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New York Times
17-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
What we got wrong: Looking back at our MLB trade grades from the 2024 deadline
By Tim Britton, Andy McCullough and Stephen J. Nesbitt We live in an era of instant feedback. When a trade happens, readers want to know what it means. Is this player going to make a difference for a contender? Is this prospect going to be worth tracking for years to come? Here at The Athletic, we have you covered. Last summer, we offered grades on more than 40 deadline deals, and we'll be back to do it again before this year's deadline. Advertisement We try our best to analyze these moves. But we don't always get them right. As any executive will tell you, it often takes years to get an accurate grade on any deal. Take the Chicago Cubs acquiring infielder Isaac Paredes last season. He did not play particularly well during his time in the Windy City, but he did help the club acquire outfielder Kyle Tucker during the winter. We couldn't have known that last July. Time tends to add more perspective. With that in mind, three of our graders from last summer's feverish deadline looked back at trades we got wrong and tried to explain why. Tampa Bay Rays get: RHP Dylan Lesko, OF Homer Bush Jr., C J.D. Gonzalez. San Diego Padres get: RHP Jason Adam Original grades: Padres: B Rays: A Andy McCullough: More than a decade ago, the writer Sam Miller — now a co-host of The Athletic's hit podcast The Roundtable — crystallized an era of transactional analysis with this gem: LOVE this trade for the Rays. Who'd they give up? And who'd they get? — Sam Miller (@SamMillerBB) January 22, 2014 We may have fallen into this trap when analyzing last year's deal that sent reliever Jason Adam to San Diego. All three of our writers felt the Padres did well in acquiring Adam, who has been excellent and is still under team control next season. But we LOVED this trade for the Rays. Whoops. Tampa Bay received three players for Adam: pitcher Dylan Lesko, outfielder Homer Bush Jr. and catcher J.D. Gonzalez. Lesko headlined the group. He had torn his ulnar collateral ligament in his senior year in high school, but San Diego still chose him with the 15th pick in the 2022 draft. Upon his return, he did not pitch well. In 16 outings for Class-A Fort Wayne last season, Lesko posted a 6.46 ERA and walked 6.7 batters per nine innings. Even so, to receive a recent first-round pick in exchange for a reliever felt like a coup for the Rays, an organization that excels at manufacturing relievers. Advertisement Well, it looks like Lesko's struggles last year were a harbinger rather than a blip. He appeared in four games for Class-A Bowling Green in April before being shut down for several months. Working as a reliever, he had lost the ability to find the plate. In his final outing for the Hot Rods, he faced eight batters, walked four and permitted three hits. He threw 30 pitches. Nine were strikes. That was on April 19. He did not appear in a game again until Tuesday, when he threw a scoreless inning for Tampa Bay's Florida Complex League affiliate. Lesko had worked with Rays officials in the intervening months to fix his delivery. In retrospect, I was too enamored with Lesko's past prospect status rather than his struggles in the present. Yes, he was once considered by some to be the best amateur arm in 2022. But after two years in the San Diego organization, he wasn't performing and the club was willing to move him. The Philadelphia Phillies, as a counter-example, kept 2021 first-round Andrew Painter off the table in trade discussions last summer, even as Painter recovered from elbow reconstruction. Lesko is still only 21. The Rays do not need to rush him. They took the time necessary to repair his delivery. They will see if Lesko can recapture the promise he displayed before he hurt his elbow in high school. But it hasn't been going well. It's a good reminder that the overwhelming majority of prospects flame out. As for the other players in the trade: Bush, 23, has been getting on base at a decent rate for Double-A Montgomery, but has not displayed much power. Gonzalez, 19, looked overmatched at the plate for Class-A Charleston before getting hurt. If I had to do it over again, I would not give the Rays a failing grade for this trade. This is the way of the world when it comes to acquiring young talent. But suggesting Tampa Bay aced the exam, as we did last summer, now looks silly. Revised grades: Padres: B Rays: A Los Angeles Dodgers get: UTIL Amed Rosario Tampa Bay Rays get: RHP Michael Flynn Original grades: Dodgers: B Rays: C Tim Britton: Did I spend the final two months of last regular season regretting that I wasn't even harsher than a C on the Guardians for deciding Lane Thomas was enough of an offensive upgrade in the outfield? Did I flip-flop entirely when Thomas hit his grand slam off Tarik Skubal to help send Cleveland to the ALCS, wondering if one swing alone turned that trade into an A+? Have I periodically checked Thomas' ugly numbers this season to further confuse myself? Will I ultimately settle back on C being the right grade? In the words of Molly Bloom, yes I said yes I will yes. Advertisement So I have to look elsewhere. And here's a little lesson on historical revisionism: When you want to tell people you were wrong but maintain that you still know better than them, you decide that the trade you were too positive on was one made by the team that won the World Series anyway. But seriously, I cannot in good conscience sit here and stand by the B I gave the Dodgers for acquiring Amed Rosario when the Dodgers themselves got rid of Rosario after all of 12 plate appearances. I understand, in principle, what Los Angeles was doing. It acquired a familiar player in Rosario to bridge the gap until some of its infielders, specifically Mookie Betts, Max Muncy and Tommy Edman, returned to the lineup. But Rosario received just those 12 at-bats over a two-week stretch. He started only three games, stuck behind Kiké Hernández and Nick Ahmed on the depth chart. There are very few concrete rules in trade analysis. We embrace nuance and context and the understanding that trade evaluations evolve. But here's one hard-and-fast rule I live by: If you cut the guy you traded for after 12 plate appearances, you get a D. Revised grades: Dodgers: D Rays: C Orioles get: LHP Trevor Rogers Marlins get: OF Kyle Stowers and IF Connor Norby Original grades: Marlins: A Orioles: C Stephen J. Nesbitt: While I came to regret dunking on Ryne Stanek to the Mets when he was pitching important innings last postseason, the trade grade I now see I missed on was for the trade that sent Stowers and Norby to Miami for Rogers. In the immediate aftermath, I loved the deal for the Marlins (A) but didn't dig it for the Orioles (C). We were all out on the O's half of the trade. Brittany Ghiroli handed out a C+. Sam Blum gave them a D. Rogers, a former All-Star and Rookie of the Year runner-up, had a 5.09 ERA from 2022-24. Why was this the guy who'd finally persuaded Baltimore to part with a couple prized position player prospects? Well, after pitching poorly for the Orioles late last season, Rogers is back to missing barrels and punching tickets and going deep into games. Advertisement He has rebounded from an offseason knee injury to turn in a 1.53 ERA through six starts. He's under club control through next season, and, as we often repeat, controllable starting pitching is an incredibly costly asset. For that reason, I graded the O's too harshly for this trade. They deserved something more like a B. And the Marlins deserved an A+++. Oh baby! After seeing little more than a cup of coffee with the Orioles in 2022, 2023 and 2024, Stowers has broken out with an All-Star first half with the Marlins, batting .293 and slugging 19 home runs. The Fish, looking to trade from their stash of starting pitching to improve the lineup, turned two-plus years of Rogers into two major-league-ready hitters who were blocked in Baltimore. Even if Stowers' swing-and-miss issues increase and Norby amounts to nothing more than a fringe big leaguer, it's a coup in return for a pitcher the Marlins were eager to move. Revised grades: Marlins: A+++ Orioles: B (Top photo of Stowers: Mitchell Layton / Getty Images)
