LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani needs offseason rest, not surgery, for knee and biceps injuries that led to his worst offensive numbers since he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers before the 2024 season.
“It was just an unfortunate game of whack-a-mole,” Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations, said. “The knee got to a better spot, and then just kind of the biceps area was bothering him. Some of that would calm down for some period, some of that would get re-irritated. It was just a lot of different things he was trying to contend with at once.”
Ohtani and the Dodgers equally are enthused about him returning to two-way duties next season. What both sides need to figure out is how to keep him healthy while hitting and pitching into October.
“I’m not only expecting him to pitch,” Friedman said, “we’re excited about him pitching.”
Ohtani didn’t pitch after July 3 this year due to injuries that also affected his hitting. He had his worst offensive numbers since joining the Dodgers in December 2023, and his 30 home runs were his fewest since 2019 with the Los Angeles Angels. His three-run drive in Game 4 of the National League Championship Series against Milwaukee snapped a 25-game homerless streak.
Ohtani turns 33 next July and has undergone two Tommy John surgeries on his right elbow during his MLB career. Friedman said how to better manage Ohtani’s two-way workload for a potential full season next year had yet to be discussed since the season ended with a four-game sweep at the hands of the Brewers in the NLCS.
“I expect us to throw our heads together and figure out both in the batter’s box, on the mound, just how we marry all that together to have him impact us as much as he can during the regular season and then also be in a really good spot going into October,” Friedman said.
BOSTON - OCTOBER 25: Matt Holliday of the Colorado Rockies in the on deck circle during Game Two of the 2007 World Series against the Boston Red Sox on October 25, 2007 at Fenway Park in Boston, Massachusetts. The Red Sox defeated the Rockies 2-1. (Photo by Rich Pilling/MLB via Getty Images) | MLB via Getty Images
Does the Colorado Rockies lineup currently hold the foundation for a playoff-contending team if the pitching were much better, or would it need a major makeover before they would be able to contend?
All previous Rockies playoff teams have been anchored by an MVP candidate or two:
Larry Walker in 1995
Matt Holliday in 2007
Troy Tulowitzki in 2009
Nolan Arenado in 2017 & 2018
It’s possible that one of the Rockies current crop of core young players hits their 90th-percentile outcome and turns into a superstar, but looking at the data right now, there isn’t anyone the low minors that has that sort of ceiling.
But do they need an MVP candidate in order to field a competitive team?
First, we need to define what competitive means in the context of MLB.
Since the third Wild Card spot was introduced for the 2022 season, the bar for making the playoffs has ranged from 81 wins (2026 Houston Astros) to 89 (2024 Atlanta Braves). Based on that, let’s say that a team with a real shot at fighting for a playoff spot in late September needs to be aiming for around 85 wins.
So, to be a true playoff contending team, the sum of all of your players’ value would need to add up to roughly 37 Wins Above Replacement (WAR).
The actual exercise of building a contending team would need to be much more nuanced and in-depth than this oversimplification, but for some quick back-of-napkin math, this will suffice.
With that goal in mind, let’s break down where on the Rockies roster those wins would need to come from
Instead, let’s be a bit more realistic and look at the lowest pitching fWAR totals of playoff bound teams in each season since the third Wild Card spot was implemented:
2022: 12.9 Seattle Mariners
2023: 12.9 Arizona Diamondbacks
2024: 12.3 Milwaukee Brewers
2025: 11.3 Toronto Blue Jays
2026: 7.5 Houston Astros
Other than being further proof that the American League West was truly dreadful this season, the list above gives a decent indication about where the minimum bar is for the pitching staff of a potential playoff team.
Until the Rockies can field a pitching staff around the 12-13 fWAR mark, it likely won’t matter how good the offense is. If they are able to achieve that mark, though, the lineup would need to reach 24-25 fWAR for the team as a whole to have a legitimate chance at the playoffs.
If the Rockies were able to fill all nine of their lineup spots with quality starters they would be sitting at 18 fWAR from the lineup… well short of the 24-25 we’ve established as the goal. Without finding an MVP-candidate type of player, they’d need to both fill the lineup with quality starters and get three of them up into that clear All-Star tier.
How far away from that were they this past season?
The 2026 Rockies only had five players reach anywhere near the quality starter benchmark:
The Rockies still have some potentially impactful hitters at Triple-A including, most notably, Charlie Condon (No. 2 PuRP).
Without needing to wait for the core of the farm system (which currently resides in the low minors) to be Major-League ready, the Rockies could soon field a full lineup of two-ish win starters with a small handful of four-ish win All-Stars.
That is within the realm of possibility with the current core. However, it would require a lot of things to go right.
The best feature of the Rockies lineup is how many potentially decent options it now contains. The team doesn’t have all of its value concentrated in just one or two superstars. They have nearly a full starting nine of solid starter options.
That depth, however, means that there are fewer spots available to upgrade cheaply. It’s much harder to find an improvement on a two-win player than it is to find one for a “replacement level” one.
Tallying all of that up, if the Rockies upgraded their pitching sufficiently, and everything broke right on the offensive side, they could have a playoff caliber roster without finding or developing a superstar.
The margin for error on that path, however, is incredibly slim. They would need essentially every starter on the roster to perform up to expectations.
The more plausible route back to contention is to develop or acquire a star (or two) that can put up MVP worthy numbers and reduce pressure on every other portion of the roster.
That’s easier said then done.
Sadly, the players in the organization that most realistically have that sort of upside are all down in the lower levels of the minor leagues. The team will need wait to see if any of their high-ceiling prospects at Single-A hit the higher end of their projections in order to start planning a stable contention window around them.
In the meantime, a realistic goal at the Major League level is probably just to prove that they can continue to raise the floor and to ensure that when/if they are able to find their next MVP candidate, they have sufficient depth surrounding them on the roster to capitalize on the opportunity.
ATLANTA, GA - OCTOBER 06: Ozzie Albies #1 of the Atlanta Braves hits a double during the ninth inning of Game Three of the Division Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on October 6, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Jack Casey/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In 2023, just three years ago, the Atlanta Braves had just completed what is statistically recognized as the greatest single-season of team performance at the plate in a 162-game season. The Braves as a team hit .276/.344/.501 with a wOBA of .359, an astonishing xwOBA of .364, a mind-boggling 307 home runs and a team wRC+ of 126. There is no other offense in the history of baseball that was that consistent over the course of 162 games. If the Braves had gone deep into that year’s Postseason instead of falling flat on their face against the Phillies (for the second season in a row, mind you), that team would be a lot more fondly remembered by not just Braves fans and media but the baseball universe as a whole.
