The 2020 Major League Baseball Player Chatter, News and Fantasy Thread.

[stevenash]

On this date today, April 15, these three things happened.

On 4/15/2009 Ian Kinsler (Tex) went 6 for 6 with 4 RBI and 5 runs scored.
On 4/15/1987 Mike Scott (Hou) pitched a complete 9 inning 1 hit 1 walk shutout striking out 10.
On 4/15/2000 Cal Ripken (Bal) got his 3000th hit.

Also on 4/15/1968 Houston Astro pitchers shutout the Mets for 24 innings (a record) winning 1-0 inn the bottom of the 24th inning.

Most importantly Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut today, 4/15/1947

[deadphish]

On this date today, April 15, these three things happened.

On 4/15/2009 Ian Kinsler (Tex) went 6 for 6 with 4 RBI and 5 runs scored.
On 4/15/1987 Mike Scott (Hou) pitched a complete 9 inning 1 hit 1 walk shutout striking out 10.
On 4/15/2000 Cal Ripken (Bal) got his 3000th hit.

Also on 4/15/1968 Houston Astro pitchers shutout the Mets for 24 innings (a record) winning 1-0 inn the bottom of the 24th inning.

Most importantly Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut today, 4/15/1947

good 1

[ApricotSinner32]

On this date today, April 15, these three things happened.

On 4/15/2009 Ian Kinsler (Tex) went 6 for 6 with 4 RBI and 5 runs scored.
On 4/15/1987 Mike Scott (Hou) pitched a complete 9 inning 1 hit 1 walk shutout striking out 10.
On 4/15/2000 Cal Ripken (Bal) got his 3000th hit.

Also on 4/15/1968 Houston Astro pitchers shutout the Mets for 24 innings (a record) winning 1-0 inn the bottom of the 24th inning.

Most importantly Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut today, 4/15/1947

[Cross]

Legendary day in baseball, good story!

[koz-man]

Former Blue Jays 2B Damaso Garcia dies at 63

Former Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Damaso Garcia died Wednesday in the Dominican Republic at the age of 63, his son, Damaso Garcia Jr., told ESPN.
Garcia played 11 seasons in the majors and was a two-time All-Star (1984, '85). He played seven seasons for the Blue Jays and in 1982 won an American League Silver Slugger award.

"It is a sad day for the Dominican baseball community," said Erick Almonte, president of the Dominican national player federation, the island nation's players' union. Garcia, who played for Tigres del Licey in the Dominican Republic, was also a past president of the union.
Garcia was beloved for being part of great double-play combos along with his Dominican compatriots Tony Fernandez and Alfredo Griffin. Fernandez died in February of pneumonia at age 57.

[JMobile]

The 2018 World Series MVP retired yesterday.

[stevenash]

The 2018 World Series MVP retired yesterday.

Pearce.
I read that, yeah.

We can be heros. just for one day.

[batt33]

Pearce.
I read that, yeah.

We can be heros. just for one day.

Perfect time to get hot!

[EmpireMaker]

Considering the circumstances, we figure to be in for an unusual free agency period in Major League Baseball next offseason. We’ve already run down the most notable catchers, shortstops, and first basemen who are slated to reach the open market once the winter rolls around in several months. We’ll do the same here with second basemen (players’ listed ages are for the 2021 campaign) …
Top Of The Class

• DJ LeMahieu (32): Some felt the Yankees made a really nice value move when they inked DJLM, but nobody predicted a fourth-place finish in the AL MVP voting. It remains to be seen whether LeMahieu can repeat anything like his whopping 2019 output at the plate, but he has long been a high-end defender.
• Jonathan Villar (30): Another player with a bit of a rollercoaster trajectory, Villar has actually matched LeMahieu in career batting output (97 wRC+). And Villar was quite good in 2019, racking up 4 fWAR despite below-average defensive grades by turning in 162 games of quality hitting and league-leading legwork on the bases.
• Kolten Wong (30): It all came together in 2019 for the longtime Cardinals second bagger, who contributed solid work across the board. With a repeat showing, the club is likely to exercise its $12.5MM club option ($1MM buyout).

