When the Arizona Coyotes narrowly missed out on a wild-card playoff spot last season -- extending their playoff drought to seven years -- the franchise put a huge emphasis on snapping that streak this season. It wasn't lost on the Coyotes that they ranked 29th in offense in 2018-19, and were the only team in the league without a 20-goal scorer. So they went out and traded for Phil Kessel over the summer. They doubled down by acquiring 2018 MVP Taylor Hall in December.

As the Coyotes stare down the final quarter of the season, they're clinging to the second Western Conference wild-card spot. They're averaging slightly more offense than last season, but their leading goal scorer isn't Kessel or Hall. It's not Clayton Keller, the No. 7 overall pick of the 2016 draft; nor is it Nick Schmaltz, a first-round pick of the Blackhawks' in 2014.

It's Conor Garland, a gritty undersized winger who was passed over in his first draft year, is making less than $800,000 this season, and only got an opportunity to make his NHL debut last season because the Coyotes were ravaged by injuries. After getting called up in December 2018, Garland scored 13 goals in 47 games, and now has a team-leading 19 through 60 games this season.

"I probably wouldn't have predicted this either," the 23-year-old Garland said. "I'm just so fortunate to be in a position to help this team win and achieve our goals."

Garland's unlikely success story is one of perseverance and adaptation. It also proves that there is no linear path to thriving in the NHL.

Garland grew up in the South Shore area of Massachusetts. Two of his best childhood buddies were Jack Eichel and Ryan Donato. Eichel went on to play in the U.S. national team development program, and Donato chose college hockey, playing for his father, Ted, who coached at Harvard.

Garland initially committed to Penn State's fledgling Division I program but fell in love with a junior team in Moncton of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. "They let me know I was going to be on the second line as a 16-year-old, which was rare," Garland said. "I could play with [current Blues forward] Ivan Barbashev and [former Blues and Capitals forward] Dmitrij Jaskin. It felt like a no-brainer to get a lot of good playing time and learn a lot."

Offense came easily. "I don't want to sound arrogant, but wherever I played, scoring came pretty naturally," Garland said. After being limited to 26 games because of a broken hand in his first season in 2012-13, Garland tallied 24 goals and 54 points in 51 games in 2013-14 but was passed over in the 2014 NHL draft.

He was disappointed but vowed to work even harder. Garland more than doubled his point total the following season, scoring 35 goals and a whopping 129 points through 67 games, good enough for the Coyotes to take a fifth-round flier on him in the 2015 draft. Even as Garland followed it up with another 128-point season, and left as Moncton's all-time leading scorer, many doubted that his production would translate to the NHL. It wasn't just his size that was an issue (Garland is generously listed at 5-foot-10, but is probably a few inches shorter). He needed to work on his skating -- getting quicker, but also stronger on his feet.

Moncton often had set plays. Garland could hide behind the net, a teammate would rim the puck, he'd catch it and make a play -- something that wouldn't usually work in the NHL. Garland was more advanced skill-wise than a lot of his peers in junior, so he often had the puck on his stick. To succeed at the next level, he needed to get conditioned to move the puck quicker.

And then there was his shot. "I've never had a good shot," Garland said. "I've worked on it every summer since I was a kid, I just don't have a hard shot. Unless I get all of it, which is rare, I'm not going to beat these NHL goalies. So I worked on placement."

In 2016, he graduated to the AHL, and he was ready to get to work. "I give a lot of credit to the Coyotes for helping me develop," Garland said. "If you ask one of the coaches in Tucson to hang out at the rink until 7 at night, they will."

If ice wasn't available, Roadrunners assistant coach Steve Potvin would take a bucket of pucks to the loading dock of the Tucson Convention Center, and he and Garland would fire off shots into the pavement.

In December 2018 Garland got his first NHL call-up.

"It's something that we've always talked about -- me, my dad and my trainer -- that as a fifth-round pick, as a smaller guy, the opportunities to make it don't come often," Garland said. "You're going to get one, maybe two chances. And if you play average, they're going to send you right back down. I remember getting the call, and thinking, 'You can be excited, but you don't want to be someone who is going up to the NHL for brief stints and then going back down. I want to be there for a long, long time.'"