Instead, it feels like one of those things that’ll be left as a footnote to history — especially considering how Atlanta’s offense has looked since then. Despite the fact that six of the core players from that 2023 lineup (Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies, Michael Harris II, Sean Murphy, Matt Olson and Austin Riley) are still around and only two of them are currently over 30, the Braves have largely been average in the three seasons since that historic 2023 performance.
Across the three seasons, he Braves have been a completely average ballclub at the plate — they’ve hit .245/.313/.408 with a .315 wOBA, a .321 xwOBA and a wRC+ of exactly 100, placing them in 15th place (exactly middle of the road) among big league ballclubs from the 2024 season through the 2026 season. 2024 saw the Braves go down to a 101 wRC+ (13th overall) before they somehow managed to repeat the trick in 2025 with the same number in that regard and then 2026 actually saw Atlanta’s offense fall down to a 20th-ranked offense in wRC+ with 97.
One thing that’s remained somewhat constant is the home run rate. In 2024, the Braves hit 213 homers (4th overall), hit for .172 in Isolated Power (5th overall) and slugged for .415 (9th overall). In 2025, their homers went down to 190 (14th overall), .155 in Isolated Power (15th overall) and slugged for .399 (14th overall). In 2026, the homers went back up to 204 (7th overall), their Isolated Power went up as well to .162 (9th overall) and they tied with the Yankees for sixth place overall in slugging at .409.
Since the NL Champion Milwaukee Brewers and the AL Champion Tampa Bay Rays are both the talk of the town right, let’s compare Atlanta’s offense in 2026 to theirs. The Braves hit more homers than either the Rays (169) or the Brewers (154, fewest in the NL), Atlanta slugged at a higher rate than either Milwaukee (.403) or Tampa Bay (.402), and the Braves had a higher number in Isolated Power than either the Brewers (.144) or the Rays (.143). So when it came for hitting for power and hitting the long ball, the Braves were clearly better at doing that than any of the two teams who will be playing for that nice gold trophy this Fall.
Despite that, the Brewers (.328) and Rays (.320) both easily cleared the Braves in terms of wOBA and the Brewers did the same in xWOBA (.321) as well. Milwaukee ended up finishing third in wRC+ (107) and Tampa Bay finished in sixth with 104 wRC+.
So what gives, here? I’d imagine that all of y’all who are over here at this particular website are smart enough to realize that there’s more ways to take bases than simply hitting for power and putting ‘em over the fence. Where the Brewers and Rays did a ton of damage this season was from wreaking havoc on the basepaths. According to Statcast, the Brewers finished with a Baserunning Runs Value of 9, which was tied for third in all of baseball. The Rays weren’t all that far behind, as they finished with a BRV of 4. The Braves wound up tied for 21st with a BRV of negative-4. The Brewers led baseball in Extra Bases Taken Run Value and the Rays placed in the Top-10 in that regard — the Braves finished in 23rd in that category.
This wasn’t just a case of Milwaukee and Tampa Bay picking their spots, either — the Brewers attempted to advance baserunners at a less-than-one-percent above average rate while the Rays were only one percent above average in their attempts. The Braves were one-percent above average in that regard and still put up worse numbers on the basepaths.
If you like to think that the Rays and Brewers are on the cutting edge of where the on-field aspect of baseball is heading in the future, then it could be safe to assume that figuring out a way to extract value on the basepaths is going to be the way forward. I’m not saying that the Braves should just forget to hit homers and start bunting everywhere — I am saying that it’s clear the the Brewers and Rays figured out by owner-caused necessity that home runs are expensive and you’ve got to figure out different ways to put runs on the board rather than simply swinging for the fences and putting runs on the board via the long ball.
It doesn’t just mean bunting or eschewing “analytics” or giving up on power hitting altogether, since both the Rays and Brewers have still been able to do that well during the Postseason — it means smart, efficient baserunning and putting pressure on not just the opposing pitcher to make their pitches but also on the defense to stay locked in and make plays in the field against your baserunners. Contact and speed may be the next frontier that we see teams try to maximize on going forward into the future, as both of these teams have proven that if you can put the ball in play and bust it around the basepaths, good things can happen. That appears to be the way forward for the more analytic-minded teams and it’s not going to take a long while for other teams to catch up.
The good news for the Braves is that they appear to be set up pretty well when it comes to the defense and pitching. The Braves have continued to figure out a way to keep their pitching staff afloat despite not having a full-strength starting rotation for a long time now, their bullpen is usually reliable and according to Fielding Run Value, the Braves were top-10 in that category and were better than the Brewers and the Rays. They’ve got the tools to do some good work at run prevention and I’d imagine that that could be the new way for the Braves to consistently win games going forward.
That’s because due to the fact that they’re currently locked in with their core set of batters, the Braves appear to be stuck in a 2023 philosophy due to their personnel limitations. While Walt Weiss, Antoan Richardson, Tommy Watkins and the rest of this staff have been trying their best to make baserunning a strength of this team, they may be limited by the fact that this squad just isn’t exactly adept when it comes to running the bases effectively.
Sprint Speed isn’t everything but it’s pretty tough to be very effective on the basepaths when you’re currently stuck with the 29th-fastest team in baseball according to Sprint Speed. The Braves averaged a Sprint Speed of 27.0 ft/sec in 2026 — the Rays came in 11th at 27.5 ft/sec and the Brewers led baseball at 28.1 ft/sec. In terms of competitive runs (according to Statcast), the Rays and Brewers were both in the Top 3 — the Braves came in at 18th.
This team just may not have the horses to run the track meet in this new era that baseball may be entering into. If that’s the case, then Alex Anthopoulos’s job of getting this offense up to speed (for lack of a better term) may be even trickier than we thought. A lineup that seemed locked in for greatness not even five years ago might find itself left in the dust if Milwaukee and Tampa Bay’s version of baseball turns out to be the way forward for baseball going into the near future.
I’m not going to turn into that guy who says “JUST BUNT IT” whenever there’s even a decent amount of space on the infield but at the same time, it’s fair to ask whether or not the Braves may have found themselves getting left behind at a very inopportune moment in time as far as the future of the sport goes. We’ll see what happens, though.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 23: Will Klein #61 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on from the dugout before the game against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium on September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Dodgers pitcher Will Klein had surgery on Wednesday to remove bone chips and clean up a bone spur in his right elbow, the team announced. The right-hander is expected to be ready for spring training.
