#kris-bryant

#kris-bryant

QUEENS Things never seem to line up for slumping teams.If the pitching is good, the bats are cold.If the offense shows up, the arms struggle.For the Mets on Sunday, it was the bullpen's turn to go belly-up.Relievers Jimmy Yacabonis and Tommy Hunter were torched for seven runs on five hits, including a pair of two-run home runs to Kris Bryant and Brenton Doyle, in the fifth inning to doom the Mets in a 13-6 rubber-game loss in their series finale against the Colorado Rockies at Citi Field.

The New York Yankees are in a slump.Heading into Monday's action, they had lost three series in a row, were 3-7 in their last 10 games, and were blown out by the Philadelphia Phillies 15-2 on Sunday.They are currently in last place in the AL East.But it's not time to panic.The New York Yankees have a lot of talent, and they are expected to return to form soon. Aaron Judge is dealing with a hip issue, but he is expected to be back soon after being placed on the 10-day injured list on Monday.

We make a lot of jokes about the Rockies, but I love them.I love the perpetual experiment of figuring out Coors Field, that their analytics department would churn out a solid, 92-game winner if this was 2002, that they gave Kris Bryant $180 million.Great org, fun follow, maybe the dumbest owner in baseball.

Good morning, baseball fans!As was expected by pretty much everyone, Carlos Rodón has opted out of the second year of his contract with the San Francisco Giants.The Giants have become something of a pitch-whisperer for struggling pitchers with ace potential, but have not shown a commitment to bringing them back once they achieve it.

Happy Monday, San Francisco Giants fans.Last offseason, fans hoped that the Giants would add to their 107-win season with a marquee free agent.For the most part, it didn't come close to happening.They were never linked to the stars of free agency.Not a whisper tied the Giants to Carlos Correa, or Corey Seager, or Marcus Semien, or Max Scherzer.

This won't be the most important thought on the mind of any reasonable fan, but yesterday's home run barrage by the San Francisco Giants and the San Diego Padres got me thinking about just how impactful the Giants' home runs have been; and, that's when I reminded myself of this segment on MLB Network - which I assume most of us can only glimpse via the clips they post to Twitter and YouTube, thanks to their wonky carriage deals - which had Brian Kenny going into the possibility of MLB giving out a "Clutch" Award and how we might arrive at one.

I've had an article idea that I've put on the back burner for the last few years.With every passing week and month that I don't write the article, it gets harder to write.Which means there's a good chance I'll just be lame and never do it.Here's the idea: ranking every single trade that the San Francisco Giants have made since Farhan Zaidi took over as President of Baseball Operations more than four years ago.

It was a big day for daytime baseball across MLB, as the Yankees finally righted the ship in their series finale with the Twins.While New York put up a dozen runs in their Wednesday matinee, two of their rivals were playing in parallel, and that's where we start our daily recap of the American League playoff favorites.

As the calendar flips to March, here are three things we'll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1.What will the Dodgers do without Lux?In letting shortstop Trea Turner depart for Philadelphia this offseason, the Dodgers expressed confidence that former top prospect would be able to flourish in an everyday shortstop role if given the opportunity for the first time in his career.

Everything considered - ownership, front office leadership, on-field performance - there may not be three organizations in worse shape than the Colorado Rockies right now.Following a couple of strong years led by Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story and Charlie Blackmon back in 2017-2018, the Rockies dwindled down to a paltry 68-94 record last season, last in the NL West.

After a surge of respiratory viruses early this winter, many children's hospitals are finally returning to normal.But next time they surge, beds for young patients could again be hard to come by.MARY LOUISE KELLY, HOST: OK.Here is some good news.Many children's hospitals are finally getting back to normal after the surge of respiratory viruses in early winter.

After throwing a "touch and feel" bullpen session last month, Chicago Cubs starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks took another step forward on Monday as he continues to recover from a shoulder injury that ended his 2022 season in July.Hendricks threw a traditional bullpen session on Monday as it was a 25-pitch set that allowed Hendricks to begin his preparations for a return at some point during the 2023 Major League Baseball regular season.

It's the holiday season, so instead of a riff on local politics and government, I'm playing Chicago sports Scrooge, based on a lifetime of occasionally cheering but mostly jeering our preternaturally underachieving professional teams.I attended the first game of the 1959 World Series at the old Comiskey Park, an 11-0 White Sox romp before they lost four of the next five and the Series; the Bears 1963 NFL Championship victory at a frigid Wrigley Field, their home stadium way back when; and numerous high-stakes Bulls and Blackhawk games over the years.

HOUSTON  As the Philadelphia leadoff man Kyle Schwarber stepped into the batter's box to start the World Series games here, what he saw when he looked across the field was a Houston Astros behemoth with sensational pitching and a well-rounded lineup.It is a team that stripped down to rebuild a decade or so ago and now is playing in its fourth World Series in six years.

Although not all recent moves made by the Cubs have sat well with fans, the fact is this new front office has worked wonders in the last year and a half.Sure, Chicago dropped the ball when non-tendering Kyle Schwarber.Anthony Rizzo went on to have a great year in 2022 in the Bronx, as well, but there are plenty of moves that have drastically improved the long-term outlook for the club.

Halloween is one of my favorite times of the year.A season of goblins, ghouls and decisions that will haunt the Cubs front office for years to come.Looking in the rearview mirror and taking a glance at some of the decisions Chicago has made have definitely paid off - and then some.For instance, moving Kris Bryant and Javier Baez has been a blessing in disguise, despite the heartache we felt at the time.