Tabbed for no higher than third in the AL East by most experts, the Rays have won 12 straight and are off to baseball’s hottest start in decades. How are they doing it and how long will it last?With their 9-7 win over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday night, the Tampa Bay Rays became just the third team to win 12 straight games to open a baseball season since the dead-ball era more than a century ago. With one more win, the Rays will tie the 1987 Milwaukee Brewers and the 1982 Atlanta Braves as the only teams to begin a season with 13 consecutive victories since the 1880s.The winning streak is the latest achievement for a team known...
David Lengel puts MLB’s 30 local telecasts to the test as he takes a tour round baseball’s broadcast boothsWith baseball’s lengthy regular season stretching from April to October, it’s not uncommon for fans to have the game on every night. Naturally, with 162 games, the broadcasters themselves become an enormous part of the fan experience.The hyper-local model which defines Major League Baseball also means that most fans have little idea what other local broadcasts are like outside their baseball bubble. Luckily MLB Advanced Media are the owners of what is probably the most comprehensive live streaming service on the planet, and I took a tour of all 30 commentary teams. Related: What's wrong with the Cubs? A backslide to mediocrity...
MLB experienced both celebratory and tragic goodbyes this week with the retirement of legendary broadcaster Vin Scully and the death of pitcher José Fernández. Plus, a review of Major League Baseball’s have notsOn Friday night in Los Angeles, I sat next to my father inside Dodger Stadium. My dad, Mike Lengel, is a 75-year-old lifelong fan of the Dodgers, who grew up in New York city watching Jackie Robinson, Pee Wee Reese, Duke Snider and the team of his childhood play in Brooklyn: until that night, he had never been been to LA or visited Dodger Stadium, where the team landed after leaving in 1957. Related: José Fernández: a smiling star whose death leaves baseball bereft Continue reading...