TBNL: RIP Ryne Sandberg, trade activity continues

Sports fans today are lucky. Watching live games or following the real-time action through other avenues has become far more accessible thanks to the Internet. It is vastly different from what things were like in the 1980s and ‘90s.

Things were limited even with cable TV. We could watch our local teams. We could watch the twice-weekly national games on ESPN on Wednesday and Sunday nights. We could also watch the Braves if you had TBS. That was about it.

It was a lot tougher to get to know the stars around the league when you only saw them play a few times a season.

Some players were still impossible to ignore (daily “Sportscenter” highlights helped). No matter how little I’d get to see some of these players play, they would often do something to leave an impression.

Ryne Sandberg was one of those players.

Even with my limited exposure to the defensive whiz, I selected the Sandberg model glove when my parents took me to the store when it was time for a new one in Little League. I still have it, too.

Sandberg passed away on Monday following a lengthy battle with prostate cancer. He was 65 years old.

Sandberg was a three-sport star in high school and had a scholarship offer to play quarterback at Washington State. The Phillies, under the direction of scouting director Dallas Green, elected to select Sandberg in the 20th round of the 1978 Draft and convinced him to pursue baseball full-time, signing him to a $20,000 bonus.

Three years later, Sandberg would debut in Philadelphia as a September callup. He’d appear in 13 games, mostly as a defensive replacement, and went 1-for-6 at the plate. His lone hit, a single, came on the road at Wrigley Field.

Philadelphia underwent several changes that offseason, starting with Green leaving to become the Cubs’ general manager. Phillies management and shortstop Larry Bowa had a challenging relationship that had soured further. Philadelphia and Green agreed to a trade, sending Bowa to the Cubs for infielder Ivan de Jesus, but, as the story goes, Green convinced them to “throw in” Sandberg, too. It’s still viewed as one of the best trades in baseball history.

Sandberg stepped right into the Cubs’ lineup on Opening Day, starting at third base before sliding over to second before the season ended. The next year, he’d start a run of defensive dominance at the position. Sandberg won nine straight Gold Glove Awards and set multiple MLB records, including the highest fielding percentage at his position (.989) and going 123 consecutive games without committing an error.

Sandberg was one of the best ever defensively, but he could also hit and run. He slashed .285/.344/.452 (114 OPS+) over his 16-year career, with 1,318 runs scored, 1,061 RBI, 403 doubles, and 344 stolen bases. Sandberg hit 282 home runs in his career, with 277 of them coming as a second baseman. That was a record at the time of his retirement, but has since been passed by Jeff Kent (354) and Robinson Canó (335).

He went to ten All-Star Games, won seven Silver Slugger Awards, and won the Home Run Derby before the 1990 ASG at Wrigley Field. Sandberg also won the NL Most Valuable Player Award in 1984, hitting .314/.367/.520 (140 OPS+) while leading the league in runs and doubles.

Sandberg was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2005, receiving 76.2% of the vote in his third year on the ballot. That summer, he would share an induction ceremony with Wade Boggs and see the Cubs retire his No. 23.

A statue of Sandberg, portraying his famous defensive stance, was installed outside Wrigley Field in 2024 shortly after he revealed his cancer diagnosis.

More trades!

Brewers add catching depth, bring Jansen home

William Contreras may be among the best catchers in baseball when healthy, but the Brewers’ backstop has been playing with a broken middle finger all season and it has hindered him offensively. Veteran Eric Haase hasn’t produced much in a backup role and the club’s top depth behind the plate, Jeferson Quero, missed all of last season with a shoulder injury and only returned to the field a month ago.

The Brewers acquired catcher Danny Jansen, who grew up in Wisconsin, from the Rays on Monday. Tampa Bay received minor league infielder Jadher Areinamo in return.

An 8-year veteran who spent most of his career in Toronto, Jansen has never really hit much in the majors, with a .218/.309/.415 (99 OPS+) line in just under 2,000 PA. Areinamo can handle any of the infield positions (besides first) and batted .297/.355/.463 in 415 PA at High-A this year.

