Mets continue to hold off the Braves, 3 game lead. DeGrom back on Tuesday, following Max on Monday, and the Mets have a helluva staff. Following the duo are Walker, Carrasco and Bassit, ERA’s of 2.79, 3.79 and 3.83. And Diaz has been phenomenal. He is striking out more than half the batters he faces. LGFM!
Jesus. Nats get Max on Monday; DeGrom on Tuesday. Is there even any point to my watching these games?
Just to find out where Soto is going, once he’s done there is almost no one on the Nats worth watching. I don’t mind watching a bad team but enjoying some of the young players develop, but that won’t likely be the case with the Nats for a while.
The Cubs seem to be headed that way, too. There’s a lot of speculation that Willson Contreras and Ian Happ are about to be dealt, as well.
Yeah, the Cubs and Nats had the worst of the fire sales last year and this year will also be sellers. I have to say I’m getting a bit tired of Contreras complaining. It sucks but baseball is a business.
I’m curious as to how badly Covid hurt the Cubs with all their investment around Wrigley and Chicago had fairly tough Covid restrictions
Looking at Baseball Reference, as of this morning, Contreras and Happ each have a WAR of 2.8; the only other Cub who is above 2 is Nico Hoerner, at 3.3.
Between the two of them, Contreras and Happ account for more than half of the Cubs’ total WAR for its batters (10.2); without them, the team’s WAR is only 4.6. Yuck!
Robinson Cano DFA’d.
Baseball is dying, folks. Anyway, attendance is back up to 2019 pre Covid numbers. And there are so many teams well below .500 with zero chances of the playoffs.
Well it failed big time to stay relevant at attracting new fans. It has really died off with the under 35 crowd. That is a age group most likely to secure a partial season ticket plan.
Worse yet the average age is getting higher and higher.
As of 2017, the average age of MLB fans/viewers was 57, up from 52 in 2000. Compare that with the average age of fans in the NFL (50), the NBA (42), the NHL (49) and MLS (40), and it’s clear that baseball faces a major challenge if it hopes to cultivate a younger and more diverse audience.
This trade surprises me: the Brewers have traded their closer, All-Star Josh Hader, to the Padres, for their closer, Taylor Rogers, and three other players.
Hader hit a rough patch just before the All-Star break this year, and his ERA is over 4 right now (as is Rogers’s), but this ESPN article notes that Hader’s set-up man, Devin Williams, is on a 30-inning scoreless streak, suggesting that they may be moving him into their closer role.
As a Mets fan, it certainly looks good to us going into this series. But hey, any team can beat another on a given day. And with the way the Braves are playing, every game is critical for the Mets before playing THEM after the Nats. If the Mets can beat up on the Nationals, all the better before taking on the Braves.
It’s a smart trade. Hader is amazing, but it saves the Brewers a ton of money while letting them get Williams into the role for much cheaper. If you haven’t seen clips of Williams’ changeup, you should. They call it “The Airbender”, and it’s an unfair pitch.
I think both teams benefit from this - Hader and Rogers both need a change of scenery.
Looking it over, I’m inclined to agree with you; I was just initially surprised to see the Brewers, in the lead in their division, dealing away one of their best players.
Trade market is moving!
Yankees trade for the top pitcher left on the board and acquire Frankie Montas. They’ve made 2 big moves, and still haven’t given up much out of their farm system.
Meanwhile, the Royals are busy acquiring known terrible pitcher Luke Weaver for young(ish) talent.
That’s a pretty good get for the Yanks. Also got Trivino, not so good, but we’ll see.
Montas is not a free agent until after 2023.
The Yankees also acquired P Scott Effross from the Cubs. The Cubs get the Yankees’ #7 prospect, P Hayden Wesneski.
The Braves extended their All-Star third baseman and major MVP candidate, Austin Riley, to the most lucrative contract in franchise history, 10 years, $212 million. It starts in '23 and runs through '32, with a $20 million team option for '33.
Riley is currently hitting .301 with 29 home runs and 68 RBI, and leads the majors with 61 extra-base hits.
The signing keeps the Braves’ young core of Riley, Ronald Acuna Jr., and Ozzie Albies together through at least '25, and each of them are currently 25 years old or younger, so they’re set to compete for awhile.
Good get there as well. E frost isn’t amazing or anything, but he’s a solid low-leverage middle reliever. With the Yanks’ pen going through some injury issues, it’s a good trade. The Cubs get what sounds like a very solid prospect.
Not to mention Matt Olson as well.
This is one of those trades that have KC fans shaking their collective heads. Weaver is a 28 year old pitcher with a career record of 24-36. This season he’s 1-1 with an ERA of 7.71.
Royals give up a 26-year-old rookie infielder named Emmanuel Rivera, who’s hitting .237. Nothing great yet, but he appears to have a whole lot more upside than Weaver.
My biggest issue is who the hell plays 3B now? Dozier is also a known terrible baseball player. Pratto is a defensive monster - maybe he’s good enough to move over.
The Rays released Brett Phillips. I say they pick him up and stick him on the hot corner. He pitches, too!