Slam Diego 2021 and Beyond

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 20-8
Overall Record: 88-48
Position: 1st
Games Back: +5

The Good

I was hoping to extend our lead over L.A. but it’s hard to complain about going 20-8 and maintaining our spot in 1st place. Should we just make a permanent spot in this section for Tatis Jr.? He had another stellar month with a .333/.410/.556 line with 9 doubles, 5 HR, and 23 RBI. Dickerson finally looked like himself with a .361/.392/.649 line, 13 doubles, and 5 HR. Franmil Reyes led the team with 7 HR, more than doubling his season total prior to this month.

On the other side of the ball, our starters were cruising this month. Weathers went 5-0 with a 1.45 ERA and 0.83 WHIP. Paddack went 2-2 with a 3.58 ERA and 0.98 WHIP. Bieber went 4-0 with a 1.70 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, and 12.6 K/9.

The Bad

Not much to complain about this month. If I had to choose, I could look at the youngster Elvis Luciano who experienced some growing pains coming out of the pen this month. He posted a 7.53 ERA with a 1.67 WHIP. Definitely a month to forget for the 24 year old, but also not enough to really hurt the team given how well we played.

The Ugly

Nothing to report! Just some nagging injuries, nothing major.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 18-8
Overall Record: 106-56
Position: 1st
Games Back: +9

The Good

We did it! We finally did it! For the first time since 2006, we’ve won the division! And after two hot months in a row, we are headed into the playoffs with all kinds of momentum!

Manny Machado is getting hot at the right time. He finished September with a .367/.422/.663 line, 6 doubles, 7 HR, and 26 RBI. Tatis Jr. just keeps pounding the ball - .326/.390.632 with 7 doubles, 2 triples, and 6 HR. Dickerson has put together another solid month and also appears to be getting hot at the right time - .308/.330/.484. And Reyes finally looks alive at the plate. He hit .302/.346/.646 with 6 doubles, 24 RBI, and a team leading 9 HR.

The pitching staff continues to be dominant. Bieber went 4-1 with a 2.64 ERA, 0.88 WHIP, and 10.0 K/9. James Paxton looked like his old self with a 3-1 record, 2.89 ERA, and 0.99 WHIP. And the bullpen continues to be a force to be reckoned with.

The Bad

Oh Ha-Seong Kim. What is going on with you this season? He had another awful month, hitting just .215. At this point, I might actually drop him from the starting lineup as we move into the playoffs.

The Ugly

Nothing! We’re on cloud nine!

[Sundance]

NL Wild Card

Los Angeles Dodgers (0) vs New York Mets (1)

AL Wild Card

Detroit Tigers (0) vs Los Angeles Angels (1)

NL Division Series

San Diego Padres vs New York Mets

Game 1 in San Diego
Shane Bieber (16-5) vs Thomas Szapucki (15-9)

With both teams throwing out their aces to start the series, you knew this one was going to be a low-scoring affair. Both starters looked strong as they each held their opposing sides scoreless through the first five innings. When push comes to shove, you’ve gotta lean on your stars, and that’s exactly what we did. In the bottom of the 6th, we finally broke through. A 1-out single by Tatis Jr. followed by a 2-run homer from Machado opened up the scoring.

A 2-out walk to Shane Bieber in the bottom of the 7th was followed by an RBI double from Tucupita Marcano to give us another run. Bieber stayed strong on the mound and our bullpen ensured things stayed the way they were. A nice simple win to open the series.

Final Score: 3-0
Player of the Game: SP Shane Bieber - 7.0 IP, 0 R, 8 K, 1 BB

Game 2 in San Diego
Ryan Weathers (12-8) vs JT Ginn (11-7)

If Game 1 was all about the pitching, then Game 2 was all about the offense. The Mets got things started early with a lead off single in the second and a 2-out home run by 3B Dansby Swanson. Machado answered back with a solo shot in our half of the inning, but the Mets would go on to extend their lead with a 2-run single from Swanson in the 4th and a 3-run home run from CF James Wood in the 5th.

We would start chipping away at their lead in the second half of the game. One run in each of the 5th, 6th, and 7th, and two more runs in the 8th. Unfortunately, the damage was done and the deficit too great to overcome. The series is tied.

Final Score: 6-8
Player of the Game: 3B Dansby Swanson - 2-2, 1 BB, 2 R, 4 RBI
Note: Mets catcher Mitch Garver tied the NL record by going 0-5 with 5 strikeouts

Game 3 in New York
Blake Snell (8-5) vs Matt Allan (3-2)

Having suffered three different throwing arm injuries in three straight years, Snell might never be the pitcher that he could have been. But that didn’t stop him from reminding everyone of his potential. The 31 year old was absolutely brilliant, choosing the playoffs to throw one of his best ever games. The Mets were helpless against him.

For Allan’s part, he actually tossed a pretty good game himself. However the long ball would haunt him. A 2-run shot by Machado in the 2nd gave us an early lead. Reyes and Dickerson added solo shots in the 6th to extend our lead to 4. With the way Snell pitched, those subsequent blasts were nothing more than insurance. We take the lead in the series once again.

Final Score: 4-0
Player of the Game: SP Blake Snell - 9.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 14 K

Game 4 in New York
Chris Paddack (13-6) vs David Peterson (8-12)

Despite the moniker “Slam Diego,” sometimes all we need is a little small ball. That’s how we started Game 4 anyway. Marcano worked a lead off walk, Tocci bunted him over, Tatis Jr. hit a single to put runners on the corner, and Machado bround in the run with a sacrifice fly.

Chris Paddack was cruising until the 6th when the Mets hit back to back home runs to give them a 1-3 lead. Thankfully, we were able to answer right back. In the top of the 7th, MJ Melendez was able to work a 2-out walk, which the pinch hitting CJ Abrams followed up with a 2-run home run. Marcano would make it a back to back affair with a solo shot of his own to give us the lead once again.

The Mets did manage to tie things up, but we put the game out of reach in the 9th. Ha-Seong Kim stepped up and hit a pinch hit solo shot, Tocci got on with a 2-out triple, and Tatis Jr. brought him in with a 2-run homer. We advance!

Final Score: 7-4
Player of the Game: SS Fernando Tatis Jr. - 2-4, 1 BB, 1 R, 2 RBI

Series MVP: 3B Manny Machado - 6-16, 3 HR, 5 RBI

Atlanta Braves (3) vs Milwaukee Brewers (2)

AL Division Series

Cleveland Indians (3) vs Los Angeles Angels (2)
Boston Red Sox (2) vs Seattle Mariners (3)

NL Championship Series

San Diego Padres vs Atlanta Braves

Game 1 in San Diego
Shane Bieber (16-5) vs Ian Anderson (14-10)

Perhaps inspired by the outing of Snell, Bieber decided to open up the series against Atlanta with a gem of his own. We’ll get to that in a second.

We opened up the scoring in the 3rd with an RBI double from Marcano. We added three more in the 4th thanks to a 2-run home run from Dickerson and an RBI walk from Marcano.

That run support proved to be more than enough for Bieber who tossed a complete game. The lone damage the Braves were able to cause came from a solo home run in the 6th off the bat of LF Tyler O’Neill. Game 1 is ours.

Final Score: 5-1
Player of the Game: SP Shane Bieber - 9.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 9 K

Game 2 in San Diego
Ryan Weathers (12-8) vs Chriss Bassitt (17-11)

The hope was to see Weathers bounce back from his awful first start in these playoffs, and we saw just that. The young arm looked strong as he shut down the Braves’ lineup. The 24 year old tossed 7 shutout innings.

For our part, we racked up a ton of hits, but not very many runs. Our lone breakthrough came in the 4th when Dickerson got things started off with a lead off single. Kim hit a 1-out single to put runners on the corner, and Campusano drove both of them in with a double. Weathers stepped up to the plate and helped himself out by driving in Campusano with a single of his own, giving us the lead 3-0.

We tagged Braves’ pitching for 12 hits, but only those 3 runs. Still, with the way Weathers pitched, it didn’t matter. Our bullpen came in and slammed the door shut. Game 2 goes to us.

Final Score: 3-0
Player of the Game: SP Ryan Weathers - 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 9 K

Game 3 in Atlanta
Blake Snell (8-5) vs Max Fried (10-8)

After two straight gems from our starters, the Braves finally cracked our pitching staff. Snell was absolutely awful. He lasted just two outs, giving up 7 runs (5 earned) in the process. Elledge came on in relief and promptly surrendered 2 more runs before finally ending the top of the 1st.

There’s not much you can do when you start the game down 9 runs. Our offense didn’t fare much better, scoring 2 runs on just 5 hits. This game was just ugly. The less we say about it the better. Hopefully we can turn things around before the Braves can launch this into a series turning moment.

Final Score: 2-12
Player of the Game: SP Max Fried - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 5 K

Game 4 in Atlanta
James Paxton (15-6) vs Mike Soroka (15-11)

After the horrific performance of the previous game, I knew that we needed to shut the Braves down before they could swing the momentum of the series. So I made the choice to bump Paddack and go with the veteran arm of our former ace, James Paxton.

The Braves got to Paxton early with a 2-run single in the first (Neither run was earned). However, the veteran quickly settled down after that, shutting down their lineup for the rest of his outing. Our bullpen looked dominant and held the Braves helpless.

It took a little while for our offense to get going, but we got to Soroka the second time through. In the top of the 5th, Reyes started things off with a leadoff double, which was followed by a double from Kim to bring him home. Marcano would go on to bring Kim in with a 2-out RBI single, tying up the game. We added another 2 runs off of Soroka in the 7th thanks, once again, to some clutch hitting from Marcano - a 2-run double this time. We stopped the Braves dead in their tracks.

Final Score: 4-2
Player of the Game: SP James Paxton - 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 K

Game 5 in Atlanta
Chris Paddack (13-6) vs Ian Anderson (14-10)

Desperate to salvage the series, the Braves opted to go with a shortened rotation and brought back Anderson to try and force the series back to San Diego.

It was a move that didn’t pay off as Anderson lasted just one out before being pulled for a sore shoulder. He left the game with the bases loaded and we pounced on the opportunity to crush their spirits even further. We knocked in 5 runs to start the game.

Unfortunately for the Braves, this was just the beginning of the end. A 2-run shot from Tatis Jr. in the 2nd, two more runs in the 3rd, a solo shot from Reyes in the 5th, and four more runs in the 6th.

All Paddack had to do was hit cruise control. He did more than that, pitching fairly well. He gave up 3 runs over the course of 7 innings.

We’re going back to the World Series to defend!

Final Score: 14-3
Player of the Game: RF Franmil Reyes - 4-5, 4 R, 1 RBI
Note: RF Franmil Reyes ties the NL playoff game record with 4 runs

Series MVP: RF Franmil Reyes - 10-19, 2 HR, 2 RBI

AL Championship Series

Cleveland Indians (4) vs Seattle Mariners (1)

World Series

San Diego Padres vs Cleveland Indians

Game 1 in San Diego
Shane Bieber (16-5) vs Aaron Civale (8-9)

In the end, the two best teams in baseball faced each other in the World Series. While Cleveland fiddled with their rotation in the days leading up to the series, there was little doubt who was going to get the ball for us.

We got on the board early with one run in the first - Tocci hit a 1-out double and Machado brought him in with a 2-out single. We added three more runs in the 3rd with a pair of singles from Marcano and Tocci, an RBI double from Machado, and an RBI single from Dickerson.

That was more than enough run support for Bieber who held the Indians in check for most of the night. He surrendered a single run in the 4th before we went to the pen in the 8th. A combination of Elledge, Hill, and Cederlind would close out the game.

Final Score: 6-1
Player of the Game: CF Carlos Tucci - 4-4, 3 R, 1 RBI

Game 2 in San Diego
Ryan Weathers (12-8) vs Brady Singer (5-2)

Just like in Game 1, we got on the board early in this one. Back to back 1-out singles from Tocci and Tatis Jr. in our half of the first were followed by a 3-run homer from Machado. Unfortunately for us, we came out strong and fizzled early.

Weathers started the game off well, keeping the Indians in check through the first five innings of the game. They finally broke through in the 6th. Weathers hit the lead off man, and then gave up a 2-out RBI double to get the Indians on the board. They tagged him again in the 6th, this time with a 2-run double.

The game remained tied through nine. Both bullpens were looking tough to beat. In the 12th we brought in Elledge to hold them. He gave up a lead off double to 2B Luis Guillorme. He would get the next two batters out before giving up an RBI single to SS Andres Gimenez. Unfortunately for us, we weren’t able to answer back. The series is tied.

Final Score: 3-4 (12)
Player of the Game: SP Ryan Weathers - 6.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 6 K

Game 3 in Cleveland
Chris Paddack (13-6) vs Daniel Espino (8-3)

After Snell’s disastrous start in Atlanta, I decided to once again mix up the rotation. This time it was Paddack who got the call. The Indians managed to get to Paddack a couple of times - the first, a solo shot in the 1st and the second, a solo shot in the 4th. But aside from those two, Paddack pitched pretty well.

