Guy Conti, a longtime Mets instructor and advisor, has died after a lengthy illness, The Post confirmed. He was 84.
The Tarentum, Pa. native served as Mets bullpen coach from 2005-08 before becoming a minor league advisor within the organization. Conti previously worked for the Dodgers and was instrumental in Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez’s early development.
The Dodgers had earlier signed Pedro’s older brother Ramon, and Conti was dispatched to the Dominican Republic to scout the younger Martinez, who was very generously listed at 5-foot-11.
Former Mets coach Guy Conti has died at the age of 84. Anthony J. Causi
“I got there, I was presented with 20 pitchers and there was no 6-foot pitcher in there, never mind 6-foot-4 like Ramon was,” Conti told The Post in 2015. “All of a sudden when Pedro got on the mound and started throwing the ball, it just exploded. He just jumped off the page after that and, ‘Oh my goodness, this must be him.’ And it was history from that point.”
After signing with the Dodgers, the younger Martinez referred to Conti as his “white daddy.” Conti helped Martinez begin throwing a changeup, and perhaps just as importantly to speak a new language.
“Pedro, of all the kids that came from the Dominican, knew that he had to learn English as soon as he could,” Conti said. “My wife was a high school librarian, and I said, ‘Go to my wife, and learn the language.’ He would go to her and get a word in the morning and at 4 o’clock, he knew how to spell it, how to use it, how to write it and he wanted another one.”
Mets pitcher Pedro Martinez (r.) greets Guy Conti (l.) at Shea Stadium on May 30, 2008. Anthony J. Causi
The two were reunited with the Mets from 2005-08 after Martinez signed with the club.
Conti, after his major league coaching tenure concluded, served as the Mets spring training coordinator for several years. His friendship with Sandy Koufax helped bring the Hall of Famer to camp on several occasions.
“Guy was the first one to arrive at camp every morning and the last one to leave,” former media relations director Jay Horwitz said.
Here are the key dates to keep an eye on during the 2026-27 MLB offseason...
5 DAYS AFTER WORLD SERIES ENDS: FREE AGENCY BEGINS
Teams have an exclusive five-day negotiating window with their internal free agents. Once that day passes, free agents are free to sign with any club.
NOV. 9-12: GM MEETINGS IN LAS VEGAS
The annual meeting of general managers could be more interesting this time around due to the expectation that a lockout will begin on Dec. 1.
These meetings usually serve as a prelude of sorts to the Winter Meetings, but it's possible that -- due to the likely truncated offseason -- free agent and trade action could already be percolating by the time the GM Meetings begin.
MID-NOVEMBER: DEADLINE FOR PLAYERS TO ACCEPT OR REJECT QUALIFYING OFFER
Teams have until the fifth day after the World Series ends to extend a qualifying offer to eligible players.
Any player who receives the QO has 10 days to decide whether to accept it or reject it.
If a player accepts, he returns to his current team for the 2027 season.
If a player rejects and signs elsewhere, his former team receives draft pick compensation.
NOV. 17-19: OWNERS MEETINGS IN NYC
The Owners Meetings could be especially notable this year given the expectation that there will be a work stoppage when the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expires on Dec. 1.
NOV. 20: NON-TENDER DEADLINE
Players on the 40-man roster who have fewer than six years of major league service time must be tendered a contract each offseason by the non-tender deadline. This includes players who are due raises via arbitration. If a club non-tenders a player, he immediately becomes a free agent.
DEC. 7-10: MLB WINTER MEETINGS
The Winter Meetings are set to take place in Orlando, but there is a giant asterisk next to this one since the lockout is expected to begin on Dec. 1. The same can be said for the MLB Draft Lottery and Rule 5 Draft, which take place at the Winter Meetings.
DEC. 8: MLB DRAFT LOTTERY
The lottery will determine the order for the 2027 MLB Draft.
DEC. 9: RULE 5 DRAFT
The Rule 5 Draft takes place at the Winter Meetings, with certain minor leaguers who are not on the 40-man roster available. If a team selects a player, they must keep that player on their 26-man roster (or the IL) for the entire season or be forced to offer him back to the team he was selected from.
FEBRUARY: ARBITRATION FIGURES EXCHANGED
Once a player is offered arbitration, the team and that player's agent have a decent amount of time to come to terms on a new contract. If that doesn't happen, both sides submit salary proposals and the player's salary is determined by independent arbitrators during hearings.
MID-FEBRUARY: SPRING TRAINING BEGINS
Mets and Yankees pitchers and catchers report in mid-February. The first spring training games begin roughly a week after pitchers and catchers arrive in camp.
With his contract to manage the Houston Astros expiring at the end of this month, Joe Espada was granted permission by the club to interview with the Seattle Mariners for their open managerial position.
A baseball official with direct knowledge of the situation confirmed to USA TODAY Sports that Espada will interview with the Mariners. The person spoke on condition of anonymity because Espada is still under contract.
Espada recently concluded his third season managing the Astros, leading them to a second American League West title in that span, even as they finished with an 81-81 record, the worst in major-league history for a division winner. The Astros' streak of eight consecutive playoff berths was broken in 2025; Espada was the club's bench coach or manager in seven of those seasons.
MLB.com first reported Espada was going to interview with Seattle.
The Mariners fired their manager, Dan Wilson, after a 76-86 season that fell well short of expectations after the club reached Game 7 of the AL championship series. Wilson's downfall arguably began then, as the club blew a 3-2 lead to the Toronto Blue Jays as Wilson made several questionable in-game decisions.
Espada's contract was set to expire along with Astros general manager Dana Brown's after this season. But Houston owner Jim Crane did not hesitate to fire Brown in August even as the club was fighting for the AL West title. Crane said then that Espada's status would be settled at season's end.
While Espada did guide the club to the postseason, the Astros' two-and-out performance against the visiting Chicago White Sox in the wild-card series certainly clouded his future.
Though switching managerial jobs within a division in one offseason is rare, it is hardly without precedent. Most notably, Craig Counsell jumped from the Milwaukee Brewers to the Chicago Cubs after the 2023 season.
MILWAUKEE, WI - OCTOBER 12: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on prior to Game Two of the National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field on Monday, October 12, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Aaron Gash/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Bouncer up the middle. Betts to the bag – over to first! To beat the champ, you gotta knock ‘em out! The Dodgers stand tall and win back to back titles!
-Joe Davis, Rogers Centre, November 2, 2025
So go the best-laid plans of mice and men, as the Dodgers flop in Game 2 of the NLCS, going into a 0-2 hole.
From a game where everything went to plan except winning, to a game basically handwrapped for the taking before the bottom fell out in dispiriting fashion, using Davis’ iconic call, the Dodgers suffered the indignity of a standing eight count in the second round of this bout.
