One of the A’s biggest questions entering camp is where Kyle Muller fits into their pitching plans.
Muller, a key piece to the prospect package the A’s received from Atlanta in the Sean Murphy trade before last season, is out of options, so he’ll have to break camp with the team or possibly be lost to a waiver claim. Sunday, Muller made his Cactus League debut and allowed one run with three strikeouts in two innings in Oakland’s 4-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers in Glendale, Arizona.
The 26-year-old lefty was the A’s Opening Day starter last season and had a good start, then struggled and was demoted to the minors. When he returned, the former Braves second-round draft pick mostly pitched out of the bullpen with mixed results.
Muller allowed just two hits against the Dodgers, but one was a solo home run to Redwood City’s James Outman. The homer is notable because Muller struggled to keep the ball in the ballpark last season — he allowed 16 in 77 innings and at one point allowed at least one homer in nine straight appearances — and Outman bats left-handed. If Muller doesn’t claim a spot in the rotation he’d need to show he can consistently get left-handers out as a reliever.
Other than Outman’s homer, Muller had no trouble with the Dodgers’ other lefties: he struck out Freddie Freeman and Jayson Hayward swinging, and got Max Muncy looking. Muller didn’t get a chance face the Dodgers’ newest big left-handed bat, Shohei Ohtani, who has yet to make his spring debut.
The A’s offense for the second time in two spring games was mostly silent. The A’s, after collecting three hits in a 5-1 loss to the Rockies on Saturday, had five hits, and four of those were singles. Hoy Park, a candidate to fill the Tony Kemp utility role, doubled home Jacob Wilson, the A’s first-round pick last June, to end the Dodgers’ shutout bid in the top of the seventh. Park scored on a wild pitch.
— Dany Jimenez had an encouraging Cactus League debut, retiring all three batters he faced on fly balls. Jimenez led the team with 11 saves in 2022, but was not much of a factor last season because of an elbow strain and inconsistency. If he recaptures his 2022 form it’d be a big boost to a bullpen that figures to open the season with Mason Miller as the closer and Lucas Erceg as the primary setup man.
— On-base machine Zack Gelof started both the games over the weekend and reached base in both games. He was out of the game when younger brother Jake, the Dodgers’ second-round draft pick last June, struck out as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning.
— Muncy, the former A’s infielder, hit a two-run homer in the fourth inning off Francisco Perez to give the Dodgers a 3-0 lead. Perez is another candidate for a left-handed role in the A’s bullpen, along with Scott Alexander, Sean Newcomb and Muller.
— The A’s continue Cactus League play on Monday against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
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SAN JOSE – Mikael Granlund has been everything the San Jose Sharks hoped he would be when they acquired him last summer as part of the deal that sent Erik Karlsson to the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Granlund scored his seventh goal of the season Saturday in the Sharks’ 4-2 loss to the Nashville Predators, giving him 31 points in his last 35 games.
Through 43 games, Granlund is averaging a career-high 20:35 in ice time, helping fill the present void with both Logan Couture and Tomas Hertl injured and unavailable.
“I’ve had so much respect for him from afar without ever meeting him, thinking he was a hell of a player,” Sharks coach David Quinn said. “Then you get to coach him and deal with him on a daily basis.
“There are few and far players in the league like him who bring that honesty. There’s no (b.s.) to his game.”
It’s easy, then, to see why Granlund might be general manager Mike Grier’s most valuable asset ahead of the NHL trade deadline on March 8.
The Sharks have a handful of wingers, like Anthony Duclair, Alexander Barabanov, Mike Hoffman, and Kevin Labanc, who could be on another team in less than two weeks.
But with only so many quality centermen available as the trade deadline nears, we can speculate that opposing general managers have checked in about a possible price tag for Granlund.
It should be high, and Grier shouldn’t waver.
With Granlund under contract for next season at a $5 million cap hit, what’s the rush to trade him right now?
Sure, if another team comes along and meets Grier’s price tag, Granlund, who turns 32 on Monday, should be traded for assets that better fit in with the Sharks’ long-term plan.
For now, though, as long as that price tag – whether it’s a first-round draft pick, a quality prospect or someone just breaking into the NHL – isn’t met, then there’s no harm in keeping Granlund in a teal uniform. He adds to the culture the Sharks are trying to build.
