As the 2023 regular season continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Padres broadcast rights revert to MLB:
Following last night’s decision by Diamond Sports Group to allow their rights to broadcasting Padres games to lapse, MLB has taken over broadcasting Padres games for the foreseeable future. In-market Padres fans can find games on MLB.TV for free through this coming Sunday, after which point they’ll be available for a $19.99 monthly fee or $74.99 for the rest of the season. Games are also expected to be made available in-market on alternative cable platforms.
The distribution change comes in the midst of what has been a difficult season for the Padres. Despite setting lofty expectations that left fans dreaming on surpassing the Dodgers as the top dog in the NL West, the group of assembled stars in San Diego have largely struggled to live up to expectations, with only Juan Soto and Josh Hader producing at their typical All Star-caliber levels. This, combined with a rotation that has only gotten consistent and healthy performance from veteran right-hander Michael Wacha, has left the Padres to struggle to a 25-29 record, fourth-best in the division and with five teams standing between them an NL Wild Card berth.
2. Tigers roster move(s) coming:
The Tigers acquired veteran outfielder Jake Marisnick from the White Sox yesterday and plan to select him to the roster ahead of this afternoon’s game against the Rangers. A corresponding move will be necessary to make room for Marisnick on both the active and 40-man rosters. A quality outfield defender and baserunner, Marisnick spent much of his career as a member of the Astros but has also played for the Marlins, Mets, Cubs, Padres, Pirates, and White Sox in his 11-season career prior to landing with the Tigers.
The Tigers planned to select Marisnick even before center fielder Riley Greene departed yesterday’s game with discomfort in his left leg, but that injury could potentially clear an active roster spot depending on its severity. Any missed time for Greene would sting, as the former top prospect has broken out in the early going this season with a.296/.362/.463 batting line (127 wRC+), solid center field defense, five home runs and six steals (without being caught).
3. Freeman, Semien look to extend hitting streaks to 20 games:
A pair of veteran stars are looking to extend hitting streaks to 20 games for the top clubs in the West divisions. In the NL, superstar first baseman Freddie Freeman has slashed an unbelievable .455/.522/.831 with five home runs and 12 doubles during the hitting streak, lifting his season-long production to an NL-leading 169 wRC+. Semien’s heroics haven’t quite reached that Herculean level over in the AL, though the infielder has still slashed a strong .313/.344/.530 during his own hitting streak. Looking at Semien’s season as a whole, his strong offense combined with stellar defense at second base has allowed him to accumulate 2.5 fWAR — sixth-best in the majors and top three in the junior circuit. Freeman will look for a hit in his 20th consecutive game against the Nationals at 3:10pm CT this afternoon, while Semien will do the same against the Tigers at 12:10pm CT.
Solid defense for Riley Greene? The guy makes highlight reel catches all the time and is great defensively.
Nice name bro. And I agree
Slightly below average DRS (-1) and slightly above average OAA. (1) = a solid, but far from spectacular defensive player. Just because Riley occasionally takes a bad route and recovers to make what looks like a highlight reel catch doesn’t mean he is a great defender. He is not. He is average.
Average is valuable, especially when he can hit and plays a premier position in CF. Its a shame he is injured.
If you watched the team, at all, you would know his great catches are not from bad routes. He doesn’t have the most range and plays rather deep, though.
So he doesn’t have great range, but the team has him play deep?
That makes no sense at all.
Facts are he has above average reaction time and speed but runs bad routes.
baseballsavant.mlb.com/leaderboard/outfield_jump You will find him down at #54 on that list.
baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/riley-greene-… You will find his speed there.
Bringing the receipts. Ouch!
The crazy thing is that while 20 games is certainly impressive, it’s still not even 1/2 way to Joe D’s 56.
If 20 not being equally to 28 is crazy, you may be blown away by calculus :/
The Braves should’ve just paid Freddie
I’m super stoked on Olson. Hometown boy playing for his team. Freddie is a dodger
Yeah, I never said Olson was bad. The contract Freddie ended up signing won’t even be an albatross considering all the contracts that bad deals that were signed this off-season.
FYI: ATL’s offer was better than the offer he accepted in LAD, with higher taxes and a lot of deferred money that he’s not charging LAD ANY (!!!) interest on. TB had the highest offer, reportedly. Also, please move on.
