[boscokid]

I guess now we know if Suarez has the stuff to be a MLB closer

[stevenash]

Welcome to The Show Bobby Witt Jr.
The next big thing.

Up in the zone Bobby goes up and gets it, for the game winner.



https://www.mlb.com/news/bobby-witt-...=1649421372174

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Welcome to The Show Bobby Witt Jr.
The next big thing.

Up in the zone Bobby goes up and gets it, for the game winner.



https://www.mlb.com/news/bobby-witt-...=1649421372174

I was watching MLB Tonight and they interviewed him after the game. He is very respectful and shy for someone with his talent. Kind of refreshing not to see someone of his pedigree not totally full of himself.

[Otters27]

Cubs Brewers was pretty good in the late innings.

[stevenash]

I was watching MLB Tonight and they interviewed him after the game. He is very respectful and shy for someone with his talent. Kind of refreshing not to see someone of his pedigree not totally full of himself.

He's a good kid, Whit loves him.
Speaking of Whit, both sides came to an easy extension through 2023.

Nice core.

Sal
Whit
Mondesi Jr.
Witt Jr.
Dozier
Santana - great clubhouse guy

Greinke backs where he belongs ...

[JMobile]

Same 'ol Padres

[jrgum3]

He's a good kid, Whit loves him.
Speaking of Whit, both sides came to an easy extension through 2023.

Nice core.

Sal
Whit
Mondesi Jr.
Witt Jr.
Dozier
Santana - great clubhouse guy

Greinke backs where he belongs ...

The Royals are an easy team to like. A nice young core of players at the Major League level and a good farm system with more prospects on the way to the Show. They will be a really good team in the years to come if they can find more pitching.

[EmpireMaker]

The Royals finalized their season-opening rotation yesterday, with manager Mike Matheny telling reporters (including Alec Lewis of the Athletic) that southpaw Daniel Lynch will claim the final spot behind Zack Greinke, Brad Keller, Kris Bubic and Carlos Hernández. Notably, that means right-hander Brady Singer — who has started all 39 of his MLB appearances — is set to work out of the bullpen initially. Matheny indicated the Royals still view Singer and righty Jackson Kowar as starting pitchers long-term, but it’ll be Lynch who gets the nod for now.
It’s a bit of a surprising move, as Singer is coming off the better season. Neither hurler had a good ERA in 2021, but Singer had a better strikeout and ground-ball rate than Lynch while issuing slightly fewer walks. Lynch generated a slightly higher whiff rate, but Singer was among the league’s best pitchers at picking up called strikes. Some evaluators raised concerns during Singer’s prospect days about whether his below-average changeup and lower arm slot could diminish his ability to turn a lineup over multiple times, but he’s not shown marked second or third times through the order splits in his career thus far. Injuries and/or underperformance to the front five figure to give Singer another rotation look in the near future.
More pitching updates from around the division:

• The Tigers are planning to use Wily Peralta in relief this season, writes Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free-Press. The righty started 18 of 19 appearances with Detroit last year, posting a solid 3.07 ERA but an underwhelming 14.4% strikeout rate. The Tigers brought Peralta back on a minor league contract this spring. He seems likely to get another big league call fairly soon, but he was delayed in reporting to Spring Training because of **** issues and is set for further ramp-up work in the minors. The Tigers added Michael Pineda on a one-year big league deal to assume the final rotation spot behind Eduardo Rodríguez, Casey Mize, Tarik Skubal and Matt Manning. Pineda — held up by **** concerns of his own — consented to be optioned to Triple-A Toledo to open the year for more build-up time, giving Tyler Alexander the #5 spot for the season’s first couple weeks. Pineda tossed three innings for the Mud Hens yesterday, and Petzold notes he’s likely to make two more appearances there before being recalled to the majors.
• The Twins made a last-minute addition to their rotation before Opening Day, acquiring Chris Paddack from the Padres in a deal that involved four MLB players changing hands. Minnesota already had a starting five of Sonny Gray, Joe Ryan, Dylan Bundy, Bailey Ober and Chris Archer lined up, and manager Rocco Baldelli told reporters (including Do-Hyoung Park of MLB.com) the Twins will roll with a six-man starting staff to open the season. Active rosters are expanded from 26 to 28 through April, giving teams flexibility to carry plenty of arms. Minnesota is also carrying top prospects Josh Winder and Jhoan Duran on the Opening Day roster, with both working in relief. Duran is expected to remain in that role (where he shined in two innings during his MLB debut this afternoon); Winder could be a rotation option down the line, and Baldelli said Winder could shoulder as much as five innings during an appearance out of the ’pen in the early going (Park link).

