Three Underrated Blue Jays that Have Come Out Strong

Whit Merrifield

If you were to look up the word ‘clutch’ in the dictionary Whit Merrifield’s name would undoubtedly appear. But despite this, he has been overlooked in the game. Whit Merrifield has come up with many key hits this season that have helped the Jays score runs. A perfect example was the game against the Chicago White Sox on July 4th.

Merrifield hit a double in the fourth inning and also recorded a steal. It can be said that one of Merrifield’s secret weapons is his speed. He has recorded 19 steals and 17 doubles this season and has shown great power against left-handed pitching. 

Another reason why Merrifield is a clutch player is that he doesn’t strike out a lot. The Jays have had their struggles with scoring runs with players in scoring position but Merrifield has been that piece of the puzzle where they can use him as a pinch runner in key moments. He is also able to play more than one position and this represents his skillfulness.

Brandon Belt

Brandon Belt is another player that can be categorized as underrated and clutch. Belt was able to provide the Jays with a beautiful swing and RBI against the Houston Astros on June 8th. You could just hear the contact he made on the swing and you knew it was a solid hit.

The Jays acquired Belt from the San Francisco Giants and he has been a well-grounded player that has helped the Jays score runs and win games. He is also a player that has pop to his bat as he has recorded six home runs this season. He also belted two homers in the game against the Boston Red Sox on July 2nd and his homer in the sixth inning came off of a breaking ball from Nick Pivetta.

Belt has been classified as an underrated hitter as he started off the season slow with a poor on-base percentage of .235. In spite of this, Belt turned things around and he had one of the best on-base percentages (.484) in baseball. On June 4th, Belt recorded a home run at the top of the seventh inning where he helped the Jays beat the New York Mets.

Danny Jansen

Danny Jansen has been a pleasant surprise for the Toronto Blue Jays this season. There have been a number of games where Jansen has come up with some crafty and important hits. His smart swing decisions at the plate have showcased him as a valuable asset to the Jays.

Danny Jansen has been one of the most underrated players as he doesn’t play in every game and isn’t usually classified as a home run hitter. But Jansen has proven fans wrong by recording 10 home runs and 33 RBIs this season. His power at the plate was most notably identified when Jansen came out big with a walk-off home run against the Atlanta Braves back on May 14th. It was one of the most memorable games and wins for Blue Jays this season.

Jansen also recorded three home runs in two days back in June and if that didn’t ‘wow’ fans then who knows what will.

Throw a Curve Ball

When it comes to winning games, it is all about team effort. There will be games where guys like Vladdy aren’t producing, which is a great chance for the underrated players to step up to the plate and be the hero. So, never underestimate a player at the plate.

It is notable when an underrated player is able to score runs with two outs, get a steal, hit with runners in scoring position, and inevitably ‘wow’ us. It is a long season in baseball and there is lots of time for more underrated players to show fans what they can do. Can you think of any other underrated players?

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German’s Perfect Game Highlights the Week

The best way to sum up the night is that the most imperfect Yankee pitcher was perfect. Domingo German has had a rocky tenure with the New York Yankees which has included multiple suspensions for both on and off-the-field issues. German has at times looked like a pitcher more worthy of being sent down to the minors than remaining in the rotation. However, against the Oakland A’s, he was masterful.

It was his moment of glory and because of his perfect game, German will always be remembered for his great outing. Not many fans know much about Don Larsen, other than the fact that he threw a perfect game in the 1956 World Series. Not many fans know a lot about Dallas Braden’s baseball career but a lot of casual fans know about his perfect game on Mother’s Day. German’s murky career suddenly isn’t as significant since he did the impossible, retiring all 27 batters he faced.

The on-the-field takeaway from his night is that if German’s curveball is clicking, he’s unhittable. He went to the curve for a majority of his 99 pitches on Wednesday and it allowed him to be dominant. He’s throwing it more this year, using the breaking pitch 41.7 percent of the time compared to only 37.3% in 2022 and only 34% in 2021. The hope for the Yankees, a team carried by their rotation, is that he can rely on that pitch to become a top-tier starter to help carry the team to the postseason.

Ohtani is the AL MVP & It’s Not Particularly Close

It’s become expected for Shohei Ohtani to have a remarkable week. He hit five home runs this week including a moonshot on Friday night that nearly traveled 500 feet. He started Tuesday night’s game and tossed 6.1 innings where he allowed only one run and struck out 10 batters. Ohtani’s numbers seem absurd at times and hard to fathom. The comparisons to Babe Ruth are used a lot but he’s in a category of his own.

Word is that Ohtani's home run is still in orbit.

(MLB x @GoogleCloud) pic.twitter.com/tDwEGsDzTA

— MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2023

What has become crazy about Ohtani’s otherworldly play is that he is dwarfing Mike Trout, who was the best player in the game. Trout is everything you want in a player with all five tools, consistent great play, and a demeanor that at times makes you feel bad for him (why did he deserve to suffer on a hapless team). Yet, Ohtani puts him in a separate tier, look at some hitting stats from the two.

Ohtani: .306/.391/.666 slash line, 31 home runs, and 217 total bases.

Trout: .260/.367/.486 slash line, 18 home runs, and 148 total bases.

Trout is putting together a strong season yet isn’t anywhere close to Ohtani. To be fair, nobody is. Ohtani has a 6.6 WAR, the next best player is Ronald Acuna Jr. at 4.8 WAR and the second-best player in the American League is Wander Franco at 4.2 WAR. Last year, it was a debate about who deserved to win the MVP, and this year, there is no debate. Now, there’s only one thing missing from Ohtani and Trout’s legacy and frankly, it’s not their fault that the Los Angeles Angels can’t reach the postseason or win a playoff game.

Braves Are Baseball’s New Best Team

The Miami Marlins are having a good season. They’ve established themselves as a wild card team and entered the weekend, with a great pitching staff leaving the way, hoping to prove they could compete in the division. They looked hapless against the Atlanta Braves who not only swept them but outscored them 29-7.

The Braves moved to 56-27 with eight wins in a row, nine wins in their last 10 games, and capping off June with a mindblowing 21-4 record. They have the best record in baseball and frankly, they look like the best team in the league. It’s hard to find a weakness in the roster and the lineup can beat any team at any point, setting them up for success this year and in the postseason.

The All-Star selections reflected the dominance the Braves have had in the National League. Eight players were voted for the game, six of which are everyday players. What I find wild is that Acuna Jr. is a gold glove centerfield and an elite talent in the outfield but with the Braves, he plays right field. He does in part to keep him healthy as he doesn’t need to run as often at the corner position but the other big reason is that Michael Harris, another gold glove fielder is patrolling centerfield. Long story short, the team is so good that their MVP-caliber player who is an elite fielder isn’t even the best fielder in his outfield.

The Braves are cruising to the best record in baseball. The question is where they can improve. Ideally, they add some bullpen help at the trade deadline but only to round out a roster not to cover up a need.

