Category: Baseball

Brendan Gawlowski of FanGraphs has a scouting report on Angeibel Gomez and other Royals prospects in Arizona.

We’ll start with the guy people will ask about first. Gomez is a tapered 6-foot-2. While he isn’t a freaky athlete in the Elly De La Cruz mold, he’s limber and has a fast bat for a kid his age. Facing some of the best stuff of his life, his feel for hitting stood out. Gomez is athletic in the box, and he was able to fight off above-average velo on the hands, turn around 97 above the belt, and flatten the bat and hit a line drive on a hard fastball up, all while holding his own versus spin. He fouled off a couple tough sliders and took one just beneath the zone. He wasn’t perfect — he expanded the zone a few times and chased a curve in the dirt — but it was a really impressive showing in context.

Where does this go from here? To my eye, Gomez doesn’t look like an early-mature guy, but he also isn’t someone who screams “physical projection” in the way that, say, Sebastian Walcott did at his age. Gomez already has average measurable power, and while there’s room for him to grow into more, my projection leans closer to “comfortably plus” than “80.”

Andres Chavez at Royals Keep writes about what went right for the Royals this year.

Recently named in MLB Pipeline’s All-Rookie first team, Jensen showed the world that he could be a dominant hitter over the course of a full season. He had posted some impressive numbers in a brief 20-game cameo in 2025, with a .300/.391/.550 line and a 152 wRC+ in 69 trips to the plate.

Well, he hit a solid .239/.323/.467 with 27 home runs, 80 runs, 81 RBI, a 116 wRC+, and 3.7 fWAR while splitting time behind the plate and at the DH spot. Oh, he also contributed 35 doubles and two triples, and ranked 15th in the majors with 64 extra-base hits. Not bad for a catcher, huh?

Celisa Calacal at KCUR sums up what was approved this week to pave the way for a downtown ballpark.

One ordinance, approved unanimously on Thursday, rezones 68 acres of the stadium development area, a key step for the $2 billion project to move forward.

The second ordinance authorizes more than $615 million in bonds, $537 million of which will pay for the construction of the ballpark, team offices and infrastructure improvements.

The third ordinance approves a tax increment financing plan that creates a so-called “stadium impact area” that stretches from Interstate 670 and the state line to 31st and Campbell streets. The law uses the taxes collected from that area in 2025 as a baseline, and redirects much of any revenue above that amount for the next 30 years to help pay the stadium construction debt.

Raytown is preparing for life without the sports teams nearby.

Gavin Williams will start the pivotal Game 5 of the ALDS for Cleveland.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. wants to stay with the Yankees.

Rangers shortstop Corey Seager undergoes elbow surgery.

Shohei Ohtani’s bat has gone quiet for the Dodgers.

Paul DePodesta talks about the Rockies’ struggles to develop pitching.

Will Japanese Triple Crown winner Teruaki Sato come to MLB?

The Marlins fire their TV broadcast team.

Ranking the best Divisional Series of all time.

The pros and cons to a 154-game schedule and the big roadblock.

A look at the young Athletics hitters.

A Wrigleyville rooftop owners is fighting the Cubs for blocking his view.

The Unified Government of Wyandotte County sues Kansas over the Chiefs stadium deal.

The international tree climbing competition comes to St. Louis.

Tech execs are becoming the go-to movie villain.

The secret to a good night’s rest is to let your dog sleep with you.

Oregon runners participate in an ultramarathon that requires eating Taco Bell.

Your song of the day is The Clash with Complete Control.

The San Diego Padres have long been the team that cannot sustain — at least that is what is espoused throughout the baseball media industry. It can be frustrating at times to hear other teams lauded for their approach to roster construction, free agency, the trade deadline, etc. and as soon as the Padres make a similar move, they are chastised.

San Diego heads to the offseason after another disappointing postseason exit and once again the baseball world has come out to say the Padres missed an opportunity and that their window to reach the precipice of the sport is closing. Critics point to an aging roster — which it is — and a barren farm system that could not possibly fetch anything of significance on the trade market. Worse yet, the Padres will surely face financial ruin if they add a single dollar to their payroll.

Of course, then there are the calls for Fernando Tatis Jr., Manny Machado or Jackson Merrill to be traded away to a team like the New York Yankees, New York Mets of Philadelphia Phillies. None of those things need to happen but the baseball pundits and fans of the opposing teams like to dream of plucking the stars from the “little team that couldn’t” in America’s Finest City.

This is all to say, leading up to and after the lockout has come and gone, Padres fans can and should expect the same old narratives to come from every corner of the baseball media landscape. The only way they will change is if new owners Kwanza Jones and Jose E. Feliciano backup their words with investments in the team that will allow them to reach the postseason for a fourth consecutive year.

Padres News:

• Thomas Conroy of Gaslamp Ball gives his thoughts on what comes next for Padres.

• MLB sends new proposal to MLBPA which recommends shortened season and changes to postseason.

• Lincoln Zdunich of Gaslamp Ballidentifies Padres free agents and which ones San Diego should look to re-sign in the offseason.

• Michael King is open to returning to Padres if he opts out of his current contract.

Baseball News:

• Gavin Williams will start for the Cleveland Guardians and Sean Burke gets the start for the Chicago White Sox in Game 5.

• Yoshinobu Yamamoto will go for Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 2.

