WASHINGTON, DC – OCTOBER 04: Bryce Harper #34, Denard Span #2 and Jayson Werth #28 of the Washington Nationals look on during a pitching change in the twelfth inning against the San Francisco Giants during Game Two of the National League Division Series at Nationals Park on October 4, 2014 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Rob Carr/Getty Images)

Injuries will test Nationals early on, but depth can carry them through

The Washington Nationals are a popular pick among baseball writers (including the crew here at The Outside Corner) to win the 2015 World Series. (Personally, I’m rolling with the Nats for the third year in a row. This is the year!) Winning the NL East seems like a formality for a team that already had […]

JUPITER, FL – MARCH 22: Giancarlo Stanton #27 of the Miami Marlins looks on at the end of the first inning of the game against the Minnesota Twins at Roger Dean Stadium on March 22, 2015 in Jupiter, Florida. (Photo by Rob Foldy/Getty Images)

TOC’s bold predictions for the 2015 season

When the TOC staff was polled with their predictions for the 2015 season, I also asked each staff member to include a bold prediction. Call it a hot take if you will – something that is well within the realm of possibility but would shock the hell out of all of us. The staff complied, […]

Jonathan Papelbon wore Carlos Ruiz’s jersey for some reason

For the second straight year, Phillies closer Jonathan Papelbon wore the jersey of his batterymate Carlos Ruiz when he took the hill for the Phillies last game of the spring at Bright House Field in Clearwater. Mr. Papelbon, you’re an odd man. For the record, the jersey swap didn’t exactly do too much for Papelbon. […]

PHILADELPHIA – JULY 24: Starting pitcher Cole Hamels #35 of the Philadelphia Phillies looks in for the catcher’s signs in the third inning during a game against the San Francisco Giants at Citizens Bank Park on July 24, 2014 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies won 2-1. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images)

Last minute trade options

MLB teams are wrapping up the interminable Spring Training schedules this week in which they’ve spent copious amounts of times evaluating their rosters. Despite that, some teams are going to realize that there rosters have some big ol’ holes in them. With Opening Day just around the corner, it is time for some teams to consider some […]

ST LOUIS, MO – OCTOBER 11: Adam Wainwright #50 of the St. Louis Cardinals sits in the dugout after being removed from the game in the fifth inning against the San Francisco Giants during Game One of the National League Championship Series at Busch Stadium on October 11, 2014 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images)

Key injuries to monitor this season

Baseball isn’t an impact sport but there is never a shortage of injuries. We’ve already seen top pitchers Yu Darvish and Zack Wheeler go down for the season. Injuries, and recovery from, is just part of the game. This give and take is going to change the dynamic for more than a few teams. What […]

LAKE BUENA VISTA, FL – MARCH 07: Justin Verlander #35 of the Detroit Tigers throws a pitch during the first inning of a spring training game against the Atlanta Braves at Champion Stadium on March 7, 2015 in Lake Buena Vista, Florida. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Justin Verlander is going on the DL for the first time in his career

Justin Verlander has been a work horse in the majors since his rookie year of 2006. Since that rookie season, Verlander has made at last 30 starts in nine straight seasons, and has crossed the 200 inning mark in eight of those seasons. He’s never spent any time on the disabled list. Well, that streak […]

TAMPA, FL – MARCH 12: Pitcher Masahiro Tanaka #19 of the New York Yankees waits in the dugout before starting a spring training game against the Atlanta Braves on March 12, 2015 at George M. Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Brian Blanco/Getty Images)

Pedro Martinez thinks Masahiro Tanaka isn’t healthy

Much of how well the New York Yankees perform this season is tied into the health of stud Japanese pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, who missed nearly three months in 2014 because of a torn ligament in his elbow. Tanaka opted for rehab opposed to surgery, and while the choice worked out for the Yankees in the […]

Rule 5 pick Mark Canha MESA, AZ – MARCH 10: Mark Canha #20 of the Oakland Athletics hits a solo home-run against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the fourth inning of the spring training game at HoHoKam Stadium on March 10, 2015 in Mesa, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images)

Rule 5 prospects hoping to make a splash in 2015

The Rule 5 Draft was originally designed to help prevent teams from stockpiling talent without the intention of promoting such players. Teams began using the Rule 5 draft as an opportunity to fill holes on the active roster with low cost players. Since its inception however, it’s morphed into something of a low-cost “try-out” for […]

DUNEDIN, FL – MARCH 19: Allen Craig #5 of the Boston Red Sox swings at a pitch during the first inning of a spring training game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium on March 19, 2015 in Dunedin, Florida. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)

Allen Craig hit an improbable inside the park homer

When I think of players that can hit an inside the park homer, I generally think of speedy middle infielders or outfielders. On occasion, maybe a gap hitter will hit an inside the parker thanks to some questionable defense and crazy bounces. So when I saw that Allen Craig, of all people, ALLEN CRAIG, hit […]

The Nationals mascot paid tolls for commuters

We’re days away from Opening Day, and what’s Screech, mascot of the Washington Nationals, up to? Why, he’s paying tolls for commuters on the Dulles Toll Road, of course. Screech was also handing out Nationals caps to those lucky enough to be passing through today. But let’s be honest – to hell with the cap. […]

MIAMI, FL – APRIL 19: Pitcher Henderson Alvarez #37 of the Miami Marlins throws during the second inning against the Seatle Mariners at Marlins Park on April 19, 2014 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Marc Serota/Getty Images)

Players who could have their arbitration years bought out

It’s been a busy couple weeks in terms of players having their arbitration years bought out by their respective teams. The Chicago White Sox recently signed Adam Eaton to a five-year extension, Christian Yelich signed a seven-year deal with the Miami Marlins to wipe out his arbitration and Brian Dozier inked a four-year deal to […]

Facebook releases 2015 MLB fandom map

Every year, Facebook releases a map of MLB fanbases by most popular team in each county. We can draw some interesting nuggets from the map. (click to enlarge so you can actually see some of the counties) -Only two teams aren’t represented, and both are second class citizens in their local markets – the Mets […]

CHICAGO, IL – SEPTEMBER 13: Jose Quintana #62 of the Chicago White Sox pitches against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning in game one of a doubleheader on September 13, 2014 at U.S. Cellular Field in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by David Banks/Getty Images)

Dark horse Cy Young Candidates

As the new season approaches (we’re less than a week away now), more and more predictions are being rolled out by websites, and well, just about everyone. We unleash predictions because having just one come true is a phenomenal feeling and we want proof that we, in fact, actually made them. Just imagine if you […]

CINCINNATI, OH – SEPTEMBER 7: Juan Lagares #12 of the New York Mets makes a leaping attempt to catch a ball hit by Jack Hannahan #9 of the Cincinnati Reds in the ninth inning at Great American Ball Park on September 7, 2014 in Cincinnati, Ohio. Hannahan was credited with a double as New York defeated Cincinnati 4-3. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images)

The Mets have bought out all of Juan Lagares’ arb years

The New York Mets actually spent some money on Wednesday, signing Juan Lagares to a four-year extension through 2019, buying out all of his arbitration years. The Mets also hold a club option on Lagares for 2020, which would be his first free agent year. He’s guaranteed at least $20 million through the life of […]

Creating baseball bats isn’t an easy task

You might think that creating baseball bats is easy. It can’t be that bad, right? Cut wood, shape wood, paint wood…tah dah! You have a baseball bat! Of course, it’s not that simple. There’s so much that goes into making bats, from choosing the correct type of wood, to shaping the wood in the proper […]

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