Kuzul

The Los Angeles Dodgers announced Friday that they traded Howie Kendrick to the Philadelphia Phillies in exchange for Darnell Sweeney and Darin Ruf.  

Kendrick spent the last two seasons with the Dodgers after nine with the Los Angeles Angels. 

After spending all of 2015 as their starting second baseman, Kendrick was a utility man in 2016 while veteran Chase Utley was Los Angeles’ go-to guy at the position. 

In 149 games, Kendrick was mainly used as an outfielder while seeing a significant decline in his production at the plate. 

A .289 career batter, the 33-year-old hit a career-worst .255 with a more consistent eight home runs, 40 RBI and .326 on-base percentage given his usual niche is toward the top of a lineup. 

The Phillies will be hoping that last season was just a fluke for Kendrick and that he can regain his form at the plate, considering the Phillies finished 2016 29th in the league with a .240 team batting average and .301 on-base percentage.

Phillies general manager Matt Klentak did tell ESPN’s Jim Bowden that Kendrick will likely play left field next season, which will be his last season before hitting free agency, via Spotrac.com. 

Kendrick has shown that he is capable of holding his own out in left too:

With Kendrick expected to make $10 million in 2017, dealing him provides a decent salary dump for the Dodgers.

They received Darin Ruf, a first baseman and outfielder, and utility man Darnell Sweeney to try to fill the void left by Kendrick’s departure. The two players fell out of favor with Klentak, according to Matt Gelb of Philly.com, as they’ve been unable to produce in the Philadelphia lineup. 

Ruf batted just .205 with three home runs and nine RBI in 83 at-bats last year and was expected to be designated for assignment, per Gelb.

Sweeney was actually a part of the Utley deal that sent the long-time Phillie to the Dodgers in 2015, but he didn’t appear in a single game in 2016. 

Stats courtesy of MLB.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Chicago Cubs announced they will not pick up starting pitcher Jason Hammel‘s contract option Sunday.

Hammel’s 2017 option was worth $12 million, according to Patrick Mooney of CSN Chicago. The deal included a $2 million buyout, per Spotrac.

Hammel is coming off a season in which he won a career-high 15 games as Chicago’s No. 5 starter behind Jon Lester, Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks and John Lackey.

Despite his 15-10 record, elbow issues ensured Hammel was the odd man out of the rotation in the postseason as the Cubs went with a four-man group that helped them win the World Series.

The elbow problems might have played a part as his ERA rose late in the campaign.

After a seven-inning, two-hit shutout against the Milwaukee Brewers on Aug. 16, Hammel’s ERA sank to 2.75. But in his final seven starts, he allowed 30 earned runs on 47 hits as his ERA rose to 3.83.

The 34-year-old vowed to come back stronger in 2017, per Mark Gonzales of the Chicago Tribune: “I’m not happy with the way things ended, but for nine-tenths of the season, I was very good. I’ll take that into the offseason once the playoffs are done and add on to what I added to this (past) offseason.”

Hammel now has an opportunity to join a pitching staff that will view him as more than a No. 5 starter. However, he won’t be supported by the Cubs’ powerful lineup.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The 112th edition of the World Series will see its last game played at Wrigley Field and possibly the last game of the series on Sunday night after the Cleveland Indians defeated the Chicago Cubs 7-2 in Game 4 on Saturday.

With the Indians one win away from their first World Series title since 1948, here is a look at the Game 5 schedule:

The Cubs are expected to roll out Jon Lester for Game 5, and the Indians will start Trevor Bauer. But both of these pitchers have been touched up a bit during this World Series.

After Lester shut down the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLCS, he faced off against Corey Kluber, who pitched a gem in Game 1.

While Kluber struck out eight Cubs in the first three innings, Lester allowed three runs in the first four as Chicago was shut out, 6-0:

The following night would see the inconsistent Cubs offense come alive against Bauer, grabbing two runs off him in 3.2 innings before he was pulled for Zach McAllister, who gave up two more earned runs:

But Chicago’s bats have gone silent over the last two games. They’ve combined for just two runs in the past 18 innings, as Cleveland’s pitching has been just about unhittable. 

Cleveland’s pitching staff has been headlined by reliever Andrew Miller, via Fox Sports: MLB:

If the Cubs do find a way to come back, it will add on to a historic World Series win, via ESPN:

Given the way the Indians are playing, though, it looks like an insurmountable challenge at the moment. 

The Indians have scored eight runs in their past two games and benefited from their dominant pitching. Now, they have three chances to win just one more game. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Arizona Diamondbacks are still facing a busy winter as they search for a new manager even though they already found their general manager in Mike Hazen.

Continue for updates.

Wakamatsu Linked to D-Backs

Sunday, Oct. 30

Today’s Knuckleball’s Jon Heyman, citing sources, reported that Kansas City Royals bench coach Don Wakamatsu will interview for the Diamondbacks’ vacant position.

