The Windup: Yankees broadcaster John Sterling's eccentricities; Mason Miller’s medical breakthrough (2024)

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Ronald Acuña Jr. joins Bad Bunny’s agency (sort of), Mason Miller’s medical breakthrough and we catch up with the oldest living MLB player. I’mLevi Weaver, here withKen Rosenthal— welcome to The Windup!

Ronald Acuña Jr. and Bad Bunny’s agency

A week ago, I learned two things. One: recording artist Bad Bunny has a sports agency, and two: that agency has recently gotten into some hot water with the Major League Baseball Players Association. Yesterday, we learned that the agency has signed Ronald Acuña Jr. … Well, sort of.

Let’s start with Rimas Sports, the agency. Rimas (“rhymes” in Spanish) was launched just last year, and its roster includes names like Francisco Alvarez of the Mets and Wilmer Flores of the Giants. One of its agents, William Arroyo, had his MLB license revokedrecently, and two others awaiting certification will reportedly be denied.

We still don’t have firm details on exactlywhythe license was revoked, though other agencies have filed complaints about Rimas in the past, alleging that non-agents have been acting in the capacity of agents, and that players have been offered incentives to switch agencies (neither is allowed).

It was a little surprising to hear that Rimas was welcoming one of the game’s biggest stars into the fold so soon after that news broke. But there’s a catch.

As Britt Ghiroli reports, it appears Rimas will not be representing Acuña in the traditional “sports agent” sense. For that, he will continue to be represented by Rep 1 Baseball. Rather, it seems like Rimas will be handling Acuña’s “marketing and off-field business.”

Representing players onthosematters does not require approval from MLBPA, and thus MLBPA certification isn’t needed.

In the meantime, according to Ghiroli’s report, “dozens” of players — many of them Rimas clients — have requested to be added to the MLBPA’s “do not call” list, meaning that other agencies are prohibited from reaching out to them. That is a move that must be triggered by players, not their agencies.

It’s a curious situation, and certainly one worth keeping an eye on as more information becomes available.

Ken’s Notebook: Appreciating John Sterling

The coolest thing about New York Yankees radio broadcaster John Sterling’s retirement might be how much players appreciated him. I learned that readingBrendan Kuty’s storyon Monday, in which Aaron Judge said his parents, Wayne and Patty, love hearing Sterling on the radio. And it was reinforced that night, when Chicago Cubs outfielder Mike Tauchman recalled his time with the Yankees from 2019 to ’21.

Tauchman explained that Yankees players, during their brief retreats to the clubhouse during games, liked to listen to the radio broadcast, hoping to hear one of Sterling’s signature home-run calls.The players got a kick out of the calls — “All Rise” for Aaron Judge, “Like a good Gleyber, Torres is there,” for Gleyber Torres, and many more. Sterling was part of the Yankees experience. And they loved the role he played.

Sterling deserves the hero’s farewell he will receive Saturday at Yankee Stadium — he called 5,420 of the Yankees’ regular-season games, including5,060 in a rowfrom Sept. 1989 to July 2019, plus 211 of their postseason games. But initially, when the Yankees announced his retirement, I feared people would dwell on the occasional mistakes he made, especially in recent years. In case you haven’t noticed, the world in the age of social media is not particularly kind.

One sports media columnist in New York seemed to delight in pointing out Sterling’s foibles, but Yankees fans rarely seemed to take issue with their play-by-play man, regarding Sterling almost like a beloved uncle. Whatever mistakes Sterling made, they were quite understandable, even endearing. For heaven’s sake, the man is 85!

Sterling’s distinctive voice, his unique style and most of all his incredible longevity — they are all part of his fabulous legacy. To think, he didn’t even join the Yankees until he was 50. Before that, he was a broadcaster for MLB’s Atlanta Braves, the NBA’s Baltimore Bullets, Atlanta Hawks and New York/New Jersey Nets and the NHL’s New York Islanders.

My first introduction to Sterling was as a teenager growing up on Long Island in the late 1970s, listening to Islander games and hearing his signature call, “Islander goal! Islander goal! Islander goal!” My dad, a New York Rangers fan, thought Sterling was ridiculous. But I came to revel in his eccentricities, as did so many Yankees fans in later years.

