The Opener

As the 2023 postseason continues, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. ALCS Game 3:

Future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer is set to take the mound tonight for the first time since September 12, when he posted 5 1/3 scoreless innings against the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on 72 pitches. The Rangers will hope for a similar outcome tonight as the ALCS heads to Globe Life Field for Game 3 today, as manager Bruce Bochy has indicated that Scherzer’s “baseline” for tonight could be around 70 pitches as he makes his first competitive appearance in more than a month, taking the mound against Astros righty Cristian Javier. Scherzer sports a 3.77 ERA and 4.32 FIP in 27 starts this season, though those numbers (3.20 ERA and 3.41 FIP) are far more impressive in eight starts since joining the Rangers.

Javier, meanwhile, posted mediocre numbers during the regular season with a 4.56 ERA and matching 4.58 FIP. That being said, Javier is an accomplished postseason pitcher with a career 1.91 ERA in 37 2/3 innings of work, including 16 1/3 scoreless innings across three career postseason starts. The clubs have also indicated that changes to their starting lineups may be in the cards tonight, with Astros manager Dusty Baker suggesting a move down the lineup could be in play for outfielder Kyle Tucker, who’s marred in an 2-for-22 slump this offseason. Meanwhile, Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News relays that, per Bochy, rookie outfielder Evan Carter could move up to the third spot in the lineup for this evening’s game. The rookie has torn the cover off the ball this postseason, with a .350/.536/.700 slash line in 28 trips to the plate.

2. NLCS Travel Day:

The Diamondbacks are heading back to Arizona licking their wounds today, as after sweeping the Brewers and Dodgers out of the playoffs en route to the ALCS the club was unable to recreate that magic against in Philadelphia. After losing 5-3 in Game 1 with ace right-hander Zac Gallen on the mound, the club turned to veteran Merrill Kelly and got an even more worrisome outcome, as the Phillies dominated in a 10-0 romp that sent them to Arizona with a 2-0 lead in seven-game set. Pending free agent Aaron Nola dominated the Diamondbacks over six scoreless innings with seven strikeouts, while Kyle Schwarber slugged two of the club’s three home runs on the evening. Philadelphia has yet to announce the club’s Game 3 starter for tomorrow, while the Diamondbacks will go with youngster Brandon Pfaadt as they try to avoid falling into an 0-3 hole in the NLCS.

3. Braves Live Chat:

The Braves installment of the 2023-24 edition of MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook series was published yesterday, as the club looks for answers following a second consecutive 100+ win campaign cut short in four games at the hands of the Phillies during the NLDS. If you have any questions about the coming offseason in Atlanta, you can tune in at 1:15pm CT for a live chat with MLBTR’s Anthony Franco. This link will allow you to submit a question in advance, participate live, or read the transcript afterward.

Here are three things we’re monitoring around baseball today…

1. NLCS Game 2:

The Phillies took the first game of the National League Championship series, winning last night’s contest 5-3 to take a 1-0 lead in the series. The second game goes tonight at 7:07 pm Central, with Merrill Kelly starting for the Diamondbacks and Aaron Nola for the Phillies. Can Arizona even the series or will the Phils take a 2-0 lead out west? Kelly tossed 6 1/3 scoreless innings in his one postseason start thus far while Nola, an impending free agent, has a 1.42 ERA in his 12 2/3 innings so far in this year’s playoffs.

2. ALCS travel day:

The Rangers managed to hold on to a 5-4 victory yesterday, giving them a 2-0 lead in the ALCS. That puts the defending-champion Astros in a tight spot, heading to Arlington for three straight games there. They will need to win two of those three contests on the road just to stay alive and send the series back to Houston for Game 6. Game 3 is tomorrow night with Cristian Javier set to square off against Max Scherzer, who will be making his return from an injury that once seemed season-ending. A situation worth monitoring will be Yordan Alvarez, who has been sick and was almost held out of the Game 2 lineup. As relayed by Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic, Alvarez insisted on playing and ended up hitting a pair of home runs yesterday. Ideally, the off-day will give him a chance to get over his illness but it certainly didn’t seem to hamper his performance.

3. What’s next for Kim Ng:

Yesterday brought the surprising news that the Marlins and general manager Kim Ng would not be continuing their relationship for another year. The club reportedly exercised a mutual option for 2024 but she did not trigger her end, seemingly motivated by the club being unwilling to give her a longer extension and because they planned to install a president of baseball operations above her. Given that the Marlins have fared well during her tenure, she figures to get interest from other clubs, but it’s unknown if she wants to immediately jump into a new job or take some time to mull things over. The Mets are looking for a general manager, but one that would work under president of baseball operations David Stearns. The Sox are also on the hunt for a GM but reporting indicates it’s not the most attractive job in the league, for various reasons.