The same goes for defensemen Mario Ferraro and Jan Rutta, goalie Mackenzie Blackwood or any other Sharks player signed past this season.
A Granlund deal can also easily be made this offseason when more center-starved teams might be in the mix for his services, or even at the 2025 deadline when other GMs do not have to worry about creating as much cap space to fit in Granlund’s salary.
Waiting for what you want can be a good thing, as history has shown.
Exactly one year ago Monday, the Sharks sent Timo Meier, four other players, and a 2024 fifth-round pick to the New Jersey Devils for four players, including Fabian Zetterlund and defenseman Shakir Mukhamadullin, and three draft picks, one of which was used to select forward Quentin Musty at No. 26 overall last year.
Meier was owed a $10 million qualifying offer as he was in the last year of a four-year, $24 million contract. But Grier, after much speculation, got the best deal he could, spurning other offers that included more draft picks and fewer older players, and pulled the trigger to try and lay part of the foundation for the future sooner rather than later.
“It was a unique situation because of the qualifying offer Timo was going to have. It was a little bit different situation than most guys in his position,” Quinn recalled. “So that probably hurt us a little bit in the return. But that being said, you look at the trade and I think we did very well.”
A Granlund trade won’t bring the same return as the Meier trade did.
Just last season, Granlund went from the Predators to the Penguins for a 2023 second-rounder. If the Sharks were to get the same kind of return – a 2024 second-rounder, for instance — before the deadline, they would have up to five draft picks in the first two rounds this year.
Grier would likely get a bigger return from the team he’s dealing with if he were to retain some of Granlund’s cap hit for the rest of this season and next.
But that would present another issue for the Sharks, who only have one retention spot left after Grier kept some salary on the team’s books in the Brent Burns and Karlsson deals.
Retaining some of Granlund’s contract might not only hamper efforts to move some of the Sharks’ pending UFAs this year, but any deals next year, as well, involving players with sizeable contracts.
Perhaps getting the right package for Granlund supersedes all of those potential concerns.
But if the right package isn’t there for Granlund, there’s nothing with holding onto him, as he’s been a terrific fit in San Jose, providing what a rebuilding Sharks team needs.
“He could have a C on his jersey,” linemate Zetterlund said of Granlund. “He’s helped the team so much this year, in all ways, in the locker room and outside the rink.”
“He’s got this leadership ability to kind of talk to people in a mature manner, but he’s also has a fun side to him that endears himself to his teammates,” Quinn said. “He’s a guy that’s very valuable.”
Regardless of what happens, Granlund is keeping an even keel.
“I mean, there’s nothing you can do about it,” he said Saturday night. “So play hockey, enjoy the game. Playing in the NHL, it’s pretty fun. But really, there’s nothing you can do about it.”
The UN’s World Mosquito Program last year announced plan to release billions of gene-edited mosquitos in Brazil.
Dengue fever has spiked fourfold in Brazil in 2024 following the release of millions of gene-edited mosquitos by the United Nations’ World Mosquito Program.
In the first five weeks of 2024, over 364,000 cases of dengue infection have been reported, according to the country’s health ministry, which is 4x greater than previous cases in the same period of 2023.
The dramatic spike in dengue cases has prompted Brazil to purchase millions of doses of the dengue vaccine.
From The Guardian:
The rapid spread of dengue has caused 40 confirmed deaths, the ministry said, and a further 265 are being investigated.
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Brazil has bought 5.2m doses of the dengue vaccine Qdenga, developed by Japanese drugmaker Takeda, with another 1.32m doses provided at no cost to the government, a ministry statement said.
Three Brazilian states have declared emergencies, including the second most populous state, Minas Gerais, and the Federal District, where the capital, Brasília, is located and is facing an unprecedented rise in infections.
Brasília will start vaccinating children aged 10-14 on Friday with Qdenga, the local government said on Wednesday.
Cases of dengue in Brasília since the start of the year have exceeded the total for the whole of 2023, with a rate of infection of 1,625 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, compared with the national average of just 170.
The UN’s World Mosquito Program announced in 2023 a plan to release billions of gene-edited mosquitos in Brazil over a 10-year period in a bid to eradicate dengue fever in the country.
“Brazilian health officials in five cities have been releasing clouds of lab-grown Aedes aegypti mosquitoes infected with Wolbachia bacteria, which prevents dengue virus transmission to humans,” Harvard Public Health reported in August 2023.
