NL West

San Francisco Giants manager Gabe Kapler is speaking out about the state of the country in the wake of Tuesday's mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. 

In a post on his personal website, Kapler wrote that he is "not okay" with where things are in the United States. 

Kapler noted he considered taking a knee during the playing of the national anthem prior to San Francisco's game against the New York Mets on Tuesday, but he didn't because he "didn’t want to call attention" to himself:

"I didn't want to take away from the victims or their families. There was a baseball game, a rock band, the lights, the pageantry. I knew that thousands of people were using this game to escape the horrors of the world for just a little bit. I knew that thousands more wouldn't understand the gesture and would take it as an offense to the military, to veterans, to themselves."

The 46-year-old said his father taught him to stand up for the pledge of allegiance when he believed the country was representing its people well or to protest and remain seated when it wasn't. 

"I don’t believe it is representing us well right now," Kapler wrote.

Speaking to reporters prior to Friday's game against the Cincinnati Reds, Kapler said he won't come out of the dugout for the national anthem before games going forward "until I feel better about the direction of our country."

Kapler was also critical of the police response and politicians who receive money from gun lobbyists: 

"The police on the scene put a mother in handcuffs as she begged them to go in and save her children. They blocked parents trying to organize to charge in to stop the shooter, including a father who learned his daughter was murdered while he argued with the cops. We aren't free when politicians decide that the lobbyist and gun industries are more important than our children's freedom to go to school without needing bulletproof backpacks and active shooter drills."

Salvador Ramos killed 21 people, including 19 children and two teachers, after walking into the school with an assault rifle. He also shot his grandmother in the face at her home before taking his grandparents' car to drive to the school, per the Los Angeles Times. 

Ramos was killed by a Border Patrol agent. 

Col. Steven McCraw, director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, told reporters on Friday that police officers made several missteps in their response to the situation. 

The mass shooting is the deadliest at a U.S. elementary school since 2012 when 26 people were killed at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut. It has led to renewed calls for gun-law reform across the country, including the sports world. 

The Golden State Warriors held a moment of silence for the victims prior to Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals and provided fans a way to support sensible gun laws. 

Instead of covering their game on Thursday night, the New York Yankees and Tampa Bay Rays used their social media accounts to share stats and facts about gun violence and its impact in the United States. 

Kapler noted he's "often struck before our games by the lack of delivery of the promise of what our national anthem represents."

He closed his post with a similar message: "I wish I hadn’t let my discomfort compromise my integrity. I wish that I could have demonstrated what I learned from my dad, that when you’re dissatisfied with your country, you let it be known through protest. The home of the brave should encourage this."

San Francisco Giants outfielder Joc Pederson credited team legend Barry Bonds for providing him with words of wisdom ahead of his three-home run game against the New York Mets on Tuesday night.

"Just getting knowledge from such a good hitter and the way he thinks about baseball and hitting, it just helped to connect some dots to free my mind up at the plate," Pederson told reporters. "I'm not ever going to be Barry Bonds. He's the best hitter to touch a bat. But it definitely helped free my mind up in the box."

The two-time World Series champion drove in eight of the Giants' 13 runs as part of a wild 13-12 victory over the Mets.

The 30-year-old California native signed with San Francisco in March after winning titles with the Los Angeles Dodgers and Atlanta Braves over the past two years.

Pederson provided the Giants' offense with an early boost, hitting six homers in April, but he'd gone cold in May. He entered Tuesday's game with an .073 average (4-of-55) and one HR this month.

He explained his conversation with Bonds, who serves as a special adviser to the club, started in the clubhouse alongside teammate LaMonte Wade Jr. and then shifted to an office ahead of the game's 6:45 p.m. PT start.

"The next thing you know it was like 6:25 p.m. and I was like, 'I gotta go,'" Pederson said.

Whatever Bonds said worked as Pederson finished with four hits, adding a game-tying single in the ninth inning to his three longballs. The Giants won the game on a walk-off single by Brandon Crawford.

Bonds is one of the most decorated players to ever step on a baseball field.