Here are three things we’re monitoring around the baseball world today…

1. ALCS Game 2:

The American League Championship series began last night, with the Rangers taking the first contest. Thanks to 6 1/3 shutout innings from starter Jordan Montgomery and then 2 2/3 scoreless/hitless innings from the bullpen, Texas shut out Houston 2-0 and took a 1-0 lead in the series. Game 2 gets going this afternoon at 3:37 pm Central with Nathan Eovaldi taking the ball for the Rangers. He will be looking to lead the club to victory and therefore bring a 2-0 series lead to Arlington for Game 3. But Framber Valdez will be on the bump for Houston and looking to even the series up at a game apiece.

2. NLCS Game 1:

The second game of the day will see the National League Championship Series begin, with the Diamondbacks and Phillies getting underway at 7:07 pm. A couple of Cy Young candidates will be squaring off against each other, as Zac Gallen is on the hill for Arizona and Zack Wheeler on the other side. Gallen tossed 210 innings in the regular season with a 3.47 ERA and has since made two postseason starts with a 3.18 ERA. Wheeler tossed 192 innings in the regular season with a 3.61 ERA and has since made two playoff starts of his own with a 2.08 ERA in those.

3. Giants managerial search:

There are four clubs with managerial vacancies at the moment, with the Giants, Guardians, Angels and Mets all looking for new skippers. It’s possible the Brewers would make a fifth, with Craig Counsell’s current contract only running until October 31 and uncertainty around whether or not he’ll be back. Of these clubs, the Giants have seemingly been the most active, at least in terms of public reporting. They’ve already interviewed a number of internal candidates, with bench coach Kai Correa, third base coach Mark Hallberg and assistant coach Alyssa Nakken having been questioned about the opening. They are also going to interview former player Stephen Vogt, who served as bullpen and quality control coach for the Mariners this year and played for the Giants in 2019.

Here are three things happening in baseball as we head into the weekend…

1. Phillies moving on:

Philadelphia knocked off their division rivals in Atlanta last night, which sends the Phils back to the NLCS for a second consecutive season. They now have a couple of days for rest and preparation, with the Diamondbacks coming to town for Game 1 on Monday night. Pitching matchups haven’t been officially announced but it’s possible that the series starts with Zac Gallen against Zack Wheeler. As for Atlanta, they now go into offseason mode earlier than hoped, with starting pitching likely to be a focus. Kyle Wright is going to miss all of next year, Max Fried is going into his final year of club control and Charlie Morton is undecided about continuing his career in 2024.

2. ALCS kicks off:

While the NLCS doesn’t get going until Monday, the American League counterpart kicks off Sunday night at 7:15 pm Central with the Astros and Rangers taking the Silver Boot series to the playoffs for the first time. It’s also the first time an LCS has taken place between two clubs in the same state. The Rangers are hoping to get back to the World Series for the first time since 2011. A victory for the Astros, on the other hand, would send them to the Fall Classic for an incredible fifth time in the past seven years. Justin Verlander takes the ball for Houston in Game 1 but the Rangers haven’t officially announced their starter yet.

3. Mariners Outlook:

MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook series continues to take a team-by-team look around the league, with the Mariners getting a post later today. This will be followed by a team-specific chat so keep an eye out for both of those.

Two more Division Series concluded last night. The Diamondbacks finished off a sweep of the Dodgers with a 4-2 win, while the Astros held on to beat the Twins 3-2. Houston clinched a remarkable seventh consecutive trip to the AL Championship Series, where they’ll match up against their in-state rivals. The Rangers head to Houston this weekend.

The D-Backs, who are into the final four for the first time since 2007, join the rest of us in watching tonight’s matchup.

1. Braves/Phillies, Game 4

The Phillies went ahead in the remaining Division Series with a resounding 10-2 home victory yesterday. They hit six home runs — including two apiece from Bryce Harper and Nick Castellanos — to secure a 2-1 lead in the series. They’ll try to clinch a second straight NLCS berth tonight at 7:07 CDT. It’s a rematch of the pitching matchup from Game 1, with Philadelphia lefty Ranger Suárez against Atlanta ace Spencer Strider. Suárez got the better of a pitcher’s duel on Saturday. If Strider and the Braves can fend off elimination, they’d head back to Truist Park for a decider on Saturday. The D-Backs await the winner next Monday.