“The country will be the first to launch a nationwide program to release Wolbachia-modified mosquitoes, which are expected to protect up to 70 million people from dengue fever over the next 10 years. And it’s building a factory to scale up mosquito production: Beginning 2024, the factory will mass-produce five billion mosquitoes a year.”
Now a year after the mosquito initiative began, dengue cases have risen sharply rather than fallen.
Notably, the World Mosquito Program received a $50 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is also bankrolling research into the dengue fever vaccine.
The Brazilian government purchased over 5 million doses of the Qdenga dengue fever vaccine, manufactured by Japanese drugmaker Takeda, which also received millions of dollars in grants from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
In other words, Bill Gates Foundation money is involved in all sides of the situation, from the gene-edited mosquitos — which has apparently exacerbated the dengue crisis — to bankrolling companies who are providing the in-demand dengue fever vaccine to Brazil.
To what end?
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Virgil Van Dijk scored a late extra-time winner to lead Liverpool to a 1-0 win over Chelsea in the 2023-24 Carabao Cup final at the Wembley Stadium on Sunday.
The Reds were without their key players with the likes of Mohammed Salah, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Darwin Nunez, and Diogo Jota for the encounter, but they were able to get the better of a wasteful Chelsea side.
Raheem Sterling thought he had given Chelsea the lead in the first half, but his effort was ruled out for offside.
Cody Gakpo’s header hit the cross bar as Liverpool began to settle into the game.
Liverpool goalkeeper Caoimhin Kelleher made several impressive saves in the first half to deny Chelsea as it ended 0-0.
In an eventful second half, Virgil Van Dijk’s header was ruled after Endo was penalised for offside.
Conor Gallagher’s effort also hit the post in the second half before the England midfielder was guilty of missing two clear-cut chances late in the second half as the game went on and eventually entered extra time.
Liverpool dominated the extra time while Chelsea failed to take their chances when presented with clear opportunities.
Van Dijk punished the Blues with a well-placed header 118th minute to lead Liverpool to their 10th Carabao Cup trophy and condemned Chelsea to a sixth straight loss in a final at the Wembley Stadium.
Liverpool manager, Jürgen Klopp was full of praise for his players following a battling performance.
Klopp said, “What happened here was absolutely insane. These things are not possible.
“The team, a squad, an academy full of character. I am so proud I could be part of that tonight.
“The craziest thing is, we deserved it. We had lucky moments. They had lucky moments. The boys showed up. It was really cool.”
Goalscorer, Virgil Van Dijk, was delighted to lead the team to their first trophy as the captain of the club.
Van Dijk said: “It’s all for the fans, so let’s enjoy it.
“Intense game for both sides, they had chances we had chances. Amazing. First trophy as Liverpool captain,
“We did a job, even with all the problems we have had before the game.
“I’m so proud, proud to be part of this club, and especially proud of the boys.”
Meanwhile, Chelsea coach Mauricio Pochettino was disappointed as his wait for a first trophy in England continues.
Pochettino said, “My emotions, it is the same as the players. I am so disappointed, it is so painful. I am an older guy who has less time to win titles. They are younger than me, and for sure, they have time.
“But in football always it is about when you have the opportunity. Always, it is about reaching the final.”
Pochettino will be hoping his players can bounce back when they take on Leeds United in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday.
Liverpool will be in action against Southampton in the FA Cup fifth round on Wednesday at Anfield.
‘I’m So Disappointed’- Pochettino Laments As Liverpool Beat Chelsea To Win Carabao Cup is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
OAKLAND — The Oakland A’s stopped hosting their annual fan fest after the 2019 season, but the fans haven’t stopped showing up.
Not when there’s something worth celebrating, that is.
Thousands of Oakland sports fans showed up to Jack London Square on Saturday for Fans Fest, a fan-run event that encouraged fans of the A’s as well as other Oakland teams like the Roots, Soul and Ballers to come together and celebrate the local community.
The total attendance was estimated by event organizers to be “more than 10,000.” The A’s averaged about 10,400 fans per game last season.
“There’s an element of protest, just making sure the voices are continuing to be heard,” said Trevor May, a reliever for the A’s last year who was one of six former A’s players to show up Saturday. “But this is a celebration of fans, that’s what Fans Fest is. A celebration of everyone. Everyone here likes the same things, likes to be with each other, likes to hang out and go to games.
