It’s MLB Thanksgiving! Everyone has something to be thankful for, so let’s go around the league and spend some time rejoicing.
Arizona Diamondbacks—New pitching coach Brent Strom isn’t the marquee item on the Thanksgiving Day table. He’s not the turkey or the ham or the vegetarian entree of choice. He’s more like a good side dish—mashed potatoes and gravy, candied yams, stuffing—but he could be important to a successful Diamondbacks pitching staff in the future and that would be something Diamondback fans would be thankful for.
Atlanta Hammers—Does any team have more to be thankful for than the team that just won the World Series? Nope. Not only did Atlanta win it all, they did it in unlikely fashion. Atlanta was still below .500 as late as August 4—when they were 54-55—but the seeds of a comeback had already been planted. They were in the midst of going 16-2 from August 3 through August 22, a stretch during which they moved up the standings from 3rd place and 3.5 games out to 1st place to 4.5 games up. Then they won the NL East, beat the Brewers in the NLDS, the Dodgers in the NLCS, and the Astros in the World Series. This is the second World Series title for the franchise in their 56 years in Atlanta and fourth World Series title for the franchise overall—a franchise that dates back to their days as the Boston Red Stockings in 1876 (according to Baseball-Reference). After being known as the Red Stockings, they became the Beaneaters, the Doves, the Rustlers, the Bees, and finally the name they are known as today, so it wouldn’t be any sort of problem at all to embrace a new name, such as the Atlanta Hammers, which would simultaneously embrace the legacy of Hank Aaron (“The Hammer”) and be way cooler than their current name. Think of the headlines: “Atlanta Hammers Mets, 15-5” or “Frederick Freeman Bangs the Hammer for the Hammers with Walk-Off Home Run!”
Baltimore Orioles—Now that it’s over, Orioles fans can forget about that 52-110 record in 2021 and think about how great Cedric Mullins was. He was really great, like, ninth in AL MVP voting great. Mullins was also the first Baltimore Orioles player to have a 30-HR/30-SB season (Ken Williams achieved the feat as a member of the St. Louis Browns in 1922). The Orioles could improve significantly if Mullins can do it again in 2022 and is joined by the #1, #8, and #72 prospects in baseball (according to MLB Pipeline)—catcher Adley Rutschman, right-handed pitcher Grayson Rodriguez, and left-handed pitcher D.L. Hall. Then, in 2023, third baseman Gunnar Henderson (#74) could be ready, followed by outfielder Colton Cowser (#76) in 2024.
Boston Red Sox—Please pass the dinner rolls and give thanks for the Red Sox knocking the Yankees out of the playoffs in 2021, as well as the Red Sox having four World Series titles to the Yankees’ one over the last two decades. Bonus thanks to the New England Patriots, who lead the AFC East and have two more wins than the New York Jets and New York Giants combined.
Chicago Cubs—Dish out some sweet potatoes for Frankie “Four Bags” Schwindel, who was the 18th round pick of the Kansas City Royals in the 2013 MLB JuneAmateur Draft. Schwindel spent seven years in the Royals’ minor league organization before he had the proverbial “cup of coffee” in the big leagues in 2019, going 1-for-15 in six games in April before being released in May. The Tigers signed him as a minor league free agent a couple weeks later, but he didn’t hit much as a 27-year-old in Double-A over the rest of the 2019 season. Then came the lost season of Covid. After being released by the Tigers in November of 2020, Schwindel was signed by the Oakland A’s. He hit .317/.362/.630 in 45 games with the Triple-A Las Vegas Aviators and was called to the big leagues for the second time in his career but once again struggled, going 3-for-20 in eight games, at which point his career batting line was 4-for-35. The A’s put him on waivers so they could activate Mitch Moreland and Frankie Four Bags was claimed by the Cubs. Even though he didn’t hit much in nine games in Triple-A (7-for-37), the Cubs brought him up in late July and put him in the lineup for good on August 3. All he did from that point forward was hit-hit-hit over the last two months of the season—.344/.391/.615, with 13 dingers in 55 games—including 27 games with two or more hits. During one stretch from September 3 through September 24, he went 33-for-80 (.413).
Chicago White Sox—It’s hard to know whether to thank the players themselves or the BABIP Gods, but the White Sox’ Tim Anderson and Yoán Moncada are first and second in BABIP for players with 1,000 or more plate appearances since the start of the 2019 season. Anderson has a .385 BABIP over the last three years, while Moncada is at .368. Teammate Leury García is eighth, at .341. That’s some serious BABIP-ing.