2. Moreno update

In a celebratory night for Arizona, the only minor concern was an injury to catcher Gabriel Moreno. For the second straight series, Moreno was forced out early of the clinching game by injury. He left the Brewers series after being hit in the head on a backswing but passed concussion protocol and returned against L.A. Yesterday’s issue was a right hand injury that the D-Backs diagnosed as a contusion. Initial x-rays came back negative, Moreno told reporters during the postgame celebration (relayed by Sam Blum of the Athletic). He seems on track to return for the NLCS, although the club will surely monitor his progress over the next few days.

3. Mets Outlook

For all but five teams, we’re into offseason mode. MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook series is nearly halfway complete. Darragh McDonald takes a look at what could be in store for the Mets in a post that’ll hit the website this afternoon.

As the playoffs continue, here are three things to look out for today…

1. Rangers moving on, potentially getting stronger:

The Rangers’ rollercoaster season it at a high point. After leading the West for much of the year, they faded in the second half and had to settle for a Wild Card spot. But they’ve gotten red hot at the right time, sweeping the Rays and now the Orioles to move on to the ALCS for the first time since 2011.

They could have some reinforcements in store for that upcoming series, which will be against either the Astros or the Twins. Both Max Scherzer and Jon Gray have a chance to return from their injuries and join the club, depending on how things progress in the next few days, with Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic laying out the details.

2. Division Series continue:

With the Rangers-Orioles series now done, there are three battles still going, and all three will be continuing today. The Braves and Phillies kick it off at 4:07pm Central, with each club hoping to win today and take a 2-1 lead into Game 4. The Astros and Twins follow at 6:07pm, with the Twins on the brink after losing Game 3 last night. Then the Diamondbacks will look to complete a sweep of the Dodgers, with Game 3 of that series starting at 8:07pm.

3. Padres chat:

MLBTR’s Offseason Outlook has been chugging along at a steady clip, with each club getting its own live chat as well. Yesterday, Anthony Franco took a look at what’s ahead for the Padres after a disappointing season and with some potential pay cuts on the horizon. If you have any questions about how that will play out, he will be hosting a chat specific to that club at 3:15pm Central. You can click here to leave a question in advance, and that same link will allow you to participate live or read the transcript of the chat after it’s completed.

On the heels of a wild win by the Braves and a crushing defeat for the Dodgers in last night’s NLDS games, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. ALDS heads to Minnesota, Arlington:

Game 3 of the ALDS is scheduled today for both the Astros’ series against the Twins and the Orioles’ series against the Rangers. Baltimore is fighting for their playoff lives today in Arlington after the Rangers took the first two games of the series at Camden Yards. The Orioles figure to send right-hander Dean Kremer (4.12 ERA) to the mound while the Rangers counter with veteran hurler Nathan Eovaldi (3.63 ERA). While plenty of playoff games were played at Arlington’s Globe Life Field during the pandemic, including the 2020 World Series, tonight’s game will be the Rangers’ first ever postseason game at their new stadium. Baltimore’s last stand will begin at 7:03pm CT.

Meanwhile, the Astros and Twins head to Target Field in Minnesota after splitting two games in Houston. Houston will send right-hander Cristian Javier (4.56 ERA) to the mound opposite the veteran Sonny Gray (2.79 ERA). The matchup is sure to be an exciting one; Gray, of course, leads the majors with a sterling 2.83 FIP and is one of the top candidates for the AL Cy Young award this year. Javier, on the other hand, has had a difficult season on the mound but made history during his last postseason outing. He threw six shutout innings against the Phillies during Game 4 of the World Series last year, leading the Houston pitching staff to a combined no-hitter for just the third postseason no-no in baseball history. The teams will play at 3:07pm CT.

2. Brewers to hold press conference:

The Brewers saw their season cut short last week when the club was swept out of the Wild Card Series in Milwaukee at the hands of the Diamondbacks. With the end of the club’s season comes an end-of-season press conference, and Curt Hogg of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel relays that Brewers GM Matt Arnold will hold the presser today at 11:30am CT. Plenty of questions face the Brewers this offseason, with co-aces Corbin Burnes and Brandon Woodruff as well as shortstop Willy Adames all set to go through arbitration for the final time and manager Craig Counsell’s contract set to expire at the end of the month. A transitional year could be in the cards for Milwaukee in 2024, despite the club winning 92 games in 2023 en route to their third division title and fifth postseason appearance in the last six years.

3. Offseason Outlook Chat today:

As the postseason continues for the eight teams fortunate enough to have made it this far, our annual Offseason Outlook series is back to take a look ahead at what’s in store for all 30 clubs this winter. Last night, MLBTR published the Angels installment of the 2023-24 series, which you can read here. If you have any questions regarding what the future might hold in Anaheim, including those about the future of a certain two-way superstar poised to hit free agency next month, MLBTR’s Anthony Franco will be hosting an Angels-centric live chat at 2:00pm CT this afternoon. You can click here to leave a question in advance, and that same link will allow you to participate live or read the transcript of the chat after it’s completed.

