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FanGraphs | Nate Freiman: In a fascinating SaberSeminar study, the former Padres farmhand looks at how the minor league strike zone changes at each level based on anonymous minor league Trackman data. Triple-A unsurprisingly has the most conservative zone, and Low-A had the largest zone for right-handers on the inside. It’s definitely interesting for developmental purposes, because certain hitters’ skills might be accentuated or diminished based around entirely different strike zones.
Baseball Prospectus | Matthew Trueblood ($): Edwin Diaz has such an incredible workload, and while teams have made lengths to either add an Opener, position players pitching, or multi-inning firemen, the Mariners haven’t done that and Diaz has continued to shoulder a large portion of relief innings. It could hurt, or he could help lift them to the postseason.
The Ringer | Jonathan Tjarks: It’s nearly impossible Robinson Canó fully lives up to his massive contract, especially on the heels of a PED suspension. He has been good, for sure, but he will definitely redeem himself in Seattle if he leads the team to a playoff berth.
The Athletic | Eno Sarris ($): Ozzie Albies has kind of fallen off a cliff in the last few months, and he has been 50% below average offensively this month. Why? His launch angle and exit velocity have both dropped, and it’s largely because from the left side, he is reaching more as pitchers make adjustments. He’ll likely overcome it, but it’s another example of the league building a playbook on a new player.