MLBits: Cardinals Getting Healthy, Ortiz 500, GM Openings, Barney, Player Stock, More

Sep 15, 2015

Off days after consecutive losses to a bad team should be banned. Maybe some MLBits will distract us from our pain as we wait for today’s doubleheader. Here is some news from around the league…

Over the last ten games, the Cardinals have finally shown some signs of vulnerability, winning just three of ten. We suspected that the sheer amount of injuries they have sustained throughout the season would catch up to them eventually, and it appears it finally has. Alas, nothing good lasts forever. According to this report at MLB.com, all of Matt Adams, Matt Holliday and Randall Grichuk are eyeing full returns very soon. Adams and Holliday, in particular, are reportedly looking at a return this week in Milwaukee, giving them a few warm up games before they face the Cubs this weekend. The Cardinals may have all but secured their NL Central post over the Cubs, but the Pirates are just 2.5 games back, so the Cardinals will need all hands on deck if they hope to finish as strong as they’ve started.

At ESPN, Christina Kahrl examines David Ortiz’s 500 career home runs and overall career as a designated hitter, as it relates to an eventual Hall of Fame bid. While just a few bat-only players have made it to Cooperstown, Kahrl bets on Ortiz’s eventual acceptance, citing not only his statistical career at the plate, but also his role in all three of Boston’s World Series victories. What do you think? Should David Ortiz be a no brainer for the hall? Or, has the history of designated hitters falling short make it less certain? What about PED concerns?

The New York Post (Joel Sherman) ranked the top five available General Manager openings for this coming off season. Citing the pros and cons of each, Sherman believes the top five to be, in order, the Red Sox, Phillies, Mariners, Angels and Brewers. I recently took a look at some of the executive rumors going about the league, and this article serves as a reminder for just how many high profile gigs will be available very soon.

As of yesterday, the Toronto Blue Jays (82-61) are ‘cautiously optimistic’ that shortstop Troy Tulowitzki could return from his shoulder injury in 2-3 weeks. Given their place among the AL East standings, it’s likely, though not a lock, that the Blue Jays will avoid the wild card game and head straight for the ALDS. If that’s the case, Tulowitzki will have two and half weeks to heal, before he would have to appear in the first ALDS game, which is scheduled for October 8. Since his trade to the Blue Jays on July 30, Tulowitzki has hit .220/.306/.327 with just a 75 wRC+.

To supplement their infield depth with Tulowitzki out, the Blue Jays have acquired former Cubs second baseman Darwin Barney, in exchange for Double-A catcher Jack Murphy from the Dodgers. Barney will be ineligible for the post season and has slashed .277/.325/.354 in 96 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City.

You can literally buy stock in Angels rookie pitcher Andrew Heaney, who has apparently signed a deal with Fantex, a financial services and brand development company from California. Heaney, 24, becomes the first MLB player to sign such an agreement, but there are a number of NFL players who have already done so (including Bears wide receiver Alshon Jeffery). If Heaney makes enough money throughout his career – more than $33.4M – investors will make money. Weird.

The Milwaukee Brewers are reportedly prepared to avoid the free agent pitching market, having just been burned by the deals they gave to Matt Garza and Kyle Lohse. I can think of many reasons why they should sit out that market, but those two deals aren’t any of them. For one, the Brewers don’t look to be too competitive next year. Why spend big on the rotation in a year where the Cubs and Pirates project to be very strong, the Cardinals still exist and you finished in the bottom part of the league with an aging roster and a fresh sell-off? Second of all, the Brewers are making a change at the general manger position. Depending on who takes over, big time additions may not be the wisest of first moves. But to the point, I find it exceedingly ill-advised to avoid future contracts based on an arbitrary correlation to previous experiences. Every pitcher is different and so are their contracts, man.

