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Game 140: Sevy For The Series Win

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(Presswire)

Pretty big win last night. The Athletics are coming after the Yankees for homefield advantage in the wildcard game and, after getting shut down for five innings, the Yankees rallied late against a good bullpen. Good response after Monday’s loss. Here are the current wildcard standings:

  1. Yankees: 87-52
  2. Athletics: 83-57 (4.5 GB)
    ——————————
  3. Mariners: 77-62 (10 GB)
  4. Rays: 75-63 (11.5 GB)

The same as two days ago, basically. Which is good for the Yankees because there are two fewer games on the schedule now. The series ain’t over yet though, and tonight’s game will determine whether the Yankees go into tomorrow’s off-day with a 3.5-game lead or a 5.5-game lead. Go win the series. Here are tonight’s lineups:

New York Yankees
1. LF Brett Gardner
2. DH Giancarlo Stanton
3. RF Andrew McCutchen
4. CF Aaron Hicks
5. C Gary Sanchez
6. 1B Luke Voit
7. 3B Neil Walker
8. SS Adeiny Hechavarria
9. 2B Gleyber Torres

RHP Luis Severino

Oakland Athletics
1. CF Ramon Laureano
2. 3B Matt Chapman
3. 2B Jed Lowrie
4. DH Khris Davis
5. 1B Matt Olson
6. RF Stephen Piscotty
7. SS Marcus Semien
8. LF Chad Pinder
9. C Josh Phegley

RHP Mike Fiers

Another chilly evening with clear skies in the Bay Area. Great night to spend at the ballpark. First pitch is scheduled for 10:05pm ET and you can watch on YES locally or MLB Network out-of-market. Enjoy the game, folks.

Injury Update: Didi Gregorius (heel) went through another full day of workouts and will “probably” be activated Friday, according to Aaron Boone … Aaron Judge (wrist) hit off a tee for the third straight day and again reported no issues. His rehab plan is still being mapped out, but he’s making progress … Clint Frazier (post-concussion migraines) suffered a setback and is unlikely to return this season. Poor kid. He was preparing to join Double-A Trenton for the postseason when his symptoms flared up again. Get healthy, Clint. See you in Tampa in a few months.

The Yankees are built around their bullpen, and Aaron Boone’s bullpen management must improve

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(Presswire)

Yesterday afternoon, for the fifth time in their last eight games, the Yankees lost a game to a team they really need to beat. The first four of those five losses came at home against the White Sox and Tigers — the White Sox and Tigers! — two teams flirting with 100-loss seasons. Yesterday’s loss came against an upstart Athletics team that is trying to chase down the Yankees for the top wildcard spot. Oakland is now 3.5 games back (four in the loss column).

The Yankees lost yesterday because CC Sabathia stunk, first and foremost. He didn’t make it out of the fourth inning. The offense didn’t help matters either. Three runs on four hits, including no hits after the fifth inning, isn’t good enough to beat a team like the A’s. The Yankees had two runners on base with no outs in the seventh inning and couldn’t get a run home. They had two on with two outs in the eighth and couldn’t get a run home either.

The game started to slip away from the Yankees in the middle innings, when A.J. Cole allowed an inherited runner to score in the fourth and then served up a solo homer in the fifth, turning a one-run deficit into a three-run deficit. Cole was brought in with a runner on base to face the middle of the lineup. After the deficit grew, Chad Green pitched the sixth and Jonathan Loaisiga pitched the seventh and eighth, all scoreless. Gah.

It would be easy to chalk up yesterday’s bullpen machinations to one of those moves that just didn’t work out — every manager makes seemingly silly bullpen decisions from time to time — if it wasn’t something that has happened multiple times now. Consider Cole’s last seven appearances:

  • August 13th: Entered down one in the sixth, exited down four in the seventh.
  • August 18th: Entered up six in the ninth, finished the game up five.
  • August 21st: Entered a tie game in the 11th, created a bases loaded jam with no outs, and escaped.
  • August 22nd: Entered down six in the eighth, finished down six in the ninth.
  • August 27th: Entered down two in the ninth, finished down four in the ninth.
  • August 29th: Entered down three in the eighth, finished down three in the ninth.
  • September 3rd: Entered down one in the fourth, exited down three in the sixth.

Three times in his last seven appearances (August 13th, August 27th, September 3rd) we’ve seen Cole enter a game with the Yankees down no more than two runs, and let it slip away. Twice in those three games one of the usual late inning guys pitched later in the game. On August 13th it was Zach Britton, who entered with the Yankees down two in the ninth. Yesterday it was Green in the sixth inning.

