Category: MLB

Dear Camden Chatters, today is my last day as a writer for this blog. I’ve been writing here since the 2019 season, though I was a fan way before that. I definitely won’t stop being a fan of this site, but I’m hanging up my cleats as a writer today.

I want to say thanks. Back in 2014, when Adam Jones circled Oriole Park carrying the AL East Champions flag after the team clinched, then pied a bunch of people in the face, I felt a real urge to share the joy somewhere. Same, too, with the Delmon Young double—could you believe how noisy the stadium was? Same, a few years later, when John Means pitched a no-hitter. And when the O’s won the division title in 2023 and Gunnar Henderson was named Rookie of the Year. And many others. Those moments are special because you have people to share them with, like this community.

I loved being a part of it as a writer. Now, I won’t deny that I wasn’t always a good writer. There have been some very bad takes on my part in seven years. I thought utility superman Stevie Wilkerson should get regular playing time. I believed in the Shintaro Fujinami reclamation project. I got on the Spenser Watkins bandwagon, if such a thing even existed.

There were times it was hard to write, because the on-field product sucked. I did a whole piece on whether the 2021 Orioles, who finished 52-110, were the worst O’s team in history. (They have a strong claim. Maikel Franco played a bunch, we tried to fix Matt Harvey, and Pat Valaika was an infield fixture. Blech.)

The team never did win a single playoff game while I was a writer here. I’ve been frustrated by some of the recent changes I’ve seen. I hope the term “liftoff” is soon forgotten, because if it’s remembered, I think it will be ironically, meaning the Orioles will continue to be bad. I wish Heston Kjerstad had panned out. I wish the team hadn’t traded Trey Mancini, or Ramón Urías, and especially not Adley Rutschman this year, I don’t care what the return was. Brandon Hyde getting fired in May 2025 felt like a real admission of internal chaos, and so many internal changes this offseason suggest this remains true.

But even so, it’s always made me happy to write about baseball. In my day job, I teach law and write long articles with 400 footnotes. Do people enjoy reading them? I hope someone does, but writing about baseball is another thing altogether.

I love telling a good story, and baseball is full of them. In seven seasons, I got to recap some great moments. There was a 6-3 win on Camden Yards’ 30th anniversary, a day that saw Brooks Robinson, Mike Mussina and Eddie Murray all come back to town. More recently, I wrote about Colton Cowser’s ridiculous home-run robbing catch, maybe the best thing I’ve seen him do in his whole career. I got to pay homage to backup catcher James McCann getting hit in the nose with a fastball, then staying in the game. I recapped Kyle Bradish’s first start back from Tommy John surgery and his MLB debut years before. Speaking of debuts, Gunnar Henderson homered in his, and Adley Rutschman’s was a 6-1 loss to the Rays where he hit a triple. I can still remember getting chills from the way he introduced himself.

I’d always get a zing of happiness when people admitted to enjoying my writing here. One time, O’s announcer Kevin Brown actually DM’d the site because he’d appreciated a piece I did comparing Renato Núñez, Anthony Santander, and Pedro Severino’s offensive adjustments. That was cool. Recapping a team win was always great, because all the comments were so happy.

The last couple seasons have been frustrating, sniffing the playoffs without quite getting there. But there are lots of reasons for hope, too. I’m excited to see Samuel Basallo grow into himself, and to watch Pete Alonso continue to hit tanks. (I didn’t expect to like the Polar Bear so much, but I was wrong. What a leader he’s been.) I like Dylan Beavers, and hope he has a good offensive year in 2027. Same with Coby Mayo, who really found something down the stretch. I think a healthy Jackson Holliday will be dangerous. There are some interesting arms on the farm right now, which definitely wasn’t true in 2019. Luis de León, Joseph Dzierwa, Anthony Eyanson and Boston Bateman are a few I’m really excited about.

We’ll see what’s in store for this team. It’s a time of transition, but that’s exciting. We don’t need more of 2025 and 2026, frankly, and I think the front office has got the message.

For me, this is it for blogging, for now, but I’ll never stop being a fan, of the Orioles or this blog, and will continue to lurk around this place. Thanks to this community of baseball fans with a shared love for Baltimore. It’s a great online space, and it’s been so much fun. I’m grateful. Here’s to many more wins next season.

Let’s go O’s!

There will rightfully be a ton of attention paid to the Mets' options in free agency, with ace left-hander Tarik Skubal potentially at the very top of their list of targets.

But the trade market could be percolating, too. 

Shortly after spinning a handful of trade deadline deals this past summer, bringing in a bevy of intriguing prospects while bolstering the Mets' farm system, head of baseball operations David Stearns was not shy about the possibility that some of those recently-acquired prospects could be quickly turned around as part of other deals that help New York.

That doesn't mean the Mets are in a rush to trade any of them, but the infusion of talent into their system likely makes it easier to swing an impact trade or two. 

And given New York's plethora of infield options who are close to the majors (including Jefferson Rojas, Mitch Voit, and Émilien Pitre), it's not outlandish to think Stearns could deal from that relative glut in an effort to improve the team elsewhere -- perhaps in the starting rotation. 

With offseason moving and shaking beginning soon, there's every reason to believe there will be a free agent and trade frenzy over the next month with the lockout looming on Dec. 1 when the CBA expires. So the Mets, and every other team, could be in a race to that theoretical deadline.

Here are the five players the Mets should have highest on their list of trade targets, ranked:

5. Hunter Brown, RHP

Brown is at No. 5 instead of the very top of this list simply because the Astros don't have to be in a rush to trade him. Set to enter his age-28 season in 2027, Brown is under team control via arbitration for two more years. And he's still very inexpensive, expected to make roughly $8 million next season.

But while the Astros can take their time if they so choose, there are a few reasons why dealing Brown this offseason could make sense.