The Division Series got underway over the weekend, with the visitors off to strong starts. The Rangers put the Orioles on the brink of elimination by taking two in Baltimore, while the Twins leave Houston with a split. Over in the National League, both Wild Card teams took Game 1 over their 100-win opponents.

With the NL series continuing this evening, some storylines to follow over the next few days:

1. National League Division Series

While the American League clubs are on a travel day, the NL teams square off in Game 2. Starting at 5:07 pm CDT, the Braves’ elite lineup will look to bounce back after being blanked in Game 1. They’ll have their work cut out for them against Zack Wheeler, who allowed one run while fanning eight over 6 2/3 innings to beat the Marlins last week. Atlanta counters with Max Fried in what’ll be the southpaw’s first appearance since September 21. The star lefty was hampered by a blister late in the regular season.

The nightcap, which begins at 8:07 pm CDT, sees the D-Backs headed back to Dodger Stadium after their 11-2 drubbing of L.A. in Game 1. Arizona sends ace Zac Gallen to the hill as they try to stretch their lead. The Dodgers counter with hard-throwing rookie Bobby Miller, who turned in a 3.76 ERA over 22 starts in his debut campaign. Miller is the most in-form pitcher on a patchwork Dodger rotation, working to a 3.36 ERA with a 24% strikeout rate since the All-Star Break. They’ll need him to carry that over in his first playoff start to avoid digging themselves a significant hole.

2. Kim Ng’s contract status

The Marlins’ surprising run came to an end when they were rather easily dispatched by the Phillies in the first round. Tough postseason aside, it was an exciting year for the Fish, who made the playoffs despite generally being viewed as the fourth-best team in the NL East going into the season. They’re on to offseason mode, although they’ll first need to address the contract of their top executive. General manager Kim Ng is reportedly in the final season of a three-year deal. It’s hard to envision owner Bruce Sherman making a change atop baseball operations just weeks after the franchise’s first full-season playoff berth in two decades. An extension feels the likeliest outcome, but there’ll be some amount of uncertainty regarding the Fish until Ng puts pen to paper.

3. Managerial interviews

Four teams presently sit without a manager. The Giants, Mets and Angels all moved on from their previous skippers, while Terry Francona stepped aside after an 11-year run in the Guardians’ dugout. There’s still not a ton of clarity on those situations, but prospective candidates are likely to interview in the coming days. San Francisco president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi told reporters last week they were beginning the interview process imminently, while there’s been speculation about a few candidates (e.g. Will Venable, Carlos Mendoza, Craig Albernaz) who might be on Cleveland’s radar. One wild card: Brewers manager Craig Counsell, whose contract with Milwaukee reportedly expires at the end of this month.

As the baseball world gears up for the second round of the playoffs, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world headed into the weekend:

1. Division Series begins tomorrow:

With all four Wild Card Series matchups having been settled on Wednesday, baseball fans are already looking ahead to the four matchups of the Division Series, which will begin tomorrow. The Braves, Orioles, Dodgers and Astros all secured byes through the Wild Card Series, meaning each club is fully rested as they gear up to face their first opponents of the postseason. First up on the schedule at 12:03pm CT tomorrow is the Orioles, who will take on the Rangers at Camden Yards. Next up at 3:45pm CT will be the Astros, who figure to face the AL Central champion Twins in Houston. The NL, meanwhile, features a pair of division rivalries. At 5:07pm CT the Braves will square off against the Phillies in Atlanta before the night concludes at 8:20pm CT with the Dodgers facing the Diamondbacks at Dodger Stadium.

2. What’s next for the Mets?

The Mets had a tumultuous evening yesterday, as GM Billy Eppler abruptly stepped down from his role as the club’s second-in-command under new president of baseball operations David Stearns. Eppler’s sudden resignation was brought on by an MLB investigation into both Eppler himself and the Mets regarding so-called “phantom IL” stints, when teams place healthy players on the injured list in order to give the player a physical and/or mental resist while freeing up their 26-man roster spot temporarily. The practice widely utilized around the league, though it’s technically against MLB’s rules.

In any case, the situation is sure to have effects going forward not only on the Mets, but on the league as a whole. It’s likely that the Mets and/or Eppler himself are at risk of facing fines or other disciplinary action from MLB, depending the results of the league’s investigation, while the league’s other clubs will surely watch the situation with interest, as it may signal a crackdown on the widespread practice by the league. In the more immediate term, the Mets now figure to look for someone to fill Eppler’s shoes in the Mets front office, with Stearns now in position to choose his own number two.’

