DO CHEATERS PROSPER? LET US EXPLORE DEEPER, THANKS TO THE HOUSTON ASTERISKS.
PAGE 4
NO A’S PITCHING STAFF SINCE ‘THE BIG THREE’ HAS GARNERED SO MUCH HYPE.
PAGE 16
AN OUTSIDE-THE-BOX MENTALITY HAS HELPED MARK CANHA REBUILD HIS HITTING APPROACH
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ALYSSA NAKKEN IS KNOCK’N DOWN DOORS BECAUSE SHE WAS THE RIGHT WOMAN TO DO SO.
PAGE 42
GIANTS FANS CAN ONLY HOPE HUNTER BISHOP PICKS UP WHERE BARRY BONDS LEFT OFF.
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HUNTER PENCE WAS A BELOVED GIANT — AND FATE DETERMINED HE WOULD BE AGAIN!
PAGE 62
Editor’s note: As this magazine went to press, weeks before the season begins, the coronavirus is making the sports landscape — particularly in the Bay Area — very murky. San Francisco’s ban on events larger than 1,000 people has affected the Warriors and the Giants, who have decided not to play the Bay Bridge game against the A’s at Oracle Park, meaning the two teams also won’t meet in Oakland. Will Oakland and Alameda County become the third major municipality to ban large events and affect the A’s season? All we really know is that whether they play, where they play and who will be able to watch in person is very much in flux. Stay tuned.
COVER ILLUSTRATION BY TIM MARRS
The Astros only brought us further into the Asterisks Era of sporting accomplishments. Now we’re left to wonder whether winning at all costs is just a reflection of American society.
STORY BY ELLIOTT ALMOND AND MARK EMMONS ILLUSTRATION BY DAVIDE BARCO
Give it your best, play by the rules, and you’ll be a winner in the end — no matter what the scoreboard says.
Boy, were we suckers.
Cheaters prosper, all right. They win. They get paid. They’re celebrated as heroes. And even when they get caught, it’s difficult to say with a straight face that they really ever get punished.
Sure, they feign embarrassment. They issue non-apology apologies, saying mistakes were made and lessons were learned. But we’re really great guys, scout’s honor. Now, can we all just move on?
Which brings us to the latest chapter of Liars, Cheaters, and Thieves Club featuring the Houston Astros. As of this writing and for the foreseeable future, they remain the 2017 World Series champions despite an elaborate ruse to steal signs of opposing
The idea has been passed down through the generations as the paragon of truth, justice, and the American way: Cheaters never prosper.The fallout in Houston hit hard, with manager A.J. Hinch losing his job, along with GM Jeff Lunhnow. JAYNE KAMIN-ONCEA/GETTY IMAGES
pitchers through the use of real-time, high-definition cameras in the outfield and (unbelievably) trash cans.
The exposure of the brazen scheme led to the firing of Astros manager A.J. Hinch and general manager Jeff Lunhow in January. The fallout spread when plot masterminds Carlos Beltran and Alex Cora lost their managerial jobs with the New York Mets and Boston Red Sox, respectively. And the scandal barrelled into spring training like a 25-car pileup without losing momentum as Opening Day approached.
Harsh words and threats of bean-ball retaliation were being slung between opposing superstars. The whistleblower — A’s pitcher Mike Fiers — was being called a snitch by former star David Ortiz and issued death threats by others.
Much like the vitriol we see in our national politics and so much else that floods our social media feeds these days, it has gotten ugly.
“We all know what is unfair,” Kevin Costner said. “What happened there is fundamentally unfair. The World Series became unfair, and no one knows what to think about it.”
Yes, that Kevin Costner.
Before the Oscar winner brought the poetry of baseball to life with films that made us laugh (“Bull Durham) and cry (“Field of Dreams”), Costner was a darn good ballplayer. The man who played the philosophizing minor league catcher Crash Davis was talented enough to try out for the powerhouse Cal State Fullerton baseball team in the 1970s.
Today, he’s a fan who felt a sting of betrayal with the revelations that the Astros’ World Series victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers was not achieved fairly.
“There are rules in place for stealing signs,” Costner said in an interview with the Bay Area News Group. “Clever people watch, and they look. That’s how you get to the big leagues. You try to see what other people don’t see. But when you take it to where it went in the most important seven games of the season, the game got destroyed. It destroyed the integrity of that World Series that some argue could have gone the other way.”
Costner represents the mainstream opinion no matter how
much Astros fans defend their team. The line of opponents outspoken in their disgust forms behind such stars as the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger, the Yankees’ Aaron Judge and Angels’ Mike Trout. The scandal has left Little Leagues from coast to coast wrestling with whether to ban the Astros as a team choice.
But the scandal has reverberated well beyond the national pastime as part of a broader conversation about character, ethics, and whether cheating at games reflects who we have become as a people. Does American Exceptionalism really mean anything goes now?
Perhaps most galling is how precious little guilt, shame or remorse has been shown by those involved.
“My read on the reaction to the Astros is that the general public is very disappointed and feels the title should have been vacated,” said Ann Skeet, senior director, Leadership Ethics, at Santa Clara University’s Markkula Center for Applied Ethics. “That certainly was my take as well. People believe this went too far as an orchestrated, intentional act that many team members, if not the entire team, participated in it.”
Skeet said that over the last few decades, the idea of “winning at all costs” has become the overriding theme in sports, business, and even politics.
“Now the question is being asked: Do the means justify the
ends?” Skeet said. “Many are coming to the conclusion that they don’t, and we’ve gotten out of kilter in what we will accept in bad or corrupt behavior. There’s a reckoning, and maybe a chance of the pendulum swinging back the other way.”
One can hope. Or, maybe this is the new normal.
Future historians will be kept busy trying to contextualize the early decades of the 21st century. They’ll have a lot to unpack. (See: Enron; The Big Shorting of the Great Recession; Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos; college admissions fixing; Trump, Donald J.)
The lack of morality and accountability throughout sports also has been one of the hallmarks of this age. The pervasiveness of evading the rules on the fields of play should be an apt metaphor for everything else happening in our time. It’s a feature, not a bug, of modern society.
“The games provide a symbolic way of expressing something much bigger than getting a ball to the right place,” said Robert J. Thompson, a Syracuse University professor of popular culture. “Sports tells a story of the overarching change we’re seeing in our society.”
There’s nothing new about breaking the rules, of course. Sports history books have reserved a thick chapter for skullduggery and devious behavior. Although the scheme wasn’t confirmed for five decades, Bobby Thomson’s pennant-winning “Shot Heard ’Round the World” homer for the 1951 New York Giants likely benefited from a long-running, sign-stealing plot involving a telescope behind center field.
Sure, over the years, baseball
After
Little did we know, things wouldn’t be all that different a century later.
ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
dealt with spitballs and corked bats, pine tar and emery boards. But that all seems so quaint now. Today’s athletes have entered an arena where the line of what is considered acceptable in gaining an edge has been obliterated.
Or perhaps it’s just more tolerated in the aftermath of Lance Armstrong, Barry Bonds and the New England Patriots’ Deflategate scam. Everybody does it. So, we just shrug our collective shoulders.
“Frankly, nothing can shock people anymore,” Thompson said.
With each new scandal, Thompson thinks about the more innocent times of the 1919 Chicago Black Sox players who threw World Series games in exchange for money from a gambling syndicate. It led to the apocryphal story of the boy telling Shoeless Joe Jackson, “Say it ain’t so, Joe!”
“That’s the cliche for the shock and disappointment we all feel that people and teams we respected could have done such a thing,” Thompson said. “But we are so beyond that now, and many people no longer care about cheating because we’re all so cynical today.”
Reality TV, he added, is both a reflection and a contributor to this desensitized view of cheating.
“When ‘Survivor’ was changing the landscape of American television, lying was instrumental,” Thompson said. “Richard Hatch, the first huge star, was filled with complicity. It’s why if you talk to a lot of people under the age of 40 now, they’re more likely to say, ‘Cheaters usually win.’ It’s very Machiavellian about who can cheat more effectively.”
One other telling point that Thompson makes: Which shows have been most talked-about in recent years? Series that featured scoundrels, such as “Breaking Bad,” “The Wire” and “The Sopranos.” We love glorifying those who don’t play by the rules in our greatest storytelling.
“Most of the great television of this era is about liars, cheaters, and bad guys,” Thompson said. “In ‘Mad Men,’ Don Draper was even lying about his very name.”
Well, we can report, the names on the ballplayers’ uniforms are legit. But we’re still not sure if Astros star Jose Altuve wore a buzzer beneath his jersey to tip him off to incoming pitches.
All of this strikes close to home with parents, who can find them-
selves struggling to explain to their children the concept of right and wrong — and how it often doesn’t seem to apply to their heroes. Costner is no different. His three youngest children, Cayden, 12, Hayes, 10, and Grace, 9, all play in youth sports.
“I wouldn’t want my kid to play in a game if they knew what was coming,” he said. “That’s the beauty of sports. The moment between the pitcher and the batter, when each one is trying to outguess the other, that’s called drama. The minute the pitcher lets the ball go and the batter swings, it’s going to move into something else, and that’s called the action. And we destroy the drama when someone knows what is coming.
“It’s nice to play for something when it counts,” Costner said. “It’s more important to play when it is fair.”
But passive observers — you know, fans — have become deeply jaded about recent results. The New York Times recently asked if the Astros’ scandal is the moment when sport becomes known as the “asterisk era.” It’s a good question.
Just watch. At this summer’s Tokyo Olympics, athletes will perform amazing feats and take our breath away. But in similar record-breaking fashion, doubts quickly will follow them across the finish line because after Ben Johnson and Marion Jones, after the East Germans, and now the Russians, people don’t know what is real and what is chemically enhanced.
Meanwhile, back in baseball, we still don’t know the whole story. The only reason we know any of this is because one man, the life-threatened Fiers, had the integrity to say “this was wrong.” He exposed the scheme in a November interview with The Athletic.
Every time the Astros players, owner Jim Crane and baseball commissioner Rob Manfred open their mouths, they seemingly make the situation worse. (Skeet, the Santa Clara ethicist, sees stark parallels between Crane’s abdication of leadership and the recent troubles at companies like Wells Fargo and Boeing.)
Everyone, it seems, is more interested in rationalizations than accepting responsibility. And hey, aren’t the Astros victims here, too, because of the humiliation they’re facing?
It will be fascinating to watch how the team reacts to the commotion this season. Will the Astros fold under the pressure of continual scrutiny, the vicious booing of fans on the road, and a potential retaliatory diet of 90-mph-plus brushback heaters? Or, will they fully embrace their role as villains and masters of the dark arts who march, Darth Vader-like, over the competition?
Costner, 65, who tries to attend the College Baseball World Series whenever Fullerton advances that far, is careful not to pile onto the Astros. After all, he knows what it’s like to live in the spotlight. He also empathizes with players who were reluctant to stand up in the face of the “clubhouse code.”
“I’m not looking for anyone to be persecuted more than they already have been,” he said. “I’m sure that players on the team wish it didn’t happen. But you’re talking about almost a profile-in-courage moment to say this is unfair, and I don’t want to play this game at this level with this much at stake with that advantage.”
Then he added:
“We’ve seen it time and time again in our lives. We know who got it right and who got it wrong. But that doesn’t define you for the rest of your life.”
Or, perhaps it will. Just not in the way the Astros expect. Maybe this is a kind of tipping point where people start demanding more accountability — and not only for baseball. The moment when citizens begin to say: This isn’t the way we should act.
Yes, another sports scandal probably could be on the horizon. But the simple fact that the anger is still white-hot brings out the natural optimist in Skeet. Maybe the Astros players escaped punishment from Major League Baseball. But she notes how the court of public opinion has ruled against them.
People do care, passionately, about playing the right way.
“Or we wouldn’t still be talking about the Astros,” she said. “People aren’t being quiet. My hope is that it suggests opinion is shifting and people are trying to find a new moral path that’s more comfortable than what they’re seeing right now.
“It isn’t over.”
Yogi Berra couldn’t have said it better.
When the A’s suspected the Astros were cheating they went straight to Major League Baseball to lodge a complaint. Decades ago, when the irascible Billy Martin was managing Oakland and he thought an opponent was breaking the rules, he took matters into his own hands.
Or, more precisely, he’d sometimes put them in the hands of the A’s visiting team batboy.
Martin, who spent a lifetime teetering on his own path between right and wrong, certainly wasn’t averse to engaging the lowest of low-level personnel in a high-stakes game of espionage. Anything to win was everything to him.
There’s no doubt how Martin would have reacted if he were still alive and managing during the Digital Age, and he suspected nefarious activity from someone like the Astros.
“He would have tried to catch ’em himself and use it against them,” said his son, Billy Martin Jr., a sports agent and director of baseball operations for the Texas AirHogs baseball team. “That’s exactly what he would do.”
Still, it would be wrong to suggest Martin didn’t have his own ways of scheming — legally or otherwise
Billy Martin knew how to root out a cheater:
He’d designate a batboy to look for corked bats in the opposing dugout. That batboy was me.
— for a competitive edge. “Trust me, my father tried to steal signs,” Martin Jr. said, without elaborating on his father’s tactics during a celebrated 16-year managerial career.
Martin went to some stunning lengths during the 1982 season to root out potential wrongdoing on the other side of the diamond in Oakland, including devising a plan with a batboy to catch one of his biggest adversaries, Reggie Jackson.
It was the batboy the A’s provided for visiting teams who alerted Martin that Jackson, then with the Angels, was traveling with a corked bat.
I know this because I was that batboy. And revealing the hubristic slugger’s secret to Martin led to one of the most harrowing nights of my teenage years.
I didn’t have much to do with Billy Martin. If he ever knew my name I’m sure he soon forgot it — not that it makes him a bad guy, because he surely wasn’t. We’d occasionally smile and nod to each other while saying hello well before games as we passed one another in the maze of Coliseum passageways. But as the other team’s batboy, I technically worked for and spent the majority of my time with the Angels, Red Sox, Yankees or whichever American League team happened to be in town.
Yet, like most everyone who drew a check from the Oakland A’s those days, an important aspect of my job was not to upset Billy, who pretty much had the final say on whatever went on at the Coliseum.
(I learned this the hard way once after I gave a high-five to Milwaukee’s Ben Ogilvie when the Brewers hit back-to-back-to-back homers. My batboy counterpart with the A’s immediately raced over and said “Billy’s really pissed! You can’t high-five guys. He said to tell you to knock that (stuff) off!”)
Partly because of Billy, but mostly because of my own curiosity while talking with equipment managers and some players around the league, I learned how to recognize bats that were corked. If I found corked bats, the understanding was I needed to somehow alert Martin. During my parts of six seasons working for the A’s in the 1980s, I found corked bats belonging to four different American League players — some used them in batting practice, but only one guy used a corked bat in a game while in Oakland.
At the risk of ruining the story’s suspense, Reggie Jackson wasn’t the guy who used a corked bat in a game. But therein lies the catch.
Naturally, Martin was delighted to hear about the doctored bat Reggie brought to town for that August series. He and Reggie had what was often a tumultuous relationship while working together with the Yankees and he relished the thought of catching Jackson breaking a rule.
After a brief, nerve-wracking meeting with Martin to determine which signal I would give him if Reggie brought out the corked bat during the series, my angst began. I was terrified of not immediately determining if Reggie was going to use his black Adirondack 302 Big Stick bat with the tell-tale signs of tiny incisions and a slightly elevated mass of after-market glue on top. Would Reggie notice me, standing three steps away from the on-deck circle, peering at the end of his bat?
As a small child growing up just three miles from the Coliseum while Jackson was an Athletic, I would sometimes be awakened by late-night fireworks triggered by Reggie’s home runs. And here we were, years later, and his bat was still keeping me awake at night.
After the first two games of the four-game series, though, it was clear to me Reggie was playing by the rules — he only brought the corked bat out during batting practice. So each time Reggie came up I made sure I wasn’t inadvertently giving Billy “the signal” Jackson was carrying an illegal bat. I was mostly relieved the would-be drama would soon end.
Then, in the final game of the series as Jackson strode to the plate in the sixth inning, amid the murmur from the crowd of more than 37,000 came the unmistakable high-pitched sound of Billy yelling “Time!” as he started shuffling toward home plate. I was aghast. Wait. Did I give the signal? I didn’t think I had my arms outstretched across the backstop to alert Billy, but now I wasn’t sure. In vain, I tried to catch Billy’s attention while shaking my head as if to indicate no, Reggie wasn’t cheating.
It was too late.
Within seconds Billy and Reggie were yelling at each other at the plate while home plate umpire Jerry Neudecker was trying to pry the bat from Reggie’s hands to inspect it. Neudecker spent a good five minutes trying to find signs of corking, which he only would have seen had he gone to the bat rack and pulled out one of Jackson’s other bats.
The bat may have been clean but I felt dirty. I couldn’t believe the surreal scene in front of me and I tried to convince myself I wouldn’t wind up getting fired because of the chaos that ensued.
Still frazzled about Reggie’s bat, I managed to get a message to Billy right after the game to say I was sorry about the mix-up and, if I did, I didn’t mean to send him a signal. Thankfully, an hour later came word back from Billy that I had done nothing wrong. As it turned out, Billy “just wanted Reggie to know I know about the bat.”
Billy told a different story to reporters that night. “I could care less if Reggie or any of the Angels are using corked bats,” Martin said.
Two weeks later, I was asked to see if another A’s opponent was up to no good. A frustrated Martin suspected some Detroit pitchers were cutting baseballs but didn’t know how. Guess who got talked into doing some investigative work while spending the night in the Tigers locker room.? Billy theorized Tigers catcher Lance Parrish may have been rubbing the ball against something sharp on his catcher’s gear before throwing it back to the mound.
Not wanting any part of the hassle, I quickly checked the gear and thankfully found nothing. Or, maybe if there was something sharp, I didn’t want to bother knowing about it?
That wound up being the last time I had to deal with any covert actions. Billy Martin was let go at the end of the A’s disappointing 1982 season that saw them lose 94 games after enjoying a renaissance the year before during the “Billy Ball” explosion.
But Martin was far from done keeping tabs on other teams’ players. He returned to manage his beloved Yankees the next season, and while scouring baseball’s rule book Billy stumbled on what he felt was the ultimate trump card: the pine tar rule.
Martin kept a list of players whose pine tar extended more than the allowed 18 inches up the bat handle, and Royals star George Brett was a prime offender.
“He literally had that one in his pocket for a long time,” Billy Jr. said. “And he waited for the perfect moment to say something.”
These A’s are set up to compete and could realistically win a title in Oakland for the first time since 1989. But would that change a thing?
ILLUSTRATION BY TIM MARRSWith one of the lowest payrolls in baseball and a stadium that skipped the charming portion of being old, they’ve gone to the playoffs in five of Bob Melvin’s eight seasons in charge. They’ve won 97 games in each of the last two years, the fourth-most wins in all of baseball during that stretch, trailing only the big-money Dodgers (198 wins), Yankees (203), and those damned cheating Astros (210).
success has only highlighted the peculiarity of the team’s situation.
