April 9, 2021
On this episode, I’m joined by the eminently intelligent and charming Steven Goldman, who serves as my co-host for the week. We start with some hot takes on hot starts and socially gross restaurants. From there, we are joined by special guest Bradford William Davis of the
New York Daily News to discuss the complicated political and economic issues behind MLB’s decision to move the All-Star game from Georgia to Colorado. As a bonuses, Bradford also attended the Rangers’ fan-packed home opener, so we spend some time on that as well. From there, it’s onto emails and all sorts of tangents. As always, we hope you enjoy, and thank you for putting up with how damn long this thing has gotten.
Key storylines to watch entering spring training; The race for the fifth starter spot could get heated; James Paxton returns to Seattle; Yankees taking a look at Justin Wilson.
Meet the Mets
The Mets hired Kevin Howard, who had worked as a hitting coordinator for Cleveland, as their farm director. If you’re looking to learn more about Howard, Justin Toscano has you covered.
There are three Mets prospects on this year’s Baseball Prospectus top 101: Ronny Mauricio at 42, Matthew Allan at 79, and Francisco Alvarez at 84.
If you’re wondering why the Mets have not yet signed Brad Hand, SNY’s Andy Martino claims it’s because Hand wants a multi-year deal, which the Mets have been unwilling to do thus far.
Deesha Thosar wrote about the Mets’ options in center field now that George Springer has signed elsewhere.
Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
NY Daily News | Bradford William Davis: CC Sabathia’s documentary on his own life and struggles with addiction is set to come out on Tuesday, and he talked to Davis beforehand to open up about the impact of his journey. Sabathia goes in depth about his experience with alcoholism, adding that he opened up in the hopes that he could help others who are struggling, particularly black men like himself who dealt with the social taboos of speaking out about it. Andrew had an advanced viewing of the documentary and will review it later this morning.
MLB bestows major-league status on Negro Leagues
The stats for seven Negro Leagues which played from 1920-1948 will be added to the major league record books.
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Major League Baseball announced Wednesday that it will bestow major league status on seven Negro Leagues that played from 1920-1948: the Negro National League (I), which played from 1920-31; the Eastern Colored League (1923-28), the American Negro League (1929), the East-West League (1932), the Negro National League (II), which played from 1933-48; and the Negro American League (1937-48).
MLB is correcting a longtime oversight in the game’s history by officially elevating the Negro Leagues to “Major League” status. pic.twitter.com/gPSaTbD5Ud MLB (@MLB) December 16, 2020