Unfortunately, our offense was nowhere to be found. We managed to get one across in the 6th with an RBI double from Dickerson, but despite having nearly twice as many hits as Cleveland, we just couldn't put together a string of them. Advantage Cleveland.

Final Score: 1-2
Player of the Game: SP Daniel Espino - 5.1 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 1 B, 9 K

Game 4 in Cleveland
James Paxton (15-6) vs Lenny Torres (11-8)

Salt. In. Our. Wounds. Paxton got off to a rough start, giving up a leadoff homer to start the bottom of the 1st. He then gave up an RBI double to RF Josh Naylor and an RBI single to LF Daniel Johnson. Still in the first, he gave up a walk to Luis Guillorme. His cleat caught the dirt and he toppled over sideways during his follow through. Torn meniscus.

It was going to be a long day for our bullpen. They were up for the task, but the damage had already been done. Once again, our offense was nowhere to be seen. We’ll need to salvage a win on the road to hopefully take the series back to San Diego to fight for our lives.

Final Score: 2-4
Player of the Game: SS Andres Gimenez - 1-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI
Note: SS Fernando Tatis Jr. ties the NL playoff game record with 5 strikeouts

Game 5 in Cleveland
Shane Bieber (16-5) vs Aaron Civale (8-9)

With the series on the line, there was only one man we could turn to. Bieber got the call to pitch on short rest to try and force the series back home. He answered that call.

We drew first blood in the top of the 3rd. Marcano got it started with a 1-out single and was followed by a double from Tocci. Tatis Jr. brought in Marcano with a ground ball to first that the first baseman wasn’t able to handle.

Cleveland answered back with a solo shot from 1B Nolan Jones in the 4th. However, aside from that home run, Bieber was able to keep their lineup in check. Dickerson gave us back the lead in the top of the 6th with a 2-run blast.

The Indians tried to mount a comeback in the 8th, but Green was able to bend and not break. We live to fight another day. The series is coming back home.

Final Score: 3-2
Player of the Game: SP Shane Bieber - 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Game 6 in San Diego
Blake Snell (8-5) vs Brady Singer (5-2)

Headed back home I had a decision to make. Do we go with the young arm of Ryan Weathers? Or do we go with the rested arm of Blake Snell? I opted to go with the most rest arm in our rotation and gave Snell the nod.

Snell labored through 4.2 innings of work, but despite his troubles, he kept the game close. The Indians managed a solo shot in the 1st and an RBI single in the 4th. It wasn’t the prettiest outing, but it was enough to keep us in the game.

Unfortunately, our offense decided to once again be a no show. It wasn’t until the 9th inning that we finally scored. With two out, Reyes hit a double. He moved to third on a Kim single. Campusano drove him in with a single of his own. There were now runners on first and second with two out. Mj Melendez hit a double that scored Kim and moved Campusano to third. Bottom of the 9th. Two out. Runners on second and third. Down two runs. Up stepped Tucupita Marcano. He gets a ball in the zone and…

Ground it to shortstop. Game over. The Indians take the series.

Final Score: 2-4
Player of the Game: CF Keith Curcio - 2-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 RBI

Series MVP: SS Andres Gimenez - 7-24, 1 HR, 3 RBI

[Sundance]

Overall Record: 106-56
Position: 1st
Games Back: +9

Ah, the bitter taste of coming up just short. This was the best regular season in franchise history. Unfortunately, we couldn’t cap it off by defending our title. We faced off against the best team in the AL, who nearly matched our record at 104-58. Our pitching showed up, as we expected, but it was our offense that let us down in the end. Still, it’s hard to complain about a season in which you made it to the World Series. So let’s take a closer look at some performances this year.

SS Fernando Tatis Jr.
.303/.364/.541, 39 doubles, 5 triples, 33 HR, 116 RBI, 14 SB, 9.9 WAR

Another MVP-worthy season from the 25 year old. El Nino ranked 3rd in the NL in hits (189), 4th in total bases (337), 8th in HR, 4th in RBI, 6th in R (112), 10th in average, and 1st in WAR. He finished second in MVP voting, earned his 4th straight All-Star appearance, and won his 3rd Silver Slugger.

3B Manny Machado
.283/.358/.521, 29 doubles, 2 triples, 36 HR, 123 RBI, 9 SB, 6.3 WAR

With a healthy Tatis Jr., Machado didn’t have the pressure this season to carry the team. Still, he produced an incredible year at the plate. 8th in total bases (309), 4th in HR, 2nd in RBI, and 8th in WAR. This season saw him hit his 1,000th career RBI and score his 1,000th run. He was selected to his 8th All-Star game, and was nominated the 2024 Division Series MVP. He also was on the shortlist for the NL MVP, finishing 7th.

CF Carlos Tocci
.302/.354/.396, 30 doubles, 3 triples, 6 HR, 59 RBI, 7 SB, 4.0 WAR

In a year in which our owner wanted me to upgrade at center field, I opted instead to put my faith in Tocci. He rewarded my faith by earning his 1st All-Star appearance. He impressed so much that the owner was actually pleased by my choice to stick with him.

1B Tucupita Marcano
.290/.374/.395, 37 doubles, 2 triples, 9 HR, 79 RBI, 26 SB, 3.6 WAR

I was a little worried that Marcano might struggle with switching positions this season, but the 25 year old adapted to first base well. He finished 1st in the NL in starts, 5th in hits (187), 4th in SB, and 8th in BB. He also earned his 2nd All-Star selection.

SP Shane Bieber
16-5, 208.0 IP, 245 K, 2.64 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 7.1 WAR

We went out and splashed the cash on Bieber and he did not disappoint. He finished 3rd in the NL in wins, 2nd in IP, 1st in K, 1st in ERA, 1st in WHIP, 1st in BB/9, 1st in QS, and 1st in WAR. He won his 1st NL Cy Young, and 4th overall in the last 5 seasons. He was also selected to his 5th All-Star game. On top of all of that, he was an absolute stud in the playoffs and was on the shortlist for NL MVP (Finished 11th).

SP Ryan Weathers
12-8, 193.1 IP, 155 K, 3.07 ERA, 0.96 WHIP, 3.8 WAR

Weathers took another big step forward in his development this season. He ranked 5th in IP, 5th in ERA, 2nd in WHIP, 6th in BB/9, 2nd in QS, and 9th in WAR. He also earned his 1st All-Star selection this season. I’m very excited about the 24 year old’s future with us.

CL Blake Cederlind
41 SV, 73.1 IP, 71 K, 2.09 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 2.2 WAR

For the second year in a row, Cederlind led the league in saves. He earned his 1st All-Star selection and finished 2nd in Reliever of the Year voting. It seems we might have found our solution to our closer problem.

RP Tim Hill
18 HLD, 40.0 IP, 43 K, 1.12 ERA, 0.93 WHIP, 1.5

The lefty-specialist was dominant in what was the best season of his 7-year career. He finished 3rd in the NL in holds and gave up just 5 runs all season. Absolutely destroyed left-handed batters this season.

Honorable Mentions:

2B Ha-Seong Kim won his second Gold Glove
Luis Caballero was named NL Manager of the Year

Prospect Follow Up

SS CJ Abrams - MLB
SP Ryan Weathers - MLB
RP Elvis Luciano - MLB
SP Will Bednar - AAA -> MLB -> AAA
SP David Harrison - AAA
RP Shuichiro Hotta - AAA -> MLB -> AAA
SP Tommy Sheehan - AAA
3B Aaron Sabato - AAA
2B Livan Soto - AAA -> MLB -> AAA
LF Robert Hassell III - AA -> MLB -> AAA
C Diego Cartaya - AA -> MLB -> AAA
RF Tirso Ornelas - AA
RF Andy Pages - A+ -> AA
SP Jagger Haynes - A+ - AAA
SS Orelvis Martinez - A+
CL Michell Miliano - A+
SP Ian Murphy - R
C Jesus Galiz - R
1B Blaze Jordan - R
LF Brayan Buelvas - R
CF Zayed Salinas - R

[Sundance]

MLB News

10/30/24 - The AL will no longer use the DH
01/28/25 - The Arizona Diamondbacks have relocated and rebranded. They are now the Indianapolis River Hawks

Extensions

RP Chad Green - 3 years, $18,000,000
RP Pierce Johnson - 1 year, $3,500,000
RP Archie Bradley - 2 years, $3,000,000

Trades

To Milwaukee Brewers - RF Franmil Reyes, RF Chas McCormick, minor league CF A.J. Brown
To San Diego Padres - Minor league 3B Jason Rooks

With Hassell III waiting in the wings, I needed to make a spot on the roster for him. With our offense struggling so much in the postseason, I just don’t know if we can afford to carry a player like Reyes.

Rooks is a similar hitter to Reyes in that he can absolutely crush the ball, but he’s going to strike out a ton as well. He probably won’t ever break into our starting roster, but we’ll definitely be keeping an eye on him.

To Washington Nationals - Minor league RHP Camilo Doval, minor league RHP Andre Jackson
To San Diego Padres - Minor league 1B Jacob Rhinesmith, minor league RHP Holden Powell

Doval and Jackson were both pitchers who just weren’t going to break into our staff.

Rhinesmith is probably good enough to play in the majors, but he’ll have a hard time beating out Marcano. He offers us some organization depth should Marcano ever get hurt, and he could possibly fill a bench role as he can also play both corner outfield positions. Powell should be an average to above average reliever when he finishes developing. I’m not sure if he’ll ever reach a point where he is good enough to join our big league squad, but he’s worth taking a chance on.

To Milwaukee Brewers - 2B Ha-Seong Kim
To San Diego Padres - Minor league LF Max Kops, minor league RHP Alis Atague

It wasn’t that our offense was bad last season. It was more that it was inconsistent. Kim is the poster boy for inconsistency. We have Abrams waiting for an opening, and I think that he’ll be a much more consistent performer.

Kops was the Brewers’ number one draft pick in 2022 and was their top prospect. If he develops to his potential, he should be an elite contact hitter with enough power to make pitchers think twice about challenging him. Atagua has raw stuff, but lacks control and is susceptible to the long ball. He’s more of a project than anything else, but he was a nice little addition to sweeten the pot.

To Philadelphia Phillies - SP Blake Snell, minor league RHP Ryan Conroy
To San Diego Padres - RP Josh Staumont, minor league RHP Hunter Goodwin

It hurts to let Snell go, but I have to face the facts. Because of his injury history, he’s just not the pitcher he could have once been. Over the course of the season, Snell is probably going to be a serviceable starter still, but with his lack of control these days, it’s just too difficult to trust him in the postseason. Conroy should be an average to above average starter in the league, but we just have better options going forward.

Staumont is a flame throwing power pitcher with a knee-buckling curveball. If I’m being completely honest, I’m not sure if we’ll have room for him in our pen, but he’s an interesting piece to have around. Possibly an option for an injury replacement, or perhaps we might move him along as part of another deal. Goodwin is pretty similar to Staumont - he’s a hard throwing righty with a nasty curve. He has a tendency to serve balls on a platter more often than I’d like, but his stuff is just so good that he’s intriguing

To Toronto Blue Jays - SP Chris Paddack, minor league RF Tirso Ornelas
To San Diego Padres - SP Paul Campbell, minor league SS Rikelvin de Castro

Some will think I’m crazy for dismantling the best rotation in baseball last season. But the curse of being a smaller market team is the demand to perform while also saving money. We have young, inexpensive prospects waiting for a chance to break into the starting rotation, and I’m going to give them that chance.

Campbell is an average starter at this point in his career. I’m going to give some young guys a chance this season, but if they struggle, we might see Campbell step into a starting role at the back end of the rotation. De Castro is a pretty average prospect. There’s nothing to write home about. However, he’s a good presence in the clubhouse, and I wanted an additional piece as part of this deal.

To San Francisco Giants - RP Elvis Luciano, minor league RHP Josh Paulina
To San Diego Padres - RP Jesus Linarez, minor league RHP Andrew Dennis

Looking at our current roster, I felt like we had one too many pitchers. The choice came down to Luciano or Sandlin. I chose to keep Sandlin because he is a team leader. I would like to keep Luciano, but we really need another bat on the bench. The most difficult part was trying to find the right person to trade him for. We wanted to get someone of decent value, but I also needed someone who wasn’t going to be on the MLB roster this season.

Linarez fit that bill. He’s bounced back and forth between AAA and the MLB. He’s good enough to spend some time with the big league club if we need him, but he’s also not going to demand a spot on the roster. We could have gotten more for Luciano, but this trade was all about fit.

Arrivals

RF Willie Marin - 3 years, $7,500,000

Marin is a 27 year old free agent out of Venezuela. He stands at 6’6”, weighs 230 lbs, and is an intimidating presence in the box. He maintains a contact-oriented approach at the plate and has plus power. He’s an average fielder at best, but with his big frame, he has a cannon of an arm. He’s a hard worker and inspires others with his work ethic.

RF Jae-Ho Lee - 1 year, $1,300,000

Another international free agent. Lee is a 27 year old from South Korea. He has quick hands at the plate and should hit for a decent average. He’s also got enough pop to punish pitchers when they make a mistake. He’s got a good eye and should be tough to strike out. We’ll have to see this spring whether or not he’s good enough to start, but in either case, he should be a nice addition to our lineup.