The team has had its figurative bell rung as it returns to its own corner for round 3. Now the Dodgers have to climb out of a hole they have largely dug for themselves.
The good news is that the last time to dig themselves out of a 0-2 LCS hole was the 2025 Toronto Blue Jays in last year’s ALCS. The bad news is that those Blue Jays were the gooberiest goobers to ever goober, which are adjectives that are so far away from this iteration of the Dodgers, they might as well be antonyms.
Still, stranger things have happened.
Plenty of ink will be spilled on the lack of performance from Shohei Ohtani, the one-man argument to bring full ABS to Major League Baseball by Will Smith, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto having his worst postseason start since his debut against the San Diego Padres in Game 1 of the NLDS in 2024, and that will be done by others.
If Milwaukee had to have Game 1, the Dodgers needed Game 2, if only to keep themselves from now facing the specter of being eliminated in front of their home fans at Dodger Stadium.
The math is pretty simple
Respectfully, I disagree with Max Muncy’s assessment of the NLCS: yes, there is a lot of series left, provided that the Dodgers actually start playing better and winning.
The Dodgers need to win four of the next five games in order to have the opportunity to defend their title for a second time, either against Tampa or Cleveland.
The Dodgers need to win at least two of the next three home games in order to earn a trip back to Milwaukee to try and do something they haven’t done all year: win in Milwaukee without Adric present. And before anyone asks, no, I have zero desire or budget to revisit Milwaukee in 2026.
If the team fails at this first hurdle, the streak of teams other than the Dodgers celebrating a championship at Dodger Stadium will continue, as the 1963 champions were the only team to clinch at Dodger Stadium. Yes, the 2020 title would have been a clinch of a title at home, but alas, everyone was quarantined due to COVID, with the series at Globe Life Field in Arlington, TX.
The last person to have this miserable a time in Milwaukee was David Vassegh in August 2022. As a fellow Slide Bro, I will now abstain from posting or linking to the footage you are now likely thinking of. Thankfully, no bones were broken this visit, as the Bernie’s Slide Experience is closed for the offseason.
There are no bad ideas right now, except standing pat
The Dodgers’ offense, regardless of how Mookie Betts would define it, has been a slog to watch this NLCS. Unless the plan is to stand pat and/or go down quietly, the time to brainstorm ideas and try to jumpstart a comeback is here.
The Brewers have turned the tables and taken the Dodgers’ best pitchers in stride. It’s not panic if things are actually growing dire. Speaking of dire, let’s address Shohei Ohtani’s contributions, or lack thereof, since Denver in August.
As a weird happenstance of history, as things have turned out, I have been present for Ohtani’s final regular-season home runs in 2025 and 2026. Neat.
The problem with the latter is that the final home run in ‘26 was on August 18th in Denver.
Katie Woo and Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic broke the story that the Dodgers were debating sitting Ohtani for Game 3 of the NLCS, while providing the following analysis:
Still, given [Ohtani’s] poor performance and questionable health, the possibility of sitting Ohtani should be on the table. Ohtani spent roughly two weeks on the injured list with left knee and right biceps pain before the end of the regular season. Before the postseason began, he said that although he did not feel 100 percent, he felt better than he did before the IL stint and was optimistic he’d be able to play through his ailments.
“I haven’t been able to get a good grasp of the root cause of all this,” Ohtani said ahead of the NLDS, through team interpreter Will Ireton. “I think that process is going to happen during the offseason when I’m going to have a little bit more time to be able to address it. But as of now, it’s something I’m just going to have to manage.”
The Dodgers have given Ohtani plenty of leash to do just that but can no longer ignore the glaring hole in the heart of the order. With their season closing in, the Dodgers must consider all options. That includes sitting Ohtani.
[Emphasis added.]
While I am generally skeptical of swing analytics as a panacea when folks are struggling, there is a key difference between Ohtani and his teammate Will Smith, who has also been a non-factor offensively this October: Smith doesn’t look like he is in physical distress while batting.
No one is asking, mockingly or otherwise, whether Smith has forgotten how to play baseball. I don’t think Ohtani has forgotten; I just think he’s that hurt.
Yes, one might be tempted to think that Ohtani is one at-bat from going on a hot streak. I sure did.
In the first nine games of the postseason last year, Ohtani had a woeful slash line of .158/.273/.368 with 2 HR, 3B, 6 RBI, and 6 BB to 17 K, while being smothered by the Philadelphia Phillies’ gamut of left-handed pitchers.
Yes, Ohtani had the greatest postseason game ever in 2025 NLCS Game 4, and if one were to exclude it from last year’s tournament, he had a slash line of .275/.431/.575, 3 HR, 3 2B, 5 RBI, 11 BB compared to 10 K.
Unlike last year, Ohtani was basically healthy but running out of gas on the mound. Here, I think the check on Ohtani’s injuries has finally come due and, if I were in a position to give counsel, it would be to not take a half measure when a full measure is due.
Ohtani didn’t roll his ankle or do something that can be mended in 24 hours. At this point, you either sit him in favor of either Josue De Paula or Teoscar Hernandez in the DH spot depending on the pitcher, or you openly ask him whether it is time to replace him on the roster, with Commissioner approval.
Here’s the problem. As of now, there is no World Series; there is only tomorrow and the next day. The day after that isn’t even guaranteed unless the Dodgers win a game in this series.
There is now a non-zero chance that Tarik Skubal has pitched his final game as a Dodger.
There is now a non-zero chance that Yoshinobu Yamamoto has pitched his final game of the year.
Win Game 3, and you guarantee another day with Skubal. Win two games, and you both guarantee another day with Yamamoto and a return trip to Milwaukee. Do otherwise and go into the long offseason wondering “what if?”
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 16: Braxton Fulford #37 of the Colorado Rockies looks on prior to the game between the San Diego Padres and the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Wednesday, September 16, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Casey Paul/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Welcome to the 2026 edition of Ranking the Rockies, where we take a look back at every player to log playing time for the Rockies in 2026. The purpose of this list is to provide a snapshot of the player in context. The “Ranking” is an organizing principle that’s drawn from Baseball Reference’s WAR (rWAR). It’s not something the staff debated. We’ll begin with the player with the lowest rWAR and end up with the player with the highest.
No. 44, Braxton Fulford (-0.3 rWAR)
Had the Colorado Rockies not signed free-agent (and left-handed bat) Brett Sullivan, Braxton Fulford probably would have had a very different 2026.
Not signing Sullivan might have resulted in Fulford spending much of 2026 as the Rockies’ backup catcher.
