MLB Owners Agree On 2020 Season Proposal... But Will The Players???

The Major League Baseball Owners have reportedly approved a plan to bring MLB back to our homes in 2020. However, this plan still needs to be approved by the...

According to Ken Rosenthal and other reports, the Major League Baseball owners have come to an agreement on a plan for an MLB Season in 2020. However, this plan cannot go into effect until approved by the MLBPA (Major League Baseball Player’s Association), which could be a tall task. Some of the highlights of the plan include:

• 82-game regional schedule and universal DH

• 30-man active rosters with a 20-player taxi squad

• 14 teams in the postseason with games played in home cities in October

• 50/50 revenue split for players and owners

That last point will be the biggest problem when it comes to receiving the MLBPA’s approval. The owners want to change the way players are paid, even though both sides already came to an agreement only 6 weeks ago over how players would be paid if and when baseball resumed. Now, due to the fact that there will be no fans in the stands to start the season, owners are proposing a 50/50 revenue split, which the MLBPA will surely reject. Players have never been paid based on their team or league’s revenue and they will not be willing to start now, especially when playing baseball this year will be anything but normal. They may be expected to wear masks, keep social distancing before, during and after games, adhere to a strange new set of rules, be away from their families, and worst of all — be denied the post-game buffet!

Nevertheless, many baseball fans may be encouraged by the latest news that the owners have agreed upon a plan. However, it means nothing until the MLBPA also agrees to the plan. A 50/50 Revenue Split is basically a salary cap, and the last time the owners tried to enforce that, we lost the World Series due to the Player’s Strike of 1994. Therefore, tonight’s negotiations are likely only the beginning. It will be a long and hard fought negotiation, but at the end of the day, both sides stand to benefit from having some sort of a season. And even if an agreement is made, there are still many obstacles left, such as what to do about cities that are still enforcing bans of mass gatherings (even without fans, an MLB game may be considered a mass gathering).

As for the rule changes, the Universal Designated Hitter is not something I am a fond of as a National League fan, but I can deal with it for one season. The same goes for the expanded playoffs. That being said, there is no doubt that owners and executives are doing their best to take advantage of the current situation in order to get whatever rules or regulations they were dreaming of before to enter into reality. I only hope that in 2021, things revert back to normal.

Woman Whose Face Was Crushed by a Foul Ball Sues MLB & The Chicago Cubs

It is no surprise in the modern Smartphone era that more and more fans are being injured by foul balls at Major League Baseball games. A Chicago Cubs fan named Laiah Zuniga was crushed in the face by a foul ball in a 2018 Major League Baseball game at Wrigley Field. She and her lawyers are suing the Cubs and Major League Baseball for the damages this caused, which seem quite severe.

“The blow knocked me unconscious,” Zuniga said in a statement released by her lawyers. “When I awoke, my beef sandwich was the only thing I had to catch the waterfall of blood running down my face.

“I suffered a spider fracture under both of my eyes," she said. “I have frequent bloody noses to this day, and my taste and smell have been permanently affected. I was hit so hard my teeth were detached from their nerves and I had to have extensive dental work done. And even then I still lost a few teeth in the process and am still losing them today.”

According to the Chicago Tribune, they are suing for over $50,000. This is an amount that a Major League Team can quite easily afford, but the question is.. should they help fans who are injured by foul balls? As most MLB fans are aware, warnings are given every game not only through the PA System but also on the tickets themselves. Teams are not to be held responsible. Nevertheless, it would be a kind gesture to help out such fans who are injured by foul balls… after all, it is not like this happens every game. It is thankfully a relatively rare occurrence.

As a die-hard baseball fan, I would prefer not to look through a net. However, given the era we’re in, and the fact that many parents have their faces stuck in their phones with young children sitting beside them, I believe it is the best move to extend the netting as far as possible.

Laiah Zuniga, after being struck in the face by a foul ball in 2018.

