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Trevor Rosenthal Drawing Interest

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Trevor Rosenthal is drawing a lot of interest, per Jon Heyman of MLB Network. After serving as one of the best relievers in baseball for many years, Rosenthal suffered a major setback when he required Tommy John surgery in 2017. That wiped out the remainder of that season and also prevented him from pitching at all in 2018. When he finally made it back to the hill in 2019, he didn’t seem to resemble his former self, registering a 13.50 ERA in 15 1/3 innings that year, a showing which included an ugly 30.6% walk rate.

While many people considered him cooked, he had a tremendous return to form in 2020. After signing a minor league deal with the Royals, he eventually had his contract selected and threw 13 2/3 innings with a 3.29 ERA and excellent 37.5% strikeout rate, though the walks were still present at a rate of 12.5%. After being traded to the Padres, he pitched another 10 innings without allowing a single earned run. His strikeout rate shot up to an incredible 48.6% and his walk rate dropped down to 2.9%.

In February of last year, the Athletics quite surprisingly outbid the field and gave Rosenthal a one-year, $11MM deal, a huge sum for a typically low-spending club. Unfortunately, the gamble backfired in a big way, as shoulder inflammation sent him to the IL in April, leading to surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. Though he was hoping for a midseason return, hip surgery in July wiped out any chance of that. In the end, he wasn’t able to make a regular season appearance at all last year.

Despite that litany of injuries, it’s not surprising that Rosenthal is garnering plenty of interest, as he’s already shown himself capable of returning from the injury wilderness. His final line on the 2020 season between the Royals and Padres was 23 2/3 innings with a 1.90 ERA with a 41.8% strikeout rate and 8.8% walk rate. While a pessimist could say that he has only had a couple of good months over the past four seasons, there’s no denying that he was elite the last time he was healthy. After missing another full season due to injuries, he surely won’t be able to land a significant commitment in either years or dollars, meaning there should be plenty of teams interested in taking a low-cost flier that he can pull off a repeat of 2020.

MLB Umpires To Begin Announcing Replay Decisions

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Major League Baseball announced this morning that beginning in the 2022 season, Major League umpires “will conduct in-park announcements during the replay review process.”

It’s an overdue update to a replay system that has often been confusing for fans viewing at home and, particularly, for fans at the the park. The NFL-style announcements regarding the nature of the challenge and the reasoning behind the umpires’ rulings will lend some clarity for all spectators. The league announced that training for this process is already underway both in Arizona and in Florida, where Spring Training games are being held. All indications are that the practice will be in place come Opening Day next week.

Under the prior system, viewers were at times unclear as to what specifically was being challenged, and it was not always immediately clear to viewers (particularly those at the park) whether a call had been confirmed or simply not overturned due to a lack of sufficient video evidence. The additional transparency provided by simply giving the umpiring crew with a microphone to explain the review and its outcome should be a welcome addition moving forward.

Michael Conforto Suffered Shoulder Injury In January

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Michael Conforto is the last unsigned player who appeared among MLBTR’s Top 50 free agents at the start of the offseason. Easily the best player still available on the open market, Conforto has nevertheless remained without a team with just a week until Opening Day.

Agent Scott Boras offered an explanation for Conforto’s delay in signing this evening, telling Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic and Joel Sherman of the New York Post the outfielder suffered a right shoulder strain while training in January. Boras says Conforto is now healthy and is again hitting but that the issue slowed down both his offseason training routine and his hunt for a club. According to Rosenthal, negotiations with teams were on hold but resumed last week.

Conforto’s injury could partially clarify the hold-up in his finding a new club, although it doesn’t seem to completely explain the delay. After all, he suffered the strain in January, a time when MLB free agents were barred from communicating with teams anyhow. Sherman writes that Conforto has been hitting for five weeks, indicating he’d returned to batting practice well before the lockout was lifted on March 10. The delay in his resuming throwing ostensibly kept Boras from negotiating with teams in the immediate post-lockout signing spree, although that he’s been in contact with clubs for about a week suggests that only set back discussions around 10-14 days.