But that’s not what happened, and as a result, the 2021 Rockies draft pick spent the bulk of his season with the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes. Yes, Fulford was with the Rockies a bit too (more on that in a moment), but this was another year in which the Texas Tech alumnus did not make a significant developmental step.
First to his Triple-A numbers.
While with the Topes, Fulford had 201 plate appearances that resulted in a slashline of .251/.363/.468, including eight home runs and a 101 wRC+. That means that his hitting performance was slightly better than replacement level — in hitter-friendly Albuquerque.
He also caught 374.0 innings and had four errors. (He spent four innings at first base, which was not a significant part of his defensive portfolio.)
Granted, those are small sample-size numbers, but the early indications are that Fulford has failed to adjust to MLB pitching.
Defensively, Fulford caught 95.2 innings for the Rockies compared to 249.0 innings in 2025. He finished the MLB season with two errors, -2 DRS, and a FRV of -2 as well.
Here’s what Sam Bradfield wrote last year: “Overall in his rookie year, Fulford had a bumpy year. He showed flashes of brilliance, but also had incredibly cold stretches.”
That largely seemed unchanged in 2026, save that Fulford was given fewer opportunities to show what he could do given Brett Sullivan’s success.
The question, then, becomes what’s next.
At this point, it appears that Goodman will remain the starting catcher for the Rockies while Sullivan continues in his role as backup (with occasional stints on the mound).
There’s really no place in this equation for Fulford. It seems unlikely the Rockies will change anything given that Fulford remains under team control until 2032 and has one option remaining. Too, the front office probably is focused on Jack O’Dowd (HM PuRP), Daniel Jackson (No. 12 PuRP), and Jack Natili (No. 20 PuRP), the latter two being catchers they drafted in 2026.
Clearly, it’s too soon to count Fulford out. But in 2027, he will need to show he can be a big-league catcher.
Not only is Los Angeles struggling to find cohesion at the plate but the Brewers also are firing on all cylinders.
This is what MLB legend Derek Jeter alluded to when speaking about where the Dodgers stand after their Game 2 loss on Monday.
MLB Hall of Fame member and commentator Derek Jeter looks on prior to game two of the National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026. Getty Images
“It’s tough, man. It’s tough to turn around your team, the entire team offensively, when you’re going up against a team like the Milwaukee Brewers,” Jeter said, per Fox Sports.
He then praised the Brewers’ pitching staff before adding, “So you really don’t get a chance to exhale when you’re at the plate, and relax, and try to find your swing and find confidence.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani reacts to a strike during the sixth inning of Game 2 of baseball’s National League Championship Series against the Milwaukee Brewers, Monday, Oct. 12, 2026, in Milwaukee. AP Photo/Abbie Parr
“I agree: The Dodgers are in trouble, unless they can figure out how to string together some hits because on top of them being in a little bit of trouble, now the Milwaukee Brewers’ offense is getting hot,” Jeter continued.
“It’s gonna be a tough task. This is the biggest hurdle they’re gonna have to overcome, if they want to go back and win a third championship in a row.”
“I agree, the Dodgers are in trouble. Unless they can figure out how to string together some hits.”
The Dodgers definitely need to figure things out fast against Milwaukee. The good news is that they have three straight games at their home field, which could provide the momentum boost needed to get them on track.
Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (30) takes pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto (18) out of the game in the third inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in game two of the MLB National League Championship Series at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on Monday, October 12, 2026. Tannen Maury/UPI/Shutterstock
Houston Astros manager Joe Espada celebrates after defeating the Athletics 9-0 to win the American League West during an MLB baseball game at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, California, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. (Photo by Jason Fochtman/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)
Joe Espada has been with the Houston Astros for nine years as bench coach and then manager. There does not appear to be a tenth year in his future.
Last week, former Fox 26 Houston sports director Will Kunkel reported that the Astros would begin the search for both GM and manager after October 31:
The Astros will not be interviewing or moving forward on any potential general manager or manager candidates until after the World Series, per sources. pic.twitter.com/5LpVJRb9cu
Back on August 24, Bob Nightengale had initially reported that a senior Astros official had said that Espada was told he wouldn’t be returning at the same time Dana Brown was fired as GM, but that he agreed to stay on the rest of the year. The team would later deny that, but the chain of events seems to indicate that the denial had more to do with the information leaking at the same time Espada was away from the team with a family emergency and not that the information was incorrect.
The Astros look like they will have a full regime change for 2027.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 30: Manager Joe Espada #21 of the Houston Astros looks on during batting practice prior to game two of the American League Wild Card Series against the Chicago White Sox at Daikin Park on September 30, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Kenneth Richmond/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Seattle Mariners have received permission to interview Houston Astros manager Joe Espada, per reports.
In normal circumstances, this would be quite unusual — a team granting a division rival permission to interview their manager for the rival team’s open managerial spot. However, this is the Houston Astros we are talking about, where circumstances are rarely normal.
This is the final year of Espada’s current deal with Houston. After spending six years as a bench coach for the club, he was named the team’s manager after Dusty Baker retired following the 2023 season. Houston has not met expectations during Espada’s time at the helm — the club has won 88, 87 and 81 games the past three seasons, and though they won the division twice, they were swept in the Wild Card round each time.
The Astros failing to meet owner Jim Crane’s expectations would seem to have more to do with the failings of the front office than Espada, however, and Crane did fire general manager Dana Brown in late August. Brown, like Espada, was in the final year of his contract. Crane announced when Brown was fired that he (Crane) would oversee baseball operations until a new general manager was hired.
Espada is technically under contract with the Astros until the World Series ends, which is why the Mariners need permission to interview him even though the Astros’ season is over. The fact that the Astros are granting permission would seem to indicate that they are not planning on Espada returning for 2027.
The Mariners are seeking a new manager after firing Dan Wilson after their disappointing 2026 campaign. Wilson was named the manager for the Mariners late in the 2024 season after the M’s fired Scott Servais, who had been their manager since 2016. Wilson, who had spent parts of 12 seasons with the Mariners as their catcher, is described in the link at the start of this post as a “franchise icon” in Seattle, and after leading Seattle to the ALCS in 2025 — just their second postseason appearance since 2001 — he seemed to be on solid footing.
But the Mariners were seen as one of the biggest underachievers (non-Mets category) in the majors this year, ending the season at 76-86, despite being the consensus favorites to repeat as division champs in the West.
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 05: A general view as Freddy Peralta #51 of the Tampa Bay Rays delivers a pitch to Ben Rice #22 of the New York Yankees during the first inning in game two of the American League Division Series at Tropicana Field on October 05, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The first game of the American League Championship Series was going splendidly for the Tampa Bay Rays, until it wasn’t.
