Mariners Moose Tracks, 3/24/22: Hanser Alberto, Stephen Vogt, and Tommy Pham
The slow trickle of free agency continues.
Good morning friends and (possibly? doubtfully) family! Let us dive into the wild world of baseball news.
In Mariners news...
- Cameron Van Til at Baseball America told the story of how the M’s farm system went from worst to first in the last few years.
Around the league...
- I do not feel compelled to list out every contract that was signed in avoiding arbitration, but if you feel so compelled to dive into those numbers and figures, I will point you to the MLB Trade Rumors arbitration tracker.
- Nuke LaLoosh in the flesh!
Ben Joyce, throwing so hard he Destroyed his Belt on his last warm up pitch.
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) March 23, 2022
And, then hits the HP ump in the mask with 102mph on his 1st pitch. pic.twitter.com/zmGtKTvdo7
- Russell A. Carleton at Baseball Prospectus wonders if robo ump calls can actually be disputed by teams in-game. ($)
- Dave Valle is leaving us for our bitter rivals.
Former MLB catcher Dave Valle has been added as an analyst for selected Rangers telecasts on Bally Sports Southwest in 2022. Valle has extensive broadcast experience with the Mariners and MLB Network. He joins C.J. Nitkowski, Tom Grieve, and David Murphy as BSSW Rangers analysts.
— John Blake (@RangerBlake) March 23, 2022
- The Phillies defense looks, well, not great in the early parts of spring training according to Dan McQuade at Defector. This was the squad that just added Kyle Schwarber and Nick Castellanos so I think this was to be expected.
- The Cleveland Guardians are bringing back former Mariner Bryan Shaw on a major league deal.
- The Dodgers agreed to a one-year deal with infielder Hanser Alberto.
- It is a little curious that we have heard very little from the A’s trade front recently, but there is this.
Teams in discussions with the A’s say Oakland currently is focused on trading LHP Sean Manaea, and is waiting to decide how to proceed with RHP Frankie Montas.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 23, 2022
- Glad to hear that she’s doing alright, but man that’s scary.
Rachel Balkovec was struck in the face by a batted ball yesterday, Yankees announce. She has been advised to rest for 5-7 days and is doing so at home. She does not expect the injury to affect her duties during the Minor League regular season.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) March 23, 2022
- It sounds like the New York Mets and Yankees players will get bailed out. The city has decided to lift the vaccine mandate for athletes starting today.
- If you’re frustrated as a Mariners fan right now, just imagine being an Angels fan.
Before signing free-agent reliever Ryan Tepera, Angels inquired about several RHHs, sources tell @TheAthletic. List included Luke Voit, J.D. Davis, Trey Mancini. After signing Tepera for 2/14, team reluctant to boost payroll further except for SP. Wants to retain $$$ flexibility.
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) March 23, 2022
- The A’s are bringing back catcher Stephen Vogt on an MLB deal.
- The Reds are an enigma and they continued their strange offseason by bringing in Tommy Pham on a one-year deal.