Sports
2024 Fantasy Baseball Breakout
Screenshot 2025-01-09 at 3.59.11 PM.pngResults backed up these scary numbers. Opposing batters slugged .726 against them with a .455 xwOBA and smacked nine home runs. For comparison’s sake, Aaron Judge had a .701 SLG and .479 xwOBA last season. Every time King threw a fastball last March or April, it was as if Judge was […]

Michael King was always an afterthought. First, going to the Marlins in the 12th round of the 2016 draft out of Boston College. Then, being traded to the Yankees as a throw-in in a deal that was predominantly to acquire international bonus pool money in their pursuit of Shohei Ohtani. Later, as an ascending as a relief pitcher that couldn’t make his way back into the rotation..252
Generally, righty pitchers don’t throw many sweepers to lefty batters because they perform much better against righty hitters.
Batter
Whiff%
.359
Just check out his pitch usage against left-handed batters from May onward.R
That last piece of data intuitively makes sense given King’s adjustments after April. Lefties teed off on him early and couldn’t figure him out afterwards. Also, his sinker was devastating against righties and is one of the most difficult pitches to square-up in the league. This is a cool piece of analysis that’s come from new Bat Tracking data.As one of the best run-suppressors in the league, King was a master at limiting hard contact. After allowing 10 home runs in April alone, he surrendered just seven total the rest of the season. He was in the 99th percentile in exit velocity against, 97th percentile in hard-hit rate against, and had the lowest squared-up rate for any starting pitcher in the league after May 1st.King’s sinker became his second-most thrown pitch against lefties after May 1st and he was using it more regularly as a put-away pitch. He also threw it significantly more often against righties. Here’s Mookie Betts looking silly against one for good measure.Those three pitches along with his changeup allowed him to hit the ground running and pitch his way to a 1.88 ERA as a starter in 2023..293
.321
All of these issues could be traced back to his fastballs not maintaining their same level of effectiveness as the season before. Each were a few ticks slower and their Stuff+ each dropped below 80! That’s so bad it’s past the danger zone and in the “something might be really wrong” zone.32.2
So, what made this move for King possible? And how did he transition so smoothly?
.726
.218
Date
At this point, King had two similarly sized samples across two seasons as a starter: in one, he was lights-out and in the other, he was awful.Rather, King had the gumption to start the bulk of his at-bats against lefties with them. More than trust in one’s stuff, that shows a ton of trust in one’s command.
Date
Role Call
wOBA
wOBA
Lastly, his most thrown pitcher overall to lefties was his changeup – another pitch whose effectiveness is closely tied to command. While that alone was not particularly crazy, King threw that changeup as often when he was behind in the count as he was ahead or had two strikes on a batter. That’s only possibly with pinpoint command and confidence.
So, King had the stuff to be a starter, excelled there in a short stint, and had that role clearly defined for him once in San Diego. All systems go, right? Right? | So, King had the stuff to be a starter, excelled there in a short stint, and had that role clearly defined for him once in San Diego. All systems go, right? Right? | All in all, he wound up as the 17th most valuable starting pitcher in the league according to FanGraphs’ Player Rater. That was ahead of George Kirby, Aaron Nola, and Luis Castillo. | Obviously, moving from the bullpen to the rotation was the key reason King broke out. In fact, he did it before it was cool – shoutout Seth Lugo for truly blazing the trail – and likely paved the way for Reynaldo López, Jordan Hicks, Clay Holmes, and possibly Jeff Hoffman to do the same. | King and his sinker are not average, though. It has plus-plus movement and he has fantastic command overall. That allowed him to be more creative and daring with that pitch than most other pitchers can afford to be. Look at the differences in where he located it in March and April versus the rest of the season. | |
After May | Fewer fastballs down the middle is almost always a good thing. King was able to live there in the past when his fastball had more zip. As its stuff waned, his command became more important and helped pull that fastball from the doldrums. | King maintained his starters’ repertoire when he moved to the bullpen. He was one of just 22 relievers who threw a minimum of 50 IP to use four different pitches at least 10% of the time that season. Other current starters Lugo and Nick Martinez were also in that group. | I already told you about the wicked front-hip sinkers against lefties. Possibly more brazen than that, King’s most commonly thrown first pitch to them was his sweeper. The only way he could get away with that was throwing them back-door, and that’s exactly what he did. | With this, he no longer had any holes in his game and ran roughshod through the entire league. |
Again, less pitches right down the middle is great. But more specifically, King began locating that sinker on the lefties’ front hip. Few have the ability to weaponize it in that way and he was able to force some outrageous called strikes doing so..356
King came out on the other side of those tough early months with one of the most audacious gameplans in baseball. He did things from a command perspective that most other pitchers won’t even try, let alone center their game around it.This helped to usher in what would be a dominant summer for him.Overall, the results against King’s fastballs improved dramatically from May through the rest of the season.
Additionally, King wielded two plus fastballs – his four-seamer and sinker. As a reliever in 2023, they had a 104 and 111 Stuff+, respectively. After moving to the rotation, they held true at 109 and 108..300
At the end of the day, his sinker, sweeper, and changeup are all plus pitches and his command is exceptional. That should establish a safe enough floor for him to be at least a low-end SP1 with upside for more..408
SLG
He was one of just 13 starting pitchers who had both an above average four-seamer and sinker by Stuff+. Of course, he only threw 38 1/3 IP as a starter and sat just under five innings per start in that first stint back in the rotation. That allowed him to maintain his velocity from the bullpen and inflate those stuff numbers some. Still, that sinker is ridiculous.
To go along with the sinker, King’s sweeper has always been a true out-pitch. It darts across the zone from King’s low, cross-body release and had the fourth-most horizontal movement in baseball when he moved to the rotation. This thing is a frisbee.SLG
There should also be confidence in his workload with over 170 innings pitched last season and he’ll still pitch his home games in PetCo Park, one of the best pitchers’ parks in the league.
Sports
Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament kicks off with record growth
SEASIDE, Ore. (KATU) — The Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament, the second-largest event of its kind globally, kicked off last week. The only larger tournament is held in Venice, Italy. The tournament, which began as a fundraiser for a new lifeguard tower, has grown exponentially from its humble beginnings with just four courts to now featuring […]