The fans got him. The players got him. He was one of a kind.

More:Sterling storiesfrom those who know him well.

How Mason Miller started throwing 100

Last week, wetold you about Mason Miller, the A’s closer who is throwing harder than anyone else in baseball. Today,Stephen Nesbitt has the storydetailing how Miller went from throwing sub-90 mph in college to routinely hitting triple digits. Here’s an excerpt from the lede:

Mason Miller is a big leaguer because of a failed drug test.

This was back when Miller played Division III ball at Waynesburg University, a school 50 miles south of Pittsburgh and a million miles from the majors. Miller was a local kid with a decent arm but a 7.00 ERA in two college seasons. He landed a finance internship at a local hospital following his sophom*ore year, but his required drug screen was flagged as diluted. When Miller objected, the lab coordinator ran another test and told Miller there were two possibilities in play, and “neither is good.” Either Miller had diluted the sample in an attempt to manipulate the outcome of the test or he had dangerously low blood sugar.

It turns out, Miller had Type 1 diabetes.

In the years since, Miller has gained 65 pounds of muscle, and double digits on his fastball. When we wrote last week, he had six of the 10 fastest pitches this year. He now haseightof the top 10, with Ryan Helsley of the Cardinals (sixth place, 102.4 mph) and Justin Martinez of the D-Backs and Nate Pearson of the Blue Jays (tied for 10th, 102.3) the only interlopers into Miller’s domain.

Meet MLB’s oldest former player, Art Schallock

We end it with a great one today.Dan Browninterviewed Art Schallock, who turns 100 years old next week. Schallock is the oldest living former MLB player, and as you might expect, the man has some stories.

Like the time the Yankees made room on the roster for Schallock to make his big-league debut … by optioning Mickey Mantle to the minor leagues. (Mantle later homered off Schallock — the last of just 11 home runs the lefty allowed in his five-year career.)

Schallock also roomed with (and bought comic books for) Yogi Berra, and held Ted Williams hitless in two at-bats. His memory is still sharp; he recalls details from his time in the minor leagues, including the Hollywood Stars in the PCL. It’s worth reading just for the story of his wife’s reaction when he was traded to the Yankees.

Statistically speaking, Schallock’s career is rather unremarkable —he accrued -0.3 bWAR in those five seasons — but in the hands of a master storyteller like Brown, it’s a time machine back to a golden era of baseball. I highly recommend it.

Speaking of players with ties to Ted Williams, Tyler Kepner’s“Sliders” columntoday includes quotes from 85-year-old Jack Fisher, who pitched in the Mets’ first game at Shea Stadium and allowed Williams’ 521st and final home run. As always, there’s a cornucopia of baseball journalism in the column, including advice from Seth Lugo of the Royals on how to use a Pringles can to help you throw a curveball.

Baseball Card of the Week

One of my favorite things about buying old cards is coming across a player with whom I’m unfamiliar. This 1959 Topps Gino Cimoli is one such card. When I find one, I generally start with the player’sBaseball Reference page, where I can find hisSABR Bio Projectlink.

Fun facts I discovered about Cimoli: he occasionally went to school with purple feet (his father made wine), he signed with the Dodgers after a 3 a.m. (!!!) visit from a scout and he scored the final run at Ebbets Field. After his baseball career, he worked for UPS as a delivery driver and used his truck as a makeshift ambulance after the 1989 earthquake in San Francisco.

Handshakes and High Fives

This week’sby Jayson Stark drills down on just how historically bad theWhite Soxare this year. But you should know by now that it doesn’t stop there. As always, read Jayson and marvel at the little universe that unfolds each week.

TheNew York Metsunveiled their City Connect uniforms this morning, and they’re instant contenders for the best in the game. Tim Brittontells you about the processthat went into the design.

Jack Leiter’s debut wasn’t quite what he hoped. But as Cody Stavenhagen writes,struggles are nothing newfor Leiter since being drafted.

This isYimi García’s 10th year in the league. That feels awfully late for a “breakout” season, but boyis he ever having one.

TheAstrosandTwinswere both projected to win their respective divisions. We have 10 reasonsHoustonandMinnesotahave both stumbled out of the gate.

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(Top photo: Robert Edwards / USA Today)