Baseball Connection

Cameron Maybin has hung up his spikes after a 15-year MLB career. Maybin played with 10 different teams over the years. Although he was a journeyman, it was for good reason. His speed and defense combination was of value to many teams. At his peak, Maybin could steal a base on command and provide some power as well. All this (and more) on today's episode.

The Indians finished below .500 for the first time since 2012. They were close, though, at 80-82. With such a young team, Cleveland is trying to establish their identity at this point. For 2022, expect Cleveland to show some growth, growing pains, and more flashes of star performance from Jose Ramirez.

Expectations were sky high in San Diego heading into last season. They were considered among the cream of the crop in terms of talent and looked like they could compete for an NL West title. Injuries mounted and things turned south in the second half of the year. The Padres finished with a disappointing record of 79-83? What else went wrong? How can they be better in 2022? All this on today's episode.

The Tigers were one of the most improved teams in MLB last season. After finishing with the worst record in 2019 and third-worst in 2020, they took a big leap in 2021 and finished near the middle of the pack. The rebuild is over and the Tigers should be a solid team in 2022 with plenty of momentum moving forward. The ingredients are in place for a return to winning baseball in Detroit. All this on today's episode.

Although the Los Angeles Angels finished fourth in their division, they hosted the best show in town on most nights in the summer of 2021. Shohei Ohtani took the baseball world by storm in his historic MVP season, producing as both a pitcher and a hitter. Don't forget about the best player in the world, Mike Trout. He needs to get healthy for this team to move forward. What will 2022 look like for the Angels? All this on today's episode.

Kyle Seager has announced his retirement. The news came as a surprise considering Seager just came off a season with career high marks of 35 HRs and 101 RBIs. Seager was a career-long Seattle Mariner and the franchise face over the past several years. How can a team plan for both now and the future? It turns out anything is possible when you have plenty of payroll flexibility. All this on today's episode.

The 2022 Hall of Fame ballot consists of many familiar names. These are some of the best players of a generation but not all were highly regarded at first. In fact, some were seen as extra fill-ins or fringe MLB players at first. Who are these players and what are their chances of Hall of Fame induction? All this on today's episode.

The Mets came into 2021 with high expectations but fell far short of them. Their offense struggled and the pitching staff was plagued with injuries. There won't be any excuse for continued mediocrity in 2022 because the Mets have made major moves to improve their squad this winter. All this on today's episode.

In the Christmas spirit, we notice that every team has received a gift at some point. Whether it's trading for an unknown player who would alter franchise history, selecting a future Hall of Famer late in the draft, or benefiting from an error which would help them win the World Series. What are the top gifts some teams have ever gotten?

A lot of winning at home but even more losing on the road. That was the theme for the Rockies in 2021. They're losing Trevor Story but have promising young infielders on the squad already. They have poor pitching but no real plan to fix it. Where should the Rockies go from here?