0 comments by TOC Locker on 1/19/2015
Until the Nationals hijacked Sunday’s baseball headlines with news of signing Max Scherzer, the biggest MLB news of the day appeared to be the Rangers making a deal with the Brewers for Yovani Gallardo. However, details of the trade had yet to be completely worked out, thus pushing an official announcement to Monday or Tuesday. […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry
The Washington Nationals may already have had the best team going into the 2015 season. The team has an unobstructed path to the postseason, and it’s even better now after signing Max Scherzer to
0 comments by TOC Locker on 1/14/2015
Apparently, the Oakland Athletics think Marcus Semien can be their starting shortstop after all. OK, that’s burying the lede a bit. Just days after acquiring Yunel Escobar from the Rays, general manager Billy Beane flipped the shortstop to the Nationals, reportedly in exchange for reliever Tyler Clippard. CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman was the first to […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 1/10/2015
The curious offseason of the Oakland Athletics continues with general manager Billy Beane picking up one of the more coveted players on the trade market in Ben Zobrist. The Nationals, Giants and Cubs had been rumored to be pursuing the 33-year-old super-utilityman, but it’s the A’s swooping in with a January surprise. According to the San […]
0 comments by TOC Locker on 1/8/2015
Successful initiatives often tend to be imitated. Inspired by Jets fans who rented several billboards near MetLife Stadium that called for the firing of general manager John Idzik, a Mets fan began a Kickstarter campaign to fund a similar campaign for billboards asking for team owners Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz to sell the franchise. […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 1/7/2015
Four players were elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on Tuesday, representing the largest class going into Cooperstown since 1955. Over the past two years, seven players have received the necessary 75 percent of the vote from the Baseball Writers Association of America (BBWAA), making up for the embarrassment of no players being elected […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/27/2014
This is something that will probably be held up as the latest example of how news travels and can be quickly distorted in the immediate dash to report stories quickly (“BREAKING“) on social media. Earlier Saturday afternoon, reports circulated out of the Dominican Republic that Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro had been arrested by authorities for […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/22/2014
The San Diego Padres have been so active in the trade market during the past couple of weeks that it’s difficult to imagine general manager A.J. Preller not doing anything this week. The Padres began as a curious outside possibility for free agents like Pablo Sandoval and Yasmany Tomas, only to become a dominant force […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/19/2014
The San Diego Padres have been the most surprising team of the offseason, making three blockbuster trades to become a contender. But the Miami Marlins are also making several intriguing moves, following through on their promise to field a contending team after signing Giancarlo Stanton to a gigantic 13-year, $225 million contract. As first reported […]
0 comments by TOC Locker
The New York Mets need a shortstop. Wilmer Flores and Ruben Tejada are nice players, but the Mets need someone who can make more of an impact at the position offensively. That doesn’t leave general manager Sandy Alderson many options. How many MLB shortstops can provide middle-of-the-order run production, while also playing excellent defense? Ian […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/17/2014
On Tuesday evening, the Padres and Rays put baseball insiders, analysts and fans on high alert with rumblings of a trade involving Tampa Bay outfielder Wil Myers going to San Diego. Though reports had the deal as close to happening, there were warnings of caution that the trade could take a while to complete because […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/16/2014
One of the big moves that didn’t occur at last week’s winter meetings was a Justin Upton trade. It’s no secret that the Braves are trying to trade the 27-year-old slugger, but finding the right match obviously hasn’t happened yet. Rumblings are that Atlanta is looking for a better return than the one received from […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/15/2014
How important is an ace at the top of a starting rotation for a playoff hopeful or contender? The Boston Red Sox could provide some intriguing answers to that question next season. The first impulse is to believe that even the Red Sox believe in the importance of an unquestioned No. 1 starter, based on […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/12/2014
After the Reds traded Mat Latos and Alfredo Simon on Thursday, you might wonder if general manager Walt Jocketty is beginning a rebuilding project in Cincinnati. At the end of July and when the Reds were officially eliminated from playoff contention, I advocated this team trading off some pieces to get younger and more players under […]
0 comments by Ian Casselberry on 12/11/2014
Sometimes, there’s a reason baseball trade rumors just won’t die. They just need time to become true. Ever since the Red Sox signed Hanley Ramirez and announced he would play left field, Yoenis Cespedes became the odd man out of the Boston outfield. Actually, he was probably on the outside looking in before Ramirez was […]
