Tag Archives: MLB

The Invisible Deadline Holding Major League Baseball’s Top Prospects Back

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By: Brady Shick

Brady Shick is from Sagamore Hills, Ohio and recently graduated from Bowling Green State University. He is currently seeking opportunities to pursue a career in Baseball Operations.

July 7, 2025

Every team in Major League Baseball (MLB) looks for a way to get a foot up on their competitors. In past drafts, teams have taken high school prospects higher than they are projected and try to sign them away, with more money than projected, from the college for which they committed to play. One of the most common ways and most controversial is through service time manipulation. Service time is a value system that equates the number of days a player spends on the active 26-man roster for each Major League team. Service time is then used to determine when a player reaches arbitration with his respective club. Small market teams are normally the main culprits of manipulating their players’ service time, but almost always headlined each season by the Pirates. The most common way to manipulate is through the Super-2 deadline and the debuts of top prospects.

The Super-2 deadline normally takes place in the end of May or beginning of June every year and is the cutoff date for players to gain an extra year in which they are arbitration eligible, which normally takes place after three years of service time. If a player is in the top 22% of service time compared to those in their rookie class, they gain an extra year where they can go to arbitration to make more money during that season. If teams wait to call up a prospect later they can save money to use in free agency.

Teams like the Pirates constantly use this strategy with examples being Gerrit Cole, Austin Meadows, Tyler Glasnow, and most recently Paul Skenes. Notable stars called up after the deadline include Bobby Witt Jr (Kansas City Royals), Byron Buxton (Minnesota Twins), Elly De La Cruz (Cincinnati Reds) among others. Most of these players eventually went on to free agency, signing with other teams or being traded prior to reaching free agency.

2025 and Super-2 

Within the last week, Major League Baseball has seen two of their top minor league prospects come up to the big leagues in Jac Caglianone (Royals) and Roman Anthony (Red Sox). Caglianone, a former two-way player, hitting and pitching at the University of Florida, has dominated across both AA and AAA levels in the minors. This was all while learning a new position (right field). Caglianone made his Major League Debut without playing a full season in the minors and after dominating in the lower levels. 

On the other hand, Roman Anthony has been as dominant as anyone in the minors this season batting .288 with 10 homers in 58 games. He was also the top prospect in all of Minor League Baseball’s second visit to Triple-A. Many scouts across the industry were perplexed as to why he hadn’t gotten the call to the big leagues yet. Major League executives were less confused on his arrival time to Boston. By holding Anthony until this time of the season the Red Sox let the Super-2 deadline pass and gained an extra year of pre-arbitration control on Anthony. All of this was done for the Red Sox to save a few extra bucks while continuing to fall out of the division and wild card standings. 

The Red Sox aren’t the only team following this practice. The second ranked prospect in the minors, Bubba Chandler (Pirates), is currently pitching in Indianapolis. The Pirates have called up three other pitching prospects from Triple-A all of whom were on staff with Chandler and none of whom have pitched as well as he has. This is just another instance of the utilization of the Super-2 deadline for baseball.

Dying Practice

Many fans will remember that the 2022 MLB season was delayed due to a players’ strike. One of the largest gripes by the Players Union was the service time manipulation by front offices across the league. Finally, after three plus months of a strike both the owners and players agreed on a new collective bargaining agreement with this issue somewhat resolved.

The solution was for owners and front offices to be incentivized to call up their top prospects at the beginning of the season. If a top prospect makes the Opening Day roster and then wins his league’s respective Rookie of the Year award, that team receives a pick after the first round in the next draft. A team will also receive an extra pick if that prospect finishes in the top three of the Cy Young or MVP awards before he reaches arbitration. However, a team is only eligible for one pick each draft and each player’s success can only be responsible for one extra pick. Since the inauguration of this rule, the Orioles and Mariners have benefitted with Adley Rutschman finishing second in the Rookie of the Year race in 2022 and Julio Rodriguez winning Rookie of the Year that same season.

This new system also can have negative consequences for front offices. Last year’s National League Rookie of the Year did not make the Opening Day Roster for the Pittsburgh Pirates. Had Skenes been up since day one, the Pirates would have received an extra pick in this month’s draft, but due to the new rules this wasn’t the case. Additionally, because Skenes won Rookie of the Year he was awarded a full-year of service time and the Pirates lost the extra year of pre-arbitration they were fighting to maintain.

Future of the Super-2

Service time manipulation has been a big issue for years within the MLBPA and it looks like a better solution is coming. Potentially, long gone are the days of prospects not making their debuts until early to mid-June thanks to the potential for an extra draft pick. However, baseball might be the hardest to predict a prospect’s future. There are plenty of guys that take a year or even a couple to figure out the big leagues. With so much uncertainty teams and front offices will continue to find ways to lengthen their competitive window and service time manipulation is the most accessible. But for the fans hopefully they can see a Travis Bazzana (Guardians) or a JJ Weatherholt (Cardinals) on an Opening Day roster.

From Japan to Clemson, South Carolina: National League Rookie of the Year Candidates

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By: Brady Shick

Brady Shick is a recent graduate of Bowling Green State University from Sagamore Hills, Ohio. He is currently pursuing a career in Baseball Operations and looking for opportunities.

February 28, 2025

One of the most prestigious awards in Major League Baseball is the Rookie of the Year Award. Hall of Famers like Rod Carew, Willie Mays, and Johnny Bench have won it. Originally named the J. Louis Comiskey Award, after the infamous owner of the Chicago White Sox, the award was changed to the Jackie Robinson Award in 1987 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Robinson breaking the color barrier and winning the award en route to his Hall of Fame career.

