MLB Bullets has to face three batters

Good morning and I hope everyone is ready for the holidays. I know I’m not.

As an alumnus of the University of Iowa, I have to give my heartfelt tribute to former football coach Hayden Fry, who died last night. Fry was such a part of the fabric of the school when I went there. We did the Hokey Pokey because of Fry.

• MLB announced their All-Decade team for the 2010s. One former and one current Cubs player made the list.
• Steve Richards explains how the new three-batter minimum rule will affect the game.
• Sam Miller breaks down every 2019 appearance of left-handed reliever Oliver Perez to see how the rule would have changed the game if it had been in effect last season.
• Matt Martell talks to MLB managers and they hate the new rule.
• Katherine Acquavella grades each teams winter moves so far.
• R.J. Anderson lists eight teams that still have a lot to do this winter. Gee, ya think the Cubs are on that list?
• Bob Nightengale reports that the Dodgers have discussed a deal with the Red Sox involving outfielder Mookie Betts. I’m sure they probably did, but Nightengale and everyone else is likely making this into a bigger deal than it actually is.
• The Dodgers are also interested in Indians shortstop Francisco Lindor and here are six “not-so-crazy” trade proposals that would send Lindor to the Dodgers or other teams.
• Mike Petriello ranks every team by how much they need to sign free agent third baseman Josh Donaldson.
• Richard Justice has five teams that are trying to sign a third baseman.
• The Brewers have agreed to a two-year, $20 million deal with free agent outfielder Avisaíl García.
• The Reds signed free agent left-hander Wade Miley to a two-year, $15 million deal.
• Jake Mailhot explains how Miley re-uniting with his former pitching coach Derek Johnson could pay off for the Reds.
• The Cardinals have signed posted left-handed pitcher Kwang Hyun Kim for two years and $8 million. Kim previously played with the SK Wyverns of Korea’s KBO.
• The Astros have re-signed free agent right-handed reliever Joe Smith to a two-year, $8 million deal.
• The Twins re-signed reliever Sergio Romo to a one-year deal worth almost $5 million.
• One of the reasons pitcher Madison Bumgarner signed with the Diamondbacks is reportedly so he could be near to the horses he keeps in his Arizona home.
• Buster Olney explains why the Diamondbacks are taking a big gamble in signing Bumgarner. (ESPN+ sub. req.)
• Craig Edwards breaks down the trade that sent pitcher Corey Kluber from Cleveland to Texas.
• Mike Rosenbaum has some minor league prospects poised to break out in 2020.
• The fire that broke out during construction of new Rangers stadium is not expected to delay its opening.
• The Tigers announced that they will retire Lou Whitaker’s number “1”. This reminds me of when the Cubs decided to retire Ron Santo’s number.
• Justin Klugh went to a winter fan “event” for the Orioles (they cancelled the regular FanFest) and reports that a winter fan event for a team that lost 108 games went exactly how you would expect it to go.
• The Navy has denied right-handed pitcher Noah Song’s request to delay his military service. Song, a graduate of the Naval Academy, was the fourth-round pick of the Red Sox this past June.
• Michael Shapiro speaks with Senator Bernie Sanders about his fight to save minor league teams from contraction.
• MLB has banned teams from having exclusive access to TrackMan data for amateur teams. Such data must now be shared with all 30 teams. The Cubs and the Yankees have been installing the TrackMan system at some of the top junior colleges and then keeping the proprietary data to themselves (or in the Cubs’ case, offering it in a trade).
• Stephen J. Nesbitt separates fact from fiction in how the Dodgers lost Roberto Clemente to the Pirates. (The Athletic sub. req.) Clemente claimed that the Dodgers tried to hide him in Montréal, but Nesbitt finds that to be more myth than truth.
• John Paschal has a baseball wish list for Santa.
• Dodgers infielder Max Muncy had his home address published on the internet and now he’s being swamped with autograph requests and he’d like it to stop. He still welcomes requests for autographs, he just asks that you send them to Dodger Stadium.
• And finally, Michael Clair’s grandmother passed away recently and he explains how he learned to love baseball from her. One of her most prized possessions was an autograph of Hank Greenberg that she got as a teenager. Michael lost it.

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