Taking Back the Ballparks - Chicago White Sox

The latest ballpark to undergo a name change, dumping the harmless U.S. Cellular (which did provide a pretty good nickname, the Cell) to the ridiculous Guaranteed Rate Field, complete with its downward trending arrow. G-Rate Field, as absolutely nobody calls it, is the closest thing to a home park in MLB I have now, though I’d actually tab the U.S. Steel Yard in Gary as my true local diamond.

Whatever you call this field, it’s one of the odd ducks of major league stadia. It’s of similar ...

Amazon bids for Disney’s 22 regional sports networks, including YES Network, sources say

Amazon is bidding for all of the 22 regional sports TV networks that Disney acquired from 21st Century Fox.

The e-commerce giant’s bid includes the New York-based YES Network, sources familiar with the matter told CNBC. An unknown sovereign wealth fund, along with the Yankees, are also bidding for the New York network.

To clarify, I believe these are mainly the various regional Fox Sports networks that Disney just acquired from Fox.

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 11-20-2018

New York Tribune, November 20, 1918:

Jake Daubert, first baseman of the Brooklyn Nationals, has gone to the civil courts with a case which the National Commission denied…the Brooklyn idol has entered in the Supreme Court of New York County a claim for $2,150 against the Brooklyn baseball club of the National League.
...
His alleged claim is based upon what is known as an “ironclad” contract of organized baseball. During the days of the Federal League the Brooklyn club signed Daubert to a ...

The Sky Is Falling, Baseball Is Dying, and the Roof May Leak

Some perspective from John Thorn.

Let’s focus for a moment on the elephant in the room: the commercial breaks that come with completed half innings or pitcher replacements. In the 2018 World Series each such instance consumed 2 minutes and 50 seconds. For easy mental computation let’s call it 3 minutes … multiplied by 17 in a nine-inning game won by the home team. 51 minutes. Let’s say that the two clubs combine to use nine pitchers, thus making seven changes. Add 21 minutes. Commercial ...

Drafting High School Pitchers Is a Major Problem for MLB, Health of Young Prospects

White Sox pitcher Michael Kopech threw 90 mph at age 14, 94 mph at 17, 99 mph at 21 and now not at all at age 22. The rookie right-hander blew out his elbow and will miss virtually all of next year while trying to come back from Tommy John surgery.

If you are even a little bit surprised, you haven’t paid attention to what’s happening with high school pitchers over the past decade. They keep throwing harder and harder—and in more competition. And major league teams keep wasting first ...

Opening Day possible for Pedroia, who doesn’t need offseason surgery

BOSTON — Dustin Pedroia is not planning on having surgery on his left knee and could be ready for Opening Day, Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski said Monday.

Pedroia was limited to just three big league games in 2018 and had an arthroscopic procedure on the knee in July. That was after he underwent major surgery on the knee in October 2017.

“He has continued rehab and therapy. And that’s what he is going to continue to do,” Dombrowski said on a conference call. ...

Griffin Conine, Jeff’s son, banned 50 games for drug test

NEW YORK- Toronto outfielder Griffin Conine, a son of former major league outfielder Jeff Conine, has been suspended for the first 50 games of next season under the minor league drug program for a positive test for the banned stimulant ritalinic acid.

New York Yankees pitcher Daniel Marten was suspended for the first 25 games for a violation of the drug program; 25-game suspensions are assessed for use or possession of a syringe of an injectable substance, the commissioner’s office said ...

2019 BBWAA HALL OF FAME BALLOT

Well, folk, here’s the chief topic we’ll be discussing for the next two months.

Most pertinent of the information in this official press release:

Roy Halladay, Todd Helton, Andy Pettitte and Mariano Rivera are among several players who will make their BBWAA Hall of Fame ballot debut in 2019.

Also debuting this year are Rick Ankiel, Jason Bay, Lance Berkman, Freddy Garcia, Jon Garland, Travis Hafner, Ted Lilly, Derek Lowe, Darren Oliver, Roy Oswalt, Juan Pierre, Placido Polanco, Miguel ...

Drafting high school pitchers is a suckers game

Drafting High School Pitchers Is a Major Problem for MLB, Health of Young Prospects

SI article with a look at the diminishing success over time of pitchers drafted out of high school

The art of the BIG deal: An inside look from the GMs who signed the largest free-agent contracts in MLB history – The Athletic

Very interesting article about big ticket free agents.