New York Times
08-07-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
MLB Power Rankings: Blue Jays, Red Sox climbing; Playoff odds then and now
By Tim Britton, Johnny Flores Jr. and Andy McCullough Every week, we ask a selected group of our baseball writers — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results. If there's one thing that baseball is great at reminding us, it's that no matter how well-researched and data-backed projections are, they're just that … projections. Through the first 90 or so games of this year's campaign, we've seen the Braves go from 93.4 percent playoff odds to 6.3 percent, and that actually might be pretty generous considering the state of the team. Advertisement The hosts of the 2025 All-Star Game aren't the only ones who've been confronted with the cruel reality that is baseball. Of course, one team's misery is another team's benefit, and that's been the case for the Brewers, who've seen their odds of playing in October nearly double since the spring. If it wasn't already clear, for this week, we're looking back at each team's preseason playoff odds (according to FanGraphs) compared to their current odds entering play on July 7. Record: 56-36 Last Power Ranking: 1 Preseason playoff odds: 98.0 percent Current playoff odds: 99.7 percent It turns out that winning 120 games in a regular season isn't easy to do. Who knew? Despite a comfortable lead in the National League West, the Dodgers are dealing with a variety of issues. Mookie Betts is scuffling. The Astros just came to Chavez Ravine and trounced them. And the injuries. My goodness, the injuries. Blake Snell has pitched just twice. Blake Treinen hasn't pitched since April 13. Tyler Glasnow has been out since April 27. Roki Sasaki was a mess before he went down with a shoulder injury. Even the celebration of Clayton Kershaw's 3,000th strikeout was marred by Max Muncy's knee sprain. So the Dodgers will spend the second half in a familiar position, wondering which of their injured crew will be available for October. — Andy McCullough Record: 58-34 Last Power Ranking: 2 Preseason playoff odds: 46 percent Current playoff odds: 99.6 percent Coming off a late October push in 2024, the Tigers figured to at least be competitive relative to the AL Central. Instead, they near the second half with the best record in baseball. Sure, it helps to have a bona fide ace in Tarik Skubal pitching every fifth day, but the Tigers have seen massive contributions from up and down the roster all season. Take Sunday's 7-2 victory over the Guardians, which saw Trey Sweeney, who had been optioned just a week prior and had never homered against a fastball in 356 plate appearances, do just that … homer against a fastball to help open the offensive floodgates against a division rival. Throw in Javier Baéz's Comeback Player of the Year campaign and Casey Mize's breakout season, among other developments, and you have the makings of baseball's most dangerous team. — Johnny Flores Jr. Advertisement Record: 53-38 Last Power Ranking: 4 Preseason playoff odds: 72.4 percent Current playoff odds: 95.8 percent Some days, the Phillies look like a collection of concerns. The bullpen is still unsettled, the outfield is a bit of a mess, and the lineup just isn't as potent as you'd think given the names within it. Other days, usually when Zack Wheeler takes the mound, none of that matters, and Philadelphia looks unbeatable. Wheeler is on an extended heater since the start of June, and he's yielded all of two earned runs in 34 innings over his last five starts (with 47 strikeouts). He's given up 11 earned runs in two starts against Atlanta this season — and 17 earned runs the other 16 times he's taken the ball. — Tim Britton Record: 54-36 Last Power Ranking: 6 Preseason playoff odds: 48.3 percent Current playoff odds: 94.8 percent Call it the PCA effect or the brilliance of Kyle Tucker, but the fact of the matter remains the same — the Cubs have nearly doubled their playoff odds and could even challenge for the best record in the National League. That they've been able to do this without Justin Steele and only 10 starts of Shota Imanaga is all the more noteworthy. The offense, which has the third-best OPS in baseball, has done a lot of the heavy lifting, but the emergence of Matthew Boyd (2.52 ERA in 18 starts), plus a bullpen that ranks fourth in all of baseball by ERA (3.26) has also gone a long way in solidifying the Cubs as one of baseball's best teams. — Flores Record: 55-36 Last Power Ranking: 5 Preseason playoff odds: 52.3 percent Current playoff odds: 98.1 percent Well, well, well. Look who is back. These Astros bear a passing resemblance to the club that has ruled the American League for nearly a decade. The uniforms are still the same. The bullpen is still electric. Jose Altuve is still around, although he plays left field now. Yes, the Astros have adapted well after an offseason of upheaval. The Kyle Tucker deal netted Isaac Paredes and Cam Smith, who have added energy and enthusiasm to the lineup. The group has opened up a sizable lead in the American League West. And over the weekend, Houston demonstrated its effectiveness against an old rival. In a matchup that could be a World Series preview, the Astros swept the Dodgers, outscoring their hosts, 29-6. Houston looks dangerous, especially when Yordan Alvarez and Jeremy Peña get healthy. — McCullough Record: 52-39 Last Power Ranking: 7 Preseason playoff odds: 62.4 percent Current playoff odds: 86.6 percent The Mets' odds dipped, though never cratered, during their recent 3-14 stretch. They've snapped out of it with four wins in the last five, and it appears they've survived the shakiest stretch for their pitching staff. Kodai Senga and Sean Manaea could both be back this weekend, limiting how often New York requires an opener or spot starts — both employed in the series win over the Yankees over the weekend. The lineup has helped pick up the slack, with Juan Soto turning himself into a genuine All-Star snub since the start of June and Brandon Nimmo, who hit two grand slams last week, now on pace for more than 30 homers. — Britton Record: 49-41 Last Power Ranking: 3 Preseason playoff odds: 63.9 percent Current playoff odds: 85.6 percent While the Yankees' playoff odds remain sturdy, their odds of winning the division have dropped considerably of late, from a peak above 90 percent in late May to just over 36 percent entering Monday. New York is just 7-16 since mid-June, and a lot of that damage has been done in the division. The Yankees lost five of six to Boston and were swept in four in Toronto. Overall, since the start of May, they're just 4-12 in the AL East, with half those wins coming against last-place Baltimore. — Britton Advertisement Record: 53-38 Last Power Ranking: 13 Preseason playoff odds: 43.6 percent Current playoff odds: 87.7 percent The Jays' four-game sweep of the Yankees, part of an eight-game winning streak they carried into Monday, vaulted them into first in the AL East. Toronto started the season 26-28 and has gone 26-10 since heading into this week's series on the South Side of Chicago. The interesting thing about the Blue Jays' improvement is, as Mitch Bannon pointed out, it's coming from many of the same guys who were part of a disappointing 2024. Alejandro Kirk is an All-Star again, George Springer is raking, and Bo Bichette is closer to his old form than whatever he was last year. — Britton Record: 49-42 Last Power Ranking: 8 Preseason playoff odds: 37.7 percent Current playoff odds: 68.8 percent This is a big week for Tampa Bay, which has hit a snag with three straight series losses to teams under .500 in the Orioles, Athletics and Twins. That's why it was Toronto who leapfrogged the Yankees into first, rather than these Rays. The schedule gets tougher now, with trips this week