Dave Cameron (FanGraphs) with a very interesting read on the difference of projections based on inputs (predictive stats) or perceived outputs (not as highly correlated to future production, but they are what actually happened). While most of the readers around here already subscribe to this manner of thinking, the article provides some needed, simplified explanation.

written by

Michael Cerami

Michael Cerami began covering the Chicago Cubs for Bleacher Nation as a part-time contributor in 2015. One year later, he joined Bleacher Nation full-time, covering the Chicago Cubs and Major League Baseball. Today, Michael runs Bleacher Nation, contributing as a writer (Cubs, MLB) and an editor for all sections of the site, including the Chicago Bears, Bulls, and Blackhawks, as well as MLB, NBA, NHL, and NFL. In 2019, Michael was the co-host of NBC Sports Chicago's Cubs Post-Game Show Outside the Ivy. You can find him on Twitter/X @Michael_Cerami

more cubs news

Chicago Cubs

Still Thinking About That Incredible Christopher Morel Play

I don't want to overreact to a relatively brief stretch of success, and I certainly don't want to jinx anything. But Christopher Morel has looked pretty darn solid at third base the last couple weeks, hasn't he? Maybe some of...

Brett Taylor

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Enhanced Box Score: Cubs 5, Diamondbacks 3 – April 17, 2024

UNCLENCH. They did it. There was 9th inning drama, because of course there was, but Drew Smyly was able to get the job done, pitching for the third consecutive day. Cubs win the game, Cubs win the series. Cubs win...

Michael Cerami

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Cody Bellinger’s Third Homer of the Year Breaks the Tie in Arizona!

Thank god. I was starting to think Brandon Pfaadt was Cy Young in disguise or something. I can't stand (or understand, for that matter) how this guy carves up the Cubs while getting destroyed by almost everybody else. But at...

Michael Cerami

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Watch Owen Caissie Launch His First Triple-A Home Run (Off a Lefty, Too!)

Owen Caissie is just one of several Cubs top prospects at Triple-A Iowa this season, but after a monster Spring Training performance (following an equally impressive Double-A debut last season), he's got a lot of eyes on him this summer....

Michael Cerami

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Cubs Call Up a Couple of Fresh Arms from Iowa

In discussing the potential for a Cubs move today for a fresh arm, I wondered if they'd go down and grab someone already on the 40-man roster or if they'd shift Julian Merryweather over to the 60-day IL to make...

Michael Cerami

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Pre-Gamin’: Cubs vs Diamondbacks – Lineups, Broadcast Info, Game Thread

CUBS LINEUP — How many rubber matches can one team have? After two wild games to start the series, the Cubs are looking to win their second-consecutive series this afternoon in Arizona. Jordan Wicks is on the mound for Chicago....

Michael Cerami

Apr 17, 2024

Gunnar Henderson Adley Rutschman Orioles

Chicago Cubs

MLBits: Orioles Can’t Stop Hitting Home Runs, Learn Jac Caglianone’s Name, More

If you have an MLB.TV subscription: I suggest you try to catch a Baltimore Orioles game soon. The Orioles lineup is chock-full of young talent, and they're absolutely mashing the baseball right now. They're fun to watch if you can...

Patrick K. Flowers

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Cubs Farm Report | April 17, 2024: PCA Goes Yard, Cade Horton Dominates, More

Pete Crow-Armstrong showed some life on Tuesday with a solo home run for the Iowa Cubs, but it was Luis Vázquez who played hero for Iowa in the end. Plus, Cade Horton dominated for the Smokies once again. That and...

Patrick K. Flowers

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Baseball America Has Added Another Chicago Cubs Prospect to Their Top-100 List

If you have been paying attention at all, I think it's going to be very easy for you to fill in these blanks: https://twitter.com/BaseballAmerica/status/1780601113198383137 Yes, that'd be Jefferson Rojas, the still-18-year-old shortstop for the High-A South Bend Cubs, currently hitting...

Brett Taylor

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Cubs

Cade Horton Dominated Once Again at Double-A, So What’s the Plan There?

As he's done nine times before, Cade Horton dominated in his latest outing for the Tennessee Smokies. It took him just 47 pitches to cruise through 4.0 innings of work and carve up the Rays' Double-A squad. https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1780387010039210247 Horton has...