Other Regulars (based upon 2019 playing time)

• Cesar Hernandez (31): Even at his best, Hernandez has never been anything close to an overwhelming offensive performer. But he does have a ~3 WAR established ceiling and has received fairly regular playing time over the past five seasons.
• Jurickson Profar (28): The once- super-elite prospect has made it through major injury issues but has never fully come around at the MLB level. 2020 could be something of a make-or-break season.
• Jonathan Schoop (29): Though he rebounded from a down 2018, Schoop wasn’t the 30+ homer slugger of yore. Defensive metrics are split on his fielding ability.

Top Timeshare Candidates

• Asdrubal Cabrera (35): After a rough start to the 2019 season, Cabrera caught fire down the stretch with the Nats. He’s unlikely to be an everyday guy come 2021, but is a trusted veteran who could still be seen as an important contributor.
• Daniel Descalso (34): He’s all but certain to be paid a $1MM buyout rather than playing on a $3.5MM club option, barring a huge bounce back after a terrible first season with the Cubs.
• Brian Dozier (34): It would be a surprise if Dozier returns to his levels of quiet stardom after two-straight down years. But he could have a chance to shine in San Diego if Profar falters.
• Dee Gordon (33): It just hasn’t worked out for Gordon in Seattle. The M’s are sure to pay him a $1MM buyout instead of exercising a $14MM club option. But the speedy veteran could still have another act left.
• Howie Kendrick (37): The bat is still legit, though it’s fair to wonder whether the glove still plays at second base. Odds are he’ll be seen mostly at an option in the corners going forward.
• Jed Lowrie (37): It’s anyone’s guess how Lowrie will look when he finally gets back on the field.
• Brad Miller (31): He surged back to life in a short 2019 run with the Phillies … but consistency has proven elusive over the years.
• Eric Sogard (35): His power outburst with the Blue Jays faded after a mid-season trade to the Rays, but Sogard is still being paid to function as a significant contributor in his latest stint with the Brewers.

Others
Adeiny Hechavarria and Freddy Galvis can be considered candidates at second base, though their real value lies in their ability to handle shortstop. Bounceback candidates include Eduardo Nunez and Chris Owings.

[jrgum3]

On this date today, April 15, these three things happened.

On 4/15/2009 Ian Kinsler (Tex) went 6 for 6 with 4 RBI and 5 runs scored.
On 4/15/1987 Mike Scott (Hou) pitched a complete 9 inning 1 hit 1 walk shutout striking out 10.
On 4/15/2000 Cal Ripken (Bal) got his 3000th hit.

Also on 4/15/1968 Houston Astro pitchers shutout the Mets for 24 innings (a record) winning 1-0 inn the bottom of the 24th inning.

Most importantly Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut today, 4/15/1947

A lot of amazing things happened on April 15 but baseball made sure it will always be about Jackie Robinson by making sure nobody ever wore number 42 again.

[Otters27]

Each passing day I wonder about MLB

[ApricotSinner32]

Former Blue Jays 2B Damaso Garcia dies at 63


Former Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Damaso Garcia died Wednesday in the Dominican Republic at the age of 63, his son, Damaso Garcia Jr., told ESPN.
Garcia played 11 seasons in the majors and was a two-time All-Star (1984, '85). He played seven seasons for the Blue Jays and in 1982 won an American League Silver Slugger award.

"It is a sad day for the Dominican baseball community," said Erick Almonte, president of the Dominican national player federation, the island nation's players' union. Garcia, who played for Tigres del Licey in the Dominican Republic, was also a past president of the union.
Garcia was beloved for being part of great double-play combos along with his Dominican compatriots Tony Fernandez and Alfredo Griffin. Fernandez died in February of pneumonia at age 57.

