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Tag: Los Angeles Dodgers

  • Law: Risks abound in the Dodgers' trade for Tyler Glasnow

    Law: Risks abound in the Dodgers' trade for Tyler Glasnow

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    Trade details: The Los Angeles Dodgers acquire RHP Tyler Glasnow and OF Manuel Margot from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for OF Jonny Deluca and RHP Ryan Pepiot

    On the same day when they introduced Shohei Ohtani as a Dodger, the team swung a big trade, agreeing to a deal that would add right-hander Tyler Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot from the Rays in exchange for two young players, right-hander Ryan Pepiot and outfielder Jonny Deluca, who haven’t even reached arbitration and have five and six years of team control left, respectively. (The deal is contingent on Glasnow and the Dodgers working out a contract extension, but that’s not part of the trade itself, as the Dodgers are only acquiring one year of Glasnow’s service and the $25 million he’s owed for 2024.)

    Glasnow is one of the best pitchers in baseball when healthy, which he has not been for any significant length of time in his major-league career. He struck out a third of batters he faced in 2023 after his return from Tommy John surgery, and his 2.91 FIP would have ranked second in the AL if he’d qualified, between league-leader Sonny Gray and Kevin Gausman. Glasnow was even better in 2021 before the surgery, with a 2.77 FIP and 2.66 ERA that both would have led the league if he’d qualified — although that year he only threw 88 innings before the injury.

    Glasnow is 6-foot-8 and makes incredible use of his height, with some of the best extension out front of any pitcher in baseball at 7.5 feet. He sits 96-97 mph with two plus breaking balls in his slider and curve. The slider has much more power — Statcast has him throwing several at 93 and change, which is illegal in several states — while the curveball has above-average vertical break that plays up because of that extension. He barely uses a changeup and over the course of his career has shown no platoon split, but last season he had some trouble with lefties, something that bears watching in case anything has materially changed post-surgery.

    The bigger issue, of course, is durability: His total of 120 innings in 2023 was actually a career high in the majors, and the most he’s thrown in any season since 2016, when he had his professional best of 140 innings and made his major-league debut. The Dodgers need quality in their rotation, but they also need quantity, with so many question marks as it is between inexperience and guys coming off injuries. Glasnow gives them quality, but I have no real idea how many innings they can count on him throwing.


    Margot may be a platoon candidate with Jason Heyward. (Orlando Ramirez / USA Today)

    Manuel Margot is a high-contact hitter with very little power whose value largely came from his plus defense anywhere in the outfield, but since a knee injury in 2022, that defensive value hasn’t been on display. From 2017-21, he was at 9-12 Runs Above Average (per Statcast) in every full season, but dropped to minus-1 in 2022 and 1 this past season. He’s definitely lost a step or two, a decline that was already in progress even before the knee injury, so I’m not that sanguine that he’s going to bounce all the way back on defense.

    If the Dodgers want him to platoon with Jason Heyward in right field, facing left-handed pitching (against whom he’s hit .281/.341/.420 in his career, versus .244/.294/.370 versus righties), he’ll have value. I’m not sure they can count on him to do more. He’s under contract for one year at $10 million and has a $12 million mutual option for 2025.

    I mentioned in my write-up of the Shohei Ohtani/Decoy contract that Ryan Pepiot “was outstanding in five September starts, throwing more strikes than he ever has in pro ball, although four were against some of the lowest-scoring offenses in baseball.” That’s obviously still true, and he’s not going to face that many low-scoring offenses while pitching in the AL East, which had four teams above the league median for runs per game, and the fifth just added Juan Freaking Soto.

    Pepiot has at least a grade-70 changeup, and after a disastrous debut in 2022 where he had no command and struggled to get to the change or finish it, he had it back last year, and his fastball played better because of it. The changeup has a ton of late movement, especially down, and hitters struggle to distinguish between it and his mid-90s four-seamer because he releases the ball so far out over his front side. His slider has improved to be a viable weapon against right-handed batters, although in 2022 the story was that using the slider more threw off his delivery and compromised his command and his changeup. None of that was evident in 2023 once he returned from a four-month layoff due to an oblique injury; he threw strikes in the minors and did so in the majors, with all three pitches proving effective in his major-league time.

    There’s definitely risk here, because his history of having even average control is limited largely to 2023, but the Rays like taking risks on guys with this sort of upside (e.g., a grade-70 or better pitch) and also have a good track record in pitching development. He slots right into their rotation into the spot vacated by Glasnow.

    Jonny Deluca, no relation to NWH manager Whitey, was a 25th-round pick out of Oregon in 2019, debuted last year at age 24 and showed plus speed and reasonable pitch recognition for a rookie, albeit with less power than he’d shown in the low minors. I’d written before last season that he was more of a 55 runner and might move to a corner, but the speed and defense he showed in his cup of coffee last summer makes center field seem more viable.

    Deluca was a strong fastball hitter in the minors, and his issues with breaking stuff carried over to the big leagues, which is hardly surprising but is obviously his biggest risk factor. He also didn’t make much hard contact in the majors in a tiny sample, but that’s out of character with his time in the minors, where he at least made enough to project to average power. The Rays gave Jose Siri and his heinous .267 OBP the majority of playing time in center last year, as he’s an elite defender with plus power, and he still managed to be worth 2.7 fWAR, which just aggravates me on a level I can’t even explain. A .267 OBP is a crime against an offense. Anyway, maybe Deluca can unseat him at some point, either this year or when Siri becomes arbitration-eligible in 2025.

    If you’re sensing that I have reservations about everyone in this deal, you’re right, and I think this entails a lot more risk for the Dodgers because the stakes are higher for them. It’s World Series or bust for Los Angeles this year, and they just added one of the best starters in baseball who is also one of the most unreliable (from the perspective of innings pitched, at least). There’s a small but real chance that Pepiot gives the Rays more in 2023 than Glasnow gives the Dodgers, if Pepiot’s apparent steps forward last year hold up over a full season in the majors.

    There’s also a chance this works out for everyone — Glasnow has his first full season as a starter, the Dodgers sprinkle their fairy dust on Margot and he and Heyward combine for 5 wins in right field, while Pepiot becomes a mid-rotation starter and Deluca develops into a regular. I just see wide ranges of possible outcomes for three of the players, all but Margot, and that increases the risk for everyone involved.

    (Top photo of Glasnow: Julio Aguilar/Getty Images)

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    The New York Times

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  • The flight of N616RH: When a private jet was the center of the baseball world

    The flight of N616RH: When a private jet was the center of the baseball world

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    On Friday morning, Robert Herjavec was tracking to be on time for a 9 a.m. flight out of John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana, Calif., until his 5-year-old twins, Hudson and Haven, announced in the car that they were hungry.

    Herjavec, a Canadian businessman and star of “Shark Tank” and “Dragons’ Den,” was traveling solo with the twins. Not wanting to start a four-and-a-half-hour flight on the wrong foot, Herjavec stopped for breakfast and texted the pilot that they’d be late. “That’s the beauty of having your own plane,” Herjavec said by phone Monday. “You show up whenever you want to go.”

    Herjavec didn’t know at the time that the 40-minute delay had just added fuel to a rumor spreading rapidly since the previous night, when an X user posted that a private jet, tail number N616RH, was scheduled to fly from Santa Ana to Toronto in the morning. Amateur internet sleuths connected dots — like flight trackers showing the jet had been in Oakland when Ohtani met with the Giants in San Francisco; that Ohtani had signed on that day, Dec. 8, in his first free agency; and that he’d flown on a Bombardier Global 5000 before — and determined that Shohei Ohtani, baseball unicorn, was flying private to Toronto to sign with the Blue Jays.

    The delay, the theory went, was Ohtani getting cold feet.


    Businessman and television personality Robert Herjavec found himself the unexpected center of international attention. (Gabriel Olsen / Getty Images)

    Herjavec hadn’t followed the frenzy surrounding Ohtani’s free agency. He’d been in Australia for almost a month with his family. His wife, Kym, remained in Australia for a funeral, so as Herjavec boarded the jet he was focused on keeping the twins entertained. He broke out books, board games and coloring worksheets, then turned off his phone for the duration of the flight.

    As N616RH took to the air, the baseball world waited to see whether Shohei Ohtani would step onto the tarmac in Toronto. A crowd assembled outside the private terminal at Toronto Pearson Airport, and a far larger one formed online as tens of thousands of people followed on free flight trackers. But it wasn’t Ohtani on board. It was a tired dad and his wired twins.

    “Such a weird confluence of events,” Herjavec said, “that the one time I’m completely unplugged from the world, the world is plugged in to me.”

    Even before N616RH left the hangar in Santa Ana Friday morning, Ohtani speculation was flying at hyper speed. Baseball insider Jon Paul Morosi had reported a decision was “imminent.” In Toronto, former NHLer Carlo Colaiacovo, now a morning radio host with TSN 1050, read on air a message from the show’s text line saying Blue Jays pitcher Yusei Kikuchi had made a Friday night reservation for 50 people at a sushi restaurant near Rogers Centre.

    “I clearly stated afterward, ‘People, don’t (read) anything into this,’” Colaiacovo recalled. “‘This is not coming from a credible source. It’s something someone is suggesting on our text line.’”

    But, after the show, the show’s producer shared with Colaiacovo a tweet from Canadian opera singer Clarence Frazer that reported that same rumor as true.

    “I’m like, you gotta be kidding me,” Colaiacovo said.

    Still, even if the sushi restaurant was a bad lead, Colaiacovo found himself believing for the first time that Ohtani actually would sign with Toronto. “That was the closest I found myself invested in this,” he said, “just because I’d always thought it was a pipe dream.” He was tracking the flight of N616RH along with everyone else.

    In the rush to connect dots, some obvious red flags were ignored. For one, N616RH’s flight log showed the jet flies frequently out of Toronto and in the past two months went everywhere from London to Zagreb and, in Southern California, Van Nuys and Santa Ana. Also, the jet had been sitting for almost a month at the Oakland airport. On Friday morning, Reddit user _jr56_ flagged that N616RH was Herjavec’s jet — RH in the tail number is for Robert Herjavec — but was accused of lying. “I am saying this because I just asked the pilot and I know everyone associated with this plane on a personal level,” _jr56_ wrote.

    When N616RH was over Colorado, the website Dodgers Nation stated that Ohtani had made his choice: the Blue Jays. Later, the jet was crossing above Lake Huron when Morosi said Ohtani was en route to Toronto. Both reports were refuted by other insiders, but Ohtani watch was at a full boil. There was no stopping it now. As N616RH entered Canadian airspace, Flightradar24, an online flight tracker, had 18,800 people following the flight, their most-tracked flight of the day. (Another tracker, Flight Aware, declined to release figures.)

    Later, Herjavec saw videos elated fans had filmed from the ground as N616RH passed overhead. “They’re like, ‘Ohtani’s jet just flew over my house,’” he said. “I’m like, hey, that’s my jet!”

     

    Evan Mitsui, a photographer for CBC News, was on assignment elsewhere in Toronto on Friday afternoon when a reporter asked him to head to the airport. Mitsui drove in traffic for an hour, parked and found a spot with a view of Hangar 8, where N616RH had stayed previously. Mitsui wasn’t the first one on site. There were Blue Jays fans, some celebrity watchers and media members. There was also security, Mitsui said, “which felt like a good sign.”

    Mitsui grew up a Mariners fan in Vancouver, and because his grandfather was Japanese their whole family adored Ichiro Suzuki. Mitsui has since adopted the Jays as his home team, and he was thrilled about the idea of Ohtani playing there for the rest of his career.

    At 4:23 p.m. in Toronto, N616RH taxied toward Hangar 8 and stopped just out of sight of the cameras. Mitsui and his Reuters colleague, Carlos Osorio, jumped back in the car, turned a corner and encountered another group of photographers and fans, with a better vantage point. There, standing in a ditch between a concrete barrier and chainlink fence, Mitsui raised his Canon camera and trained the 300 millimeter lens on the front door of N616RH.

    Inside, Herjavec saw Canadian customs agents approaching.

    “I’m getting the kids ready,” he said. “The airplane is a disaster, as you can imagine. I’m getting them dressed. I turned my phone on, and it’s going crazy. I look out the window, and the customs guys are there. Normally when you land privately in Canada, you get cleared online. It’s pretty rare that customs comes on.”

    Herjavec hadn’t been privy to the hours of anticipation for N616RH’s landing. He also hadn’t been privy to the radio call from Pearson ground control that had crackled into the pilot’s headset when the plane touched down in Toronto: “November 6-1-6 Romeo Hotel, ground, hello. A very warm welcome to everybody that may, or may not, be on board to Toronto.” All Herjavec knew was that there were customs agents climbing the staircase into the jet.

    “Where is he?” an agent asked.

    “Who?” Herjavec asked.

    “Ohtani.”

    “Ohtani?”

    As they started to sort out the confusion, the customs agent mentioned there were a lot of people waiting outside the airport. Herjavec scanned the fenceline and saw photographers, videographers and security personnel. He said there was a helicopter circling, too.

    “Now I expect that treatment every time I land,” Herjavec joked. “It was like something out of a movie — which, of course, makes you realize after 21 years on ‘Shark Tank’ and ‘Dragons’ Den’ that we really are not that famous. We need to go out and find more $700 million deals.”

    Neither Mitsui nor the people standing beside him in the ditch noticed that the tail of the jet had a shark fin logo and a name: Herjavec.

    “You have blinders on,” Mitsui said. “I remember sitting there in the ditch, eagle eyes on the door on the front of the plane like my life depended on it.”

    Mitsui laughed.

    “And then this guy gets out,” he said, “and it’s clearly not Ohtani.”


    Shohei Ohtani was absolutely, positively not on N616RH. (Kyodo via AP Images)

    As Herjavec and the twins stepped into a waiting Cadillac SUV, Mitsui and Osorio didn’t budge. They stayed there for a half hour, then waited in the car for another half hour just in case Ohtani’s agents planned to sneak him off the plane after the crowd had dispersed. The photographers would never forgive themselves if they left early. “How wild would that be if we were the only two guys with a picture of Ohtani setting foot on Canadian soil for the first time as a Jay?” Mitsui said. “That’s what we were thinking: Don’t blow this shot.”

    But Ohtani wasn’t on the jet. He wasn’t coming. The photographers packed up and headed home. On the way, CBC News sports reporter Devin Heroux called Mitsui and asked if he could confirm it was Herjavec. Mitsui could. He hadn’t realized anyone would care. Heroux tweeted the news. More than 4.2 million people have viewed that post since Friday. Then an editor on the news desk asked if Mitsui had any photos. “I’ve got pictures of a plane with a door open and a guy who’s not Ohtani,” Mitsui told him, sitting in traffic. The editor said to send one over.

    “I was so focused on getting a picture that, when that picture didn’t materialize, that was it. I lost interest,” Mitsui said, laughing. “Had I been a better journalist, I would have realized that was information the rest of the world cared about.”

    On the drive home, it started to click for Herjavec that, from before he’d even gone to bed in Southern California the night before, his jet had been at the center of the baseball universe.

    “All my friends were texting me,” he said. “The reaction went from, ‘Hey, are you buying the Blue Jays?’ to ‘Why didn’t you tell me you knew Ohtani?’ to ‘Are you negotiating this deal?’ I’m thinking the story is big news in the baseball world. But I get in the car, I’m driving home, I turn on the radio. It’s national news in Canada. The Ohtani jet has just landed, with my tail number on it.”

    But then, being a Blue Jays fan who spent most of his childhood in Ontario and celebrated two World Series titles in his early 30s, Herjavec started to get sucked into the Ohtani rumors. He loved the idea of the Blue Jays beating out the other big-city ball clubs to land Ohtani. There had to be some truth to all the reports, right? “I got excited,” he said. “I was like, oh, maybe they just got the wrong flight. Maybe he’s behind me. Maybe there’s another flight coming.”

