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The season is barely one-sixth over, but I think we can all agree that what Zach McKinstry is doing this season so far is nothing short of amazing. He qualified for a batting title his first and only time so far in his third big league season and ended up with 1.1 fWAR (Fangraphs). He was reduced to super utility status last season, his fourth, yet he still matched that 1.1 WAR. He is an everyday player once again, but already, he has 1.3 WAR so far. Just how unprecedented would his season be if he somehow maintained this pace? Well, simple math tells us that Zach would end up with 7.8 WAR. I don't think anyone reasonably hopes that could happen, let alone expects it, and probably he himself least of all. But he doesn't have to end up with WAR that high to still have a relatively historic performance. Here's what I mean: This is Zach McKnistry's fifth season. His prior high WAR is 1.1. How high would his WAR have to be to set a record for fifth-season WAR that's the highest versus his high WAR from the previous four seasons? The current record holder is Tommie Agee. His highest WAR in his first four seasons was 0.0. His fifth season WAR was 6.4. That's a difference of ... (checks math) ... +6.4. The next two highest are Darin Erstad, who had a +5.9 WAR bump in his third season (8.7 vs previous high of 2.8), and then our old buddy Cecil Fielder with a +5.8 bump (6.5 vs previous high of 0.7). So if Zach could end up with 7.8 WAR, he would have a fifth season bump of +6.7, which would give him the record. But wait: there's something else. When Agee got his fifth season bump, he was only 23 years old, so he was still heading toward his peak—plus, he was a fifth-season rookie that year. When Erstad and Cecil had their fifth season bumps, they were both 26. That age puts them solidly in the middle of their peaks. Zach is 30 this year—in fact, he turns 30 tomorrow. (Happy birthday, Zach McKinstry!) That's, like, practically a whole generation older than those other guys were, and well past a player's peak. Guys who are 30 don't just turn it up a big notch like that. It's basically unprecedented. So, then, what is the record for fifth-season bump for someone who's 30? Good question. And here's your answer: Ed Lennox and Ducky Holmes. Yeah, I don't know who they are, either. But Ed Lennox had 5.5 WAR in his age 30 season, his fifth season, and the best he'd had before that was 2.8. And Ducky (lol) clocked in at 3.7 WAR in his age-30 fifth season, versus his previous career high of 1.1. Each of these is +2.6 (rounded). But the biggest bump for any over-30 player was Cy Seymour, a legitimately very good player who had 8.7 WAR season at age 32, versus a previous high of 4.6. That's a fifth-season bump of +4.1. But here's the thing about those guys: they were all birth-of-baseball-era players. Cy's age 32 season came in 1905. Ducky's age 30 year was 1899, when there was only one 12-team league. And Lennox's age 30 season was in 1914—in the Federal League. The Federal League?! Was that even a major league? I mean, yeah, technically it is was, but ... I don't know. You tell me. But even including the National League guys, they all played during an era when society was not geared to funneling all the best potential baseball talent into the majors. A lot of the best players actually toiled in the minors, like the Pacific League and the American Association. Aggregating all the best players into one league was a hit-and-miss proposition back then, meaning the talent level they were playing against was probably not even the best in the country that it could be. So it would have been far more likely that a guy who's 30, or 32, could have his best season at that age, and by a long shot, in a way you just don't see today. So here's the bottom line: If Zach McKinstry can manage to end up with a 3.8 WAR or better, he will have the highest age-30 fifth-season bump in history. And if he can manage to end up with 5.3 WAR, it will be the the greatest ever fifth-season bump for any player age 30 or over in history. And he will have done so in much playing in tougher circumstances against highly-optimized competition that the other three age 30-plus players did not experience. Oh, and by the way: How's Carlos Guzman doing these days?

Replace the Little Caesar’s glove hole in the left field bullpen with a giant Beth Bernstein face. If a Tiger hits a home run into her mouth hole everyone in the stadium gets a free Mistrial Guarantee Card for their next DWI charge.

I keep seeing people say it was consistent with how the game was reffed. I don't recall any jump shooters getting bodied like THJ did and it not being called.

SSS obviously but the bat sure looks encouraging in 10 games.

