Mariners Moose Tracks, 1/28/23: Bryce Miller, Jeff McNeil, and Pete Fairbanks

Good morning all! Let’s kick off the weekend with some news from around baseball.

In Mariners news...

• Geoff Pontes at Baseball America wrote about what makes Bryce Miller special and why fans should be hyped about his coming MLB debut. ($)
• Pat Ellington, Jr. continued his series on Black baseball players with a profile on Julio Rodríguez.
• When I said the Mariners were done announcing minor league coaching staffs yesterday, I lied. Yesterday, they unveiled their ACL and DSL team staffs, which both also feature former organizational players.
• Kyle Kishimoto at Fangraphs analyzed the M’s signing of Tommy La Stella and where he fits into the team’s plans in 2023.
• Congrats to the Nuts!

• Goodbye road grays.

Around the league...

• It’s Extension Week, evidently, as infielder Jeff McNeil has agreed to a five-year contract extension with the Mets.
• The Rays found some more money in their piggy bank, handing out a three-year extension to right-hander Pete Fairbanks.
• It’s not just players either; Atlanta has signed manager Brian Snitker to a contract extension.
• The Society for American Baseball Research (SABR) announced its nominees for 2023, if you wanted to catch yourself up on some of the best writing that you might have missed from last year.
• Bradford Doolittle at ESPN ranked every lineup in baseball, with the Mariners positioning themselves pretty well!
• Marc Normandin at Baseball Prospectus has no sympathy for minor league owners who claim to be concerned that minor league pay raises may come out of their salaries. ($)