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Happy Friday you beautiful OTC readers! I hope you had a tremendous week, that you have a lovely long weekend planned (even if that just means sitting on the couch and relaxing, whatever works for you!)
You know who it hasn’t been a good week for? The New York Mets. Between the silly thumbs-down scandal that broke over the weekend, to Javier Baez’s missing earring, there’s a whole new story that has broken about acting Mets GM Zack Scott, who was busted for a DUI this week.
So obviously stories about the Mets have been a big focus for the week, so we’ll look at those first.
- Emma Baccellieri says the Mets woes are worse than the common jokes would have you believe.
- Ken Rosenthal suggests it’s time for sweeping changes for the Mets. (The Athletic subscription required.)
- ESPN brings us a just-the-facts overview of the story.
- But Buster Olney has a similar stance to Rosenthal, that it’s time for drastic measures.
Now on to the rest of Friday’s links!
- Could we be seeing some changes to service time agreements? Anthony Franco looks at MLB’s proposal to the MLBPA.
- Where does the duo of Adam Wainwright and Yadier Molina rank in terms of best pitcher-catcher combos. Zachary Silver looks at the Cards' dream team.
- Jay Jaffe assesses 10 position players who helped bolster their cases for Cooperstown this year.
- Don’t worry, he also did one for pitchers.
- The Undefeated bring us a historical look at the 1971 Pirates, the first all-Black and Latino team in MLB history.
- Rob Mains talks about John Smotlz and the advantage of contact hitters. (Baseball Prospectus Premium required.)
- Peter Gammons suggests that it’s relievers who are bearing the worst brunt of pandemic issues. (The Athletic subscription required.)
- Guess someone isn’t a fan of those “deep drive” jokes.
Nick’s wife Jess Castellanos is calling for an end to the “deep drive” jokes https://t.co/WgGMM7xRYA
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) September 2, 2021
- Hope Sloop has the story of the Akron Rubberducks who are hosting a theme night after a man named Tim broke up with his girlfriend on the scoreboard.
- Derek Jeter might not be totally ready for his Hall of Fame induction, but he’s waited long enough. Story by Mark Feinsand.
- Speaking of Jeter, Bradford Doolittle reports that his speech for the HoF isn’t ready yet.
- Is Julio Rodriguez baseball’s next superstar? Jesse Sanchez looks at the young phenom.
- Patrick Dubuque reflects on the 2021 season for the KBO and how they can bounce back next season. (Baseball Prospectus Premium required.)
- As the season enters its twilight month, Zach Kram gives us some insights into the likely award winners for the year.
- Matt Kelly previews the toughest stretches for teams in the last month of play.
- Madeline Coleman reports on the flooding of Yankees Double-A affiliate park, which you can also see below.
- Yikes.
Yankees Double-A affiliate Somerset Patriots home TD Bank Ballpark is completely submerged. pic.twitter.com/BlyW8HeC3C
— Eli Fishman (@elijfishman) September 2, 2021
And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.