to Detroit (for three) and Boston (for four). The good news is Tampa Bay just welcomed Ha-Seong Kim back, which should provide some stability in the middle infield and allow some other versatile pieces to move around. — Britton Record: 51-40 Last Power Ranking: T-11 Preseason playoff odds: 35.4 percent Current playoff odds: 60.9 percent At 50-40 entering Monday, the Brewers are firmly in possession of the National League's second Wild Card spot, largely thanks to a 16-9 run in June, marks only bested by the Astros and Blue Jays. While the offense continues to be middle-of-the-pack, the pitching is, in typical Milwaukee fashion, as stout as ever. Freddy Peralta, who earned his second career All-Star nomination on Sunday, boasts a 2.91 ERA, while Quinn Priester, who was acquired in a throwaway trade with the Red Sox, put up a 1.98 ERA over five games (four starts). Meanwhile, the bullpen just saw the return of DL Hall and Aaron Ashby. — Flores Record: 48-42 Last Power Ranking: 10 Preseason playoff odds: 32.9 percent Current playoff odds: 44.7 percent San Diego went 13-15 in June, which allowed the Dodgers to pull well ahead in the National League West. The team still has a good chance to capture a Wild Card spot and punch another ticket to October. Yu Darvish returned to action on Monday, which should help a starting rotation that has sorely missed him and also Michael King, who has been out since late May with a shoulder injury. With the trade deadline approaching, the Padres have continued to monitor the availability of Red Sox outfielder Jarren Duran. A deal like that sounds unfathomable until you remember A.J. Preller is involved. We'll see what happens. — McCullough Record: 50-42 Last Power Ranking: 9 Preseason playoff odds: 26.2 percent Current playoff odds: 46.6 percent Rafael Devers has gotten off to a slow start as a Giant, but have no fear: He's under contract for another eight seasons after this one. Like San Diego, San Francisco cooled off in May and June, with the Dodgers surging ahead in the division. The Giants will be jockeying with the Padres, Brewers, Cardinals, Reds and possibly the Diamondbacks for Wild Card positioning. It is an excellent outcome for a club that looked more likely to finish in fourth place when the season began. Another excellent three-man race will be the chase for the National League Cy Young award, as Logan Webb tries to outclass Philadelphia ace Zack Wheeler and Pittsburgh wunderkind Paul Skenes. All in all, it's been a fun summer so far in San Francisco, which is an upgrade over previous years. — McCullough Record: 48-42 Last Power Ranking: 15 Preseason playoff odds: 60.4 percent Current playoff odds: 73.3 percent The Mariners took care of business this past weekend by sweeping the lowly Pirates. After playing sub-.500 baseball in May and June, the sweep was important for Seattle as it embarks on what could be a taxing road trip to face the Yankees and the Tigers. George Kirby logged 6 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball against Pittsburgh on Sunday, continuing a recent stretch of solid pitching as he gets more comfortable coming back from shoulder inflammation. Cal Raleigh swatted two homers on Friday night to extend his lead over Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. The Mariners are in good position in the Wild Card race. — McCullough Record: 47-45 Last Power Ranking: 19 Preseason playoff odds: 55.0 percent Current playoff odds: 25.7 percent The Red Sox have rebounded from their six-game losing streak last month, cruising to a weekend sweep over woeful Washington to get back over. 500 entering a home series with cataclysmic Colorado. We get it: trading your franchise cornerstone in large part because of a failure of organizational communication has a way of sucking the oxygen out of a team. But have you noticed what Ceddanne Rafaela has done? Since May 27, he's hit nine homers with an OPS over .950. The only players with more wins above replacement since then? Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh (which, of course, because they're 1-2 for basically any time period this season). Alex Bregman could be back this week. Those playoff odds feel low. — Britton Advertisement Record: 48-43 Last Power Ranking: T-11 Preseason playoff odds: 23.4 percent Current playoff odds: 32.3 percent Even after getting routed 11-0 by the Cubs on Sunday, two days after giving up a franchise-record eight homers on the 4th of July, also to the Cubs, the Cardinals remain in the thick of the NL Wild Card race, sitting just one game back of the third and final spot. How the rest of July plays out will dictate what St. Louis and president of baseball operations John Mozeliak do at the trade deadline. If the team continues to spiral, selling seems inevitable, while a dominant July could mean adding reinforcements. Which is to say, set a reminder for 6 p.m. EST on July 31 to see where those odds finally land. — Flores Record: 45-46 Last Power Ranking: 17 Preseason playoff odds: 60.4 percent Current playoff odds: 18.8 percent The offense is one of the best in baseball. The pitching staff has been one of the worst. And so the Diamondbacks are approaching the deadline still unsure how to act. Should the club trade pending free agents like starter Zac Gallen and third baseman Eugenio Suárez? Or should the group hold tight and push for October? The front office would certainly prefer the latter. Arizona entered 2025 expecting to contend. But a major investment in free-agent starter Corbin Burnes has already curdled, and general manager Mike Hazen could recoup a good bit of talent in a seller's market this month. It's a real dilemma. — McCullough Record: 44-47 Last Power Ranking: 18 Preseason playoff odds: 51.5 percent Current playoff odds: 18.1 percent Both participants in the 2023 World Series have been confounded by their performances in 2025. The Rangers are the mirror image of the Diamondbacks: Texas' pitching has been excellent, but their offense has been horrid. The Rangers entered Monday's games with the best ERA in baseball, a mark supported by the combined excellence of starters Jacob deGrom, Nathan Eovaldi and Tyler Mahle. But Mahle is hurt, and the lineup just cannot find a rhythm. Texas hoped to contend for the American League West this season. They'll be lucky if they can sneak into a Wild Card spot now. — McCullough Record: 46-45 Last Power Ranking: 14 Preseason playoff odds: 20.2 percent Current playoff odds: 12.8 percent At 46-44, a Wild Card berth is still in play for Cincinnati, and those odds could look even sharper if the rival Cardinals spiral out and become sellers at the deadline. With Hunter Greene potentially set to begin a rehab assignment soon, the Reds could soon see All-Star snub Andrew Abbott and Greene serving as a 1-2 punch at the top of the rotation. A turnaround in health and fortune could also go a long way for Terry Francona's ballclub. — Flores Record: 43-47 Last Power Ranking: 20 Preseason playoff odds: 55.5 percent Current playoff odds: 19.9 percent Right now, the margin for error in Minnesota is razor-thin. Sitting 14 games back of the Tigers in the AL Central, the division is essentially out of reach, barring a collapse of epic proportions. Which means the Twins will need to secure one of the AL's three Wild Card spots, a proposition that is easier said than done, considering the competitiveness of the AL East and back-and-forth battle in the West. Still, the fact that the club was able to take two of three against the Rays should provide enough confidence that a Wild Card berth is possible. To get there, they'll need Carlos Correa and his 'clutch' pedigree to show up. Time is starting to run out, though. — Flores Record: 39-50 Last Power Ranking: 16 Preseason playoff odds: 93.4 percent Current playoff odds: 6.3 percent Can we finally, conclusively, permanently bury the 2025 Braves? They've lost nine of 11, they've fallen behind the Marlins in the NL East, and they've lost Chris Sale and Spencer Schwellenbach for extended time. What hope is there? Look, while we've