BASEBALL

Calling all creative artists in the Crustacean Nation!

Baseball’s ninth work stoppage and first in 26 years appears almost certain to start Dec. 2, freezing the free-agent market and threatening the start of spring training in February. Free agents can start signing with any team on the sixth day following the World Series, and this year’s group includes Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Freddie Freeman, Trevor Story, Max Scherzer, Marcus Semien, Kris Bryant, Anthony Rizzo, Michael Conforto and Kevin Gausman.

Baseball’s biggest payroll couldn’t buy the Los Angeles Dodgers another championship. Saturday night’s 4-2 loss to the Atlanta Braves in Game 6 of the NL Championship Series ended the Dodgers’ streak of seven consecutive postseason wins in elimination games. Max Scherzer watched helplessly from the dugout, unable to go in Game 6 as planned because of lingering fatigue in his powerful right arm.

The minor league baseball seasons wrapped earlier this month. We’ve updated area players in the minors every other week during the year. This is the final update of the season.

News4Jax has updated area players in Major League Baseball weekly throughout the season and that wraps up with this final installment.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through Sept. 28 games.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through Sept. 13 games.

The Gators and the Bulldogs will face off in an exhibition baseball game at 121 Financial Ballpark in Jacksonville ahead of the annual Florida-Georgia football game.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through Aug. 30 games.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through Aug. 16 games.

Tim Anderson recently admitted he has never watched “Field of Dreams.” Well, he just submitted a pretty good script for a sequel.

Checking in on area products in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through Aug. 2 games. Recent draft picks and undrafted free agents who have signed are listed.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Fans were probably a little puzzled at first when the news broke announcing the new nickname for Cleveland’s baseball team.

It’s official: The Cleveland Indians will become the Cleveland Guardians.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball. Stats are through July 19 games. Recent draft picks and undrafted free agents who have signed are listed.

If you think trying to hit a baseball off a professional pitcher is hard, it might not have anything on trying to hit a Wiffle Ball off a professional.

Dave Barnett has been coaching for a long, long time and nabbed quite a few honors along the way.

Area products finally heard their names called on the second day of the Major League Baseball draft on Monday.

Jackson Baumeister is in a pretty good situation — play baseball at his dream college or start his pro career early should he hear his name called in next week's baseball draft.

America’s pastime on America’s birthday: J.P. Small Memorial Park was filled with fans and baseball players on Sunday for the annual matchup between the Westside Giants and the Eastside Reds.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball.

Every other Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball.

Desi Relaford, a Jacksonville-raised former Major League Baseball player, is helping create baseball academies in Africa.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update players in Major League Baseball.

Each Tuesday, News4Jax will check in on area players and how they’re doing in minor league baseball.

In the history of Jacksonville sports, there are a few teams who wore the title of Cinderella particularly well. The 1970 Jacksonville University basketball team. The 1996 Jaguars. And now, you can add the 2021 JU baseball team to the list.

The area has produced countless stars in professional baseball and we’re keeping track of the players currently in the big leagues. Each Wednesday, News4Jax will update how area players are doing in Major League Baseball.

A glance at players with area ties who are playing minor league baseball.

Needing a win to keep their season alive, Jacksonville University enjoyed their biggest offensive explosion of the year to keep their postseason going.

The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are back in action for the first time in 20 months and also mark the return of Jacksonville baseball to AAA ranks for the first time since 1968.

Pitcher Dane Dunning (Clay), shortstop Javier Baez (Arlington Country Day) and pitcher Adam Wainwright (Glynn Academy) are among the area players who are on Major League Baseball rosters on Opening Day. He’s penciled in as the tandem No. He’s a career .261 hitter in five big league seasons with 23 HR ad 126 RBI. OF Austin Hays, JU, Orioles, Hit .392 (20 for 51) with four HRs, 13 RBI in limited action in 2020. C Roberto Perez, Florida Gateway College, Indians, A career .271 hitter since coming into the bigs in 2010.