New MLB Proposal Has All Teams Playing In Their Own Stadiums... But Still No Fans.

The proposals began almost immediately after Spring Training stopped. MLB owners and executives are desperate to bring back Major League Baseball into people’s homes so that some type of revenue can start being generated. However, thus far, every proposal has been met with extreme challenges that proved too much to overcome.

First, there was the Arizona plan… then the Arizona/Florida plan… then the Arizona/Texas/Florida plan… and now it’s the 3-Division plan. In this plan, there would be 3 separate divisions of ten teams each, with each team playing in their own ballpark. The plan surfaced through a report by Bob Nightengale of USA Today, who said that MLB officials are “cautiously optimistic” that the season will start in late June, and no later than July 2, playing at least 100 regular season games. This plan would not include fans and the ten teams in each division would only play among themselves.

Of course, nothing can happen until medical experts agree that it is safe and widespread testing is available. Also, even with the 10 teams in each division only traveling to teams within their own division, there will still be plenty of travel. Under the current proposed divisions, teams like the San Francisco Giants would be traveling to places like Houston and Arlington, while the Yankees would travel to Miami. To further complicate matters, the plan calls for an abbreviate Spring Training in each teams’ Spring Training Complex. This would require even more moving around for the players and personnel.

What also must be taken into account is the fact that these games would be televised. Therefore, the amount of people at each game, even without fans, would easily be in the several hundreds. Think of the cameramen, reporters, producers, coaches, extended rosters, umpires, network personnel, announcers, clubhouse assistants, trainers, etc etc… and this would be in multiple states during a pandemic. The governors of these states would have to approve the plan and MLB would have to be prepared for the backlash it might receive from the general public, who, believe it or not, are not all baseball fans. Unless the social climate improved tenfold within the next 30 days, this plan simply feels impossible.

Christian Yelich & Brewers Agree To MASSIVE Extension!!

According to a report by The Athletic (Ken Rosenthal), the Milwaukee Brewers are about to spend some of the money they saved by losing Yasmani Grandal and Mike Moustakas by locking up their superstar outfielder, Christian Yelich.

The report indicates that the agreement is a nine-year deal worth about $215 million and is expected to be announced Friday at the team’s Spring Training Facility.

The Brewers obviously plan to make Yelich their centerpiece for years to come as they build around him and try to compete for championships year in and year out. Congratulations to the Brewers, Yelich, and Brewers fans on this amazing extension.

Seattle Mariners Extend Marco Gonzales + 2020 Team Preview

The Seattle Mariners have agreed with their current Ace, Marco Gonzales, on a four-year contract extension. The 27-year old lefty will make at least 30 million dollars and possibly as much as 45 million according to Ken Rosenthal of the Athletic. Gonzales has been a consistent pitcher for the Mariners and will be one of the few to have a guaranteed spot in the rotation.

Yusei Kikuchi and Justus Sheffield will also likely help fill out a rotation that will likely only be determined after a competition in Spring Training. Former Mets prospect Justin Dunn figures to be a leading candidate as well as often injured Kendall Graveman, who did not see the field last year with the Cubs and has not been fully healthy since 2016. Waiting in the wings is Logan Gilbert, who completely dominated Minor League hitting in 2019. Look for Gilbert to make his Major League Debut sometime in 2020.

The Mariners also bolstered their bullpen with the signing of former Arizona Diamondback, Yoshihisa Hirano. Hirano had a fantastic 2018 but faltered a bit last season while still accumulating over 60 innings out of the bullpen. He joins former Cubs bullpen piece and 2016 World Series Champion Carl Edwards Jr. and incumbent closer Matt Magill in the 2020 Seattle Bullpen.