Twenty twenty-four brought one of the best National League (NL) “Rookie of the Year” Races in recent years. Headlined by two first round picks in Paul Skenes and Jackson Merrill, it was one of the tightest races we have seen. Even the third finalist, Jackson Chourio, would have been likely to win Rookie of the Year most other seasons. Chourio finished the season batting .275 with 21 home runs and 22 steals. Meanwhile, Merrill’s efforts in batting .292 with 24 homers resulted in him earning his first ‘Silver Slugger’ award. FInally, Skenes finished the season as a NL Cy Young Candidate with a resume of 133 innings pitched, a sub 2.00 ERA, and 11 wins. Skenes ended up taking home the award in a tight race with Merrill and this season could bring the same.

2025 Favorites 

Roki Sasaki

Right now far and away the favorite for NL Rookie of the Year is Roki Sasaki. Sasaki comes over from Nippon Baseball in Japan to join the reigning World Series winning Los Angeles Dodgers. Sasaki was one of the biggest free agents this season aside from Juan Soto. In Japan’s professional league, Sasaki had a 2.10 E.R.A over 4 seasons, and more than 500 strikeouts in fewer than 400 innings. While in Japan, Sasaki also outdueled Yoshinobu Yamamoto in a head-to-head matchup before Yamamoto signed his 12-year $325 million contract with the Dodgers last offseason. Sasaki also dominated during the World Baseball Classic (WBC) with two spectacular starts in 2023.

The only thing stronger than Sasaki’s reputation is his pitching arsenal. Sasaki debuted his stuff for the world at the WBC with a fastball consistently topping out at 100+ and an elite splitter. These pitches led to 11 strikeouts on two starts for Sasaki including some against current MLB veterans. 

Sasaki goes into one of the best situations possible in LA. Joining an organization known for developing talent, especially on the pitcher’s mound, with names like Clayton Kershaw, Walker Buehler, and Ross Stripling, they are poised to help Sasaki fulfill his potential. This along with being one of the best pitchers in Japan is why Roki Sasaki is the current favorite to win National League Rookie of the Year.

Dylan Crews

Even though Paul Skenes finished his first season in the majors as a Cy Young finalist and National League Rookie of the Year, the media wasn’t sure if he was going to the Pirates with the first pick. There was buzz around his Louisiana State University teammate outfielder Dylan Crews that he might be going to Pittsburgh. Crews was a five-tool prospect coming out of college and had a dominant junior year batting over .400 with 18 home runs. However, Crews ultimately ended up being drafted by the Nationals who held the next pick. 

Crews made his Major League Debut in 2024, but still maintained his prospect status thanks to a small sample size of at-bats and he is ranked as the 6th best prospect by Baseball America. While Crews did not have a great start to his career he showed flashes of his five tool potential. Crews stole 12 bases in 31 games, played well defensively, and added 8 extra-base hits. Crews will make the Nationals’ roster out of Spring Training to be an everyday outfielder for the Nats. He will be a strong contender for Rookie of the Year.

Bubba Chandler

In high school Bubba Chandler was a multi-sport athlete. Prior to being drafted he was a 4-star quarterback recruit committed to play at Clemson. However, when he was drafted by the Pirates in 2021 he decided to sign with the franchise and start his professional baseball career. Originally, Chandler was a two-way player for the Pirates’ affiliates, where he would play in the designated hitter spot on days he wasn’t pitching.

Last season saw Chandler’s first year in the minors where he devoted himself strictly to pitching. This decision saw a vast improvement in his season statistics from a year prior and he really excelled in Triple-A for Indianapolis. Chandler saw his best minor league success late in the season last year just one step away from Major League Baseball. In Triple-A Chandler finished the season with an E.R.A of 1.83 in nearly 40 innings with 54 strikeouts in 7 starts. 

The main thing holding Chandler back amongst this group is the timetable for his MLB debut. The Pirates are notorious for manipulating service time to get the most years of control for their top prospect using the Super-2 deadline. This deadline is an arbitrary date during each season in which a player doesn’t receive a full year of service time. This gives the team an extra year of control before the player goes to free agency. The Pirates have done this for almost all of their top prospects including Paul Skenes, Gerrit Cole, Andrew McCutchen and other top prospects. Additionally, the Pirates are not contenders so there is no reason to push Chandler to Pittsburgh.

Conclusion

The favorite to win National League Rookie of the Year is undoubtedly Roki Sasaki. From his stellar performances at  the World Baseball Classic and dominating in Japan, Sasaki has debuted his talent across the world and it’s time for him to showcase it for Major League audiences. Dylan Crews and his five tools will be an immense talent for a young Nationals team with no one to take away opportunities. It will be time for him to show more than just flashes of his five-tool potential. As for Chandler the only thing holding him back is the Pirates’ timetable for his debut. Regardless, this year’s race could be just as exciting as the 2024 Rookie of the Year race.

MLB Breakout Predictions: NL East

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Caption: NL East Teams

by Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

February 25, 2023

Welcome to part three of six of my series predicting the breakout stars for each and every Major League Baseball (MLB) team for 2023. In this series, I have already discussed the Central Divisions for both leagues which brings us to today’s topic, the National League East.

Finishing in last place in 2022 were the Washington Nationals. This team won the World Series just three seasons ago, well not this exact team as the roster has almost entirely turned over. However, this team has a pretty high ceiling with all of the young talent they obtained through trading their top stars.

My pick for their breakout star is MacKenzie Gore. Gore was the third player picked in the 2017 MLB Draft and was one of the major pieces in the trade sending Juan Soto to the Padres. Although his career is six years old to this point, Gore is only 23 at the time of writing as he was drafted right out of high school.

Gore has only thrown 70 innings at the Major League level and while he struggled with an ERA of 4.50, he punched out 72 batters. Through 250.1 innings in the minors, Gore notched 320 strikeouts while maintaining a stellar 2.91 ERA.

I predict that this season Gore will start to reach his potential and look for him to throw 150 innings with 200 strikeouts and a 3.40 ERA. MacKenzie should be a viable option for the ace of this Nationals’ staff.