Unsurprisingly, Boras claimed that a now-healthy Conforto is drawing strong interest. However, he declined to project a timetable for the 29-year-old to sign. At the very least, that negotiations are ongoing would seem to reduce speculation among some fans that Conforto could wait until after the draft to put pen to paper. The left-handed hitter rejected a qualifying offer from the Mets at the start of the offseason, entitling New York to draft pick compensation if he signs elsewhere and costing a signing club a draft choice.

Waiting to sign until after the draft would remove that compensation from the equation, and a few qualified free agents like Stephen Drew and Dallas Keuchel have taken that approach in past offseasons. However, this year’s draft is scheduled to take place from July 17-19, later than the early-June drafts of the Drew/Keuchel era. That’d require Conforto sitting out more than half the season, a course of action which never seemed likely.

Conforto is coming off a down season from a results perspective, but his strikeout and walk rates were customarily strong. The left-handed hitter also posted better batted ball marks than his 14 homers and .153 ISO (slugging minus batting average) would indicate. He looks like a strong bounceback candidate, one who could upgrade most lineups around the league.

Nevertheless, it’s tough to pin down top suitors for Conforto, even at this stage of the offseason. The Marlins, Yankees, Padres and Rockies were linked to him before the lockout. Miami and Colorado have since gone in different directions to upgrade their outfields, while San Diego is reportedly reluctant to take on another big move that could push them above the luxury tax threshold. New York hasn’t addressed the outfield, but they’ve since added Anthony Rizzo and Josh Donaldson to the payroll.

The Blue Jays more recently checked in as part of their search for a lefty-hitting outfielder, but they acquired Raimel Tapia from Colorado last week. No other team has been definitively tied to Conforto throughout the winter, but Jon Heyman of the MLB Network suggested on his Big Time Baseball podcast last week the Rangers could jump into the mix.

League Makes Proposals To MLBPA Restricting Sign-Stealing, On-Field Information

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Major League Baseball has made a series of proposals to the players union about measures meant to restrict sign-stealing, and the use of information during games, The Athletic’s Britt Ghiroli reports (Twitter thread).  It isn’t yet known how the MLB Players Association will respond to these proposals, whether they accept or reject the league’s idea, or perhaps make some counter-proposals with some tweaks.

One proposal involves the PitchCom system currently being tested during Spring Training games, as the league is now offering that players can continue to use the system on a voluntary basis during the regular season.  PitchCom is an electronic method for a catcher to communicate signs to the pitcher — the catcher enters the desired pitch (or pickoff throw, pitchout, etc.) on a specialized wristband, while the pitcher is wearing an audio device in his hat that tells him the pitch call via an automated voice.  The catcher and as many as three other fielders can also be wearing the audio device, to ensure accuracy and to make the information known around the diamond.

Ideally, PitchCom is a way of addressing sign-stealing by simply removing signs altogether.  The system also theoretically speeds up play by removing the need for some mound visits.  Early reviews have varied from individual to individual, and it remains to be seen how many players (or the MLBPA as a whole) would be open to continuing the PitchCom tech during the season.  The voluntary nature of the usage could be an obstacle, as a competitive advantage could be gained by some teams.

The league’s other proposals relate to the in-game use of scouting information.  Under these new rules, a player at the plate couldn’t (to use Ghiroli’s example) review any information on a scouting card within his helmet, for instance.  Also, team staff wouldn’t be allowed to print and deliver and new information to any on-field personnel during the game, whether on the actual diamond or in the dugout.

Specifying the use of printed information relates to how the league has already restricted the use of some electronic devices during a game, in the wake of the Astros’ sign-stealing scandal.  Still, while it would seem fairly easy to monitor whether or not a batter is using a “cheat sheet” during an at-bat, it would seem more difficult to completely police the flow of information between the on-field personnel and front office personnel over the course of a game.  Of course, there may never be an entirely airtight way to prevent teams finding loopholes, though having direct rules in place could at least act as some kind of deterrent.

MLB Tightening Crackdown On Foreign Substances

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Major League Baseball’s efforts to root out pitchers’ usage of foreign substances was one of the biggest stories in the sport last summer. Beginning in early June, the league made clear that it was planning to crack down on grip enhancers, concerned pitchers were using sticky stuff to enhance the quality of their raw arsenals as opposed to merely trying to improve their control.

