Bobby Witt Jr. will be the first shortstop with two 30/30 seasons, writes Anne Rogers.
Witt became the first Royal ever to record a 30-30 season in 2023, when he hit 30 home runs and stole 49 bases. And he is only the eighth player to record two consecutive 30-30 seasons, joining Ryan Braun (2011-12), Alfonso Soriano (’05-06 and ’02-03), Vladimir Guerrero Sr. (’01-02), Barry Bonds (1995-97), Ron Gant (’90-91), Bobby Bonds (’77-78) and Willie Mays (’56-57).
James McArthur has a grade one sprain of the ulnar collateral ligament (UCL).
“We’ll probably keep him out five to seven days, depending on how he feels,” manager Matt Quatraro said of McArthur’s timeline. “We’re really hoping it’s not a season-ending injury.”
Brittany Ghiroli of The Athletic writes why the Royals being good is good for baseball.
While MLB has taken steps to stem the downward epidemic in sports, getting teams to consistently play their best, getting front offices to take risks and getting owners to open their wallets is a whole different problem.
Witt’s otherworldly season (he’ll easily reach 10 fWAR) would make him a surefire American League MVP if not for Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees. Plus, it comes after a spring in which Sherman approved an 11-year, $288.8 million contract extension for the Royals’ young star that could end up being worth as much as $377 million over 14 years. It’s the most lucrative deal in franchise history.
And again, if Kansas City – one of the smallest markets in baseball – can do it, why can’t everyone else?
Mike Petriello names Lucas Erceg and Kris Bubic as relievers who could dominate in the postseason.
Given the results so far, it is reasonable to wonder if he will ever return. Bubic’s ERA of 3.33 is not outstanding, but the FIP of 2.18 absolutely does, and 31 Ks to four walks is outstanding. As you’d expect from a now-healthy pitcher working out of the bullpen in short stints, the velocity of his fastball has increased significantly, from 91.7 to 93.2 MPH, and a changeup is now 5 MPH faster than it was three years ago. But it’s also that. It’s resetting the curveball that didn’t work, and adding a slider that works better.
Craig Brown discusses Seth Lugo’s last start.
The hard stuff was higher, as mentioned. The slurve consistently missed deep. He could hit the corners, but not as often as he normally does. He lived in the meaty part of the zone. Also, it seemed like Lugo just had trouble getting hitters out. He would go 0-1 or 0-2 up on the count and then let the hitter right back in by throwing a pitch or two (or three) outside the zone. Was he trying to be too subtle? I don’t think that was the case. It was simply because Detroit’s hitters were able to block the pitches that were way outside the zone. A killer lineup isn’t as effective if he’s not hitting his spots.
Bobby Witt Jr. is one of the young stars that Baseball America is writing about and who could have an impact in the playoffs.
The Twins beat the Guardians last night and hold the Royals five games back but only 1.5 games ahead of Minnesota.
Would Francisco Lindor be more valuable to the Dodgers than Shohei Ohtani?
Victor Robles may have made the dumbest attempt to steal a base of the season.
What went wrong with the Rangers this year?
The White Sox hire a former Navy SEAL with no baseball experience to reorganize their management.
Could Emmanuel Clase be the first closer to win the Cy Young since 1992?
Nathan Eovaldi activates his player option for 2025.
The Guardians lose outfielder Steven Kwan to injury.
The Mets honor Grimace with a purple seat.
Teams from the lower leagues are leaving the Californian cities.
Searching for traces of baseball in North Korea.
Can any of these 0-2 NFL teams make the playoffs?
Are Americans generous?
The Earth may have had rings like Saturn millions of years ago.
Former MoviePass CEO admits $9.95 unlimited ticket system was a scam.
Your song of the day is Muse with Uprising.