Roberto Clemente was the first Latino to be inducted in the Baseball Hall of Fame. The legacy of Roberto Clemente is still treasured today, proven nearly 50 years after his death. In fact, the Orange County School Board unanimously voted to rename the facility Roberto Clemente Middle on Sept. 21, coincidentally during Hispanic Heritage Month. Becoming baseball’s most prominent Afro-LatinoRoberto Clemente started his Major League Baseball career with the Pittsburg Pirates. The son of a sugarcane worker, Clemente began his professional baseball career just after finishing high school.

Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo enters his fifth year with the Diamondbacks and the final year of his current contract under a substantial amount of scrutiny. The protocols have been tightened even further from what they experienced during the abbreviated 2020 season. Players underwent a five-day at-home quarantine before reporting, with exceptions for essential activities and approved outdoor workouts and exercise. AdThey’ll need to stay in their living quarters throughout spring training except for baseball activities, medical care, grocery shopping, takeout food pickups and outdoor physical activity. Mozeliak believes knowing which players already have at least some measure of protection from the coronavirus can help in preventing an outbreak during spring training.

The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp’s move to Triple-A is complete. The Jumbo Shrimp will play in the Triple-A East league and in the Southeast Division. Minor league baseball underwent a massive overhaul last offseason to reduce the number of teams from 162 to 120 and provide four affiliates for each Major League Baseball team. The full leagues were released Friday as well, with the Triple-A league replaced what was the International League and the Pacific Coast League. “This is a momentous day for Jumbo Shrimp fans to officially bring the top level of Minor League Baseball to 121 Financial Ballpark,” said Jumbo Shrimp owner and CEO Ken Babby.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Ron Salem has been a fan of Hank Aaron since he was kid. Aaron had a remarkable season on the field then but had to endure the racism of the 1950′s segregated South. AdSalem is proposing that the city name the baseball grounds at J.P. Small Park in Durkeeville, Hank Aaron Field. It’s the right time to honor Aaron, Salem said, an incremental and long overdue, but much-needed step in the city’s history. “I don’t think we’ve treated our African-American history here in Jacksonville very well, particularly our sports history here in Jacksonville,” Salem said Monday morning.

(AP Photo/David Zalubowski)Jacksonville native Daniel Murphy is retiring from Major League Baseball, wrapping up a 12-year career in the big leagues. Murphy, who played at Englewood High School and Jacksonville University, told SportsNet New York on Friday that he was retiring. “This is a beautiful game, and I really just feel humbled and blessed that it let me jump on the ride for a little bit,” Murphy told SNY. Murphy played seven seasons for the Mets and will be remembered the most for his time there, including a torrid postseason in 2015. But his best season came in 2016 with the Nationals where Murphy hit a career-highs in batting average (.347), home runs (25) and RBI (104).

Since then, the stadium changed its name from the Baseball Grounds to 121 Financial Ballpark, and COVID-19 has changed the way the world looks at large gatherings like sporting events. The Jacksonville baseball drought will finally come to an end on Feb. 12 when Raines and Ribault will hit the field for the High School Heritage Classic. “As long as you are moving inside or around 121 Financial Ballpark, you must be wearing a face coving. Once you are seated in place in your seat you may remove your face covering.”While 121 Financial Ballpark has not hosted a game since COVID-19 began, fans have had the chance to attend other events there like bingo and movie night. Those events have helped the Jumbo Shrimp prepare for when fans return to the park for a ball game.

Before the 2020 season was wiped out by COVID-19, Florida and Florida State had played a neutral site game in Jacksonville every year since 2007. JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Sunshine Showdown baseball game in Jacksonville between Florida and Florida State is off. But we appreciate the cooperation with Florida and Florida State. Now, he’ll have to wait until the Gator Bowl football game to get his first experience as the man in charge. Catlett is retiring after 29 years of leading Gator Bowl Sports and serving in various capacities with the JaxSports Council and Gator Bowl Charities.

