Taking Back the Ballparks - Washington Nationals

Part 5: Nationals Park

The rare modern stadium without a corporate sponsor. Alas, Nationals Park doesn’t exactly ring out as requiring a lot of deep thought, though it is a nod to the place that predated old Griffith Stadium.

One would think the club’s D.C. location would offer ample naming opportunities for the ballpark. Then again, one would think the club’s D.C. location offered the architects ample opportunities for exciting backdrops, and they failed miserably in what’s an ...

Electronic device speeds Byron Buxton’s hand recovery

Wherever he goes these days, Byron Buxton has a new constant companion: A rectangular blue box called the True Wave that helps speed his recovery from a bone contusion in his left hand.

“That’s my best friend,” Buxton said Saturday afternoon as he sat at his Comerica Park locker.

In between baseball activities at the park and during his down time at the hotel or while flying from city to city, Buxton has found relief in hooking up a small, oval-shaped electrode patch to the back of his ...

The case for Jose Altuve as the American League MVP, and a look at the rest of the contenders

Nick Cafardo embraces WAR.

WAR numbers can also vary based on the formulas used to calculate them. Defensive metrics are also getting more refined and accurate. And there are these things called your eyes. If you’ve followed a player all season you understand his value regardless of what the numbers say. Usually the numbers back up the eyes and the instincts.

Sunday Notes: Travis Shaw and the Brewers are Sneaky Good | FanGraphs Baseball

When I first wrote about Matt Olson, he was 20 years old and wrapping up a season where he led the Pacific Coast League with 37 home runs. Three years later, he’s showing off his prodigious power in an Oakland uniform. Since being called up by the A’s in mid June, the sweet-swinging first baseman has gone deep 24 times in 210 plate appearances. His slash line is a McGwire-esque .262/.357/.667.

The bridge between those aforementioned seasons included an impactful mechanical adjustment. ...

Yankees look ahead after postseason clinch | MLB.com

I’m giving this the thumbs down!

ASK BA: Can A Team Promise Otani A Lucrative Extension? | BaseballAmerica.com

The CBA says, “The Commissioner may impose strict penalties on any Club that attempts to circumvent the system.” What exactly would the Commissioner do? Loss of pick(s)? Fine? Spanking? Would any team blow through the cap to sign Otani?

A’s Bruce Maxwell kneels for anthem | MLB.com

Baseball players join the movement.

How the Astros’ trade for Justin Verlander came together | SI.com

If you are interested in trade discussions, this is a must read.

“The reality is that any economic modeling that includes projections is not going to like a deadline deal, where you’re trading what could be an enormous amount of future value for a decent amount of present value,” says Luhnow. “The math does not support these types of deals. It’s a matter of using your best judgment.”

Bellinger blasts Giants, Dodgers clinch NL West

“You know, I could play Otani every day,” he said, with a faint smile. “Oh, I’d put him out there. Trust me.”

The Giants will make every effort this winter to court Shohei Otani, a generational talent from Japan who conjures comparisons to Babe Ruth with his 102 mph fastball and his ability to turn them around at the plate.

Maybe next year the Giants will have Otani on their side. Maybe they will have Giancarlo Stanton’s chiseled form in the middle of their lineup.

Alderson: Collins’ future won’t become a ‘public conversation’ | New York Post

Too late.

Arizona Diamondbacks had a dinosaur throw out the first pitch - SBNation.com

Don’t worry; it wasn’t a real dinosaur.

Wondering if Jiménez is making his final start with Orioles - School of Roch

He’s had an interesting career.

Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger sets NL rookie home-run record with 39th

Bellinger breaks the NL rookie home run record in the same game the Dodgers clinch their 5th straight division title. And he’s still got 8 games left to pad the record.

Canadian Fakin’ - Goins uses hidden ball trick to get Frazier

Ryan Goins is known for being a magician with the glove, but in Friday night’s 8-1 win over the Yanks at Rogers Centre, he unveiled his sneakiest move yet: The hidden ball trick.

Jeter Cleans House Via Remote Control

Derek Jeter doesn’t even own the Marlins yet, but he already has informed the team that he plans to fire two special assistants who are in Baseball’s Hall of Fame (Andre Dawson and Tony Perez), the manager who led them to the 2003 World Series championship (Jack McKeon), and the player known as Mr. Marlin (Jeff Conine), according to two MLB sources.