This year’s ALDS sweep at the hands of the Rays felt like a culmination for the Aaron Boone era Yankees. I’m not sure it will actually be a culmination of his managerial tenure as I could definitely see the team keeping him, but those three games felt like everything that has gone wrong in a Yankees’ playoff exit from 2018 to now all rolled into one. There were mental mistakes, sloppy play, and bats going cold all at once.

I think it would be unfair to say that Boone hasn’t grown at all since taking the job. Early in his tenure, I used to get frustrated by him sticking with a pitcher too long trying to steal an extra out or two. These days, it seems pretty rare that those instances happen. However, any growth from him is overshadowed by the frustration that I share with many other Yankee fans.

In watching this year’s playoff defeat, my mind couldn’t help but keep going over the things that went wrong that I could see coming, because all of Boone’s teams seem to suffer in these ways. Whether or not the Yankees do bring Aaron Boone back, I personally am out, and it would take a massive change of fortune to change that. Here are the reasons why.

For one, his teams seem to play with just no sense of fundamentals. I am an analytically-inclined fan, so when I say this, I don’t meant that they don’t bunt enough or that they need to learn to go the other way and hit singles, because I think there are logical reasons that make it easier said than done against the pitchers of today. However, there are some baseball things that happen in the heat of the moment of a game that don’t make sense no matter your way of thinking.

Austin Wells getting thrown out try to stretch a double into a triple in Game 1 of the ALDS is the perfect example. “Don’t make the last out of the inning at third base” is a longtime baseball axiom that makes perfect sense. With two outs, you can’t score on a sacrifice fly or any other kind of productive out, so those 90 feet matter way less than just having a chance with a runner in scoring position. Yet in the heat of the game, Wells seemingly wasn’t even thinking about that, never mind the fact that he ran through Luis Rojas’ stop sign too.

Austin Wells said he was just trying to make something happen with the Yankees not doing anything against Rasmussen. He picked up Luis Rojas' stop sign after he was passing second base.

"I was already committed. Made two good throws and got me." pic.twitter.com/aWe8otzpDK

— Greg Joyce (@GJoyce9) October 4, 2026

I feel like I regularly watch the Yankees allow opposing runners to take extra bases because a fielder tries for an out at home that has like a five percent chance at happening rather than throwing ahead of the runner, holding them, and living to fight for another day. Or, an infielder will try and make a rushed and/or spectacular throw to try and complete a double play leading to an error, and a runner getting an extra base (à la Jazz Chisholm Jr. in Game 2). I know it’s probably hard to think about these things in the moment and your instincts will kick in to some degree, but it feels like the Yankees regularly disadvantage themselves by going to the spectacular instead of sticking to basics.

Relatededly, I have another issue with the defense in general. Anthony Volpe went from winning a Gold Glove as a rookie to looking like a shortstop novice in just two seasons. It’s cost the Yankees some playoff games, including the infamous 2024 World Series Game 5 meltdown. Again, errors are something that are going to occur no matter what, but the Boone Yankees have been so sloppy so often.

That sloppiness also almost always comes to a head during an almost annual mid-season — usually around June or July — swoon.

Another baseball saying is that every team wins 50 and loses 50, and your season is decided by what you do in the rest of the games. For the most part, that holds true and I don’t think there’s any manager who could’ve snapped their fingers and won 110 games with any of Boone’s Yankees teams. Every team is going to slump. However, why is it that every Boone team will start off hot and then go through about a month where they appear to forget how to play baseball?

This year, they went 12-14 in June. If you expand that out to a couple days either side of the month, they had a 15-20 stretch. In 2025, they were under .500 in all of June and July. They were under .500 in July 2024, and that includes a five-game winning streak at the end of the month. They were on pace for 122 wins in mid-June 2022 and ended up winning under 100.

Again, I recognize that every team is going to have some slumps. The MLB-best Brewers were just barely over .500 after April and ended up with 103 wins. No team is going to put up exactly even .600 winning percentages every month — even the 1998 Yankees played a few ticks below that pace in September. However, I would appreciate if the Yankees stop having a stretch that obviously foreshadows what is going to happen that October.

Another issue that has played out in the postseason, but sometimes appears in the regular season as well is that the Boone Yankees’ teams never get the last laugh. I don’t mean this just in a “they haven’t won the World Series” sense, but they always seem to be the team that ends with with egg on their face.

In 2020, they got into it with the Rays after Aroldis Chapman airmailed a pitch over Mike Brosseau’s head, leading to a verbal back and forth between the two teams, on the field and in the media. What happens that October? The Yankees lose to the Rays after … Mike Brosseau homers off Aroldis Chapman.

In a 2021 Subway Series game, Francisco Lindor made allusions to what he perceived as the Yankees’ stealing signs. Giancarlo Stanton chirped him back after he hit a home run, leading to the benches clearing. However, what ended up deciding the game? Lindor’s third homer of the game.

The Yankees had a running rivalry with the Astros, partially inflamed by the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. However, Houston has won every postseason series. The 2018 Red Sox used the Yankees as motivation even after defeating them. The Dodgers’ Joe Kelly kept chirping the Yankees after the 2024 World Series, even though he was bad enough that he wasn’t on LA’s roster that entire postseason.

Beyond just losing every postseason under Boone, the Yankees constantly end up the butt of jokes, and frankly I’m done with it.

Mets infielderRonny Mauricio's relatively small taste of the majors in parts of three seasons can be summed up pretty easily: His chances have been sporadic and his performance at the plate has been largely ineffective, but he has displayed enough eye-popping exit velocities and light-tower power to keep your eyebrow raised just a bit.

