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Baseball Starts Season in Seoul

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SEOUL – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Major League Baseball’s regular season begins Wednesday in Seoul, South Korea, and Tuesday the league announced the starting pitchers for that game and the 15 Opening Day games that will be played March 28.

No fewer than 20 of the 30 pitchers named are All-Stars, and four of the Opening Day starters will be appearing with a new team.

Those staff aces making their debuts for their new teams are Corbin Burnes of the Baltimore Orioles, Tyler Glasnow of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Frankie Montas of the Cincinnati Reds and Alex Wood of the Oakland Athletics.

In the Seoul Series opener, at 6:05 a.m. ET, Glasnow and the Dodgers meet Yu Darvish and the San Diego Padres with the teams playing again 24 hours later.

MLB Network will have all the preview material for Opening Day covered with nine studio shows airing March 27.

Highlighting the March 28 slate is the lone interleague matchup, ESPN’s national broadcast between last season’s World Series champion Texas Rangers and the Chicago Cubs in Arlington, Texas.

The Rangers will send right-hander Nathan Eovaldi against Cubs lefty Justin Steele.

The Dodgers, favorites to win the 2024 World Series, return from Seoul to host the St. Louis Cardinals March 28.

Prized free-agent acquisition Shohei Ohtani is expected to play his first home game for the Dodgers in that contest, an MLB Network-televised matchup against Cardinals right-hander Miles Mikolas.

A pair of leading American League contenders meet in Houston when the New York Yankees send Nestor Cortes against the Astros’ Framber Valdez.

There are also six divisional contests, highlighted by the Philadelphia Phillies’ visit to the Atlanta Braves in a rematch of the National League Division Series. The Phillies will send Zack Wheeler to the mound while ace Spencer Strider takes the bump for the Braves.

The Braves and Phillies combined to win 194 games last season.

–Field Level Media

Sox: Bello Reaps $55m Extension

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FORT MYERS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston Red Sox right-handed starter, Brayan Bello, agreed to terms on a six-year, $55 million extension, multiple media outlets reported. Per The Boston Globe, the deal includes a $21 million club option for a seventh season.

The reported contract comes on the heels of Red Sox offseason acquisition Lucas Giolito’s potential season-ending injury. ESPN reported Tuesday that initial imaging revealed a partially torn UCL and flexor strain in his pitching elbow for Giolito.

Bello, who turns 25 in May, posted a 12-11 record with a 4.24 ERA in 28 games (all starts) last season. He struck out 132 batters in 157 innings but gave up 24 home runs.

That’s still an improvement from his first season with Boston in 2022. He was 2-8 with a 4.71 ERA in 13 games (11 starts).

“He’s an exciting, young starting pitcher that was acquired and developed internally. I think he embodies exactly what we’re trying to do,” chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said recently, per The Globe.

“We still think that his best years are ahead of him. We recognize some opportunities to further optimize the repertoire and we’re super excited about having him.”

–Field Level Media

Red Sox: Giolito Injured; Torn UCL

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston Red Sox right-hander Lucas Giolito could miss the entire 2024 season after initial imaging revealed a partially torn UCL and flexor strain in his pitching elbow. If Giolito requires surgery as opposed to extensive rehab, he’s likely to miss up to 10 months.

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The news would be a potentially significant blow to the Red Sox, who signed the former Chicago White Sox ace to address their starting pitching depth. He signed a a two-year contract worth $38.5 million.

Giolito, 29, became a free agent after spending time with three clubs during 2023.

Giolito produced a cumulative 8-15 record with a 4.88 ERA in 33 total starts last season with the White Sox, Los Angeles Angels and Cleveland Guardians. He allowed 41 home runs, the second-highest total in the majors, but struck out 204 batters over 184 1/3 innings.

Giolito was an All-Star in 2019 and received American League Cy Young Award votes in three straight seasons (2019-21). Across eight MLB seasons with the Washington Nationals (2016), White Sox (2017-23), Angels and Guardians, Giolito is 61-62 with a 4.43 ERA and 1,077 strikeouts over 1,013 2/3 innings of 180 appearances (178 starts).

