Now Warming Up…MLB

Let's start with the Opener.

***I had a friend who was a great softball player.  No, this is not the opening lyric of a famous Springsteen song, but a fact. She had the traditional windmill motion, and when I tried to hit it, I struggled mightily to square it up with the speed and movement she created. MLB purchased a stake in the Athletes Unlimited Softball League this week, creating a partnership between professional baseball and softball for the first time. Seemingly lagging behind most major sports leagues, MLB is trying something akin to what the NBA did in 1996 with the creation of the WNBA. I think this is great for MLB and for the AUSL. It seems like a logical partnership on so many levels by creating a platform for these amazing women athletes while potentially creating more MLB fans. What do you think?

Now to the Set Up Man.

***The great Jacob deGrom started a game for the Texas Rangers this week without recording a strikeout for the first time in his career.  His recovery from Tommy John surgery at the age of 36 has been incredible, as he still can move the ball. But a game without a strikeout may be the canary-in-the-coal-mine for deGrom and his ability to strikeout the universe.  Age, fragility, and surgeries made his contact with the Rangers curious when he signed it. Although his best days are surely behind him, deGrom can overcome the loss of velocity and be a very effective, if not dominant, starter. If the Rangers are going to get in the race, they are going to need deGrom to help them win games.  Despite the decreasing strikeouts, I expect he can still be an ace.

Now the Closer.

***The American League East looks like the Yankees and a bunch of playoff hopefuls, right now.  Heck, the Tampa Bay Rays are hot and have ascended to second place.  But the Orioles of Baltimore look lost, and hope for a winning season seems bleak.  Currently with a -97 run differential, a losing record, and mostly free-agent busts, the team needs a jolt somehow, someway.  Notable exception has been Tomoyuki Sugano, the Japanese free-agent pitcher who has kept the Orioles in the games he has started, pitching to a 3.23 ERA so far.  If you were the GM of this team, how would you shake it up?

 “If you’re not practicing, somebody else is, somewhere, and he’ll be ready to take your job.” – Brooks Robinson