    Herjavec had some fun with the Ohtani saga Friday night, posting a Photoshopped photo of himself in a Blue Jays uniform, but since then he’s come to know about the theories swirling around his flight.

    Like the one Colaiacovo, the radio host, still finds fishy. Ohtani is represented by CAA. Herjavec is a CAA client, too. Colaiacovo believes the Blue Jays got played. As a former pro athlete, he said he applauds Ohtani’s agent, Nez Balelo, for executing a plan to perfection without unintended leaks. Colaiacovo feels Ohtani wanted to sign with the Dodgers all along, and Ohtani’s camp made the Blue Jays possibility seem real so as to spook the Dodgers into caving.

    And they made that happen, Colaiacovo theorized, by sending Herjavec on a strategically timed flight to Toronto, going quiet and letting the baseball world believe Ohtani was on N616RH.

    “It makes you question,” Colaiacovo said. “Why was Robert leaving from that airport to Toronto, on that day, at that time, and is linked to the same agency?”

    Herjavec has seen that theory. He’s had friends ask about it.

    “I thought that was interesting,” Herjavec acknowledged before dismissing it. “I’m sure Ohtani knows who his agent at CAA is, whereas I infrequently talk to my agent — maybe because he’s not negotiating $700 million deals for me. I’ll have to call him. Absolutely no truth to it. CAA is a big agency. They just happen to rep both of us. But, funny story. Fake media is definitely a real thing. Isn’t it incredible how just one little (detail), and people just want to connect the dots?”

    Herjavec has a home in Hidden Hills, Calif., but he said he’s refusing to go to Dodger Stadium. They took Ohtani from the Jays, and for that reason, he’s out. “It pisses me off,” he said. “I’m waiting for the Blue Jays to invite me to the season opener to throw out the first pitch.” He might be in luck. The Blue Jays reached out Monday morning. Before calling them back, Herjavec said he was hopeful he could get a $400 million deal for 5-year-old Hudson to pitch for the Jays.

    “He’s got a pretty mean knuckleball,” Herjavec said.

    Ask Herjavec, a guy who knows deals, about the 10-year, $700 million contract Ohtani has agreed to with the Dodgers, and he launches into his thoughts. That kind of money impresses even a shark.

    “Incredible,” he said. “The largest sports deal in history. I think it goes to show you how the dynamics of sports has changed. I mean, look at what my friend Mark Cuban just did. He sold a percentage of the Mavs at a $3.5 billion valuation for a team he bought for $285 million 23 years ago. There’s no doubt that everything’s increasing — money, salaries, TV rights. Have we peaked? Or is this about to go to another level?

    “Is it like Formula 1? Liberty Media bought Formula 1 for $4 billion. And now the market value of Formula 1 is $20 billion. So I think a lot of smart money thinks that baseball and all live TV is heading in that direction.

    “Cuban and I bought a pickleball club a couple years ago. I don’t know if we’re going to have the same trajectory, but as Mark tells me, we’re going to make hundreds of dollars on that.”

    Ask Herjavec about his Friday flight on N616RH, though, and he just laughs.

    “Well, after 21 years on TV,” he said, “it extended my 15 minutes of fame into the 16th minute.”

    (Illustration of Bombardier Global jet and Shohei Ohtani: Ohtani Photo by Ezra Shaw / Getty Images; Bombardier photo Mark Ralston / AFP via Getty Images)

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    The New York Times

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  • Shohei Ohtani Agrees To Record $700 Million, 10-year Contract With Dodgers

    Shohei Ohtani Agrees To Record $700 Million, 10-year Contract With Dodgers

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    NEW YORK (AP) — Shohei Ohtani has set a financial record to go along with his singular on-field performance, getting a record $700 million to make a 30-mile move up Interstate 5 to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

    His agent, Nez Balelo, issued a midafternoon news release Saturday announcing the 10-year contract, ending months of speculation that began even before Ohtani became a free agent on Nov. 2. In recent days, media and fans had tracked private plane movements and alleged sightings like detectives in attempts to discern the intentions of the two-time AL MVP with the Angels.

    “This is a unique, historic contract for a unique, historic player,” Balelo said. “He is excited to begin this partnership, and he structured his contract to reflect a true commitment from both sides to long-term success.”

    Ohtani’s total was 64% higher than baseball’s previous record, a $426.5 million, 12-year deal for Angels outfielder Mike Trout that began in 2019.

    His $70 million average salary is 62% above the previous high of $43,333,333, shared by pitchers Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander with deals they struck with the New York Mets. Ohtani’s average salary nearly doubles the roughly $42.3 million he earned with the Angels. It also exceeds the entire payrolls of Baltimore and Oakland this year.

    His agreement includes unprecedented deferred money that will lower the amount it counts toward the Dodgers’ luxury tax payroll, a person familiar with the agreement told The Associated Press. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the details were not announced.

    ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA – SEPTEMBER 30: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Angels before a game against the Oakland Athletics at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on September 30, 2023 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)

    Ronald Martinez via Getty Images

    “He structured his contract to reflect a true commitment from both sides to long-term success,” Balelo said. “Shohei and I want to thank all the organizations that reached out to us for their interest and respect, especially the wonderful people we got to know even better as this process unfolded.”

    This is perhaps the largest contract in sports history, topping highs believed to be set by soccer stars Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappé.

    There was no immediate comment by the Dodgers. Ohtani has not spoken with reporters since Aug. 9.

    “I apologize for taking so long to come to a decision,” Ohtani said in an English-language statement on Instagram. “I would like to express my sincere gratitude to everyone involved with the Angels organization and the fans who have supported me over the past six years, as well as to everyone involved with each team that was part of this negotiation process.”

    “And to all Dodgers fans, I pledge to always do what’s best for the team and always continue to give it my all to be the best version of myself,” he continued. “Until the last day of my playing career, I want to continue to strive forward not only for the Dodgers but for the baseball world.”

    Ohtani joins a lineup that also includes 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts and 2020 NL MVP Freddie Freeman. The Dodgers won the NL West this year for the 10th time in 11 seasons before they were swept by Arizona in the Division Series in October.

    Los Angeles begins the 2024 season in Seoul, South Korea, against San Diego on March 20-21.

    Ohtani’s decision came six years and one day after he first agreed to his deal with Angels.

    Ohtani has redefined modern baseball since he chose the Angels as his first major league team. Nobody has come close to matching his achievements at the plate and on the mound, becoming one of the majors’ elite players in both roles when healthy. Along the way, he has become one of the most marketable athletes in the world, a force when it comes to ticket sales, TV ratings and sponsorship revenue.

    He was a unanimous AL MVP in 2021 and 2023 — he finished second in 2022 — winning this year despite injuring his elbow in late August and an oblique muscle in early September.

    Ahead of his 30th birthday on July 5, he has a .274 average with 171 homers, 437 RBIs and 86 stolen bases along with a 39-19 record with a 3.01 ERA and 608 strikeouts in 481 2/3 innings. Ohtani has 34.7 Wins Above Replacement (WAR), per Baseball Reference.

    The Halos are a perennial also-ran, both in the AL standings and in the Los Angeles market, but they won Ohtani’s services in late 2017 partly by promising him the freedom to train and to play however he wanted. Ohtani immediately dazzled the entire sport in 2018, batting .285 with 22 homers and 61 RBIs as a designated hitter and going 4-2 with a 3.31 ERA and 63 strikeouts.

    Ohtani won the AL Rookie of the Year award in 2018 despite making just one pitching appearance after early June due to an injured elbow ligament that required Tommy John surgery following the season. Ohtani made just two mound appearances in the next two years while continuing to play as the Angels’ DH.

    When his arm was finally healthy in 2021, Ohtani put together a season for the ages.

    He won the AL MVP award with 46 homers and 100 RBIs at the plate while going 9-2 with a 3.18 ERA on the mound. He improved as a pitcher in 2022, going 15-9 with a 2.33 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP while still driving in 95 runs at the plate, but finished behind Aaron Judge in the MVP voting after the Yankees star hit an AL record 62 homers.

    After winning the MVP award in the World Baseball Classic last March while leading Japan to victory — he struck out Trout to end the tournament — Ohtani maintained his two-way magnificence this year, hitting 44 homers with a career-high 1.066 OPS while going 10-5 with a 3.14 ERA before tearing his elbow ligament again on Aug. 23. He didn’t hit after Sept. 3 because of the strained right oblique.

    Along with his elbow injuries, Ohtani’s transcendent success has come with another significant damper: He has never made the playoffs or even played on a winning team in the majors. Owner Arte Moreno’s Angels haven’t won more than 80 games or finished higher than third in the AL West during his tenure alongside Trout, a three-time AL MVP, and a perennially disappointing cast of supporting players.

    Ohtani earned $42,269,259 in his six seasons with the Angels. After receiving a signing bonus of $2,315,000 with his initial deal, he had salaries of $545,000, $650,000, $259,259 (in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season), $3 million, $5.5 million and $30 million.

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  • Shohei Ohtani to sign with Dodgers

    Shohei Ohtani to sign with Dodgers

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    Shohei Ohtani’s singular pursuit of history, one man’s quest to rewrite the baseball world’s understanding of what is possible, reached another summit on Saturday when he agreed to the largest contract in the annals of major North American team sports, a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers, his agency CAA announced.

    Ohtani announced his decision on Instagram. The deal ends years of feverish speculation about Ohtani’s future. Ohtani, a 29-year-old two-way sensation, has captivated the industry since he left Japan for Major League Baseball heading into the 2018 season. He has done things that appeared impossible in the modern era, feats that harkened back to Babe Ruth. As he traveled the country with the Los Angeles Angels this past summer, fans serenaded him with recruiting pitches. When he entered free agency, a dozen teams lined up, curious to see if they could meet his eye.

    Only one team could secure Ohtani’s services. He will now be compensated for both his immense talent and his unparalleled star power. His contract eclipsed the $360 million record for free agents set last winter by New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge and also surpassed the record-setting $426.5 million extension from Ohtani’s former Angels teammate Mike Trout. His achievement exceeded even those outside of baseball, topping the $450 million contract inked by Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes. Ohtani has outpaced even soccer star Lionel Messi’s $674 million contract — signed in 2017 when he was with FC Barcelona.

    His individual brilliance was not enough to lift the Angels into the postseason. With the Dodgers, Ohtani will now have an opportunity to add collective hardware to his trophy case. The Dodgers have won the National League West in 10 of the past 11 seasons, topped 100 victories in five of the past six full seasons and won the World Series in 2020. Ohtani has never played a postseason game in his big-league career.

    “My sense is that he wants to be the best ever,” said St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nootbaar, who played with Ohtani last spring in the World Baseball Classic, “but I don’t think he would ever publicly say that.”

    Significant questions linger about Ohtani’s future. He will not pitch in 2024 as he recovers from a September operation to repair his right elbow’s ulnar collateral ligament. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2018. Neither Ohtani, who has not taken questions from reporters since August, nor his agent, Nez Balelo, nor the Angels have disclosed the exact nature of the second surgery, but the Los Angeles Times has reported it was a second Tommy John procedure.

    Balelo has stressed that Ohtani remains committed to both pitching and hitting in the future. “Shohei loves to pitch,” Balelo told reporters in September. Ohtani will attempt to return to the mound in 2025. His camp has not revealed at what point Ohtani would consider giving up his dual career and focusing on learning a different position. Since he was a teenager, Ohtani has ignored suggestions that he focus on only one pursuit.

    Ohtani demonstrated his potential as the American League Rookie of the Year in 2018, but his two-way hopes were delayed after his first elbow surgery. It was not until 2021 that the full flower of his ability bloomed. He has won the American League MVP in two of the past three seasons; in the intervening season, he led all American League pitchers in strikeout rate while hitting 34 home runs with an .875 OPS. To create a comparison for him involves inventions that sound freakish. “It’s like if Judge went out and was a 20-game winner as well,” former teammate Kole Calhoun said.


    Ohtani will not pitch in 2024 after undergoing Tommy John surgery, but his agent stressed he’s committed to returning to the mound. (Photo: Michael Owens / Getty Images)

    Ohtani is committed to being a starting pitcher. If he cannot stay healthy enough for that role, he could aid his new team as a reliever. He closed the final game of the World Baseball Classic, securing the crown for Japan by striking out Trout. His four-seam fastball averaged nearly 97 mph in 2023; the velocity of the pitch figures to improve in short bursts.

    Even if Ohtani never pitches again, his value as a hitter is immense. In 1920, his first season exclusively as a hitter, Ruth led the American League in homers, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. In 2023, while still making 23 starts with a 3.14 ERA, Ohtani led the American League in the same three categories as Ruth. He swatted 44 homers with a career-best 1.066 OPS. He did this while making starts and dealing with a torn ligament in his elbow.

    Only one stage remains for Ohtani. He has never played a postseason game in the majors. As the Angels foundered in recent years, Ohtani became more vocal about his desire to play for a winner. Now he has the chance to make a different kind of history.

    Required reading

    (Photo: Stacy Revere / Getty Images)

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    The New York Times

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  • Stark: 5 things to watch on the 2024 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

    Stark: 5 things to watch on the 2024 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot

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    Nine weeks from today, we’ll find out who gets to live out the weekend of a lifetime next July in magical Cooperstown, N.Y. Spoiler alert: Adrián Beltré’s friends and loved ones had better make those dinner reservations ASAP!

    But there were 25 other names on the 2024 Baseball Hall of Fame ballot that was announced on Monday. And when I looked over those names, I could already see the storylines forming in my brain.

    So here they come — my Five Things to Watch on the latest, greatest Hall ballot.

    1. Can Adrián Beltré make ballot history?


    Adrián Beltré throws out the first pitch before Game 2 of the 2023 World Series. (Raymond Carlin III / USA Today)

    Could Adrián Beltré really become the first position player to get elected to the Hall of Fame unanimously? It’s a fascinating question to contemplate, isn’t it?

    Derek Jeter missed by one vote. Ken Griffey Jr. missed by three. Ty Cobb was four away. Cal Ripken Jr. was eight away.

    Babe Ruth wasn’t unanimous. Willie Mays wasn’t unanimous. Henry Aaron and Ted Williams weren’t unanimous. It’s bizarre even to type those words.

    But Hall of Fame voting is in its ninth decade of making way too little sense. So even if the voters of the 21st century seem a lot more rational than their predecessors of 50, 60 and 70 years ago, there are always questions. Don’t expect that to change between now and Jan. 23, when the results are announced.

    So let’s ask again: Is it possible that Beltré could join the great Mariano Rivera as the only unanimous Hall of Famers? I’ll take the “under,” but seriously, what reason could any voter find to not check Beltré’s name?

    Who could not vote for a third baseman with 3,166 hits? Can’t answer that … if only because no true full-time third baseman ever got that many. (George Brett finished with 3,154 hits. Paul Molitor topped 3,300 but spent more time at DH than at third.)

    Who could not vote for a third baseman so smooth that he owns five Gold Glove awards and the most career Fielding Runs of any third baseman in history not named Brooks Robinson?

    Who could not vote for a third baseman who once won a home run title, led his league in hits and was still winning Gold Gloves and collecting MVP votes at age 37?

    Who could not vote for a third baseman who rolled up 93.5 career WAR, according to Baseball Reference? You understand that puts Beltré in legend territory, right? He ranks 25th in WAR among all position players whose careers began after 1900. And every non-Hall of Famer in that group is in the team picture of the All-PED team.

    I’m sure somebody will find a reason not to vote for him. But even if Beltré isn’t unanimous, he could still rack up the highest first-ballot percentage by a third baseman in history. Brett was at 98.2 percent. Mike Schmidt was at 96.5. If Beltré isn’t somewhere in that range, I can’t wait to hear the reasoning from those voters who leave his name unchecked.