Departures

RP Luis Gutierrez - Rule 5 Draft, Colorado Rockies

He was a decent prospect. At the time of him being picked up, he still looked a ways away from being ready for the big leagues. I’m a bit surprised the Rockies chose to pick him up. He’s developed a bit since then, but he’s still a borderline talent at this point. Would have been nice to keep a hold of him, but not terribly upset that he was drafted.

LF Corey Dickerson - Free agent, unemployed

The time felt right to move on from Dickerson. He’s still a very productive player and his price tag wasn’t bad, but there were some interesting international free agents and we have some prospects waiting for chances. It was just time to say goodbye. I’m very surprised that no one has picked him up yet. He’s 35, but he can still play and contribute.

LF Alek Thomas - Claimed off waivers, Houston Astros

Thomas was out of options and I was hoping to sneak him through waivers so that we could send him back to the minors. Unfortunately, that didn’t quite work out for us. We took a gamble and lost, although it wasn’t a terrible loss.

Outlook

With five straight playoff runs, including back to back World Series appearances in the last two seasons, all eyes will be on us to see if we can continue our run. Can we win a second title and make this a true dynasty? We’re predicted to once again be the best team in baseball, but can we keep living up to the hype? With the same bullpen and just a few changes to the starting rotation, we know that our pitching staff is going to be one of the best in the league. But can our offense come around and find consistency? Or will we once again go cold in October?

[Sundance]

Fernando Tatis Jr. - SS - 26

Entering his 7th season in the big leagues, El Nino is a perennial MVP candidate at this point in his career. In the past three seasons he has twice led the NL in WAR, won an MVP award, and also finished as the runner up. As long as he’s healthy, he’s one of the premiere talents in baseball.

Manny Machado - 3B - 32

The future Hall of Famer is still the most decorated player on the roster. In the last three seasons, he’s finished the season as a Top 10 player, twice being named the MVP runner up. He should reach 2,000 career hits pretty early in the season, has a chance to reach 400 career doubles, and a longer shot at reaching 400 career home runs. He's already the club’s all-time leader in homers, with 191 for the team so far.

CJ Abrams - 2B - 24

Now in his 3rd season with the club, Abrams has finally been handed the reins of a starting role to begin the season. The young middle infielder should be an elite contact hitter with enough pop in his bat to make pitchers honest. He’s a plus defender and has elite speed. Defensively, I don’t think he’ll have any troubles replacing the two-time Gold Glove winning Kim, and at the plate, he should offer us more consistency.

Willie Marin - LF - 27

The first year man out of Venezuela has the potential to be the signing of the season. He has top tier hand-eye coordination that should translate into a high average. He can effectively use his 6’6” frame to crush balls when he makes contact. If he can adjust to the MLB, he should be among the top offensive players in the game.

Tucupita Marcano - 1B - 25

Marcano has made the All-Star game in back to back years - as a second baseman in 2023 and as a first baseman in 2024. He has proven to be remarkably consistent at the plate. When it’s all said and done, we expect him to be around 180+ hits, 30 doubles, 10 HR, and 25 steals.

Shane Bieber - SP - 29

4 Cy Youngs in five years. In that same timeframe he’s won 2 ERA crowns, 2 strikeout crowns, and led his respective league in WAR 3 times. Entering 2025, we expect more of the same from Bieber. He should finish the season in discussion for silverware.

James Paxton - SP - 36

With three starters aged 25 or younger, Paxton is the wily old vet of the rotation. In fact, Paxton is the oldest pitcher we’ve got. He was the 2023 Cy Young runner up, but it was clear last season that he’s lost a little something to his pitches. After three straight seasons of 200+ IP and 200+ K, Paxton failed to reach either of those marks in 2024. His 4.15 ERA was the worst of his career, his 1.26 WHIP was his worst since 2019, and his K/9 was his lowest since 2015. I’m hoping to see him bounce back this season, but his best days may be behind him.

Ryan Weathers - SP - 25

Our 2018 1st round pick took a big step in his career last season. Last season he was, in my opinion surprisingly, picked to finish as a Top 10 pitcher in the NL, and he more or less met those expectations. 2025 will be his 3rd full year with the club, and with it comes the burden of our expectations.

The Bullpen

It would take too long to single out everyone, so let’s just lump them all together. While our starting rotation undergoes a changing of the guard, our bullpen remains essentially untouched. There’s the two veteran arms of Archie Bradley and Tim Hill that we can lean on in tough situations. Then there’s our core of lights out relievers - Robby Butron, Seth Elledge, and Chad Green that should be able to come in and close out games. And at the back end we have Blake Cederlind who has led the league in saves in consecutive years. Knowing the talent and consistency that exists in our pen made the decision to tinker with our starting rotation that much easier.

Prospects 2025

2B CJ Abrams - MLB
SP Will Bednar - MLB
RF Robert Hassell III - MLB (#59 in MLB)
SP Shuichiro Hotta - MLB
LF Max Kops - AAA (#8)
SP Jagger Haynes - AAA (#9)
3B Heriberto Rodriguez - INT (#62)
SP David Harrison - AAA (#97)
SS Victor Acosta - R (#111)
SP Byung-Doo Lee - INT (#115)
RF Andy Pages - AAA (#123)
SP Tommy Sheehan - AAA (#152)
C Jesus Galiz - A+ (#194)

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 17-9
Overall Record: 17-9
Position: 1st
Games Back: +3

The Good

There doesn’t appear to be any need to worry about the changes and inexperience of our starting rotation. The pitching staff as a whole seems to be picking up right where they left off to end last season. Shane Bieber struggled to find results, but he pitched very well this month - 3.24 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 35 K over 33.1 IP. Ryan Weathers looked sharp with a 2.49 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and 26 K in 25.1 IP. New addition to the rotation, Shuichiro Hotta also looked impressive, holding opposing lineups to just a .208 average.

On the other side of the field, Fernando Tatis Jr. seems to be in mid-season form. He hit .312/.368/.570 and led the team with 6 HR, 21 RBI, and added 5 steals. Manny Machado also came out swinging with a .358/.406/.547 line with 10 doubles, a pair of homers, and 16 RBI. Carlos Tocci is looking as consistent as ever with a .308 average to open up the first month of the season. New starter CJ Abrams is also looking pretty good with a .292 average with 5 doubles and 5 homers. He also led the team with 7 steals.

The Bad

One of our veteran arms is off to a rough start. Archie Bradley posted a 5.14 ERA with a 1.57 WHIP in just 7 innings worth of work. We expect him to smooth things out, but definitely a month he would like to forget.

The Ugly

Unfortunately, not all of our newcomers have found early season success. Willie Marin struggled in his first month in the MLB - .182/.270/.330. Rookie Robert Hassell III also struggled in April, hitting just .195/.276/.230. Lastly, our catchers are off to a slow start as well. We currently have Luis Campusano starting about 80% of the games, but he hit just .225/.295/.324. MJ Melendez, who might have overachieved last season at the plate, hit just .136/.240/.227 in limited action.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 19-10
Overall Record: 36-19
Position: 1st
Games Back: +6

The Good

Things looked a little sketchy there at the beginning of the month as we lost 5 of 7 to start the month. We righted the ship however and were able to extend our lead over our division rivals by winning 7 of the last 8 games of the month.

Both Tatis. Jr and Machado continue to be our main contributors at the plate. Tatis Jr. hit .295/.361/.467 with 6 doubles, 4 HR, 20 RBI, and 5 steals. Machado added a .321/.392/.624 line with 6 doubles as well, a team leading 9 HR, and 19 RBI.

Abrams continues to look impressive. The youngster hit .305/.383/.424 with 8 doubles and a massive 14 steals. Marcano looked like his normal self with a .322/.394/.398 line, and Tocci continues to look great, hitting .356 for the month. Marin looked more comfortable at the plate this month, hitting 8 doubles, 2 triples, and 5 HR while also driving in a team leading 22 RBI. And fellow league newcomer Jae-Ho Lee added a team leading 9 doubles.

The starting rotation continues to pitch well. There weren’t any particular performances that stood apart from the rest. Just a solid job all around from our starters. And the bullpen continues to look dominant. Bradley, Butron, and Hill all looked close to untouchable.

The Bad

Definitely the slow start to the month. We actually dropped down to 3rd at one point. Thankfully we were able to get things settled relatively quickly, but I could do without any more scares like that for the rest of the season.

The Ugly

As good as our bullpen was, there was one concerning performance. Pierce Johnson had an absolutely awful month. He threw just 7.1 innings, but gave up 14 hits, including 4 HR, and 9 runs, 6 of which were earned. He finished the month with a 7.36 ERA and 2.45 WHIP.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 18-7
Overall Record: 54.26
Position: 1st
Games Back: +10

The Good

We were really able to pull away from the pack this month. The owner isn’t too happy that I wasn't able to cut down on our expenses this season, but we’re in the midst of a possible dynasty. Maybe if we win it all he’ll get off my back.

We finally got some production from behind the plate. Campusano hit .347/.412/.542 this month. Abrams and Tocci both continue to look incredibly consistent. Abrams hit .326/.439/.484 with 7 doubles and 7 steals, and Tocci hit .333/.368/.456.

The starters are still looking good. James Paxton led the way this month by looking like his old self. He showed he’s still got a bit left in the tank by going 3-0 with a 3.18 ERA, 0.88 WHIP and 9.3 K/9. Weathers was close behind with a 1-0 record, 2.53 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, and 7.0 K/9. The bullpen was nearly untouchable this month. Five of our relievers posted sub-1.00 WHIP.

Here’s a look at the Padres that made the All-Star team this year.

SP Shane Bieber - 7-5, 3.59 ERA, 90.1 IP, 1.15 WHIP, 10.2 K/9, 2.3 WAR
SP James Paxton - 8-1, 2.64 ERA, 95.1 IP, 1.07 WHIP, 7.7 K/9, 1.7 WAR
CL Blake Cederlind - 22 SV, 3.62 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 6.4 K/9, 0.1 WAR
2B CJ Abrams - .311/.391/.476, 9 HR, 24 SB, 3.5 WAR
3B Manny Machado - .324/.386/.603, 18 HR, 3.7 WAR
SS Fernando Tatis Jr. .341/.401/.585, 15 HR, 12 SB, 5.3 WAR (Most votes, injured)

Former Padres player CF Alex Verdugo also was named to the NL squad

The Bad

Our offense is playing well as a whole, but there were a few concerning performances this month. Marcano hit just .252. Machado wasn’t much better at .253, although he did add 7 HR. Lee also struggled with just a .236 average. Like Machado, he did show a bit of pop though, with 6 HR.

The Ugly

You knew the injuries were coming. I’m just amazed that it took this long for us to get hit. Pierce Johnson suffered a torn UCL and is done for the year. He isn’t expected to be back until mid-season next year. Tatis Jr. also got hit with the injury bug. He strained his abs avoiding a tag on a triple. He’ll be out a minimum of 5 weeks.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 16-13
Overall Record: 70-39
Position: 1st
Games Back: +12

The Draft

This was actually a really impressive draft pool this year. We went with 21 year old LHP Billy “City” Matherne from Stony Brook University. He’s a 6’5”, 205 lbs ground ball pitcher that throws in the low to mid 90s. He should develop a wicked slider and a plus forkball to go along with his fastball. He also throws a curveball, but would probably be better off if he dropped that pitch altogether. If he reaches his potential, he should be good enough to challenge for silverware.

The Good

Record-wise, it wasn’t the greatest month for us, but we still managed to increase our gap over the rest of the NL West. There were a number of great offensive performances this past month. Lee had a monster month, hitting .361/.418/.732 with 13 doubles, 7 HR, and a ridiculous 33 RBI. Getting a chance to start, 2B Alex Goicochea had a fantastic month - .356/.377/.584 with 6 doubles, 4 triples, and 3 HR. Abrams posted a .333/.403/.3277 line while taking over duties at shortstop for most of the month. Marin and Machado also looked sharp, hitting .311 and .312, respectively.

Bieber looked good this month, going 3-0 with a 3.98 ERA, and 0.91 WHIP over 6 starts. In the pen, Butron, Elledge, and Green all looked unhittable.

The Bad

While we had a number of good offensive performances this month, our pitching let us down a bit. Youngsters Bednar and Hotta both had months to forget. Tyler Johnson also really struggled this month.

The Ugly

The normally consistent Cederlind was absolutely atrocious this month. He posted a 10.12 ERA, 2.50 WHIP, and blew 4 saves this month.

We also got hit with another major injury. Right before the end of the month, James Paxton suffered a partially torn labrum. He’s expected to miss 3-4 months. Prior to his injury, he had posted a 2.82 ERA with 1.12 WHIP and was on pace for 14 wins, 200+ IP and 180+ K. David Harrison will be getting called up from AAA to replace him.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 19-9
Overall Record: 89-48
Position: 1st
Games Back: +15

The Good

The gap between us and the second place Rockies keeps growing. Marin led the way with an incredible August. He hit .412/.469/.696 with 8 doubles, and 7 homers. C Diego Cartaya got called up to replace an injured (minor) Luis Campusano and hit .340/.407/.553. Marcano returned to form with a .314/.371/.438 line with 10 doubles. Abrams hit .309 and added 12 steals. Tocci continues to be extremely consistent, hitting .312 this past month with 8 doubles.