The Braves offered him more than the Dodgers. When you offer a player more than any team in baseball offered him, it is incumbent upon the player to accept. You can’t force a guy to stay.
See: Piazza, Mike
I’ve almost gotten over it.
To be fair, all 36 Padres fans have the money to pay to watch.
Have you seen the HUGE 40k crowds in S.D the last couple yrs?
Maybe he meant 3.6 …as in millions? I’ll give the benefit of the doubt on a typo for the decimal point!
Tiger moves to free up roster space for Marisnick? Wingenter to the 60-day (hasn’t pitched since April 15) to free up 40-man space and Ibanez to AAA to open a spot on the 26-man roster. Or they could do both in one clean move by DFA’ing Ibanez or Schoop. I don’t think any of those would harm the team.
I think in-market Padres fans should get the watch the game for free for the rest of the season. This is bull that they have to pay because of Diamond Group’s screw up.
Could not agree more. My 14,12,and 10 year old sons are watching baseball, but not the hometown Pads??? Such a stain on MLB.
Padres fans will be able to watch games on all the satellite, cable or streaming TV providers they are used to watching games on and a couple of new ones. They don’t have to pay additional money to watch.
They will ALSO be able to get a package on MLB.tv to watch the Padres in-market for $19.99 per month if they DON’T have satellite, cable, or a streaming service like Fubo or YouTubeTV.
Freddie’s veneers cost more than your kid’s college education.
Two 20 game hitting streaks!!! Longtime Braves and current Cardinals broadcaster Chip Carey must be so excited. Heck, he was probably onto it when it was at 3 games. Nothing more exciting!!! Chip could even tell us who has the current longest hitting steak during day games. (and home games, away games, at specific stadiums,etc.)
Only problem is 75% of the stats and things that came out of Chips mouth were false. Brandon > Chip
Definitely. Anyone is better than Chip. I can listen to Joe Simpson if he is beside someone with a brain but having Simpson as the “analyst” with Chip was awful. They fed off each other’s low IQ. Peter Moylan is quite decent actually. And I love the accent
Brandon giggles too much and is becoming very annoying very quickly.
I mute most t.v. announcers now.
There was a button I could press during some of the playoff games one year where the announcers were muted but the game wasn’t. I wish I could do it again. And I agree. I don’t think he’s particularly good. But when you’ve been watching Chip for a decade anything seems good by comparison. Jon Sciambi was good. Does Cubs games now.
Still such a bummer Braves let Freeman slip away. Gotta know when a player is the type of guy who is gonna do big things into his 30s. It’s a work ethic, mentality thing. Everyone who watched him consistently knew he was capable of being even better. Dodgers pick the right guys. Enjoy these great years.
1-Olson is fine.
2-Freeman took less money from the Dodgers. That’s all they can do. If Freeman wants to play in LA for less money, then Atlanta has no way out.
Olsen is certainly very good. But the rest of what you said is extremely misleading. Atlanta traded for Olsen before Freeman signed. They could have offered Freeman more. While Olsen is, once again, very good, Freeman is an elite hitter who isn’t streaky like Olsen. Freeman is better is all I’m saying. They didn’t offer him more because of his age, but extremely dedicated people who play a position that isn’t taxing, and have HOF level talent, generally perform well in their 30-36 (approx) seasons, if not longer. It was a product of looking at it all (age wise) too analytically. IDK why you say he took less. I haven’t seen any info the Braves went over 135m. Maybe he took less per year but that’s an extra guaranteed mid-30s year for the player.
Agree. Freeman use to give in a little with two strikes and masterfully “wrist” those singles to all parts of the shallow outfield.
Still stung by his leaving.
Missing Dansby as well.
They could have offered Freeman more.
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They couldn’t really.
If you were buying a house and the high bid was $400k, so you offered $425k, you wouldn’t raise your bid unless the #2 guy decided to outbid you.