And so Garland made it impossible for the Coyotes to send him back down.

He still had to adjust as he got to the NHL. "In the A, and in juniors, I was good on the forecheck and going in on guys," Garland said. "Of course the first guy I go in against in the NHL is Brent Burns. I remember I tried to just push him in his hips, just get him off balance a bit. And it was just nothing. He just didn't move. So that was the first time I was like, 'Well, that's not going to work here, I'll learn from that.'"

Then on Jan. 12, 2019, he had his breakout moment. In a Hockey Night in Canada game against the Edmonton Oilers, Garland scored a goal off his face. He got 10 stitches over his left eye, returned to the game with a full shield, then scored the game-winner -- which earned him the coveted HNIC towel, but also a bruise that lasted months. His teammates briefly nicknamed him "McGarland" (as he outdueled Connor McDavid offensively in that game), which was amusingly twisted into McGarlic. By February, he signed a two-year contract worth $1.55 million total.

Garland has thrived because he is tenacious. Per Natural Stat Trick, Garland has averaged 1.24 goals per 60 minutes at even strength since debuting in the NHL, thanks, in part, to averaging 10.5 shots per 60 minutes.

The Coyotes have given Garland top-six minutes, and he has primarily played with Christian Dvorak, Schmaltz or Hall. "Dvorak is so good defensively, that if you make a mistake, he can cover for you," Garland said. "And Hallsy and Schmaltzy make so many plays each and every shift, and can make things happen on their own, it makes it easier to simplify your game, and when you get the puck you can do what got you there."

When Garland was younger, he would always read stories about smaller guys who made it in the NHL. Any time there was a story about Brad Marchand, Garland would read it.

"Small guys, you always hear the same thing: They work so hard and would just do anything to make it," Garland said. "So if there's a small kid out there who doesn't think he has a chance to make it, maybe he can read this and realize there is a chance. You just have to work incredibly hard and be tenacious and be competitive. Then the rest will take over."

Jump ahead:
What we liked this week | What we didn't like
Three stars of the week | Biggest games coming up

Emptying the notebook

The Coyotes posted a big 3-1 win against the Washington Capitals on Saturday night, which they're hoping gets them back on the right track. Since Jan. 9, the Yotes have gone 4-8-4, the fourth-worst points percentage in the league in that span. That makes the final 21 games extremely crucial. "We fought so hard last year, and we got so close, and we had one bad road trip that kind of just killed us," Garland said. "And we realized how important every single game is, not just down the stretch, but from the beginning of the season. You can't take a night off. That's something Phil [Kessel] has really stressed to us since coming over. I remember early in the season, Phil told the guys, 'Hey, it starts now. We've got to start banking some points now. Teams will go on winning streaks, teams will go on losing streaks, but if we bank points now, we'll be in better shape.'"

The Seattle NHL team -- which should be announcing its name and logo in the next month or so -- held its first scouting meetings after the All-Star Game. "The biggest thing was just going through everybody's teams and getting a handle on that, and then we went through the process of what a mock draft might look like," GM Ron Francis said. "Everybody understands what we're looking at in January will look different than what we're looking at after the trade deadline, and what we're looking at after next summer, and it's going to be different again after the next trade deadline and then when we finally get to pick in summer of 2021. But it helps to go through the process and better understand it, and it gives our scouts a little more clarity when they go back and keep watching games."

Shortly after the meetings, Seattle announced that Ulf Samuelsson, one of their first five scouting hires, had departed the organization to coach Leksands IF of the Swedish Hockey League for the rest of the season. "That's where he played hockey in Sweden, his son Philip plays there, and they're trying not to get relegated to the second division," Francis explained. Francis said the team wouldn't immediately replace Samuelsson, who was working out of San Diego and scouting the Pacific Division. The existing scouts (which includes Francis) will double-up on their Pacific assignments. Francis says he'll see how Samuelsson's season goes, and left the door open for him to return to Seattle in the future.

