What? You’re surprised that Alex Anthopoulos would announce a contract for one of his players on the eve of his teams first post-season game?
I wouldn’t be. Canadian Thanksgiving or not, Monday was just another business day for Anthopoulos, the Atlanta Braves general manager and Montreal native, who formally announced a six-year, $75-million agreement with rookie pitcher Spencer Strider.
Strider's role against the Philadelphia Phillies in the National League Division Series is to be determined -- he’s been sidelined since Sept. 18 with an oblique injury, after going 11-5 (2.67 ERA) with 202 strikeouts in 131 2/3 innings -- with a bullpen stint or even an ‘opener’ scenario seemingly the very best-case scenario. Either way, the contract is sure to have attracted the attention of the Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah, who will receive American League Cy Young votes after finishing third in wins and ERA and fourth in innings pitched during the regular season, while recording the lowest WHIP and (0.99) in team history and the second-lowest ERA.
It really does seem at times as if Anthopoulos is trolling the Blue Jays, doesn’t it? Strider’s deal came less than two months after rookie outfielder Michael A. Harris II signed an eight-year, $72-million contract, and was the fourth multi-year extension signed this season by a Braves player, including Matt Olson’s eight-year, $165-million deal and Austin Riley’s 10-year, $212-million package. The Braves had previously locked up Ronald Acuna, Jr., and Ozzie Albies to club-friendly long-term contracts. As far as the Blue Jays and cornerstone players such as Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., and Bo Bichette are concerned? Crickets, with both players due to be free agents after the 2025 season and Bichette, like Manoah, citing a point of principle in letting the Blue Jays renew him this spring.
Of course, it takes two sides to make a deal work, and it’s entirely possible that the Blue Jays are entirely comfortable ponying up massive dollars to buy out two or three years of free agency with one of or both of Guerrero and Bichette. It’s not as if the Blue Jays are afraid to spend money or make long-term commitments, given the large extension given to Jose Berrios last season and the big free-agent deals handed to George Springer and Kevin Gausman. So what does it mean exactly?
I got nothing for you on that. I really don’t, beyond hoping it’s some sort of philosophical thing.
There’s a reason Anthopoulos made the announcement when he did, same as the Phillies announcing they were removing the ‘interim’ tag from manager Rob Thomson: Major League Baseball frowns upon announcements on post-season game days and ideally once the series themselves begin. As Anthopoulos noted: “After this morning, the focus is absolutely on the team.”
Strider's unavailability as a starter would weaken the Braves in an area where the Phillies are perhaps their closest match: starting pitching. But it won’t be a mortal wound for the Braves, who are better in all facets of the game than the Phillies. This one could be over quickly …
Six to watch
Ronald Acuna, Jr., RF, Braves
One of the storylines of the Braves' World Series title in 2021 was that it was accomplished without Acuna, Jr. – supposedly, their marquee player and franchise cornerstone who tore his right anterior cruciate ligament on July 11. The Braves were 44-44 at that point and Anthopoulos had yet to pull off a magical, surgical trade deadline.
When he did, all Acuna could do was look on as everybody remarked how remarkable it was that they could win without him. That’s a helluva thing for a then 23-year-old All-Star who had a so-so 2020 post-season.
Look for Acuna to get after it: his first-pitch average of .469 was fourth in the NL and one-third of those hits went for extra bases. Might as well test the Phillies' atrocious defence early and often.
Freddie Freeman, 1B, Los Angeles Dodgers
Oh come on. You know damn well you want to see Freeman playing the Braves in the NL Championship Series after his complicated departure from the team this winter – an exit made all the more intriguing by the fact that the Braves essentially signed everybody else of significance from that team to long-term contracts.
Chaos is good. Bitterness can be sweet.