The fourth-place finishers in the NL East last year were the Miami Marlins. This is another young team with a lot of potential over the next few years. There are a few different potential candidates for their breakout star.

Take, for instance, the cover of next year’s MLB The Show videogame Jazz Chisholm Jr., or even the returning Sixto Sanchez, but I think the player who will steal the spotlight is going to be Edward Cabrera.

MLB The Show fans already know what I am talking about with Cabrera as he has terrorized players for the past two years with his pitch variety and velocity.

In real life, Cabrera has a sinker that sits around 96-98 with lots of arm side movement as well as his 12-6 curveball that keeps hitters guessing. If everything goes right with players getting healthy, the Marlins could have Sandy Alcantara, Edward Cabrera, and Sixto Sanchez as the top three of their starting rotation.

I look for Cabrera to go 14-6 with an ERA under 3.00 and throwing at least 150 innings.

The next in the standings in the NL East last season were the Philadelphia Phillies. The Phillies really don’t have a lot of super intriguing young players on their team this season after their World Series visit. I’m looking for a relative newcomer to be their breakout star.

I think that Brandon Marsh will have a great season where he can finally shine. Marsh has spent his last two seasons sharing the outfield with stars like Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani. Now he gets the chance to shine in an outfield with Nicholas Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber.

I think if he is able to get his feet under him and play a lot of games again this year, he can become a very well-rounded outfielder. He is great defensively with his .990 fielding percentage, and will only improve with age.

I look for Marsh to bat .270 with 130+ hits as well as being one of the top defensive outfielders in the National League. His defensive play will really stand out being in an outfield with Castellanos and Schwarber who are both below average fielders.

Finishing second in the NL East last year were the New York Mets. The Mets spent a lot of money this offseason trying to make their way back to a World Series berth spending $500 million on free agents.

One of the Mets’ big acquisitions was star Japanese pitcher Kodai Senga, who I think will be a breakout star for the Mets. Over his 11 seasons in professional baseball, Senga has a staggering 2.42 ERA and a record of 104-51 with 1340.2 innings pitched. He has averaged almost 122 innings pitched during his time with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks.

Japanese pitchers often struggle when they come to the MLB due to the change in the size and feel of the ball being different than it is in Japan, but I expect Senga to make an impact from the start.

I anticipate that Senga will throw 100 innings with an ERA around 2.75 and 125+ punch-outs in his first season in the MLB. I look for him to put up even better numbers than Masahiro Tanaka even though Senga is about five years older than Tanaka was when he entered the league.

Finally, this brings us to the 2022 NL East champions, the Atlanta Braves. I wouldn’t really say that this player will breakout this year as he won the ‘2022 Rookie of The Year award.’ But I still look for Michael Harris to continue his exciting play and keep improving on his already impressive numbers.

Last year, Harris slashed .297/.339/.514 with 19 homers and 123 total hits. Harris only played in 114 games so averaging more than a hit a game as a rookie in the very competitive NL East, is a feat in and of itself.

I look for more of the same from Harris in 2023. If he can get his strikeouts down and walks up, I’m predicting a .300/.400/.500 slash line from him. That, along with 25 homers and easily 20+ stolen bases, and with a little bit of good fortune, I think he can put up 30/30 years for many seasons to come.

Next time, I’ll be talking about the ever chippy AL East so be sure to check back in a few days for that!

MLB Breakout Predictions: NL West

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Caption: NL West Teams

by Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

February 23, 2023

Welcome back to my series predicting breakout stars for every Major League Baseball (MLB) team for the 2023 season. This time, we are rounding out the National League (NL) with the Western Division.

The West is always a tough division with 2-3 teams in playoff contention yearly. The Colorado Rockies finished in last place last year, so they get to kick off this list.

The Rockies are a very young team this year with their longest tenured player at eight years of experience (Randal Grichuk) and their oldest player being only 37 (Daniel Bard).

I think their breakout performer will be someone who has had a few years in the league, but hasn’t yet lived up to his first round hype. Brendan Rodgers. Rodgers was drafted 3rd overall in 2015 and although he has played 100+ games the last two seasons, he has yet to live up to amazing numbers at the plate.

This is not to discredit his work at the plate either. Rodgers has slashed .274/.326/.434 over the last two seasons which is more than acceptable for a shortstop of his caliber, especially if he is able to keep winning Gold Gloves.

Rodgers has also put-up decent power numbers averaging 14 homers and 26 doubles. Last year, he proved that he is capable of being more patient at the plate and can take walks if he doesn’t get his pitch. He more than doubled his walk count from 2021 in just 30 more games.

I think Rodgers will slash .290/.350/.460 with 20 homers as well as bringing his second consecutive Gold Glove to Colorado. I also anticipate him to be on the long list of people receiving MVP votes.

Finishing ahead of the Rockies were the Arizona Diamondbacks. This is another relatively young team with only a handful of players with more than 5 years of experience.

Arizona is looking to shock people this season and possibly even make a run for a Wild Card spot.

My pick for their breakout star is going to be Gabriel Moreno. Although he will be splitting time with Carson Kelly behind the plate, I think he can take the starting position by the All-Star break.

Through 25 games last season, Moreno hit .319, which is what he has done his entire career as he has a .310 average through five Minor League seasons. Especially in today’s game, finding a catcher who can hit for average is increasingly rare and, in turn, valuable.

I look for Moreno to catch 100 games for Arizona this year and slash .290/.360/.400 as well as possibly capturing a Gold Glove.

Finishing the middle of the Western Division last season were the San Francisco Giants. This brings us to the first of three (spoiler alert) pitchers I have chosen for this list. The Giants have a lot of talent but most of it is holed up in their pitching staff.

I think this player is only going to improve after his coming out party last year where he finished 11th in Cy Young voting.

This player is Logan Webb. The now 26-year-old, entering his 5th MLB season, put up career best numbers last season with his 192.1 innings pitched and 2.90 ERA.