SEASIDE, Ore. (KATU) — The Seaside Beach Volleyball Tournament, the second-largest event of its kind globally, kicked off last week. The only larger tournament is held in Venice, Italy.
The tournament, which began as a fundraiser for a new lifeguard tower, has grown exponentially from its humble beginnings with just four courts to now featuring over 230 courts.
Organizers attribute the event’s massive growth over the past 40 years to its popularity and the community’s continued support.
In response to the increasing number of teams wanting to participate, the tournament will expand to five days in 2026 to better manage logistics and accommodate more teams.
Watch the full interview with the Interim Director of the Seaside Chamber of Commerce, the Seaside Beach Volleyball Director of Operations, and the Chief Operations Officer of Volleyball Life below.
Sports
Ivan Dodig named new Croatia Davis Cup coach
by croatiaweek August 12, 2025 in Sport Ivan Dodig (Photo: si.robi/CC BY-SA 2.0) The Croatian Tennis Association has announced that Ivan Dodig has been appointed as the new captain of Croatia’s Davis Cup team. The 40-year-old will replace Velimir Zovko, who has led the side in recent years. Dodig will make his debut in the […]

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Sport

Ivan Dodig (Photo: si.robi/CC BY-SA 2.0)
The Croatian Tennis Association has announced that Ivan Dodig has been appointed as the new captain of Croatia’s Davis Cup team.
The 40-year-old will replace Velimir Zovko, who has led the side in recent years.
Dodig will make his debut in the role when Croatia faces France in the second round of the Qualifier stage in Osijek on 12 and 13 September.
The Croatian Tennis Association thanked Zovko for his work and wished him success in the future, while extending congratulations to Dodig, expressing hopes for continued top results for Croatian tennis.
Dodig is one of Croatia’s most successful tennis players in doubles.
He has won three Grand Slam men’s doubles titles – the French Open in 2015 and 2023, and the Australian Open in 2021 – as well as several mixed doubles crowns, including the Australian Open in 2022, French Open in 2018 and 2019 and Wimbledon in 2019.
He also won a silver medal at the Olympic Games in 2021.
Dodig has been a key figure in Croatia’s Davis Cup campaigns over the years as a player.
Croatia has lifted the Davis Cup trophy twice, first in 2005 and again in 2018.
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Sports
Kara Griffin-Ruwin – Women’s Beach Volleyball
2023: Did not see action 2022: Did not see action. Prior to Tulane: Griffin-Ruwin comes to New Orleans from San Francisco, California. At the beginning of her beach volleyball career she trained with the Sandlegs beach volleyball club before moving on to train with the Valley Girls. Griffin-Ruwin also trained on the sand with former USC coach, Anna Collier and […]

