The Weekly Rundown: 8/18/24 - 8/24/24
Joey Votto calls it a career, Mariners fire their manager, and much more.
Good morning and happy Sunday!
It was another eventful week in the baseball world as we had a retirement announcement, a manager firing, a contract extension, and a bunch of clutch homers with major implications for teams in the playoff hunt.
Before we get to all that, here’s your weekly reminder to subscribe to the newsletter if you haven’t already. You’ll get these in-depth MLB recaps in your inbox every Sunday during the season, in the postseason, and throughout the offseason.
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Joey Votto hangs ‘em up
Reds great Joey Votto announced his retirement after 17 MLB seasons. He was in the Blue Jays’ minor league system but was unable to earn a promotion with his hometown team.
Votto made the announcement on Instagram. You can check out the post below:
Votto retires a six-time All-Star, 2010 NL MVP, and 2011 Gold Glove award winner. The 40-year-old led the league in on-base percentage twice and earned MVP votes in nine of his 17 seasons.
Next stop, Cooperstown. Votto might not be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but in my opinion, he’s a no-brainer for an induction. He’s one of the greatest ever at one of the most important parts of the game: getting on base. MLB will miss him.
Mariners fire Scott Servais
Scott Servais was relieved of his duties in the middle of his ninth season as Mariners manager. Former Seattle catcher Dan Wilson will replace him for the rest of 2024 and beyond. His promotion does not come with the interim tag.
Servais’ firing comes after the Mariners’ brutal road trip in which they went 1-8. They’ve struggled mightily for the last two months, posting a 20-33 record since June 19. They’ve gone from having a 10-game lead in the AL West to falling behind the Astros in the division standings and losing ground in the AL Wild Card race.
“It was a very difficult decision to make, but I thought one that our team was in need of,” Mariners president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto said. “We need a different voice and a different direction.”
Seattle also fired hitting coach Jarret DeHart. Wilson announced Mariners great Edgar Martinez will take over the role for the rest of the campaign.
Angels extend Perry Minasian
The Angels signed general manager Perry Minasian to a two-year contract extension that will keep him in the front office through 2026.
It’s a bit of a head-scratcher. The Angels haven’t been competitive during Minasian’s four-year tenure as GM. They’re currently in last place in the AL West standings and there are no signs a turnaround is coming anytime soon. Their farm system is widely considered one of the worst — if not the worst — in the entire league.
Despite that, Angels owner Arte Moreno touted the organization’s long-term outlook with Minasian leading the charge.
"Over the last four years, Perry and his baseball-operations staff have begun to lay the foundation for a bright future of Angels baseball," Moreno said in a statement. "We have been impressed by the steps Perry has taken to infuse our major league team with young and exciting talent while also revamping our player-development process. We believe this extension will allow him to continue the vision of building sustainable success throughout the Angels organization and deliver a championship for our fans."
The Angels do have some intriguing talent in the organization, some of which is already in the majors. Catcher Logan O'Hoppe, first baseman Nolan Schanuel, shortstop Zach Neto, and right-hander Ben Joyce have already shown flashes at the MLB level. Second baseman Christian Moore, the team’s first-round pick in the 2024 draft, has already reached Double-A.
Perhaps those players provide some optimism, but it’s hard to have a positive view of a team that has consistently disappointed despite having two of the greatest players of all time — Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani.
Elly De La Cruz makes history
Reds phenom Elly De La Cruz recorded his 60th stolen base of the year (it’s only August!), making him the first shortstop ever to notch 20 home runs and 60 steals in a season.
No answers for Raisel Iglesias
Braves closer Raisel Iglesias is the hottest pitcher in baseball right now. The 34-year-old righty extended his streak of retiring batters to 38 with a perfect ninth inning in Friday’s game vs. the Nationals. He entered the game with 11 straight perfect outings.
His streak ended in the 10th when he plunked a batter to start the inning, but he sat down the next three Nats hitters to give Atlanta the 3-2 victory.
Iglesias boasts a 1.39 ERA and a ridiculous 0.60 WHIP in 50 appearances this season.
Pete Crow-Armstrong Wheeler
With the announcement of Backyard Baseball’s return, Cubs rookie Pete Crow-Armstrong showed off his best Pete Wheeler impression.
Crow-Armstrong showed off his wheels with an inside-the-park homer vs. the Marlins.