[ApricotSinner32]

Each passing day I wonder about MLB

what are we thinking jack

[deadphish]

what are we thinking jack

any books have odds on if season starts at some point?

[Chi_archie]

On this date today, April 15, these three things happened.

On 4/15/2009 Ian Kinsler (Tex) went 6 for 6 with 4 RBI and 5 runs scored.
On 4/15/1987 Mike Scott (Hou) pitched a complete 9 inning 1 hit 1 walk shutout striking out 10.
On 4/15/2000 Cal Ripken (Bal) got his 3000th hit.

Also on 4/15/1968 Houston Astro pitchers shutout the Mets for 24 innings (a record) winning 1-0 inn the bottom of the 24th inning.

Most importantly Jackie Robinson made his MLB debut today, 4/15/1947

wow that's some interesting stuff

[stevenash]

There were three snow outs today 4/16/2018
Boston, and even Toronto which plays in a dome was snowed out because of falling snow and ice on the Rogers Center roof.

[Cross]

Snow on the ground in Minny,they would have had snow outs this year.

[koz-man]

MLB players raise nearly $1M for meals for kids

More than 50 Major League Baseball players representing all 30 teams have raised nearly $1 million to provide over 4 million meals to support childhood hunger prevention during the coronavirus pandemic.
The Home Plate Project is a partnership between Major League Baseball, country music superstar Garth Brooks' Teammates for Kids Foundation, and Big League Impact, a program led by St. Louis Cardinals pitcher Adam Wainwright and Texas Rangers pitcher Kyle Gibson.
The Home Plate Project initiative was originally scheduled to launch its second year in the fall. But Brooks, Wainwright and Gibson saw the urgency now to provide meals for children who rely on free or reduced-price meals at schools that are closed because of the pandemic.
On short notice, the charity groups were able to raise $937,100.
Wainwright founded Big League Impact in 2013. He says the big leaguers felt the need to jump in right away to help feed kids in their cities.

[Stallion]

Is anyone's city or towns any closer to opening?? I.E less social distancing??

[stevenash]

Is anyone's city or towns any closer to opening?? I.E less social distancing??

Arizona maybe

[JMobile]

San Diego will get an update at the end of this month

[stevenash]

San Diego will get an update at the end of this month

SD would probably be one of the first cities to play.
Maybe the eight domed or retractable roof teams too.

Maybe, just maybe we can see July 1 baseball, not sooner is my opinion.

[batt33]

July 4th! how about that!

[stevenash]

July 4th! how about that!

I'll settle for July 4

[ApricotSinner32]

Trump saying we could be opening soon mlb time??????????

[EmpireMaker]

It was just a few years ago that Tigers right-hander Michael Fulmer looked like one of the most valuable pitchers in baseball. Fulmer burst on the scene in 2016 – one year after the Tigers acquired him from the Mets in the teams’ Yoenis Cespedes trade – parlaying a 95 mph fastball into 159 innings of 3.06 ERA ball en route to American League Rookie of the Year honors. Unfortunately, though, Fulmer’s career has gone in the wrong direction since then.
While Fulmer did turn in another fine season in 2017, an All-Star campaign, injuries began to cut him down then. Dating back to that season, Fulmer has undergone three surgeries – one for ulnar nerve transposition, another on his knee and most recently a Tommy John procedure. TJS wiped out all of 2019 for Fulmer, which came after he slumped to an unspectacular 4.69 ERA across 132 1/3 innings during the previous year.