For one, Houston is in a period of transition, currently searching for replacements for outgoing GM Dana Brown and manager Joe Espada. Meanwhile, despite winning the putrid AL West in 2026 with a record of 81-81, the arrow is pointing down for the Astros. Jeremy Peña will be a free agent after 2027, Yordan Alvarez will be a free agent after 2028, the high-priced Carlos Correa can't stay healthy, and Jose Altuve (who will turn 37 years old next May) seems to be running out of gas.

There's also the fact that (with the exception of Altuve) Houston has typically been unable or unwilling to extend its stars, as was the case relatively recently with Gerrit Cole and George Springer, who both walked as free agents. 

Adding all of that up, it could be smart for Houston to start retooling for the future. 

And if the Astros decide to dangle Brown, who has emerged as a legitimate frontline starter over the last three seasons, the Mets should race to the phone. 

4. Joe Ryan, RHP

Ryan was a buzzy name attached to the Mets last offseason, and could be again this time around.

With Ryan almost certainly set to depart Minnesota via free agency after 2027 (there is a mutual option for 2028 worth $13 million that he would likely only accept if his season is derailed by injury or poor performance), it would behoove the Twins to trade him this offseason.

One thing to note, though, is that the Twins actually became buyers at the 2026 deadline even though they were under .500 (56-57) and 4.0 games back in the mediocre AL Central on Aug. 3. So it's possible they simply roll the dice again in a still-underwhelming division and try to win. 

If they don't, Ryan -- who has a 3.79 ERA and 1.08 WHIP with a 10.1 K/9 rate across six big league seasons -- could be one of the most intriguing names on the trade market.

For the Mets, he would be a strong fit in the middle of a rotation that is expected to include Nolan McLean and Christian Scott, and could feature a legitimate ace at the top -- with a Skubal signing a possibility. 

3. George Kirby, RHP

When you look at the Mariners' starting rotation depth chart, which features Kirby, Logan Gilbert, Bryan Woo, Kade Anderson, Bryce Miller, and Emerson Hancock, it makes sense why people are looking at Seattle as a potentially big player on the trade market this winter.

As far as Kirby, he has backslid a bit since putting up very strong seasons from 2022 to 2024 in what were his first three years in the league. In 2026, while posting a career-worst 4.33 ERA and 1.39 WHIP, the value of Kirby's stuff also regressed in a big way. But it wasn't due to a loss in velocity, as Kirby's four-seam fastball averaged a career-high 96.7 mph. It also seemingly wasn't an issue with his extension off the mound (something that hampered Freddy Peralta during his time with the Mets).

Kirby's elite command (his walk rates in 2023 and 2024 were 0.9 and 1.1, respectively) has also become simply very good. 

But the tools are still there for Kirby, who will earn roughly $10 million in 2027 via arbitration and is under team control through 2028. 

An undeniable plus is that Kirby is a New York native who grew up in Rye, so he wouldn't be overwhelmed by the market. 

2. Drew Rasmussen, RHP

The Rays hold a $20 million option on Rasmussen for the 2027 season, but Tampa has typically traded their higher-priced players ahead of free agency -- as they did recently with Tyler Glasnow and Brandon Lowe. So they could theoretically pick up Rasmussen's option and then deal him. 

Perhaps their run to the World Series changes the calculus with Rasmussen. If it doesn't, he would be one of the most sought-after pitchers available.

There will always be some lingering concern about Rasmussen's health given that he has had multiple serious elbow surgeries, including an internal brace procedure that kept him out for most of 2023 and 2024.

But when Rasmussen is healthy, he's one of the best pitchers in the sport. And he's been healthy the last two seasons, throwing a combined 322 regular season innings for the Rays while posting a 2.71 ERA and 0.96 WHIP while striking out 301 batters and allowing just 241 hits.

Rasmussen, who will be entering his age-31 season in 2027, would give the Mets a true ace to slide in atop their rotation.

1. Logan Gilbert, RHP

Yes, every top target is a starting pitcher. 

With Gilbert set for free agency after the 2027 season, it's possible the Mariners are more motivated to move him than Kirby.

Gilbert, 29, has been an inning-eating machine for Seattle, tossing 185.2 or more innings four of the last five seasons.

In 2026, he posted a 3.73 ERA and 1.08 WHIP while striking out 205 batters and allowing only 153 hits across 186 innings spanning 32 starts. His advanced metrics were also mostly in the red, including xERA, xBA, chase percentage, and extension.

Like Kirby, Gilbert's arsenal is expansive, though he is especially reliant on his four-seam fastball and slider.

Gilbert might not have quite the upside of Rasmussen, but could be a safer bet due to his mostly clean injury history.

The Brewers have won the first World Series in team history and the long-awaited victory party will carry on through the streets of downtown Milwaukee.

On Friday, Oct. 30 the team will celebrate its championship – Commissioner's Trophy in tow – with a parade beginning at 10 a.m. local time (11 ET). The parade route will start on Wisconsin Avenue and weave its way through downtown Milwaukee before concluding on the lakefront at Henry Maier Festival Park for a rally that in all likelihood with be rollicking.

There will be a variety of ways to watch the championship parade, either on MLB Network, or streaming on YouTube, MLB+, MLB.TV, Brewers.TV or Brewers.com.

The Brewers secured their first World Series title with a 4-1 victory in Game 5 against the Tampa Bay Rays on Wednesday, Oct. 28.

Get Milwaukee Brewers championship book and gear!

Meet the Mets

Bo Bichette is reportedly exercising his $42 million player option to stay with the Mets.

Bichette will remain under contract for the 2027 season but he has the option to opt out again next year.

The Mets claimed infielder Kyren Paris off waivers from the Angels and designated Cristian Pache for assignment.

Tarik Skubal should be at the top of the Mets shopping list this offseason, but Clay Holmes shouldn’t be too far behind the Cy Young winner.

Tylor Megill had a front row seat to his brother winning the World Series and he can only hope he can help his team find that same success.

With the offseason officially upon us, there are important dates to mark down on your calendars before a potential lockout.

Around the National League East

The Braves unsurprisingly exercised their options for Ronald Acuña Jr and Ozzie Albies.

