When the team and the length and the dollar figures from the looming Shohei Ohtani sweepstakes settle into place, and if the winner is some franchise other than the Angels, what if after what if will start to emerge.
There’ll be dissections about how the Angels handled one of the sport’s greatest hitters and pitchers — the greatest in 100 years at combining both — for six seasons.
There’ll be analysis of how managers Mike Scioscia, Brad Ausmus, Joe Maddon and Phil Nevin, as well as general managers Billy Eppler and Perry Minasian, built around this championship window, and then puzzling conclusions about how each year’s quest found some strange way to fall short.
This all certainly changes if Ohtani returns from his pitching-hand blister, Mike Trout returns in a month or two from surgery to repair a fracture of the hamate bone in his left hand, Anthony Rendon returns from his shin contusion, the Angels find a way to remain healthy and make a magical postseason run filled with the magical moments that the sport’s greatest players are supposed to have.
But they lost all of their lineup’s fireworks over the Fourth of July holiday. If anything qualifies for a here we go again moment, it was Ohtani, Trout and Rendon each exiting the game due to injury on Monday or Tuesday.
For all the Mets have to worry about with the “Worst Half Money Can Buy,” they’ll almost certainly be topped by the disappointing era during which the Angels had two of the sport’s most prolific players and haven’t won a postseason game — let alone make the playoffs.
Ohtani’s pitching blister, Trout’s faulty swing and Rendon’s foul ball off the leg might have altered the franchise’s trajectory with three weeks until the trade deadline. MLB Network’s Jon Morosi reported he doesn’t expect the Angels to deal Ohtani. But, given these setbacks, the hypothetical scenarios of trading Ohtani have kept echoing through the news cycles.
It would create a different type of disappointment than the Mets have flirted with. Steve Cohen went all-in with the $364 million payroll, taking a shot — and a chance — on proven veterans who could stumble and take a step back at any point. The Angels have always seemed to have a narrower margin for error, even with Ohtani and Trout overlapping.
At least Ohtani still can be their No. 3 hitter when he doesn’t pitch, as he did in going 0-for-4 in Wednesday night’s loss to the Padres that dropped the Angels to 45-44, four games back of a wild-card spot.
They’re inching closer to the most memorable moment from Ohtani’s and Trout’s shared tenure in Anaheim occurring when they weren’t even playing for the Angels. The stark flip in emotions from how their year started — less than 10 days after the vintage Ohtani-Trout matchup in the ninth inning of the World Baseball Classic title game between Team USA and Japan — has become perhaps the most somber part of the 36-hour stretch for the Angels, too.
The thrill was there in March when Ohtani entered from Japan’s bullpen in the ninth inning, recorded the first two outs and then pumped two 100-mph fastballs past one of the sport’s most powerful hitters. Then, Ohtani’s 1-2 pitch to Trout hit the radar gun at 102 mph. This was baseball’s global stage, with two of its most recognizable names battling for a chance to grasp a type of baseball glory they hadn’t come close to touching with the Angels.
So when Ohtani tucked an 87-mph slider past Trout, he spread both of his arms wide, threw his glove, threw his hat and waited for his teammates to reach the mound. And in the middle of that, Ohtani roared. Think Chris Sale, a bit more stoic, after the final World Series out in 2018. Think Daniel Hudson in 2019, when the Nationals turned that lowly 19-31 May record into October glory. Think Julio Urias in 2020, capping the condensed season amid COVID-19.
That dream keeps slipping away from the Angels. The latest string of injuries certainly doesn’t help, either. And the trade deadline, as well as the Ohtani sweepstakes, have only gotten closer.
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MLB discipline hits the Yankees
Yankees reliever Jimmy Cordero was suspended for the remainder of the season by MLB on Wednesday for violating the league’s Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy, becoming the third member of the franchise to receive a suspension under the policy since 2016.
Former Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman was suspended in 2016 for a violation that occurred while he was a member of the Reds, and perfect game pitcher Domingo German accepted an 81-game suspension covering parts of 2019 and 2020 for an incident that occurred in September 2019.
Manager Aaron Boone said he found out about the suspension Tuesday night and that Cordero had informed him about the investigation a few days prior.
He said it’s “sad” to hear about domestic violence, adding, “My biggest thing right now is just feeling for the situation and hoping and praying that something good comes out of this — that there’s maturity, that there’s growth, that there’s healing in whatever is going on.”
“When things like this, that are about as serious as it gets, come up, there’s a heavy price to be paid,” Boone said Wednesday when asked about having managed multiple players who have been suspended for domestic violence incidents. “Certainly I support that, I know the organization supports that. And hopefully, now it turns to hopefully genuine healing in all these situations that are all different, I’m sure, in every case, on some level.”