Brett Taylor

Apr 17, 2024

Picks

Red Sox vs. Guardians Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats & Best Bets – Thursday, April 18, 2024

Led by Connor Wong (two-game homer streak), the Boston Red Sox (10-9) are favorites versus the Cleveland Guardians (12-6) Thursday at 1:35 PM ET. Oddsmakers have named the Red Sox as -126 favorites for the game, which airs on NESN.Boston's...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

MLB Prop Bets

Best MLB Prop Bets Today, April 18, 2024

The Cleveland Guardians versus the Boston Red Sox is one of five strong options on today's MLB slate.One of the best ways to wager on baseball is via MLB player prop bets. There are props for each of today's matchups,...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

Picks

Tigers vs. Rangers Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats & Best Bets – Thursday, April 18, 2024

The Texas Rangers (10-9) serve as underdogs on the moneyline (-109) in Thursday's contest with the Detroit Tigers (10-8). Game time is set for 1:10 PM ET on MLB Network. The Rangers are favored against the spread in this one...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

Picks

Rays vs. Angels Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats & Best Bets – Thursday, April 18, 2024

The Tampa Bay Rays (10-9) are favorites (-158) on the moneyline when they square off against the Los Angeles Angels (9-9) Thursday at 1:10 PM ET, live on BSSUN.Ryan Pepiot will get the ball for Tampa Bay while Los Angeles...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

MLB Prop Bets

Red Sox vs. Guardians Probable Starting Pitchers – April 18

The Cleveland Guardians (12-6) play on Thursday in Boston against the Boston Red Sox (10-9). First pitch is at 1:35 PM ET.The probable starters are Brennan Bernardino (0-1) for the Red Sox and Carlos Carrasco (0-1) for the Guardians.Red Sox...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

MLB Prop Bets

Tigers vs. Rangers Probable Starting Pitchers – April 18

The Detroit Tigers (10-8) and the Texas Rangers (10-9) play on Thursday at 1:10 PM ET. The game will take place at Comerica Park.The Tigers will give the ball to Kenta Maeda (0-1, 6.00 ERA), who is eyeing win No....

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

MLB Prop Bets

Rays vs. Angels Probable Starting Pitchers – April 18

The Tampa Bay Rays (10-9) play at home against the Los Angeles Angels (9-9) on Thursday. The matchup is set to begin at 1:10 PM ET.The Rays will look to Ryan Pepiot (1-2) against the Angels and Griffin Canning (0-2).Rays...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

NBA Picks

Nuggets vs. Lakers Prediction: Expert Picks, Odds, Stats and Best Bets for NBA Playoffs Game 1 – Saturday, April 20, 2024

The Denver Nuggets and the Los Angeles Lakers square off to start the first round of the NBA Playoffs. The Nuggets are favored by 7 points in the contest, which airs on ABC at 8:30 PM ET. The matchup has...

Data Skrive

Apr 18, 2024

How to Watch

How to Watch Red Sox vs. Guardians: Live Stream or on TV

The Boston Red Sox (10-9), led by Tyler O'Neill, host Josh Naylor and the Cleveland Guardians (12-6) on Thursday at 1:35 PM ET.The article below will provide you with everything you need to know to watch Boston play Cleveland.When is...

Data Skrive

Apr 17, 2024

Chicago Bulls

UGH: Alex Caruso’s Availability Already in Doubt for Next Play-In Game

The Chicago Bulls can't seem to swat the injury bug. Despite Andre Drummond and Ayo Dosunmu returning from their multi-game absences on Wednesday, the Bulls have likely lost their defense ace. Alex Caruso suffered a foot injury in the first...

Elias Schuster

Apr 17, 2024

MLBits: Cardinals Getting Healthy, Ortiz 500, GM Openings, Barney, Player Stock, More

Read More

more cubs news

Latest News

more cubs news

Most Popular

Most Popular

Latest News

Most Popular

Most Popular