Cincinnati Reds—Canadian Thanksgiving was six weeks ago, but Reds fans still can’t resist being thankful on this MLB Thanksgiving for one of the best stories in baseball in 2021, which was the revival of Joey Votto. It’s not like Votto was bad over the previous couple seasons, but he just wasn’t the Joey Votto we all knew and loved. This year, he returned to the 3.5 WAR level he last achieved in 2018, but he did it in an entirely different way. In 2018, Votto’s 130 wRC+ was driven by his .417 on-base percentage. In 2021, Votto sacrificed OBP for power, hit .266/.375/.563, and had a 140 wRC+. One highlight of his season was a streak of seven straight games with a home run, which was very nearly an eight-game streak. According to Jay Jaffe’s JAWS system, Votto is already above the average JAWS rating of the 21 Hall of Fame first basemen. Votto ranks 12th in JAWS, not far behind Jim Thome and Miguel Cabrera despite having 2,000 fewer plate appearances.
Cleveland Guardians—According to this article from Zippia.com, green beans are the most popular Thanksgiving side dish in Ohio. Yep, green beans, the dish that can easily get lost in the shuffle among the sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce, and dinner rolls. Some years, the green beans are spruced up a bit and turned into a green bean casserole that elicits rave reviews from everyone around the table, like Cleveland’s 2016 season that nearly ended with a World Series victory. Other times, it’s just a bowl of green beans that the host forgot to put on the table and nobody seemed to notice, like Cleveland’s 2021 season when they finished below .500 for the first time since 2012. It’s difficult to know which version of green beans Cleveland will be in 2022 but, as of now, fans still have José Ramirez to be thankful for.
Colorado Rockies—Sure, Nolan Arenado and Trevor Story are gone and Charlie Blackmon is well into his decline phase, but the Rockies have one thing going for them that fans can be thankful for—they still win more often than not when playing at Coors Field. Even with three straight 4th place finishes in the AL West over the last three seasons, the Rockies have won almost 54 percent of their home games, which is a better home winning percentage than the Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres, and Boston Red Sox during that time. So, Rockies fans, you can still head out to the ballpark—after first stopping at Biker Jim’s for a jackalope dog and a beer—and see more wins than losses. Then, just find something else to do when the team is on the road because you’re not going to want to watch that train wreck.
Detroit Tigers—In 2021, after struggling to a 9-24 record over the first 20 percent of the season, the Tigers went 68-61 over the last 80 percent of the season. They had a successful Rule 5 addition in outfielder Akil Baddoo and a nice free agent signing in Robbie Grossman. They also have two top-10 prospects who are expected to be up with the big league team in 2022—Spencer Torkelson and Riley Greene. Torkelson was the #1 overall pick in the 2020 June Amateur Draft and hit .267/.383/.552, with 30 homers in 121 games across three levels of the minor leagues. Greene was the Tigers’ 1st round pick in 2019. He hit .301/.387/.534 in 124 games across Double-A and Triple-A. The future looks bright for the Tigers.
Houston Astros—Welcome back, Justin Verlander. Well, he never actually left but he was a free agent and could have signed elsewhere. Instead, he signed what is essentially a 2-year, $50-million contract and will continue his Hall of Fame career with the Astros. One really fun JAWS-related happening right now is that Justin Verlander, Clayton Kershaw, and Zack Greinke are 33rd, 34th, and 35th in JAWS for pitchers, with Max Scherzer coming on strong at 43rd. Verlander needs 24 wins to get to 250 for his career and 359 strikeouts to move into 10th on the all-time list (although Scherzer could push Verlander down to 11th).
Kansas City Royals—Do people in Kansas City have barbecue on Thanksgiving? Inquiring minds want to know. Anyway, Bobby Witt, Jr. is generally considered a top-3 prospect in all of baseball. He split time between Double-A and Triple-A last season and was essentially the same hitter at both levels, hitting .290/.361/.575 overall. He’s also a great power-speed guy, with 33 homers and 29 steals in 123 minor league games in 2021. Witt will be up with the Royals in 2022, it’s just a matter of whether they manipulate his service time and wait a few weeks to bring him up from Triple-A or put him in the Royals lineup on Opening Day. Kansas City has had four Rookie of the Year Award winners in their history—Lou Piniella in 1969, Bob Hamelin in 1994, Carlos Beltran in 1999, and Angel Berroa in 2003. Bobby Witt, Jr. could be their fifth.
