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The MLB Daily Dish is a daily feature we're running here at MLBDD and rounds up roster-impacting news, rumors, and analysis. Have feedback or have something that should be shared? Hit us at @mlbdailydish on Twitter.
Good morning baseball fans! We finally get back to playing some baseball that counts in the standings.
Our first major starting pitching deal of the summer went down on Thursday, with the Red Sox acquiring Drew Pomeranz from the Padres in exchange for pitching prospect Anderson Espinoza.
Another American League East team, the Rays, were active on Thursday, signing Kevin Jepsen to a major-league deal.
Between now and the trade deadline, the Mets appear poised to address their bullpen.
Despite losing 16 of the last 20 All-Star Games, the National League is on the rise and could be threatening the AL as the premiere league in baseball.
In 2003, NL designated hitters were excellent. The same was true in 2009. It’s been true again this year. Now, in the past, those spikes have been one-offs. And this could be another one-off, but I’m just taking a snapshot of time, here, and in this snapshot, the NL has done well to find a bat on the bench. People used to complain that the NL was at a disadvantage because rosters didn’t include DH types, by design. This has been a successful season. There’s been no DH disadvantage at all.
There’s still going to be a lot more baseball. With 180 interleague games in the books, there are another 120 left to play, and the numbers could shift rather dramatically. In the AL, the first-place Orioles have played just seven interleague games. The first-place Rangers have played just eight. On the other hand, the Phillies lead the NL with 16 interleague games. And the Cubs, so far, have played just two, by far the smallest amount. I don’t know if the National League is superior to the American League. I do know it’s at least a valid question. If anybody cares, the two leagues have again found a balance.
Rougned Odor rejected a contract extension of six years, worth $35 million from the Texas Rangers.
The latest edition of the Rosterbatorical was released yesterday, with the guys talking about the All-Star Game and their midseason awards.
Here is a roundup of news from around the American League West.
Over at Beyond the Box Score, the staff put together their own version of the mid-season All-Stars, with the National League team being finalized yesterday.
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Today in Baseball History: In 1999, the Mariners finally play a home game outside, opening their new home ballpark, Safeco Field.