TRIPLE THREAT CLE: New York Yankees

Showing posts with label New York Yankees. Show all posts

Tuesday, December 19, 2017

Podcast 12/19/17: On the Browns & NFL Week 15 and Our Favorite Athletes, Games, Movies, TV and More of 2017

Thursday, December 14, 2017

Podcast 12/13/17: On John Dorsey's Browns, Aaron Rodgers' Return, MLB Hot Stove, Star Wars & More

Tuesday, August 1, 2017

On Deck Circle 8/1/17: MLB Trade Deadline

By Pat Luhta, @PLuhta

MLB's trade deadline has come and gone, with some big pieces moving to title contenders along with some smaller moves made that could turn out to be just as important to teams.

The big news of the day centered around 2 starting pitchers, with the Yankees acquiring Sonny Gray from the A's and the Dodgers going down to the wire to land Yu Darvish from the Rangers at the last minute. The Yankees were linked to Gray for a few weeks and after the A's tried playing the field a bit, the two teams were able to reach an agreement. Oakland got a boat load in return, both Jorge Mateo and Dustin Fowler are top prospects that will bolster the A's farm system and the Yankees not only get Sonny Gray but didn't have to give up Clint Frazier or Gleyber Torres in the deal.

So this deal works out great for both teams, the Yankees are entrenched in a 3 way division race right now and did not give up either of their top 2 prospects while the A's get quality prospects as they look to reload their farm system during this rebuilding period. The Yankees, now with Sonny Gray and Jaime Garcia (who they got from the Twins earlier) gives them enough pitching to make a run for the World Series this season.

When the clock struck 4pm, no deal for Yu Darvish was announced and many assumed that the Rangers got cold feet and did not trade him. Shortly after, the news broke that Darvish did in fact get traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers for 3 minor league prospects.

This is similar to the Yankees/Gray deal but even better really, the Dodgers kept their top 3 prospects and only traded 1 (Willie Calhoun) that ranked in their top 10. Alex Verdugo, Walker Buehler and Yadier Alvarez were not in the deal, the Dodgers kept their word that they would not trade them and still found a deal that got this trade complete. The Rangers wanted Verdugo in this deal, but Darvish's no-trade clause and dwindling starting pitching market hindered them greatly in finding a deal similar to what the A's received for Gray. Their hands were tied and it was either trade him to the Dodgers or don't trade him at all, they held out as long as they could but took the Dodgers' best offer as the trade deadline struck. MLB's best team, with a 74-31 record just added Yu Darvish to go along with Clayton Kershaw (once healthy) and Alex Wood, it's clear what the goal is for Los Angeles this season.

And watch out for the Kansas City Royals now, this team has been on a roll as of late and patched up some problem areas before the trading deadline. Their main acquisition was OF Melky Cabrera, who can provide some pop in the lineup and will be an upgrade in the field. A week ago, they also bolstered their pitching staff in a multi-player trade with the San Diego Padres, receiving starter Trevor Cahill and relief pitchers Ryan Buchter and Brandon Mauer. The deals haven't been a big splash but they are adding the necessary bits and pieces for a playoff run, they currently are the 2nd wildcard team with Tampa Bay close behind and they also trail the Indians for the AL Central lead by just 2 games.

Other trades that don't have that "sizzle" but could be a huge benefit to teams down the stretch include the Houston Astros acquiring Francisco Liriano. Liriano will be used out of the bullpen but could also make some spot starts as well which may be needed. The Astros starting pitching is starting to unravel a bit, Lance McCullers has been getting knocked around and is now headed to the DL and Dallas Kuechel was roughed up in his first start back from his DL stint. So Liriano could be in play here big time for the Astros as someone who helps keep the ship afloat while the pitching works itself out.

The Cubs got a little better as well, adding C Alex Avila and reliever Justin Wilson from the Tigers. The Tigers did not find a suitor for Justin Verlander as his contract and no-trade clause were deal breakers, but they did clean house a little bit by trading J,D. Martinez, Alex Avila(who is the son of Tigers' GM Al Avila, so yes he traded his own son) and Justin Wilson.

Jonathon Lucroy was on the move again at the trade deadline as he is headed to Colorado. Last season, he was initially traded to the Cleveland Indians but after not receiving a guarantee that he would be their catcher, he used his no-trade clause to block the deal. He was then later dealt to the Texas Rangers and now that the Rangers aren't contenders, he was once again traded to a contender.

Another under the radar deal would be the Boston Red Sox added Addison Reed. The Red Sox already have Craig Kimbrel as their closer so adding Reed to be the setup man puts them in a real good position come playoff time, when pitching really takes center stage.

So there's the run down on some of the bigger trades that have happened over the past couple days. A lot of contending teams bolstered their roster in order to make a run for the playoffs and at the World Series. There's still a waiver trade deadline coming up where some pieces will be moved, but this deadline is where teams really position themselves for October. If you are a fan of any of the teams mentioned above as getting better, then you should feel real good about how the trade deadline deals went and should be excited for how the remainder of the season should go.