Olson was a more than adequate replacement for Freeman and the money saved from tying up Freeman has been spread around. Freeman broke an 0-for-13 funk by going 3-for-4 in the final game of the regular season (it was the first time in 2022 he’d gone three games without a hit) and missed the batting title by one percentage point thanks to the decision by New York Mets manager Buck Showalter to rest Jeff McNeil. Coward!
Freeman led the majors in hits (199) and finished tied with teammate Mookie Betts with a major league-leading 117 runs scored. Freeman and shortstop Trea Turner joined Babe Ruth and Bob Meusel of the 1921 New York Yankees as the only pair of teammates to have 190 or more hits with 100 or more RBIs, 35 or more doubles, 20-plus home runs, 10-plus stolen bases and multiple hitting streaks of more than 12 games.
That’s a long way of saying he’s good. Plus, Freeman has healthy individual numbers against the San Diego Padres, including two homers off closer Josh Hader.
Raisel Iglesias, RHP, Braves:
One of the hallmarks of Braves manager Brian Snitker has been his ability to handle a post-season bullpen and, my goodness, did Anthopoulos ever help strengthen his hand by acquiring Iglesias from the Los Angeles Angels at the trade deadline for Jesse Chavez and Tucker Davidson, a 26-year-old left-hander.
The Braves already had a deep bullpen with Kenley Jansen as their closer but in bringing in Iglesias, who had three full years and $48 million left on his deal, they made one of the stealthiest pickups of the deadline.
Scuffling with the Angels, Iglesias posted a 0.34 ERA in 28 games with the Braves, striking out 30, walking five, giving up no homers and pitching to a WHIP of 0.835. Iglesias’ calling cards -- a changeup to lefty hitters, slider to righties -- make him tailor-made to get high-leverage outs against the Phillies lefty hitters before Atlanta gets around to Jansen.
Manny Machado, 3B, Padres
There was a whole lot of Trent Grishaming and Jurickson Profaring in the Padres' defeat of the New York Mets in their wild-card series, but considering San Diego's woeful 4-15 record against the Dodgers this season you’d think one of the Padres big names needs to step up.
I mean, this isn’t rocket science: during the regular-season Machado accounted for 14.2 per cent of the Padres' runs and 15.7 per cent of their extra-base hits. No other player hit those levels. His career numbers against Game 1 starter Julio Urias are impressive: 10-for-27 with four homers.
J.T. Realmuto, C, Phillies
The Braves won 11 of 19 games between these teams but the run differential in those games was just plus-three for Atlanta and Realmuto had three homers and 12 runs batted in against them.
Realmuto led all catchers during the regular season with a 6.5 fWAR -- he led all NL players and pitchers in fWAR over the final 75 games of the regular season -- and went 1-for-6 with two walks in the Phillies' wild-card sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Phillies are a bad defensive team, but Realmuto’s the exception: leading the majors in runners caught stealing and percentage while going 21-for-21 on the bases himself. The wild-card series against the St. Louis Cardinals marked his post-season debut.
Julio Urias, LHP, Dodgers:
Injuries to Walker Buehler and Dustin May, some summer arm issues for Tony Gonsolin and Clayton Kershaw’s dance with Father Time have reinforced the notion of Urias being the most consequential pitcher on the team with the most wins in baseball (111) -- a point that manager Dave Roberts hammers daily in national media appearances, feeling his left-hander is under-appreciated despite being the NL’s ERA champion.
Since deciding to work from the stretch late the 2020 season, only three qualified pitchers have thrown a higher percentage of pitches in the zone. He’ll finish games hitting 96 m.p.h and is unafraid to drop his arm down to a near-sidearm angle at times against lefties.
Urias has pitched out of the bullpen in the post-season and has already told Roberts he’s good for two starts over the five-game series -- and is prepared to come out of the bullpen if needed during the post-season. The Padres hit .181 off him in four games this season.
Prediction? Urias will win a post-season MVP Award if the Dodgers run the table.
Jeff Blair’s picks
Braves defeat Phillies 3-0.
Dodgers defeat Padres 3-1.
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