[jrgum3]

Interesting move by MLB to put Friday night baseball on Apple TV+. You can't get these games on TV anywhere else even if it's your local team but if you download Apple TV+ on an apple device or on a console like Playstation or XBox, which is what I did you get 3 months free. After your trial is up it's 5 bucks a month to continue watching 2 marquee games on Friday nights which I assume they'll continue to do because they want to grow the game.

[jrgum3]

I guess now we know if Suarez has the stuff to be a MLB closer

Well it didn't take long for the Padres to turn to Taylor Rogers. It was probably an obvious move since they traded for him and he has closer experience. He probably was drafted in fantasy though because he was going to be Minnesota's closer if he didn't get dealt and now he's probably going to hold down the 9th for the Padres after what happened to Suarez on Opening Day.

[Cross]

No laying chalk this week in baseball.

[jrgum3]

No laying chalk this week in baseball.

I got lucky with the Giants today and I'm happy they won but boy oh boy I can just tell it's going to be an adventure for them to shut the door in the 9th. Was unfortunate with the Blue Jays today as I took them on the run line in the F5 and they came all the way back to tie the game from down 7 runs early but couldn't take the lead until the next inning. The Blue Jays were my pick to win it all on MLB.com's pickem game but I'm not sure they'll win the pennant because their pitching is too inconsistent. They sure can rake though there's no doubt about that.

[stevenash]

Interesting move by MLB to put Friday night baseball on Apple TV+. You can't get these games on TV anywhere else even if it's your local team but if you download Apple TV+ on an apple device or on a console like Playstation or XBox, which is what I did you get 3 months free. After your trial is up it's 5 bucks a month to continue watching 2 marquee games on Friday nights which I assume they'll continue to do because they want to grow the game.

Peacock is getting MLB too next month.

Sounds to me Manfred is getting some good advice, he's too stupid to come up with good original ideas like "hey, it might be a good idea to market our product via streaming too"

[JAKEPEAVY21]

No laying chalk this week in baseball.

I would not lay much chalk for a few weeks until teams start to get in a bit of a groove.

[JMobile]

Padres need to stick with Taylor Rogers instead of Suarez

[jrgum3]

Giants wasted a masterful performance by Carlos Rodon today. I just hope he stays healthy this year because he's going to make us Giants fans forget all about losing Kevin Gausman to the Jays this offseason.

[EmpireMaker]

Cubs left fielder Ian Happ was removed from today’s 9-0 win over the Brewers after being hit in the left kneecap by a Trevor Gott pitch during the seventh inning. X-rays were negative, as Happ told NBC Sports Chicago’s Tim Stebbins and other reporters after the game. “It’s going to be pretty stiff [Sunday], I’m sure, but right now it’s not too bad,” Happ said. It would seem as if Happ is questionable for tomorrow’s lineup, and since the Cubs don’t play on Monday, Happ has some more time to heal up and receive further treatment to determine if an IL trip could be necessary.
The Cubs/Brewers series has thus far seen seven batters hit by pitches over two games, which has some a frequent occurrence in recent meetings between the two division rivals. The result was a skirmish that saw both benches and bullpens empty after Andrew McCutchen was hit by a Keegan Thompson pitch in the eighth inning, but ultimately nothing but harsh words were exchanged.
More from the NL Central…

• Busch Stadium is known as a pitcher-friendly ballpark, and the Cardinals have added to this built-in run suppression by creating a tremendous defensive roster. As Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch examines, the club has embraced this to the point of deciding against moving in the walls at their ballpark, even after commissioning a study to examine the possible impact. “We started to think we may have an edge here with this particular configuration,” chairman Bill DeWitt III said. “In theory, a bigger ballpark, more balls in play, a defense that catches anything — why don’t we put this on ice and see how things develop? We have an elite defense and we’re contemplating doing something that might minimize the impact of that defense. Let’s not.” Goold’s piece breaks down some of the findings of the study, with the Cards looking at how potential alterations to any of the dimensions would affect everything from fan experience to on-field performance.
• Reds manager David Bell provided reporters (including MLB.com’s Mark Sheldon) with several updates on injured players over the last two days. Lucas Sims is on pace to head to Triple-A this week after throwing a live BP session at the team’s extended Spring Training camp, and Bell set April 20 or 22 as the target dates for Sims’ likely return. Donovan Solano is out with a left hamstring injury, but Boone said Solano has been doing some running drills and even took some swings during some simulated game sessions.
• Mike Minor and Luis Castillo both began the season on the IL due to shoulder soreness, and while Castillo was initially thought to have the quicker return of the two, Minor has now seemingly moved ahead after throwing a 35-pitch simulated game on Friday. Minor could now be ready for Triple-A work or at least another sim game, while Castillo still has to get a second bullpen session under his belt. In terms of projections, the Reds are now aiming for Castillo to be back by late April, while Minor could make his debut closer to the middle of the month.