Monday, July 17, 2017

On Deck Circle 7/17/17: 5 Bold Predictions For The MLB's Second Half

By Pat Luhta, @PLuhta

Baseball season is now past the unofficial midway point now that the All-Star game and festivities are complete. As the MLB season is back underway, we can look at what’s ahead for the 2nd half of the season and make some predictions on what’s to come. So let’s not only make some predictions, but let’s go out on a limb and make some real bold ones here. These predictions may not seem likely but there’s no telling what could happen with this many games left to play still, so let’s jump right into it here with 5 bold predictions for the 2nd half of the MLB season.

1. The Yankees will not make the playoffs – So I’ll get started with a bold-lite prediction here and call the Yankees and non-playoff team. The Yankees got off to a hot start in April and lead the division through May and are now in the playoffs as a wildcard team so they’ve been a playoff team since the beginning of the season. They are just 6-18 since June 13th though and are tapering off rapidly, Boston has not only surpassed them for the division lead but the Tampa Bay Rays have also caught up to them and went into the All-Star break tied for the top wildcard spot. With the Twins, Royals, Angels and Rangers all within 3 games of the wildcard spot, it’s completely feasible that the Yankees miss out on the playoffs this season if they continue this type of play.

2. Carlos Correa or Jose Altuve will win AL MVP – This bold prediction is based off the previous prediction. Right now, Aaron Judge is the AL MVP and it’s not close, he has this all locked up right now. If the Yankees do miss the playoffs though and Aaron Judge hits a rookie wall, then that leaves the MVP up for debate. The Astros were an impressive 60-29 at All-Star break and on pace for roughly 110 wins this season, if they can win that many games then someone on the Astros will get big time consideration. Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve are the top 2 candidates and very similar in production, it will be a close call in which they will split votes and one will end up as the AL MVP.

3. The St. Louis Cardinals will win the NL Central – A 3rd place team that is 2 games under .500 and 5.5 games out of 1st place at all-star break, it would seem unlikely that any team under those circumstances would make a run at the division. But the Cardinals though have the benefit of playing a division that is still up for grabs, not sold on the Brewers yet and the Cubs are still a mess even with the acquisition of Jose Quintana(which the White Sox fleeced them in, btw.) The Cardinals’ bats need to wake up a bit and they can make up ground in no time, their pitching is amongst the best in the league and any team that has good pitching will have a shot at the postseason. Pitching stays where it is and bats heat up a bit, and the division is all theirs to win.

4. Pittsburgh Pirates will be biggest sellers as trade deadline approaches – Everyone right now is assuming that the Oakland A’s will be the biggest sellers, but let’s not be too sure about that. The A’s have Sonny Gray that will almost certainly be dealt and they will have other available assets such as Yonder Alonso and Khris Davis to deal as well. But the Pirates have more players that are worth trading for and being 7 games out of the division, it’s time to start dealing them. While I do not think Andrew McCutcheon will be traded, players like Gerrit Cole, Ivan Nova, Josh Harrison and Francisco Cervelli could all be on the move. Cole and Nova especially now that the market for starting pitching has been set with the trade of Jose Quintana to the Cubs, pitching will cost buyers a lot in order to deal so Pittsburgh can get younger real quick by trading either or both pitchers.

5. Bryce Harper and Clayton Kershaw will win the NL triple crown - In batting, the triple crown is when a batter leads the league in batting average, RBI's and home runs. This is one of the rarest feats in baseball, Miguel Cabrera accomplished it in 2012 but before then it was Carl Yastrzemski in 1967 and to stack the deck even more against Bryce Harper, there hasn't been a triple crown winner in the NL since 1937. That ends this year, Harper is currently 2nd in the NL in batting average, tied for 3rd in RBI's and tied for 7th in home runs(only 4 back of the current leader.) He is within striking distance of them all and will end up leading the National League in all 3 come season's end. The triple crown in pitching is a bit more common, when a pitcher leads the league in wins, ERA and strikeouts. Clayton Kershaw accomplished this once before, back in 2011 and he is primed to do it again this season.

He leads the league in wins and is 2nd in both ERA and strikeouts and is extremely close to being 1st in all 3. Max Scherzer has a 2.10 ERA while Kershaw has a 2.18 and Scherzer has 173 K's while Kershaw has 159, that slim margin is what is keeping Kershaw from currently leading in all 3. A batter and pitcher winning the triple crown in the same league in the same year has not happened since 1934 and has only happened once in the National League(back in 1884, I'm sure we all remember that), but this year we will get to witness a rare phenomenon as both Bryce Harper and Clayton Kershaw will be triple crown winners.

Friday, June 23, 2017

On Deck Circle 6/23/17: Who's Real and Who's Fake?

By Pat Luhta, @PLuhta

The MLB season is quickly approaching the halfway point, teams are hitting the 70 game mark on the season. Right now, there is still a ton of sorting to be done among the top of the division and it can turn quickly one way or the other for any team. There are even teams out there that may win their division and make the playoffs, but will be overmatched and aren't truly made of championship material.