His accolades include seven National League MVP Awards, 14 All-Star selections, eight Gold Glove Awards and two batting titles. His 762 home runs and 2,558 walks are both the most in MLB history.

His Hall of Fame candidacy generated ample debate because of his links to the BALCO scandal.

Bonds never tested positive for performance-enhancing drugs in a MLB-administered test, but an indictment as part of his perjury case included evidence of a positive test for anabolic steroids in November 2000.

That link to PEDs was a key factor as Bonds' 10th year on the Hall of Fame ballot ended in January without being enshrined. He could still be one day elected for the HOF via an Era Committee.

Regardless of whether he ever lands in Cooperstown, his success at the plate makes him one of the greatest hitters ever and, based on his advice to Pederson, it appears he still knows a thing or two about how to attack modern pitching.

The Los Angeles Dodgers will likely release starting pitcher Trevor Bauer if he wins a large enough reduction via appeal to his 324-game suspension without pay for violating MLB's joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.

That's according to New York Post's Jon Heyman, who noted that Bauer has nearly $60 million left on his current three-year, $102 million deal signed with the Dodgers before the 2021 season.

He also wrote that the Dodgers, who had a league-high $280.8 million Opening Day payroll, would "take the financial hit" for any remaining money owed should the suspension get reduced.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred announced the suspension on April 29. If the suspension is not reduced, Bauer would be eligible to return early in the 2024 season.

His current contract runs through 2023, a season with a player option. Heyman previously reported that Bauer does not plan to opt out.

Three women have accused Bauer of sexual violence, per Gus Garcia-Roberts of the Washington Post. 

The first allegation came to light in June 2021, when The Athletic's Brittany Ghiroli and Katie Strang reported that a woman received a temporary restraining order against him after alleging he sexually assaulted her on two different occasions.

The woman said that she and Bauer began consensual sexual encounters but that he soon performed sexual acts she did not consent to. The woman also said Bauer choked her unconscious, punched her on multiple occasions and caused serious injuries.

Last February, the Los Angeles County District Attorney's office decided against pursuing criminal charges against Bauer, who said he is filing a defamation suit against the woman and her attorney. 

Garcia-Roberts wrote that an Ohio woman said Bauer struck her "without her consent during sex in 2018" and that she was granted an ex parte temporary civil stalking protection order in June 2020. A third woman said that Bauer assaulted her during sex multiple times from 2013-14.

Bauer denied the allegations in the Washington Post article.

Bauer was put on paid administrative leave in July 2021 soon after the first allegations came to light. His leave was continuously extended until April when the suspension was announced.

Regarding his baseball future, Heyman said that "there is believed to be little support inside the Dodgers clubhouse for Bauer." Heyman also noted that Bauer's suspension is "seen as having a chance for a steep reduction":

While not all the facts have come out, with three women known to claim abuse, it's unlikely the ban will be completely overturned as Bauer has suggested it should be. However, Bauer’s criminal case was thrown out, and with the previous record ban for abuse being exactly half Bauer’s suspension, he’s seen as having a chance for a steep reduction. He’d surely prefer a hearing held soon; his pay stopped with the ban, and more importantly, he hasn’t pitched for 10 months.

Bauer said he would appeal MLB's decision:

The 31-year-old has played 10 MLB seasons for the Arizona Diamondbacks, Cleveland Guardians, Cincinnati Reds and Dodgers.

Four days after being officially released by the New York Mets, Robinson Cano is reportedly nearing a deal with the San Diego Padres. 

Per Jon Heyman of MLB Network and the New York Post, Cano and the Padres are "close" to an agreement. 

Dennis Lin of The Athletic reported the two sides are expected to finalize the contract on Friday.

The Mets designated Cano for assignment on May 2, giving the team seven days to either trade him or place him on waivers. He was released by the team on Sunday. 

As a result of the abbreviated spring training caused by the lockout, Major League Baseball allowed teams to carry 28 players on the roster for the first month of the season. May 2 marked the deadline for teams to cut their roster down to 26 players.

