Signing all the older veterans in free agency the past few years and such?

They're not only the oldest team left in the playoffs, but per ESPN, the oldest team in MLB period, average age 30.1. Rays are fourth oldest, by the way.

Brewers ninth-youngest and Cleveland near the middle.

I don't know the date of ESPN's survey. Statista had the Dodgers barely in the top 10, but that was back in June.

Looking at their roster on B-Ref, six of the nine regular batters are 31 or older. Ohtani, Glasnow and Snell are 31 or older on starters, and if they shovel him a bunch of money, Skubal turns 30 next year.

And, overall next year?

Freeman, Muncy, Betts, Teoscar and Kiké Hernandez, Rojas and Snell are all 34 or older. All those players except Kiké are on next year's team and most on 2028's, barring trades, of course.

Now, yes, it's the Dodgers. Especially if there's no salary cap and they don't care about paying repeater money on the lux tax (they will again next year), they can hustle up new FAs. But there probably will be some degree of reckoning soon enough.

For commenters, yes, I knew when I posted this about where the Dodgers' farm system ranked. MLB had the Doyers at No. 5 two years ago. ESPN? Half a dozen teams are as close as, or almost as close as, to the Dodgers as the Dodgers are to the Brewers.

There's also a "no room at the inn" issue. Unless Dodgers trade away some oldsters (and eat contracts in so doing) where do all of the minor leaguers of today play?

Andrew Wiggins (NBA) is a former 1st overall pick. He had a lot of hype in high school and even into college to the point where he was drafted 1st overall. However, his first 8 years in the NBA were already on track to becoming a draft bust. Then he broke out with the Warriors and was a key piece in their '22 title run. Since then, he's pretty much removed his bust label entirely and is still important for the Heat.

What is the MLB version of this? What's a 1st overall pick that was horrible in the first few years of the MLB but still became a solid role player for a contending team?

Guardians 1, Rays 3

FINAL

CLE 1-1 · TB 1-1

The Rays broke through in the 4th and never trailed from there.

In the bottom of the 4th, Liam Hicks drove in two runs with a base hit, and the margin grew to 3-0 for the Rays.

Pitching shaped the game: Freddy Peralta held the Guardians scoreless for six innings, allowing four hits with six strikeouts, while Parker Messick gave up just zero earned runs in five innings while striking out three.

Linescore

CLE 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0, R 1, H 6, E 1
TB 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0, R 3, H 7, E 0

• W Freddy Peralta (1-0) · L Parker Messick (0-2) · S Bryan Baker (4)

Guardians Batting

Guardians Notes

2B: DeLauter (2, Seymour, I).
TB: Bazzana; DeLauter 2; Halpin; Kwan 2; Ramírez, Jo.
RBI: DeLauter (4).
2-out RBI: DeLauter.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Rocchio; Adell 3.
Team RISP: 1-for-6.
Team LOB: 9.
SB: Ramírez, Jo (2, 2nd base off Peralta, F/Hicks, L).
E: Ramírez, Jo (1, fielding).
Pickoffs: Messick (Williamson at 1st base).
DP: 2 (2 Bazzana-Rocchio-Lowe, N).
SUBSTITUTIONS:
a: Walked for Hedges in the 7th.
b: Struck out for Halpin in the 8th.

Rays Batting

Rays Notes

2B: Caminero (2, Messick).
TB: Caminero 2; DeLuca 2; Hicks, L 2; Simpson; Walls.
RBI: Hicks, L 2 (3).
2-out RBI: Hicks, L 2.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Aranda; Mesa Jr.
GIDP: Díaz, Y; Simpson.
Team RISP: 1-for-5.
Team LOB: 5.
PO: Williamson (1st base by Messick).
SUBSTITUTIONS:
a: Popped out for Williamson in the 6th.

Guardians Pitching

Rays Pitching

Scoring Plays

Game Leaders

Turning points

Contact leaders

Starter pitch mix (count, avg mph)

Selected Highlights

• Freddy Peralta strikes out Chase DeLauter, TOP 1ST
• Peralta strikes out Rocchio to escape jam, TOP 2ND
• Parker Messick picks off Ben Williamson, BOT 2ND
• Guardians turn smooth double play, BOT 3RD
• Junior Caminero's running catch at the net, TOP 4TH
• Victor Mesa Jr. scores on error, BOT 4TH
• Liam Hicks' two-run single, BOT 4TH
• Junior Caminero denies Steven Kwan with leaping catch, TOP 5TH
• Freddy Peralta throws fastest pitch of career, TOP 5TH
• Chase DeLauter's RBI double, TOP 7TH
• Ian Seymour limits the damage in the 7th, TOP 7TH
• Richie Palacios' running catch, TOP 8TH

Game Info

• WP Peralta, F.
• HBP Hedges (by Peralta, F); Aranda (by Messick).
• ABS Challenge Hicks, L 2 (Ball-Overturned to Strike, Ball-Confirmed); Kwan (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Bailey (Strike-Overturned to Ball).
• Pitches-strikes Messick 82-47; Armstrong 20-15; Herrin 6-4; Cecconi 16-12; Peralta, F 99-68; Kelly 17-9; Seymour, I 15-10; Baker 8-7.
• Groundouts-flyouts Messick 7-2; Armstrong 0-0; Herrin 0-0; Cecconi 1-0; Peralta, F 1-5; Kelly 0-2; Seymour, I 0-0; Baker 1-1.
• Batters faced Messick 22; Armstrong 6; Herrin 1; Cecconi 3; Peralta, F 25; Kelly 4; Seymour, I 5; Baker 3.
• Inherited runners-scored Seymour, I 2-1.
• Umpires HP: Carlos Torres. 1B: Mark Ripperger. 2B: Jordan Baker. 3B: Chad Fairchild. LF: Adam Hamari. RF: Nestor Ceja.
• Weather 72 degrees, Dome.
• Wind 0 mph, None.
• First pitch 8:08 PM.
• T 2:42.
• Att 32,125.
• Venue Tropicana Field.