It's time to predict which current contending teams are actually real and will remain in contention and be considered a World Series team, and which ones are fake and will eventually fall off, whether it's before the end of the season or if they manage to make the playoffs. Here's a breakdown of the division leaders and contenders and if they are here to stay or if they are fool's gold.

AL EAST

New York Yankees - REAL: It took everyone a little while to start believing that this team has staying power but the Yankees seem to be back. Their offense, led by Aaron Judge, is exploding this year and if Judge, along with Gary Sanchez, Starlin Castro and others, can keep this up then they have what it takes to remain the division leaders. Their pitching is also looking real good, Luis Severino and C.C. Sabathia (no, you're not seeing things) are having good seasons and what's scary about their staff is that Masahiro Tanaka has not been good. If he turns it around a bit then there's no telling what this team is capable of. They have hit a little bit of a slump lately, but nothing to worry about long-term as this team is for real.

Boston Red Sox - REAL: This team has it all and may end up being the team to beat in the American League. Betts, Bogaerts and Benintendi make a powerful triple threat on offense that is making up for the loss of David Ortiz and Chris Sale has been worth every little bit of the trade so far as he has been their ace pitcher. In order for the Red Sox to become that team to beat though, they will need David Price to fully return to form as right now they really do not have a solid #2 starter behind Sale. Still though, the Red Sox are a team that will be in contention all season long.

Tampa Bay Rays - FAKE: The Rays are currently hanging on in the wild card hunt, but I don't see it lasting too much longer. With a slew of teams right behind them and if they fall out just a little bit then expect them to be seller's at the deadline. I'm not counting them completely out, their offense may provide enough to keep them in it, but Chris Archer will again be a hot commodity at the trade deadline and the Rays end up dealing him this year.

AL CENTRAL

Cleveland Indians - REAL: I've been saying for a month now that the Indians are just working things out and they will be fine. Sure enough, they have seemingly turned that corner are now in 1st place in the division. Edwin Encarnacion is crushing the ball after a very slow start to the season and after a brief DL stint, Corey Kluber is looking like his Cy Young form. This is the team that made the World Series last season, they are definitely for real.

Minnesota Twins - FAKE: The Twins had the luxury of the Indians starting off sluggish, so they did what they could to gain a lead in the division. While Brian Dozier and Miguel Sano have been bright spots in the lineup and Jose Berrios looks like a future ace, their playoff hopes seem about up. Put it this way, when a team has over -40 run differential and ranks 28th in team ERA, there's no chance to sustain a first place lead or make up ground on the wild card spots. Because of that, I have to call the Twins as fake.

AL WEST

Houston Astros - REAL: I'm honestly not sure how anyone could consider this team to be fake, they are as real of a team as it gets. They have the best record in the entire MLB, Carlos Correa and Jose Altuve are both legitimate MVP candidates and their pitching is in the top 5 in a majority of stats. There isn't much else to say, this team is for real and the current favorite to win the World Series.

NL EAST

Washington Nationals - REAL: Even though they are going to win their division and have one of the best records in the league, this was tough for me to choose. Don't get me wrong, on paper they are definitely legit and have what it takes to win the NL, but they use their starting pitching so much that there's a decent chance the wear and tear down the stretch could lead to another 1st round exit. But ultimately, I have to go with the Nationals being real, they have everything it takes so can't call them anything but solely based on a hypothetical that their pitching will eventually breakdown. I don't have high hopes for their playoff run, but this team is for real.

NL CENTRAL

Milwaukee Brewers - FAKE: Let me start by saying that the Brewers are fake, for now. They are beginning to prove themselves and win me over, but I'm just not ready to jump all in on them right now. They are just so middle of the road in many team categories, and both batting and pitching and are being led by some unlikely players. While Eric Thames and Chase Anderson have been real good stories, are we 100% sure that they will keep this going all season long? They just have very little margin for error, and while they likely will win the division, it's still too soon to buy them as a real threat.

Chicago Cubs - FAKE: What? The defending World Series champs are fake this season? At first I thought it was just a little lack of motivation after winning it all last year, that they'd shrug it off and turn it up, but this team has some serious holes that do not look fixable. Their offense is just lacking, Anthony Rizzo being the only player that's really living up to his norm this season. They are 29th in batting average, 18th in On Base %, 19th in OPS, 17th in runs and 29th in stolen bases, all the makings of a pretty subpar offense overall. Their pitching isn't much better, with only 1 starting pitcher (Jon Lester) with an ERA under 4. This goes beyond just a "championship hangover" and are real issues that makes this alarming. They need to win the division in order to even make the playoffs thanks to the 3 teams in the NL West and with these problems, don't be surprised if they miss out on the postseason.

NL WEST

Los Angeles Dodgers - REAL: What if I told you at the start of the season that the offensive MVP of the team would be Cody Bellinger and the Cy Young of the team would be Alex Wood? Bellinger started the season in triple A and the Dodgers have Clayton Kershaw, but sure enough, those two are leading the way for the Dodgers. Bellinger leads the entire NL in home runs despite not being called up until April 25th, add him to a lineup that already has Corey Seager, Justin Turner, Yasiel Puig and Adrian Gonzalez and there's reason why this team is one of the best statistical offenses in the league. Kershaw is still typical Kershaw,(10-2 2.60 ERA, 115 K's) but Alex Wood has just been that much better this season. Wood is 7-0, 1.90 ERA and 72K's in 12 games this season, he's a legitimate 2nd ace on the team. With the offense as good as it is and the pitching being top notch(including Kenley Jansen being 15/15 in saves with 50 K's and zero walks), this team is for real.

