June 2016 - Baseball Wiretap

Blue Jays Ride Five-Run Third Inning To Game 1 Win Over Rangers
The Blue Jays defeated the Rangers 10-1 in Game 1 of the ALDS on Thursday afternoon thanks to a huge third inning.

RealGM Staff Report

Dodgers To Start Andrew Toles In Left Field For Game 1
The Dodgers will start rookie Andrew Toles in left field against the Nationals in Game 1 of the NLDS on Friday evening.

Doug Padilla/ESPN

Barry Bonds 'Grateful And Humbled' For Time With Marlins
A day after the Marlins fired him as hitting coach, Barry Bonds posted on his personal blog a message of thanks and farewell to club officials.

ESPN

Giants-Mets Scores Record Rating For MLB Wild Card Game
The telecast generated a record 5.8 overnight rating, which surpasses the previous high (5.7) set by both the AL and NL Wild Card Games in 2015.

Ben Cafardo/ESPN

Diamondbacks Have List Of Five Potential GM Candidates
Major League Baseball vice president Kim Ng is under consideration, according to the report.

Nick Cafardo/Boston Globe

Cubs Are Las Vegas Favorites To Win World Series
Three times as much money has been bet on the Cubs to win the World Series as any other team at the Wynn.

David Purdum/ESPN

Matt Showmaker Open To Wearing Protective Headgear
Matt Shoemaker, who was struck in the head by a line drive last month, says he's open to wearing protective headgear in the future.

ESPN

Brian Cashman Doesn't Expect Contract Extension From Yankees
Brian Cashman is heading into the final year of his contract with the Yankees, but doesn't except to discuss or receive an extension until the season ends.

Barry M. Bloom/MLB

Andrew Miller: Buck Showalter 'Knows What He's Doing'
Andrew Miller, one of Buck Showalter's former relievers, strongly defended the manager after he failed to use Zach Britton in the Orioles' Wild Card loss to the Blue Jays.

Jerry Crasnick/ESPN

Toronto Police Identify Beer-Throwing Fan As Local Writer
Toronto police have identified the fan that threw a beer can at Hyun soo Kim during a routine fly ball during Tuesday night's American League Wild Card game at Rogers Centre.

Matt Snyder/CBS Sports

Bumgarner, Gillaspie Lead Giants Past Mets, Advance To NLDS
The Giants shutout the Mets 3-0 in the NL wild-card game on Wednesday night.

ESPN.com

Yankees Will Be 'Hard-Pressed' To Part With Young Talent Via Trade
Brian Cashman doesn't foresee the Yankees dealing a host of young talent in exchange for a front-line starter like Chris Sale this offseason.

Jack Curry/YES Network

Giants Leave Eduardo Nunez Off Wild Card Roster
The Giants have opted to carry 11 pitchers on their roster for the National League Wild Card game, leaving Eduardo Nunez off the squad.

Associated Press

CC Sabathia To Have 'Cleanup' Surgery On Right Knee
Brian Cashman said team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad will operate within the next week.

Associated Press

Marlins Exercise Option On Ichiro For 2017
Ichiro Suzuki has played the last two seasons with the Marlins.

ESPN

Cardinals, Carlos Martinez Have Mutual Interest In Extension
The two sides plan to discuss a deal in the coming months and could reach an agreement before the 2017 season.

Derrick Goold/St. Louis Post-Dispatch

Rob Manfred In Favor Of Changing September Call-Up Rules
There has been increasing talk about changing the rules regarding September call-ups in recent years, with one idea being that teams would have to designate a set number of players for each game.

Jim Caple/ESPN

Tigers Exercise Option To Bring Back Brad Ausmus
The Tigers have exercised their option on the contract of Brad Ausmus for the 2017 season, according to multiple reports.

ESPN

Blue Jays Fan Throws Beer Can At Hyun Soo Kim During Fly Ball
The Orioles were enraged after a fan threw a beer can onto the field as Hyun Soo Kim caught the final out in the seventh inning of the Blue Jays' win in the American League Wild Card Game at Rogers C

Jerry Crasnick/ESPN

Buck Showalter On Not Using Zach Britton: 'It Didn't Work Out'
Zach Britton warmed up three times: in the eighth, ninth and 10th innings.

Brittany Ghiroli/MLB

Edwin Encarnacion's Walk-Off Home Run Sends Blue Jays To ALDS
With the score tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the 11th inning on Tuesday night, Edwin Encarnacion hit a walk-off, three-run home run to send the Blue Jays past the Orioles and into the ALDS.

Jim Caple/ESPN

Cubs Set NLDS Rotation; Jon Lester to Start Game 1
Jon Lester will be followed in Game 2 by Kyle Hendricks, then Jake Arrieta in Game 3 and, if necessary, John Lackey in Game 4.

Carrie Muskat/MLB

Royals Expect Payroll To Decrease In 2017
The Royals still plan to contend after a disappointing season, but there will be monetary restraints.

Rustin Dodd/Kansas City Star

Rays 'Hellbent' On Return To Contention
Matt Silverman said that a broad-based sell-off shouldn't be expected despite a disappointing 2016.

Marc Topkin/Tampa Bay Times

Tim Tebow To Play In Arizona Fall League
Tim Tebow performed well enough with the Mets in the instructional league to warrant a trip to the Arizona Fall League.

Adam Rubin/ESPN

Brewers Will Bring Back Entire Coaching Staff
Craig Counsell has nine assistants on his staff, including hitting coach Darnell Coles, pitching coach Derek Johnson and bench coach Pat Murphy.

Associated Press

Tony La Russa Remains With Diamondbacks, But Won't Run Baseball Ops
Tony La Russa remains with the Diamondbacks, who fired Dave Stewart and Chip Hale on Monday, but he will no longer run the team's baseball operations department.

Steve Gilbert/MLB

Mike Scioscia: Angels Aren't 'Far Off'
Mike Scioscia doesn't think the Angels, who finished the season 74-88, are that far away from contending once again.

Jeff Fletcher/Orange County Register

Mark McGwire, Bud Selig, George Steinbrenner On Hall Of Fame Ballot
Mark McGwire joins Bud Selig, George Steinbrenner and seven others on the Today's Game Era ballot to be considered for election to Cooperstown in December.

Associated Press

Rob Manfred: It's Possible David Ortiz Was PED-Free In 2003
Rob Manfred says it's possible that David Ortiz was free of performance-enhancing drugs in 2003, as the slugger as long insisted.

Scott Lauber/ESPN