Here is the result in plain text:
We got BERGMAN!
Part of the shtick was that I would do this AM-FM radio voice. Ami (Sawdaye) was down the hall and he literally flew into the room, screaming, “You ass…! You can’t do that! You’re embarrassing the club!” And I’m like, “What are you talking about?” He pointed at the card. “Oh, it’s Bregman. My bad.”
Ami said – and I don’t know if this is true or not – that when he called (Bregman) to congratulate him on being a Red Sox selection, that Alex was all pissed off. “I can’t believe guys would mispronounce my name. It’s bush league. I have no respect for the Red Sox.” He relays that to me and of course I’m feeling like a real jerk.
I just misread the card.
For so long, Bregman was the one who got away. But no more. In his text exchange with Sawdaye after Bregman agreed to join the Sox, Petersen recalled his mispronunciation once again, saying, “Not sure if you wanted to fire me or hit me, but I’ve never seen you so pissed.”
Sawdaye couldn’t resist another jab.
“It’s why he was never a Red Sox,” Sawdaye said.
It’s not as if Ricketts’ payroll commitments are suffocating. Only two Cubs are under contract past 2026: left-hander Shota Imanaga (through 2027 if he exercises player options) and shortstop Dansby Swanson (signed through 2029). The team is more than $31 million under the luxury tax threshold and possibly could have remained under even if it had signed Bregman, through deferrals or other moves.
These words from Hoyer, regarding his case to ownership for Bregman, were telling: “I realize this is a financial stretch above our budget, but I realize this is the moment to do it.” The Cubs are projected to win a weakened NL Central even without Bregman, but his addition might have sealed the deal. He was a better fit for their roster than he is for Boston’s. And by getting him on a short deal, the Cubs could have given additional development time to third-base prospect Matt Shaw.
If not now, when? Lately, with Ricketts, the answer seems to be “never.”
Jesse’s back — again!
Entering his 18th season, Texas Rangers reliever Jesse Chavez is in position to accomplish an incredible feat. When Chavez turns 42 on August 21, his age will match the round in which he was drafted — the 42nd, by the Rangers, out of Riverside (Ca.) City College, in 2002.
Let’s see The Athletic’s Jayson Stark find another player who was drafted in as low a round and still was pitching in the majors at that age. It surely won’t happen again, because the draft now only consists of 20 rounds.
Chavez is in Rangers camp on a minor-league contract. His career not only is coming full circle in his fourth stint with the organization, but he also has fulfilled the prophecy of his former coach at Riverside, Dennis Rogers. Chavez said that while he was in school, Rogers told him he would pitch until he was 40.
“I thought he was full of s—,” Chavez said.
Rogers, though, said he saw a number of signs that Chavez was capable of a long career. Flashes of velocity as a freshman. A low-stress delivery. A fearless approach. And perhaps more than anything, “a psychological toolbox that many people didn’t have.”
We talk about being mentally in tune. He was already there as an 18-19-20-21-year old. It just grew and grew. He had repairable mental skills. He could repair on the fly, whatever he saw.
In 2003, Rogers was doubling as manager of the Oakland A’s rookie-ball team in Vancouver when he crossed paths with Chavez, who was in his first year of pro ball with the Rangers’ organization.
“Hey coach, watch me play long toss,” Chavez said.
Rogers obliged.
“It was the farthest I had ever seen anybody throw with no stress,” Rogers said.
Rogers, 73, recalls telling Chavez he could pitch “forever” without mentioning a specific age. “Forever” will not happen. Chavez said this is his final season. He told his wife, Crystal, and three daughters, 21, 15, and 9, that he had one more year left in his body. And they responded, “If that’s the case, let’s do it.”
Adding insult to injury, the Los Angeles Angels do not have insurance on third baseman Anthony Rendon or any other player, according to sources familiar with the club’s policy. The reason: Owner Arte Moreno does not wish to incur the additional cost.
Rendon, 34, is expected to miss the entire season recovering from hip surgery. If indeed he is out all year, he will have appeared in only 25.3 percent of the Angels’ games over five seasons. The team owes him $38.6 million in 2025 and another $38.6 million in ’26.
The deductible for teams that purchase insurance generally ranges from 60 days to one year. Premiums and benefits vary depending on a player’s injury history. But one industry source briefed on players’ insurance policies estimates the Angels might have received a net benefit of at least $50 million on Rendon.
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