Minnesota Twins Sign Rich Hill and Homer Bailey

The reigning American League Central Champions are set on repeating — and they just signed a couple of pitchers to help them do so. Unfortunately for the Minnesota Twins, they were not able to land a high dollar extremely coveted free agent such as Madison Bumgarner or Dallas Keuchel, but they did the next best thing and brought a couple veteran pitchers with plenty of experience and success in their careers. The pitchers signed are former Los Angeles Dodger Rich Hill as well as Homer Bailey, owner of two career no-hitters.

Unfortunately for the Twins, Hill is still recovering from a surgery and won’t be available until mid-season. The same can be said for Michael Pineda, who is still serving a suspension for having a banned substance in his body - one that is often used to mask PEDs. Nevertheless, with a potent offense and two All Star pitchers at the top of their rotation (Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzo), the Twins should be able to hang on long enough until Hill and Pineda are able to return. Minnesota also has a solid bullpen with impressive arms such as Taylor Rogers and Tyler Duffey.

Both Rich Hill and Homer Bailey have been serviceable pitchers in recent years despite the fact that Hill is 39 years old. Based on recent performance, he not yet over the Hill (Pun intended of course) and if he can continue to pitch at or near the level he has in the past 5 years, he will be a big help to a Twins team trying to repeat a 100+ win season. With multiple hitters capable of 30+ home runs such as Max Kepler and Nelson Cruz, they will score runs… it’s only a question if they can also prevent them.

Win Now Mode! Cincinnati Reds Sign Shogo Akiyama! 2020 Preview...

The Cincinnati Reds are back in the mix in 2020 as they have made yet another upgrade to their offense by adding Japanese star Shogo Akiyama! This is a player who has shown remarkable consistency throughout his long Japanese career in which he has accumulated 5,000+ plate appearances. Despite his age at 31 years, his career batting average (.301) corresponds to his latest 2019 season (.303) and his power numbers have only improved throughout his career. Akiyama has eclipsed the 20 home run mark for three consecutive years. This is a solid lead-off hitter with amazing speed — a perfect signing for a Reds team with plenty of question marks in the outfield, especially after Nick Senzel’s season-ending shoulder injury.

Akiyama is a perfect compliment to an offense that already has plenty of power — consider the fact that Aristedes Aquino hit 19 home runs in just over 200 at bats in 2019. Over an entire season, he could easily hit 40+ bombs. This is in addition to two certified sluggers in Mike Moustakas and Eugenio Suarez, both of whom you can rest assured will hit at least 35+ home runs each (Suarez crushed 49 in 2019). If Joey Votto still has enough left in the tank for a strong season in 2020, this offense could be quite formidable.

All that said, the Reds real strength is their rotation. Take a look at the 1-2-3 punch this rotation offers and their strikeouts per innings pitched in 2019.

• Luis Castillo (220 SO in 190.2 innings)

• Trevor Bauer (253 SO in 213 innings)

• Sonny Gray (205 SO in 175.1 innings)

This filthy trio within the Reds rotation is something opponents will not enjoy dealing with. To finish off the rotation, the Reds will trot out solid pitchers Anthony DeSclafani and newcomer Wade Miley. When you combine this powerful rotation with an improving offense, the Reds should be in a position to win plenty of games in 2020. Their primary issue may be the bullpen…

Raisel Iglesias strugged in 2019 and will need to have a major bounce back year to remain in the closer role. However, there are not a lot of reliable arms in that bullpen and the Reds will have to figure out how will stack up during Spring Training. There are still plenty of available relievers on the Free Agent market including former Astro Will Harris. Even if he is not affordable, Cincinnati may want to look into signing more relief pitchers even to minor league deals just to deepen their options going into Spring Training.

Two-Way Player Michael Lorenzen

All in all, this is a Reds team that looks decent going into 2020. Do not count them out in a loaded NL Central Division that includes the Cardinals, Cubs and Brewers. Their only weakness may the bullpen and possibly catcher, where their current starter is Tucker Barnhart. However, keep an eye on first rounder Tyler Stephenson, set to make his debut in 2020.