The Astros were scheduled to spend July 4 in the nation's capital during a three-game series against the defending World Series champion Nationals. But the Nationals won every game at Minute Maid Park, with Kendrick's two-run home run in the seventh inning of Game 7 putting them ahead to stay. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)Former West Nassau High School star Howie Kendrick is retiring after 15 major league seasons that included earning NLCS MVP honors during the Washington Nationals’ 2019 World Series run. Howie Kendrick, 2019 World Series hero, has announced his retirement after 15 big league seasons. “My beloved Washington Nationals, thank you for embracing me as one of your own,” Kendrick wrote on Instagram.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are moving up. Jacksonville’s baseball team is moving from Double A to Triple A, a move announced Wednesday afternoon. “We are incredibly excited about the prospects of bringing the top level of Minor League Baseball to the excellent Jumbo Shrimp fans in Jacksonville and throughout Northeast Florida,” said Jumbo Shrimp owner & CEO Ken Babby. The Jumbo Shrimp didn’t play in 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Jumbo Shrimp played in Triple A from 1962-68 when they were known as the Suns and were in the International League.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are building off of a successful high school baseball classic and branching out into college. The Jumbo Shrimp are partnering with BCSG 360 to host Historically Black Colleges and University programs Edward Waters and Savannah State in the inaugural JAX Diamond Classic on March 22, 2021 at 121 Financial Ballpark. “We are excited and honored to host the JAX Diamond Classic,” said Jumbo Shrimp executive vice president/general manager Harold Craw. “It is with great pride we showcase our facility to not only the teams from Edward Waters and Savannah State, but also to their fans, alumni and supporters.”Last February, the Jumbo Shrimp hosted the inaugural High School Heritage Classic between Raines and Ribault at the Ballpark. Part of the proceeds from the game between EWC and Savannah State will be donated to bolster programs for college admittance, scholarships and college preparation for students.

While appointing Sonia Sotomayor as a justice for the Supreme Court in 2009, then-President Barack Obama caught a few people by surprise when he said, “Some say Judge Sotomayor saved baseball.”

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Dane Dunning’s path to the big leagues is a lesson in perseverance. And now, the former Clay High School and University of Florida star is one of the better stories in Major League Baseball since making his debut last month for the Chicago White Sox. Dunning, 25, is 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 20 innings for the AL Central-leading White Sox. “I told my dad, day one when I played baseball, I want to be a Major League Baseball player. Dunning was placed in the White Sox major league player pool roster and called up for the first time on Aug. 19.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. After a long and sometimes painful road, former Clay High School hurler Dane Dunning is set to make his Major League debut on Wednesday night for the Chicago White Sox. Wednesdays appearance will be his first in a regular season game since 2018 when Dunning pitched in the minors before injuries derailed him. After an elbow strain in June of 2018, Dunning didnt pitch again that season in the minors. While he seemed healthy the following spring, Dunning wound up suffering an injury and wound up having Tommy John surgery in March of last year. Dunning, a 2014 Clay High graduate, had one of the better high school pitching performances at the state level as a junior.

(2020 Getty Images)A lone Boston Red Sox employee eats a hot dog in the stands before a game between the Boston Red Sox and the Baltimore Orioles at Fenway Park on July 26, 2020 in Boston. (2020 Getty Images)A peek at Tropicana Field during a game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Atlanta Braves on July 27, 2020 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (2020 Getty Images)A mask is placed on the Teammates Statue on Opening Day at Fenway Park on July 24, 2020 in Boston. (2020 Getty Images)A general view of of cardboard cutouts placed in the seats before the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the San Francisco Giants at Dodger Stadium on July 25, 2020. (2020 Getty Images)With information from the Associated Press.

Beep baseball lets blind players step up to the plate Equipment outfitted with distinct sounds allows the blind and visually impaired participate in “beep baseball.” WISH’s Jessica Hayes reports.

Baseball expands its use of instant replay in upcoming season Opening day for Major League Baseball is almost here and this season, new rules involving instant replay go into effect. Don Dahler reports on how the change will effect the game.