José Alvarado was a bit of a disappointment for the Phillies this past season.

With players on the IL the Nationals currently have 45 players on their 40-man roster so they will have some decisions to make in the coming days.

Around Major League Baseball

Righty Michael King declined his player option with the Padres and is now a free agent.

The Athletics acquired outfielder Nate Eaton from the Red Sox in exchange for prospect Jareth Rayo.

Let the free agency speculation begin!

It took 57 years for the Brewers to capture their first championship and all the right ingredients had to come together to make it happen.

There are now only four teams that haven’t won a World Series championship, so who will be the next team to break the drought?

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Michael Drago reviewed Marcus Semien’s subpar first season in Queens.

Vasilis Drimalitis wrote about Bichette exercising his option.

This Date in Mets History

On this date in 2015, David Wright blasted the first World Series home run in Citi Field history to help propel the Mets to a 9-3 victory over the Royals in Game 3.

The World Series is over. There will be no baseball played today. There will be no baseball played tomorrow. And sadly, we have no idea when Major League Baseball will be restart again, if at all, in 2027.

Usually, this is where we turn to the famous Rogers Hornsby quote:

“People ask me what I do in winter when there’s no baseball. I’ll tell you what I do. I stare out the window and wait for spring.”

But that depressing reality doesn’t quite capture the mood this year. There’s no guarantee spring will bring us relief from the hellscape the owners are about to unleash. So instead, I’m just angry. Angry at the owners, angry that the sport I love is about to do unspeakable levels of damage to itself, and angry that we have no idea what things are going to look like on the backside of this completely unnecessary carnage.

Back in 1994, baseball lost eight months of action from the time the strike ensued in August all the way through Opening Day in 1995, which was delayed until late April. With Covid, we technically went nine months without baseball as the season didn’t start until July, but the offseason leading up to it was relatively normal, and we even had spring training games start on time.

Over the last 150 years, nothing has disrupted an MLB season like this looming lockout could. Not World Wars, not the Great Depression, and not even the infancy of the sport back in the late 1800s. Since the Western Frontier closed, we’ve never gone more than nine months without a professional baseball game. Today marks the beginning of a stretch that could end that fact. We’re sailing straight into a sea of uncertainty.

What we do know is that the Milwaukee Brewers — The smallest market in the sport — just won the World Series over the Tampa Bay Rays, who ooze overachievement an on annual basis. And yet, the owners are preparing to shut down everything down over the guise of competitive balance. They could not be more full of shit!

At least now, after the way this October unfolded, we can get a little bit more serious: The real reason the owners want a cap is because they need a line on a graph to go up. Nothing more, nothing less. Valuations of franchises tend to be much higher when you get to put a limit on how much you pay the guys who make your product magical, and since baseball has and always will reflect the American reality, we now get to sit back and watch as a small group of billionaires prepare to make life worse for everybody else.

And along those lines, there’s something else that has me very concerned. We as a society don’t compromise on much of anything anymore. Two sides dig in, never abandon hardline positions, and nothing gets done while everything crumbles around us. Is there any reason to believe this impending lockout will be any different? The owners have made it pretty clear they’re not going to budge unless they get a cap. The players meanwhile have always seen a cap as a nonstarter. Even if we didn’t live in the most unproductive debate environment in American history, it’s hard to see how this ends without one side emerging completely victorious.

There’s either going to be a cap, or there’s not. Baseball will either be changed forever when we resume, or we’ll be rebuilding the current structure and way of things when it’s time to pick up the pieces. I don’t see much of an in-between, but then again I don’t see much of anything right now as we stare into an apocopic abyss.

All I know for sure is that I’m angry right now, and it’s hard for me to direct that anger at any place other than the owners. The wonderful story of what the Milwaukee Brewers just did juxtaposed with what these jackals are about to do is deeply poignant at this hour, and with no more baseball games to distract us from the impending tsunami, I’m dreading just how ugly this is about to get.

The Commissioner’s Trophy resides in the city of Milwaukee for the first time in 69 years after the Brewers secured their first World Series championship.

In doing so, they trampled over the Dodgers in a lackluster four-game series sweep, crushing the Dodgers’ dreams of becoming the first baseball team to three peat in 26 years. Reflecting on being eliminated for the first time in three years, Dave Roberts sat down with Buster Olney of ESPN about the Brewers’ tenacity, noting that while the Dodgers were hungry to win, the Brewers were “starving.”

“I was telling my wife after we got eliminated that I know our guys were hungry, but the Brewers were starving.”

Paul Sporer of Fangraphs lists four players to keep an eye on in fantasy baseball for the 2027 season, with right-hander Emmet Sheehan cracking the top spot on the list. Sheehan struggled to stay afloat at the big league level throughout the majority of the regular season, but had flashes of brilliance during the final stretch run.

He either needs to greatly improve his fastball command or alter it in some way, perhaps even switching to a sinker. I tend to find homer issues something that can be overcome, though, so while it is a significant wart for Sheehan, the core skills are too strong for me to ignore so I’ll happily rebuy even around pick-160.

At least one player to have worn a Dodgers uniform was crowned a World Series champion this year, that being right-hander Dustin May. May discussed being in this year’s Fall Classic with Robert Flores of MLB Network prior to the start of the series, noting that this year was more significant due to his near-death experience two years prior.

“It means more to be in this moment today knowing two years ago, looking back at it, I wasn’t really sure if I was ever going to play again.”

The Dodgers are not going to win the World Series every year— as evident by this year’s postseason— but, as Cary Osborne of Dodger Insider notes, they are the ultimate challenge for any team’s chances of winning it all.

The Dodgers have built up this reputation: To win the World Series, one has to go through the Dodgers.

Despite an all-time final-day comeback to win the American League Central Division title, the 2006 Minnesota Twins season didn’t end in as positive a manner. But one thing that cannot be taken away from the ‘06 campaign: it produced perhaps the most hardware-heavy season in franchise history.