Webb looks to be the best option to become the new ace in San Fran. He reminds me a lot of prime Matt Cain, another all time Giant great from those 2010-2014 dynasty years.

If the Giants’ lineup is able to provide good or even decent run support for Webb, look for him to possibly start the All-Star game.

I predict Webb will throw 200+ innings this season and keep his sub 3.00 ERA yet again. Webb is primarily a contact pitcher so I don’t expect his strikeout numbers to be very high, but he will still probably have at least 140 Ks.

Finishing in second place in the West in 2022, were the San Diego Padres, another team looking to make it back to the playoffs and to finally make that elusive World Series run.

The Padres are shaping up to contend again, and I expect a large contributor will be Brent Honeywell Jr. Honeywell hasn’t seen big league action since he started two games and pitched in three for the Rays in 2021.

Honeywell has struggled with the injury bug since being drafted in 2014 and spent 2018-2020 out of professional baseball rehabbing and working to get back into shape.

This being said, he is one of my favorite pitchers to watch as he is possibly the last Major League Baseball player/pitcher who still throws a screwball (outside of Brewers’ pitcher Devin Williams “changeup”).

I think that if Honeywell can stay healthy and throw 120 innings, he can keep his ERA around 3.30 and punch out 150+ batters. I really look forward to watching Honeywell in the coming years as he promises to become a dominant starter.

Finally, we’ve reached the last National League team in this series, the Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers are always expecting a playoff berth and this year is no different.

I think this player has finally worked his way into an everyday role as well as helping to end the revolving door of relievers/closers the Dodgers have been working with ever since Kenley Janson left.

Brusdar Graterol is my choice for their breakout star in the 2023 season. Last year he appeared in 46 games, accruing 49.1 innings and allowing only 39 hits and 20 runs for an ERA of 3.26.

Along with his desirable numbers, Graterol is a treat to watch pitch as he touches triple digits with his fastball as effortlessly as you or I might toss a wad of paper into the trash can.

And while his ERA was a little higher than you would like out of your everyday closer, his fielding independent pitching or FIP, was 2.95. FIP takes into account errors and situations to determine a pitcher’s ERA using only things the pitchers themselves can control.

I predict that Graterol will play in 60 games this season and notch 40+ saves along with a 2.50 ERA over the course of 75 innings. Along with Webb, Graterol could easily become a starter in this year’s Mid-Summer Classic.

MLB Breakout Predictions: AL East

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Caption: AL East Teams

by Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

February 21, 2023

Welcome back to part four of six of my predictions for the breakout star of every Major League Baseball (MLB) team for the 2023 season. Today we tackle the stacked AL East.

Kicking off with the team that finished in last place in 2022, the Boston Red Sox. Boston won 78 games last year which would be a huge upgrade for most of the last place teams in 2022.

The Bosox don’t really have a plethora of young talent to pick from, but the one that I have the most confidence in is Triston Casas. He will more than likely be sitting behind Bobby Dalbec at first base, but with Dalbec’s average dropping substantially every season since 2020, I could see Casas getting some serious playing time.

Casas is just 23 years old and has only played 27 games, so still has fewer than 100 at bats in his MLB career. Even though he struggled (.197/.358/.408) when he played last year, he still barely played. I could see Casas being a strong middle of the order batter for Boston this year.

I anticipate Casas playing 100+ games this season and slashing .270/.380/.450 if he is able to use his 6’5” frame to generate some power and use the 302’ right field wall to hit some homers. I could also see Casas hitting 18-20 homers with 80+ RBI.

Finishing five games above Boston in 2022 were the Baltimore Orioles. I would imagine, most people would expect me to say Adley Rutschman for their 2023 breakout star. However, I expect someone who is yet to have any MLB experience to have a much better statistical year.

The 2023 breakout star for the Baltimore Orioles will be pitcher Grayson Rodriguez. Another 23-year-old for the list, Grayson was drafted in the first round in 2018 and has put up four great seasons across the minor leagues.

In four seasons of minor league baseball, Rodriguez is 25-9 with a 2.47 ERA to go along with his 419 strikeouts in only 292 innings. Of course, the glaring issue is that he has zero MLB experience and has also averaged just over 4 innings per start. But I think that once he debuts this season, he will make an instant impact.

Rodriguez has a three pitch mix that he uses to keep batters off balance, including his fastball that effortlessly touches triple digits.

I expect Rodriguez to go 10-6 this year with a 2.80 ERA and to be a heavy candidate for AL Rookie of the Year.

Coming now to the first of three AL East teams that made the playoffs in 2022, are the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays have a good mix of relatively young players and talented veterans. I would have Wander Franco as my pick, but I feel that he already had his breakout year when he was a rookie and continued to play well last year.

I also considered Shane Baz, but he’s currently injured and doesn’t look to be available for Opening Day.

So my choice for the Rays’ breakout star is Peter Fairbanks. Fairbanks is a 29-year-old relief pitcher who has been very underappreciated in my opinion. He has four years of MLB experience but has only thrown 114.1 innings up to this point. However, in his defense, Fairbanks is doing well with what he has been given putting up a 3.46 ERA and punching out 161 batters in his time.

I expect Fairbanks to be the full-time closer for Tampa Bay this season, and if they can make another playoff run he should play a massive part in closing those games.

My prediction is that Fairbanks will have 60+ innings pitched this year, an ERA around 2.50, and 30+ saves for Tampa this year. He is also a great early pick for the AL All-Star team.

Finishing second in the AL East in 2022 were the Toronto Blue Jays, another super good team with tons of talent looking to return to the playoffs in 2023.

Again, I was shocked to remember that Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is only 23 years old and nearly has a triple crown to his name. However, my pick for their breakout star is someone who is yet to play an MLB game for Toronto.

