TBNL: Mookie Betts trade five years later; HOF plaques revealed

Uneven trades involving blockbuster players tend to stick in people’s minds a little more readily. A prime example is the Mookie Betts trade — which was agreed upon five years ago today.

The deal wouldn’t be finalized until the next day, but five years ago today the Boston Red Sox agreed to send Betts to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a complex deal involving three teams, nine players, a draft pick, and a lot of cash.

CBS Sports’ Mike Axisa took a lengthy and thorough look at the whole ordeal — chronicling everything from Boston’s initial efforts to sign him to an extension to the circumstances that led to the trade and all that’s resulted since. It’s well worth a read.

Only a single player the Red Sox received in the deal is still with the team: catcher Connor Wong. While considered a subpar defender, he’s proven to be a useful bat behind the plate after taking over the club’s starting role last season.

HOF reveals plaque cap selections

For every Hall of Fame inductee who played for multiple teams, there’s often a discussion about which team should be on the cap of their plaque. Sometimes it’s an easy call and sometimes it becomes so complex the player (and/or his family) requests that the plaque be wearing a blank cap.

The HOF ultimately makes the final call.

Which teams will be represented in this year’s HOF class were announced on Monday, with zero surprises among the group.

• Dick Allen, Phillies

• Dave Parker, Pirates

• CC Sabathia, Yankees

• Ichiro Suzuki, Mariners

• Billy Wagner, Astros

Seatle also announced on Monday that Ichiro will throw out the first pitch on Opening Day. The team already revealed plans to retire his No. 51 this summer.

Boggs is now cancer-free

Hall of Famer Wade Boggs revealed in September 2024 that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer. The 66-year-old announced on Friday that he was now cancer-free, which is always incredible news but especially positive when it’s someone as beloved as Boggs.

Fingers crossed we see a similar announcement from Ryne Sandberg sometime soon.

Tampa’s Yankees-sized promo gaffe

The Rays will play their home games at Tampa’s George M. Steinbrenner Field after Hurricane Milton destroyed parts of Tropicana Field in November. The team revealed their promotional schedule for the 2025 season and there’s a twist that someone likely didn’t think through.

The team wanted to “acknowledge their interim home” with a Steinbrenner Field Bobble Series, as the Tampa Bay Times’ Marc Topkin writes. Three figures will be given out during the season, each standing on a base that includes the letters forming Steinbrenner’s initials — GMS.

Junior Caminero (June 5), Shane Baz (June 19), and Taj Bradley (July 2) will be featured in the giveaways.

While it’s apparent what the Rays’ marketing team was trying to do, the effort falls flat when Steinbrenner and his family have famously owned the division-rival Yankees for decades.

Elsewhere, around the sport …

• Cincinnati revealed the No. 14 patch they will wear on their jerseys this year, after Pete Rose’s passing last September.

• Milwaukee, meanwhile, will wear a patch on their uniforms honoring Bob Uecker, who passed in January.

• Today’s “let’s see how old we can make you feel” moment involves former outfielder Darryl Strawberry. Strawberry’s MLB career spanned 17 seasons from 1983-99. His grandson — yes, grandson — just committed in January to play baseball at Rutgers University next fall. Carter Sweeney-Strawberry is an outfielder, like granddad.