Rangers defense...lol

Tyranny in this case depends on whose ox is being gored. Tyranny is fine if it happens to people they find don’t align with them.

Yep. Imagine calling a high school senior, telling them you were the admissions officer of school X, and that while an email or portal update will follow shortly you personally wanted to call to congratulate and welcome them to the Class of '29. And then 10 seconds later say, just kidding. One guy on ESPN Radio this morning was saying that a good counter-prank would be for the dad to come home today and inform the son that the organization is taking this very seriously and feels this phone number leak damages their relationships with players and agents going forward, and that therefore the dad has been from his job as defensive coordinator. Let the son stew on those consequences to the family until the next morning.

These kids should be sent to CECOT

the can make what excuses they want, but their sponsorship clearly ran out of juice.

And I bet his daddy wants to whoop him old school.

*to the Pistons

They should trade Giannis and start the rebuild.

The difficulty is the rule is below normal shoulder height. If a player is bent over it could be above their shoulders and still be ok. The Fiala goal is an example as he was crouched down and it was played above the shoulder but wouldn’t have been had he been at normal height. Perry isn’t crouching and is at normal shoulder height. The puck is clearly hit above his shoulder and should’ve been called.

On one hand I agree with you... This is "just" a prank call and I'm not calling for Jax to be tarred and feathered then kicked out of society. But, on the other hand it's about time and place. I don't think Howard Stern, or your local radio station, would prank call someone at such a time and place like this. It's one thing to call a random person and say: "Hey, is your refrigerator running? Then you better go catch it!" It's another thing altogether to "prank" someone on draft day. Most of us will never experience something like this so I'm trying to find some sort of analogy, but I can't. I mean you've got friends and family all there ready to celebrate... The next 5+ years of your life are about to change massively and with a potentially gigantic payday and some strange calls triggering all your (and your family/friends) excitement only for them to go: "Psyc! I fooled you!" Okay, maybe this analogy (kinda) works: You just found out your mom needs a kidney transplant or she'll die in a few months. You don't have the money for it, let along wondering how long she'll have to wait on the transplant list... you make a go fund me and talk about it on social media. Suddenly you get a call from a stranger: "Listen, I'm a multi-millionaire and my life was saved by a self-less organ donation in the past and I'm really moved by your story. I'm looking to pay it forward for the blessing I had. Not only will I pay for the surgery and the after-care, but I have connects and I'm getting your mom to the top of the list. You're prayers have been answered. Everything is going to be great." As you're tearfully trying to thank the man he suddenly interrupts you: "Ha!! You believed me? You loser! Ha!" and hangs up the phone.

Listen, I don't like what he did. Regardless who it is, I am never OK kicking someone when they are already down. That being said, they are just prank calls. He shouldn't be canceled like he got accused or rape or killed someone while drinking and driving. Obviously prank calls are not as popular as they use to be. I am just wondering if this was Howard Stern's staff or your local radio station if everyone would be so upset?

Maybe it's my generation speaking (not that I'm that much older than Jax), but I also feel like the medium is a little superficial. The whole "I screwed up so let me take a picture of a black background and type a four-sentence apology into Instagram, tag him, and call it a day" just feels childish in and of itself. To the extent he feels the need to make a public post (I don't know that he does), it should be focused on Shedeur and the fact he called him to apologize. Then moving on and creating space for the victim of your behavior. Everything else is just actually trying to "apologize" to the public in order to salvage any reputation in the public eye he can.

She has only played in Independent Leagues and her career ERA is 12.04. Are the Tigers playing them soon?

Interesting. 🤔 So is John Fisher & the despicable A’s ownership channeling the Bill Veeck that signed Larry Doby…or the Bill Veeck that hired a midget to bat in a MLB game? I wouldn’t put anything beyond the worst ownership in baseball.

I was gambling in Havana I took a little risk Send lawyers, guns and money Dad, get me out of this HEY !