3. Showalter eyeing Anaheim:

The Angels recently parted ways with manager Phil Nevin, whose contract with the club expired at the end of the season. GM Perry Minasian recently indicated that the club’s search for a new manager was still in a very preliminary stage, noting that they had not yet established a timeline for the new hire or even assembled a list of potential candidates. One candidate has thrown his own hat into the ring, however: recently-fired Mets manager Buck Showalter has reportedly expressed interest in the vacancy in Anaheim.

On the surface, the pairing seems to be a good fit given Showalter’s desire to return to the dugout in 2024 and the tumultuous situation the Angels are facing, with the likely departure of two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani this offseason, perhaps calling for a more experienced hand to guide the club as they look to avoid missing the playoffs for the ninth-consecutive time. Organizations looking to fill managerial vacancies around the league appear to be gearing up to begin external interviews in earnest next week; could one between Showalter and the Angels be among them?

With the first round of the playoffs now in the rearview mirror, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:

1. Wild Card ends in four sweeps:

None of the newly-minted three-game Wild Card Series will actually reach a third game this year, the second of MLB’s new postseason format. Each of the Twins, Rangers, Phillies, and Diamondbacks completed two-game sweeps yesterday, ending the 2023 campaign for the Blue Jays, Rays, Marlins, and Brewers respectively. With the Wild Card Series wrapped up, the four winners can look ahead to the Division Series, where the Astros, Orioles, Braves, and Dodgers await them for a five-game set.

Yesterday’s games were characterized by excellent pitching performances, with three of four winning pitchers registering quality starts and the fourth, AL Cy Young award candidate Sonny Gray, striking out six in five scoreless innings of work. NL Cy Young award candidate Zac Gallen, meanwhile, allowed two runs on five hits and three walks over six innings. The night’s longest performances came from Rangers veteran Nathan Eovaldi, who struck out eight across 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball, and free-agent-to-be Aaron Nola’s seven scoreless innings for the Phillies. Nola was also assisted by the night’s strongest offensive performances. Veteran catcher J.T. Realmuto slugged both a double and a homer, but the star of the Phillies offense last night was 25-year-old second baseman Bryson Stott, who continued a strong sophomore season in 2023 with a grand slam off Marlins lefty Andrew Nardi.

2. Counsell’s decision looms:

Brewers manager Craig Counsell is widely considered to be among the best managers in today’s game, but entered the 2023 campaign on an expiring contract. While Brewers ownership has expressed a strong desire to see Counsell return to the manager’s seat in 2024, the sides agreed to postpone discussions of a new contract until after the club’s season came to an end. With Milwaukee having been swept out of the NL Wild Card series by Arizona last night, the NL Central champions are surely now going to turn their attention to whether or not Counsell will helm the team next year.

If Counsell departs the Brewers but would like to continue managing in 2024, he’d immediately become the most attractive managerial candidate on the market, with a fair few options at his disposal. The Guardians are seeking a replacement to the widely-respected Terry Francona, while the Giants and Angels have each parted ways with the managers in recent days. Still, no team has fueled speculation regarding Counsell’s future more than the Mets. The club just hired former Brewers president of baseball operations David Stearns to take over the organization’s helm, with Stearns’s first act in his new role being to fire manager Buck Showalter.

3. Arizona hopeful Moreno avoided concussion:

After a scary incident on the field during last night’s win over the Brewers, Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo told reporters (including MLB.com’s Tim Stebbins) that rookie catcher Gabriel Moreno has not yet been placed into the concussion protocol after being hit in the head by the backswing of Brice Turang’s bat. Lovullo said the club is still “finding out” what his status is, but that after Moreno entered the dugout following the second inning, team trainers insisted he be taken out of the game. Moreno noted after the game that he was feeling “a little bit dizzy” but that he was feeling better by the end of the game.

The loss of Moreno for the coming five-game set against the Dodgers could be devastating for the Diamondbacks. After coming over from the Blue Jays in the Daulton Varsho trade this past offseason, Moreno has combined excellent defense behind the plate with a solid offensive performance as he slashed .284/.339/.408 in 380 trips to the plate this season. If Moreno misses time, the club figures to use glove-first backup Jose Herrera as the starting catcher while he’s away. The only other catcher on the 40-man roster is former-White Sox backstop Seby Zavala, who was claimed off waivers in early September and is ineligible to participate in the postseason. Adrian Del Castillo and Ali Sanchez are the club’s top catching options from the Triple-A level this season.