[stevenash]

How about that lockdown back end relief job from KC yesterday.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Nice to see a bit of resilience from the Padres after the gutting 9th inning loss on opening day.

Let's see if Snell can find the plate today and give a good showing.

[JMobile]

Yankees are hot. Rizzo and Stanton with 2 HR's now

[d2bets]

Seiya Suzuki with his first HR, a 3-run bomb off Peralta.

I know it's early and all, but this guy looks like the real deal. He's probably gonna end up a steal at 5/85.

[Otters27]

Trout hit a Homer last night. Hes my favorite player

[Cross]

Seiya Most definitely the real deal!

[stevenash]

Trout hit a Homer last night. Hes my favorite player

Mine too.

The Millville Meteor

[EmpireMaker]

Braves General Manager Alex Anthopolous struck out in his attempt to land a top-of-the-rotation arm during the offseason, he said recently on The Bill Shanks Show. Even without a fresh face at the top of the rotation, the Braves enter the season in pretty good hands with Max Fried and Charlie Morton leading the way.
The face of the Braves’ title defense season, however, may depend more on the next two arms in the rotation: Kyle Wright and Ian Anderson. If the young duo can fully establish themselves as mainstays in the rotation, the future in Atlanta is bright.
Anderson is further along than Wright at the moment, having made 24 starts in the 2021 season, finishing with a 3.58 ERA/4.12 FIP over 128 1/3 innings. He then made four starts in the postseason, all four of which the Braves won. In fact, over the past two postseasons, the Braves are 7-1 in games Anderson starts, while he owns a 1.26 ERA over 35 2/3 postseason innings. After 30 career regular-season starts, Anderson’s rotation spot is secure. The only question remaining relates to his ceiling.
Wright, meanwhile, made just two starts with the big league squad during the regular season, and then matched that total in the World Series alone, tossing 5 2/3 innings and serving up just one earned run. Wright should finally get his opportunity to stay in the rotation this year.
The final spot in the rotation is where the Braves were presumably looking to upgrade. Mike Soroka lurks somewhere in the organization, but he can hardly be counted on until proven healthy. For now, they will rely on a depth group that includes Huascar Ynoa, Tucker Davidson, Kyle Muller, Touki Toussaint, and Bryce Elder. That group carries more upside than most depth stables, but for a team with aspirations of back-to-back titles, upside can mask inefficiency.
The Braves have won the division four years running, and they’re the defending World Series champions. To suggest that they need anything is premature. But with the Mets and Phillies both nipping hard at their heels, nothing is guaranteed. It’s certainly interesting to note that Anthopolous explored frontline rotation additions this offseason. As the season progresses and new names become available on the trade market, the Braves may again look to engage the trade market.

[Otters27]

Tampa only team undefeated.

Orioles only winless team

[jrgum3]

Trout hit a Homer last night. Hes my favorite player

That Trout guy is pretty damn good. Just a shame he's wasting the prime of his career in Anaheim.

[stevenash]

^
Not when one of his teammates is setting Exit Velocity all time records.

(3) Baseball GIFs ������ on Twitter: "119.1 MPH EV from Shohei Ohtani, the new record by a LHH in the Statcast era. https://t.co/yMhMv9PpAt" / Twitter

[JAKEPEAVY21]

Padres vs Giants today, should be a good series

[stevenash]

Padres vs Giants today, should be a good series

I'm going to make pretend I'm Switzerland for that game and just watch and root for a good game only.

[JAKEPEAVY21]

I'm going to make pretend I'm Switzerland for that game and just watch and root for a good game only.

I'm outnumbered here nasher

[JMobile]

Tampa only team undefeated.

Orioles only winless team

Padres could of been undefeated

[Cross]

Fun opening weekend for sure!

[Cross]

Please stay healthy this year, Buxton!

[jrgum3]

Seems like nothings changed with the Giants they have solid pitching but they will struggle to score runs especially when the wind is whipping around Oracle Park and knocking balls down like Ruf's ball that he crushed in the 7th only for it to get knocked down on the warning track for the third out.