NEWSLETTER
No Major League Baseball for (at least) four months. I tend to be fine with exhaling for a minute when the World Series is over, but it’s only a few weeks before I would like to be back into the season. I expect that will be the case again this year – or maybe even sooner – since there might not be a lot of offseason-type activity until the CBA is settled. It’s possible things will just get quiet for a while, and I’ll miss baseball all the more. Maybe I should get me a Dominican Winter League team …
• A big congrats to Jorge Soler on his World Series MVP honors. Who saw that coming when he was hitting .183/.277/.313 in mid-July for a 37-55 Royals team? Good for him. Good for the Braves.
• The Cubs, as you’ll recall, traded Soler just after their 2016 World Series win for Wade Davis. Given how things ultimately played out for the Cubs, it turned out that the only way for a member of that core to win another World Series was with a team that wasn’t the Cubs. (Well, and then he had to get traded again by the Royals.)
• Soler, who’ll be 30 in February, will make for another interesting free agent case. Although he can play a corner outfield spot, he’s never looked or rated well there. As a pure DH, he’s had only one full really good offensive season in 2019. He was great with the Braves in the second half this year, and then was huge in the playoffs (11 games). This year was just the second time in his career that he was healthy enough to top 600 PAs. How much do you pay a guy with that profile, hoping that the bat gets a little bit better/more consistent in his 30s? I’ll always have affection for Soler, but when you really review the body of work, I’m not sure he’s a great DH bet going forward unless it’s a really reasonable contract, and unless you can make sure that strikeout rate doesn’t climb back over 30%.
• For the record, I still don’t have a huge beef with the Soler trade. As much as I was a fan of Soler’s bat, it had become very hard to see him lasting as an everyday corner outfielder, and his troubles with breaking pitches were not improving. I wish the Cubs had been able to get more than just one year of Davis for Soler, but I didn’t really have a problem – and still don’t – with them trading him, overall.
• I laughed:
Fun fact: Jorge Soler once hit a ball so far off me in Omaha that he apologized the next day.
— Rob Zastryzny (@RobZastryzny_8) November 3, 2021
• Speaking of monster Soler homers, that one last night – the 446-foot blast that left the stadium and proved to be the game-winner – wound up at a nearby apartment party:
This was fun. @JeffPassan and I tracked down the monster HR by Soler. Safe to say we left the park to do so! ‘How about $1 million?': The inside story of where Jorge Soler's home run went once it left Minute Maid Park https://t.co/TNWaKBl9nR
— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) November 3, 2021
• I am a nerd and thus immediately wonder what the legal state of ownership is of the baseball if you have to go into a fenced off area (while your wife (inadvertently?) distracts security). I would think the actual ownership would lay with whoever’s property that was in the fenced-off area, but it’s hard to blame this fan for just going for it and getting the ball. Either way, hopefully it ultimately winds up with Soler for him to decide what he wants to do with it.
• The goggles are right there on your head, my man:
"You guys are going to be World Champions for the rest of your lives."
Time to pop those bottles 🍾🍾🍾 @Braves | #BattleATL pic.twitter.com/gn574j6jVK
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) November 3, 2021
• Joc gonna Joc, and I love how happily himself he is (this is actually from the pennant celebration, but I only saw it this morning):
Joc Pederson: pearls, a glass of wine, and another ring. pic.twitter.com/9qXfKad8lu
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) November 3, 2021
Does Anthony Rizzo's bat also get a World Series ring? https://t.co/9paNfKrOeO
— Bleacher Nation (@BleacherNation) November 3, 2021
• The offseason dates and deadlines post is here, and you already know this year’s huge caveat: the CBA stuff. Something to note is that MLB did send out credentials request information for the Winter Meetings (which come after the CBA expiration), so they are still operating as though there will not be a lockout. That isn’t evidence of anything, mind you! Just confirmation that everything is going to proceed AS THOUGH there will be no lockout … until there is one.
• It just keeps happening:
Cross another off Mets’ list. Daniel Adler, Harvard alum and young Twins exec, will stay in Minnesota. He is said to admire Alderson but prefers to stay with Twins to continue to develop and be more ready for the next opportunity. This is more about self awareness than rejection.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 2, 2021
• Found the next rising exec who’ll reject the Mets:
Both @Britt_Ghiroli and I are hearing from sources that #Orioles Assistant GM/VP Sig Mejdal is on @Mets radar for their GM post. Unknown whether the interest is mutual. No formal interview has occurred as of today. O's would need to OK an interview if Mejdal has interest.
— Dan Connolly (@danconnolly2016) November 2, 2021
• A reminder that the Cubs’ crunched 40-man roster hits the wall this week, as the guys on the 60-day IL have to come off the IL and back onto the 40-man. That will put the Cubs over 40, so … there will be departures as soon as today. More on that coming.
• As of this morning, the anniversary sale is still going on, so hop on it while you have a chance (ends 1pm CT today):
HAPPY 5-YEAR ANNIVERSARY CUBS FANS! To celebrate with you, we made our World Series collection $5.00 off with Free Shipping! Sale ends tomorrow at 1pm! LINK: https://t.co/yNxGsFd9Yi pic.twitter.com/51fi5lS4TA
— OBVIOUS SHIRTS® (@obvious_shirts) November 2, 2021
• Highlighting what there was to highlight (there actually was a good bit of fun stuff this year, all jokes aside – and Michael is a very fun and happy guy, so he’s perfect for it):
Big news! Happy to (finally) tell you guys about Marquee Unpacked. 🤩
A new show on @WatchMarquee, hosted by yours truly that highlights some of the best moments from this past @Cubs season.
Debut is TONIGHT at 7 pm CST. Tune in 📲 pic.twitter.com/TVBDNk51nu
— Michael Bolling (@mikealexbolling) November 3, 2021
• As expected, maddening as it is, the Bears did nothing at the deadline:
Let’s Talk About All That Nothing the Bears Did at the NFL Trade Deadlinehttps://t.co/6mwJqY2dxD
— Bleacher Nation Bears (@BN_Bears) November 2, 2021
• Oh, Scottie … :
Oh Great, Now Scottie Pippen is Taking Aim at Michael Jordan and John Paxsonhttps://t.co/8X5pZwFWD1 pic.twitter.com/wyQnITW3HW
— Bleacher Nation Bulls (@BN_Bulls) November 2, 2021