Heyman added that Wakamatsu “managed the Seattle Mariners for 2009 and most of 2010. Many people were impressed by his smarts, and some others thought he got a raw deal.”

The Diamondbacks are coming off a 69-93 season, which was the second time in three years they have won less than 70 games.

Whoever is hired as Arizona’s manager, they will be the third manager in four seasons and will be tasked with trying to guide the team to a winning season and the playoffs for the first time since 2011. 

Former Infielder Cora to Be Interviewed

Saturday, Oct. 29

Heyman, citing sources, reported that the Diamondbacks have secured an interview for the manager vacancy with former big league infielder Alex Cora. 

The Diamondbacks hired Hazen on Oct. 16, per Heyman, which is why Cora’s name could have cropped up for this job. 

Cora played 14 major league seasons with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Boston Red Sox, New York Mets, Texas Rangers, Washington Nationals and Cleveland Indians. When Cora played for the Indians in 2005 and with the Red Sox from 2006-08, Hazen was an executive for both of those teams. After spending two seasons as Cleveland’s assistant director of player development, Hazen was hired by the Red Sox, where he rose up the ranks to general manager. 

According to John Marshall of the Associated Press (h/t the Washington Times), Hazen left the Red Sox for the Diamondbacks in October for more control as he was also given the tag of vice president in Arizona. 

While Cora is currently serving as an analyst on ESPN, he has interviewed for a number of jobs in the past, including openings with the Nationals, San Diego Padres and Miami Marlins in 2015, per Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Six hours before Game 3 of 2016 World Series on Friday between the Chicago Cubs and Cleveland Indians at Wrigley Field, StubHub stopped its ticket sales.

According Darren Rovell of ESPN.com, “StubHub spokesman Glenn Lehrman told ESPN that the six-hour shutdown has been part of the contract with the Cubs and that the team reiterated that it wanted to keep it in place throughout the 2016 playoffs.”   

Fans looking to attend the historic game had to try other ticketing websites, though there were only about 900 tickets remaining at 1:08 p.m. CT. Rovell noted “the get-in price went from $1,690 to $1,290, a drop of nearly 24 percent” after StubHub pulled the tickets. 

But as of 5 p.m. CT (roughly two hours before game time), Vivid Seats, one of the sites the extra tickets went to, listed its cheapest one at $1,533 for standing room only.

This is the first World Series game at Wrigley since 1945, when Hall of Famers Hank Greenberg and Hal Newhouser featured in the Cubs’ 9-3 Game 7 loss to the Detroit Tigers.

As the Chicago Tribune‘s Brian Moore noted, patrons didn’t have to pay nearly as much back then:

Cubs fans have been waiting years and even decades for this moment, though, so it will be difficult for them to put a price on such an experience.     

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Fresh off his historic start in Game 1 of the World Series against the Chicago Cubs, Cleveland Indians ace Corey Kluber has gotten the nod from manager Terry Francona to start Game 4 on Saturday, Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller reported Wednesday.

Francona also added that Kluber will go for Game 7 if necessary, via Matt Snyder of CBS Sports. 

Kluber helped the Indians take a 1-0 series lead by striking out nine batters over six innings without allowing a run Tuesday.

His performance was headlined by a dominant start as he became the first pitcher in World Series history to strike out eight batters in the first three innings, via the Fox telecast: 

He also set an Indians World Series record for strikeouts in an entire game, surpassing Orel Hershiser in Game 1 of the 1995 series against the Atlanta Braves and Jaret Wright in Game 7 of the 1997 Fall Classic against the Florida Marlins, both of whom fanned seven. 

More importantly, Kluber threw just 88 pitches on the night, which could go a long way with just three days of rest. 

The 30-year-old has only started a game on three days’ rest once in his career, and it came earlier in the postseason. After throwing 100 pitches in Game 1 of the ALCS against the Toronto Blue Jays, Kluber returned for Game 4 and went five innings, allowing two runs on four hits as the Indians lost 5-1. 

But given the way the powerful Cubs offense had such difficulty getting to Kluber, it’s only natural that Francona and the Indians will want to roll out their ace as much as possible in the World Series. After all, this was a Cubs team that had scored 23 runs in the final three games of the NLCS against the Los Angeles Dodgers. 

What makes Kluber so difficult is his deception on the mound. With the same windup and release point for each of his pitches, it’s all but a guessing game for batters to try to decipher whether his pitch will stay true like a fastball or perform a last-second, severe break like his devastating cutter. 

It makes Games 2 and 3 that much more important for the Cubs now that the ace they couldn’t touch is looming in Game 4. 

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

For the baseball fan who appreciates the historical aspect of the game, the Chicago Cubs clinching the National League Championship Series on Saturday night with a 5-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers set up a dream World Series against the Cleveland Indians.

