The balls in Japan are juiced again - MLB

Last year a scandal erupted in Japanese baseball when NPB commissioner Ryozo Kato admitted that the league had doctored the baseballs in order to generate more offense. It was so bad that he ended up resigning in September.

You can bet your bippy that no one in Japan is gonna repeat THAT blunder again:

The commissioner of Japanese baseball has apologized after random tests showed the official ball is livelier than it should be.

The tests revealed that balls used at six stadiums on March 29 were livelier than they should have been.

Nippon Professional Baseball commissioner Katsuhiko Kumazaki says, “I want to apologize for causing a commotion.”

Kind of embarrassing that, for the second year in a row, the Japanese baseball commissioner is apologizing for the same thing. On the bright side, that’s two more apologies than Bud Selig has ever offered.

ST. LOUIS — Miles Mikolas is sticking with the St. Louis Cardinals.

The right-hander signed a three-year, $55.75 million contract on Friday that will carry through the 2025 season.

The new deal replaces a $68 million, four-year contract signed in February 2019 that covered the 2020-23 seasons and was set to pay $15.75 million this year.

Mikolas will receive a $5 million signing bonus payable July 1 and will make $18.75 million in 2023 and $16 million in each of the following two seasons. Mikolas can earn a $250,000 bonus for winning a Cy Young Award, $50,000 for All-Star election or selection or winning a Gold Glove, $100,000 for League Championship Series MVP and $150,000 for World Series MVP.

Mikolas is scheduled to make the second opening-day start of his big league career next Thursday when the Cardinals host Toronto. Mikolas went 12-13 with a 3.29 ERA last season while helping St. Louis to the NL Central title.

“Miles stands among the top pitchers in the game today, and has continued to provide a steady presence for us both in the rotation and inside the clubhouse,” St. Louis general manager John Mozeliak said in a statement.

Mikolas is 45-40 with a 3.79 in 143 games with San Diego, Texas and St. Louis. He recently pitched six shutout innings in two appearances for the U.S. in the World Baseball Classic.