When Seattle enters the NHL in 2021-22, their AHL franchise in Palm Springs, California, will also begin play. But that's not the only AHL movement going on lately. The Vegas Golden Knights purchased the San Antonio Rampage (currently the St. Louis Blues' farm club) to be their AHL affiliate, and they're planning on relocating them closer to home, pending approval from the AHL's Board of Governors. Golden Knights owner Bill Foley announced he was developing "a second hockey facility in Henderson which will be a new state-of-the-art, 6,000-seat arena for our AHL team." Having the AHL and NHL clubs within driving distance will make call-ups far easier. That leaves the Blues in the market for a new AHL affiliate. They could partner back with the Chicago Wolves. One interesting rumor I heard: Don't discount Indianapolis from getting an AHL team sometime soon. That could be a good fit for St. Louis.

Bruce Boudreau's firing was surprising given the timing; the Wild were showing signs of life after going 7-3-1 and are well within reach of a wild-card spot. It truly feels as if no coaches in this league are safe, but for those wondering if this bloodbath is unprecedented ... not quite. The NHL has always been a volatile league when it comes to coaching turnover. In fact, this is the fifth season in league history that eight or more teams have used multiple head coaches. We last saw a season with eight in-season coaching changes in 2011-12.

What we liked this week

• It was undoubtedly the scariest moment of the week -- and perhaps the season -- as Blues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester collapsed on the bench in a cardiac episode. However, there is a happy ending. It's great to hear that Bouwmeester is doing well, and according to some Blues players "in good spirits" after undergoing a procedure to restore his heart's normal rhythm. The incident was a reminder of how well-prepared the NHL is for situations like this. The league has a lengthy list of emergency medical standards, including language that requires two doctors to be in attendance for every game, and one must be within 50 feet of the bench. A defibrillator must also be present, which is pertinent here, as Blues GM Doug Armstrong said a defibrillator was needed to revive Bouwmeester before he was transported to the hospital. It was also inspiring to see the NHL community step up and show support for the Blues and Bouwmeester. One good example: as the Blues traveled to Las Vegas for their next game, the Golden Knights made a counselor available for Blues players to help them process the incident, and also invited fans to sign "get well soon" banner for Bouwmeester:

Fans: join us in sending @StLouisBlues defenseman Jay Bouwmeester our best wishes by writing him a message outside sections 11 & 12 ?? pic.twitter.com/gI6himVW5K

— Vegas Golden Knights (@GoldenKnights) February 14, 2020

• Here come the Lightning. It's not just that they've moved past the early doom-and-gloom projections. The Lightning actually look as dangerous as they've ever been -- as in, maybe they've learned how to peak at the right time this time. Since Dec. 23, the Lightning have gone 22-2-1. Their 45 points are 10 more than the next-closest team in that span (the Bruins) and they have an otherworldly plus-46 goal differential. Tampa Bay is on a 10-game winning streak, their second 10-game winning streak of the season. The 1929-30 Bruins and the 1970-71 Bruins are the only other teams in NHL history with multiple 10-game winning streaks in a single season.

• Another reminder that Artemi Panarin is worth every dollar: The Bread Man is up to 77 points, the most by any Rangers player in the past 10 seasons. The Rangers have 25 regular-season games remaining.

Three stars of the week

Leon Draisaitl, C, Edmonton Oilers

No Connor McDavid? No problem. Draisaitl is bolstering his Hart Trophy case with another stellar week. He led all skaters with 10 points (three goals, seven assists) through four games as the Oilers went 3-1.

Zach Sanford, LW, St. Louis Blues

The 25-year-old had a heck of a week, scoring five goals in three games. Not bad for a guy who tallied eight goals all of last season. His week included a four-goal outburst against the Golden Knights, to keep the Blues in the emotional game played two days following Jay Bouwmeester's collapse.

Jacob Markstrom, G, Vancouver Canucks

The goalie is having a moment, winning both of his starts this week. That includes a 49-save shutout against the Blackhawks on Sedin jersey retirement night.

What we didn't like this week

• I literally cringed when I saw that Micheal Ferland left an AHL game in the first period on Friday night with concussion-like symptoms. Ferland is recovering from a concussion he sustained in October. In December, he thought he was ready to come back, but after two games, he was sidelined again because of lingering symptoms. He was cleared to return again this week, and was in Utica on a conditioning assignment. The 27-year-old is an extremely talented player who plays a rugged style and undoubtedly would help the Canucks in their quest for a playoff spot this spring. I know he probably feels pressure to come back. He is on the first year of a four-year, $14 million contract. However given his history, and how susceptible he could be to longer-term damage, it seems best if Ferland shut it down for the season -- and perhaps ponder if maybe this should be it for his career.

