MLB's Tokyo Series a Hit with Fans and Collectors
Konnichiwa, Collectors.
The baseball season is officially underway, with the Dodgers sitting at 2-0 after sweeping the Cubs in the Tokyo Series. The games, featuring Japanese MLB stars Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki for the Dodgers, and Shota Imanaga and Seiya Suzuki for the Cubs, was a huge success, with more than 25M fans in Japan tuning into the opening game.
The series was also closely followed by collectors, with Topps releasing a special set of Series 1 cards, Complex, Topps and artist Takashi Murakami collaborating on suite of cards and merch that had lines snaking around retail outlets, and even MLB auctioning off jerseys, balls and bases from the games.
Which makes us wonder, how did MLB authenticate and list all of those items for auction so quickly…?
And here's our answer! ESPN.com published a deep-dive of MLB's authentication process, which aims to ensure the legitimacy of game-used memorabilia. Since 2001, MLB has authenticated over 10.5M items, including jerseys, baseballs, and other equipment. The authentication team, composed of former law enforcement personnel, catalogs and records items using a hologram system and a strict chain of custody. The long-read is a fascinating look at how items like the ball from Ohtani's first hit of the season, or Imanaga's jersey from Game 1, go from field to the auction block.
A rare copy of baseball's most iconic card, the T206 Honus Wagner, known as 'The Connecticut Wagner,' is set to be auctioned in Goldin's Spring Vintage Auction starting May 21. The card, a PSA 1, which last sold publicly in 2010 for $282,000, is expected to sell for significantly more this time around, with estimates cresting the $5M figure. Meanwhile, another T206 Wagner, this one graded PSA Authentic (Restored), is heading to auction through Mile High Card Company, with the sale kicking off April 7.
A copy of the other contender for 'baseball's most iconic card' is up for auction, and it arrived there under unique circumstances. Back in 1980, to settle a $100 debt tied to a game of pinochle, a man accepted a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle card in lieu of a crisp Benjamin. The card was then stored safely for 4 decades until it was inherited by his grandson, who got it graded (SGC 2.5) and sent it to Fanatics Collect for auction. The sale ends tonight, and at press time, bidding was already at $36,000, making the card-over-cash decision a very lucrative one.
Hey! Are you reading Mail Day yet? Those who are got the hot tip to pick up J.J. McCarthy rookie cards on Tuesday, a day before news broke that he was likely to be named the Vikings starter headed into the upcoming NFL season. And Mail Day readers got the scoop on the new Capris Sun Moon Punch, that has collectors holstering their plastic straws to preserve the limited edition pouches. The next Mail Day, known in certain never-wrong circles as the most entertaining read in collectibles, drops Tuesday.
To follow up on a story we've been tracking at Above the Mantel, the leader of a crime ring that stole and melted down priceless sports memorabilia, including Yogi Berra's World Series rings and Roger Maris' MVP awards, has been sentenced to an 8-year prison term. Earlier this month Thomas Trotta plead guilty to the crimes, including targeting museums and private collections to steal irreplaceable artifacts. In addition to the prison sentence, Trotta was ordered to pay over $2.7M in restitution.
Today begins one of the best stretches in all of sports, March Madness. Heading into the tournament, all eyes are on freshman sensation Cooper Flagg, after he injured his ankle in the ACC Tournament. Flagg is expected to play, and his sports card market (and firm status as the top pick in the upcoming NBA draft) will be strengthened by a strong run in March. Think Flagg and Duke can win it all? Join Mantel's Bracket Mayhem on Yahoo Sports, where the winner will take home a box of 2024 Topps Chrome McDonald's All-American Basketball Mega Box.