Padres Continued Embarrassment

It’s easy to forget what the perception of the San Diego Padres was before the season started. They were expected to compete for the best record in the National League. They looked hapless this week, losing seven of their last 10 including series defeats to the Washington Nationals, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Cincinnati Reds.

The Padres are 38-46 and have to be more worried about finishing in last place in the division than making the postseason. To say their season has been embarrassing is an understatement. Juan Soto has bounced back and is putting together a great season but the rest of the lineup has fallen apart. Michael Wacha and Blake Snell have stepped up in the rotation but the rest of the pitching staff has struggled. The Padres are a team that rely on their stars and so far, they’ve only received some production from their elite players.

The question is where the Padres go from here. What do they do with this lost season and what happens moving forward? Ideally, they trade away some of their players at the deadline but this is a team that invested in long-term contracts, making it difficult to move many if any of their players. The other option is to do nothing, keeping a crumbling roster in the same state. The trade deadline will be interesting for the Padres, largely because it’s unknown how they’ll approach it but the angle they take will determine their future for both this year and for years to come.

The 4th of July Week Is Another Checkpoint

Just like Memorial Day is a checkpoint, the Fourth of July is another point in the season where we can look back and see how teams are doing. Memorial Day is when sample sizes start to matter but Independence Day, along with the All-Star Break, are the halfway points.

So, what are some of the takeaways? Well, the Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, and Texas Rangers are the top teams in baseball and they look poised to contend for the World Series. The Reds, Arizona Diamondbacks, and Baltimore Orioles have proven that their hot starts aren’t flukes and they can compete this year. The rule changes, while scoffed at initially, are a success. And Rob Manfred, well, he’s still got a lot to be desired.

Other Takeaways From This Week in Baseball

• The Toronto Blue Jays were swept this weekend at home against the Boston Red Sox. It’s a tough sweep for them since they could have made up significant ground in the wild card race if they took at least one game but instead, they are starting to slide again. So it goes with these hard-to-predict Blue Jays.
• The Milwaukee Brewers have won seven of their last 10 games and are tied with the Reds for first place in the National League Central Division. Maybe we’re in for a tight divisional race after all.

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The reincarnation of Nostradamus wouldn’t touch a prediction like these standings with a ten-foot bat full of pine tar. 

The Dodgers are playing up to par according to the moves made during the offseason. Andrew Freidman decided to give the rookies in the farm system an opportunity to earn a spot in the major league club and sign a couple of one-year contracts to save money for bigger fishes on the verge of becoming free agents after the 2023 season.  

Three Hot Takes for the Remainder of the Dodgers Season

During the previous offseason, Andrew Freidman’s moves differed from any of his previous winters. 

Instead of signing one of the highly regarded free agent shortstops like Xander Bogaerts and Trea Turner, the Dodgers decided to give Gavin Lux a shot at the position. The front office decision led to a season-ending injury to Gavin Lux and a trade for Miguel Rojas to hold down the position until next year. 

Instead of bolstering the rotation to help Julio Urias defend the National League West pennant with long-term contracts to veteran pitchers, the Dodgers signed Noah Syndergaard and Clayton Kershaw to one-year contracts and counted on Dustin May to return to his pre-Tommy John surgery form.

The decision proved to bite them as the previously mentioned decision, as the front office’s bet on Syndergaard and May to support the starting rotation forced the bullpen to expose their flaws. Whenever a franchise is grouped with teams like the Oakland A’s, the Kansas City Royals, the Nationals, and the Colorado Rockies, always expect the worst. The Dodgers bullpen currently holds a 4.74 ERA, the fifth-highest ERA in the league behind the previously mentioned teams. 

Still, the Dodgers are nine games above .500 and are only 2.5 games behind first place. A couple of trades before the deadline to fill up some of the holes in the roster and a winning streak or two can only guarantee another playoff berth for the eleventh year in a row. Here are three hot takes for the month of July that can solidify a deep run in October and another shot at the World Series. 

The Dodgers Will Trade Away Top Prospect

The Dodgers current top prospect, not currently playing in the majors, is a catcher hitting .198 with double-A Tulsa Drillers by the name of Diego Cartaya who is predicted to make the big league club during the 2025 season. Will D. Smith is on the Dodgers hook until 2026 but will hit arbitration before the 2024 season. 

Smith has proven to be the future of the Dodgers backstop. As of June 30th, Smith is hitting .283 with 122 home runs and an OPS of .906, he is also on the cusp of becoming an All-Star for the first time in his career. If Smith doesn’t keep his current form in the future, the Dodgers’ next option is Dalton Rushing, the organization’s fourth prospect. 

The farm system’s abundance of catchers allows the Dodgers to trade Cartaya for a worthy player. Maybe someone that can help the offense and pitch every 5th day to relieve Kershaw from carrying the team on his broken back. They can’t continue to hoard their prospects, the Dodgers need to swing for the fences now and earn first dibs at pitching their organization to a once-in-a-lifetime talent. 

Clayton Kershaw Will Become a Cy Young Candidate

Since Julio Urias was placed on the injured list, Clayton Kershaw has transformed himself into a vintage version of himself, leading the pitching staff in ERA, wins, and strikeouts. During his last outing, Kershaw pitched a no-hitter against the Rockies into the 6th inning before removing himself from the game due. 

“I just finished in the game and the shoulder was a little cranky there in the sixth inning, so I shut it down,” said Kershaw to Yahoo Sports before the last game of June. “So somewhat optimistic that it should be good to hopefully not miss a start. With the All-Star break coming up, we have some time to potentially shift things around, so we’ll see. But as of now, I’m kind of on the same day-to-day basis.” 

Dodgers fans can breathe again and should start asking themselves how many Cy Young votes Kershaw will earn. Since his long contract with the Dodgers ended, Kershaw has focused on one-year deals that motivate him to pitch at a high level and pitch the team into a position that gives them an opportunity to win the World Series. 

In the previous two one-year contracts, Clayton Kershaw has finished the season with an ERA under 3.00 and posted double digits in the win column. His WAR average from the last two seasons is above three games. 

With Urias showing a decline, Kershaw will continue to pitch as well as he has and become a Cy Young candidate. Everyone loves a comeback story.

The Rookies Are Here To Stay

Bobby Miller and Emmet Sheehan are in the Major League club to stay, even after the Dodgers trade for a famous two-way player. 

Since being called up, Miller has demonstrated he can pitch in the majors with consistent numbers. Miller has earned three wins, while losing one and maintained an ERA of 4.13 that converts Noah Syndergaard’s plus-seven ERA into an expendable asset. 

Sheehan has been outstanding in his first two starts with the Dodgers. During his first appearance, he pitched a no-hitter into the sixth inning and earned his first win against the Houston Astros, and kept his ERA under two. 

Even if Syndergaard comes back and turns into the hard-throwing pitcher from years past, the rookies are here to stay. If their help is not needed in the starting rotation, their help can bolster the bullpen while developing them in the major league in the way the Dodgers developed Julio Urias during the 2020 championship run. 