Beyond the Cole infatuation, we’ve also seen Green transition from multi-inning guy to one-inning guy, something he doesn’t seem to like. Boone said he wanted to get Britton regular work to help him get back up to speed following the Achilles injury and long layoff, and he’s pitched 13 times in the last 35 games, a 60-appearance pace that would be considered on the low side for a full-time reliever. There were Chasen Shreve issues earlier this year.

You can’t manage every game like Game Seven of the World Series, and of course there are often days certain relievers are not available for whatever reason, and we just don’t know about it. But something like yesterday — using Cole in a one-run game and Green in a three-run game — stands out as a strategic mistake, especially given the explanation. And the fact something like this has happened multiple times is especially bothersome.

This is where I have to acknowledged Joe Girardi’s best trait as a manager, at least on the field, was his bullpen management. He wasn’t flawless — remember when he liked Anthony Swarzak’s slider? or Andrew Miller said he could be “wasteful?” — but, by and large, he used his relievers well. A guy like Cole, who was buried in mop-up duty most of the summer, probably would be persona non grata in a close late season game under Girardi. Or maybe not. Who knows?

It’s easy to obsess about bullpen management because, aside from the batting order, it is the most visible part of the manager’s job. With the Yankees, bullpen management takes on added importance because this team is built around the bullpen, especially when it comes to the postseason. The plan is three or four innings from the starter, maybe five, then turn it over to the relief crew and smother the other team in October. That’s how the Yankees are built.

Expecting Boone to manage a regular season game like he would a postseason game is silly — would Girardi ever bring Green into a regular season game with one out in the first like he did the Wild Card Game last year? no way — but there is still room for improvement. The Cole obsession needs to stop. Britton needs more action to get himself right. Using Green in a way he feels most comfortable seems worthwhile. Settling on a set closer with Aroldis Chapman sidelined is probably a good idea.

I expected worse bullpen management under Boone this season but I didn’t think it would be this much worse. This was the risk the Yankees took when they hired a rookie manager straight out of the broadcast booth. He’d have to learn things on the job and he’d have to do it with a team with World Series aspirations. And look, the Yankees are really good. They’re 86-52 overall and they went 17-13 in August even though like half the team was on the disabled list. The Yankees are really good. But bullpen management has been an issue, and since the Yankees are built around their bullpen, it’s something Boone has to improve.

Game 137: End of the Homestand

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(Rich Schultz/Getty)

The penultimate homestand of the regular season ends today and this afternoon’s game will determine whether this is a tolerable 4-3 homestand or a disappointing 3-4 homestand. Man, losing four of seven to the White Sox and Tigers at home would really stink. Even winning four of seven would feel kinda like a letdown. Whatever.

A modest goal today: Get a hit at some point in the first four innings. That’s been an issue the last few days. I’m not going to bother to look this up to confirm it because I don’t really care, but it feels like the Yankees have won all these “they’re getting no-hit through five innings they suck so much” games this year. Still, hits are good. Hits and runs. Here are today’s lineups:

New York Yankees
1. RF Andrew McCutchen
2. CF Aaron Hicks
3. 3B Miguel Andujar
4. DH Gary Sanchez
5. 2B Gleyber Torres
6. 1B Luke Voit
7. C Austin Romine
8. SS Adeiny Hechavarria
9. LF Brett Gardner

RHP Lance Lynn

Detroit Tigers
1. 3B Jeimer Candelario
2. CF JaCoby Jones
3. DH Nick Castellanos
4. 1B Niko Goodrum
5. LF Mikie Mahtook
6. C James McCann
7. SS Ronny Rodriguez
8. 2B Dawel Lugo
9. RF Victor Reyes

LHP Matt Boyd

It is warm and cloudy in New York today, but there is no rain in the forecast, and that’s all that matters. This afternoon’s series finale will begin at 1:05pm ET and you can watch on YES. Enjoy the game.

Boone Suspended: Aaron Boone has received a one-game suspension and an undisclosed fine for Friday’s ejection tirade, MLB announced. His cap made contact with the umpire at some point and making contact is an automatic suspension. Boone is serving the suspension today and bench coach Josh Bard will fill in as manager.