The Rays offense took a 2-0 lead early and Drew Rasmussen battled through a tough Cleveland offense for six innings. He was hit around a bunch, but worked around trouble. Unfortunately, the Guardians were able to launch a pair of solo homeruns to tie the game and boot Rasmussen from the game. Then the Rays bullpen, which was absolutely nails in the ALDS, unraveled and allowed the Guardians to score five runs over the final two frames and Cleveland cruised to a 7-3 game one victory.
Tonight the Rays will look to even out the series before it heads to Cleveland on Thursday and they’ll rest their hopes on Freddy Peralta.
Not many pitchers produced better results than Peralta over the last month of the season. The league certainly didn’t think so as Peralta was named the American League Pitcher of the Month in September.
During the ALDS, the Rays called upon Peralta to start the second game against the New York Yankees. Following Drew Rasmussen’s dominance from the day before, Peralta was excellent as he held the Yankees hitless over the first three frames. The unstoppable Ben Rice ended that in the 4th when he launched a solo homerun and then Peralta’s command abandoned him in the 5th inning leading to Kevin Cash going to the bullpen. Overall, Peralta worked 4.2 innings, allowing a run on three hits, while he walked one and struck out three.
The Rays offense will have a tough challenge as Cleveland sends southpaw Parker Messick to the mound. Messick was fantastic during his brief run with the Guardians towards the end of the 2025 season. In 2026, Messick proved that was no fluke as he dominated opposing lineups. Over 32 starts, Messick compiled a 2.56 ERA | 3.07 FIP with a 25.8 K% & 6.6 BB% over 186.1 IP. He finished among the league leaders in most important pitching categories.
During their ALDS, the Guardians called upon Messick twice. Usually Messick has impeccable command but it faltered during his two outings as he walked 19.4% of the opposing hitters he faced over 6.2 IP. Overall, Messick allowed 4 runs on 6 hits, while he walked 6 and struck out 11 over his appearances. He most recently pitched on the 8th in game four, where he was pulled in the third inning after allowing two runs on two hits with four walks and five strikeouts.
The Rays offense continues to sputter in the playoffs and the team will need more from their offensive stars if they hopes to advance further. The team as a whole currently has a 67 wRC+ and is hitting .209/.261/.341 over their four playoff games thus far, averaging just over 3 runs a game.
Will the Rays be able to overcome Parker Messick and rediscover their offensive footing? We’ll find out later tonight.
Do it delicately. Do it with respect. But just do it.
“I think for me, it’s having a conversation with him tomorrow, kind of try to figure out what’s best for him, what’s best for us,’’ Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told The Athletic after the Dodgers fell behind the Milwaukee Brewers two games to none in the National League Championship Series. “He certainly has earned that conversation and deserves it.”
That sounds dangerously wishy-washy.
Forget about figuring out what’s right for Ohtani, the Dodgers superstar. It’s time to focus on what’s right for the Dodgers – and that was eminently clear on Tuesday, Oct. 14 in Game 2 of the NLCS.
Ohtani, the team’s designated hitter, went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts. His postseason batting average dropped to .150. That’s 3-for-20 at the plate without a single extra-base hit. He has also managed to draw three walks to score two runs, and that’s not nearly enough for a designated hitter with a team in dire straits.
Ohtani replacement: Rookie can provide spark
The obvious move is to replace Ohtani with Josue De Paula, the Dodgers' 21-year-old rookie.
To have any chance of rallying in this series, Los Angeles needs a spark. De Paula is the best candidate to deliver it.
The Dodgers called him up Sept. 11. In 31 at-bats, De Paula collected 10 hits for a batting average of .323. He also had three doubles, a triple and a home run, giving him a slugging percentage of .581 and an OPS of 1.081.
He’s a disciplined hitter.
During the postseason, he’s pinch-hit three times, drawing two walks and fouling out to third. To see what De Paula can do, he deserves a full complement of at-bats every game. The Dodgers deserve it too, if they hope to become the seventh team to rally from a two games-to-none deficit and win a best-of-seven AL or NL championship series.
Ohtani's injuries at play?
Ohtani hasn’t homered since Aug. 18, dating back 23 games. Over that same stretch, he has three extra-base hits. (De Paula has three extra-base hits in his last seven at-bats.)
The slump isn’t Ohtani’s fault. Inflammation in his left knee forced him to stop pitching for the rest of the season. Then he developed issues with his right bicep and neck.
He was on the injured list for 12 days and clearly never recovered.
Every time Ohtani steps to the plate, Dodgers Nation hopes, prays, and pleads that the two-way star will snap out of his slump.
It’s time to end the futility and for the Dodgers to give themselves a chance by benching Ohtani.
SPRINGDALE, AR - APRIL 10: Carson Roccaforte #1 of the Northwest Arkansas Naturals looks on prior to the game between the Amarillo Sod Poodles and the Northwest Arkansas Naturals at Arvest Ballpark on Friday, April 10, 2026 in Springdale, Arkansas. (Photo by Daryn Davis/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
Every year during the Winter Meetings, teams hold the Rule 5 draft, which allows them to select eligible minor leaguers who have not been added to their organizations’ 40-man rosters. With the current labor deal set to expire on December 1 and a work stoppage looming, it is unclear whether the draft will take place as scheduled. In 2021, the major league phase of the Rule 5 draft was postponed indefinitely during the lockout, although the minor league phase proceeded as scheduled. MLB and the union could agree to hold the major league draft before the current labor deal expires.
The Royals currently have a full 40-man roster, plus eight players on the 60-day Injured List that will need to be activated once the offseason begins. Carlos Estévez, Jonathan India, Craig Kimbrel, Luke Maile, and Josh Rojas will all come off the roster as free agents after the World Series. That will mean a lot of additional roster clearing just to get the roster back down to 40, let alone enough to clear spots to add new players.
Players are eligible after four seasons in the minors if they signed at age 19 or later, or after five seasons if they signed younger than age 19. That means this year, the college draftees from 2023 become eligible, while all signees from 2022 and before are eligible. Selected players must stay on the MLB roster all season or be offered back to their original teams. Teams can protect eligible players by placing them on the 40-man roster by late November.
Teams overwhelmingly select pitchers more than hitters, and if they do choose hitters, it is usually guys who can come off the bench – utility players, backup catchers, and speedsters. The caveat to adding any player to the 40-man roster is that the player would be unable to have contact with the club, participate in spring training, or even play in games if there is a prolonged work stoppage. Assuming there is a Rule 5 draft, and assuming the rules won’t change, who do the Royals need to consider protecting?
Will be protected
Lucas Braun was acquired from the Braves in the Lane Thomas trade, and the right-hander could be in the mix for a rotation spot at some point next year. He had a solid 4.16 ERA with 8.2 strikeouts-per-nine innings across Double-A and Triple-A. The 25-year-old won’t blow anyone away with velocity, but he uses command, deception, a deep arsenal of pitches, and a lower arm angle to generate good results.