Harrison, our 1st round draft pick in 2022, looked incredible in his first six big league starts. He went 5-1 with a 1.77 ERA, 0.89 WHIP, and 9.7 K/9. Fellow first year pitcher Tommy SHeehan also looked sharp. Coming out of the pen he had a 1.65 ERA with 0.67 WHIP.

The Bad

Tatis Jr. actually looked human this month. He hit just .232, although he did chip in with 8 doubles and 20 RBI.

The Ugly

There were a few concerning performances from our bullpen this month. Bradley had a month to forget with a 7.04 ERA, 1.96 WHIP, and just 4.7 K/9. Tyler Johnson had another awful month - 6.75 ERA and 2.14 WHIP. Our staff is still dominant, but they aren’t the impenetrable force that they were last season.

[Sundance]

Recap

Monthly Record: 14-11
Overall Record: 103-59
Position: 1st
Games Back: +14

The Good

Back to back division wins! We finished the season tied with the Braves for the best record in the NL, and second best record overall. We have a couple of players getting hot at the right time. Abrams hit .406/.459/.703 with 11 doubles, 2 triples, 5 HR, and 6 steals in the final month of the season. Marin hit .315/.400/.761 with 5 doubles, 12 HR, and 26 RBI.

Ryan Weathers is looking good headed into the postseason. He finished the last month of the season with a 2-1 record, 3.21 ERA, and 1.04 WHIP over 5 starts. Bradley bounced back this month as well. Elledge, Green, and Sheehan all looked great coming out of the pen as well. We have a lot of key players performing well as we look towards October.

The Bad

Shane Bieber got hit with an injury right before the season was set to end. Thankfully it’s not serious, but it is going to keep him out of the beginning of the playoffs at the very least.

The Ugly

As we wrap up the end of the season, there’s a lot to be worried about. September was not a kind month to several of our players. Our catchers went cold. The trio of Campusano, Cartaya, and Melendez went just 16-98. Lee also cooled off in a big way, hitting just .186 in September.

Our remaining healthy starters outside of Weathers all looked very average. There were also several relievers who struggled. Butron had a 6.55 ERA and 1.82 WHIP, Tim Hill and a 5.14 ERA and 1.57 WHIP, Tyler Johnson struggled again with a 9.00 ERA and 2.17 WHIP, and Sandlin posted a 10.12 ERA with 3.75 WHIP.

Fatigue might be taking its toll on our roster. Hopefully we can rest up and reset with our bye.

[Sundance]

Sorry for the lack of updates recently. I've burned through my stash of queued up posts and am all caught up with my current save. Currently in the middle of the playoffs, but haven't had time to finish them so far. Hopefully I'll find some time tonight, but if not, then for sure this weekend!

[Sundance]

NL Wildcard

Philadelphia Phillies (1) vs Colorado Rockies (0)

AL Wildcard

Seattle Mariners (1) vs Baltimore Orioles (0)

NL Division Series

San Diego Padres vs St. Louis Cardinals

Game 1 in San Diego
Ryan Weathers (10-5) vs Jack Flaherty (8-13)

Imagine your starter lasting just 1.2 innings. Do you think you’d win that game?

That’s the exact position we found ourselves in, and the exact question we had to ask. The good news, we didn’t have to take Weathers out because he was struggling. The bad news, we had to take him out in the second inning after he rolled his ankle while following through. It was going to be one long and difficult day for our bullpen.

For their part, our offense did what they could to help out. We got on the board in the second after back-to-back 2-out walks to Lee and Campusano. Hassell III, pinch hitting for Tommy Sheehan, came through with an RBI single. Lee would add a solo shot just two innings later.

That was all the run support our bullpen needed. They combined for a two-hit shutout to take Game 1.

Final Score: 2-0
Player of the Game: RF Jae-Ho Lee - 1-3, 2 R, 1 RBI
Notes: 1B Tucupita Marcano strained his calf while running the bases. He’s expected to be out for 3 weeks.

Game 2 in San Diego
David Harrison (8-3) vs Josh Clarke (7-11)

At some point, the inexperience of our starting rotation will come back to haunt us. Game 2 was the first of those hauntings. Harrison looked shaky to start the game. Back-to-back walks to lead things off in the 1st, followed by an RBI single and an RBI error. Our offense answered back with a pair of runs scored in the 2nd and 3rd, but Harrison fell apart again in the 6th.

He gave up a 1-out double, which was followed by a walk. The runner on second scored on a single. With 2 runners on, Butron came on in relief and surrendered an RBI single. He struck out the next batter and then gave up a 3-run homer. The Cardinals would have 6 runs crossed in the 6th. We pulled a couple of runs back in our half of the 6th, but it was too little too late.

Final Score: 4-9
Player of the Game: LF Marcell Ozuna - 2-3, 2 R, 3 RBI

Game 3 in St. Louis
Jagger Haynes (0-0) vs Dinelson Lamet (8-4)

How many players get their first MLB start in the playoffs? Thanks to the injury to Bieber, SP Jagger Haynes got the opportunity to do just that. The rookie was certainly up for the task. He tossed 8 innings, giving up 6 hits, 1 R, 0 BB, and striking out 11.

Abrams hit an RBI double in the 3rd to give us an early lead. We scored another two runs in the 4th thanks to a homer from Marin. The Cardinals were able to scrape together a couple of runs, but with the way Haynes was pitching, it didn’t matter. Advantage back to us.

Final Score: 4-2
Player of the Game: SP Jagger Haynes - 8.0 IP, 1 R, 0 BB, 11 K

Game 4 in St. Louis
Will Bednar (13-8) vs Bernardo FLores Jr. (14-8)

Another youngster cracking under the pressure of the playoffs. Bednar started off decently enough, giving up just an RBI double through the first 4 innings of the game. However, he fell apart in the 5th, giving up 4 runs, including a 3-run homer to 1B Cavan Biggio.

Our offense was nowhere to be found. We got just 3 hits off of Flores Jr., then just 1 hit off of their bullpen. We head back to San Diego with the series all tied up and a decision on our hands. Who will start Game 5?

Final Score: 0-5
Player of the Game: SP Bernardo Flores Jr. - 5.0 IP, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K

Game 5 in San Diego
Ryan Weathers (10-5) vs Jack Flaherty (8-13)

With the series on the line, I decided to go with the most consistent pitcher (That was still healthy) in our rotation - Ryan Weathers. Unfortunately, for the third time, we saw the pressure get to one of our young talents.

Weathers lasted just 1.2 innings, giving up 4 runs in the process. It was going to be another long day for our bullpen.

Flaherty shut us down completely for the first 7 innings of the game. We finally got to him in the 8th thanks to a 2-run homer from Tatis Jr. Headed into the 9th, we were down 2-5. Remember, Padres never say die.

With one out, Campusano worked a walk and advanced to second on an Ivan Castillo single. Hitting for himself, closer Blake Cederlind helped the cause with a single of his own. With the bases loaded, Abrams knocked in a run with yet another single. With two out and the bases still loaded, Fernando Tatis Jr. worked an RBI walk. Manny Machado stepped up to the plate with the game on the line and smashed a walk off 2-run RBI single to left. We live to see another day!

Final Score: 6-5
Player of the Game: SP Jack Flaherty - 7.1 IP, 2 R, 4 BB, 5 K
Series MVP: LF Marcell Ozuna - 8-20, 2 HR, 6 RBI

Atlanta Braves (1) vs Philadelphia Phillies (3)

AL Division Series

Los Angeles Angels (3) vs Seattle Mariners (1)

New York Yankees (0) vs Detroit Tigers (3)

NL Championship Series

San Diego Padres vs Philadelphia Phillies

Game 1 in San Diego
David Harrison (8-3) vs Jameson Taillon (17-7)

One way to ease the mind of a young pitcher is to just support him with a bunch of bombs. Or at least, that seemed to be the approach our lineup had in Game 1.

Machado got it started with a 2-run blast in the bottom of the 1st, Lee added a solo shot in the bottom of the 2nd, and Tatis Jr. hit a solo shot of his own in the bottom of the 3rd. Inspired by the offensive onslaught, Harrison thought he'd get in on the action himself and helped the cause with a 2-run single in the 4th.

With offense aplenty backing him, Harrison cruised through his outing. The rookie tossed 7.2 innings, giving up 6 hits and 1 run, while striking out 7. Game 1 to us!

Final Score: 6-1
Player of the Game: SP David Harrison - 7.2 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K

Game 2 in San Diego
Jagger Haynes (0-0) vs Francisco Morales (12-4)

With it unclear if Bieber will return in time to pitch this postseason, we’ll have to continue to lean on young, inexperienced arms. Haynes couldn’t replicate his first big league start, but he did pitch well enough to keep us in the game. The youngster gave up 3 runs on two home runs, both hit by 3B Alec Bohm.

We had some big hits ourselves. A double and a pair of RBI singles in the 3rd brought around 2 runs, and Campusano hit a 2-run bomb in the 4th. By the time we pulled Haynes after 6 innings pitched, we were up 4-3. Unfortunately, our bullpen is what let us down this game. In the 7th, Sandlin came in and promptly surrendered a pair of RBI singles to give the Phillies the lead. That’s all the runs they needed as their bullpen was able to shut us down the rest of the game. Series tied.

Final Score: 4-5
Player of the Game: 3B Alec Bohm - 2-4, 1BB, 2 R, 3 RBI

Game 3 in Philadelphia
WIll Bednar (13-8) vs Eduar Segovia (5-7)

One of the concerns about having such a young roster is that there are times when the moment can become too big for our players. On the other hand, there are times when our youth makes us feel invincible. We found ourselves feeling the latter in this game.

Abrams got things started for us with a lead off double. He promptly stole third, then scored on a wild pitch to give us an early 1-0 lead. Bednar pitched relatively well, although he did find himself in a bit of self-caused trouble in the 4rd. A couple singles mixed in with a pair of walks gave the Phillies two runs. However, he was able to settle down and stop the bleeding. A solo shot from Machado brought the game back into a stalemate.

It stayed that way until the 9th, when one of our stars decided to be the difference maker. With two outs and the score tied, Tatis Jr. stepped up to the plate and launched a solo home run to give us the lead. Cederlind stepped in to close the game out, and the advantage is back in our favor.

Final Score: 3-2
Player of the Game: SP WIll Bednar - 7.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 9 K

Game 4 in Philadelphia
Ryan Weathers (10-5) vs Joe Musgrove (8-7)
In a pitcher’s duel, you would think that we would have the edge given our staff. Weather started the game throwing exceptionally well. In fact, both pitchers looked sharp to start the game, each of them holding the opposing lineups scoreless through the first 5 innings. Unfortunately, it was Weathers who cracked first. In the bottom of the 6th, a pair of singles and a 2-run double put the Phillies on the board first.

Our manager was a little too late to pull Weathers out of the game. The Phillies struck again in the 7th with a pair of doubles, a sac bunt, and a sac fly to give them two more runs. Our offense was nowhere to be found, mustering just 4 hits all game. The series is tied, once again.

Final Score: 0-4
Player of the Game: SP Joe Musgrove - 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 6 K

Game 5 in Philadelphia
Shuchiro Hotta (12-10) vs Jameson Taillon (17-7)

I would take an early 2-0 lead with our pitching staff any day of the week. Unfortunately, this game proved that I would have been a fool for taking that bet. Things started off so well. A pair of early runs and Hotta cruising through the first go-around of the Phillies’ lineup. Unfortunately, the second time through proved to be disastrous for Hotta.

2B Braden Shewmake led things off by reaching first on a catcher’s interference. A single put runners on the corners. Hotta wealked 1B Rhys Hoskins to load the bases with one out. An 0-1 wild pitch to Bryce Harper would bring in one run. Hotta would go on to strike Harper out. Then, with two out and runners on second and third, C J.T. Realmuto hit a 2-run single. He would advance to second on another wild pitch from Hotta, and a double off the bat of CF Jackie Bradley Jr. would bring him in to score.

The Phillies would add another 3 runs in the 7th. We had no answers. Advantage to Philly as we bring the series back to San Diego.

Final Score: 2-7
Player of the Game: C J.T. Realmuto - 2-4, 1 R, 3 RBI

Game 6 in San Diego
David Harrison (8-3) vs Francisco Morales (12-4)

You know it’s going to be a good day when you start things off with a lead off home run. Abrams got things started for us with a 0-1 blast to left. With his nerves rattled, opposing pitcher Morales walked Tocci, gave up a single to Tatis Jr., walked Marin, and then gave up a 1-out, 2 RBI single to Lee. Campusano followed that up with an RBI double, and Castillo finished things off with a 2 RBI triple. Batting around the lineup and plating 6 runs ain’t a halfway bad start to a game.