Colorado Rockies - REAL: The Rockies having a good offense is nothing new, the friendly atmosphere in Denver will always give them a boost in numbers. But this offense has some serious talent and the offensive numbers can't be blamed on the thin air in Denver. Charlie Blackmon may be the best CF in the NL(McCutcheon isn't ready to give that crown up just yet), Nolan Arenado is a star 3B with ridiculous HR ability and Mark Reynolds is having a career renaissance. Their starting pitching isn't great, but their bullpen has been exceptional this year. Greg Holland leads the league in saves as Adam Ottavino sets the table for him, a top 5 offense with a shut down bullpen is a perfect way to mask any issues with the starting pitching. And we're still a month away from the trade deadline, do not be surprised if the Rockies go for Chris Archer or Jose Quintana to help the starting rotation. Rockies are a playoff team that can contend with any team in the MLB, this team is for real.

Arizona Diamondbacks - REAL: I have been hesitant to call them real all season so far, but can't deny what this team is doing and any team that is circling around +100 in run differential needs to be taken seriously. Paul Goldschmidt leads the way for an offense that is also one of the best in the league(it's an NL West thing), with Jake Lamb, Chris Owings and Brandon Drury also providing a ton of pop off the bat. This team last trade deadline was looking to be sellers and the main guy they were looking to unload was SP Zack Greinke. In his first of a 6 year 205 million dollar deal with the Diamondbacks, Greinke underperformed and the team was looking to give up on him, and it's a good thing for them that they didn't. Greinke has returned to All-Star form, 8-4 with a 3.14 ERA and 1.05 WHIP, he's also struck out 111 batters while only walking 19. Robbie Ray has also been a solid starter for them and Fernando Rodney has been a perfect 20/20 in save opportunities this season. The NL West will be such a fun race the rest of the season and its a shame that 2 of these 3 teams will have to play in the 1 game wildcard playoff. Not sure who the best of the 3 are, but Arizona has a good of a claim to being the best as any.

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

On Deck Circle 5/2/17: April MLB Recap

By Pat Luhta, @PLuhta

We have made it through one month of the MLB season as April is now behind us. Typically, the month of April is filled with a false sense of hope or despair, a hot or cold start to the season and fans begin to read too much into it. Baseball is a very long season, teams have only played around 25 games in a 162 game season, so it’s way too soon to jump to any conclusions on how a team or player will fare. So while April is not a true indicator on how a teams’ season is going to go, there are definitely some things to take away from it and also some things to keep an eye on as we head into May. Here are a few highlighted stories to recap the month of April.

1. The New York Yankees - The many of us (myself included) that have been reveling in the struggles that the Yankees have faced over the past couple of seasons may have to wipe that grin off of our faces. Picked to finish 4th or 5th in the AL East in preseason, the Yankees are currently tied for 1st place with the Baltimore Orioles with a 15-8 record. They are not only tied with the Orioles for the AL East, but also tied with them for the best record in the AL. Rookie Aaron Judge is leading the way for them on offense with a .303 batting average with 10 home runs and 20 RBI’s. The pitching has been the key though, Luis Severino and Michael Pineda have been dealing for the team and if Masahiro Tanaka finds his groove like he did towards the end of last season then this rotation could keep this team in the playoff hunt all season long. It would seem as though the Yankees did not stay down long and will be a competitive team again in 2017.

2. Chicago White Sox – While the Yankees’ surprising start to the season is noteworthy, no team has had a more surprising good start than the Chicago White Sox. Over the last 2 seasons, and this offseason in particular, the White Sox have gone into full rebuild mode. They gutted the roster for the most part, trading their best players away for prospects, and being inactive in free agency while they build their farm system up. Some were saying that this team might lose 100 games this season, so the bar was set real low for the south siders but right now they are anything but a potential 100 loss team. They are currently 13-10 and only .5 games back of the Cleveland Indians for 1st place in the division. While we will have to wait it out to see if the hitting of Avasail Garcia and the pitching of Derek Holland and Miguel Gonzalez holds up, but a month into the season and the White Sox are standing toe-to-toe with the defending AL champions. All eyes in Chicago have been on the Cubs lately, but if the White Sox keep this up then they may take some shine off their cross town rival here, and this rebuilding process may be coming along a lot faster than most anticipated.