Dieter Kurtenbach
For instance: The A’s play in one of baseball’s largest markets, but they claim small-market status.
The A’s are likable and eminently entertaining, too. Man, are they fun to watch.
The A’s really should be the story of baseball, but their recent
Their on-field product is exceptional, but they have the lowest television viewership in baseball outside of Miami, with ratings dropping 18 percent last season, despite, again, the team winning 97 games. They’ve now decided they don’t need to be on the radio.
The A’s organization effectively created the team-building formula that everyone else in baseball is now emulating. They have an eminently strong team from the farm system upward, but they seem as impermanent as any team in baseball.
Don’t blame the media or the fans, the players or the front office, for this strange existence, though. No, blame ownership.
The A’s effectively operate as a
minor league team amid Major League Baseball. It’s a travesty and an embarrassment because as much as baseball teams are a private enterprise, they also stand as civic trusts.
I’d like to say that A’s fans deserve better than this profits-over-prestige ownership, but years — nay, decades — of that kind of management has driven away all but the most ardent diehards. A generation, perhaps
two, of fans has been lost. Despite another winning season, despite the Giants’ rebuild, the A’s only added 88,595 in total attendance year-over-year. Oakland barely outdrew the Tigers last season.
But there’s the crazy thing about it all: The A’s, at least at the highest levels, might not operate like a real Major League Baseball team, but this year, they could absolutely win the World Series.
Yes, the 2020 A’s are more
than good enough to be crowned champions come October. The lineup has been one of the better nine in baseball the past few years and is likely to improve this year. They have a legitimate superstar (or whatever baseball players can max out as in this day and age) in Matt Chapman, the best third baseman in the game. Matt Olson might be the best first baseman in the game.
Shortstop Marcus Semien fin-
ished third in American League MVP voting last year and it was no fluke. Designated hitter Khris Davis is poised for a healthy campaign where he hits more than 40 homers. Behind them, there’s a coterie of young-but-morethan-just-promise players that will score runs in bunches and be as good defensively as any team in baseball.
But that’s old news to those who have been paying attention.
What’s new is this team’s pitching staff. The Achilles’ heel of the last two editions of the A’s, Oakland’s rotation now has a chance to boast the best in baseball this season thanks to the additions of uber-prospects Jesus Luzardo and A.J. Puk, as well as the return of Frankie Montas. A well-built stable of reliever arms — led by All-Star closer Liam Hendricks — is poised to back them up (and start things off, too).
These A’s are young and already established. That makes them a formidable foe for the rest of the American League this year — a team with championship odds much better than the 33-to-1 they’re currently receiving from Las Vegas books. There are far worse teams with far smaller numbers attached to them.
The deeper irony is that whether or not these incredible A’s capitalize on this moment seems moot to the team’s overall health.
Yes, that’s how peculiar this organization is.
As was the case last year, and the year before that, and the year before that, too, everything about this franchise revolves around the ballpark.
Perhaps another winning season — maybe a championship season — bolsters the team’s chance of building a new stadium near Jack London Square, but California bureaucracy isn’t all that impressionable to anything other than cash, the one thing A’s ownership seems unwilling to provide despite its deep pockets.
A new ballpark promises to change the team’s finances, but any further delay on breaking ground risks the A’s losing this formidable core; of seeing Chapman and Olson, like so many great A’s players before them, leave The Town in an effort to be paid like the stars they are.
If they walk, the last pocket of casual fans will likely walk with them.
Fan habits don’t change fast, but the A’s roster does. Reasonable people can only be subjected to so many bait and switches before they write a franchise off for good.
The A’s are a miracle — one that we should all hope has staying power this time.
But this organization raises the question: Is it really a miracle if no one is around to see it performed?
People have been touting the potential of this young A’s staff for years. Now with health seemingly on their side, can the likes of Luzardo, Puk, Montas and Manaea (with a little wisdom and craftiness from Fiers) get this team over the top?
Jesús Luzardo was just a toddler when the Big Three — Barry Zito, Mark Mulder and Tim Hudson — tore onto the big league scene 20 years ago.
That moniker elicits visions of the Miami Heat’s LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh for the Parkland, Fla., native.
Oakland’s trio of arms that rose to fame two decades earlier exists mostly as a piece of trivia. But, for A’s fans, the Big Three remains the bar by which pitching greatness is measured.
The summers of 1999 and 2000 saw three homegrown wunderkinds rise quickly to transform a hapless Oakland A’s franchise toiling around 100 losses into a bona fide postseason powerhouse.
The hardware piled up quickly between Mulder, the tall and athletic power lefty, Zito, the laid back California kid with a stunning curveball, and Hudson, the bullish righty with a sweet splitter and southern swagger.
Nine All-Star appearances and three league-leading win totals. One Cy Young Award, two Cy Young runner-ups and four appearances on MVP finalist lists. Not too shabby.
Luzardo, A.J. Puk, Frankie Montas, Sean Manaea — anchored by veteran Mike Fiers — will enter the 2020 season with more hype than any Oakland pitching staff since the Zito-Hudson-Mulder days. Only this time, there isn’t a team in need of rescue.
The A’s are coming off back-
to-back 97-win seasons without this core of talented arms. Each pitchers’ journey took a bit longer than hoped, but they have finally arrived and the timing couldn’t be more opportune.
“It’s a high bar to get over,” A’s executive VP Billy Beane, who ushered in the Big Three era, said during a conversation in Mesa, Ariz. “I still remember, and never forget. When you have a guy like Tim Hudson come up and go 11-1 right away, and Zito strike out the middle of the Anaheim Angels order in his debut … they immediately become some of the best pitchers in the league.
“Now we have guys here who are incredibly talented and have a chance to be very good major league pitchers.”
As for their ceiling, Beane knows better than to speculate: “I’ll stay away from the comparisons and superlatives.”
But for an A’s fan base that hasn’t seen its team win a playoff series in 14 years, it’s fun to dream about a staff that could be the difference-maker.
The A’s have luck to thank for the 22-year-old left-hander who landed in their lap at the 2017 trade deadline. The first-place Washington Nationals were
desperate to patch up a weak bullpen. Oakland had two backend relievers — Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson — to leverage.
“The timing, we got lucky,” Beane said. “(Nationals GM) Mike Rizzo is no dummy.”
The A’s had been eyeing Luzardo since his prep days at Stoneman-Douglas High. Beane and the A’s brass offered up Madson, but giving up Doolittle ultimately brought Luzardo — then a teenager rehabbing from Tommy John surgery — into the package.
Luzardo’s ceiling is sky high. An electric arm is only amplified by rare confidence put on display in his big league debut and ensuing relief appearances following his September call-up last season.
“He’s mature enough to know
how to handle the game,” pitching coach Scott Emerson said. “You look at the best pitchers in the league, they’re going to get right off the horse and run themselves into some good games and good streaks.”
One question about Luzardo is his durability since he stands just 6-foot-1. Like Hudson, he doesn’t have the classic pitcher’s build. But, like Hudson, the A’s are high on Luzardo’s on-field qualities. He has a strong lower half and the athleticism Beane and scouts adored in Hudson.
Luzardo’s talent goes beyond his five-pitch repertoire. Luzardo mixes up his timing and executes dizzying movement on his fastball and sinker — movement that’s only magnified by a hybrid
curveball/slider and then capped off with the all-important changeup.
“He has off-the-charts stuff,” Emerson said.
“He’s aggressive, likes to attack hitters,” Puk said.
Luzardo traversed an unfamiliar routine when he came out of the bullpen last year, but he is expected to contribute as a starter — his natural fit.
But all those injuries that piled up since he was a teenager — Tommy John surgery at age 19, a prolonged shoulder injury at age 21 — will force the A’s to monitor closely not just his workload in 2020, but his long-term abilities beyond.
Scouts say that Luzardo has clear-cut ace stuff, but question whether his size and injury history will allow him to reach his full potential.
“You can see all the things you see in great pitchers, he has all the ingredients there,” Emerson said. “It’s just about going out in games and doing it.”
“This guy’s not going to get to us? What are you wasting your trip for?”
Age: 22
Born/hometown: Lima, Peru/Parkland, Fla.
How he got here: Drafted in third round by Nationals in 2016; acquired by A’s with Blake Treinen and Sheldon Neuse in 2017 deadline deal for Sean Doolittle and Ryan Madson.
Pitches: Fastball, curve, sinker, changeup.
Upside: One of the highest-touted pitchers in recent years, drawing comparisons to two-time Cy Young winner Johan Santana. Dazzled in seven relief appearances after being called up last season.
Downside: For all his potential, Luzardo has yet to start a game in the majors. His debut was delayed last year because of a shoulder strain and some other minor injuries. In part because of his health history, he started more than 16 games in a season just once in his first three seasons in the minors and averaged fewer than 70 innings per season.
Age: 24
Born/college: Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Florida
How he got here: Drafted sixth overall by the A’s in 2016
Pitches: Fastball, slider, changeup, curve.
Upside: The hard-throwing, long-haired lefty is a (only slightly) shorter version of Randy Johnson, armed with an upper-90-mph fastball and nasty slider. The 6-foot-7 Puk pitched exclusively in relief after his promotion last season and went 2-0 with a 3.18 ERA, striking out 13 in 111⁄3 innings
Downside: Missed 2018 season following Tommy John surgery and his innings likely will be limited in 2020. Similar to a young Big Unit, strike zone command has at times been an issue.
I tried to take his mind off that and not talk about baseball,” said Luzardo, who used episodes of “Rick and Morty” as a distraction.
out of the gate.
Jesus Luzardo’s mixes up his timing and executes dizzying movement on his fastball and sinker — magnified by a hybrid curveball/ slider.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFF
Beane had to poke fun at general manager David Forst. A cross-country trip to the University of Florida to scout a 6-foot-7, left-handed flame thrower seemed a futile task for a team armed with the sixth overall pick in the 2016 draft.
That May, Puk somehow trickled right into the A’s hands. He’d enter the organization a little unpolished, but skyrocketed through the system despite a major Tommy John surgery setback in 2018.
Luzardo was hanging out by the pool at the A’s minor league hotel when he met Puk, who had found out that day he’d be going under the knife. Luzardo offered guidance and Puk offered a spare room in his Arizona apartment. A fast friendship blossomed as the two high prospects bonded over the tediousness of recovery. But Luzardo saw a quiet competitor then.
“He was frustrated at the time.
Puk regained arm strength and hopped back on the fast track. A year after surgery he was promoted to Triple-A Las Vegas. That August he was making his major league debut against the Yankees out of the bullpen.
Baseball’s first peeks at Puk don’t tell his whole story. Sure, he flashed a near 100-mph fastball with a near 90-mph slider. But the change of scenery and role seemed to mess with his control. Out of the bullpen and rehabbing, Puk couldn’t use his changeup. Struggles with command that lingered from his pre-injury stuff follow him.
Those concerns extend beyond the A’s clubhouse. Scouts wonder if he can meet his full potential and become a true every-fifth-day starter. If he can, Puk could end up being the long-term ace of the staff.
Emerson knew from Puk’s first bullpen with the A’s back in 2016 that he’d have a special career. He saw heat and a plus breaking ball
“The ultimate thing I always talk about in hitting is timing and pitching is disruption of timing,” Emerson said. “Now he has that fastball/changeup mechanism that he can really disrupt hitters’ timing with, which will make his breaking ball appear better.”
Beane doesn’t put much stock in spring training performances. He had enough “good spring trainings” in his baseball career to know how they might track in the regular season.
It’s no surprise, then, that Beane puts even less stock in the first bullpen sessions of spring. So when Emerson came running to Beane’s office last February with a new report, Beane scoffed.
“I’m telling you, Montas has turned a corner,” Emerson told Beane, who rolled his eyes. “How
Age: 27
Born: Sainagua, Dominican Republic
How he got here: Signed by Red Sox in 2009 at age 16, was part of trades to White Sox and Dodgers before joining A’s in 2016 in deadline deal for Josh Reddick and Rich Hill.
Pitches: Split-finger fastball, sinker, slider and four-seam fastball.
Upside: Blossomed from inconsistent hard-throwing prospect to All-Star candidate with the addition of a split-finger fastball last season, going 9-2 with a 2.63 ERA in 16 starts.
Downside: Questions remain about consistency. Enters season under a cloud of suspicion after missing half of 2019 and the AL Wild Card Game for a PED ban.
many times have I heard that?”
A few Montas starts into the regular season had Beane wishing he could retract the eyeroll.
Through the first 15 starts last season, Montas was one of the game’s most dominant starters. He had a 2.70 ERA, 103 strikeouts and a legitimate case to represent the A’s on the American League All-Star team. A complete turnaround from the 7.03 ERA and 3.88 ERA he compiled in 2017 and 2018, respectively
The gap between 3.88 and 2.70 came down to Montas experimenting with and mastering a splitter during the offseason. He swapped that split finger for a changeup that “was not very good” and saw an influx of swings and misses.
“A little bit like Dave Stewart,” Beane said. “Not that Montas is a journeyman, but with the split it all clicked. If he can duplicate what Dave did for us that’d be great.”
“I haven’t in one year seen one guy make that big of a transformation,” Beane added. “And I will no longer discount the first week of bullpens.”
Montas’ breakout campaign came to a screeching halt after a one-run, eight-inning win against the Tampa Bay Rays in late June. The next morning, Montas was suspended for 80 games after testing positive for a banned substance.
“I thought we were done because we’re so thin in pitching and he had been such a shot in the arm at the beginning of the year,” Beane said.
Scouts wonder if he can be the Montas of 2019 after getting popped. But Montas settled into
the Arizona desert and kept up his Oakland routine — like he never left. After his suspension, he made one last start in Anaheim. He pitched a seamless six innings.
But, Montas only had 16 games last season to prove not only that he’d turned a corner, but that he could keep walking. The hyper-focused microscope on Montas, post-PED, might prove unnerving. It might also apply just the right amount of pressure for him to keep thriving.
“I think if we can get the same Frankie Montas, he’s proven he can do it,” Emerson said.
There’s a lot more to Sean Manaea than meets the eye. He comes off a bit silly and laid back. He’ll bleach his hair then dye it a little more yellow/green in the name of team spirit, but admit that he’s turned his mane “puke” color. He’ll get matching Spongebob Squarepants tattoos with his brother. He’ll dance, he’ll make faces — whatever it takes to loosen tension in this A’s clubhouse.
During some spring drills, Manaea made an athletic catch off a comebacker and quasi-jokingly proclaimed this would be the year he’d win a Gold Glove. He’ll say he wants to win a Cy Young. The tone is pure Manaea, but his teammates know his intent is deadly serious.
“It comes off ‘ha ha,’ but in the back of his mind he wants to win a Gold Glove and a Cy Young,” Luzardo said. “And that’s the kind of
Sean Manaea’s funky delivery creates unique deception that makes a dropping slider and elevated fastball generate swings and misses.
goals you need to set for yourself. And I think he can do it.”
Manaea’s competitiveness may be subdued, but it has yielded some results. The left-hander started the 2018 season by tallying the 11th no-hitter in A’s history. He accrued a 1.21 ERA after shoulder surgery recovery last season and earned himself a start in the AL Wild Card Game.
His competitiveness showed after it became a wild-card meltdown against the Rays, taking full responsibility for the loss despite there being blame to share.
“Manaea is the ultimate competitor,” Emerson said.
To get to the next level, Manaea wants to master his slider to go along with a low-90s fastball and changeup. Legendary lefty Randy
Johnson stopped by A’s camp and handed down some tips to help Manaea get his slider in the Johnson sweet spot.
Manaea’s strength is rooted in a concept that Emerson calls “tree branching” — or, more commonly known these days as “tunneling.” His funky delivery creates unique deception that makes a dropping slider and elevated fastball generate swings and misses.
Tree branching renders velocity almost unnecessary. But confidence is key, and Manaea is most confident when he’s hitting his heat.
“Who knows when we’ll see that come back,” Emerson said. “He’s proven you don’t need velocity to be a successful major leaguer.”
So, who is Manaea? He’s flashed ace flair, veteran competitiveness and swing-and-miss stuff. In other words, it’s a complex question.
“He’s not just that young, talented left-hander anymore,” A’s manager Bob Melvin said. “He’s had to make some changes along the way because of the injury — do things a bit differently. But he’s excited about a full year, as are we.”
Even if he overflows with sarcasm, Manaea pines for advancement. He left for surgery an ace with a no-hitter, and then had to waste precious time on recovery. This team hopes his re-emergence will be a loud one.
Fiers decided to speak up and help expose baseball’s biggest scandal since the Black Sox of 1919. In the comforts of the clubhouse confines, Fiers has done his best to keep a low profile and focus on the game itself — his teammates and the baseball world largely praising him for cleaning up the game.
Fiers’ role as a rotational anchor has shifted. Last year’s 34-year-old ace will be counted upon for his tutoring as much as his pitching.
“Feels good to have kids with this type of stuff, top prospects, look up to a righty throwing 88 mph,” Fiers laughed. “It is kind of cool.”
The veteran has taken to orga-
Mike Fiers’ role as an anchor in the rotation has changed. Last year’s ace will be counted upon for his tutoring as much as his pitching.
RANDY
nizing rotation meetings to impart both a sense of brotherhood and healthy doses of reality.
“He’s been pitching forever,” Puk said. “So I try to pick up some of the things to incorporate into my career.”
Some of that could be termed craftiness.
“Mike doesn’t independently have the greatest attributes: the best fastball, the best breaking ball or whatever,” Emerson said. “But Mike Fiers has unpredictability, which makes his pitches all the much better.”
Fiers is the journeyman on this staff. The A’s are his fourth big league team, and through his journey Fiers has pocketed two no-hitters, won a World Series, been non-tendered by the Astros and traded. He’s had strong seasons with the A’s, yet missed out on back-to-back wild-card nods.
He’ll enter his 10th year in the majors a stylistic outlier. Minds outside the A’s confines wonder if his 88 mph fastball can be effective in a climate where velocity is king.
But Fiers’ importance to this potentially breakout staff will be measured far beyond the analytics.
Age: 28
Born/college: Valparaiso, Ind./Indiana State
How he got here: First-round pick (34th overall) in 2013 by Royals; traded with Aaron Brooks to A’s two years later in deadline deal for Ben Zobrist.
Pitches: Fastball, slider, changeup
Upside: More than picked up where he left off after shoulder surgery wiped out most of last season, going 4-0 with a 1.21 ERA in five starts down the stretch. Also earned nod to start AL Wild Card Game against the Rays.
Downside: Pitched through shoulder pain for nearly two years — throwing a no-hitter during that stretch — before the 2018 surgery and appeared back at full strength. But spent parts of three of his four seasons in the majors on IL and a procedure on his hip delayed the start to his pro career.
Age: 34
Born/college: Hollywood, Fla./Nova Southeastern (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
How he got here: Drafted in 22nd round by Milwaukee in 2009. Played for Brewers, Astros and Tigers before joining A’s via trade in August 2018.