We struck again in the 4th with a 3 run homer from Marin. The Phillies launched a halfhearted comeback in the 5th, but it was too little too late. We tie the series back up!

Final Score: 9-5
Player of the Game: LF Willie Marin - 2-4, 1 BB, 3 RBI, 2 R

Game 7 in San Diego
Jagger Haynes (0-0) vs Eduar Segovia (5-7)

With our season on the line, who else would we turn to except for a rookie who had only made two previous starts? Nothing could possibly go wrong with that scenario, right?

Haynes has all but guaranteed his spot on the starting roster next season. Despite the Phillies striking first in this game, the youngster held his own, going 6 innings, striking out 9, walking 1, and giving up 2 runs.

We tied the game up at 1 with an RBI single from Tatis Jr. in the 4th. We then took the lead in the 5th with an onslaught of 2-out singles. Once we moved into our bullpen, it was game over for the Phillies. Our pen held them scoreless, while we tacked on 2 more runs in the 6th, and another 5 in the 8th. World Series, here we come!

Final Score: 10-2
Player of the Game: SP Jagger Haynes - 6.0 IP, 1 BB, 9 K, 2 R
Series MVP - LF Willie Marin - 10-25, 1 HR, 5 RBI

World Series

San Diego Padres vs Los Angeles Angels

Game 1 in Los Angeles
Will Bednar (13-8) vs Brad Keller (11-8)

What do you get when you mix a lack of offense with a tired bullpen?

Keller held our lineup in check, giving up 5 hits over 7 innings of work. Meanwhile, Bednar had a very pedestrian outing, and our bullpen was uncharacteristically atrocious. Not the way we wanted to start this series. I think the less we say about this game, the better.

There was some positive news to come out of this train wreck however. Shane Bieber has finally returned to the lineup. He tossed 2.2 innings of work in relief and gave up just a single hit. We’re not going to take any unnecessary chances with him. This was his rehab assignment. We’re taking him out of the pen and will save him for later in the series.

Final Score: 0-9
Player of the Game: SP Brad Keller - 7.0 IP, 1 BB, 7 K

Game 2 in Los Angeles
Ryan Weathers (10-5) vs Dawson Barr (2-0)

It’s tough to win games when you surrender runs in each of the first three innings to start a game. Despite that, we challenged the Angels. We brought back 2 runs in the 5th with back-to-back solo shots from Lee and Campusano. We then tied up the game in the 8th with some smallball - a lead off single from Abrams, a walk from Hassell III, fielder’s choice by Tatis Jr. to move the runner to third, and a sacrifice fly from Machado to bring the run in.

We held strong and forced the game into extra innings. In the top of the 11th we took the lead with another solo shot off the bat of Lee. Unfortunately we couldn’t hold onto that lead. The Angels tied it back up in the bottom half of the inning with a lead off triple and an RBI single. They then took the game with a solo blast of their own in the 12th.

It’s not looking good for us

Final Score: 4-5 (12)
Player of the Game: SP Dawson Barr - 6.1 IP, 2 BB, 4 K, 2 R

Game 3 in San Diego
Jagger Haynes (0-0) vs Alex Farias (20-3)

Desperate to salvage this series, I opted to move up the rookie sensation and give him the start against the Cy Young contending Farias. Haynes proved to be more than up for the challenge.

Both teams struck in the 1st. The Angels got things started with a lead off homer from 3B Anthony Rendon. We answered back with a single from Abrams. Two steals later and he would score off a sacrifice fly from Machado. Speed kills am I right?

Machado would bring in another run on a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the 3rd. The Angels would tie the game back up in the 5th with a solo home run from 1B Matt Thaiss.

A trio of singles would give the Angels a late lead in the 8th. But remember, Padres never say die. We answered in the bottom of the 9th with a 1-out walk by Marin and a walkoff two-run shot from Lee. Let’s turn this series around!

Final Score: 4-3
Player of the Game: SP Jagger Haynes - 7.2 IP, 1 BB, 10 K, 3 R

Game 4 in San Diego
David Harrison (8-3) vs Jaime Barria (10-8)

Did I say let’s turn this series around? Maybe we should hold off on that.

Both pitchers started off strongly and held each lineup in check the first time through them. However, it was the Angels that struck the harder blow. They knocked in 4 runs in the 4th, while we managed just 1. Those runs proved to be more than enough to see the game through, even though they would later add on to that tally.

Final Score: 1-7
Player of the Game: SP Jaime Barra - 5.2 IP, 2 BB, 5 K, 1 R
Notes: RP Robbie Butron had to be removed from the game with elbow soreness. He’s day to day for the remainder of the playoffs.

Game 5 in San Diego
Shane Bieber (14-8) vs Jose Suarez (11-8)

With the series on the line, we had no choice but to turn to Bieber and pray that our star pitcher isn’t too rusty.

Apparently our prayers fell on deaf ears. Bieber started the game by giving up back-to-back-to-back home runs to 3B Anthony Rendon, LF Jo Adell, and CF Mike Trout.

We nabbed a run ourselves in the bottom of the 3rd with a pair of singles from Castillo and Goicochea, and a sacrifice fly from Abrams. Unfortunately, it was hard to bounce back from having our souls crushed at the start of the game.

Once again, we come up just short.

Final Score: 2-5
Player of the Game: SP Jose Suarez - 7.0 IP, 0 BB, 3 K, 2 R
Series MVP - 3B Anthony Rendon - 11-24, 3 HR, 8 RBI

[Sundance]

Overall Record: 103-59
Position: 1st
Games Back: +14

I had concerns that we might be running out of steam heading into the playoffs. A couple of long series certainly didn’t help us as we moved into the World Series. Overall, I can’t be too upset with this season. We made it to the World Series once again, and were tied for the second best record in baseball. In the end we fell short to the best team this season. Still, it’s hard not to be disappointed with the lack of a championship when we are striving to build a dynasty here. Six straight playoff appearances now, but just the one trophy.

Let’s take a look at some noteworthy performances from this past year.

C Luis Campusano
.253/.333/.370, 19 doubles, 1 triple, 8 HR, 52 RBI, 2.1 WAR

Another unproductive offensive year from our catchers. Campusano is arbitration eligible and will most likely be making somewhere between $10-$12 million next year. He has the tools to be a decent enough batter, but he can’t seem to consistently put everything together. Can we afford to pay that much for a defensive-minded catcher?

Unfortunately, I don’t think I have a choice. There aren’t many other options out there. J.T. Realmuto is going to be a free agent this offseason, but do I really want to pay $20+ million for a 34 year old? Looking within, Melendez is probably on his way out and wouldn’t be an offensive upgrade anyway. Cartaya has shown some potential in the minors, but in limited action, hasn’t been able to carry that success into the big leagues. Brandon Valenzuela down in AA is an intriguing prospect, but he’s just too unproven at this point. Galiz, our top prospect at catcher, is still years away from being ready to play at the top level. It looks like we might just have to ride it out with Campusano for the foreseeable future.

1B Tucupita Marcano
.278/.346/.388, 27 doubles, 6 triples, 10 HR, 66 RBI, 16 SB, 1.9 WAR

After posting back-to-back All-Star seasons, Marcano had a bit of a down year in 2025. He wasn’t unproductive at the plate, but his slash line set career lows across the board. Still, he played in 159 games this season and his presence in the lineup is always one that I can count on. He didn’t meet my expectations for this season, but there’s nothing to be concerned about yet.

2B CJ Abrams
.328/.407/.496, 36 doubles, 3 triples, 19 HR, 75 RBI, 52 SB, 8.2 WAR

What a season out of the 25 year old! I put my faith in the youngster this season and he did not disappoint. His 193 hits ranked 4th in the NL, he led the league in steals, he finished 3rd in AVG, 3rd in OBP, 3rd in runs created, 9th in OPS, and 2nd in WAR. He earned his first All-Star selection, his first Silver Slugger, and finished 2nd in MVP voting.

He’s arbitration eligible this offseason and should be getting quite a pay raise. My next goal is to lock him up long term, as he should be a star second baseman for years to come.

3B Manny Machado
.307/.373/.541, 30 doubles, 2 triples, 35 HR, 114 RBI, 5 SB, 6.8 WAR

Another incredible year for the future Hall of Famer. He ranked 10th in the NL in hits (182), 3rd in total bases (321), 8th in HR, 3rd in RBI, 6th in R, 9th in AVG, 6th in SLG, 10th in runs created, 8th in OPS, and 4th in WAR.

He was selected to his 9th All-Star game, won his 4th Silver Slugger this year, and finished 3rd in MVP voting. He also hit his 2,000th career hit and his 400th career HR this year. The 33 year old has shown no signs of slowing down, and I couldn’t be more happy.

SS Fernando Tatis Jr.
.299/.364/.518, 35 doubles, 4 triples, 22 HR, 92 RBI, 17 SB, 7.4 WAR

Can you call a 7.4 WAR season a down year? That’s honestly how spoiled we are when it comes to Tatis Jr. He finished outside of the NL’s top 10 in every major hitting category, but still managed the 3rd highest WAR. He earned his 5th All-Star selection, won his 4th Silver Slugger, and finished 6th in MVP voting. Not too much to complain about this season.

LF Willie Marin
.296/.368/.550, 36 doubles, 3 triples, 35 HR, 104 RBI, 7 SB, 3.5 WAR

It was quite the year for the first year man out of Venezuela. It took him a little while to find his feet, but once he did, Marin was a beast at the plate. Here’s a look at how he stacked up against the rest of the NL - 5th in total bases (318), 8th in HR, 7th in RBI, 4th in extra base hits, 5th in SLG, 7th in runs created, and 6th in OPS. Those numbers were good enough to see him win the NL Rookie of the Year award, be named the NLCS MVP, and be on the shortlist for MVP. He turned out to be quite the signing!

CF Carlos Tocci
.317/.365/.438, 34 doubles, 5 triples, 9 HR, 58 RBI, 2 SB, 4.0 WAR

The thing that I love about Tocci is that I can just set him in the lineup and forget about him. I know that he’s just going to steadily produce throughout the season and quietly impress me at the end of the year. His 187 hits were the 5th most in the NL and he finished with the 4th highest average. Tocci isn’t going to make many headlines, but he’s a player that I can always count on.

RF Jae-Ho Lee
.278/.348/.508, 32 doubles, 1 triple, 22 HR, 101 RBI, 2.3 WAR

While not quite as impressive as fellow first year player Willie Marin, Lee managed to put together quite a nice little season. It didn’t take the 28 year old out of South Korea very long to adjust to the MLB, although fatigue did catch up to him towards the end of the season. He finished 10th in the NL in RBI, but other than that, there’s nothing noteworthy about his numbers. Just a solid outing all around.

SP Shane Bieber
14-8, 194.1 IP, 213 K, 4.12 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 10.1 K/BB, 4.5 WAR

Bieber has been one of the most, if not the most, dominant pitchers in the league since 2019. It’s strange to see him be anything other than soul-crushingly dominant. Don’t get me wrong, he still had a fantastic season for us, but given his recent track record, I was just hoping for a little more. Call me greedy.

Our ace finished 6th in the NL in wins, 8th in IP, 3rd in K, 5th in WHIP, 1st in K/BB, and 6th in WAR. He earned his 6th All-Star selection and finished on the short list for the NL CY Young, although he wasn’t a real contender for the award this season.

SP Jagger Haynes
0-0, 0 IP, 0 K, 0.00 ERA, 0.00 WHIP, 0.0 K/BB, 0.0 WAR

Just look at that stat line! It’s amazing that he didn’t win the Cy Young this year. Ok, ok - jokes aside, Haynes is worth mentioning for his postseason performance. Having never pitched at the big league level before, Haynes stepped into our starting rotation and went 2-0 over 4 starts with a 2.93 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 41 K, and 10.3 K/BB. Did I mention this was in the playoffs? And that he had never pitched in the big leagues before? Absolutely incredible from the youngster.

SP James Paxton
9-3, 130.2 IP, 116 K, 2.82 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, 4.1 K/BB, 2.8 WAR

Prior to suffering a partially torn labrum, Paxton was named to his 4th All-Star game and was putting together a pretty nice season. Unfortunately, he missed the last two months of the season, in addition to the playoffs, so we’ll never know what could have been this season for the veteran arm. He still somehow managed to make it onto the shortlist for the NL Cy Young award. Not quite sure if that means the experts were impressed by him, or if it was just a down year for the league.

SP Ryan Weathers
10-5, 199.2 IP, 181 K, 3.52 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 4.6 K/BB, 3.4 WAR

The last of our Cy Young contenders. While none of our starters were real challengers for the award, it’s nice to see three of them make it on the shortlist. In comparison to the rest of the NL, Weathers ranked 4th in IP, 7th in ERA, 2nd in WHIP, and 5th in K/BB. He’s another arbitration eligible guy this offseason. Hopefully his price tag won’t jump up too much.