During their World Series run, Urias became a lethal weapon out of the bullpen earning a 3-0 record with a 3.27 ERA in 11 appearances. He became a part of Dodgers’ history as he closed out game 6 to clinch the series over the Tampa Bay Rays.

Urias’ trajectory can be telling of what’s to come for Miller and Sheehan.

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After the teardown over the past few seasons, GM Nick Krall loaded up the farm system and fully leaned into the rebuild. 2022 sucked as a Reds fan. Nobody likes to lose even if you saw how special the three young pitchers could be.

The Reds window for the postseason is open, likely a year earlier than expected. There are plenty of factors in play, of course. The division is weak. Elly De La Cruz, Matt McLain, Spencer Steer, and Andrew Abbott look to be the real deal. Those City Connect Unis are sharp. Who knows what it could all be?

Regardless, in order to compete in 2023 and maximize their competitive window, there are a few things the Reds must do.

Move the Cincinnati Reds Must Make

Relax! Don’t Sell the Farm!

“Get the pitching!” “Luke Weaver shouldn’t be on a Major League rotation!” “Hunter Greene is a thrower, not a pitcher!” “I have no idea what I’m talking about but I’m loud and Facebook gives me a platform!”

Okay, three of those quotes are almost regular entrants on Reds Facebook, the last is embellished subtext. But the point is clear: if the Reds want to actually compete, they need to make a move for pitching.

Here’s the thing: they really don’t.

I can already hear your comments loading and your pitchforks sharpening, but hear me out.

The Cincinnati Reds have been on an absolute tear of late, including a ridiculous 12-game winning streak that could have been 14 games if not for two one-run games against, arguably, the best team in baseball. They’ve done that without the services of Green and Nick Lodolo. Graham Ashcraft hasn’t gotten back to form. Weaver still exists.

And yet, they’re in first place.

The argument is certainly valid that the Reds shouldn’t have to score 10+ runs in order to get the win. However, they’re still doing it.

The only way to pick up the pitching that would satiate the thirst in Reds country would be to ship off top-level prospect(s). You want a great pitcher with team control? Say goodbye to Christian Encarnacion-Strand and/or Noelvi Marte.

Should they make a move for a decent arm or two and give up mid-tier prospects? Sure! The farm is loaded enough that they can afford to ship off guys who they don’t expect to be stars. Maybe they can see if the Mets will take Kevin Newman or Jose Barrero for Max Scherzer. Well, maybe not.

MORE: Did you take the over or under on the Reds this year?

Pick Up Joey Votto’s Option

Joey Votto deserves to retire a Red. He will wear the Reds cap in Cooperstown when finally inducted and Cincinnati should do right by him.

“But Votto isn’t his old self!”

I disagree. He still gets on base. He still bangs. He’s still a leader in the clubhouse.

The crux of it is this: Votto has only had, to date, 27 at-bats. He’s still getting on base 1/3rd of the time (literally, his on-base percentage is .333), and his OPS+ is 121, making him above league average. If your metric for how good a player is is their batting average, I have some news about the 1980s I’d like to share.

Batting average is not the end-all-be-all in today’s game and, frankly, it’s a bit out-dated. Votto gets on base and his power has returned.

If you are not convinced that Votto deserves to ride out this competitive window, I’m sorry you don’t like fun. Votto has given this team and city everything ever since he debuted on September 4th, 2007. He’s a former MVP who has received votes eight other times (and should have won in 2017 but I digress).

If there is even an inkling of a chance that the Cincinnati Reds can win it all, Votto should be with the team. The payroll in 2024 is laughably low, so picking up Votto’s $20MM team option is nothing.

Make Room for CES and Connor Phillips

Since the beginning of the 12-game winning streak, the Reds averaged 6.4 runs per game. Guys like De La Cruz, McLain, Steer, Jake Fraley, and TJ Friedl have been on fire of late. The lineup looks like it’s nearly perfect but there’s one thing missing: Christian Encarnacion-Strand.

Encarnacion-Strand had a strong Spring Training but he was not rewarded with an Opening Day roster spot. His response? He’s been absolutely destroying AAA.

To date, he’s slashing .323/.395/.628. His OPS is 1.023. Those numbers are thanks to 17 home runs and 50 RBI. While there is a concern that he does not walk much and tends to strike out a lot, he’s well worth the call-up.

It’s incredibly easy to say bring him up, figure out the lineup later. But he might be another piece that could make the Reds catch fire again. In terms of batters, two names stand out as potential options/cuts: Kevin Newman and Curt Casali. CES can do anything Newman does, honestly. And Casali, while he calls a good game behind the plate, is akin to having a pitcher in the batting lineup.

As for pitching, the Reds are playing musical chairs in the bullpen in an attempt to kill time and get players healthy. Connor Phillips is a very popular name to take a place in the Reds rotation after a start or two at AAA Louisville.

In 14 starts at AA Chattanooga, Phillips is 2-2 with a 3.34 ERA, 1.314, and a ridiculous 15.4 K/9. Of the 284 batters he faced, he struck out 111. When Weaver continues to Magikarp his way through every sub-5.0 IP outing, it may be time to give the youngster the call.

With Greene and Lodolo sidelined until August, the Reds DO need rotation help. Ashcraft will get back to form, I’m not worried about him. Abbott is doing things that would make Jesus himself do a double-take (his ERA+ is 395!!). Brandon Williamson has been looking like a rookie. Give Phillips a shot.

Who knows, maybe the Reds lineup will bail him out as they have with Weaver.

Get the Marketing for 2024 Ready

Whether or not the Reds win the NL Central in 2023, they’ll be the odds-on favorite to take the division moving forward. Their young core has already shown to be able to carry the team. If their starting pitching can just stay healthy, the Reds can be special moving forward.

So, thankfully, starting in 2024, Reds fans can expect more optimism from the front office instead of the usual “Where ya gonna go?” or PowerPoints about how 75% of the league doesn’t even try.

You know how you can get fans in seats on even the non-bobblehead nights? Extend those young guys. Take a page out of the Arizona Diamondbacks book and sign those young players now because they are only going to get more expensive.

Each of De La Cruz, McLain, Steer, and Abbott look like they could continue on a hot streak and contend for Rookie of the Year. You think that once they hit arbitration they are going to want a team-friendly deal? Nope!

The deal that the Reds got done with Hunter Greene was beautiful. Do it again. Sure, the Castellinis are not as liquid as the Steve Cohens of the world. However, he’s still obscenely rich and this team is only going to get more and more lucrative.

By locking down some or all of those stars, you guarantee that fans believe again. Fans will turn up in droves to support the local ballclub. If they know that Elly De La Cruz is going to be a Red for the foreseeable future, they’ll be there. They’ll buy merch. MLB will market your team. Are you tired of watching the Yankees, Dodgers, and Astros on national TV in primetime? Get those guys signed and keep winning. You won’t have to buy AppleTV+ or whatever to watch the Reds.