Pitches: Fastball, changeup, curveball and slider.
Upside: Not a traditional “ace” in terms of tools (fastball tops out around 90 mph) or stature, but pitched his second no-hitter last season and has been a rotation anchor (20-6 with a 3.86 ERA in 43 appearances with A’s).
Downside: Traditional slow starter has yet to prove his big-game mettle.
Braden Bishop, the Mariners outfielder and Bay Area native, stepped into the box as the leadoff hitter against A’s lefty Jesus Luzardo on a May night in Midland, Texas.
Luzardo was just a 20-yearold working his way through Double-A, but his status as a top prospect in baseball was already well known, and Bishop had his approach ready.
“I was like, ‘I’m going to ambush fastball first pitch,’” Bishop said. “And then you actually get in there and it’s every bit of 97-98. It’s definitely an eye-opening experience because he’s got elite stuff.
“He’s the guy that, when you’re not hitting against him, you’re fascinated because you’re like, ‘Oh my god.’ A lefty, throwing upper 90s, all the offspeed stuff, big legs coming down at you. He’s definitely a special arm that you’d rather watch than face.”
All of Major League Baseball got a small taste of Bishop’s experience in September and October last season, where Luzardo struck out 20 batters and only allowed two runs, six hits and five walks in 15 innings between the regular season and the AL Wild Card Game.
For the hitters who have faced him, it’s hard to forget Luzardo, both for his distinct mound presence and for his live left arm.
“He’s good, man. He’s really good,” Rangers catcher Jose
Trevino said. “I love facing other pitchers that bring the competitiveness, the fire, the energy. Like, you can tell on the mound, they have a good demeanor up there. This dude… this dude is going to be a great pitcher for a long time, I think.”
Rangers infielder Scott Heineman added, “When you’ve got a guy throwing 98 from the left side, with those glasses, he’s a competitor, he’s going to give you a battle, so you’ve got to be ready to go from pitch one.”
All six regular-season appearances came against AL West opponents, facing batters that he could continue to face for years. But some of those hitters had already seen Luzardo before. Mariners infielder Dylan Moore hit a homer against Luzardo in Triple-A back in 2018 when he was a Brewers prospect.
“He kind of jumps at you a little bit, and all the stuff is electric,” Moore said. “For me, you’ve got to get the fastball, which moves pretty good down and away, you’ve got to get that close to you and then you’ve got to watch out for the offspeed stuff. The changeup’s good, the slider’s good. It’s definitely a grinder AB every time.”
Moore faced Luzardo twice in last season’s final weekend, and after he popped out the first time, he worked the count to 3-0 before the fourth pitch — a 98 mph fastball — drilled him on his
STORY BY ALEX SIMON PORTRAIT BY RANDY VAZQUEZelbow the second time. Moore was thankful he had a pad covering it.
“I was just taking all the way and it came right in there,” Moore said. “He has an electric fastball, so it’s tough to get out of the way of anything like that.”
Luzardo was on track to be in the rotation last spring, but a rotator cuff strain in March sent him to the injured list, and he was sidelined for another month when he strained his lat in early July. The 22-year-old worked as a starter in August for Las Vegas, but the A’s used Luzardo strictly out of the bullpen in September. His opponents are split on where they’d like to see him.
“I think I’d rather face him as a starter than out of the ‘pen,” Heineman said. “Because when he’s coming out of the ‘pen, he’s coming in hot. 99 (mph) and he’s not saving any energy, he’s going full-go.”
Moore, who faced Luzardo as a starter in the minors, countered, “He wasn’t throwing as hard because he was throwing more pitches, but still the stuff was there. If he could locate, which I believe he can, as a starter, then he’ll be very, very good.”
And throughout every stop so far, he has been, something Bishop can attest to. The St. Francis-Mountain View alum has gone 1 for 6 against Luzardo throughout their professional careers, and he almost didn’t get the one hit
in 2018 after falling behind in the count.
“It’s not a guy you want to get down 0-2 to, because he throws every pitch for a strike and he’s got good put-away stuff,” Bishop said. “I remember he threw me a slider and he left it up and out over the plate a little bit, and I shot it into right field for a hit. It was one of those moments where it’s the biggest sigh of relief, because you’re like, ‘Oh my god, if he had just thrown the heater, or thrown the changeup, or even made a good slider down, you’re probably out.’”
That’s how Ty France feels, too. The Padres infielder faced the left-hander nine times across four starts in Double-A in 2018 and went 0 for 9 with three strikeouts. He got another at-bat in Luzardo’s first appearance of the spring on Feb. 25 and struck out on three pitches.
“His stuff’s electric,” France said. “His fastball, he’s got really good command of and he’s got good movement on it. The other day, he started me off changeup-changeup, and then ran his 97, 98 up there and it looked a lot harder. He’s definitely got bigleague stuff.”
It’s the kind of stuff that makes people show immediate respect.
“Hopefully we face each other for 15 years,” Trevino said. “But I’d love to work with him one day, whether it’s catching a bullpen or something. That dude brings it.”
Jesus Luzardo’s repertoire of pitches makes batters think long and hard about their approach.
Mark Canha decided it was time to stop overthinking the art of hitting. Why not instead go minimalist: shrink his zone, wait for his pitches and make pitchers work harder? So far, so good.
STORY BY EVAN WEBECK PORTRAIT BY RANDY VAZQUEZIt’s a spring training day in mid-February and Mark Canha is deep into conversation about his approach to hitting — or, more accurately, his approach before hitting.
Canha turned in a breakout season at age 30 and figures to occupy the middle of the A’s order again this season.
The premise of the discussion: How? It’s not often a guy overhauls his approach nearly a decade into his professional career. Even rarer: to do it with the success of Canha.
You’ll hear him credit the mental side. He describes himself as “methodical” and says his time at UC Berkeley was the best thing that ever happened to him. Then he drops the word “academic,” which might conjure in your mind images of analytics and Billy Beane — the new-age baseball stereotype.
But what Canha is talking about has nothing to do
with numbers.
“I think you could argue that the analytics actually take thinking out of the game,” Canha says. “A lot of the analytics are just computers telling people what to do.”
His is a different brand of baseball IQ, one that applies its cerebral nature to the margins of modern baseball statsheets, that isn’t afraid to try new things. It’s a product of a childhood spent in Silicon Valley and, most of all, the four years he spent at Cal. (“He went to Cal, of course he’s a cerebral guy,” joked manager and fellow alum Bob Melvin.)
Canha craves to know the why and the how. The underlying reason why one swing is successful and another isn’t. He compares his career in baseball to a Rubik’s Cube, a continuous puzzle he’s trying to solve.
“I think a lot of the way I think about things is probably unconventional,” Canha says. “I’m not
afraid to try things or experiment. I think I got outside the box and just started thinking, well what do you have to lose?”
Before last season, Canha took an introspective look at himself as a hitter.
A career spent, as he describes it, without much help in the minor leagues even more deeply instilled the independent, creative mindset he was first exposed to in Berkeley. Throughout his five years in the Marlins’ farm system, he would spend hours in the cage, trying anything from hitting with his eyes closed to standing on one foot.
Erik Goeddel’s career took a similar trajectory. The two kids from the South Bay were teammates at Bellarmine Prep and both went on to play Division I — Canha at Cal, Goeddel at UCLA — and entered pro ball the same year. Goeddel, who’s since hung up his spikes to pursue a Master’s in engineering at USC, remembers conversations they had over dinner after facing each other early in their minor-league careers.
“He felt like he was definitely getting slowed down, I felt that frustration from him,” Goeddel said. “Because he was always hitting but moving (through the ranks) kind of slow. … It seemed like with Mark, whenever he was frustrated, he would just turn that into working harder. He used that to his advantage.”
Ask Canha who he credits with his success, and he says himself. Goeddel, who’s watched him put in the work, would say the same.
“Mark kind of always had his approach,” Goeddel said. “He’d listen to what coaches were saying, but not everything. He always had his certain things that he did and that worked. It stuck with him.”
The summer before being drafted, Canha and Goeddel were assigned to the same team in the amateur Cape Cod League. As a pair of 20 year olds in between their junior and senior years of
The keys to Mark Canha’s breakout year: Accepting the fact failure will happen often and putting the onus on pitchers to come to him.
college, they stayed with host families. Neither had access to a car. The nearest gym was five miles away. Both were frustrated with how the summer was going.
But that didn’t stop Canha from making it to the gym every morning. He picked up a bicycle — and convinced Goeddel to get one, too — and would meet up with Goeddel to ride the five miles there and back.
“No one else on the team wanted to do that,” Goeddel said. “After a few days I was kind of getting tired. Mark wasn’t gonna slow down. He was going to make sure we kept doing that.”
It took Canha four years to reach Triple-A, but the work paid off with 20 home runs and his first pro season with a batting average over .300. But that offseason, Miami, the team that drafted him, left him unprotected in the Rule 5 draft. Once he got to Oakland, he began working with hitting coach Darren Bush and got the consistent instruction he had been missing.
The way Canha thinks about the game isn’t something Bush sees in every player. He admitted the first year or two was full of trial and error, deciphering the right approach to take with a guy who “analyzes everything that he does,” Bush said.
“It’s made him into the player that he is,” Bush said. “Some guys, they’ll just swing until they say, ‘OK, I got it.’ He takes his time. He thinks about each thing individually. He really looks at it. ... Sometimes you have to use different tools in your tool belt to help that guy move along.”
As a Rule 5 player, he spent the entire 2015 season on the A’s roster and immediately impressed with a respectable rookie year, hitting 16 home runs in 441 at-bats. But, between one season-ending hip surgery and trips between Oakland and Triple-A Nashville the next two years, Canha struggled to match that initial success.
Canha has long obsessed over his swing, pinpointing anything he could in his mechanics, but he had never paid much attention to the other aspects of hitting. Every player has heard it: Even the best hitters are going to fail seven out of 10 times. Canha was trying to cover the whole plate and fend off
Canha’s @bigleaguefoodie Instagram has 20K followers so obviously the guy has something to say about good grub. And a lot of it has to do with places to eat right here at home. Here’s his essential vitals when it comes to Bay Area foodie-ism:
Favorite cuisine: Sushi
Favorite Bay Area restaurant: Chez Panisse — “The food is just so pure. (Chef) Alice Waters is a legend.”
Postgame Oakland eats: Millennium, Ramen Shop, Zachary's Pizza
Favorite road food city: New York — “Kind of boring, but it’s undeniable.”
every pitch.
He realized he couldn’t be perfect.
“It’s too hard to do,” he said. Last offseason, he came up with a plan, inspired partly by Matt Joyce, who played the 2017 and 2018 seasons in Oakland. Joyce never batted higher than .243, but posted on-base percentages of .335 and .322.
“I looked to myself, like if I can walk more, I don’t even have to do anything,” Canha said. “I just have to not do it. I just have to not swing the bat a little bit more and be more selective and get better pitches to hit and I’ll walk more. I don’t even have to have a high batting average.”
“Then I did that and look what happened,” he continued. “My batting average went up.”
Canha nearly doubled his walk rate, from 8.3% in 2018 to 13.5% in 2019 (and from 3.7% in 2017). He went from chasing balls outside the strike zone on 31.1% of pitches in 2018 to 25% in 2019, according to Fangraphs data. He’s even been more selective on pitches in the zone.
Just as he has realized he can’t be perfect, neither can the pitchers.
“Now,” Canha said, “I’m more like, I want the pitch down the middle and I’m going to be aggressive in the middle of the plate.
“Because just because the pitcher’s trying to throw outside doesn’t mean it’s going to go there.”
The new philosophy — “shrinking the zone,” he likes to call it, or in other words “more hitter’s pitches and less pitcher’s pitches” — resulted in career-bests in batting average (.273), home runs (26), on-base percentage (.396) and slugging percentage (.517) in 2019.
Believe it or not, Canha hasn’t always had the diverse, developed palate from which 20,000 followers wait to see his latest culinary expedition. And it may surprise in the ways his Instagram foodgasms and “Bat Flippin’ Season” T-shirts intersect with his mindset on the field.
Psychologist Robert R. McCrae, in part of a 1987 study that developed the theory behind the
popular “Five Factor” personality tests, was the first to show a link between openness to experience and creativity. From creative batting techniques to exotic cuisines, Canha is willing to try just about anything.
Raised in the quiet San Jose suburb of Willow Glen and a three-year varsity letter winner at Bellarmine College Prep, Canha credits his time in Berkeley to opening his eyes to a variety of perspectives.
“You meet all kinds of different people and everyone’s so smart,” Canha said. “Everyone thinks of things a little differently … I like people who are weird and talking to people that are strange and have different ideas. I like to embrace that.”
He points to the book by Tim Ferriss, “The 4-Hour Workweek,” which he calls one of the most interesting books he’s ever read and “a testament to thinking outside the box.”
Maybe the only thing Canha was hesitant to try was fish. He used to think it looked “yucky” and wouldn’t eat his parents’ freshly prepared sushi. As he remembers it, he was 10 or 12 years old when he tasted sushi for the first time.
“It was like Safeway, grocery store sushi,” Canha remembered. “I couldn’t believe how much I liked it, and this was a kid who wouldn’t eat fish. … Now sushi is my favorite food there is.”
It was, in fact, Melvin who “hooked him up” at triple-Michelin-starred Chicago restaurant Alinea last season. The two “go back and forth” with restaurant recommendations.
View this post on Instagram
Alinea in Chicago... you just have to go and see for yourself. Thank you @grant_achatz and @ thealineagroup for an experience we’ll never forget #stAyfoodie #alinea #michelinstars #chicagoeats #chefstable
A post shared by Mark Canha (@bigleaguefoodie) on Aug 26, 2019 at 12:07pm PDT
One dinner that didn’t make it onto the @bigleaguefoodie page came back in January. Canha was
Canha was a three-year letter-winner at Bellarmine, where he posted batting averages of .380, .426 and .434, with 26 homers in three seasons — the kind of numbers that attracted the eye of Cal.
in line to receive the Santa Clara Valley major-leaguer of the year award at the annual Hot Stove Dinner at the San Jose Elk’s Club.
He starred for three years at Bellarmine Prep, where he finished with a career .415 batting average and one Central Coast Section championship. Gary Cunningham, who coached him all three years, said he was “mature beyond his years” in high school.
He was tasked by organizer and former Archbishop Mitty baseball coach Bill Hutton to inform Canha of the award and to try to get him to attend. Some miscommunication led to Canha getting less than two week’s notice. But he was their top award winner and keynote speaker.
Berkeley is the place Canha attributes to opening his mind. “You meet all kinds of different people and everyone’s so smart,” he said. “Everyone thinks of things a little differently ... I like people who are weird and talking to people that are strange and have different ideas. I like to embrace that.”
CAL ATHLETICS
Canha had grown up around the corner from Hutton before going on to terrorize his Mitty squads in high school. A year after losing to Mitty in the Central Coast Section title game, Canha and Bellarmine beat Mitty for the trophy the next season. Cunningham recites Canha’s high-school stats from a paper he now has at the ready (batting averages of .380, .426 and .434, with 26 homers in three seasons) and keeps in touch with the occasional text message during the season.
After realizing the mistake, Hutton called Canha and said, “We need you here,” Cunningham remembered. Canha told Hutton that his wife, Marci, had a doctor’s appointment the following morning (the couple is expecting their second child).
And yet…
“Here’s what Mark did: He says OK I’ll be there.”
Canha caught a late-afternoon flight from his home in Scottsdale to attend the banquet and accept the award, with a speech about what his Bay Area roots mean to him, before flying back that night for his wife’s doctor’s appointment in the morning.
“Not many guys would fly all the way from Phoenix to give this little 10-minute talk,” Cunningham said.
As he keeps showing the baseball world, Canha is not just any other guy.
Jason Whited was just trying for Sean Murphy’s voicemail. Then an assistant coach at Centerville (Ohio) High School, Whited tagged along to the all-area meeting. That night, all 18 high school baseball coaches in the Dayton, Miami Valley area had unanimously voted Murphy the player of the year.
Whited wanted to be the first to deliver the news. He called Murphy, expecting the phone to ring four times then beep. It was a Saturday night, Murphy should have been having fun. Hell, it was prom night — Murphy’s senior prom — he should have been having the time of his life. Instead, he picked up on the second ring. The news Whited called to deliver suddenly took a back seat to a more pressing question.
“I’m like, ‘What are you doing, man? Are you not at prom?’” Whited said. “And he said, ‘No, me and a bunch of players decided just to hit.’”
Mike Murphy popped the tailgate of his son’s 2001 red Ford Ranger. That truck had been
STORY BY JORDAN KAYE PORTRAIT BY RANDY VAZQUEZSean Murphy isn’t here for any hoopla or introspection; the A’s catcher for years to come wants to get to work and leave the talking to others.
through the ringer. Its odometer was nearing 200,000 and the truck bed was miles past being a mere mess.
Sean was 900 miles away, playing baseball against the best competition he had ever faced in the Cape Cod summer league. His folks figured it was as good a time as any to declutter the pile in his flatbed, to have it tidy for his return.
Mike began to scour. There were dozens of baseballs. Plenty of other equipment. Enough Gatorade bottles to fill a vending machine. And, buried amongst it all, Sean’s Ohio All-State Award — broken in two.
He called his son.
“I said, ‘Sean, we found your all-state plaque, do you want it? I’d have to fix it,’’’ Mike remembered. “And he said, ‘No, I don’t want that.’ Every one of his awards, every one of his college rings and all that, I have all those.’
“I said, ‘I’m going to hang onto those, because someday it will mean something to you.”
Sure, people have labeled him as the Oakland A’s No. 2 prospect. He’s been tagged as Oakland’s catcher of the future, the one expected to help guide the A’s young pitching staff deep into October. Murphy pays little attention to things others say, things on the outside.
Murphy has always gone about his business without much thought of perception.
And he plays baseball in the same vein. He deciphers situations and conversations judiciously rather than emotionally. He’s always thinking. Always scheming. Anything to garner an advantage.
In college, it wasn’t uncommon for him to take a lead off first bending down and limping. He’d grab at his leg and hobble off the bag. Then the pitcher’s leg would kick up and Murphy would bolt toward second base.
“I saw it work more than once,” J.D. Orr, Murphy’s teammate at Wright State, said.
Added Murphy: “No one is
Former pitching coach and big league pitcher Bill Bray says catcher Sean Murphy’s “got the best arm I’ve ever seen.”
going to expect the catcher whose limping down to first to take a bag. And then, all of a sudden, you take off and everyone is surprised.”
During one game in high school, his Centerville team was facing off against Ohio powerhouse Archbishop Moeller — the alma mater of Ken Griffey Jr. and Barry Larkin. Centerville had a late lead and Whited wanted to prevent any damage with runners on. Knowing Murphy would make a fool of any soul brave enough to steal on him, Whited wanted to bait Moeller into taking off.
