Quote of the Week
“ Hey Houston Texans, Mike Trout and I kinda look alike... so how do you feel about 12 years, $430 million fully guaranteed for me too? ”
– JJ Watt, NFL player
This Week in Baseball
Extension-palooza
You get an extension! You get an extension! And you get an extension! Major League Baseball teams this week gave out nearly $1 billion in contract extensions to some of its biggest stars. Mike Trout. Alex Bregman. Eloy Jimenez. Chris Sale. Paul Goldschmidt. Blake Snell. Justin Verlander. Truly a wonderful time to be a baseball player... and then there's Dallas Keuchel.
Re-Retirement
Ichiro Suzuki retired. Again. But this time for real. Normally a Hall of Famer ending his career would be the top story of the week, but everyone thought he retired last year, so frankly we're just not sure we believe him at this point.
Undefeated...
The Seattle Mariners kicked off the season with two victories against the Oakland Athletics. The games were played in Japan, so not many baseball fans in the United States watched them. If you know anyone who did watch those games that were one at 4:00 am, you might want to check their freezer for any severed heads.
L.A. I.L. ...
Rich Hill joins fellow Dodgers Clayton Kershaw and Walker Bueller among the ranks of the injured and will start the season on the Injured List. By process of elimination, that means Hyun Jin Ryu will start the Dodgers season opener. And in the meantime the team will keep him covered in bubblewrap.
Revision of the Nerds...
FanGraphs has made a change to the formula that calculates Wins Above Replace (WAR) for catchers. FanGraphs is one of the leading statistically oriented baseball sites and the change affects both catchers and pitchers in an attempt to show how catcher pitch-framing positively or negatively affected performance. Baseball is a kids' game and part of being a kid is not understanding complex math equations.
On the Air
“ Maybe Bryce Harper is just a big softy and wants to just play with one team. ”
-
Bryce Harper-Mike Trout in Philly?; Blake Snell’s Paltry Raise; A-Rod Engaged to J-Lo; Luke Perry Honored; Antonio Brown, College Admission Scandal (Episode 97)
First and foremost, we have to admit that the thought of a Bryce Harper-Mike Trout outfield in Philly sounds pretty sexy. Episode 97 of Foul Territory: A Baseball Podcast—the Joe Beimel edition—is brimming with Bryce Harper-Mike Trout banter and the …
Going Deep
-
Countdown to a Craig Kimbrel Signing
Craig Kimbrel has been one of the best closers in baseball for nearly a decade. He’s had a 1.91 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP while tallying 333 saves. (BTW: the fastest to 300 saves in baseball history.) He’s the kind …
-
Eloy Jimenez and the Other Prospects Who Should Start in MLB
The sport of baseball is often referred to as a kids’ game and coincidentally teams are leaning more heavily on the performances of younger players. Prospects scouting and development have grown in significance to teams in recent years as well …
-
Ichiro is Beyond Baseball
Today is one of those rare days in sports where the score doesn’t matter and the news of the day still breaks your heart. If you love baseball and sports greatness, the retirement of Ichiro Suzuki is truly a sad …
Off Base
