Category: Sports News

Good afternoon everyone, it’s time to dive back into the mailbag and answer some of your questions. Remember to send in your questions for our bi-weekly call by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.

Craig Z. asks: It would seem a qualifying offer to Bednar is a given. The QO to Jazz also seems likely as Yankees will perceive he will reject it and, unlike the gamble with Grisham that was a huge miscalculation on Cashman’s part, Jazz will probably reject it. Your thoughts?

I don’t know if I’d agree with your second point, as reports have come out saying that the team is actually unlikely to offer the qualifying offer to Jazz Chisholm Jr. this offseason. The gamble over whether Chisholm would accept the deal or not mirroring what happened with Trent Grisham last year is probably informing their decision on that matter, as while I wouldn’t hate bringing Jazz back on a one-year deal the team seems to be angling towards allowing him to walk. Whereas Grisham was coming off of a career-best year, Chisholm had his worst season in pinstripes, but the argument could be made that Grisham knew the market was a lot more crowded with excellent choices while Chisholm is still one of the best options in a free agent field lacking a true superstar or even many stars to compete against.

With that in mind, it might be a more reasonable gamble to give Chisholm the QO and not lose him for nothing than it was with Grisham, but again the team clearly cares about their budget and potentially handing out over $45 million in 2027 salary between Bednar and Chisholm before free agency even opens might restrict them too much to make other moves. I’m not thrilled with the backup option to Chisholm being running Anthony Volpe at the keystone, but if it leads to improvements elsewhere on the roster I could see the logic in the move — and we’ll talk about where that upgrade is most needed in a moment. Ultimately, while I know Chisholm had a disappointing year for New York (and perhaps set himself up to with talk of having a 50-50 season during spring), I think it’s unlikely they field a better player at his position than him in 2027 and I think that makes the QO a worthwhile choice, but it looks like that won’t be the case.

Anton H. asks:With Ryan McMahon struggling to solve the Yankees’ third base problem as hoped, do you think the team will try to trade him this offseason, or is a DFA more likely? Given his $16 million salary for 2027, what teams, if any, could make a compelling case for acquiring him despite the financial commitment?

Now, here is where the resources need to be allocated to improve the position. Third base has been a black hole for damn near a decade at this point, with only small bursts of quality play like Gio Urshela’s 2019 run sparkling before being swallowed back up by the void. Ryan McMahon was never expected to be a quality hitter when the Yankees acquired him, but they were certainly expecting better than the 78 wRC+ he posted in 124 games. He was also expected to overcome his offensive capabilities by providing stellar defense, and while he lived up to that in 2025 his play at the hot corner sizzled out completely in 2026 leading to a frustrating experience where he really didn’t provide much of anything.

That’s not really a compelling case to bring towards any potential suitors, so while the team would surely love to trade him away for whatever they could get, it would require tacking on prospects to get even partial salary relief at the moment. Normally I’d say they’re better off just going the DFA route like they did with DJ LeMahieu and Aaron Hicks, but the team is also staring down the prospect of moving on from Giancarlo Stanton’s contract as well and I’m not sure that Hal Steinbrenner could stomach two deadweight contracts for players not even on the team anymore. Of the two, it would be easier to sell McMahon with a prospect attached than it would Stanton, who has a full no-trade clause and an extra year on his deal even if it is a team option. If push comes to shove the team is better off moving on from McMahon and DFA’ing him would suffice, but if they can find an angle to move him that doesn’t cost any of their blue chip prospects it wouldn’t be a bad move to make — they can’t all make it to the big leagues, and using prospect capital to improve the roster by subtraction is still an improvement. I trust the player development team to find enough talent to keep the pipeline greased up, and they didn’t offload too much in this year’s deadline.

jws85 asks:Assuming no additions during free agency, who would be the best leadoff hitter? Rice and Judge needs to be 2-4. Lombard, Bellinger, or Volpe could be options. Wells, García, Stanton, and Jones makes no sense.

