FUNDAY SUNDAY

TODAY IS A GREAT DAY TO ENJOY BILLY-BALL

Jan 25, 2026

∙ Paid

ARE JOSE RAMIREZ AND THE CLEVELAND GUARDIANS RUINING BASEBALL?

José Ramírez, the third baseman of the Guardians and one of the best players in baseball, apparently has agreed to a seven-year extension that will keep him in Cleveland through 2032. The deal would pay Ramírez an additional $106 million across four seasons. Ramírez is already signed through the 2028 season, with salaries of $21 million, $23 million, and $25 million. This new deal will pay him $175 million over the next seven seasons, with $10 million in deferred compensation each year. The deal also includes a no-trade clause and bonuses for winning or finishing in the top five in MVP voting.

Ramirez could have made more money on the open market over the years, but unlike other players seeking to leave their teams, he wants to stay with Cleveland, and unlike other teams that frequently alienate their players (Hi, Boston!), or want to deal their players before free agency (Hello, Milwaukee!), they want him to stay and are willing to put together a package that prevents another, wealthier team, from grabbing that player (Good morning, L.A.!).

More deals like this could end the animosity between the owners and the MLBPA. The Guardians and Ramirez should be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize and immediately hand it over to our overlord in Mar-a-Lago.

BILLY-BALL QUIZ OF THE DAY

This former player is on the minds of millions of people today. He was never an all-star, but his father was an all-pro. He played for both the Yankees and the Red Sox, but he was better known for his play in California. He is renowned for a World Series scoop he made.

Who is he?

GOTTA LOVE THIS

From Dan Shaughnessy:

“Bet you didn’t know that David Bell and Mike Yastrzemski, grandsons of Gus Bell and Carl Yastrzemski, respectively, each have 123 big league homers.”

Dan also points out that the Red Sox have a lot of pitchers, too many starting outfielders, not enough infielders, and need a bat. He believes a significant trade is in their near future.

I wonder if they could talk to the Giants about acquiring Rafael Devers.

FROM THE SHARPEST MIND

I’m so lucky to know Katie Sharp, the Customer Success Manager for baseball-reference.com, the Hall of Fame-worthy site. She is always kind enough to help me with historical baseball stat questions, and I had one this week about Wilbur Wood, the knuckleballer who recently passed away. Wood was a really good guy and, by himself, a repository of unusual baseball stats. For example, in 1973, Wood went 24–20, becoming the first pitcher since Walter Johnson (1916) to both win and lose 20 games in the same season in the modern era.

I also noticed that in 1975, playing for the White Sox, Wood lost 20 games, while Jim Kaat won 20, and I wondered how unusual that was.

Katie shared that there are only 4 instances of it happening in the last 100 years:

1980 A’s (Mike Norris, 22 wins; Brian Kingman, 20 losses)
1975 White Sox (Jim Kaat, 20 wins; Wilbur Wood, 20 losses)
1973 White Sox (Wilbur Wood, 24 wins; Stan Bahnsen, 21 losses) - Wood is on the list twice on both sides (I add excitedly)
1954 Phillies (Robin Roberts, 23 wins; Murry Dickson, 20 losses) - Mr. Dickson lost 20 and also lost the “a” in his first nme (no typo there, it’s me being creative). Dickson briefly held the all-time career record for home runs allowed with 302. In 1956, he broke Red Ruffing's record (254 HR), but in 1957, Robin Roberts (505 HR) broke Dickson’s record , holding it until Jamie Moyer broke it in 2010 with 522 homers allowed.

When Wood lost his 20 in 1975, he was coming off four straight seasons of 20-win campaigns. That struck me as odd as well. Katie shared that the other pitchers in AL/NL history since 1900 to have at least four straight 20-win seasons and then 20+ losses in a season after the streak were:

I’m hoping that by highlighting her work, I can show my appreciation to Katie. I hope she will be kind enough to share other great baseball anomalies with us.

COSTAS RETURNS

Bob Costas is returning to NBC Sports as the host of its “Sunday Night Baseball” pregame show. The HOFer was the play-by-play voice and host for NBC Sports’ MLB coverage for 15 seasons (1982-89, teaming with analyst Tony Kubek on NBC’s MLB “Game of the Week” and then from 1994 to 2000). In 1995, Costas called his first World Series on television, teaming with analysts Joe Morgan and Bob Uecker. Costas will debut on Thursday, March 26, when the Dodgers host the Diamondbacks, the lone prime-time game on Opening Day.