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    Make your Hall of Fame picks in our first-ever The Athletic MLB reader survey

    2. Are we finally going to have a Hall of Famer who spent his whole career on a Rocky Mountain High?


    Todd Helton is on the verge of election. (Christian Petersen / Getty Images)

    Four elections ago, Larry Walker knocked down the big billboard at the Colorado state line that used to say: THE ROAD TO COOPERSTOWN — YOU CAN’T GET THERE FROM HERE. So now that the road is finally open, is it Todd Helton’s turn?

    Helton spent 17 seasons playing for the Rockies. He finished his career with a .316/.414/.539/.953 slash line. You know how many players whose career started after 1930 have topped that? Exactly two: Ted Williams and Stan Musial.

    So do we even have to ask whether Helton would already be a Hall of Famer if he’d put up those numbers anywhere else? That’s obvious.

    But what’s also obvious is that Coors Field is like no place else. And Helton is the first player ever to play his whole career in Colorado and find himself on the precipice of the Hall of Fame. So even if the Coors Cooperstown Curse isn’t what it used to be, has it magically evaporated all of a sudden? Don’t be so sure of that.

    Nevertheless, there’s an excellent chance Helton’s time has arrived. He was the biggest shooting star on the ballot last year, jumping by an amazing 20 percent. So he missed election by 11 votes last year, his fifth on this ballot. And history tells us that pretty much everybody who comes that close gets his ticket to Cooperstown punched the next year.

    In the past 50 elections, only 10 other players returned to the ballot after coming up short by 11 votes or fewer. Of that group, just Jim Bunning didn’t get elected the next time he was up. And Bunning got his plaque eventually (via the Veterans Committee).

    So Todd Helton is going to be the first career-long Rockie to make it onto that podium. The drama over these next two months is whether that happens now or later. And “now” is an excellent bet.

    3. Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley: Together again?


    Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley will reunite on the Hall ballot.  (Hunter Martin / Getty Images)

    They were the Trammell and Whitaker of their generation. Will Hall of Fame voters value that?

    Not so long ago, Jimmy Rollins and Chase Utley hung out in the middle of the infield for an incredible 1,227 games together, the most in National League history. And not all of those games were in Philadelphia, by the way. (They also teamed up for 14 games for the Dodgers at the end of the 2015 season.)

    But now it’s time for them to make yet one more cool reunion — on the new Hall of Fame ballot.

    It’s Utley’s first year on the ballot, and he’s as intriguing as any first-timer on the list. It’s Rollins’ third spin through the process. And at first, I thought: Hey, that’s fun. But then my next thought was: Wait. Has this ever happened? Have two longtime double-play partners ever taken a ride together on the Cooperstown Express?

    I knew, you see, that Alan Trammell and Lou Whitaker somehow never appeared on the same ballot. That’s the voters’ fault, not theirs, of course. Whitaker remains one of the writers’ worst one-and-done’s ever, getting bounced following his first election in 2001 after receiving just 2.9 percent of the vote. Which meant he was missing in action once Trammell arrived in 2002.

    So I had to turn to my friends at STATS Perform to see if there was any parallel in history to Rollins and Utley. And let’s start with this: No double-play combination in the history of baseball ever played as many games together as these two guys and then showed up on the Hall ballot together. Wow.

    STATS’ Tom Paquette dug deeper on this. Besides Rollins/ Utley and Trammell/Whitaker, he found only six double-play duos in the modern era (1901-present) that played at least 1,000 games together. But to find the last time any of those combinations appeared on the same Hall ballot, you have to go back nearly 40 years.

    Nellie Fox and Luis Aparicio spent 1,035 games in the same infield in the 1950s and ’60s. Then, between 1979 and 1984, they made it onto six Hall ballots together, a streak that ended with Aparicio’s election in ’84.

    Before them, you have to travel back another four decades to find any other member of the 1,000-Game DP Combo Club that appeared on the same ballot. The only other was the fabled Joe Tinker/Johnny Evers tag team. But don’t look for any YouTube footage on those two. They played their last game together for the Cubs in 1913. Then they appeared on six Hall ballots in the 1930s and ’40s.

    So is it possible that Rollins and Utley are in for a longer ride than six years? Since Rollins has eight years of eligibility left, it’s theoretically possible. But is one of them going to get elected by 2031? Or both of them? Or neither? Good question. And if that answer is one of them, then which one?

    Rollins has the more traditional selling points on his side: An MVP trophy, four Gold Gloves, more than 2,400 hits, 200 homers, 400 steals and 857 extra-base hits. And how many other shortstops in history can say that? That would be none. Yet he attracted only 50 votes last year. So is he going to find another 242 votes out there? That seems hard.

    Utley, meanwhile, has a very different case. He’s basically an analytics cult hero, whose monster peak (six seasons, from 2005-10, in which he averaged 7.6 WAR) has the potential to make him a popular name to check, especially when you add in all the winning his teams did.

    But Utley never even got to 1,900 hits. And the writers haven’t elected a player with under 2,000 in almost 50 years (since Ralph Kiner, in 1975). Yet if I had to place a friendly wager on this, I’d still bet Utley gets more votes this year than Rollins.

    You know what would be really interesting, though? What are the chances these two can somehow elevate each other’s candidacy — just by generating perspective and conversation about who’s more deserving? It’s a question worth asking, if only because I’ve always wondered what might have happened if Trammell and Whitaker had gotten the chance to do that.

    4. Will Billy Wagner and Gary Sheffield run out of time?


    Billy Wagner received 68.1 percent of the vote in the last election. (Ronald Martinez / Allsport)

    It’s Gary Sheffield’s 10th and final year on this ballot. It’s Billy Wagner’s ninth, so he has two more shots at this. But is that enough time?

    Fourteen years after he took his final ferocious hack, Sheffield attracted 54 more votes last year than he’d gotten the year before, so he’s now at 55.0 percent. Thirteen years after his final save, Wagner’s vote count rocketed upward by 64 votes last year — the biggest one-year jump by any reliever in Hall voting history. He made it all the way to 68.1 percent.

    If one of them is going to make it to 75 percent, Wagner is the obvious favorite. He was only 27 votes — 6.9 percentage points — away from election last year. So are there really 27 voters so dug in on keeping him out of Cooperstown that he can’t find those votes? History would suggest that’s highly unlikely.

    Five previous relievers — Trevor Hoffman, Goose Gossage, Bruce Sutter, Hoyt Wilhelm and Rollie Fingers — have crossed the 60 percent barrier with at least two years left on the ballot. All five of them got elected within two years.

    On the other hand, Hoffman was at 67.3 percent in 2016 and still came up short the next year. So does Wagner have a 7 percentage point leap in him this time around? We love election night drama, right? That story has all the makings.

    Sheffield, meanwhile, has a bigger mountain to climb because he’s trying to do something extremely rare. Over the past 50 elections, only one man has made the unlikely pole vault from 55 percent (or lower) in his next-to-last year to getting elected at the buzzer. And that was Larry Walker, who was at 54.6 percent with one year to go — and then eked in by six votes on his final turn.

    But does a guy with Sheffield’s ties to performance-enhancing drugs, vague as they might be, have that sort of jump in him? Seems unlikely, but we’re about to find out.

    5. Can Joe Mauer channel his inner Ernie Banks?


    Joe Mauer was the AL MVP in 2009. (John Biever / Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)

    Once upon a time, in a baseball galaxy far, far away, there was a future Hall of Famer named Ernie Banks. Just like Joe Mauer, his career was divided between time at two positions. Just like Mauer, he was special at one, not so much at the other.

    In his nine seasons at what was then looked at as primarily a defensive position, Banks was the greatest hitting shortstop of his time. But then, in part two of his career, when he moved to an offensive position (first base), let’s just say he didn’t remind anybody of Willie McCovey.

    So what happened when Banks finally appeared on a Hall of Fame ballot? He cruised to first-ballot election in 1977, with 83.8 percent of the vote. And why do we tell this tale of Mr. Cub at a time like this? Because it seems instructive to how voters could view Mauer in his first go-round on this ballot.

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    Joe Mauer ‘humbled and honored’ to be considered for Cooperstown

    In his 10 seasons as a catcher for the Twins, Mauer did stuff at the plate no catcher had ever done. Three batting titles. An MVP award. A 135 OPS+. That’s not just greatness at that position. That’s historic greatness — for a full decade, remember.

    But then concussions forced him to spend the last five seasons of his career at first base. And you know how that went. In his time at first, Mauer batted only .278, slugged a minuscule .388, never made another All-Star team and never showed up on a single MVP ballot. So now that his debut on the Hall ballot has finally arrived, here’s the question:

    Why wouldn’t the voters treat him like they once treated Ernie Banks? At a position where he played 10 seasons, Mauer was clearly way over the Hall of Fame line. So how heavily does he deserve to be penalized for honoring his contract by playing another position, where he wasn’t That Guy?

    On a ballot that’s jammed with so many fun first-ballot names — Beltré, Utley, David Wright, Bartolo Colon, Matt Holliday, etc. — nobody is a more fascinating candidate to watch than the pride of St. Paul, Joe Mauer. But where is his vote total headed? That, my friends, is the reason columns like this exist.

    (Top photo of Adrián Beltré in 2012: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

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    The New York Times

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  • Bowden’s 24 predictions for the 2023-24 MLB offseason: Signings, trades, hirings and more

    Bowden’s 24 predictions for the 2023-24 MLB offseason: Signings, trades, hirings and more

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    Free agency officially started Monday but the managers, not the players, stole the show, headlined by the Cubs’ stunning swoop to land Craig Counsell. Frankly, I’m still in shock after yesterday’s series of managerial moves, which also included hires by the Mets (Carlos Mendoza) and Guardians (Stephen Vogt).

    Another unpredictable MLB offseason is here and although the trades and signings haven’t started in earnest, we have seen some noteworthy transactions, including several teams exercising club options on potential free agents such as Alex Cobb (Giants), José Leclerc (Rangers) and Kyle Hendricks (Cubs). We’ve seen teams cut ties with the faces of their franchise, as the White Sox declined their option on Tim Anderson and the Reds did the same with Joey Votto. We’ve seen players such as Eduardo Rodriguez and Marcus Stroman opt out of contracts (with the Tigers and Cubs, respectively) and players like Josh Bell opt into contracts (with the Marlins). We’ve even seen a trade, as the Tigers acquired Mark Canha from the Brewers for a minor-league reliever. The Marlins have hired Peter Bendix to be their president of baseball operations and the Red Sox chose Craig Breslow to be their chief baseball officer. Got all that?

    The big moves, the ones that will keep us on the edge of our seats for weeks, are still to come. So let’s try to guess how this could all play out. Here are 24 predictions for the 2023-24 offseason, what should be another fun and wild winter. Please share your own predictions in the comments section.

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    Top 40 MLB free agents: Contract predictions, best team fits for Ohtani, Yamamoto and more

    1. None of the seven players who received the one-year, $20.325 million qualifying offer (Shohei Ohtani, Cody Bellinger, Matt Chapman, Josh Hader, Blake Snell, Aaron Nola and Sonny Gray) will accept it, as they all will pursue longer-term deals in free agency.

    2. Ohtani will surprise many by signing with the world champion Texas Rangers. The contract includes incentives, escalator clauses and award bonuses that will make him the highest-paid player in the history of the sport. The Dodgers and Mariners finish as the runner-ups in the Shohei sweepstakes.

    3. Aaron Nola signs a five-year, $125 million deal with the Dodgers about 24 hours after they learn that they’ve lost out on Ohtani.

    4. The Phillies, after falling short in their attempts to bring back Nola, quickly pivot and land lefty Jordan Montgomery on a five-year, $127 million contract.


    Juan Soto will be a free agent after next season. Will the Padres trade him? (Brad Penner / USA Today)

    5. The Yankees pull off a blockbuster trade with the Padres to land three-time All-Star Juan Soto. And then …

    6. … New York turns around and inks Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a seven-year, $211 million deal that ultimately pushes the Yankees’ payroll to the highest it’s ever been under owner Hal Steinbrenner.

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    Bowden: Could the Padres trade Juan Soto? 5 teams to watch if they decide to move him

    7. The Giants sign outfielder Jung Hoo Lee to the largest contract of any position player in this year’s free-agent class outside of Ohtani, Bellinger and Chapman.

    8. The Cubs bring back Bellinger on a six-year, $144 million deal to play first base.

    9. The Astros hire Joe Espada to be their next manager, promoting him after six seasons as their bench coach.

    10. Managers Lou Piniella and Jim Leyland are elected to the Hall of Fame by the Contemporary Baseball Era Committee in the vote during the Winter Meetings.


    Coming off a 101-win season, will the Orioles extend any of their young core? (Tommy Gilligan / USA Today)

    11. The Orioles shock the baseball world and sign both Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson to long-term deals that break franchise records. In response, O’s fans break the single-season record for season ticket sales during the Angelos family’s ownership tenure.

    12. Julio Urías of the Dodgers and Wander Franco of the Rays receive lengthy suspensions following reviews of their respective cases that make both ineligible to play major-league baseball in 2024.

    13. The Twins, coming off an AL Central-winning campaign, stand pat and make no truly significant moves during the offseason.

    14. The Angels turn to one of their own, hiring Darin Erstad as their new manager to succeed Phil Nevin.

    15. The Washington Nationals are finally sold and the new ownership group includes future Hall of Fame executive Theo Epstein, who will serve as CEO and president of the club.

    16. Bruce Bochy of the Rangers and Skip Schumaker of the Marlins are named managers of the year for their respective leagues. Bochy’s GM, Chris Young, is named MLB Executive of the Year.

    17. Joe Maddon and Buck Showalter aren’t hired as managers this offseason. Both of them, along with Dusty Baker, never manage again in the majors. Baker ultimately serves as a consultant with a team while waiting for the call from Cooperstown.


    The Cardinals missed Yadier Molina in 2023. Could he return to the dugout in 2024? (Jeff Curry / USA Today)

    18. Yadier Molina joins the Cardinals coaching staff and becomes the most prominent “manager in waiting” in the sport.

    19. The Oakland A’s much-debated move to Las Vegas is approved by MLB. The A’s will play the 2024 season in the Coliseum and the next three years in Vegas in their Triple-A ballpark, which is upgraded to serve as their home until a new major-league stadium is built.

    20. MLB begins more concrete discussions about expansion but specifies that it won’t happen for at least five to seven years. Nashville, Charlotte and Montreal become the early favorites to land new franchises. The league plans to have four divisions of four teams in each league.

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    Bowden: MLB expansion should include geographic realignment — so let’s build new divisions

    21. MLB approves the Automated Ball-Strike System with a challenge format for the 2024 season.

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    Are robot umps ready for their MLB debut? Not so fast.

    22. Shohei Ohtani and Ronald Acuña Jr. are named the MVPs of their respective leagues.

    23. Gerrit Cole and Blake Snell are named Cy Young Award winners.

    24. Gunnar Henderson and Corbin Carroll take home Rookie of the Year honors.

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    Bowden: My early award predictions for MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year and more

    (Top photo of Shohei Ohtani: John McCoy / Getty Images)

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  • From breakout young stars to ring-chasing old timers, why D-Backs-Rangers is worth watching

    From breakout young stars to ring-chasing old timers, why D-Backs-Rangers is worth watching

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    Look, we didn’t expect this either. 

    Of all the possible World Series matchups, a tussle of the 90-win Texas Rangers against the 84-win Arizona Diamondbacks wasn’t exactly at the top of our wish list. It’s being already decried as a battle of who could care less, and we get it. 

    But we also disagree. 

    Is this World Series custom-made for primetime? Of course not. But when asked to come up with a handful of reasons to watch, it took about two minutes for a small group of baseball writers to bat around more than a dozen storylines, personalities and raw talents that are going to be worth watching for the next however-long-this-lasts. 

    Give us another Game 7, we say, because this might not be the series we expected, it might not even be the series we deserve, but it’s going to be a series worth watching. 

    And here’s why. 

    These teams actually have star power … 

    If you were expecting Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani, you must not have been paying attention for the past decade. 