got shovels in our hands, it is worth pointing out that although 6.3 percent is low, it is not nothing. The 2021 Cardinals were at 1.3 percent in August and 2.8 percent in September; they made the playoffs. The 2015 Rangers were at 3.0 percent in late July; they won the division. And most notably, in 2021, Atlanta was only at 7.0 percent to make the postseason in the final week of July; it won the World Series. —Britton Advertisement Record: 44-48 Last Power Ranking: 22 Preseason playoff odds: 42.5 percent Current playoff odds: 9.8 percent Much like the Twins, the margin for error in Kansas City is non-existent. At 5 games back of the AL's third and final Wild Card spot, the Royals will need to start stacking up wins and fast. Going 4-3 against the Diamondbacks and Mariners over the last week is a step in that direction, but the team will need to take advantage of six games against the Pirates and Marlins, plus another six at home against the Guardians and Braves, to push those playoff odds closer to reality. — Flores Record: 41-48 Last Power Ranking: 21 Preseason playoff odds: 24.9 percent Current playoff odds: 5.8 percent Entering the 2025 season, the offensively starved Guardians were always going to face an uphill battle in what figured to be a competitive AL Central, particularly after trading away Josh Naylor in favor of signing 39-year-old Carlos Santana. That said, the Guardians are currently marred in their worst offensive season by OPS since 1972. Take away All-Stars José Ramírez and Steven Kwan, and the rest of the lineup is producing a .610 OPS. Having just escaped a 10-game losing streak, the Guardians would need a turnaround of epic proportions to join the October conversation. — Flores Record: 44-46 Last Power Ranking: 23 Preseason playoff odds: 9.5 percent Current playoff odds: 3.6 percent It's funny, but even though the team's odds look worse now than they did in March, the Angels have experienced small pockets of success this year. The latest involves outfielder Jo Adell, a former top prospect who has spent half a decade unable to find his footing in the majors. During a 32-game stretch since June 1, Adell posted a 1.014 OPS with 12 homers and 28 RBIs. More encouraging, he produced a .379 on-base percentage during that period. It's a small sample size for a player who has thrilled fans in small sample sizes before. But what else do Angels fans have to hang onto these days? You have to take hope where you can find it. — McCullough Record: 40-49 Last Power Ranking: 24 Preseason playoff odds: 45.0 percent Current playoff odds: 4.1 percent Thanks to a weekend sweep of Atlanta, the O's are 21-13 since their low point in late May, and they're playing the kind of baseball that was expected of them at the start of the season. An optimist can squint and chart a path from 13th in the AL to October, past the mediocre middle of the AL Central and the .500 laggards in the AL West, by Boston in the division to where they only need the Mariners, Blue Jays or Rays to falter to give them a legit chance. A pessimist notes that yeah, that sounds like it has a 4.1 percent chance of happening, and that's why Baltimore is still poised to sell impending free agents like Cedric Mullins and Ryan O'Hearn at this month's trade deadline. — Britton Record: 41-48 Last Power Ranking: 26 Preseason playoff odds: 1.3 percent Current playoff odds: 0.3 percent No, the Marlins are not going to make the playoffs in 2025. However, Miami has been a lot better than most anyone — including those staring back in the mirror — expected them to be at the start of the season. Since reaching a low point of 16 games below .500 in mid-June, the Marlins are 15-7. They came into Monday night's game in Cincinnati riding a nine-game road winning streak, which included sweeps of good teams in the Giants and Diamondbacks. The rebuild Peter Bendix launched after a postseason appearance in 2023 may have looked aimless to outsiders — again, looking in the mirror here — but it's on surer footing than the more conventional one stagnating in Washington. — Britton Record: 38-54 Last Power Ranking: 25 Preseason playoff odds: 20.3 percent Current playoff odds: 0.1 percent After a 1-0 loss to the Mariners on Sunday, a game in which Paul Skenes struck out a season-high 10 batters, the 2025 Pirates became the first team in MLB history to win three straight shutouts and then lose three straight, also by shutout. Entering Monday, the team hadn't scored in 28 straight innings, and the offense as a whole ranks at or near the bottom in nearly every major category. Given Skenes' continued brilliance, it's easy to see why there was even the faintest projection of an October appearance. Given the offense's continued struggles, it's also easy to see why those odds vanished. — Flores Record: 37-55 Last Power Ranking: 28 Preseason playoff odds: 12.1 percent Current playoff odds: 0.1 percent A collapse in mid-May shifted the narrative around this season from 'spunky upstarts with intriguing position-player core' to 'intriguing group handcuffed by poor infrastructure.' Yes, the Athletics are struggling at Sutter Health Park. The team entered Monday with a 16-29 record at home. Only the Rockies play worse in their own park, and they might be the worst baseball team of all time. Unlike the Rays, who could return to Tropicana Field next season, the Athletics will have to play at least two more seasons in Sacramento. The opening act has not been pretty. — McCullough Advertisement Record: 37-53 Last Power Ranking: 27 Preseason playoff odds: 2.9 percent Current playoff odds: 0.1 percent Imagine making one of the great prospect trades in baseball history and getting fired the day two of those lottery tickets formally make the All-Star team. Mike Rizzo and Dave Martinez are out, and Washington's rebuild is on the cusp of requiring deeper excavation. What exactly is the plan and the timeline here now? The Nationals have done nothing around the core of James Wood, C.J. Abrams and MacKenzie Gore — literally, the rest of the roster is barely above replacement level — and now might be starting over again. — Britton Record: 30-61 Last Power Ranking: 29 Preseason playoff odds: 0.1 percent Current playoff odds: 0.0 percent Yeah, but at least we're not the Rockies. — Some White Sox fan somewhere — Flores Record: 21-70 Last Power Ranking: 30 Preseason playoff odds: 0.1 percent Current playoff odds: 0.0 percent There's always next year. — McCullough
Yahoo
16-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Clayton Kershaw's cap
A bit of a confession: I have generally taken Pride Night off for the last two years. Partly because I was still annoyed at the team's collective cowardice and Clayton Kershaw's tantrum, which was corroborated in his biography, The Last of His Kind: Clayton Kershaw and the Burden of Greatness by Andy McCullough. If I am being totally honest, this play broke me a little bit: I am also blacked out as I once again live in the San Francisco Giants' broadcast zone. However, is offering supplements to packages to add 'home team' broadcasts that would normally be blacked out. I have barely any interest in watching the San Francisco Giants play the Dodgers under normal circumstances — fat chance I'll pay extra for the 'privilege.' Advertisement Pride Night 2025 came and went, and the Dodgers got beaten with little my news alert went off. Symbols and scripture Clayton Kershaw altered his Pride Night cap on Friday night with scripture, which was innocuous enough at first glance. However, Kershaw wrote 'Gen. 9:12-16,' on his cap, which reads as follows: 12 And God said, 'This is the sign of the covenant that I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all future generations: 13 I have set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between me and the earth. 