Still just 25 years old, Mauricio has also been bitten by the injury bug.

He missed the entire 2024 season and a chunk of the 2025 campaign after tearing his ACL while playing winter ball.

This past season, when it looked like Mauricio would get a long look at shortstop while Francisco Lindorrecovered from a serious calf injury, he fractured his left thumb on a headfirst dive into first base. 

Given a chance in the last two games of the 2026 season, Mauricio went off, going 4-for-7 with three homers, six RBI, and a walk. Mauricio's two home runs on Sept. 26 put an exclamation point on New York's final victory of the season, and his blast in Game 162 the next day gave the team something more to think about heading into the winter.

With Mauricio out of minor league options, it's now or never for him to stick.

Will the Mets move on from him ahead of the 2027 season? Should they?

WHY IT COULD MAKE SENSE TO MOVE ON FROM MAURICIO

Three years removed from his MLB debut, Mauricio is still the same kind of offensive player he was back in 2023.

In 107 games spanning three seasons (he missed 2024 due to the ACL injury), Mauricio has never had a batting average over .248. He has never had an on-base percentage higher than .296. He has never had an OPS+ that was even league average.

Some of that can be chalked up to inexperience and infrequent chances at the big league level, but it also has a lot to do with Mauricio's inability to lay off pitches outside the strike zone. 

"He missed a lot of time, that was a nasty knee injury," Mets manager Andy Green said when discussing Mauricio after the 2026 season ended. "He’s come back and the athleticism has returned. I don’t see any residual effect from that -- from my vantage point, people come back from injuries all the time.

"Does it make life harder? Sure. Does he have every opportunity to still turn this into a good career? Sure, he does. The path forward for him is to impact the baseball consistently, and if he can, minimize the chase."

When it comes to the chase issue, Mauricio was near the very bottom of the league in 2023, 2025, and 2026 in chase percentage while unsurprisingly also being near the bottom of the league in strikeout percentage. The strikeout rate has actually ticked up each of his first three seasons, from 28.7 percent to 29.3 percent to 32.3 percent. 

While bouncing around the infield and getting starts at third base, second base, and shortstop, Mauricio's defense has been a mixed bag. He might not be the best fit to play shortstop regularly, but that wouldn't be an issue with the Mets because of the presence of Lindor. 

What could impact Mauricio, though, is that the Mets will be set on the left side of the infield if third baseman Bo Bichette opts in. At second base, New York has three highly thought of prospects at the upper levels of the minors -- Jefferson Rojas, Mitch Voit, and Émilien Pitre -- who could push Marcus Semien for the job early next season. 

WHY IT COULD MAKE SENSE TO KEEP MAURICIO

When Mauricio squares a ball up, it often explodes off his bat.

In his three seasons in the bigs, Mauricio has consistently posted elite exit velocities with impressive bat speed to match. During Mauricio's 20-game look in the majors this past season, his barrel percentage was elite. 

To drill down a bit more, here's a deeper dive on Mauricio's big league home runs over the last two seasons:

Sept. 27, 2026: 410 feet, 107.5 mph exit velocity (batting right-handed)
Sept. 26: 411 feet, 106.6 mph exit velo (batting left-handed)
Sept. 26: 384 feet, 102.5 mph exit velo (right-handed)
May 1: 421 feet, 111.3 mph exit velo (left-handed)
July 28, 2025: 415 feet, 106.3 mph exit velo (left-handed)
July 27: 398 feet, 104.7 mph exit velo (left-handed(
July 8: 362 feet, 94.2 mph exit velo (left-handed)
June 25: 378 feet, 97.6 mph exit velo (left-handed)
June 14: 374 feet, 107.6 mph exit velo (left-handed)
June 7: 456 feet, 110.3 mph exit velo (left-handed)

As far as Mauricio's potential fit, it could come as a backup infielder and designated hitter option.

Brett Baty figures to be in New York's plans in 2027, and could be in a super utility role. Beyond Baty, though, no one on the 40-man roster stands out as a clear backup infielder who can also be part of the DH mix.

Jared Young could be the backup first baseman or part of a timeshare situation at the position, and Jorge Polanco profiles best as a DH -- but Polanco being a contributor in 2027 is health-dependent. When it comes to Mark Vientos, it feels like his days as a Met could be coming to an end. 

Regarding Mauricio's contract status, he is under team control through 2030 and won't be eligible for arbitration until 2028.

VERDICT

The Mets don't have to be in a rush when it comes to making a decision on Mauricio.

Unless there's a team out there that views Mauricio highly via trade, New York can simply have him come to spring training (whenever it begins, given the expected lockout) and take things from there.

It's possible a crowded 26-man roster situation could squeeze Mauricio out, but that would likely mean that Young is on the bench, Baty is on the bench, and Polanco is healthy (along with every other expected Opening Day position player).

The likeliest outcome with Mauricio is that he doesn't seriously reduce his tendency to chase, resulting in him never being an average or better offensive performer in the majors.

But a 25-year-old switch-hitter with this kind of power potential should be given every last opportunity to reach his ceiling before the Mets move on. 

The watching Braves baseball portion of our year has ended. Now it’s the offseason. We’ll watch the rest of MLB’s postseason with you here. But outside of that, we will be into offseason programming. We’ll have player reviews soon. We’ll slowly perform an autopsy of the season. After that, it’s a lockout. The owners seem determined not to start the season on time. I would expect them to start at least a month late, then have an abbreviated Spring Training. Heh, if we get a shorter Spring, then maybe it won’t be terrible.

