Although they might’ve otherwise snuck into a Lukewarm Stove, some official deals need reporting …
The Mets acquisition of Robinson Cano and Edwin Diaz is finally complete (that was a long one!). Cano and Diaz will head to New York along with $20M, while Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak, Gerson Bautista, Justin Dunn and Jarred Kelenic will head out to Seattle to witness an epic teardown from the inside:
It’s official! We’ve acquired 8x All-Star @RobinsonCano and All-Star closer @EdiDiaz44 from Seattle in exchange for Jay Bruce, Anthony Swarzak, Gerson Bautista, minor league RHP Justin Dunn and minor league outfielder Jarred Kelenic. #Metspic.twitter.com/h6Qd7sQvoW
Speaking of the teardown, that’s not the only Mariners deal we need to report. Also official: Seattle will send reliever Juan Nicasio, shortstop Jean Segura, and reliever James Pazos (reported later) to Philadelphia for Carlos Santana and J.P. Crawford. If no money is exchanging hands in this deal, the Mariners will be sending roughly $67.5M worth of commitments to the Phillies while taking on just $36M in return (all back-of-the-napkin calculations), which sure looks like a bit of a salary dump … of a pretty darn good player in Segura. And that’s just not a good look.
Don’t get me wrong: as bad as it is for the sport as a whole, tearing down and tanking is still a good way to win in the future. HOWEVER, a big(ish) market team like the Mariners should NEVER prioritize money over returns. If anything, that should be their biggest advantage (i.e. cover as much money as you can to get the best possible return, i.e. buying prospects). Shame.
Dodgers Manager Dave Roberts has agreed to a four-year extension – adding three new years to his current deal – with the Dodgers. And despite the two World Series losses, that feels like a good decision for everyone involved. Just don’t tell Joe Maddon’s son:
Wow this guy gets an extension with no WS and yet my dad is soon to be a free agent lol https://t.co/obIwXYTRmC
I’m not particularly familiar with Tom Shieber, but the investigation he lays out to identify this otherwise never-before-seen image of a baseball game from the early 20th century is downright impressive:
As far as I know, this panoramic photo of a baseball game has never been made publicly available until now. Little was known about it until recent research revealed its story. The moment pictured is an important one in baseball history. Here's the scoop: https://t.co/1y1sZSOAZxpic.twitter.com/8xd29yUiBy
Sunday’s notes at FanGraphs are full with plenty of interesting conversations and tidbits, including the public’s general disgust with Bill Madden’s choice to include Placido Polanco’s name on his Hall of Fame ballot (people love to be “different”). But one little fact I found particularly interesting and surprising was about one of our favorite Chicago Cubs: “Anthony Rizzo is 29 years old, broke into the big leagues in 2011, and has 635 RBIs. Eric Hosmer is 29 years old, broke into the big leagues in 2011, and has 635 RBIs.”
Relatedly, I found these two graphs rather interesting, as well (NOTE: Not for any particular reason, other than just how good and relatively consistent Anthony Rizzo has been over the past several years, even compared to other (historically) good players like Eric Hosmer):
And yet … Anthony Rizzo is probably not the hitter Joey Votto has been throughout his career (and Rizzo has been VERY good):
According to ESPN (further detailed here at FanGraphs): “A group seeking to lure a Major League Baseball team to Portland announced that it has signed an agreement in principle to develop a 45-acre waterfront site.” The deal was announced on Thursday and was revealed alongside artist rendering of a new ballpark. According to FanGraphs, the site could be the destination of one of the long-anticipated expansion teams *or* it could serve as an alternative for a team to move (the Diamondbacks, Mariners, and Angels are/have all recently dealt with stadium disputes). My guess is an expansion team, but either way. If you get a chance check out the renderings at FanGraphs, because the stadium concept and details look really cool.
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
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