Carson Roccaforte is a slam-dunk to be added after a 35 HR/32 SB season in which he hit .257/.338/.519 across Double-A and Triple-A. Roccaforte turns 25 in late March, and he should be in the outfield mix for next season, although he is a left-handed bat and the Royals are already lefty-heavy in the outfield.
Could be protected
Felix Arronde flashes good stuff, but his inability to miss bats really hurt his performance this year. He started out okay, but was awful in the second half with a 9.76 ERA in his last nine starts. Overall he posted a 6.49 ERA in 105.1 innings with Northwest Arkansas, after a promising season the year before. The Cuban right-hander is still just 23 years old and has a mid-90s fastball with a curve and split-fingered changeup. He is ranked #15 in the farm system by Baseball America and could be seen as a good project for an organization good at developing pitchers.
Gavin Cross has had a very enigmatic career, but he seemed to turn a corner this summer. The former first-round pick turned it on in mid-May and hit .291/.334/.535 with 17 home runs in his last 82 games. He has the pedigree and the power, but the strikeouts are still a big concern. Like Roccaforte, he is left-handed, so the Royals may find him expendable.
Brett Squires smashed 31 home runs last year, hitting .277/.351/.549 with 24 steals to boot. The undrafted free agent has hit in the minors, but will be 27 years old by next spring. Older hitters who rake in the upper minors are typically unprotected, and only two first basemen have been selected in the Rule 5 draft in the last decade – Mike Ford (2017) and Ryan Noda (2022).
Long shots to be protected
Jacob Berry was acquired from the Marlins midseason and hit .251/.350/.416 overall at Triple-A with 12 home runs and 19 steals. He’s a former first-round pick whose power has never materialized, but displays good contact rates. He’s a switch-hitter and the Royals had him play second, third, and outfielder, so he could have some value as a utility player.
Austin Charles is an intriguing, toolsy athlete who combines power, speed, and a terrific arm. He has also had trouble staying on the field, and was limited to just 45 games at High-A this year. He is just 22 year old, and jumping to the big leagues is a big stretch considering his lack of a track record, but he did look impressive this year, hitting .285/.353/.491.
Derlin Figueroa had the third-most home runs in the farm system with 26, behind Roccaforte and Squires. The 23-year-old left-handed hitter had a line of .252/.324/.515 with 18 steals in High-A for the Quad Cities River Bandits. He plays first and third, positions teams don’t typically take in the draft, and the big leagues would be a big jump.
Frank Mozzicato wasn’t protected or selected last year, and seems unlikely to be an option this year either after putting up an 8.04 ERA with 72 walks in 71.2 innings. And yet, is there a team out there that thinks they can work with his plus curveball, add some velo to his fastball and shape up his command? Probably not.
Spencer Nivens is a Columbia, Missouri native and former Missouri State outfielder who hit .280/.365/.446 with nine home runs and 17 steals in 104 games in his second tour of Northwest Arkansas. He has a really good eye at the plate with good walk numbers and low strikeout numbers. He is another left-handed outfield bat, so the Royals may not feel the need to protect him.
Hunter Owen has shown good strikeout rates the last two seasons, but was hit a lot more this year, causing his ERA to rise to 5.94 for Northwest Arkansas. He’s a lefty who can miss bats, a profile that teams frequently like to take in the Rule 5 draft, so I think the Royals would have to at least consider protecting him despite his poor ERA.
Jack Pineda did nothing but hit this year. He had an impressive line of .371/.443/.548 in 59 games at Double-A, then hit .302/.337/.488 in 22 games for Omaha. But he has never really done this before, with very weak offensive numbers prior to 2026. The 27-year-old is able to play all over the infield, which is attractive to teams, and he could be selected if a team feels he figured something out this year.
Daniel Vázquez is a glove-first shortstop who raised eyebrows last fall with a very impressive performance in the Arizona Fall League. But his offense fell flat this year at Double-A, with a line of .246/.315/.328 and just four home runs in 124 games. He is just 22 years old and his glove may be MLB ready, so a team could take a gamble on him if they think his bat will catch up eventually.
Peyton Wilson has been a good organizational soldier, hitting at every level and playing wherever the Royals ask him. That kind of versatility could be attractive to teams looking at him in the Rule 5 draft, but he will be 27 next year and his upside is low enough that I don’t think the Royals would sweat losing him too much. The switch-hitter batted .276/.359/.430 with seven home runs and 17 steals for Omaha, and does a little bit of everything well.
Jordan Woods was an undrafted free agent out of Canada who had Tommy John surgery early on. This summer he tossed six perfect innings with 14 strikeouts in an outing for the Columbia Fireflies. He was moved up to High-A Quad Cities, where he struggled with a 5.80 ERA with 44 strikeouts in 40.1 innings. He is very much a long shot, but his added velocity and flashes of brilliance make him intriguing as a young lefty who has been moved slowly due to his injury.