“With Will it’s more get healthy, show that you’re healthy, throw to some hitters,” manager Dave Roberts said on September 22. “He’ll throw during the week off, then we’ll kind of see if there’s an opportunity later on in the postseason, sort of like last year.”
That opportunity never came this postseason for Klein. He’ll begin next season with one year, 81 days of service time and one option year remaining, having used options in 2024 and 2025.
Rabada and Mulder lead hosts to victory in second Test
Boland bats for more than three hours as nightwatcher
It took time, it gently frayed nerves, but ultimately South Africa sealed the second Test at Gqeberha deep into the final day, clear by an innings and 31 runs, levelling the series with one to play. In truth, although Australia made 295 and got within 28 overs of safety, they did not deserve to save this game, even if Scott Boland and Travis Head did. Letting South Africa escape from 40 for four to pass 400 was the first offence, then came Australia’s capitulation for 99 to be forced to follow on. The salvage operation was in waters too deep.
Australia got an early boost from a washed-out morning session that cut the day’s ration from 98 overs to 82. The next boost came from Boland, once again the headliner: having done it all with the ball while nobody else could match him, he then led with the bat. He had the nightwatch job in the first innings, batting briefly on the fourth morning, then had to do it a second time that evening, taking Australia to stumps at 156 for four.
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 19: Freddy Peralta #51 of the Tampa Bay Rays celebrates after wining the ALCS MVP after defeating the Cleveland Guardians in game six of the American League Championship Series at Tropicana Field on October 19, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Seattle baseball fans surely know it already — the Mariners are among five teams in baseball to have never won a World Series title. Heading into the 2026 season, there were plenty of people (including myself) that felt the M’s were in position to make a run at not only reaching their first World Series, but potentially even crossing their name off that short list of teams whom have never reached the sport’s highest pinnacle.
As it turned out, this was not the year for the Mariners. They did not make the playoffs — you, dear reader, surely do not need the reminder. However, with the Milwaukee Brewers and Tampa Bay Rays making it out of their respective leagues, 2026 is now guaranteed to produce a first-time World Series champion for the second time in four seasons. The list of teams to have never won the Fall Classic is about to dwindle even further, down to four.
Both teams have a host of connections to Seattle, including former Mariners players on each roster (Jake Mailhot has more on them right here). The franchise that would become the Brewers started out in Seattle as the Pilots for one season in 1969 before moving to Wisconsin. Their departure spurred the lawsuit that would eventually result in Major League Baseball awarding Seattle another team, the one we now call the Mariners. The Rays on the other hand, while never calling Seattle home, have made more trades with Jerry Dipoto’s Mariners than any other team during his tenure. They may as well be the Mariners’ younger, more successful sibling by the similar fashion in which they run their organizations. It also can’t go without mentioning that Jeff Sullivan, the founder of this very blog, is currently a senior analyst in the Rays baseball operations department.
All this is to say…somebody’s gotta win it all. It’s not going to be the Mariners in 2026. So, without further ado, I present the following discussion prompt:
Who are you rooting for, the Rays or Brewers, to win their first World Series title? And why?
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - MAY 25: Sam Haggerty #0 of the Texas Rangers pitches against the Houston Astros at Globe Life Field on May 25, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With the offseason underway, we are taking a look at every player who appeared for the Texas Rangers in the 2026 season.
Today we are looking at outfielder Sam Haggerty.
That didn’t work out as we had hoped, did it?
Brought in to camp in 2025 on a minor league deal after having been released by the hated Mariners of Seattle, Haggerty was brought up in May of 2025 and filled a much needed role on the team, that of a righthanded outfield bat. It was anticipated that Haggerty would be able to provide value in that role in 2026, as well.
We maybe should have been clued in that the Rangers weren’t completely sold on Haggerty by how they handled his contract situation in the offseason. Haggerty was entering his final season of arbitration eligibility, and normally arb-eligible players are signed in early January, close to the deadline for the team and the player to submitted numbers for arbitration. Haggerty’s deal, for $1.25 million, was announced on the day of the deadline to non-tender players, which suggests the Rangers were going to bring him back at their number or else they’d cut him loose rather than risk paying him more in arbitration. Not exactly a vote of confidence in his ability to be a quality righthanded bat.
And, yes, if you want to be pedantic, Haggerty isn’t a righthanded bat, he’s a switch-hitter, but for his career he has a 765 OPS against lefthanded pitchers and a 548 OPS against righthanded pitchers, the kind of platoon split that makes you think maybe he should junk the switch hitting thing and just hit righthanded all the time.
In any case, I regret to inform you that Sam Haggerty did not provide value in that aforementioned role in 2026. He did not provide value in any role in 2026, in fact. Haggerty slashed .159/.213/.182 in 47 plate appearances in 35 games, which is pretty terrible.
I thought that a 395 OPS might be the worst the Rangers have gotten from a player in that many plate appearances in a season, at least recently, and of course I was wrong. Doing a search on Stathead for players with a sub-400 OPS in at least 45 plate appearances in a season for the Rangers, I discovered that the 2024 Rangers had two such players — Davis Wendzel and Andrew Knizner. Wendzel had a 397 OPS, so he at least edged out Haggerty, though Knizner’s 394 OPS put him just behind Haggerty. Knizner put up his putrid OPS in 93 plate appearances, which is pretty impressive, if you think about it.
Curtis Terry had a 279 OPS in 48 plate appearances in 2021, which is the lowest for any player with at least 45 plate appearances for the Rangers since 1973, at the second lowest for the Rangers if we exclude pitchers (Dick Bosman and Pete Broberg qualify in 1972 if we do include pitchers). Robinson Chirinos in 2020, Hanser Alberto in 2016, Mike Carp in 2014 and Cristian Guzman in 2010 are the other qualifiers in the 21st century.
I’m now reminded that the Rangers traded Tanner Roark to the Nationals for Guzman, and am irked.
The most memorable part of Haggerty’s 2026 season is probably the circumstances surrounding his release. Haggerty went on bereavement leave on June 1, and then was designated for assignment a few days later, when he returned from bereavement leave. Unfortunate timing, that.
Haggerty is also a bit noteworthy because he wore number 0. Only three other players in Rangers history have sported a 0 — Al Oliver, Oddibe McDowell, and Junior Ortiz.