Before we get into the final teams remaining, here’s a look at the postseason bracket:

Odds To Win World Series

Odds relayed by Odds Shark

Cleveland Indians: 163-100

Chicago Cubs: 50-59

Predictions

Cubs defeat Indians in seven games for World Series title

These will be two teams with conflicting amounts of rest heading into the World Series. Come Tuesday, the Indians will have had over five days of rest while the Cubs will have had two. 

There are opposite views that come up about rest. Some believe a break is good for a weary team that has played over 170 games in a season. Others will say it quells the momentum gained through a busy October schedule. 

One thing that is certain is the dominant Indians pitching is coming into the Fall Classic fresh off resounding performances in the American League Division Series and American League Championship Series. 

In eight games, they went 7-1 with with a 1.77 ERA while allowing just 15 runs. Though it’s been a makeshift rotation of sorts behind Corey Kluber, Cleveland’s bullpen has been stellar behind Andrew Miller, who struck out 14 batters in 7.2 innings in the ALCS:

However, Cleveland’s offense has struggled in the postseason, batting just .208. They’ve relied on the long ball during October, launching 11 home runs compared to their 26 RBI. 

They’re going to be meeting a Cubs team that has allowed just four home runs in 10 postseason games, so that option could be in jeopardy in the World Series. 

On top of that, the Chicago offense has ignited to look like the one that led the majors with 4.99 runs per game during the regular season.

After being shut out twice in a row by the Dodgers in Games 2 and 3 of the NLCS, the Cubs scored 23 runs on 33 hits over their last three games. 

They’ve also scored 21 more runs than the Indians have this postseason, although the Cubs have played three more games.

But with their ability to get after Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw on Saturday, Cubs bats look unstoppable:

Heading into the Fall Classic, the Chicago Cubs are playing a more well-rounded brand of baseball, which is why they’ll squeak out their first World Series title in 108 years in seven games. 

Stats courtesy of MLB.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

If you were to go up to any baseball fan in years past and tell them that the Chicago Cubs would meet the Cleveland Indians for Major League Baseball’s championship, there’s a good chance they would laugh in your face. 

But after the Cubs defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 6 of the NLCS from Wrigley Field on Saturday night, that’s the exact matchup we’ll have in the 2016 World Series, via MLB: 

Here is how the schedule will look for the Fall Classic, beginning on Tuesday:

There will be a very long, tortured drought that comes to an end at the conclusion of this series. 

The Cubs haven’t won a World Series since 1908, while the Indians haven’t reigned triumphant since 1948. 

However, one drought has come to an end with Chicago’s win on Saturday night, as it clinched its first National League pennant since 1945. 

A well-rested Indians team will be waiting for the Cubs after it took down the Toronto Blue Jays in five games in the ALCS that ended on Wednesday. 

Thanks to an American League victory in the All-Star Game in San Diego, the Indians will also be hosting an opening game of the World Series for the first time in franchise history. 

With a struggling offense that’s batted .208 in the postseason, Cleveland has been reliant on the long ball and pitching, which has riddled opposing batters all throughout October. 

In eight games, Indians pitching has allowed just 15 runs with a 1.77 ERA while compiling a 7-1 record. It’s been headlined by reliever Andrew Miller, who won the ALCS MVP thanks to his dominance, via SportsCenter: 

But they’ll be playing a Cubs offense that exploded to life in the final three games of the NLCS. 

After two straight shutouts at the hands of the Dodgers in Games 2 and 3, Chicago has reeled off 23 runs on 33 hits in its last three games. 

With the big bats of Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Addison Russell and now Javier Baez, this World Series could be a case of an unstoppable force meeting an immovable object in Cleveland pitching. 

And with both teams playing against history, this could be one of the most exciting Fall Classics we’ll see in quite some time. 

Stats courtesy of MLB.com. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Kyle Schwarber’s powerful bat has been absent from the Chicago Cubs lineup since the third game of the 2016 season, when the outfielder suffered a torn ACL and LCL. His availability for the World Series has yet to be determined.

Continue for updates.

Latest on Schwarber’s Rehab

Monday, Oct. 24

Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com reported Schwarber will serve as a designated hitter in the Arizona Fall League on Monday and will fly to Cleveland to join the Cubs afterward.

Epstein Comments on Schwarber’s Status

Saturday, Oct. 22

“He’s made it to a best-case scenario after six months,” Cubs president Theo Epstein said to Jesse Rogers of ESPN.com regarding Schwarber’s recovery. “We’re not ruling anything in; we’re not ruling anything out. We’re not getting ahead of ourselves. We have a lot of work here before this becomes pertinent.”