Aaron Judge said he was “upset” to find out about Cordero’s situation.
Cordero, a 31-year-old who played for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2022 and made his Yankees debut out of the bullpen this year, had appeared in 31 games in 2023 with a 3.86 ERA.
The Yankees said in a statement they’re “fully supportive” of MLB’s investigation and discipline.
The Yankees went on to lose to the Orioles, 6-3, on Wednesday night with the bullpen giving up a 2-0 lead.
10 years of Judge
When the first round of the MLB Draft begins Sunday, with LSU teammates Paul Skenes and Dylan Crews going No. 1 and No. 2 in some order, it also will mark the approximate 10-year anniversary of when the Yankees selected a player who has significantly impacted their franchise — even if a World Series hasn’t followed.
With a compensatory pick at No. 32 overall, the Yankees took Fresno State outfielder Aaron Judge as one of their three selections across the top 33 picks.
They bet on his frame. They bet on the collegiate power that could translate. When the Yankees’ pick was revealed, Judge stood up from his seat, hugged his parents, removed his suit coat and put on the pinstripes for the first time.
That year, with the No. 11 overall pick in the first round, the Mets selected Dominic Smith, who remained a highly touted prospect until he was non-tendered and ended up with the Nationals. The Yankees selected third baseman Eric Jagielo at No. 26 and left-hander Ian Clarkin at No. 33, too, and neither of them is with an MLB team.
Among the other notables (for better or for worse) in that 2013 class:
Kris Bryant (No. 2, Cubs): Three years later, he helped Joe Maddon’s group snap their 108-year World Series drought. He has also won a Rookie of the Year award and an MVP honor, while making four All-Star Games. He’s played in just 97 of 250 possible games into Year 2 of a seven-year, $182 million contract with the Rockies.
Clint Frazier (No. 5, Guardians): He ended up in The Bronx as part of the return for the Andrew Miller deal in 2016, but his career has been defined by inconsistencies — though he most recently got another chance with the White Sox this year — and struggles following concussion symptoms.
Tim Anderson (No. 17, White Sox): He won the batting title in 2019, but he has hit just .235 through the first half of 2023 and hasn’t recorded a homer, which marks a strange drop in power. He was never a 40-homer player. But his OPS in a full season has never dipped beneath .679, and through 62 games in 2023, it’s at .552.
Billy McKinney (No. 24, A’s): He hasn’t produced at the level expected for a former first-rounder. But in June, he provided a spark to the Yankees lineup by hitting .276 with an OPS of .869.
Devin Williams (No. 54, Brewers): Williams turned into a two-time All-Star with the Brewers, beginning as their setup man and then becoming the closer when Milwaukee sent Josh Hader to the Padres in 2022.
Jeff McNeil (No. 356, Mets): This pick later in the draft aged better than selecting Smith in the first round. Despite his struggles this year, McNeil developed into a strong second baseman — and middle-infield partner for Francisco Lindor — and corner outfielder after playing shortstop at Long Beach State. He won the National League batting title last year with a .326 average.
Nestor Cortes (No. 1,094, Yankees): He was selected in the 36th round, near the end of the draft, and struggled for years before making his first All-Star Game in 2022 and compiling a 12-4 record.
A new air around the U.S. Women’s Open
For the past month or so, the LPGA Tour has been defined by its new generation, the one tasked with guiding the sport into the future while purse increases and broadcast network availability follow.
Rose Zhang, at 20 years old, won her professional debut in early June at the Mizuho Americas Open after completing her second season at Stanford. Ruoning Yin clinched the Women’s PGA Championship as a 20-year-old. Nelly Korda, who holds the No. 2 ranking in the Rolex Women’s World Golf Rankings at 24 years old, has won eight LPGA Tour tournaments and one major.
And the U.S. Women’s Open, which begins with the first round Thursday at Pebble Beach, will have its final two rounds air in primetime on network TV (NBC) for the first time, according to Sportico.
The winner of the 2023 U.S. Open will earn a $2 million prize, up from $1.8 million last year when Minjee Lee won the event.
There are still the veterans — including Michelle Wie West, who said it will be her final tournament — who have excelled and taken the titles at past tournaments. But that shouldn’t take away from the accomplishments of Zhang and Yin, two golfers with the chance to have their names join those conversations in the future.
“I want to continue trying to carve a path for young kids to just follow their dreams,” Zhang said after her first LPGA win. “I will continue to do what I’m doing, I’ll continue to fight.”
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