MLB Bullets Would Rather Fight Than Switch

I don't have anything to go up here. Sorry.

• Orioles manager Buck Showalter and Yankees manager Joe Girardi started yelling at each other in the middle of Monday night's 4-2 Orioles win. The source of the argument was apparently Joe Girardi's belief that O's third base coach Bobby Dickerson was stealing signs.
• On Tuesday, Showalter said the whole matter was over, although not before agreeing with MLB Network analyst Darryl Hamilton that the Yankees steal signs all the time. You know, if baseball were a romantic comedy, Showalter and Girardi would have ended the fight with a dramatic kiss.
• The Yankees have a bigger problem than just sign-stealing Buck. Ken Rosenthal points out that Derek Jeter is a shell of his old self and it might be better if he just shut it down for this season tried to get healthy for next year.
• It's clear that the Yankees think that Jeter may not be back this season, or at least not productive. Last night they acquired Brendan Ryan from the Mariners for a player to be named later. Ryan can't hit at all, but until Andrelton Simmons arrived on the scene, he was the best defensive shortstop in the game. Oh, sorry Michael Kay. Best defensive shortstop other than Jeter. (Heh, heh)
• Joel Sherman of the New York Post asks have we already seen Jeter play his last game? Seems pretty unlikely, since Jeter has a player option for next season and he's not the type of guy to retire unless his foot fell off or something. Even Sherman thinks it's unlikely, but a man's got to generate page hits somehow, right?
• In a more friendly, sportswriter version of the Showalter/Girardi conflict, Jon Heyman takes to task those who think Mike Trout should be the MVP over Miguel Cabrera. He doesn't refer to him by name, but he clearly takes a playful jab at Joe Posnanski, calling him a "creative stats guy." But even Heyman says Trout might be the best player in the American League. So what he's really arguing is that a player from a losing team can't be MVP unless, and he says this later, they're so much better than everyone else in the league.
• Posnanski takes the time to respond to Heyman and 1) is flattered to be called "creative stats guy" and 2) says "I think the MVP award should go to the best player. Period." So instead of arguing who the best player in the American League is, what Heyman really wants to do is argue about the meaning of the word "valuable." He's not a sportswriter, he's a linguist!
• David Schoenfield looks at the debate and says the "old school" writers are basing their MVP decision on stats. Or rather one stat, RBIs.
• Jeff Sullivan throws a stink bomb into the discussion and says "Hey, what about Josh Donaldson for MVP?"
• Yadier Molina is an NL MVP candidate, although he's not likely to win it this year. Not in the least because he may not even be the best player on the Cardinals anymore with the emergence of Matt Carpenter.
• Carpenter is a product of the "Cardinals Way" that produces waves and waves of talent out of the minors, although the Cards call it the "next man up" system. Same idea.
• Jacoby Ellsbury has a compression fracture in his right foot. The Red Sox expect him back before the end of the season, so that's good news for them.
• I'm not going to say the Red Sox aren't going to miss Ellsbury, but Joe Lemire says the Red Sox have the best record in baseball thanks to their patient approach at the plate and incredible team depth. So that depth thing will help them get through September.
• Since the all-star break, Eric Hosmer has outhit Chris Davis. So who would you rather have on your team in 2014?
• Speaking of the Royals, Ned Yost defends his decision to have Carlos Pena bat with runners on the corners and one out in the ninth inning on Monday. Pena struck out. It seems we're getting a lot of explanations out of Yost lately.
• In case you hadn't heard, the Pirates won their 82nd game on Monday, ending their twenty-year streak of losing seasons. Dayn Perry looks back at twenty years of highs and lows in Pittsburgh. But mostly lows.
• Marc Normandin says the Pirates have finally conquered the curse of Tim Wakefield.
• Al had a post on this talking about the Cubs angle, but the 2014 schedule was released. As announced previously, the Diamondbacks and Dodgers will start the season in Australia. The biggest issue will be learning to run the bases clockwise rather than counter-clockwise.
• The Blue Jays are going to play two exhibition games in Montreal. Look for baseball fans in the city to use the games to campaign for baseball's return to Quebec.
• Not wanting to take any chances as far as Montreal (or anywhere else) is concerned, a radio station in Tampa has started a "Save baseball in Tampa Bay" campaign.
• Jerry Crasnick thinks despite their strong regular season, the Braves aren't built to win in the post-season. Normally I'd say "whatever that means" but he actually takes the time to explain what he means.
• Add Scott Miller's name to those who want to end the huge September rosters. Or at least limit the number that can be active at any one time. He uses the example of the Rangers, who currently have 36 active players, as an example of the insanity.
• Matt Harvey is optimistic before meeting with Dr. James Andrews this week. Craig Calcaterra thinks Harvey ought to just get the surgery over with.
• Bryce Harper is injured, but he's not allowed to talk about it. Apparently it's been classified by the NSA Nationals GM Mike Rizzo.
• The Marlins are going to shut down Jose Fernandez after his next start. Just giving Houston a chance to catch them and give the Marlins Carlos Rodon.
• Terence Moore thinks the Big Red Machine of the 1970s was the greatest dynasty in baseball history, although he admits he's biased. I'd buy that they were the greatest lineup 1 through 8, but the pitching on those teams was rather pedestrian.
• Jhonny Peralta is going to work out with the Tigers, as the team decides whether or not to include him on their postseason roster.
• Jack Etkin traces the baseball career of Greg Reynolds, going from second pick in the draft, to injured, to bust and now back to at least being a journeyman major leaguer in a playoff race with the Reds.
• Dirk Hayhurst thinks that R.A. Dickey is worth the money the Blue Jays are paying him, even with his disappointing season.
• Cuban infielder Alexander Guerrero is expected to sign a $32 million deal with the Dodgers.
• The International Olympic Committee will not reinstate baseball and softball for the 2020 Olympics. John Manuel thinks this is the permanent end of Olympic Baseball (and long live the WBC anyway). But I still feel sorry for our softball players.
• Finally, Matt Clapp looks at the 40 most undeserving players to get a Starting Lineup Action figure over the late 80s and 90s. (h/t Rob Neyer.) I admit I bought five or six of those figures. I loved having my Walter Johnson (or Greg Maddux) figure pitch to Josh Gibson. But I can assure you I bought none of the figures listed there.