• Zack Kassian, what are you doing? There is a knife stapled to your shoe, and you can't go around kicking people in the chest. Kassian's argument that he was trying to disentangle from the pile of players is absurd. The Department of Player Safety agreed with Kassian that the play was not malicious, but it's still extremely dangerous. Honestly, it feels as if he got off easy with a seven-game suspension, especially as a repeat offender.

• Speaking of discipline, Evander Kane ripped the NHL for inconsistencies in their discipline process after receiving his second suspension of the season, three games for elbowing. Kane pointed out that "there have been countless incidents of the same nature through this season and past seasons that have gone unsuspended or fined" and "no one person can tell you what is or isn't a suspension in today's game, it's become a complete guess." The discipline process is collectively bargained between the players and the league, and Kane called for a reform. He suggested an independent third party to run NHL Player Safety.

• This Sharks season is cursed. Erik Karlsson is out for the rest of the campaign because of a broken thumb, which probably eliminates any slim chance at a last-quarter surge into the playoffs. And let's not forget this is the season the Senators have the Sharks' first-round pick from the Karlsson deal. Not ideal. This gives the Senators two very good chances of landing the No. 1 pick in the lottery, and the right to select Alexis Lafreniere.

• Hate seeing this Alex Ovechkin 700-goals watch drag on. He's stuck at No. 698 and has gone four straight games without a goal, his longest goalless drought of the season and most since he went six games without a goal in December 2018.

Games of the Week

Thursday, Feb. 20: Pittsburgh Penguins at Toronto Maple Leafs (ESPN+)

I highlighted this game as soon as I saw our ESPN+ schedule for February. It's two top-10 offenses but also a showdown between two of the best centers in the sport, period: Auston Matthews versus Sidney Crosby.

Friday, Feb. 21: Nashville Predators at Chicago Blackhawks

Two Central Division teams battling for their wild-card lives face off. This game (and this week's results in particular) could determine whether either of these teams are sellers at the deadline.

Saturday, Feb. 22: Boston Bruins at Vancouver Canucks (ESPN+)

There's still bad blood between these fan bases from the 2011 Stanley Cup Final (which was now nearly a decade ago). The matchup I'm most excited for in this one: David Pastrnak, who leads the league with 42 goals, versus Jacob Markstrom, who is coming in hot as a dark horse Vezina Trophy candidate.

Quote of the Week

"He's not going to be a player there that's going to have a very long career. I'm not overly concerned with him." -- Bruins winger Brad Marchand on Rangers defenseman Ryan Lindgren, per NBC Sports Boston's Joe Haggerty. Marchand has a gift for this kind of thing.

The year is 2040. The NHL adds it's 35th and 36th teams with the addition of the Atlanta Grits and the Kansas City Ribeyes. Alex Ovechkin announces the upcoming 2040-41 season will be his last at age 56. He enters the season with 1,287 career goals. This is also the final season for United States-born forwards Auston Matthews and Jack Eichel. Matthews spent the last 10 years of his career with the homestate Arizona Coyotes, while Eichel spent the entirety of his with the Buffalo Sabres and won two Stanley Cups.

I'm now 74 years old. I still religiously get in my Dan Uggla wrist curls (50 sets of 50) regimen and still contribute to ESPN when called upon. So before I head out for my morning pickleball match with Darren Pang down in Naples, Florida, I sent in my top 20 American-born NHL players (sorry, Brett Hull, Canadian-born Americans are ineligible here).

Here's my personal ranking (with some of the younger talents, like Matthews and Eichel, projected out for their careers through 2040 to even the playing field).

20. Mark Johnson, C (1980-1990)

Career NHL stats: 669 games, 203 goals, 305 assists

Johnson was a national Champion at Wisconsin and led the 1980 American Miracle on Ice team with 11 points in a gold-medal effort, scoring two goals in the upset win of the Soviets. And despite playing on some bad teams in the NHL, he still averaged 0.76 points per game in his 11-year career. And in his post-playing career, Johnson is a national-championship-winning head coach for the Wisconsin women's team. Clutch and class.