“We’re letting them know we (the players) liked being with them, too. We’re all in this together. We know we would all prefer a different situation and it’s none of our decisions. At least there’s support here.”
The event was billed as a celebration of sports teams, not an anti-A’s fest, but it turned out to be a little bit of both.
It felt like a block party, with music playing and beer flowing starting at 11 a.m., as fans entered through various security checkpoints and then made their way to some of the 60 vendors throughout the square.
Thousands of Oakland Athletics fans attend the Fans Fest event hosted by the Oakland 68’s and Last Dive Bar in and outside Bloc15 warehouse in Jack London district in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
There were artists selling bobbleheads and pictures of special moments in A’s history, memorabilia collectors selling autographs and baseballs, autograph tents where former players met with fans, live music, a stage for special guests and all the food and beer one could ask for on a warm Saturday afternoon.
Watching it all unfold, event organizer Bryan Johansen, one of the founders of the Last Dive Bar fan group, couldn’t stop smiling.
“I just got back; I had to go pick up the players, I did a beer run, and this looks amazing and beautiful,” he said. “I’m going to love looking back at all the pictures. I just hope everybody has an amazing time.”
Along with May, fellow former A’s Coco Crisp, Grant Balfour, Ben Grieve, Billy North and Mike Norris spent time with the fans.
“It just feels like a bash for the fans of this city, and we’re showing love for them,” Crisp said.
The A’s lease at the Coliseum expires after this season, meaning it could be the team’s last after 57 years in Oakland. Conversations are ongoing between the team and the city in an attempt to extend the lease, but Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao said Saturday that she’s still demanding that the A’s name and logo stay in Oakland, and that MLB guarantees the city an expansion team after the A’s leave for Las Vegas.
MLB commissioner Rob Manfred has said he’s not in position to guarantee expansion. Thao, who showed up to Fans Fest wearing a hat supporting the new independent-league Oakland Ballers, sat down for an interview with baseball show Foul Territory and said she is not budging.
“There comes a time when you have to cut the cancer, that’s my position,” Thao said about getting rid of A’s owner John Fisher. “Keep the A’s branding and name and we get an expansion team.”
Thao said she hasn’t spoken with Fisher in a long time.
“Good luck in Las Vegas,” she said. “I know John Fisher is going to do John Fisher things.”
Thao said Saturday’s event was “way better than anything John Fisher could do. The energy is amazing. There’s nothing like Oakland fans.”
Those fans plastered Fisher’s face on the outside of portable toilets at the event, aptly named “The Johns”.
Former Oakland Athletics star outfielder Coco Crisp, right, signs autographs to fans during the Fans Fest event hosted by the Oakland 68’s and Last Dive Bar at Bloc15 warehouse in Jack London district in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
There was some extra controversy before the event, when Drake’s Brewing Company, an original sponsor that also serves at the Coliseum, pulled out at the last minute. Drake’s hasn’t commented about why they pulled out, and the A’s have told media outlets they did not contact Drake’s about their involvement, but event organizers remained suspicious.
“Hours before the event they pulled out with no explanation given, just unforeseen circumstances,” Johansen said. “We know Aramark (a food vendor that works with multiple MLB teams) is who they report to. The A’s can say they didn’t contact Drake’s, but did they contact Aramark? It’s just unfortunate.”
Several East Bay breweries, including Fieldwork and Altamont stepped in to fill out the lineup alongside Dokkaebier, 21st Amendment and others.
Thao was one of many who voiced her support for Schools Over Stadiums, a political action group made up of Nevada teachers trying to stop the $380 million in state public funding from going towards a new ballpark in Las Vegas.
The lines were long at the Schools Over Stadiums tent on Saturday, where spokesperson Alex Marks was informing A’s fans how they could help support the cause.
“We’re just here to say thank you to these fans who have been so supportive,” Marks said while standing in front of a sign that read, “STOP THE VEGAS SCAM.”
At one point during the event, a “Let’s go Oakland” chant broke out as if it was the middle of an A’s game.
“I wanted to see how big Fans Fest was going to be,” said Nick Freieri, a longtime A’s fan from Los Gatos. “As a fan, what can we do as a community to show our voices here? We’re here to let them know the fans aren’t the problem. It’s the ownership.”
The former A’s players were sympathetic to the fans’ cause.