He wanted a cheap out to get out of the inning. His catcher pulled his veto card.
“He said, ‘You know, Coach, I just want to completely eliminate the running game. There’s four scouts here from different teams (we’ll play later in the tournament), I just want to completely eliminate the running game,’” Whited said Murphy told him. “He’s already thinking four or five games ahead.”
Opponents don’t often dare to dash on Murphy. In high school, his pop time consistently hovered around 1.9 seconds, Whited said. In his six big-league throw downs, he was clocked, on average, at 1.98 seconds. Even for the small sample size, that was 21st in MLB last year amongst catchers with at least five attempts.
“(Pitching coach, and former major league pitcher, Bill Bray) and I are sitting in the dugout one night and Murphy threw a guy out at third base by a mile,” said Kelly Nicholson, Murphy’s coach with the Orleans Firebirds of the Cape Cod summer baseball league.
“And Billy just turned to me and said, ‘He’s got the best arm I’ve ever seen.’ And I said, ‘Ever?’ And he said, ‘Ever.’”
Murphy does all the things he’s lauded for. He has a rocket launcher for a right arm. His knack for reading hitter’s tendencies has been commended by his pitchers and coaches alike. And his bat, the one that shot a 409foot opposite-field home run in September for Murphy’s first hit, it has some pop.
Playing in the minors for all of 2018, Murphy had a slash line
of .285/.361/.489. With the A’s at the end of last year, the 6-foot3, 232-pound catcher posted a .245/.333/.566 slash line in 20 games. He also set an Oakland record, clobbering a quartet of homers in his first seven games.
He just doesn’t like to talk about it. Never has. In some ways, those around him love him for that. His personality and his emotions never waver. Through the roller coaster of a baseball game and season, he’s a straight line.
“He was a very quiet guy, but if you ever had a question about anything he wasn’t afraid to talk to you about it or give you his piece of mind,” Orr said. “I truly can say I don’t think I’ve seen a time (when he wasn’t calm).”
“He’ll come out (to the mound), maybe if you’re not doing too well, and calm you down,” A’s pitcher A.J. Puk, who was drafted in the same 2016 Oakland draft class as Murphy said. “It’s a great characteristic he has.”
Josh Phegley agreed — about everything. He didn’t hear Murphy say a whole lot. He couldn’t tell when he was frustrated. And, to him, it didn’t matter.
“He’s got all the tools,” Phegley said. “He’s a big target. He’s got a lot of power at the plate. He’s got a good swing. He’s got a cannon for an arm.
“I think he’s going to have a
long and great career.”
When Murphy arrived in Oakland as a September call-up in 2019, Phegley was the A’s starter. And in a move that signaled a clear shift to Murphy as the future behind the plate, Oakland let Phegley, who is now with the Cubs, go in his final year of arbitration.
Regardless, the former A’s catcher worked closely with Murphy upon his promotion.
Phegley joked that Murphy told him he was nervous when he first reached the bigs. Only thing was, no one could tell.
While Mike and Sean’s mother, Marge, yelled to the heavens with their arms outstretched above their heads, hugging while tears streamed down their face, their son hardly flashed a smile rounding the bases after his first MLB home run. A few days later, his teammates from Wright State posted in their group chat congratulating Murphy on, you know, what every kid dreams about.
“He was just like, ‘Oh, cool, thanks. I appreciate it,” Jeremy Randolph, Murphy’s roommate and roommate at Wright State said. “It was like (he had) a home run against Youngstown State.”
Leaning against a wall in the A’s spring training clubhouse, Murphy was trying his best to downplay his intelligence on the diamond. It was stuck up to say he had a higher baseball IQ than anyone else, the catcher noted. But his teammates and coaches were the ones who felt he saw the game at a different level, he was told.
“I’m happy they say that,” Murphy said. “It’s like anything, the more you do it, the easier it comes to you. You’re not born with it.”
Just as Murphy was about to finish his thought, A’s pitching coach Scott Emerson’s lengthy 6-foot-5 frame popped around the corner and waltzed down the hallway adjacent to Oakland’s catcher. Murphy’s head perked up. His voice rose an octave so his coach would hear.
“When you have great pitching coaches like Scott Emerson writing up good scouting reports, it helps.”
In mid-stride, Emerson responded: “You’ve got to execute them, Murph. Not me.”
Although he’s also got some key opener experience, A’s closer Liam Hendriks takes pride proving he will finish what he started.
INTERVIEW BY SHAYNA RUBIN
PORTRAIT BY RANDY VAZQUEZ
A’s closer Liam Hendriks bounced from home to home before landing in Oakland. He pitched for the Minnesota Twins, Toronto Blue Jays and Kansas City Royals and spent plenty of time on the waiver wire before the A’s traded for him in 2015.
Even his A’s career has ricocheted from rock bottom to record-breaking highs. He has been designated for assignment, started an AL Wild Card Game and staked his claim as one of baseball’s best closers in a matter of years. He broke an A’s reliever record with 116 strikeouts.
Hendriks sat down to discuss his roller coaster career, the Astros situation, his passion for old-school metal and his eclectic mix of reading material.
QGoing from DFA’d to the most dominant closer in the game last year, did your season come as a surprise for you?
AI think even in my wildest dreams I couldn’t anticipate the kind of year I had last year. So I mean, now it’s the challenge of not only coming out and surprising people, now I have to worry about replicating it. I’ve kept my same schedule, started throwing in October and bullpens in November, feeling pretty good.
QWas there a moment you could identify where everything clicked for you?
AOne of those moments was in Pittsburgh. So I pitched the night before in a 13-1 game, came in and threw a 24-pitch scoreless inning. I pitched the next day and it was a one-run game in the rain. I had at least two guys on and I let another on and I just asked, what am I doing? Why am I pushing away from contact? Why am I trying to paint the corners? Why am I trying to do this? And I think it was Jung Ho Kang who came up for the Pirates and I was like, look, I’m just going to throw at him and let’s finish this, ended up striking him out and getting out of the inning. That was when I started to gain confidence in
myself and figure it out. I needed that kind of boost for myself. No matter what anyone tells you, you have to figure it out for yourself. From then I didn’t care if the guy in the box was hitting .320, who cares? I’m just going to go out there and pitch and I’m not thinking too much about where the pitch is going.
QDo you think this A’s team can win the West?
AThe last couple of years we haven’t been good in April and May, so that’s something we need to focus on. If we can come out strong, we got some of the best closing speed in baseball, as you can see by the second half the last two years.
QThe team knew about the Houston Astros stealing signs. Was it obvious to you ever as a pitcher?
ASomeguys said they could hear certain things and pinpoint it, but when I’m pitching, I don’t hear much at all. There are times when I’m so focused that I don’t even know if they called
out with some quick one-liners that just have you scratching your head and then laughing. Especially when you’re out there in the bullpen for 162 games, just sitting out there alone with everyone.
QWhich of your teammates is due for a breakout year? Who will hit the most homers?
AI think it’s Matt Olson’s year. I can definitely see him running away this year and being one of the most prolific first basemen in the league, or in the entirety of baseball. Unfortunately, first basemen tend to get the short end of the stick because you see the Chapman-like players diving around and all that. But he was one of the toughest hitters you had to face last year. It doesn’t go unnoticed by the pitchers.
QWhat bands do you usually listen to?
a ball or strike. I don’t hear very well, at the best of times, according to my wife. I’ll hear jeers, but nothing specific. So if I may have heard bangs or something, I just don’t remember.
QWere you surprised that your teammate, Mike Fiers, was the one to blow the whistle?
AMike, who played on the team with the knowledge of what was going on, actually putting his name to that was what was necessary for this to come out. It needed to come out from a player, it couldn’t come out from an organization. You can have the argument that he’s annoyed with the way they treated him — they non-tendered him at the end of the year. But it’s been a couple of years removed. Anonymous sources are all well and good, but you need a name behind it.
AJust for his unequivocal dry humor, I think that’s Joakim Soria. He’s not the guy you’d expect because he’s not that loud and outspoken, but he just comes
AI like Def Leppard, Warrant, White Shark, Queen. I’m a big Queen fan. I just like the old-school metal genre. I went with my wife to see Rock of Ages in the offseason. We had a great time, got to go on the stage and take photos with the cast. My walk-up song last year was a mixture of Queen, Prodigy, Rage Against the Machine and Skrillex.
QYou’re a big reader — what’s the best book you’ve read recently?
AI read the “Lightbringer” series by Brent Weeks. I dabble between genres. I just finished an Australian sports book that was written by two reporters covering 65 different stories from their time being a sports journalist, the Olympics in Sydney, cricket greats and rugby greats, which I don’t follow as much. There was a cricketer that apparently drank 60 beers on a flight from Australia to England, that’s the rumor going around. There’s a book called the “Three Body Problem” by Liu Cixin, a book about astrophysics from a Chinese revolution in the 1970s standpoint. It’s a premier author out of China, translated. I read that. It’s fictional but the science in it is accurate, which I find fascinating. When I read a book, I have to finish it. Even if I can’t get into a book, I refuse to not finish it.
Matt Olson
A fractured hamate sliced 34 games off Olson’s 2019, yet the A’s big-hitting, sweetswinging left-handed slugger caught up and kept pace with the rest of the league. He finished last season with 36 home runs, 91 RBIs and a .267 average. With a full season (most likely) on deck, 26-year-old Olson may well be primed for his best season yet. Fangraph’s ZiPS projects Olson to compile 35 home runs and 98 RBIs, and slash .253/.339/.512. Don’t be surprised if Olson smashes those slightly regressive projections and becomes one of the most prolific bats in the league this season — while, arguably, playing the best first base defense in the game.
Marcus Semien
Semien had one of the most surprising 2019 seasons, making just the right adjustments at the plate and practicing just enough patience to earn an 8.1 WAR and career highs in every major statistic (33 homers, 92 RBIs. 123 runs, a .285/.369/.522 slashline and a .892 OPS) that led to a third-place finish behind the Angels’ Mike Trout and the Astros’ Alex Bregman in the American League MVP race. Anything close to replicating his career year could make 29-year-old Semien the hottest free agent piece in 2020 (unless, of course, the A’s and Semien agree to an extension). But, we’re skipping steps here. First and foremost, a repeat season for Semien may act as a key pillar to another A’s postseason rush.
Jesús Luzardo
Let’s consider Luzardo the frontman for a can’t-miss rotation; every summer night may boast a show on the mound. The lefty may be in line for Rookie of the Year consideration. Premature conjecture? Sure. But the 22-year-old displayed young Felix Hernandezlike brilliance with Johan Santana-like confidence in his September debut in 2019. He has the type of breaking ball that is simultaneously unidentifiable in real time (a curveball that sort of slides) and reactioninducing. Luzardo and fellow young prodigy A.J. Puk are coming off injuries that will force the A’s to monitor their workloads closely. But, the sneak peek tells us their performances in any capacity will be events.
Liam Hendriks
Hendriks feels the pressure a bit. The Australian closer hit a perfect balance of calm confidence and ease of effort in 2019 that earned him a league-leading 1.80 ERA and 25 saves. He took a rapid ascent into the closer’s role last year out of necessity when Blake Treinen struggled and fell to injury. He exceeded his fill-in role. Now the question is, can he replicate his 2019?
Khris Davis
It’s hard to replicate outstanding power. Davis hit more than 40 home runs in each of his first three seasons with the A’s -- and somehow also managed a .247 average for those three years (plus a year with the Milwaukee Brewers). But in 2019 he hit a bump. Davis lost himself at the plate and spiraled into a dismal .220/.293/.387 slashline with a .679 OPS. He hit just 23 home runs — 10 came in the first 17 games. The A’s are driving at full force when Davis is seeing clearly from the wheel. Watch for a potential comeback year in 2020.
HOW HIGH CAN THIS ROTATION FLY?
This could be one of the most talented rotations the A’s have trotted out since the Big Three toed the Coliseum’s mound. There is talent up and down the line, with high-level talent on the outskirts of it, too:
Jesús Luzardo, A.J. Puk, Frankie Montas, Sean Manaea, Mike Fiers, Chris Bassitt. The ceilings for Puk and Luzardo look sky high — national recognition could be in order. But, as a collective, this could be a gauntlet up and down for opposing teams.
A conversation since the December day Jurickson Profar was traded, and perhaps before that. There’s a long list of candidates, and a couple of ways manager Bob Melvin can play it. Will one player win the job for himself or will it be second-base-by-committee?
Jorge Mateo and Franklin Barreto are, in essence, fighting for the same spot. Will the winner of the battle be platooning with lefthanded hitters Tony Kemp and Rule 5 pickup Vimael Machin? Where will Sheldon Neuse fit in?
The American League West has a crack in its foundation. The foundation, for the latter half of the past decade, was a mighty Houston Astros team. But the sign-stealing scandal might have allowed for a change in the divisional dynamic. The A’s, who have won 97 games in back-to-back seasons, are a little more talented in 2020 and capable of taking the divisional crown.
Marcus Semien is a hometown hero at his peak. Matt Chapman is revolutionizing the way third basemen play their position. The A’s may be looking to commit to a face of the franchise (or more). And A’s fans may want to wear a jersey to the ballpark that represents a player not on his way out the door. There are incentives, but will both sides pull the trigger?
Matt Chapman’s performance at third base is a show in itself. When he hits a hot streak, Chapman’s performance at the plate can be just as compelling. He’s an All-Star, a Platinum Glover, the de facto team leader and, by all means, a star. But, some injury bad luck and untimely hitting slumps have kept Chapman a notch below superstardom. A hot streak that coincides with a long postseason run might push Chappy over the top.
Whether Khris Davis can put together a comeback year at the plate could determine much about how well this A’s offense performs.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFFDaulton Jefferies, 24: The A’s pitching pool goes deeper. Like its big league brother, the Las Vegas Aviators’ staff could be a can’tmiss show, too. That starts with right-handed Cal alum Jefferies, who has impressed in camp as a pure strike thrower with off-thecharts walk rates. He was the A’s minor league pitcher of the year in 2019 despite performing on innings restrictions after Tommy John surgery. He’s a force and may be the next man up in A’s rotations of the future.
James Kaprielian, 25: Kaprielian is added depth to the Aviators rotation. Also coming off multiple injuries to his throwing arm, Kaprielian is primed for a rise in the minor leagues that could have him on the precipice of a big-league debut in the near future.
Grant Holmes, 23: Holmes, a long-, curlyhaired right-hander, is two seasons removed from shoulder surgery and bounding back into prime form. He has the potential to be a big swing-and-miss arm out of the A’s farm that could be on the express path to Oakland if he is consistent.
Nick Allen, 21: Allen might be a ready-made star defensive infielder, primarily at shortstop, with a Gold Glove on his big league horizon. A slow-developing bat has kept Allen off most national prospect “top 100” lists, but he ranked No. 6 on the A’s MLB Pipeline in 2019. He is improving at the plate, though, and has pivoted away from being a fly ball hitter to committing to an approach that goes gap to gap.
Logan Davidson, 22: It’s rare to see a player make big league camp in his first professional season, but Davidson, the A’s 2019 first-round pick, impressed early in Mesa with his bat. Keep an eye on a rapid ascent for the Clemson University kid.
Bringing back Pablo Sandoval and Hunter Pence was the clearest sign yet Farhan Zaidi and the Giants brass realize this is going to be a slow rebuilding process.
ILLUSTRATION BY DAVIDE BARCO
THE GIANTS
Sorry, but it’s going to be another lost season.
How many is that in a row now?
How much longer must Giants fans suffer?
The problem with a total, topto-bottom, bottom-to-top rebuild of a baseball organization is that, well, they take a while.
And this Giants rebuild is going to take a while yet to start showing the fruits of President of Baseball Operation Farhan Zaidi’s efforts.
The selling point — one I’ll echo — is that the benefits of breaking it all down and starting from scratch more than covers for the growing pains at the start, but projections of a brighter tomorrow can only ease so much.
So in the meantime, the Giants are hoping nostalgia still plays around these parts.
Think of Hunter Pence and Pablo Sandoval coming back to the Giants as black and orange methadone. A bit of the old to take the edge off.
The World Series hero duo will rejoin these aging Giants as part of a sub-replacement core of Buster Posey [84 OPS-plus (100 is league average) in 2019], Brandon Crawford and Brandon Belt to create a reunion tour event that Zaidi and his modern front office hope can tide San Francisco fans over until the real players — the ones that give the Giants a chance to compete against the juggernaut Dodgers —
Buster Posey has been a mainstay in the Giants lineup for a long time, and this year he’ll have some old friends rejoining the roster.
RAY CHAVEZ/STAFF
are promoted to San Francisco.
Now, you might be asking: If the Giants were so keen to push nostalgia, then why not bring back Madison Bumgarner this past offseason, too?
Well, there are myriad reasons — the most significant being that it takes two parties to agree on a contract. Bumgarner was looking for something the Giants weren’t offering at this juncture — something they might never offer again — so he found it elsewhere. He’s right, the Giants are right. That’s the way it goes sometimes.
The second reason — and this is a big one — is that the Giants
The Brandons, Belt and Crawford, are among the old guard whose play has declined as the team awaits their contracts to run out.
RAY CHAVEZ/STAFFmight be about nostalgia, but only in the short term.
Bumgarner wanted to be paid for past performances for the next five years. That’s fair.
But the Giants don’t play that game anymore.
Zaidi’s Giants aren’t committing big, or even moderate money, to anyone long-term, opting instead to remain financially flexible for the future, as to augment a young (and cheap) core they believe will help the team contend for pennants again soon.
Meanwhile, the Diamondbacks — a franchise without a plan or a steady fan base, and, therefore, al-
ways in a perpetual state of panic — are perpetually keen to make a splash, hoping that the next one will be the one that makes their troubles go away. They ponied up what Bumgarner was looking for this offseason, and now he can hang out with his horses year-round.
Don’t blame the Giants for how it all went down. Blame baseball and its ridiculous system of player compensation.
The past decade of baseball has seen hedge-fund managers take over the game. And — get this — these could-be billionaires in charge of billion-dollar franchises are running things like hedge funds.
That means exploiting market inefficiencies — no matter how small, no matter how cold they might seem — in an effort to profit, be those defined by wins or actual monetary gains.
Over the last few years, it’s become undeniably evident that there is one — just one — way to build a sustainably winning team in this day and age. It makes the game homogeneous and, frankly, boring, but the method is tried and true. Build from the bottom up and only spend at the top after the foundation is fully set. And even then, don’t spend much. After all, young players are paid less than they deserve, older free agents often make more than they should.
It’s Moneyball 2.0 — this time everyone is cheap.
But it works. The Astros used this model, an algorithm and some trash cans to win a World Series (for now). The Red Sox and Cubs bottomed out and won soon thereafter, too. The Yankees and Dodgers didn’t need to go all the way to rock bottom — such is their financial clout — but they weren’t far off and they’ve used the model to become juggernauts.
The Giants were the last of baseball’s uber-rich teams to catch the wave.