I guess I’m asking what would you all like to do in the meantime. I have some ideas for spending the time while we wait on the lockout to end:

• Let’s start the Community Prospect List selection. This has been a tradition for a decade, but during 2025 no one was interested. Does anyone want to run it this year? I don’t mind, but I would rather someone else run with the ball on this one. It consists of setting up a Feed post asking who should be ranked number one. You tally the vote by recs, then continue until you reach number 25 or 30. If you’re interested, we may be able to set you up so that you have access to create polls in the Feed, which mere commenters can’t do.
• While we’re voting, does anyone want a Commenter of the Year contest? I’ll organize that, if so.
• I know lots of you like the version of football that is played on Saturday. Does anyone want an official Battery Power Alleged College Football Pick’em?
• I have been kicking around starting a series on random/forgotten Braves over the years. I was thinking about a daily-ish Braves interesting post from years before. I may be hitting the Feed with that soon.

That’s what I have unless you guys want to play Yahtzee.

Let’s say there is a scenario in which the Phillies had an offer on the table to improve their moribund offense. That incoming player was a guaranteed 3-4 WAR player at a position of need – third base, outfield, pick your poison. The only catch is that there had to be something of value going back to the trading team, and that something of value was from a position they did not want to move from.

Would you trade one of Zack Wheeler, Cristopher Sanchez or Jesus Luzardo in order to get a piece for the offense that improved it substantially?

There needs to be some creativity this offseason to get the Phillies back into a position where they are fighting for a World Series title. Maybe this is the creativity that is required.

No, this isn’t a post that was delayed four months.

That Atlanta Braves have begun their off-season roster machinations with the team’s transaction page showing that utilityman Luke Williams has been designated for assignment while left-handed reliever Danny Young has been selected to the roster.

This follows a slew of transactions on October 8 to activate players from the IL and recall players on the 40-man roster.

Williams has seen action with the big league team since being acquired by Atlanta in 2023, but only appeared in two games this season – walking in his only plate appearance – although he was on the team’s Wild Card Series roster. He spent most of the season with Triple-A Gwinnett.

Young appeared in 16 games with Atlanta this past season after seeing action nine times across the 2022 and 2023 seasons. After a solid start as a low-leverage option in the bullpen, he allowed nine runs in his final four appearances with Atlanta and was designated for assignment in mid-August.

With a lockout likely by December, there may be a small window for trade and free agent activities after the World Series.

Off the field, owners and players are digging in for what promises to be a painful and shameful labor dispute. But before we get to that, we still have some action to settle on the field. Specifically, an NLCS matchup that almost perfectly prepares us the imminent conflict.

Yes, in classic baseball fashion, the sport has once again found a way mirror the issue of the day. Namely: Does MLB need a salary cap?

In one corner, we have the Dodgers and their Pacific rim empire. They have all of the money, all of the stars, and are gunning to become the first three-peat champions of this century. Just as importantly, a large segment of MLB fans from coast to coast believe the only reason they’re this close to a three-peat is because they have all of the money and all of the stars. This means — whether these beliefs are true or not — the Dodgers also might hold the keys the owners need to sell a salary cap to the fans.

That may sound crazy at first glance, but if the Dodgers don’t win, we instantly morph into an entirely different landscape. Consider the following:

1) The three American League teams to enter the season with the lowest payrolls were the Guardians, White Sox and Rays. They are now the last three teams standing on AL side of the board. (In other words, you’re guaranteed to have at least one small market / low payroll team in the World Series.) 

2) The Mets spent over $350 million this year and finished in last place. (In a vacuum, a strong case that Dodger level spending isn’t necessarily an automatic ticket to success.)

3) The Brewers play in Milwaukee, which is MLB’s smallest market.

Could the stakes be any higher for the owners and players in terms of how the upcoming winter work stoppage is going to play with the general public? If the Brewers win, you’re guaranteed an all small market/low payroll World Series. Any rational argument for a salary cap is dead on arrival (although the owners will still be trying like hell to implement one). In short, the owners could be picking the worst possible year to make their case for a cap.

But if the Dodgers win, the owners can and will sell the following narrative to a receptive and captive audience: “It’s not fair! The big bad billionaire behemoths are blowing everybody out of the water.” In short, a third straight Dodger World Series win would make the owners’ case for a cap in the name of maintaining competitive balance — Even though we know the real reason is they just want more money.

I’m of course oversimplifying things, but those two scenarios are very different worlds. Right or wrong, the outcome of Brewers vs. Dodgers will change the public perception on this issue, and which side the public puts more pressure on during the stoppage matters.

Make no mistake, a lockout is coming no matter what. Both sides are going to draw a line in the sand and retreat to their trench. However, whether that happens in a world where the Dodger dynasty is at the peak of its power or in a world where two small market teams prove you can win on limited resources might tip the scales. It’s basically the difference between starting a war on a sunny day or starting a war trying to invade Russia on the first day of winter.

The background conditions will play a huge roll in the upcoming negotiations, and while fans have no seat at the table, it looks like the baseball gods will get to decide which way the wind is blowing when the owners and players fully engage in their pissing match.

Meet the Mets

Teruaki Sato, NPB’s first Triple Crown winner since Munetaka Murakami, could make the jump to MLB next season, and he’s been linked to the Mets.

Around the National League East

Todd Zolecki listed five pressing questions facing the Phillies ahead of this offseason.

