The 31-year-old may not be one of Major League Baseball's most popular players
http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-wil-myers-jersey , but he's unquestionably one of its best. An average season for him since 2013 consists of a .947 OPS, 30 home runs, 17 stolen bases and 6.0 WAR.Take all that and put it in a Red Sox lineup that's already anchored by AL MVP favorite Mookie Betts, J.D. Martinez, Xander Bogaerts and Andrew Benintendi, and an elite offense looks even better.If there's a reason to force concern about Goldschmidt, it has to do with how he didn't look superhuman in 2018. His strikeout rate ticked up, and his .290 batting average and .389 on-base percentage were his worst since his pre-superstar days of 2011 and 2012.However, Goldschmidt's strikeouts were frontloaded. And hehit the ball just fine. His hard contact rate reached a new peak of 46 percent. His barrels鈥攂alls hit with an ideal combination of launch angle and exit velocity鈥攑er balls in play also peaked:2015:12.8%2016:7.8%2017:13.3%2018:13.6%The biggest factor in Goldschmidt's relatively pedestrian numbers may have had nothing to do with him.Consider the shocking disparity that developed in his home/road OPS splits:Not so coincidentally, there was a major difference at Chase Field in 2018: a humidor. It had an immediate power-suppressing effect
Rickey Henderson Jersey , according to MLB.com's Mike Petriello. Per ESPN's park factors, it ultimately helped transform Chase Field from an extremely power-friendly park to a not-so-power-friendly park.There's no humidor at Fenway Park. And if the Red Sox do take a closer look at Goldschmidt, they'd surely like the look of how his non-homer fly balls and line drives at Chase Field would have played in Boston:Image courtesy of BaseballSavant.MLB.comThe only downside of trading for Goldschmidt is that the Red Sox would be guaranteed to have him for just one year.And said year won't come cheap. In addition to paying his $14.5 million salary, the Red Sox would have to give the D-backs talent for him. These aren't simple matters for a team with a bloated payroll and a barren farm system.But more so than any other team, the Red Soxshould be looking to go all-in on 2019.Next year could be their last with Bogaerts, Chris Sale, Rick Porcello and Martinez, who can opt out of the final three years of his five-year, $110 million contract.In the meantime, there's not a whole lot they can do to improve their luxury tax status or farm system anyway. They might as well double down before they're obligated to pivot in a new direction.Making a deal will be the hard part
http://www.padresfanproshop.com/authentic-ozzie-smith-jersey , but it shouldn't be impossible.The Red Sox could offer the Diamondbacks Moreland as an immediate replacement and a future piece of trade bait. They could also offer top prospect Michael Chavis (No. 69 at MLB.com) and an MLB-ready pitcher, such as Mike Shawaryn.The prize would be one of Major League Baseball's best players. The ultimate reward could be another magical season. Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant. Chicago Cubs relief pitcher Brandon Morrow will miss the rest of the 2018 MLB season because of a lingering elbow injury.On Tuesday, Cubs president of baseball operations Theo Epstein announced Morrow, who's been on the 10-day disabled list since mid-July because of a bone bruise in his elbow, won't return this year, per Patrick Mooney of The Athletic.The 34-year-old California native was scheduled to make his return from the DL this week after sounding an optimistic tone following a bullpen session Saturday."My mechanics have been free; I don't feel like I'm holding back," hetold reporters. "Everything feels good coming out. My command of my breaking stuff was really good, I thought. I have plenty to compete and throw the ball competitively. I'm the sign-off. If it feels the same [Sunday], everything's all good."Bob Nightengale ofUSA Todayprovided further details from Epstein about Morrow and the Cubs' bullpen situation without him for the rest of the regular season and a potential playoff run:Bob Nightengale BNightengaleBrandon Morrow simply couldn鈥檛 recover from bone bruise
Cory Spangenberg Jersey , Theo Epstein says, leaving#Cubs with closer by committeeMorrow was terrific before the injury. He posted a 1.47 ERA and 1.08 WHIP with 31 strikeouts in 30.2 innings across 35 appearances. He also converted 22 of his 24 save opportunities.The success came after he signed a two-year, $21 millioncontractwith the Cubs in December.Steve Cishek, Jesse Chavez, Carl Edwards Jr. and Jorge De La Rosa will continue to split the late-inning work, with Pedro Strop sidelined for the remainder of the regular season with ahamstring injury.