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Newsweek
5 days ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Blue Jays Reportedly Expected to Refuse Bo Bichette Trade, Change His Position
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. The Toronto Blue Jays earned a win in their series with the Philadelphia Phillies after posting nine runs on Thursday and it could be a sign they've turned their season around. The team was a bit of a disappointment after it struggled out of the gate even with the additions of Jeff Hoffman, Anthony Santander and Andres Gimenez to the roster. Now the Blue Jays are above .500 with plenty of time to build some momentum toward the playoffs. Even with several weeks before the trade deadline arrives, the moderate success of the season up to this point seems to have settled any speculation that the Blue Jays might trade away star shortstop Bo Bichette as he heads toward free agency at the end of the year. Speaking with Jeff Passan on a recent episode of ESPN's "Baseball Tonight" podcast, Buster Olney noted the team is expected to refuse any trade inquiries on Bichette, given their primary executives' contract situations and investments up to this point. TORONTO, CANADA - MARCH 28: Bo Bichette #11 of the Toronto Blue Jays looks on before playing the Baltimore Orioles at Rogers Centre on March 28, 2025 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by) TORONTO, CANADA - MARCH 28: Bo Bichette #11 of the Toronto Blue Jays looks on before playing the Baltimore Orioles at Rogers Centre on March 28, 2025 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by) Sousa/Getty "No, because of the context of the Blue Jays, the fact that this is the last year for (president) Mark Shapiro in his contract, it's the next to last year for Ross Atkins their general manager, they spent $500 million on Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to sign him to a long-term deal, they just did these renovations that went in place last year," Olney said. " And so, what I've heard is, people with other teams, basically saying, 'Yeah, there's no way they'll do that. There's no way they'd wave a white flag as early as July.'" However, Olney added that Bichette is expected to see a different sort of move, as he's no longer inspiring confidence as an everyday shortstop. "In doing this reporting, a lot of what I'm hearing is, 'Yeah, he's not a shortstop anymore. He needs to change positions,' " Olney said. Bichette has a .974 fielding percentage at shortstop so far this year, making it the second year in a row in which he's underperforming the league average. He has also seen his offense dip both this year and last compared to a stronger campaign two years ago, possibly because of the challenges of his defensive role. So, even as the Blue Jays hold onto every contributing asset they can for the remainder of the season, it seems Bichette could be poised for a move elsewhere on the diamond soon. More MLB: Nashville White Sox? Jerry Reinsdorf to Sell Team, Raising Fears of Move
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NBC reportedly makes offer to take over ESPN's MLB deal, ‘Sunday Night Baseball' after split
'Sunday Night Baseball' might be headed to NBC next season. NBC Universal made an offer to Major League Baseball earlier this month that would have it take over ESPN's package of regular-season and postseason games, according to the Wall Street Journal. Specifics of that deal are not yet known. It's also unclear when that deal could be finalized, though the two sides have apparently been in talks for several weeks. NBC is offering significantly less than the $550 million per year ESPN is currently paying, per the report. ESPN announced earlier this year it had 'mutually agreed' to terminate its deal with MLB after the 2025 season. That ends a partnership that has been going on for more than three decades. ESPN and MLB were under contract through 2028, but they had an opt-out clause for earlier this year. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has reportedly said the league has 'not been pleased with the minimal coverage that MLB has received on ESPN's platforms over the past several years outside of the actual live game coverage.' Meanwhile, ESPN has been asking for MLB to take a lower rights fee — it reportedly wanted to cut the fee by more than half, down to no more than $200 million per year — but MLB declined. ESPN started broadcasting MLB games in 1990. It has carried regular-season games, various playoff games, the Home Run Derby, the show 'Baseball Tonight' and more. The split marks the latest broadcast transition for MLB, which has reached deals with multiple streaming services in recent years, including Apple TV, The Roku Channel and Amazon Prime. Also, Diamond Sports Group, which ran more than a dozen teams' regional sports networks, went bankrupt, and that has led some teams to start their own streaming services under the league's watch. If NBC is successful in landing baseball, it would mark the network's latest expansion into the sports world. NBC is preparing to start broadcasting NBA games on the network and on Peacock again next season, more than 20 years after the league left the network.