I am not a big uniform number guy — I would be hard pressed, off the top of my head, to give you the uniform number of any Ranger — but I do have opinions on uniform numbers. One of them is that 0 is an acceptable number, but only for certain players. There should be some flava to you and your game if you are going to wear number 0.
Al Oliver and Oddibe McDowell? Good 0s.
Junior Ortiz? Anonymous backup catcher. If he were a mediocre starting catcher, I’d say no, but I think a backup catcher who doesn’t play much can be a number 0.
Sam Haggerty as a bench guy who plays a number of positions in the infield and the outfield is an acceptable 0. But in 2026, he was basically a platoon left fielder, and you can’t be a platoon left fielder and wear number 0 unless you’ve got a lot of spice in your game, unless you’re an energy guy.
Of current Rangers on the 40 man roster, Alejandro Osuna and Cody Freeman would be good number 0s. Someone tell one of them to change their number for 2027.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 21: Al Horford #20 of the Golden State Warriors battles Sandro Mamukelashvili #54 of the Los Angeles Lakers for position during the second half of a game at Crypto.com Arena on October 21, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The start of the regular season brought with it lots to be happy about in Tuesday’s rout of the Warriors. The new Big 3 had huge nights and gave the Lakers a great opening to the season.
Prior to all that, we asked for questions and you guys delivered, as always. Obviously, some of this will come with a caveat of it coming before that opening game, but all of it still applies.
So, let’s dive into what you want to talk about.
JJ claims he has a roster that fits together now and is deep….does that mean he will refrain from playing Luka and Austin 45 minutes a game? — Reality Check 1617
I continue to say this sentiment is overblown, but I also acknowledge, and I think JJ would, too, that he couldn’t rely on his bench as much this year. By all accounts, that should change.
Again, he even said as much in his media availability at the start of the season. We’ll have to see if the action meet the words, but, on paper, this is a deeper team that should mean everyone plays fewer minutes, particularly the stars.
The fact they went nine deep on Tuesday with Collin Sexton and Adou Thiero injured further drives home that belief, though. When at full health — which will likely happen rarely this season — this team could go 10 or 11 deep. That should allow them lots of rest for lots of guys, stars included.
How much should we be worried about our scouting, player development, and drafting departments? I know we’ve been hiring and changing since the ownership changes, but how much can we count on this fresh start and new personnel being a new direction? — Johnny Tuttle
I don’t think worried is the word I would use, but excited. It’s no secret the Lakers have been well behind the curve when it comes to scouting. That fact is laid bare in the team whiffing on Jalen Hood-Schifino and Dalton Knecht back-to-back years.
Beefing up those areas should address a clear weakness in the franchise. Think about how many positions the Lakers have filled this year that just didn’t exist prior. There are not just more knowledgeable voices in the mix, but ones with decades of experience, too.
For so long, the Lakers kept such a small inner circle in the front office. Seeing that expand to include more smart voices is a very, very welcome change.
What is the back story on the trade of Ayton? On the surface, it made and makes little sense to have traded a guy who, yeah, was ‘meh’ as a starter but would have been well above average as a back-up. Lakers got back relatively little and since then have been searching for a backup center…when they had just traded a good one.
So:
-is it that they had another trade lined up for a back up center but it fell through?
-is it that Ayton was a locker room cancer who they just wanted to be rid of whatever his skills?
-is it that they think Looney is a better fit?
-is it…just a miscalculation? — scooter
I think this is one of those situations where things are better on better than they are in practice.
On paper, the Lakers had an underwhelming starting center who was still talented on an affordable contract. After acquiring their starting center, Ayton made sense as the backup where so much wasn’t riding on his shoulders.
In practice, and with a bit of reading between the lines, Ayton was…a lot. While we laughed at the idea of the training staff giving him Crunk Juice to motivate him, the amount of massaging of his personality, so to speak, only for him not to really show up when needed was probably grating.
Sure, in a backup role, responsibilities and expectations change. But I just think the Lakers were ready to be out of the Ayton business. And the fact that they could get draft capital back for him was all the more reason to be done.
I think their calculation was that going into the season looking for a backup center with some extra draft capital was better than another season of the Ayton experience.
As I understand, the first that the Lakers can trade Bronny is December 15th. Am I correct on that? As such, shouldn’t they stick him in the G League where he can actually rack up stat lines and possibly increase his trade value? — OCLakerFan1968
The Lakers play the Sixers twice this season. The first game is on December 25th in LA. What are the chances that the Lakers’ marketing department capitalizes on the historic nature of Father versus Son and have Bronny start? — Crap
After a very poor preseason, it’s fair to be low on Bronny. Even if he was dealing with an injury that predated training camp, that feels like the kind of story you put out to save face after the fact.
I’ve had some questions about how the Lakers are developing Bronny, or what they’re developing him into. He’s always felt like more of an Avery Bradley type as a small off-ball guard with a focus on defense and shooting. But a lot of his reps have come as an on-ball point guard type, which doesn’t make as much sense.
Regardless of what his role should be, it’s pretty clear now that the scouting report says to pressure Bronny and he can’t deal with it. And until that changes, he’s probably not going to get any consistent minutes.
Having said that, there’s zero value in putting him back in the G League. He’s already shown he’s a great G League player. No team is going to trade for him because he had a couple of good G League games. It’s sink-or-swim time for Bronny in the big leagues.
At some point, you have to find out what you have and the Lakers are going to do that this season. If it doesn’t work, then they decline his option for next year and cut bait.
As for the latter point, I know it was at least partly written in jest, but I don’t imagine head coach JJ Redick has much interest in sentimental stuff with LeBron James anymore.
What is our biggest positional with this current roster?
Backup PG – We saw how thin we are if any of Luka/AR/Sexton are resting injuries Backup PF – I guess we are calling Williams and Mamu our PFs? Backup C – Does ANYONE have faith in both Kessler’s health and Looney actually being productive? — Kilgary
I think the answer is pretty clearly the backup center spot, and I think the Lakers know that. That’s been the most persistent rumor since this summer. Trades tend not to happen until that Dec. 15 date when most of the league becomes trade-eligible, so I don’t imagine this is something the team will be able to fix for some time.
The backup PG position isn’t as bad when Collin Sexton returns. You have four capable ballhandlers. And for the backup power forward, the dearth of wings on the roster are going to man that spot and I don’t think this team will have a “traditional” four.