With how much fun the 2023 Reds have been, it’s only natural to expect that the 2024 and beyond teams will be even more so. Ramp up the marketing and start expecting to sell out each and every game at Great American Ballpark.

It’s a new dawn in Cincinnati. The Bengals are legitimate Super Bowl contenders. Don’t get left behind, Reds.

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Then something special happened. Something that all Yankee fans and even baseball fans will remember for years to come. Something that didn’t happen for over a decade and for the Yankees, it hadn’t happened since the turn of the century.

German was flawless. He pitched a perfect game, the 24th in major league history. 27 A’s batters came to the plate and he retired them all. It was a performance that he needed but more importantly was the start of the season for the Yankees, a team that needed an energy boost like this.

A Perfect Night For German

At first, nobody was thinking of a perfect game. It wasn’t on anybody’s radar. All that mattered was that the Yankees needed a bounce-back game. Through the first few innings, that’s what they got.

In the fourth inning, Giancarlo Stanton wrapped a home run over the left field wall. The monster blast gave the Yankees their first run and the lead. In the fifth inning, they put the game out of reach, scoring six runs in the frame. It was a rally that wasn’t seen in a while from the batting order, one that only scored five runs or more twice in the previous 12 days.

Suddenly, German retired the A’s in the bottom of the fifth inning and everyone started to notice something special was brewing. That was the inning when a hard grounder to first forced Anthony Rizzo to make a diving stop and flip the ball to first, a play that proved to be the biggest in the game.

Now, some folks in their heads were counting down the outs. Of course, nobody could say anything and the bench avoided German like he was possessed, fearing that they would be the ones to jinx him. he didn’t get the memo and went back out to pitch the rest of the game.

He threw only 99 pitches in total and tosses nine strikeouts. German’s curve ball in particular was his go-to. He tossed it 51 times for multiple whiffs and weak contact off the bat. By the time German retired Brent Rooker in the seventh, everyone sensed what was happening. The outing was still perfect and he retired the best hitter of an otherwise hapless lineup. Now, the only obstacle in German was himself.

When German was in the dugout, it seemed like the only two people who weren’t afraid to jinx him were Ryan Ruocco, who was calling the game on the Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network (YES), and pitching coach Matt Blake. Blake was chatting about what pitches to throw as if it were another day at the ballpark.

The lineup, without saying anything, also sent that message as they piled on the runs. It was 8-0 when German retired the A’s in the eighth and when he went out to end the game in the last frame, the score was 11-0. The only thing that mattered at the bottom of the ninth was whether a perfect game would be thrown or not.

German was nervous, as he mentioned after the game, but looked unfazed. He forced Aledmys Diaz into a 1-2 count and got him to ground out to short on a high fastball. On the first pitch to Shane Langeliers, he threw his unhittable curve and force a pop fly to center field, which was caught with a lot of energy and passion (as many final outs are in perfect games, hoping the fielder isn’t the one to make the error) by Harrison Bader. For the final out, German went with his best pitch, the curveball, to force a grounder to Josh Donaldson who fired the ball to first.

The perfect game was thrown and a sign of relief was exhaled by the starter as the Yankees stormed the field. German has had a rocky season to put it lightly. He’s been suspected of using sticky substances and he was suspended at one point in the season. Multiple times in the game, he was checked by the umpires with an understandable suspicion that his perfection, had to be coming from a doctor baseball. On this night, he was clean and flawless.

German has also had plenty of highs and lows on the mound. He’s allowed 45 runs in 81.1 innings pitched and his 9.4 Barrel Percentage is a particular concern. Opponents have hit the ball hard off of him and taken him deep throughout the year. His previous start had him booed off the mound at Yankee Stadium by fans who saw him as a liability in the rotation. At the Coliseum, he was perfect. Wednesday night was his moment in the spotlight as he became the hero the Yankees didn’t ask for but got anyway.

German Joins Elite Company

The Yankees have had no shortage of perfect games. German was the fourth to throw one in team history and that is more than any other franchise. Interestingly, his perfect game parallels the first one that was thrown in team history.

Don Larsen had a rough career and was a back-of-the-rotation pitcher, even with the Yankees. He notably went 3-21 on a last-place Baltimore Orioles team in 1954 and in his 15-year career, he pitched for seven teams (his career WAR is 18.4, a low total for someone who pitched that long). His 1956 season was one of his best but underwhelming as he allowed 72 runs in 179.2 innings pitched. But of course, none of that matters when it comes to Larsen.

In Game 5 of the 1956 World Series, he was unhittable. He pitched the first and only perfect game in World Series history and helped propel the Yankees to the series title over the Brooklyn Dodgers. It took the Yankees seven games to win the series but after a 2-0 win with a perfect game, the series was all but theirs.

In 1998, the game that turned the Yankees season around was pitched by David Wells. The team was 28-9 at the time but not a juggernaut in the American League at that point. Then Wells, while hungover, pitched his perfect game. The flawless start was the fuel the Yankees needed as they went 114-48 that season and 11-2 in the postseason to win the World Series. That team is regarded as one of the greatest in baseball history and the regular season was embodied by a perfect game.

The next year, David Cone had his perfect game. A mid-July game against the Montreal Expos was meant to commemorate the Larsen perfect game. Little did the nearly 42,000 in attendance know that they would witness history. Cone threw only 88 pitches and tosses 10 strikeouts in about as efficient a game as possible. His perfect game was another part of the modern dynasty as the Yankees went on to win the World Series that year.

Every time the Yankees have thrown a perfect game, it seemed to be followed by a World Series title. Likewise, the names of the pitchers who tossed them have gone down in memory as great or near legends. Say the name “Larsen” or “Coney” around Yankees fans and they’ll immediately say “perfect game” and some can even tell you where they were. While German’s outing won’t fuel a World Series title per se, his name will forever be linked to perfection even if his career suggests otherwise.

How This Start Can Turn The Yankees Season Around

The game itself was remarkable but also a reminder of how the Yankees will reach the postseason. If the Yankees are going to get on a run, it will come from their starting pitching.

Gerrit Cole has been everything the Yankees could have asked for in an ace. His dominance has singlehandedly kept the team competitive. Jhony Brito has shown flashes and Luis Severino when healthy can hold his own. German’s start showed that if his curveball is clicking, he can be dominant.

This is all being done without the help of Nestor Cortes, who is injured, and Carlos Rodon, who has yet to throw for the team. the expectation is that they will both join the rotation and put it over the top. However, the Yankees still have a rotation that can push them to the postseason.

German won’t be perfect for the rest of the season. However, he can build off this start and be a reliable part of a great rotation. And that is what the Yankees really need.

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MLB Milestones We Can Still See In 2023

300 Home Run Club

The 300 Home Run club gained two new members already this year with both Arenado and Freeman reaching that mark in 2023. But the club is not done growing yet. There’s still about half the season for a few more stars to gain admission to the club.