JB's biggest failing this post-season has been limiting Ausar's minutes. This team turned a corner when Ausar was put in the starting lineup in early January and they won all season long by turning defense into offense. They aren't a team that can let you score and match you offense-for-offense in the half-court because they only have 1 All Star. We won Ausar's minutes by 8 points in this game. We made the run in the second half based on defense with Ausar on the court. Overall in the playoffs the Pistons are 13 points better on defense and 1 point better on offense when Ausar's on the floor. This is simple stuff that's apparent whether you're using the eye test or looking at analytics.

I mentioned it in another thread but I think he has the highest upside of any of our prospects. I could easily see him being a top 5 prospect in all of baseball by the end of next season.

Toledo 2-0 Lee 1/4 RBI 2K 2B Owens 1IP 0H 0K 0BB Erie L 5-4 10 Inn. Anderson 3/5 Liranzo 0/5 K Campos 1/4 BB K Montalvo 4IP 4H ER BB 2K WM W 9-3 Clark 3/4 RBI BB Briceno 0/3 K Pacheco 0/2 BB K Lakeland L 2-1 Rainer 1/4 BB K HR Franyerber 2/4 BB K Rucker 1/4 K

I don't remember him. If he played 30 years earlier, I probably would have.

My favorite one year wonder is Zoilo Versalles - A Twins shortstop who never had a WAR greater than 2.5 until he had 7.2 WAR and won the MVP in 1965. The next year, he had 1.3 WAR and then -1.6 WAR. Overall, he played 12 years with 12.6 WAR. He accumulated 57% of his career WAR in that one season. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/v/versazo01.shtml

Just incredibly immature. Kid will bear the consequences. Any internet search will bring this up for the rest of his life. edit: he’s not a kid. If he was 15… ok but he’s 21

It’s such a splendid black-comedy joke that we’ve been told for decades we need unfettered 2A rights - even unto countenancing repeated mass-casualty shootings - “to protect against tyranny”, and when the real thing comes everyone folds like a lawn chair.

edit to add: THIS IS NOT CONFIRMED ANYWHERE, so I’m sorry. Looks like it’s a non-story. =====•••••••======•••••===== Oakland A’s called up pitcher/outfielder Kelsie Whitmore to their club. She’s the first woman to be part of an MLB roster. 🎉. I’d love to see her get into a game soon. This news made my day. 🩷

the 2021, 22, and 23 drafts may literally be the best 3 year run ever. 8 of 23 players drafted (35%) are Allpro. I actually like 25 class over 24 class. this does not include UDFAs. 1 Penei Sewell 7 All world 2 Levi Onwuzurike 41 Part time starter on 2nd contract 3 Alim McNeill 72 All pro 3 Ifeatu Melifonwu 101 Productive player on 2nd contract 4 Amon-Ra St. Brown 112 All pro 4 Derrick Barnes 113 Part time starter on 2nd contract 7 Jermar Jefferson 257 7R hung around roster bubble for years 1 Aidan Hutchinson 2 All pro 1 Jameson Williams 12 Talented, but not altogether 2 Josh Paschal 46 Part time starter on 2nd contract 3 Kerby Joseph 97 All pro 5 James Mitchell 177 Some talent, not a good fit 6 Malcolm Rodriguez 188 Fantastic value for 6R 6 James Houston 217 Some talent, was not a good fit 7 Chase Lucas 237 7R hung around, signed with new team 1 Jahmyr Gibbs 12 All pro 1 Jack Campbell 18 Starter 2 Sam LaPorta 34 Starter all pro 2 Brian Branch 45 Starter all pro 3 Hendon Hooker 68 Unknown, trending sideways as best 3 Brodric Martin 96 Unknown, looks like 1st true miss 5 Colby Sorsdal 152 Not bad for 5R, not going to make '25 roster 7 Antoine Green 219 Hanging around 1 Terrion Arnold 24 Starter, solid but not impactful 2 Ennis Rakestraw 61 Injuries held him back, solid backup? 4 Giovanni Manu 126 Total wildcard - if '26 starter, another HR for Brad, could be nothing 4 Sione Vaki 132 Not sure what Brad was so excited about 6 Mekhi Wingo 189 Fantastic value for 6R 6 Christian Mahogany 210 Fantastic value for 6R, starter in '25 1 Tyleik Williams 28 If he comes close to Alim, then A pick 2 Tate Ratledge 57 Starter in '25? 3 Isaac TeSlaa 70 If starts in '26, then A pick 5 Miles Frazier 171 Fantastic value for 5R? 6 Ahmed Hassanein 196 Perfect culture fit, can he produce in '26? 7 Dan Jackson 230 ST guy, any more than that? 7 Dominic Lovett 244 ST guy, can he make roster?