The Braves have made tweaks to their 40-man roster, adding a lefty pitcher and designating an infielder for assignment.

Around Major League Baseball

Jackson Chourio’s postseason statistics put him in some rarefied air at only 22 years old.

Gavin Williams will start the decisive ALDS Game 5 for the Guardians, just two days after closing out Game 4.

Sean Burke will get the ball first for the White Sox in Game 5 against the Guardians, with the rest of the pitching plan less defined.

Colton Cowser believes he can return to form for the Orioles in 2027.

Matthew Roberson of FanGraphs listed the ten best Division Series of all time.

The Dodgers have chosen Tarik Skubal and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to start the first two games against the Brewers in the NLCS.

The latest MLB proposal for the new CBA would slightly shorten the season, and it could be prioritizing quality over quantity with it.

The Brewers went out with a whimper against the Dodgers in last year’s NLCS, but this year it could be very different.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Steve Sypa reviewed the 2026 Syracuse Mets’ season.

This Date in Mets History

65 years ago, the Mets picked the foundational pieces of their first team in the expansion draft.

I try very hard to fight back against apathy. In politics, the economy, media, the world begs for your apathy. Don’t make a fuss, let it all just happen. It’s all going According to Plan. The state apparatus depends on your apathy. Do not give them that gift.

And yet, not quite 48 hours after the Yankees once again lost in the ALDS, lost to a team seeded higher than them, lost to a team that is just so fundamentally annoying that thinking about them raises my blood pressure a point or two…I don’t feel much at all.

I’ve always tried to hedge my reactions to bad sports news. The Don LeGreca-style rants make for good radio and some of the longer, more unhinged comments we get here are fun to scroll past, but at the end of the day I consume baseball for my own entertainment. Letting yourself get mad over something you say you enjoy while having 0 control over it hasn’t made a whole lot of sense to me. Let sports lift you up, not press you down.

And true to form, I’m not mad about the 2026 Yankees. I’m beige. The Yankees dogwalked the Red Sox last week only to find themselves canine-ized by the Rays, swept out of the ALDS in what’s actually a worse result than last year. (They lasted a whole four games against the Blue Jays!) Aaron Boone put the worst leadoff hitter in baseball atop the lineup, telling us that he liked the potential for action on the basepaths ahead of the only batter who showed up in the series, and that leadoff hitter went 0-for-5 as the team died—with him as the final out—because of course he did.

I don’t quite know why I’m so numb to all of this. The Yankees won 93 games, the second-best record in the AL, without the game’s best player, while actively rehabbing three pitchers in their starting rotation, while Austin Wells was locked in the trunk of a car for four months, while shortstop was an open question until the season’s final few weeks. It should be kind of remarkable that they were even in the dance in the first place?

But the AL was so bad, the table so uncompetitive, that the Yankees didn’t really outrun the other guy being chased by the bear. There was no bear at all. The team wasn’t good enough to chase down the Rays, dooming themselves to an additional two playoff games while the Rays got to rest, prepare, and welcome the Yankees to the Trop for the start of the series. The same offense we’d seen sleepwalk through the year for weeks at a time showed themselves, they lost, and I don’t really care.

Supposedly at the staff level the organization is starting to pick at itself like an under-stimulated pet bird. This annual tradition of “just be good enough to make it before 26 people who should be among the best in the world at what they do collectively forget what their jobs are” might finally be sinking in. At the top level though we’ll be told not to worry, There is A Plan, these guys are having good at bats actually, it’s right in front of us.

Congratulations to the New York Yankees. You’ve managed to accomplish something my government and AI companies haven’t. Sure, man, whatever you say, I shrug my shoulders and I walk down the street.

While we continue to enjoy the few days of a break between the Division Series and National League Championship Series, we do know that the Dodgers will start Tarik Skubal on the mound in Game 1 in Milwaukee on Sunday, followed by Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 2 on Monday afternoon.

Here are a few other postseason notes, as we wait for Saturday night’s finale of the Division Series, with the Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians deciding their ALDS vying for a shot at the Tampa Bay Rays.

A gaggle of writers at The Athletic offered their thoughts and predictions for the NLCS. Among them was Dennis Lin picking the Brewers to win:

“The Brewers will be fresher than they were a year ago, when the Dodgers swept an exhausted team. In this rematch, Milwaukee will also feature the sport’s most disciplined offense, the hardest-throwing pitching staff and, after Wednesday’s smothering of the Padres, the belief they can win big games on the road.”

Lin referred to the Brewers in NLDS Game 4 at Petco Park, which snapped a record 12 straight postseason road losses, a streak that spanned seven different series. Wednesday’s win in San Diego was the first Brewers postseason road win since Game 3 of the 2018 NLCS at Dodger Stadium. Half of the dozen consecutive road losses for Milwaukee came in Los Angeles.

Links

• Scoring has been down this postseason, with both teams scoring at least four runs in only one of 24 games thus far (Game 4 of Guardians-White Sox on Thursday). Bradley Woodrum at Baseball Prospectus looked at the reasons behind the low scoring and the numbers behind the “magical fourth run.”
• Major League Baseball this week proposed a 154-game regular season plus expanding the Division Series to best-of-7 beginning in 2029, part of its collective bargaining with the MLB Players Association. Jen Ramos-Eisen at their Left on Base newsletter wrote about the proposal and the MLBPA response.
• Former Dodgers center fielder Jim Wynn — the Toy Cannon — was among 10 excellent players Joe Posnanski wrote about at his Joe Blogs newsletter who didn’t receive a single Hall of Fame vote.