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Associated Press
25 minutes ago
- Associated Press
This Date in Baseball - Stephen Strasburg strikes out 14 in MLB debut
June 8 1914 — New York's Iron Joe McGinnity posted his 14th straight win beating Pittsburgh 2-0. With the win moved the Giants into first place over Chicago. 1933 — Philadelphia's Jimmie Foxx homered in his first three at bats all off Lefty Gomez as the A's beat the New York Yankees 14-10. Foxx had homered his last time up the previous day to tie a major league record of hitting four consecutive home runs. Bobby Lowe did it in 1894. 1940 — Harry Craft of Cincinnati connected for a home run, a triple, a double and two singles in seven at-bats to lead a 27-hit attack as the Reds pounded the Dodgers 23-2 at Brooklyn. 1950 — The Boston Red Sox beat the St. Louis Browns 29-4 at Fenway Park and set major league records for runs scored; most long hits, 17 (nine doubles, one triple and seven homers); most total bases, 60; most extra bases on long hits, 32; most runs over two games, 49; most hits in two games, 51, including 28 this game. Bobby Doerr had three homers and 8 RBIs, Walt Dropo hit two homers and drove in seven runs and Ted Williams added two homers and five RBIs. 1968 — Howie Bedell's sacrifice fly in the fifth inning ended Don Drysdale's record streak of 58 2-3 consecutive scoreless innings. The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Philadelphia Phillies 5-3. 1969 — The New York Yankees' No. 7 was retired on Mickey Mantle Day. A crowd of 60,096 came to Yankee Stadium to honor Mantle and watched the Yankees sweep the Chicago White Sox 3-1 and 11-2. 1975 — Detroit's Tom Veryzer doubled with two out in the ninth to end Oakland's Ken Holtzman's no-hitter. Outfielder Bill North misjudged Veryzer's hit but was not charged with an error. Holtzman retired the last hitter for a 4-0 victory. 1986 — In the longest 9-inning game by time in AL history Baltimore's Lee Lacy went 4-for-6 with three home runs and six RBIs as the Orioles beat the New York Yankees 18-9. The game took 4:16 to complete. 1996 — Warren Morris hit a two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Louisiana State a 9-8 victory over Miami in the championship game of the College World Series. 2001 — Damion Easley became the ninth Detroit player to hit for the cycle as the Tigers beat Milwaukee 9-4. 2010 — Stephen Strasburg exceeded expectations in his much-hyped major league debut, striking out 14 in seven innings to lead the Washington Nationals to a 5-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates. Last year's No. 1 overall draft pick allowed four hits, two earned runs and didn't walk a batter, piling up the most strikeouts in a debut since J.R. Richard fanned 15 for Houston in 1971. 2012 — Kevin Millwood and five Seattle relievers combined on a no-hitter, the third in franchise history, and the Mariners beat the Los Angeles Dodgers 1-0. Millwood was cruising through six innings, giving up just one walk. But while warming up for the seventh he felt a twinge in his groin and was pulled from the game. Five relievers combined to finish the no-hitter, capped by Tom Wilhelmsen retiring Andre Ethier on a routine grounder to end it. 2013 — In the longest major league game in more than three years, Adeiny Hechavarria hit an RBI single in the 20th inning and the Miami Marlins outlasted the New York Mets 2-1. 2020 — MLB owners present their counter-proposal to get the season started. They propose playing 76 games, with a postseason involving 16 teams, drop the proposed sliding scale for reducing salaries - although they still seek further cuts -, and also propose dropping all forms of compensation for signing free agents. The ball is now back in the MLBPA's court. 2021 — Pirates rookie 3B Ke'Bryan Hayes, swinging a red hot bat after coming back from a two-month stay on the injured list, makes a very embarrassing mistake when he has a home run taken away for missing first base. His apparent solo shot off Walker Buehler is nullified when the Dodgers successfully appeal that he did not touch the bag while rounding the bases. _____
New York Times
39 minutes ago
- New York Times
Craig Kimbrel rejoins Braves 11 years later, and their losing streak continues
