Josh Donaldson Wants You To Know: This Wasn’t A Catch

Is Donaldson right? Somehow, I don’t think the rule was written with the idea that being hit in the midriff with a batted ball and then grabbing it with the hand would not be a catch.

Scouting report on Japanese star Shohei Ohtani | MLB.com

“I saw Griffey in the Minor Leagues and A-Rod as an amateur,” one international scouting director said. “The buzz about Ohtani is similar to those guys and guys like Strasburg. Compared to Griffey and A-Rod, he isn’t as polished a hitter and probably doesn’t have the same upside. But he does have the chance to be a Strasburg. What is unique is that he does both.”

Carlos Carrasco And Trevor Bauer’s Baseball Versions Of Their Cleveland Teammates, Ranked

What a fun team. I really, really hope these guys win it all if my team doesn’t.

Technology Threatens Scouts, Could Also Set Them Free | FanGraphs Baseball

As I’ve said for about twenty years, scouts and sabermetrics is complimentary. As Sawchik writes, Statcast (and the like) can make scouts even more valuable, not less.

“When we got the pitch-tracking data… it didn’t eliminate scouts. It freed scouts form having to chart pitches and grind through the data to find trends,” Huntington said. “Now much more is automated. But a scout that sees the pitcher’s tells, a scout that recognizes patterns — patterns that a computer won’t even ...

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 9-19-2017

Harrisburg Telegraph, September 19, 1917:

Ping Bodie, of the Athletics, is an enthusiastic collector of baseball articles which have helped make history for the national game.

When the Athletics played in Detroit recently the Tigers made a triple play. When First Baseman Burns tossed the ball on the diamond after the three-ply killing Umpire Nallin obtained it.

“This should make quite a souvenir for you, Ping,” said Nallin, as he handed the ball to the big Italian.

“You betcha,” said Ping.

Brad Ausmus’ tirade about ‘negativity’ a bad response to reasonable question | MLive.com

Ausmus should stay off Twitter.

A’s preferred stadium site criticized for causing gentrification, killing waterfowl | Field of Schemes

Won’t somebody think about the ducks?????

The [Golden Gate Audubon Society], which has more than 7,000 members in Oakland and nearby cities, said the proposed ballpark in the Eastlake neighborhood would be disastrous for nearly 200 species of ducks, herons, songbirds, nesting cormorants and fish that make their homes in Lake Merritt, the nation’s oldest wildlife refuge.

“We’re not antibaseball. We love the A’s, but we want them to stay where they are,” said Cindy Margulis, the ...

LEADOFF: Final vote today on Braves spring training facility; cost top

You have to love stadium deals.

Dodgers’ Corey Seager out of lineup Monday | MLB.com

“I think there’s a little bit of preservation, understanding where his arm is at,” said Roberts. “I don’t think it’s 100 percent. I think he’s doing a little guarding and protecting. He knows when to let it go and when not to. But I think it’s clear that he’s doing some protecting. He’s not showing the arm strength he has had because he’s trying to manage it.”

Roberts said Seager wants to play through the pain rather than sit. Although the club has not discussed specifics of what Seager is ...

Clayton Kershaw Allowed a Grand Slam | FanGraphs Baseball

Thanks to the magic go MLB.TV I had four games going last night. This result was a little shocking.

Red Sox outlast Orioles in 11 innings, 10-8

I stood up late to watch this one. Good win!

Matt Harvey Out Of Answers For Rough Season

It was not fun to watch.

Run or slide into first base? Let’s ask Statcast

The dumbest play in baseball….OR IS IT????

Is sliding into first base faster than simply running through it? It’s a question that’s been kicked around baseball for years, with few satisfying answers. Of course, for most of those years, Statcast™ data weren’t available to apply to situations like this. Let’s use it now to dig into one of baseball’s longest-running discussions, and hopefully we can prove at least part of it.

OMNICHATTER will answer all your questions in due time, for September 18, 2017

‘Friends,’ the Sitcom That’s Still a Hit in Major League Baseball

For at least one generation of Americans, “Friends” endures as a cultural touchstone, a glowing chunk of 1990s amber. But its runaway popularity stretched far beyond the United States, and for some Latino baseball players it is something more: a language guide, a Rosetta Stone disguised as six 20-somethings commingling in a Manhattan apartment.

Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 9-18-2017

El Paso Herald, September 18, 1917:

Ball games in the American league will be speeded up hereafter according to president Johnson, who has instructed his umpires not to tolerate any unnecessary delays.

The order today is the outgrowth of a complaint made by president Comiskey, of the Chicago Americans, who said that protests of some managers and players about the condition of the ball in recent games has made it necessary to play two hours or more.

Baseball in the 21st century: “Hold my beer ...

Safest Bet in Sports: Men Complaining About a Female Announcer’s Voice

Women in sports broadcasting are used to men criticizing their voices. In my three years in sports radio, I’ve had more men complain about my voice than everything else about me combined — and trust me, there are a lot of other things they don’t like about me.

“It has nothing to do with you being a woman,” they tell me, “I just can’t stand the sound of your voice.”

OTP 18 September 2017: Ex-Baseball Star Darryl Strawberry Criticizes Jemele Hill, Praises POTUS: Trump is ‘A Great Man’

“I think no one should call anyone anything. President Trump, he’s a great man to me. He was always gracious to me. I really love him, his family, I was on his show and he’s always been kind to me… I’ve known him quite well and every time I’ve seen him and been around him he’s always been so gracious with me and I’m always grateful for that.”

Rangers’ Joey Gallo hits 490-foot home run | MLB.com

This is a home run.

Baseball’s Hunter Greene, all that and more

A feature on Hunter Greene.

If you’re the Red Sox, do you want to play the Indians or Astros in the divisional round of the playoffs?

Nick Cafardo’s latest.

Sunday Notes: Oakland’s Chris Smith Rides a Rollercoaster | FanGraphs Baseball

David Laurila’s latest.

The Contentious Physics of Wiffle Ball

To this day, the company insists, “we don’t know exactly why it works—it just does!”

John Lackey melts down, blames ump; Cubs crush Cards 8-2 anyway – Chicago Sun-Times

He seems to have some anger issues.

Why hasn’t MLB fixed its September roster expansion rules?

Allow teams to activate as many players as they want but limit them to 25 dressed players per game. Fixed.

Silverman: Red Sox get off easy but face scrutiny for stealing signs | Boston Herald

How much was the fine?

The Quotable OMNICHATTER for the weekend of September 16-17, 2017

Trevor Bauer admitted this wasn’t the first time he ended a 22-game winning streak | MLB.com

With this additional info, it’s clear Terry Francona should be fired.

Have the Cardinals Found the New J.D. Martinez? | FanGraphs Baseball

Dave Cameron likes him; he really likes him.

Royals stop Indians’ winning streak at 22 | MLB.com

You can let your kids outside again. The streak is over.