If you’re forcing me to keep Ben Rice and Aaron Judge somewhere in the 2-4 range then I’d set my sights on George Lombard Jr. earning the leadoff role, as the rookie showed solid results at the plate during his whirlwind debut in the second half and throughout the postseason. The defensive misplays were atypical of his performance down in the minors, but the bat showed some promise and the only other candidate I see would be Volpe, who has already had his chance to be a leadoff hitter to no avail. However, what I would rather do in this scenario is just have Rice hit leadoff, bat Judge second and have Bellinger flanking him with Lombard or Jones at cleanup and García hitting fifth. Rice proved that he’s a capable enough table-setter, and without an ideal OBP-driven player in the lineup as is you might as well give your best hitters the earliest chances to get up to bat.

The Nats had a lot of prospects take meaningful strides in 2026, but the one I want to talk about today is Miguel Sime. When the Nats took Sime in the 4th round of the 2025 draft, he was a raw but electric prospect with a massive fastball, but not much else. There is still rawness in his game, but Sime took big steps in the right direction this year.

The development of Sime’s slider is the biggest story of this season. Heading into the year, Sime had a curveball and changeup to go with his triple digit heater. Both pitches had promise, but neither were refined yet. In the offseason and during Spring Training, Sime worked hard to find a slider grip that worked for him. He talked about this in an interview last month.

Once he found the right grip, the pitch came naturally to him. The slider became Sime’s go to weapon, even throwing it more than his fastball at times. Sime’s slider has deceptive downward movement that makes it difficult to pick up. Hitters often think the slider is coming and by the time they realize their mistake it is too late.

The development of the slider gives Sime two elite pitches. His body type, pitch mix, velocity and control woes remind me a lot of Jarlin Susana. Like Susana, Sime generates a ton of swing and misses. For the season, his strikeout rate was 41.3%, or 16.18 K/9. Even as he got aggressively assigned to High-A, that strikeout rate remained around 40%.

That mid-season promotion told me a lot about how much the Nats believe in Sime as both a pitcher and competitor. They easily could have left him in Low-A to develop for the rest of the year. However, the organization wanted to challenge him and Sime responded well. 

His numbers were actually much better despite facing better opposition. In Low-A, Sime struck out over 45% of hitters, but posted a 4.44 ERA due to a 21% walk rate and some bad luck. Once he got to Wilmington, Sime posted a 2.15 ERA with 76 strikeouts in 46 innings. His walk rate was still an alarming 19.9%, but it did not matter because opponents hit under .150 against him. 

Obviously, control is the biggest thing Sime needs to work on. We knew his control was not pinpoint heading into pro ball, and we saw that play out. However, his stuff might be even better than expected. Sime’s fastball shape is very good and as mentioned, the slider has become a lethal weapon. At the Futures Game, Sime’s raw stuff might have been the best of any pitcher.

Between the Futures Game outing and his Spring Breakout appearance, the stuff models loved his pitches when there was Statcast data. He has velocity, movement, deception and several different nasty offerings. At 19 years old, there is still plenty of time for the control to come around.

However, that lack of present control does give him a lot of relief risk. If I had to bet right now, I do think the bullpen is Sime’s ultimate home. That is no sure thing though, and the Nats will and should give him every opportunity to prove he can start. With how young he is, we have plenty of time.

Despite his youth, there is a chance that Sime starts next season in AA as a teenager. He showed that his stuff can overwhelm High-A hitters. While he has walk problems, they have not mattered that much yet. In Double-A, those control issues are likely to hurt him more and force him to adapt.

Overall, Sime is a high upside arm with triple digit velocity and a nasty slider. His huge physical presence gives him an intimidating look on the mound. All of these things scream future closer, but his ultimate home is still to be determined. 

If the control trends in the right direction, Sime could be one of the top pitching prospects in baseball. Even with shaky control, he has loud enough stuff to make him a fairly safe bet to pitch in the big leagues for a long time. Sime’s first year in pro ball was a resounding success. Now I am excited to see what he can do in year two.

The World Series begins tonight.

Normally, when the Dodgers aren’t involved, I generally ignore the proceedings, reveling in the de facto time off before being absorbed by the many tasks I launch into during every off-season. With this year’s offseason likely to be much longer due to the own goal that is the impending lockout, I have embraced something I generally disdain: procrastination.

The baseball hipsters are drinking their figurative oat drink lattes and living well by reveling in the pending matchup between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays. The list of teams that have never won a title should decrease to four.