And all those years of burying their heads in the sand created a real toxic situation — it was a franchise rotting from both ends. The farm system had marginal prospects and needed a major influx of talent. The major league roster was so bad and expensive that Zaidi couldn’t have traded away some of the players unless he attached much-needed prospects to a deal.
After one year, the Giants aren’t even back to square one — the rebuild is well underway, but the end result is still at least two years away. The new guard needs time to develop, the old guard’s contracts need to run out.
Which brings us back to Pence and Sandoval. Why them? Because this is still a business.
They’re not taking away meaningful at-bats from future core players — this team’s future, hopefully winning core is in the minor leagues right now. No, they’re here to sell tickets.
Last year, the Giants were able to bring people to the ballpark on the basis of it being Bruce Bochy’s last season in charge of the team. It was a contrived and somewhat effective promotion.
This year, the motto can be summed up as “if you’re going to stink, at least be likable.”
Though it doesn’t hurt that Pence and Sandoval are cheap, too.
The Giants stand a chance of being a juggernaut like their other big-money brethren.
It’s just going to take some more time to find out when the new era of prosperity can truly begin.
Until then, let’s pretend that the good old days are still happening at Third and King.
PHOTO BY RANDY VAZQUEZ
When AOL’s Instant Messenger service began growing in popularity in the early 2000s, Sacramento State student Ryan Nakken decided to join the conversation.
Nakken used the social network to keep in touch with friends, but when he found out his scrappy, softball-loving sister Alyssa also had an AIM profile, he decided to add her too.
“I was feeling good, I had like 20 or 30 people on there,” Ryan said. “Then I added my sister and I looked at her profile and she had like 300 friends. I couldn’t believe that she even knew 300 people, but she knew them all and was friends with them all. That’s how she was.”
Alyssa is nine years younger than Ryan and six years younger than her brother Jason, but even when she was in middle school, her siblings admired her for the close bonds she developed so seamlessly with friends.
“She’s the most amazing person in the world because of the people she chooses to be around,” Jason said. “Her friends growing up were always very good
Simply by being herself, Alyssa Nakken was destined to break down barriers in baseball.
people and helped lead her in the right path. People gravitated toward her.”
Nearly two decades later, people still gravitate toward Alyssa Nakken. And in the two-plus months since she was hired as the first female full-time coach in Major League Baseball history, people from all over the world have begun looking up to her.
“You turn on the TV and there are news reporters in the childhood bedroom at your parents’ house and it’s like, ‘Well, that escalated quickly,’” Nakken said.
On Jan. 16, the Giants issued a press release announcing the hires of Mark Hallberg and Nakken as the latest additions to the largest coaching staff in baseball. The duo will serve as general assistants for first-year manager Gabe Kapler, but the release had no mention of the fact Nakken was breaking a barrier that’s stood since the inception of the sport.
That’s in part because her hire was not made to satisfy an angry portion of the Giants fan base who felt the organization has alienated women or to change the narrative surrounding a team expected to endure its fourth straight losing season.
Nakken was hired because the Giants needed a coach with her skills.
“When she was offered the position, it wasn’t the fact that she was going to be the first woman,” Nakken’s mother, Gaye, said. “That wasn’t even in the discussion between her and Gabe and she didn’t look at it in those terms.”
The rest of baseball does.
“She told us her jersey is going in the Hall of Fame,” sister-in-law Stephanie Nakken said.
The No. 92 jersey Nakken will
wear on Opening Day at Dodger Stadium will find its way to Cooperstown. Any significance to the unusual number?
Nakken said there weren’t many numbers left when she was hired, but she chose it because no one in MLB history has worn No. 92. The jersey, like Nakken, is one
of a kind.
“People wait their whole lives to go in the Hall of Fame and she’s been with the Giants for what, two months, and she’s in the Hall of Fame,” said Gaye. “We’re not amazed at what she’s doing, but it’s hard to comprehend what it all means.”
How did Nakken position herself to shatter a glass ceiling? Her journey in sports began on the softball fields of Woodland with the California Flames.
“She was definitely a standout, but that was always because of the fact that she worked so hard,” travel ball coach Gabe Abelia said. “Her work ethic was just crazy. She would get me tired because she was always asking, ‘Coach, can you hit me more balls or can you pitch to me?’ and it was always something just to work a little bit more.”
A pitcher-turned-first baseman, Nakken parlayed a successful prep career as a three-sport athlete at Woodland High into a scholarship offer to play softball at Sacramento State. In a stellar four-year career, Nakken became a three-time all-conference player and started 164 consecutive games.
Nakken’s 19 home runs rank third in school history and her 115 runs scored place her sixth in the Hornets’ record books, but coach Kathy Strahan doesn’t look back at boxscores when recalling Nakken’s achievements. The retired coach instead thinks of the uniform Nakken refused to keep clean.
“She was always getting dirty,” Strahan said. “We would take ground balls, pregame warmup stuff, and her uniform was already just brown. Just dirt from head to toe. Her headband was on sideways. She was diving for balls there and we hadn’t even started the game.”
Nakken majored in psychology and graduated with a 3.76 GPA, but admitted feeling “lost” when her softball career finally ended. After a brief stint as a financial planner at Sacramento State, Nakken decided to pursue a master’s degree in sports management at the University of San Francisco. That’s where she first snuck a foot inside the door of the base-
In November, Nakken wasn’t shy about walking into the offices of the Giants’ highest-ranking executives and asking them “What’s your take on the status of our organization?”
Four months later she’s a key cog in reinventing how this team operates.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFFball world.
“We sat down and met and figured out what she could do to be part of USF and college baseball and we hired her as our baseball operations director,” Dons coach Nino Giarratano said.
At USF, Nakken coordinated team travel, set up fundraising events and handled the day-today functions of the program. She made an impression on Giarratano through “her work ethic, detail and communication toward the whole group” and perhaps most importantly, found an ally willing to vouch for her when she was ready for the next challenge.
“The opportunity to interview with the Giants came open and we helped push the door for her to get the opportunity in an operations capacity,” Giarratano said.
In 2014, Nakken joined the Giants’ baseball operations department and assisted with projects relating to the amateur draft and player development. She soon became a full-time employee and took a leading role in coordinating initiatives related to health, wellness and diversity within the organization.
At the end of the 2019 season, Nakken received the Anita Sprinkles Award, which is considered the “Willie Mac Award” of the front office. At a time when her desire to return to the baseball operations side of the organization was on the rise, the award made Nakken realize she had more to offer the Giants than anyone knew.
In November, she began walking into the offices of the Giants’ highest-ranking executives and asked a simple question.
“What’s your take on the status of our organization?”
Shortly after Kapler was hired
to succeed Bruce Bochy, she approached him with the same query. He flipped it on her and the duo unknowingly entered the early portion of one of the most important job interviews in the sport’s history.
“She and Gabe worked heavily on a position where she would be in operations because she had a lot of insight into the organization from the enterprising side of things,” Alyssa’s father, Bob, said.
Outside of Ron Wotus, a three-decade veteran of the franchise, none of the nine other coaches Kapler had hired to date saw the rise and fall of the Giants’ on-field product up close. Nakken’s institutional knowledge became a valuable resource, and as Kapler and president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi considered a new role for her, they realized Nakken’s communication skills would be an asset in the clubhouse.
Nakken knew the Giants’ new regime was ready to help her expand her reach. Until early January, she didn’t know how it
While there’s an inherent pressure in being the first to do anything, let alone break down barriers for women in a men’s sport, Nakken is determined not to listen to the outside noise.
would happen.
“When Gabe came to her home in the Sunset district in San Francisco, they talked about a lot of things,” Gaye said. “Then at the end, he told her it would be the assistant coach position. She was kind of shocked at that.”
In the five days between the time she accepted the job and when the Giants made a formal announcement, Alyssa began preparing her family and friends for what came next.
“I asked, ‘Are you the first female coach in history,’ and she said, ‘I think so.’” Jason said. “At that point, I knew it was going to mean something.”
“I told her, ‘Ooh you’re going to get your own Wikipedia page,’” Stephanie said. “‘It’s going to get crazy.’ And it got crazy fast.”
When the news became official, SportsCenter shared Alyssa’s picture with the world on live TV while pioneers such as Nancy Pelosi and Billie Jean King tweeted their congratulations and support.
“The social implications are difficult to process,” Bob said.
“
When she was offered the position, it wasn’t the fact that she was going to be the first woman. That wasn’t even in the discussion between her and Gabe and she didn’t look at it in those terms.”
GAYE NAKKENRANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFF Nakken majored in psychology and graduated with a 3.76 GPA, but admitted feeling “lost” when her softball career finally ended. SAC
At 29, Nakken isn’t just the first woman with a full-time MLB coaching position. She’s also one of the youngest assistants in the majors. As she navigates the challenge of finding her voice in a new role, she’ll also have eyes fixed on her every move as she carries a torch for a generation of women who now have reason to view coaching in a way Nakken and others couldn’t.
“With coaching, I never saw it,” Nakken said. “This job has been hidden for so long. I’m so excited to be in this role for the challenge.”
One of the primary reasons the Giants tabbed Nakken for the role is because she’s such a strong communicator, but to the outside world, the assistant coach will be tough to reach. The tweets from cultural icons had to be passed along to her through screenshots via texts because Nakken knows the praise she receives for her achievements will be coupled with a small percentage of detractors waiting to watch her fail.
“I’ve just grown to not fall victim to feel bad about myself by what people say,” said Nakken, when asked why she’s not active on social media. “I also feel incredibly supported by the people closest to me.”
The nasty comments and inflammatory posts also serve as a reminder to those closest to her that not everyone shares the same sentiments of her ascension up the baseball ladder.
“The negative stuff helps for me to understand the true significance of the position,” her father, Bob, said. “When you see that oh my gosh, there are people that are concerned about this and they don’t like it. Then it puts it into the context of this really is a major event.”
To the family, friends and coaches who know her better than anyone, Nakken is the perfect choice to handle the responsibility
Nakken took a lead on coaching baserunning and assisting with outfield instruction this spring. As the season begins, she’ll work with hitters in the batting cage during games, she’ll lead meetings for the coaching staff and she’ll play a critical role in establishing a positive culture where new ideas, new analytics and new strategies are embraced.
of being first with the determination to ensure another woman comes next.
“I really applaud her for not getting caught up in the firestorm surrounding everything,” Strahan said. “She’s not one to put the light on herself and take all the attention. She plays hard and that’s who she is, but she doesn’t want the attention. She wants the team to win.”
For some, simply seeing Nakken in her uniform will inspire them to pursue a dream. For others, learning about the trail she’s paved will show them there’s now a path to walk.
“She’s all about women, she’s all about women’s sports, promoting women,” Abelia said. “She got that job by working her way up.”
During spring training, Nakken took a lead on coaching baserunning and assisting with outfield instruction. During the regular season, her role is expected to grow and evolve. She’ll work with hitters in the batting cage during games, she’ll lead meetings for the coaching staff and she’ll play a critical role in establishing a positive culture where new ideas, new analytics and new strategies are embraced.
A family whose fandom dates back to the Giants’ Candlestick Park days is already anticipating her Opening Day introductions at Dodger Stadium and Oracle Park. Coaches that shared a dugout with her from the age of nine have asked Nakken to share stories from a clubhouse that once belonged exclusively to men.
When the last decade started, the Nakken family cheered the Giants on as the franchise won its first World Series title in San Francisco-era history. As the 2020s begin, Bob and Gaye’s youngest daughter and Ryan and Jason’s baby sister has secured a victory that’s just as meaningful.
“It’s awesome to hear that she’s a part of that new wave,” Jason said. “The Giants are leading that march.”
Thanks to Alyssa Nakken, women now have a place in major league dugouts.
“Intellectually you understand it, but do you really understand it?”RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFF
Serra High and ASU grad Hunter Bishop gives hope for a homegrown star who can swat baseballs into McCovey Cove and snare balls in the outfield for years to come. It’s been awhile since the Giants had one of those.
BY KERRY CROWLEY
Amonth before the 2019 Major League Baseball draft, the heavy hitters from the Giants front office gathered in a small room inside the organization’s minor league complex in Scottsdale, Ariz. President of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and amateur scouting director Michael Holmes were there to meet with one of the top draft-eligible prospects in the country, the player’s father and his agent.
It’s not unusual for major league executives to talk with prospective draft picks. It is to ask Barry Bonds to tag along.
“He’s a huge Serra Padre fan, literally the first thing he said to me was ‘Gotta keep it in the brotherhood, man.’” Hunter Bishop said. “It was pretty cool.”
With the No. 10 pick in the draft, the Giants didn’t know if Bishop — a power-hitting center fielder from both of Bonds’ alma maters, Serra High and Arizona State — would even be available. They could dream on the idea anyway.
“The power was just a perfect fit,” Zaidi said. “So it was really about both sides getting to know each other better and we thought it would be cool for Barry to sit in and for them to have that exchange with the Serra connection, the Bay Area connection.”
In the days leading up to the draft, there were rumors the Texas Rangers would step in and snag Bishop with the eighth pick. There were rumblings a rough sophomore season might hurt his stock and force teams in the 10-to15 range of the draft to reconsider.
The Giants were concerned the Rangers might swoop in on their target, but Bishop knew his hometown team would do all it could to nab him.
Bishop knew all along the Giants wouldn’t let him get away.
“They pretty much just told me how much they loved me and if I get to that pick, they’re not going to let me go,” Bishop said.
Before he began his quest to follow in Bonds’ footsteps from Serra to ASU and eventually the Giants, Bishop modeled his athletic career after another famous Padre.
“This guy was going the Tom Brady route,” Serra football coach Patrick Walsh said.
A San Carlos native, Hunter followed his older brother Braden to St. Francis in Mountain View before transferring to Serra in San Mateo after his sophomore year. He played quarterback and joined the baseball team, but unlike Braden — an outfielder for the Seattle Mariners — Hunter, his parents and his coaches saw a future in football.
A teenager who swung golf clubs instead of baseball bats said he never took to the main position he played: pitcher.
In the hours leading up to his debut on the mound with the Padres, Bishop went into his head coach’s office and admitted he wasn’t ready.
“Hunter came into the office and he wanted to talk and he said, ‘I just don’t feel comfortable on the mound,’” Serra coach Craig Giannino said. “I said, ‘Really?’ and he said, ‘I just don’t feel like I really know what I’m doing.’”
Telling his coach was the easy part. Telling his dad, Randy, was another story.
“I’ll never forget when I told him I was going to start hitting,” Bishop said. “He sat me down on the couch, dead serious, and said, ‘You might need to look into a fraternity or something like that in college.’”
The father thought his son’s baseball career might be over on the spot.
“I’m a total realist,” Randy said.
“No one at Serra knew Hunter and Hunter had not even come close to playing the outfield or hitting at all. So I just assumed, well, the only way you’re going to make the Serra baseball team is if you pitch.”
As Bishop transitioned from
The Bishop brothers (Braden, left, plays for the Seattle Mariners) started the 4MOM Foundation, a charity with the goal of fighting for the world’s first survivor of Alzheimer’s disease in honor of their late mom Suzy.
the mound to the outfield, an injury zapped his arm strength and forced him to move from quarterback to wide receiver on the football field. In the final weeks of his junior baseball season, Bishop still envisioned himself following through with his commitment to play for Washington Huskies football coach Chris Petersen.
Baseball scouts had other plans.
“Hunter called me and said, ‘I got this call from this guy and I’ve made the Under Armour All-American team.’” Randy said. “I was like, ‘What?’ I call this guy back and said, ‘Hey, is this a joke or what?’”
Hunter had barely played the outfield during his junior season at Serra, but scouts salivated at the raw potential he showcased in batting practice.
“You really never know, but you couldn’t deny the toolset,” Giannino said. “The speed, the wiry strength, the quick twitch, the hand-eye coordination.”
Evaluators watched him run a blazing 6.5 60-yard sprint at the Area Code Games in Stockton and Bishop told them he’d soon run routes at Washington. They watched him crush home runs at
Wrigley Field before the All-American Game and he insisted he’d crush defensive backs with the ball in his hands.
“My phone started ringing off the hook after that from Fullerton to Stanford, to Cal to you name it and I was like, ‘Guys, he’s playing football,’” Randy said. “But hey, we’ll come out and visit.”
The only high-profile baseball program the family didn’t see in-person was Arizona State. On the recommendation of assistant Ben Greenspan, Sun Devils head coach Tracy Smith made one last plea.
“I’m driving over the Golden Gate Bridge and my phone rings and it’s Tracy Smith from ASU and he said, ‘Hey, I’m calling you as a father and not as coach,’” Randy said. “‘You need to let your son play baseball because he’s going to be a big leaguer. I just want you to come here, I will introduce you to our football coach, I will allow Hunter to play two sports, but I need him to play baseball.’”
By the middle of his senior year, Bishop, his parents and his high school coaches realized there wasn’t much of a decision to make.
“It came down to a lifestyle choice in his senior year. It was very apparent that he had some tools in baseball that could lead to a 20-, 30-year career,” Walsh said. “We all know football is more of a short-lived career, particularly at the wide receiver position.”
At 17 years old, Bishop realized he had his whole life ahead of him. A conversation that took place two years earlier made him realize what a luxury that was.
“I remember one day I got home and my parents sat me down,” Bishop said. “I was young and I remember my dad, the strongest dude I’ve ever known, he was bawling. My mom was straight-faced, super strong about it and they told me.”
Bishop’s mom, Suzy, had been diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
“I remember, my brother was taking it pretty harshly in college,” Hunter said. “That’s when I kind of knew something was not good. Fast-forward to my senior year of high school, my senior day, she could barely even walk on the
field.”
Early-onset Alzheimer’s disease is a rare form of dementia that causes a person’s brain cells to waste away. As Randy describes it, it’s an “insidious disease” that “we wouldn’t wish on anyone.”
Suzy’s diagnosis devastated the family, but inspired Hunter and Braden to devote their lives to a new mission. Together, the brothers started the 4MOM Foundation, a charity with the goal of fighting for the world’s first survivor of Alzheimer’s disease.
“We had the idea of how could we make a difference?” Hunter said. “We should start a foundation. At first, he had the platform with UW, I was still in high school, he got it off the ground running and he wrote 4MOM on his arm every single game.”
Hunter eventually brought the 4MOM mission and his fundraising efforts with him to Arizona State, where he burst onto the scene with a .301 average and .847 OPS as a freshman en route to earning Honorable Mention All-Pac-12 honors. Less than two years after learning to play the outfield, Bishop received buzz as a prospect who could be chosen in the top three rounds of the 2019 MLB Draft.
He admitted he saw the hype and for the first time in his baseball career, felt the pressure to live up to it. At the same time, Suzy’s health continued to deteriorate and Hunter felt her emotional absence.
“I didn’t appreciate her enough, to be honest, and I don’t think any kid does,” Hunter said. “My sophomore year I started realizing how important it is to have a mom. Just the situations you go through in college, you don’t always want to talk to your dad.”