I agree with you on this, and to be clear, the question I posed wasn't about getting a rental only. It was, which of the five Top 100s in our minors would we give up for an established major leaguer who gives us a much better chance of winning this year? And the Orioles front office decided, none of them. And look what they got then, and where they are now. It's all about the willingness to give up two birds in the bush in exchange for one bird in the hand. I'm with with you on wanting to get an All-Star caliber third baseman, but it looks like we might have one already, at least at the moment. Maybe all we have to do is get a solid outfielder back, like Vierling, or a healthier Carpenter—or what the hell, let's take a big swing and say Parker—and then we can long term MVPKinstry at third , at least for the year?

The cat is dead. Pretty sure.

2-1 @ Houston 3-1 @ Angels 3-0 @ Rockies 26-12 Then invited to Buckingham Palace.

5-5 wouldn't be asking for much. I say we'll go 7-3. I mean....All We Do Is Win...🎶🎶

The worst case scenario would be even worse than that—remember how the ‘84 team went to Seattle on top of baseball history at 35-5, and then got swept by the 20-24 Mariners? That started a 4-8 skein that “dropped” us to 39-13, rendering us a mere .750 team. Horrors! 😉 But yes, your scenario is exactly what I landed on as the minimum acceptable result of the western trip would be.

Ha! Caught that too, said she had season tickets to the tigers and the crappy little league play reminded her of that season lol.

None of them for a rental. I wouldn't trade top 100 prospects unless they were getting someone who could help beyond this year.

I want to know who we drop from the 26 man roster to accommodate the acquisition assuming Maeda is already gone? Also, I think pitching is the only avenue to strengthen a playoff bound team in a meaningful way and if the Tigers pitching holds up as it has there will be no need. That said, Liranzo or Briceno would be my picks.

Hard to answer not knowing the return but none of them which doesn't answer your question. So to be fair maybe Liranzo or Rainer if the return is very solid with multiple years of control. Certainly not for a half season bat or reliever even with years say 1 plus year of control. I would prefer to trade from our pitching depth since we seem to develop it so say Montero, Jaden Hamm, Melton, Owen Hall. I think they would bring back a good enough return while maintaining our core minor league talent/depth.

“Our bad. Enjoy the offseason.” What a joke, but totally on-brand for this series.

😁

And so it begins again. LA up a goal with under 7 minutes to go and looking to take a commanding 3-0 lead over the Oilers. Kane scored a scrappy goal around the net that was reviewed for a kick and upheld. Shockingly and completely mystifying, Jim Hiller on the Kings bench challenges for goaltender interference in a 4-4 game on the road in the playoffs!!!! Call quickly upheld leading to an Oiler PP. It took all of 10 seconds for Draisitl to make an amazing pass to set up the GWG. They tack on 2 ENG to make it a 7-4 victory. We’ve all see this story before and the only question now is will it be Oilers in 6 or 7.

I predicted for years he would campaign on reforming the judiciary. Turns out he didn't need to campaign on that after all.

They're putting those aside for the citizen militias. The professionals will still wear camo and flak.

If hundreds of thousands of ciminals were let into the country, why did the violent crime rate not rise last year? I understand that there are logistical problems with allowing too many immigrants into the country at the same time, but they are lying about the violent crime wave. I realize that you guys know that!

The blacker and whiter it gets, the closer we get to openly rounding up and disappearing entire groups of people in plain view of everyone else, who will comment about what’s happening before their eyes at their peril.

This is pretty black and white.

They're already doing it. Look where these people have disappeared from. The guy in El Salvador was from Maryland, that woman who did that op-ed was from Massachusetts, and the judge who got arrested was from Milwaukee. He's also denying funding to Maine because the governor won't apologize. Social Security offices are being closed more in blue areas than red. It's already begun.