Justin Morneau: AL MVP

• The Canadian sensation put up this line to take home top-of-league honors: 157 G, 661 PA, 97 R, 190 H, 37 2B, 34 HR, 130 RBI, .321 BA, .934 OPS, 140 OPS+, 4.3 bWAR. Was this a 100% deserved MVP? Ehhh…David Ortiz, Travis Hafner, & maybe even resident MN 1B-coach Grady Sizemore had pretty compelling cases. But it’s not like Morneau has to give it back.

Johan Santana: AL Cy Young

• This is one that the voters got exactly right—no one eclipsed ’06 Santana: 19-6 W/L, 233.2 IP, 245 K, 2.77 ERA, 162 ERA+, 1.00 WHIP, 7.6 bWAR. In what should have been Johan’s third straight Cy Young Award, there’s a case to be made he could have double-dipped as AL MVP considering that WAR total.

Joe Mauer: AL Batting Champion

• A .347 batting average was tops in the Junior Circuit. This was the first time a backstop brought home the batting bacon since Ernie Lombardi (.330 BA) did so for the Cincinnati Reds in 1942. 2006 was Mauer’s third season in the bigs—and his second functional campaign (missing almost all of 2004 due to injury)

Torii Hunter: Gold Glove

• Ho hum—just the sixth consecutive gilded glove-trophy for the CF-er.

Four incredible individual performances that render 2006 memorable 20 years hence despite the ALDS thud.

Happy Friday, everyone! Fair warning for today’s news post… it’s very Brewers-heavy for obvious reasons. We know, we know, we normally don’t love to share so much positive press about division rivals, but we suppose given the circumstances we need to make an exception. The Brewers did, indeed, end their own lengthy World Series curse this weekend by finally winning their first World Series championship, defeating the Rays in five games. They made their run through the postseason losing only two games in all of October, something that will surely put them among the names of the most dominant postseason teams in history. And catcher William Contreras became the first catcher since 2015 (when Salvador Perez did it for the Royals) to win World Series MVP.

So, of course, there’s a lot of discourse about the Brewers win to get through, and we’re just going to jump into it, because next week we start looking ahead to the big awards, and to a likely frenzied free agent market ahead of the MLB lockout.

• Michael Baumann sings the praises of the World Series-winning Milwaukee Brewers.
• The Brewers lost only two games in their entire postseason run, Jay Jaffe looks at other teams who dominated in the postseason.
• Anthony Castrovince looks at the path that took the Brewers to their first World Series victory.
• Anthony Castrovince explains why William Contreras earned his World Series MVP title.
• Dan Gartland explains that there’s more than one way to win a World Series.
• How the Brewers’ stars came through when the team needed them most. Story by Ryan Phillips.
• Jorge Castillo shares that the Rays are still proud of smashing expectations, even if they didn’t win the Series.
• Evan Drellich has a guide to surviving the looming baseball lockout. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• This might be the best shot of the World Series.

• We saw the Tampa Bay ground crew out a lot on Wednesday night re-grooming the mound. Let’s take a look at whether or not there’s a good reason for that. Story by Davy Andrews.
• Max Ralph looks at what an incredible year it was for the Contreras brothers.
• Sarah Langs figures out just how dominant the Brewers were this October.
• Some items from the Brewers’ historic run are headed to the Hall of Fame. Story by Max Ralph.
• What’s next for the Brewers? Karl Rasmussen looks ahead. He also assesses what comes next for the Rays.
• Doug Greenberg shares that the Dodgers are still the odds-on favourites to win the World Series next year.
• Cody Stavenhagen looks at how much this World Series win meant to long-suffering Brewers fans. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Classic.

• Michael King has declined his player option and opted to become a free agent. We’ll see a lot more of this over the coming week. Story by Max Ralph.
• Keegan Matheson looks at which Blue Jays players could be up for awards consideration in the coming weeks.
• Anthony DiComo spotlights the trio of Brewers from Venezuela, who are now two-time champions this year.
• How Christian Yelich honored the late Bob Uecker after the Brewers’ big win. (AP)
• Congrats to the Brewers.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.

Good morning, Purple Row!

Here’s what’s going on with the Colorado Rockies and the rest of Major League Baseball.

Rockies News & Links

Antonio Senzatela’s Stunning Turnaround Since Leaving Rockies Gets Perfect Ending | Si.com

Outside of the joy of not having the Dodgers win the World Series, and having a first-time champion in the Milwaukee Brewers, the icing on the cake is seeing Antonio Senzatela celebrating. After helping Venezuela win the World Baseball Cup earlier this year, along with his Milwaukee teammates Jackson Chourio and William Contreras, the former Rockie is now soaking in another world title. This piece by Laura Lambert revisits Senzatela’s career from when the Rockies signed him at age 16 to pitching in the World Series.

Rockies have longest odds in all of MLB to win the 2027 World Series | Denver Sports (The Fan)

All it takes is one day after the World Series, and the odds for next season are out. Of course, this is before trades, free agent signings, and all manner of roster changes that might happen before spring training hits in February. But it already doesn’t look good for the Rockies, who are facing 300-to-1 odds. Slightly more suprising, the Los Angeles Dodgers have the best odds, ahead of the World Series Champion Brewers.

Around MLB

Milwaukee Public Schools to close for Brewers’ championship parade | MLB.com

It’s party time in Milwaukee and school is out. The World Series Champions will bring home their hardware to celebrate with their fans on Friday for a parade starting at 9 a.m. MST. Considering vibrant Brewers crowds at the World Series games at American Family Field and Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay, a giant turnout is expected. The parade will be aired on MLB Network and streamed live for free on Brewers.com.

Treasures from 2026 World Series Headed Home to Cooperstown | Baseball Hall of Fame

Cooperstown will be getting some new gear soon. As soon as the World Series concluded on Wednesday night, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum was swooping in to collect artifacts to memorialize the Milwaukee Brewers first-ever championship. Items that will be added to the Autumn Glory section of the Hall of Fame include MVP William Contreras’ catching gear, Jacob Misiorowski’s hat from Game 5, Cooper Pratt’s bat that connected for six straight hits in Games 4 and 5 and more.