As a sophomore at Arizona State, Bishop’s average dropped more than 50 points, his slugging percentage fell by 75 points and his interest in the game disappeared altogether.
“He didn’t want to play anymore, he just wanted to come home and be with his mom,” Randy said. “Hunter was her baby.”
Bishop’s on-field struggles
After a summer spent in the Cape Cod League came a remarkable junior season in which Hunter Bishop hit 22 home runs and posted a 1.227 OPS at ASU. That’s when the Giants decided they should go hard after the homegrown kid.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFF
couldn’t compare to the emotional trauma of watching his mom suffer, but by the end of his sophomore year, he began to see baseball as a coping mechanism.
“It’s hard to produce when a ball is coming 100 miles per hour at you when your soul is dragged down by very real-life things,” Walsh said. “But I think he and his brother have found this opportunity through this very tough, difficult, dark time and then used baseball as a way to celebrate his mom’s life.”
He spent the summer playing in the prestigious Cape Cod
League and returned to Arizona State as a transformed prospect and a transformed person. During fall exhibitions, Bishop estimates he hit 25 home runs and remembers the two he launched in a matchup against a Texas Rangers minor league squad as a turning point in his development.
“That sophomore year was probably the most helpful thing for me,” Bishop admitted. “Because I think if I would have killed it sophomore year, you never know, I could have gone into junior year and thought ‘I have to do this for the draft.’”
When his junior season at Arizona State began, the draft mattered little to Bishop. By the end of a remarkable season in which he hit 22 home runs and posted a 1.227 OPS, Bonds led a contingent of Giants executives who told Bishop they wanted to make him a homegrown star.
“He’s the best hitter to ever play the game, I don’t care what anybody says,” Bishop said. “So just to pick his brain, hear what he has to say about the swing, different situations he encountered, for everything I had been through whether it had been my mom or
struggles or super good moments, just to sit there and realize where I am now, it was unbelievable.”
On June 3, 2019, a then-20-yearold center fielder received the call every young athlete dreams about. When the Texas Rangers passed at No. 8 and the Atlanta Braves had other ideas at No. 9, the Giants brought Bishop home.
“I say it all the time, he’s representing the greatest city in the world,” Giannino said. “There’s a lot of pride that’s there for that.”
A high school quarterback and scratch golfer admits he never saw a career in a Giants uniform
coming. The most tragic part of Bishop’s journey is that since the middle of high school, he did see a future his mother wouldn’t be a part of.
“With this disease, you know,” Bishop said.
On Oct. 5, 2019, Suzy Bishop died at the age of 59 after a five-year battle with Alzheimer’s disease.
At points in his grieving process, Hunter has felt guilty for taking her life for granted and sorrow for the moments they won’t share together. Together with his brother Braden, the fam-
From his time at Serra High to Arizona State, Hunter Bishop evolved as a hitter — perhaps even far beyond what he could have ever imagined as an aspiring football star at Serra.
ily channeled their emotions into finding a cause far greater than what sports can offer.
“The way we view it now is we’re our mom’s legacy and we’ll do whatever we can do to make a difference and make other families at some point never have to deal with it,” Bishop said. “But for now, how can we make it as easy as possible for families who have to go through what we went through?”
His baseball career, unlike most top prospects, has still been relatively brief. Yet just six springs after moving from the mound to
the outfield, Bishop has the potential to rise quickly through the Giants’ minor league system.
“You make him in a video game, this is how you draw him up,” Giants farm director Kyle Haines said. “The size, the speed and I know everyone talks about that, if they don’t know him, but I feel fortunate that I get to know the person.”
His fundraising efforts with the 4MOM Foundation have the potential to skyrocket too. During his pre-draft meeting with the Giants, Zaidi set aside time to discuss Bishop’s journey and learn about the adversity the family has faced.
“I recall Farhan saying, he can’t imagine how Hunter has dealt with it and come out on such a positive note,” Randy said. “That he doesn’t know if he could have done that when he was Hunter’s age and it just shows Hunter’s drive and his whole commitment as a human being.”
As 4MOM hosts more events like the Cheers4MOM holiday fundraiser that raised more than $20,000 in December and the upcoming Care4MOM conference scheduled for January 2021, the Giants plan to work with Bishop to spread awareness of the foundation.
“It’s hard to learn about the family story and what they’re doing without being touched,” Zaidi said. “I would imagine we’ll be doing a lot with them going forward.”
The baseball player, Hunter Bishop, has the potential to become a homegrown hero. The person, Hunter Bishop, is already using his spare time to improve the lives of others. If the engaging, charismatic slugger reaches his potential with the Giants, his combination of talents can change the fortunes of a team and change the future for families dealing with the realities of a terrible disease.
“We’re all going to be sitting here watching him play and hitting balls into McCovey Cove,” Walsh said. “That foundation has to be there and continue to be there and all that comes with it.”
On the heels of three consecutive losing seasons, the Giants aren’t just searching for wins.
They’re looking for hope.
Thanks to strong draft and international freeagent classes in recent years, the lowest levels of the Giants farm system are now loaded with potential major league contributors. Despite the organization’s struggle to draft and develop high-impact contributors since its last World Series title, Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi and farm director Kyle Haines believe it’s only a matter of time before the next crop of homegrown stars are playing at Oracle Park.
At a time when the rebuilding Giants are focused on player development in the major leagues, the most promising prospects should soon have their chance to shine. We looked at the top players in the Giants’ farm system and provided an ETA of when fans can expect to see them wearing orange and black.
Ht/Wt: 6’3 / 220
Bats/Throws: R-R
Age: 23
ETA: Mid-2020
When the Giants were on the clock with the No. 2 overall pick in the 2018 draft, there was little doubt the organization was going to choose Bart. A polished two-way catching prospect out of Georgia Tech, Bart has been billed as the future of the franchise and the successor behind the plate to Buster Posey thanks to his advanced hit tool and an underrated defensive profile. “I love throwing to Joey,” pitcher Sean Hjelle said. “He shoots me straight. He’s not going to come out for a mound visit and make me feel good about
Joey Bart (with teammate Ricardo Genoves looking on) is expected to make his big-league debut this season. His middle-ofthe-order power and polished catching skills could give the Giants an immediate boost.
myself. If I’m not throwing well, he’s going to tell me and then we’re going to go over the plan and figure out how to change it.” Bart’s first full season in the minor leagues was marred by a hand fracture that required surgery, but the Giants believe time off from baseball gave the catcher a fresh perspective and an even greater appreciation for the game. “I think we might look back someday and think that maybe the early-season injury ended up being a blessing for him,” Haines said. “I think it gave him a new start, after the emotions of big league camp and going into the season, I know it kind of helped him re-set mentally.” Bart’s power will make him a middle-of-the-order bat upon his arrival in the big leagues, but the Giants aren’t yet concerned with finding him a secondary position to learn. After watching the way Posey’s power numbers declined over his career, the organization will be more cautious about resting Bart early in his career, but he’s still a plus-defender at the catcher position and the Giants want to take advantage of those talents. “From a physical standpoint, he’s got all of the tools,” manager Gabe Kapler said. “He can drive the baseball to any part of the field. He’s got really, really strong hands and when he’s behind the plate, you’ll notice the ball just stop.”
Ht/Wt: 6’11 / 225
Bats/Throws: R-R
Age: 22
ETA: End of 2020, early 2021
The massive righty spent the spring in big league camp and made an impression with his poise, work ethic and command. His unique arm angle isn’t the only reason the Giants are excited about his potential. “People always loop him in as a command guy, but they forget he throws 95 miles per hour,” Haines said. “He’s got a good breaking ball and I think he’s definitely a guy that’s under the radar and you’re going to look up and he’s going to have a very nice, long major league career.” Hjelle will likely begin the year in the Double-A Richmond rotation and has a chance to break into the big leagues by September.
Ht/Wt: 6’1 / 188
Bats/Throws: R-R
Age: 20
ETA: End of 2020, early 2021
Ramos, 20, isn’t a teenager anymore, but when he made his Double-A debut at 19 last August, he was the youngest player in the league. The Giants are thrilled with the young center fielder’s development and believe he’s only scratching the surface with the power he’s displayed thus far. “That kid is very special. I wouldn’t say that about a lot of guys,” Bart said. “If I see a guy that’s really good, it really opens my eyes.” Don’t be fooled, though. Ramos is more than just an all-or-nothing slugger. “The power is just something that stands out as being different compared to most kids his age in center field,” Haines said. “But he can do a little bit of everything. He has a chance to be a very nice, well-rounded player.”
Ht/Wt: 6’2 / 178
Throws/Bats: R-R
Age: 18
ETA: 2022
Luciano might turn out to be the best prospect in the Giants’ farm system. The Dominican Republic native was the last big signing for former general manager Bobby Evans and his presence has been a gift to an organization that believes he could be a generational talent. While most organizations are reluctant to bring international signees stateside so early in their careers, Luciano made the decision easy on the Giants with his performance in spring camp last season. “His development in the second half was great,” Haines said. “We’re just hopeful he realizes if he keeps growing the way he grew last year and keep doing that for a few years, he’s going to be in a good spot by the time he’s 20, 21 years old.”
With the present still looking bleak, Giants fans are wise to stay closely tuned to minor league footage of these young players who could be stars-in-the-making.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFF
As sports fans, we love stories like that of Mike Yastrzemski because it reminds us that perseverance is often the quality that counts most in life.
Six years after the Orioles chose Mike Yastrzemski in the 14th round of the MLB Draft, the little-known outfielder was involved in a trade the baseball world hardly noticed.
Last March, the Orioles sent Yastrzemski, a career minor leaguer, to the Giants in exchange for pitching prospect Tyler Herb. Less than a year later, the 29-yearold Yastrzemski is one of the faces of the 2020 Giants after compiling one of the best rookie seasons in franchise history.
How did the grandson of Hall of Fame outfielder Carl Yastrzemski go from Orioles afterthought to all-important Giants outfielder? Ahead of the 2020 season we spoke with Yastrzemski on the driving forces in his journey, the lows in his minor league career and the highs from an unforgettable rookie year.
QWhen you look back on your 2019 season, what stuck with you?
AI think by playing free and loose, results came from it. Being able to come over to a new organization and get new eyes, it let me play free and it was a lot easier to perform.
QHow do you keep your major league dreams alive when you spend all of those years in the minor leagues?
ASome days, you’re not dreaming, you’re just waiting for it to end. I didn’t want to pull the plug on it myself, but I always said I would play until somebody ripped the jersey off of my back. That was kind of the mentality I had and I had to keep. Even the days where it didn’t feel like it was going anywhere, it was still about maintaining a positive attitude and enjoying baseball because I love it and it’s fun.
QYou’ve said one of the most influential people in keeping you in baseball was your mom. What kind of role has she played in your career and keeping you inspired?
Keeping your major league dreams isn’t easy, but 14thround draft pick Mike Yastrzemski says playing free makes it easier to perform.
NHAT V. MEYER/STAFFAWatching her be a single mother for much of my life, I think a lot of my determination is watching how she made things work for me. I always had what I needed and what I wanted and if that doesn’t give you any way to go about your business, then I think you’re not looking at it the right way.
QYou’ve been with your wife for 10 years. How important has her support been through this journey?
AIt’s unbelievable to have a partner that looks at your dream the same way that they look at their own. You can’t describe how valuable that is. Just to have her be by my side and be pushing me to stick with it and stay positive. She was working four different jobs at one point to keep us afloat so to have that was just beyond what I could ever imagine.
QWhen you were drafted as a junior out of Vanderbilt, you had an opportunity to sign for good money, but you went back as a senior anyway. Why?
panicking when you have a bad stretch and you can’t be over-celebrating when you’re having a good stretch. You just have to understand that all of those things are going to happen in a season. There’s no player in history to ever be perfect. To understand that the game is that hard makes you more comfortable in your own failures.
QHow would you rank these three moments from your rookie year? 1) Your first career hit 2) Your three-home run game 3) Your home run at Fenway Park where your grandfather starred.
A1) The homer at Fenway 2) The three-home run game 3) The first hit. I can forget the first one because getting back-picked isn’t a very fond memory of mine.
QWorst minor league bus ride?
AMy dad always regretted not graduating. That always stuck with me for the longest time and so I made him a promise when I was younger that I would graduate and I had that opportunity at my fingertips and I don’t think there was really any amount of money that I would have given up to take that away. I think that was super important to my life and understanding what’s really important because this all ends at some point. I lost a little bit of an opportunity to get here sooner, but to have that degree in my back pocket for whenever I need it, you can’t put a value on that.
QLast July, the Giants told you they were considering sending you down. Did it surprise you that Triple-A was going to be an option for you again?
ANo because baseball is like that. Baseball is waves and it’s ups and downs and if you can keep the mental sanity to stay level — which is the hardest part of this game — it’s to realize no matter how well or poorly you’re playing you have to show up and be the same guy. You can’t be
AProbably one in rookie ball in Aberdeen where our bus caught on fire. All of a sudden, the guys were yelling about how it was really hot in the back and there was smoke and we all had to get off on the exit. That one was pretty bad.
QGabe Kapler has talked about you being a leader this year. Despite being a rookie just a season ago, he values your presence. How does that make you feel?
AIt feels awesome to have the confidence from the manager to put you in a position to have impact on other players and it’s really a big deal to me. I want guys to understand that I have something to offer because there are going to be a lot of guys that are going to impact this team. When I came up I was just nervous in general, but until you get to know these guys, these guys that have been around for 10-to-12 years are all human beings too. They’re always here to help.
QWhat was your reaction to the Giants making a bobblehead day for you?
AI just started laughing. I found out from my wife, she saw it first and I think it’s really cool. I’m excited to see how it comes out.
Mauricio Dubón
The Giants felt they gained one of the most versatile high-level prospects in baseball when they acquired Dubón in exchange for relievers Drew Pomeranz and Ray Black at last year’s trade deadline. The former Milwaukee Brewers farmhand initially reported to Triple-A, but it wasn’t long before the Honduras native burst onto the scene in San Francisco with a smooth swing and impressive glove at both shortstop and second base. The Giants are optimistic that Dubón will use this season to develop into the type of super-utility weapon who can make an impact all over the diamond and be a leader of the team’s next core. Expect Dubón to receive plenty of opportunities at second base and shortstop, but don’t be surprised if he finds a home in center field, rotates into the corner outfield spots or plays a few innings at first base. The next wave of Giants talent will be expected to make versatility and positional flexibility key components of their skill set, and Dubón is simply the first prospect to reach the shore.
Mike Yastrzemski
Yastrzemski spent six seasons in the Orioles’ minor league system and never received a shot at the major league level, but he never gave up the dream. After a minor trade brought him to the Giants last March, he received a promotion from Triple-A in May and became the team’s best hitter. Is the 29-year-old’s success repeatable? The organization is betting on it.
Tyler Beede
There’s no question Beede has the talent to succeed in the majors, but the Giants are wondering if he can be consistent. Beede has flashes where he looks like the best pitcher on the staff and moments where his command evades him and he morphs into the worst. The 2020 season could be make-or-break for Beede in the majors.
Logan Webb
It’s possible Webb has the highest upside of any pitcher in the Giants organization as the 23-year-old right-hander has been dominant for much of his minor league career. With a low- to mid-90s fastball and plus offspeed offerings with his changeup and slider, Webb has the tools to be a top-of-the-rotation
starter if he continues developing.
Joey Bart
The Giants aren’t certain when Bart will arrive in the majors, but it should happen at some point during the 2020 season. His debut can’t come soon enough for fans who know Bart could be the cornerstone of a new era and play the same role Buster Posey did during the Giants’ golden years.
KAPLER’S SECOND TRY
In two mediocre seasons with the Phillies, Giants manager Gabe Kapler drew criticism for the team’s inability to meet expectations. He now takes over a Giants club with lesser talent and has the added challenge of following a beloved future Hall of Fame manager in Bruce Bochy. Will the lessons Kapler learned in his first go-around lead to more success in San Francisco?
VETS’ LAST STAND
Giants veterans including Buster Posey, Brandon Belt and Brandon Crawford all face uncertain futures as the organization looks to identify members of a future core that can turn the club into a perennial contender again. Will playing time be slashed for some of the incumbent starters, or will a new era inspire the longest-tenured players to step up their games?
OUT OF NOWHERE
Giants president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi loves to scour the waiver wire, make small trades and sign minor league freeagents to create depth. Zaidi’s efforts led the Giants to players such as Mike Yastrzemski and Alex Dickerson last season and his résumé suggests he has a knack for discovering new talent. Who’s the surprise breakthrough performer for the Giants in 2020?
MAKING HISTORY
It’s one thing to have the biggest coaching staff in MLB history with 13 people. It’s another to have the first woman coach in the majors in assistant Alyssa Nakken. The three-time allconference softball player at Sacramento State has experience in baseball operations from the
The Giants are optimistic that Mauricio Dubón will develop into a super-utility weapon and be a leader of the team’s next core.
University of San Francisco and in the Giants organization and now she’ll step into a role no woman has ever held. It’s exciting territory for Nakken, who embraces her role as a pioneer.
The Giants only won 77 games last season, but the record could have been significantly worse if not for the heroics of All-Star closer Will Smith. With Smith leading the charge at the back end of the bullpen, the Giants’ 38 one-run wins were the most by any MLB team since 1993. With the left-hander now a member of the Braves, the Giants will need similar stability in the late innings if they hope to improve their record for the third straight year.
Jeff Samardzija: After concerns mounted following a season marred by a shoulder injury in 2018, Samardzija re-established himself in 2019 and enjoyed his best year since he was an All-Star in 2014. With a contract that will expire after the season, Samardzija could become one of the most attractive potential additions to a number of different contenders at this year’s deadline.
Tony Watson: Almost every team with postseason dreams could use another proven left-handed relief option.
Brandon Belt: If Belt is healthy and picks up a few home runs thanks to the new dimensions of Oracle Park, he could be on the move.
Johnny Cueto: If the Giants are willing to pay a portion of Cueto’s 2021 salary, contenders will show interest this July.
Hunter Pence: Say-it-ain’t-so! The Giants will want to audition young outfielders and Pence will want another ring.
RANDY VAZQUEZ/STAFFrepeatable.
The Giants are betting that 29-year-old Mike Yastrzemski’s success last season is
anyone lucky enough to have stolen a few minutes with Hunter Pence knows it’s a captivating whirlwind. As he makes direct and unwavering eye contact with you, he is part motivational speaker and part nerdy buddy.
He’s not shy, he’s not in your face, but he’s definitely caffeinated. He makes you feel like you’re the only person that matters, he gives you every ounce of his attention, and you find yourself wondering … is Hunter Pence my best friend?
From the moment he arrived in San Francisco from Philadelphia in 2012, it was apparent Pence was different. He wooed the fans with his quirkiness and intense passion that launched the “Yes! Yes! Yes!” movement. He inspired his teammates with intense pregame speeches that earned him the title of “The Reverend.”