The NBA announced in the off season that the officials would crack down (point of emphasis) on the off-arm push-offs frequently used by players like Harden, and SGA. Was any data released from the pre-season games on whether the officials were calling this violation more frequently than before (knowing that the calls might be fewer if players were policing themselves)? — Coops Knee Highs
There hasn’t been and I don’t expect there will be. In the past, the league has never really done something like this when it comes to its points of emphasis. Things could change this year, but that would be a new development.
TORONTO, CANADA - JULY 26: Edwin Encarnacion #10 of the Toronto Blue Jays celebrates his fourth inning home run with teammates Brett Lawrie #13 and Travis Snider #45 during MLB game action against the Oakland Athletics July 26, 2012 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Brad White/Getty Images) | Getty Images
During the playoffs, teams that aren’t participating usually fade from the spotlight. MLB discourages any team from making headlines that might take attention away from postseason action. Of course, it’s also quite possible the Blue Jays wouldn’t provide us with much to discuss regardless.
Let’s try a question:
Which Blue Jays player did you have the highest hopes for, only to see them fall short of your expectations?
There are plenty of possible answers, but right now, mine is Travis Snider. Snider was the organization’s top prospect and made an encouraging debut. In 2008, at 20, he appeared in 24 games and and hit .301/.338/.466.
The next year, at 21, he played 77 games and hit .241/.328/.419—not bad for someone his age. In 2010, he posted a .255/.304/.463 line over 82 games.
Some decisions didn’t make sense to me. He was a top prospect on a team that finished 11 games out of first place—so why not let him play every day? At 22, he posted a .767 OPS. Why not give him a regular spot in the lineup?
In 2011, he played just 49 games for Toronto. On July 30, the Pirates traded him.
He spent three seasons in Pittsburgh, hitting .244/.314/.388 over 311 games, and later spent a year with the Orioles.
I always felt he was a bit mismanaged. If you call up a player at age 21, you need to commit to playing him regularly. But the Jays had their struggles with developing young talent at that time, often opting for veterans like Kevin Millar, Brad Wilkerson, and Kevin Mench instead. When a young player arrives at 20 or 21, you have to let him play.
Now it’s your turn. You don’t need to write 400 words—just share your pick and your reasoning.
Ron Duguay, a flashy NHL forward who was known for his off-the-ice life as well as his skill on the ice, died Oct. 22 after a battle with colon cancer. He was 69.
Duguay spent 12 seasons in the NHL, including six with the Rangers, helping lead them to the 1979 Stanley Cup Final, where New York lost in five games to the Montreal Canadiens.
Duguay had 164 goals and 176 assists for 340 points in 499 games with the Rangers, where he was selected with the 13th pick in the 1977 NHL Draft.
“The New York Rangers organization mourns the loss of Ron Duguay, one of the most popular players in franchise history,” the Rangers said in a statement. “Ron’s signature skating style – with his hair flowing as he moved down the ice – captivated The Garden Faithful, and his skill, tenacity, and charisma earned him the admiration of all New Yorkers. We join the hockey community in sending our condolences to Ron’s friends, family, and loved ones during this difficult time."
The New York Rangers organization mourns the loss of Ron Duguay, one of the most popular players in franchise history. Ron's signature skating style - with his hair flowing as he moved down the ice - captivated The Garden Faithful, and his skill, tenacity, and charisma earned him… pic.twitter.com/q1FzskSdN5
Duguay also played for the Detroit Red Wings, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Los Angeles Kings, and later returned to the Rangers. He recorded 673 points in the NHL regular season and playoffs, retired from hockey in 2008-09 and was an in-studio analyst for MSG Network for 12 years.
Duguay was divorced twice and had two children. At the time of his death, he was dating former Alaska governor and 2008 Republican U.S. vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin.
For better or worse, the spotlight was on Brady Tkachuk for much of the night on Wednesday at Canadian Tire Centre.
It was Brady’s first game back in Ottawa since he was traded by the Senators to the Florida Panthers over the summer.
As many expected, there were plenty of fireworks both on and off the ice.
Much of the ambiance was set by the Senators fans in the stands, who pelted Tkachuk with a barrage of chants throughout the evening.
Those chants included “Brady sucks,” “F—k you, Brady,” “You eat crayons,” and “You can’t read,” among others.
To his credit, Tkachuk took it all in stride.
He smiled at the crowd as they chanted at him before the game, during his tribute video and much of the time he was on the ice.
“Were they ruthless?” Tkachuk said with a smile when asked about the crowd after the game. “It was good. It shows the passion they have.”
As for the game itself, the early stages were dominated by Ottawa, much to the delight of their fans.
The Panthers first shot on goal didn’t come until the ten-minute mark of the opening period, but it was a big one.
With Florida on their first power play of the night, Matthew Tkachuk found his brother to the right of Ottawa’s net, and Brady quickly spun around with the puck and fired a shot that went off Sens goalie Linus Ullmark and into the net.
That would basically be the end of any positivity toward Florida’s night.
Five unanswered goals later, Tkachuk and the Panthers skated off with their tails between their legs following the 5-1 onslaught by the Senators.
“It was just nice to be back,” Brady said. “Of course, it’s not the outcome we wanted, but it’s the start of a road trip. Just have to bounce back and move on to tomorrow.”
The game featured a total of 84 penalty minutes, two fights and 67 hits, though the verbal assault by the Sens fans certainly seemed more blatant and profound than anything that happened on the ice.
“It wasn’t out best game,” said Tkachuk.
Fortunately for the Cats, it won’t be long before they have a chance to make up for the rough night.
Florida will be right back in action on Thursday when they wrap up the road back-to-back with a matchup against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
“It’s a really big test tomorrow, really challenging,” Tkachuk said. “We’ve got one of the greatest to ever do it stepping on the ice tomorrow, so that’ll just get you really excited for that.”
Photo caption: Oct 21, 2026; Ottawa, Ontario, CAN; Florida Panthers left wingBradyTkachuk(8) salutes the crowd as he is welcomed back to the Canadian Tire Centre to play against the Ottawa Senators for the first time. (Marc DesRosiers-Imagn)
(Photo by Jesse D. Garrabrant/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The inaugural possession of the Philadelphia 76ers’ season opener against the New York Knicks, a 106-100 Sixers win to spoil some of New York’s banner-raising delight, helped convey just how different life may be for each of Philadelphia’s four All-Stars this year, particularly its point guard, Tyrese Maxey.
