Tag / Dodgers

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Looking Ahead To 2020

Major League Baseball released their tentative 2020 schedule earlier this week.  While the local squads have differing goals in mind as 2019 winds down, with the Cubs struggling for their 8th straight trip to post-season and the White Sox playing out the string in year three of their rebuild, it’s time to turn our attention to next summer for both teams.

For the third year in a row, the White Sox open their season against the Royals, but will be at home for the first time.  They follow that with a trip to Cleveland and Boston.

The interleague schedule pits the White Sox against the NL West, with trips to Colorado, San Francisco, and San Diego and home series against the Rockies, Diamondbacks, and the Dodgers.  The rivalry with their north side foes continues with a 2 game series at home and a 2 game series at Wrigley Field, both in July in the weeks surrounding the All Star Break.

In August, they will travel to Iowa to battle the Yankees in the first Field of Dreams game, hosted where the film of the same name was filmed in 1989 and played in an 8000 seat stadium that will be inspired by the original Comiskey Park.

The season ends with 10 games against their Central Division rivals, which hopefully will be important.

On the north side, the Cubs open their season up north in Milwaukee, before returning home the following Monday to kick off the home portion of their schedule against the Pirates.

The interleague schedule pits the Cubs against the AL East, with trips to Baltimore, New York, and Toronto and home series against the Orioles, Red Sox, and the Rays.

In June, they will head to London for a two-game tilt against the Cardinals

The Cubs end the year with a 16 of their final 22 games against the NL Central, with 13 of those coming against the Pirates and the Cardinals, who are likely to challenge them for the NL Central crown.

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All Time Team Records

The 2019 baseball season got underway yesterday, with the now early start brought about due to the last collective bargaining agreement.  To celebrate, it is time once again to look at the all-time team records for games that I have identified as having attended dating back to 1984. The Cubs look to avenge last year’s loss in the Wild Card and hope to make it back to the World Series, while the rebuilding White Sox hope to finally start seeing some of their young talent blossom.  The 2019 season should be an exciting one on both sides of town.

All-Time Team Records
Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
California Angels 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 13 2 0.867
Florida Marlins 15 8 0.652
Colorado Rockies 10 6 0.625
Philadelphia Phillies 10 7 0.588
New York Yankees 14 10 0.583
Boston Red Sox 17 13 0.567
Los Angeles Angels 17 13 0.567
Toronto Blue Jays 13 10 0.565
Cleveland Indians 26 23 0.531
Detroit Tigers 27 24 0.529
Chicago Cubs 213 192 0.526
Houston Astros 22 20 0.524
Chicago White Sox 293 271 0.520
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2019 Predictions

The 2019 baseball season is scheduled to kick off tomorrow, at least the North American portion, with a full slate of games featuring all 30 teams.  For the ninth consecutive year, I’ve looked into the crystal ball to make my picks for the upcoming season.

American League

East: Yankees

Central: Indians

West: Astros

Wild Cards: Red Sox, Angels

AL Champion: Astros

Cy Young: Justin Verlander

MVP: George Springer

National League

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#3 – Paul Konerko

PaulKonerkoRedName: Paul Konerko

Rank: 3

Position: 1B

Years With White Sox: 1999-2014

After brief appearances with the Dodgers and the Reds in 1997 and 1998, Paul Konerko was traded to the White Sox on November 11, 1998 for center fielder Mike Cameron.  He started at DH on opening day in 1999, an 8-2 victory over the Mariners, going 1-4 with a home run and 2 RBI.

2000 saw Konerko get off to a quick start with an inside the park home run on April 11 against the Devil Rays, the first by a White Sox player since 1990.  In his second full season, he helped lead the surprising White Sox to their first Central Division title.  He, along with the rest of the White Sox offense, struggled during the Division Series against the Mariners, going 0-9 in the three game sweep.

After steadily improving in 2001 and 2002, Konerko ran into trouble in 2003, with his average under .200 for the first half of the season.  He found himself coming off the bench as manager Jerry Manuel seemingly lost confidence in him.  He bounced back in the second half and re-established himself as the starting first baseman.

Konerko bounced back in a big way in 2004, hitting 41 home runs and knocking in over 100 RBIs en route to the Comeback Player of the Year award.  2005 saw him put up a second consecutive 40 HR, 100 RBI season as the White Sox found themselves back in the playoffs for the second time in his career.  This time, things would go much differently for both Konerko and the White Sox.

Konerko homered twice and drove in 4 runs during the three game sweep against the Red Sox, catching the final out that sent the White Sox to the ALCS for the first time since 1993.  Konerko hit another 2 home runs and drove in 7 against the Angels during the 5 game series.  Once again, Konerko caught the final putout that sent the White Sox to their first World Series since 1959.  Following the victory in game 5, Konerko was named ALCS MVP.

