Late last week, the MLB world was hit with some sad news when it was revealed that longtime Minnesota Twins scout Mike Radcliff had passed away.

Radcliff was often praised for his ability to draft and develop talent within the Twins organization and help to build a strong homegrown team.

Some players that were drafted under his watch include Torii Hunter, Michael Cuddyer, and Joe Mauer.

He is often also praised for his constant belief in the talent that he drafted and helped rise through the ranks of the Twins organization.

This afternoon, MLB analyst and close friend of Radcliff, Jon Morosi, spoke to MLB Network about what Radcliff meant to the game and the Twins organization.

Mike Radcliff’s legacy includes his role in the @Twins drafting stars like @toriihunter48, @mcuddy23 and Joe Mauer — but his impact in @MLB is far greater than wins and losses, as we discussed on @MLBNetwork today. @MLBPipeline @BaseballAmerica @MiLB pic.twitter.com/XzfKgxK47d

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) February 6, 2023

Morosi talked about Radcliff’s ability to mentor young scouts.

Of course, his reach extends beyond just the Twins organization.

Morosi talked a lot about his character and how he represented the game and the Twins with class and dignity and was a great friend and mentor to those around him.

The players selected during his tenure also speak volumes to what Radcliffe was able to accomplish during his time as a scout.

Morosi also praised him for his graciousness to team personnel and media members, and how he saw beyond just the players he drafted, but appreciated those around him.

The belief in his players was something that was also touched upon.

Hunter, Mauer, and Cuddyer were not necessarily sure things, but Radcliff saw something special in them and believed they could help the Twins.

Morosi closed his statement by expressing how much of a loss Radcliff’s death is for baseball and how important he was to the game.

The post MLB Insider Reflects On Beloved Twins Scout appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link

This year, 10 new faces will be added to the list of MLB umpires.

One of those new faces is Malachi Moore, who once played Junior College Baseball at the Compton Youth Academy in California.

He also underwent extensive training to become an MLB umpire at the Youth Academy.

But it was at the Youth Academy where he ultimately discovered his passion for the game of baseball and his desire to become an MLB umpire was realized.

Ultimately, he gave up on playing when veteran umpire Kerwin Danley told him that he wasn’t much of a player, but then chose to teach him umpiring.

It was then that Moore realized he wanted to become an umpire, and he stopped by MLB Network to tell that story.

Compton Youth Academy alum Malachi Moore joins Hot Stove on @MLBNetwork to talk about his journey towards becoming an MLB Umpire pic.twitter.com/k6LX2TTuyO

— MLBDevelops (@MLBDevelops) February 6, 2023

Advertisement

Ultimately, Moore learned a harsh lesson from Danley when he was told that he likely wouldn’t make it far as a player.

Fortunately though, Danley was nice enough to take him to the batting cages and show him the ins and outs of being an umpire.

It was at that moment that Moore realized that his days in baseball were in fact not over and that he could continue as an umpire.

Moore says that was when he ultimately fell in love with it and that this was where his desire to reach the big leagues as an umpire stemmed from.

Now, he has a chance to fulfill that dream and step on an MLB field as one of the newer umpires in recent years.

The post New MLB Umpire Reflects On His Journey appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link

American sports fans can’t help it: they love to compare everything they see, use, watch, or enjoy.

It’s a natural thing to do, and it happens in every country.

In the specific case of the United States, fans often discuss which sports and leagues are the most popular.

Several metrics and factors are used to determine the winner: average attendance to games, overall revenue, TV ratings, social media followers or interactions, and more.

The people at FiveThirtyEight wrote an interesting article and show us a key graph using average attendance to games.

The NFL is heavily favored in that exercise.

“Put simply, NFL games are massively bigger spectacles than contests in any other American sport, with thousands more people showing up to NFL stadiums during football season than we see at MLB, NBA or NHL games,” they tweeted.

Put simply, NFL games are massively bigger spectacles than contests in any other American sport, with thousands more people showing up to NFL stadiums during football season than we see at MLB, NBA or NHL games. https://t.co/8VFUMi16Lk pic.twitter.com/0rqyBusge4

— FiveThirtyEight (@FiveThirtyEight) February 6, 2023

There are several things to consider.

Attendance to MLB games is, on average, just under 27,000 while the NFL is just shy of 70,000.

NBA and NHL are next with almost 18,000 and close to 17,000, respectively.

We have to account for the fact that there are 17 games per team in an NFL season, and the number is 162 in MLB.

Additionally, NBA and NHL would have a problem with bigger venues from a visibility standpoint.

NFL is a huge league, but these are important factors to consider.

There is no question, however, that NFL is ahead of MLB when it comes to viewership.

MLB has to make sure to showcase its product in the most possible avenues to start making up some ground.

The post MLB Continues To Trail The NFL In Key Category appeared first on The Cold Wire.

Source link