Injury Update: Didi Gregorius (heel) took batting practice and ran the bases today. It’s more likely he’ll return at some point during the Mariners series late next week rather than the upcoming Athletics series … Aside from the ongoing hamstring issue, Giancarlo Stanton is fine. Adding McCutchen and getting Sanchez back allows the Yankees to finally give Stanton a day to rest. He’d started the previous 84 games.

Roster Move: Welcome back, Jonathan Loaisiga. The Yankees have called Johnny Lasagna up from Double-A Trenton, the team announced. He was scheduled to start today. There are now 31 players on the active roster.

Aaron Boone’s first big test as Yankees manager

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(Mike Ehrmann/Getty)

Last night the Yankees lost an impossibly frustrating game against the Rays and there’s plenty of blame to go around. Luis Severino got hammered, Chad Green couldn’t strand inherited runners, and don’t even get me started on the Didi Gregorius bunt. The worst part is Didi squared around twice before he got it down, so Aaron Boone had a chance to call it off, and he didn’t. Oy vey.

All of that will be forgotten though. Gary Sanchez was the goat of the game and it was the kind of game that will stick to his reputation forever. Rightly or wrongly, there are lots of people out there who think Sanchez is lazy and last night’s game was validation. First, Gary took his time jogging after a ball that got away on a cross up, allowing a run to score all the way from second. Good grief. Here’s the play:

The cross up is whatever. It happens. Severino said after the game it was his mistake, that he misread the signs. Either way, the cross up happened. The problem was Sanchez taking his time getting the ball and allowing Jake Bauers to score from second. Severino was late covering home, though I assume that’s because he didn’t actually expect Bauers to try to score. Gary should’ve gotten that ball quickly.

And secondly, Sanchez didn’t run hard on the game-ending grounder. Hard-hit grounder to the shortstop, Aaron Hicks hustled to beat the force play at second base, but the Rays were able to throw to first for the out because Sanchez didn’t run. Had he beat it out, the tying run scores. Instead, the game ended. Here’s Gary jogging it out:

Sanchez was slow out of the box and it looked like he broke it down because he thought they’d get the force at second, and by time he picked up the pace, it was far too late. Either way, inexcusable. Sanchez did drive in a run in the game, but between the slow recovery on the cross up and not running out the final play, it was an inexcusable game. It was really was. If Sanchez hustles on the final play and gets thrown out because he’s a slow catcher, then, well, what can you do? But there was no hustle.

After the game Sanchez said the only thing he could say — “I should have gotten to that ball quicker. I should have done a better job. I should have run harder,” he said — but, ultimately, the lack of effort on two plays that demanded urgency contributed (greatly) to the loss. It’s one thing to be in a slump and not hit for awhile. That happens to everyone. And hey, I am totally cool with jogging out the occasional grounder, especially so soon after returning from the disabled list. But last night? That can’t happen in those situations, and when a star player and one your top core building blocks does it, it has to be addressed.

Boone handled Sanchez’s mistakes well during his postgame scrum — “He should be able to get after it. He’s here and back, and should be fine getting after things,” Boone said —  and, frankly, what he says to the media is meaningless. What he does behind the scenes matters, and guess what? We’re not privy to that. We don’t know what Boone said to Sanchez, we don’t know what veteran leaders like Brett Gardner and CC Sabathia said to him, and we don’t know what other teammates said to him. And we’re probably never going to find out, because that stuff is usually kept in-house.

Clearly though, this is not something the Yankees can let slide. They can’t send Sanchez to the minors — he’s out of options and would have to go through waivers to go to Triple-A and lol at that — so forget that. You can’t fine a player for anything on-field — teams can only fine players for breaking rules and sorry, hustling is not a rule — and besides, I’m not sure a fine would get the point across anyway. MLB fines always seem so silly given how much money players make. Pulling him from the game would’ve worked if Sanchez hadn’t made the final out.

Can’t send him down, can’t fine him, so the only real solution is benching him. Sitting Gary the next two games would be the way to go, but there’s a day game tomorrow and Sonny Gray needs his personal catcher Thursday night, which throws a wrench into things. Maybe Boone should just sit Sanchez the next three games and let Austin Romine grind it out? He should sit though. The single best way to get through to players is to take away their playing time, so do it.

All things considered, the players have made life easy for Boone this season. When they play poorly, they’re still playing .500 ball. There hasn’t been any sort of crisis. This is the first real test of Boone’s managerial career. An important player half-assed two costly plays last night while his teammates fought to get back into that game (twice!). It has to be addressed and how Boone addresses it is important. If Sanchez is back behind the plate tonight, it’s going to look really weak. There have to be consequences for that, something beyond a stern lecture. Boone prides himself on having good relationships with his players, but sometimes tough love is needed too, and this is one of those times.

