The Dodgers’ bench was not really very good last year. Matt Beaty hit .270 with a .363 OB% and was a solid role player (204 ABs). So was Austin Barnes, not so much for his bat, but for his defense and game-calling skills. Zach McKinstry, DJ Peters, Luke Raley. Sheldon Neuse, Billy McKinney, and Zach Reks could not jump out of a boat and hit water. Gavin Lux was simply…
Yesterday, the Braves sent four of their top fourteen players to the Oakland A’s for Matt Olson? Don’t get me wrong, Matt Olsen is an extraordinary player, but Freddie is “extraordinaire!” The Braves are making a lot of money. They are way under the Salary Cap (yes, I know they say it is not a salary cap). Olson makes about $18 Million less a year than Freeman and is controlled…
If you know anything about me, you know that I believe the conventional wisdom is usually wrong… to say nothing of dumb! Insofar as I know, every blog, baseball writer, and a majority of the fans have tried, convicted, and sentenced Trevor Bauer in the Court of Public Opinion. I think that they are wrong! Very wrong – but I am not going to discuss it again… at least not…
There is no denying that Freddie Freeman is one of the best players in baseball. He is a stone-cold hitter and would really help the Dodgers, this year… but at what cost? Freddie Freeman will be 33 this season. Do you really want him blocking 22-year-old Miguel Vargas who really could be ready later this year, but who really needs to play 1B in the majors? The Dodgers have put…
Jokers to the right… Here I am, stuck in the middle with you. The clowns are the MLB Owners while the Jokers are the MLBPA… and all the fans are stuck in the middle. Why cancel games? The MLBPA says that is unnecessary. They think the owners can just snap their fingers and here’s the game. All the players have to do is show up, but what if they are…
Maybe we are seeing the “beginning of the end” of the lockout! It has been reported that MLB offered to raise the base luxury tax threshold to $228MM next season, with that figure rising to $238MM over the course of the CBA. That’s enough progress that the players can call it a WIN. Of course, MLB will want some concessions as well. They will want the 14-team playoff (which I…
This post was inspired by a couple of things. First, David Ortiz and Minnie Minoso were elected to the Hall of Fame, and a suggestion by one of our readers on my post about Larry Doby. The Dominican, Cuba, Puerto Rico, Venezuela, have all contributed many players to the big leagues. But Mexico, Panama, and Columbia have also sent players to the majors. By country here are the counts, these…
I am not a Manfred Man (see what I did there? Not everyone will get that…), but this delay of the baseball season is not on Rob Manfred. It’s on his bosses. He takes his marching orders from them – he does not tell them what to do. Baseball has a huge problem with its ownership. The “have” teams are getting filthy rich and they have a chance to win…
Who remembers the 1995 Replacement players? Those that remember that time know full well that the option of owners playing a season with replacement players is not an option that can be ever considered again. Spring training 1995 was three weeks of comedic exhibition baseball. Former Major Leaguer Pedro Borbon returned to pitch for the Reds at age 48. After striking out his first hitter, he attempted to field a…
I told my wife yesterday that the players rejected the owner’s offer and that there was going to be NO BASEBALL SEASON this year. She said: “Honey, that’s negative, think positive!” so, I thought about it for a while and realized that I am a “glass half full person.” I am optimistic in general. I am a positive person! So, I have changed my opinion on the baseball season: “I…