Daulton Varsho is a rarity in today’s game as he is both a catcher and an outfielder. Varsho reminds me a lot of J.T. Realmuto since he is a brick wall behind the plate and he also has incredibly deceptive speed. Varsho stole 16 bases last season and I would be shocked if he doesn’t have more in 2023.

I think Varsho will finally get his feet under him at the plate and will start to bring his batting average around. I anticipate that Daulton Varsho will hit .265 this season with 30 home runs and 25+ stolen bases. The Blue Jays really have something special on their hands with a catcher that could easily become a 30/30 hitter.

Although I would love to see Varsho continue to catch, if Toronto wants to save his hitting and keep his legs fresh longer, I could see him transferring to mostly outfield duties.

Finally, we get to talk about everyone’s favorite, the New York Yankees. The Yankees didn’t make many moves this offseason as they mostly focused on bringing back Aaron Judge.

As excited as I am to get to see Jasson Dominguez, I don’t expect him to be on the team until September call-ups. So, my choice for the Yankees breakout star is Oswald Peraza.

Peraza only appeared in 19 games for New York last season, getting 15 hits in 49 at bats alongside his 1.000 fielding percentage. He seems to be the Yankee shortstop of the future, finally filling the gap that Derek Jeter left when he retired. And lucky for Yankee fans, he seems to have a sure-handed glove.

I think that if Peraza can stay healthy and get 80+ starts this season, he will be able to perform at the level Yankee fans expect.

I look for him to slash .275/.350/.400 with 50 RBI and no fewer than 25 stolen bases; if he does, he will be a heavy contributor to the 2023 Yankees.

The ‘World Cup’ of Baseball

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Caption: Team USA Hoists the WBC trophy after winning in 2017

By Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

February 7, 2023

With Major League Baseball’s (MLB) Opening Day coming up at the end of March, baseball fans have a lot to anticipate. But, even before that, on March 8, the World Baseball Classic (WBC) begins.

The WBC is essentially the World Cup but just for baseball. Twenty teams from around the world compete in a tournament to determine who is best in baseball. There are four pools of five teams each that play a round-robin to determine seeding. The top two teams from each pool advance to the semifinals. Then begins the single-elimination tournament that culminates on March 21 when a champion is crowned.

Pool A consists of Chinese Taipei, the Netherlands, Cuba, Italy, and Panama.

Pool B is Japan, Korea, Australia, China, and the Czech Republic.

Pool C has the USA, Mexico, Colombia, Canada, and Great Britain.

And Pool D rounds out the field with Puerto Rico, Venezuela, the Dominican Republic, Israel, and Nicaragua.

There are talented stars from the majors on almost every team. Shohei Ohtani (the Angels) is making his WBC debut and will play for Japan while his Angels’ teammate Mike Trout is going to be the captain for Team USA. Yu Darvish (Padres) will be joining Ohtani on Team Japan as well.

Team USA boasts many all-stars including Mookie Betts (Dodgers), Paul Goldschmidt (Cardinals), and Pete Alonso (the Mets). The most interesting team, in my opinion, is the Dominican Republic as almost their whole team is full of bona fide stars: Julio Rodriguez (the Mariners), Jose Ramirez (the Guardians), Juan Soto (the Padres), Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (Blue Jays), and Sandy Alcantara (Marlins) just to name a few.  

Of the first round matchups, I’m most excited for Team USA vs. Team Great Britain. After Team USA struggled to be competitive in the 2022 FIFA World Cup, I would like to see the USA get payback.

Of the round-robin play, there are a few games that I would consider must-see-TV. I think that Cuba vs. Italy will be a great game. Cuba has Luis Robert and Yoan Moncada (both of the Chicago White Sox) while Italy, which is managed by Mike Piazza, has MLB stars Trey Mancini (Cubs) and Brandon Nimmo (the Mets).

In Pool D, Puerto Rico vs. the Dominican Republic should be an amazing game with heaps of MLB talent on both sides. Puerto Rico has Marcus Stroman (Cubs), Edwin Diaz and Francisco Lindor (both of the Mets).

My prediction for the championship game is the Dominican Republic vs. Team Japan. I would love to see Ohtani on the mound against the stacked roster of Dominican sluggers.

Many games of the 2023 WBC are going to look like All-Star games featuring MLB players as well as stars of the past and future. The WBC really encompasses everything that makes baseball fun to watch. It is a serious competition, but has the nostalgic feel that helped players fall in love with baseball in the first place. Take Adam Jones’ dramatic catch (for Team USA) of what appeared to be a home run off the bat of Orioles’ teammate Manny Machado in the semifinal of the 2017 World Baseball Classic.

We only get to see these stars in rare form like this every four years and we haven’t gotten to see it since 2017 due to COVID. I’m very excited to see all the players having a blast and playing the game they have loved since they were kids.

Robots in the Major Leagues?

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Former Oakland manager Bob Melvin argues with Angel Hernandez in a 2021 game

By Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

January 20, 2023

If you are a baseball fan and have been paying attention to things happening in the league, you might be aware of the umpire problem. Umpires have been a part of the game since its inception. They are the enforcers of rules and, although they are human, they are ideally going to be impartial. But at the end of the day, they are in charge of the game and usually, what they say is final.

Recently Major League Baseball (MLB) has started to allow teams to “challenge” out calls on the bases as well as other fielding calls. When this happens, the umpires gather and listen to a crew in New York City break the play down and tell them what the correct call is. It works very similarly to American Football’s challenge rule.

The main instance where the shortcomings of umpires is the most prevalent, however, is with balls and strike calls. Teams are unable to challenge these calls meaning that even in crucial moments, the umpire can dictate that phase of the game.

While MLB has done many things to make the game more appealing to fans, they have also tried to make the game faster. They have already begun using a pitch clock to prevent unnecessary time between pitches in the minor leagues, with the possibility of major leagues usage this coming season.

One of the most divisive of these ideas is the implementation of “Robo” umpires. This would mean that a program reads where the pitch was located when it crossed the plate and spit out its ruling on every pitch.

