True baseball rears its head in October. If you can’t master the fundamentals of the game, you will get exposed. The pomp and circumstance of home run highlights and one-dimensional displays that overshadow baseball’s multi-faceted culture gives way to the intricate beauty of the sport and the wait…wait..bang that morphs into the pulse of the game as it takes playoff form and reverts back to its authentic self.
Guys who hit 62 homers during a regular season that allows them to feast on subpar pitching and tanking teams, can easily go 1-for-16 as AL MVP favorite Aaron Judge did during Houston’s four-game sweep of the Yankees in the American League Championship Series. He accepted the blame for “not stepping up when the team needed it.”
But one would be silly to assume that he could have carried the Yankees to victory over such a well-balanced and managed team by himself. His fellow MLBbro slugger Giancarlo Stanton was also non-existent.
While on a fast track to 500 career homers, Stanton only managed to muster 6 hits in 32 at bats during these playoffs, including a couple of early Bro bombs. He also failed to impose the kind of wood-waking that could compensate for Judge being in a mini-slump. With no other true threat to at least shake the opposition, the pressure on Judge to produce each and every at-bat has become a recipe for postseason disaster that he experienced for the sixth consecutive season.
This time, the unfortunate culmination to an historic season was another loss to Dusty Baker’s Houston Astros in the American League Championship series. It was a clean 4-0 sweep. The brooms were boomin’ in the Bronx. Another rain delay couldn’t even save the Yankees from Dusty’s destiny.
Judge’s decision to reject the Yankees’ $213.5 million extension through 2029 worked out brilliantly for him. Accepting such a deal would also have tainted the market, which is never good for player contracts. Prior to this season’s outburst, Judge was already a $300M player.
So shafting the initial offer and proving he is probably worth double that price for the right team was genius on his part. It’s showed guts and he will reap the glory.
What Happened ? Who Knows, But Don’t Blame The Bros
You can say the Yankees underachieved. You can blame the front office for not assembling a team that can generate runs without hitting homers. You can blame the superstars for not showing up. You can blame the superior pitching of the Astros bullpen and the hooded baseball savant sitting in the dugout with his black gloves looking like a 73-year-old Kanye West.
Either way, it’s a lesson in the art of baseball. Championships usually come down to how well you execute pitching and defense. On the offensive side, it’s about a team’s ability to play small ball when the big licks just ain’t there.
MLB can never be compartmentalized into a video game, homer derby where the other aspects of the game that makes the sport watchable and exciting is put on the back burner and buried by metrics and numbers that don’t play true when the chips are on the line. You can’t measure the heart of a player. You can’t measure momentum and you definitely can’t compute destiny. Right now, as currently constructed, the Yankees aren’t built to win a World Series.
The Phillies and Astros, however, seem like teams of destiny. Real teams, doing real things who know where they are going. The Yankees seem lost in the woods. But don’t blame the Bros.
Don’t blame it on the alcohol, blame it on the bean balls.
Two MLB bros find themselves a little lighter in the pocket after wild pitching led to a bench and bullpen clearing brawl during the contentious series between the St. Louis Cardinals and New York Mets last week.
Cardinals’ pitcher Jack Flaherty and Mets pitcher Tijuan Walker were fined undisclosed amounts for their role in the melee that followed several hit batters. You can never knock a guy for taking up for his teammate, but both Walker and Flaherty are vital keys to their team’s success and coming off injuries. I don’t think their respective front offices want them out there mixing it up and risking reinjuring their golden arm. Their bread and butter.
Anyway…
Erratic pitching on both sides sent opposing players to first base with bruised bodies and egos Wednesday afternoon at Busch Stadium.
The Mets became frustrated during Tuesday night’s game after three players were hit by Cardinals pitchers. Things went far left on Wednesday afternoon in St. Louis thanks to wild Cardinals pitching and lingering tension from the incidents that occurred less than 24 hours earlier.
During their hump day matinee’ the Mets trailed the Cardinals 10-5 in the bottom of the 8th inning. Mets pitcher Yoan López, went high and tight with what was supposed to be a brush back pitch that almost made contact with Nolan Arenado’s helmet sending him to the dirt.
After a few choice words things escalated between first base and the mound and it got heated. Arenado was very demonstrative and had to be restrained.
Once they dropped gloves – MLB style – it was on from there. The bullpens and dugouts emptied onto the diamond in St. Louis. But in classic MLB fight card fashion, no real punches were thrown.
The Mets boast the best record in MLB as of Friday (14-6) and have been target practice at the plate for most of the young season. Understandably, the Mets were a little salty since their hitters had been drilled a league-high 18 times coming into the game. Pete Alonso even got beaned in the head on April 27th, which surely sparked all of subsequent bad blood.
They were hit several times in DC during their series with the Washington Nationals and apparently it was time to brush back. Lopez, a rookie, may have been answering the call after J.D. Davis was pelted earlier in the game prompting this retaliation code response.
“I don’t know if I would have thrown at his head but I would have hit him,” said former Mets pitcher and current TV analyst Ron Darling during the game broadcast.
We all know the Mets have a very old school manager in Buck Showalter, who understands the unwritten rules of the game as well as anybody.
This could make for a combative series when the Cardinals hit Queens for a four-game set starting May 16.