While with the White Sox, Giolito tossed a no-hitter in 2020 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Acquire C.J. Cron

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FORT MYERS – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox signed veteran first baseman C.J. Cron on Sunday to a minor league contract and invited him to spring training.

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Cron began working with the team Sunday, and Red Sox manager Alex Cora said the right-handed hitter likely will make his spring training debut on March 11 against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Cron, 34, was a free agent after playing last season for the Colorado Rockies and Los Angeles Angels. He was limited by back issues and batted a combined .248 with 12 home runs and 37 RBIs in 71 games.

A first-round selection (17th overall) by the Angels in the 2011 MLB Draft, Cron has played 10 seasons for the Angels (2014-17, 2023), Tampa Bay Rays (2018), Minnesota Twins (2019), Detroit Tigers (2020) and Rockies (2021-23).

Cron has batted .260 with a .320 on-base percentage, .471 slugging percentage to go along with 187 homers and 604 RBIs in 1,049 games. His best season as a power hitter was in 2022, when he was selected to the All-Star Game and posted 29 homers and a career-high 102 RBIs.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Sign Liam Hendriks

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox and All-Star closer Liam Hendriks have agreed to a two-year deal worth a guaranteed $10 million, multiple outlets reported Monday.

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The deal is pending a physical for the right-hander, who is coming off Tommy John surgery in August and is not expected to pitch much, if at all, in the 2024 season. If he does return, it would be well after the All-Star break, per the reports.

The deal is loaded with incentives, which could put the value at $20 million and includes a mutual option for 2026, per the reports.

Hendriks, 35, pitched just five games for the Chicago White Sox after returning last May from stage 4 non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Hendriks went 2-0 with a 5.40 ERA across five innings. He also had one save before undergoing surgery to repair a torn ulnar collateral ligament.

Hendriks began the 2023 season on the IL. He completed lymphoma treatment on April 3 and announced he was cancer-free 17 days later. He was diagnosed in the fall of 2022.

Hendriks, a three-time All-Star, is 33-34 with a 3.82 ERA and 116 saves in 476 career appearances (44 starts) for five teams, including the Oakland A’s (2016-20) and White Sox (2021-23).

The Red Sox are expected to start the season with Kenley Jansen as their closer, though he has been the subject of trade rumors.

–Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Feb 18

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While We’re Young (Ideas) | ’24 NBA All-Star Weekend

BREAKING NEWS FROM SATURDAY NIGHT: The ups and downs, ebbs and flows of the annual NBA All-Star Weekend were on display Saturday night. The verdict for the NBA this year was another serious high mark.

Highlights of the night included a very competitive three point contest won by Milwaukee’s Damian Lillard who is now a back-to-back champion, defeating Atlanta’s TraeYoung on the final shot.

NY Liberty guard Sabrina Ionescu set the bar very, very high by shooting an incredible round at the NBA three-point line and scoring 26 points (which included her hitting her first seven shots and 8-of-9 of the “money balls” which counted for two points each.

Under pressure in the single round of competition, Steph Curry of the Golden State Warriors met the mark and scored 29 points to secure the victory and a ‘boxing or MMA-like” championship belt. Curry drained two perfect racks of five basketballs and then went three for five on his final rack of all money balls.

The end result was a significant ($55,000) donation by State Farm Insurance to benefit each player’s charity efforts.

In the final scene of the night, Mac McClung, the former Georgetown and Texas Tech guard, turned pro via the NBA G-League’s Osceola Magic (Orlando’s minor league club) became a back-to-back champion by defeating Boston Celtics All-Star Jaylen Brown.

Brown brought out some of the classic Dominique Wilkins’ power dunks and fit them into a creative repertoire of well choreographed dunks. It wasn’t enough as McClung scored an amazing “50” on his final dunk of the night to take honors.

For an event that always seems to have some high notes and clinkers, Saturday night scored well and was a highly entertaining evening. Turner (TNT) Sports outdid itself with dozens upon dozens of well-placed cameras, super slo-mo replays and great commentary and back and forth humor – especially by Kenny Smith.

