Stay updated on everything baseball with our morning MLB News & Moments articles. We’ve got you covered to keep you in the know.
Today’s Headlines
Brawl Suspensions Handed Out
Tim Anderson was suspended six games, and José Ramírez three games for their roles in the brawl between Cleveland and Chicago on Saturday. Both players are appealing, and will play until those proceedings are resolved. What you need to know about the brawl is that someone was mad about someone else doing someone else’s home run celebration, and then someone else struck out someone else and yelled at the other team, and oh gosh I’m so bored by this.
Things Get Testy on the South Side
Reliever Kenyan Middleton did not hold back on his former team, after being traded from the White Sox to the Yankees. Middleton:
“I don’t know how you police the culture if there are no rules or guidelines to follow because everyone is doing their own thing. Like, how do you say anything about it because there are no rules. You have rookies sleeping in the bullpen during the game. You have guys missing meetings. You have guys missing (pitcher fielding practices), and there are no consequences for any of this stuff.”
Adding fuel to the fire, former White Sock Lance Lynn agreed with Middleton in brief comments in Los Angeles today, and then White Sox GM Rick Hahn fired back at Middleton:
“Quite frankly, it’s a little bit ironic that Keynan’s the one saying this because my last conversation with him face to face was a week ago in this clubhouse where he sought me out to apologize for his unprofessional behavior – unprofessional behavior that [White Sox Manager] Pedro had called him out on and had an individual meeting with him about, and Kenyan wanted to apologize for.”
It’s a bad look all around for the White Sox, and probably not the best response to the controversy by the GM throwing a former player under the bus.
‘Stros Go to the White House
The Astros made the customary post-World Series visit to the White House on Monday.
The 2022 #WorldSeries champion @Astros took a trip to The White House today. pic.twitter.com/BCJBuz0E1v
— MLB (@MLB) August 7, 2023
Your mileage may vary on whether you think this should still be a thing or not, but I’m sure it’s nice for the players and it did give us a moment a few years ago where we temporarily all thought Jose Altuve had had enough of it.
Best Moments From Yesterday
Baseball Continues to be the Best, Joey Votto also.
Sweet moment, as a fan attending her first game gets a shout out from Joey Votto after the Reds snapped a six-game losing streak:
Thank you for coming to the game tonight and supporting us!
— Joey Votto (@JoeyVotto) August 8, 2023
Aaron Boone is All of Us
The scene: Anthony Volpe struck out looking, and Yankee manager Aaron Boone was none too pleased about the call. Boone was ejected, and acted the same way we might if we felt our team had been aggrieved and wanted to demonstrate for our friends how bad the call was. Boone leads the American League in ejections in 2023.
Aaron Boone's Laz Díaz imitation. 🤣 pic.twitter.com/s9Yij6JoCV
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 8, 2023
Walk Off Salami
Pablo Reyes knocked a walk-off grand slam off Kansas City in the bottom of the 9th to secure a 6-2 win.
The Yellow Sox remain undefeated! #walkoff pic.twitter.com/L2RvgSaZwf
— MLB (@MLB) August 8, 2023
Injuries
American League rookie home run leader Josh Jung is expected to miss six weeks after undergoing surgery on his fractured thumb. Jung may still return this season if the timeline is as expected.
Yankees starter Carlos Rodón is back on the IL with a strained hamstring. It’s been somewhat of a lost season for the former ace, who missed the early part of the season with forearm and back injuries, and has pitched to a 7.33 ERA in limited action.
Mets outfielder Starling Marte also landed on the IL on Monday, with a strained groin.
Articles You Should Read
Bryan Woo’s Repertoire is the Blueprint for Modern Pitching – Jack Foley, Pitcher List
Underneath the Bottle – Steven Goldman, Baseball Prospectus
Fantasy Baseball Coverage
The List 8/7: Top 100 Starting Pitchers
Fantasy Baseball Reliever Rankings
Featured image by Justin Paradis (@JustParaDesigns on Twitter)