Zack Greinke and Javy Baez believe in themselves, and I believe in Rhys Hoskins – no matter how many outs he made today. This is Wednesday baseball.
Nothing But Net
Eloy Jimenez has thrice – thrice! – jumped into the left field netting at Guaranteed Rate Field. Eloy’s third trapeze fail of the season came in Wednesday afternoon’s tilt with the Tigers.
is Eloy a Gold Glover right now? No. but is he the best forever? Yes. #WhiteSox pic.twitter.com/fd2DwQike7
— Stephen Nelson (@StephenNelson) August 12, 2020
Luckily, the ball landed in foul ground (unlike on Christian Yelich’s inside-the-park home run earlier this season) – so Jimenez actually got to enjoy his time in the hammock.
Instead of a net, how about we put a ball pit out there? Just a thought.
Juan Soto Bests Himself (And Ties Frank Robinson, Ken Griffey Jr.)
Juan Soto hit the longest home run of his career on Tuesday.
That lasted all of a day. I’ll keep my analysis here short: Ball go far.
Juan Soto just hit a ball onto the concourse beyond the second deck at Citi Field. Oh my god.
— Jesse Dougherty (@dougherty_jesse) August 12, 2020
JUAN SOTO!
Remember that 463-ft HR on Monday that was the longest of his career?
Well THIS is now the longest of his career — 466 ft.
112.9 mph off the bat, ALSO his hardest-hit HR of his career. pic.twitter.com/H8K16VDpPQ
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) August 12, 2020
Enough talk, amiright? Let’s see the thing already:
Soto to the MOON. 😱 pic.twitter.com/mkpfeugIzr
— MLB (@MLB) August 12, 2020
Later, the Mets tried getting him out with a lefty. Nice thought. Even got two strikes on him. Good job, Mets.
Soto, of course, countered with his flat-footed, two-strike stance. He choked up on the bat. He hit it out. These are Juan Soto things.
Juan Soto is now tied for 5th, with Frank Robinson and Ken Griffey Jr. with 60 HR before turning 22. pic.twitter.com/13j59KnqVw
— MLB Stats (@MLBStats) August 13, 2020
Keep in mind: Juan Soto won’t turn 22 until October.
Off To The Races
Freddie Freeman isn’t known, necessarily, for his foot speed. But he’s working on it.
Maybe Freeman and Luke Voit have a longstanding foot-speed rivalry. Maybe Freeman loves to hit doubles so much he decided to tag along for Voit’s. Maybe he saw a spider. Who knows.
Either way, this is a man who loves baseball.
You Can’t Steal It If Zack Greinke Gives It Away For Free
Zack Greinke is maybe the most cerebral pitcher that we have in the game today. He’s a veteran, he’s savvy, he dances to the beat of his own drummer. Which is to say: he makes his own decisions.
Zack Greinke, Calling his own pitch/Filthy Slider. pic.twitter.com/CzCyQ48H6T
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 13, 2020
Typically, the catcher will flash the sign to the pitcher because that way, the batter can’t see the sign. Not Greinke. He wants to throw the slider, and he doesn’t care who knows it.
Suddenly, I realize why Greinke might not understand the significance of his teammates’ stealing opponents’ signs.
Not only does Greinke not really need his catcher – he doesn’t need the umpire either.
Zack Greinke: “Hey, let's go. Jeez. It was right there, man. You can't keep missing those.” pic.twitter.com/2MbWvlRSyL
— Tony Adams (@adams_at) August 13, 2020
Isn’t it just the worst when someone is disappointed in you? You’ll get it next time, Blue!
Bo Bichette Gets A Lesson In Analytics
Bo Bichette had four singles by the time he came up to bat in the eighth. That’s when he realized there was a much more efficient way to up his total bases.
Things you need to know:
– Bo has FIVE hits
– We've homered in SIX straight innings
– This ball may NEVER land 😱 pic.twitter.com/XB6XFCdT5K— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 13, 2020
That’s the power of analytics. Here’s another number with power: number 11. He plays for the Blue Jays.
But he’s not the only one with pop on this Toronto/Buffalo squad. After trailing 8-0 to the Marlins, Toronto homered in 6 straight innings, culminating in Bichette’s long ball above. Then Travis Shaw realized they actually needed one more.
It was 8-0…😳
Then, we circled the wagons 😎 pic.twitter.com/tjcvGyxKya
— Toronto Blue Jays (@BlueJays) August 13, 2020
Then, because this is baseball, they lost. But what can you do? Even with Bichett’s power, 11 can’t beat 14.
Live by the numbers, die by the numbers.
He’s The Best
Chicago Cubs shortstop Javy Baez was asked about Franscisco Lindor today.
https://twitter.com/MLBastian/status/1293647619781271559
“He’s the best, but I’m El Mago.” You must be, because that was magic.
A Three-fer Of Two-fers
Rhys Hoskins did something tonight that hasn’t been done by a Philadelphia Phillie since Placido Polanco. Spoiler: it’s not a good thing.
Rhys Hoskins has grounded into three double plays tonight. First time a Phillies hitter has done that since Placido Polanco in 2010.
— Matt Gelb (@MattGelb) August 13, 2020
It’s unfortunate when some of the most fun things that happen in baseball make you revel in the misfortune of others. But three double plays?!?
That’s fun.