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Through two seasons with the Orioles, Tyler O’Neill has played in just 139 total games, hit 19 home runs, and made five trips to the IL. While the 2026 campaign was a slight improvement from his debut season in Baltimore, the Canadian outfielder was once again a gigantic disappointment.

The Orioles attempted to handle O’Neill more gently this time around. He was limited to just 54 games in 2025, and the hope was that they could avoid a similar fate in 2026. Of the 85 games in which he appeared in this year, only 61 of them were starts, and he played defense in just 67 of them. It was not a massive workload, particularly for someone being paid $16.5 million per year. But that didn’t stop the injuries from coming anyway.

O’Neill suffered a concussion early in the season when an illness led to dehydration, which resulted in him fainting and hitting his head. That left him sidelined from April 9 through April 23. He returned to the lineup in late April, and would remain an outfield option for much of the year until late August, when he suffered a rotator cuff strain. There was some hope at the time that O’Neill could rehab the injury quickly and return before the end of the season. But it didn’t work out that way. O’Neill received PRP injections in September, and his season was over.

There really weren’t any positives to speak of for O’Neill through the end of June. To that point he owned a .182/.282/.270 batting line with two home runs, six doubles, 17 walks, and 43 strikeouts. You could squint and see some potential for positive regression in things like hard hit rate and lower than expected BABIP, but it was grasping for straws.

July is where O’Neill finally became a spark for the lineup. From July 1 through August 17, O’Neill hit .289/.359/.602 with eight home runs, two doubles, nine walks, and 26 strikeouts across 30 games. His season totals jumped up to a respectable (if still underwhelming) .223/.310/.395 thanks to that seven-week stretch.

That would be the peak of O’Neill’s campaign. He finished his season by going 0-for-11 over his final four games, and then hit the IL with the shoulder injury that shelved him. His last game of season came on August 22.

There is an argument to be made that O’Neill had finally figured something out in July. It’s possible that the early-season concussion lingered and, paired with a less consistent role in the everyday lineup, it was difficult for him to get into an offensive groove. Then, as soon as things were clicking, the injury bug bit him again. Just bad luck.

But it’s pretty much impossible to actually make that argument for O’Neill given his history. The guy gets hurt a lot. The most games he has ever played in a single MLB season was 138, which came way back in 2021 with the Cardinals. He played 113 games for the Red Sox in ‘24, his platform year before inking the three-year contract with the Orioles prior to 2025. So, even when he is productive, he is good for at least one lengthy IL stint per season. In order to be of value, he needs to play really well in those games he can actually suit up for. As an Oriole, that is yet to happen with any sort of consistency.

As the Orioles plan for 2027, the reality that O’Neill is probably going to miss time has to be factored into roster planning. It cannot be assumed that he will hold down an outfield corner for 140 games next summer. That’s not something he has ever done, and it’s unlikely he starts now. The fact that he ended the season on the IL with a rotator cuff injury for which he received PRP injections already sounds dicey, though reports indicate that he should be ready for spring training.

O’Neill will be entering the final season of his contract in 2027. That gives the Orioles more flexibility with him if he struggles, if the team falls out of contention, or if he is consumed by injuries again. The team has already paid out a majority of his salary, and the chance for him to “turn things around” will dwindle by the day. Should the team need a 26-man roster spot sometime midsummer while O’Neill toils, cutting him will be on the table.

But in all likelihood, that is a consideration for sometime during the regular season. At the moment, the Orioles outfield, outside of Colton Cowser’s glove, is one big question mark. O’Neill, despite his flaws, may be closer to a productive and known commodity at the plate than any other outfielder on the Orioles 40-man roster. And it’s not as if the team is going to be able to save any money by cutting or trading him now anyway. So the incentive for doing so before other plans are in place is basically zero.

The outfield should be a top priority for the Orioles this offseason, whenever it is that they can actually make moves. It’s a shallow free agent class, and many of the top options (Randy Arozarena, Ian Happ, Seiya Suzuki) are already older than O’Neill is now, so it doesn’t feel like a market where the Orioles are going to seriously compete. Perhaps the trade market is more open. Or, and this could be the best path, the Orioles explore converting some of their infielders into corner outfielders. Coby Mayo and Blaze Alexander feel like the two most prominent candidates should their peers on the roster come into the spring healthy.

The O’Neill experiment has been a failure through two years. Given the uncertainty on both the roster and in baseball broadly, he’s unlikely to be going anywhere this offseason. At this point, he can be a very expensive insurance policy if the Orioles fail to solve their outfield issues this offseason. Hopefully the organization holds a similar view, because going into 2027 with the plan being for O’Neill to be an everyday option in one of the corner spots is a recipe for yet another underperformance.

Good morning, baseball fans!

The 2026 MLB playoffs have officially come to an end, with the Milwaukee Brewers defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 4-1, and securing the franchise’s very first World Series Championship!

Congratulations to the Brewers and their fans! And thank you, once again, for eliminating the Los Angeles Dodgers and keeping us from having to endure a three-peat. There are not enough words in any language to describe how much of a relief that was.

Next week, we’ll get back to discussing the Giants (oh god, no, please, don’t make me) but in the meantime:

What were your favorite moments from the Brewers postseason run?

With the World Series over, it’s time for wheeling and dealing!

Well, ok, they’re not big moves, but necessary and expected ones:

The Royals made the first of many potential significant moves Thursday to address their bullpen for 2027 when Kansas City announced that it declined the $13 million club option on closer Carlos Estévez while exercising a $2.5 million club option on right-hander Tony Gonsolin.

At The Star, Jaylon Thompson profiles 2026 first-round pick Zion Rose:

Rose relies on an unconscious swing at the plate. He isn’t trying to overthink and, in turn, overcomplicate the situation. His plan revolves around sticking to an approach and letting his natural instincts and abilities take over.