Good morning Birdland,

There was no baseball yesterday, and it seems like the Orioles avoided stepping on yet another rake. So, there is little content on which to blog. But we will prevail!

There will be a decisive Game 5 in the ALDS this evening. The White Sox and Guardians will face off at 8 p.m. in Cleveland. TBS/HBO Max has the broadcast.

University of Maryland product Sean Burke will start for the ChiSox. He was quite good this season (11-7, 3.34 ERA, 172.1 IP, 4.2 bWAR). What has allowed him to excel? Well, according to Burke himself: “This is my life. I don’t have family, no girl, no kids. This is all I do.” I suppose that does give you more time to hone your craft…but, like, are you going OK, Sean?

Burke later clarified that he didn’t literally mean he had no family. In fact, a bunch of them celebrated on the field with him when the White Sox clinched the playoffs. Rather, he seems to have meant that he doesn’t have a current long-term romantic relationship or kids. He gave an individual shoutout to his mom, so I would bet she in particular did not love the quote. Probably good that he got all of that sorted out before Thanksgiving rolls around next month.

Back to the baseball. My rooting interests are with the White Sox tonight. If they win, that will mean it is a White Sox/Rays ALCS, two teams that the Orioles had winning records against this season. It just feels fitting that this mediocre American League yields a World Series representative that our frustratingly sub-par favorite team handled in the regular season and yet it was the rest of the field that gave them so much trouble. It could be you guys out there!

Links

Sonny Gray Plans To Pitch In 2027 | MLB Trade Rumors
This is not Orioles-related, but it could be! We know Mike Elias loves to sign old starting pitchers. Gray seems to prefer East Coast teams. And he has said he wants to win a World Series. Now, let’s admit that the Orioles are NOT the team you think of when dreaming about the postseason, but maybe they could be? Gray had a 2.72 ERA over 169 innings in 2026. He has thrown 166 innings or more in four straight seasons.

How Cowser believes he can return to form for O’s in ’27 | Orioles.com
Ah yes, Colton Cowser, the topic of the rift between Jim Palmer and Craig Albernaz. He is a player that will be under the microscope a bit in 2027. His glove is so good that he needs to be in the lineup pretty much everyday regardless of matchup, but he has serious trouble with left-handed pitching. They should try to fix that.

Taking another look at the bullpen | Roch Kubatko
This is one area of the team that feels pretty good going into the offseason. They should not just assume they will continue to ascend in 2027, but it’s a good starting point. At the very least, Félix Bautista, Ryan Helsley, and Yennier Cano should be a solid veteran trio you can trust most nights. Rico Garcia should have his spot as well. They probably need to go find a lefty that they feel similarly about, though Josh Walker and Grant Wolfram have their backers.

Kyle Goon: Are the Orioles listening? Their fans think they aren’t. | The Banner
The Orioles have not been a winning baseball team for two full seasons now, and they completely fell apart back in 2024. Meanwhile, Elias has gotten a promotion and spoken about making his department bigger this offseason, the new owner who has presided over the losing is writing books about being an owner, and the employees that actually make Camden Yards an enjoyable experience have gotten fired. So yeah, it doesn’t feel fair, and the Orioles should have some sense of that when they make these decisions.

Orioles birthdays

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

• Luis Vázquez turns 27 today. The utility infielder has emerged in Baltimore occasionally in each of the last two seasons, though he played in just one game in 2026.
• Nick Vespi is 31 years old. He pitched out of the Orioles bullpen for parts of three seasons from 2022 through ‘24, compiling a 3.88 ERA over 53.1 total innings.
• The late Gordie Sundin (b. 1937, d. 2016) was born on this day. He pitched in one big league game, which took place with the Baltimore Orioles in 1956.

This day in O’s history

1979 – The Orioles score five runs in the first inning of Game 1 of the World Series, and cling onto those runs in order to prevail 5-4 over the Pirates.

1996 – The O’s even up the ALCS at one game apiece with a 5-3 win over the Yankees. Rafael Palmeiro hits a seventh inning homer to help lock down the victory.

2012 – Raul Ibańez, who pinch hits for a struggling Alex Rodriguez in the bottom of the ninth inning, goes on to hit two key home runs. First, he smacks a game-tying homer off of Orioles closer Jim Johnson in that ninth inning, and then hits a walk-0ff solo shot in the 12th inning off of Brian Matusz to give the Yankees a 3-2 win in Game 3 of the ALDS.

2014 – The O’s drop Game 1 of the ALCS to the Royals 8-6 in extra innings. The Royals score three runs on two homers in the top of the 10th inning to pave the way toward a win.

2023 – The Orioles get swept out of the ALDS by the eventual champion Texas Rangers. Dean Kremer gets knocked around early, while Nathan Eovaldi dominated the Baltimore lineup.

Good morning, baseball fans!

The 2026 MLB Playoffs continue today, and it looks like my complaining from yesterday paid off, because we’ve finally got a Game 5! The American League Division Series between the Chicago White Sox and the Cleveland Guardians will conclude tonight, one way or another.

As of the time this is being written, only the White Sox have announced a starting pitcher, which will be right-hander Sean Burke.

Tonight’s game starts at 5:00 p.m. and will air on TBS/HBO Max, with national radio coverage available on ESPN Radio.

