We’re off to Arizona.
Jaylon Thompson writes about first-round pick Jac Caglianone as he sets off on his professional career.
On Wednesday, Jac Caglianone officially signed with the Kansas City Royals. Last week, the Royals selected him sixth overall in the 2024 MLB Draft. The 6-foot-5 athlete was announced as a two-way player. He will play first base and get an opportunity to pursue a pitching career.
“It’s a dream that I had since I was little,” Caglianone said. “So, doing that officially and being in such a great place, there is really no better feeling.” The Royals are excited to add Caglianone into the fold. He starred for the Florida Gators and posted historic numbers within the program and owns the school record for career home runs (75) with the Gators. This season, Caglianone hit .419 with 35 home runs, 72 RBIs and 58 walks in 66 games.
David Lesky has one more look at the Royals' trade deadline targets.
By mid-June, well, there were questions of how they should act. And now, with just a few days left before the deadline, the Royals are unequivocally in the thick of a race. How aggressive they should or will be as we near the final buzzer has been debated, but nobody can argue that they are justified in their desire to make a playoff push, especially with how they’ve played out of the break.
Over at ESPN, Diamond Sports Group has reportedly made substantial progress in a TV deal, writes Aiden Gonzalez.
Diamond, 16 months into Chapter 11 restructuring, had a confirmation hearing scheduled for early next week but asked Judge Chris Lopez for more time in hopes of finalizing a new deal with Comcast, as well as the NBA and the NHL.
“We believe that we have made substantial progress on resolving our issues with Comcast, and we have the intention of fully documenting and executing an agreement with Comcast to broadcast our RSNs in the very near term,” Diamond attorney Brian Hermann said in court, alluding to Diamond’s regional sports networks.
For ESPN Insiders, David Schoenfield looks at a potential Brent Rooker trade for the Royals.
“From the ‘You Can’t Predict Baseball’ files, the A’s claimed Rooker on waivers from the Royals after the 2022 season. He made the All-Star team last year. He’s been even better this season, hitting .291/.370/.578 with 23 home runs, ranking eighth in the majors in OPS. He strikes out a ton and is pretty much limited to DH (he’s started just 13 games in he outfield) but he’s making $750,000 while being under team control for three more seasons. He’s the best bat out there.”
Mike Gillespie at Kings of Kauffman writes that reliever success shouldn’t change the team’s deadline plans.
“No. Bubic being the answer to Kansas City’s relief needs would be nice, but it’s far too early in his transition to declare him so. He must pass a longer, more stringent test, and that can’t be accomplished in the next week. Picollo needs to bolster his relief corps a bit more before the trade deadline passes.”
Also at Kings of Kauffman, Jacob Milham looks at the Ben Kudrna promotion.
“The 43rd overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, Kudrna has steadily climbed up the minor league ranks, and his performance in High-A this year oozes that he deserved a promotion. He has a 4-5 record and 3.49 ERA while striking out a team-leading 71 batters and posting a career-best 4.01 FIP this season. He must be learning something from the big-league rotation because his five quality starts in 15 starts are tied for the most in Quad Cities.”
Farm to Fountains has a closer look at fifth-round pick, AJ Causey.
“The Royals drafted their second Volunteer of the class in the fifth round. Drew Beam was the first, and they’ll both join outfielder Jared Dickey who entered the system last summer out of Tennessee. Reliever A.J. Causey is an interesting arm. The Royals took him with the 138th overall pick, and he’s already signed for $477,500. The slot value for his pick was $505,000. That’s a small amount of pool savings, but it’s clear that the Royals loved the arm. Director of Amateur Scouting, Brian Bridges, spoke about Causey after day two of the draft. “It’s not a fun at-bat,” he said. Bridges praised the uniqueness that Causey offers, mentioning that he’s the type of arm team’s have gotten away from of late.”
The Red Sox and manager Alex Cora have agreed to an extension.
MLB Network announced they’ve launched a standalone streaming option.
Kevin Kiermaier announces he will retire after the 2024 season.
Guardians starter Tanner Bibee exited his start early with cramping.
Benches cleared in Colorado after Cal Quantrill went after Reese McGuire’s arrest history.
Mike Trout’s rehab assignment is on hold as he gets re-evaluated.
49ers LT Trent Williams is holding out for a new contract.
Chiefs WR Justin Watson suffered a brutal injury in practice.
Tom Brady isn’t quite Leo DiCaprio, as his new girlfriend is 27 (just barely north of 25).
Yellowstone geyser explosion signals the end of days? (/s)
Your song of the day is Happier from Marshmello ft. Bastille.