The Bullpen:

RP Robby Butron - 1 SV, 6 HLD, 82.1 IP, 2.73 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, 10.2 K/9, 4.9 K/BB, 1.5 WAR
RP Seth Elledge - 4 SV, 16 HLD, 68.1 IP, 1.19 ERA, 0.80 WHIP, 13.0 K/9, 4.7 K/BB, 2.1 WAR
RP Chad Green - 0 SV, 20 HLD, 54.2 IP, 3.62 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 13.0 K/9, 7.9 K/BB, 1.1 WAR
RP Tim Hill - 0 SV, 16 HLD, 37.0 IP, 2.43 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 7.3 K/9, 6.0 K/BB, 0.3 WAR
RP Tommy Sheehan - 0 SV, 2 HLD, 55.2 IP, 2.10 ERA, 0.70 WHIP, 9.4 K/9, 6.4 K/BB, 1.0 WAR

It was another great year for our bullpen with several stand out performances. In his second year, Butron developed into one of the premier relievers in the game and we heavily relied on him - he threw more innings than any other reliever in our staff. Elledge was another workhorse that we relied upon in high leverage situations. He led all relievers on the staff with 67 appearances and pitched well enough to earn himself Reliever of the Year honors. Green is another pitcher that pitched in high pressure situations and excelled. Hill is the oldest arm in the pen, but remains one of the top lefty specialists in the game. And in his first year at the big league level, Sheehan quickly adjusted and exceeded expectations.

Honorable Mentions

Manager Luis Caballero won his second consecutive Manager of the Year award.

CL Blake Cederlind led the NL in saves with 39 and finished on the shortlist for Reliever of the Year (Although I personally don’t think that he had that great of a season).

Former Padres players CF Trent Grisham and CF Alex Verdugo were also named as MVP nominees this past season. Grisham for the AL and Verdugo for the NL.

Prospect Follow Up

2B CJ Abrams - MLB
SP Will Bednar - MLB
RF Robert Hassell III - MLB (#59 in MLB)
SP Shuichiro Hotta - MLB
LF Max Kops - AAA (#8)
SP Jagger Haynes - AAA (#9) - > MLB
3B Heriberto Rodriguez - INT (#62)
SP David Harrison - AAA (#97) -> MLB
SS Victor Acosta - R (#111)
SP Byung-Doo Lee - INT (#115)
RF Andy Pages - AAA (#123)
SP Tommy Sheehan - AAA (#152) -> MLB
C Jesus Galiz - A+ (#194)

[Sundance]

League News

11/28/2025
The Cardinals have signed veteran 2B Trea Turner for $96,000,000 over 5 years. Turner is coming off of his best complete season and certainly capitalized that. Last year he hit .313/.369/.503 with 31 doubles, 7 triples, 21 HR, 96 RBI, 22 SB, and 6.0 WAR.

The Cubs have signed LF Dylan Carlson for $161,600,000 over 8 years. Carlson has really come into his own the past two seasons. In 2024 and 2025 he averaged a .276/.354/.519 line with 32 doubles, 10 triples, 28 HR, 102 RBI, 21 SB, and 5.2 WAR. At 27 years old, he’s a very nice pick up for Chicago.

12/7/2025
The New York Yankees have signed SP Julio Urias for $153,600,000 over 7 years. The 29 year old is one of the top pitchers in the game, although there are some lingering concerns over his ability to stay healthy. He’s managed to avoid major injuries over the last couple of seasons, but he did miss nearly the entire 2023 season with a torn elbow ligament. Over the last 5 seasons with the Dodgers he led the league in ERA twice, in K/9 twice, and in WHIP once. Surprisingly, the only award he has to his name is a single All-Star selection.

12/16/2025
The Texas Rangers have signed 29 year old 2B Jonathan India for $145,600,000 over 7 years. This is a signing that is surprising. I’m just not seeing what the big deal about this guy is. He averages .255/.353/.454 with 29 doubles, 6 triples, 25 HR, and 84 RBI a season, and he’s coming off of his best year as a pro. His numbers are certainly enough to help a ball club, but I don’t know if his price tag is worth it. But hey, good for him for getting paid.

01/06/26
The New York Yankees have signed 28 year old RP Bryse Wilson for $97,400,000 over 6 years. This is another one that is a little bit of a head scratcher. I think the problem with Wilson is that I just don’t know what he is. He came up as a reliever before making the switch to starter, but he’s only started the last season and a half. His numbers as a starter are average at best. On paper there’s a lot to like about him - he’s got a good mental make up, he’s got good stuff with excellent control, and he’s got 3 very good pitches. This is a great pick up for the Yankees if he pans out, but right now, it’s a lot of money to invest into an unknown product.

1/14/2026
3B Adrian Beltre has been inducted into the baseball Hall of Fame. He received 84.4% of the votes in his 3rd year on the ballot. He finished his career with 3,166 hits, 636 doubles, 38 triples, 477 HR, 1707 RBI, 121 SB, 63.6 WAR, and a .286/.339/.480 line.

LF Manny Ramirez received 61.6%. This was his 10th and final year on the ballot. CF Curtis Granderson (2nd year), CF Matt Kemp (1st), 2B Chase Utley (3rd), SS Jimmy Rollins (5th), 3B Aramis Ramirez (5th), RF Nick Markakis (1st), 2B Daniel Murphy, SP Gio Gonzalez, and RF Shin-Soo Choo were also dropped.

2/2/26
The Washington Nationals have signed 1B Yordan Alvarez for $106,600,000 over 7 years. If he can stay healthy, Alvarez is the type of player you can stick in the heart of your lineup and expect 30+ doubles, 30+ HR, and a .260 average from him. That’s if he’s healthy. He struggles to make it through 100 games a season, so his numbers are always going to be short of his potential. It’s a lot of money to tie up with someone who is going to spend significant time on the IL.

Trades

11/19/25
To Texas Rangers - C MJ Melendez, RF Robert Hassell III, minor league RHP Josh Staumont, minor league RHP Mitch Spence, $6 million in cash
To San Diego Padres - Minor league LF Yeison Morrobel

The downside of having a lot of talented youngsters is that sometimes there just isn’t room for them. Hassell III is a player that I really hate to see leave the organization. He was the 59th ranked prospect in baseball last year, and peaked at #41 in 2023. Last season, as our 4th outfielder, he hit .265/.346/.424 with 24 doubles, 5 triples, 7 HR, 50 RBI, and 1.9 WAR. If we take those stats and project them over a full season using our starting roster’s average ABs per season, those numbers turn into 37 doubles, 8 triples, 11 HR, 78 RBI, and 3.0 WAR - quite a nice little season!

So why trade away a player that can obviously produce at the big league level? Like I said, there’s just not room for him. He’s not going to beat out Marin, Tocci, or Lee this season for a starting spot, and with them being 28, 30, and 28 years old respectively, it’s unlikely that he’ll beat them out in the future either. Plus we have both Max Kops and Andy Pages in AAA who are knocking on the door. One, if not both, of those guys will likely see time with the big league club this year.

Melendez was a wonder in the club house and a fantastic defender, but at the end of the day, he was surplus to requirements. $4 million for a backup catcher who has only produced a positive WAR once in the last three seasons. He’s still young and for a team that’s rebuilding like the Rangers, he should be a great role model for their youngsters. Staumont was always going to be a piece of a trade, and Spence is a decent prospect, but unlikely to ever break into our roster.

So if there is a log jam in the outfield, why bring in yet another outfielder? Well, he’s a direct replacement for Hassell III in the organization, but the advantage he gives us is time. He’s just 21 years old and hasn’t played higher than A+ ball, so he’ll be fine stuck in the minors for a few years. By the time he’s ready to break into the big league team, the outfield might look a lot different than it does today. Morrobel isn’t being recognized as a top-tier prospect, but if he continues to develop, I could see him surprising people. He looks very similar to Tocci and has all the makings of a great contact hitter. He also won the A+ East MVP and Silver Slugger for CF. He’s not listed in the Top 100 prospects yet, but he is someone to watch.

11/19/25
To New York Yankees - RHP Tyler Johnson, RHP Nick Sandlin, SS Ivan Castillo, minor league RHP Paul Campbell
To San Diego Padres - Minor league RHP Bauer Brittain

Gotta keep that pipeline moving! Johnson and Sandlin both had disappointing years last season, but their upside is so high that you can’t blame anyone for wanting them in their bullpen. They should help strengthen a Yankee bullpen that finished 8th in the AL last season in ERA. With the emergence of Haynes and the return of Paxton we now have, *checks notes*, 7 starting pitchers. A couple of bodies are going to the pen, so room needed to be made.

Looking at our options, I think the rotation this year is going to be Bieber, Paxton, Haynes, Weathers, and Bednar. That means that both Harrison and Hotta will be moving to the pen. Of course, this is all assuming that both pitchers will accept being relievers. If they don’t, I might have to make some more moves.

Castillo is a player I would have liked to keep, but once again, the pipeline. He’s probably good enough to start in this league, but he’s content with being a bench player. He’s a nice security blanket in the middle infield. You can put him on your roster and expect him to quietly hit around .300. Looking at our minors, we have two guys that could probably step into his role - 2B Livan Soto and SS Charlis Aquino. Both players were in AAA last season, where Soto hit .333 and Aquino hit .324. Let’s also not forget that there is Alex Goicochea on the roster as well, who hit .355 over 234 at bats last season.

Campbell was always going to be nothing more than insurance for our roster. He’s an average big league pitcher, and he should find some action with the Yankees.

Brittain was a 28th round draft pick by Seattle in 2022. He was released from the organization and picked up by the Yankees the following year. He’s a decent enough prospect with some interesting upside. Throws a fastball in the high 90s with a knee-buckling curve and a changeup that should continue to develop into a plus pitch. He’s got pretty good stuff and control, but he’s likely to give up his fair share of homers. With the culture we’ve built up within the organization, I think he could develop into a possible bullpen guy down the line.

11/19/25
To Minnesota Twins - Minor league RHP Connor Lehmann, minor league RHP Wandi Montout, minor league C Adam Kerner, minor league 3B Cesar Labra. Minor league LHB Byung-Doo Lee
To San Diego Padres - Minor league 1B Logan Boniface

You can call this trade organizational restructuring. The Twins are rebuilding and we’ve given them several pieces to work with. There’s some borderline talent in this group, and a couple players with intriguing tools. Lehman and Montout can probably pitch well enough to make a big league roster, Kerner looks like a career backup, but there’s enough there for him to make the cut, and Labra will be a pretty average player. Lee was a name that kept coming up in the last few trades whenever I asked to make things work. It makes me think that I’m missing on him, but I can live with my decision.

Boniface is an unproven talent that could go either way in his development at this point. If he stalls, he’s a career minor leaguer. However, if he continues to develop, then he should turn into a nice little first baseman. Could potentially develop above average contact ability with some decent pop. He’s a long ways away from the majors, but I’m willing to take a chance on him.

Arrivals

3B Wilmer Reyes

Organizational depth. He’s a good influence in the clubhouse.

CF Leuri Mejia

More organizational depth. Good head on his shoulders. He knows how to get a team going.

Departures

CL Blake Cederlind - Free agent, Chicago Cubs

RP Pierce Johnson - Free agent, Unemployed

Season Outlook

With very few changes to our big league roster, we are once again predicted to lead the way in the NL West. We’ve made it to the playoffs in six consecutive seasons, but have only walked away with one championship. The question looms heavy above us - Can we win another World Series and become a true dynasty?

[Sundance]

Tucupita Marcano - 1B - 26

Since his career year in 2023, Marcano has slowly dropped, not just in the eyes of our scouts, but in production as well. My hope is that this trend ends this season. At his best, he’s the type of player that can hit .300+ with 30+ doubles and 80 walks a season. His worst ain’t half bad, but it leaves a bit to be desired. If we want to get over the hump and move from a playoff team to a championship team, we’ll need a solid season out of our first baseman.

CJ Abrams - 2B - 25

Hopes were high for the young middle infielder last season, but I don’t think anyone expected the season we got out of Abrams. To put up 8+ WAR in his first season as a starter was absolutely ridiculous. What sort of expectations can I even set for him this season? Do I expect him to match last season’s production? Do I expect him to improve? Whatever the case, I’m excited to see how he develops this year. We should have the most entertaining middle infield in all of baseball.

Manny Machado - 3B - 33

The old man of our lineup. He’s still one of the best third baseman in the game and his resume just keeps growing - 2 Gold Gloves, 9 All-Stars, and 4 Silver Sluggers. The only thing missing is an MVP award. He definitely has the talent to produce one, it’s just unfortunate that there is so much talent and competition in the league right now. It will take an absolutely monster year for him to win one. The good news is that we don’t need him to win one in order for us to succeed. We just need him to keep playing like he has been.

Fernando Tatis Jr. - SS - 27

What can you say about a man that is literally a human highlight reel? He’s the face of the franchise, one of the faces of the league, and as long as he stays healthy, he’s going to put up monster numbers. He’s led the NL in WAR twice in the last 4 seasons. He’s been an MVP, he’s a 5-time All-Star, and he’s won 4 Silver Sluggers. He should be getting his 1,000th hit, his 200th double, and his 200th HR this season. He’s the key to our success.