SAN FRANCISCO – More than 2 1/2 months after Craig Kimbrel signed a minor-league deal with the Atlanta Braves, and two weeks after he called general manager and president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos to tell him he was ready, the team's all-time saves leader finally made it back. The Braves added Kimbrel to the major league roster and joined the team in San Francisco for Friday's series opener against the Giants. He pitched a scoreless seventh inning in a game that ended like far too many have recently for the Braves — in a one-run loss, the fifth consecutive defeat for Atlanta and 12th in 15 games. Advertisement 'It feels good (to be back),' said Kimbrel, a 15-year veteran who began his career with the Braves but last pitched for them in 2014. 'I've been working hard for the last couple of months to get back here, and whatever the circumstances are, it's great to be back to come and help this ballclub. Throw up some zeroes, do my job and just enjoy it.' He threw up a zero, but he and the Braves didn't enjoy Friday night, which ended with another loss for Atlanta. The spiraling Braves have not enjoyed much lately. They lost 5-4 in 10 innings Friday on a walk-off wild pitch by Pierce Johnson, whose curveball bounced wide of Sean Murphy, allowing Tyler Fitzgerald to score as Atlanta absorbed its third consecutive one-run loss and fifth in the past 13 games. The Braves stink in close games, partly because of their bullpen but also because of their poor situational hitting. They were 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position Friday. They got a tying two-run homer from Matt Olson in the seventh inning, and nearly a grand slam by Alex Verdugo, whose fourth-inning fly sailed wide of the right-field foul pole. They left the bases loaded in the 10th, failing to score after advancing the ghost runner to third with one out. The Braves and Giants have each played 26 games decided by one run, tied for the most in the majors, and Atlanta has lost 17, while San Francisco has won 14. The Braves' 13-24 record in games decided by one or two runs is third-worst in the majors, better than the Chicago White Sox (6-24) and Colorado Rockies (9-22). That helps explain why the Braves are 27-35 and in fourth place in the National League East, 12 games behind the division-leading New York Mets and 3 1/2 games ahead of the last-place Florida Marlins. And so it goes. Kimbrel's fastballs Friday averaged 91.5 mph, far below the 97-99 mph heat he delivered during his closer heyday with the Braves more than a decade ago. He gave up a soft single and a walk to the first two batters he faced. Advertisement He got through the inning with three batters faced, thanks to a terrific throw by Murphy to throw out Heliot Ramos trying to steal second base and Kimbrel's pick-off of Jung Hoo Lee at first base. Kimbrel struck out Wilmer Flores to end the inning and keep the score 4-4. 'Kind of lucked out in it a little bit, obviously,' Snitker said. 'I'm glad he got through it. It's good to kind of get him out there for the first time. So, you know, we'll see.' Now pitching for your Atlanta Braves, number 46, Craig Kimbrel!#BravesCountry — Atlanta Braves (@Braves) June 7, 2025 The move to add Kimbrel, 37, came after Atlanta's bullpen imploded in one of the team's worst losses in recent memory Thursday, when the Arizona Diamondbacks scored seven runs in the ninth inning to win 11-10 in Atlanta. Before Friday's game, Kimbrel wished happy birthday to his son, Joseph, who turned 3 Friday, and talked about how pleased he was to rejoin the team with whom the Huntsville, Ala., native began his career. The team that his grandmother still watches play every game, and she was thrilled about Kimbrel wearing the 'A' on his cap again. The Braves put setup man Daysbel Hernández on the 15-day injured list Friday with forearm inflammation, and traded reliever Scott Blewett back to the Baltimore Orioles for cash, one day after Blewett was charged with five runs, including four in that ninth-inning collapse. They also recalled left-hander Dylan Dodd, attempting to do something, anything, to get things turned around with their bullpen and their team in general. 'I think where we're at right now, it's good to have two fresh arms,' Snitker said. Kimbrel rejoins the Braves at the Giants' ballpark where he pitched in the NL Division Series as a rookie in 2010, when he worked two perfect innings with four strikeouts in Game 2, the only win for Atlanta and retiring manager Bobby Cox in that series. Advertisement 'Yeah, the playoffs in 2010,' Kimbrel said, smiling at the memory. 