2023: Did not see action
2022: Did not see action.
Prior to Tulane: Griffin-Ruwin comes to New Orleans from San Francisco, California. At the beginning of her beach volleyball career she trained with the Sandlegs beach volleyball club before moving on to train with the Valley Girls. Griffin-Ruwin also trained on the sand with former USC coach, Anna Collier and AVP/USA professional, Allie Wheeler. Griffin-Ruwin was recognized by AVCA volleyball as an elite rising high school volleyball student-athlete. She has trained and competed in P1440, USAV, CBVA’s, AAU and AVP tournaments. Top finishes in CBVA and P1440 tournaments. Getting stronger off the courts, Griffin-Ruwin did OC Fast-Twitch training, F45 training, and Apiros.
Griffin-Ruwin plans on majoring in Design and wants to pursue a career as an Interior Designer in the Real Estate Business.
Sports
Former Linn-Mar Star Returns to Drake as Head Coach
Former Linn-Mar High School standout Sam Read is returning to Iowa as the new head cross country and track and field head coach at Drake University. The school hosts the annual Drake Relays, a multi-day track and field event that brings in Olympians, college and high school athletes from around the world. Read most recently […]

Former Linn-Mar High School standout Sam Read is returning to Iowa as the new head cross country and track and field head coach at Drake University.
The school hosts the annual Drake Relays, a multi-day track and field event that brings in Olympians, college and high school athletes from around the world.
Read most recently served as the head cross country and distance coach at Eastern Washington for the past seven years. The team was a contender in the Big Sky Conference under Read, as he also coached five school records in track with a handful of NCAA West Regional qualifiers.
“I am truly honored to accept the opportunity to lead the men’s and women’s cross country and track and field programs at Drake University,” Read said. “Having grown up competing in Iowa experiencing the Drake Relays, I understand the pride and tradition these programs carry, and I look forward to building upon that legacy.”
Read coached at Montana State as an assistant for a number of years after competing for Linn-Mar and attending Wartburg College in Iowa. He ran at the Drake Relays as a high school athlete and was an Iowa Conference champion at Wartburg in the 10k while qualifying for the national meet.
“I am thrilled to welcome Sam into our athletics department and excited for his leadership of our cross country and track and field programs,” Drake Director of Athletics Brian Hardin said. “His track record at Eastern Washington was remarkable. Sam’s vision for how he would leverage the greater support available at Drake to contend for Missouri Valley Conference titles was convincing.
“Even more impressive was his ability to see the Drake program for not only what it is today, but what it can be in a short period of time.”
Read replaces Jay Koloseus, who took an assistant track and field position at Arizona earlier this summer after eight years at Drake in a variety of positions.
Sports
USA Women Advance To Quarterfinals At U20 World Championships With 14-6 Win Over Italy
Story Links Salvador, Brazil – August 12 – The USA Junior Women defeated Italy 14-6 today at the World Aquatics U20 World Championship. Julia Bonaguidi was named player of the match after she scored six goals while Christine Carpenter and Lauren Steele combined for eight saves in the cage. Team USA advances straight into the […]

