MLB Bullets finally makes the Sale

Real Cubs baseball is just a few days away.

• The contract extensions just keep coming as the Red Sox signed left-handed pitcher Chris Sale to five-year, $145 million deal.
• Chris Cotillo writes that the Red Sox were determined not to make the same mistake they did when they let left-hander Jon Lester leave through free agency. And we Cubs fans are glad they did.
• Jay Jaffe looks at the contract and what Sale can be expected to produce throughout the life of the deal. Jaffe thinks that the Red Sox got a great deal unless Sale misses time with injuries. And that’s one reason that Sale was willing to accept the deal.
• Jon Tayler looks at the affect this deal has on Sale and the Red Sox and a more general look at how Sale’s extension shows the sorry state of free agency today.
• Bradford Doolittle breaks down this extension and what it means for Sale, the Red Sox and the rest of the players facing free agency (ESPN+ req.) in the next few seasons.
• And Sale isn’t the only American League pitcher signing an extension. Astros hurler Justin Verlander signed a two-year, $66 million extension that makes the 35-year-old the highest-paid pitcher in average annual value in MLB history.
• Verlander is still upset about the current state of free agency, but he thinks deals like this are the future of baseball and what the Astros offered him was too good to turn down.
• Phillies owner John Middleton, he of the “stupid money” quote, said that Philadelphia fans embraced Bryce Harper and were “turned off” by Manny Machado, which was a big reason why the Phillies tried harder to sign Harper than Machado. Even if that’s true, Middleton should stay quiet about something like that. Bob Nightengale does note that the Phillies ticket and merchandise sales have gone up a lot more than the Padres since the two signings, but I’m going to say that a lot of that could be the difference between Philly and San Diego fans. I do admit that Harper probably is a bit more marketable than Machado. If I owned a team, I would not give someone bulletin board material by saying that.
• Carrie Muskat reports that his Padres teammates are impressed with Machado, saying that he’s surprisingly smart and a great teammate.
• Bill Baer wants to remind everyone that every study has shown that there is very little correlation between the salaries the players make and the price of tickets and concessions. This is something fans are mistaken about all the time and the owners are happy to let them think that, passing the blame for higher prices onto the players. In fact, what correlation there is between the two is the other way: higher prices lead to higher salaries, not the other way around.
• Angels outfielder Mike Trout signed his extension that will make him an Angel for life (is that an oxymoron?). Yesterday Trout spoke to the fans in Orange County and got a little choked up, saying that he loved the Angels and Anaheim.
• One player who hasn’t signed an extension is Mets ace pitcher Jacob deGrom and the Mets other ace pitcher, Noah Syndergaard, is not happy about that. Thor also complained about the travel schedule the Mets have going this week where they head to Syracuse, NY for a promotional appearance. Also, I’m pretty sure he complained about Loki’s villainy.
• Mike Axisa makes the case for the Brewers to sign free agent closer Craig Kimbrel.
• Bad news for the Reds as their All-Star second baseman Scooter Gennett will miss two-to-three months with a groin injury suffered over the weekend.
• Indians third baseman Jose Ramirez left Sunday’s game after fouling a ball off his knee. The X-rays were negative, but there is no current timetable for Ramirez’s return. But it’s much less serious than it looked at first.
• In possibly related news, the Indians have said that barring a trade, veteran Hanley Ramirez has made their Opening Day roster.
• Rangers pitcher and former Cubs pitcher Jason Hammel has announced his retirement.
• The Rockies traded outfielder Mike Tauchman to the Yankees for reliever Phillip Diehl. (So Diehl was dealt to Denver?) DIehl thought the whole thing was a prank when manager Aaron Boone had told him. Apparently Diehl had a prank coming.
• The Giants got outfielder Michael Reed in a deal with the Twins for former Cubs farmhand John Andreoli.
• The Giants also acquired catcher Eric Kratz from the Brewers.
• The Blue Jays will sign free agent reliever Daniel Hudson.
• Chris Thompson blasts the Mariners by saying that the M’s are more interested in reaching a path to enlightenment than a path to the playoffs.
• Michael Baumann looks at the current state of the evolution of a major league bullpen. Baumann argues, and a lot of players agree with him, that the role of a bullpen pitcher has changed a lot even over the past five years.
• Anthony Castrovince ranks the top ten bullpens in baseball right now.
• David Laurila talks with Diamondbacks pitcher Luke Weaver about the slider/cutter he’s working on.
• Nationals closer Sean Doolittle did what I do often and spent some time getting lost in Baseball-Reference. Doolittle is particularly impressed with old baseball nicknames.
• Former pitcher Dirk Hayhurst gives a salty take on the short and difficult life path of a major league ballplayer.
• And finally, Rays minor league pitcher Jack Labonsky will live in an old school bus this season to save money. Originally I thought this was just another story about how minor leaguers don’t have enough money to live on and it is indeed one of those. But it’s a remodeled school bus and it actually looks very nice inside, although pretty cramped.

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