'This still is one of my favorite ballparks, and moments (like that), things that you enjoy and you remember and that make them your favorite in your life. And that playoffs there was kind of my welcome to the big leagues moment. This place is electric when it's sold out in the playoffs, so it is good to be back.' Closer Billy Wagner strained an oblique in that Game 2 win, the last game pitched by the Hall of Famer, and Kimbrel, who was 22 at the time, was brought in with a runner on base and none out in the ninth inning of Game 4 in Atlanta, the Braves trailing 3-2. Kimbrel got three quick outs by striking out Buster Posey and getting Travis Ishikawa to ground into a double play. But the Braves failed to score in the bottom of the ninth. Kimbrel took over as closer in 2011, when he led the NL with 46 saves and a staggering 41.5 percent strikeout rate, piling up 127 strikeouts with 32 walks in 77 innings. He was the unanimous NL Rookie of the Year winner, ahead of teammate Freddie Freeman. It marked the first of four consecutive All-Star appearances for Kimbrel, who during that dizzying five-year span in 2010-2014 compiled a 1.43 ERA in 294 appearances for Atlanta, with 186 saves and 476 strikeouts in 289 innings. He finished in the top nine in Cy Young balloting each of those All-Star seasons and received MVP votes in three. In short, Kimbrel had one of the greatest five-year stretches of any closer in history, then was traded to San Diego just before Opening Day in 2015 when the Braves were shaving payroll and needed to move him to dump B.J. Upton's bad contract. Kimbrel has pitched for seven other major league teams since leaving Atlanta. He's never been as elite as he was with the Braves, but he had some standout seasons, making five more All-Star teams and also getting Cy Young votes in 2017 with the Boston Red Sox. Advertisement One year ago, he had a 2.10 ERA at the All-Star break with the Orioles, but he dealt with a balky back that worsened as the season progressed. After posting an 11.50 in 19 appearances after July 14, Baltimore released Kimbrel in September. He signed a minor-league deal with the Braves late in spring training, spent a few weeks in Florida pitching his way into game shape and then went to work in the minor leagues, making three Double A appearances before moving up to Triple-A Gwinnett and posting a 2.45 ERA in 15 appearances. Kimbrel had a recent stretch of seven scoreless appearances in which he allowed two hits and two walks with 10 strikeouts in seven innings before giving up two hits and two runs in his final appearance Wednesday. He had a clause in his contract that would force the Braves to bring him to the majors or release him if another team made a major-league offer. 'I mean, it was tough,' he said of waiting. 'This is where I want to be. It came out that (going elsewhere if offered a contract with another team) was an option, but I wanted to be here in Atlanta. This is the team, the jersey I want put on. Obviously, I wanted to be a couple weeks ago, but I didn't let it bother me too much, because I still got work to do. 'I knew at some point I was going to be throwing the ball, and I'm glad it's right now.' The clause in his contract wasn't a factor. 'There's a couple different reasons for that,' Kimbrel said candidly. 'I mean, obviously you got to have suitors on the other side as well, right? So, some of those things just didn't work out.' Friday, he was back with the Braves, pitching on a mound where he made a lasting memory 15 years earlier. 'I told him, I said, 'I remember kind of when he became Craig Kimbrel was here,'' said Snitker, who was the third base coach on that 2010 team and saw Kimbrel warm up with particular gusto in the postseason. 'After Billy pulled his oblique, I remember (Kimbrel) warming up and thinking, yeah, that's something special right there.' Snitker added, 'It's good to see him. He's worked hard to get back here. So, hopefully he can help us out.'
New York Post
40 minutes ago
- New York Post
Dodgers vs. Cardinals prediction: MLB picks, best bets Saturday
Gambling content 21+. The New York Post may receive an affiliate commission if you sign up through our links. Read our editorial standards for more information. Belmont Stakes day at Saratoga. Our pick, because we did so well in the first two legs, is Baeza. Looking to cash before Baeza leaves the starting gate. The Dodgers travel eastward to play the Cardinals in St. Louis. The Red Birds' Erick Fedde has surrendered nine runs over his last 16 innings, resulting in back-to-back losses. L.A.'s Yoshinobu Yamamoto comes off his worst start of the season. The Yanks scored four runs on seven hits and chased him after 3 ²/₃ innings. Yamamoto had given up just two runs in his previous 13 frames. Erick Fedde AP Four of his six wins were earned on the road. $50 on the Dodgers. In a game that had more twists and turns than Owen Wilson's nose, the Pirates nipped the Phillies 5-4. Learn all you need to know about MLB Betting Bailey Falter faltered, allowing four runs over 3 ²/₃ but this time the Bucs offered some run support. Bryan Reynolds and Henry Davis homered. Nick Gonzales' ninth-inning sac fly won it! Down -254 dornochers. Why Trust New York Post Betting The one and only Stitches has been handicapping baseball, daily, for the Post since 2019. Miraculously, he has finished in the black twice. But wait there's more. He showed his versatility by winning the Post's NFL Best Bet crown last year.