Dominant on the Bump
Framber Valdez, Houston Astros
7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 9 K, 1 BB vs. Chicago White Sox
Bowden Francis, Toronto Blue Jays
7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 7 K, 0 BB vs. Chicago Cubs
Colin Rea, Milwaukee Brewers
7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 5 K, 0 BB vs. Cleveland Guardians
Gavin Stone, Los Angeles Dodgers
7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 10 K, 2 BB vs. Seattle Mariners
Mitch Keller, Pittsburgh Pirates
7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 9 K, 0 BB vs. Texas Rangers
Frankie Montas, Milwaukee Brewers
7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 K, 1 BB vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Nestor Cortes, New York Yankees
7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 4 K, 0 BB vs. Cleveland Guardians
Paul Skenes, Pittsburgh Pirates
6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 9 K, 1 BB vs. Cincinnati Reds
Joe Musgrove, San Diego Padres
7.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 9 K, 0 BB vs. New York Mets
Bowden Francis, Toronto Blue Jays
8.0 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 12 K, 3 BB vs. Los Angeles Angels
Pablo Lopez, Minnesota Twins
7.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 9 K, 1 BB vs. St. Louis Cardinals
Big Bombs
Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez crushed a walk-off homer against the Orioles.
Diamondbacks rookie Adrian Del Castillo recorded his first career grand slam.
Yainer Diaz walked it off for the Astros vs. the Red Sox.
Juan Soto set a new career high with his 36th homer of the season.
Miguel Amaya smashed his first career grand slam for the Cubs vs. the Tigers.
Anthony Santander put the Orioles ahead of the Astros with a grand slam.
Shohei Ohtani joined the 40-40 club (40 homers, 40 stolen bases) with a walk-off grand slam vs. the Rays.
Eugenio Suarez put the D’backs up big on the Red Sox with a grand slam.
Blue Jays rookie Addison Barger hit his first career walk-off homer vs. the Angels.
Francisco Lindor hit homers from both sides of the plate, including a grand slam, vs. the Padres.
Web Gem of the Week
Red Sox rookie Ceddanne Rafaela made an incredible diving grab at shortstop.
Welcome to the Show
Reds pitching prospect Julian Aguiar made his big-league debut Monday vs. the Blue Jays. The 23-year-old righty allowed two runs on four hits and and one walk while striking out two in four innings.
The Angels’ Niko Kavadas crushed a three-run bomb for his first MLB hit on Thursday vs. the Blue Jays. Los Angeles acquired Kavadas from Boston as part of the trade deadline deal involving reliever Luis Garcia.
Rockies prospect Drew Romo collected his first career hit during Tuesday’s game vs. the Nationals.
Astros prospect Shay Whitcomb’s first MLB hit was a double vs. the White Sox.
Rockies pitching prospect Luis Peralta, acquired from the Pirates before the trade deadline in exchange for Jalen Beeks, made his debut on Saturday vs. the Yankees. He didn’t allow a hit in 1.2 scoreless innings and struck out two.
Notable Injuries
The Rays placed reliever Pete Fairbanks on the 15-day injured list with a lat strain.
The Guardians placed right-hander Alex Cobb on the 15-day IL due to a fractured nail on his right hand.
The Diamondbacks placed second baseman Ketel Marte on the 10-day IL with a sprained left ankle.
Braves third baseman Austin Riley will miss 6-8 weeks due to a fractured right hand.
The Reds placed infielder Jeimer Candelario on the 10-day IL with a left great toe fracture.
The Orioles placed starter Zach Eflin on the 15-day IL with shoulder inflammation.
The Rangers placed righty Tyler Mahle on the 15-day IL with shoulder stiffness.
The Padres placed infielder Ha-Seong Kim on the 10-day IL with right shoulder inflammation.
The Giants placed catcher Patrick Bailey on the 10-day IL with a right oblique strain.
The Yankees placed rookie right-hander Luis Gil on the 15-day IL with a lower back strain.
The Reds placed left-hander Andrew Abbott on the 15-day IL due to a left shoulder strain.
The Mariners placed right-hander Yimi Garcia on the 15-day IL due to inflammation in his throwing elbow.
The Nationals placed outfielder Alex Call on the 10-day IL due to a partial left plantar fascia tear.
Cardinals catcher Willson Contreras was placed on the 10-day IL with a finger fracture.
Rapid Fire
The Dodgers designated right-hander Brent Honeywell Jr. for assignment.
The Reds claimed infielder Amed Rosario off waivers from the Dodgers.
The Dodgers DFA’d shortstop Nick Ahmed.
Veteran reliever Hector Neris signed with the Astros after being released by the Cubs.
The Braves signed Gio Urshela after the Tigers released the veteran infielder.
The Cardinals released veteran shortstop Brandon Crawford.
The Guardians DFA’d left-hander Anthony Gose.
The Reds signed first baseman Dom Smith after the Red Sox released him.
The Dodgers DFA’d veteran outfielder Jason Heyward.
The Giants signed Cavan Biggio to a minor-league deal.