The use of “Robo” umpires would change a lot of things we know about the game of baseball. While I like that it will likely ensure a definitive strike zone for every game going forward, I cannot help but feel badly for catchers. For their entire careers they have been taught how to receive pitches to give the umpire the best look as well as giving their pitcher the best chance to get a strike. “Catchers would really be required only to block balls in the dirt and throw,” ESPN’s Buster Olney said of the changes.

This would not change anything outside of balls and strikes as there would still be field umpires in charge of making calls at each base, but it would still be a massive change to the game.

Using “robo” umpires has proven to be divisive in baseball. Some personalities are in favor of the idea while others say they would prefer the human element to remain in the game. In mid-2022, Chicago Cubs catcher Yan Gomes said, when asked about the robot strike zone, “The best thing in baseball, and professional sports in general, is the human element of things.”

Jared Sandberg, manager of the El Paso Chihuahuas, said of the change, “I know there’s been some times where there’s been some frustrating calls, a ball clipped the zone or clipped the corner, or is off the plate and clips the line. So there has been some frustration, but it has brought some consistency to the game.”

For me personally, I was apprehensive of the idea of taking human umpires out of the equation. I agree with Gomes on the human element of the game. But the more I have watched and really paid attention to the game, I feel like umpires are able to let their ego take over the things that are happening on the field. Even though the umpire has the final say, there has always been an understanding that players and managers can confront umpires within reason when it comes to calls.

Sometimes, toward the end of games where umpires have been especially inconsistent, players’ tempers boil over when something small doesn’t go their way and they often get ejected from the game. I like that this way there will be a definite call on every ball and strike and there will be no major inconsistencies. On a large scale, I rarely agree with Commissioner Rob Manfred’s ideas on improving the game, but I think that robo-strike zones will be something we grow to appreciate… even if it takes a little while to get used to it.

The Era of the Dollar

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By Ryan Harless

Ryan Harless is a third-year undergraduate at BGSU from Hillsboro, Ohio. He is majoring in Sport Management with a Journalism Minor. Baseball and golf at all levels are his primary interests but he is also interested in combat sports, hockey, basketball, and football.

January 11, 2023

The Era of the Dollar

Major League Baseball has a money problem. With the rise in popularity of professional sports and rise in revenue, there will always be disparities in how the teams choose to spend their available money.

Over the 2022-2023 MLB offseason, we have seen teams such as the Mets and Yankees spend lots of money in free agency. MLB writer for The Score, Travis Sawchik tweeted that, “The Mets spent more in free agency in one night ($315 Million) than the Pirates have spent since 2010 ($207 Million).”

This is a very jarring stat (especially if you are a Pirates fan). Many fans will see that and think, they should really limit how much teams can spend. However, I propose a different view on things.

The Cincinnati Reds were purchased in 2006 by Bob Castellini for $270 million. Castellini is on record saying that it was his goal to bring a winning team to Cincinnati. (As a lifelong Reds fan, I will use the Reds as a reference throughout the article). Castellini is also on record as saying to upset fans, “Where are you gonna go?” when asked about mounting unrest in the fanbase.

The Reds are currently worth 1.075 billion! More than three times what he paid for them well over a decade ago. Since his first season as owner in 2006, the Reds have only finished with a record over .500 five times and have only made the playoffs four times.

In recent memory, the Reds have had great players on their team. Now disgraced Trevor Bauer won the first Cy Young award in the team’s history in the shortened 2020 season. The next year, he went to the Los Angeles Dodgers in free agency. Before that, there was Nicholas Castellanos who was the heart and soul of the 2020-2021 Reds. He put up better numbers than almost anyone on the team, but after his contract was up the Reds didn’t even call to offer him another deal.

The Reds are not alone in this situation. Teams like the Pirates, Athletics, Orioles, and Marlins have all had good players ripped away from them simply because the owners didn’t want to spend their money on them.

Don’t get me wrong, I know there are cases where owners just don’t see much of an upside with certain talent. But I also know that every single Major League Baseball team is owned by a billionaire and is backed by other very wealthy people.

Instead of fans getting in an uproar at Steven Cohen for shelling out over 800 million dollars this offseason, we should direct our attention to another group – the group of owners who are sitting back and collecting record profits while their team and fans rot in last place.

Professional sports are a lucrative investment for anyone who has the money to get their foot in the door. But that just isn’t what sports are about. I know sports are a business, but I firmly believe that if you purchase a professional sports team to make money, you are in it for the wrong reasons.

Sports are supposed to be an escape for everyday people like you and me. It’s not a giant game of Monopoly for billionaires to buff up their bank accounts.

If you are looking for an answer on how to make this stop, I do not have one. The obvious choice is to just quit paying attention and going to games. Make the owners feel it in their pockets. But why should we as the fans be punished because the owner of our favorite team won’t open up his dusty wallet?

Caption: New York Mets owner Steven Cohen

Conspiracy Theories, Scandals and Public Trials: The Houston Astros Investigation on Twitter

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By Griffin Olah

Griffin is a second-year undergraduate BGSU student from North Ridgeville, Ohio. He is a Sport Management major and a Journalism minor. His primary sports interests are baseball and football, both collegiate and professional, but he is also interested in basketball, MMA, boxing and hockey

The Houston Astros are a topic that has been discussed ad nauseam within the sports world. Everyone is focusing on the punishment, the crimes, and the reactions. The investigation, however, is no longer the focus. If you remember back to the middle of January, however, you may remember the craziest day in recent baseball history. This is the day that social media handed down the confirmation of the Astros cheating scandal that the MLB was looking for. Instead of a private investigation, the Houston Astros were tried by the public eye for the world to see, spawning some of the greatest stories in recent memory.

