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Well, I suppose the stove is hot.
Andrew Vaughn Rafael Devers is a massive domino to fall a whole month and a half before baseball’s trade deadline.
As a result, things have to get real for the Cubs a lot sooner than we might’ve expected.
Adding Devers turns a surprisingly decent Giants club into a blossoming force, and with the Dodgers facing several injuries to their pitching staff, the Cubs won’t be the only team in pursuit of some of the top starters on the trade market.
Competition in the trade market shouldn’t come as a shock, but I’m not sure anybody expected the ball to start rolling in the middle of June.
Sure, it’s possible this was a one-off ahead of a lull before deadline action really picks up in a month or so. But if you ask me, this is just the beginning of a wildly interesting summer ahead.
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Venable tossed, Sox swept
White Sox manager Will Venable was ejected for arguing balls and strikes in the bottom of the first in Sunday’s loss to the Rangers. It’s the second time Venable’s been tossed in his rookie managerial campaign.
WHAT HAPPENED: Venable voiced his displeasure with home plate umpire Marvin Hudson on a couple of calls that went against White Sox starter Aaron Civale, prompting a wildly quick hook from Hudson. Venable then immediately made his way out to Hudson as the two hurled profanities back and forth.
(The video is great — a real screaming match.)
VENABLE ON THE EJECTION: “There was early frustration, you could call it. And, obviously, you saw what happened.”
Venable’s first ejection as manager came on May 11 against the Miami Marlins.
AARON CIVALE ON VENABLE: “Anytime the manager goes and fights with the players, that’s an awesome sign. When you have each other’s backs, that’s how you know you’re in a good position and the culture’s good. When you’re fighting for each other, that’s important.”
Civale, who was acquired on Friday from the Milwaukee Brewers for Andrew Vaughn, pitched five innings, allowing two runs on six hits and four walks while striking out four in his debut with the club.
For those counting at home, that’s three ejections between Venable and Cubs manager Craig Counsell since last Sunday.
The actual pitch that ended up getting the Sox’s skipper run yesterday wasn’t an awful call by Hudson, but it didn’t really matter after the home plate umpire’s rough start.
And Venable certainly got his money’s worth. The visual of the rookie manager losing his mind at Hudson, a 27-year umpiring vet, was a pretty good one, too.
As for Venable’s intentions, if it was to rally the troops and the offense after four straight losses, it didn’t work. Miguel Vargas’s solo home run in the sixth was the Sox’s lone run support in the loss.
The sweep drops the Sox to an abysmal 7-31 on the road this season, and 23-49 overall through 72 games. Last year’s club was 19-53 at this point.
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EXTENSION: After making Billy Donovan unavailable to the New York Knicks in their head coach search last week, the Bulls are “in the process of extending” Donovan to keep him in Chicago long-term, according to ALLCITY’s Marc Stein.
In Donovan’s five seasons with the team, the Bulls have made the playoffs once, losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in the first round in 2022. Since then, the Bulls have been eliminated in the Play-In Tournament each of the last three years by the Miami Heat.
TRADE ALERT: On Friday, the Blackhawks traded the restricted free agent rights to defenseman Victor Söderström to the Boston Bruins for defenseman Ryan Mast and a seventh-round pick in the 2025 NHL Draft.
Söderström was acquired from the Utah Hockey Club at the trade deadline in a cap move that also brought Hall of Fame defenseman Shea Weber’s salary to Chicago. #BlackhawksLegend
Craig Counsell, on the topic of thinking about the Cubs and their playoff chances later this season:
"If you're worried about something else other than today, today is going to kick your ass."
— #Jared Wyllys (#@jwyllys)
5:11 PM • Jun 13, 2025
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