In the column below, you’ll read of other All-Star Weekend memories, noting – It was a great night from the couch and the home LED Hi-Def TV.

By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – While I’m very accustomed to being on site and – in the case of this year -listing an Indianapolis dateline, it’s very nice and comfortable writing from Boston and watching the All-Star festivities from the couch.

It was 16 years ago tonight that I watched the NBA All-Star Saturday events from a couch, joining former NBA referee Bob Delaney and his wife, Billie, at their home in Florida after a 12-day tour promoting Bob’s first book – COVERT. The last couple days were in the NBA All-Star city – New Orleans – where we did hundreds of interviews and enjoyed the Thursday-Friday tip-off of a great event in one of the greatest American cities. Overall, we were exhausted but had a great time tuning in to watch.

This weekend, it’s quite the same. I’m scoring from home.

At his pre-event media availability, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver stated that the league examined many of the intricacies of the All-Star Game and the league and its players – largely behind the experiences of new NBA Players Association executive director Andre Iguodala – have agreed to put the focus on the game of basketball.

Amen.

“We returned to the East versus West format and the 48-minute game format because we thought what we were doing was not working,” said Silver at his Saturday media availability. “I’d say people uniformly were critical of last year’s All-Star Game and felt it was not a competitive game. It was not a position held solely by the league. I think the players collectively recognized, as well, that it wasn’t what they wanted to see, either, that they had not put their best foot forward.

“I’d say Andre Iguodala now, who is the executive director of the Players Association, and a former player, shares that view with the league office; that we’re not necessarily looking for players to go out there as if it’s the Finals, necessarily, but we need players to play defense, we need them to care about this game.

“And the feeling was that maybe — and I’ll take responsibility for it … as you know, I used to run something called NBA Entertainment … that we’d gotten carried away a little bit with the entertainment aspect,” added Silver.

“By that I’m not just talking about the halftime or the intros, per se. One of the things we heard from the players, was on one hand now, ‘you’re telling us you want us to play this as if it were a real game, but there’s nothing about it that feels like a real game.’ You have us standing up on stage, operating through this draft (of players choosing sides). Then once the intros start, we get cold, we’re standing there forever, we don’t get to go through our usual routines. Then come halftime, you’re adding not just a little bit of extra time but a lot of extra time, so we get cold in the locker rooms.

“I think we sat down with the players and we listened to them, and we said, all right, we have to return to basketball, back to basketball, so to speak. It’s about the game. That’s ultimately how we’re going to be judged.”

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: It’s worth noting – ahem – that this columnist was fortunate enough to work 25 consecutive NBA All-Star Games, dating from 1982 to 2007 and attend another four as a media member for a grand total of 29 NBA All-Star Games. The line of demarcation was the 1984 NBA All-Star Weekend in Denver where the Nuggets’ organization encouraged the league to stage a Slam Dunk contest, reminiscent of the great ABA Slam Dunk Contest of 1976 when NY Nets forward Julius “Doctor J” Erving squared-off against Denver’s David Thompson – both Hall of Famers – for the greatest slams in basketball history.

That February, as Commissioner Larry O’Brien passed the torch to David Stern, the league paired the Slam Dunk with a valiant attempt to organize an “Old-Timer’s Game” which was very well received and began a long process for the league to proiperly reconnect with the players of yesteryear. Recognizing the opportunities ahead, we quickly switched the phrase from “Old Timers” to “Legends.”

The Legends Game made its way through the late ‘80s and early ‘90s until a couple serious injuries – to LA Lakers/Clipper great Norm Nixon and to Thompson – called for an end to the Legends Game and the introduction of other contests like 2Ball, the Skills Contest and the inclusion of WNBA Players into the various events. For the most part, a good time was had by all but certain weekends were much beter received than others. There was a definite ebb and flow, with the likes of Larry Bird (3-point king) and Michael Jordan (Slam Dunk champion) getting high praise for their participation.