Personally, I think I’m rooting for the White Sox still, although it was brought to my attention that Cleveland hasn’t won a World Series since 1948. So I don’t think I’ll be unhappy with either result, since I don’t actually have a vested interest in either team.

Who are you rooting for today?

Good morning, Rockies fans!

Major League Baseball is apparently interested in giving us a little less baseball.

On Thursday, MLB unveiled its latest proposal for a new collective bargaining agreement, including a reduction of the regular season from 162 games to 154 beginning in 2029. The 154-game schedule was once baseball’s standard, before the American League expanded to 162 games in 1961 and the National League followed in 1962.

For the Colorado Rockies, that would mean 77 home games at Coors Field and 77 on the road, instead of 81 each. That, of course, would also make a .500 record 77-77 instead of 81-81.

The number of games isn’t the only proposed change. MLB also wants a scheduled weekly off-day, generally on Mondays, and four doubleheaders against division opponents, further reducing the number of days teams would take the field. The additional rest could benefit Colorado’s pitching staff, although those doubleheaders could create their own challenges.

So, just how important are eight games?

The Rockies have never won the NL West. The closest they have ever come was in 2018, when they finished tied with the Dodgers for first place after 162 games, only to lose Game 163.

After Game 154, Colorado was 84-70 and 1.5 games behind Los Angeles. The Rockies then won seven of their final eight games to force the tiebreaker.

Of course, for a franchise accustomed to looking up at the rest of the division, a shorter season might just mean eight fewer games spent doing so.

---

Rockies news & links

The Case for the Colorado Rockies Being Aggressive This Offseason | Sports Illustrated

Despite a fourth consecutive 100-loss season, Maddy Dickens believes the Rockies have enough encouraging pieces to justify an aggressive offseason. With Hunter Goodman leading an improving offense and some positive developments in the bullpen, Dickens argues that addressing the starting rotation should be a priority for Paul DePodesta. It’s an optimistic assessment of where Colorado stands heading into 2027.

The Rockies Player Most Likely to Be Traded This Offseason | Sports Illustrated

With Paul DePodesta preparing for his first full offseason leading the Rockies, changes to the roster seem inevitable. Sports Illustrated’s Ben Fisher examines which Colorado player could be on the move as the organization looks toward 2027. The question isn’t simply who might be available, but what kind of return the Rockies could get as they reshape the roster.

Arizona Fall League Position Player Scouting Notebook | FanGraphs

FanGraphs’ Brendan Gawlowski included Rockies prospect Andy Perez in his Arizona Fall League scouting notebook. Perez’s bat-to-ball skills caught his attention, but so did his aggressive approach at the plate. The ability to make contact is there, though improving his swing decisions could go a long way toward determining how much offensive value he ultimately provides.

Rockies No. 10 prospect Jared Thomas’ first AFL homer | MiLB.com

Jared Thomas is making some noise in the Arizona Fall League. The Rockies’ No. 10 prospect launched his first home run for the Salt River Rafters, sending the ball 417 feet. After an injury-interrupted season, Thomas is getting some valuable extra playing time this fall, and this is a pretty good way to make use of it.

Around MLB

Storylines to follow as White Sox, Guards play winner-take-all Game 5 | MLB.com

The White Sox and Guardians have spent all season battling for supremacy in the AL Central, and now it comes down to one game. In their 17 meetings this year, eight have been decided by a single run, including four walk-offs. Will Leitch looks at the biggest storylines heading into Saturday night’s winner-take-all Game 5, including José Ramírez’s resurgence and Chicago’s unconventional pitching strategy.

The 10 Best Division Series of All Time, Ranked | FanGraphs

Following an entertaining Division Series between the Brewers and Padres, Matthew Roberson takes a look back at the best Division Series in MLB history. Since the format became a permanent part of the postseason in 1995, there have been plenty of memorable October moments. Roberson ranks the ten best series, giving baseball fans something to debate while we wait for the next round.

Brewers-Padres Playoff Series Is Setting MLB Velocity Records | Baseball America

J.J. Cooper examines how the Brewers and Padres combined for the hardest-throwing game of the pitch-tracking era, averaging 95.3 mph across all pitches on October 3. It’s an interesting look at how much velocity has increased across baseball.

Mathemadage: Who Gets Game Seven? | FanGraphs

Should a team save its ace for a potential Game 7, or use him earlier to improve its chances of getting there? Ben Clemens examines the math behind postseason pitching decisions and whether teams are better off using their best starters early or saving them for the biggest possible moments.

---

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

Today’s Reflections

There are a few known and lesser-known Cubs prospects in this entry of Cub Tracks.

Go, Clevelanders!!! The Guardians are one game from advancing to the ALCS. We owe the fans of Cleveland for 2016, when they became the organization with the WS longest drought. Go Everyone Associated with Cleveland!

---

Iron Mike (RIP):

---

*means autoplay on, (directions to remove for Firefox and Chrome). {$} means paywall. {$} means limited views. Italics are often used on this page as sarcasm font. The powers that be have enabled real sarcasm font in the comments.

---

Lockout on Everyone’s Mind:

• Matthew Nethercott (Diamond Centric): Here’s Why MLB Owners Will Avoid A Lengthy 2027 Lockout. “Baseball’s looming labor dispute could threaten the 2027 season, but a little-discussed provision involving MLB’s television contracts may give owners a powerful incentive to reach an agreement.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): MLB Has Reportedly Issued a Lengthy Memo on How Teams Are to Handle the Upcoming Lockout. “The gist, of course, is that all operations of the baseball operations involving the 40-man roster have to cease.”
• Matthew Nethercott (Diamond Centric): MLB Owners Propose Major Changes to Regular Season & Postseason Format. “A 154-game regular season, seven-game Division Series and a new system allowing teams to select playoff opponents are among the proposed changes tied to a salary cap agreement.”