Bryce Harper currently sits at 288 career-long balls, 12 shy entering play on Monday, June 26th.
Manny Machado sits at 292, eight shy of 300 HRs.
Anthony Rizzo sits at 294, six shy of the club.

Jose Altuve

Altuve has had a bit of a controversial career, especially since the sign-stealing scandal. But reaching 2k hits is still remarkable. After starting the season on the IL with a broken finger, Altuve is back and trekking his way to 2,000 Hits. He is looking to join Freeman, McCutchen, and Andrus as the newest members.

Currently, Altuve sits at 1,961 Hits, only 39 away from 2k and five home runs away from 200.

MORE: There are a few extremely fun potential World Series matchups we could see…

Giancarlo Stanton

Stanton, the oft-injured slugger, has always produced over his 14-year career. He’s known for producing some of the most eye-popping exit velocity numbers and home run distances. After a stint on the IL in 2023, he is back pushing to 400 home runs.

Stanton sits at 384 HRs, sitting 16 shy of the exclusive 400 Home Run Club. And, not to mention, 15 RBIs short of 1,000 for his career.

Adam Wainwright

Wainwright has already announced that the 2023 season will be his last. He has had a remarkable career in St. Louis. To many, his return this year was surprising, especially with Albert Pujols and his longtime catcher Yadier Molina retiring after the 2022 season. But he came back and is trying to join Kershaw in the 200 Win Club.

Currently, he sits at 198 wins, two shy of 200. And he is also one game started shy of 400.

Zack Greinke

Greinke has had a remarkable career and has always been one of the more unique characters the MLB has seen. But, over his long career, he has always proven his dominance. Entering potentially his last season, he can continue to move up the all-time strikeout list (he’s currently 20th All-Time).

Greinke sits at 2,943 Strikeouts, only 57 strikeouts short of the 3,000 Strikeout Club.

More: Can Luis Arraez hit .400?

Justin Verlander

The 2022 American League Cy Young winner is not done adding to his Hall Of Fame career. Verlander joined the New York Mets before the season and looked to continue his dominance even as one of baseball’s oldest current players.

Verlander is at 246 wins, four shy of 250 MLB victories, a number we might not see again.

One of the great things about baseball and MLB is the history and stats of the game. As well as all the unique and different ways a player can accumulate stats and accolades. So at the end of the 2023 season, we will see where these guys landed and what will be next on the list.

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The two teams combined for 47 runs in the three-game set. Every game in the series was decided by one run. There were many moments when a game could’ve swung one way or the other and flipped this series. That is postseason baseball. It’s when every pitch, every plate appearance, and every swing has significance. That’s where we start this week, with the Braves and the Reds and their series.

What You Missed Last Week in Baseball

Braves & Reds Give Us Postseason Baseball

The Reds entered the series looking unbeatable. They won 11 games in a row heading into the weekend series, including sweeping the Houston Astros, the defending World Series champion. With the Elly De La Cruz addition, the lineup has become tough to stop, scoring 4.92 runs per game including seven runs per game in the past 12 games. The rookie makes everyone in the lineup better from Jake Fraley to TJ Freidl to recent callup and longtime Red, Joey Votto.

De La Cruz’s impact was seen firsthand in Friday’s game. He hit for the cycle to drive in four runs and circle the bases three times. He’s a force in the heart of the lineup that forces opponents to pitch around him as he not only can power the ball for a homer but if it’s in play, it’s likely extra bases. This was helped by Votto’s presence as well with the veteran not only returning but hitting two home runs in the 11-10 win. With this lineup playing the way it does, it makes you wonder how far the Reds can go this season. Do they need pitching help? Yes. Do they need bullpen help? Alexis Diaz proved otherwise with his save in the Friday win.

MORE: Will the Reds stay hot and hit the OVER (65.5)?

That said, the Braves reminded the Reds of the gap between a good and great team in the National League. They took the next two games of the series with their lineup waking up and taking over the games. Matt Olson had two homers and drove in five runs while Ronald Acuna Jr. had three hits in the two wins. The Braves have a lineup that is star-studded and deep enough to take over a game at any point. Their batting order is what the Reds aspire to be someday.

And that is in a lot of ways how the series can be described. The Braves have been there and done that. They have a rotation that can win a World Series, as they’ve shown previously. They have a lineup built for October. The Reds are only entering their contention window and are seeing the gap. They know that someday they can reach the Braves level but they got some work to do.

MORE: The Braves were expected to win 95.5 games, are they on track?

London Ball

There was a lot of excitement for the London Series between the Chicago Cubs and the St. Louis Cardinals. Like the Field of Dreams game last year (and the year before that), the intrigue of playing major league baseball in a field not designed for that brings a level of excitement.

The games themselves weren’t that entertaining. The Cubs run away with the opening game and then scored four runs before noon (central time) only to allow seven runs after the opening frame and lose 7-5. However, a few things stood out from the game that are with noting.

The surface was different and it felt that way. Instead of a typical grass and sand field, London Stadium had a surface that resembled more of what the Toronto Blue Jays have. The ball was more lively and bounced with more speed and height while ground balls took off. It’s something that always seems to be a throwback to the 80s when every ballpark was astroturf and the game was built on speed.

The other part of this series is the fact that MLB is trying to grow the game and London is just another destination. Europe has felt like a frontier that baseball has yet to plant its flag into and there’s no shortage of cities that can be next.

Are the Mets Done?

Sunday’s loss has to be a low point for the New York Mets. With a 6-3 lead in the eighth inning, they looked like they were going to end the weekend series on a high note against the Philadelphia Phillies. The bullpen hasn’t been a strength but with David Robertson ready to close things out, it looked like a sure win. But, manager Buck Showalter didn’t bring in Robertson. Instead, he went with Josh Walker, who pitched six innings this year, and then Jeff Brigham to clean up the mess Walker made.

The Mets allowed four runs in the inning to lose the game 7-6. They’ve now dropped to 35-42 on the season, remain in fourth place in their division, and are eight games out of a wild card spot. The Mets have spent to the point where .500 ball would be a disappointment, they are seven games behind .500 at the moment. To make things worse, they trail the Phillies, who are in third place in the division, by five games while leading the Washington Nationals by five games. Long story short, they trail the third-place team by the same number of games as the last-place team in their division.

The clock was already ticking on Showalter. The question is if this weekend was the last straw. Every game counts for the Mets and a blown lead like Sunday’s game was one that fell on the manager. He had plenty of chances to turn to his closer to end the game but kept Robertson in the bullpen and allowed the Phillies to win. It’s ironically, the same big mistake he made in Baltimore with the Orioles in the 2016 wild card game. In the game, he kept Zack Britton in the bullpen with the game tied in extra innings as he was having his closer for a save situation. Now, that mistake could be his lasting impression in New York.