Considering that Fulmer’s still just 27 years old and under team control through 2022, it would be unwise to throw dirt on his career just yet. Fulmer may well turn back into a significant asset for the Tigers when he’s ready to return (which should be sometime this season, if there is one), though it’s also worth wondering if the club and general manager Al Avila should have sold high on him when they had the chance. Fulmer was involved in a bevy of trade rumors during his healthier days, but the Tigers were unwilling to move him for anything other than a massive return when his value was at its zenith. They’ve since gone into a full rebuild and may not even return to contention during Fulmer’s remaining years of control.
In fairness to the Tigers, you can’t necessarily blame them for their reluctance to part with Fulmer. After all, it’s not every day you find a young, hard-throwing starter with front-line potential. That said, plenty of teams tried to pry him out of Detroit, which could have benefited from moving him.
Going back in the MLBTR archives since 2017, the Braves, Astros, Athletics, Dodgers, Phillies, Yankees, Padres, Cubs and Rangers are among teams that have at least kicked the tires on Fulmer. The juiciest Fulmer-related rumor came out last summer and went back to 2017, when Houston and Chicago reportedly offered Detroit one now-superstar apiece for the hurler.
The Cubs were apparently willing to give up Javier Baez, while the Astros would have surrendered Alex Bregman for Fulmer and reliever Justin Wilson. The Tigers turned down those offers. At that point, Baez was a solid player – not the true standout middle infielder he has morphed into over the past couple years. Bregman, though, was just two years removed from going No. 2 in the draft and has been among the most valuable third basemen in the game over the past few seasons. As for Wilson (now a Met), the Tigers did end up trading him to the Cubs that year for third baseman Jeimer Candelario and shortstop Isaac Paredes. Candelario was a quality prospect at the time, but he hasn’t made a great impact in the majors yet, while Paredes is still promising. Bregman helped the Astros to a World Series title (albeit one that many regard as tainted) in 2017, however, and Baez has been irreplaceable to the Cubs.
If either the Astros or the Cubs had successfully pulled off a Fulmer trade, it’s interesting to ponder how they’d look nowadays. Would the Astros have ended up acquiring ace Justin Verlander, Fulmer’s ex-teammate, from the Tigers in August 2017? If not, would they have won the World Series that year or the AL pennant without his Cy Young contributions last season? Would the Cubs have sent outfielder Eloy Jimenez and righty Dylan Cease to the crosstown-rival White Sox for starter Jose Quintana in 2017? Those are just some of the intriguing scenarios to consider in the case of a Fulmer non-trade.
If we’re to believe the Astros/Cubs rumors, it seems fair to say the Tigers’ refusal to trade Fulmer three years ago has had an enormous effect on them and the league as a whole. While it’s not the Tigers’ fault that injuries have derailed Fulmer of late, they might be a lot closer to escaping their rebuild had they traded him to Houston, Chicago or one of the several other teams that pursued him. Now, they’re left to hope that he’ll begin a career renaissance when he takes the mound again.

[BigSpoon]

Trump saying we could be opening soon mlb time??????????

Just secure a stockpile of hydroxychloroquine and we are good to go.

[jrgum3]

Good the sooner baseball can closer to returning the sooner we can get back to normal everyday life which includes sports.

[Chi_archie]

It was just a few years ago that Tigers right-hander Michael Fulmer looked like one of the most valuable pitchers in baseball. Fulmer burst on the scene in 2016 – one year after the Tigers acquired him from the Mets in the teams’ Yoenis Cespedes trade – parlaying a 95 mph fastball into 159 innings of 3.06 ERA ball en route to American League Rookie of the Year honors. Unfortunately, though, Fulmer’s career has gone in the wrong direction since then.
While Fulmer did turn in another fine season in 2017, an All-Star campaign, injuries began to cut him down then. Dating back to that season, Fulmer has undergone three surgeries – one for ulnar nerve transposition, another on his knee and most recently a Tommy John procedure. TJS wiped out all of 2019 for Fulmer, which came after he slumped to an unspectacular 4.69 ERA across 132 1/3 innings during the previous year.