In one man’s opinion, high points over the years included:

  1. Jordan and Dominique Wilkins going mano-a-mano at the ‘88 Slam Dunk in Jordan’s home court Chicago Stadium.
  2. Vince Carter dominating the Slam Dunk when the weekend was played in a rain-soaked Oakland in the Year 2000.
  3. Bird, Craig Hodges, Mark Price and Peja Stojakovic shooting the lights out at various Three Point Contests over the years.
  4. Spud Webb amazing the Dallas crowd and his peers with dunk after dunk to defeat his teammate, Dominique Wilkins.
  5. The NBA at 50 celebration.
  6. Dee Brown slamming it down with a blindfold on at the ‘91 Slam Dunk Contest in Charlotte.
  7. Blake Griffin jumping over a car in the Slam Dunk leading to Dwight Howard popping a sticker high up on the backboard, then later blowing a candle out of a strategically placed cupcake on the backboard.
  8. Of course, there were dozens of other highlights over the years, NYK Kenny “Sky” Walker reaching new heights in Houston – The Space City; Jason Kidd in the Skills competitions; The WNBA’s Diana Taurasi and Sue Bird proving they could compete at the highest level; among many others. (Feel free to add your suggestions in the comment section).

The greatest of NBA All-Star Weekends and my favorite, for sure, was the 1992 NBA All-Star Weekend in Orlando, when Earvin “Magic” Johnson returned from his abrupt and forced preseason retirement (HIV Virus) to lead the West to a decisive 153-113 victory, while gaining Most Valuable Player honors in an astonishing and emotional event.

Of course, Johnson would later play on the ‘92 Dream Team and eventually return for limited action in the NBA.

NBA ALL-STAR WEEKEND in INDIANAPOLIS: Tonight, as noted, the NBA will return to its roots with an old-fashioned EAST vs. WEST all-star game. No more shenanigans with LeBron James and Giannis Antetokounmpo choosing up sides. Thankfully, the league didn’t fold to pressure mounting for a USA vs The World contest, as that’s for the Olympic Games and Basketball World Cup, not an NBA mid-season exhibition that’s supposed to be fun. … That’s the one, “key” factor that everyone seems to overlook as they criticize the players for not competing as though its the NBA Finals. The weekend is a three-ring circus of events, parties, meetings, interview sessions, network media obligations and late-night hanging, and that’s encouraged as the norm. It makes it damn near impossible for the All-Stars to compete at a high level after a three-day gauntlet of commitments. … Over the years, the level of high competition only comes when the score is relatively close at the end of the third quarter and very close at the 6:59 timeout in the fourth quarter. Then, the players’ competitive spirits kick-in, the adrenaline flows, the coaches call for solid team defense and the stars shine. It’s somewhat cyclical. The league had a great experience the first time they tried the “Elam Ending” with a 157-155 thriller (2020 in Chicago), tacking on “24” points to the 133 points “Team Giannis” had accrued as of the end of the third quarter. With the clock turned off, and as fate would have it, “Team LeBron” kicked it in gear and outscored “Team Giannis” 33-22 down the stretch to win a very exciting game, much to the pleasure of Nick Elam, a professor from Ball State, who came up with the idea ((although his version called for a 35 point addition to the leading team at the end of the third quarter but the NBA shortened it to “24” in honor of the late LA Lakers star Kobe Bryant and his uniform number.

Tonight (Sunday night), the NBA will return to its East vs West roots created when the NBA All-Star Game began (1951 in Boston) – five years after the birth of the Basketball Association of America. The league considered the long history of the game of basketball in the State of Indiana, and decided to go the traditional route. Maybe it was the thought of coach John Wooden, or paying tribute the the love of the game at the high school and college levels. Regardless, the 2024 game will have no gimmicks, no choosing up sides – playground style. Just basketball.

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Red Sox Acquire Sandlin from KC

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Kansas City Royals acquired right-handed reliever John Schreiber from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor league righty David Sandlin on Saturday.

Also, the Royals placed right-hander Kyle Wright on the 60-day injured list.