    But Rangers shortstop Corey Seager made a pretty compelling case for American League MVP this season (non-Ohtani division), and Diamondbacks ace Zac Gallen is going to finish somewhere near the top of the National League Cy Young race (he already started the All-Star Game), and he helped beat his hometown Phillies to get here, even while reflecting on the declining quality of local institution Wawa. That’s pathos.

    … and the hardware to prove it 

    Speaking of All-Star Game starters, the Rangers had five of them this year, including three-quarters of their everyday infield. The Diamondbacks had three All-Star starters, plus their 23-year-old shortstop coming off the bench. 

    And you might not have noticed, but Rangers starter Nathan Eovaldi has the track record of a postseason ace, and he’s on a mission to avenge his one World Series loss. Casual fans might not know their names, but the league knows these guys can play. 

    It’s a matchup of power versus …

    Sure, it would have been interesting to see all those big boppers in the Phillies lineup, but the Rangers hit the third-most home runs in baseball this season, led by Adolis García, a guy who was twice designated for assignment before becoming a must-see offensive beast who went deep 39 times this season and then went berserk for five more home runs and an MVP award in the ALCS. Whatever you do, don’t hit this man with a pitch. 

    … speed.

    The Diamondbacks don’t have the Rangers’ offensive thump, but they did steal 166 bases this season (second-most in the game) while leading the majors with 44 triples. These guys can and will run wild — they stole four bases in decisive NLCS Game 7 — and their second baseman, Ketel Marte, has quietly been one of the game’s best up-the-middle players of the past half-decade (top 40 in position player WAR since 2019) and is earning his place among the best players in franchise history. When the Diamondbacks do need a homer, they still have Christian Walker, who was claimed off waivers three times in his career but hit 69 longballs the past two years. 

    The Diamondbacks might have baseball’s most exciting young player …


    Corbin Carroll mixes elite speed with legit power. (Nick Wosika / Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

    The Diamondbacks might not have many household names now, but give it a few years and their leadoff hitter, Corbin Carroll, might be the name you remember from this series. The 23-year-old is a shoo-in for National League Rookie of the Year and has a tremendous blend of speed (54 stolen bases) and power (25 home runs) that could make him one of the game’s great players for the next decade. 

    … but he’s not alone. There are young stars all over the place.

    Carroll’s not the only one who’s just starting to make a name for himself. Rangers third baseman Josh Jung (he and Carroll were drafted within eight picks of one another in 2019) was an All-Star as a rookie this season, and Rangers left fielder Evan Carter (who turned 21 in August) reached the big leagues in September and was one of the game’s best hitters in the final month of the regular season. Carter currently ranks as Baseball America’s 10th-best prospect in the entire sport.

    Diamondbacks infielder Jordan Lawler (a bench player for now) ranks ninth on that list, and his teammate Gabriel Moreno (one of the best young catchers in the sport) ranked 12th when the season began but has since accrued too much big-league time to qualify. Second-year center fielder Alek Thomas is still just 23 and already has an all-time postseason moment.

    The Rangers went all-in at the deadline to get here … 

    This year’s trade deadline was a letdown for many teams, but not for the Rangers, who spent heavily the past two offseasons and still supplemented their rotation with deadline deals for both Max Scherzer and Jordan Montgomery. They also traded for Royals flamethrower Aroldis Chapman and Pirates backup catcher Austin Hedgers.

    … while the Diamondbacks built from within.

    The Diamondbacks made smaller deals at the deadline — closer Paul Sewald was their biggest addition — but mostly grew their team from within. All told, the Diamondbacks’ postseason roster includes four different players (Lawler plus pitchers Brandon Pfaadt, Andrew Saalfrank and Slade Cecconi) who made their big league debuts this season (and two of them weren’t in the majors until September). Saalfrank pitched just 10 times in the regular season, and he’s already made eight appearances in the playoffs.

    Old-timers are riding off into the sunset …

    I didn’t call Scherzer old, you did! But seriously, Mad Max is 39, joined the Rangers at the trade deadline, and hasn’t gotten to do much this postseason. He’s already won three Cy Young awards and a World Series ring in his career, but one more dazzling performance in October would be an exclamation point.

    … while chasing one last shot at a ring.

    In the other dugout is 38-year-old Evan Longoria. He hasn’t played in a World Series since his rookie year with the Rays in 2008, and these days he’s more of a complementary role player than the hot-corner superstar he was a decade ago, but he has a legitimate chance to finally win a ring in what could be his final season.

    “Most of the time, when you hear about guys’ legacies, it’s about a ring,” Longoria said this month. “It’s about a World Series. It’s about the impact that they’ve made in the playoffs. That’s more of a legacy thing for me.”

    The fantasy football fight guy is here …

    There’s also 35-year-old Diamondbacks outfielder Tommy Pham, an intense veteran perhaps best known to casual fans for his role in a fantasy football-inspired fracas last season, in search of his first championship. He’s joined by 34-year-old Rangers reliever Will Smith, who is in pursuit of his third in a row title (all with different teams).

    … while a certain big lefty with enormous postseason credentials isn’t. 

    And, if you’re the sort who roots for awkward ring ceremonies, Madison Bumgarner could win his fourth career ring after the Diamondbacks released him in April with a 10.26 ERA.

    The Diamondbacks front office is worth rooting for …

    Seven years ago, the Diamondbacks cleaned house and brought in longtime Boston Red Sox executive Mike Hazen to run the show. He brought some Red Sox connections with him — including manager Torey Lovullo — and has many in the industry rooting for him after his wife, Nicole, died of a rare form of cancer in 2022. 

    “Such good, real people,” one longtime executive said of the top Diamondbacks decision makers.

    Hazen has defied the curse of The Athletic’s own Ken Rosenthal to get his team to its first World Series since 2001. 

    … but believe it or not, the Rangers’ front office is fascinating too.


    Chris Young has delivered in his first full year as Rangers GM. (Jim Cowsert / USA Today)

    No one tunes in to see the general manager clapping in his suite, but Rangers general manager Chris Young should be in the mix for Rookie of the Year at 44 years old. Young is in his first full year on the job having moved into the top seat at the end of last season. He was still playing — he was a good big league pitcher — as recently as 2017, worked in the league office for two years, and has been a front office executive only three years, but Young was aggressive at the trade deadline to help push the Rangers over the top and into this position. 

    And if you can’t get into the man behind the curtain, there’s always Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, back in the dugout after three years of semi-retirement, trying to win his fourth World Series title and force another line onto his inevitable Hall of Fame plaque.

    You could just watch because … it’s the World Series.

    OK, we’ll acknowledge this is not the matchup anyone outside of Dallas and Phoenix wanted when the postseason got started. The Braves were the perceived juggernaut, the Orioles were the flashy young upstarts, the Dodgers were the iconic franchise with an all-time ace, and the Phillies had the world-beating offense with a rocking home-field advantage.

    But it’s the Fall Classic! With a pitch clock, so the kids can watch more than a half inning before bedtime!

    Think of Rangers first baseman Nathaniel Lowe’s mother and watch with a touch of sentimental optimism. Think of all the key players your least favorite team gave up and watch with a healthy dose of vindictive cynicism. Or just watch because it’s baseball in October, one team hasn’t won in two decades, and the other hasn’t won at all. The Rangers are trying to make history. The Diamondbacks are trying to shock the world. Goodness gracious, snakes alive!

    (Top photo of Evan Longoria: AP Photo / Brynn Anderson)

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    The New York Times

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  • Stark: Stop whining about MLB’s playoff system. Phillies, Astros show way to October success

    Stark: Stop whining about MLB’s playoff system. Phillies, Astros show way to October success

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    “We feel like we’re built for these moments.” — Phillies catcher J.T. Realmuto

    PHILADELPHIA — He was puffing on a cigar that looked to be about the size of the Walt Whitman Bridge. The party beverages were still dripping off every crevice of his clubhouse and its occupants. And on the gigundous scoreboard just behind him, six words said it all:

    THE PHILLIES — ON TO THE NLCS.

    But as Realmuto roamed the infield of Citizens Bank Park, hugging a procession of family and friends Thursday night, he knew the big baseball story across America was not: THE PHILLIES — ON TO THE NLCS. No, what America seemed way more focused on was this:

    THE BRAVES — NOT ON TO THE NLCS.

    And …

    THE DODGERS — ALSO NOT ON TO THE NLCS.

    Not to mention …

    THE ORIOLES AND RAYS — NO LONGER SCHEDULED TO PARTICIPATE IN THE ALCS

    So here’s our question — and his: Why are we so obsessed with who’s not still playing in the postseason when there’s such an obvious reason that teams like Realmuto’s October behemoths, the Phillies, are still playing?

    And that reason goes like this:

    Surely, you must have noticed by now that October baseball is practically a whole different sport than April-to-September baseball.

    So here’s an idea: Maybe we should stop looking for excuses for the teams that are heading home. Instead, let’s take a closer look at why teams such as the Phillies — and their partners in World Series crime last fall, the Astros — keep finding ways to survive and advance.

    “I think there’s something special about October baseball,” Realmuto said, still wearing the glow of the Phillies’ NLDS-clinching 3-1 victory over the 104-win Braves. “And to see the teams that thrive in this environment and thrive with this much pressure, when the games mean so much, there’s so much more focus involved in the postseason.

    “It’s hard to get that focus for a 162-game regular season. So to see, in my opinion, the teams that thrive here and play well in this situation, I mean, that’s what baseball is all about. That’s what you play for.”


    Spencer Strider has dominated the Phillies in the regular season. But the postseason has been a different story. (Eric Hartline / USA Today)

    But even as he was uttering those words, there was a whole different conversation going on just a few hundred yards away, in the dejected clubhouse of the winningest team in baseball (April-September division), the Braves. You can probably guess how that one went.

    It’s normal to ask what went wrong in losing clubhouses at this time of year. What never used to be normal was hopping on board with the conspiracy theory that this was somehow baseball’s fault, for devising a playoff system designed to “sabotage” the chances of the best teams in the sport (April-September division).

    Well, you know who wasn’t interested in that conspiracy theory? The losing pitcher for the Braves — their ace, Spencer Strider. And good for him.

    “We’re not a group that makes excuses,” Strider said. “I’m not a person that makes excuses. I’m sure there’s a lot of Braves fans out there that are not happy, and they have every right to be that way. We’ve got nobody to blame but ourselves. Me personally, I wasn’t good enough.”

    Nevertheless, Strider was asked, wouldn’t a different postseason format be more fair — maybe a best-of-seven Division Series instead of best-of-five, for instance?

    “No,” he replied. “I think that the people (who are) trying to use the playoff format to make an excuse for the results they don’t like are not confronting the real issue. You’re in control of your focus, your competitiveness, your energy. And if having five days off (means) you can’t make that adjustment, you’ve got nobody to blame but yourself.”

    So as we begin to contemplate the lessons of October (thus far), we need to start with the team America loves to hate but the team that puts every one of these conspiracy theories to rest …

    THE ASTROS — So if it’s The System’s fault that the best teams lose every October, how do we explain the Astros? If those five days off that the top two seeds earn before the Division Series is such a buzz-killer (and season-killer), shouldn’t someone tell the Astros?

    They got the same five days off as everyone else last October … and went out and swept their first two series anyway, and never lost a postseason game until the World Series.

    Then once again this year, they won the American League West on the final day of the season, again took the same five days off as everyone else … and went out and beat the Twins in four games. So apparently, it is possible to dig into that first-round bye and still go on to bigger and better things? Huh. What do you know? That doesn’t fit everyone else’s narrative at all.


    The first-round bye hasn’t stopped this Astros juggernaut. (Jesse Johnson / USA Today)

    “Everyone can talk about the week off, but look at a team like Houston,” the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber said. “They’re … back in the ALCS. So I think there’s something to be said about teams that might not have had so much success throughout the season, but when they get into moments like that, they’re finding ways to win.”

    And by that, of course, he also means … his team. So let’s look at some of the October baseball lessons the Phillies teach us.

    SOMETIMES THE RECORD DOESN’T REFLECT THE TALENT — The man who built the Phillies, Dave Dombrowski, has done this before. Again and again and again, in fact. He built World Series teams in Florida, Detroit and Boston, and now a fourth in Philadelphia. So he apparently knows exactly what it takes.

    “Well, first of all, we have a good team,” he said Thursday night, a Champagne-sopped baseball cap turned backward on his head. “And we actually have played well for a long time. Once we got past that 25-32 start, we’ve basically been playing at a 100-win pace, and our team has kind of come together.”

    Dombrowski’s team-building M.O. is no secret. He has assembled a roster led by stars, a pitching staff full of high-velocity arms and a clubhouse occupied by baseball nuts who love to play as much as they love being around each other. But when Dombrowski, the Phillies’ president of baseball operations, was asked how much of this was by design, the product of constantly searching for players who are ready for moments like this, he laughed.

    “Well, I mean, it’s hard to identify, specifically,” he said, “because if it was easy, everybody would do it.”

    But it’s amazing how often, through the years, Dombrowski has used the phrase, “championship-quality player,” to define what attracted him to the latest star he’d signed or traded for. So he has spent a four-decade career proving he knows that quality when he sees it. And the 2022-23 Phillies have now spent the last two Octobers proving it.

    On that note, let’s take a quick intermission to remind you of some of the things this group has done:

    • It has now beaten Strider three times since last October. No other team in the sport has even handed him more than one loss in those 12 months.

    • The Phillies have fed off their stadium-rocking fan base to go 10-2 at home in these last two postseasons — and an incredible 9-and-0 against the other National League playoff teams they’ve faced.

    • The Braves just hit more home runs (307) this season than any lineup in the history of the NL. Then the Phillies went and outhomered them in this series, 11-3. Only once all season (in mid-September) did the Braves give up 11 runs over any four-game span.

    • And that also means the Braves hit fewer home runs in this series as a team than Nick Castellanos — a man who didn’t hit a single home run for the Phillies all last postseason — pounded this week by himself, in a span of six at-bats.

    • Then again, that Phillies long-ball barrage didn’t merely start this week. The Phillies have now mashed 24 home runs over their past 10 postseason home games dating back to last year. And how many other teams have bombed that many long balls over a 10-game span in postseason history? That would be none, according to our friends from STATS Perform.

    • Which means, finally, that the Phillies hit more home runs in this Braves series (11) than they allowed runs (eight). And that’s the perfect transition to the next October lesson they have taught us …

    COLLECT POWER ARMS (AND KEEP THEM HEALTHY) — Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola and Ranger Suárez have started all six games the Phillies have played in this postseason. They’ve allowed a total of six earned runs — in six starts. That’s a 1.54 ERA. That’s how you win in October.

    Meanwhile, the Phillies have rolled out their assembly line of relievers pumping upper-90s heat over those six games — and given up a total of two runs, both of them on Austin Riley’s game-winning two-run homer off Jeff Hoffman in Game 2 of the NLDS. That’s a 1.26 ERA. That, too, is how you win at this time of year.

    In Game 1 of the NLDS, Phillies manager Rob Thomson orchestrated the first nine-inning, seven-pitcher shutout in franchise history. In Game 4, he waved for his two most trusted bullpen weapons, José Alvarado and Craig Kimbrel, in the sixth and seventh innings, respectively — and still had enough depth behind them to navigate to the finish line. And yes, that is how you win in October.

    “You know, early in the season,” Realmuto said, “we struggled a little bit … but when you have stuff like that, like we have on our staff, once they figured it out later in the season, they started rolling. So I trust our guys’ stuff against any team in baseball. That’s an incredible lineup we just faced for four games.”

    But one more thing: The Phillies also managed health and workloads so effectively this year that they somehow arrived in October with — miracle of miracles — every significant arm on their staff healthy. Compare that with the health (or lack thereof) of the Dodgers’ staff, or the Braves’ staff — and isn’t it obvious that this, too, is how you win in October?


