MLB Bullets sleeps well in Seattle

Boy, I sure am glad MLB takes a break for the World Cup. The fact that the Cubs didn’t play this past weekend meant that I could watch soccer and go to my daughter’s recital and not miss anything.

• Are the Mariners for real this year? In the sense that the Mariners exist, they are definitely for real. But David Schoenfield argues that the way the M’s have handled losing five straight games indicates that they have the internal strength necessary to make the playoffs in 2018. They’re also still six games up on the Angels in the Wild Card hunt.
• Jon Tayler looks back at the moves that Mariners’ general manager Jerry Dipoto made to turn Seattle into a first-half success.
• R.J. Anderson, however, believes that the M’s need to add another starting pitcher, which will not be easy considering the Mariners payroll and their bleak farm system.
• Some of the Mariners success has been due to the strong first-half of journeyman pitcher Wade LeBlanc, who is having the best year of his career at age 33. Sheryl Ring makes the case that LeBlanc’s success may be a real improvement on his part and not just a lucky first-half.
• The Mariners make lots of trades with the Rays and they may try to again as the Rays are looking to trade most of their veterans, including Chris Archer, before the trade deadline, writes Marc Topkin.
• Speaking of journeymen, our old friend Edwin Jackson is scheduled to make his first start for the Athletics tonight. When he is announced in the lineup, Jackson will tie a major league record having played for his 13th major league team, tying Octavio Dotel. Jackson’s time in Chicago can charitably be described the same way the Hindenburg disaster was described. But Jackson always worked hard and never tried to blame anyone but himself for his struggles. He always said there wasn’t much he could do but try to do better the next time, which was true. It’s also not like those Cubs teams were going to win anything even if he pitched well. So Jackson is a fine person by me and I congratulate him on tying the major league record.
• Jonah Keri thinks it makes sense for Angels pitcher/DH Shohei Ohtani to come back as a DH-only as his pitching arm (hopefully) heals. (VIDEO)
• Eddie Matz writes that the Phillies are “crashing the party” in more ways than one. For one, they’re good enough to win the NL East. Two, former Cubs Jake Arrieta and Tommy Hunter have imported the Chicago clubhouse disco party after wins to Philadelphia. Disco was always bigger in Philly than Chicago anyway.
• Buster Olney argues that even if Bryce Harper leaves the Nationals next season, the team is poised to compete for years to come.
• Bradford Doolittle makes the case that the National League should continue on without the designated hitter. And yes, the polls continue to show that American League fans love the DH and National League fans hate it. Yes, there are many exceptions, including some on this masthead.
• I don’t know how much attention to give this story, which is why I’m kind of sticking it in the middle of the piece. You may have heard the name of Hanley Ramirez connected to a federal drug trafficking investigation on Friday. It should be made clear that those reports were completely erroneous, and it was simply the result of an alleged criminal dropping Ramirez’s name when he was caught. So repeat: Hanley Ramirez is in no way connected to drug trafficking, period.
• The Royals are reportedly considering signing convicted child molester and Oregon State pitcher Luke Heimlich, which makes some sort of perverted sense.
• Here’s a preview of the College World Series, which starts tonight in Omaha when Oregon State takes on Arkansas in the best-of-three series.
• Blue Jays closer Roberto Osuna has been suspended 75 games for a violation of MLB’s domestic violence policy. Even when the suspension is over, Osuna may face visa issues which is a huge problem for someone playing for the Blue Jays.
• The Blue Jays put starter Aaron Sanchez on the disabled list.
• Braves closer (and ex-Cub) Arodys Vizcaino went on the DL with shoulder inflammation.
• Top Reds prospect Nick Senzel will miss the rest of the season after surgery on a tendon in his index finger.
• Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez is likely heading to the DL as well.
• The Cardinals are encouraging their players to be more honest about their injuries. Too many players try to play through an injury without telling anyone and just end up making it worse. Kudos to the Cards for trying to put an end to that. I remember when the Astros accused J.R. Richard of faking his injury and accused him of being a “malingerer.” Soon thereafter, Richard had a stroke which ended his career. No one ever apologized, as far as I know.
• The Dodgers hit seven solo home runs against the Mets on Sunday, which ties a National League record.
• Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier thought he had a home run. Instead, the ball hit a speaker hanging from the roof of Tropicana Field and landed in the glove of shortstop Adeiny Hechevarria for an out.
• Astros infielder Alex Bregman shaved off his mustache—during a game with the Royals. One inning he just showed up to bat and it was gone.
• And finally, the bus that was supposed to take the Padres from their hotel to AT&T Park in San Francisco never showed up. So they flagged down a double-decker sightseeing bus and rode to the park in style, waving to people along the way.

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