19. Neal Broten, C (1981-1997)

Career NHL stats: 1,099 games, 289 goals, 634 assists

Broten won an NCAA hockey title at the University of Minnesota, a Miracle on Ice Olympic gold medal in 1980 and then a Stanley Cup with the Devils in 1995. He later won the Lester Patrick Award for service to hockey in the United States in 1998. A tremendous hockey life.

18. Mark Howe, D (1974-1995)

Career NHL stats: 929 games, 197 goals, 545 assists

A Hockey Hall of Famer, Howe has the third-highest points per game (0.8) for USA-born defensemen behind Brian Leetch and Phil Housley. Early WHA years cost him some NHL points. But Vancouver star rookie Quinn Hughes could eventually pass Howe to occupy that spot behind Leetch and Housley.

17. Mike Richter, G (1990-2003)

Career NHL stats: 666 games, .904 save percentage, 2.89 goals-against average

Richter shared duties early on and played on some bad Rangers teams at the end of his career. But he also delivered New York a Stanley Cup in 1994, had 301 career wins and provided so many memorable moments (like the 1996 World Cup of Hockey MVP effort). He was the kind of player who leaves an imprint on your hockey brain.

16. John Carlson, D (2010-present)

Career NHL stats: 746 games, 105 goals, 367 assists

Carlson is a great player. A World Junior hero. A Stanley Cup champion. A likely Norris Trophy winner in 2019-20. And still just 30 years old, he should have five more good season in him to finish off a Hall of Fame career.

15. Tony Amonte, RW (1992-2007)

Career NHL stats: 1,174 games, 416 goals, 484 assists

What a fun player to watch. Amonte could play in all situations and always showed up to play, rarely missing games. He ranks top 20 all-time in both goals and assists by a USA-born player.

14. Bill Guerin, RW (1992-2010)

Career NHL stats: 1,263 games, 429 goals, 427 assists

Guerin has the sixth-most goals among USA-born players (429) and two Stanley Cups. His hockey energy could feed a room, and he was always fun to be around.

13. Jonathan Quick, G (2008-present)

Career NHL stats: 639 games, .913 save percentage, 2.40 goals-against average

Two Stanley Cups and a Conn Smythe is an outstanding resume. But the Kings probably played him too much in his 20s -- he had seasons of 72, 72, 69, 68 and 68 games -- which might shorten his career.

12. Frank Brimsek, G (1939-1950)

Career NHL stats: 514 games, 2.70 goals-against average

Minnesota-born Brimsek was a rare American NHL player in the 1940s, but he helped the Bruins to a Stanley Cup win in 1939 and again in 1941, and he took home two Vezina Trophies during his career.

11. Phil Housley, D (1983-2003)

Career NHL stats: 1,495 games, 338 goals, 894 assists

Housley entered the NHL as an 18-year-old and was immediately productive. He was ideal for the wide-open, high-scoring hockey of the mid-1980s and early 1990s.

10. Joe Mullen, RW (1982-1997)

Career NHL stats: 1,062 games, 502 goals, 561 assists

Mullen had more goals (502) and points (1,063) than any U.S.-born player at the time of his retirement. He was one of those fortunate players who found himself on good, winning teams. And he played a big part with smart play and a heavy shot.

9. Keith Tkachuk, LW (1992-2010)

Career NHL stats: 1,201 games, 538 goals, 527 assists

Tkachuk is still the only USA-born player to lead the NHL in goals, doing so in 1996-97 with 52. He never played on a truly great team, so he always got a lot of attention from the opponent -- and he still produced. His sons, Matthew and Brady, might join him in the Hall of Fame one day.

8. Jeremy Roenick, C (1989-2009)

Career NHL stats: 1,363 games, 513 goals, 703 assists

I know, I'm more bullish on Roenick then others. But he stopped accumulating stats in his 30s because how physically he played in his 20s. I started covering the NHL in 1989, and whenever I talked to kids getting drafted back then, they'd all mention Roenick as the guy they wanted to play like.

