2026 MLB regular season running thread

[2muchcoffeeman]

I stand up for my Uncle Charlie, who after 16 years of fighting bone cancer in his spinal cord decided last spring that he was ready to be done.

 

[UPChip]

ASG-specific caps.

Perhaps (It looked like there might have been some sort of embroidery or something on the front of them in one shot), but the part that doesn't make sense to me is why they didn't apply the various patches and bells and whistles to a road cap.

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

A shutout? In the ASG?

Weird.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Fourth one. First since 2013.

 

[MTM]

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Now Cecil Fielder’s GRANDSON is getting traded.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/49367420/reports-astros-finalizing-trade-lance-mccullers-brewers

 

[Baron Scicluna]

Don’t remember seeing this on here, but former Phillies closer Al Holland died on the Fourth of July. RIP

Obituary: Al Holland (1952-2026)

 

[Jake from State Farm]

When the Tigers traded for Willie Hernandez I went to the Phillies clubhouse and found Al Holland sitting out front. He was shaking his head and saying: “Willie, Willie. What am I going to do without Willie. I asked him how he thought Hernandez would do as a closer and he said he’d be great (which he was). He then asked me who else was in the trade. I told him Dave Bergman and Alejandro Sanchez. “They traded Al Sanchez?” Holland was a good man and a good pitcher.

 

[Batman]

Holy schnikes.
Crazy story from Theo Epstein about how, when the rain delay hit, Fox wanted to suspend Game 7 of the 2016 World Series so they could get another ratings boost the following night. To his credit — and perhaps amazingly — Rob Manfred put the kibosh on it immediately.

 

[Baron Scicluna]

Holy schnikes.
Crazy story from Theo Epstein about how, when the rain delay hit, Fox wanted to suspend Game 7 of the 2016 World Series so they could get another ratings boost the following night. To his credit — and perhaps amazingly — Rob Manfred put the kibosh on it immediately.

I mean, not that Fox cares about integrity, but that’s pretty much ****ing around with the integrity of the sport right there.

 

[ChrisLong]

Don’t remember seeing this on here, but former Phillies closer Al Holland died on the Fourth of July. RIP

Obituary: Al Holland (1952-2026)

Seemed like nobody was keeping track of this, including Holland. I was in a small media scrum when it was pointed out to him that he had retired 27 consecutive batters (don't remember how many games it took). "Do I get credit for a perfect game?" he asked. It must have been "81 or '82 when he was on the Giants.

 

[micropolitan guy]

Hardly any traffic on this site during the ASG, man its popularity has really decreased. There's no offense anymore because the pitching is so good when you face a quality arm every single inning.

 

[tapintoamerica]

You think there'll be baseball in 2027? Optimism looks weird on you!

I don’t think there will be a full season. But if Skubal makes it through October 2026, he’ll blow out his elbow in one of his first starts of 2027. That’s the way these things work.

 

[BYH 2: Electric Boogaloo]

Tis the season for overvalued prospects. Guys ranked in the overall top 100 are legitimate. Almost all of them make the Majors. Beyond that? Nah.

Amen. So tired of hearing about prospects. I believe it was Jim Leyland who said a prospect means you ain't done **** yet. The problem is Theo Epstein & the Red Sox nailed a few drafts right after the Moneyball revolution (drafted Jonathan Papelbon, Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Clay Buchholz, Jed Lowrie, Josh Reddick & Anthony Rizzo from 2003 through 2007) so everyone thought hanging on to prospects was the way to go. Believing they were always right prospects was yet another thing to fuel the egos of GMs. Add into the equation the prospect dorks all over the Internet believing GMs were always right about prospects and there you go. An entire generation of GM dorks are holding on to prospects because one might end up good.

 

[Songbird]

 

[UPChip]

MLB released a 2027 schedule today with almost all the league opening on Thursday, March 25.

Besides the obvious and previously mentioned labor issues, the Yankees, Pirates, Tigers and Cubs are all scheduled to open at home.

 

[MTM]

I know roster reveals are only a thing in the NFL, but I'm a little surprised that baseball would release its schedule on the same day as the NHL did the same.

Maybe they need something to talk about on the MLB Network.

 

[BYH 2: Electric Boogaloo]

I know roster reveals are only a thing in the NFL, but I'm a little surprised that baseball would release its schedule on the same day as the NHL did the same.

Maybe they need something to talk about on the MLB Network.

Don't worry. Once they lose next year (at least) to the lockout, they'll join the rest of the leagues in doing a dumb made-for-TV off-season sked reveal.

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Cleveland gets the gift of starting the season in Chicago and Detroit, then coming home for most of the next two weeks. At least they get the Yankees for home-opening weekend, so that should bolster the crowd. They play their most home games of any month in April.

Stock up on those hoodies, Guardians fans!

 

[TheSportsPredictor]

Hooray! The full return of baseball as the Rays and BoSox face off.