Major League Baseball has several new rules going into effect for the 2023 season. The new rules have been tested in spring training (except for the shortened time to decide on replay reviews), discussed, debated, and in the case of when the clock starts between batters, slightly tweaked. There may be another new twist during the upcoming season, as teams try to find a way to shift within the...
The Cleveland Guardians and All-Star Andrés Giménez have agreed to a contract extension that will lock the second baseman to the Guardians through potentially the 2031 season, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan. The extension, which will start in 2024, is for seven years and $106.5 million. The Guardians have a club option for 2031, as well. As Passan points out, the deal will buy out...
The new rules in Major League Baseball for 2023 have been discussed over and over. Is the pitch clock good or bad for the game? Will the larger bases protect infielders and encourage more stolen bases? How about the “two disengagements” rule? Will base runners (such as Tim Locastro) feel emboldened to take off after two attempted pickoffs, knowing that if the pitcher throws over...
The start of the 2023 MLB Season is just days away. We are continuing our NL East preview here at Metsmerized with the Atlanta Braves, the reigning division champions. Atlanta spent most of last season trailing the New York Mets in the division, but a sensational run from June through September helped the Braves erase a 10.5-game lead to win the NL East pennant. They failed to continue that...
As expected, Diamond Sports Group, the owner of 14 Bally regional sports networks (RSNs) that carry Major League Baseball games, filed for bankruptcy on March 15. This filing may immediately affect the Texas Rangers and have implications for how MLB games are broadcast in the near future. On March 11, the Rangers notified Diamond Sports that they would seek to terminate their relationship with...
The Team USA offense has gotten red hot at the right time. On Sunday night, they were able to dominate Cuba, 14-2, in Miami as they have reached the World Baseball Classic final for the second consecutive time. They await the winner of the Mexico-Japan semifinal, which will be played tomorrow night. It did not look good early as Cuba got on the board first against Adam Wainwright. After three...
Only four teams remain in the 2023 WBC. Tonight, one team is going to punch their ticket to the championship game. That’ll either be Cuba or the USA. Meanwhile, tomorrow night, Mexico and Japan will play to see who makes up the other half of the WBC final. That aforementioned final is scheduled for Tuesday, March 21 in Miami, Florida. Cuba vs. USA, 7:00 PM ET To get to the semifinals, Cuba...
The first question that needs to be answered is, “if there are changes in how Major League Baseball games are available on television, will those changes affect the broadcast of New York Mets games?” The answer is no, but significant changes in television coverage may be coming very soon for almost two-thirds of MLB teams. The story, as documented in an article by Daniel...
We are a little over two weeks into Grapefruit and Cactus League action, as Major League Baseball prepares for an historic season. Historic in the sense that every team will play every other team, and several new rules will be implemented. The objectives are to speed up the games and add more offense, and in particular, more in-play action. It’s only natural to ask the question, “so,...
With Mets’ starter Jose Quintana potentially missing a significant part of the season with a rib fracture, the Mets will need the likes of David Peterson and Tylor Megill to step up as depth in the rotation. Megill, making his third outing of the spring, tossed four scoreless innings in the Mets’ 9-3 win over the Marlins in Jupiter on Monday afternoon. Megill allowed three hits and a...
Both USA and Puerto Rico are set to play their second games of the World Baseball Classic. In game one for the United States, they defeated Great Britain 6-2. Adam Wainwright was credited with the win, and the USA was led by Kyle Schwarber and his two-run home run offensively. Meanwhile, Puerto Rico defeated Nicaragua 9-1 on Saturday. Marcus Stroman picked up the win, and Mets’ shortstop...
The New York Mets made it to the World Series in 2015 in large part because of pitcher Matt Harvey and slugger Yoenis Céspedes and on Thursday morning those two were opponents as Italy took on Cuba in the World Baseball Classic. Neither player saw major league time in 2022 with Harvey pitching to a 3.72 ERA in the Orioles’ minor leagues and Céspedes only playing a few games in the...