And here’s the twist: Jeter asked Marlins president David Samson to fire those four Marlins luminaries for him, because Jeter didn’t want ...

The subtle change that saved Aroldis Chapman’s season | New York Post

He stopped throwing pitches down the middle?

Karl Ravech on Twitter: There is no conversation worth having ...

What, he doesn’t care about the children in the bleachers?

There is no conversation worth having regarding whether all MLB teams should have nets running foul pole to foul pole. Of course they should https://t.co/ut2lXPEadB

— Karl Ravech (@karlravechespn) September 22, 2017

How Marlins pitcher Junichi Tazawa helped create 90 jobs in a North Carolina candy factory

Tazawa. Candy. Baseball. This is a fun one.

OMNICHATTER needs no introduction, for the weekend of September 23-24, 2017

Albert Pujols is having the worst season for a 37-year-old in MLB history

Pujols has four more years on this contract, making him the favorite for the worst ever season for a 38-year-old, a 39-year-old, a 40-year-old, and a a 41-year-old.

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 9-22-2017

Updates on international baseball in the Chicago Eagle, September 22, 1917:

The American boys in France are finding out that they are not the only men who can play ball. Not counting the Canadians, or “Americans,” there are in the Australian part of the British empire’s army a lot of very nifty baseballers.

The Japanese government, it is reported, plans to send two college [baseball] teams in a tour of its territory in Manchuria, partly to make the Japanese colonists there feel in touch with the ...

Robinson Cano hits 300th home run | MLB.com

Moms dig the long ball.

Robinson Cano became the third second baseman in Major League history to hit 300 home runs in his career when he launched a solo shot off Rangers reliever Keone Kela in the bottom of the ninth inning in Thursday’s 4-2 loss at Safeco Field.

Cano had a special fan in attendance as his mom, Claribel, had flown in from the Dominican Republic earlier this week.

Marlins’ Brian Anderson — inspired by Brian Anderson and Brian Anderson — has one of the most common names in baseball history - Sun Sentinel

“It’s almost like you see yourself. Oh, there’s a Brian Anderson up there. Maybe that’ll be me one day,” Anderson said. “It’s a pretty cool experience, seeing a guy with your name. That said, it also makes you realize you’re really common, so you’re not going to stand out much with your name.”

Anderson, the Miami Marlins’ third baseman, stood out enough anyway to earn his first major league call-up this month, becoming the third Brian Anderson in major league history. Out ...

Baseballs Are More Consistently Juiced Than Ever | FiveThirtyEight

Making the balls more consistent might further affect MLB’s overall home run rate, but it also means pitchers and hitters should end up with a more even playing field. Such consistency won’t help every player, but at least they’ll have a better idea of what they’re working with — a ball that travels farther and flies faster than it used to.

Ozzie and the MVP | Articles | Bill James Online

Dave Fleming on the 1987 MVP race.

The Rangers release artists’ renderings of their new ballpark

Good news for BDC, I guess.

Never tell OMNICHATTER the odds! for September 21, 2017

Where have you gone, Tim Lincecum? In search of beloved Giants ace

He hasn’t retired yet, but when he does Baer is poised to bring him to San Francisco in some kind of official capacity. “There’s definitely a place in the Giants world for Linecum,” he said. “I mean, that goes without saying.”

Until then? Lincecum is believed to be back here inhabiting the shores of Lake Washington, although no one with the Giants could say for sure. Someone thought maybe he was in Arizona. When the team tried to invite him to throw out the first pitch before a ...

Inside Baseball AL Notes | Young Yankees Re-Writing Record Books

Heyman’s latest. You can find the NL Notes here.

Raul Mondesi, former Yankees outfielder, sentenced to eight years in prison for corruption while mayor of San Cristobal

Former Yankees outfielder Raul Mondesi was sentenced to eight years in prison on Wednesday for corruption he took part in while mayor of San Cristobal in the Dominican Republic.

Mondesi, who was mayor of San Cristobal from 2010 to 2016, was also fined 60 million pesos for the corruption, according to a report.

That’s $1,257,336.00 in US Dollars.