14 When I bring clouds over the earth and the bow is seen in the clouds, 15 I will remember my covenant that is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh. And the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh. 16 When the bow is in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.' Reaffirming God's covenant not to flood the earth again is fairly innocuous at face value. The problem, as it were, is best described thusly: the verse has been frequently used by homophobic Christians to denounce the LGBT community as their appropriation of the rainbow is allegedly blasphemous. Advertisement Apart from a flash of anger, my reaction was confusion. I wondered if the Dodgers had somehow decided to give another award to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence and if we had all missed it (we had not). Positive reactions to what Kershaw did were trumpeted on Fox News. Negative reactions, like the one posted below, were also pretty easy to find. In 2023, I argued that Kershaw was mistaken in his criticism during Pride Night but not a homophobe. I have seen the argument that Kershaw is a homophobe sprout online from those who are either willfully missing the point or do not understand emotional nuance. It is without dispute that Kershaw, through his charities, has done considerable humanitarian work overseas for underserved communities. During his interview with the Times, Kershaw stated that he publicly disagreed that the Dodgers are giving an honor to the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence. Kershaw stated that he pushed the Dodgers to bring back Christian Faith and Family Day as a response to the Dodgers' handling of the Sisters' situation... ...Now, based on perception and the timing of what has happened, one could credibly argue that the Dodgers have given Kershaw a quasi-veto about the event. If one were to be uncharitable, as some outlets have been, one could argue that Kershaw is trying to 'both sides' this issue. I do not agree with Kershaw's disagreement, but that aspect is not my biggest gripe. Kershaw famously said his complaints during Pride Night 2023 were not related to the LGBT community but directed at the aforementioned Sisters: 'This has nothing to do with the LGBTQ community or pride or anything like that,' Kershaw said. 'This is simply a group that was making fun of a religion, that I don't agree with. ... For us, we felt like the best thing to do in response was, instead of maybe making a statement condemning or anything like that, would be just to instead try to show what we do support, as opposed to maybe what we don't,' Kershaw said. 'And that was Jesus. So to make Christian Faith Day our response is what we felt like was the best decision.' On pages 345 and 346 of his biography, Kershaw further addressed the controversy to biographer Andy McCulloch: 'I put a lot of thought into it, and talked to a lot of different people...I just came to the conclusion that the Dodgers really put us in a horrible position. It's not an LGBT issue. It's just, like, [the Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence are] pretty rough. And I'm all for funny, and satire, but that goes way beyond it. So I did feel like I needed to say something... 'I'm a sinful person, just like everyone not for me to condemn or judge other people. But there's no way to say that without people just cancelling you. So you treat everybody the same, and do the best I can to love other people as well as I can...' ...'Sometimes I feel like an imposter when it comes to my faith, because baseball has given [me] a huge platform, right? Talk about whatever you want. And Jesus, ultimately, is what I choose to talk about. And I think that [talking about Jesus] is what God wants me to do with my life, is use that platform. But sometimes when you don't feel the Holy Spirit, or I don't feel that [presence], you feel like you're just putting yourself out there without the conviction of doing it.' Advertisement McCullough later wrote that Kershaw's inner turmoil was likely due to common existential crises that arise with middle age. Kershaw has not provided any context for his gesture during this year's Pride Night. I wondered why Kershaw didn't just wait until Faith and Family Night for his gesture, when I looked and realized that it was not on the schedule this year. Both Faith and Family Night and Jewish Heritage Night are absent from this year's scheduled promotional events at Dodger Stadium. I have no idea why, as new additions like One Piece Night are now on the schedule instead. Pride Night remains a bona fide hit in the Los Angeles community. Barring a change in the schedule, Friday night might be Kershaw's one bite at the apple on the issue in 2025. As much as one would expect me to call out Kershaw in this situation, I think I will take my cue from one of our resident moderators, David Young, as to what I wish Kershaw had written on his cap: GAL 3:28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for YE ARE ALL ONE IN CHRIST JESUS. Emphasis mine, and King James Version (1611) translation used especially for the fundies. The actual Christian message is one of inclusivity! (2/2) — David Young #Vin (@ 2025-06-14T17:08:12.758Z Advertisement I hope that Kershaw's heart has not hardened towards the LGBT community. If it has, there is one team that still refuses to engage with LGBT Pride in any way: his hometown Texas Rangers. I was present when Kershaw proudly declared that he would be a Dodger for life. I would like to believe he remains here if this year is not his final campaign, but only time will tell. But all Angelinos are welcome at Dodger Stadium, be they Christian, LGBT, or otherwise. More from
New York Times
10-06-2025
- Sport
- New York Times
MLB Power Rankings: Guess who? A new team takes the top spot and we ask some big questions
By Tim Britton, Johnny Flores Jr. and Andy McCullough Every week, we ask a selected group of our baseball writers — local and national — to rank the teams from first to worst. Here are the collective results. Now that we're into the second week of June, we've reached the point of the season where a bad start can become a bad season, when the numbers on the scoreboard are tough to change with a good homestand or road trip. In other words, we're starting to see answers for our preseason questions come into focus — on who might break out, who might regress and who will surprise us out of the blue. Advertisement Which means it's time we change the questions. Every organization is on a fact-finding mission over the 50-plus days that separate today from the trade deadline, working to figure out what exactly is real and what isn't. So, for each of the 30 teams, let's ask one big question: What is the thing that each front office needs to research and answer to propel a pennant, to save a season, or to retrench a rebuild? Record: 43-24 Last Power Ranking: T-2 One big question: Can Detroit keep its pace? The Tigers have been far and away the best team in the AL through the season's first 67 games or so. With a little over 90 games left, it's worth wondering if any of this is sustainable. Detroit has had contributions from up and down the lineup, and from some hidden heroes, like Jahmai Jones and his first pitch, first homer as a Tiger, along with some truly standout pitching (see Tarik Skubal's Baseball Reference page). It's been enough to carve out a seven-game lead in the AL Central, and the Tigers just took the weekend series against one of the NL's best in the Chicago Cubs. If the Tigers can hold steady, they'll have enough to claim home-field advantage throughout the playoffs, which could bode well for a deep October run — Detroit's 23-9 home record is the best in the AL. Precedent suggests not to count these Tigers out. — Johnny Flores Jr. Record: 42-24 Last Power Ranking: T-2 One big question: How will the top of the rotation shake out? Hey, when you win more games as a team than the rest of your division does over a seven-day span, things are breaking right. Juan Soto got on base Sunday more than he did over like the last three weeks of May, Pete Alonso is hot, and the Mets' rotation keeps posting zeroes well beyond the usual time for regression. That rotation should be getting Frankie Montas and Sean Manaea back before the All-Star