Konerko cooled down during the World Series, hitting only one home run against the Astros, but what a home run it was.  With the White Sox trailing in the 7th inning, Konerko came up to face new pitcher Chad Qualls with the bases loaded.  Konerko made contact on the first pitch, sending it into the left field seats for a grand slam and the lead.  Like the previous 2 series, Konerko caught the final putout at first base in Game 4, giving the White Sox their first World Series title since 1917.

With the afterglow of winning the World Series starting to subside, Konerko became a free agent.  Despite rumors of him getting more lucrative offers from both the Dodgers and the Orioles, Konerko finally resigned with the White Sox, inking a 5-year, $60 million contract that would keep him on the south side through 2010.

Konerko battled through injuries in 2008, leading to his worst season since 2003, but he did manage to help the White Sox reach the post-season for the third time during his career.  He hit 2 solo home runs in the 4 game series against the Rays, in what would be his final playoff appearance.

Konerko had two more chances at free agency, signing a 3 year deal with the White Sox prior to 2011 and, finally, re-upping for one last season in 2014.  He finishes his career as the White Sox all time leader in total bases and second all time in home runs, RBIs, and games played.  In addition, he was a 6-time All Star and had served as team captain since 2006.  He also is the only White Sox player to appear in the post season 3 different times.

Konerko’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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The Marquee Sports Network

The long awaited announcement of the creation of a new Cubs-owned network finally came 2 weeks ago.  The Marquee Sports Network will launch in 2020, in time to air spring training games.  “We are excited to better serve our fans with expanded and exclusive programming showcasing our remarkable players, beloved ballpark and storied past,” president of business operations Crane Kenney said in a press release, “Our dedicated ‘Cubs-centric’ network will carry all available Cubs games and feature uncompromising, in-depth and behind-the-scenes coverage.”

The Cubs also announced that broadcasters Len Kasper and Jim Deshaies will continue to be involved with the live game broadcasts. The network will also provide extensive pregame and postgame coverage, original Cubs-related content and other live sports programming, per the release.

As rumored, the Cubs partner in the new venture is Sinclair Broadcast Group.  Sinclair has come under fire over the past couple years for its right-wing political slant and forcing its individual TV stations, of which WGN narrowly avoided becoming earlier this year, to air hard-right commentary.  “From our view, the reason Sinclair was such a good partner had to do with their technical capacity,” Kenney said on the Mully & Haugh Show on The Score.  “In terms of the programming on the channel, that will be exclusively our control. So what our fans, what the consumer sees when they turn the channel on will be something the team controls, as it should be, given that we know fan base and the team better than anyone.”  Later, Crane added, “While Sinclair’s TV stations may have a right-leaning bent, you won’t see any of that on our channel.”  This, of course, avoids the fact the Cubs fans who disagree with Sinclair’s politics may not feel good about contributing to their profits, even if their propaganda doesn’t air on the network.

The big outstanding question is carriage fees and clearance.  Industry reports say that the carriage fee that the network will request from cable operators could reach $6 per month, easily on the high end of the spectrum.  High carriage fees have led to clearance issues in the past for other teams.  When the Dodgers teamed with Time Warner to create SportsNet LA in 2014, they changed $4.90 per subscriber.  The end result was that Dodger games were, and continue to be, available to only about 30 percent of the Los Angeles market.  By June 2017, SportsNet LA’s ratings for Dodger games had dropped 49% from 2013.

Given the availability of Cubs games on WGN’s superstation for years, the team expects the new network to draw subscribers from much of the Midwest, if not the entire country.  But, convincing cable operators to add the channel on a non-premium tier and passing that $6 per month charge along to all customers, at a time when cord cutting is eroding their subscriber base, may be a tough sell.  Time will tell if this works out as well as the Cubs expect it to, or if they missed the boat on the RSN gravy train that is already showing signs of drying up.

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#7 – A.J. Pierzynski

Name: A.J. Pierzynski

Rank: 7

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 2005-2012

A.J. Pierzynski signed with the White Sox on January 6, 2005 following a year with the Giants that called his professionalism into question.  He rewarded the White Sox organization with 8 seasons of stability behind the plate the included 1 All-Star selection, 2 playoff appearances, and, of course, the 2005 World Series championship.  Over those 8 seasons, Pierzynski was involved in many key moments that endeared him to the White Sox faithful, including:

The walk-off home run, and resulting bat flip pictured to the left, against the Dodgers in 2005.

The two home runs in a thrashing of the Red Sox in game one of the 2005 ALDS, the first White Sox home postseason victory since 1959.

The controversial dropped third strike that led to a White Sox victory in game two of the 2005 ALCS against the Angels.

The 2006 brawl against the Cubs where Michael Barrett sucker-punched him after Pierzynski enthusiastically scored a run against the crosstown rivals.

Hanging on to the throw from Ken Griffey Jr. to preserve the shutout in the 2008 tie-breaker game that pushed the White Sox into the playoffs over the Twins.

Being behind the plate for Mark Buehrle’s no-hitter in 2007 and Philip Humber’s perfect game in 2012.