Tigers add a starter

The Tigers were likely to add a starting pitcher even before shutting Reese Olson down for the remainder of the season (due to a shoulder strain). Detroit had some competition, as multiple teams were allegedly pursuing Chris Paddack given his affordability (he’s only due $2.5 million the rest of the season before reaching free agency) and the Twins being out of contention.

The division rivals reached an agreement on Monday, with Paddack and right-hander Randy Dobnak going to Detroit for minor leaguer Enrique Jimenez.

A seven-year veteran, Paddack leans on his plus control to balance out a lack of pure stuff. Since returning from Tommy John surgery last season, he’s posted a 4.97 ERA with 162 strikeouts over 199.1 IP. Dobnak, who is in the last year of a five-year extension he signed with the Twins during his rookie season, has only made one appearance in the majors this year, working five innings in relief. He holds a 4.86 ERA (90 ERA+) for his career in 140.2 IP.

Jimenez, a 19-year-old catcher and first baseman, hit .250/.339/.440 in 192 PA this year in the Florida Complex League.

Rays backfill newly created catching need

Finding themselves in need of a catcher after dealing Jansen, the Rays didn’t wait long to complete a second trade on Monday evening. Minor league outfielder Matt Etzel was sent to the Marlins for catcher Nick Fortes.

A 4th-round pick in 2018, Fortes has spent his whole career with the Marlins until now. Known more for his glove than his bat, the 28-year-old is a career .224/.277/.344 (70 OPS+) hitter in more than 1,000 PA.

Etzel has hit .267/.365/.418 over three seasons in the minors, reaching as high as Double-A, since the Rays took him in the 10th round of the 2023 Draft.

Jays address the bullpen

Toronto entered play on Tuesday leading the AL East and carrying the seventh-best bullpen ERA in baseball. Still, even contending teams look to improve before the trade deadline and between games of a doubleheader with the Orioles, the two teams completed a trade.

The Jays acquired right-hander Seranthony Dominguez from the O’s for minor league righty Juaron Watts-Brown. Dominguez made his debut with the Jays in the second game of the doubleheader.

The 30-year-old Dominguez spent most of his career in Philadelphia before a 2024 trade to Baltimore. He’s posted a 3.54 ERA (117 ERA+) with 335 strikeouts over his 285 career innings pitched.

Watts-Brown, Toronto’s 3rd-round pick in 2023 out of Oklahoma State, has taken a big step forward this season, posting a 3.54 ERA with 115 strikeouts in 89 IP between High-A and Double-A.

Obligatory Rich Hill update

4.0 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 6 BB, 3 K, 2 HR, 81 pitches

Rich Hill’s second start for the Royals didn’t go as smoothly as the first. He walked too many batters, which hurt him when Ronald Acuña Jr. and Marcell Ozuna each homered with a runner on. Kansas City needed a fresh arm in the bullpen for Tuesday’s game and designated Hill for assignment.

With teams in dire need of pitching, it’s not out of the question that someone takes a flyer and acquires Hill before Thursday’s trade deadline. It’s possible he also clears waivers and elects to remain with the Royals, returning to Triple-A. Given Kansas City’s lack of pitching depth, there’s a chance he’ll be called on again before the season ends.

Elsewhere, around the sport …

• Munetaka Murakami has missed most of the season for the Yakult Swallows after suffering an injury on Opening Day. The 25-year-old went 2-for-4 in his return to the lineup on Tuesday, hitting a mammoth opposite-field home run to help the Swallows top the DeNA BayStars 5-1.

• Monday was the signing deadline for the 2025 Draft. Just two players selected in the first ten rounds chose to attend college instead of turning pro. RHP Angel Cervantes (Pirates, 2nd round) will enroll at UCLA. OF Mason Ligenza (Dodgers, 6th) will head to campus at Pittsburgh.

• Early returns suggest the Erie Moon Mammoths rebrand created by “Last Week Tonight With John Oliver” has been a resounding success. The Mammoths debuted their temporary identity last weekend and the team (the Erie SeaWolves; Detroit’s Double-A affiliate) will wear the Mammoths uniforms three more times this season. Oliver revealed on Sunday’s show that the Mammoths “sold four years’ worth of merchandise in three weeks”.