break, and while the preliminary concern is who gets bumped from the back end, the longer-term one for a team thinking into October is how it shapes the front part. It's great when Paul Blackburn tosses five scoreless at Dodger Stadium; who are the guys the Mets think can do that in an NLCS? Will Manaea and Montas be up to that task? Will Kodai Senga survive his eventual regression? Can Clay Holmes start for seven months? — Tim Britton Advertisement Record: 40-27 Last Power Ranking: 1 One big question: Will the pitchers ever get healthy? On the same day the Dodgers activated relievers Kirby Yates and Michael Kopech this past weekend, the team placed starter Tony Gonsolin on the injured list with elbow discomfort. Gonsolin became the 14th Dodger pitcher on the list, a group that includes Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Roki Sasaki. The team had hoped its overflow of talent could carry it through the regular season. Upstart campaigns from San Diego and San Francisco are making that challenging. The Dodgers are embarking on a 10-game stretch facing only the Padres and the Giants. These next two weeks could be clarifying about how easily the club can coast into October without its best arms available. — Andy McCullough Record: 39-25 Last Power Ranking: 4 One big question: Can the bullpen get by without its closer? Sure, Aaron Judge makes the headlines, but for years, the most impressive aspect of the Yankees as an organization may have been how reliable their bullpen was year after year — how they slotted in bigger acquisitions while also nailing all the smaller ones that become big ones. Luke Weaver is as big a success story as any, and now New York has to navigate the next several weeks without its bullpen linchpin. We'll be honest: This question basically boils down to what Devin Williams can provide. His first save chance after the Weaver injury was dicey, the second one on Friday more sure. If Williams finds his footing, then the Weaver injury can be a blessing in disguise. If not, the Yankees' need to supplement the 'pen come late July will be clear. — Britton Record: 40-26 Last Power Ranking: 5 One big question: Will Jed Hoyer's front office be given clearance to go all-in? After back-to-back 83-win seasons, the Cubs are primed to join in on the October festivities for the first time in a full season since 2018. What's more, there's a legitimate shot that the team could finish as the NL's No. 1 seed. To this point, the club's hitting (.774 OPS, 3rd) and pitching (3.67 ERA, 10th) have been among the league's best, but Chicago could still use another frontline starter and perhaps an extra bat for the stretch run. So will Hoyer, who is in a contract year, be given the chance to get the Cubs to where they need to be for a potential deep postseason run? Cubs fans surely hope so, and we all know how much manager Craig Counsell loves 'out getters.' — Flores Record: 38-28 Last Power Ranking: 8 One big question: Will Buster Posey's big shakeup boost the offense? Tired of watching a stagnant offense, Posey executed a flurry of roster moves last week, headlined by jettisoning first baseman LaMonte Wade Jr. in favor of new acquisition Dominic Smith. The team responded with five consecutive victories, including a sweep of the floundering Atlanta Braves that included a walk-off homer from Matt Chapman. The offense hasn't exactly caught fire yet, and in five games, Smith hasn't been much better than Wade had been for the Giants. But Giants fans are unlikely to care about the difference between causation and correlation. What matters is that the club remains competitive in the NL West and is a game and a half behind the Dodgers. — McCullough Advertisement Record: 38-28 Last Power Ranking: 6 One big question: Can the bullpen be salvaged on the fly? The undercurrent of Philadelphia's bullpen struggles — and what helped cause them — boiled over in a simple part of Wednesday's box score. Win: Jeff Hoffman. Loss: Jordan Romano. What broke down into an offseason 'trade' of Hoffman for Romano hasn't worked especially well for either side. But the Phillies have been left to lament a key strength of 2024 in their bullpen returning to a justifiably maligned weakness in 2025. Romano has not been a sufficient substitute for what Hoffman provided. A less straightforward exchange of Carlos Estévez for Carlos Hernández has also not been fruitful for Philadelphia. All this has been exacerbated by the suspension of José Alvarado. Bullpens can be the easiest element of a team to fix in-season; there are dozens of relievers available come July. But the unpredictability of their performance — see: the 2025 NLDS — makes that task unpleasant anyway. — Britton Record: 37-28 Last Power Ranking: 7 One big question: Can the rotation hold up without Michael King and Yu Darvish? The Padres are entering a crucial stretch of the season, with seven games scheduled against the Dodgers across the next two weeks. San Diego will enter this crucible without King, who is nursing an injured shoulder, and Darvish, who is dealing with elbow trouble. The team can line up its two best remaining starters, Nick Pivetta and Dylan Cease, for the first two games of this week's Dodgers series, but will still rely heavily on the trio of Randy Vasquez, Stephen Kolek and rookie Ryan Berget, a group that lacks experience and tends not to miss bats. The trio has pitched well thus far, but the underlying metrics suggest regression could come soon. — McCullough Record: 36-29 Last Power Ranking: 11 One big question: When will Yordan Alvarez return? As The Athletic's Chandler Rome outlined earlier this month, updated imaging of Alvarez's injured right hand discovered a new fracture, which complicated his recovery timetable. The Astros have not disclosed when they expect Alvarez — who has not played since May 2 — to return. He is the most dynamic hitter on a team that has still surged into first place in the AL West despite his absence. The infield duo of Jeremy Peña and Isaac Paredes has helped offset the loss of Alvarez and a substandard season from Jose Altuve. It might be enough to win a weak division. But if Houston wants to do damage in October, the club needs its best slugger doing what he does best. — McCullough Record: 36-30 Last Power Ranking: 11 One big question: What do you do at the deadline? For a team that emphasized development above all in 2025, the Cardinals are certainly playing well. Sitting just one game back in the NL Wild Card standings, the Cardinals have as good a shot as any to make the postseason. So what do the Cardinals do at the deadline? Any one of Erick Fedde, Ryan Hesley, Phil Maton and Steven Matz could fetch a pretty nice return, especially with how the pitching market has shaped up. They could also help the Cardinals complete a surprise postseason run. Whether it's a full fire sale, a deep October run or something down the middle, the Cardinals have some tough decisions to make in the coming weeks. — Flores Advertisement Record: 33-32 Last Power Ranking: 9 One big question: Can Bryce Miller right the ship? Logan Gilbert and George Kirby tend to receive the most praise among Mariners starters, but it was Miller who posted the rotation's lowest ERA (2.94) in 2024. Seattle is still waiting to see that version of the pitcher in 2025. Miller's ERA bloated to 5.73 after he gave up five runs in five innings to the Angels last weekend. He missed a good chunk of May as he dealt with a bone spur in his elbow. He's been getting punished for pitches over the plate at a time when the Mariners have lost a first-place foothold in the AL West. When Gilbert returns from the injured list, Miller's spot in the rotation could be in jeopardy. — McCullough Record: 36-30 Last Power Ranking: 14 One big question: How will they handle the road trips? Thanks to some last-minute schedule changes, Tampa Bay has played 20 more home games than road games so far, and its 59 remaining road games are eight more than anyone else in the American League. That includes 19 of 22 on the road during one stretch bridging July