Once allegations came down, a relatively unknown podcast host and Yankees fan by the name of Jimmy “Jomboy” O’Brien saw his following grow faster than he could ever imagine. O’Brien, the proprietor of Jomboy Media, was best known for posting the video of Aaron Boone’s now-infamous “Savages in that Box” rant on Twitter (Young, 2019). When he saw the Astros allegations, however, he transformed into internet sleuth. When the world was in disbelief of the claims of the Astros cheating, O’Brien delivered a bombshell packed into a simple 2:20 video on Twitter. O’Brien cracked the code and found video proof the Astros cheated.

O’Brien’s initial tweet was retweeted over 37,000 times and liked more than 100,000 times. A lesser-known media man was now an internet sensation and the leading authority on everything Astros related. Then, the talk about buzzers leaked and Jomboy Media again went to work to expose the latest scandal. O’Brien found a new image containing what may have been an electronic buzzer on Astros catcher Robinson Chirinos’s batting glove. 

At the same time as O’Brien’s image came to light, a new account vied for interest. After the Astros fired manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow, the Red Sox firing manager Alex Cora and the Mets firing their manager Carlos Beltran, it seemed like the scandal was done. Then, the buzzers came to light. 

A private account on Twitter, @S0_blessed1, began a tweetstorm that changed the landscape of MLB. The anonymous account accused Astros superstars Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman of wearing buzzers under their jerseys to relay signs to them. Curiously, the account apologized to their “tio,” which means uncle in Spanish. Speculation immediately ran as to who the uncle was and why this person was exposing more possible methods used by the Astros on their way to a now tainted World Series victory. 

As the identity of @S0_blessed1 was being searched for, many reputable sources agreed with the account’s claims. Cincinnati Reds pitcher and noted critic of the Astros Trevor Bauer confirmed that he had heard talk within MLB about the Astros wearing buzzers. O’Brien also confirmed he was hearing similar things from sources in MLB. 

Amid this media storm, many people were looking for the identity of the anonymous account. Based on the “tio” comment, many pointed to Carlos Beltran, the disgraced former Mets manager. Since the account broke the news of Beltran’s firing days before the Mets formally announced it or any other major media outlets carried it, many believed the owner of the account was close to the former player and manager. 

Twitter then took the bait from Beltran’s “niece” and ran with it. Kenny Ducey found the home run in the ALCS that was mentioned in the “niece’s” tweets and slowed down the end of Altuve’s trot. The slow-mo video seems to show Altuve holding his jersey tight against his body and telling the mob of teammates at home plate to not rip off his jersey. Then, there is the disputed audio of Altuve possibly saying “I’m wearing a wire.” 

That last part, as already stated, had been disputed. Some have said that it is Altuve speaking Spanish, which many people would not be able to lip read and equate to a wire. Altuve himself did not dispute the fact that he didn’t want his jersey torn off, telling dugout reporter Ken Rosenthal that he, “got in trouble with [his] wife” for taking his shirt off on television in the past (Garro, 2019, para. 9). In the past few days, Carlos Correa came out and confirmed that Altuve’s wife was not happy with him for taking his shirt off and also mentioned an “unfinished tattoo that looked kinda bad” on his collarbone that he didn’t want to show on television (Anderson, 2020, para. 7). 

Obviously, possible proof that Altuve was wearing a wire in the 2019 postseason, which was not part of the Commissioner’s Report, would make the scandal grow even more with possibly worse repercussions. While immunity was granted to the players in relation to the investigation into the 2017 iteration of the sign-stealing scheme, a new investigation may not be so kind. The potential ramifications are mind-numbing to think of, and the accusations themselves destroy any possible respect or goodwill for the team. 

Without Twitter and the dedication of the public to get to the truth, none of this would come to light. While the Commissioner conducted his own report, the findings are limited when compared to the scope of the Twitter investigation. Clearly, all Twitter sources are not to be trusted, and some here are untrustworthy. As the days wore on and the tweets from @S0_blessed1 became more and more ludicrous and eventually disappearing, the account’s credibility was called into question. Eventually, it was determined that the account was run by a noted Twitter troll, or someone who dispenses false information for comedic or personal value, and almost none of the information was considered true. But if the account made up all its claims, why is there so much evidence supporting it? 

Twitter is often seen as a cesspool of false and fake information, which is true in part. Some believe that it has no value in modern society, which can also be true. Nobody, though, can diminish the role that social media, and Twitter, in particular, played in the investigation into the Astros’ nefarious ways. One of the main principles of journalism is to be the watchdog for larger government entities, corporations, and organizations. On January 16. 2020, Twitter took on that role and conducted its own investigation. Without internet sleuths like Jomboy, Kenny Dacey and so many others, the full extent of this scheme may never have been realized. Maybe in the future, Twitter and the public as a whole can solve more of these mysteries and bring to light the wrongdoings of teams, organizations, corporations and other massive entities like the Houston Astros.

References

Anderson, R.J. (2020, February 16). Astros’ Carlos Correa fires back at Cody Bellinger, reveals new reason why Altuve didn’t want jersey removed. CBS Sports. Retrieved from: https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/astros-carlos-correa-fires-back-at-cody-bellinger-reveals-new-reason-why-altuve-didnt-want-jersey-removed/

Bauer, Trevor [@BauerOutage]. (2020, January 16). I’ve heard this from multiple parties too, for what it’s worth…[Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/BauerOutage/status/1217888647468310528?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1217888647468310528&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fsports.yahoo.com%2Fa-new-astros-cheating-conspiracy-theory-has-set-twitter-ablaze-205503577.html

Ducey, Kenny [@KennyDucey]. (2020, January 16). Altuve making sure he keeps that jersey on (via r/nyyankees)[Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/KennyDucey/status/1217888139072745474

Garro, A. (2019, October 19). Congrats to the Astros for clinching a trip to the World Series in the most adorable way possible. Cut4. Retrieved from: https://www.mlb.com/cut4/jose-altuve-keeps-jersey-on-after-winning-alcs-with-homer

Jomboy [@Jomboy_]. (2019, November 19). Astros using cameras to steal signs, a breakdown[Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/jomboy_/status/1194348775965437952?lang=en.

