An MLB riser and faller before deadline week. Plus: Active players on track for the Hall of Fame?

New York Times

a day ago

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We're starting to see some bubble teams pop. But one is starting to float … Plus: It's Jayson Stark's annual look at future Hall of Famers, and Ken considers Aaron Boone's role in New York.
I'm Levi Weaver, here with Ken Rosenthal — we're off tomorrow, so welcome to The Windup, and we'll see you again on Monday!
For the Cardinals, this was supposed to be a year for 'developing young talent' (ie. 'Don't get your hopes up'). Instead, for the first half of the season, they went out and surprised everyone. Could they keep it up?
Alas, after the All-Star break, St. Louis was swept by the Diamondbacks and then lost two of three to the Rockies. Ah.
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President of baseball operations John Mozeliak has called the team's deadline plans 'fluid,' but also said: 'Clearly the weekend was not what we wanted to see. Now we have to understand what the future looks like.'
Yesterday, the Cardinals DFA'd starting pitcher Erick Fedde, acquired from the White Sox at last year's deadline. Fedde has been pretty bad this year, but there was hope he might rebound and be a trade asset (he didn't).
From May 11-19, the Cardinals spent seven out of eight days at one game out of first place in the NL Central. On June 30, they were only three games out.
It seems July 1 was their Cinderella's midnight — they're still a game over .500 at 52-51, but 5-12 for the month, 9 1/2 games out in the NL Central and 3 1/2 out (and falling) in the NL wild card.
More should-be sellers:
From my latest column:
It's a fine line. A manager who puts struggling players on blast often will lose his clubhouse. But a manager who consistently defends those players risks losing public credibility. In the view of many New York Yankees fans, Aaron Boone made his choice long ago. His willingness to back players, even amid mental lapses, troubling slumps and defensive meltdowns, overrides any concern from the fan base.
Boone's 'all is well' demeanor in interviews, no matter how much it inflames fans who believe he is gaslighting them, ultimately means little. What matters is whether Boone, behind the scenes, is holding his players accountable.
If he is, it sure isn't showing on the field.
Last night, the Yankees were at their sloppy worst, committing four errors in three innings in an embarrassing 8-4 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays. They have now made 12 errors in 10 games against the Jays, the team they are chasing in the AL East.
Boone, speaking to reporters afterward, reacted with typical restraint. He said the Yankees were 'a very good defensive team' that fielded poorly in their two series at Toronto's Rogers Centre. Perhaps. But fans watching blunder after blunder keep wondering when things will change.
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The Yankees on May 28 led the AL East by a season-high seven games. Their lead on June 12, when they peaked at 42-25, was 4 1/2. Since then, they've gone 14-21, falling four games behind the Jays and showing the same bungling tendencies they've displayed season after season under Boone, regardless of who is on their roster. The embarrassment the Yankees suffered in Game 5 of last year's World Series was merely the culmination of their flaws.
By wins and losses, the standard that matters most, it's difficult to be critical of Boone. Since taking over in 2018, he has led the Yankees to the third-highest victory total in the majors, behind only the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros. The Yankees reached the postseason all but one of those years, and last season won the American League for the first time since 2009.
This season, even with injuries to starting pitchers Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt, also is likely to end in a postseason berth. The Yankees currently hold the top wild-card spot in the AL, a league in which few teams, if any, look like powerhouses. If they get hot again, much of the noise surrounding them could subside.
More Rosenthal: Ken's notes column is deadline-centric and includes a plea to Brewers ownership, plus notes on the Dodgers, White Sox, Blue Jays, Braves and Diamondbacks.
This Sunday is induction weekend at the Baseball Hall of Fame. This year's class includes Dick Allen, Dave Parker, CC Sabathia, Ichiro Suzuki and Billy Wagner. One thing we know about each of those players: The debate is over. They're in. Hall of Famers.
So … who've you got for the class of 2039?
That's right, it's time for Jayson Stark's annual check-in on which active players are headed for Cooperstown … eventually.
(Don't worry, Jacob Misiorowski isn't listed. Yet.)
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This year, Jayson has some new tiers, including the Starters Corner. It's a good addition; our definition of a Hall of Fame starting pitcher is already evolving, and it's going to have to continue to do so. Starting pitchers' usage just looks different now.
Consider Chuck Finley, who won 200 games and struck out 2,610 hitters from 1986-2002. When he was eligible for the Hall of Fame in 2008, he received … one vote. One!
The only three active pitchers with 200-plus wins or 2,500-plus strikeouts? Clayton Kershaw, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander (all three have both).
The catch? Finley threw 3,197 1/3 innings. Only Verlander has more among active pitchers, and has done so in three more seasons. It was just a different time. Stark dives into how voters should consider this.
All season long, the book on the Rangers has been: pitching/defense good; hitting bad. But uhhh …
Runs Per Game, July 1-22:
While we weren't looking, the Rangers have gone 12-6 in July. They're 6-2-1 in their last nine series, including wins against the Tigers and Astros — whom they do still trail by 7 1/2 games in the division.
But they're only 1 1/2 games out of a wild-card spot now, tied with the Rays.
What changed? Some of it has been good players finally being … good? Corey Seager is healthy again and hit his fifth home run of the month last night, tying him with Marcus Semien for most on the team in July (Adolis García is next, with four).
But some success has come from names even Rangers fans might not recognize. On Monday night, Cody Freeman's first big-league hit gave the Rangers a 2-1 lead, then Michael Helman's first big-league home run made it 5-1. Rowdy Tellez — who has somehow never been a Texas Ranger before, despite being named Rowdy Tellez — is there now.
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And the pitching's still good. They entered last night with a league-best 3.21 ERA (then held the A's to one run).
Are they going to salvage this season after all?
Deadline coverage:
Shohei Ohtani has now homered in five consecutive games.
When do we start to worry about the Tigers? Swept by the Pirates, they're 1-9 in their last 10 games.
Jesús Luzardo's first season in Philly has been extremely … weird.
Chandler Rome tells us how the team is adjusting Cam Smith's routine to help him make it through a long first pro season.
Keith Law has an updated top 60 MLB prospects list after the draft. (Better Tigers news!) There's a live Q&A here at 1 pm ET.
Justin Verlander finally got that first win as a Giant.
On the pods: On 'Rates & Barrels': a look at hitters like Pete Crow-Armstrong, Ceddanne Rafaela and Jackson Chourio, who succeed despite high chase rates.
Most-clicked in our last newsletter: The video of Ichiro's walk-off homer off Mariano Rivera. I never considered it wouldn't be.