Freeman is better than Olsen this year and perhaps a better offensive threat so far than everyone in the NL except Acuna. But I’d still take the Olsen deal as it’s likely Freeman declines (assuming age becomes a factor) in next few years while Olsen hasn’t likely reached prime yet. The Braves FO is savvy
What I’m trying to say is that Freeman’s agent was using the Dodgers to push up the price for ATL. But once the Braves signed Olson the hand flopped. No other team except Tampa was in I think. At that point he decided to go to Cali, where he is from. He had to “settle” for LA. Freeman has all but said this if you read between the lines. Chipper Jones has basically said it. They are good friends.
Listen when they asked him if he had any regrets about his free agency. He is crying like a baby and saying “I don’t even want to get into that, because…regrets….yeah…definitely.” something to that effect. He was clearly sad but angry also. The next year people said he advised Swanson (same agent) to take control of the process himself.
Factor in that they traded minor league “talent” for Olsen and it’s more head scratching. They could have just offered Freeman more money. It’s not like it was bad trading for and signing Olsen (quite the opposite) but I think they should have just re signed Freeman and kept the prospects for another trade. Consider that they got Olsen for those prospects. What else could they have gotten? They wouldn’t have to have traded for a first baseman if they weren’t being so cheap to a franchise icon. Perhaps they just wanted all the attention on Acuna for marketing/branding purposes
Do the math. The Braves offered Freddie more than the dodgers without deferred payments and California tax. Freddie didn’t want a statue he is just a human and preferred the happy wife happy life mantra.
Factor in that they traded minor league “talent” for Olsen
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The fact that they pay Olson a lot less makes up for the minor league talent. It is $21M v $27M, so the Braves save $36M in the first 6 years.
Freddie didn’t want a statue he is just a human and preferred the happy wife happy life mantra.
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IMHO, he thought he could just string the Braves along, and that they would never let him go, being a team icon and all. He thought wrong. It’s not unlike negotiating for a house. You need to weigh how much you want the house versus how much you want to save a few dollars.
I propose you look deeper into this. His camp set a deadline for negotiations without his consent and the As were on the line asking if the Olson deal was a go or not. If they didn’t pull the trigger then the Olson deal probably wouldn’t have happened. Freeman said to the press that everyone close to him knows what happened and that he regretted it all. That’s why Kershaw said what he said about Freeman not wanting to play for the Dodgers (basically). Freeman fired the agent. Read between the lines. He was just bargaining. He was always gonna go back to ATL in his mind. His agent pushed too far too quickly. Next thing Olson is in ATL and they have no need for Freeman at that point. All Freeman can do is sign the other deal.
I heard the ultimatum was 24 hrs for the Braves to pick between a 5 year and a six year deal, both for more actual money in the bank than he ended up getting…by a good bit. I think the six year deal was 185 and I forget the five year deal but I think 160? All this while the As were on hold. I heard this several places. On YouTube, in articles. I don’t exactly know from whom. I assumed it to be the case.
The reason these statements about him taking less for LA are wrong is because when he signed there was no offer from Atl. So he didn’t pick LA’s offer over ATL. ATL chose to get Olson and take themselves out of it. You are all making it seem as if when he signed that deal there was an offer from Atl but there wasn’t. There was no offer made the entire off-season from Atl. It was merely the extension they had offered earlier. His camp seemed to think he’d eventually get more than he got.
Freeman ended up firing his agent over the debacle. From what has been reported publicly it seems as though his agent was not all that forthcoming with him and was play games with negotiations to drive up value and therefore his commission. Sadly with how insane these contracts have gotten I’m sure there are quite a few agents who are negotiating their own interests as well. Say what you will about Boras, but for all of his scuzzy qualities I don’t think manipulating clients is one of them. They go to him knowing the default end game is a maximum contract above all else.
Because of all the deferred money, Freeman took less money to go to the Dodgers.
Just want to say how much I love this place. I’ve been stifling through other controversial articles (related to the dodgers) on every other sports page this morning and today except this one. If you want REAL baseball journalism, this is the place to be.
In response to this, I just signed up to be a yearly member, after years of being a lurker. Keep up the good work guys. I’m thankful for this place
The Tigers have had a nice run a preview of sorts for next season. Geene just went on the 10 day with a stress fracture. It’s time for them to play Miguel more especially after yesterdays game. Then do their platoon thing with the other positions.
The pitching is too bad for them to win the central this year, but they are fun to watch. Next year will be better.