Jomboy [@Jomboy_]. (2019, November 18). I have no idea what an electronic buzzer looks like but someone just sent me this as a ‘maybe that’s[Tweet]. Twitter. https://twitter.com/jomboy_/status/1196525061659906050?lang=en

Oz, M. (2020, January 16). A new Astros cheating conspiracy theory has sent Twitter into a frenzy. Yahoo! Sports. Retrieved from: https://sports.yahoo.com/a-new-astros-cheating-conspiracy-theory-has-set-twitter-ablaze-205503577.html

Young, D. (2019, August 17). Jomboy is obviously good for baseball, and the Yankees should lighten up. New York Daily News. Retrieved from: https://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/ny-jomboy-savages-mlb-bill-simmons-20190817-hho4pn2mlvcghjdmlozroxh4se-story.html

Igniting MLB’s Cold War: The Coming Battles on Labor

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By Griffin Olah

November 12, 2019

Griffin is a second-year undergraduate BGSU student from North Ridgeville, Ohio. He is a sport management major and a spanish minor. His primary sports interests are baseball and football, both collegiate and professional, but he is also interested in basketball, MMA, boxing and hockey.

Last winter, the hot stove sat cold. Top of the line free agents like Craig Kimbrel, Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, and Dallas Keuchel waited and waited as minor signings and under-the-radar trades filled the feeds of baseball news. It stayed like that until March, when Machado and Harper both signed an excess of $300 million and a surprise Mike Trout extension broke the bank at $430 million. In a span of a few weeks, the hot stove heated back up to its former glory, then fell cold once again, leaving talented players like Keuchel and Kimbrel unemployed into the regular season.

Naturally, talk turned towards owner collusion and tanking. And that led to the biggest problem facing Major League Baseball in the coming years: Labor Strike.

The current CBA for the MLB is set to expire in 2021, and negotiations have been nearly nonexistent so far. Not since 1994 have players sat out of regular season baseball action, and the threat is imminent. After the last offseason, the Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) is closely watching the market for this coming offseason. After small changes done by owners -such as a luxury tax, a cap on international free-agent spending and the proposal to cut down the number of minor league teams- they now have a plethora of excuses to answer why they don’t want to give away massive free-agent payouts. The MLBPA, however, is ready for a fight.

That fight might have already started. On November 5th, Atlanta Braves GM Alex Anthopolous, on a conference call, divulged that he was already in contact with 27 other teams and knows what their free agent goals and trade targets are (Nightengale, 2019). As soon as this went public, sirens went off at the MLBPA offices. Here, a current GM is possibly admitting to collusion on the part of owners. The next day, MLBPA Chief Tony Clark announced the MLBPA would be investigating Anthopolous’s statement. (Nightengale, 2019). Following Clark’s announcement, Anthopolous “walked back his words, saying he misspoke, didn’t discuss free agents or the free-agent market, and that he apologized for the confusion” (Passan, 2019, para. 12). 

Like any situation regarding the complicated labor structure of an industry, this is just the start of an incredibly complex issue. The media, however, seems to be in agreement: the owners are greedy and just looking to keep their own money. Some point to the fact that the Tampa Bay Rays, with the league’s lowest payroll, made the playoffs, or that St. Louis Cardinals owner Bill DeWitt said that owning a team in baseball isn’t as profitable as many people think while his team, that he bought in 1995 for $150 million, is now valued at $2.1 billion (Stephen, 2019). These proponents of players’ rights believe that the owners make enough money to share it with the players they employ and have no right to suppress the market as they have the past two offseasons. It’s understandable that not every team is in a market like Los Angeles or New York or Boston where money comes rolling in from TV deals, sponsorships, and other sources, but teams like the Cardinals have the money. They can afford to bump the luxury tax line and flirt with crossing it. This makes the fact that Red Sox owner John Henry wants his team to slash payroll even more egregious (Shaikin, 2019). If a team that historically pays out the top salaries in the league wants to cut payroll to save money, maybe something is amiss among the owners.

In a complex issue, however, there are two sides, and one is not recognized. What about the owners and the teams’ perspective? Do all the players agree with Tony Clark coming after the people that write their checks? Sure, there will always be a vocal section of dissenters for any topic, but do they represent the ideas of all the players? The media only focuses on what’s wrong with the owners and why they need to change. Instead, how can the system be fixed? Yes, the trend of increasing revenue and decreasing salaries is concerning to anyone on the players’ side, but in the age of superstar mega-contracts like Harper, Machado, and Trout, can teams afford to pay anyone else? Owners are not the only ones in the wrong in this situation, and that needs to be recognized by the media and the MLBPA in order to create a CBA that can help everyone in the game, not just the owners or the players.

References

Nightengale, B. (2019, November 6). MLBPA launches investigation into Braves GM Alex Anthopolous after free agency comments. USA Today. Retrieved from https://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/mlb/columnist/bob-nightengale/2019/11/06/mlb-alex-anthopoulos-free-agents-mlbpa/2513159001/

Passan, J. (2019, November 7). Union chief’s rebuke of GM heats up baseball’s cold war over free agency. ESPN. Retrieved from https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/28025583/union-chief-rebuke-gm-heats-baseball-cold-war-free-agency

Shaikin, B. (2019, October 19). MLB’s next collective bargaining agreement could reward younger players sooner. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved from https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2019-10-19/mlbs-next-collective-bargaining-agreement-reward-younger-players-sooner

Stephen, E. (2019, November 7). Tony Clark’s statement on collusion was a necessary stand against MLB. SBNation. Retrieved from https://www.sbnation.com/mlb/2019/11/7/20953616/tony-clark-mlbpa-statement-collusion-mlb-labor-war