Around the MLB 2018

[Schad]

Ohtani just clubbed a bases-clearing three-run triple. Egads.

[dagger]

They really just eat their young in NY. With luck, this plus Boone's inexperience will result in a wasted year for the Yankees.

Read on Twitter

[Skin Blues]

Not only has Ohtani been one of the best power hitters and starting pitchers this season, he's also possibly the fastest runner in baseball. Babe Ruth minus the hot dogs. A genetic freak if I've ever seen one. And he's not lucking into those hits, he has the third-highest Exit Velocity in baseball (min 20 batted balls) with 97.0 MPH, which is actually better than Luke Maile Superstar who has only averaged a mere 96.9 MPH.

[Schad]

That was the thing that opened my eyes about the triple; I know that he has a reputation as a fast runner, but the ball's placement and velocity was "stretching for a triple" territory, and despite a quick gather and throw he was in comfortably enough that they need not have bothered.

[Skin Blues]

Was timed on a home-to-first sprint at 3.80 seconds last year, which is better than Dee Gordon's average max effort time of 3.81 seconds. Insane.

[Tanner]

Ohtani took the Angels from a 2nd WC contender to a real one, assuming he keeps being this good on both sides. Their GM has made a lot of good moves the last few years. Sucks for the Jays, so as fun as it is to watch Ohtani, have to root for him to level off (and he probably will).

[Schad]

Oh, he'll definitely level off, if only because he's currently on pace for a combined 12 fWAR or something absurd, and that's with both his innings and at-bats limited.

The Angels as a whole will taper, but unless their pitching staff implodes, they look for all the world like a playoff-caliber team. Lowest K rate in the league thus far, paired with the second-highest isolated power...that's a pretty unusual combination, and their HR rate on flyballs isn't anything abnormal. They're just consistently making hard contact right now.

[I_Like_Dirt]

Ohtani took the Angels from a 2nd WC contender to a real one, assuming he keeps being this good on both sides. Their GM has made a lot of good moves the last few years. Sucks for the Jays, so as fun as it is to watch Ohtani, have to root for him to level off (and he probably will).

I don't see any reason to cheer for Ohtani to level off. I hope he stays this good even though I think that's highly unlikely. He's being good doesn't also prevent the Jays from being good. Frankly, I'd love to see the Jays have some epic playoff series wins against him. He's just really good and a joy to watch.

[So_Fresh]

Shohei Ohtani Lobbying Angels For More Playing Time.

As a pitcher, Ohtani is 2-0 with a 2.08 ERA and 18 strikeouts over 13 innings. In his first seven games with an at-bat, including one as a pinch-hitter, the left-handed slugger hit .346 with three homers and 11 RBI.

[SharoneWright]

Consider me gobsmacked... Bartolo Colon with a perfect game going into the 8th!??

[Schad]

He's back, baby.

Colon also moved into sole possession of 35th all-time on the career strikeouts list. This despite being one of the least K-happy pitchers of his generation. Or the two generations that have come after him.

[vaff87]

Was timed on a home-to-first sprint at 3.80 seconds last year, which is better than Dee Gordon's average max effort time of 3.81 seconds. Insane.

His top speed on that triple was 28.3 ft/s. That’s fast, but it’s not near guys like Buxton and Hamilton.

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sprint_speed_leaderboard

[BigLeagueChew]

Read on Twitter

[Skin Blues]

Breaking a bat at the bottom like that won't do anything to affect the speed or distance. A physicist named Alan Nathan has done a ton of work on the subject (same guy that studied Dickey's knuckleball a few years ago when we traded for him). The ball-bat contact time is so short that by the time a crack develops from the bending wave travelling down the barrel, the ball is already gone and is unaffected by whatever happens. Usually when a bat breaks it's because the hitter gets it right on the handle, or off the very end, which is why the ball never goes very far. It's not common to break a bat by hitting the ball on the sweet spot. As Todd Frazier showed us a few years ago, you don't even need to be holding the bat at the time of contact as long as you get the barrel going fast enough before letting go.

[dagger]

I'm telling you, there is a bad vibe around the Yankees

Read on Twitter

Down 7-0 in the fifth to Miami, the angst is palpable

Read on Twitter

[So_Fresh]

Bautista agrees to minor league deal with Atlanta.

[LLJ]

Bautista agrees to minor league deal with Atlanta.

Wish he woulda retired. I don't think he's going to magically rediscover the fountain of youth at his age.

Unless PEDs of course.

[Schad]

Sean Manaea threw up a 2 walk no-hitter against the fricking Red Sox.

[Schad]

Spare a thought for poor Jaime Barria, the 21 year old spot starter for the Angels. He threw a 49 pitch, no-run inning, thanks in large part to Brandon Belt's 21 pitch effort.

[rotty]

Read on Twitter