As both stadiums are domed, if there are weather delays, something weird has happened. The play on the field should entertain, as the venues themselves are not that picturesque. Still, if you want more information, updated with recent travel, we shall oblige.

Before this year, the last time the Brewers made the World Series, I was gestating in utero (October 1982 vs. January 1983). I know folks in Milwaukee losing their figurative minds about something some started to take for granted in Los Angeles.

I’d tease about their enthusiasm, but unalloyed joy is a good thing. After all, how much of a moron do you have to be to do something to catch my attention by screwing up when everyone is either literally waiting or celebrating?

Timeless…well, Mostly Timeless Tickets

11 years ago, the Milwaukee Brewers sold their Timeless Ticket. For $1,000, one would get a personalized brass ticket that was good for one use only to “any future Brewers home game at American Family Field. Whether it’s this season, the year 2050, or the 7th game of the World Series, all are valid games to redeem a Timeless Ticket.”

Only 1000 tickets were produced, and they allowed for redemption “subject to ticket availability at the time of redemption.”

The Brewers lay out the procedures for redemption, which allow for one ticket and the option to purchase three additional tickets at full regular retail price.

In the fine print, the Timeless Ticket cannot be used for any hypothetical All-Star Game in Milwaukee or any MLB game at American Family Field where the Brewers aren’t playing. On its face, if you suddenly were reminded of Forever Stamps from the U.S. Postal Service, that’s by design, per Darren Rovell of ESPN:

In late October, the team announced it would sell 1,000 “Timeless Tickets” for $1,000 each. They come in 1-pound bronze tickets with the owners’ names engraved on them.

…[A]s the offer went online for the first time, the team announced that it would add another nine timeless tickets to each deal, which would be redeemable for any regular-season game in the team’s future, except for Opening Day games.

The original bronze ticket is good for any single game, including say, a World Series home game at Miller Park, or whatever stadium the Brewers happen to be playing in should they return to the Fall Classic. The team’s only appearance came in 1982.

The idea is the brainchild of Brewers chief operating officer Rick Schlesinger.

“I was at the post office and got caught up with the idea of forever stamps,” Schlesinger said. “So I wondered what we could do to offer our fans something where we could give them the promise of being able to go to any game.”

In theory, speaking from personal experience, it’s a banger of a deal and a heck of a gimmick. I have certainly spent more money on more frivolous Dodgers-related purchases.

Fast forward eleven years, and one would think the Brewers have a public relations layup just waiting for the positive press. “Grandpa bought a Timeless Ticket, and now in his twilight years he gets to see his beloved Brew Crew play for a title after beating those crumbum Dodgers. Also, he bought three additional tickets at full price for his family.”

The positive copy writes itself. Considering how much goodwill there is in Cream City right now, you’d have to be an absolutely incompetent moron to blow it now.

When folks tried to redeem their Timeless Tickets this time, they were presented with the option of Terrance Level seats (Upper Deck) or Standing Room Only. Speaking from personal experience with the venue: ouch. For a Dodger Stadium equivalent, imagine buying a one-time pass that should allow you in the best available seat, including Field Level or the Loge, and instead you have to settle for a seat in the rafters of the Upper Deck.

Back in 2018, Timeless Ticket holders had the option to try to redeem their Timeless Tickets for a potential World Series berth. Some fans were able to secure seats behind home plate at field level. Cody Bellinger and Yasiel Puig had other ideas, making these reservations moot.

It turns out that the Timeless Ticket holders’ position in the queue was bumped at some point. Rather than selecting seating after the season ticket holders, the holders were placed behind the general public, seeing seating options that they could not select.

“Back in 2015, that was a big selling point from the sales people about this,” [Danny] Fochesato said. “They really touted, ‘Hey, this is going to be the best available seats. You’re getting the priority just behind season-ticket holders. Anything the season-ticket holders don’t have, you’ll have dibs at it for the World Series.’ That’s kind of the story they sold.”…

“We had a form, and it only had 400-level or standing-room options,” Fochesato said. “We couldn’t even know what game we had. We just had to put a preference of which ones we wanted, and then we had to submit the form and just sit and wait for them what we got. I immediately was like, ‘No, that’s bogus.'”