    Zack Wheeler (pictured), Aaron Nola and Ranger Suárez have given the Phillies strong outings this postseason. (Dale Zanine / USA Today)

    COLLECT GUYS WHO LOVE THE MOMENT — October is a parade of game-defining, team-defining moments. Isn’t it hard to recall a roster as stuffed with hitters who feed off those moments as the group the Phillies roll out there every game?

    “You look at everyone on this team, and I think everyone wants the quote/unquote ‘moment,’” Schwarber said. “But when we get put in that moment, that’s a quality that’s hard to have, where everyone’s able to calm down within the craziness and really lock into the at-bat.”

    So where does that calm emanate from in those moments? Well, it’s always helpful to …

    BUILD AROUND A SUPERSTAR — I’ve already written one column this postseason laying out Bryce Harper’s special ability to rise to meet any moment. And Schwarber’s theory is that watching a teammate melt the pressure the way Harper does can have a powerful ripple effect on any team.

    “Bryce is a great example for everyone,” Schwarber said, “to look at and watch when the moment may be the biggest and the brightest it can be. And when you look at him in the box, there’s no giddiness. You look at the (pitches he) takes. There’s nothing that’s outlandish, where you’re trying to go get something.

    “You’re staying within yourself. And that’s what this team does really well is staying within themselves. And when you stay within yourselves, explosive things can happen.”


    Bryce Harper sets the tone for the Phillies. (Bill Streicher / USA Today)

    SO IT’S NOT APRIL, MAY, JUNE, JULY, AUGUST OR SEPTEMBER ANYMORE — The season is a marathon — a test of day-to-day grit, roster depth, system reinforcements, health and luck. It takes a village to survive the season. But it takes all the qualities we’ve just highlighted — very different qualities — to separate yourselves in October.

    As Dombrowski said, if it were easy to find those qualities, every team would do it. But by now, we should know them when we see them. And Braves manager Brian Snitker was the first to admit he saw them in the Phillies.

    “We got beat by a really good club,” he said Thursday night, “that has a penchant for this time of year.”

    So how should we define that penchant? “There’s no magic formula,” Realmuto said. But we’re down to four teams left in our October Madness tournament. So doesn’t it make more sense to study those teams and what got them here than it does to grasp for who’s to blame that eight other teams never made it this far?

    The blame game may be rattling away, off in the distance. But the Phillies? They can tune out that talk — because they’re on to the NLCS, to play a Diamondbacks team that may be as perfectly built for new-rules baseball as any offense in the sport. But now those D-Backs become the latest team to have every reason to fear the Phillies, because as we’ve mentioned, this is their time of year.

    “This team just feels like we’re built for October,” Realmuto said. “Look, obviously we would love to win 100 games in the regular season. We would love to run away with the division like the Braves got to do the last six years. But at the end of the day, our goal is to win a World Series. It’s not necessarily to beat the Braves. It’s not necessarily to win the division. It’s to win a World Series.

    “So now,” he said, “we know we’ve got two series down — and two more to go reach our goal.”

    The Athletic’s Tyler Kepner contributed to this story.

    go-deeper

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    Nick Castellanos and Phillies bask in the view after beating Braves their way to reach NLCS

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    Trea Turner makes history as he stars in Phillies’ playoff run to cap turnaround season

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    Braves a postseason bust again, ousted by Phillies for second straight year

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    Schultz: The Braves’ two playoff flops can’t be coincidence. This group needs to change

    (Top photo of Kyle Schwarber, left, and J.T. Realmuto celebrating after the Phillies advanced to the NLCS: Tim Nwachukwu / Getty Images)

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  • Rosenthal: Dodgers need to sign Ohtani and do more to change the narrative

    Rosenthal: Dodgers need to sign Ohtani and do more to change the narrative

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    If you’re a Los Angeles Dodgers fan, how exactly are you going to get fired up about the 2024 regular season?

    Two words: Shohei Ohtani. Yet, even if the Dodgers sign the two-way superstar as a free agent, they would not be assured of a different outcome in October.

    No matter. The Dodgers essentially took last offseason off while waiting for Ohtani to hit the open market. Now, after another crushing October disappointment, they need to change the narrative.

    Their biggest need is starting pitching. Ohtani will not pitch next season while recovering from elbow surgery. Even if his only task initially is to replace J.D. Martinez at designated hitter, he will not dramatically improve a Dodgers offense that just scored 900 runs for the first time in 70 years.

    Ohtani, 29, also will not be the answer to the Dodgers’ postseason woes. Not if he hits in the playoffs the way Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman did in going a combined 1-for-21 against the Arizona Diamondbacks. And not if the Dodgers fail to adequately address a 2024 rotation that presently includes only one proven starter: Walker Buehler, who will be coming off his second Tommy John surgery.

    Strictly from the standpoint of team building, the above points are quite relevant. But the Dodgers this offseason cannot simply be concerned with simple roster construction. For all their regular-season success, if ever a franchise needs to give their fans a reason to stay engaged, it’s this one.

    If you’re a Dodgers fan, you’re still likely to buy tickets to see Betts, Freeman and Co. next season, even if president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman does nothing. The Dodgers have led the league in attendance for each of the past 10 full seasons. Their average attendance of 47,371 this season was the highest in the majors by more than 7,000.

    Then again, if you’re a Dodgers fan, you’re probably experiencing just a bit of October fatigue.

    Your team has made the playoffs each of the past 11 years, yet secured a World Series title only in the shortened 2020 campaign.

    Your team has won 100 or more games in each of the past four full seasons, yet advanced past the Division Series only once.

    Your team, based on a comparison of regular-season records, has suffered three of the six biggest upsets in postseason history in the last three years!

    That’s … a lot.

    One can rationalize the true test of a franchise is its ability to build teams capable of repeatedly dominating the 162-game regular season, which the Dodgers have done.

    One can rationalize that, in an era when teams play at least three and sometimes four rounds of playoffs, a team needs considerable luck to win the World Series.

    One can rationalize in any number of ways, but many Dodgers fans will not want to hear it. Their team is this generation’s version of the 1990s and early 2000s Atlanta Braves, who won 14 straight division titles but only one World Series, in a 1995 season reduced by a player’s strike to 144 games. And really, enough is enough.

    Clayton Kershaw was the Dodgers’ most expensive signing, for one year, $20 million. Noah Syndergaard, one of the season’s bigger busts, was next, for one year, $13 million. Then came Martinez, for one year, $10 million, and a few lesser moves, including one, Jason Heyward, that worked out quite well.

    Friedman’s additions at the deadline (Lance Lynn, Joe Kelly, Amed Rosario, Kiké Hernández) were mostly meh, though Eduardo Rodríguez’s rejection of a trade from the Detroit Tigers to the Dodgers deprived the team of a potential difference-maker. The thin trade market foreshadowed what will be a relatively thin free-agent market. But the Dodgers surely know they cannot exercise restraint for a second straight winter, and rely on all of their young pitchers to mature at once.


    Dave Roberts will very likely get votes for NL Manager of the Year. (Mark J. Rebilas / USA Today)

    Manager Dave Roberts will be a topic of discussion, as he often is after playoff disappointments, but this one isn’t on him. After coaxing 100 wins out of this team, Roberts almost certainly will get votes from the baseball writers for NL Manager of the Year, perhaps even be a finalist.

    In the end, Kershaw’s bum shoulder, combined with injuries to Buehler, Dustin May and Tony Gonsolin and the absence of Julio Urias, left the team’s rotation too vulnerable. Urías, the team’s Opening Day starter, was charged with a domestic violence felony after a physical altercation with his wife in early September. Major League Baseball placed him on paid administrative leave, and he missed the rest of the season.

    The free agent who makes the most sense for the Dodgers, and every other club, is Japanese right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who will hit the market at 25. But Blake Snell, a pitcher the Rays drafted under Friedman, also will be available. Ditto for Aaron Nola and Sonny Gray, among others.

    Kershaw’s uncertain status further increases the urgency to bolster the rotation, and Ohtani actually fits into that plan, if not for ‘24, then perhaps beyond. Ohtani is not a sure thing coming off a second Tommy John surgery, and that surely will complicate his market. But his work ethic is impeccable. His character seems to be as well. The offense he will provide, along with the marketing boost, still makes him a perfect fit.

    This is about winning, yes, but the Dodgers have proven quite proficient at that. Even if they fail to sign Ohtani, they again should be the team to beat in the NL West. Well, been there, done that, for pretty much a decade and counting. No one should diminish Friedman’s accomplishments. But fans can be forgiven for wanting more.

    Ohtani would provide not just the steak, but also the sizzle. And maybe, come October, the dessert fans are craving, too.

    (Top photo of Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts: Ronald Martinez / Getty Images)

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  • MLB’s best playoff ballparks: The most raucous places this October from replaceable to Phanatical

    MLB’s best playoff ballparks: The most raucous places this October from replaceable to Phanatical

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    By Chad Jennings, C. Trent Rosecrans and Stephen J. Nesbitt

    In one American League Wild Card Series, the whole thing turned on a play designed around crowd noise. It was too loud at Target Field, Twins shortstop Carlos Correa realized, for the third-base coach to warn Blue Jays baserunners about a developing pickoff play. The Twins used the noise to their advantage, picked off Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and secured a two-game sweep.

    In the other AL Wild Card Series, empty seats were everywhere. The Rays are an excellent team that thrives on their underdog status — low payroll, injured players, they always find a way — but playing in front of two of the smallest postseason crowds in the past 100 years, the Rays were swept by a Rangers team that had nine fewer wins in the regular season. The indifference was deafening.

    Home-field advantage, it turns out, just isn’t the same from one ballpark to the next.

    “To be honest with you, I think we have one of the best home-field advantages in baseball,” third baseman Alec Bohm said as the Phillies swept the Marlins to improve to 24-11 in postseason games at Citizens Bank Park. “People say it’s difficult to play here and things like that. I think going through that type of stuff and learning how to play here, that just makes this time of year that much better.”

    This time of year certainly brings out the best, and the postseason’s greatest moments tend to be punctuated by the crowds who witness and react in real time. After seeing the way crowds could respond — or not — to October baseball this week, The Athletic ranked the home-field environments of the eight remaining playoff teams, from the replaceable to the Phanatical.

    No. 8: Arizona Diamondbacks

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Chase Field

    1998

    48,405

    24,212

    Memorable postseason moment: Game 7 of the 2001 World Series started with a pair of 20-game winners in Roger Clemens and Curt Schilling and ended with Hall of Famers on the mound: Mariano Rivera and Randy Johnson. In what is remembered as one of the greatest postseason games of all time, Luis Gonzalez blooped a bases-loaded single to score Jay Bell and deny the Yankees their fourth consecutive title.

    Our take: We’re sorry, D-Backs fans. It’s not you. It’s them. A tremendously impressive two-game sweep in Milwaukee carried the Diamondbacks into a division series showdown with, oh boy, the Dodgers. It’s not that we don’t think Arizona can beat L.A. at home — the Diamondbacks split six games against the Dodgers at Chase Field this season — but it’s less than a seven-hour drive from Dodger Stadium to downtown Phoenix, and we’re concerned that all the quirks of that ballpark could be rendered meaningless if there’s a bunch of Dodgers blue in the crowd.

    There’s a lot to like. The pool. The retractable roof. We love it. We hope you prove us wrong. Show up, go nuts, and leave a comment — click to subscribe! — telling us we don’t know a rattlesnake from a water moccasin. We deserve it.

    But if we had to go on the road for a playoff game, at least in this round, we’d choose your ballpark. Consider it a compliment! Or maybe we just like the dry heat.

    No. 7: Texas Rangers

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Globe Life Field

    2020

    40,300

    31,272

    Memorable postseason moment: There have been 16 postseason games in Globe Life Field history, but the Rangers have never appeared in a playoff game at their new-ish home. How did that happen? Well, 2020. It was a weird time. The Dodgers played in all 16 of those during the 2020 expanded playoffs, sweeping the Padres in the NLDS, going seven games with the Braves in the NLCS and then winning the World Series.

    Our take: This is the great unknown. Globe Life Field opened in a season that had no fans, and it remained open for losing seasons in 2021 and 2022. Saturday will be our first look at the place when the home team is actually playing meaningful baseball in October. Hard to rank it any higher until we know what we’re dealing with.

    The old Rangers ballpark could drum up a Texas-sized atmosphere worthy of Stevie Ray Vaughan and Pat Green, but the new place — at least in the regular season — feels very much like a multi-events space that happens to be hosting a ballgame. Maybe that changes in the playoffs? The Rangers haven’t been home since Sept. 24 when they won their last five games in Arlington, the last three of which went a long way toward keeping the Mariners out of the postseason.

    With a closed roof containing all the noise, Globe Life is sure to get awfully loud, and nothing turns a glorified convention center into a real ballpark quite like a late-inning rally in October.

    No. 6: Minnesota Twins

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Target Field

    2010

    38,544

    24,371

    Memorable postseason moment: For this, you have to go all the way back to Tuesday. The Twins snapped an 18-game postseason losing streak with two blasts off the bat of rookie Royce Lewis. It was their first playoff win since Oct. 5, 2004. On Wednesday, they completed the Wild Card sweep of the Blue Jays for their first postseason series win since 2002. The roars heard at Target Field, like this one, were more than two decades in the making.

    Our take: We have only a small sample of postseason games at Target Field, but, boy, Twins fans can make some noise. After Game 1 against Toronto, Twins manager Rocco Baldelli said, “I thought the place was going to split open and melt, honestly. It was out of this universe out there on the field. The fans took over the game. They helped us win today.” The next day, they did it again.

    Early in Game 2, Correa told Sonny Gray that, because of the crowd noise, Jays baserunners couldn’t hear their third-base coach screaming, “BACK!” So, with Guerrero on second and a full count to Bo Bichette, they executed a perfect timing pick. “The crowd was incredible,” Gray said after the game. “They were incredible yesterday. They were incredible today from the moment I stepped on the mound an hour before the game to the moment — they’re probably still out there.”

    So, Twins fans have swarmed their team with support. But is it intimidating? (It’s certainly better than its predecessor, the Metrodome, but it doesn’t have the same potential for overwhelming volume.) For now, Target Field strikes us as more of an awesome place to play than one that strikes fear in the opponent. But this month Twins fans could prove us very wrong.

    No. 5: Houston Astros

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Minute Maid Park

    2000

    41,168

    37,683

    Memorable postseason moment: Albert Pujols off Brad Lidge? Jorge Soler to the moon? Nah, we’ll go with Chris Burke ending what was then the longest game in MLB postseason history in both time (5 hours, 50 minutes) and innings (18) with a walk-off home run with one out in the 18th inning in the 2005 NLDS. Burke didn’t start the game but pinch-ran for Lance Berkman in the 10th. Roger Clemens came into the game for Houston in the 16th and pitched three scoreless to pick up the win. But it is Burke’s homer that will always be remembered.

    Our take: We get it, Houston. We also think your ballpark should be in the top half of this list. One of our writers called it “the loudest stadium I’ve ever attended, by at least one standard deviation.” The Astros sold out the building 23 times this year. They drew 3 million fans for the first time since 2007. Minute Maid Park is big and loud, and visiting fans show up fully exhausted from walking in the south Texas sun.

    But in all those sellouts, the Astros went 6-17. Despite all that noise, they were 39-42 at home. Before their final homestand, the team added some green paint to the batter’s eye in response to player complaints, and the Astros responded by going 1-5 with three of those losses coming against the Royals. So, yes, the ballpark is packed tighter than toes in a cowboy boot, and the place gets louder than a Pantera concert in a concrete basement, but these Astros just haven’t responded to it. Why not? Should a visiting team really be all that intimidated by it? Bring back the in-play flagpole atop Tal’s Hill, we say!