“The unconscious behavior is just the muscle memory of what your body has been working on this whole time,” he said. “(It’s) what you have been preparing for. So yeah, that’s the unconscious one. You never want to think while you are in the box — at least about mechanics.”

Pete Grathoff highlights a fan’s silly Halloween idea:

One Royals fan thought it would be fun to dress as catcher Carter Jensen, but with a twist. Remember when Jensen was scratched from the starting lineup early in the season because he overslept?

That’s all for “official” stories for the Royals. How about a little MLB section for the World Series? Then we’ll get to the Royals blogs.

Drew Lerner at Awful Announcing reports that the ratings for the World Series were not the catastrophe some predicted:

When including the preliminary figure from Game 5, the full five-game series averaged 11.83 million viewers across Fox, Fox Deportes, and Univision, which would put the series’ viewership level with Astros-Phillies in 2022 (11.76 million viewers) and Braves-Astros in 2021 (11.74 million viewers), both of which had six games. Viewership will predictably fall short of Dodgers-Yankees in 2024 (15.10 million viewers) and Dodgers-Blue Jays last year (15.49 million viewers), but will easily surpass Rangers-Diamondbacks in 2023 (9.08 million viewers), the least-watched World Series of all time.

Hey, didn’t someone make that prediction last week? Oh, right, it was, checks notes, Drew Lerner at Awful Announcing, as linked to by everyone’s favorite Friday Rumblings host last week. So, wait? We don’t need the Yankees and Dodgers in the World Series to get decent ratings, though it would have been helpful if this went more than 5 games.

Milwaukee Public Schools are closed tomorrow so kids can go to the victory parad— I mean, for safety, of course:

MPS specified that schools will be closed “due to operations and safety impacts from the Brewers parade and celebration.”

Who says judges can’t have fun:

Michael Maxwell, the presiding judge in neighboring Waukesha County, declared Brewers attire will be formally considered “in compliance with professional decorum expected of courtroom staff, litigants and attorneys appearing before the court” through the conclusion of the victory parade.

(NSFW) Brewers manager Pat Murphy had some NSFW advice for Jake Bauers and threw shade specifically at the Yankees, but more generally at large market teams:

“You’re going to be a rich f—er. Just remember when you’re on that horses— Yankees team and you’re all playing for yourselves, just remember this is the way we used to do it.”

(/NSFW)

The Brewers didn’t suffer ill effects from the World Baseball Classic. A trio of their players won the WBC title and World Series title:

Seven months after becoming World Baseball Classic champions with Team Venezuela, Milwaukee’s Jackson Chourio, William Contreras and Antonio Senzatela pulled off a rare double, joining Alex Bregman and Luke Gregerson as the only players to win WBC and World Series titles in the same calendar year. Bregman and Gregerson did so for Team USA and the Astros in 2017.

Also, I linked to a Dan Szymborski (Szymborksi! Szymborski!) article a month ago that said there’s basically no effect across the board, though effects on individual players may vary.

Over at ESPN, Jeff Passan wrote his longform story about the Brewers.

Steve Megargee of the AP wrote about the connection between Bob Uecker and Christian Yelich.

Finally, Jordan Shuterman wrote about the Rays and how “being the best team in the American League simply wasn’t enough”.

Blog Time!

David Lesky continues to flood Inside the Crown ($) with awesome offseason content. He did his “JJ for a Day” three-parter. Yesterday was his “Offensive Free Agent Guide”. Today, it’s time for his Less Offensive Free Agent Guid— oh, wait “Pitching Free Agent Guide”:

Free agency is always a little kinder on the pitching side. I think I mentioned this in a comment yesterday, but teams are just more willing to let pitching go year-to-year and hit free agency than young talent, so there’s a little more out there every year. I think, for example, you can completely build a bullpen through free agency. It’s better if you don’t have to, but you could put together an expensive but not stupid expensive bullpen just from guys on the list above. It’s a little harder with starting pitching, but that doesn’t mean it’s not possible to supplement what they already have. Ultimately, if the Royals are going to make good on their stated goal of competing in 2027, some of these guys above are going to need to be with the Royals whenever the season starts. I’ll be fascinated to see which ones they end up signing.

At Royals Keep, Kevin O’Brien looks at whether the Royals should keep Jame McArthur:

Because McArthur missed two full years at the Major League level, he will come cheap in arbitration. According to MLB Trade Rumors, his projected arbitration amount is $800,000, $10,000 less than a year ago. For context, Mears ($2.2 million), Alex Lange ($1.7 million), and Alec Marsh ($1.1 million) were expected to command higher amounts this offseason. McArthur is not only cheaper than those three, but he’s also more likely to be healthier and/or more effective.

While McArthur posted high ERAs in 2023 and 2024 with the Royals, his FIP numbers suggested he’s a much better pitcher. The now-30-year-old righty probably isn’t a fit for closing situations anymore, but his stuff, ability to generate CSW (31.9% career CSW%), and groundball-inducing style make him an ideal low- to medium-leverage arm who can eat the middle innings. Even in a small sample, McArthur showed decent stuff last year, with his curveball rated as a pretty plus pitch based on TJ Stuff+ and grade numbers.

We’ve reached the offseason and not as many people are reading. So it’s time for me to point out that in our link post, I’m linking to Royals Keep’s link post linking back to Royals Review. Royals Linkception!

Brian Burrows at KOK: 6 Royals prospects who could be protected no matter what happens with Rule 5 Draft

Matthew Swigonski at KOK: Grading every Royals infielder reveals who stood out in 2026

It’s not going to be a long OT, but I feel like I should do something Halloween-related.

I can’t exactly do tiers of Halloween specials like I’ve done with Christmas specials (and again and again). There’s It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. That’s it. That’s the list. Because of this, we watch The Nightmare Before Christmas most Halloween seasons, even though it’s more of a Christmas movie than a Halloween movie.

Of course, there are tons of horror movies… but I’m not really into horror movies. However, I did review the Scream series a couple of Halloweens ago.

