MLB Bullets is stepping away from the game

Are there any sporting events worth paying attention to this weekend?

• Former number 1 pick Mark Appel told Joon Lee that he is taking an “indefinite break” from the game, which is a fancy way of saying he’s retiring while leaving open the possibility of attempting a comeback later. Appel seems to have no regrets and says if you want to call him a “bust,” he’s fine with that. He says he still wants to be a major league ballplayer, but he’d rather be happy.
• J.J. Cooper says that Appel shows that scouting is still an imprecise art. Amateur scouts who watched Appel pitch at Stanford thought he was a future major league ace. Pro scouts who saw him pitch just a few months later thought he was a back-of-the-rotation guy at best.
• Assuming Appel never returns, he’ll only be the third number 1 pick to never play in the majors. John Schlegel and Ed Eagle have the 15 players taken in the top 3 to never make the majors.
• ESPN re-published this piece from last June by Jerry Crasnick about Appel’s struggles in the minor leagues.
• In the pace-of-play negotiations, Commissioner Rob Manfred has made an offer to the Player’s Association that would delay implementing a pitch clock for a year in exchange for trying other things first. But it would automatically happen in 2019 if game times were not significantly cut in 2018.
• Craig Calcaterra calls Manfred’s offer “weird” and wonders what the solution is.
• Tim Brown writes that the next ten days are vitally important for baseball as the MLBPA decides how to respond to Manfred’s offer.
• One proposal that MLB is considering is bringing back bullpen carts. Emma Baccellieri writes please, please, please bring back bullpen carts. Not to speed up the game, but for the sheer entertainment value they bring.
• One thing that MLB has done right is that all 30 teams will have extended the netting behind home plate by Opening Day.
• On to the Cold Stove. David Schoenfield has the biggest remaining hole for all 30 teams and a possible solution for all of them.
• Eric Hosmer is unsigned, but Mark Townsend writes that is because he wants an eight-year contract and no team is crazy enough to give him that.
• Alex Hall agrees. The reason that free agents haven’t signed is because they have unreasonable expectations.
• Jon Heyman thinks that only seven teams have actually improved themselves this winter.
• The Brewers are one team that have improved and they’re trying to get better by asking about Chris Archer in trade. Ken Rosenthal reports that such a deal is unlikely, however.
• Travis Sawchik believes that new Brewers outfielder Christian Yelich is already pretty good and could take his production to a new level with Milwaukee.
• On team that definitely hasn’t gotten better is the Yelich’s former team, the Marlins. Ben Lindbergh looks at the Miami Fire Sale 3.0 and concludes that it is the biggest sell-off of talent in major league history.
• Bob Nightengale thinks team president Derek Jeter will need to develop a thicker skin if he wants to continue down the path he has the Marlins on.
• Grant Brisbee’s head is still reeling as he realizes that Giancarlo Stanton is now with the Yankees. The Illuminati are involved, somehow. That’s not me—Brisbee actually writes that. I’d say the lack of offseason action was making us all loopy, but I think Grant was like that before.
• Yankees GM Brian Cashman has been on the job for 20 years. Andrew Marchand has Cashman’s greatest hits and misses over that time.
• I mentioned that former Cubs catcher Alex Avila signed with the Diamondbacks earlier in the week, but Jeff Sullivan wants to point out that at least by one measure, Avila was one of the best hitters in baseball in 2017.
• Another former Cubs catcher has a new team as Miguel Montero has signed a minor-league deal with the Nationals.
• Jonathan Mayo has 12 prospects who could make a big impact in the majors in 2018.
• Bradford Doolittle asks how many teams might have the greatest player in their history currently on their team. Believe it or not, the Cubs are one of them. We’re looking at you, Sparkles.
• Joe Posnanski writes about how baseball legend Buck O’Neil signed Oscar Gamble, who passed away this week. Posnanski says O’Neil was more proud of signing Gamble than any other player, and he signed Lou Brock.
• Athletics first baseman Brandon Moss talked more about the state of labor relations in baseball and how he feels the union needs to take a harder line.
• The White Sox gave a 2005 World Series ring to Ron Kittle. That’s a nice gesture.
• The head of the San Diego Chicken is up for auction. I suppose you could put it on a pike for some sort of bizarro Renaissance Festival.
• Retired Cub Sam Fuld is hosting a camp for kids with diabetes in Tampa.
• The Rockies are going to have a new mountain-shaped scoreboard and Mark Townsend thinks it is going to be really cool.
• The Red Sox complex in Fort Myers had an alligator report early for Spring Training. Can he hit?
• And finally, when NBA star Blake Griffin was traded to the Detroit Pistons, Tigers pitchers Michael Fulmer and Daniel Norris both recorded a message to welcome him to Detroit. Norris’ message is both shorter and a lot more helpful than Fulmer’s. It’s also pretty funny.

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