The move left the Mets on the hook for the $44.7 million that was still remaining on Cano's contract. He was hitting .195/.233/.268 with one homer and three RBI in 12 games this season. 

San Diego could look to use Cano at designated hitter or as a bench player. Luke Voit, the team's primary DH, has a .184/.349/.327 slash line with two homers and seven RBI in 15 games. 

Second baseman Jake Cronenworth has a .657 OPS in 117 at-bats. The Padres could get superstar shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. back in mid-June after he underwent wrist surgery in March. 

Cano was looking to re-establish himself for the Mets this season. The eight-time All-Star was suspended for the entire 2021 season after testing positive for a performance-enhancing drug in November 2020. 

Instead, after a slow start, Cano found his career at a crossroads as a 39-year-old free agent. His sample size of at-bats this season is so small that it's hard to draw any conclusions from his .591 OPS. 

During the 2020 season, Cano fared well with a .316/.352/.544 slash line and 10 homers in 49 games. 

The Padres would be an ideal landing spot for Cano. They are a playoff contender in the NL with plenty of depth already on the roster, so he doesn't have to come in to potentially save their season.     

Major League Baseball umpire Dan Bellino has issued an apology following his altercation with Madison Bumgarner in Wednesday's Arizona Diamondbacks-Miami Marlins game. 

Bellino said in a statement, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers:

I would like to address my actions on May 4 involving Madison Bumgarner. When I began my MLB career almost 15 years ago, I received some good advice. I was told to umpire every game as if my children were sitting in the front row. I fell short of those expectations this week. While I can't go back and change what happened, I take full accountability. I will learn from this incident, and I sincerely apologize.

Bumgarner was thrown out of Wednesday's game at the end of the first inning while getting his glove and other equipment checked for foreign substances.

Bellino was rubbing Bumgarner's hand for what appeared to be an unnecessary amount of time, and once the check was done, the veteran pitcher appeared to tell the umpire, "Take your f--ing time," before an argument broke out. 

Bumgarner eventually had to be restrained by his coaches and teammates before things settled down. Bellino was disciplined for the incident, according to Rogers. However, he is still working the Houston Astros-Detroit Tigers series this weekend. 

Bumgarner, meanwhile, is not facing further discipline, Rodgers added. He told reporters (h/t R.J. Anderson of CBS Sports) after the game that he knew why he was thrown out. 

I don't know if I can say anything that would make the situation better, so what I'm gonna say is I'm extremely proud of our team coming back and winning today because I put us in a big hole there. Obviously you didn't go into the game with the intention of throwing one inning, so for them to be able to fight and everyone picked me up today, for that to happen that's pretty incredible. Very proud." 

The 32-year-old has made six starts this season, posting a 1.50 ERA, 1.13 WHIP and 15 strikeouts across 24 innings. He is in his third season with the Diamondbacks after a 11-year career with the San Francisco Giants. 

Arizona enters Friday's game against the Colorado Rockies with a 13-13 record, fifth in the NL West. 

Major League Baseball is suspending Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Trevor Bauer for 324 games, the equivalent of two full seasons, without pay for violating its joint domestic violence, sexual assault and child abuse policy.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today provided the league's full press release:

Bauer announced he will appeal the suspension:

ESPN's Jeff Passan noted, per Gus Garcia-Roberts of the Washington Post, that Bauer is also facing new allegations:

The 2020 National League Cy Young winner hasn't appeared in a game for the Dodgers since June 2021.

On June 30, The Athletic's Brittany Ghiroli and Katie Strang reported a woman had obtained a temporary restraining order against Bauer after alleging he had sexually assaulted her on two occasions. The woman said he had choked her until she was unconscious, punched her multiple times and committed sexual acts to which she didn't consent.

Bauer's attorney, Jon Fetterolf, denied the allegations.

MLB placed Bauer on administrative leave beginning July 2 and extended his leave in 14-day increments until he was ruled out for the remainder of the 2021 season last September.