Giants Surprise Surge in the National League

The San Francisco Giants have snuck up on everyone. A 10-game win streak followed by back-to-back wins put them in second place in the National League West Division, only 2.5 games behind the Arizona Diamondbacks, the team they took the weekend series against. The Giants are 44-34 and have the second wild card spot in the National League.

The question is what makes the Giants good? The answer is the same thing that made them dominant in 2021. They have elite pitching or more accurately, good pitching behind a good enough fielding team. On top of that, they have a lineup that has depth with six active batters having an OPS+ over 100. The Giants don’t have one intimidating bat in their lineup but they have multiple tough outs in every game. It makes their lineup one that nobody wants to face.

The Giants aren’t going to replicate their 2021 season where they won 107 games. However, this is a team that will be tough to deal with and they can easily snag one of the wild card spots in the National League.

Hot & Cold Streaks Galore

The last big thought from this week was the surprising number of hot streaks and cold streaks in baseball. The Reds won 12 games in a row while the Braves won eight straight and nine of the last 10 games. The Giants won 10 in a row while the Miami Marlins won six of eight. The Pittsburgh Pirates lost 10 games in a row and 12 of their last 13 while the Oakland A’s lost eight consecutive games and 10 of their last 11. It was one of those stretches where if your team wasn’t on a streak, something wasn’t right.

Other Notes From This Week in Baseball

• The Los Angeles Angels put a beatdown on the Colorado Rockies on Saturday night. They scored 25 runs, 13 of them in one inning, to take the game. Unfortunately for them, momentum is only as good as their next starting pitcher. They lost the Friday game and the Sunday game to lose the series and fall out of the wild card position.
• I hope you like Sox. The Chicago White Sox face the Boston Red Sox this weekend. Otherwise, the series felt rather meaningless are both teams are going nowhere this season. To be fair, the Red Sox are a game above .500 but their luck has them in baseball’s best division so they are in last place.
• The New York Yankees took two of three against the Seattle Mariners and two of three against the Texas Rangers. They did this while scoring a total of 17 runs in the last six games. Will they make the postseason on the backs of dominant starting pitching? We’ll find out.

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One Move Every AL East Team Should Make in 2023

New York Yankees: Ditch Josh Donaldson

Matt Olson and Josh Donaldson are making the same amount of money in 2023 at $21,000,000 each. Olson has 21 home runs so far this season. Donaldson has eight hits.

While he’s only had 60 at-bats so far this year, Donaldson has been pathetic when he does play, and at 37 years old, it doesn’t appear like he’ll revert back to his old self. The Yankees have lacked offense recently with Aaron Judge on the Injured List, and while guys like Willie Calhoun, Billy McKinney, and Jake Bauers have stepped up, the veteran core of the Yankees has not.

The easiest one to replace out of that core is Donaldson, as heralded prospect Oswald Peraza has torn up Triple-A this year, hitting .292 with a .923 OPS. Peraza has taken reps at second, short, and third, and would add versatility compared to Donaldson, who is only usable at third. If the Yanks want to contend for the division, they need to jettison Donaldson and call the kid up.

Baltimore Orioles: Trade for an ace pitcher

The Orioles had a ton of cap space in the offseason, and many outlets (including myself) claimed that they were setting up for a disappointing year when they didn’t make much use of it. Instead, the O’s have been a very pleasant surprise, going 45-28 so far and proving themselves a legitimate contender for the AL East and a playoff spot.

However, the same issue from the offseason still persists: they don’t have a high-end starting pitcher. Tyler Wells has been great so far for Baltimore, with a 3.22 ERA, and Kyle Bradish and Kyle Gibson have been average, with a 108 and 106 ERA+.

The other three starters have not been close to that with Dean Kremer, Grayson Rodriguez, and Cole Irvin putting up 92, 57, and 55 ERA+s. If the Orioles want to be true contenders in October, they’re going to need a Game 1 and maybe even a Game 2 starter, as Wells’s 4.64 FIP shows he’s had good fortune in 2023 so far.

Watch for the O’s to make a move at the deadline.

Tampa Bay Rays: Add some bullpen help

Tampa Bay has been outstanding this year, jumping out to a 52-25 record and shattering expectations along the way. They’re going to be in good shape this year if they keep playing how they’re playing, don’t get me wrong, but they can still improve on their World Series chances.

While the Rays bullpen has been good, their underlying numbers show that they’ve been a bit lucky in 2023. Colin Poche and Jason Adam have been the best out of the pen for them, with 179 and 158 ERA+s, but their FIPs are at 4.07 and 4.20. Every bullpen pitcher for Tampa Bay with at least 10 innings pitched has a FIP above 4.00 except Kevin Kelly and Pete Fairbanks, so Tampa could use some bullpen help for October.

Toronto Blue Jays: Acquire an elite player

Yes, if only it were that simple. But the Blue Jays desperately need an elite talent to carry them in games where that talent can make the difference.

Going into the season, the consensus was that the Jays had two of them and were ready to take the AL East by storm. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has disappointed. With only a 116 OPS+ in 2023 so far, nine home runs, and 42 RBI, he’s lagging well behind his pace in 2022, with 32 HR and 97 RBI, and his incredible 2021, with 48 HR and 111 RBI.

Alek Manoah was the Blue Jays elite talent on the other side of the ball, but he has had a nightmare 2023, with a 6.36 ERA and a recent send-down to rookie ball. If those two don’t bounce back, the Blue Jays will need to acquire elite talent at the deadline if they want to make a run. 

Boston Red Sox: Infield improvements

The Red Sox outfield has carried them thus far in 2023, with Jarren Duran, Alex Verdugo, and rookie Masataka Yoshida all posting OPSs over .800 and Rob Refsnyder and Adam Duvall providing clutch offense off the bench.

However, their infield has not lived up to the task, with Rafael Devers disappointing after he signed his new deal with a 108 OPS+, and the other four most-used infielders all with below-average OPSs. Enrique Hernandez has been the biggest disappointment in 2023 with only a 72 OPS+, and Pablo Reyes has spelled him at shortstop during Trevor Story’s absence. Story’s timetable to return is still unclear, with an August return being the target, but Boston cannot count on his return to be their catalyst in the playoff race. They need a good infielder and fast, and they should look to acquire one at the trade deadline. 

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Entering this series against the Seattle Mariners, the script was clear. They needed their pitching to step up to secure the series. With the lineup struggling, the starters delivered to secure a 3-1 victory and a 4-2 win to take home back-to-back games.

The Yankees have been led by their starting pitching this season. With the lineup looking hapless, the pitchers have kept the team above .500 and in the Wild Card race in the American League. The question is if this is sustainable. More importantly, can the Yankees remain a contender with a great pitching staff but an awful lineup?

Cole Continues To Carry The Yankees

Gerrit Cole had another remarkable start. On Tuesday, he pitched 7.1 innings and allowed only one run while striking out eight Mariners. What stood out in the start was his usage of the slider, a pitch he throws 21% of the time but used for 28 of his 105 pitches. The pitch resulted in multiple swings and misses and quick strikeouts to allow for a strong outing.