3. Eric Thames and Chase Anderson – These are two real good stories here and both happen to play for the Brewers. Eric Thames started his MLB career back in 2011 for the Toronto Blue Jays. He then played the 2012 season with the Blue Jays and the Mariners, and that was the end of his MLB career…or so we thought. Thames spent the 2013 season in the minors then the next 3 seasons he played in South Korea before attempting a comeback this season. Thames not only made the team but has been the Brewers best hitter, currently batting .345 and is tied for the MLB lead with 11 home runs. He is also responsible for the best interview clip of the season, after it was revealed that he's been drug tested numerous times already as he hot start is drawing some skepticism, he claimed his innocence and said they could test him as many times as they wanted, saying that he has "plenty of blood and urine to spare." If he keeps this up and the Brewers are in the playoff race, we might see him go from out of the league to a potential MVP candidate.

Starting pitcher Chase Anderson’s time in the MLB was almost up, the 29 year old was in a rotation battle for the final spot and if he were to be optioned to triple A then that could have been the end of his MLB career. He won the job as 5th starter and is currently a big reason that Milwaukee is only 1 game back of 1st place in the NL Central. He’s 2-0 on the season, with a 2.10 ERA and 1.07 WHIP and also leads the team in strikeouts with 24. It’s safe to say that he has locked down a starting job for good and doesn’t need to worry about being sent down to triple A any time in the near future now, a good story of someone that had one more chance and has taken advantage of it.

4. The NL West – 2011 was the last time that an NL West team not named the San Francisco Giants or the Los Angeles Dodgers have won the division, and the Dodgers have won it 4 straight years. This year could be a different story, as the Giants have stumbled big time and have lost their ace Madison Bumgardner for at least 2 months and the Dodgers have been around .500 for majority of this month. The Arizona Diamondbacks (16-11) and Colorado Rockies (16-10) have taken full advantage of the slow starts by the Dodgers and Giants, and have vaulted themselves to 1st and 2nd in the division.

The NL West was originally thought to be a 2 team race between SF and LA but Arizona and Colorado have currently made some good cases to take them seriously as they look to dethrone the 2 teams that have had a stranglehold on the division. The Dodgers ended April on a 4 game winning streak which put them only 2.5 games back of the division lead, so they are making a charge to the top and it will be interesting to see if they can continue to climb or if either Colorado or Arizona can win the division this season.

5. Washington's Offense - The Washington Nationals have been known for their starting pitching, with a rotation that may be the best in baseball. Max Scherzer, Stephen Strasburg and Gio Gonzalez make for a dominant 1-2-3 punch. But the story in Washington isn't about their pitching, it's been about their offense which is hitting the cover off the ball this season. Washington's offense is on a record pace, breaking some month of April records and their offense ranks 1st in just about every category. On the last day in April, they put a stamp on the month by scoring 23 runs against the Mets, the 7th time in their 25 games that they've scored at least 10 runs. They are on an absolute tear this season and putting up runs at an incredible pace, making them a very scary team considering the pitching staff that they have as well. They did lose Adam Eaton for the season though so that could definitely affect how their offense performs going forward, but this was a ridiculous month of hitting for the Washington Nationals.

Thursday, August 25, 2016

This Week In The Show 8.25.16

By Alex Hale, @ThatCLESportGuy

Well, this season has escalated rather quickly. After a few weeks to digest all that has happened in baseball for the last month, it’s finally time for another This Week in The Show. A lot has happened since we last had one of these, but now with the season coming down to the final stretch it’s time to highlight the biggest stories in Major League Baseball. We have a lot to dive into so let’s skip the formalities and dive right into this.

Fallen Angels- Going into the 2016 MLB Season, the Angels were looked at as a potential Wild Card team. Led by quite possibly the best player in the game in Mike Trout and a young talented pitching staff, the Angels seemed poised to make a run for the playoffs. But injuries soon started to pile up, especially in their starting rotation losing their ace Garrett Richards and Andrew Heaney. In August the bottom has seemed to fall out on the Angels starting the month 7-15 including an 11 game losing streak. You got to start thinking that the Angels will probably look in the offseason to replace Manager Mike Scoscia if they continue to struggle down the stretch.

My Thoughts- I’ve seen this coming for a while for the Angels and it’s time to face the facts…it’s time to rebuild the franchise. I would start by moving Mike Trout for a king’s ransom. It would replenish an extremely thin farm system and start the rebuilding process. I would also think that Mike Scoscia is entering his final days as Angels Manager. Since their 2002 World Series run, Scoscia really hasn’t done anything special as manager.

The Yankees Youth Movement- After dominating the trade deadline and completely rebuilding the franchise, the Yankees took the next big step in their rebuilding process. On August 13, the Yankees called up outfielders Aaron Judge and Tyler Austin, who proceeded to hit back-to-back HRs in their first at-bats. The Yankees also have finally seemingly give the spot behind the plate to long time top prospect Gary Sanchez who is answering the call hitting .382 with 8 HRs in the month August so far. Whether fans want to believe this or not, but with Clint Frazier on the way soon, this looks to be only the beginning of the next Yankee Dynasty.

My Thoughts- Gary Sanchez was brought up slowly and it seems their patience might pay off. Sanchez is a potential 25 HR/90 RBI threat one day with a great arm behind home. Austin should be a solid OF for the future, but the emergence of Aaron Judge is no surprise. If you recall Aaron Judge was my AL ROY dark horse selection and already is proving why I prized him so much. Once Frazier comes up and backs up the hype, the Yankees got an amazing core going forward.