“The love of the fans, the support I had when I was here, the way they embraced me, I felt this was the time to come up here and enjoy this moment and be around the fans,” said Balfour, the closer during his years in Oakland from 2011-13. “There’s so much history, I’ll be sad to see them go. I’d rather see Vegas get a new team and start fresh.”
Oakland Athletics fan Hal Gordon, also known as “Hal the Hot Dog Guy” who sells hot dogs at the A’s games, wears a possum costume during the Fans Fest event hosted by the Oakland 68’s and Last Dive Bar at Bloc15 warehouse in Jack London district in Oakland, Calif., on Saturday, Feb. 23, 2024. (Ray Chavez/Bay Area News Group)
Despite the White House and media gaslighting the American people that Joe Biden is fit as a fiddle, the rest of the world certainly isn’t buying it.
An Italian TV station aired a skit portraying Biden as an ailing and confused old man who couldn’t find his way to the podium or even utter coherent sentences.
“I said to the president of Israel, Mikhail Gorbachev…” the actor said as an off-screen reporter attempted to correct the puppet president. “Sorry, Michael Jordan, when he went to the moon…long shot from Dallas.”
“Sorry, it wasn’t the moon, it was Mars. ‘Mars Attacks.’ Beautiful film where Netanyahu sang, ‘Somewhere over the garage,’” the actor continued.
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Soon a briefcase representing the nuclear football was pulled out and opened to reveal a giant red button, where the Biden actor declared, “I forgot to take the pills” before pushing it, which then cut to an explosion.
Outkick founder Clay Travis weighed in on the brutal skit Saturday, lamenting that the rest of the world “is laughing at us.”
“Italian TV is mocking Joe Biden more ruthlessly than any American comedians are. This is what the world thinks of Biden, they’re all laughing at us. This is what SNL would be doing if they weren’t Democrat propagandists,” he wrote on X.
Italian TV is mocking Joe Biden more ruthlessly than any American comedians are. This is what the world thinks of Biden, they’re all laughing at us. This is what SNL would be doing if they weren’t Democrat propagandists: pic.twitter.com/3VdtrvofWa
Saudi Arabia similarly ridiculed Biden in their own version of “Saturday Night Live” last year.
The only groups who still pretend that Biden is sharp as a tack heading into the 2024 presidential election are his Democrat colleagues and the mainstream media.
Following pressure on the naira, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) will resume its weekly dollar intervention to qualified Bureau de Change Operators (BDCs). This time, the apex bank will give BDCs about $40,000 per week, THE WHISTLER can exclusively report.
THE WHISTLER learnt from a reliable document that the intervention will be done through bank accounts of qualified BDCs and they are to sell electronically to customers in need of BTA/PTA and not cash.
A memo sent by the ABCON reads, “In furtherance to our various engagements with the Central bank, the Apex bank in conjunction with our strategic partners have agreed to our request under their supervision to inject liquidity into our sub-sector through a weekly intervention starting on Monday 26/02/2024 for funding and collection on Tuesday 27/02/2024.
“The collection will be at designated CBN branches in Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Awka respectively. The details of the naira account to be credited for funding bidding will be made available on Monday.
“The CBN is also coming up with eligible BDCs on Monday unfailingly based on certain compliance criteria.”
A virtual meeting was held on Sunday by approved BDCs to deliberate on the new development. THE WHISTLER understands from a reliable source that the CBN will intervene twice a week.
A source said, “It is true that CBN is going to start intervention again from tomorrow Monday, February 26, 2024. They will start giving BDCs money. The interventions will be Wednesdays and Fridays and the amount is $20,000 for each day.”
THE WHISTLER understands that the intervention will be for BDCs that are up to date with their annual subscription and filling of monthly returns.
BDC operators that did not pay annual renewal fees and submit audited reports for 2022 will not be part of the intervention from the apex bank.
“The BDCs who are current with regulatory compliance as of 2023 will qualify for the intervention. Unlike before, the BDCs were allowed to sell to any customer, but with the new intervention, BDCs will sell only to people who are going to school, and medicals- that is BTA/PTA as the case may be. They are not allowed to sell to random customers and importers,” he said.
The CBN will now determine the rate the BDCs will sell the dollar which is contrary to the ‘willing buyer, willing seller’ model introduced by the CBN.
