View from the Catwalks: Brandon Lowe gets screwed
Braves win game one, Charlie Morton is hurt, and Brandon Lowe is not a Silver Slugger finalist
The Braves knocked off the Astros 6-2 in game one of the World Series. They did so by scoring early and often. Jorge Soler became the first player in 117 World Series to lead off game one with a homer.
SOLER POWER!
— MLB (@MLB) October 27, 2021
JORGE SOLER LEADS OFF THE #WORLDSERIES WITH A HOMER! pic.twitter.com/iuC8zkP53y
Both starters were done early, Framber Valdez because the Braves hammered him, and Rays legend Charlie Morton due to injury after taking a comebacker off the ankle. He tried to gut it out, but left in the third when the ankle could no longer hold up.
Charlie Morton, Filthy 80mph Curveball.
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) October 27, 2021
[And he's hurt. ] pic.twitter.com/GXMb55OeEj
X-Rays of the ex-Ray did not bring good news. Charlie is done.
Charlie Morton has a broken right fibula and will miss the remainder of the World Series, according to the Braves.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) October 27, 2021
Rob Manfred said some things.
“The Native American community in that region is wholly supportive of the Braves program, including 'The Chop.’”
— The Athletic (@TheAthletic) October 27, 2021
— MLB commissioner Rob Manfred defends the Atlanta Braves’ name and popular fan celebration ‘The Chop.’https://t.co/miBOVhHs61
Chris Conroy, who is normally a pretty good umpire, did not have a great night behind the plate. He missed 11 calls per Umpire Auditor, 10 of which went the Astros way. Plus, he had this amazing fakeout.
Did the umpire just say "that's outside" out loud and still call strike three? pic.twitter.com/kfrbju5cEq
— Baseball Doesn't Exist (@BaseballDoesnt) October 27, 2021
All in all, not terrible. Just not up to his usual standards. And don’t expect things to get better. This is your World Series crew.
Ninety umpires called at least 10 games behind home plate this year. If you sort those 90 by how often they called balls and strikes correctly (i.e., how good they are at their job), here's how the seven World Series umps rank: pic.twitter.com/5Ebqff2lWr
— Jeff J. Snider (@snidog) October 25, 2021
Rays Metrics with a fun thing on Shane McClanahan.
[THREAD] Shane McClanahan's first MLB season was an extremely successful one. He finished in the top 20 in FIP amongst starters this year.
— Rays Metrics (@RaysMetrics) October 26, 2021
I dug into how I think he could take his game to an even higher level by following the steps of one of his teammates (1/8) pic.twitter.com/wYFOkH4iBW
People in the Tampa Bay area aren’t the only ones who aren’t excited about the Montreal/Tampa timeshare. Especially when it comes to paying for a park.
"We’re not going to let them use our wallets as an open bar." - @renaudbrossard #cdnpoli https://t.co/bqzUZsJBkI
— Franco Terrazzano (@franco_nomics) October 25, 2021
A reminder that even after cities foot the bill for a park, that’s not the end of the cash grab.
This evening the Cobb County Board of Commissioners will decide whether to allocate up to $350,000 for emergency expenditures related to the World Series #cobbcounty #TruistPark #WorldSeries #WorldSeries2021 https://t.co/wwD2GOGb4M
— Cobb County Courier (@CobbCourier) October 26, 2021
Silver Slugger finalist are in. The Rays have three finalists. Missing from the list — a list that includes DJ LeMahieu(!) — is Brandon Lowe.
#Rays finalists for the Silver Slugger award:
— Danny Russell (@d_russ) October 25, 2021
C Mike Zunino
OF Randy Arozarena
DH Nelson Cruz
Award will be announced Nov. 11, 2021 at 6 PM
Marcus Semien was probably going to win it at second all along. But the snub of Lowe is ridiculous.
The list of Silver Slugger finalists is a great reminder of why nobody really pays attention to the Silver Slugger award.
— Dan Szymborski (@DSzymborski) October 25, 2021
Wander Franco likes cars.
Customization of Wander Franco's new Mercedes-Benz included an all-white interior with his El Patron nickname on the floor and “a steering wheel decked out in diamonds," according to TMZ, with a total cost of about $235,000. #Rays #RaysUp https://t.co/rQ7bsr2NgK
— Sports by Tampa Bay Times (@TBTimes_Sports) October 25, 2021
Brett Phillips is going to be doing some interviews! Send along your questions to him.
@MLB Fans,
— Maverick Phillips (@Brett_Phillips8) October 26, 2021
This message is for you!
Sincerely, https://t.co/JAIE7ElYvc pic.twitter.com/Mp73kvKA8C
Oh, we’re just making up awards now?
After putting up one of the greatest seasons we’ve ever seen, the sensational Shohei Ohtani will become just the 16th recipient of the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award. pic.twitter.com/zBozIVTJMd
— MLB (@MLB) October 26, 2021
Bob Klapisch wrote a thing about the Yankee clubhouse, and it’s a doozy. Unfortunately, it is now “subscriber exclusive” so you can’t read the whole thing without paying for it.
How David Cone could help #Yankees in 2022. (And I don't mean just in the YES Network broadcast booth.) https://t.co/5WSOCTxoIZ
— Bob Klapisch (@BobKlap) October 24, 2021
But if you try, you can find the juicy stuff on Twitter. Like here:
Gerrit Cole reportedly got in Brett Gardner's face because he was making pine tar jokes after MLB cracked down on foreign substance usage, per @BobKlap pic.twitter.com/apON5cr65A
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 24, 2021
And here:
Oh God. My whole show is going to be about this article, isn’t it… would anyone like to come on so I’m not ranting alone? pic.twitter.com/ihbeuK1UCs
— Spooky Ghostsulias (they/them) (@StaceGots) October 24, 2021
Ozzie Guillen interviewed for the San Diego Padres managerial position.
The Padres interviewed former White Sox and Marlins manager Ozzie Guillen for San Diego’s managerial opening, sources tell me and @Ken_Rosenthal. The interview took place last week.
— Dennis Lin (@dennistlin) October 26, 2021
Meanwhile, Cardinals bench coach Oli Marmol lands the St. Louis gig.
Jersey born. Florida kid. Dominican Republic roots. 6th-round pick, two ahead of Anthony Rizzo. Matt Carpenter's first roommate in pro ball. Released one day, rehired as coach within the month. Swift rise -- to manager of #Cardinals.
— Derrick S. Goold (@dgoold) October 26, 2021
Meet Oli Marmol: https://t.co/Ei5CPh3heV
Finally, this dog:
A dog approaches you wearing this costume, wyd???
— ᴘᴀᴠʟᴏᴠ ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴏʀɢɪ (@PAVGOD) October 26, 2021
pic.twitter.com/fxw68aR9vM