NEWSLETTER
There was nothing in the promotion of ‘Eternals’ that got me hyped to see it, even though I am an unabashed MCU homer. They almost never miss. But, I finally saw it last night, and, as I suspected from the promotion and the trailers, this one was definitely a miss. It wasn’t a HORRIBLE miss, and there were certain aspects that I liked (the big question of what is “right” to do – that was good). But mostly it just felt uneven and really out of place. It also seemed grand and landscape-altering in a way that didn’t feel earned within the MCU. There was a lot in there that you can’t just drop into a movie that otherwise feels so one-off. I understand it won’t BE a one-off – there’s more coming – but they have serious work to do, because that’s how it felt while watching.
•  Day two of meetings between MLB and the MLBPA is going to be the big story for the day, and we discussed last night where things stand. Since then, Evan Drellich provided a little more context in a full write-up at The Athletic, and I’d been waiting for the part where SOMEBODY said something nasty. It’s just how this goes. Basically, an MLB spokesman beefed about there being some negative characterizations of the meeting from the players’ side, and they would instead prefer to keep things behind closed doors. I gotta tell you, if that was the worst thing one side or the other was going to say publicly to this point, that’s another good sign. Modest, but good. The player side characterizations haven’t really been bad at all, and if the MLB spokesperson wants to play the “we’re trying to take the high road and keep things private” card … fine. I find it a little ridiculous when people do that WHILE take a shot, but again, some beefing was expected. So far, this has been nothing. And I hope it stays nothing.
•  Well, I guess there’s also this from the players’ side in The Athletic piece, but it’s a pretty darn fair point:
then sell the team for an enormous profit, this isn't that complicated pic.twitter.com/9nLMcI6Evc
— Crongasaurus (@cdgoldstein) January 25, 2022
•  At today’s meeting, it’s expected that the owners will present SOME positions, though not a full-on offer. My realistic hope for the day is that, just as the players did yesterday, the owners either take something they’ve been pushing off the table, dramatically soften something they’ve been pushing, or mostly accept ONE thing the players are seeking. I just want to see some chipping away.
•  The other newsy thing today is the announcement of the Hall of Fame voting, which, well, has slipped in the minds of many. David Schoenfield goes through the possible outcomes today and into the next few years. I just have so much trouble caring, and while the PED stuff is not the exclusive issue that irks me, Jeff Passan does a good job summing that part up, in reference to Barry Bonds’ continued exclusion:
He’s not the only one, but Bonds’ rejection, in particular, epitomizes how all these decades later, baseball is still bungling the PED issue, valuing a lazy, ahistorical moral referendum over the preservation of history.
It’s difficult to pinpoint what’s most frustrating. Perhaps it’s that there already are players in the Hall accused of using PEDs. Or that the commissioner whose tenure encompassed the entirety of the steroid era, Bud Selig, is himself enshrined. Or that generations of players before Bonds, including manifold Hall of Famers, popped amphetamines as part of their pregame routine. Or that others honored with bronze renderings include multiple racists, domestic abusers and even a player who last year resigned from the Hall’s board of directors after a woman levied credible sexual misconduct allegations.
Really, maybe it’s just as simple as the guy with the most home runs ever should be in the museum that exists to tell baseball’s story.
•  It goes on from there, laying out why it is both unfair and absurd that the Hall has been policed in this way, given everything we now know about that era.
•  The Cubs get some baby-step praise for the way they are running their expanded prospect camp this offseason:
Minor Leaguers work for MLB owners from September until April without pay. Many work second jobs and go into debt just to afford the cost of offseason training. This is both unfair and a poor approach to player development.
The Cubs’ camp is a baby step in the right direction. https://t.co/LQdLug8ErY
— Advocates for Minor Leaguers (@MiLBAdvocates) January 24, 2022
•  We discussed the camp, itself, yesterday, but there was one bit of separate news in the article from Sharma and Mooney: “The Cubs are searching for a new minor-league field coordinator now that Ed Blankmeyer — the longtime St. John’s University head coach who managed the Mets’ Class-A Brooklyn affiliate last year — reconsidered and departed this winter shortly after accepting the job.” That’s a bummer, because Blankmeyer came with such an extensive baseball background, and was replacing Jeremy Farrell, who’d been poached by the Reds to be their new farm director. (The “field coordinator” role is a little different in each organization, but the short version is that it is often an all-purposes minor league coaching and developmental role, helping every team be in its best position to develop its prospects. It’s definitely an important gig, hence a guy like Farrell getting promoted from it straight to being the top developmental coach in the Reds’ system.)
•  Beats headphones, security cameras, lanterns, and more are your Deals of the Day at Amazon. #ad
•  If you’re in the Myrtle Beach area:
We want YOU!
Join us at the ballpark this season; we're now accepting applications for various game day jobs!
See an entire listing and apply here: https://t.co/xgOEkfng9T pic.twitter.com/VBpy10AUA8
— Myrtle Beach Pelicans (@Pelicanbaseball) January 24, 2022
•  Blackhawks rumoring:
Blackhawks Expected To Pursue Top KHL Free Agent Andrei Kuzmenkohttps://t.co/3xhOFFnM0M pic.twitter.com/um8JIefB5D
— Bleacher Nation Blackhawks (@BN_Blackhawks) January 24, 2022