and August. So how will a roster accustomed to overcoming inherent disadvantages conquer that one? The Rays have been good on the road so far, with series wins in Phoenix, San Diego and the Bronx. But those series do get tougher when they're stacked one after the other after the other later in the season. The challenge will be present this week, at Fenway and at Citi Field. — Britton Record: 35-30 Last Power Ranking: 13 One big question: Can Carlos Correa continue to heat up? At some point in the early part of the season, there was some legitimate worry that Correa — Minnesota's $200 million man — was 'cooked,' as the kids like to say. Between March and April, Correa's combined .579 OPS was a sight for sore eyes, but in the time since then, Correa has steadily gotten back to his typical self at the plate. In May, he posted an .875 OPS, and he tallied two hits to help the Twins avoid a sweep against the Blue Jays after being held out with back tightness for three games earlier in the week. Over his last 15 games, he has an .842 OPS, and only figures to see those numbers rise over the summer. A return to form for Correa can help take the Twins from middle-of-the-pack offensively (.701 OPS, 16th) to among MLB's best. — Flores Record: 36-30 Last Power Ranking: 15 One big question: How can they stabilize the back end of the rotation? There was a stretch late last season when Bowden Francis was as intriguing a starter as any in the sport, one who flirted with a no-hitter — and we mean got down on a knee and proposed to one on multiple occasions — just about every other time he took the hill. It hasn't worked that way in 2025 for Francis, and the back end of the Toronto rotation has suffered as a result. The Jays are seven games over .500 when one of their three best starters (José Berríos, Kevin Gausman or Chris Bassitt) is on the bump. They're under .500 the rest of the time. Which means their chances of continuing their current surge into playoff position in the American League may reside on different kinds of recoveries from Francis and Max Scherzer. — Britton Record: 35-32 Last Power Ranking: 16 One big question: Can Joey Ortiz salvage his sophomore season? A key piece of the deal that sent Corbin Burnes to Baltimore a season ago, Ortiz has not been the same player since returning from a neck injury in mid-2024 (.817 OPS through July 1 vs. a .637 OPS after July 14). This year, his .497 OPS has not been the stuff expected of an everyday player, and his underlying stats (barrel rate, hard-hit rate, average exit velocity, etc.) all rank in the bottom of the league. Among qualified shortstops, his -0.4 fWAR is 87th in the league … there are 91 qualified players. Advertisement His defense has been good, but it's certainly not enough to keep him in an everyday role. Can he turn things around, or do the Brewers need to give him a break at Triple A to refine his mechanics? — Flores Record: 28-37 Last Power Ranking: 10 One big question: What happened to the offense? The window for offensive firepower can be frustratingly brief. In 2023, Atlanta's lineup was relentless: more than 300 home runs and just under six runs per game from a lineup mostly comprised of 20-somethings. Poor health relegated that offense to a league-average outfit last season, and the offense has fallen into the bottom third in baseball in runs per game this season, even as a healthier unit. Yes, overall the offense should produce better moving forward as Ronald Acuña Jr. plays in a larger percentage of its games. But the entire infield and Michael Harris II in center field have all taken steps backward over the last two years, some of them significant. Most of those guys are signed through the end of this decade. — Britton Record: 34-32 Last Power Ranking: 18 One big question: Is Jac Caglianone enough to lift the offense? That question is quite the burden to place on a 22-year-old rookie, but it's almost assuredly the exact kind of question that the Kansas City front office hoped to answer when it called up the 2024 first-round pick to the big leagues. The Royals have become a pitching factory of sorts (3.31 team ERA, fifth in MLB), which are probably not the words anyone thought they'd be typing in 2025, but the offense continues to struggle. Caglianone, who absolutely demolished minor league pitching (.982 OPS in 199 at-bats in Triple A and Double A), could be the answer, or his K-rate could be an easy exploit for pitchers to take advantage of. It's the exact kind of gamut a team runs when it calls up a prospect, but the Royals believe it's a risk worth taking. — Flores Record: 34-31 Last Power Ranking: 19 One big question: What if Shane Bieber doesn't return? OK, that's a rough question to propose, but it's a legitimate possibility. Earlier this week, Bieber, who is coming off Tommy John surgery and inked a two-year, $26 million deal in the offseason, was shut down from throwing after experiencing elbow soreness following a bullpen session. He'll be re-examined in a week, at which point the Guardians will hope it's a minor scare and they can continue to ramp up Bieber for a midseason return. But what if it's more than that? Would Cleveland entertain the possibility of adding a starter at the deadline to boost its rotation (4.09 ERA, 20th) and playoff odds? Can Bieber, who has a $16 million player option for next season that he would almost certainly exercise barring a banner finish to this season, get healthy enough to show he's still a Cy Young-caliber starter? There's a lot riding on Bieber's return for both sides. — Flores Advertisement Record: 32-34 Last Power Ranking: 17 One big question: Will the Diamondbacks sell at the deadline? That certainly wasn't the plan coming into 2025, not after adding Corbin Burnes to supplement one of the best offenses in baseball in 2024. But the team had been sputtering for weeks, even before Burnes injured his elbow and saw his season ended by Tommy John surgery. Arizona is several games under .500 and plays in perhaps the sport's best division. The club could push for a Wild Card spot. Or it could attempt to take advantage of a seller's market and try to flip pending free agents such as third baseman Eugenio Suárez, outfielder Randal Grichuk, starting pitcher Merrill Kelly or reliever Shelby Miller. — McCullough Record: 32-36 Last Power Ranking: 22 One big question: How should all the pieces fit? Years ago when reading David Halberstam's 'The Breaks of the Game,' I was struck by how rigid NBA teams of the 1970s viewed positional fit. If a team had two good players at one position, inevitably, one needed to be traded to fill a need somewhere else. This doesn't really happen in the NBA anymore, and in baseball, it's been a while since the Phillies needed to trade Jim Thome to make room for Ryan Howard. The collection of talent the Red Sox have amassed — with Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony now in the bigs — is enviable, and figuring out how it should all fit together is what executives and managers will doubtlessly tell you is 'a good problem to have.' It is still a problem, which encompasses good and bad solutions, and Boston's approach to similar problems this year has not engendered optimism it will nail the landing in finding time for all of its young, left-handed-hitting potential stars. For now, Anthony replaces the injured Wilyer Abreu and Mayer has been filling in for Alex Bregman. But what happens when Abreu and Bregman return? — Britton Record: 34-33 Last Power Ranking: 20 One big question: Can TJ Friedl make the All-Star team? The 29-year-old lefty has flown under the radar this season, but the fact is he's been one of the NL's best outfielders. Among qualified NL outfielders, Friedl is eighth in fWAR (1.5), 11th in OPS (.800), third in batting average (.292) and fourth in hits (69). Those are all marks for becoming an All-Star, but Friedl faces an unfortunate challenge in that Pete Crow-Armstrong, Corbin Carroll, Kyle Tucker and James Wood all have been phenomenal, that Juan Soto is now in the NL and that Kyle Stowers (left