Willie Marin - LF - 28

Marin burst on the scene last season and earned himself a Rookie of the Year award. Now we’ll be looking at Marin to build upon that success. At 6’6”, he’s an imposing figure in the box, and he uses his massive frame to crush balls. Having Tatis Jr., Machado, and Marin sitting in the middle of our lineup is enough to scare even the best of pitchers.

Carlos Tocci - CF - 30

This is a make or break year for Tocci. To be completely honest, this situation sucks for him. He’s only 30 and he regularly hits over .300, but he’s playing for his career here in San Diego. The bottom line is that Kops is coming. And either Lee or Tocci is going to be the one that has to sacrifice his position. On paper, Lee is the better bet for our long-term success. So it’s going to take a monster year for Tocci to keep his place with our club.

Shane Bieber - SP - 30

Last season was the first year since 2019 that Bieber looked almost human. Not to say that last season was bad by any means, but when you look at his body of work - 4 Cy Young awards in 5 years, it just doesn’t stack up. Last season was basically his worst season since his rookie year. But here I am complaining about a season in which he still earned 4.5 WAR. I’m just being greedy, I know. Still, with a young staff, we’ll need Bieber to lead the way and keep us on pace.

Jagger Haynes - SP - 23

Haynes showed the world what he could do last season in the playoffs, and expectations for him this year are through the roof. The big question is going to be - can he handle the pressure? With some of the nastiest stuff in the league, control beyond his years, and four pitches he can throw at will, Haynes can make even the best hitters look foolish. The most important thing for him this season will be to take things one pitch at a time and not let any one moment get too big for him. If he can do that, he might just nab a few awards this season.

The Bullpen

I always feel bad lumping these guys together, but talking about them individually feels redundant at times. We’re going to need this group to continue to be one of the best in the league if we want to make another run at a championship. Seth Elledge (29), Chad Green (34), Tim Hill (34), and Robby Butron (28) will be the core to our success. But there’s questions that remain this year. Will Butron adapt to the closer role? Will Shuichiro Hotta and David Harrison accept being moved into the pen? Will Tommy Sheehan be able to replicate the success of his rookie campaign? Is time catching up to the aging Archie Bradley?

Prospect Watch 2026

LF Max Kops - AAA (#3 Prospect)
SP Jagger Haynes - MLB (#6)
CF Zayed Salinas - AA (#59)
SS Victor Acosta - A (#64)
SP Victor Capristo - R (#69)
3B Heriberto Rodriguez - R (#72)
RF Andy Pages - MLB (#86)
SS Orelvis Martinez - AAA (#134)
C Jesus Galiz - AA (#158)

[Sundance]

4/8/2026

Seattle Mariners catcher Daulton Varsho suffered a strained lat while running the bases. Early reports suggest that he’ll miss 3-4 weeks. Varsho was off to a slow start before getting injured - hitting just .133 through the first 6 games of the season.

4/9/2026

Bad news for the Philadelphia Phillies as relief pitcher Peter Sakellaris has been ruled out for the remainder of the season. He felt a pop in his throwing arm during tonight’s game. The culprit appears to be a torn ulnar collateral ligament. The 25 year old was originally selected in the 8th round in the 2023 draft by Atlanta. He’s bounced around the league a bit before finally landing in Philly this past off season. I’m sure this isn’t how he imagined his rookie year would start.

Former Padre first baseman Eric Hosmer has recorded hit number 2,000. The 36 year old is currently playing with the Baltimore Orioles. He is hitting .214/.290/.375 with 1 HR so far this season. For his career, Hosmer has a .269/.327/.426 line with 375 doubles, 249 HR, and 1044 RBI.

4/11/2026

Another day and another pitcher down for the season. This time it was Baltimore Orioles starter Ross Stripling. “Chicken Strip,” as he’s known locally, was taken out of his second start this season after coaches saw him grab his elbow following a pitch. Rumors are that it’s a damaged ligament in his elbow and that he’ll likely need surgery to reconstruct it. This is just the latest in a long line of elbow injuries for the 36 year old. He suffered a sprained ulnar collateral ligament in 2024 that kept him out for 4 weeks, tore a ligament in 2022, which caused him to miss 15 months, and had to have bone chips removed in 2021, which was another 5-6 weeks on the IL.

Cincinnati Reds right fielder Tristen Lutz is also headed to the IL. The outfielder tore his rotator cuff while throwing a ball into the infield. Lutz was expected to be a key piece of the Reds’ lineup, so this injury comes as a big blow to them. He was hitting .278/.333/.500 at the time of his injury.

4/12/2026

This year’s draft pool has been announced! Here’s a quick look at the Top 5 pitchers and hitters:

SP Joe Morgan - 21
Our scouts rank Morgan as the top player in the draft this year, but this is one that I disagree with them on. He should develop plus stuff with excellent control and average movement. He has a cannon for an arm and throws in the high 90s to low 100s. He also looks like he’s going to be a workhorse and should have no problem tossing 200+ innings year in and year out. He throws five pitches, but only two of them look to be dominant. He has an average curveball, an average to slightly above average slider, and a changeup that leaves a lot to be desired. He should be a pretty good starter, but I don’t see him having the sort of career that our scouts are predicting.

SP Danny “Hellhound” Grice - 22
Grice is the perfect example of a player that has all the tools in the world, but not the commitment to make the most out of them. He throws a hard sinker in the mid to upper 90s. His sinker and his splitter are already well developed and are MLB caliber. He has fantastic movement on his pitches, and should only gain more. He has the type of stuff that could anchor a rotation. The problem with him is that he displays a severe lack of hustle. He’s the type of player who has probably always had the game come easily to him and has never truly had to work before. His talent will take him far, but his mental makeup is going to hold him back.

SP Pat Trunk - 22
Another hard throwing sinker baller. Trunk is a very developed prospect, and it shouldn’t take long before he sees some time in the big leagues. Three of his four pitches are already MLB quality, and his fourth, a changeup, should continue to develop into a quality pitch. He’s got wicked stuff with incredible movement. The biggest knock on him is that he struggles to control where his pitchers are going. However, his college coaches rave about his work ethic. He was always the first one to report to practice, and the last one to leave. He’s incredibly coachable, and that should help him make the most of his abundant talent.

SP Ben Meadows - 21
Meadows has the type of stuff that can make even the best hitters look foolish. If he reaches his potential, he’ll have a knee-buckling curveball and a changeup that batters can swing twice at and still miss. There’s no question about his talent, but he does struggle to grasp the mental aspects of the game. He has a tendency to forget how many outs there are, and sometimes looks lost when having to field.

SP Dusty “Groucho” Schuh - 18
The only high school arm in the Top 5. Schuh will most likely feature as a #2 or #3 guy. He’ll be a decent enough starter, but his pitches tend to lack a certain bite to them. He’s the type of guy who looks amazing while he’s warming up, but in actual game situations, his pitching leaves a little bit to be desired.

CF Tony van der Horst - 21
Van der Horst is the only position player to be in the Top 10 overall. He’s a very well-rounded player. With his speed and contact ability, he can easily sit atop any lineup. And at 6’4”, he has enough power to make pitchers pay, so sitting in the heart of a lineup is also a possibility. He’s the type of player that will probably consistently hit around .300 with 25+ HR a season.

2B Xavier Ramirez - 21
Ramirez is almost a great leadoff batter. However, there’s one glaring hole in his tool set. He’s got plus speed, a ridiculously good eye, and works the ball gap to gap. The problem is that he has a major tendency to hack at pitches and often misses. He’s a hard worker, so he might be able to fix that tendency, but even with his struggles to make contact, he has other tools that should get him on base pretty often.

RF Ron Simon - 21
Whoever drafts Simon might just walk away with the steal of the year. He projects to be a .310 hitter that can hit 25+ HR a year. He’s also an incredibly tough out and should be very difficult to strike out. There is a lot to like about his approach as a hitter and I think he should have a long and productive career ahead of him.

CF Manny Medina - 21
Average pretty much sums up Medina. He looks like the type of player that should hit for the league average, hit an average number of doubles, an average number of homers, work an average number of walks, and rack up an average number of strikeouts. The only thing that separates him from a completely average player is his speed. He should be able to grab 30+ steals a year and his legs are an asset in the field. He should be good enough to play at the next level, but there’s nothing to write home about here.

2B J.J. Ferguson - 22
Ferguson will find himself sitting at the top of a bad lineup or at the bottom of a good one. Should hit for a decent average, works the ball to the gaps, and is known to battle at the plate. He doesn’t have much power to speak of and he occasionally struggles to identify pitches. He’s got plus speed which should help him offensively. He’s a well-rounded defender. There’s enough talent here for him to be an every day big leaguer, but he’ll probably never be a star.

4/15/2026

Giants starter Blake Rivera is set to be sidelined for the next 4-5 months. He is suffering from ulnar nerve entrapment (Hey, that’s a new one!). While not a star, this should be a pretty big blow to San Francisco as Rivera has been heavily used in a variety of roles over the past two seasons. He appeared in 56 games in 2024 and 50 games in 2025, working as a reliever, a closer, and also starting 13 games.

Rivera wasn’t the only pitcher to go down tonight. Marlins closer Kendall Williams is also headed to the IL and is likely done for the season. Another pitcher, another blown elbow. Williams suffered a torn flexor tendon in his elbow during tonight’s game against the Phillies. He’s likely to miss up to 14 months as he recovers.

In more positive news, right fielder Joey Gallo of the Houston Astros hit his 300th home run. Gallo has a career line of .210/.328/.476 over 4878 at-bats.

4/16/2026

Another day, another pitcher down. This time it’s Twins starter Tyler Ivey. Ivey fell to the ground after throwing a pitch in tonight’s game. Team trainers rushed out to the field and Ivey was eventually carted off. It appears as though he tore a muscle in his back. He’s out a minimum of 4 months as he recovers.

4/17/2026

It’s only April and already this is a rough year for pitchers. Two more have been taken out by injury. The first is reliever Jordan Hicks for the Houston Astros. Hicks was taken out of tonight’s game after feeling discomfort in his throwing elbow. An MRI showed bone chips in his elbow. He’ll need surgery to remove them and should miss somewhere between 3-4 months.

The second pitcher is Reds starter Michael Kopech. Another elbow injury as he suffered a torn ulnar collateral ligament. Kopech signed with Cincinnati this offseason, but lasted just 3 games before this injury struck. He’ll be out for around a year.

4/18/2026

Am I ever going to get through this month? Or am I stuck in some sort of time loop where I do nothing but write about injured pitchers?

Reliever Trevor Bauer of the Twins is the latest victim. After complaining about pain in his elbow, scans revealed bone chips. He’ll need surgery to remove them and will be out for around 7 months. This isn’t Bauer’s first run in with this injury. Bone chips were also discovered in his throwing elbow in 2024.

4/26/2026

Finally some news that doesn’t involve an injury! CF Jackie Bradley Jr. of the Phillies and SP Logan Allen of the Nationals have both been suspended for their roles in a bench-clearing brawl between the two teams.

Words were exchanged between the players after Bradley Jr. reached base on an error. He charged at Allen, who wrestled the 36 year old to the ground before reinforcements from either side reached them. Bradley Jr. will be suspended for 4 games, while Allen will miss 6.

4/28/2026

Well, that didn’t last very long. Here’s another pitcher down with a problematic elbow. Cardinals reliever Lou Trivino will be out 5 months after bone chips were discovered in his throwing elbow. Trivino has struggled this season and will likely place blame on his injury. With the way things are going, every pitcher in the league now has to fear that their elbow will blow apart at any minute.

In happier news, Aaron Judge hit his 300th home run today. Judge, now playing for the Mets, is off to his best start in years. He is currently hitting .297/.377/.681 and already has 11 homers this season. For his career, Judge holds a .258/.364/.524 line.

April’s Best Hitters

AL - 3B Bobby Witt Jr., Kansas City Royals
.269 average, 11 HR, 25 RBI, 21 R

NL - 1B Michael Toglia, Colorado Rockies
.364 average, .440 OBP, 8 HR, 37 RBI, 21 R

April’s Best Pitchers

AL - SP Alex Farias, Los Angeles Angels
4-0, 53 K, 7 BB, 1.88 ERA

NL - SP Victor Jimenez, Chicago Cubs
5-0, 38 K, 2.00 ERA

April Recap 2026

Monthly Record: 11-16
Season Record: 11-16
Position: 5th
Games Ahead/Back: -7

The Good

3B Manny Machado - .302/.358/.510, 3 doubles, 5 HR, 15 RBI
The veteran third baseman is off to a hot start. He led the team in hits (29) and runs, and co-leads in RBI with Marin and Lee.

LF Willie Marin - .286/.330/.490, 5 doubles, 5 HR, 15 RBI
His 28 hits were second on the team and he matched Machado in both home runs and RBI.

RF Jae-Ho Lee - .250/.321/.542, 10 doubles, 6 HR, 15 RBI
His average is down, but Lee was the only player to reach double figures in doubles, he led the team in HR, and as mentioned previously, he co-leads in RBI.