Yahoo
21-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
NBC reportedly makes offer to take over ESPN's MLB deal, ‘Sunday Night Baseball' after split
'Sunday Night Baseball' may be headed to NBC next season. NBC Universal made an offer to Major League Baseball earlier this month that would have it take over ESPN's package of regular season and postseason games , according to the Wall Street Journal. Advertisement Specifics of that deal are not yet known. It's unclear when that deal could be finalized either, though the two sides have apparently been in talks for several weeks. NBC is offering significantly less than the $550 million per year that ESPN is currently paying, per the report. ESPN announced earlier this year that it had 'mutually agreed' to terminate its deal with MLB after the 2025 season. That ends a partnership that has been going on for more than three decades. ESPN and MLB were under contract through 2028, but they had an opt-out clause for earlier this year. MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has reportedly complained that the league has 'not been pleased with the minimal coverage that MLB has received on ESPN's platforms over the past several years outside of the actual live game coverage.' ESPN has been asking for MLB to take a lower rights fee — it reportedly wanted to cut it by more than half, down to no more than $200 million a year — though MLB had declined. ESPN first started broadcasting MLB games in 1990. It has carried regular season games, various playoff games, the Home Run Derby, its 'Baseball Tonight' show and more. The split marks the latest transition broadcast-wise for MLB, which has reached deals with multiple different streaming services in recent years — including Apple TV, The Roku Channel, Amazon Prime and more. Diamond Sports Group, which ran more than a dozen team's regional sports networks, went bankrupt, too. That has led some teams to have to start their own streaming services under the league's watch. If NBC is successful in landing baseball, it would mark the latest expansion the network has made in the sports world in recent years. NBC is preparing to start broadcasting NBA games on the network and on Peacock again next season, more than 20 years after it left the network.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
ESPN Analyst Sends Ominous Message About Yankees' $90 Million Slugger
If the New York Yankees want any advice on resetting two-time batting champion DJ LeMahieu's career, longtime ESPN analyst Tim Kurkjian is on line three. By his own admission, Kurkjian doesn't have much faith left in LeMahieu, who rejoined the Yankees this week after a lengthy injured list stint. After multiple years bouncing around the Yankees' infield, LeMahieu should see most of his action at second base moving forward—at least, until All-Star slugger Jazz Chisholm returns from his right oblique strain. Advertisement Oswaldo Cabrera's severe ankle injury also allows LeMahieu to become the full-time third baseman again, a role he last held in 2023. Speaking candidly on ESPN's 'Baseball Tonight' podcast, Kurkjian said the Yankees should put LeMahieu at the hot corner and 'hope it works.' 'He has not been the same player for several years now,' Kurkjian said, 'and I'm not sure what it is, but I would try to … see if playing him in the same position will help.' New York Yankees third baseman DJ LeMahieuJohn Jones-Imagn Images The key, Kurkjian explained, is no longer using LeMahieu as a utility player. LeMahiu has regularly split his time between first, second, and third base over his seven Yankees seasons after almost exclusively playing second base for the Colorado Rockies. Advertisement LeMahieu played 38 games at first and 36 at third base last year, providing a career-worst .204 average and -1.6 bWAR along the way. 'Now, do I think it's going to return him to his former glory?' Kurkjian asked. 'No, I don't, but I think it's worth a try.' New York Yankees star DJ LeMahieu plays second base in 2021Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images That's likely not the most reassuring opinion for Yankees fans, especially ahead of a highly-anticipated Subway Series showdown with the rival New York Mets. At least Kurkjian admits that the LeMahieu who hit .336 with 8.6 bWAR and a .922 OPS from 2019-20 is long gone. The Yankees keeping LeMaheiu at third base isn't impossible. Backup infielders Oswald Peraza and Jorbit Vivas offer needed versatility, with Peraza already seeing action at every infield position but first through 23 games. Advertisement LeMahieu, who is in the penultimate year of a six-year, $90 million contract, went 1-for-5 in two games against the Seattle Mariners this week. Related: Aaron Judge Has Words for Yankees Outfielder After Giancarlo Stanton Injury News Related: Yankees' Oswaldo Cabrera Admits Smiling After Horrific Injury
Time of India
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Time of India
'He is certainly athletic enough'- MLB insider suggests Red Sox outfielder's name for Triston Casas' replacement
The untimely exit of Boston Red Sox ' first baseman Triston Casas has already created a situation of confusion in the team. With Casas being shifted to the injured list after he went on to rupture the tendon of his left knee while running past the base, he accidentally collided with the Twins' star Ty France and fell on his knees. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now With the 2025 MLB season in full swing, a reputed baseball insider suggested an in-house replacement for Triston Casas. MLB insider suggest a replacement from Boston Red Sox after Triston Casas' exit With Boston Red Sox's first baseman Triston Casas' exit from the team, the buzz around a suitable replacement has been doing the rounds of the MLB fraternity. Casas made headlines in the middle of the 2025 MLB season after he was injured due to his ruptured tendon of his left knee. Looking at the severity of the injury, the 25-year-old slugger might not be able to play for the entire season. Casas' exit during the middle of the season has forced the management of the Boston Red Sox to look for his perfect replacement. During a recent appearance on the widely watched baseball show Baseball Tonight with Buster Olney, MLB insider Karl Ravech spoke about a suitable replacement for Triston Casas. Ravech went on to suggest the name of the Red Sox second baseman, Kristian Campbell . He said, 'He is big enough and certainly seems to be capable as a fielder to play anywhere. They have used him anywhere; they love his bat…. If there is a chance, you can get him to work out and get comfortable enough to play 1B? He is certainly athletic enough.' According to Karl Ravech, it is better to look for qualified faces who can fill in the void in the team instead of searching outside. Triston Casas' absence can be easily filled by the $60 million Red Sox star Kristian Campbell for the remaining 2025 MLB season. Reportedly, the 22-year-old slugger recently made a comeback to the team after missing three games of the ongoing season due to a rib injury. Also Read:
