Major League baseball has the votes from the players to implement the Universal Designated hitter. It will go into effect immediately. This marks the end of an era, obviously and should fundamentally change the game in the national league; befitting some and and optimally giving another offensive player who may be blocked at their position an opportunity to showcase their abilities. Teams that will most likely benefit the most are the Mets, the Cubs, the Dodgers and the Cardinals.
The league has also announced in their new partnership with the MiLB will lead to consolidation of their sanctioned minor league affiliates and roster limits. This is a move to parse payrolls on the league’s end and MiLB is thought to be getting a better product as the talent at each level will most certainly be purified. While it means less minor league baseball players overall in systems it will be the best of each organization and may lead to a faster track for the players who make the cut to the majors.
The new agreed upon CBA means a new free agency compensation deadline. It will be now be Opening day. This means that free agents tethered to a compensation tag will now be unencumbered by that burden at the outset of the regular season which is a boon for them as teams had been staying away until June 15th which was the previous deadline.
The Steinbrenners were reportedly so frustrated by the one season under Carlos Pipes that they were mulling firing him in season. Some say the final nail in the coffin for the one year General Manager was Giancarlo Stanton having a huge second half for the cross town rival Mets after being dealt at the trade deadline. It is unclear if manager Michael Young will survive the purge but he is not the source of the furor according to one executive. Either way many expect the new regime to be under immediate pressure to get the team back in contention or face a similar fate to Pipes.
The parade date has been set, as well as a White House visit for the Los Angeles Angels. Many expect General Manager Brad Smith to finally get his due and be the 2021 Executive of the year. This comes after he was scrutinized constantly by many in the sports media for “neglecting pitching”. This is simply a case of winning curing all as his method of building an all time outfield simply paid off. Make no mistake about it, the Angels slugged their way to the championship but their pitching was far from the disaster that the experts had predicted it to be. It’s safe to say that Smith has bought himself some time before anyone paints him with an ugly brush any time soon.
Across town there are a lot of frustrated Dodger fans for the first time in a few years. Dodger-Twitter is full of criticism for allowing Clayton Kershaw and Felipe Vazquez to be claimed off of waivers late in the 2021 season as fans believe those two may have very well put them over the top in the World Series which went down to the wire in game 7. General Manager Bob Campbell is now firmly occupying the Los Angeles executive dog house.
One of the more interesting teams to keep an eye on are the surprise Cincinatti Reds who surprised everyone by reaching the NLCS. One executive tells me that they are a small shopping spree away from being fixtures in the NL playoff picture as they are rife with young talent to build around.
The Atlanta Braves have been sold. John Malone has been bought out by Kanye Byner. MLB owners approved the Atlanta Braves purchase yesterday in a special meeting. Byner will take charge of an organization that chalked up a 96-66 record this past season, which was good enough for first place in the National League East Division. According to financial insiders with knowledge of the new owner, he is demanding in expectations and in dealing with people. Financially, Byner is known for being economizer. Many execs expect the Braves, despite winning the division, to make some wholesale changes at the direction of the new brass.