2018 Midseason Review: The New Manager

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(Presswire)

Ninety-five games into the 2018 season, the Yankees are on pace for 106 wins and every other day it seems like they do something that hasn’t been done since the 1998 Yankees. That includes a 17-1 stretch earlier this year, with eight of those wins coming against the Astros, Indians, and Red Sox. Some quick numbers on the 2018 Yankees:

  • Run Differential: +131 (third best)
  • Runs Scored per Game: 5.19 (second best)
  • Runs Allowed per Game: 3.81 (third fewest)
  • wRC+: 115 (tied for best)
  • ERA+: 124 (second best)

A powerhouse team, through and through. At the All-Star break it is clear the Yankees, Astros, and Red Sox are the three best teams in baseball. Order them however you want. Those three stand out from the other 27 clubs. The 2018 Yankees: They’re good, folks. Really good. Great, in fact.

The 2018 Yankees have a rookie manager in Aaron Boone, who came into the season about as inexperienced as possible. Yeah, he played for a while and comes from a baseball family, though he’d never coached or managed at any level. Boone went from player to broadcaster to 2018 Yankees manager. It was a risky decision for a team with World Series aspirations.

Evaluating a manager is so incredibly difficult — remember the days when we used to look at the difference between actual record and expected record based on run differential, and pin that on the manager? — because the most important part of their job happens behind the scenes, either in the clubhouse or on the team plane or at home. It’s not just an X’s and O’s gig.

Because of that, I’m not going to bother to slap a grade on Boone as part of our midseason review like we have with the players. Instead, I’m just to pass along some thoughts and observations about the new skipper as the Yankees prepare to head into the second half.

1. Last week was a bad week. Might as well start here. Last week was Boone’s worst week as a manager in terms of on-field decisions. He got burned trying to steal outs against the Orioles with CC Sabathia and Masahiro Tanaka, who were clearly running on fumes and were left in long enough to give up big home runs. Ditto Chad Green, who was also left in too long against the O’s and Indians and got burned because of it.

There was also the decision to save pinch-hitter Brett Gardner for two outs in the ninth rather than use him to hit for Kyle Higashioka, who was allowed to face Zach Britton with a runner on third and one out with the Yankees down a run. (He struck out.) There’s also the whole “not giving runners the red light when Giancarlo Stanton is at the plate in a close game” thing that has burned the Yankees several times. Just let the man hit with men on base!

Last week was Boone’s worst week in terms of obvious managerial decisions (leaving a pitcher in too long, etc.) that didn’t work out. There have been other instances like that this year where the decision did work out — I remember Sabathia being left in to get the final few outs against the Braves a few weeks ago when he was on the ropes, but he got the outs — so we all kinda forgot about them. Last week, they came back to bite the Yankees.

2. There hasn’t been a radical shift in on-field strategy. If you didn’t know any better, it would be hard to look at the on-field decisions and tell whether Boone or Joe Girardi was the manager. Like Girardi, Boone has a set seventh (Green) and eighth (Dellin Betances) inning guy in the bullpen. He doesn’t like lefties (or righties) hitting back-to-back in the lineup. He’s not a fan of bunting and, despite statements to the contrary in Spring Training, he’s not opposed to letting a pitcher (Sonny Gray) have a personal catcher (Austin Romine).

The on-field decisions are generally similar and it’s either because a baseball manager can only do so much to impact a game, or because so many shots are called from the front office. Or both. The Yankees are a very analytical organization and I’m not sure whether directives have been handed down, though I do know information is provided for Boone and the coaching staff. Perhaps that information has led to Boone making similar decisions as Girardi. Point is, there doesn’t seem to be a big difference between the two in terms of their on-field strategy.

(Presswire)

3. There have been no egregious rookie mistakes. Every manager, no matter how experienced, will make a pitching change that doesn’t work out or a lineup decision that doesn’t make sense. That’s baseball. The egregious rookie mistakes I’m talking about are Managing 101 stuff. Consider some of the other rookie managers:

  • Mickey Callaway, Mets: Gave the umps the wrong lineup card and batted out of order.
  • Gabe Kapler, Phillies: Forgot to warm up a reliever before taking out his starter.
  • Dave Martinez, Nationals: Changed pitchers before the pinch-hitter was announced and lost the platoon advantage.

