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MLB announces major rule changes for 2019

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Like it or not, the MLB is undergoing a major facelift.

The league officially approved some significant rule changes on Thursday that will become effective during the 2019 season.

In case you missed it, here is what to expect.

  • Inning Breaks: Subject to discussions with broadcast partners, inning breaks will be reduced from 2:05 to 2:00 in local games, and from 2:25 to 2:00 in national games.  (The Office of the Commissioner retains the right to reduce the inning breaks to 1:55 in local and national games for the 2020 season.)
  • Mound Visits: The maximum number of mound visits per team will be reduced from six to five.
  • Trade Deadline: The trade deadline will remain July 31st; however, trade waivers will be eliminated.  Players may be placed and claimed on outright waivers after July 31st, but players may not be traded after that date.
  • Joint Committee: MLB and the MLBPA will form a joint committee to study other potential changes.
  • All-Star Game:
    • All-Star Game fan voting will be conducted in two rounds.  During the “Primary Round,” each Club will nominate one player per eligible position (three outfielders), who will be voted on by fans.  In late June or early July, an “Election Day” will be held in which the top three vote-getters at each position in each League during the Primary Round (including the top nine outfielders) will be voted on by fans during a prescribed time period to determine the All-Star Game starters.  Further details on the new fan voting format will be announced in April.
    • All-Star bonus payments will be given to the top three vote-getters at each position in each League during the Primary Round (top six for outfielders).  Additionally, the prize money awarded to players on the winning All-Star team will be increased beginning with the 2019 All-Star Game.
    • Both Clubs will start the 10th inning of the All-Star Game, and each subsequent inning, with a runner on second base (re-entry substitutions allowed for runners).
    • Home Run Derby: Total player prize money for the Home Run Derby will be increased to $2.5 million.  The winner of the Home Run Derby will receive $1 million.

Baseball

Nationals have “made it clear” they are not trading Juan Soto

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Washington Nationals fans can breathe a sigh of relief…for now.

Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo squashed recent rumours suggesting Juan Soto’s time in the Nation’s capital could be coming to an end, saying during an interview with a local radio station that the team will not be trading their superstar slugger under any circumstances.

“We are not trading Juan Soto…We have made it clear to his agent and to the player. … These journalists have to fill a blank sheet of paper every day. It’s a good thing to get some attention on a story. But we have every intention of building this team around Juan Soto.” said Rizzo.

“We’ve spoken to his agent many, many times (and) recently sat with him when he was in Washington, D.C. Made it clear to him that we are not interested in trading him, and I guess the rest of the world just doesn’t believe it.”

Lets face it: the Nationals are in rebuild mode and Soto’s contract expires in a few years. He reported turned down a massive 13-year, $350-million contract extension over the summer, and is in the prime of his career. Adding this all up, you would think the Nationals would at least explore the idea of trading him and getting a kings ransom for him in order to set themselves up nicely for their next contention window.

But if you believe in Rizzo’s words, the team feels they still have a chance at convincing him to stay and believe he will be able to still contribute in a big way once they get good again.

The 23-year old has amassed .294/.426/.539 slash line to go along with 107 homers and 328 RBI in just four-plus seasons in the majors. He has also won two Silver Slugger Awards, an NL batting title, a World Series title, and was recently a runner-up for NL MVP in 2021.

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Baseball

Veteran lefty JA Happ retires from baseball after 15 MLB seasons

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Longtime MLB pitcher JA Happ is calling it quits after an exceptional career.

The 39-year old lefty officially announced his decision to retire from baseball during an appearance on the ‘Heart Strong Podcast’.

“I didn’t maybe feel what I needed to feel in order to think I wanted to keep doing this. I felt like that was a sign, like ’OK, it’s time to go,'” said Happ.

“I think I’m still processing it, but I do wake up feeling good about it, and I’m happy to start the process of being a full-time dad, for the time being, at the very least.”

Happ pitched 15 seasons in the MLB with eight different teams, most notably the Toronto Blue Jays, Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees and Houston Astros.

During his career, he posted an 89-63 record, 4.23 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 1095 strikeouts and 397 walks over a span of 1226.2 innings pitched.

He was noted for being a reliable and consistent back of the rotation type of starter who peaked later in his career, making his lone MLB All-Star appearance in 2018.

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Baseball

MUST WATCH: Aaron Judge wins it for the Yankees with a walk-off three-run blast!

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The Toronto Blue Jays were up by two runs heading into the bottom of the 9th with one of the best closers in the game in Jordan Romano taking the mound.

You would think it was almost a 100% certainty that the Blue Jays would end up with the win.

Unfortunately for them, New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge had other plans!

Surprisingly, this was the first walk-off bomb in Judge’s career.

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