“The CBN will determine the rate the BDCs will sell from tomorrow and the rate of the CBN, all BDCs are not expected to sell anything above 2.5 per cent. The maximum spread to be sold on Monday from each dollar sold from Monday will be 2.5 per cent,” another source present at the meeting told THE WHISTLER.
THE WHISTLER understands that the BDCs are expected to make returns by 10 am a day after receiving the intervention from the apex bank.
EXCLUSIVE: CBN To Resume $40,000 Weekly Dollar Intervention To BDCs On Monday, Abandons Willing Buyer, Willing Seller Policy is first published on The Whistler Newspaper
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. — Breaking from a rambunctious Sunday morning conversation in Spanish with Jorge Soler, Pablo Sandoval grabbed the bat from his locker and began to make his way toward the clubhouse door and on to the batting cages for his morning hitting routine when a reporter interrupted him midstride.
Sandoval didn’t have time to talk, he said. That is, until he learned of the subject of the conversation.
“Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah,” Sandoval said. “I want to see Boch. I want to give him a hug. Congratulate him about last year. And thank me for all the support and advice he gave me to get back to the field.”
Yes, Sandoval was happy to make an exception to talk about the manager with whom he won three World Series and spent the first 10 years of his career. When his new manager, Bob Melvin, asked him about making the hour-long trek to Surprise for their exhibition against Bruce Bochy’s Rangers, again Sandoval was glad to oblige.
“I told him I would love to go because we’ve got a great relationship,” Sandoval said. “It’s special to have a manager for 10 years in your career and still have the communication, the relationship with him. He called me son.”
Despite their bond, Sandoval said the last time he saw Bochy in person was at the end of the 2019 season, when Bochy stepped away from the Giants.
Now back in the manager’s seat — and a newly minted World Series champion for the fourth time — Bochy heard from Sandoval this offseason, when the 37-year-old was beginning to spread the word that he was back in shape and attempting to make a comeback.
Sandoval said he also had an outstanding offer from the Rangers to come to camp as a non-roster invitee, but he chose the Giants over Bochy.
“I was sending workout videos to him too,” Sandoval said. “He was excited. He was happy to see me back in shape and happy to love the game again.”
Melvin, who overlapped with Bochy on the other side of the Bay for Bochy’s final nine years in San Francisco — and two of his World Series titles — said he had a “really good” relationship with his counterpart, with whom he’s been known to share a bottle of wine.
“I don’t have anything for him today,” Melvin said. “Won a World Series; he can give me one now.”
Doctors clear Winn
Melvin let out a sigh of relief, literally, when asked about Keaton Winn.
Last week, the promising 26-year-old split-finger artist felt some soreness in his right elbow following a bullpen session — the second time he’s felt discomfort in his elbow since he was called up last season — and was temporarily shut down. But he is set to resume throwing Monday after doctors gave him the all-clear Friday.
“Phew,” Melvin said. “I was glad to hear that. We thought it was minor, but you never know these days. … It gets your attention, for sure.”
With Winn still about a week away from game action, another young right-hander, Mason Black, will start Monday’s game against the Angels, Melvin said, and free-agent signing Jordan Hicks will make his debut Tuesday.
Winn and Melvin were both confident he would be ready by Opening Day, though, if maybe only stretched out to 70 or 80 pitches.
“I kind of expected it, but it was still good to hear,” Winn said. “Last year was more, I don’t want to say wear and tear, but more inflammation. This is more just stressed the nerve out is the best way to understand it. Kind of just shocked it, scared it a little bit.”
Fantasy punishment
Sometime soon, J.D. Davis will don a protective helmet and a jersey with “BB” on the back and stoop onto the stool in the on-deck circle.
That, per tradition, is his punishment for finishing in last place in the team’s fantasy football league last season. Davis, like broadcaster Dave Flemming did so amusingly last spring and the tandem of Austin Slater and Mike Yastrzemski two years ago, must serve as bat boy for a game.
The champion, if you followed the Tommy Pham saga of two years ago, should come as no surprise: Joc Pederson.
A date hasn’t been decided, but maybe it would be appropriate to give Pederson the satisfaction of paying witness. The Giants visit Pederson’s new club, the D’backs, on Thursday, then don’t play them again until their final game in the desert on March 23.
The rules stipulate the player only has to perform duties until the Giants’ starting pitcher comes out of the game. So, using logical reasoning, Davis said, “better to knock it out early.”