MPrck;
To me the Tigers have been the biggest upside surprise in MLB this year.
Even in games they lost against superior teams, they played hard, smart and stayed in the game. A 180 from the past 5 or so years.
Kudo to Harris, the new front office, and the culture they’ve implemented.
Yes, I agree, they really been very surprising to everyone.
Or you can just stop freeloading, be a man, and pay for it.
Agreed with the sentiment, earn what you want, pay for what you have. But…Pads fans have been given the shaft this year, subtle concessions could be made.
What shaft other than the team having a losing record? They can watch the games on all the carriers they could before and the Padres added several more. IF they don’t have TV or streaming from someone like FUBO or YouTube TV they can now buy an in market package to watch the games on MLB.tv for $19.99 a month. They are better off now than when DSG was running the show.
I couldn’t agree more. People have to pay for what they want, or else what they want will cease to exist. I expect to be paid for my work, so I have to expect to pay others for their work. I always have the option of saying no.
Corporate stooge post!
Why pay for something that’s free? Stupid people usually pay for things others can easily get for free. Very stupid people.
Pay 20 bucks a month to have restrictions on what you’re allowed to watch
Watch whatever game you want for free whenever you want. No restrictions
I’d pay 20 bucks if they offered all games and didn’t pull shady things. But why should you pay 20 bucks just to be told you’re not adopted to watch the game today cause it’s blacked out?
Funny how you talk about my honor while defending a multi billion dollar organization that literally prevents people from enjoying a product they pay to watch but aren’t always allowed to…… cause reasons.
Do you enjoy paying full price and not getting what you pay for? Stupid.
If you paid a restaurant full price for a meal and got 75% of it you’d demand a refund
If you paid full price for gas and got 75% of the value you’d be mad
If you paid full price for any product but didn’t get 100% of what you’re paying for you’d be mad.
The only thing I find suspect in this article is the statement that Juan Soto has been producing at his typical all star level this year. He’s been healthy – I won’t deny that – but he’s clearly not doing what he did in WAS. There was even an article in MLBTR about a month ago pointing out that his performance to that point (in SD) makes the likelihood of an extension fairly unlikely.
I’m looking forward to that negotiation. So far, it is looking like 30 Hrs, a ton of walks, and a weak fielder. That has value, but the dude turned down $450M, and I wouldn’t offer much more than $300M, if that.
That said, He could easily hit 45 HRs next year, and Preller could easily offer him that $450M. As always, it only takes one GM to think a given player is the missing link.
@solaris have you seen his numbers over the last 30 games? OPS of 1.085. Yes, he started the season painfully slow, but he’s been producing at an all star level for well over a month now.
The Padres broadcast rights don’t revert to MLB, they revert to the Padres.
In-market Padres fans can find games on every satellite, cable and streaming provider they were used to seeing them on and the Padres added several new ones.
If they don’t have one of those local TV providers they can subscribe to an in-market single team MLB.tv package and watch games with no blackouts in the Padres TV territory.
If they live out-of-market, Padres fans can continue to watch on MLB.tv.
.
I think most people know that Freddy is the superior player TODAY; but the Braves opted to see who’d be the better player FOUR years from now.
Don’t forget what they gave up to acquire Olsen vs signing Freddie as a free agent.
vivalosdoyers;
I’ll bite……
Don’t forget how much cheaper Olsen is than Freddie…..which left them money to acquire and pay Murphy as well as extend a few of their young players.
Either way the Braves are winning.
Pirating is against the law, so yes, you can get in trouble. Chances of getting caught are slim, but its still not the right thing to do.
Good thing it’s free and I’m not making a profit off of it. And good thing I’m not the one reproducing it.
Kind of like how people that buy fake fashion designer brands aren’t the ones that get in trouble. It’s the people selling the fake brands that do.
Use or reproduce (another’s work) for profit without permission, usually in contravention of patent or copyright.
Watching pirated materials is a crime. Have you ever watched that little video at the beginning of every DVD?
You mean the one that says you cannot make copies or distribute said copies? Yeah. Youre not the one making copies nor distributing said copies (hosting a website to distribute copies). You people don’t really understand pirating laws do you? It shows.