Schwarber Has Missed Most of Cubs’ Historic Season

The second-year outfielder suffered the injury when he collided with teammate Dexter Fowler while pursuing a fly ball during an April 7 game against the Arizona Diamondbacks:

Schwarber underwent surgery April 19 and missed the remainder of the regular season.

But Epstein suggested the outfielder is on the cusp of making an unlikely return if the Cubs win one more game thanks to his hard work during rehabilitation, per Rogers:

It was a pleasant surprise. We got news that was better than expected. …

He asked for a chance to do this. With as hard as Kyle has worked and as much as this means to him — and potentially us — we wanted to give him that opportunity. …

We’re going to evaluate him day to day from a medical standpoint and a baseball standpoint.

With the Cubs having made it to the World Series for the first time since 1945, they could add a bat that hit 16 home runs with 43 RBI in just 69 games last season as they try and clinch their first title since 1908.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Chicago Cubs might be one win away from making the World Series for the first time since 1945, but Los Angeles Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw stands in the way in Game 6 of the National League Championship Series on Saturday night.

While the Dodgers look to stay alive and overturn a 3-2 series deficit, the Cleveland Indians will be waiting for the winner after their five-game triumph over the Toronto Blue Jays in the American League Championship Series. 

A quick turnaround awaits the National League champion, as the 112th Fall Classic will begin on Tuesday in Cleveland:

The final three teams have been thirsting for a title with significant droughts, with some obviously larger than others.

Odds Guide

Odds to Win World Series

Cleveland Indians: 163-100

Chicago Cubs: 50-59

Los Angeles Dodgers: 27-4

Relayed by Odds Shark

Cleveland Indians

World Series Appearances: 6 (including 2016)

World Series Wins: 2 

Last World Series Win: 1948

Last World Series Appearance: 1997

The Indians have shown throughout the 2016 season that they are one of the most well-rounded rosters in all of baseball, and that’s been highlighted through slumps and injuries. 

With a roster that’s lost starting pitchers Carlos Carrasco and Danny Salazar, Cleveland’s arms have stepped up in a big way, especially this postseason, as they’ve been able to work alongside a limited offense that’s hit just .208:

In terms of starting pitching, ace Corey Kluber has been supported by veteran Josh Tomlin and the 25-year-old Trevor Bauer until the latter sliced his pinky open while repairing a drone. 

The most recent hero came in the form of Ryan Merritt, who started Game 5 after recording just one regular-season start during his rookie campaign, putting him in sparse company, per MLB Stat of the Day:

He went 4.1 innings, allowing just two hits in Game 5 to help the Indians clinch the pennant. 

In the bullpen, it’s been all about reliever Andrew Miller, who has been the definition of untouchable during October. The ALCS MVP has pitched 11.2 innings in the postseason, allowing no runs on just five hits while striking out 21 batters.

Against either a Dodgers or Cubs team that has scored over 30 runs during the postseason, that dominant Indians pitching will have to be just as good to secure a championship for the first time in 68 years. 

Chicago Cubs

World Series Appearances: 10

World Series Wins: 2 

Last World Series Win: 1908

Last World Series Appearance: 1945

The longest, most well-documented drought in major North American professional sports looks like it could come to an end this year. 

Baseball’s best regular-season team, with a 103-58 record, barnstormed through the league this year behind a core of young, powerful stars in the batting order and a strong pitching staff. 

But those big Chicago bats fell upon hard times in the postseason, as they scored one run or less in three games, including two straight shutouts in Games 2 and 3 of the NLCS.

They’ve come alive over the past two games, though, scoring a combined 18 runs on 26 hits, which is something that could cause any pitching staff stress.

Pair that with Jon Lester’s postseason dominance, and the Cubs will most likely feel confident about their title hopes if they can get by the Dodgers:

Getting to the World Series would be a massive accomplishment for this franchise regardless of what happens as they are one win away from breaking another sizable drought of 71 years without a Fall Classic appearance.

Los Angeles Dodgers

World Series Appearances: 18

World Series Wins: 6 

Last World Series Win: 1988

Last World Series Appearance: 1988

The last time the Dodgers were in the World Series, Kirk Gibson delivered one of the most memorable home runs in baseball history:

While a 28-year drought is a considerable one, it is nothing compared to the other two that could be ended this postseason. 

But the Dodgers have their back up against the wall for Game 6 of the NLCS. One more loss, and they will fall one series short of the World Series for the fourth time since 2008. 

Luckily for them, Kershaw is taking the hill and has already taken care of the Cubs once in the NLCS. In fact, he joined some elite company in shutting them out in Game 2, per ESPN Stats & Info:

He’s been the lone bright spot in a Dodgers pitching staff that has gotten hammered throughout the playoffs. In 10 games, they’ve allowed 50 runs, 45 of them earned, which will make it extremely difficult for the offense to overcome, even if the Dodgers can find a way to come back against the Cubs.

Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com