When May comes around, we can reliably count on at least three things: spring fully blooming, millennials posting a certain Justin Timberlake meme and MLB fans debating whether their new favorite players can maintain their hot starts. The phrase “small sample size” may be as ubiquitous as Mother’s Day cards this time of year, but […]
Over the offseason, Kevin Gausman signed a five-year, $110 million deal with the Toronto Blue Jays, one of the biggest contracts handed out this winter. For a then-30-year-old with only a season and a half’s worth of ace-like production, it was a big commitment, but one that ought to be worth it if he can […]
Springtime in baseball is rife with expectation for pitchers. It’s a new year, and over the offseason, players have been working on their craft, whether that be tweaking their pitches, adjusting their mechanics or getting their minds right. Spring training allows players to practice those changes in a simulated setting, but it’s not until a […]
Beyond his superlative pitching skills, Jacob deGrom’s most impressive trait might be his ability to raise the bar ever higher for himself. The college shortstop turned ninth-round pitcher turned elbow-surgery survivor won the National League’s Rookie of the Year honors in 2014, but he wasn’t content merely to feature next to the other New York […]
It may have been in Major League Baseball’s new best-of-three wild-card round, but the Atlanta Braves’ series victory over the Cincinnati Reds last week was a long time coming. Going into these playoffs, Atlanta hadn’t won a postseason series since defeating the Houston Astros in the 2001 National League Division Series. The 19 intervening years […]