That’s really bad! Managing 101 stuff, like I said. It’s a low bar, I know, but Boone hasn’t done anything like that so far. Callaway in particular seems in over his head — last week he changed his pitcher before the pinch-hitter was announced a la Martinez — and we haven’t seen anything like that with Boone yet. Bad pitching or lineup decisions are whatever. Everyone does that. The basic stuff? No issues there.

4. He’s great with the media. And that’s not nothing. Boone is a natural with the media — surely his time as a broadcaster helps with this — and he’s quite good at diffusing potential controversies. Remember when Aaron Judge got thrown out trying to steal with Stanton at the plate against the Indians last week? After the game Boone said he second guessed himself, he screwed up, and that was it. End of the story.

Girardi could be a little stubborn with the media and it created some unnecessary headaches. Remember the non-challenge in the ALDS? After the game Girardi wouldn’t admit the mistake and his excuse was he didn’t want to throw off his pitcher’s rhythm with a challenge. Only digging a deeper hole with an excuse like that. Boone is much more personable and much more adept at diffusing any problems with the media. It’s a very Joe Torre-esque quality.

5. So what happens when the intensity increases? Let’s be real here, the players have made Boone’s job incredibly easy so far this season. The Yankees have not experienced anything close to a crisis. Their worst stretches this year are .500 ball. They haven’t had that ugly 3-9 stretch where the sky starts falling, you know? The players have made the first 95 games of Boone’s managerial career very easy.

Going forward though, the games will become more important and more intense as the postseason race heats up, and we don’t know how Boone will react in that environment. He seems to be the exact opposite of Girardi. Girardi was very intense and high strung, and hey, that can work. It did work for a long time. Boone is pretty much the opposite. He’s very even-keeled and relaxed, and I think that is reflected in the team. The Yankees seem much more loose this year than they have the last few years. The manager sets the tone.

Will that change as we get deeper into the postseason race? Who knows. Boone’s never managed and we’re not going to know how he handles those pressure situations until the team actually plays in those situations. Hasn’t happened yet. I think Boone will be fine. His big thing is staying in command and controlling emotions. I’d be surprised if, coming September when a postseason spot is on the line, we see Boone with that strained look on his face like Girardi.

* * *

The Yankees are so good and so talented that Boone’s single biggest job is don’t screw it up. Give your best hitters the most at-bats, use Green and Betances and Aroldis Chapman in the late innings of close games, and things’ll be fine. Keep everyone happy and make sure there isn’t a mutiny in the clubhouse. That is the Boone’s single most important responsibility, and he’s done that. So far, so good, though a postseason race remains uncharted territory for the new manager.

Game 61: Sweep the Mets

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(Rich Schultz/Getty)

The first two games of this series have been a microcosm of the 2018 season for the Mets. They started great before collapsing. The Mets were 11-1 at one point and now they’re 27-34 with the NL’s third worst record. They’ve lost their last eight games overall and their last ten home games, if you can believe that. Seems impossible.

Anyway, this is a Yankees blog, not a Mets blog. The Yankees are looking for the Subway Series sweep tonight. They’re also looking for their fifth straight win, their tenth win in their last eleven games, and to improve their MLB best 42-18 record. The Red Sox already lost today, so the Yankees are four games up in the loss column right now. Pretty great. Beat the Mets, enjoy the off-day tomorrow. Here are the starting lineups:

New York Yankees
1. LF Brett Gardner
2. RF Giancarlo Stanton
3. 1B Greg Bird
4. C Gary Sanchez
5. SS Didi Gregorius
6. CF Aaron Hicks
7. 3B Miguel Andujar
8. RHP Luis Severino
9. 2B Gleyber Torres

New York Mets
1. 2B Asdrubal Cabrera
2. 3B Todd Frazier
3. LF Brandon Nimmo
4. RF Jay Bruce
5. C Devin Mesoraco
6. CF Michael Conforto
7. 1B Adrian Gonzalez
8. RHP Seth Lugo
9. SS Amed Rosario

There is on-and-off rain in the forecast tonight but it doesn’t appear to be anything that will postpone the game. Or at least I hope not. They might have to play through some wet stuff for a while. We’ll see. Tonight’s series finale will begin at 8:05pm ET and you can watch on ESPN. Enjoy the game.