Salvador, Brazil – August 12 – The USA Junior Women defeated Italy 14-6 today at the World Aquatics U20 World Championship. Julia Bonaguidi was named player of the match after she scored six goals while Christine Carpenter and Lauren Steele combined for eight saves in the cage. Team USA advances straight into the quarterfinals on Thursday at 3pm et/12pm pt with the opponent TBD. Live streaming of all matches is available through the World Aquatics YouTube page by clicking here. Live stats of all matches are provided from Microplus by clicking here.
Team USA got the first goal of the game half a minute in courtesy of Kamryn Barone. Shortly after, the Americans earned a penalty and cashed in when Bonaguidi rang the register from five meters. Italy would halve the deficit with a great bar down goal before Bonaguidi put home back-to-back goals to push the lead to three with an early hat trick. The Italian side would strike back with consecutive goals of its own to leave the score at 4-3 in favor of the United States after one.
Bonaguidi remained aggressive to start the second quarter, scoring first to add to her total. Emily Ausmus got involved from there when she buried a penalty attempt followed by a fadeaway shot that beat the goalkeeper. Carpenter and the Team USA defense held strong all quarter long to send the game into halftime with a 7-3 American lead.
The Italians earned a penalty and converted on the attempt to begin the third period but Bonaguidi had an immediate answer on the other end. Next, Steele dropped a perfect pass to Ausmus who put it away on the counter attack and Lucy Haaland-Ford scored to give the United States double digits on the day. Late in the period, Ausmus rose up from deep to beat the shot clock buzzer as Team USA took an 11-4 advantage into the final frame.
In the fourth, it was Haaland-Ford who had the first word. She followed it up with another score to notch a second half hat trick. Midway through the quarter, Bonaguidi chimed in again to run the American lead to ten. From there, the Italians scored again for the first time since the opening moments of the half but it was too little, too late as Team USA claimed the 14-6 win.
Team USA went 1/2 on power plays and 1/1 on penalties while Italy went 0/3 on power plays with no penalties attempted.
Scoring – Stats
USA 14 (4, 3, 4, 3) J. Bonaguidi 6, E. Ausmus 4, L. Haaland-Ford 3, K. Barone 1
ITA 6 (3, 0, 1, 2) E. Bianco 2, E. De March 1, B. Rosta 1, B. Cassara 1, C. Malluzzo 1
Saves – USA – C. Carpenter 6, L. Steele 2 – ITA – O. Sesena 4
6×5 – USA – 1/2 – ITA – 0/3
Penalties – USA – 1/1 – ITA – 0/0
Sports
Former Two
Where have all the two-way players gone? That was the thesis of an article published Tuesday in The Athletic, which held a microscope to the many pitcher-slash-position-players to reach the minor leagues (if not the majors) since Shohei Ohtani’s 2018 debut. More news: Dodgers Predicted to Sign Max Muncy Replacement in Free Agency to Blockbuster 6-Year […]


Where have all the two-way players gone?
That was the thesis of an article published Tuesday in The Athletic, which held a microscope to the many pitcher-slash-position-players to reach the minor leagues (if not the majors) since Shohei Ohtani’s 2018 debut.
More news: Dodgers Predicted to Sign Max Muncy Replacement in Free Agency to Blockbuster 6-Year Deal
Ohtani remains 1 of 1. Not only did he win the National League MVP Award in his first season with the Dodgers — something no full-time designated hitter had ever done — he’s picked up where he left off on the mound. In eight starts this season, he has a 2.37 ERA, with 16 hits and five walks allowed while striking out 25.
But the story is not merely that one man is hitting and pitching at such a high level. No player is attempting to do both full-time in the majors with any degree of success besides Ohtani, even though many have tried.
One former two-way player, Kansas City Royals pitcher Michael Lorenzen, played with Ohtani in Anaheim. He offered an interesting theory why no other two-way players are experiencing any degree of success or failure besides Ohtani.
To Lorenzen, it’s not merely a lack of skill or a lack of commitment, though both are obstacles that few two-way players can overcome. It’s also a lack of opportunity.
More news: Dodgers’ Dave Roberts Has New Update on Kiké Hernandez’s Potential Return
“Shohei had all the leverage in the world,” Lorenzen told Dhani Joseph. “He proved it in a different, high-caliber league, and he came over early so he was a discount (salary-wise) to everyone when he did come over. He got to make every decision of like, this is what I want to do.”
In other words, it’s no accident that MLB’s only two-way player came from Japan. Nippon Professional Baseball, Japan’s top league, afforded Ohtani the kind of proving ground that no MLB organization has been willing to extend its own two-way prospects in the minor leagues.
Joseph cited the examples of Brendan McKay, Nolan McLean, Carson Benge, Mitch Voit, Reggie Crawford, Bryce Eldridge, and Jac Cagliaone. All were either announced as two-way players when they were drafted, or demonstrated minor-league ready skills as both a hitter and a pitcher. Yet for reasons not necessarily under their control, all eventually focused on pitching or hitting, not both.
More news: Dodgers’ Dave Roberts Appears to Temper Expectations on Roki Sasaki
Lorenzen was the rare example of a two-way player who was allowed to pitch and hit coming up through the affiliated minor leagues. In 2019, he became the second player in history to hit a home run, earn a win, and play in the field in the same game. Babe Ruth was the first.
But Lorenzen has not taken an at-bat since 2021. His career 84 OPS+ was simply not enough for teams to justify giving his at-bats to a two-way player, as opposed to one-way hitters who likely had more potential (if not more demonstrated ability). When the National League adopted the DH rule for good in 2022, his fate might have been sealed.
Lorenzen’s theory suggests Ohtani could be the last full-time two-way player in MLB, unless one proves his potential in a foreign league first.
For more Dodgers news, head over to Dodgers on SI.
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