2026 Misc MLB News Thread

[markedman5]

 

[liveforoctober]

Wow, Steele all over again. Best of luck to that young man in his recovery.

[formerlybis]

49 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

 

Not wanting to really do any of my own research here - could this have been a byproduct of overuse last year?

[Team Canada]

1 hour ago, markedman5 said:

 

That's a shame.

But also, a bummer for him and hope he comes back strong, for his sake.

[Fear The Chorizo]

12 minutes ago, formerlybis said:

Not wanting to really do any of my own research here - could this have been a byproduct of overuse last year?

Impossible to say for sure....but frankly, yes.

Horton has already had 1 TJ surgery while in college, and his workload last year totaled almost 150 IP.  He never came close to 100 IP in either 2023 or 2024.

[Dragonbait]

Welp.. big brawl in the Angels/Braves game.

 

[folly412]

Pirates actually spending money.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/48428020/sources-konnor-griffin-agrees-9-year-140m-deal-pirates

[markedman5]

Quite the fall from opening day starter

 

[Frisbee Slider]

10 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

Quite the fall from opening day starter

 

9.7 BB/9 and 2.52 WHIP through three starts. Seems like something needs to get refined.

[Fear The Chorizo]

27 minutes ago, markedman5 said:

Quite the fall from opening day starter

 

Maybe he's just not that good - pitched well enough for a godawful team last year to make the Rule V pick work out...but he struggled down the stretch after that workload jumped well over what his injury history allowed for in the minors.

Wouldn't surprise me if he's got an arm issue at the moment, either.

 

[ghostdrew]

Maybe the brewers knew something about him and that was the reason for the rule 5 designation.

[Team Canada]

8 minutes ago, ghostdrew said:

Maybe the brewers knew something about him and that was the reason for the rule 5 designation.

I don't think the Brewers were playing 4-D chess, and we probably don't need to relitigate the whole Rule 5 thread over again, but they made a judgement (which was heavily criticized) not to protect him. Could've just been they liked other pitchers in the system more than him, or it was just a terrible gamble. Unlikely they were utterly convinced that he'd fail as an MLB pitcher. He largely was excellent last year, but maybe that was an aberration, or maybe he's just having a rough couple games and will bounce back.

[StearnsFTW]

19 hours ago, formerlybis said:

Not wanting to really do any of my own research here - could this have been a byproduct of overuse last year?

I posted this in the NL Central thread yesterday.

 

I'm sure I've posted on this site about how badly the Cubs abused Horton last year.  Absolute malpractice.

 

I actually feel bad for the kid.

[liveforoctober]

1 hour ago, markedman5 said:

Quite the fall from opening day starter

 

Shane we could use another hard throwing RH option in the bullpen if you want to come back! (half blue)

[Team Canada]

Now Tigers lock up McGonigle for 8/150M. I'm sure Made is paying attention.

[MoreTrife]

Damn the Mets have lost 10 straight! That's AWESOME! Love chaos. Only teams I'd rather see that happen to are dodgers and cubs.

[sveumrules]

5 minutes ago, MoreTrife said:

Damn the Mets have lost 10 straight! That's AWESOME! Love chaos. Only teams I'd rather see that happen to are dodgers and cubs.

Yeah, lots of craziness looking at the early standings.

The combination of Cohen's checkbook and Stearns strategery hasn't resulted in the instant juggernaut many predicted. Since the front office switcheroo in 2023 the Brewers have 294 wins (2nd in MLB) while the Mets are a solitary game over .500 at 254 W - 253 L despite outspending the Brewers by about $880M in OD payroll looking at the numbers on Cots. Mets current playoff odds are 45.0% on FG and 57.0% on BPro.

Defending AL Champs were a top two FA spender this offseason and are currently 7 W - 13 L. Blue Jays current playoff odds are 28.3% on FanGraphs and 40.0% on BPro.

Their opponents in the ALCS were supposed to have the easiest path to a Division Title besides the Dodgers but are currently sitting at 9 W - 13 L. Mariners current playoff odds are 69.6% on FG and 88.1% on BPro.

Phillies have the 3rd most wins on that 2023 to present leaderboard, but are currently 8 W - 12 L with an old expensive roster and thin farm system. Current playoff odds are 53.5% on FG and 39.1% on BPro.

Red Sox were predicted to compete for the AL East crown with TOR and NYY but instead sit at 8 W - 12 L. Current playoff odds are 41.4% on FG and 34.6% on BPro.

Lotta season left, and I'd imagine a couple two tree of the five teams above will turn it around and still end up making the playoffs, but looking at all that is a pretty good reminder of how much worse off the Brewers could be at the moment considering the myriad issues they've had over their first 20 games.

[umphrey]

Kinda looks like Stearns is about to get run out of New York. I was questioning their offseason but I thought there was some plan and it would come together with some sneaky underrated acquisitions. Not looking good for them. 

[yourout]

i have been following the Padres a bit after attending a game and they might be one of the bigger surprise teams in the NL this year.

[Jopal78]

13 hours ago, umphrey said:

Kinda looks like Stearns is about to get run out of New York. I was questioning their offseason but I thought there was some plan and it would come together with some sneaky underrated acquisitions. Not looking good for them. 

The Mets will go on a tear at some point. They’re not going to play .318 baseball all year. Nor does being 8 games out in April mean much. There’d have to be an unprecedented crash for Stearns to get fired in year 3. 
 

 

[owbc]

4 hours ago, Jopal78 said:

The Mets will go on a tear at some point. They’re not going to play .318 baseball all year. Nor does being 8 games out in April mean much. There’d have to be an unprecedented crash for Stearns to get fired in year 3. 
 

 

New York market + meddling owner = short leash. 

They have an easy schedule coming up -- Mendoza will be out as manager by May 7 if they don't start winning games. 

[Jopal78]

1 hour ago, owbc said:

New York market + meddling owner = short leash. 

They have an easy schedule coming up -- Mendoza will be out as manager by May 7 if they don't start winning games. 

No. Just because Steve Cohen is a brash, expects to win and is visible on the socials does not  mean he is “meddling” owner. There are not any reports he overrules the GM, dictates who plays and who doesn’t or otherwise micro-manages the team, etc.

Further, to have played .318 baseball so far is clearly an anomaly and not reflective of the talent they have in the roster which is quite good (Soto, Bichette, Lindor, Peralta, McLean, etc). 

In 2024, the Mets went 9-19 on May, spent the entire season out of first place, yet won 89 games and lost the NLCS 4-2.  They’re going to be fine. 

I know as Brewers fans who were  spurned by David Stearns for the big market glitzy New York,  his quick failure there would be extra sweet, but he’s not getting fired this year short of them losing 100+ games.