And he even played good enough baseball — choppy swing, chicken wing arm and all — to secure a long-term contract with the Giants with a full no-trade
With Pence’s return to a Giants uniform, it’s hard to imagine a more beloved player coming back to a place that appreciates and embodies his offbeat charm more.Hunter Pence’s late-season arrival in 2012 was key to bringing title No. 2 to San Francisco and solidifying it’s even-year magic. KARL MONDON/ STAFF FILE
clause to keep him in San Francisco for five years.
In 2013 he played all 162 games to earn himself the coveted Willie Mac Award. His acceptance speech was quintessentially Hunter Pence — he credited everyone else for his success, it tugged at the heartstrings, and he told Buster Posey he loved him.
“Buster, I know you don’t like it when I say I love you … you think it’s soft. But I actually think it’s the strongest thing we got,” Hunter declared to the sound of laughter and the thunderous applause of 40,000 in orange and black.
Giants fans are always happy to share their love for Pence and all those moments would probably top the list. But it doesn’t quite get to the root of why No. 8 returned to the city he’ll probably retire in.
It doesn’t give the full story of how Hunter Pence came home or articulate the unique bond he has created with the fanbase — including with a special youngster who proudly wears his Hunter Pence costume to the ballpark at every opportunity.
Leaving the Giants was difficult for Pence, especially not knowing where he would land next. While uncertainty loomed, he immersed himself into a total rehaul of his swing and approach — one that had worked for him for so long because he was a good athlete, but needed to evolve into more if he wanted to remain in the big leagues.
With that fire, he earned himself a pivotal role with the Rangers. He built strong relationships within the organization. He played for his childhood team and earned the love and support of a new fanbase. He was an All-Star.
If this were a breakup, you would say Pence had come out on top and left the Giants to struggle through yet another tough season. And yet, wherever he went, the Giants fans never stopped coming to support him.
“It didn’t matter where I was, someone had a Giants jersey on,” he said
When Pence and his wife, Alexis, left San Francisco, packing up the high-rise apartment they lived in for over five years, they
probably didn’t expect they’d ever be back. They found a renter for their condo and left for the Dominican Republic so Hunter could play winter ball.
A little over a year later, the Pences were set to return home to the Bay Area without the comforts of the only home they’ve ever known in the city. But to their surprise, their renter reached out and offered to break the lease on the apartment so they could come home — the home of so many of their best memories.
“It means so much to us. This is where we got married, where we had so many special things happen,” says Alexis. “San Francisco is special. It’s truly a place that embraces individuality and following your heart.”
In 2014 when Pence’s beloved scooter went missing, the city banded together to find the culprits and retrieve the stolen goods. Businesses all over San Francisco were offering a year
of free ramen, steaks or cash rewards to find Pence’s ride.
Eventually when the scooter was returned to its rightful owner, Pence had it auctioned off to raise money for Make-A-Wish Greater Bay Area.
That reciprocal relationship between a baseball player and a city is something Pence does not take for granted: “What’s important to me is the human connection and being committed to each other in the community. Give love whether it’s given back or not.”
That brings us to a little boy named Charlie Teague. Charlie was 2 years old and at UCSF Medical Center for a series of surgeries to help correct a condition he was born with known as congenital melanocytic nevus. Pence discovered what Charlie was going through via Twitter and reached out to the parents. Within a few hours, Hunter and Alexis were at the hospital, playing catch with
Charlie from his hospital bed.
“Hunter does things out of the goodness of his heart, not out of self-promotion or anything like that. He’s just a good person. He cares,” said Stephanie Teague, Charlie’s mom.
For the last few years, Charlie (who is now 7) has visited Pence at the ballpark, even after Hunter joined the Rangers. He is affec-
tionately known as Mini-Pence to the fans and members of the media for dressing up like his idol, mini beard and all.
After one of his visits, Pence noticed that Charlie was still wearing the much-too-big batting gloves he had given him on his first visit to the hospital. Within a few weeks, he delivered Charlie his own custom gloves and mitt that fit him with “Charlie” inscribed in the leather.
“I just wanted to give him something to make him smile,” Pence said.
Kelly Teague, Charlie’s father, tears up while sharing how much their friendship has meant to their family: “Charlie had really big scars after his surgery and I guess I was always afraid he was going to get bullied. But something about having Hunter in his corner has made Charlie a super confident kid. It means so much to us, as parents.”
Charlie is certainly not the only fan relieved to see Pence back in the Bay Area. Wherever Pence goes, the shouts of “Welcome home” rain down. But Charlie does know how to crystalize the way Hunter Pence makes many people around here feel.
“I love him so much,” Charlie said. “And I think he's actually one of my best best best best best friends.”
“What’s important to me is the human connection and being committed to each other in the community. Give love whether it’s given back or not.”
Hunter PenceThe memories have been special ones, whether it was the relationship between Pence and Mini-Pence, top, or yet another bubbly celebration with Buster Posey after dispatching the Royals in 2014. Everyone ready to make some more? SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS; NHAT V. MEYER/STAFF FILE
The late-90s, early-2000s New York Yankees were villains because they won more than anyone else. The contemporary Houston Astros, however, are an entirely different story. The baseball world was flipped on its head when The Athletic published its bombshell report that the Astros illegally stole signs in 2017 and 2018. MLB conducted its investigation and handed out its punishments. Manager AJ Hinch and GM Jeff Luhnow were suspended, then subsequently fired. Houston was also fined and lost draft picks, but no players were suspended. A large contingent deemed the punishment too light and called for the 2017 title to be vacated. Countless players have ripped the Astros. Some pitchers have contemplated intentionally hitting Houston players. Even with all this madness, the Astros still project to be one of baseball’s best teams. But make no mistake: The Astros just became arguably the biggest villains in league history, making the aforementioned Yankees look like choir boys.
This past decade was not kind to the Dodgers. They won the second-most regular-season games and won the NL West seven straight times, but never got the big one. Part of their inability to get over the hump has been the front office’s unwillingness to go all in, but that mentality finally shifted. The Dodgers made a big trade, acquiring 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts and David Price from the Boston Red Sox. Amazingly enough, they acquired Betts without giving up Gavin Lux or Dustin May, their two top prospects who are expected to contribute in 2020. There are few teams in league history that have amassed as much talent as the contemporary Dodgers. Their lineup features two, in-their-prime MVPs and is arguably the best in the game. Betts will be a free agent after this season, so if the Dodgers are going to finally win a World Series, this is the year.
Now this is going to be fun. After last season’s doldrum of an offseason, several teams put forth the capital to improve and vault themselves into contention. The result? A season where more than half the teams
in the league could realistically make the playoffs. In the AL Central, the White Sox backed up the Brinks truck, signing free agents Yasmani Grandal, Dallas Keuchel and Edwin Encarnación as well as Luis Robert, MLB Pipeline’s No. 3 prospect, to a six-year, $50 million deal. In the AL West, the Angels signed Anthony Rendon and have emerged as a threat for a wild-card spot. The two divisions worth especially paying attention to are the NL Central and East, as both divisions boast four teams each that could conceivably
make the postseason. The Reds added Nicholas Castellanos, Mike Moustakas, Shogo Akiyama and Wade Miley. The Phillies inked Zack Wheeler and Didi Gregorius. Don’t forget about the Diamondbacks in the NL West. They added Madison Bumgarner and Starling Marte after winning 85 games last season. Aside from the Dodgers and Yankees, there are no real locks to win the division, which should make for some entertaining baseball down the stretch.
The Chicago White Sox splurged this winter, signing pitcher Dallas Keuchel, top left, among other big names. The Diamondbacks weren’t shy in the offseason either, adding Starling Marte and former Giant Madison Bumgarner.
Inside Oracle Park reads a quote by infamous owner Bill Veeck: “Baseball is the only thing besides the paper clip that hasn’t changed.” That’s no longer the case. There have been moves made in recent seasons, such as eliminating takeout slides and home plate collisions, reducing mound visits and the introduction of replay. While not inconsequential, strategic freedom has remained untouched. That is, until now. Major League Baseball rolled out a set of new rules ahead of the 2020 season, the most consequential being the “three batter minimum” for pitchers, the goal being to shave time off games. This rule will probably fall short of reducing the length of games, but its implications will be felt by a now endangered group of pitchers known as LOOGYs, or left-handed one out guys. Typically, these southpaws will be brought in to face lefthanded hitters, get them out, then be removed from the game. With this new rule, LOOGYs would basically be eliminated. Not only does this rule endanger the longevity of current LOOGYs, but eradicates the next generation, should this rule remain in place.
MLB instituted new roster rules ahead of the 2020 season and, while subtle, it will be interesting to see how teams navigate around these rules. Pre-September and postseason rosters expand from 25 to 26 with a maximum of 13 pitchers. In September, rosters shrink from 40 to 28 with a maximum of 14 pitchers. MLB also introduced the TwoWay Player Designation. If a player has totaled at least 20 innings pitched and at least 20 starts as a position player, with at least three plate appearances in each game, a player will be considered a Two-Way and not count as a pitcher. Due to the restrictions of position players pitching (a team must be losing or winning by more than six runs when he enters), players who want to become Two-Ways will essentially have to throw 20 innings while designated as a pitcher, then start 20 games while designated as a position player. For players such as Brendan McKay and Jared Walsh, the need to fulfill both the 20 inning/20 game qualification may make it difficult to earn Two-Way roster status despite their reputation as two-way players.
Signed nine-year, $324 million deal with New York Yankees: Since being traded to Houston, Cole has metamorphosed into one of baseball’s best pitchers. In 2019, Cole totaled career bests in innings pitched (212-1/3), strikeouts (326), ERA (2.50) and WAR (6.8). The Cy Young runner-up was just as dominant in October, recording a 1.72 ERA in five postseason starts. Cole will now take all the lessons learned from Houston’s analytically-driven front office and bring them to the Bronx, forming arguably the best pitching staff in all of baseball. With a tripledigit fastball coupled with a knuckle curve, slider and changeup, Cole is as unhittable as they come.
Traded to Los Angeles Dodgers from Boston Red Sox: Only two players have accrued more than 30 fWAR since 2015. One is Mike Trout. The other is Betts. Now, two of the game’s best outfielders play in Southern California. Betts is a legitimate five-tool player with potential to post another 10+ WAR season. Over the last four seasons, Betts has hit .305/.382/.535 and averaged 29 home runs, 94 RBIs and 24 steals, good for an OPS+ of 139. Now in the National League, there’s a legitimate chance Betts joins Frank Robinson and becomes the second player to win MVP in both leagues.
ANTHONY RENDON
Signed seven-year, $245 million deal with Los Angeles Angels: Fresh off a legendary World Series performance, Rendon heads West to give Mike Trout a legitimate, in-his-prime complementary superstar. Since 2017, Rendon has been one of the steadiest bats in the league, hitting .310/.397/.556 and averaging 28 home runs and 106 RBIs.
BY JUSTICE DELOS SANTOSBumgarner, along with batterymate Buster Posey, were the faces of the Giants’ dynasty. But given the state of affairs in San Francisco, it was time for Bumgarner and the Giants to move on from one another. Bumgarner has slightly regressed since the infamous dirt biking accident in 2017, but he has never suffered a pitching-related injury and is coming off a season in which he had a respectable 3.90 ERA and 3.2 fWAR over 2072⁄3 innings.
Acquired by White Sox in free agency: The White Sox cast the first stone of the offseason then kept on firing, immediately ending any concerns of another slow offseason. Chicago not only signed Grandal, Keuchel and Encarnación, but inked deals with Jose Abreu and Luis Robert, MLB Pipeline’s No. 3 overall prospect. Grandal is arguably the best catcher in baseball. Keuchel is a former Cy Young Award winner who brings legitimacy to the Sox’s rotation. Encarnación can still mash and has eight straight seasons of at least 32 home runs. They might be a year away from postseason contention, but this winter was a declaration that they’re ready to contend.
His 19.9 fWAR is the highest of any third baseman over the last three seasons. The signing gives Los Angeles a deadly trio featuring Trout, Rendon and Shohei Ohtani with Jo Adell, MLB Pipeline’s No. 6 prospect, waiting in the wings.
MADISON BUMGARNER
Signed five-year, $85 million deal with Arizona Diamondbacks: Of all the players who changed jerseys this offseason, none had as much of an attachment to his former club as Bumgarner did with the Giants. He helped bring home three titles and etched his name into baseball lore with arguably the most spectacular pitching performance in World Series history.
Gavin Lux, Dustin May: Along with their treasure trove of established talent, the Dodgers boast two of baseball’s best prospects in Lux and May, rated No. 2 and No. 32 in MLB Pipeline, respectively. Lux, an infielder, tapped into his raw power last season, slugging 28 combined home runs in Double-A and Triple-A before being called up. May started a couple games for Los Angeles, but mainly came out of the bullpen, totaling a 3.63 ERA in 34-2/3 innings.
Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Cavan Biggio: The future is now in Toronto. The Blue Jays boast not one, not two, but three sons of former players in their infield. That bloodline is plenty apparent as all three have the potential to morph into offensive stars. Last season, Biggio totaled 16 home runs and 14 steals in 100 games while Guerrero Jr. hit .272 and smacked 15 homers in 123 games. The most impressive of the trio, however, was Bichette. In 46 games, he slashed .311/.358/.930 with 11 home runs and 21 RBIs.
Fernando Tatis Jr.: If last season was a glimpse of what’s to come, the future of baseball is in good hands. The Padres’ Tatis Jr. electrified audiences with his daring baserunning, catching infielders sleeping to take an extra base or scoring from third on sacrifice flies. He was also a menace with the bat, slashing .317/.379/.590 with 22 home runs in 84 games. Entering his age-21 season, Tatis Jr. projects to be one of the game’s best shortstops for the next decade.
BY JUSTICE DELOS SANTOS
Signed with Cincinnati Reds: Much like the Chicago White Sox, the Cincinnati Reds were equally aggressive in the offseason, signing threetime All-Star Mike Moustakas and Nicholas Castellanos to multi-year deals. Moustakas and Castellanos have been two of the game’s premier power hitters over the last two seasons, averaging 34 and 25 home runs since 2017, respectively. The Reds also signed Japanese outfielder Shogo Akiyama and starting pitcher Wade Miley and those additions, plus the acquisition of Trevor Bauer at last year’s trade deadline, give Cincinnati the makings of a contender in the NL Central.
Jesús Luzardo: Luzardo stepped on the mound to face the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL Wild Card game relatively unknown to a national audience. After three scoreless innings, Luzardo departed with an aura as the A’s ace of the future. With a fastball that can touch triple digits combined
with a nasty slider and changeup, Luzardo has the tools to headline Oakland’s starting rotation for years to come.
Luis Robert: Before Robert played a single game at the major league level, the Chicago White Sox inked him to a six-year, $50 million contract extension with two club options this offseason. After dealing with injuries in 2017 and 2018, Robert was fully healthy last season, slashing .328/.376/.624 with 32 home runs and 36 steals. The White Sox could make him their starting center fielder come Opening Day.
Brendan McKay: The Tampa Bay Rays boast the league’s most progressive front office, so it’s only appropriate they have a prospect who embodies the versatility-centric future of baseball. McKay is one of many two-way players who have sprouted up in recent seasons. His pitching is far more advanced than his hitting — he had a 1.10 ERA compared to a .200 batting average last year in the minors — and he will primarily pitch this season.
Jo Adell: The Angels already provided Mike Trout with a complementary star by signing Anthony Rendon this offseason, but another in-house option is waiting in the wings. Adell, MLB Pipeline’s No. 6 overall prospect, might be joining Trout in the outfield soon enough. In 43 games with the Double-A Mobile BayBears, Adell slashed .308/.390/.553 with eight home runs.
The Houston Astros became arguably the most hated team in league history after being outed for sign stealing, but still have enough talent to contend for a title. The Yankees reclaimed full Death Star Status by swiping Gerrit Cole from Houston. In Anaheim, the Angels signed Anthony Rendon to pair with Mike Trout, and Shohei Ohtani could return to the rotation and fulfill his two-way superstar potential. The White Sox and Twins loaded up while Oakland and Cleveland boast intriguing mixes of talent.
Last year: 107-55 (1st place), lost to Washington Nationals in World Series, 4-3
Key newcomers: RHP Austin Pruitt, C Dustin Garneau
Key losses: SP Gerrit Cole, RP Will Harris, C Robinson Chirinos, OF Jake Marisnick, SP Aaron Sanchez, SP Wade Miley
Best-case scenario: The Astros continue to chug along despite their new role as baseball’s villains and contend for their second World Series title in four years.
Worst-case scenario: Houston crumbles amidst the pressure, Justin Verlander and Zack Greinke begin to show their age and they’re an early exit in the playoffs.
Last year: 97-65 (2nd place), lost to Tampa Bay Rays in AL Wild Card Game
Key newcomers: OF Tony Kemp, C Austin Allen
Key losses: SP Brett Anderson, SP Homer Bailey, 2B Jurickson Profar, SP Tanner Roark, RP Blake Treinen, RP Ryan Buchter, C Josh Phegley
Best-case scenario: Jesus Luzardo and A.J. Puk solidify Oakland’s rotation, Marcus Semien, Matt Chapman, Matt Olson and Ramon Laureano continue playing like budding stars and the A’s finally win the AL Wild Card Game.
Worst-case scenario: Oakland’s lack of established pitching comes back to bite and they miss the playoffs altogether.
Even with superstar Mike Trout, the Angels may not have enough firepower or pitching to make the playoffs.
Last year: 72-90 (4th place)
Key newcomers: 3B Anthony Rendon, SP Dylan Bundy, SP Julio Teheran, SP/RP Matt Andriese, C Jason Castro
Key losses: 1B Justin Bour, OF Kole Calhoun, SP Trevor Cahill, C Kevan Smith
Best-case scenario: Mike Trout and Rendon do superstar things, Andrelton Simmons and Shohei Ohtani return to form and the Angels get just enough out of their starting rotation to make the AL Wild Card Game.
Worst-case scenario: The Angels don’t get enough out of their rotation, Ohtani fails to re-
discover his pre-injury form, Rendon struggles to adapt to American League pitching and the Angels miss the playoffs.
Last year: 78-84 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: SP Corey Kluber, SP Kyle Gibson, SP Jordan Lyles, RP Joely Rodríguez, C Robinson Chirinos, 3B Todd Frazier
Key losses: IF Logan Forsythe, OF Nomar Mazara, OF Hunter Pence, RP Emmanuel Chase
Best-case scenario: Kluber, Gibson and
Lyles give Texas a legitimate one-through-five rotation, Nick Solak builds off an impressive rookie campaign and the Rangers field a competitive team that flirts with a wild-card spot.
Worst-case scenario: Texas’ offense sputters due to a lack of established hitting and the Rangers open up Globe Life Field with an uncompetitive team.
Last year: 68-94 (5th place)
Key newcomers: SP Kendall Graveman, RP Yoshihisa Hirano, RP Carl Edwards Jr.