The Los Angeles County district attorney's office stated on Feb. 8 the 31-year-old wouldn't face criminal charges stemming from the allegations. He issued a seven-minute statement on the matter on his YouTube channel:

In addition to the allegations laid out in The Athletic's report, Gus Garcia-Roberts and Molly Hensley-Clancy of the Washington Post reported last August an Ohio woman had sought a temporary order of protection against Bauer in June 2020.

Criminal charges aren't a prerequisite under the league's policy in order to hand down a suspension. Aroldis Chapman (30 games), Jose Reyes (51 games) and Roberto Osuna (75 games) all received notable bans despite not being criminally charged or having their charges eventually dropped.

MLB and the MLB Players Association agreed in March to extend Bauer's administrative leave period.

ESPN's Jeff Passan reported in February that Bauer was not only expected to be suspended by MLB, but that his punishment could also run for one or two years.

Passan also wrote how his future in the sport was somewhat unknown:

In August, sources around the sport told ESPN they expect the league to levy a significant suspension against Bauer. Further, front-office officials questioned not just whether the reigning National League Cy Young Award winner would return to the field with the Dodgers but whether any team in MLB would be willing to roster him after multiple women accused him of abuse.

ESPN spoke with more than two dozen sources—executives, owners, lawyers, players and others familiar with how the league's domestic violence policy operates—to assess Bauer's future. While MLB and Bauer's camp declined comment, the picture that emerged is one in which Bauer will remain a prominent figure in baseball even as he's not in a uniform, with him protesting the discipline handed down and trying to salvage his career and money.

Following the conclusion of the 2021 season, Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman was vague about Bauer's long-term status with the organization.

"It’s no different than where we were in July, August and September," he told reporters. "From our standpoint, it’s being handled by the league office. As soon as something is decided, we will come down and talk through it extensively with you guys. But until that happens, we have to reserve comment."

Bauer originally signed a three-year, $102 million contract with the Dodgers during the 2021 offseason. The deal included $32 million player options for 2022 and 2023. The right-hander exercised the first of those two options last November.

The Colorado Rockies and left-handed starting pitcher Kyle Freeland have reached an agreement on a five-year, $64.5 million contract extension that includes a sixth-year player option, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Freeland, who was scheduled to become a free agent after the 2023 season, has played all six of his MLB campaigns with the Rockies.

The 28-year-old's best performance was in 2018, when he went 17-7 with a 2.85 ERA en route to finishing fourth in National League Cy Young voting.

Freeland and the Rockies were headed for arbitration before reaching an agreement that will keep the pitcher in Denver through 2026. Per Nick Groke of The Athletic, Freeland was looking for $7.8 million. The Rockies offered him $6.4 million.

Freeland was born and raised in Denver before going to the University of Evansville in Indiana. The Rockies selected Freeland eighth overall in the 2014 draft. Three years later, Freeland made his MLB debut.

The southpaw hasn't been able to replicate his 2018 success, but he's still a serviceable pitcher. He went 7-8 with a 4.33 ERA in 23 starts last year.

Freeland pitches half of his games in the hitter-friendly Coors Field, but Groke noted that he's been up to the task.

Since he debuted in 2017, Freeland has the lowest home ERA among Rockies starters, at 4.53. And his overall park-adjusted ERA+, according to FanGraphs, is the same as [Germán] Márquez’s, representing the best on the team.

His pitch arsenal seems built for the extreme environment of Coors Field, more dependent on guile, placement and mix than on high spin rates, which can die in the thin air.

He'll be pitching Tuesday when the Rockies welcome Bryce Harper and the Philadelphia Phillies to town for an 8:40 p.m. ET game. Right-hander Kyle Gibson will take the mound for the opposition.

At $7.01 billion, the New York Yankees are once again the most valuable franchise in Major League Baseball in 2022.

As seen in the graph tweeted by Sportico's Michael McCann, the Yanks lead the way, followed by the rival Boston Red Sox at $5.07 billion, while the Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs and San Francisco Giants round out the top five:

The same teams occupied the top five spots last year as well, although the Yankees saw their value rise from $6.75 billion in 2021.