Boras, who represents Harper, also negotiated Mark Teixeira’s 8-year, $180 million contract with New York, and Scherzer’s and Fielder’s contracts.

“The biggest challenge is the amount of information that comes to you and to weigh it,” Boras said. “The free-agent process is one that teams do things they never, ever expected to do at the start of things. You really realize in this process that they really change their direction ...

Mariners trade left-hander James Paxton to the Yankees for three prospects

As part of Mariners general manager Jerry Dipoto’s offseason of change, which isn’t a teardown, but it’s a reimagination of the roster, Seattle has traded talented, but at times enigmatic left-handed pitcher James Paxton to the New York Yankees in exchange for three prospects — left-handed pitcher Justus Sheffield, right-handed pitcher Erik Swanson and outfielder Dom Thompson-Williams.

How to Improve MLB The Show

A Negro League All-Star Team (All-Star Baseball 2004/2005)
This really should have been in The Show from the beginning, and it’s a shock and shame that it has taken this long. While the All-Star Baseball franchise might not have been as popular as other baseball video games, it brought a sentimentality and historic perspective to the game’s development and design. A product of that approach included a team consisting of the best of the best from the Negro Leagues. While outlets work to keep ...

Avid Barry Bonds Collector Has Amassed 5,000 Examples Of The Same Card

To describe Greg Mirmelli as a diehard, fanatical, or a rabid Barry Bonds fan would be an understatement. Over the past five years, he has amassed 5,000—count ’em!—1986 Topps Traded Barry Bonds rookie cards.

“I’m pretty sure there is no other person in the world that has that many,” the 45-year-old, Miami Beach realtor and parking lot operator told me.

I think that is a fair assumption.

Ichiro gave a surprise gift at Hitoki Iwase’s retirement party ... then immediately left

Ichiro could have stayed longer, if he wanted.

Cubs in need of major overhaul? Don’t be silly

The Cubs won 95 games in 2018. To put that number into context, in the last 73 seasons, they have won more games than that exactly four times. Only one National League team won more in 2018. That would be the Brewers, who went into Wrigley Field and won their 96th in a one-game playoff that decided the NL Central.

The Cubs won 95 times despite third baseman Kris Bryant playing just 32 games after the All-Star break. Despite right-hander Yu Darvish throwing his final pitch on May 20. Despite ...

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 11-19-2018

New York Evening World, November 19, 1918:

John A. Heydler, secretary-treasurer of the National League and acting president since the resignation of John K. Tener, will be elected president without opposition when the league holds its annual meeting in [New York] on December 10. Many others have been mentioned for the vacancy, but it can be said that only Heydler’s name will come before the meeting. He is to become, like Ban Johnson, president-secretary-treasurer of his league.

This was an ...

Q&A: Damon Minor on Giants’ Steven Duggar, Chris Shaw, Aramis Garcia

For the past two seasons — either in Triple-A Sacramento or the Arizona Fall League — Damon Minor has worked with the Giants prospects trio of Steven Duggar, Chris Shaw and Aramis Garcia. In 2018, Minor saw all three of them as the River Cats’ hitting coach before each player made their major league debuts in San Francisco.

NBC Sports Bay Area recently spoke to Minor, as the former Giants first baseman assessed each hitter’s development at the plate.

The sort of analysis one must ...

MLB Trade Rumors: Phillies ‘Expecting to Spend Money’ in Pursuit of Bryce Harper, Manny Machado

First task of the Phillies negotiators: making sure that Harper and Machado have no knowledge whatsoever about the nature of Phillies fans.

Braves’ Braxton Davidson hits walk-off home run in AFL championship, appears to break foot on way to plate

Major League Baseball’s Arizona Fall League held its championship game on Saturday in Scottsdale, Arizona. Atlanta Braves prospect Braxton Davidson hit a walk-off home run to give the Peoria Javelinas a 3-2 win over the Salt River Rafters.

Judging by the bat flip, he’s clearly on the highest of highs from the walk-off win. The 22-year-old ranked third in home runs (six) during the 2018 AFL season.

But after Davidson rounds the bases and as he’s about to join his teammates at home plate for ...

Heyman’s Latest: Mets, Machado, Red Sox, Dodgers, Marlins

Jon Heyman of Fancred hears that the Mets have decided they’d rather spread their money around to various areas than splurge on Machado.

