MLB Bullets Has A Boo-Boo

Did you know that Billy Beane and Billy Bean were actually teammates on the 1988 Toledo Mud Hens? And that there was another outfielder on the team named Pete Rice? Yep. The Mud Hens outfield consisted of Rice and Bean(e)s.

• Al already mentioned this in the game recap, but the defending champion Giants were dealt an early blow when a Corey Black pitch broke Hunter Pence's left forearm. Pence will miss the first month of the season.
• Jon Paul Morosi writes that Pence's absence will leave the Giants with a power shortage.
• Christina Kahrl examines the Giants outfield options going forward.
• She also asks whether Casey McGehee can replace the production that the Giants lost in Pablo Sandoval. Or at least, how much of it can McGehee replace.
• We now know why Ryan Vogelsong re-signed with the Giants after it was initially reported that he was close to a deal with the Astros. The Astros reportedly Aiken'd him. I just made that word up, but it fits.
• The Los Angeles Times is reporting that the panel appointed to recommend what MLB should do about Josh Hamilton is deadlocked and the final decision will have to be made by an arbitrator.
• Jon Paul Morosi and Ken Rosenthal are reporting that the Hamilton decision could come early next week. Apparently, a one-year suspension is one option on the table.
• Craig Calcaterra calls such draconian punishment "madness" and that Hamilton needs MLB's assistance and not its discipline.
• Will Leitch looks back at the drug issues of the 1980s and agrees that Hamilton needs support. He hopes MLB has evolved from the dark ages of the eighties.
• Rob Neyer isn't sure what to think but he does think a compromise is in order here.
• Also, we aren't supposed to be reading about this. All of these Hamilton deliberations are supposed to be private. MLBPA chief Tony Clark has blasted MLB over the leaks.
• Calcaterra is upset about the leaks as well.
• Touching on the controversy from last time, Billy Bean wrote a very thoughtful response to Daniel Murphy's comments. In it, Bean says that inclusion means inclusion for everybody. Also, I liked how he said that since it took him 32 years to come to terms with his sexuality, it is only fair for him to be patient with others about it.
• Murphy, for his part, says he won't talk about anything but baseball anymore.
• Hopefully putting an end to another Mets controversy, Noah Sydergaard apologized for eating during an intrasquad game and David Wright apologized for confronting him while reporters were around. So the New York media can go back to hounding A-Rod.
• One Mets controversy goes away and another arrives. Zack Wheeler revealed that he doesn't like his infielders to put defensive shifts on behind him. Also in that link, Chris Mosch has several updates on defensive shifts, if you are into that sort of thing.
• David Schoenfield thinks that while defensive shifts probably prevented more hits off Wheeler than it cost him, if defensive shifts bother Wheeler, they probably aren't worth it. If Wheeler is thinking about the defense behind him rather than the pitch, that negates any benefit from shifting in Schoenfield's calculations.
• Hey, we had Mets controversies so it's only fair that we have Yankees controversies. Yankee GM Brian Cashman said that he thinks that Derek Jeter should be the last captain of the Yankees.
• Rob Neyer asks what the point of that is.
• Mike Axisa doesn't get it either.
• Manager Joe Girardi also seemed puzzled, but said he wasn't planning on naming a new captain this year anyway.
• The Yankees need Carlos Beltran to bounce back this season.
• This is a fascinating, must-read article by Ben Lindbergh in Grantland. Who was the more productive player over the course of his career: Adam Dunn or Juan Pierre? This is a more advanced version of the Johnny Pesky/Dick Stuart debate that Bill James led off the 1982 Baseball Abstract, which was the first one that was put out by an actual publisher.
• Whoever had Mike Minor in the "First pitcher of the spring to go see Dr. James Andrews" pool, you win!
• Joel Hanrahan will need Tommy John surgery, so the Tigers released him. Craig Calcaterra examines who pays for the surgery in such cases.
• Jon Paul Morosi notes the value in the incredible durability of Royals catcher Salvador Perez. Counting the postseason, Perez started 158 games behind the plate last season, which is a record. I checked. Randy Hundley played in 160 games in 1968, but he only started 156 games. That's still the regular season record, of course. Durocher would have made a great prison warden in a B-movie.
• These are not last year's Padres.
• There is a report that Cuban free agent infielder Hector Olivera has a damaged UCL.
• Olivera's people have strenuously denied the report.
• Barry Zito came back to baseball for the "joy of competition." He's in Athletics camp on a minor-league deal.
• Former Cub Bryan LaHair is in Red Sox camp on a minor-league deal. He talks about his struggles with injuries over the past few years, which he says started the second half of his All-Star season with the Cubs.
• The Dodgers are willing to pay half of Andre Ethier's salary to a team that will give him a good home. So far, no takers.
• Jon Heyman writes that while Jeff Samardzija is almost certain to reach free agency, the trade was still worth it for the White Sox. That remains to be seen, doesn't it Jon?
• Dave Cameron notes certain teams almost never trade with each other. He leaves off the Cubs and Blue Jays, who have not made a deal since the 2001 Alex Gonzalez deal and have only made six deals in the 38-year history of the Jays.
• David Schoenfield remembers one of the most famous trade of all, when two Yankees pitchers swapped wives.
• Mike Oz loves the new batter's box rule, if only for the comic results when hitters remember it after stepping out.
• And finally, if you're going to Chase Field this summer, you may want to check out the Churro Dog. Only 1100 calories. Also, Cy Brown has some other top weird ballpark food for this year.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.