Sports Explored

@stevenkwanshat Rocchio in 2025: vs LHP: 87 wRC+ vs RHP: 73 wRC+ Getting him to ~95–100 is a big jump. That’s probably the swing factor in whether this lineup is “good” vs legit.

If Brayan Rocchio can even muster a 95 wRC+ we have a lineup with 8 good baseball players

I’m still a writer. I said I was done with sports articles. I’m not. Hope you enjoy these thoughts. @rodbluhm/note/p-192162781?r=dzf6q&utm_medium=ios&utm_source=notes-share-action" target="_blank" rel="nofollow noopener">substack.com/@rodbluhm/note…

@ThePoniExpress I’d look at it from a market perspective—win totals tend to shade toward the over because that’s where public money goes. You’re often paying a premium for optimism. So 78.5 likely isn’t a “true” median outcome—it’s a priced one.

I’ve wagered a small fortune on the Pirates over 78.5 wins this year. How would you feel right now if you were me?

@923TheFan @RuiterWrongFAN @CLETalkingHeads If the Browns are going to trade Myles Garrett, what exactly are they waiting for? He’s entering his age-30 season. 23 sacks is more likely an outlier than a new baseline.

"The Browns are saying they're not trading Myles Garrett. The key words are 'right now'. I think that it's more likely than not he plays this season here and they trade him next year (if they're going to), but..." 🏈 @RuiterWrongFAN w/ @CLETalkingHeads on the storyline around the #Browns and Myles Garrett

If the Browns are going to trade Myles Garrett, what exactly are they waiting for? He’s entering his age-30 season. 23 sacks is more likely an outlier than a new baseline. The “3 first-round picks” argument leans on a Crosby scenario that never actually materialized. And the Browns hold pick #6—very real chance at a top EDGE replacement. This feels like the window.

Last year, Myles requested a trade. He signed the new contract based on the Browns having a plan at QB and coaching. They overhauled the coaching staff and I guess Sanders is QB1 now? Myles has the no trade clause to dictate where he goes. This means there won't be a public bidding war. Draft day trade becomes very likely, if not something post-June1

I thought Coach DeBoer threaded the needle well on Ty Simpson. No hype, but also not overly critical of his shortcomings. He made it clear there are real positives in Ty’s game, along with areas that still need development—which is probably the most honest evaluation you’re going to get.

Alabama Head Coach Kalen DeBoer didn't do a great job selling us on Ty Simpson, but he's honest, and we appreciate him for it. He DID swing our feelings a bit on a couple other players. Link below! audacy.com/923thefan/spor…

@SportsBoyTony I might be off, but most of the shots I see Mobley take inside 15 ft are jump hooks. Feels like his shot profile is still pretty limited—maybe expectations are just really high for him right now?

Mobley was shooting 60% post ASB, but I can’t imagine the Cavs org thought he would be this much of a question mark heading into his fifth year playoff run Harden has made a concerted effort to make life easier on Evan since the trade because he knew they’d need him. But he’s not someone to play thru at this stage. That’s troubling

@TonyGrossi Feels like the key takeaway is the contract change created a real path to a trade. Whether they take it is a different question, but that wasn’t the case a few weeks ago.

Unlocked: A trade of Myles Garrett is the Browns' only ticket out of no-man's land. via TLOD thelandondemand.com/news/2026/mar/…

@JackDuffin @JackMcCurry08 That’s a pretty big shift—from <1% to 50/50. Feels like this moved from “not happening” to “very real possibility” quickly.

You can go back to last year, I said multiple times there was less than a 1% chance Myles Garrett gets traded in 2025 I would say it’s at least 50/50 now this offseason Garrett gets traded

@JackDuffin @JackMcCurry08 Interesting how the conversation has shifted—feels like this is less hypothetical than it was a few weeks ago.

Cleveland #Browns Open The Door To Trading Myles Garrett 247sports.com/nfl/cleveland-…

@JackDuffin This is interesting—does the contract change make a trade more viable, or just change when it could realistically happen?

Yesterday I wrote an article titled “Last Day For The Cleveland Browns To Trade Myles Garrett In 2026” 247sports.com/nfl/cleveland-… Well that date just moved to 7 days before the regular season 👀

@TonyGrossi Tony, would appreciate your insight on proper trade value here. David Bailey and Rubin Bain look like top edge prospects in this draft. Feels like adding an extra 1st this year and future picks could really help in a rebuild.

Hmmm. Complicated contract. But timing makes you wonder if this makes him more tradeable after what the Raiders could have gotten for Maxx Crosby?

@TylerKepner This is a great explanation of why batting averages are down. What it doesn’t answer is whether hitters are optimizing their approach in response. If contact is harder, situational hitting might actually be more valuable than we think.

Whatever happened to the .300 average? Only one NL hitter did it last season. No lefty in either league did it. Here's why the benchmark of batting is going extinct -- unlocked and free for all nytimes.com/athletic/71433…

@NFL_DougFarrar We discussed QB anticipation yesterday. ARod often talked about “trust” with his receivers. Knowing they would run the right routes, making adjustments at the line of scrimmage, etc. allowed him to anticipate where receivers would be.

It’s too bad that recent oddities have obscured the fact that at his peak, Rodgers had the most arm talent… ever.

Thinking about this more— The key point is BA doesn’t capture total offensive value (no walks, limited view of power). That’s why metrics like wRC+ are used—it measures overall run contribution. Raleigh vs Judge is really a value discussion (position + total production), not a batting average one

BA isn’t the key metric plus Cal Raleigh is a C at arguably the most important defensive position. Judge played the OF. Judge had an incredible year at the plate and he won. Raleigh’s is a switch hitter and his numbers were great from both sides of the plate wRC+ 186 vs LHP wRC+ 150 vs RHP Link to an article I wrote about wRC+ open.substack.com/pub/baseballex…

In 2000, 30 players hit .300 or better. Last season, fewer than 10 did. Is hitting a lost art, or did pitching just win the arms race? Genuinely asking.

That’s a good question—and I don’t think it’s something you can dismiss out of hand. One way to evaluate it is total run production. If modern hitting approaches (launch angle, damage, etc.) were clearly superior, you might expect higher scoring. But total runs were actually higher in 2000 (~25K) than in 2025 (~21.6K). So it doesn’t look like offense has increased. That suggests not a “lost art,” but a tougher run environment—likely driven by pitching—and hitters adapting within it