After shuffling up the floor, Maxey delivered the ball to his backcourt mate, VJ Edgecombe, and veered into a bludgeoning back-screen as LeBron James took the baton and initiated the action himself. With the entirety of Philadelphia’s star-laden starting five in transit, New York could not properly traverse the commotion. Worried about James motoring downhill, OG Anunoby was tardy switching onto Maxey, who rainbowed home the catch-and-shoot triple for three of his game-high 28 points.
Tuesday night, Maxey hoisted five catch-and-shoot threes to compose 26.3% of his total field goals. Last season, he averaged just 3.4 per game to compose 15.9% of his total field goals, per NBA.com. Although Maxey netted only one of these attempts — he made 41.8% of them a year ago — his quality of looks throughout the contest was significantly better than the past three seasons and signaled a splendid scoring campaign ahead.
With James and Jaylen Brown now flanking Maxey, Edgecombe and Joel Embiid, the Sixers are swimming in the deep end of star power, scoring outlets and championship expectations. They are all eyeing a deep playoff run that culminates in a title. Step one of their journey began Tuesday with an impressive victory inside the reigning champs’ palace.
There’s plenty to glean from that performance, most of it positive, as should be the case after defeating a team as daunting and as healthy as the Knicks. So, what did game one teach us about the Sixers? Where do they currently stand? Where can they go? And what hurdles might they need to overcome along the way?
The stage is set for Tyrese Maxey to be his best self
Maxey’s uptick in spoonfed threes underscored how much easier and reshaped his scoring load should be this season. While he’s a tremendous player and offensive cog, on-ball creation, especially from a standstill, is not his ideal deployment. Yet the past three seasons — with scant surrounding perimeter creation and Embiid toggling in and out of the lineup — consistently stretched him too thin as he garnered usage for which he’s unqualified.
Philadelphia’s revamped roster will alleviate that burden and let him boogie as one of the league’s foremost off-ball scorers. Maxey is now free to zip around screens, catch the ball on the move, knife through tilted defenses and leverage his speed and shooting without his size and limited vision disrupting those efforts as often.
Since 2023-24, Maxey’s rate of assisted makes has been 43%, 37% and 45%, according to Cleaning the Glass. Tuesday, 67% of his field goals were assisted, including 71% of his 2-pointers. The latter number there is the starkest shift; last year, only 37.8% of his 2s were assisted, per NBA.com. Maxey seems likely to enjoy far more opportunities this season being coaxed downhill with help from others rather than being burdened with the task himself. That’s a major windfall for his game.
He is still the focal point of the offense (his 26.6% usage rate narrowly trailed Embiid’s 27.4%) but the means to reach those ends are more favorable. He went 7-of-10 inside the arc and drew nine free throws. Even if he won’t shoot 70% on 2s moving forward, he will shoot better than 22% (2-of-9) from deep. Those extremes offset one another. With reps like these, Maxey is primed for a titanic scoring season:
The Sixers are lethal when they run. How often will they?
Beyond his vast off-ball scoring exploits in the half-court, Maxey’s sterling offensive signature stems in part from his transition prowess. Year after year, Philadelphia is a considerably more efficient open-floor team when he’s on the court. With James and Brown joining him and Edgecombe, a quartet of transition tycoons now don Sixers red, white and blue.
Ideally, they’ll tap into that and produce as many easy buckets as possible. When they did hit the runway Tuesday, they thrived. According to Cleaning the Glass, they averaged 1.8 points per transition possession. But their fast-break frequency was only 10% (league average was 15.4% last season).
Now, the Knicks were well-organized setting up their defense to discourage early offense chances, which is a hallmark of this group’s resistance. They’ve ranked seventh or better in opponent transition rate every season since 2023-24. But I’m fascinated to monitor how often the Sixers mash the accelerator — they’ve sat outside the top 10 in transition frequency every year since 2021-22 — because the chemistry among Maxey, Brown and James was evident. When those dudes had opportunities, they were prompt and cohesive seizing them.
Most opponents the Sixers face this year will not be as talented or connected as New York’s. Teams will have lapses in judgment or let tired legs prevail, so Philadelphia can successfully dial up the tempo. But if the Sixers keep defending like they did Tuesday, the stops will pile up, especially against less dangerous offenses than the Knicks’, and they’ll enjoy plenty of running and gunning, if they so choose.
Philadelphia held New York to a 98.0 defensive rating and 24-of-61 shooting (39.3%) inside the arc. That defensive rating would’ve been its seventh-best mark across the entire 2025-26 season and fourth-best against all playoff opponents.
The Sixers were led by a domineering rim protection performance from Embiid, who looked quite nimble and comfortable in space. Cycling through drop coverage, trapping and hedging, he disrupted ball-handlers and still bothered big men when they received passes. He recorded three blocks, a feat he accomplished only five times combined in 2024-25 and 2025-26, including the playoffs. New York took 25.4% of its shots at the rim when he was on the floor and 41.9% of them when he sat, per databallr.
Embiid operating like a premier interior anchor drastically elevates Philadelphia’s defensive ceiling. As Brunson probed inside the arc, Embiid allowed the Sixers’ help defenders to continually stay home (no lob threat was a boon, too) and suppress the Knicks’ 3-point volume. Just 33.3% of their field goals came beyond the arc, which would’ve tied for their ninth-lowest rate of 2025-26.
Helping punctuate Embiid’s retrograde defensive showing was Brown, who did not serve as Brunson’s primary defender but wielded his size and discipline to frustrate the 2026 Finals MVP during his cameos.
While Embiid roamed off of Josh Hart much of the second half, James assumed the Karl-Anthony Towns assignment to reel in Towns as a shooter, driver and playmaker. James touts the strength and foot speed to tightly close out on Towns without worries of being steamrolled to the rim and was diligent about interfering with his passing windows. As a result, Towns tallied one assist to four turnovers, repeatedly struggling to find beneficial space against his weathered counterpart.
LeBron did a good job last night of disrupting KAT's passing windows. He's got the strength and foot speed to tightly close out on him without fear of being bowled through downhill and really made it tough for KAT to create quality looks as a playmaker or scorer: pic.twitter.com/dmGRaLBrG3
Embiid, Brown and James may have spearheaded Philadelphia’s suffocating defense but the supporting cast of Maxey (three steals, three blocks), Edgecombe (one steal) and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (one block) all contributed to harmonic execution.