In fact, the same 10 teams are represented in the top 10 of Sportico's list this year compared to last, with the only difference being that the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Angels swapped places. Atlanta went from eighth to seventh.

Of course, the Braves are coming off their first World Series championship since 1995.

As Sportico's Kurt Badenhausen noted, the average MLB franchise is worth $2.31 billion in 2022, although there is a sizable gap between the teams.

The five most valuable MLB teams are worth $25 billion in total, which means they are propping up the average value significantly compared to teams near the bottom of the rankings, such as the Miami Marlins, Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals, Pittsburgh Pirates and Oakland Athletics, all of whom have a value of $1.34 billion or lower.

The $2.31 billion average value is a 5 percent increase from last season with jersey advertisement patches and an expanded postseason playing a role, per Badenhausen.

That increase is aided by the fact that only two franchises—the Marlins and Baltimore Orioles—saw their value fall compared to last year. Meanwhile, the Houston Astros had the biggest rise in value since 2021 at 10 percent.

It comes as little surprise that the most profitable and valuable teams all reside in huge markets, including two teams from New York City (Yankees and Mets) and Los Angeles (Dodgers and Angels) inside the top eight.

The Yankees are traditionally at or near the top of such lists on an annual basis, as they are among the most valuable franchises not only in MLB but in all of sports.

For the past three years, the Yankees have finished second only to the NFL's Dallas Cowboys on Forbes' list of the most valuable sports teams in the world, but Badenhausen reported that they are now the most valuable sports franchise in the world for 2022.

Despite their value, the success fans have come to expect has largely eluded them. Although the Yanks have reached the playoffs the past five seasons and haven't had a losing record since 1992, they also haven't won or reached a World Series since 2009.

The Red Sox, Dodgers, Cubs and Giants have all won a World Series more recently, as have teams outside the top 10 in valuation, such as the Astros (11th), Washington Nationals (12th) and Royals (28th).

New York could also be in danger of losing superstar outfielder Aaron Judge to free agency during the offseason, as the sides have yet to come to terms on a new deal. But based on the fact that the Yankees are worth over $7 billion, letting him walk for financial reasons would be a tough sell to the fanbase.

The San Francisco Giants are planning to call up center fielder Heliot Ramos ahead of Sunday's game against the Miami Marlins, according to Alex Pavlovic of NBC Sports Bay Area.

MLB.com ranks Ramos as the sixth-best prospect in San Francisco's minor league system.

The 22-year-old split the 2022 season across Double-A and Triple-A. In 116 games, he batted .254 and slugged .417 with 14 home runs. In March, Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter listed him as the Giants' most hyped prospect coming into this season:

We're still at least a year away from seeing Marco Luciano in the big leagues, and Joey Bart has already seen MLB action, so Ramos gets the nod for the Giants. The 22-year-old's elite bat speed and huge raw power should give the Giants a major boost offensively once he gets the call, and the team's outfield situation is far from set in stone.

The timing of Ramos' promotion is a bit surprising. Earlier this week, president of baseball operations Farhan Zaidi told The Athletic's Tim Kawakami that Ramos was getting close to the majors but added he's "definitely a name to look for at some point this summer."

That certainly seemed to indicate the Puerto Rican slugger wouldn't be joining the Giants until late May or early June, unless Zaidi has a far different definition of "summer."

Ramos has hit the ground running in 2022, though. He homered in his first at-bat in the Sacramento River Cats' season opener.

In a 6-0 victory over the Sugar Land Space Cowboys on Thursday, he doubled home Sacramento's first two runs.

All three of San Francisco's regular starting outfielders (Mike Yastrzemski, Joc Pederson and Steven Duggar) bat left-handed. Adding Ramos' righty bat to the mix gives manager Gabe Kapler a little more flexibility with his offense.

The Giants face a left-hander (Taylor Rogers) Sunday and see another southpaw on tap Wednesday (Sean Manaea of the San Diego Padres). Either game would be a good opportunity to insert Ramos into the starting lineup.