A.J. Pierzynski’s White Sox career officially came to an following the 2012 season, when the free agent catcher signed a contract with the Texas Rangers, leaving Paul Konerko as the last remaining member of the 2005 World Series champions to play for the South Siders.

Pierzynski’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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The Waiting Game

Spring training camps are opening up all across Arizona and Florida and the two biggest free agents are still unsigned.  Bryce Harper and Manny Machado, both aged 26, were looking to snare 10 year deals worth in excess of $300 million, but are on the outside looking in as their peers get back to work.  With 2 straight winters of a free agent freeze out, many people are questioning what is going on.  Especially when 2 superstars, each about to enter their prime, are unable to find the deals that they are looking for.

There are many reasons for the lack of movement.  First, many of the teams that you would expect to be outbidding each other are treating the luxury tax thresholds as though it were a salary cap.  This has left the Yankees, Red Sox, Cubs, and Dodgers on the sidelines.  Secondly, the number of teams that aren’t planning on being competitive further limits the list of available suitors.

Of course the remaining reason, depending on your point of view, may be the most troubling.  Either teams are colluding to keep the price of free agents down, as they did in the 80s before to a cost of $280 million in a 1990 settlement, or analytics has gotten to the point where each team values players the same, leaving little variation in offers.  Either way, the last 2 off-seasons are likely to lead to labor unrest, which the sport has largely been able to avoid since the 1994 strike.  And the longer Machado and Harper are out of camp, the worse it will be.

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Remaking the TV Landscape

Earlier this week, news broke that the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks were nearing a new 5 year deal with NBC Sports Chicago following the expiration of their current contract in 2019.  The Cubs are expected to branch out on their own, creating the new Marquee network to carry their games.

Assuming the White Sox rebuild progresses as expected, this could be a good situation for them.  The 5 year deal gives them time to rebuild their audience with known partners while the sports world waits to see what the future of RSNs are and how, and if, in-market streaming comes to fruition.

The Cubs, on the other hand, are risking many things with their new venture.  The Dodgers did something similar a few years back and, while they received a tremendous amount of money for doing so, they still are having issues finding clearance among cable providers and most of their games are unavailable to a majority of their fanbase in Southern California.  Should the Cubs have similar issues, especially since they are spurning the largest cable provider in the Chicago area to create their new network, they will face considerable fan backlash.

Another issue the Cubs may have to deal with is the reputation of their reported partner in the new venture, Sinclair Broadcast Group.  Sinclair has come under fire over the past couple years for its right-wing political slant and forcing its individual TV stations, of which WGN narrowly avoided becoming earlier this year, to air hard-right commentary.  While that political stance seems to fit well amongst most of the Ricketts family, it will be a hard sell to many in the Cubs fanbase should it bleed over into their broadcasts.

 

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2018 BBWAA Award Predictions

The Baseball Writers of America have announced the finalists for their awards for the just completed baseball season, which will be announced next week.  It is a good bet that few of my original predictions for the winners will be accurate.  Hopefully, these new predictions will be slightly better, especially since I’ll have a 33% chance of being right.

American League

Most Valuable Player: Mookie Betts, Jose Ramirez, Mike Trout

Giancarlo Stanton was was my pre-season selection to win the award this year and, while he was productive, he didn’t pull away from the pack as he did last year for the Marlins.  Mookie Betts should run away and hide with this award.

Cy Young Award: Corey Kluber, Blake Snell, Justin Verlander

A late season injury kept my pre-season pick of Chris Sale from competing for his first Cy Young award.  My guess is that Blake Snell takes home the prize.

Manager of the Year: Alex Cora, Kevin Cash, Bob Melvin

Once again, I didn’t make any predictions for this award prior to the season.  Alex Cora should be a shoo-in for the award, given the Red Sox performance in his rookie campaign as skipper.

Rookie of the Year: Miguel Andujar, Shohei Ohtani, Gleyber Torres

Another award I didn’t predict prior to the season.  Despite losing time due to injury, Ohtani seems to be the odds-on favorite.

National League

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2018 Predictions Revisited

Six months ago, at the dawn of the 2018 baseball season, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what.  Now that the regular season has come to an end, it is time revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Yankees

The Red Sox set a franchise record in wins and have pretty much held a commanding lead for the entire season, so I was a little off here.

Central: Indians

Getting this right shouldn’t really count, as the Indians are the only team in the Central to finish with a winning record.

West: Astros

The Astros have surpassed 100 wins and are ready to defend their title.

Wild Cards: Red Sox, Angels

Well, if you swap out the Red Sox and the Yankees, this doesn’t look too bad.  The Angels, however, did not pan out and instead the A’s took the second Wild Card slot.

AL Champion: Yankees

Well, they are still alive, so I guess it can still be a good pick.

Cy Young: Chris Sale

This seemed like a good pick through much of the season, but a late year injury may hold him back.

MVP: Giancarlo Stanton

Not going to happen.  Either Mookie Betts or Mike Trout will take home this award.

National League

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