Going from “any game, best available ticket” to “hope and pray for the game you want.” We have a word for that situation, but it is unprintable in this generally family-friendly publication. So we will instead use the time-honored substitute of “malarakey,” with indications of another word: “fraud.”

Rather than have to analyze and explain Wisconsin contract law or write about impending lawsuits (I will leave our cousins at Brew Crew Ball to handle that story if it ever comes), the Brewers acknowledged that they screwed up.

Brewers president of business operations Rick Schlesinger said Tuesday that several hundred fans had indicated they wanted to redeem their Timeless Tickets for a World Series game. Schlesinger acknowledged that “we subsequently erred in our internal communications on the logistics of fulfilling the requests.”

“While we were able to accommodate all with seats, we received feedback from some that they were unhappy with their seat locations,” Schlesinger said. “Clearly, even with extraordinary limitations on available seats, we did not live up to the spirit of the program, and we have been working through a resolution.”

Schlesinger said any Timeless Ticket holder who applied for World Series tickets before the deadline will now get to keep those World Series tickets while also being able to retain their Timeless Ticket to redeem for another game in any future season.

“We regret our mistake and look forward to welcoming them to American Family Field for their World Series experience,” Schlesinger said.

[Emphasis added.]

To be a fly on the wall of the Brewers’ Legal Counsel’s office over the past week…Whether these patrons are satisfied is another question entirely. This situation is right out of a law school textbook. But you might think, well, they still get to go; why throw a stink at all?

If I pay for something and you don’t give it, there’s a problem. Or if you change the deal, it better be in a movie, or you’re going to have a problem on your hands.

In short, the Brewers went full Michael Scott; you never go full Michael Scott.

Having to be publicly shamed to do the right thing by their most loyal fans — that’s a move right out of monetizing Dodgers Fan Fest to the gills. If there is a moral here, it is: do not overpromise and then underdeliver.

Sticker shock

World Series ticket sticker shock is emanating from both Milwaukee and Tampa. Direct sales are long gone, leaving the secondary market as supply and demand go into overdrive.

The get-in price for tonight’s Game 1 in Milwaukee is north of $2,000, and the get-in price for Game 3 in Tampa is north of $700. Some Milwaukee fans are likely finding it cheaper to go to Tampa, in which case, welcome to the brotherhood of traveling fans. It’s neat.

I get the sudden sticker shock. Back in 2024, I shared their collective pain:

No one should have to make what is essentially a rent payment to sit in the upper deck of any game. I am mindful that ticket prices are like real estate: it all comes down to location, location, location.

I understand that sitting at the Loge at Dodger Stadium should cost more than the upper deck. But should that cost equal a small used car (about $2,500 to $3,000, based on current listings on the secondary market)?

As I wrote about in my amateur adventures, before joining the staff here, I had World Series tickets for a potential Game 6 and 7 for about 24 hours. Both tickets combined cost about $1,200 and these seats were in the upper deck with no rhyme or reason as to location as I felt a closeness to the 2021 team because of all the games and cities I went to, warts and all.

As a comparison, I spent about $800 to sit atop the Green Monster in Boston for the finale of the series where Mookie Betts returned to Beantown for the first time. Ironically enough, seats in that section went up to $1,300/ticket as I recall. That seat was easily the most I ever paid in the regular season.

I have often decried the “Dodger tax” that I have to pay when I go see the Dodgers on the road. The truth is that it is often significantly cheaper for me to go see the Dodgers elsewhere than in the confines of Our Blue Heaven unless I am willing to entirely abandon a decent view of the game.

It is okay to pay for a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

But no one should have to go into debt to enjoy something that they love.

My reaction now: I was being naive, or, if one requires a meme:

It’s not that I don’t have sympathy; it’s that some fans are caught in the gears of a system designed both to pay the players and line the owners’ pockets, especially if the series goes beyond the minimum length.

MLB sets the baseline purchase price for playoff and World Series tickets, which serve as the basis for creating the playoff prize pool that gets split amongst all of the participating players, with the World Series winners getting the largest share.

Spending what I spent to go see regular-season games in Tokyo is one thing, and frankly should not be repeated unless I was living in Japan. But the World Series is different. Last year, I spent around $3,000 USD on the secondary market just for the ticket for Game 7 in Toronto. Remember, I’m not bona fide; I have to pay my own freight. All things considered, I got a heck of a seat for the price.