That decision wasn’t without backlash. Rays ace Tyler Glasnow claimed the timing of the midseason enforcement contributed to an injury that eventually required Tommy John surgery. Phillies manager Joe Girardi and then-Nationals star Max Scherzer had an on-field squabble after Girardi asked for umpires to check Scherzer. A pair of pitchers — Héctor Santiago and Caleb Smith — were suspended for ten games apiece.

However, the foreign substance controversy mostly faded from public view after the first few weeks of its enforcement. Umpires continued to examine pitchers’ hats, gloves and belts frequently, but Smith was the only pitcher to fail a substance check in the second half of the season.

Tom Verducci of Sports Illustrated reports that MLB sent a memo to teams today informing them that foreign substance inspections will become more rigorous this season. Beginning with Spring Training contests this weekend, umpires will check pitchers’ hands directly, according to the memo. They may also continue to examine players’ equipment. Starting pitchers will be checked between random innings, while every reliever will be inspected at least once, as was the case last season.

Verducci obtains a copy of the memo, quoting MLB senior vice president of baseball operations Michael Hill as saying “If an umpire’s inspection reveals that the pitcher’s hand is unquestionably sticky or shows unmistakable signs of the presence of a foreign substance, the umpire will conclude that the pitcher was applying a foreign substance to the baseball for the purpose of gaining an unfair competitive advantage.” As was the case last season, that’d lead to an automatic ejection and suspension.

Position players aren’t subject to foreign substance inspections, but they would also be ejected and suspended if found to be harboring sticky stuff for pitchers. Verudcci writes that the league is tightening inspections in response to a fear that pitchers began carrying foreign substances on areas of their body besides their hat, belt and glove late last season. He notes that leaguewide fastball and slider spin rates and velocity-adjusted spin rates starting to trend upwards late in the year (albeit not to pre-enforcement levels) after falling dramatically in the immediate aftermath of the crackdown. Directly examining the pitcher’s hand should theoretically make it harder to skirt the substance checks and curtail whatever portion of that increase was due to pitcher subversion of the sticky stuff ban.

There remains the possibility that foreign substance checks won’t need to be as prevalent at some point in the future. MLB began to test pre-tacked baseballs in the minors late last season. In November, commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters the pre-tacked ball could be put in circulation during regular season action at some point in 2022.

The NHL Trade Deadline Is Today

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What’s already been a hectic week of trades and transactions is set to culminate today, as the NHL’s 2022 Trade Deadline is at 2:00 p.m. CT. Make sure to follow our coverage on Pro Hockey Rumors (@prohockeyrumors on Twitter!) to see what happens as teams have their last chance to move talent in and out before the end of the regular season.

We’ve already seen some gigantic waves this week, such as the Florida Panthers acquiring longtime Philadelphia Flyers captain Claude Giroux for an unexpectedly low price, and the Boston Bruins shoring up their defense by trading for and extending former Anaheim Ducks defenseman Hampus Lindholm.

There’s still the potential for blockbusters today, though. All eyes are on the Arizona Coyotes and defenseman Jakob Chychrun, as the 23-year-old defenseman is now the best man on the market, but it’s not a given that he gets moved out. The Anaheim Ducks may not be done yet after dealing away a good portion of their defense, as two-time 30-goal scorer Rickard Rakell is also on the market.

Make sure to continue to follow Pro Hockey Rumors throughout Deadline Day as all the action wraps up. You can also keep up with all of the trades on our Twitter.

MLB, MLBPA Discussing Reinstating Extra Innings Ghost Runner Rule

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MARCH 17: The extra inning ghost runner is “trending back toward reality for the 2022 season” reports MLB Network’s Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Heyman adds that MLB has yet to make a call on reinstating the rule, but is listening to team managers who want to “avoid testing arms”, and thus would be in favor of the rule’s reinstatement, after a truncated spring camp.

MARCH 14: The extra innings ghost runner might be sticking around in Major League Baseball, report Jayson Stark and Matt Gelb of The Athletic.  Players, who “heavily support” this new feature from the last two seasons, tell the reporters they expect it to be enacted this week with the announcement of health and safety protocols.

Though the automatic runner on second base in extra innings was originally put in place as a COVID response, ultimately the players like it because it has mostly killed the marathon extra innings game.

