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The Giants had their rookie dress-up day yesterday, and here's a picture from Hunter Strickland's Instagram. This is probably an uncontroversial topic, so I see no need to comment further on it.
Vote for the Roberto Clemente Award
Sergio Romo is this year's Giants nominee for the Roberto Clemente Award, which celebrates not only accomplishments in the field of baseball, but also . . . in the game of life. Not, like, the actual Game of Life though. I mean, don't get me wrong; for all I know Romo is great at every facet of that game, like ignoring the creeping existential dread about the meaningless of all human existence in the face of the eventual heat death of the universe, or buying a new car. New cars are nice.
Delmon Young 'fortunate enough' to keep making playoff appearances
If there's one baseball player who most embodies excellence both on and off the field, it has to be Delmon Young. And he's been karmically rewarded for it with six consecutive years of appearing in the playoffs. This is certainly because Delmon is a winning player who knows how to win winningly, like a modern day Orlando Cabrera. It's surprising that he wasn't nominated for the Roberto Clemente Award too.
Rockies owner Dick Monfort reportedly nixed deadline trade involving Jorge De La Rosa
As a Giants fan, I am pretty excited about the prospect of a businessman interfering in baseball decisions for a team that they play 19 times a year. Anytime the owner of another team wants to make his presence felt, I am entirely in favor of it. Be it due to massive payroll cuts like the Wilpon Mets or McCourt-era Dodgers, or simply making personnel decisions like the Cowboys or Al Davis's Raiders, non-sports experts making sports decision is always a ticket to success.
Only for teams I don't root for, though. I can't possibly be clear enough about that.
The Lineup Card: Eight Memorable Final-Week Storylines
First things first: There is a Salomon Torres reference in this article, and the reason I linked it is that I hate you.
Now that that's out of the way, BP asked some of its writers for their favorite pennant race stories, and they obliged with some great ones. From the 2011 collapsekake to Ted Williams hitting .400 in 1941, and even the 2003 Tigers miraculously avoiding 120 losses, there are a lot of reminiscences that remind you of why you love baseball. But why was the 2012 NL West left off? After the Dodgers made a big trade that everyone said won them the division, the Giants heroically rallied to edge them by 8 games. To me, that's a beautiful pennant race. And yet, no love.
2014 Minor League affiliation changes
Many minor league affiliates are changing parent clubs this offseason, with the rumors being that the Giants will move to Sacramento. Here's a way to keep track of all the changes. Will the Dodgers, in addition to moving from Albuquerque to Oklahoma City, also buy AAA teams in Colorado Springs and Las Vegas? Stay tuned!