This Week in Baseball
-Taylor Ballinger, Matt Korte, Jeff Gangloff
Good morning, Nation. Short one for you, this week. Matt’s out of town and Jeff’s bachelor partying it in the Big Easy. We’ll be back and better than ever next week. As always, hope you enjoy – and let us know what you think by posting below. We’re open to healthy discussion.
Ned Yost’s new Apple Watch prompts suspicion from MLB by Mike Oz, Yahoo
Apparently someone is buying the Apple Watch. Ned Yost was caught on camera sporting the high tech Apple timepiece during the Royals Sunday night contest against the Angels. Although he apparently wasn’t breaking any rules, MLB did contact him to discuss the issue. (Gangloff)
How Paul Goldschmidt turned himself into a perennial MVP candidate by Ben Reiter, Sports Illustrated
Paul Goldschmidt may be one of the best players that no one talks about. He has had a lot of success early in his career but has had to take a different road than many other perennial MVP candidates to achieve such success. Ben Reiter of Sports Illustrated explores where Goldschmidt came from, how he emerged to greatness, and what exactly makes Paul Goldschmidt Paul Goldschmidt. (Gangloff)
Baseball Fever Grows in Montreal With Hope of a New Team by David Waldstein, NY Times
I posted an article a few weeks ago about the greatest baseball stadium that never was, Labatt Park in Montreal. Perhaps that stadium could become a reality in the near future, though. Montreal, a metropolitan area of over four million people, is the largest city in North America without a baseball team – and it seems like the city is as ready as it’s been in years to support a club. Personally, I’d love to see Tampa move to Montreal and set up two great AL East rivalries. Boston/New York and Toronto/Montreal in the same division would be a lot of fun. (Ballinger)
David Denson, Gay Minor Leaguer, Has Power but Faces Long Odds by Daniel Victor, NY Times
David Denson made news this week, becoming the first active player associated with Major League Baseball to come out as gay. He still faces long odds to make it to the Majors, as this story notes, but kudos to the Brewers organization, MLB, and Denson’s teammates for their overwhelmingly positive reactions. (Ballinger)