field) might be the Marlins' only representative. That makes his chances of showing up in Atlanta all the more distant. — Flores Record: 31-35 Last Power Ranking: 21 One big question: Can Bret Boone wake up the offense? Can anyone? When the Rangers fired hitting coach Donnie Ecker on May 4, the offense ranked 29th in runs, 28th in on-base percentage (.284) and 25th in slugging percentage (.358). Under Boone, who returned to the game as Ecker's replacement, the group has been just as ineffective: 26th in runs, 30th in OBP (.282) and 28th in slugging (.353). The lack of production has been exasperating for a team playing in a winnable division and receiving stalwart efforts from its starting rotation. The Rangers took two of three from Washington this weekend, and Marcus Semien's bat is beginning to defrost. It's not too late to make up ground in the West. — McCullough Record: 30-35 Last Power Ranking: 23 One big question: Who else can be part of the core? Pull up Washington's page on Baseball-Reference and you get a good feel for how the Juan Soto trade has helped the Nationals: On the line of top 12 performers for the 2025 squad, the first three all came from San Diego in that 2022 deal. Now it's a matter of supplementing that group, be it from the remaining piece of the trade (Robert Hassell III) or from within (Dylan Crews, Brady House, Cade Cavalli, etc.). It's a nice start of a core, but a start of a core isn't enough to compete in this division yet. — Britton Advertisement Record: 26-38 Last Power Ranking: 24 One big question: Can they do enough by July 31 to encourage the front office? When I covered the 2023 Mets, one player looked at his stats in September and remarked how they were about where they should be — how over 162 games the stats eventually evened out. Problem was, he said, you actually don't have 162 games. You have until the deadline to give your front office a reason to trust you for the last two months. The Orioles are trying to provide that encouragement now. They're 10-4 in their last 14 games as their starting rotation has stabilized — hey, Charlie Morton wasn't totally cooked, after all — and they have some vitally important series coming up. The American League is not a juggernaut, and its competitive flatness has provided Baltimore with an opportunity to get off the mat here and now. — Britton Record: 31-34 Last Power Ranking: 25 One big question: Is this the real Nolan Schanuel? As bleak as recent seasons have been, at least the Angels appear to have found long-term answers at shortstop (Zach Neto) and catcher (Logan O'Hoppe). The hope was that Schanuel, a 2023 first-round pick, could provide the same stability at first base. He held his own as a rookie in 2024, and in recent weeks has offered glimpses of a brighter future. He may not provide the power of a classic slugger, but if Schanuel can keep getting on base at a .402 clip, as he did in May, the Angels will take it. — McCullough Record: 27-40 Last Power Ranking: 26 One big question: What do you do with Paul Skenes? They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, expecting a different outcome. If there's one person who's experiencing it right now, it's Paul Skenes. Case in point: last week, Skenes took the loss on Tuesday after pitching eight innings of one-run ball against the Astros, and took a no-decision on Saturday after 7 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball. It's the exact kind of thing Skenes experienced in May, April and March. If the team has no intention of building around him, then perhaps fielding some trade offers isn't the worst thing in the world. If these past few seasons, and especially this week, tell us anything, it's that Tommy John or some variation of an elbow injury comes for us all, meaning Skenes' value has never been higher than it currently is. — Flores Record: 26-42 Last Power Ranking: T-27 One big question: Can the pitchers adjust to Sutter Health Park? This temporary home in West Sacramento has been hellish for the Athletics, who are 12-23 there this season, even after winning a series against Baltimore over the weekend. Only Colorado has won fewer games at home than the Athletics. The team understood the conditions would not be ideal in the Triple-A ballpark. But it has been brutal for the pitching staff. The A's entered Monday's games with the worst collective ERA (5.68 overall and 5.85 at home) and worst home run rate (1.53 per nine innings) in the sport. No team had allowed more runs, and that included the Rockies. It will be years before the team moves to Las Vegas. The group will have to learn to adjust, or risk more years in the basement of the AL West. — McCullough Record: 24-40 Last Power Ranking: T-27 One big question: Can Sandy Alcantara be salvaged? Look, we acknowledge it is probably not any fun for a Marlins fan to Ctrl+F for their team, only to read more about the drop in trade value for what was once its best player. We'd have been happier writing about Ryan Weathers' improved repertoire, too, until he got hit in the head by a warmup throw down to second base and landed on the 60-day IL with a lat strain suffered later in the game. But the best thing that could have happened for Miami's 2025 season, more so than a breakout by Weathers or Kyle Stowers or Edward Cabrera, was a return to form by Alcantara and a trade for a boatload of prospects in a trade market that favors sellers. Instead, Alcantara's ERA entering his start Tuesday night is a grade-school riddle: Why is six afraid of his ERA? Because 7.89. — Britton Advertisement Record: 22-44 Last Power Ranking: 29 One big question: Is it time to lower the asking price on Luis Robert Jr.? At this point, Robert is who he is. That player who bashed 38 homers en route to an All-Star selection and Silver Slugger award in 2023 isn't coming back. Up until now, the White Sox have seemingly held firm on his potential, as well as his desirable contract in trade negotiations. However, it seems high time that they lower that asking price just a bit. It's highly unlikely that the White Sox will pick up the club options in his current deal ($20 million in 2026 and 2027), meaning that any return is a good return for a player they're likely to DFA at season's end. Robert is still valuable (league-leading 21 steals and is a true centerfielder), just in a different light, which requires the Sox to view him in a different light (less future Mike Trout and more Harrison Bader — sorry, Harrison). — Flores Record: 12-53 Last Power Ranking: 30 One big question: Can the Rockies avoid breaking the White Sox's record? After getting swept by the Mets over the weekend, the Rockies entered Monday on pace for a 30-132 record, a mark that would demolish the recent mark of 121 defeats set last year by the White Sox. To avoid that ugly piece of history, the Rockies will need to play at a .309 clip over the next 97 games. That feels . . . doable? But considering Colorado has played at a .185 pace thus far, it will require a serious burst of winning. Hard to foresee. — McCullough
Yahoo
04-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
FOX 13 Extra Innings: Mariners walk it off in the 11th inning
MLB's Money Divide EXPOSED: Are Dodgers & Mets Ruining Baseball? Join us on the latest Sportsnaut Interview as we dive into the financial divide in Major League Baseball with Andy McCullough, senior writer for The Athletic. In this exclusive interview, we discuss his latest article, "Which MLB Teams Are Actually Trying? Charting a Divide Between the Haves and the Have-Nots," exploring how teams like the Dodgers, Mets, and Yankees dominate spending, while others lag. Are these big spenders disrupting competitive balance? Will a salary cap ever happen? Get the full scoop on MLB's economic landscape and what it means for the future of baseball! Timestamps: 0:00 - Intro 1:00 - Andy's Article Overview 2:00 - Does Spending Guarantee Wins? 5:00 - Competitive Balance in MLB 10:00 - Dodgers' Deferred Money Strategy 14:00 - Salary Cap Debate 17:00 - Closing Thoughts 16:26 Now Playing Paused Ad Playing