SP Jagger Haynes - 1-0, 33.1 IP, 43 K, 2.43 ERA, 0.75 WHIP
The young star was by far our best pitcher this month. Among the starters, he leads in practically every category. Bieber has pitched more innings and has a better K/BB, but those are the only two stats that Haynes doesn’t lead in.

SP Ryan Weathers - 2-2, 29.1 IP, 21 K, 3.07 ERA, 0.92 WHIP
Weathers posted a very good month to start the season and continues to be the unsung hero of the starting rotation. He might not win any awards, but his consistent performance goes a long way.

The Bad

Nearly everyone else. We do not look like a team that made it to the World Series last season. Marcano is hitting just .232, Tatis Jr. is off to a slow start with a .237 average, and the usually consistent Tocci is down at .212.

On the hill, Will Bednar has looked awful to start the season. He currently has a 6.66 ERA with 1.73 WHIP. Shane Bieber and James Paxton are yet to find their forms and look very mediocre. Even our bullpen has been a let down. Seth Elledge, Chad Green, David Harrison, and Tommy Sheehan all had months to forget to start the season.

It’s early, so I won’t panic just yet. Hopefully this is just a slow start and nothing more.

[Sundance]

5/12/2026

The Tussle in Toronto! Benches cleared in tonight’s game between the Indians and the Blue Jays as Cleveland left fielder Daniel Johnson stormed the mound after a heated exchange with Toronto reliever Triston McKenzie. Punches were thrown, and missed, before Johnson grabbed hold of McKenzie and wrestled him to the ground. The benches cleared, but neither team seemed all that interested in joining the fray. The players were eventually separated and ejected from the game. Further punishment has been handed down from the league with Johnson set to miss 3 games and McKenzie to miss 7 games. To add insult to injury, McKenzie was also literally injured in the “brawl.” The reliever looks to miss up to 6 weeks as he recovers from recurring back spasms.

5/15/2026

There must be something in the water because another fight erupted tonight. This time it was between 2B Bryson Brigman of Seattle and RP Chris Archer of Baltimore. After taking a pitch high and inside that sent him to the ground, Brigman charged the mound. Blows were exchanged, with each player landing glancing hits before they inevitably stumbled to the ground. The situation was quickly deescalated and both players were sent packing. They’ll each serve a 4 game suspension. Neither player was available for comment following the game.

5/16/2026

I almost thought that we were going to make it through the month without hearing about a pitcher’s elbow exploding, but I was wrong. Miami Marlins starter Carlos Hernandez is the latest pitcher to fall victim to a season ending elbow injury. Yet another torn ulnar collateral ligament. The 29 year old is expected to miss a minimum of 1 year, and might be out even longer than that as he recovers.

5/17/2026

Another day and another season ending injury. C Cal Raleigh of the Houston Astros suffered a devastating injury while trying to beat out a ground ball. While lunging at first base, Raleigh’s leg locked and got caught on the base. He immediately tumbled to the ground and grabbed his leg in pain. He was quickly carted off of the field. Reports from team doctors show that his kneecap shattered in the accident. He is expected to be out 6-7 months.

5/20/2026

The Los Angeles Dodgers have negotiated a contract extension with SS Corey Seager. The 32 year old put pen to paper on a 5 year, $103 million deal. Seager is a former Rookie of the Year, a 3-time All-Star, a 3-time Silver Slugger, 2-time Champion, and 2-time World Series MVP. He is currently hitting .297/.367/.568 with 17 doubles and 11 HR through the first two months of the season.

5/21/2026

New York Yankees starter Julio Urias is done for the season after undergoing radial nerve decompression surgery. He’s expected to miss somewhere in the range of 7-8 months. Urias signed a massive contract with the Yankees this off season, but injuries were always going to be a concern with him. This is his second major elbow injury in the last three years.

Milwaukee outfielder Christian Yelich is also headed to the IL. The 34 year old suffered a torn back muscle after diving for a ball in tonight’s game. Despite getting off to a slow start, this remains a huge blow to the Brewers. Yelich is a former MVP, a 5-time All-Star and 6-time Silver Slugger.

San Diego starting pitcher James Paxton is off to the IL as well. The 37 year old reported soreness in his throwing shoulder and is expected to be shut down 6-7 weeks to let his aging arm heal.

5/25/2026

Another pitcher is done for the season. But hey, at least it isn’t an elbow injury this time. Seattle starter Framber Valdez suffered a torn labrum in tonight’s game. He’ll be out 4-5 months. Seattle will surely miss the lefty as he was off to a great start - going 4-1 with a 2.29 ERA and 1.05 WHIP at the time of his injury.

On the other side of the country, New York Mets second baseman Jeff McNeil also went down for the year. An errant throw from the outfield led to a collision at second base. The result was McNeil being taken out of the game for concussion protocol. Early signs are not good and it looks like he could be up for nearly a year as he recovers from post-concussion syndrome. McNeil was putting together a pretty solid year with a .310/.74/.495 line for the season.

5/30/2026

Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts is set to miss some time while on the IL. The 33 year old right fielder suffered a herniated disc and will be out 3-4 weeks while it heals.

May’s Best Hitters

AL - 1B Nolan Jones, Cleveland Indians
.333 average, 11 HR, 27 RBI, 31 R

NL - CF Jake Fraley, New York Mets
.435 average, 4 HR, 6 RBI, 6 R

May’s Best Pitchers

AL - SP Milt Howell, Chicago White Sox
4-1, 19 K, 18 BB, 3.55 ERA

NL - SP Jagger Haynes, San Diego Padres
4-1, 47 K, 4 BB, 1.41 ERA

May Recap 2026

Monthly Record: 21-8
Season Record: 32-24
Position: 1st
Games Ahead/Back: +1

The Good

1B Tucupita Marcano - .292/.367/.375, 8 doubles
After a poor first month to the season, Marcano started to look like himself in May. He’s brought up his batting average 30 points. Hopefully he can find some consistency and keep this up going forward.

3B Manny Machado - .282/.357/.505, 5 doubles, 6 HR, 21 RBI
I can generally count on Machado to put up solid numbers, and this month was no different. He led the club in RBI, was tied for the club lead in HR, and his 29 hits were the third most on the team this month.

CF Carlos Tocci - .303/.347/.413, 9 doubles
These are the sort of numbers I expect out of Tocci. With this month’s performance, he’s added nearly 50 points to his average for the season. He’s going to need to keep it, since, as I mentioned at the beginning of the season, he’s playing for his career here in SD.

RF Jae-Ho Lee - .304/.357/.471, 8 doubles
Lee looked in mid-season form this past month as his numbers in May closely resembled his numbers from last season. Much like Tocci, he’ll need to continue to impress since one of these two outfielders will be losing their starting spot next season.

SP Will Bednar - 3-1, 38.2 IP, 32 K, 3.03 ERA, 0.96 WHIP
The former 1st round draft pick bounced back in a big way this month. Much like the rest of the roster, I’ll be hoping for some consistency out of the 25 year old as we continue forward.

SP Jagger Haynes - 4-1, 38.1 IP, 47 K, 1.41 ERA, 0.86 WHIP
Haynes earned himself Pitch of the Month honors for May. He currently leads the NL in ERA, strikeouts, BB/9, K/BB, and WHIP. We got a glimpse of what he could do in the playoffs last season, and he has more than lived up to the hype so far.

SP Ryan Weathers - 4-2, 38.1 IP, 37 K, 2.58 ERA, 0.97 WHIP
With the arrival of Haynes, Weathers might be the forgotten man on our staff. Let’s not forget that he finished on the shortlist for the Cy Young last season and was picked as one of the Top 10 pitchers in the NL just two seasons ago.

CL Robby Butron - 10 SV, 11.0 IP, 8 K, 0.82 ERA, 0.82 WHIP
Butron seems to have adapted to his new role as the team’s closer. He currently leads the league in saves through the first two months of the season and has a sub-1.00 ERA and WHIP.

The Bad

2B CJ Abrams - .236/.347/.415, 5 doubles, 4 HR, 11 RBI, 7 SB
Our young second baseman has been battling a sprained thumbs and it appears to be hampering him at the plate. He’s listed as day-to-day, so hopefully it heals up soon. He’s able to chip in when he does make contact, but it’s obvious that the thumb injury is affecting his swing.

LF Willie Marin - .227/.306/.464, 5 doubles, 6 HR, 16 RBI
The power numbers are there, but he’s been unlucky this past month. He has had the habit of hitting balls right at defenders as his BABIP is down at .219. Hopefully the reigning Rookie of the Year can straighten things out.

[Sundance]

6/1/2026

The thoughts and prayers of the baseball world go out to Chicago tonight. White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf has passed away after a lengthy battle with cancer. His son, Jerry Reinsdorf Jr., will assume day to day operations of the club.

6/2/2026

The first no-hitter of the season belongs to Tampa Bay Rays starter Yoniel Curet. The 23 year old righty out of the Dominican Republic struck out 11 and surrendered 1 walk. To date, Curet is 2-0 over three starts with 54 K and a 1.37 ERA.

6/6/2026

Cleveland second baseman Richard Palacios is headed to the IL. The 29 year old came up short while running to second and was taken out of the game as a precaution. He is expected to miss around 5 weeks as he recovers from plantar fasciitis.

In other injury news, Colorado’s Kade McClure is set to miss at least 4 months. The Rockies’ reliever is suffering from radial nerve compression.

6/7/2026

Julio Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners is headed to the IL for the next several weeks. The right fielder fractured his thumb while sliding head first into third base. This is a big loss for Seattle as Rodriquez as the 25 year old was hitting .276 with 14 HR and 38 RBIs at the time of his injury. Thankfully, he shouldn’t be out for too long, with his expected return set for 4 weeks from today.

Unfortunately, for Red Sox reliever Josh James, his recovery time table looks a bit more dismal. James suffered a torn flexor tendon in tonight’s game and will be out for a minimum of a full year as his elbow heals.

6/10/2026

The Milwaukee Brewers have extended the contract of starting pitcher Freddy Peralta. The 30 year old is set to make $125,4000,000 over the next 6 seasons.

Peralta was due for a payday, but I’m surprised that the Brewers offered him this much. He’s put together two very good seasons in 2023 and 2025, both of which he finished 3rd in CY Young voting in, but has been a pretty average starter outside of those years. No awards, no crowns, and no All-Star selections, but the Brewers have decided that he’s their man and are paying him Cy Young caliber money. To each their own I suppose.

6/13/2026

Texas starter Jose Corniell is done for the season. The 23 year old pitcher suffered a damaged elbow ligament and will need to undergo reconstruction surgery. He’s expected to miss significant time next season as well, since his expected recovery will take around 14 months. Corniell is an exciting young pitcher with a powerful arm. The Rangers will be keeping a close eye on his recovery, hoping that this injury won’t derail the youngster’s prospects.

6/15/2026

Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves hit home run #300 tonight! The 28 year old continues to add to an already impressive resume - he was the 2018 NL Rookie of the Year, a 3-time MVP, 6-time All-Star, and 6-time Silver Slugger.

6/21/2026

The All-Star teams have been announced! You can see the full list in the images below.

We’re sending:

SP Jagger Haynes - 8-1, 2.08 ERA, 99.2 IP, 0.83 WHIP, 11.5 K/9, 3.0 WAR
RP Seth Elledge - 3-2, 1.38 ERA, 32.2 IP, 1.16 WHIP, 11.3 K/9, 1.5 WAR
3B Manny Machado - .272/.332/.506, 17 HR, 3 SB, 2.5 WAR
SS Fernando Tatis Jr. - .282/.383/.528, 15 HR, 9 SB, 4.1 WAR

6/25/2026

3B Miguel Sano of the Milwaukee Brewers has hit home run #300! The power hitting Sano has struggles so far this season, so this is a nice little achievement for the 33 year old. Sano is a lifetime .231 hitter, but is hitting just .187 so far this season. Despite his struggles, he has still managed to hit 16 HR with 40 RBIs.

6/30/2026

What do you get when you cross an angry 6’0” tall batter with a .197 average with a 6’6” tall pitcher with a 7.2 ERA? The “brawl” in Baltimore! Orioles reliever Luke Farrell entered tonight’s game and immediately found himself in trouble. The 35 year old simply couldn’t find the plate. After a second pitch ran high and inside, Jacksonville’s Harrison Bader had seen enough and charged the mound. After an exchange of blows in which neither player landed a single shot, the benches cleared. Farrell faces an eight game suspension, while Bader has been hit with a four game suspension.

June’s Best Hitters

AL - 3B Hye-Min Bu, Jacksonville Warhawks
.360, 10 HR, 21 RBI, 22 R

NL - LF Juan Soto, Washington Nationals
.407, 11 HR, 29 RBI, 25 R

June’s Best Pitchers

AL - SP Emerson Hancock, Seattle Mariners
4-0, 34 IP, 42 K, 2.38 ERA

NL - SP Shane Bieber, San Diego Padres
5-0, 37 IP, 36 K, 1.46 ERA

June Recap 2026

Monthly Record: 20-5
Season Record: 52-29
Position: 1st
Games Ahead/Back: +6

No Good/Bad this month. Since it’s the midseason point, I’m going to do a midseason recap instead.