MLB - NEWS & NOTES

I don't see how they can do it without making the season longer. MLB already played a pre season game in Australia and not all the players were pleased with how long the flight was. It would have to be negotiated in a contract with the union, right? How would you like sitting on air trips to foreign countries to play a game? Don't like it! *NO*

 

I really wish they would bring back the Montreal Expos.

 

They are trying right? Doesn't Montreal want a team?

 

The way the Canadiens have fallen, yes, they want a team in Montreal.

 

NEW YORK (AP) -- Baseball's strike zone could be getting a slight lift.

Major League Baseball is studying whether to raise the bottom of the strike zone from the hollow beneath the kneecap back to the top of the kneecap.

"I'm not in a position to predict whether it's going to happen or not," Rob Manfred said during an interview with The Associated Press on Monday on his first anniversary as baseball commissioner. "I think that the interest in the topic is really driven by the fact that if you look over time there has been a movement down of the strike zone, largely as a result of the way we evaluate the strike zone with umpires."

Strike zone data was included in a presentation given to owners last week at their meeting in Coral Gables, Florida. An agreement with the players' association would be necessary to make a change for this year, and baseball officials said the matter is likely to be discussed during collective bargaining, which would delay any change until 2017.

The strike zone extended to the top of the kneecap through the 1995 season, then was dropped to its current level.

"The umpires have done a great job calling the strike zone as we want it called," Manfred said. "The question is whether we ought to make an adjustment."

Consideration of an alteration comes following a decade-and-a-half decline in offense. There was an uptick during the second half last season.

"The bottom to the top of the knees is only a matter of a couple inches, so it wouldn't be a big adjustment for anybody," San Francisco Giants shortstop Brandon Crawford said in an email. "But, it may help hitters mentally knowing that the zone is a little smaller (even if only by a couple inches). It could help us check off pitches that look like they might be at the bottom of the zone but are sinking even lower."

Without bottom-of-the-zone strikes, pitchers would have to adjust.

"Obviously, raising the strike zone provides more opportunity for hitters to create lift, leading to more doubles and homers, and runs - which probably generates more eyeballs watching the sport," Los Angeles Angels closer Huston Street said in an email.

 

they had a great team, fans never came and they moved to washington. sorry. i am against any city who had a team in the big 4, lost them due to poor fan support and now wants another. sorry but no dice. mlb needs reduction, NOT more damn teams. OMG more teams? It's already diluted already. NO, NO, NO.

 

not a good enough reason to back a team in a city it already failed once before. no dice. get carey price healthy bc that's all you got.

 

lets see how long bf he changes his mind on this...?

 

Doug Fister to the Astros - 1yr/7M

 

I want to see it called up to the top of the knee. I saw waaaaay too many strikes called that were below the knees last year. It was ridiculous. Maybe a few younger umps with 20/20 vision might help out also. I saw too many balls called strikes all over the strike zone last year. And thats really ridiculous!

 

I dont care for the inconsistency. Different game, different ump, different strike zone.

It would be nice if they got on the same page, but they overall do a pretty good job.

 

Yeah Will, and we thought they were doing a great job on the calls at 1st base until instant replay changes about 1/4 of them.......

 

Its a real hard call tho. You have to listen as well as see the play. Instant replay really shows just how close those calls can be .

The strike-zone is what bothers me the most.

 

Rays acquire Corey Dickerson from Rockies

The Rays have acquired outfielder Corey Dickerson from the Rockies in exchange for multiple pitchers, Fox's Ken Rosenthal reports. Joel Sherman tweets that the Rockies will be receiving lefty reliever Jake McGee, among others.

Dickerson, 26, is coming off a 2015 season in Colorado in which he batted .304/.333/.536 with 10 home runs in 68 games (he missed substantial time because of plantar fascitiis and then a rib fracture). Dickerson is capable of manning all three outfield positions, and for his career he owns an OPS+ of 125 across parts of three big-league seasons. He'll be eligible for salary arbitration following the upcoming season and is slated for free agency after the 2020 season.

 

kind of an odd movie here. i think dickerson had a monster year the year before. mcgee is a solid pitcher but he's a middle reliever. ??

 

Dodgers, Howie Kendrick agree to 2-year, $20M contract

Sources tell Fox's Ken Rosenthal that the Dodgers and second baseman Howie Kendrick have agreed to a two-year contract, pending the results of a physical. Jon Heyman adds that the deal will pay Kendrick $20 million over those two seasons.

Kendrick, 32, is coming off a 2015 season for the Dodgers in which he batted .295/.336/.409 (107 OPS+) with nine home runs and 22 doubles in 117 games. For his career, Kendrick owns an OPS+ of 108 across parts of 10 big-league seasons. He's spent almost 9,500 defensive innings at second base. This past season, he spent more than a month on the DL with a hamstring strain.

For 2016, our CBS Sports Fantasy projections tab Kendrick for a line of .292/.336/.407 in 595 at-bats. Kendrick's re-signing likely pushes Enrique Hernandez back into a reserve role for the Dodgers.
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Good move by the Dodgers.

 

The reason we all wear 42. Happy birthday to a true icon, Jackie Robinson.