Cole’s bread and butter this year has been his fastball. The 98-mile-per-hour high heat is what can blow batters away and allow him to control games. However, his slider has started to become the putaway pitch. It drifts away from right-handed batters and forces ground-outs on left-handed hitters. While Cole will still rely on his fastball (throwing the pitch 56% of the time) his secondary pitch is what makes him a Cy Young-caliber pitcher.

This season, Cole has carried the Yankees. Aside from the strong starts every five days, he’s stepped up on a team that has otherwise struggled. His 3.3 WAR leads the Yankees and his performance on the mound has kept the team competitive. In a season where the lineup hasn’t been great, Cole makes the team postseason worthy.

The Rotation Is Coming Into Form

Jhony Brito returned from his injury stint to pitch Wednesday night’s game. He pitched a gem. Ok, maybe a gem is an exaggeration but he tossed 5.2 scoreless innings, allowing only two hits and one walk while striking out three.

The 25-year-old has had plenty of highs and lows on the mound this year. In his previous start, he allowed four runs in four innings. This season, he’s allowed 28 runs in 40.1 innings pitched. However, in his first start in over a month, he showed he is ready to take off. His outing proved that he can take up the final spot in the rotation and remain a reliable contributor.

The best thing about Brito stepping up is that the rotation suddenly looks like a reliable one, one that can carry the Yankees. Domingo German and Luis Severino have struggled at times but have both stepped up to become solid middle-of-the-rotation pitchers. Clarke Schmidt has pitched poorly for most of the season but has improved in recent starts. Schmidt has allowed only six runs in his last three starts and only nine runs in his last six, bouncing back from an awful April and early May.

Eventually, Carlos Rodon (fingers crossed) will pitch for the Yankees. He finally threw a ball on a mound in a game. granted it was a few innings with the double-A club (Somerset Patriots) but that is progress for a pitcher that was doubtful to return this season. If Rodon is back in the rotation, he puts this pitching staff over the top. He’s the pitcher that can make the Yankees’ rotation a legitimate one that nobody would want to face. This is of course if he stays healthy which still feels like an uphill battle.

The Bullpen Rounds Out The Yankees Pitching

The rotation has stepped up specifically in the last two games but the bullpen has been remarkable all year. The Yankees don’t have leads often but when they do, closing out games has felt easy.

The Yankees have had a great bullpen since the Mariano Rivera days and it seems like he’s blessed the team with a good bullpen. Since he’s retired, they’ve gone from David Robertson, Andrew Miller, and Dellin Betances to Aroldis Chapman, Chad Green, and Adam Ottavino to Wandy Peralta, Michael King, and Clay Holmes.

This year’s group is led by Holmes who has not only been the closer but the most valuable in the bullpen. His 1.2 WAR, 179 ERA+, and zero home runs allowed are all best in the bullpen and his sinker remains one of the best pitches in baseball. As the setup relievers, Peralta has been the pitcher capable of coming into a game at any point to pitch a scoreless inning, allowing only 10 runs in 28 innings pitched while King has put together a remarkable year as he’s allowed only 12 runs in 38.1 innings pitched.

The pitching staff stepping up has made the Yankees a formidable team. It’s something many of us weren’t expecting when this season started but it’s how things are turning out. It’s oddly similar to the 2019 season. That year, the lineup was a disaster with too many swing-and-miss hitters and not enough plate discipline. Instead, the Yankees reached the postseason on the backs of Cole, Nestor Cortes, and a reliable rotation. It’s something that makes it easy to believe that this team can figure out a way to compete even without a great lineup.

Is This Sustainable?

The bottom line is that the Yankees can only go so far with a hapless lineup. This lineup is not only bad but looks like one of the worst in baseball when Judge isn’t in it. Think of this. The Yankees only have three batters with an OPS+ over 100 and that includes Judge. Without him, their leader in that category is Anthony Rizzo at 118.

The Yankees with no run support can make the postseason, maybe, as a Wild Card team. But, they would be eliminated rather quickly by a team that not only has a great pitching staff but a lineup that can put up a few runs on Cole and the others.

Fortunately, the expectation is that this won’t be the lineup the Yankees have in October. For starters, Judge will return from his toe injury. His return immediately makes the lineup average. On top of that, Giancarlo Stanton, the definition of a boom or bust hitter, has been all bust at the moment but eventually looks to start to become the powerful presence everyone anticipates (so it goes with him). Lastly, the Yankees won’t shy away from making a few moves at the trade deadline. This year, it will be about adding contact to the back half of the lineup and they will be sure to do that if the lineup remains a liability.

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The Nevada legislatures passed the vote to allow the development of a new ballpark. That’s all John Fisher, owner of the club, needed. With that, the A’s are starting to relocate to Las Vegas. The move puts a lot of fans in a weird spot. How should they feel? Is this good for baseball? Why are we still talking about a team 36 games below .500?

This week, it’s hard not to think about the A’s and particularly the fans in Oakland. Likewise, it’s also hard not to think about commissioner Rob Manfred who not only let this happen, in a messy way nonetheless but embraced it. So, let’s look at this news in two parts.

A’s Have Their Week, Season & History Crushed

For a few days, things looked bright in Oakland. To be specific, the team was on a seven-game winning streak, their owner looked unlikely to close a deal, and fans reverse-boycotted the team by paying to sell out Tuesday’s home game.

The A’s weren’t just winning, they were beating up some great teams. The Milwaukee Brewers are in first place in the National League Central Division, they swept them. The Tampa Bay Rays have the best record in the American League, they beat them in consecutive games. The A’s for the first time all season, looked like a team that could win a handful of games and maybe in a few years be competitive.

The Tuesday night game was also one to remember not just for the people in Oakland, but for baseball fans as a whole. The fans packed a ballpark that is designed to keep fans out. They chanted for Fisher to sell the team and other chants that would be wise to not repeat. The people of Oakland showed in one game that they are not the reason that the team is leaving but instead, they proved that it’s the owner who wants the deal that best suits him, and he’ll try everything in his power to make sure that happens.

Then came the vote, one that gave Manfred, Fisher, and MLB the green light to build a ballpark in Las Vegas. Shortly after the A’s fans showed that they care about the team, the team showed they couldn’t care less about the fans. At times, it seemed like the A’s wouldn’t be able to move to Las Vegas, a city that is willing to put in the money but doesn’t need the flailing team as much as the flailing team needs them. Yet, the legislation passed, and with that, the end of the A’s as we know them. The vote and turn of events all but put the dagger into this team.

The immediate aftermath was a team that looked lifeless, as they have throughout the season. The A’s lost five games in a row since the ruling and are now 19-55. They look like a team that has nothing to play for and it’s hard to blame them. At this point, any baseball fan feels bad for the fans of the team, the city, the players, and everyone who was thrown into this mess that has become the story of baseball for all the wrong reasons.

