After three weeks off in the middle of February, Jake Mintz & Jordan Shusterman have a lot to catch up on. The guys spend the bulk of today's episode recapping an avalanche of baseball transactions that happened in the leadup to spring training.
First, the Los Angeles Dodgers re-signed Clayton Kershaw on a 2-year deal, keeping the future Hall of Famer in town on a Dodger rotation that, for the first time in years, won't be dependent on him for success. The Dodgers also traded Manuel Margot to the Minnesota Twins and brought back Kiké Hernandez. Oh, and Shohei Ohtani was very good in his spring training debut.
Up the California coastline, the San Francisco Giants signed Jorge Soler to add some power to the middle of their lineup. Intriguingly, they've also brought back Pablo Sandoval, who had been out of the majors for a few years now, in order to recreate some early 2010s magic?
The guys roll through a number of other signings including Brandon Woodruff and Gary Sanchez to the Milwaukee Brewers, Tim Anderson to the Miami Marlins, Gio Urshela to the Detroit Tigers, Liam Hendriks to the Boston Red Sox, the combination of Spencer Turnbull and Whit Merrifield to the Philadelphia Phillies & the St. Louis Cardinals bringin in Brandon Crawford.
Next, they discuss a trio of extensions in Jose Altuve, Bobby Witt Jr. and Mitch Keller all inking deals with the Houston Astros, Kansas City Royals & Pittsburgh Pirates, respectively.
Closing out the show, the guys discuss the Royals bucking the new uniform rules, two teams who will not be getting City Connect jerseys, the Washington Nationals displaying a troubling sign in their bullpen & three non-irrelevant spring training stories.
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3:10 - Dodgers: Ohtani's debut, Kershaw's new deal & Margot trade
15:30 - Giants: Jorge Soler joins the squad, plus Pablo Sandoval?
23:00 - Cardinals bring in Brandon Crawford
25:00 - Lightning-round signings
33:10 - Jose Altuve, Bobby Witt Jr. & Mitch Keller extensions
41:15 - More uniform shenanigans
46:20 - Washington Nationals' disconcering sign
53:05 - 3 Spring Training stories that matter
57:50 - Funny business: Torey Lovullo & little league stories
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