Baseball Page 1134 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

The Mariners' Front Office Sounds Like A Total Shitshow
It seemed a little odd when Eric Wedge stepped away from the Seattle Mariners after his contract ran out. No extension, no firing. Wedge and the team simply parted ways. After the Seattle Times published an article Saturday in which Wedge criticized three of his old bosses, however, the breakup mad...

Having A Hall Of Fame Vote Turned Me Into A Monster
I clicked open the post and prepared to cast my vote for who makes it onto our Hall of Fame ballot. I figured, there are about 10 no-doubters, 20 no-chance-in-hellers, and a handful of tough calls. I could knock this out in a minute. I scrolled down to see who I'd be voting on, and I halted at the p...

Price Of Fame: Frank Thomas, Who Saved My Life
Over the next few weeks, we’ll be examining the merits—and relative lack of merits—of all 36 players on this year’s Hall of Fame ballot for the purposes of better informing the electorate, i.e., you. All entries in the series can be found here....

Robinson Cano Gets $240 Million From Mariners, Surprises Everyone
Well, that wasn't supposed to happen. After just about every baseball writer working had written off the Seattle Mariners' chances of landing Robinson Cano, news broke this morning that the Mariners had scooped up the prize of the 2013 free agent class with a 10-year, $240 million deal. Based on my ...

Reports: Mariners Break Off Talks With Robinson Cano
For all the talk about Jay Z's foray into the sports agent world, he hasn't been much more than a figurehead. But yesterday, for the first time I can remember, he actually took part in a negotiating session, a meeting with the Mariners on behalf of Robinson Cano. It seems to have gone poorly....

Price Of Fame: Ray Durham, Who Made Ballgames Worth Enduring
Over the next few weeks, we'll be examining the merits—and relative lack of merits—of all 36 players on this year's Hall of Fame ballot for the purposes of better informing the electorate, i.e., you. All entries in the series can be found here....

How A Reporter Eavesdropped On Barry Bonds's Grand Jury Testimony
Ten years ago today, Barry Bonds testified before a grand jury investigating BALCO that he did not know the substances he was taking were illegal steroids. It was that claim which would lead to Bonds being indicted on charges of perjury and obstruction of justice, and convicted of the latter. The te...

Why The Yankees Rebuild From Without
Jacoby Ellsbury is a very good outfielder, signed at market rate, who projects to age well but in five or six years will nevertheless be one of the more overpaid players in the game. But that's a problem for another day, and despite dropping $238 million on Ellsbury and Brian McCann, the Yankees sti...

Angry, Dumb Red Sox Fans Call Jacoby Ellsbury A "Trader"
Free agent outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury has agreed to a deal with the Yankees. He used to play for the Red Sox. In case you are an alien or a baby born today who just learned how to use a computer, the Red Sox and Yankees are big rivals. Anyway, Boston fans are mad about Ellsbury being a traitor for ...

Yankees Sign Jacoby Ellsbury To Seven-Year Deal, Because They Can
The New York Yankees have reportedly signed Jacoby Ellsbury, because eat it. They don't care. The Yankees get who they want. (Unless it's Cliff Lee.)...

Do Nice Players Make Their Teammates Worse?
Dick Allen was known for being an unpleasant teammate who warred with teammates and divided clubhouses. In "The Politics of Glory," Bill James called him "a manipulator of extraordinary skill," and wrote,...

The Pundits Weigh In On Our Purchase Of A Hall Of Fame Vote
When we announced last week that we had purchased a Hall of Fame vote, making a mockery and farce of the process by which veteran baseball writers anoint the elect among retired ballplayers and usher them into the sacred temple at Cooperstown, we had one question: Will the takes be strong? Happily, ...

What It Took To Get Ted Williams's Head Off His Body
Adapted from The Kid: The Immortal Life of Ted Williams (Little, Brown and Company). ...

Todd Jones Does Not Believe Todd Jones Belongs In The Hall Of Fame
Todd Jones, who had a lengthy and perfectly respectable career as a reliever, has some thought on his appearing on the Hall of Fame ballot:...

Reports: The Nationals Asked D.C. To Buy Them A Roof For $300 Million
The math of stadium financing always seems to be addition. Nationals Park opened in 2008, and the $693 million ballpark was entirely paid for through public funding. Now, according to multiple reports out of Washington, the Nats have approached local officials about building a retractable roof over ...

Deadspin Buys Hall Of Fame Vote, Will Turn It Over To Deadspin Readers
Recently, as you may recall, we announced our plan to subvert the annual elections for baseball's Hall of Fame by buying votes from voters. Our idea was to make a mockery and farce of the increasingly solemn and absurd election process, and to take some power from the duly appointed custodians of th...

Alex Rodriguez's MLB Lawsuit Now Includes This Dumb Photo
Alex Rodriguez's legal team has updated his lawsuit against MLB with new "evidence" that Bud Selig has it out for him, including the above photo. ...


Watch These Mets Sacrifice Their Dignity For Your Holiday Joy
There are no words for this Flash holiday card from the Mets. Only tears of happiness, and off-kilter, music-like sounds made in sympathy for these merry gentlemen and what sports they are. ...

Alex Rodriguez Flips The Bat After He "Crushed" His Appeal Hearing
Alex Rodriguez is a free man. No, not baseball-wise—he still faces the prospect of a 211-game suspension. But after angrily storming out of his hearing on Wednesday then opening up to Mike Francesa, it's as if some huge weight has been lifted from his shoulders. Now's he sounds almost like a real hu...