I could have spent less for a seat farther away from the action, but when it matters, you pay the extra expense to see your team in action. Maybe you see history, maybe you don’t, but at the end of the day, seeing your team on that final stage is what matters. Everything else is silence.

Good luck to the Brewers and Rays in what should be an entertaining and exciting series.

It’s been a wild 2026 ride to the Fall Classic. Cubs fans were treated to the first 40-40 season in franchise history. They were also treated to one of the biggest rollercoaster rides in the 150-year history of the team as the Cubs won 10 games in a row twice while also losing 10 games in a row. Ultimately, that inconsistency hit the Cubs at the wrong time as they were swept out of the Wild Card round by the Padres. As some astute commenters noted during the Championship Series previews, there really aren’t a lot of guys on either the Brewers or Rays rosters who have experience on the North Side of Chicago. It’s basically Trevor Megill and a whole lot of guys we’ve never seen in the Cubs system. With that in mind let’s take a closer look at the small market matchup set to begin in Milwaukee tonight.

Brewers vs. Rays: One ring to rule them all

For the first time since 1980 the World Series features two teams who have never won a ring. That means regardless of whether fortune favors the Brewers or the Rays some fanbase is going to experience the ecstasy of a championship for the first time. It’s understandable that a lot of Cubs fans have a soft spot for the Rays in this matchup given our collective frustration at finishing second to the Brewers year, after year, after year, after year:

Look, I’m sure I’ll find some reason to roll my eyes and cheer against the Brewers by the time this World Series is over, but right now I’m just excited for great baseball. If great baseball determines that the Brewers finally win a World Series, I think I’m okay with it. Jake Bauers considering retirement but returning to baseball for the healthcare coverage only to do this is great stuff, regardless of your primary team allegiances [VIDEO].

And don’t get me wrong, there should be some great baseball. As I discussed yesterday in looking at the small market nature of the 2026 World Series, these two teams are perennial success stories in MLB. The Brewers have eight Postseason appearances in the last decade and the Rays have six, these are two of the more successful teams in baseball who are only missing a championship ring.

On the pitching side the Brewers have likely NL Cy Young Award winner Jacob Misiorowski in Game 1 facing off against the Rays Nick Martinez. In Game 2 the Brewers will send Logan Henderson to the mound against Rays ace Drew Rasmussen. While Game 3 starters have yet to be named, it seems likely that would be former Brewer, and ALCS MVP, Freddy Peralta for the Rays and Robert Gasser for the Brewers. Peralta has been excellent this postseason [VIDEO]:

And then it’s a question of bullpens. Both teams have solid bullpens with a clear eye towards who their high leverage guys are in a pinch. That means the Brewers should expect to see a lot of Bryan Baker, Kevin Kelly, Tyler Wells, Cam Booser, and Ian Seymour, while the Rays will likely see Megill, JoJo Romero, Dustin May, DL Hall, Aaron Ashby and Abner Uribe. One wildcard to keep an eye on is the addition of Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff to the World Series Roster:

On the hitting side of the equation, the hottest bats in the Brewers lineup during the League Championship Series against the Dodgers were MVP Bauers and second baseman Brice Turang, catcher William Contreras and outfielder Garrett Mitchell [VIDEO].

The Rays bats were a bit quieter during their series against the Guardians, but look for slugger Junior Caminero to show up on baseball’s biggest stage with his speedy sidekick, Chandler Simpson who hits for average and runs like Pete Crow-Armstrong. I’m personally looking to see how Yandy Díaz performs. Yandy is one of the most underrated hitters in baseball this side of Seiya Suzuki and he’s a big reason the Rays will be in the World Series [VIDEO].

With both teams looking for their first franchise championship, tickets to games in Milwaukee and Tampa Bay are going for prices not seen since the Cubs and Cleveland faced off in 2016. It does not seem like those prices are coming down as game time approaches. The cheapest tickets to get into American Family Field for Game 1 are hovering around $2,900 for an obstructed view seat:

Whether fans can afford to join the action in person, watch with friends at their favorite neighborhood tavern or follow from the comfort of their couch, the vibes around a team’s first World Series win are priceless. Who are you cheering for as action kicks off in Milwaukee tonight?