    No. 4: Atlanta Braves

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Truist Park

    2017

    41,084

    39,401

    Memorable postseason moment: When the Braves won the World Series in 1914, they were still playing in Boston. In 1957, Milwaukee. When Sid Bream slid home to beat the Pirates in 1992, the Braves were in the right city but at the wrong ballpark (Fulton County Stadium doesn’t count). The Max Fried-Jorge Soler game in 2021 happened in Houston. The iconic moment at Truist Park could be Eddie Rosario’s dazzling catch at the wall in Game 4 of the 2021 World Series, but the most memorable — even though it didn’t lead to a championship — might be rookie Ronald Acuna Jr. hitting a grand slam off Walker Buhler in Game 3 of the 2018 NLDS, which happened to be the first postseason game ever played at the ballpark.

    Our take: Obviously, there are issues bigger than baseball to deal with here. The war chant and Tomahawk Chop are offensive and problematic, but we’re not going to resolve that issue in the next four weeks. In fact, it’s all about to come front and center — again — as the best team in baseball opens its postseason with a roster that would be plenty intimidating in a Little League park with metal bleachers.

    But have you ever seen them play in front of 40,000 screaming fans when the stadium lights go dark and the entire ballpark starts doing the Chop in unison with their lit cell phones?

    “It does add something to the offensive ambiance,” our Braves scribe David O’Brien noted.

    Truist Park had 54 sellouts this season, and the place drew just over 3.19 million, which was the Braves’ highest total attendance since the park formerly known as SunTrust opened in 2017.

    The Braves have won six straight division titles, and they’ve been to the playoffs 22 times since 1991. This is not uncharted territory for them. This ballpark is going to be packed with fans who know their team is good and will not be quiet about it, regardless of what anyone else thinks.

    No. 3: Baltimore Orioles

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Oriole Park at Camden Yards

    1992

    44,970

    23,911

    Memorable postseason moment: Delmon Young’s three-run double in the eighth inning of Game 2 of the 2014 ALDS completed the Orioles’ comeback from three runs down in the eighth  to beat the Tigers. Zack Britton pitched a perfect ninth, and the Orioles would go on to beat the Tigers in Game 3 in Detroit to sweep the series before losing to the Royals in the ALCS.

    Our take: When the Orioles are bad, their ballpark is bad. Beautiful and unmistakable, but bad because of the empty seats and because it is basically a second home ballpark for every East Coast team that takes the train into Baltimore and overwhelms the place with their own variation of the “Let’s go, Yankees” chant. It’s a ballpark that can be, and has been, taken over by opposing fans.

    When the Orioles are good, though, Camden Yards is one of the best ballparks in the country, and it starts pregame with every rendition of the national anthem that includes the entire ballpark screaming “O!” in unison, so loud that it drowns out the word “say” before the hope-they’re-ready-for-it singer gets to the words, “does that star-spangled banner yet wave.”

    As you’ve no doubt realized, the Orioles are awfully good this year, and we expect Camden Yards to follow their lead. The O’s had the second-most wins in baseball, and their fans responded with a home attendance that jumped more than a half million from last season. A young Orioles roster might be at risk of being shell-shocked on the road, but at home, this team is going to be treated as heroes from the start.

    Let’s just hope, when they go on the road, manager Brandon Hyde doesn’t forget to use his best reliever in a must-win game. That could be pretty bad.

    No. 2: Los Angeles Dodgers

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Dodger Stadium

    1962

    56,000

    47,371

    Memorable postseason moment: With two outs and a runner on in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the 1988 World Series, Kirk Gibson hobbled toward home plate and stepped in against Hall of Fame A’s closer Dennis Eckersley. The Dodgers were down one and down to their last out. Gibson had an injured left hamstring and a balky right knee. He fouled off Eckersley’s first offering and almost fell over. He fouled off a couple more and worked the count full. Then he pulled an outside pitch into the right-field seats for a walk-off homer and, somehow, made his way around the bases. It remains one of the most badass moments in World Series history.

    Our take: All the jokes about traffic still making its way into the parking lot in the second inning are justified. The “intensity” of baseball in L.A. isn’t the same as it is in, say, St. Louis or Boston or any other city where athletes are the biggest celebrities in town.

    But by the middle innings, Dodger Stadium is packed, and by the late innings of playoff games, the place has the over-the-top intensity of a Michael Bay car chase (Mookie Betts as Bumblebee). More than one opposing pitcher this season had to tweak his PitchCom device to deal with the late-inning noise that came from such a massive ballpark, one that once again held the largest total attendance in baseball this year.

    “You’ve got a four-deck stadium,” Freddie Freeman said this summer. “It’s the only one in baseball. You’ve got 50,000 people, every single night here. For them to go out of their way to make you feel good when you’re doing your job, it means a lot. I do appreciate it. It does make you feel good inside and also just means you’re doing your job pretty good.”

    Speaking of doing a job pretty good, the Dodger Stadium D.J. is a maniac. For starters, the volume is set at a level that can’t possibly meet OSHA standards, and beyond that, there’s some twisted desire to have some sort of noise blaring at all times. Plus, there’s the intimidation factor of playing in an iconic ballpark that feels like no other in baseball. Dodger Stadium knows what it is and what it’s about, and it uses every bit of that to its advantage.

    No. 1: Philadelphia Phillies

    Team Venue Opened Capacity Att. (2023)

    Citizens Bank Park

    2004

    42,792

    38,157

    Memorable postseason moment: There have been three no-hitters in postseason history, and two have taken place at Citizens Bank Park. Those in Philly would like to forget the Astros’ combined no-hitter in Game 4 of last season’s World Series, so instead we’ll concentrate on Roy Halladay’s 2010 no-hitter in Game 1 of the NLDS against the Reds. In his first postseason start, Halladay allowed only one baserunner, when Jay Bruce walked with two outs in the fifth inning.

    Our take: Look, Philadelphia fans have thrown snowballs at Santa Claus and batteries at J.D. Drew. Their Phanatic mascot is iconic, but part of his charm is the way he – it? – taunts and antagonizes opponents. It’s a real love-it or hate-it place to play. The Phillies and their fans are capable of producing unforgettable moments, like Wednesday night when Bryson Stott hit a grand slam and the ballpark provided the only commentary necessary.

    “I yelled at the dugout and couldn’t really hear myself,” Stott said, “so I knew the crowd was loud. Any time we get to play here, you know it’s going to be loud from the very first pitch. I wouldn’t want to play anywhere else. It’s a phenomenal time every time we take the field here in the postseason.”

    “I’ve always said it, we’ve got the best fans in baseball,” Bryce Harper added. “It’s an amazing place to play.”

    (Top photo of Game 2 of the Wild Card series between the Marlins and the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Wednesday: Rob Tringali / MLB Photos via Getty Images)

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  • MLB teams make final playoff push with postseason spots on the line

    MLB teams make final playoff push with postseason spots on the line

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    MLB teams make final playoff push with postseason spots on the line – CBS News


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    Major League Baseball is entering its final weekend as multiple playoff spots remain up for grabs. CBS Sports baseball writer Matt Snyder joins to discuss his postseason picks.

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  • Dodgers place Clayton Kershaw on the injured list due to left shoulder soreness

    Dodgers place Clayton Kershaw on the injured list due to left shoulder soreness

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    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Clayton Kershaw was placed on the 15-day injured list by the Los Angeles Dodgers before Monday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates due to left shoulder soreness.

    The Dodgers recalled right-handers Michael Grove and Gavin Stone, and optioned left-hander Victor González to Triple-A Oklahoma City.

    Kershaw was selected to his 10th All-Star team Sunday, which tied him for the most in franchise history. He said he was planning to attend next week’s game in Seattle despite being unable to pitch.

    Max Muncy hit his 19th homer of the season, and Los Angeles defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates 5-2 to get Dave Roberts his 700th win as the Dodgers’ manager.

    New York Mets' Pete Alonso hits a two-run home run against the Houston Astros during the sixth inning of a baseball game Wednesday, June 21, 2023, in Houston. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

    Mets slugger Pete Alonso will participate in the All-Star Home Run Derby on July 10 in Seattle, looking to win the event for the third time.

    Kansas City Royals' Kyle Isbel slides home to score on a sacrifice fly hit by Bobby Witt Jr. during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Dodgers Sunday, July 2, 2023, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

    Nicky Lopez matched a career high with four RBIs while Maikel Garcia and Bobby Witt Jr. drove in two runs apiece to help Kansas City to a 9-1 romp over the Dodgers.

    Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw works in the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Colorado Rockies Tuesday, June 27, 2023, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

    Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw showed some progress while playing catch before Sunday’s game against the Kansas City Royals but the club remains uncertain what his next step will be.

    The left-hander picked up his 10th victory, which is tied for the NL lead, with six scoreless innings in his last start against Colorado on June 27. He is 10-4 this season with 105 strikeouts and a 2.55 ERA.

    Grove will start the opener of a four-game series against the Pirates. The right-hander is 0-2 with a 7.54 ERA.

    With Kershaw’s stint, every member of the Dodgers’ starting rotation has spent time on the injured list this season.

    ___

    AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • Michael Harris hits 2 HRs, Braves beat Guardians 4-2 for ninth straight win

    Michael Harris hits 2 HRs, Braves beat Guardians 4-2 for ninth straight win

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    CLEVELAND (AP) — Michael Harris homered twice and Bryce Elder, one of Atlanta’s eight All-Stars, pitched 6 2/3 solid innings to lead the Braves to their season-high ninth straight win, 4-2 over the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night.

    Harris connected for solo shots in the third and fifth innings off Guardians rookie Gavin Williams (0-1). Atlanta’s No. 9 hitter is batting .416 (37 of 89) with seven homers and 16 RBIs in his last 24 games.

    Marcell Ozuna also homered for the Braves, who have won 17 of 18 and 24 of 27. Atlanta, which has had three winning streaks of at least eight games, improved MLB’s best record to 57-27.

    Yainer Díaz had his first career two-homer game and Jeremy Peña added a two-run shot in his return from injury to lead the Houston Astros past the Colorado Rockies 6-4.

    Cleveland Guardians' David Fry, center, is mobbed by teammates after hitting a game-winning single in the tenth inning of a baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, July 4, 2023, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

    David Fry had a game-ending hit and the Cleveland Guardians stopped the Atlanta Braves’ nine-game winning streak with a 6-5 victory in 10 innings Tuesday night.

    Seattle Mariners' Ty France follows through on an RBI double to score Julio Rodriguez against the Tampa Bay Rays during the third inning of a baseball game, Sunday, July 2, 2023, in Seattle. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)

    Seattle center fielder Julio Rodríguez and right-hander George Kirby, Tampa Bay shortstop Wander Franco and Houston outfielder Kyle Tucker were added to the American League All-Star roster as injury replacements and Pittsburgh closer David Bednar was picked for the National League team.

    Seattle Mariners' Mike Ford (20) scores from third on a passed ball ahead of the tag by San Francisco Giants starting pitcher Keaton Winn (67) during the second inning of a baseball game, Tuesday, July 4, 2023, in San Francisco. (AP Photo/D. Ross Cameron)

    Logan Gilbert struck out seven pitching a five-hit gem for his first career complete game, Mike Ford homered during a four-hit performance, AJ Pollock added a late two-run shot, and the Seattle Mariners beat the San Francisco Giants 6-0 for their fourth straight win.After striking out Mike Yastrzems

    Elder (7-1) didn’t give up a run until Amed Rosario’s two-run single in the seventh. A.J. Minter came on and got out of a two-on jam and Nick Anderson retired Myles Straw with two on in the eighth. Raisel Iglesias worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 15th save.

    REDS 3, NATIONALS 2

    WASHINGTON (AP) — Joey Votto hit a two-run home run to end an 0-for-21 slump, Ian Gibaut pitched out of a jam in the sixth inning and Cincinnati beat Washington for its fifth win in six games.

    Votto homered in the fourth off Jake Irvin, depositing the ball just inside the visiting bullpen in left-center field and driving in Elly De La Cruz. It’s his fourth home run in 12 games this season since returning in June.

    Luke Weaver (2-2) picked up the win by allowing two earned runs on six hits in five-plus innings. He was spared a 10th consecutive no-decision — or worse — when Gibaut got through the sixth, allowing just one hit, striking out Corey Dickerson and inducing a flyout from Derek Hill.

    Catcher Tyler Stephenson drove in the Reds’ other run with an RBI single in the second. Fresh off being named an All-Star for the first time, closer Alexis Díaz picked up his 24th save.

    Jeimer Candelario hit his 12th home run of the season, a solo shot in the fourth inning for Washington. Irvin (1-4) struck out three and allowed six hits.

    MARLINS 5, CARDINALS 4

    MIAMI (AP) — Nick Fortes hit a go-ahead RBI single in the seventh inning and Miami rallied to beat St. Louis.

    Marlins pinch hitter Yuli Gurriel tied it in the seventh with a two-run double against reliever Andre Pallante (2-1) after two straight walks. The Marlins then inserted the speedy Jon Berti to pinch run for Gurriel, and Berti scored on Fortes’ ground-ball single.

    Marlins reliever Tanner Scott worked a scoreless eighth to preserve the lead, and A.J. Puk got the final three outs for his 14 save of the season.

    Paul DeJong had broken a 2-2 tie in the sixth with an RBI double for the Cardinals. Willson Contreras was 3 for 4, finishing a triple shy of the cycle.

    Huascar Brazoban (3-1) got the last two outs of the seventh for the win.

    YANKEES 6, ORIOLES 3

    NEW YORK (AP) — Harrison Bader hit a tiebreaking three-run homer in the eighth inning and New York rallied to beat Baltimore.

    Anthony Volpe scored the tying run in the seventh on a wild pitch by All-Star reliever Yennier Cano (1-1) before the Yankees completed the comeback ahead of a postgame fireworks show.

    Giancarlo Stanton opened the eighth with a hard single off Cano before Anthony Rizzo followed with a single against Danny Coulombe. After showing bunt on the first pitch, Bader drove a 1-1 sweeper into the left-field seats for his seventh homer.

    Tommy Kahnle (1-0) stranded former Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks in the eighth to keep it tied. Clay Holmes struck out two in a 1-2-3 ninth for his 10th save.

    The second-place Orioles lost for the fifth time in six games and are three games ahead of third-place New York in the division standings.

    BREWERS 8, CUBS 6

    MILWAUKEE (AP) — Newly signed Jahmai Jones hit a pinch-hit, three-run double in his first big league appearance since 2021, helping Milwaukee rally past Chicago.

    With the bases loaded and two outs in the seventh inning, Jones hit a line drive on the first pitch from reliever Anthony Kay that one-hopped off the center field wall and scored Raimel Tapia, Christian Yelich and Owen Miller, tying the game at 6.

    The Brewers completed their comeback from a six-run deficit in the eighth inning with an RBI single by Willy Adames and a sacrifice fly by Miller — both off Mark Leiter Jr. (1-2) — to take an 8-6 lead.

    Brewers All-Star reliever Devin Williams allowed a double by Nico Hoerner and a walk to Ian Happ in the ninth, and then struck out All-Star Dansby Swanson to earn his 18th save.

    Joel Payamps (3-1) pitched a perfect eighth inning for Milwaukee.

    The Brewers won their third straight game and remained tied for first place in the NL Central with Cincinnati. The Cubs have lost three straight and seven of their last eight.

    ASTROS 12, RANGERS 11

    ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — José Abreu and Chas McCormick had back-to-back RBI doubles in the ninth inning and second-place Houston Astros recovered after giving up an eight-run lead.

    Abreu and McCormick also homered earlier for Houston, which took three of four against its instate rival to move within three games of the division lead. It is the closest the Astros have been in a month after trailing by as many as 6 1/2 games.

    Kyle Tucker, who hit Houston’s majors-best eighth grand slam in the second for a 6-0 lead, led off the ninth with a single against Rangers closer Will Smith (1-3), who had only his second blown save in 16 chances. Abreu and McCormick then followed Alex Bregman’s deep flyout with their doubles.

    The Rangers had their only lead on Corey Seager’s sacrifice fly that made it 11-10 in the eighth.

    Bryan Abreu (3-2), the fifth Houston pitcher, allowed that run in the eighth before Ryan Pressly worked the ninth for his 18th save in 21 tries.