Canadian Takeover- After starting off the year slow, the Toronto Blue Jays have started to heat up in the 2nd Half of the year, going 12-9 in the month of August. This is coming without star slugger Jose Bautista. The Blue Jays have been led by Josh Donaldson and Edwin Encarnacion for the most part this season, but Troy Tulowitzki is finally starting to swing the bat like he’s supposed to and has offset the loss of Bautista. What’s more surprising is the great starting pitching they’ve gotten this year, especially with Aaron Sanchez and J.A. Happ leading the way. The Blue Jays it seemed all season were underachieving and now they’re finally playing to their potential and aren’t at full strength still. With a month and a half to go, the Blue Jays are getting hot at the right time.

My Thoughts- The Blue Jays were my preseason pick to win the AL East and it never made sense why they weren’t in control of the division early on. Their offense is their strong suit and it carried them especially in the 2nd Half. I think their rotation really hasn’t even reached its potential yet, especially with the inconsistency of Marcus Stroman. If one more starter can get hot with Happ and Sanchez, the Blue Jays might not only win the division, but could be a very tough out in the playoffs.

Dry Spell in Phoenix- After their big moves in the offseason, the Diamondbacks looked to be everyone’s pick to win the NL West, but instead the Diamondbacks look to be the biggest flop in recent memory. The acquisition of Shelby Miller and Zack Greinke signaled the start of a new dynamic duo of starters to go with a lineup led by Paul Goldschmidt. Instead Zack Greinke has been anything but his 2015 form and Shelby Miller has pitched so terribly, he was sent down to the minors. On top of that, a report by ESPN’s Keith Law explained how messed up the Diamondbacks Front Office is during what he called, “The Timeline of Error”. In it he explains that Diamondbacks GM Dave Stewart has no knowledge of the rules when it comes to making moves. On top of that he explains how little they understand how the draft works. And we haven’t even mentioned trading 2015 #1 Overall draft pick SS Dansby Swanson and Diamondbacks 2014 1st Round pick SP Touki Touissant for a simple salary dump. When you read what Keith Law writes, it’s alarming.

My thoughts- Whether Dave Stewart or Tony La Russa is at fault here, the moves they’ve made over the past few years are inexcusable. It definitely shows total incompetence by the Front Office and I’d argue they took incompetence to the next level. When your GM makes a trade that would’ve violated rules and it takes the OPPOSING GM to tell your GM the rules…he must be fired. I can run the Diamondbacks better than Tony La Russa and Dave Stewart and that says a lot.

Here Come The Champs- It seemed like a month ago, the Kansas City Royals were dead and buried and weren’t going to be able to defend their crown and might actually be virtually out of contention by September, but the Royals got back to the basics. They’ve played smart and efficient baseball and have racked up a 16-6 record through the month of August. Their offense is finally getting back some of the players they’ve lost to injuries earlier this year and the Royals starting staff has gotten a major boost from lefty Danny Duffy who has been red hot over the past few months and has an 11-1 record with a 2.66 ERA and might garner Cy Young contention if he continues this.

My Thoughts- The Royals seemed to underperform all year on both sides, now with a starter to anchor the rotation in Duffy and players like Kendrys Morales who have played better as of recently. They were efficient and clutch when it came to scoring runs last year and with their bullpen still looking good, nobody should be sleeping on them. They could make a run at the Wild Card and while a long shot, could make a run at the division, with 6 games against the Indians in the last week, including the last 3 games of the year, which will be played in Kansas City.

Thank You A-Rod- On August 12, one of the most talented, yet polarizing players in the history of Baseball took what looked to be his final bow in Alex Rodriguez. A-Rod had been having the worst season of his career and was a shell of what he once was. But what has happened since August 12 is the speculation of if Alex Rodriguez is really retired. Rumors have said Miami was among a few of the teams that might want to bring in Rodriguez for a potential pennant run. But it seems for now those rumors have gone away, but nobody seems sure if A-Rod is done for good. I find it completely interesting myself that people are so intrigued about a player who is a shell of his former self and whether he’s really retired or not.

My Thoughts- Bottom line… A-Rod is done. He would look like Baseball’s Brett Favre if he plays anywhere else at this point. Rodriguez is 41 years old and had hit only 9 HRs and was hitting .200. Who would want that on their team, plus the fact he’s a highly controversial character for the locker room. It seemed after the game A-Rod was at peace with his decision and I expect that his playing days are done.

I Don’t Believe What I Just Saw- I have to throw this in there because of how improbable this victory was. The Cleveland Indians down 1-0 going into the bottom of the ninth against the Toronto Blue Jays faced their dominant closer Roberto Osuna. Up stepped Jose Ramirez who proceeded to get a hanging off-speed pitch and get a hold of it and the ball just barely cleared the wall to tie the ballgame. The next batter was rookie CF Tyler Naquin. Naquin would proceed to hit another fly ball that RF Michael Saunders missed leaping at the wall and the ball hit the wall and rolled to center field. Naquin would fly around the bases and after Melvin Upton Jr. slipped grabbing the ball, Naquin would proceed to be the first Indian in 100 years to hit a Walk-Off Inside the Park Home Run. While that was rare, it was more rare that it was back to back HRs, capped off by the Inside the Park Home Run.