Last year, I wrote about candy. Maybe it’s time to revisit that for a second. I didn’t write about a specific type of candy or candy tiers or anything like that. It was more a rambling screed in a couple of different directions.

I still feel the same way about the four major candy holidays, though, as I noted last year, my consumption has gone down with age. I also haven’t been able to discover the missing flavors I was chasing.

The real downer here is that candy prices keep going up. And we keep getting the same dumb excuses, just like last year:

Notice how all of those stories also talk about how candy is “outpacing inflation”, as above? That’s weird – it’s almost as if there’s a new cover story every year. I’m sure it’s not the expensive acquisitions, failed buyouts, and stock buybacks that need to be paid for by the consumer in an ever less competitive marketplace.

That’s whether you’re getting your information from Delaware Online:

The cost of a bulk bag of 100 pieces of candy has gone from $9.91 in 2021 to $16.96, a 71% increase over five years. The national rate of inflation over those five years was 22%.

The biggest increases have taken place over the last three years, with an increase of $2.45 from 2023 to 2024, $2.34 from 2024 to 2025 and 57 cents from 2025 to 2026. Combined, that’s a $5.36 increase over the last three years.

Or ABC7 in New York:

According to an analysis by the ABC7 Data Team, candy prices are up about 7.7% from a year ago, compared with a 1.8% increase in grocery prices overall. The analysis found candy prices have risen at more than four times the rate of overall grocery inflation.

NPR’s Marketplace brings all the numbers:

Overall, the price of candy and chewing gum has risen by more than 47% since 2020, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Consumer Price Index. Marketplace looked at price changes for popular chocolates and candy between 2020 and 2026 using the Wayback Machine, finding that some products rose even more, with prices increasing between 60% and 100%…

A bag of party-size Hershey’s Kisses weighed 35.8 ounces in 2020 and retailed for $8.98 at Walmart. Now, the party size weighs 30 ounces and costs $14.92. That’s a 66% price increase. But if you look at the cost per ounce, the price actually doubled, rising from 25 cents an ounce to 50 cents an ounce. The largest bag of Brach’s Classic Candy Corn shrunk from 44 ounces in 2020 to 34 ounces in 2026. But the price per ounce doubled from 11 cents to 22 cents.

They talk about some of the cocoa and sugar shortages we looked at last year. They don’t talk about the consolidation in the industry that we also mentioned.

Even as prices go up and people are facing hard financial situations:

It’s not just that candy costs more—economic think tank Groundwork Collaborative, in association with the Century Foundation, found candy prices are up 15% on average over last year. For many shoppers, Costaglia said, they simply “don’t have the financial means to buy it this year.”

…Forbes seems almost happy to report that companies will still make tons of money from us:

Halloween is still going to be a big celebration this year, with NRF predicting a total of $13.5 billion in spending—candy making up about 30% of the spending total at $4.1 billion, up 5% from last year but far below the overall 15% uptick in prices.

So there’s that. In other words, same story as last year. Prices continue to go up for consumers and businesses continue to take an ever bigger cut. Yay?

In light of (Sir) Patrick Stewart’s passing earlier this week, I thought I should feature a game that he was in. Obviously, he was more known as a star of stage and screen, but for Friday Rumblings, video games are our sandbox. I don’t think he was in any Star Trek games that were well received. However, the pair of X-Men Legends games were highly rated, back in the sixth generation of consoles.

Per wiki:

It was basically Final Fantasy with X-Men. Over time, however, it really started to evolve. As development moved along, we added more and more elements of action and combat to it… -— Co-project lead Patrick Lipo on the development of the gam

I remember playing some co-op games with friends on the GameCube and it was quite fun.

Here’s a chapter of the game with some voice acting from Stewart:

The Atlanta Braves announced Thursday that they have exercised options for both Ronald Acuña Jr. and Ozzie Albies. Acuña Jr. is set to earn $17M next season, and Albies will earn $7M. Of course, both of these figures do not account for the impending lockout. 

The Braves also made a couple of roster moves Thursday, reinstating Spencer Schwellenbach, Spencer Strider, Hurston Waldrep, and Joey Wentz from the 60-day injured list. 

While none of these moves come as a surprise, they mark another step in the Braves’ offseason preparations ahead of the looming labor dispute.

More Braves News:

Otto Lopez and Jeremy Peña have been linked to the Braves as shortstop trade candidates.

Our 2026 player review series continues with José Suárez. 

MLB News:

Though subject to change, we have outlined current important offseason dates.

From the Feed:

When do you think the 2027 season will begin?

This year, the Dodgers watched the World Series from home, with the Milwaukee Brewers’ World Series victory over the Tampa Bay Rays officially ushering in a fresh slate for the Dodgers to plan their 2027 championship pursuit.

“When you take the experience and the talent of our core guys, and you look at what is coming [up through the farm system], that is what gives us a high degree of confidence about being able to sustain this,” said Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations, in his end-of-season news conference, “not just in 2027, but as we look out.”

As the Dodgers attempt to strengthen their roster to climb back to the top, however, they’ll have to navigate a disjointed winter transaction window.

Read more:Shaikin: Tensions between MLB and players' union continue to escalate amid salary-cap battle

MLB owners are expected to impose a lockout when the collective bargaining agreement expires on Dec. 1. If that happens, the offseason will grind to a halt, suspended indefinitely until the two sides sign a new agreement.

Will that expected shutdown spur early action in free agency?

Will the threat of a salary cap freeze the player market?

It’s unclear, but teams are readying themselves to jump into action whenever the market does move.

“There’ve been a number of things that we’ve done over the last couple of years that, in October, early-November planning we didn’t think was likely or that possible,” Friedman said. “An opportunity popped up, and we were at least prepared enough to act in the time to get something done — there’ve been trades, there’s been free-agent signings.

“So for us, it’s just about our internal meetings, getting as prepared as we can be. Because things are going to play out in ways and timing and things that we can’t anticipate, so be as prepared as we can be.”