Stark and Gelb note that the apparition may not necessarily appear in the 10th inning, but instead could surface in the 11th or 12th.  With the National League adopting the designated hitter this year, baseball traditionalists are doing plenty of grumbling this week.

MLB Requiring Coaches To Be Up To Date On COVID-19 Vaccinations In Spring Training

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Major League Baseball is requiring all coaches to be up to date on their COVID-19 vaccinations in order to access restricted areas and to have in-person contact with players in Spring Training, reports Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. Any staff member who hasn’t yet been fully vaccinated must at least receive one dose of the Pfizer/Moderna two-dose vaccines and have their second appointment scheduled. Those who are not fully vaccinated or elect not to get a booster shot once they become eligible would forfeit their field access unless granted an exemption by their team.

As Rosenthal notes, this isn’t unprecedented. MLB required this for non-playing personnel to participate in the postseason last September. He adds that MLB has not yet decided whether this policy will carry over into the regular season.

One coach, who said they are fully vaccinated, nevertheless expressed frustration about the mandate when speaking with Rosenthal. “There are some that are not happy about the mandated booster. They feel if the players don’t have to, why us?,” the coach said. “I’m not anti-vax. I just don’t like people saying if you don’t do this, you’re fired … MLB put this on us right after the lockout. Calculated. They could’ve told us months ago.”

Players are not required to be vaccinated. That would need to be collectively bargained with the MLB Players Association. However, unvaccinated players will probably be unable to cross the Canadian border to partake in games held at the Rogers Centre. They will not be paid nor will they accrue service time for games missed on account of vaccination status.

NFL Free Agency Is Underway

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Although free agency deals cannot officially be signed until Wednesday, agreements are coming at a frenetic pace. The NFL’s legal tampering period, which allows free agents to negotiate with other teams, began Monday morning. Head on over to Pro Football Rumors (@pfrumors on Twitter) to keep up with all the action!

Future Hall of Famers like Von Miller and Bobby Wagner headline a free agent crop that includes numerous Pro Bowlers, and after the NFL salary cap spiked by more than $25MM, budding young standouts will cash in as well. With teams needing to move under the $208.2MM cap by Wednesday, big names like Jarvis Landry and Za’Darius Smith are being sent to the market. The trade block continues to produce blockbusters, too.

Yes, Tom Brady is back. The Buccaneers and Broncos, who now have Russell Wilson headlining their roster, will be busy aiming to fortify their teams around Canton-bound quarterbacks. The Steelers appear to have pegged Ben Roethlisberger’s successor, agreeing to terms with Mitchell Trubisky. The Deshaun Watson market has accelerated to the point the Texans could land a historic trade haul soon.

Check out Pro Football Rumors for the latest updates from the start of unofficial NFL free agency. Follow the action on Facebook and Twitter.

Three Teams Interested In Albert Pujols

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Future Hall-of-Famer Albert Pujols is looking to continue his career, and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand (via Twitter) reports that three teams have shown some interest in signing the 42-year-old.

As Pujols prepares for what would be his 22nd Major League season, the slugger showed last year that he still has something to offer a roster.  After being released by the Angels in May and then signed by the Dodgers, Pujols finished the 2021 campaign with a scorching .294/.336/.603 slash line against left-handed pitching (in 146 plate appearances).  The Dodgers largely limited Pujols to platoon and pinch-hitting duties, and he responded with some of his most productive numbers in some time.

Feinsand notes that Pujols’ market has been expanded by the official installation of the universal DH, as now National League teams have a greater need for extra hitting pop.  The flexibility of the designated hitter slot allows for less concern from NL teams about how Pujols would physically manage getting regular playing time as a first baseman.

Beyond the on-field help Pujols can still provide, teams could also be intrigued by his reputation as a clubhouse leader, and any potential ticket sales that could be drummed up by Pujols’ march up the all-time leaderboards.  Pujols’ 679 career home runs puts him 17 homers behind Alex Rodriguez for fourth on the all-time list, and over a full 162-game season, it certainly seems possible that Pujols can become the fourth player to ever reach the 700-homer plateau (Pujols had 17 home runs over 296 PA with the Angels and Dodgers last year).  Pujols also needs 68 RBI to pass Babe Ruth for second place on the all-time RBI list.

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