---

Minors/Pipeline:

• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): MLB Pipeline Names Its Cubs Prospects of the Year. “Ayers’ breakout year certainly deserves the nod, but so does that of Josiah Hartshorn and his incredible pro debut. My guess was that we would see various platforms go in either direction.”
• Jim Callis (MLB.com): Age is but a number for Cubs’ Cabada, the second-youngest player in the Fall League. “One of the most gifted young hitters in the Cubs system, Juan Cabada was ready for the challenges that awaited him when he made his U.S. debut this year.”
• Cory Sparks (North Side Baseball): Cubs Farmhand Miguel Useche is Surging, Against All Odds. “From independent ball to Double-A, Miguel Useche has already come a long way. Can he complete an improbable journey to the big leagues?”

---

Free Agents/Arbitration:

• Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball): Ranking the Cubs’ Contract Option Decisions, from Easiest to Toughest. “Eight members of the Cubs have options in their contract for 2027. Most of them will be declined, in one way or another, but for the team, the decisions break in each direction—and, mostly, they figure to be pretty easy.”
• Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Cubs may have already ruled themselves out of Randy Arozarena sweepstakes without saying it. “We can rule this one out.”
• Matthew Trueblood (North Side Baseball): How Cubs Should Handle Their 11 Arbitration-Eligible Players This Fall. “The Cubs won’t have to fork over big money for their fistful of arbitration-eligible players this offseason. That’s the good news. The bad news is, they’d really love to have to pay some of them more.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): The Qualifying Offer Number For Post-2026 Free Agents is Out. “This year’s Qualifying Offer figure matters quite a bit to the Chicago Cubs, on both sides of the ledger. Lots to consider.”
• Matt Sullivan (Sporting News): Cubs get great free agent prediction on fan favorite 131 OPS+ outfielder. “This prediction for the Cubs would be a great offseason result.”
• Conor Liguouri (Sporting News): Why Cubs are perfect landing spot for Padres $17 million ace . “This makes too much sense for the Cubs.”
• Jordan Campbell (Cubbies Crib): Cubs could take first step toward Ian Happ reunion with looming qualifying offer decision. “An ideal outcome.”

---

Assorted Stories:

• Carson Wolf (Just Baseball): Where the Cubs Stand After an Abrupt End to the 2026 Season. “The Cubs’ 2026 season ended abruptly after entering the postseason with World Series aspirations. Now, several questions need answers this offseason.”
• Doug Schwamb (Chicago Cubs): The Chicago Cubs Need to Focus A Lot More on Their Farm System. “A common theme emerged when MLB.com released its farm system rankings in August: The top-3 farm systems are playoff contenders.”
• North Side Baseball: Forum Friday: Cubs Pre-Offseason Mega Thread, Non-Cub Playoff Chit-Chat. “The week’s best Cubs conversations, from the human-moderated North Side Baseball forums.”
• Elias Shuster (Chicago Cubs On SI): 2 Cubs Players Who Will Likely See a Huge Uptick in Playing Time in 2027. “The Chicago Cubs could see a couple of lineup regulars depart this offseason, opening room for two younger players.”
• Rich Eberwein (Cubbies Crib): Cubs have a Dansby Swanson problem that’s only going to get worse. “With Dansby Swanson’s bat hitting career lows in 2026, the Chicago Cubs must address a growing concern in their lineup.”
• Brett Taylor (Bleacher Nation): Nico Hoerner on What the Cubs Can Take Away from a Two-Game Wild Card Sweep. “Among the topics about which I most wanted to hear is the dichotomy between the playoffs being THE PLAYOFFS, and also being just two games. How much can a player take away from something like that?

---

Food For Thought:

The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was an American blues and blues-rock band from Chicago. Formed in the summer of 1963, the group originally featured eponymous vocalist and harmonicistPaul Butterfield, guitarist Elvin Bishop, bassist Jerome Arnold, and drummer Sam Lay.^[1] The band added guitarist Mike Bloomfield and keyboardist Mark Naftalin before recording their self-titled debut album, which was released in October 1965. The founding sextet were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2015, along with Billy Davenport, their drummer on their second album, East-West.

In the early 1960s, Butterfield met aspiring blues guitarist Elvin Bishop. Bishop recalled:

He [Butterfield] was playing more guitar than harp when I first met him. But in about six months he became serious about the harp, and he seemed to get about as good as he got in that six months. He was just a natural genius. This was in 1960 or 1961. By this time Butter had been hanging out in the ghetto for a couple of years, and he was part of the scene and getting accepted.

Eventually, Butterfield, on vocals and harmonica, and Bishop, accompanying him on guitar, were offered a regular gig at Big John’s, a folk club in the Old Town district on Chicago’s near North Side. With this booking, they persuaded bassist Jerome Arnold and drummer Sam Lay (both from Howlin’ Wolf’s touring band) to form a group with them in 1963. Their engagement at the club was highly successful and brought the group to the attention of record producer Paul A. Rothchild.

Please be reminded that Cub Tracks and Bleed Cubbie Blue do not necessarily endorse the content of articles, podcasts, or videos that are linked to in this series.