Other eligible players: Angel Acosta, Andy Basora, Ethan Bosacker, Roni Cabrera, Christian Chamberlain, Dustin Dickerson, Manuel German, Ricson Gonzalez, Tyson Guerrero, Jose Gutierrez, Josh Hansell, Chase Isbell, Brandon Johnson, Justin Johnson, Henson Leal, Chazz Martinez, Mason Miller, Shane Panzini, Hunter Patteson, Coleman Picard, Yimi Presinal, Henry Ramos, Ryan Ramsey, Oscar Rayo, Emmanuel Reyes, Ben Sears, Erick Torres, Luca Tresh, Hyungchan Um, Javier Vaz, Trevor Werner, Henry Williams, Jhosmmel Zue
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - SEPTEMBER 25: Caleb Durbin #5 of the Boston Red Sox makes a throw to first base during the third inning against the Chicago Cubs at Fenway Park on September 25, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by CJ Gunther/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Proximal interphalangeal joint reconstruction is a pretty intimidating way to say that Caleb Durbin finally got his pinky fixed. Durbin initially dislocated his pinkie way back on June 24 — literally the day before the Red Sox’ 15-game winning streak began — but the injury didn’t really effect his play and he obviously remained on the field for the rest of the season. “It doesn’t quite straighten or bend all the way,” Durbin told the media back in September. “There really is kind of a joint understanding [with the team] that we’ll get it looked at at the end of the season if we have to, because [whatever the diagnosis is], it’s not going to impact my decision to play at all.” (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)
Durbin’s pinky didn’t end up being a major injury, but the Red Sox had plenty of those nonetheless. And the fact that a few of those injuries — particularly the injuries to Garrett Crochet and Roman Anthony — were initially misdiagnosed as minor indicates this offseason might be a good time for the Red Sox to review the training and medical staff. (Sean McAdam, MassLive)
Given that Crochet and Anthony both essentially had lost seasons, it isn’t surprising that they both landed on this list of six payers with the biggest questions entering the offseason. “[Anthony’s] potential remains sky-high, but he still needs to show what he can produce in a full, healthy season. Will the hand injury linger? Will it fully heal? Does he continue to split time between left field and designated hitter? What does a full season of Anthony look like?” (Jen McCaffrey, The Athletic)
Trevor Story also appears on the above list. But, unlike Anthony and Crochet, Story won’t the the only one who dictates how his season goes next year. That’s because Franklin Arias’ timeline for promotion will have a major domino effect on the whole roster. “If Story were to move positions, it would be to second, where he has experience. But where would that leave Curtis Mead?” (Ian Browne, MLB.com)
Arias is not participating in the Arizona Fall League this year, but a handful of other Sox prospects are, including Antonio Anderson, who hit a grand slam over the weekend and who has been one of the league’s top hitters so far. (Jim Crowell, Soxprospects.com)
And while we’re still a long way off from free agency, the news about Sonny Gray’s return to baseball has a lot of people already thinking about next year’s rotation. If Gray doesn’t re-sign with the Sox, here’s an early look at some free agent options to replace him. (Justin Leger, NBC Sports)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - OCTOBER 12: Teoscar Hernández #37 of the Los Angeles Dodgers hits a sacrifice fly in the first inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in game two of the National League Championship Series at American Family Field on October 12, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There was no shortage of problems for the Dodgers in a Game 2 loss that has seen the reigning champs return home trailing 2-0 in the NLCS. We might focus on the no-challenge that derailed Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s struggles; we could discuss the bullpen’s shortcomings, having been asked to carry the load after Yamamoto didn’t get out of the fourth—it is all pertinent. Nevertheless, the simple reality is that the Dodgers haven’t hit, and they’ve done that in the worst possible way, securing all of one extra-base hit through 18 innings.
Following Game 1’s loss, we talked here about the silver lining of consistently putting people on against a talented Milwaukee staff. And that if you’re able to sustain that, you’ll eventually run into a big hit or two that can change a game—this lineup is too deep to project otherwise, or so we thought.
Instead of building from the positives of Game 1, the Dodgers offense took a step back in the second game of this series. Were it not for the self-inflicted wounds of Brewers starter Logan Henderson, they could’ve easily produced nothing the whole game—nothing, which summarizes their output in five innings of work against the Brewers bullpen.
It’s well established that to get anything going against the likes of Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby, and Trevor Megill is a lofty task. That’s now a secondary issue because, again in Game 2, the Dodgers offense had their shots against more vulnerable pitchers and produced very little out of it.
Brewers starter Henderson was nowhere near his most polished version, and multiple errors, including one of his own, contributed to the Dodgers scoring four runs off him in 4.0+ innings. It could’ve been far worse, though, had they been just the tiniest more effective in capitalizing on a clearly rattled arm. Two innings in particular deserve special attention: the third and fifth frames.
In the third inning, Freddie Freeman came up to bat after the first two reached with bullets off Henderson, and he hit one that looked headed to the gap before Sal Frelick ran it down in a phenomenal defensive play (Savant put it at an .840 xBA). The same defense that made errors to put the Dodgers in the game also made up for it with difficult plays that many others would not have made. Still, the Dodgers scored a run in that inning after a wild pitch—with only one out and hard-hit balls after hard-hit balls against Henderson, you’d figure Teoscar Hernández and Shohei Ohtani would capitalize on a runner in scoring position, but neither could, stranding Mookie Betts.
Shortly thereafter, Henderson came back out there for the fifth and allowed one more run due to an errant throw that left a runner in scoring position with one out. With the score tied at 3-3 and the Brewers up in the series, Pat Murphy did not push the envelope and bring one of his key guys in against the top of the order; instead, he went to Dustin May. And before you ask, no, the Brewers haven’t turned May into a dominant arm since acquiring him. In fact, May’s record in Milwaukee has been especially bad, with an ERA north of 5.00 and two runs allowed in three innings in his only playoff appearance, a start against the Padres in the NLDS.
Against May, the Dodgers played for the one run, and a couple of sacrifices later, they led 4-3, but the feeling of leaving May off the hook was evident—knowing full well how much tougher things would get as the Brewers brought in their top arms. One run to take the lead is not the worst thing in the world, far from it, but in that moment with that matchup—still needing five innings out of your bullpen and facing one of the worst arms the Brewers will throw your way—playing for a single run was underwhelming. And that’s factoring in the struggling offense.
Following that inning, the worst-case scenario set in for the Dodgers, as their bullpen had a few hiccups here and there, while the Brewers’ was, by all accounts, perfect—so much so that it gave itself the luxury of not utilizing Megill, adding two insurance runs in the eighth to go up 7-4. In an alternate reality, we might come here and complain they didn’t drive that run in off May on their way to losing the game 4-3, but you required more in that situation—particularly when the other side’s top relievers have done what we’ve seen against this Dodgers lineup.
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 2: Manager Warren Schaeffer #4 of the Colorado Rockies celebrates after a 6-5 win against the Baltimore Orioles at Coors Field on September 2, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Justin Edmonds/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Two weeks ago, I spoke on the phone with Colorado Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer about the 2026 season.
Below are excerpts from that conversation, which has been lightly edited for clarity.
On the last weeks of the season for Schaeffer and his staff
You continue on with how you prepare for a game, and you are trying to win every night. Just the day leading up to the game looks a little different because you’re having exit meetings.
So, for instance, we would meet with the hitting coaches (Brett Pill and Jordan Pacheco) and Paul DePodesta and Josh Byrnes and go over what we want the offense to look like in the offseason, what the individual plans (are) for these guys.
And then Paul, Josh, and myself meet with the players individually, and then the hitting coaches meet with that player as well to make sure that they’re on the same page.
The same thing happens with the pitching.
So every day, I would say that whole last home stand, which was a couple weeks long, there were about five exit meetings a day with those guys. It’s more you’re preparing for something that is ultra important, getting them ready for the offseason, and at the same time, you can do you can do two things. You can prepare for tonight and prepare for those as well.
On preparing with a possible lockout in mind
I don’t think so because we just make sure that we communicate very, very well with these guys through the month of October. You give them a couple weeks off, and then you call them, and then through November (until) December 1, if there’s a lockout, that’s when the communication has to stop.