Schreiber, who turns 30 on March 5, posted a 2-1 record with one save and a 3.86 ERA in 46 games (two starts) last season with Boston. He struck out 53 batters in 46 2/3 innings.

Schreiber owns an 8-6 record with nine saves and a 3.58 ERA in 139 career games (two starts) with the Detroit Tigers (2019-20) and Red Sox (2021-23).

Sandlin, 22, went 4-2 with a 3.41 ERA in 15 games (all starts) split last season with the Class-A Columbia Fireflies and the High-A Quad Cities River Bandits. He had 90 strikeouts in 68 2/3 innings.

Wright, who was acquired from the Atlanta Braves for fellow right-hander Jackson Kowar on Nov. 17, is recovering from surgery to repair a torn capsule in his throwing shoulder. He is expected to miss the 2024 season.

Because of injuries in the 2023 season, Wright appeared in just nine games (seven starts), posting a 1-3 record with a 6.97 ERA in 31 innings.

Wright, 28, led the majors in 2022 in wins when he posted a 21-5 record in 30 starts in his first full season. He had a 3.19 ERA and struck out 174 batters in 180 1/3 innings.

In 60 career games (51 starts) since 2018, Wright is 24-16 with a 4.45 ERA in 281 1/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox: Former Skipper Williams, 80

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BOSTON – Longtime baseball man Jimy Williams, who won 910 games as a major league manager and was the 1999 American League Manager of the Year, has died at the age of 80. Two of the teams that Williams skippered, the Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox, announced his passing. No cause of death or other details were reported.

“We are saddened to learn of the passing of former Blue Jays manager Jimy Williams,” the Blue Jays said in a satement. “His impact on our organization will forever be remembered.”

Williams went 910-790 in 12 seasons managing the Blue Jays (1986-89), Red Sox (1997-2001) and Houston Astros (2002-04). He took the Red Sox to the postseason in 1998 and 1999, going 5-9. He was manager of the year for Boston in 1999.

“Jimy Williams was a true staple and leader of the Red Sox,” Boston said in a news release to media.

Williams won two World Series rings as a coach, in 1995 as third base coach of the Atlanta Braves and 2008 as bench coach of the Philadelphia Phillies.

Williams played in just 14 games as a middle infielder in 1966 and ’67 with the St. Louis Cardinals. He went 3-for-13 in his career, with his first hit coming off Hall of Famer Juan Marichal.

He joined the Blue Jays as a base coach in 1980 after managing in the minor leagues for six years.

–Field Level Media

Beltre, Mauer, Helton – Hall of Famers

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COOPERSTOWN – (Staff and Wire Services) – Adrian Beltre, Joe Mauer and Todd Helton became the newest members of the Baseball Hall of Fame Tuesday night, when results of the balloting conducted by voting members of the Baseball Writers Association of America was announced by president Josh Rawitch at the plaque gallery inside the museum.

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Beltre, a star third baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers, Seattle Mariners, Boston Red Sox and Texas Rangers from 1998-2018, earned a resounding 95.1 percent of the vote in his first year on the ballot.

Fellow first-ballot inductee Mauer, who played his entire career for his hometown Minnesota Twins from 2004-18, garnered 76.1 percent. His 293 votes were four more than the minimum needed to reach the 75 percent necessary for enshrinement.

Helton, a slugging first baseman who spent his 17-season career with the Colorado Rockies from 1997-2013, received 79.7 percent of the vote in his sixth season of eligibility.

Beltre, Mauer and Helton will be inducted along with former manager Jim Leyland — who was elected via the 16-member Contemporary Baseball Era Committee on Dec. 3 — in a ceremony scheduled for July 21 in Cooperstown.

Beltre and Mauer are the first pair of first-ballot inductees since Mariano Rivera and the late Roy Halladay were enshrined in 2019. The three-person class elected by the writers is also the largest since 2019, when Mike Mussina and Edgar Martinez were also elected.

Billy Wagner just missed with 73.8 percent of the vote in his penultimate season of eligibility. Gary Sheffield, in his 10th and final year on the ballot, finished at 63.9 percent.