Key losses: SP Félix Hernández, C Omar Narváez, RP Wade LeBlanc, OF Domingo Santana, OF Tim Beckham, OF Keon Broxton
Best-case scenario: Mitch Hanniger returns to All-Star form after coming back from injury. Justin Dunn, Kyle Smith, Justus Sheffield and other youths put together encouraging seasons. Jarred Kelenic, MLB Pipeline’s No. 13 prospect, tears up the minors and cooks up some hope for the future.
Worst-case scenario: Seattle’s youth struggles to develop and the team slogs through another uncompetitive season.
Last year: 101-61 (1st place), lost to New York Yankees in ALDS, 3-0
Key newcomers: 3B Josh Donaldson, SP Kenta Maeda, C Alex Avila, SP Homer Bailey,
Key losses: C Jason Castro, 1B CJ Cron, 2B Jonathan Schoop, SP Kyle Gibson, SP Martín Pérez, RP Trevor Hildenberger
Best-case scenario: The Bomba Squad, now including Donaldson, continues to hit bombs. Maeda, Hill and Bailey provide legitimate pitching come October and the Twins prove worthy of hanging with the American League’s big dogs.
Worst-case scenario: Minnesota’s home run-centric offense falters in the postseason and the Twins end the season still searching for their first postseason victory since 2004.
Last year: 93-69 (2nd place)
Key newcomers: 2B César Hernández, OF Delino DeShields, RP Emmanuel Chase, C Sandy León
Key losses: SP Corey Kluber, 2B Jason Kipnis, OF Yasiel Puig, RP Tyler Clippard
Best-case scenario: José Ramírez and Francisco Lindor play like super-duper stars and carry an otherwise average offense and the pitching staff is productive enough for Cleveland to reclaim the division title.
Worst-case scenario: Cleveland’s lack of offensive weapons and starting rotation depth are too much to overcome, the Indians miss the playoffs and the Lindor trade rumors get louder and louder.
Last year: 72-89 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: C Yasmani Grandal, SP Dallas Keuchel, DH Edwin Encarnación, SP Gio Gonzalez, OF Nomar Mazara, RP Steve Cishek
Key losses: C Welington Castillo, SP Iván Nova, RP Hector Santiago, 2B Yolmer Sanchez
Best-case scenario: Grandal, Keuchel and Encarnación provide a huge boost to Chicago’s existing core, Luis Robert, MLB Pipeline’s No. 3 prospect, looks the part of a future superstar and the White Sox give the Twins and Indians a run for their money.
Worst-case scenario: The splashy free agents aren’t enough to compete this season and the Sox miss the playoffs, remaining a year away from legitimate contention.
Last year: 59-103 (4th place)
Key newcomers: RP Greg Holland, 3B Maikel Franco
Key losses: IF Cheslor Cuthbert, RP Brad Boxberger
Best-case scenario: Adalberto Mondesi has his breakout season and Salvador Perez doesn’t miss a beat after missing last season and the Royals establish a sneakily good lineup
Best-case for the Indians? Francisco Lindor is his studly self and carries the team to the division title.
VICTOR DECOLONGON/GETTY IMAGES
while Jakob Junis and Brad Keller emerge as legitimate starters, giving Kansas City some pieces going forward.
Worst-case scenario: Jorge Soler, Whit Merrifield and Hunter Dozier regress and Perez can’t return to pre-injury form as the Royals record another 100-plus loss season.
Last year: 47-114 (5th place)
Key newcomers: 1B C.J. Cron, 2B Jonathan Schoop, C Austin Romine, SP Ivan Nova, OF Cameron Maybin
Key losses: SP Edwin Jackson, SP Matt Moore, SP Tyson Ross, RP Victor Alcántara
Best-case scenario: Matthew Boyd, Victor Reyes and Niko Goodrum emerge as pillars of the future. Casey Mize and Matt Manning pitch well enough in the minors to earn midseason call-ups. Veterans play well enough to generate buzz at the trade deadline and they’re flipped for prospects.
Worst-case scenario: Detroit’s young cubs don’t show growth and not a single position player has more than a 2+ WAR.
Last year: 103-59 (1st place), lost to Houston Astros in ALCS, 4-3
Key newcomer: SP Gerrit Cole
Key losses: DH Edwin Encarnación, SP CC Sabathia, RP Dellin Betances, SS Didi Gregorius, C Austin Romine
Best-case scenario: Cole continues to pitch at a Cy Young level while Miguel Andjuar and Giancarlo Stanton return to full health, giving the Bronx Bombers a legit one-through-nine lineup as the Yankees return to Death Star status.
Worst-case scenario: Injuries once again derail another season, leaving the Yankees still searching for their first championship in over a decade.
Last year: 96-66 (2nd place), lost to Houston Astros in ALDS, 3-2
Key newcomers: 1B Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, DH José Martínez, OF Manuel Margot, OF Hunter Renfroe, C Mike Zunino
Austin Meadows, Brendan McKay taps into his two-way potential and the Rays make the ALCS for the first time since 2008.
Worst-case scenario: The Rays’ collection of good-but-not-great hitting proves detrimental, the pitching staff regresses and they miss the playoffs.
Last year: 84-78 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: OF Alex Verdugo, SS Jeter Downs, SP Martín Pérez, RP Austin Brice, C Kevin Plawecki
Key losses: OF Mookie Betts, SP David Price, SP Rick Porcello, IF Brock Holt, C Sandy León
Best-case scenario: Xander Bogartes, Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez continue to mash, Andrew Benintendi and Jackie Bradley Jr. have career years and the offense provides fireworks to make up for the loss of Betts, willing Boston into wild-card contention.
Worst-case scenario: The loss of Betts, Price and Porcello is too much to remain competitive in an already top-heavy AL East and Boston’s championship window slams shut.
Last year: 67-95 (4th place)
Key newcomers: SP Hyun-Jin Ryu, SP Tanner Roark, SP Chase Anderson, IF Travis Shaw, SP Shun Yamaguchi, RP Anthony Bass
Key losses: 1B Justin Smoak, SP Clay Buchholz, RP Ryan Dull
Best-case scenario: Toronto’s young core of Bo Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Cavan Biggio emerge as budding stars and the Blue Jays make some noise as a budding, scrappy young team.
Worst-case scenario: The Jays’ young bats experience the sophomore slump and free agent signee Ryu can’t stay healthy.
Last year: 54-108 (5th place)
Key newcomers: SS José Iglesias, RP Kohl Stewart, RP Wade LeBlanc
Key losses: IF Jonathan Villar, SP Dylan Bundy, OF Mark Trumbo
Best-case scenario: Trey Mancini and Renato Nunez both once again slug 30-plus home runs and Ryan Mountcastle hits well upon his debut. Adley Rutschman lights up minor league pitching and breezes through the minors and the Orioles get another high draft pick.
Rafael Devers of the Red Sox is all smiles now, but may need another career season to keep the Red Sox in Wild Card contention.
MADDIE MEYER/GETTY IMAGES
Key losses: OF Tommy Pham, RP Emilio Pagan, C Travis d’Arnaud, OF Avisaíl García, 3B Matt Duffy, RP José De León
Best-case scenario: Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow stay healthy, Tsutsugo, Nate Lowe and Yandy Díaz break out to complement
Worst-case scenario: Baltimore’s pitching staff somehow gives up more home runs than last season and no young players emerge to complement Rutschman down the line.
The Dodgers, who added a superstar in Mookie Betts, are the only lock for the playoffs in the NL. The other five playoff spots are fair game. The champion Nationals lost All-Star third baseman Anthony Rendon. The Braves lost Josh Donaldson, but added several solid pieces. The Reds were aggressive while the Cardinals and Cubs have talent, but were passive in the offseason. The Brewers lost a significant chunk of their core, but still feature arguably the game’s best hitter. Don’t forget about Arizona, New York or Philadelphia either. This is going to be fun.
Last year: 106-56 (1st place), lost to Washington Nationals in NLDS, 3-2
Key newcomers: OF Mookie Betts, SP David Price, SP Alex Wood, RP Brusdar Graterol, RP
Blake Treinen, SP Jimmy Nelson
Key losses: OF Alex Verdugo, SP Hyun-Jin Ryu, SP Rich Hill, SP Kenta Maeda,1B David Freese, IF Jedd Gyorko
Best-case scenario: Betts and Price
seamlessly transition to the National League, Gavin Lux and Dustin May provide an influx of young talent and the Dodgers finally get the World Series monkey off their back.
Worst-case scenario: The Dodgers fall short of a World Series title and Betts walks in free agency.
Last year: 85-77 (2nd place)
Key newcomers: SP Madison Bumgarner, OF Starling Marte, OF Kole Calhoun, RP Hector Rondon, RP Junior Guerra, C Stephen Vogt
Key losses: IF Wilmer Flores, OF Adam Jones, OF Steven Souza Jr., OF Jarrod Dyson, RP Yoshihisa Hirano, C Alex Avila
Best-case scenario: The additions of Bumgarner and Marte, combined with the existing core headlined by Ketel Marte (no relation), are enough to push Arizona into a wild-card spot.
Worst-case scenario: Ketel Marte regresses after his career season and the Diamondbacks can’t muster enough offense from their lineup, ultimately missing the playoffs.
Last year: 70-92 (5th place)
The Dodgers, the top team in the West, are hoping pitcher Dustin May and an influx of young talent provide the spark that takes them to the World Series.
Key newcomers: OF Tommy Pham, RP Emilio Pagan, RP Drew Pomeranz, SP Zach Davies, OF Trent Grisham, 2B Jurickson Profar
Key losses: OF Manuel Margot, OF Hunter Renfroe, 2B Ian Kinsler, SP Eric Lauer, 2B Luis Urias
Best-case scenario: Fernando Tatis Jr. and Chris Paddack continue to serve as pillars of San Diego’s future. Top prospects MacKenzie Gore and Luis Patiño pitch well enough in the minors to earn call-ups and solidify San Diego’s rotation.
Worst-case scenario: Tatis Jr. regresses after his amazing freshman campaign, Wil Myers and Eric Hosmer’s contracts become albatrosses, further restricting San Diego’s financial flexibility, and the Padres finish 20 games below .500 for a fifth consecutive season.
Last year: 71-91 (4th place)
Key newcomers: C Drew Butera, RP Tyler Kinley
Key losses: 1B Yonder Alonso, SP Tyler Anderson, RP Chad Bettis
Best-case scenario: The Rockies generate enough offense from Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story, Charlie Blackmon, David Dahl and Ryan McMahon to be somewhat competitive, with top prospect Brendan Rodgers emerging to provide some additional juice.
Worst-case scenario: Colorado’s inactivity in the offseason results in another wasted season and Arenado’s relationship with the front office continues to sour.
Last year: 77-85 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: SP Kevin Gausman, SP Drew Smyly, OF Hunter Pence, IF Wilmer Flores, RP Jerry Blevins
Key losses: SP Madison Bumgarner, C Stephen Vogt, OF Kevin Pillar, RP Will Smith Best-case scenario: Young players such as
Mauricio Dubon, Steven Duggar and Jaylin Davis, among others, emerge as building blocks of the future. The team’s veteran arms, namely Jeff Samardzija, Gausman and Smyly, generate interest at the trade deadline and are dealt for prospects.
Worst-case scenario: Various members of the Giants’ youth struggle in full-time roles and members of their veteran infield continue to regress with age.
Last year: 75-87 (4th place)
Key newcomers: OF Nicholas Castellanos, IF Mike Moustakas, OF Shogo Akiyama, SP Wade Miley, RP Pedro Strop
Key losses: IF Jose Peraza, SS José Iglesias
Best-case scenario: Castellanos, Moustakas and Akiyama provide additional firepower and Joey Votto bounces back, giving the Reds enough offense to complement a very respectable starting rotation and win the division.
Worst-case scenario: Cincinnati’s starting rotation can’t replicate its production from last season, the crowded outfield creates problems with getting everyone playing time and the Reds’ postseason drought lives on.
Last year: 84-78 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: OF Steven Souza Jr., RP Jeremy Jeffress, RP Casey Sadler
Key losses: OF Nicholas Castellanos, SP Cole Hamels, IF Addison Russell, RP Pedro Strop, OF Tony Kemp, RP Derek Holland, OF/IF Ben Zobrist
Best-case scenario: Kris Bryant and Javier Báez play at an MVP level, the pitching staff overachieves as Jon Lester and Yu Darvish reverse recent trends and the Cubs find their way back into the playoffs.
Worst-case scenario: Chicago’s pitching staff becomes a weak link and the offense can’t score enough runs to make up the difference. The championship window further closes as the Cubs miss the playoffs and the team’s relationship with Bryant continues to deteriorate.
Last year: 91-71 (1st place), lost to Washington Nationals in NLCS, 4-0
Key newcomers: SP Kwang Hyun Kim, OF Austin Dean
Key losses: OF Marcell Ozuna, SP Michael Wacha, 1B/OF Jose Martinez, OF Randy
Korean lefty Kwang-Hyun Kim, top, who signed a 2-year, $8 million deal this offseason with the Cardinals, is vying for a spot in the rotation.
MICHAEL REAVES/ GETTY IMAGES
The Nationals starting rotation remains as strong as ever, with Stephen Strasburg returning for the defending World Series champs.
MIKE EHRMANN/ GETTY IMAGES
Arozarena
Best-case scenario: St. Louis’ young core of Paul DeJong, Tommy Edman and Harrison Bader translate their first taste of the playoffs into career years at the plate. Dylan Carson earns a midseason callup to provide an extra layer to the offense and the Cardinals get just enough out of their pitching staff to compete for a wild-card spot.
Worst-case scenario: The Cardinals’ inactivity in the offseason comes back to bite them, particularly when it comes to the pitching staff, Matt Carpenter, Yadier Molina and, to a lesser extent, Paul Goldschmidt show signs of decline and the Cardinals miss the playoffs.
Last year: 89-73 (2nd place), lost to Washington Nationals in NL Wild Card Game
Key newcomers: OF Avisaíl García, IF Justin Smoak, SS Luis Urias, SP Eric Lauer, SP Brett Anderson, SP Josh Lindblom, IF Jedd Gyorko, IF Ryon Healy, C Omar Narváez, UTIL Brock Holt
Key losses: C Yasmani Grandal, IF Mike Moustakas, SP Zach Davies, RP Drew Pomeranz, IF Travis Shaw, SP Chase Anderson, IF Eric Thames, OF Trent Grisham Best-case scenario: Christian Yelich and Keston Hiura continue to punish baseballs, Lorenzo Cain bounces back and Milwaukee’s top-of-the-line bullpen makes up for an OK starting rotation and the Brewers compete for the division crown..
Worst-case scenario: The Brewers can’t find
enough production to make up for the loss of Grandal, Moustakas and a plethora of others, Cain and Braun begin to show their age and they miss the postseason.
5. Pittsburgh Pirates
Last year: 69-93 (5th place)
Key newcomers: IF JT Riddle, OF Guillermo Heredia, C Luke Maile
Key losses: OF Starling Marte, OF Melky Cabrera, OF Lonnie Chisenhall, C Elias Díaz, SP Francisco Liriano
Best-case scenario: Bryan Reynolds, Josh Bell and Kevin Newman continue to provide hope for the future and prospect Ke’Bryan Hayes makes his way to the majors and Mitch Keller gets comfortable and emerges as a legitimate starting option alongside Jameson Taillon, Chris Archer and Joe Musgrove, all of which make the Pirates a sneakily competitive team.
Worst-case scenario: Pittsburgh’s foundational pieces regress and the Pirates rack up another 90-loss season.
Last year: 97-65 (1st place), lost to St. Louis Cardinals in NLDS, 3-2
Key newcomers: OF Marcell Ozuna, SP Cole Hamels, RP Will Smith, C Travis d’Arnaud
Key losses: 3B Josh Donaldson, SP Dallas Keuchel, SP Julio Teheran, C Brian McCann
Best-case scenario: The additions of Oznua and d’Arnaud help ease the burden of losing Donaldson, Ronald Acuña Jr., Ozzie Albies and Mike Soroka continue their ascension into stardom, the pitching staff sneakily emerges as one of the league’s best and the Braves make their first NLCS appearance since 2001. Worst-case scenario: Atlanta’s offensive production is weak outside of Acuña Jr., Albies and Freddie Freeman, the bullpen isn’t as good as advertised and the Braves miss the playoffs.
Last year: 93-69 (2nd place), won World Series over Houston Astros, 4-3
Key newcomers: RP Will Harris, IF Starlin Castro, 1B Eric Thames
Key losses: 3B Anthony Rendon, OF Gerardo
Parra, 2B Brian Dozier
Best-case scenario: The returning crop carries the swagger from last season’s championship, the starting rotation remains strong as ever, Juan Soto emerges as an MVP candidate and the Nationals win the division outright.
Worst-case scenario: The loss of Rendon
is too great a loss for the offense, Harris isn’t enough to stabilize a questionable bullpen and the Nationals miss the playoffs.
Last year: 86-76 (3rd place)
Key newcomers: SP Rick Porcello, RP Dellin Betances, SP Michael Wacha, OF Jake Marisnick
Key losses: SP Zack Wheeler, 3B Todd Frazier, OF Juan Lagares, IF Joe Panik
Best-case scenario: New York’s hitting core continues to mash, Betances, Edwin Diaz and Jeurys Familia have bounceback seasons to form an elite bullpen and the Mets come away with the division.
Worst-case scenario: Pete Alonso, J.D. Davis and Jeff McNeil can’t replicate last year’s offensive numbers, the bullpen is mediocre, Yoenis Céspedes and Robinson Cano’s contracts become sunk costs and the Mets miss the playoffs.
Last year: 81-81 (4th place)
Key newcomers: SP Zack Wheeler, SS Didi Gregorius
Key losses: OF Corey Dickerson, SP Jason Vargas, RP Pat Neshek, IF César Hernández, IF Maikel Franco
Best-case scenario: Behind incumbents Bryce Harper, Rhys Hoskins and J.T. Realmuto, the addition of Gregorius and a healthy Andrew McCutchen, the Phillies become a formidable offensive team, scoring enough runs to mask a questionable pitching staff and compete for a wild-card spot.
Worst-case scenario: The pitching staff’s lack of depth sinks any aspirations of postseason contention and the Harper-era Phillies once again miss the postseason.
Last year: 57-105 (5th place)
Key newcomers: OF Corey Dickerson, IF Jonathan Villar, RP Yimi García, 1B Jesús Aguilar, C Francisco Cervelli
Key losses: IF Starlin Castro, OF Curtis Granderson, IF Neil Walker, RP Wei-Yin Chen, IF Martín Prado
Best-case scenario: Brian Anderson and Isan Díaz have great seasons at the plate and give the Marlins’ offense some long-term clarity, veterans get flipped at the deadline for prospects. Sixto Sanchez earns a midseason call-up and looks the part of a future ace and the Marlins get another good pick for another last-place finish.
Worst-case scenario: Miami records another 100-plus loss season without any future building blocks rising to the surface.
