MLB Bullets does the right thing

Good morning. Opening Day (Japan Edition) is just two days away!

• The Blue Jays announced over the weekend that they intend to raise the pay of their minor league ballplayers from between 40% to 56%. (The Athletic sub. req., but you can read the details here.) It’s not nearly enough, but it’s a giant step in the right direction and the Blue Jays deserve to be applauded for this. Also, the Blue Jays admit that it’s not enough, (The Athletic sub. req. again.) so maybe it is just a first step that hopefully other teams will follow. I’ll have more on this story in a later article.
• This joins the other changes coming to baseball in 2019 and here’s a quick primer on all the coming rules changes and what impact they would have had if they had been in place in previous years.
• Buster Olney thinks the new hard July 31 deadline on trades is going to make a huge impact. (ESPN+ sub. req.)
• Ben Lindbergh doesn’t think the rules changes in place for 2019 and 2020 will make much of a difference, but it does get the momentum going for rules changes that will change the game much more dramatically.
• Neil Paine looks at what the impact would be if the NL adopted the DH in 2019.
• Emma Baccellieri has a history of major rules changes in MLB.
• Giants pitcher Jeff Samardzija thinks that MLB should do away with extra innings and just call games ties after nine innings. I’d say 11 innings, but honestly, I’m with the Shark on this one. Let’s stop thinking of ties as something so awful that we should do all kinds of stupid things to avoid them. This rule clearly wouldn’t apply to the playoffs, however.
• Astros manager A.J. Hinch got thrown out of a Spring Training game in the bottom of the first inning by umpire Angel Hernandez and then criticized Hernandez as unprofessional after the game. Hinch also said that umpire CB Bucknor was the voice of reason in the whole affair and Hinch sounded just as surprised as we all would be about that.
• To no one’s surprise, Hinch was suspended one game. So he won’t get paid for a Spring Training game that none of his players were getting paid for?
• Phillies outfielder Bryce Harper got hit in the ankle by a pitch and he’s day-to-day after the entire city of Philadelphia almost soiled themselves. Harper is still expected to be ready for Opening Day, non-Tokyo edition.
• If you remember, Phillies manager Gabe Kapler was informed that the team was signing Harper by fans (or “phans”) with phones behind home plate during a Spring Training game. Tragedy struck this past week as one of those fans was killed in the Ethiopian airline crash last week.
• Tim Brown has the inspiring story of the lifetime friendship between Twins teammates and legends Tony Oliva and Rod Carew.
• Gabe Lacques has some things to watch for as Spring Training winds down.
• Tim Brown on Red Sox infielder Dustin Pedroia and how he says he feels like he’s back to his old self this Spring Training. Pedroia may not be ready for Opening Day, but the Red Sox think he won’t be out long.
• The Mariners got bad news as their third baseman Kyle Seager will miss the first 10-12 weeks of the season after surgery. Rian Watt breaks down how much the M’s will miss Seager.
• Kyle’s little brother, Dodgers shortstop Corey Seager, missed almost all of last season with Tommy John surgery but he’s going to be ready to play on Opening Day.
• Angels pitcher Andrew Heaney will start the season on the injured list.
• Braves pitcher Mike Foltynewicz will miss most or all of April as he recovers from a sore elbow.
• Free agent outfielder Carlos Gonzalez signed a minor-league deal with the Indians.
• Former Mets and Phillies outfielder Lenny Dykstra pleaded guilty to disorderly conduct and had the other charges dropped. He will not serve any jail time.
• Mike Axisa has ten “under-the-radar” MVP candidates for 2019. I could deal with Kyle Schwarber winning the MVP.
• David Adler looks at Fangraphs playoff odds before the first game is played. Adler doesn’t mention it, but the Orioles and Marlins already have a 0.0% chance of making the postseason.
• Will Leitch lists what he thinks is the coolest jersey to buy for each team. David Bote is a risky choice. It is reasonably cool.
• Athletics fans got a loud “Let’s Go Oakland” chant going at the Tokyo Dome in a exhibition game against the Ham Fighters. (Yes, I know they’re just the Fighters from Nippon Ham. This way is funnier.)
• MLB’s marketing slogan in Korea is “It’s big ball chunky time” and for just a minute, everything is right with the world.
• And finally, the Brewers did a “Mean Girls” parody video with new guy Yasmani Grandal. I’ve always been a Heathers man myself, but that’s probably just a product of my age.

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