Carlos Beltran, in his second year on the ballot, received 57.1 percent of the vote — up from 46.5 percent last year, when many believed he was being punished for his role in the Houston Astros’ sign-stealing scandal. Chase Utley (28.8 percent) led the remaining debut candidates.

Beltre, the only third baseman to finish with at least 400 homers and 3,000 hits, is sure to wear a Rangers hat on his plaque after he concluded his career with an impressive eight-year stint in Arlington, Texas, that solidified his first-ballot status. While with Texas, he made three All-Star teams, won three Gold Gloves and finished in the top 10 in the American League MVP balloting four times while hitting .304 with 199 homers and 1,277 hits.

Beltre finished his 21-year MLB career as a .286 batter with 477 homers, 1,707 RBIs, 3,166 hits and 848 walks.

Mauer played all 15 seasons with the Twins and built his Hall of Fame case while spending his first 10 seasons behind the plate. The native of nearby St. Paul won three batting titles and three Gold Gloves as well as the AL MVP in 2009, when he set career highs with a .365 average, 28 homers and 96 RBIs. Mauer spent his final five seasons at first base following a series of concussions.

Another one-team icon, Helton earned induction on his sixth year on the ballot and will become the second Colorado Rockies player in the Hall of Fame, joining former teammate Larry Walker in Cooperstown. Helton batted above .300 in his first 10 full MLB seasons and finished his career with a .316 average along with 369 homers. He led the NL with a .372 average and 147 RBIs in 2000.

Wagner’s 422 saves rank sixth all-time. The diminutive left-hander made seven All-Star teams and averaged 11.9 strikeouts per nine innings, the highest figure ever among pitchers to throw at least 900 innings.

Sheffield, a slugger known for his bat waggle and ferocious yet controlled swing, hit 509 homers and finished in the top 10 of the MVP balloting six times for five different teams.

Andruw Jones, a defensive whiz as well as a potent batter, received 61.6 percent on his seventh year on the ballot.

–By Jerry Beach, Field Level Media

Sox Dump Sale and Cash for Prospect

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Atlanta Braves acquired All-Star left-hander Chris Sale and cash considerations from the Boston Red Sox on Saturday in exchange for infield prospect Vaughn Grissom.

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Sale waived his no-trade clause to make the move to the National League for the first time, with the Red Sox set to send $17 million to the Braves in order to offset Sale’s 2024 salary.

A seven-time All-Star, Sale is owed $27.5 million in 2024, with a $20 million club option for 2025. If the 2025 option is exercised, $5 million of that is deferred until 2040.

Sale, 34, has dealt with injury issues in recent seasons, making 20 starts last season and 31 combined starts over the past three seasons. Sale did not pitch in 2020 after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He had a stress fracture in his ribs in 2022 along with a finger fracture and a broken wrist while reportedly riding a bicycle.

Last season, Sale dealt with a stress fracture in his scapula, going 6-5 with a 4.30 ERA in his 20 starts with 125 strikeouts and 29 walks.

In 13 seasons with the Chicago White Sox (2010-16) and Red Sox, Sale is 120-80 with a 3.10 ERA, 2,189 strikeouts and 416 walks. He was an All-Star in seven consecutive seasons starting in 2012 and finished as high as second in American League Cy Young Award voting in 2017, and third in 2014. He has seven top-six finishes in Cy Young voting.

Sale’s 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings is the best in baseball history.

In five appearances (three starts) during Boston’s World Series-title run in 2018, Sale went 1-0 with a 4.11 ERA. He gave up three runs in four innings of a Game 1 World Series start against the Los Angeles Dodgers then pitched a scoreless final inning of the deciding Game 5 to give the Red Sox the title.

Grissom, 22, made his major league debut with the Braves in 2022 and has a .287 batting average with five home runs in 27 RBIs in 64 games with Atlanta over the past two seasons. Grissom, who was born in Orlando, was an 11th-round draft pick by the Braves in 2019.

–Field Level Media