10 Biggest Takeaways from MLB's Week 21
This season has now cranked right through the dog days of August, and per usual, they were more doggish for some than others.
The Texas Rangers and Chicago Cubs have loved this month. The Washington Nationals and Jack Zduriencik have hated it. All baseball fans should have been joyed when Vin Scully decided to come back as an 88-year-old broadcaster. Nothing that might happen in the last days of the month will change any of that.
As this week ends and September opens its door, we can officially say the final stretch of this regular season is here. It's exciting stuff.
But for now, let's look backward. It can be just as interesting. Have trust. Plus, judging things in hindsight is always fun, right?
Chicago Cubs Still Boiling Hot
1 of 10
On July 29, the Lovable Losers were 2.5 games out of the second wild-card spot. Now, one month later, the Cubs are firmly in control of their own fate as they own a 5.5-game lead for that position over the San Francisco Giants thanks to a stretch in which they've won 21 of their last 28 games.
The Cubs are 3-3 over the last week.
But this week's record is hardly the point right now, because they are a club that has everything needed to succeed in September. Kris Bryant is back to his early-season self. Anthony Rizzo would be an MVP candidate if Bryce Harper weren't going berserk. Jake Arrieta is an ace. Jon Lester and Jason Hammel are his capable sidekicks. The back of the bullpen is great at preventing runs—and baserunners in general.
"It's not any shock to us because we see each other every day, man," Cubs center fielder Dexter Fowler told Bleacher Report. "We know what we can all do. For us, it's just that we're doing it."
If they keep it up into October, some sort of drought might actually end.
Jack Zduriencik Deserves Some Credit
2 of 10
There was plenty of criticism for Jack Zduriencik, the Seattle Mariners' now-former general manager, upon his firing Friday morning. Plenty. And a decent amount of it was certainly warranted.
But get this straight: The Mariners have the talent to win and win soon, which is why the job is going to be a coveted one in the coming weeks. Zduriencik is responsible for that.
Pitchers like Taijuan Walker and James Paxton are viewed as cornerstone for the Mariners' future; Zduriencik drafted them. Felix Hernandez will anchor whatever winning the franchise does in the near future; Zduriencik kept him in Seattle with what is now a team-friendly contract (seven years, $175 million). Robinson Cano and Nelson Cruz might end up being overpaid, but for now, both are significant parts of the team's offense; Zduriencik signed them in free agency.
The reason so many people believed the Mariners could win their division—if not reach the World Series, as many critics predicted—is because of the roster Zduriencik built. It did not live up to expectations, and while he must—and has—shouldered most of the blame for that, not all of it is his fault.
That is why no one should be surprised if Zduriencik ends up helping some other front office by next season.
Common Sense Says MLB Colluded Against Barry Bonds
3 of 10
Arbitrator Fredric Horowitz ruled Major League Baseball did not collude against Barry Bonds after the 2007 season, according to Jon Heyman of CBS Sports, who wrote about the issue in May.
Horowitz seemingly did not have enough hard evidence against MLB, but we should all know better. Bonds was the face of the BALCO scandal, and he symbolized what had become the most hated part of the sport—performance-enhancing drugs. He was Public Enemy No. 1. There's hardly a question that baseball wanted him gone as it tried to sweep much of that era under a giant rug.
But how many guys with a 1.045 OPS, .480 OBP, 132 walks and 28 home runs can't get a job—no matter what baggage they might bring with them? That was the crux of Bonds' case, but there was no smoking gun or even shell casings.
Legal courts need that kind of stuff to convict. Courts of public opinion and common sense do not. Based on those burdens of proof, MLB is guilty.
.png?w=256)
Protective Netting Is Way Past Due
4 of 10
It is simply a matter of luck, and MLB should be on its knees smooching the feet of the baseball gods daily. Because that luck could (and still might) be gone in an instant if a foul ball or splintered bat finds its way into the seats and fatally injures a fan.
Right next to player safety, fan safety should be priority No. 1 for baseball. But owners shot down the idea of extending the protective netting behind home plate to ensure the safety of their patrons, according to Fox Sports' Ken Rosenthal.
Now the Philadelphia Phillies want to install extra netting, per Rosenthal, and MLB is finally looking into doing so at all ballparks. Rosenthal reported the move will be delayed as the team awaits official regulations.
This is good news. Now we just have to pray nothing else happens between now and the time netting actually goes up.
Yasiel Puig's Hamstrings Could Cost Dodgers Their Ring
5 of 10
The Los Angeles Dodgers are built to win a World Series now. That is a fact. Ownership, the front office, the manager, the players, the fans and anyone who has seen their immense payroll will agree.
Yasiel Puig, the team's superstar right fielder, is a big part of the plan, because when he is healthy, he is one of the best offensive players in the game. Some might not like his style or youthful disregard for authority, but when he is on the field and not ailing, it is amazing what he can do while wielding a bat.
But too often this season Puig has been hurt, and most of that hurt has come from his hamstrings. The Dodgers put him on the disabled list Friday for the second time this season because of a hamstring injury, one on each side. The first stint lasted 39 games, and while the team does not think this latest shelving is that serious, hamstrings are unpredictable healers. So, who knows for sure?
