Quick Hits: Puerto Rico, Ballparks, Ohtani, Minors Pay

Indians star Francisco Lindor hit a memorable home run in last night’s tilt in Puerto Rico’s Hiram Bithorn Stadium, the San Juan landmark that was hit hard by Hurricane Maria. You can hear Lindor discuss the well-timed long ball ball in a video at MLB.com. And you’ll also want to review the huge effort that went into getting the ballpark ready to host a MLB game amidst the widespread devastation on the island, as Joe Mock writes for USA Today Sports.

Here are some other interesting recent stories from around the game:

• Dayn Perry of CBS Sports examines the ballpark history of the South Side of Chicago — and more generally — in an interesting piece that’s well worth your time. The machinations to replace Old Comiskey ultimately left the club playing in what’s now known as Guaranteed Rate Field, but the Sox missed a chance at a mythical park known in concept as Armour Field. Anyone with even a passing interest in how society interacts with stadiums ought to give this a read (or, at least, open it in a browser tab for future consideration).
• Though Shohei Ohtani struggled in a much-anticipated outing last night, the Angels’ new star remains the most interesting player in baseball. That’s true not only for North American fans just getting acquainted with the incredibly talented young player, but also those in Japan who have long been awed by his skill. As Dave Sheinin of the Washington Post writes, the insatiable appetite for news on Ohtani has left Japanese media members engaged in a non-stop drive for stories. That has put quite a strain on the journalists operating a long way from home, as Sheinin explores in this interesting piece.
• Hard-working scribes aren’t the only folks pushing themselves for sometimes meager rewards in the game of baseball. Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch recently penned a valuable article on the minor-league grind, which often means long hours for little compensation. Pay for non-40-man players remains an important topic, and this is a good look at just why it matters for the many hopeful big leaguers who are plying their trade all around the country, waiting for a chance not only to play the game at its highest level, but also to achieve some financial security.