The Sixers seamlessly switched off-ball actions — Brown, James, Maxey, Caldwell-Pope and Edgecombe all have some matchup versatility — communicated punctually to prevent mismatches, rotated to blot out lucrative openings and applied necessary physicality to divert the Knicks from traveling where they pleased.
The James-Embiid frontline was scrutinized much of the offseason as it pertained to Philadelphia’s defensive possibilities. One game against one opponent — whose style is plainly out there to scout since it hardly altered the roster — does not extinguish all concerns.
But it would be hard for them to start a season more encouragingly than they did. The perimeter quartet bouncing around, talking, pointing and effectively navigating screens ensured it would result in a shiny outcome. Sustained attention to detail and movement skills like those from the entire rotation will quell many of the worries that surrounded Philadelphia over the summer.
Jaylen Brown, fitting in
After the gaudiest season of his career as he filled in for the injured Jayson Tatum to lead the Boston Celtics offensively, many (including me) wondered how Brown may assimilate to a star-infused Sixers roster that wouldn’t require such towering, centralized usage.
In his debut Tuesday night, Brown (19 points on 7-of-14 shooting, eight rebounds, six assists, one steal, one block) reverted back to his early NBA days when he wasn’t an All-NBA wing and saw many of his chances as a cutter, quick-hitting driver and off-ball attacker/shooter.
His 50 touches ranked fourth on the Sixers, down from 66.1 per game last year, and six of his seven field goals were assisted (85.7%, up from 36% last year). The lone unassisted bucket was a slaloming transition score. His imprint occurred organically and as a backseat to Maxey, Embiid and James.
Even Brown’s seven misfires were within the construct of the offense and never felt overbearing. He missed a corner three off a sideline-out-of-bounds set, couldn’t convert a rhythmic turnaround inside over the diminutive Jose Alvarado, was bested by a Deuce McBride strip/block in early offense, walked Landry Shamet under the rim before having a layup roll out, caught a grenade late in a disjointed possession, clanked an open pull-up jumper over Shamet and left a spot-up three short.
Although Brown was traded in a one-for-one deal involving Paul George, James’ acquisition meant he was truly replacing Kelly Oubre Jr. in the starting unit. During Oubre’s three seasons as a Sixer, opposing defenses, including the Knicks, routinely ignored him on the weak-side to muck up happenings elsewhere, confident he didn’t brandish the offensive arsenal to truly punish that gambit.
With Brown in his stead, New York’s helpers felt more conflicted, unsure of whether to abandon a highly talented scorer like Brown or let other highly talented scorers like Embiid and Maxey run amok. His mere existence granted fellow All-Stars single coverage inside and they capitalized; Philadelphia’s rim frequency was 35.3% with him on the floor and 4.5%(!!) without him, per databallr.
A singular game does not immediately dissolve all questions about Brown’s fit and offensive duties. But it does capture how naturally he can embrace a valuable, amended role to complement his new running mates when facing the caliber of team the Sixers expect to see this spring.
This whole experiment is still a work in progress
Despite the win and a dogged defensive game, there is considerable room to improve. The Sixers’ 106 points yielded a 103.0 offensive rating. Sure, shooting 27.5% (11-of-40) beyond the arc hurt. But they didn’t compensate with pristine interior scoring, making 26-of-49 (53.1%) of their 2-pointers.
Embiid didn’t seem entirely comfortable with his perimeter-based deployment, attempting seven triples (two were late-clock heaves), and rarely rolled to the free-throw line, his most potent area on the floor. That’s not a new development and I imagine his decade-long series of lower-body injuries has him cautious to play in a crowd as often nowadays. New York often sat on those potential rolls as well, which likely influenced his decision to hover around the arc.
Yet he and Philadelphia are a much more fluid, lethal attack when he’s confronting defenders at the nail rather than almost exclusively sitting beyond the 3-point line as a “spacer” (defenses don’t worry about him there), handoff hub and screener.
He’s a notoriously slow starter offensively (four points, 1-of-9 shooting in the 2025-26 season opener; 2-of-11 in his 2024-25 debut) and migrated toward the midrange as last year progressed, so it’s totally plausible that occurs again. The Sixers should hope it does to reach their tantalizing offensive ceiling.
James set a handful of empty-corner ball-screens for Maxey and hardly rolled with vigor out of them either. It stagnated the offense at times and left potential profits on the table. According to Synergy, he’s ranked in the 24th percentile (2025-26, 1.00 points per possession) and 21st percentile (2024-25, 0.98 PPP) the past two seasons as a roller, so such usage hasn’t entirely suited him lately; space was, however, there to attack and he did not.
I understand he takes a bit of time to ramp up each year but his explosion, both vertically and horizontally, is greatly diminished from his prime (duh). I thought that subdued his aggression and am curious whether those habits evolve over the season to better elevate the offense. Theoretically, he and Maxey should kill on those empty-corner actions.
The Sixers’ peak is contingent on their front-court recording more inspiring ball-screen reps than these and being more commanding interior presences than totaling 27 points on 7-of-28 shooting (41.7% true shooting).
Game one speed bumps for a bunch of players still navigating how to best interact with each other on the court is not reason for panic, let alone against such a high-level defense. Embiid will be a much more imposing force offensively in six weeks than he is today. James will better understand where he’s optimized as a half-court cog by Christmas than he does today. But they are nonetheless areas to address as Philadelphia builds toward title contention and discovers itself offensively.
And hey, doing so while 1-0 with a nifty win like that in your backpocket ain’t too shabby.
WILLIAMSPORT, PA - AUGUST 23: Milwaukee Brewers mascot Bernie Brewer looks on during the 2026 Little League Classic presented by New York Life between the Atlanta Braves and the Milwaukee Brewers at Journey Bank Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field on Sunday, August 23, 2026 in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Hailey Leonard/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The World Series starts tomorrow in Milwaukee at 8PM. First World Series against two teams who have never won a title since the 1980 title match.
Tim Stebbins wrote about offseason questions for the Guardians.
Zack Meisel wrote about the hitting and pitching issues that led to the Guardians losing three games straight in the ALCS. Of most note, Tanner Bibee said he is ready to make any changes needed to improve from his 2025-2026 performances.