Oh good, more mid-tier free agents.  THAT IS WHAT THEY ALWAYS DO AND FAIL.  A 3 WAR player isn’t an “impact bat.”  It’s a supporting cast member.

Report: Dodgers’ Kenley Jansen to Undergo Heart Surgery, Expected to Return for Spring Training

Dodgers closer Kenley Jansen will undergo heart surgery on Nov. 26 and is expected to be fully recovered prior to spring training, Ken Gurnick of MLB.com reports.

Jansen announced the upcoming surgery on Friday at the Dodgers’ annual Thanksgiving Turkey Giveaway. Recovery is expected to take anywhere between two to eight weeks depending on what the doctors find during surgery.

“If we don’t find anything, so let’s say they go in and nothing happens, everything is good, I will be done in two ...

MLB rumors: How Dodgers’ Dave Roberts could replace Giants’ Bruce Bochy

The Giants already made one drastic change to their franchise this offseason in hiring Farhan Zaidi away from the Los Angeles Dodgers as their new president of baseball operations. Another year from now, could they add another prominent figure from their archrival?

According to FanCred’s Jon Heyman, the Dodgers and manager Dave Roberts appeared close to a multiyear contract extension a week ago, but they now sit at a standstill, unable to come to an agreement. Roberts is said to be on vacation ...

The View is Always Better When You’re the Lead Dog

Mike Trout, the best player in baseball, was not named American League MVP yesterday.

He does, however, join a pretty exclusive club.

Carson Cistulli From Fangraphs Joins the Blue Jays

Here is a surprise, the Jays scouting department is going in a more esoteric direction.  All scouting reports will now need to be in the form of a haiku or sonnet.

Michael Wilbon Weighs In On Jacob deGrom With Worst Baseball Take Of Year | MLB | NESN.com

I can’t watch the show. It’s like trying to follow the logic of two drunks arguing at the bar.

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 11-16-2018

El Paso Herald, November 16, 1918:

KANSAS CITY MAY ENTER MAJOR BASEBALL FOR SEASON OF 1919

Baseball Experts Believe Packing Center Better Baseball City Than St. Louis, Where Two Major League Teams Divide Interest
...
Kansas City is said to be waiting to be struck by National league lightning. A story has been started to the effect that the franchise of the St. Louis Cardinals will be transferred to Kansas City and that Omaha will replace the Reef Town in the American association. There may be ...

How Kevin Brown Became Baseball’s First $100 Million Man

Twenty years after he declared himself “the new sheriff in town,” ex-Dodgers general manager Kevin Malone wants to emphasize one fact about the contract that permanently changed Major League Baseball: the charter plane trips for Kevin Brown’s family were not his idea.

“Everybody criticized us for granting a charter plane to fly Kevin’s family from Georgia for his starts,” Malone, the first general manager to sign a free agent to a nine-figure contract, states. “The Rockies ...

With win over All-Stars, Japan builds for 2020 Olympic gold

Coming off a strong showing against a team of Major League Baseball All-Stars, Japan manager Atsunori Inaba has every reason to be confident about his team’s chances of winning a gold medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Japan won the six-game exhibition series 5-1 against an MLB squad featuring National League Rookie of the Year Ronald Acuna Jr., fellow nominee Juan Soto and veteran catcher and nine-time gold glove winner Yadier Molina.

The tour was a chance for Inaba to gauge the progress of ...

Mets GM Brodie Van Wagenen has kissed Rob Manfred’s ring

Let’s take a trip back to early last February. The hot stove season was as cold as ice. Despite spring training being less than two weeks away, scores of players remained unsigned and rumblings emerged that, perhaps, collusion was to blame.

The players were frustrated and there were reports that they were approaching the union to ask what, if anything, they could do about it. Some suggested some sort of wildcat strike or work slowdown or whatever. None of that seemed feasible or legal, but ...

Ben Zobrist, start designing your customized cleats. MLB grants players more shoe freedom.

ATLANTA—Baseball’s shoe police can go home.

Major League Baseball and its owners approved an amendment to the basic agreement that finally loosens restrictions on the design and colors of players’ footwear in games.

Players, such as Ben Zobrist of the Chicago Cubs and Mike Clevinger of the Cleveland Indians, were furious last season that they were being warned and fined by Major League Baseball if their footwear did not adhere to league-mandated rules.

Beats actually doing something ...