Mookie Betts hasn’t been his usual dominant baseball self so far this season. Mookie is batting just .250 and he missed a couple of reps after getting beaned on the forearm with some hot cheese a week ago.
Betts has been one of the most productive players in the game over the past five seasons, so the concern is minimal. He hits for average, power, steals bases (last 30-30 players in MLB) and his glove is space-ship special.
If there was any real cause for alarm…meaning if we had to nitpick, the only alarming statistic (other than a batting average that sits 50 points below his career clip) was Betts’ paltry three RBI in 80 official plate appearances coming into Wednesday’s game against the Cincinnati Reds.
We know he’s the party starter in the Dodgers’ lineup and to keep 100, the entire lineup had been slumping during a recent 1-5 stretch, despite the franchise’s impressive collection of offensive powerhouses.
Good thing they play everyday in baseball because an 8-0 win behind seven strong innings from Clayton Kershaw on Wednesday cured those “batter blues” real quick.
It was inevitable that the 2018 AL MVP would get it going sooner than later. Betts’ leadoff double on Tuesday was an Omen of things to come.
Then, on Wednesday, Betts lined a pitch to centerfield for his second hit of the game, driving in two runs and putting the finishing touches on a win that broke a three-game skid. It was the distinguished Black Knight’s first multiple-RBI game of the young season.
Expect many more to follow.
Matt Beaty and Mookie Betts both single for four more runs. Shouts to Sal Romano for giving up as many hits to the Dodgers in an inning as they have had the last 10 games, probably. pic.twitter.com/Bv5lgQXcMr
A player as multifaceted as Mookie is always impactful. Even if he isn’t wielding a hot stick, Betts does so many other things. Smells like Mookie is cooking up one of his infamous hit streaks, where he doesn’t strike out in like 40 or 50 at-bats.
You can’t keep a good brother down for long, especially if his name is Markus Lynn Betts.
Black in the day, Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) provided a pipeline of talent that brought the flavor to the game of Major League Baseball on the field — and when given the opportunity — in the front office.
While the game struggles to survive on these campuses as many schools pulled the plug on their baseball programs, MLB continues looking to diversify its talent pool off the diamond by tapping into the Black excellence prevalent in these universities.
The Groove Phi Groove social fraternity’s chapter at Bowie State University is hosting a virtual information session on Wednesday, April 28, that will expand the knowledge of professional opportunities in baseball for HBCU students.
The hour-long zoom session is featuring reps from The Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, and Talent Acquisition teams at MLB, who are looking to educate a generation of prospective employees who could bring diversity to the front offices of MLB teams while developing a pool of future candidates for front-office positions through its Diversity Pipeline Program.
MLB’s team of front office pros will guide HBCU students, student-athletes, school administrators, and recent alumni looking to explore career opportunities.
This career information session also features an introduction to career opportunities available through the 2021 Summer Internship Program.
This open discussion will present MLB professionals sharing information about the industry, and tips necessary to develop and thrive in it. The session also features an overview of baseball career opportunities available for business and baseball operations candidates learning about MLB career perspectives from employees of color.
MLB professionals will also share their experiences and information about the industry, and provide tips to develop and succeed in the industry. MLB teams are hoping to connect with students, student-athletes, school administrators, and recent alumni wishing to embark on baseball and business operations careers.
Five MLB bros were on blast Saturday afternoon when the Washington Nationals and New York Mets went toe-to-toe again at CitiBank Field in Queens.
In the second game of a massive early season, three-game series, Joe Ross met Marcus Stroman on the hill while the Nats put the entire right side of the infield in the hands of Black Knights, Josh Bell and Josh Harrison.
Ross Was Boss
Ross followed his worst start of the season against the Phillies with arguably his best.
Manager Dave Martinez pulled him after 91 pitches and an easy 6 innings of work as DC smashed New York 7-1. The understated righty found the location that was missing in St. Louis earlier last week and put the Mets bats on ice.
It was the perfect rebound performance for Washington after Ross gave up 10 runs in 4 1/3 innings last Monday versus the Cardinals.
This was a solid all-around performance by Ross who also did his thing at the plate with an RBI single in the second inning.
That was an early blow, giving them a 2-0 lead and forcing New York into a standing eight count. His only mistake was a solo HR to Michael Conforto in the fourth. Otherwise Ross was in shutdown mode all afternoon.
Harrison and Bell ignited the Washington offense and they went for the kill early and delivered.
Harrison walked in the first and scored as Starlin Castro drove him in for a first inning lead on a day where he finished 1-for-5 at the plate.
Bell later scored when Castro lined a shot to centerfield and the floodgates were officially open, officially sinking the Mets.
Stro Had No Flow
There wasn’t too much for Stroman to smile about after losing the fight with his location and the Nationals took advantage. They clipped him for a run in the first inning and it was downhill from there for the Mets starter, who was due for a rocky start after being lights out this season for the Mets. Entering Saturday’s start Stro Bro was 3-0 with a 0.90 ERA.
Nationals manager had Stroman’s number and stacked the lineup with lefties.
It was the most unfortunate time for Stroman considering this was the Saturday afternoon game of the week and the national TV audience caught his worst start of the year. The durag was tight but his game wasn’t as he lasted just 4 innings trailing 5-0 after yielding 8 hits and 5 runs.
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