The long-term takeaway from this week was the A’s era in Oakland is all but done. They left a unique legacy in the city but one that in a lot of ways, is unfortunate and sad. Yes, the A’s won three World Series titles in a row and four in the Bay Area. Yes, the green and yellow uniforms were introduced as they were heading west, and along with the jerseys, the A’s gave us a lot of iconic players, teams, and moments. But, it’s hard not to think of their tenure in Oakland without thinking about the owners and the bad luck the fans had to endure.

At first, the A’s dealt with Charles Finley, one of the worst owners in sports history. Finley’s teams won three titles in spite of him and not because of him. They won because they drafted well and free agency wasn’t a thing until the late 1970s. Finley meanwhile, drove the team to bankruptcy, feuded with players and fans, and didn’t even spend his time with the team (he was based out of Chicago). Recently, the A’s have dealt with Fisher, who is as incompetent as they come and actively trying to drive the team away from the fans.

The A’s haven’t officially moved to Las Vegas but this week was a dagger for what seems like an inevitability. The rest of the season will be weird, eerily, and at times, nostalgic. We will look back at Oakland’s time with the team and the highs and lows that came with the A’s, a team that is the definition of boom and bust.

Rob Manfred, Reminds Us That He’s Rob Manfred

When the season started, it looked like Manfred finally got something right. His tenure has been mired with rough moments and the rule changes looked like something that would define his legacy for the better.

The pitch clock, shift ban, bigger bases, and all the rules meant to speed up the game not only worked but made the game more exciting. Baseball looked like it was heading for a comeback in the national landscape. Manfred was ridiculed for the changes but a few weeks into the season, they became a hit for fans of all ages. But as the saying goes, “A broken clock is right twice a day.” The saying for those who don’t know is meant for people who always mess up or are always in the wrong but on the rare occasion, they get something right.

The rule changes were Manfred’s broken clock moment. This week was a reminder as he not only helped with the relocation but then stood by the decision to move the team while neglecting a fanbase that tried to keep it. He mentioned during his press conference that there wasn’t an offer from Oakland. The Mayor of the city stated that there was a proposal that Fisher wasn’t happy with. He belittled the fans for the reverse boycott stating how the attendance was average for most MLB teams, ignoring the premise of it in the first place. Overall, he sounded tone-deaf during his press conference and was covering up for an owner that didn’t want to speak for himself.

In a season that looked promising, this puts a stain on the year. The game hasn’t felt this exciting yet Manfred found a way to mess up a year with a lot of optimism. It’s a reminder that Manfred is still the commissioner that finds a way to put himself on the wrong side of things.

Small Market Teams Are Thriving (Surprisingly Enough)

After the first two notes were about Oakland, it’s time to look at what some small market teams are doing right. After all, this is the year where the smaller market teams are not only playing well but they are the dominant teams in the league.

The Rays are in first place in the American League East Division. The Atlanta Braves and Arizona Diamondbacks have the two best records in the National League. The Miami Marlins and Baltimore Orioles are in playoff position. The San Francisco Giants were the notable non-spenders of the offseason, failing to sign Aaron Judge and Carlos Correa, the top two free agents. The Giants have the fifth-best record in the National League.

In a league where the small market teams are typically stomped by the teams with higher payrolls, they have had the upper hand this season. Why? Well, there isn’t one answer but a common thread is that these teams have wisely invested in their rosters and are making smart moves, not big ones. These teams aren’t trying to acquire the best players but rather the player that best fits into their lineup or their field. Likewise, they have started to invest in the team, unlike a team that is looking to leave its city (ahem).

The takeaway from this season should be how many smaller clubs are starting to win. Baseball is known for being a sport where the spenders are the ones that usually end up in the World Series. This year, we might see the Rays go up against the Diamondbacks.

Is it Time to Believe in the Angels?

The Los Angeles Angels are 41-33 and in wild card position. After taking the series against the Texas Rangers and winning the weekend series against the Kansas City Royals, they have moved 4.5 games behind first place in their division. Every year, the Angels get off to a hot start and fans hope that this could be the year that they snap the longest playoff drought in baseball. Then, without fail, they fall apart. They haven’t reached the postseason since 2014, it’s tied with the Detroit Tigers for the longest drought.

So, is this their year? It’s early but this season does feel different. The big change is in the lineup with help around Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani in the batting order. Four active batters have an OPS+ over 100. Sure Trout and Ohtani do most of the work but this year, there’s more in the lineup that allows them to average 4.93 runs per game.

The pitching staff is where the questions start. Yes, Ohtani is putting together a Cy Young (and MVP) season but there’s a drop-off after that. The Angels don’t have a strong rotation and it’s unclear if they can hold up with that in mind. Otherwise, the Angels will have to outslog their way to the postseason. This week, they did that with a 9-6 win and a 7-3 win but that doesn’t look sustainable and they’ll need the pitching staff to step up.

Giants Batter the Dodgers

This was a slight surprise from the weekend. The Giants not only swept the Los Angeles Dodgers, they outscored them 29-8. This was a beatdown that the Giants gave the Dodgers, highlighted by the 15-0 Saturday win, and it flipped the two teams in the standings.

The Giants have been a rollercoaster team all season with a lot of groundball pitchers and a lot of contact hitters. At times, they look like a legitimate wild card team and are riding a hot streak, winning seven in a row and eight of 10. However, when they do cold, particularly when their fielding struggles, everything unravels and they look like a last-place team.

The real takeaway from this series was the Dodgers. They don’t look like the big bad team that they have been for years. Specifically, they don’t have a rotation which makes it easy to think that they’ll win every series. Sure, Clayton Kershaw looks great as expected but Julio Urias is hurt, Walker Buehler isn’t back from his elbow injury and might not return this season, and Noah Syndergaard has been a disastrous signing. The Dodgers were confident their rotation would hold up just fine as it did last year. It hasn’t and it’s showing.

Other Takeaways From The Week in Baseball

• There’s a power outage in New York. The New York Yankees face the New York Mets this week in the most anti-climactic Subway Series in years. The two teams were lacking star power and both teams split the set. After the two-game series, the Yankees went only to score eight runs on the weekend against their rival Boston Red Sox. The Mets, well they scored only 16 runs in their series but lost two of the three games, dropping to 33-38.
• The Royals are the new worst team in baseball. They’ve won only one of their last 10 games and have 19 total wins on the season. The Rays won more games than them in April (22-6) which speaks volumes to how bad they’ve been. The Royals however aren’t trying to lose. They are just a sorry team which is a shame since they have some players that should make them more competitive.
• The Cincinnati Reds, with their sweep of the Houston Astros, have extended their winning streak to eight games and are now 37-35. They keep rolling and look like the team to beat in the National League Central Division.
• On the flip side, the Astros were swept and are stumbling. They entered the season as the team to beat in the American League but they haven’t looked like a juggernaut in the slightest. The Astros face the Mets this week in a series where both teams will be desperate to turn things around.

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