My Thoughts- THIS IS WHY BASEBALL IS THE BEST SPORT. YOU CAN’T SCRIPT THIS, I REST MY CASE!

The playoff picture is finally starting to take shape and teams are bracing for the final month of the season. As we’ve seen so far this year that anything can happen in a split second. We’ve seen sudden retirements, amazing comebacks and historic feats already this year. Once again Baseball continues to show why it’s the best sport of them all. You cannot predict what you’ll see next and trust me, I think this season has one more shocker left in store for us yet.

Tuesday, August 2, 2016

This Week In The Show 8.2.16: MLB Trade Deadline Wrap-Up

Now The Race Is On!
By Alex Hale, @ThatCLESportGuy

As the clock passed 4pm Monday afternoon, it signaled the end of what turned out to be one of the best trade deadlines in recent history. It was full of blockbusters and a lot of controversy. Unlike previous years deadlines with a lot of anti-climatic movement at the deadline, the rumors that were swirling before the deadline gave us a lot of fun and now it’s time find out who the big winners and losers were. Now let’s be honest in a few years, this could all look different about who won and lost at the deadline. But in terms of right now for quite a few teams, the future looks bright and for some others, lost opportunity.

Winners

New York Yankees- For the 1st time since 1989, the Yankees went into full blown rebuild mode and they came out as huge winners at the deadline. It started with the trade of Aroldis Chapman to the Chicago Cubs as the Yankees acquired SS Glyber Torres along with other prospects including OF Billy McKinney. Then in a shocker, the Yankees acquired OF Clint Frazier and SP Justus Sheffield along with 2 other prospects in exchange for RP Andrew Miller. Then before the deadline buzzer Monday traded Carlos Beltran to the Rangers in a deal centered around former Top 5 draft pick SP Dillon Tate. The Yankees made a bold move to rebuild and Brian Cashman did an outstanding job getting great value in every trade he made. More importantly, most of the prospects they got could help the Yankees in the next 2 years to start a quick turnaround in the Bronx.

Texas Rangers- The Rangers really went for it at the deadline, starting by acquiring OF Carlos Beltran from the Yankees, giving up SP Dillon Tate and then following that up with a bombshell, acquiring C Jonathan Lucroy and RP Jeremy Jeffress from the Brewers giving up a package centered around SP Luis Ortiz and OF Lewis Brinson. Immediately the Rangers have fortified their lineup to be a scary one from 1 through 9. Adding Jeffress gives them another strong reliever for a bullpen that needed another arm in there. The only downside was not acquiring a SP, while the Rangers do have Cole Hamels and potentially Yu Darvish leading the rotation in the playoffs, after them, they really are lacking there. That could be a problem down the stretch.

Chicago Cubs- The Cubs looked to make big changes in their bullpen and really did an outstanding job by first acquiring RP Mike Montgomery from the Mariners, an effective lefty reliever for them in the 7th/8th innings. Then the Cubs made their big blockbuster trade by acquiring Aroldis Chapman from the Yankees. While the Cubs have Hector Rendon as their closer, Joe Maddon will have more of a “spot closer” role for both and choose who to close by who is hitting in the 9th. Then to top everything, the Cubs got sidearm specialist Joe Smith from the Angels to give them a completely different look in the bullpen which really makes their bullpen one of the more intriguing bullpen in terms of depth and styles to choose from.

Milwaukee Brewers- For a team that was one of the bigger sellers, they made out pretty well. While their original deal with the Indians had a solid return for Jonathan Lucroy, they made out better with Texas getting Luis Ortiz and Lewis Brinson, who are ranked #2 and #3 in Texas’ farm system respectively. While they probably should’ve gotten Joey Gallo, they still got a good haul for Jeremy Jeffress and Jonathan Lucroy. They also moved RP Will Smith to the Giants and acquired the Giants 2015 1st Round draft pick SP Phil Pickford and C Andrew Susac, a great replacement for losing Jonathan Lucroy. They’re laying a good foundation for the future and the next step will probably be trading Ryan Braun in the offseason.

Honorable Mention- Washington Nationals, Oakland A’s

Losers

Miami Marlins- You talk about the most dysfunctional franchise in all of sports, the Marlins gotta rank up there with another disastrous trade deadline. Their big move was acquiring from San Diego centered around SPs Andrew Cashner and Collin Rea, but Rea hurt himself in his first start with the Marlins and before Monday’s deadline, was traded back to San Diego for one of the prospects the Marlins originally dealt. Once again the Marlins showing their continued dysfunction and why they are a joke of an organization. Cashier was a solid upgrade, but not one worth trading multiple top prospects for, including their 2015 1st Round pick 1B Josh Naylor. Marlins better make the playoffs or else changes in player personnel might be needed in the offseason.

