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Major League Baseball has a problem developing as more and more evidence seems to suggest that changes were made to the baseballs prior to the start of the postseason. Rob Arthur at Baseball Prospectus was the first to suggest that postseason baseballs appeared to be de-juiced. That brought a response from Major League Baseball which denied that any planned changes had taken place.
The Athletic’s Evan Drellich on Monday spotlighted MLB’s relationship with Rawlings and why it is unlikely that the league is as unaware about changes to the ball as it claims. Drellich writes that baseball is losing public trust with the situation and that is a problem.
Braves News
- The Braves will have a number of roster decisions to make in the coming weeks. I highlighted them on Monday with a closer look at how the 40-man roster shapes up heading into the offseason.
- Third baseman Josh Donaldson was named as one of three finalists for the MLBPA’s Comeback Player of the Year Award. Reds right-hander Sonny Gray and Dodgers lefty Hyun-Jin Ryu are the other candidates for the National League.
- Our 2019 player review series officially begins with reserve catcher John Ryan Murphy who logged exactly one at-bat for the Braves in 2019.
Braves Podcasts
Atlanta Baseball Talk Show #460: NLDS Post Mortem
MLB Playoffs
- The Washington Nationals are one win away from the World Series after an 8-1 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in Game 3 of the NLCS. Stephen Strasburg struck out 12 in seven innings while allowing just one unearned run in a dominant performance on the mound.
- After seeing increased bullpen usage across the board for the last several postseasons the trend seems to be reversing as starting pitchers have been much more of a factor in the 2019 playoffs.
- Despite that trend, the Yankees and Astros are both considering going with bullpen games for Game 4 of the ALCS.
- Rain is in the forecast for New York on Wednesday night and in the event that Game 4 is a washout, Major League Baseball is considering pushing back the start time for a potential Game 5 of the NLCS so that the game is broadcast in prime time.
MLB News
- Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman announced on Monday that longtime pitching coach Rick Honeycutt will not return in 2020. Honeycutt is expected to remain with the organization as a special assistant. Bullpen coach Mark Prior is currently the favorite to replace Honeycutt.
- Speaking of Friedman, he is still unsigned for the 2020 season but said in today’s press conference that he expects to wrap up a new contract with the Dodgers in the next few days.
- Phillies’ player information coordinator Sam Fuld has reportedly declined the opportunity to interview for the vacant managerial positions with the Cubs, Mets and Pirates.
- The New York Mets will reportedly interview Eduardo Perez as part of their managerial search. Perez is currently working as an analyst for ESPN. Other candidates for the Mets opening reportedly include Carlos Beltran, Mike Bell, Derek Shelton and Joe Girardi.
- The Chicago Cubs interviewed Astros bench coach Joe Espada and plan on sitting down with former Phillies skipper Gabe Kapler later this week to discuss their managerial opening.