*The Masked Marvel tried to calm your nerves about 2017.
*Don't miss the case for voiding the last two years of Jose Altuve's contract. Or the 2017 payroll breakdown.
*Danny Worth elected free agency in the last week and presumably will not be returning to the Astros organization.
Worth absolutely killed it in Fresno to the tune of .330/.431/.525 with 72K:54BB. But in 16 games for Houston (40 PAs) Worth hit .179/200/.231 while seeing time at 2B, 3B, SS, and DH at the height of the Astros' injury crisis.
*Astros prospect Ramon Laureano went 3x5 with a single, double, triple and an RBI in yesterday's Arizona Fall League game for Glendale. On October 11 Garrett Stubbs hit a homer for Glendale; Rogelio Armenteros threw 1.1IP, 3H/2ER, 0K:1BB. Francis Martes is scheduled to start today.
*Not for nothing, but the Blue Jays are planning on offering impending free agent Edwin Encarnacion a qualifying offer - should such a thing still exist by the beginning of 2017. Heyman reports Encarnacion will be looking for at least a four-year deal, though the Blue Jays would prefer to offer three years. He'll be in his Age 34 season in 2017 and posted an .886 OPS this season after four straight .900+ OPS seasons. (My dumb brain would happily give Encarnacion 4yrs/$90m).
*Four months after the Padres' managing partner Peter Seidler said he expected president/CEO Mike Dee to be around for a long time, Dee is out.
*The history of Clayton Kershaw's postseason bullpens. Spoiler: 53% of the runners his bullpen inherited scored. That's not all on Kershaw.
*Vice Sports: The Dodgers are still alive because things like reason and logic don't exist in the playoffs.
*Hardball Times: MLB turned a blind eye to Bobby Cox's domestic abuse
We didn't come out here to play tiddlywinks, son.
-Hal Smith