Boston Red Sox- Quite possibly the biggest loser at the deadline, the Red Sox made numerous small moves to help fortify the team, then traded Anderson Espinoza to San Diego for Drew Pomeranz, who is struggling with his new team. The Red Sox continued to scour the pitching market, then centered in on White Sox ace Chris Sale. The White Sox asking price was way too high and the Red Sox seemingly continued to try to land him until the end of the deadline. That backfired on them as they walked away with no other trades after the Pomeranz one. The Red Sox seemingly valued their top prospects very highly and wouldn’t budge on them to blow away the White Sox to make a deal. Their consistent activity on Chris Sale cost them big down the stretch at the deadline and might be a big difference on where they end up at the end of the year.

Detroit Tigers- Only 4.5 GB of the Indians and 1 GB of the Wild Card, I’m stunned the Tigers did nothing. While the Tigers have an offense that’s coming alive and JD Martinez returning just around the corner, I thought the Tigers would go after a SP. Nothing really materialized and the Tigers didn’t make any deal. While the Tigers have Michael Fulmer and Justin Verlander, they really needed to find an upgrade for the middle/back end of the rotation. I felt that Phillies SP Jeremy Hellickson made perfect sense, but obviously a deal couldn’t be reached. Not making a deal for another starter might come back to bite them.

Los Angeles Angels/Minnesota Twins- I’m talking about in this area the confusing trade made at the last moments before the deadline. The Angels traded struggling SP Hector Santiago, who actually was drawing interest from multiple teams including Texas and instead flipped him to Minnesota for SPs Ricky Nolasco and Alex Meyer. What were these teams thinking? I mean it’s great for Twins to get rid of Nolasco’s contract, but Meyer is an intriguing arm who just hasn’t figured it out yet. The Twins might be looking towards 2017 with this move but the trade for both teams is extremely confusing and is an F for both teams.

Honorable Mention- Baltimore Orioles, Pittsburgh Pirates, Houston Astros

Hard to Grade

Cleveland Indians- Yes, the Cleveland Indians vastly improved their back end of the bullpen by adding Andrew Miller. But let’s remind ourselves the Indians traded OF Clint Frazier to get him. Frazier will be a star in NYY and fans will one day complain about this deal, but the Indians decided to contend right now so to a degree, I understand it. But the Jonathan Lucroy debacle makes their deadline hard to grade. Honestly I have no idea how this went down and maybe we won’t ever know, but to lose him and watch him go to Texas while not upgrading the Catcher is a bit of a question mark. Indians could’ve used another bat and were in on Carlos Beltran and losing out to the Rangers.

The Indians eventually settled on Rays OF Brandon Guyer, who mashes lefty pitching. The Indians used this opportunity to finally DFA Juan Uribe and move Jose Ramirez to 3B for what looks to be an every day role. The Indians do have Brantley returning, but he’s an unknown still coming back from his shoulder injury. I expect Indians to be active in August Waiver Trade Deadline to find another bat and probably then I’ll feel much better with the Indians activity.

Arizona Diamondbacks- So the most active team at the Winter Meetings goes quiet at the deadline, especially a team that has played not up to expectations. They sent down SP Shelby Miller, didn’t move him and also couldn’t move Daniel Hudson even though there was plenty of interest. They moved Tyler Clippard to the Yankees for a minor leaguer which that even confused me. They’ve continued to struggle this year in almost every aspect with the exception of Paul Goldschmidt. There really seems to be no direction with this franchise and it leaves a lot of questions to be answered down the line.

Los Angeles Dodgers- Ok I love the fact that they added Rich Hill, although he’s injured and they didn’t trade their top prospects. But what I didn’t understand is adding Josh Reddick to create a serious log jam in the OF, leaving Yasiel Puig as the odd man out. Reddick may be an upgrade compared to Puig, but the presence of Puig and his unpredictable attitude could be toxic to the clubhouse. The Dodgers at the same time to create this log jam paid a pretty good price to get Hill and Reddick, again this is an upgrade that on the field is great, but off the field could be a disaster. Don’t be stunned if Puig is put up on August Waivers.

Honorable Mention- San Francisco Giants, Toronto Blue Jays, Colorado Rockies, Atlanta Braves

Now remember these are initial reactions and all of these will probably change in time. There were some very good trades that under the radar will be steals of the future and I’ll go over those here in the coming days. While the Trade Deadline has passed, we now look toward the August Waiver Trading Deadline. In a simplified explanation, teams must put a player through waivers, then they must clear waivers in order for them to be traded. We’ve seen trades like the monster trade of Adrian Gonzalez to the Dodgers and for Indians fans, the trade that brought back Jim Thome. I would expect with some teams not as active at the deadline, there will be activity before that deadline passes as well. But for now, we’re now into the last 2 months of this 6 month marathon. It’s not time for the teams that made the investment to win now, to take the next step and start to position themselves as a team for a long postseason run. Races are far from over and because of the deadline, some division races could either change in the coming weeks or a team can start to run away. Only time will tell, but as for the trading deadline that now has passed, for the first time in a few years, it didn’t disappoint.