Mar 29, 2025; San Francisco, CA, USA; Florida Gators guard Walter Clayton Jr. (1) celebrates defeating the Texas Tech Red Raiders during the West Regional final of the 2025 NCAA tournament at Chase Center. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Clayton Jr. rose to prominence before the 2025 NBA Draft in the NCAA Tournament, almost single-handedly carrying his Florida Gators through the clutch repeatedly. Whether it be in the Round of 32 against UConn, the unreal comeback against Texas Tech in the Elite Eight, or the heroics of the National Championship game against Houston, anytime Florida needed something, Clayton Jr. provided it.
SAN ANTONIO, TEXAS – APRIL 07: Walter Clayton Jr. #1 of the Florida Gators celebrates after defeating the Houston Cougars in the National Championship of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at the Alamodome on April 07, 2025 in San Antonio, Texas. (Photo by Sam Hodde/Getty Images) | Getty Images
You are probably saying to yourself “Self, Walter Clayton Jr. was drafted in 2025, I don’t care what he did in college. How did he play in the NBA last season?” The answer to that is a bit more complicated!
Clayton was selected 18th overall in the 2025 Draft by the Utah Jazz. The Jazz were very much not interested in winning last season, so many of the looks he received were not placing him in the best position to succeed.
When Utah made the trade to acquire Jaren Jackson Jr. from Memphis, the Grizzlies demanded that he be part of that package. He was, and thus he played the last 24 games of the season in Memphis. Memphis, obviously, also wasn’t very interested in winning, thus the looks for Clayton Jr. were difficult.
However, Clayton did a much better job of assisting and getting others involved while playing for the Grizzlies, as he racked up nearly six dimes per contest. And to top it all off, Clayton was playing his best ball at the end of the regular season, shooting 50% from deep and 47% overall in the month of April.
Of course, Memphis had a roster crunch this offseason, and after being left without a partner on the dance floor, were forced to cut bait. Now, after a very short waiting period after clearing waivers, the 2025 NCAA Tournament’s Most Outstanding Player joins forces with that tournament’s highest drafted player in Cooper Flagg. So, what can you look for with Clayton Jr. here in Dallas? Here’s a few things that tell his story as a player.
Clayton Jr. is fearless
You don’t have the courage to step up and hit these outrageous shots the way Clayton did if you don’t have some intestinal fortitude, and he’s got that in spades. At 6’2”, he has to be intentional about getting shots off on the outside, and also a very physical and crafty finisher. He’s shown that in the past, as per Yahoo! Sports, Clayton Jr. shot over 60% at the rim in his final year at Florida. While he’s struggled in the NBA at times with that, I think part of that is rookie lumps, while the other part is just simply the floor math being tilted against him. I’d love to get another look at that from him in Dallas.
Shooting is a strength… I think
Coming out of Florida, Clayton shot nearly 40% on spot-up 3-pointers and 37% on off-the-dribble attempts. For a college player, those are fantastic numbers. As mentioned above, Clayton also excelled at finishing at the cup. In the NBA, he has done none of those well. Last year, Clayton shot a combined 75-of-244 from deep across his two stops, good for just under 31%. He also was just 47% on two-pointers in the NBA, a number that should be better. Now, small samples across a rookie season in which he was traded and not set up for success should be taken with a hefty grain of salt. But, it would be great to see the bounce back this season.
The playmaking has taken a step forward
One of the issues coming into his rookie year was the lack of real playmaking pop from Clayton. At Florida, he showed some flashes, but there were some head-scratching turnovers and, frankly, I just don’t think he saw the floor well at times. You could kind of crowd him a bit and with his shorter stature, it forced some issues. Well, in Memphis to end the season, Clayton averaged over eight assists per 36 minutes, while keeping his turnovers down to around three. That’s really good work and a great sign for his future.
Best and worst case outcome
The best-case scenario for Clayton seems to be a Payton Pritchard- or Jordan Clarkson-type of star-in-their-role player. If he can continue to showcase the playmaking pop, perhaps he can reach those upper-tier outcomes and become a starter in this league. At worst, Clayton is probably out of the league after the year, but that really only happens if the shot continues to fall off, he doesn’t keep up the playmaking, and is just overwhelmed when on the ball.
In reality, I do think Clayton is an NBA player. He needs a steady home and a system that can maximize what he does. At Florida, Todd Golden implored that group to run, drive-and-kick and press the defense. I think Clayton Jr. can find some of that in Dallas, and I hope he is able to make it stick.
Aug 23, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies right fielder Bryan de la Cruz (41) celebrates as he scores the game-winning run during the ninth inning against the St. Louis Cardinals at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
outfield (noun): 1) the part of a baseball field beyond the infield and between the foul lines, 2) a position on a baseball team which the Phillies have trouble developing players.
There was a point in the season in which Felix Reyes was considered an outfielder.
Felix Reyes.
Then the team decided to give de la Cruz a shot and what do you know? He actually started to produce a bit once he made it back to the major leagues. Too little, too late?
The biggest thing that de la Cruz brought to the team was adequacy. Putting Edmundo Sosa out in the outfield was fine as a one or two game thing, but depending on him as a true part of a platoon was not great planning. It was done because they didn’t have any real options to do that…..except that they did.
He was fine at the plate, taking a few walks, striking out less than the league average, even popping a couple of home runs. He was a fine fourth outfielder.
Remember how de la Cruz was supposed to be the right handed part of a platoon in the outfield? Turns out, even in a limited setting, he wasn’t actually that good against left handed pitching. He had an .891 OPS against right handers, a .623 OPS against left handers. Neither number was with more than 50 plate appearances, so the small sample size argument is ripe here, but that does seem kind of impossible to do.
Final grade: B
In his limited time here, de la Cruz was at least productive. As stated previously, as a fourth outfielder, he’s a fine option. The issue is not with him; it’s about timing.
Why did it take so long for the team to bring him up?
While with Lehigh Valley, de la Cruz posted an .806 OPS in 356 plate appearances. His strikeout rates were fine, his walk rates were fine, his defense was….fine. What took so long for the team to bring him up? They were willing to try others ahead of him, Reyes included, for reasons known only to the team. Would he have helped them win games earlier in the season? Maybe. Maybe having a more competent outfield option helps them get through some of the early season doldrums they had on offense. By the team he was brought up, Bryce Harper was the regular right fielder and de la Cruz played more games in left. He wasn’t producing so much that the decision to keep him down was so egregious, but it was more of a roster construction head scratcher.
It highly unlikely he’d be brought back unless he takes another minor league deal. If he did that, the team should consider it. As a starter on a major league deal? They had better upgrade everywhere else first before considering that idea.
