Happy Saturday!

The most important baseball decision of the summer belongs to the Tigers.

Three years ago, the LA Angels stood in the exact same spot.

Will Detroit make the same mistake?

Tarik Skubal is progressing quickly from elbow surgery. He's scheduled to make a rehab start this weekend and could be back in Detroit's rotation by mid-June.

Good news, right?

Well...

The Tigers have fallen apart. They sit near the bottom of a weak AL Central, which raises an interesting question:

Do they trade Skubal for a mountain of prospects, or hope he pitches them back into contention knowing they'll lose him after the season for nothing more than a draft pick?

The Angels chose door No. 2 with Shohei Ohtani.

They could have traded Ohtani, maybe even Mike Trout, and completely rebuilt their franchise.

Instead, they held on.

We all know how that worked out.

Here's hoping Detroit makes the smart baseball decision.

Meanwhile...

The Yankees just lost Aaron Judge indefinitely with a fractured rib.

It’s a brutal blow for New York, which is locked in a tight race with the Rays in the AL East.

Another reminder of how quickly things can change.

One injury.

One swing.

And finally...

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts jumped into the CBA debate this week, taking aim at critics who claim Los Angeles is ruining baseball with its spending.

Roberts called the criticism “lazy”.

He said the Dodgers' success is about more than money. It's about drafting, player development, and finding international talent.

Yeah.

Signing Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto probably hasn't hurt. 😂

Roberts also suggested other organizations should look in the mirror.

With a $400 million payroll, that's probably a pretty nice mirror, Doc.

An accident. An injury. A baseball tradition may now be at risk.

One of the coolest sights at a ballpark happens between innings.

An outfielder playing a game of catch with a fan in the stands.

Last weekend, that tradition may have taken a major hit.

Blue Jays outfielder Jesús Sánchez left the game after being struck on the wrist by a ball thrown from the stands.

Fortunately, X-rays were negative.

According to reports, a young fan thought Sánchez was asking to play catch and tossed the ball.

An accident.

A simple misunderstanding.

But also a reminder that a baseball thrown from 30 rows up can do some real damage.

The worst part?

Moments like this tend to change behavior.

Players already have enough reasons to avoid interacting with fans during games.

Nobody is blaming the kid.

Nobody is calling for fan bans.

But don't be surprised if those friendly between-inning games of catch become a little rarer.

Sometimes it only takes one accident to kill a tradition.

Here's the strangest baseball stat you'll read all week.

What do Ty Cobb and Brandon Marsh have in common?

Answer:

They're the only two players in MLB history with a career BABIP above .370.

BABIP?

BABIP measures how often a ball hit into the field of play becomes a hit.

Marsh sits at .376.

Cobb finished at .383.

Ty Cobb and Brandon Marsh.

In the same sentence.

Who would've thought? 🍺😂

Most baseball fans don't remember the wins. They remember the mustache.

The New York Mets inducted Bobby Valentine into their Hall of Fame last weekend.

For many fans, one image immediately comes to mind.

Not the World Series.

Not the playoff runs.

The fake mustache.

In 1999, Valentine was ejected during a game against Toronto.

A few innings later, he mysteriously reappeared in the Mets dugout wearing sunglasses and a phony mustache that looked like it came from a dollar-store Halloween kit.

It was one of the funniest moments in baseball history.

But Bobby Valentine was a lot more than a baseball prankster.

Growing up in Anaheim, I remember him as a young California Angels outfielder everyone thought was headed for greatness.

Fast.

Athletic.

Exciting.

Bright future.

Then came the injury.

1973.

Valentine crashed into the outfield wall chasing a fly ball.

Back then, those walls weren't padded the way they are today.

The injury was horrific.

A Compound fracture.

And just like that, the career everyone imagined for Bobby Valentine was gone.

Valentine fought his way back and played parts of ten major league seasons.

Then he reinvented himself.

Broadcaster.

Author.

Restaurant owner.

Mayoral candidate.

And manager.

He led the Mets to the 2000 World Series and guided the Chiba Lotte Marines to a Japan Series title in 2005.

So yes.

The fake mustache deserves its place in baseball lore.

But before the disguise, before the dugout stunt, there was a young California Angels outfielder destined for stardom.

That's the Bobby Valentine I remember.

—Box

Have a great weekend.
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