Considering that Fulmer’s still just 27 years old and under team control through 2022, it would be unwise to throw dirt on his career just yet. Fulmer may well turn back into a significant asset for the Tigers when he’s ready to return (which should be sometime this season, if there is one), though it’s also worth wondering if the club and general manager Al Avila should have sold high on him when they had the chance. Fulmer was involved in a bevy of trade rumors during his healthier days, but the Tigers were unwilling to move him for anything other than a massive return when his value was at its zenith. They’ve since gone into a full rebuild and may not even return to contention during Fulmer’s remaining years of control.
In fairness to the Tigers, you can’t necessarily blame them for their reluctance to part with Fulmer. After all, it’s not every day you find a young, hard-throwing starter with front-line potential. That said, plenty of teams tried to pry him out of Detroit, which could have benefited from moving him.
Going back in the MLBTR archives since 2017, the Braves, Astros, Athletics, Dodgers, Phillies, Yankees, Padres, Cubs and Rangers are among teams that have at least kicked the tires on Fulmer. The juiciest Fulmer-related rumor came out last summer and went back to 2017, when Houston and Chicago reportedly offered Detroit one now-superstar apiece for the hurler.
The Cubs were apparently willing to give up Javier Baez, while the Astros would have surrendered Alex Bregman for Fulmer and reliever Justin Wilson. The Tigers turned down those offers. At that point, Baez was a solid player – not the true standout middle infielder he has morphed into over the past couple years. Bregman, though, was just two years removed from going No. 2 in the draft and has been among the most valuable third basemen in the game over the past few seasons. As for Wilson (now a Met), the Tigers did end up trading him to the Cubs that year for third baseman Jeimer Candelario and shortstop Isaac Paredes. Candelario was a quality prospect at the time, but he hasn’t made a great impact in the majors yet, while Paredes is still promising. Bregman helped the Astros to a World Series title (albeit one that many regard as tainted) in 2017, however, and Baez has been irreplaceable to the Cubs.
If either the Astros or the Cubs had successfully pulled off a Fulmer trade, it’s interesting to ponder how they’d look nowadays. Would the Astros have ended up acquiring ace Justin Verlander, Fulmer’s ex-teammate, from the Tigers in August 2017? If not, would they have won the World Series that year or the AL pennant without his Cy Young contributions last season? Would the Cubs have sent outfielder Eloy Jimenez and righty Dylan Cease to the crosstown-rival White Sox for starter Jose Quintana in 2017? Those are just some of the intriguing scenarios to consider in the case of a Fulmer non-trade.
If we’re to believe the Astros/Cubs rumors, it seems fair to say the Tigers’ refusal to trade Fulmer three years ago has had an enormous effect on them and the league as a whole. While it’s not the Tigers’ fault that injuries have derailed Fulmer of late, they might be a lot closer to escaping their rebuild had they traded him to Houston, Chicago or one of the several other teams that pursued him. Now, they’re left to hope that he’ll begin a career renaissance when he takes the mound again.

was looking forward to watching Eloy this year

[stevenash]

Today on this date 4/17/2010 exactly 10 years ago Ubaldo Jimenez threw the first Rockies no hitter.
9 innings, 6 walks, 7 K's, needed to use 126 pitches to do it and Troy Glaus on defense to save his no-no on a scorcher hit by Dexter Fowler.

So I was looking at Jimenez's 2010 season that Dominican had a rubber arm.
Besides that 126 pitch no hitter, he threw 100 pitches in a game that year 25 times.
25 times 100 or pitches in 33 starts, he was 19-8 that year probably the best year ever by a Rockie starter.
Third in Cy Young voting.
Here's that 2010 season link.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.fcgi?id=jimenub01&t=p&year=2010

[deadphish]

Trump saying we could be opening soon mlb time??????????

i think he claimed he went to game recently @ Marlins Park

[Stallion]

Trump is a moron. If he opens things back up, they will close back up shortly after.

[stevenash]

Trump is a moron. If he opens things back up, they will close back up shortly after.

And for longer than a couple of months this time too.
I'm a republican but not a big Trump guy, he's thinking about his own billions only.

[JMobile]

Yup, it's TRUE. Trump looking to reopen sports but without the fans present.

[Cross]

Twins Braves 91 World Series game 6 on tv right now, so good! Puckett the GOAT!