Injury Update: Aaron Judge and his jammed thumb are “good,” according to Aaron Boone. He’s just taking advantage of tomorrow’s off-day to give Judge back-to-back days off. I’m going to pretend the Yankees are trolling ESPN after the whole Sunday Night Baseball scheduling snafu.

Saturday Links: Pettitte, Mock Draft, Jersey Deal, Juiced Balls

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(Al Bello/Getty)

The Yankees and Angels continue their three-game series later tonight, but not until 7pm ET. Saturday night games are The Worst. Here are some notes to check out before first pitch.

Pettitte to make Old Timers’ Day debut

Andy Pettitte is officially an Old Timer. The Yankees announced the 2018 Old Timers’ Day roster earlier this week and Pettitte is among the first-timers, along with Jason Giambi, Nick Swisher, Dion James, and (of course) Aaron Boone. The usual cast of characters will be in attendance as well. Here is the press release. Old Timers’ Day is Sunday, June 17th, this year.

Pettitte, who turns 46 next month and recently became a grandfather, retired for good following the 2013 season. He will be Hall of Fame eligible for the first time later this year. Mike Mussina has been unable to get over the hump and into Cooperstown, and based on that, I don’t think Pettitte is getting voted in anytime soon. I do think he’ll stay on the ballot for several years though. Going to be fun to see him at Old Timers’ Day.

MLB.com mock draft v5.0

Another week, another mock draft from MLB.com. Jim Callis provided this week’s mock. He has the Tigers selecting Auburn RHP Casey Mize with the No. 1 pick, which should be no surprise if you’ve been following mock drafts these last few weeks. The Yankees hold the 23rd overall pick. Here is Callis’ mock selection for the Bronx Bombers:

23. Yankees: Brice Turang, SS, Santiago HS (Corona, Calif.)
Turang was mentioned as a candidate to go No. 1 overall entering last summer, and while he hasn’t lived up to those expectations, he’s still a talented shortstop in a Draft thin at that position. A variety of high school position players get mentioned with New York, including Adams, Casas, Edwards and outfielder Mike Siani (Pennsylvania).

Here are my write-ups on Turang, Siani, and Triston Casas. Could’ve sworn I wrote one for North Carolina OF Jordyn Adams, but apparently not. Florida HS SS Xavier Edwards is still on my list of draft prospects to profile. Anyway, once again the Yankees are connected to bats. That has been the case all spring. Aside from guys expected to go in the top 5-10 picks, this draft class is light on college bats, so it’s no surprise the Yankees are connected mostly to high school kids. The draft is a week from Monday.

Nike, not Under Armour, to get MLB apparel rights

According to Terry Lefton, Nike is expected to get MLB’s next apparel rights deal, which begins in 2020. Under Armour was getting the deal but is backing out for financial reasons. “They were a different company when they did the deal. It’s just not affordable for Under Armour anymore,” said a source to Lefton. You may remember Under Armour was set to slap their logo on all jerseys, like so:

It’s unclear whether the Nike swoosh will appear in a similar spot going forward. Majestic currently provides MLB apparel and their logo appears on the sleeves of all jerseys except the Yankees. The Yankees were granted an exception. They weren’t getting an exemption from Under Armour. No idea what’s up with the Nike deal.

I’m of the belief it’s only a matter of time until there are advertisements on MLB jerseys — they’re not going to look like NASCAR cars or anything, but I bet we see advertisement patches on sleeves in the near future — and a logo on the chest of jerseys is step one. Well, no, step one was the Majestic logo on jersey sleeves and step two was the New Era logo on the side of caps. A logo featured on the front of jerseys is step three. Jersey ads are coming. Maybe not with the Nike deal, but eventually.

MLB releases study on “juiced ball” study

Earlier this week MLB released the results of a study into the “juiced baseball,” or, in English, they looked at whether changes to the ball led to the uptick in home runs. Here’s a breakdown of the results. The study found the baseball itself has not changed. Everything is within specifications, though, to be fair, those are wide-ranging. From the study:

There is also no evidence that any variations in the ball occur either intentionally or through substandard quality control by Rawlings. If anything, they would be inherent to the manufacturing process, which relies on substantial “by hand” labor.

The committee in charge provided recommendations, which include potentially establishing standards for storage (i.e. a humidor in all parks). Homers are actually down this year — teams are averaging 1.12 homers per game, down from 1.26 last year and 1.16 homer the year before — but they’re still flying out of the park at one of the highest rates in history. I like dingers. Dingers are cool. If MLB does something to reduce dingers, I’ll be bummed, but I’d understand.