Amid those unique circumstances, here’s a guide to the Dodgers’ offseason:

Which Dodgers are entering free agency?

Nine Dodgers became free agents at the conclusion of the postseason — although veteran infielder Miguel Rojas announced his intention to retire.

The other eight are utility player Kiké Hernández, and pitchers Tarik Skubal, Eric Lauer, Kris Bubic, Brusdar Graterol, Evan Phillips, Blake Treinen and Alex Vesia. So, bullpen help and all-around pitching depth have become areas of need.

“Obviously we’ve got some key free agents,” Friedman said. “That being said, if we started the season tomorrow, we feel really good about the roster and team that we have. But that’s never our mindset to say, ‘OK, we’re good enough.’ We’re going to work hard to try to figure out where we can improve, and in different areas.”

Could the Dodgers make a trade?

For the last two years, the Dodgers have had a hot offensive first half (115 WRC+) before a second-half dip (109 in 2025, 105 in 2026). Friedman said the team would work to diagnose the problems that plagued the Dodgers in July and August — and reemerged in the postseason.

“A lot of the rules are designed for the run-prevention side to have a real advantage,” Friedman said. “So much of our focus has been, how do we try to combat that on the run-creation side. And I think there are ways that we can get better. And even if we were coming off a consistent great year, our minds would be, how do we get better? But we’ll definitely spend a lot of time trying to wrap our arms around it and figuring out what is actionable and what things we can improve going forward.”

Friedman pushed back on the notion that age was to blame, saying that explanation was painting with too broad of a stroke.

If the solution involves personnel changes, however, a trade might be necessary to shake up the Dodgers’ veteran position-player group. Whether the Dodgers would want to part with one of their clubhouse leaders, and whether another team would be interested in taking on (or the Dodgers would pay down) any of those contracts, remains to be seen.

Read more:After NLCS exit, Dodgers face big questions about their aging lineup and future

The Dodgers have pointed to their farm system, ranked No. 1 by MLB Pipeline as of mid-August, as a reason for optimism. But their position-player prospects, including three outfielders at the top of the list, are blocked by veterans already on the Dodgers’ roster.

“Things work themselves out,” Friedman said. “There are times where you wake up one day and you’re too left-handed. You start to address it, wake up another day and say, “Wow, we’re too right-handed now. Things happen.

“Like right now, we have a really talented group of outfielders coming through our minor-league system. There have been times where we haven’t. We also have a lot of really talented infielders coming as well. But for us, it’s just about having as many talented players as we can.”

What are the recovery timelines for injured Dodgers?

Shohei Ohtani is expected to return to two-way duties next season and be ready in time for spring training, according to Friedman. Though Ohtani battled lingering left knee and recurring right biceps injuries through much of the season, surgery is “not on the table.”

Backup catcher Dalton Rushing underwent elbow surgery last week. His nine-month estimated recovery would have him back to catching around late July and hitting before then.

Right-handed reliever Will Klein underwent a procedure to remove bone chips from his right elbow last week, and the Dodgers said he was expected to be ready in time for spring training.

What are key early-offseason dates?

Nov. 2: The first five days after the conclusion of the World Series are a “quiet period,” when teams have exclusive rights to negotiate with their free agents, before free agency opens in earnest. By the Monday deadline, teams must also decide whether to extend one-year qualifying offers to eligible players (Graterol, Hernández, Phillips, Treinen, Vesia), and it’s the deadline for contract option decisions.

Nov. 10-12: General managers meetings in Las Vegas. With the winter meetings in December expected to be canceled because of a lockout, GM meetings likely will be the one time for baseball operations leaders to all gather under the same roof this offseason.

Nov. 17: Players must accept or decline qualifying offers by the 1 p.m. PDT deadline.

Nov. 20: By the deadline, teams must tender contracts to 40-man roster players under team control who have not yet signed deals for the upcoming season. Non-tendered players become free agents.

Dec. 1: The current CBA expires.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Happy Friday, everyone! Well, the World Series title has been decided, and the Milwaukee Brewers are the new MLB champions. The team won their first-ever World Series (though, to be fair, no matter which team won they would have been first-time winners, which was pretty cool). It was an incredible series, with some amazing performances, some of which we’ll get into in the links below. William Contreras could probably teach an offseason seminar in ABS challenges, because he was unreal.

Now that the World Series is over, contract opt-outs are picking up, free agency is going to start heating up, and the looming MLB lockout might be the biggest topic of conversation. So let’s just jump right into it.

Detroit Tigers News

• In case you’re keeping track:

• Remembering a vital part of the crew.

• If you ever wanted to be lectured about recycling by a giant tiger, today is a good day for you.

MLB News

• The Brewers lost only two games in their entire postseason run. Take a look at other teams that dominated in the postseason.
• What the heck was going on with the pitcher’s mound on Wednesday night?
• So it begins. Michael King has declined his player option and opted to become a free agent.
• Looking at the path that got the Brewers their first World Series victory.
• 2026 was an incredible year for the Contreras brothers.
• Which Blue Jays players could be under consideration for the major awards coming out soon?
• Why did William Contreras win the World Series MVP?
• Just how dominant were the Brewers this October?
• A look at some of the items from the Brewers’ historic run that are heading to the Hall of Fame.
• Spotlighting a trio of Venezuelan players on the Brewers who are now two-time champions this year.
• What’s next for the Brewers?
• The Brewers proved that there’s more than one way to win a World Series.
• What comes next for the Rays?
• How the Brewers’ stars came through when the team needed them the most.
• The Rays are still proud of what they accomplished, even if they didn’t win the Series.
• The Dodgers are still the odds-on favorites for the World Series next year.
• How Christian Yelich honored the late Bob Uecker after the Brewers’ big win.
• How much did this World Series mean for long-suffering Brewers fans? ($)
• A handy guide for surviving the upcoming baseball lockout. ($)
• Possibly THE World Series photo.

• Incredible quote.

• Congrats to the Brewers.