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Yesterday being an off day, we have no pithy recaps. But there are only 3 off days remaining from here to the end of the season so this will be rare. Those dates are September 6, 17th and 27th. Why we get an off day on the 27th, in the middle of a home stand, with just 3 games left in the season is beyond me.
(MLB could have easily parked the Wednesday game with Oakland up in Seattle as a 1:30 start, giving the A’s plenty of time to get down to Anaheim for a 7:05PM start the following day. So MLB could have moved the Sept. 12th game between the Angels and Texas to the 27th.)
Also, as I noted earlier this week, we are no all in with AL West games. Only a weekend series on September 7th/8th/9th to close out our AL Central games with the White Sox will blemish our AL West conclusion. The Mariners, on the other hand, have 8 remaining non AL West games on their calendar. The Rangers have 9, the A’s have 12, and the Astros have a whopping 19! Balanced schedule, my ass.
These, folks, are your We-Be-Holding-At-An-Elimination-Number-Of-14 HaloLinks:
A Little Bit Of Shohei Ohtani News
Ohtani don’t need no two-way cache to be declared a great success. Getting a chance to get his groove back against lefties might be helpful, though..........
Shohei the Babe..........
A Little Bit Of Angels News
Billy Eppler is warming up his motors for the next round of franchise reconstruction. First, Rene Rivera was placed on the waiver wire and Atlanta claimed him. We await word on what bits and pieces might be dribbling back. That makes TWO LAA catchers who found themselves notified that they are suddenly in contention for a 2019 World Series appearance..........But, you know, perspective and spin are everything on today’s Internet. Did we ”ALLOW” Rivera to go to Atlanta? Did we “LOSE” Rivera to Atlanta? Did Atlanta “CLAIM” Rivera off the LAA roster? Or did Rivera get “AWARDED” to Atlanta?............
Rene says goodbye. And he turns the page like a well-trained pro...........
Next, Eppler went south and signed young Alexander Ramirez. At only 16 years of age, this might be the first LAA prospect signed that I will never see play in person..........
Old Man Albert Gets Old. Thus yet another shot at career home run inner-circle elitism takes a hit (at least his career GDP record remains safe). He currently sits at 633 after 18 seasons. The guys above him all played 22 or 23 seasons. He is 27 away from Willie Mays at #5, 63 away from PEDs Rodriguez at #4, 81 away from Babe Ruth at #3, 122 away from Hank Aaron at #2, and 129 away from PEDs Bonds at #1. Over the last 4 seasons, his HR total has gone 40, 31, 23 and now 19. You do the math...........
Tempe Days Schedules are out for 2019. Bring Your Own MRI machines.........
Since our E# > 0, there is still a chance to break this Best Stretch Run in LAA History..........
Jo Adell is fighting off back spasms. Why would a young pro athlete incur such an odd problem this late in the year? Cheap sleeping accommodations or something?.........
Besides Patrick Sandoval, Griffin Canning also had a decent outing the other night..........
Everywhere In Baseball
I know how shocked you all will be to learn that a former BoSux insider is airing dirty MLB laundry, and that a lot of it is going to muck up the Red Sox legacy. I think we should wait until the book is out and well read and see what is exposed about other teams, too, before arming ourselves with stones to throw. But my guess is that we will have more stones to throw elsewhere, than Boston fans will have to throw at us..........
The source article from Ken Rosenthal is behind The Athletic paywall, but you can get the gist of it here. The Blue Jays are committed to moving him so that they don’t have to figure out whether to gamble on any Qualifying Offer for a guy with a deteriorating body...........
If you love ballparks, and love ballpark design ideas, then moving beyond the Camden Yards craze here with the Athletics’ design process is a brilliant and fun read..........
Baseball is hard. And baseball is getting harder. Because baseball pitchers continue to throw harder, and faster. And more of them are doing it.........
Base running can also be hard. Especially when one has only that single job in an important game, and epicly fails at it..............
The one thing that the world will never find to be in short supply would be stupid ideas. They can even come from the genius world of academia..........
Roberto Osuna is upset that everybody is quick to pre-judge him concerning allegations over his domestic violence legal problems. I might wish to point out to Mr. Osuna that MLB investigated those facts, too, and ended up placing Osuna on a 75-game suspension. Were they too quick to judge, as well?..........
Joe Maddon has to deal with questions about his job security?..........
The Marlins are opening up a new can of worms. Less interested in fielding a competitive team than they are in saving oodles of cash while banking on some future luck, they are turning to Vuvuzela Baseball as a way to fill their empty stadium with noise..........
Look at how the sports gambling broadcast ecosystem is exploding...........
The Duffle Bag
The Angels just got yet another nod in the Baseball Hall of Fame! Oliver Drake pitched for the Twins, marking his 5th different club in one season, so the HoF asked for some gear. It’s Twins gear, but Drake’s HoF lineage is a 5-team deal, and the Halos are in the food chain..........A starting pitcher going at least 8 innings without recording a single K or a single BB? Forget that. Let’s talk about a starting pitcher going at least 8 innings anymore!..........Mark Reynolds suffered this At Bat, late in a very tight game. Mark Reynolds is now voting for robo umps..........Fan catches, classified. I still suggest that adult fans must guzzle their beverage in penance for robbing some nearby youngster..........Ladies and gentlemen, I give you The Outfield Shift..........First World Problems: unable to keep track of all your World Series rings..........