    TWINS 8, ROYALS 4

    MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Edouard Julien hit a pinch-hit, solo homer to start a five-run eighth inning and Minnesota went on to beat Kansas City for the seventh time in eight games this season.

    Carlos Correa had four hits from the leadoff spot and Byron Buxton drove in two runs with sacrifice flies for the Twins.

    The Royals had tied the score in the top of the inning on a solo homer by Nick Pratto off Brent Headrick (2-0), the first batter he faced.

    Kansas City reliever Taylor Clarke (1-3) surrendered five runs and five hits and retired just one of the seven batters he faced.

    The Royals have lost 11 of their last 12 games in Minnesota.

    MARINERS 6, GIANTS 5

    SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Julio Rodríguez hit a two-run double in a four-run ninth inning against All-Star closer Camilo Doval, and Seattle held on to beat San Francisco.

    J.P. Crawford broke a 2-all tie with a sacrifice fly against Doval. Rodríguez’s double made it 5-2, and Teoscar Hernández added an RBI single with two outs as the Mariners handed Doval his worst outing in the majors.

    Andrés Muñoz (2-1) pitched eighth to get the win. Doval (2-3) had his third blown save in 27 chances this season.

    Rookie catcher Blake Sabol homered twice and drove in all five runs for the Giants. He launched a three-run shot with two outs in the ninth to bring San Francisco within one. Pinch-hitter Wilmer Flores singled before Paul Sewald struck out Brandon Crawford to end it.

    PADRES 10, ANGELS 3

    SAN DIEGO (AP) — Blake Snell helped keep All-Star sluggers Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout in the ballpark, and Xander Bogaerts hit a three-run homer that sent disappointing San Diego to a big win.

    Trout left with an apparent left hand or wrist injury after fouling off a pitch while leading off the eighth inning. He immediately shook his arm. Angels manager Phil Nevin and a trainer came out to check on the superstar and he left the field.

    Ohtani wasn’t able to add to his major league league-leading 31 home runs. He walked twice. Trout, who has 18 homers, walked, had two singles and drove in a run.

    In perhaps the biggest at-bat of the night, rookie reliever Tom Cosgrove struck out Ohtani on three straight pitches with two runners on in the sixth, one batter after Trout hit an RBI single to pull the Angels to 4-2.

    Snell (5-7) held the Angels to seven hits while striking out seven and walking four in five innings.

    Jaime Barria (2-4) allowed four runs and five hits in five innings, struck out five and walked none.

    DODGERS 5, PIRATES 2

    LOS ANGELES (AP) — Max Muncy hit his 18th homer of the season, and Los Angeles got Dave Roberts his 700th win as the Dodgers’ manager.

    Jason Heyward and Miguel Rojas had RBI doubles to help the Dodgers bounce back after dropping the last two games in a weekend series at Kansas City.

    Caleb Ferguson (5-3), the second of six Los Angeles pitchers, got the win. Evan Phillips worked the ninth for his 12th save

    Mitch Keller (9-4) gave up five runs (four earned) in five innings and struck out seven. The Pirates have dropped three straight as they left nine on base and were 2 for 9 with runners in scoring position.

    ___

    AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • Braves sign new C Sean Murphy to a $73 million, 6-year deal

    Braves sign new C Sean Murphy to a $73 million, 6-year deal

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    ATLANTA — The Atlanta Braves signed newly acquired catcher Sean Murphy to a $73 million, six-year contract Tuesday, locking up another key player with a long-term deal.

    The contract includes a $15 million club option for 2029 with no buyout that could raise the total value of the agreement to $88 million.

    Murphy will make $4 million in 2023, $9 million in 2024 and $15 million each season from 2025 through 2028. He agreed to donate 1% of his annual salary to the Atlanta Braves Foundation.

    The deal follows a familiar pattern of the Braves agreeing to new contracts with players who are still under club control for an extended period. Over the past year, they reached long-term deals with sluggers Austin Riley and Matt Olson, as well as rookie stars Michael Harris II and Spencer Strider.

    Atlanta has previously signed outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr. and second baseman Ozzie Albies to similar pacts, ensuring that seven core players are under contract for at least three more seasons — and often much longer — with club options that could extend the deals even more.

    The 28-year-old Murphy was acquired from the Oakland Athletics shortly after the winter meetings in a three-team deal that also included the Milwaukee Brewers.

    The Braves sent All-Star catcher William Contreras and minor league pitcher Justin Yeager to the Brewers, while backup catcher Manny Piña and pitching prospects Kyle Muller, Freddy Tarnok and Royber Salinas went to Oakland.

    Braves general manager Alex Anthopoulos acknowledged paying a heavy price, but said it was worth the cost to acquire one of the game’s top catchers.

    “We definitely gave up a ton,” Anthopoulos said at the time. “But we got a really good player back. Getting players like that is hard.”

    Murphy batted .250 with 18 homers, 66 RBIs and a .759 OPS in 148 games this past season. He’s regarded as an elite defender, winning a Gold Glove in 2021.

    Murphy is expected to share playing time behind the plate with Travis d’Arnaud, a player with similar offensive and defensive strengths. Those two also are expected to get extensive time at designated hitter, with the idea of keeping them as fresh as possible over the long season.

    The acquisition of Murphy has been the biggest offseason move for the five-time defending NL East champions, who also added depth in their bullpen with a trade for former All-Star reliever Joe Jiménez.

    But for the second year in a row, one of the team’s most popular and productive players left in free agency.

    One year after first baseman Freddie Freeman signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, longtime Braves shortstop Dansby Swanson finalized a $177 million, seven-year deal with the Chicago Cubs.

    Vaughn Grissom and Orlando Arcia are the contenders to be Swanson’s replacement unless the Braves make a move to bring in another shortstop before opening day.

    ———

    AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Roberto Clemente remains Latino legend 50 years after death

    Roberto Clemente remains Latino legend 50 years after death

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    When Puerto Ricans belt the name Roberto Clemente in song, they want the world to understand their pride, unity and culture. Clemente, for them, is the pinnacle of what it means to be a true Puerto Rican. His name is in their songs, and kids read about his story in school. His picture hangs in the houses of many Latino ballplayers.

    “When we’re being challenged, and they’re trying to figure out who we are, the answer is we all wear No. 21,” said Luis Clemente, Roberto’s middle son. “We are Roberto Clemente, so you know who we are. This is the face of what makes a Puerto Rican.”

    Fifty years after his death, Roberto Clemente, the skillful outfielder with the Pittsburgh Pirates, remains one of the most revered figures in Puerto Rico and Latin America. His graceful flare and powerful arm were unrivaled in his era, but his humanitarian efforts are perhaps his greatest legacy. Half a century after he played, many of today’s Latino baseball players credit him for paving the way.

    “The name Roberto Clemente is something that fills us with passion and admiration,” said Miami Marlins pitcher Sandy Alcantara, who was born in the Dominican Republic. “Since he was one of the Latin players that did so much for us here in America, not only here but in all of Latin America, I think he is a living legend.”

    Clemente died at age 38 on Dec. 31, 1972, when his plane crashed off the coast of Puerto Rico as he was delivering relief supplies to earthquake victims in Nicaragua.

    He died a future Baseball Hall of Famer, with exactly 3,000 hits, four National League batting titles, 12 Gold Gloves, an MVP award, two World Series championships and 15 All-Star appearances.

    He was passionate about his Puerto Rican roots, and he spoke loudly about the racism he experienced as a Black Latino during a career that paralleled the civil rights movement.

    “That was an expression of Clemente’s angst of how many saw him,” said baseball historian Adrian Burgos Jr., who focuses on the experience of Latinos in baseball. “Outside of that superstar ballplayer, they saw a Black man, a Black Latino, when he began to speak.”

    Clemente entered the majors after Jackie Robinson broke the sport’s color barrier, and he was unprepared for what he faced when he left Puerto Rico.

    According to demographics data compiled by the Society for American Baseball Research, white players made up 90.7% of MLB players when Pittsburgh selected Clemente from the then-Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1954 Rule 5 draft. African American players made up 5.6%, while Latino players made up 3.7%.

    When Clemente reported for Pirates spring training in Florida, Black players weren’t allowed to eat in the same restaurants as their white teammates after games and often had to wait for food to be brought back to them on the bus.

    Clemente refused to be treated like a second-class citizen, and he demanded the same mindset from his Black teammates.

    “He would even tell the rest of his teammates, ‘Those of you who eat food from this place, we’re gonna go at it,’” Luis Clemente said. “And they’d say, ‘Roberto, we’re starving. We have to eat something.’ He’d say, ‘I don’t care. … If I’m not good enough to be served food at that restaurant, then that food is not good enough to feed ourselves.’”

    Clemente understood the impact of his voice, which he used to denounce racism, oftentimes in his native Spanish language. His statements were translated in broken English. His pride and demeanor were often misunderstood.

    “There’s all kinds of cultural dissonance in terms of a sense of who he is and the more traditional take on ballplayers for these taciturn, tobacco-spitting white guys,” said Rob Ruck, author of “Raceball: How the Major Leagues Colonized the Black and Latin Game.”

    Clemente spoke about political and social issues with Martin Luther King Jr. He was passionate about creating equal access for Latinos and often went back to Puerto Rico to host free baseball clinics for underprivileged kids.

    The Roberto Clemente Award is given each year to a player for charitable work in the community. Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner was this year’s winner.

    Clemente’s dedication to humanitarianism lives today through his family and the Roberto Clemente Foundation, which delivered food and aid to families in Puerto Rico when Hurricane Fiona ripped through the island earlier this year.

    “That is the true Clemente legacy,” Luis Clemente said, “is how you help others and how you make others understand how important they are in society.”

    The same can be said for today’s Latino players, he added, as he feels their dedication to their home countries started, in part, with his father.

    “Dad set the example of being thankful for what God provides,” Luis Clemente said, “for the opportunity of becoming a Major League Baseball player. … These players for the most part, they have had it rough. They understand what living in need is and they know how to share their blessing.”

    Today’s MLB and cultural landscape look quite different from when Clemente played, but diversity issues still exist.

    On opening day 2022, 38% of players on active 30-man rosters were people of color, per The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport. The percentage of African American players (7.2%) is the lowest it has been in over 30 years, while the number of Hispanic and Latino players (28.5%) continues to increase.

    On Sept. 15, when the league celebrated its annual Roberto Clemente Day, the Tampa Bay Rays made MLB history by starting nine Latin American players against the Toronto Blue Jays.

    Latino stars like Ronald Acuña Jr. and Fernando Tatis Jr. have helped usher in a livelier era for MLB, one in which boisterous Latino players are more comfortable than ever showing off the energy and flair more typical in their home countries than in the U.S.

    Yet, Latino players still confront longstanding criticisms that any eccentricity they bring is too much.

    “The continuing tension that Latino players encounter is this notion that is rooted in an imagined past,” Burgos said, “and that is ‘Play the game the right way.’ Much of that comes out of the culture of Major League Baseball during its segregated era, where it was only white American players that were in the league.”

    Because of his impact, many people believe Clemente’s No. 21 should be retired league-wide. Only Robinson’s No. 42 is retired on every MLB team.

    “For me, Clemente was a figure of political resistance,” Ruck said. “He was also a figure to me that captured what sport can be in its best-case scenario, which is a democratic arena accessible to all.”

    ___

    AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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  • Trevor Bauer reinstated by MLB’s independent arbitrator

    Trevor Bauer reinstated by MLB’s independent arbitrator

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    NEW YORK — Trevor Bauer was reinstated Thursday by Major League Baseball’s independent arbitrator, allowing the pitcher to resume his career at the start of the 2023 season.

    The 31-year-old Los Angeles Dodgers star was given an unprecedented two-season suspension without pay by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred on April 29 for violating the league’s domestic violence and sexual assault policy after a San Diego woman said Bauer beat and sexually abused her last year, an accusation the pitcher denied.

    The players’ association filed a grievance on behalf of the former Cy Young Award winner, and a three-person panel headed by independent arbitrator Martin Scheinman started hearing the case on May 23.

    Scheinman upheld a 194-game suspension rather than Manfred’s intended 324-game penalty but reinstated Bauer immediately, assigning 50 games to cover part of the lengthy time Bauer was put on administrative leave while MLB investigated during the 2021 season and early this year.

    “Can’t wait to see y’all out at a stadium soon!” Bauer wrote on Twitter.

    Bauer will lose more than $37 million in salary for the final 144 games of last season and for the first 50 games of next season, through May 23. The lost salary next year is effectively a clawback from part of his administrative leave, when he continued to receive pay.

    MLB said Scheinman affirmed that Bauer violated the domestic violence policy.

    “While we believe a longer suspension was warranted, MLB will abide by the neutral arbitrator’s decision, which upholds baseball’s longest-ever active player suspension for sexual assault or domestic violence,” MLB said in a statement. “We understand this process was difficult for the witnesses involved and we thank them for their participation.”

    While Scheinman issued his award to the parties, a full written decision is not expected until later. The panel included MLB Deputy Commissioner Dan Halem and union assistant general counsel Bob Lenaghan.

    “While we are pleased that Mr. Bauer has been reinstated immediately, we disagree that any discipline should have been imposed,” Bauer’s representatives, Jon Fetterolf, Shawn Holley and Rachel Luba, said in a statement. “That said, Mr. Bauer looks forward to his return to the field, where his goal remains to help his team win a World Series.”

    The players’ association declined comment on Scheinman’s decision.

    Bauer was never charged with a crime. His accuser sought but was denied a restraining order against him, and Los Angeles prosecutors said in February there was insufficient evidence to prove the woman’s accusations beyond a reasonable doubt.

    Bauer, who hasn’t played since the allegations surfaced and MLB began investigating, repeatedly has said that everything that happened between him and the woman was consensual.

    An email sent after business hours Thursday seeking comment from the woman’s attorney, Bryan Freedman, wasn’t immediately returned.

    Bauer sued his accuser in federal court, a move that came less than three months after prosecutors decided not to file criminal charges against the pitcher. Bauer named the woman and one of her attorneys, Niranjan Fred Thiagarajah, as defendants in the lawsuit. The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they have been victims of sexual assault.

    The lawsuit said that “the damage to Mr. Bauer has been extreme” after the woman alleged that he had choked her into unconsciousness, punched her repeatedly and had anal sex with her without her consent during two sexual encounters last year.

    The pitcher has said the two engaged in rough sex at his Pasadena home at her suggestion and followed guidelines they agreed to in advance.

    Another woman, from Columbus, Ohio, told The Washington Post that Bauer repeatedly choked her without her consent and sexually assaulted her over the course of a years-long relationship. Bauer, in a statement through his representatives, said their relationship was “casual and wholly consensual.”

    The suspension will cost Bauer $37,594,233 from his $102 million, three-year contract: $28,131,868 of his $32 million salary in 2022 and $9,462,365 of his $32 million salary in 2023.

    Under Major League Rule 2, Bauer will not count against the Dodgers’ player limits for 14 days, giving the team until Jan. 6 to decide whether to cut ties. If the Dodgers jettison Bauer, they would remain responsible for the roughly $22.6 million he is owed next season and he would be free to sign with any club.

    “We have just been informed of the arbitrator’s ruling and will comment as soon as practical,” the Dodgers said in a statement.

    The money not paid to Bauer will be reflected on the Dodgers’ luxury tax payroll, cutting the amount of tax they must pay this year and are projected to pay in 2023.

    After winning his first Cy Young with the Cincinnati Reds in 2020, Bauer agreed to join his hometown Dodgers. He did not pitch after June 29 in 2021 and finished with an 8-2 record and a 2.59 ERA in 17 appearances.

    Bauer was placed on administrative leave on July 2, 2021, under the domestic violence policy, a leave extended 13 times.

    Among 15 players previously disciplined under the policy, the longest suspension was a full season and postseason for free agent pitcher Sam Dyson in 2021. None of the players previously disciplined under the policy appear to have challenged the penalty before an arbitrator.