So we have to make sure we’re all on the same page before that, which we already are. But Pill and Pacheco in the month of November, I believe, are going to travel to see each one of these guys offensively and make sure we’re on the same page, and everything’s going correctly before the lockout kicks in, if it does.
On making communication adjustments
I think if you go through a season and you’re not trying to make adjustments positively for the next year, you’re really not doing your job. So, I do think that there are a list of things that I want to do better, and the way I communicate is definitely one of them.
I mean, I think specifically with the staff, there needs to be from my end just more communication, just different meetings set up on a daily basis, making sure that I’m touching base with the pitching more often as opposed to what I did this year — the coaches I’m talking about — so that we’re all on the same page more often. It’s not that we weren’t, but you can always get better on that.
I guess you can always improve the communication with the minor leagues, I think, because you get into a season, and you always want to do that. But then what’s right in front of you usually takes precedence in a daily operation. So I think improved communication with the minor leagues to make sure that we’re all on the same page, you can always get better at that.
So those are probably two big ones.
On working with the new front office
Oh man, it’s been awesome — those two guys (DePodesta and Byrnes) specifically.
I mean, it’s been a whole slew of new people in there, but specifically the two that I work with most often are Paul and Josh, and those guys have been great. I mean, it’s just an even-keel headspace that they’re in at all times. There’s no overreaction. There’s a real perspective that they bring in terms of where we want to go and what we have to go through to get there.
The communication is great. Just the vision is very good. It’s just a pleasure to go to work with those guys every day. I can’t explain that enough, how much of a pleasure it is. It’s always about the people that you go to work with, and to have two very good human beings that you work with on a daily basis that communicate well, it’s a pleasure.
On things the 2026 Rockies did well that got overlooked
I’d say — what six weeks? — it just wasn’t good, and we didn’t finish the way we wanted to for a myriad of reasons, I think.
But if you step back and look at the season as a whole and see the progress that we made, I think offensively it was absolutely incredible. The turnaround was unbelievable from last year, just in terms of pretty much every offensive category, the the level of competition that we brought every night, the belief in each other that those offensive players brought every single night. Late-inning comebacks all the time, never giving in. That’s what they did better than anybody.
Every offensive statistic and category, it was improved — and improved in a dramatic way. The personnel was better. Just everything overall offensively, I thought was better.
And then, if you look at individual pitcher performances, pushing towards our future, I think you saw a lot of a lot of promise there and a lot of good things moving forward.
Trade acquisitions like Mark Manfredi and Nick Frasso, part of a young core in that bullpen that are going to be really good. You saw Mason Adams be extremely good out of the starting rotation. You saw some steps forward with Gabe Hughes, with Tanner Gordon, even though it didn’t end well. Juan Mejia went through his struggles, but I think there’s argument that you would rather him go through his struggles right now. We believe in him a ton. Like next year when we’re in a playoff push, he can learn from him and get better now.
Brennan Bernadino had an unbelievable season as our left-hander in a bullpen in a lot of time, which is a very difficult situation, being the only left-hander in a bullpen and having to succeed down there like that. He was absolutely awesome, and he’s part of our future for sure.
I think we saw, obviously, there’s a ton of areas where we need to get better. There’s no doubt about it.
On some of the disappointments and focused areas for improvement
Winning is absolutely a byproduct of how you go about your business, and I do believe that our defense was not even close to where it needs to be going forward.
Infield, I would say in general, the defense was below the bar this year. Now, we have the personnel for it to be very, very good. It just wasn’t.
Obviously, we have a shortstop that has won a Gold Glove already. We have a third baseman that can win a Gold Glove. We have a first baseman that can win a Gold Glove. But I think just overall as a unit, I think it’s a no-brainer that we need to be better defensively.
We did get better in the base-running category this year, no doubt about it. Put more pressure on teams with guys like Jake McCarthy, guys like Cole Carrigg, and just the overall, I guess, atmosphere that they brought to our offense. But, overall, we can exploit another team better with our base running on a nightly basis.
Our pitching has to get better. There’s no ifs, ands or buts about it. The run differential shrank a ton this year with the offense getting much better, and the pitching was better. But, overall, we need to keep more runs off the board in order to win more ball games. All that stuff matters and is big.
There’s a couple things. We lost a ton of one- and two-run ball games. I don’t know the exact number, but it was a lot. That, for me, that’s where the experience comes in. I think guys learning from this year and going through that. I think something similar happened to the White Sox last year. They played a ton of one- and two-run ball games and lost (them). With an extra year under the belt and learning how to control the emotion, control the at-bat more, focus on the ability for a player to control the count on both sides of the ball takes some experience in the big leagues.
We’ve had a lot of young guys that are learning and finding their way, and it takes some time, and you have to have some patience with that. But I do believe that next year with the lowering of the heart rate in big moments on both sides of the ball, will prove very, very helpful for us.
It’s hard when at the end of the year it didn’t go well, but we were right there all year — one- and two-run ballgames. The year before, not even close.
On addressing defensive issues
Me being a defensive coach before, there’s a couple ways you need to go about this, and Andy Perez does a really good job. You need to attack individual performances, and then you also have the ability to look at it as a unit, as a unit that’s accountable to each other in terms of the infield guys, the personnel that makes it up, and belonging to a unit and how important that is to the success of a team.
But individually, I think each guy goes through something different in the year. I think Tovar’s defense was down — I think in large part because his offense was so down. He did a good job of not taking it out in the field, but it’s a really difficult thing to go through the offensive season he had and it to not affect his defense.
Kyle Karros goes through different things, individually. He can be a very, very good defender. He is a very, very good defender, but there are certain things that he needs to improve upon, no doubt about it, and he knows it.
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Adael Amador, he needs to improve his range. He needs to improve side-to-side movement, which is definitely a physical (issue). Really, the only time you can improve it exponentially is in the offseason. It’s very difficult to improve it during the season when you’re playing every day.
But Kyle Karros, it’s not physical. Kyle has all the physical ability to move side to side. He’s got arm strength. He’s got ability to throw from all different angles. It’s just a matter of being consistent throughout the year, which comes with experience.
So everybody has something different. Like Kyle’s not going to go into this offseason saying, “I need to field a ground ball differently.” That’s not how you go about that. It’s a guy you trust immensely. You trust this guy. When you work with him every day, you trust him that his improvements are going to happen based on how he goes about his business on a daily basis with experience moving forward.
TJ Rumfield could use side to side. He knows this. Even though he’s a plus defender, he can improve side to side and getting more range.
I think if you were to pick one thing as a unit, other than making the routine play, I think it’s the improvement of range based on where we play in altitude. You don’t want runners getting on base, and the range is the biggest area of improvement overall as a unit, I would say.
