A look back at five years, ahead to the future On October 29, 2018 after having spent his first seven big-league seasons with the Washington Nationals, Bryce Harper officially became a free agent. At age 26, Harper would become one of the most coveted players to reach the open market in the history of the sport. Over the next few months, formal meetings would take place between Harper and his wife Kayla, agent Scott Boras, and representatives from the Nationals, Chicago White Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, and San Francisco Giants. On January 12, 2019, Phillies brass including controlling owner Joh ..read more

This is the eighth year that I have a Hall of Fame vote as a member of the Internet Baseball Writers Association of America and am releasing my ballot publicly for the seventh time. Honestly, I can think of no reason why I didn’t release last year’s 2023 ballot. Brain cramp, I suppose. A “small ballot” guy over recent years, the nominees this time around led me to expand my ballot out to double-digits for the first time since 2019. This year, 10 players received my vote for the IBWAA Hall of Fame. There were 26 names on this year’s IBWAA ballot. The 10 men who received my votes were as follows ..read more

During this past calendar year of 2023, the Major League Baseball community lost several important figures. Among their number were 108 men who at one time or another pulled on a uniform and took the field with a big-league club, including one of the greatest Hall of Fame players of all-time. Brooks Robinson (86) was one of the greatest defensive players in the history of the game. He spent his entire 23-year career with the Baltimore Orioles, including the final 14 exclusively as their third baseman. Robinson won a record 16 Gold Gloves at the hot corner, was an 18x American League All-Star ..read more

Die-hard baseball fans know that there are many facets to the enjoyment of our pastime when we head out to our favorite Major League Baseball facility. The sights, smells, and sounds experienced at a game from warm late winter days and nights in Arizona and Florida, through spring and summer, on out to the cold mid-fall postseason drama at ballparks across the country is unlike any other sport. In Philadelphia, those include the open-air beauty of Citizens Bank Park, the joyful antics of the Phillie Phanatic, the smell and taste of cheesesteaks grilled up at Campo’s and Tony Luke’s out on Ashb ..read more

The 2024 World Series opens on Friday night at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas with the American League champion Texas Rangers playing host to the National League champion Arizona Diamondbacks. The Rangers and Diamondbacks are each fresh off having eliminated last year’s pennant winners, the Houston Astros and Philadelphia Phillies, with dominating Game 7 performances on the road in their respective League Championship Series. While the Rangers (Texas) and Dbacks (Arizona) claim to represent an entire state in their team names, those looking for more specific city-metro references can thi ..read more

The regular season in Major League Baseball is a 162-game marathon. An endurance test that begins in the cold of early spring, advances through the long, hot dog days of summer, and winds down as the leaves begin to fall from the trees and the weather again cools at the start of fall. As of the start of play on Monday, September 25, there was just one final week remaining in the 2023 MLB regular season. For at least half of the 30 clubs, the test results are going to result in a failing grade. Well, that is, at least if postseason contention is your measuring stick. But the other half still ho ..read more

The 2023 Major League Baseball campaign has now reached the three-quarter mark, six furlongs in a long horse race of a season, with most clubs now having completed 120 of the 162-game regular season schedule. Over the course of the next 6 1/2 weeks, the dog days of summer will push into early fall, and the season will play out in a stretch run that promises to bring the thrill of the postseason chase to ballparks across the country. Here in my hometown of Philadelphia, we know from first-hand experience the importance of reaching postseason play. Just get in, and anything can happen. Our Phill ..read more

The 2023 Major League Baseball All-Star Game is behind us now, with the National League snapping an 11-game losing streak by defeating the stars from the American League by a 3-2 score at T-Mobile Park in Seattle. Technically, we are about a week and a half past the exact 81-game halfway point. However, the All-Star break is traditionally looked upon as the halfway point of each season. Following four days off, all 30 clubs will return to play on Friday night, July 14. This leaves approximately two-and-a-half weeks until the 2023 trade deadline arrives on Aug. 1. This gives us a fanta ..read more

Major League Baseball’s First-Year Player Draft, known officially in the rules of the game as the Rule 4 Draft, is scheduled to take place from July 9-11 in Seattle. The draft is being held in the Emerald City as part of the MLB All-Star Week festivities. Player selection will be broken down into three segments. The first two rounds will take place on Sunday, July 9, beginning at 7:00 PM ET. Both rounds will be televised by MLB Network and the first round will also be covered by ESPN. Rounds 3-10 will take place on Monday, July 10, and will be covered at MLB.com and the MLB app. Rounds 11-20 w ..read more

Lynn Nolan Ryan was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame on his first eligible ballot in 1999. The big right-hander was named on over 98% of the ballots (491 of 497) during that voting process. The New York Mets’ 12th-round selection during the 1965 Major League Baseball Draft at 295th overall, few would have envisioned the storied career that was about to unfold when Ryan made his big-league debut. In September 1966 at age 19, Ryan was called up and enjoyed a cup of coffee with two appearances (one start) for the Mets. Returning in 1968, Ryan spent four more seasons in New York. He made 103 a ..read more