    Bauer’s suspension was the longest of any MLB player since pitcher Jenrry Mejia was given a lifetime ban in 2016 for a third violation of the drug agreement. Mejia was reinstated for 2019 and returned in the minor leagues.

    ———

    AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer reinstated from suspension by independent arbitrator

    Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer reinstated from suspension by independent arbitrator

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    Trevor Bauer was reinstated Thursday by Major League Baseball’s independent arbitrator, allowing the pitcher to resume his career at the start of the 2023 season.

    The Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher was given an unprecedented two-season suspension without pay by baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred on April 29 for violating the league’s domestic violence and sexual assault policy after a San Diego woman said Bauer beat and sexually abused her last year, an accusation the pitcher denied.

    The players’ association filed a grievance on Bauer’s behalf, and a three-person panel headed by independent arbitrator Martin Scheinman started hearing the case on May 23.

    Scheinman upheld a 194-game suspension rather than Manfred’s intended 324-game penalty but reinstated Bauer immediately, assigning 50 games to cover part of the lengthy time Bauer was put on administrative leave while MLB investigated during the 2021 season and early this year.

    “Can’t wait to see y’all out at a stadium soon!” Bauer wrote on Twitter.  

    San Francisco Giants v Los Angeles Dodgers
    FILE — Trevor Bauer of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches against the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium on June 28, 2021 in Los Angeles, California.

    Meg Oliphant/Getty Images


    “We have just been informed of the arbitrator’s ruling and will comment as soon as practical,” the Dodgers said in a statement.

    The Dodgers will have to decide whether to retain Bauer. If they cut him, they would be responsible for the remaining salary he is owed.

    Bauer, the 2020 National League Cy Young Award winner, will lose more than $37 million in salary for the final 144 games of last season and for the first 50 games of next season, through May 23. The lost salary next year is effectively a clawback from part of his administrative leave, when he continued to receive pay.

    MLB said Scheinman affirmed that Bauer violated the domestic violence policy.

    “While we believe a longer suspension was warranted, MLB will abide by the neutral arbitrator’s decision, which upholds baseball’s longest-ever active player suspension for sexual assault or domestic violence,” MLB said in a statement. “We understand this process was difficult for the witnesses involved and we thank them for their participation.”

    Bauer’s accuser sought but was denied a restraining order against him. Los Angeles prosecutors said in February there was insufficient evidence to prove the woman’s accusations beyond a reasonable doubt.

    Bauer, who hasn’t played since the allegations surfaced and MLB began investigating, repeatedly has said that everything that happened between him and the woman was consensual.

    Bauer was placed on administrative leave on July 2, 2021, under the domestic violence policy, a leave extended 13 times.

    Among 15 players previously disciplined under the policy, the longest suspension was a full season and postseason for free agent pitcher Sam Dyson in 2021. None of the players previously disciplined under the policy appear to have challenged the penalty before an arbitrator.

    Bauer sued his accuser in federal court, a move that came less than three months after prosecutors decided not to file criminal charges against the pitcher. Bauer named the woman and one of her attorneys, Niranjan Fred Thiagarajah, as defendants in the lawsuit. The Associated Press does not typically identify people who say they have been victims of sexual assault.

    The lawsuit said that “the damage to Mr. Bauer has been extreme” after the woman alleged that he had choked her into unconsciousness, punched her repeatedly and had anal sex with her without her consent during two sexual encounters last year.

    The pitcher has said the two engaged in rough sex at his Pasadena home at her suggestion and followed guidelines they agreed to in advance.

    Bauer has said in a past statement sent through his representatives that he had a “casual and wholly consensual sexual relationship from 2013-2018” with the woman, which began when he was pitching for the Triple-A team in Columbus.

    “None of our meetings ever involved a single non-consensual, let alone illegal, act,” Bauer said. “In fact, she is the one who introduced me to choking, both in our relationship and as a consensual act during sex. The incidents she detailed to the Washington Post — and specifically the one that involved non-consensual choking in which she claims to have convulsed and woken up on a hotel floor — absolutely never occurred, in any capacity.”

    After winning his first Cy Young with the Cincinnati Reds in 2020, Bauer agreed to join his hometown Dodgers. He did not pitch after June 29 in 2021 and finished with an 8-2 record and a 2.59 ERA in 17 appearances. He was paid his $28 million salary last year.

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  • AP source: Bogaerts to Padres for 11 years, $280 million

    AP source: Bogaerts to Padres for 11 years, $280 million

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    The San Diego Padres and Xander Bogaerts have agreed to a blockbuster $280 million, 11-year contract, adding the All-Star slugger to an already deep lineup

    SAN DIEGO — The San Diego Padres and Xander Bogaerts agreed to a blockbuster $280 million, 11-year contract Wednesday night, adding the All-Star slugger to an already deep lineup.

    A person familiar with the negotiations confirmed the contract to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because it was pending a physical.

    The Padres already had Fernando Tatis Jr. at shortstop, but he missed the entire season because of injuries and an 80-game suspension for testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug.

    San Diego also met with Aaron Judge and Trea Turner before the big stars opted for different teams. The Padres reached the NL Championship Series this year before losing to the Phillies.

    “From our standpoint, you want to explore and make sure we’re looking at every possible opportunity to get better,” general manager A.J. Preller said before the Bogaerts deal surfaced. “We’ve got a real desire to win and do it for a long time.”

    The 30-year-old Bogaerts was one of the headliners in a stellar group of free-agent shortstops that also included Turner, Carlos Correa and Dansby Swanson.

    Bogaerts, who’s from Aruba, terminated his $120 million, six-year contract with Boston after the season. The four-time All-Star forfeited salaries of $20 million for each of the next three years after hitting .307 with 15 homers and 73 RBIs in 150 games.

    Bogaerts is a .292 hitter with 156 homers and 683 RBIs in 10 big league seasons — all with Boston. He helped the Red Sox win the World Series in 2013 and 2018.

    Bogaerts becomes the latest veteran hitter to depart Boston after the Red Sox traded Mookie Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers in February 2020. Rafael Devers has one more year of arbitration eligibility before he can hit the market.

    Bogaerts had his best big league season in 2019, batting .309 with a career-best 33 homers and 117 RBIs. He had 23 homers and 103 RBIs in 2018.

    In 44 postseason games, Bogaerts is a .231 hitter with five homers and 16 RBIs.

    ———

    Blum reported from Qatar.

    ———

    AP baseball: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP—Sports

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  • MLB live updates, takeaways: Padres, Astros and Phils move on, Guardians put Yankees on the brink

    MLB live updates, takeaways: Padres, Astros and Phils move on, Guardians put Yankees on the brink

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    Eight teams started Saturday still in the 2022 postseason. After today’s league division series games, that number shrank considerably.

    The Philadelphia Phillies eliminated the Atlanta Braves with an 8-3 National League Division Series Game 4 victory that had Philly’s Citizens Bank Park rocking.

    The Seattle Mariners played their first home playoff game in more than 20 years, but they couldn’t avert a sweep against the Houston Astros. And the San Diego Padres knocked out the 111-win Los Angeles Dodgers after holding on for a 2-1 victory in Game 3.

    The American League Division Series matchup between the New York Yankees and Cleveland Guardians was split after the first two games in the Bronx. But the Guardians pushed the 99-win Yankees to the brink of elimination with a walk-off win in Game 3.

    More: Everything you need to know about the 2022 MLB playoffs | Previewing LDS matchups | Could this be the greatest postseason … ever? | Bracket, results and more

    Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego Padres

    Padres win series 3-1

    Takeaways

    The Padres have slayed the “dragon up the freeway,” to borrow a phrase from their owner, Peter Seidler. They won three consecutive NLDS games to eliminate a star-studded Dodgers team that dominated them throughout the regular season, and they seem to be operating at a completely different level at this juncture. They’re getting solid-to-great starting pitching and playing stellar defense behind it. The back end of their bullpen is dominating. And they’re stringing together timely hits, never more so than in the five-run seventh inning that produced an epic comeback on Saturday night.

    Perhaps just as important — they’re playing with an extreme level of confidence. Eliminating the Mets and Dodgers, two teams that combined to win 212 games during the regular season, will do that. Now they’ll have the home-field advantage in an NLCS showdown against the similarly hot Phillies. And given the energy at Petco Park these last two nights, that could be a major lift. — Alden Gonzalez

    San Diego’s first lead of the game

    Padres tie things up

    Dodgers strike first

    Some pregame news

    Guardians lead series 2-1

    It might seem impossible to win without going big on offense in the postseason, but don’t tell that to the plucky Cleveland Guardians. The New York Yankees hit three homers, including a 449-foot moon shot by formerly struggling slugger Aaron Judge. But the Guardians just keep blooping pitches into the outfield and looping little liners to the opposite field — and before you knew, it added up to some real offense. The Yankees tried to close it out with a combination of Wandy Peralta and Clarke Schmidt, but Cleveland kept blooping and looping until the bases were loaded for frequent postseason hero Oscar Gonzalez, who singled softly through the middle, scoring two runs for a walk-off win in the ninth inning as a sell-out crowd at Progressive Field set the grandstand shuddering. It turns out a slingshot offense actually can get it done in October, and when it does, it’s awfully fun to watch. — Bradford Doolittle

    Cleveland walks it off

    Guardians’ lead is short-lived

    Yankees add to the lead

    All rise … finally

    Aaron Judge‘s first hit of the postseason is a game-tying two-run homer. Prior to that, Judge had been 0-9, with eight strikeouts this postseason. According to ESPN Stats & Information, that was Judge’s 12th career postseason home run, which broke a tie with Bernie Williams for the third most by a Yankee through the age-30 season. Judge trails only Mickey Mantle (14 home runs in 54 games) and Derek Jeter (14 HRs in 110 games).

    Guardians strike first (and second)

    Cleveland is ready to rock

    Astros win series 3-0

    Takeaways

    The game that felt like it might never end finally did, at 7:31 p.m. local time — 6 hours, 22 minutes after it started, 18 innings deep, on account of one bad pitch.

    Jeremy Pena, the rookie shortstop for the Houston Astros, hammered a hanging slider from Seattle Mariners rookie Penn Murfee to center field, breaking the longest scoreless tie in playoff history and leading the Astros to a 1-0 victory.

    In a game that had as many pitchers as hits (18), with a postseason-record 42 strikeouts, no errors and incredibly clean baseball, the Astros advanced to their sixth consecutive AL Championship Series, sweeping their division rivals and illustrating again that whether it’s a slugfest or a pitching duel, they’re as equipped as any team to triumph. — Jeff Passan

    Houston completes the sweep

    Astros (finally) get on the board first

    They’re still scoreless in Seattle

    Wait, what just happened?

    Hail to the king

    Arrivals

    Phillies win series 3-1

    Takeaways

    Once again, Major League Baseball will not have a repeat World Series champion after the Phillies bounced the Braves from the postseason with a resounding 8-3 victory in Game 4 of their NLDS.

    Just as they did in all three of their wins in the series, the Phillies jumped to an early lead that had Atlanta playing chase pretty much from the beginning. And for the second day in a row, it was a party from start to finish at a raucous Citizens Bank Park.

    Instead of a bat-spike home run celebration providing the signature moment like it did in Game 3, the highlight on Saturday was a spring around the bases. In the third inning, J.T. Realmuto became the first catcher in postseason history to hit an inside-the-park home run, one inning after Brandon Marsh ignited the crowd with a three-run blast.

    Two things are clear no matter who Philly faces in the NLCS: This team that found new life earlier in the season when manager Rob Thomson took over won’t be an easy out for anyone; and when the Phillies take the field at home in an NLCS for the first time since 2010 on Friday, it’s going to be quite a scene in Philadelphia. — Jesse Rogers

    Bryce adds the exclamation point

    Phillies piling on

    According to ESPN Stats & Information, that is the first inside-the-park home run by a catcher in the postseason and the first time any Phillies player has done it in the playoffs.

    Braves get one back

    Phillies strike big first blow

    Dawn Staley is hyped

    The Philadelphia native knows a bit about winning when it counts.

    Is Blooper nervous?

    Arrivals

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  • MLB Playoffs: Mariners host Astros, Yankees visit Guardians

    MLB Playoffs: Mariners host Astros, Yankees visit Guardians

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    Playoff baseball returns to the Pacific Northwest on Saturday.

    The Seattle Mariners are hoping it’s more than a one-day cameo.

    Julio Rodríguez and company host Yordan Alvarez and the Houston Astros for Game 3 of their AL Division Series. The Mariners are hoping to extend their October stay after dropping the first two games of the best-of-five series in Houston.

    Matt Olson and Atlanta look to stay alive against Bryce Harper and Philadelphia, and the Los Angeles Dodgers take on Manny Machado and San Diego in Game 4 of their NLDS on Saturday night. The New York Yankees face the Cleveland Guardians in the other ALDS matchup.

    It’s the first playoff game in Seattle since the Mariners were eliminated by the New York Yankees in the 2001 AL Championship Series.

    “The factor that I don’t think is getting talked about enough and I think it’s going to show up tomorrow on the first inning is when there’s 45,000 Mariner fans in the stands pumped and ready to go, and all behind us. Because we certainly need it,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “I talked about it when we clinched, ended the drought, how valuable our fan base has been to this team. This team really, somehow, we get wired, we get going when it’s loud here.”

    Seattle snapped the longest playoff drought in the four major North American sports when it clinched one of the AL wild cards on Sept. 30 thanks to Cal Raleigh’s home run.

    Even the starting pitcher for Houston — trying to end Seattle’s season on Saturday — has appreciation for seeing the Mariners back in the postseason.

    “Moments like these where the fans get to come back out and watch postseason baseball for an organization that hasn’t been there in a while I think is really cool,” Houston right-hander Lance McCullers Jr. said.

    Here’s what else to know about the MLB playoffs Saturday:

    SATURDAY’S SCHEDULE (All times ET)

    NLDS Game 4: Atlanta at Philadelphia, 2:07 p.m., FS1

    ALDS Game 3: Houston at Seattle, 4:07 p.m., TBS

    ALDS Game 3: New York Yankees at Cleveland, 7:37 p.m., TBS

    NLDS Game 4: Los Angeles Dodgers at San Diego, 9:37 p.m., FS1

    ALL RISE?

    Maybe a change of scenery will help Aaron Judge as he looks to find his timing at the plate. Judge and the Yankees visit the Guardians for Game 3 of their AL Division Series on Saturday.

    Judge went 0 for 5 with four strikeouts in Friday’s 4-2 loss in Game 2. He is 0 for 8 with seven strikeouts in the deadlocked best-of-five series.

    “Just a little late,” Judge said. “When you’re a little late, you’re missing pitches that you’re usually doing some damage on. You’re swinging at stuff that you usually don’t. So it’s truly all about timing.”

    The 30-year-old Judge hit .311 with 62 homers and 131 RBIs this season, leading New York to the AL East title and setting himself up for a big payday. The 6-foot-7 outfielder is eligible for free agency after breaking Roger Maris’ AL home run record.

    ON THE EDGE

    Atlanta is on the brink of elimination heading into Game 4 at Philadelphia. The Braves won the World Series last year, and then rallied past the Mets for their fifth consecutive NL East title this season.

    Charlie Morton starts for Atlanta, and Noah Syndergaard takes the mound for Philly. Morton, who turns 39 on Nov. 12, is 7-4 with a 3.35 ERA in 17 career postseason appearances. Syndergaard is 2-1 with a 2.33 ERA in six postseason games, including a scoreless eighth inning in Game 2 at Atlanta.

    Morton was in the mix for Friday’s Game 3, but the Braves went with Spencer Strider instead. The rookie right-hander was tagged for five runs in 2 1/3 innings in a 9-1 loss.

    “It’s the postseason. You’ve just got to be ready to throw when they call on you,” Morton said.

    ___

    More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

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