What we do know is that Puig was just starting to heat up before going on the DL, and that would have been huge for the Dodgers going into the final month of the season. Now, if Puig's missed time carries into October or if he is playing at a less-than-premium level because of the hamstring, it could cost the Dodgers a run at October greatness.
MLB Needs More Players Like Carlos Gomez
6 of 10
First, a disclaimer: I covered Carlos Gomez on a daily basis for a time when he played for the Milwaukee Brewers. We got along very well then, and that continues when we see each other now. All baseball writers have guys who check in as favorites, and for me, Gomez is on that list.
With that said, even if I hadn't covered Gomez, I would argue baseball needs more players who display the passion, flair and overall joy that he typically exudes. And nobody should care what the New York Yankees or their manager think. They are way too sensitive, much like way too many of their brethren.
During a series between Gomez's Houston Astros and the Yankees this week, Gomez flipped his bat and screamed at himself in frustration after making an out. This has become the new thorn in the side of the game's overly sensitive.
"Some of our guys took exception to it, and I think they took even a little more exception when he started yelling at our dugout," Girardi told reporters. "Just got a little heated.
"I just told him, 'Play the game right.' Show a little professionalism to the pitcher."
So, just so we get this right, you don't flip a bat or yell when you do well. You don't do it when you do badly. You just don't show any emotion, period, right?
No. This is a game. This is entertainment. The field is a stage. The players perform for audiences. They are not too different from actors or singers or magicians. We pay to watch, and they are paid handsomely for it.
Gomez entertains. A lot. He is usually smiling when he does. He signs autographs without hesitation. He engages on social media. If every team had one guy like him, that guy would probably be a fan favorite in his squad's city.
If this sport hopes to gain and retain younger fans, those who think they know better need to stop chastising players like Gomez.
The Mismanagement of Trea Turner
7 of 10
The Washington Nationals surprised people when they called up shortstop prospect Trea Turner last week, but the assumption was that the team did it because Turner was going to play. Otherwise, why start his service clock and take away minor league at-bats?
Well, a week into his major league career, Turner finally got a start Friday—at second base.
In a season that is as disappointing as any team has had in recent memory, the Nationals sitting Turner is poor form. This guy is the No. 2 prospect in the organization and a top-10 overall prospect as rated by Baseball America. If the Nationals wanted to bring him up before the minor league season was over, then they should play him.
That falls on general manager Mike Rizzo, since he's the one who called up Turner. But as former GM Jim Bowden said Friday morning on his MLB Network Radio show, sometimes managers go against the wishes of GMs when it comes to playing rookies. Bowden noted he did just that when he was the Nats' GM and that it could be happening to Rizzo, because not playing Turner "makes no sense."
Sarah Palin Should 'Stick To' What She Knows
8 of 10
There are a ton of puns ready-made for that headline above, but the point is Sarah Palin should not be weighing in on ESPN's suspension of Curt Schilling, who was reprimanded by the network for a tweet that compared Muslims to Nazis.
Palin defended Schilling on Facebook and said ESPN was "awful in this. Stick to sports." She did not acknowledge the fact that ESPN was sticking to sports and punished Schilling for not doing the same.
OK. Now the jokes can continue.
Hanley Ramirez Will Move to First Base
9 of 10
As newly hired Boston Red Sox team president Dave Dombrowski noted earlier this week, the idea to move Hanley Ramirez from left field, where he's played terribly, is a "logical" one.
Ramirez started working out at first base this week because he is awful in the outfield and because the Red Sox are loaded there for years to come. This season, Ramirez has minus-19 defensive runs saved and a minus-56.4 ultimate zone rating, according to FanGraphs.
You figure Ramirez does not want to be so atrocious in left field. And he seems more than OK with the move, too, which should happen before the end of this season, Dombroski told Gordon Edes of ESPN.com.
"It's what we need," Ramirez said. "You want young blood [in the outfield], hustling and diving all over the place.
"I can't do that. I had two surgeries on my left shoulder; I can't be flying all over the place. It's really impressive when you got those three guys out there, and I'm really happy to move to see that."
Who knows if Ramirez will play first base as well as converted catcher Mike Napoli—who was great there for Boston—but it certainly can't hurt to find out considering what he's done in left.
Winning Comes Before Chemistry, Not the Other Way Around
10 of 10
Good players, and especially good pitchers, win baseball games. Chemistry does not.
That needs to be said because we are still in an age where otherwise intelligent people like to believe things are the other way around. That thinking says teams that get along well and have fun eventually win. That is why teams like the San Francisco Giants win championships and the Los Angeles Dodgers, a team with a skyscraping payroll, do not. Never mind that the Giants have had undeniably great pitching while the recent Dodgers teams have had major issues with theirs.
Pedro Martinez weighed in with his thoughts on the matter, tweeting of the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners, "You have to wonder what went wrong? To me, having such talent in a team and not making it, there must be something wrong about chemistry."
He doesn't mentioned what actually went wrong, like Miguel Cabrera getting hurt, Justin Verlander pitching to an ERA over 5.00 through Aug. 4 or Robinson Cano's OPS+ dropping more than 30 points from last year.
Winning spawns chemistry, if there really is such a thing. The reverse is not true—don't believe the hype.
.png?w=480)
