After Dodgers eclipse Rays in World Series, what's next for baseball?

After Dodgers eclipse Rays in World Series, what's next for baseball?
The Los Angeles Dodgers and pitcher Clayton Kershaw are finally celebrating a World Series victory, the franchise's first since 1988, the year the Dodgers beat the Oakland Athletics. Dodgers infielder Justin Turner tested positive for COVID-19 and is under investigation by Major League Baseball for joining teammates in the on-field celebration. How fitting is that for the coronavirus season? So what's next? There's always second-guessing, trade and free agent talk, and discussion about how...

Astros scandal is more reason to be grateful Nats won title

Astros scandal is more reason to be grateful Nats won title
What if Howie Kendrick's hit landed just foul? What if the Nationals still trailed in the eighth and ninth innings of Game 7 of the World Series and sat and watched the Astros mob each other in the center of the diamond as the sellout crowd in Houston roared? How would everyone around here have felt about Monday's announcement by Commissioner Rob Manfred that general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch had been suspended for the 2020 season (and then later fired by owner Jim Crane) and...

Astros fire Luhnow and Hinch after MLB levies penalties in sign-stealing case

Astros fire Luhnow and Hinch after MLB levies penalties in sign-stealing case
Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow and manager A.J. Hinch were suspended by Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred Monday for allowing the team's uniformed personnel to steal signs electronically during the 2017 and 2018 seasons. Luhnow and Hinch were suspended through the 2020 World Series. The Astros also were fined $5 million - the maximum allowed under MLB rules - and they'll have to forfeit first- and second-round draft picks in 2020 and 2021. About an hour the initial report...

By sweeping Nationals in D.C., Astros take command of series before heading home

By sweeping Nationals in D.C., Astros take command of series before heading home
The Astros arrived in Washington, D.C., looking for relevance. They left leading the best-of-seven World Series three games to two and have a chance to win a Fall Classic for the second time in three seasons. "If we win in front of our own fans, it will be special," Astros shortstop Carlos Correa said. "I think I will black out for the first time in my life." Correa hit one of three home runs and Gerrit Cole pitched seven strong innings as the Astros cruised to a 7-1 victory against the...

Rookie hurler delivers shutdown performance as Astros square World Series

Rookie hurler delivers shutdown performance as Astros square World Series
Rookie pitcher José Urquidy pitched five shutout innings and Alex Bregman hit a grand slam Saturday night as the Houston Astros tied the World Series with an 8-1 win against the Nationals in Game 4. The Astros win guarantees the best-of-seven series, tied at two games apiece, will have a Game 6 on Tuesday in Houston. Game 5 is Sunday night at Nationals Park with the Astros' Gerrit Cole pitching against Max Scherzer, a rematch of Game 1. Urquidy, 24, who was the Astros' opening day starter...

Simplified approach yields positive results, gets Astros back in Fall Classic

Simplified approach yields positive results, gets Astros back in Fall Classic
After losing the first two games at home, the Astros have made this World Series competitive, thanks to a pitching staff that snuffed out a steady stream of potential Nationals rallies. The Astros avoided an almost insurmountable situation by beating the Nationals 4-1 on Friday night in Game 3 of the World Series, the first World Series game in D.C. since 1933, the year the American League Senators lost the title to the New York Giants. The Nationals lead the best-of-seven series two games to...

Explaining my BBWAA vote for AL Manager of the Year

Explaining my BBWAA vote for AL Manager of the Year
I was in the minority in the voting for the American League's Manager of the Year. I was one of two voters from the Baseball Writers' Association of America to cast my first-place ballot for New York's Joe Girardi, who led the Yankees to a wild card spot in the playoffs. Texas' Jeff Banister, with 17 first-place votes, won the award followed by Houston's A.J. Hinch and Minnesota's Paul Molitor. Banister led the Rangers to the AL West title. This was the most intriguing Manager of the...