Los Angeles Angels—Because his season was limited to just 36 games due to a calf injury, it’s easy to overlook that Mike Trout was having the best offensive season of his career before going on the IL in May, hitting .333/.466/.624, with a 190 wRC+. Despite not playing more than 140 games in a season since 2016, Trout ranks fifth all-time in FanGraphs WAR for players through their age-29 season. The four players above him are Babe Ruth (91.5, combined hitting and pitching WAR), Rogers Hornsby (87.9 WAR), Ty Cobb (86.4), and Mickey Mantle (85.1). That’s it. That’s the list. Angels fans can certainly be thankful for Mike Trout. Oh yeah, there’s also Shohei Ohtani, AL MVP, who was the first player from a losing team to get every first-place vote. Ohtani’s 152 wRC+ as a hitter placed him between Fernando Tatis, Jr. (156 wRC+) and Aaron Judge (148 wRC+). His 3.18 ERA was about the same as Joe Musgrove (3.18) and Sandy Alcantara (3.19). When you combine what he did at the plate and on the mound, Ohtani finished the season with 8.1 WAR (per FanGraphs). That’s really good, but it would also be only the eighth-best season of Mike Trout’s career.
Los Angeles Dodgers—Dodgers fans have enjoyed a bountiful feast over the last decade, yet they somehow still feel hungry when they push away from the table after eating that last slice of pecan pie. Three World Series appearances in the last five years just isn’t satisfying when two of them resulted in losses. Even going 255-129 (.664) over the last three regular seasons—nearly a 108-win pace over 162 games—isn’t enough after losing in the NLCS to the Braves this year. Perhaps re-signing Max Scherzer and Clayton Kershaw would put Dodgers fans in a thankful mood.
Miami Marlins—With just one (pandemic) playoff appearance since their 2003 World Series-winning season, the Marlins have been disappointing their fans for a generation. There is hope, though, as the team has an abundance of good, young pitching, including Sandy Alcantara, Pablo López, and Trevor Rogers, who were all quite impressive in the major leagues last season. Elieser Hernandez and Jesús Luzardo currently fill out the starting five, but Sixto Sánchez and Edward Cabrera could force their way into the rotation soon enough.
Milwaukee Brewers—In the 29 days between MLB Thanksgiving and Christmas, the movie Love, Actually will be shown approximately 117 times, thus showcasing Milwaukee as a prime vacation destination for goofy English guys named Colin who think American women will instantly swoon at their English accents. Although, it should be acknowledged that not everyone loves Love, Actually. For some, it’s quite problematic. Others outright despise it.
Minnesota Twins—After four seasons of cult-hero status, Willians Astudillo was designated for assignment last week with a .270/.295/.406 career major league batting line. Even with an incredibly low 1.9 percent strikeout rate, his 86 wRC+ just wasn’t what his fans were hoping for when he first burst upon the scene. But fear not, Twins fans, because there’s a better version of Astudillo busting down the door to the big leagues. Minor league prospect Jose Miranda hit a combined .344/.401/.572 while playing 25 or more games at first base, second base, and third base in 2021.
New York Mets—Congratulations, Mets fans, you have a new GM! After seemingly pursuing every white man in khakis with some modicum of baseball experience, the Mets finally landed on Billy Eppler, the former Angels GM whose teams couldn’t make the playoffs even with Mike Trout on the roster. The Mets were able to lure Eppler away from the William Morris Endeavor, a talent representation company that recently shifted some attention towards baseball. What could possibly go wrong when you hire an agent to be GM, right? Since this is the beginning of the holiday season and we’re feeling generous, we’ll also remind Mets fans that Francisco Lindor hit .239/.316/.500 after coming off the IL on August 24, so there’s hope that he could provide many reasons to be thankful over the 10 seasons remaining on his contract.
New York Yankees—When you’ve been to the playoffs 23 times and won five World Series in the last 27 seasons, do you really need something to be thankful for? Isn’t making the playoffs nearly every year enough? I mean, think of the poor Mariners, who haven’t been to the playoffs since 2001.
Oakland Athletics—On Thanksgiving Day, Oakland A’s fans can say thanks while watching the former Oakland football team, the Las Vegas Raiders, when they take on the Dallas Cowboys. Fans who still root for the Raiders can hope for a victory, while fans who hate the Raiders for leaving Oakland can root for a loss. Either way, it has to be better than thinking about all your favorite players being traded away by a penny-pinching billionaire owner who is trying to squeeze money out of taxpayer’s wallets so he can build a waterfront stadium that will undoubtedly increase his already substantial net worth.
