Benches Clear on Day 2 of Opening Weekend

AUTHOR: SPENCER REYES

Opening Day excitement was present at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. The New York Mets looked to former National ace, and two-time Cy Young, Max Scherzer to pitch for game two of their season.

Fast forward to the 5th inning of the April 8th contest. Brandon Nimmo will hit a triple to left field on a 2-2 count, and fellow outfielder, Starling Marte will hit for a double, bringing home Nimmo, to make the score 4 to 3 in favor of the Mets.

One ball and one strike go by, but on the third pitch, Nationals submariner, Steve Cishek hit Francisco Lindor on the C-flap of his helmet. Almost immediately, both benches and bullpens cleared as this was the fourth time in 14 innings that a Mets batter was hit by a pitch.

Buck Showalter’s reaction to Lindor being hit has gone viral and been used by most New York media outlets. He was enraged by the Nationals pitching staff’s actions, “Times like that when it’s the fourth one, I don’t want to really hear about intent. Those things can’t happen”.

Showalter suggested that managers should only let pitchers play who can control the ball regardless of the environmental conditions. He argued that after that many times, the intent isn’t a card to deal with.

This situation seemed to put a spring in the bats of the wounded, as both Pete Alonso and Lindor went yard with a home run apiece. The “Polar Bear” hit his first career grand slam, within his four-year career with the Mets.

The New York Mets ended up losing the last game of the away series against the Nationals, but baseball fans should keep their eyes peeled for more interactions this year due to different grips on the baseballs and how the environment affects the pitchers.

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE

Opening Day is Upon Us

Author: Spencer Reyes

THE MLB LOCKOUT IS OFFICIALLY OVER!

Sing your praises, thank your lucky stars, and pick up a ball and glove. The MLB 2022 season will not be canceled and will start very soon on April 7th. Spring Training started up on March 17th at the Florida and Arizona complexes, and there will be a full, 162 game schedule, with some other rules that have been put in place for 2022. The MLB and the Players Union have agreed to a 12-team postseason bracket including a 3-game series for the first round, which will change playoff baseball as we know it. This will replace the 10-team system that was originally in place with a one-game series for the first round.

There has also been an increase in the amount of money a team can spend, going from $210M to $230M and have promised to reach $244M by 2026. If a team spends a dollar over this threshold per year, they will be taxed by the league. The annual minimum salary has also increased from $563,000 to $700K and will continue to jump to $780K by 2026 as well.

As far as playing terms, both sides have agreed to a universal DH, meaning that no pitchers will be allowed to hit. They have also implemented a draft lottery for the six worst teams at the end of the year, creating a draft system like the NBA and NHL. Players also were happy once seeing that their player options increased by 2 per year. This is the number of times a player can be moved down from the MLB level to a minor league team each year.

The last two points agreed on have to do with player acquisitions. As soon as the newest CBA deal was reached on Thursday, the floodgates were open as trades and signings were now allowed to occur prior to the season starting. They also instituted a deadline on July 25th to reach a deal on the idea of a draft for the international baseball prospects. This idea is up in the air but was supposedly the last piece to this 3-month lockout saga, and both sides agreed to defer this side argument to start the 2022 season.

Mark your calendars for April 7th as the top baseball players in the world will finally have the chance to show their worth after an elongated stretch of inactivity.

PLAY BALL!

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE

The New York Mets Need to Make a Call

Author: Frank Caggino

Now that the MLB lockout has finally ended, free agency has resumed. Players and in particular starting pitchers, have been flying off the board. While the Mets signing Max Scherzer improved their pitching staff, the pitchers after him and deGrom all have question marks. Carlos Carrasco had some injuries and even when healthy, did not pitch the way the Mets hoped. Taijuan Walker was an All-Star, and then mostly struggled in the second half of the season. Tylor Megill had mixed results and it is not ideal to depend on a pitcher who will only be in their second season. There are very few decent pitchers left in the starting pitcher market and that is why the Mets should pursue the trade market.

The best starting pitcher left among the free agents is Yusei Kikuchi. Who similar to Taijuan Walker, struggled in the second half of the season and does not have a proven track record. The Mets need someone more reliable if they intend on being a team that competes for a World Series. The trade market has multiple quality pitchers, (I have written about Tyler Mahle of the Reds) and the Oakland Athletics have multiple quality pitchers. Oakland has a reputation of trading their good players and not keeping them long term. The Athletics, want to move on from those pitchers at some point, which is why the Mets should try to acquire one of them. The three pitchers from Oakland that have been rumored to been available are Chris Bassitt, Frankie Montas, and Sean Manea. All three pitchers were healthy and had consistent seasons. The Athletics, also have some valuable portion players that could be moved and the Mets can help replace them.

Matt Olsen is a player whose name has popped up in trade rumors, and if Oakland does trade him, the Mets have a player who could potentially help fill the void. Dominic Smith does not have much of a role in New York, since the team singed Starling Marte, Mark Cahna, and Eduardo Escobar. Robinson Cano will be back this year and will take away some designated hitter reps. Perhaps after Olsen is traded, the Mets can make their deal with Oakland to acquire a starting pitcher for a package that includes, Dom Smith and some other prospects. It is important for the Mets to make a move for the rotation because of how much they have invested.

Having Jacob deGrom and Max Scherzer in the same rotation, might be a once in a lifetime thing for the Mets and it can not be wasted. The Mets have the highest payroll in all of baseball and have to ensure that they will be a winning team. The Athletics will not re-sign any of their pitchers and if they are smart, they will trade them and get some value in return. If the Mets are smart, they will be the team to call Oakland.

SPORTS ARE OUR UNIVERSE