MLB Bullets is out for the year

OK. My left index finger is badly injured and in a splint. So I’m typing with one hand—well, one-and-a-half hands. So if I’m a little less talk-y than normal, that’s why.

• Angels outfielder Mike Trout is out for the season with foot surgery.
• Adrian Garro writes that Trout’s injury is so unfair.
• Jon Tayler doesn’t think this should change anything: Trout is still the AL MVP.
• Looking ahead in the postseason hunt, Anthony Castrovince has has all the crazy tie-break situations.
• Jay Jaffe looks at the odds that we have a crazy tie-break situation, which he calls Team Entropy.
• Richard Justice ranks the bullpens of the playoff contenders.
• Dayn Perry looks at the remaining schedules of some of the contenders.
• The staff at ESPN.com discuss the state of the worst two teams in baseball, the Tigers and Orioles.
• The top free agents for this upcoming winter.
• Michael Baumann writes that the Red Sox have no good reason to trade Mookie Betts.
• Tony Wolfe thinks the Braves signing Dallas Keuchel has turned out to be a great move.
• Ken Rosenthal looks at which teams are likely to be looking for a new manager this winter. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• The Braves’ Charlie Culberson was hit in the face with a pitch he was trying to bunt.
• Culbertson is out for the season, but the good news is that he won’t need surgery.
• The Pirates have shut down injured pitcher Chris Archer for the season. That’s good, since the rest of the team was already shut down for the season.
• Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza will undergo Tommy John surgery.
• Ben Clemens argues that the Astros’ Yordan Alvarez has been perhaps the best hitter in baseball this year.
• Mike Mazzeo thinks Diamondbacks pitcher Zac Gallen is yet another quality player the Marlins gave away for next to nothing.
• Buster Olney details how the Mets’ Pete Alonso worked on his defense to become a major-league first baseman. (ESPN+ sub. req.) He modeled his game after Paul Goldschmidt.
• Steve Rushin laments the loss of the paper ticket for sporting events.
• An argument in favor of the Howard Terminal location for new Athletics stadium.
• From a bonus money point of view, should top high school player sign with a pro team or go to college. (It’s sign.)
• How MLB helped build a new baseball diamond for an elementary school on the South Side of Chicago.
• Athletics pitcher Mike Fiers is dealing with nerve irritation.
• Presumably, this is unrelated to the crazy beard he sported this week and he shaved off immediately after the game.
• Padres minor leaguer Taylor Trammell hit a big home run in the Texas League title series and he celebrated all the way around the bases.
• And finally, Mariners legend Ichiro Suzuki was honored in Seattle over the weekend and he gave a heartfelt five-minute speech in English thanking the fans.