Gameday · Box score · Statcast · Game Graphs

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Good story here, linking to a couple other stories that it was primarily mechanics, but not just that.

Since playing for Tampa Bay, additionally, the righty changed his delivery and pitch selection. His arm angle was significantly lower in New York than it was in Milwaukee and that elevated closer to his previous approach with the Rays. His release extension also dropped from his time with the Brewers to his time with the Mets but stabilized after the trade.

Beyond the mechanics, it was also in part pitch selection and spotting:

Despite his nickname ("Fastball Freddy") that's known around the league, he significantly increased how often he threw his changeup — especially against other right-handed batters. Meanwhile, his fastball was more effective when he did throw it. He began throwing his curveball in the strike zone more often, too, as his walk rate fell and his strike rate increased.

There's a video at the link that discusses the mechanics more.

And, another reason for a Brewers-Rays series would be to see him against his original team.

Guardians 1, Rays 3

FINAL

CLE 1-1 · TB 1-1

Linescore

CLE 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0, R 1, H 6, E 1
TB 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0, R 3, H 7, E 0

• W Freddy Peralta (1-0) · L Parker Messick (0-2) · S Bryan Baker (4)

• TV TBS/HBO MAX, TruTV, Univision/ TUDN · TBS/HBO MAX, TruTV, Univision/ TUDN

• Radio WTAM 1100, WMMS 100.7, ESPN Radio, WARF 1350 · WDAE 95.7 FM, ESPN Radio, WQBN/1300AM

Guardians Batting

Guardians Notes

2B: DeLauter (2, Seymour, I).
TB: Bazzana; DeLauter 2; Halpin; Kwan 2; Ramírez, Jo.
RBI: DeLauter (4).
2-out RBI: DeLauter.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Rocchio; Adell 3.
Team RISP: 1-for-6.
Team LOB: 9.
SB: Ramírez, Jo (2, 2nd base off Peralta, F/Hicks, L).
E: Ramírez, Jo (1, fielding).
Pickoffs: Messick (Williamson at 1st base).
DP: 2 (2 Bazzana-Rocchio-Lowe, N).
SUBSTITUTIONS:
a: Walked for Hedges in the 7th.
b: Struck out for Halpin in the 8th.

Rays Batting

Rays Notes

2B: Caminero (2, Messick).
TB: Caminero 2; DeLuca 2; Hicks, L 2; Simpson; Walls.
RBI: Hicks, L 2 (3).
2-out RBI: Hicks, L 2.
Runners left in scoring position, 2 out: Aranda; Mesa Jr.
GIDP: Díaz, Y; Simpson.
Team RISP: 1-for-5.
Team LOB: 5.
PO: Williamson (1st base by Messick).
SUBSTITUTIONS:
a: Popped out for Williamson in the 6th.

Guardians Pitching

Rays Pitching

Scoring Plays

Game Leaders

Turning points

Contact leaders

Starter pitch mix (count, avg mph)

Selected Highlights

• Freddy Peralta strikes out Chase DeLauter, TOP 1ST
• Peralta strikes out Rocchio to escape jam, TOP 2ND
• Parker Messick picks off Ben Williamson, BOT 2ND
• Guardians turn smooth double play, BOT 3RD
• Junior Caminero's running catch at the net, TOP 4TH
• Victor Mesa Jr. scores on error, BOT 4TH
• Liam Hicks' two-run single, BOT 4TH
• Junior Caminero denies Steven Kwan with leaping catch, TOP 5TH
• Freddy Peralta throws fastest pitch of career, TOP 5TH
• Chase DeLauter's RBI double, TOP 7TH
• Ian Seymour limits the damage in the 7th, TOP 7TH
• Richie Palacios' running catch, TOP 8TH

Game Info

• WP Peralta, F.
• HBP Hedges (by Peralta, F); Aranda (by Messick).
• ABS Challenge Hicks, L 2 (Ball-Overturned to Strike, Ball-Confirmed); Kwan (Strike-Overturned to Ball); Bailey (Strike-Overturned to Ball).
• Pitches-strikes Messick 82-47; Armstrong 20-15; Herrin 6-4; Cecconi 16-12; Peralta, F 99-68; Kelly 17-9; Seymour, I 15-10; Baker 8-7.
• Groundouts-flyouts Messick 7-2; Armstrong 0-0; Herrin 0-0; Cecconi 1-0; Peralta, F 1-5; Kelly 0-2; Seymour, I 0-0; Baker 1-1.
• Batters faced Messick 22; Armstrong 6; Herrin 1; Cecconi 3; Peralta, F 25; Kelly 4; Seymour, I 5; Baker 3.
• Inherited runners-scored Seymour, I 2-1.
• Umpires HP: Carlos Torres. 1B: Mark Ripperger. 2B: Jordan Baker. 3B: Chad Fairchild. LF: Adam Hamari. RF: Nestor Ceja.
• Weather 72 degrees, Dome.
• Wind 0 mph, None.
• First pitch 8:08 PM.
• T 2:42.
• Att 32,125.
• Venue Tropicana Field.

Gameday · Box score · Statcast · Game Graphs

Updated automatically by mlb-dinger · v3.12.0 · Updates as the game progresses.

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