Philadelphia Phillies—With 2021 NL MVP Bryce Harper and 2021 NL Cy Young Award runner-up Zack Wheeler, the Phillies have two centerpieces on the Thanksgiving Day table. Now they just need to fill in the side dishes, like a couple more outfielders, a shortstop, some relief pitchers, and some butter rolls. Is that too much to ask?
Pittsburgh Pirates—Rooting for the team with the third-worst record in baseball since the start of the 2020 season makes it hard for Pirates fans to find something to be thankful for but no matter how bad it gets and how many losses the team piles up, they still play in the best ballpark in baseball.
San Diego Padres—With the way the 2021 season ended, it’s easy to forget the Padres were 34-20 and in 1st place in the NL West through May 30. A month later, they had dropped to 3rd place, but were still only 2.5 games out. Then they went 30-50 over the remainder of the season—an implausible 7-21 in September/October—and finished a distant 28 games behind the Giants. But don’t fret, Padres fans. You still have perhaps the most electrifying player in baseball, Fernando Tatis, Jr., along with Manny Machado, Jake Cronenworth, Trent Grisham, Joe Musgrove, Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, and hopefully a healthy Mike Clevinger. That’s more talent than many teams can be thankful for.
San Francisco Giants—With a lineup that includes many players over 30, the San Francisco Giants are the mashed potatoes and gravy of the Thanksgiving meal. They’re not new and exciting, like Brach’s Turkey Dinner, Apple Pie and Coffee Candy Corn. Instead, they’re solid and reliable, like Brandon Crawford and the now-retired Buster Posey. Posey’s career is one to be especially thankful for.
Seattle Mariners—Get the ice cream out of the freezer, the kids are coming. Yes, the Mariners’ record of 90-72 in 2021 was much better than their -51 run-differential would expect. One could argue they were more of a 75-to-80 win team. That may be true, but there’s still hope that the young players who came up this season and the others due to arrive in the next few seasons will finally help the Mariners end their two decades long playoff drought. Outfielder Jarred Kelenic and starting pitcher Logan Gilbert were the first two big-name arrivals. Kelenic really struggled, was sent to the minors, came back, and struggled some more. Finally, in September, he seemed to figure something out when he hit .248/.331/.524 in 29 games. Gilbert’s 4.68 ERA doesn’t look great, but it came with a 3.73 FIP, 4.19 xFIP, and 3.87 SIERA, so there’s a good chance he’s better next season. The next wave of young players should arrive in 2022, starting with outfielder Julio Rodríguez (#2 on the MLB Pipeline Top-100) and including pitchers George Kirby (#33) and Emerson Hancock (#34).
St. Louis Cardinals—Cardinals fans can give thanks for another impressive season from 39-year-old starting pitcher Adam Wainwright. If he can replicate his 2021 season in 2022, he’ll get his 200th career win sometime next September.
Tampa Bay Rays—Wander Franco is the whipping cream on top of the delicious pumpkin pie that is the Tampa Bay Rays. Franco only played 70 games for the Rays last season, but his 127 wRC+ at the age of 20 was impressive, better than Orlando Cepeda and Willie Mays when they were 20 years old.
Texas Rangers—Even coming off a 102-loss season, there are still some things Texas Rangers fans can be thankful for—the have a new ballpark, the team has money to spend, and the Dallas Cowboys will once again play their traditional Thanksgiving Day game.
Toronto Blue Jays—Through his age-21 season, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is hitting .289/.367/.517, good for a 135 wRC+. His Hall of Fame father, Vladimir Guerrero, had played in just nine games through his age-21 season. Also, little Vlad just had a season with a 166 wRC+, which is a level of offensive excellence his father never attained over a full season. The original Vlad’s best offensive season was in 2000, when he had a 160 wRC+.
Washington Nationals—If you’re old enough to remember just how good young Albert Pujols was as a hitter with the St. Louis Cardinals twenty years ago, you have some idea just how good a hitter Juan Soto is. The top hitters in baseball history through the age of 22 are Joe Jackson (181 wRC+), Ted Williams (177 wRC+), Stan Musial (170 wRC+), Mike Trout (165 wRC+), Jimmie Foxx (160 wRC+), Ty Cobb (159 wRC+), Juan Soto (156 wRC+), and Albert Pujols (154 wRC+). Soto’s career .432 OBP is the fifth-highest ever for players with 1000 or more plate appearances through their age 22 season and his OBP since the start of the 2020 season is a ridiculous .471. Nationals fans, be thankful for him while you can.
-Bobby Mueller