On his role during the offseason
That’s a hard one to answer because last year, I was going through interview processes and and hiring a bunch of people, and doing that whole thing, and we didn’t have much time to get it done, so it was very intensive.
This year, we’re going to attack issues that we think held us back this year that we can improve directly this year.
So, obviously, you take I think at least a couple weeks, maybe a week or 10 days off here, and I’m going to go camping with my son this weekend. But we’re going to have Zoom calls. Who knows what’s going to happen with the lockout?
But my goal is to have the staff clicking on all cylinders, ready to roll all winter long, and try to just put more work and time into the off-season than any other club because we need it — whatever that is: exercises, in-game exercises that we can simulate, conversations with players. A lot of discussion on philosophy and how to move forward with what we got. Just basically brainstorming and ideas and getting together and trying to have everything ready, so when we get ready to go in spring, we’re all clicking on the same wavelength because you can always get better at that.
And just having plans in place that we all believe in that is going to help us moving forward.
But what you don’t want to do is go into the offseason and just say, “Hey, this is time off” because we can’t afford that. We have to spend this time wisely, and we’ve got a lot to do to push this thing forward.
On his role prior to the lockout
It’s very limited. Just calls asking my opinions on players, probably. That’s Josh and Paul’s job. But if I have anything on players, if I’ve heard anything about players that they’re talking about via connections in the game, all that sort of thing, but just offering up opinions.
My job is more involved with my staff through November, even through December, January. It’s just pushing the staff forward.
I have hope no matter what because I’m with these guys every day.
But it’s just proof that it can happen. You can go from a 100-loss season to a winning season and a playoff season the very next year. The Arizona Diamondbacks did it not long ago, and the White Sox did it this year. There’s a lot that goes into that. You don’t just snap your fingers. That’s why we have to get to work immediately to get this thing still moving it forward.
I think it was a huge step forward this year, but we need to push it forward again next year.
But you look at the White Sox and what they’ve done and how they acquired their players and the style of play that they play, and their pitching has gotten so much better.
It’s a good formula for sure, and those guys should be proud of themselves.
Final thoughts
I was struck by Schaeffer confirming — like other staff we’ve talked with — the chaos the Rockies organization waded through during the last offseason as they hired new staff. For myself, I am interested in seeing the steps they take to improve this season. (And I’m already irritated by a probable lockout that will delay the progress.)
In addition, I appreciated Schaeffer’s description of how they are preparing players both for their offseason work and a lockout. (That Pill and Pacheco are planning to visit players seems very positive.) And I thought his comments on improving the defense were interesting as well.
I know you all will have thoughts on this, and I look forward to reading them in the comments.
(Original Caption) Four catchers of the New York Yankees pose together for the first time during spring training, in the Yankees camp at St. Petersburg. In front, left to right:Charlie Silvera, Yogi Berra, and Jim Robertson. In rear: Ralph Houk.
As far as non-stressful jobs in sports go, backup catcher to an established star would be a pretty good one to have. For nine years in New York, Charlie Silvera got to fill that role, and not just behind any old star — he was the backup to Yankees icon Yogi Berra. For his career in the Bronx, Silvera made less than 500 plate appearances, yet he still got to play a role on one of the most successful eras in the history of the most successful franchise.
Charles Anthony Ryan “Charlie” Silvera Born: October 13, 1924 (San Francisco, CA) Died: September 7, 2019 (Millbrae, CA) Yankees Tenure: 1948-56
Silvera was born in San Francisco in 1924, going on to become one of a number of Yankees of that era to hail from the city. In his youth, he played sandlot baseball with fellow future Yankees Bobby Brown and Jerry Coleman. In 1942, he caught the eye of the Yankees, who signed him to a deal.
Silvera debuted in the minors as a 17-year old in 1942, playing for the Class D Wellsville (NY) Yankees as an outfielder. However after 75 games there that season, he joined the military, serving in the Air Force in World War II. Silvera would miss the entirety of the next three seasons while serving, although he did play on a military team during that time.
Upon returning to baseball, the Yankees converted Silvera into a catcher. He spent the next three seasons in the minors before earning a call-up to the Yankees late in the 1948 season. He appeared in four games, recording three hits in both of his first two games, and going 8-for-14 in total.
After that cameo, Silvera earned the Yankees’ backup job for the 1949 season. He would spend the next nine seasons filling that role. The most games he ever appeared in a season came in his full debut year in ‘49. Starter Yogi Berra missed some time through injury and Silvera hit decently enough in his 58 games that season, putting up a .315 batting average and a .403 OBP. However, he was never going to fully replace the budding star in Berra, and never would. The Yankees also advanced to the 1949 World Series. Silvera came off the bench in Game 2 of the series, as Berra again had to exit due to injury. He went 0-for-2, as the Yankees lost that game but won the series. Despite playing in an era where the Yankees were winning and playing in the Fall Classic a lot, that was the only postseason appearance Silvera would ever make.
Over the next seven seasons, Silvera played in just 18, 18, 20, 42, 20, 14, and seven games respectively. Despite that, he would win five more World Series rings during his time with the Yankees. Opposing players would often try to trash talk Silvera for his lack of playing time, but the catcher was never bothered. He later said “the opposition would call me ‘Jesse James, the payroll bandit.’ I’d tell them, ‘Go ahead and give it to me, but Yogi Berra tips me more than you make.’”
Having only appeared in 21 games over his last two seasons in the Bronx, the Yankees traded Silvera to the Cubs ahead of the 1957 season. Silvera put up a completely respectable — for a backup catcher — 86 OPS+ with the Yankees, he was just never going to replace Berra.
Upon going to the Cubs, Silvera was given the No. 8 that Berra wore in New York. He appeared in 26 games for Chicago that season, but struggled and missed time with injury. The Cubs released him after that season. Silvera played a couple more years in the minors but never made it back to the bigs, leaving the playing ranks after 1960.
Silvera stayed in baseball in various roles after his playing career ended. He joined former teammate Billy Martin on the coaching staffs of the Twins, Tigers, and Rangers when Martin was beginning his managerial career. He served as the bullpen coach for those teams, although Martin didn’t bring him back to the Bronx when Martin went back there.
After coaching, Silvera got into scouting with the Cubs and Marlins. He received a seventh World Series ring for his work for the 1997 Marlins. He often came back for Yankees Old-Timers’ Day but he did return to the San Francisco area in his later years, where he resided until his passing in 2019. Prior to his death, he had been the last surviving member of the Yankees dynasty to win five championships in a row from 1949-53.
Had he played in the modern era, Silvera very likely could’ve gone to another team in free agency to get more playing time. However, the rules at the time were what they were, and the Yankees were plenty happy to keep him around as a backup. Ending up with more than a hand’s worth of World Series rings would be a nice consolation prize.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