7. Chris Chelios, D (1984-2010)

Career NHL stats: 1,651 games, 185 goals, 763 assists

Most probably think No. 7 is too low for Chelios. He always had great fitness (despite legendary partying) and was a elite competitor. Yes, Chelios was very fortunate to almost always be on good teams, but he also was a huge part of all of them with his competitive fire and leadership presence.

6. Brian Leetch, D (1988-2006)

Career NHL stats: 1,205 games, 247 goals, 781 assists

Calder Trophy, Norris Trophy (two), Conn Smythe Trophy and the Stanley Cup. Leetch won it all, and he seemed to have been constructed in a hockey laboratory. He was lava-lamp smooth.

5. Jack Eichel, C (2016-present)

Career NHL stats: 344 games, 134 goals, 199 assists

Eichel is, and will continue to be, a monster talent. His skating, passing and shooting are all high-end skills. He is strong and is still gaining grit as he ages. Eichel has a unique "speed skating" stride and a heavy shot. So yes, if Captain Jack stays focused and driven, he will go down as a top-five USA-born player.

4. Pat LaFontaine, C (1984-1998)

Career NHL stats: 865 games, 468 goals, 545 assists

To be honest, I was tempted to put LaFontaine No. 1 on the list. He has the most points per game among USA-born players, and he was one of those players who could absolutely do it all. My hockey crush on Patty Ice is real.

3. Mike Modano, C (1990-2011)

Career NHL stats: 1,499 games, 561 goals, 813 assists

Modano has the most goals and points for a USA-born player. That's enough to put him this high. And he was maybe the coolest skater of all time, with the way his sweater fluttered in the air and he cruised up the ice.

2. Auston Matthews, C (2017-present)

Career NHL stats: 272 games, 153 goals, 123 assists

I think Matthews will be the first American-born player with 600 goals -- and 700 isn't out of the question. I hope he loves the game forever. He may go down as having the best arsenal of shots among American players, with a devastating wrist shot and one-timer whether from in close or distance. Matthews is a threat to score as soon as he gets off the bus.

1. Patrick Kane, RW (2008-present)

Career NHL stats: 962 games, 383 goals, 629 assists

Kane is brilliance. They call teammate Jonathan Toews "Captain Serious," but when it comes to taking the game and his craft seriously, Kane is also right near the top. He's a substance-and-style player who helped bring Chicago back (name a pathetic sports franchise, and that was the Hawks before Kane and Toews arrived). Kane doesn't miss games, is remarkably consistent and has matured on and off the ice. And, yes, he loves wearing the USA sweater during international play.

Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane escaped injury after being accidentally hit in the face by the boot of opposing defender Joseph Aidoo during his side's 2-2 draw with Celta Vigo.

With Sunday's contest 1-1 on the hour mark, Aidoo attempted to kick the ball before it went out of play, but the defender lost his balance and fell backwards.

As he landed at Zidane's feet and knocked the coach over, the player's legs went up and his left boot caught the Frenchman on the left cheek.

The two made sure each was OK before Aidoo ran back onto the pitch to rejoin the action.

Zidane twice touched his face straight after the collision, before telling reporters after the game that he is "fine."

"Yes, he hit me but anyway, I have to be there [on the touchline]," Zidane added.

Goals from midfielder Toni Kroos and captain Sergio Ramos were unable to lead Madrid to victory after Celta Vigo forward Santi Mina netted a late equaliser.

The incident comes days after Zidane was involved in a car accident last Saturday on his way to training.

How do you win the Champions League?

It turns out that "be Real Madrid" is not a bad place to start. The Spanish giants have won 13 European Cups, and no other club has more than seven. They've won four of the past six, and their current manager, Zinedine Zidane, has never not won the Champions League. Three tries and three trophies for Zizou, so that's that, huh?

Although Zidane The Manager has yet to be eliminated from the Champions League, other teams have in fact won the tournament.

As I wrote about in my newsletter, Liverpool grabbed it last year with a slightly throttled-down pressing approach that relied on their defense and their goalkeeper -- a sentence that would've been unthinkable just a year prior. Barcelona nabbed the trophy in 2015, thanks to the devastation wrought by Lionel Messi, Neymar and Luis Suarez. Bayern Munich did it the year before Pep Guardiola came to town by essentially fielding the entire World Cup-winning German national team, plus Arjen Robben and Franck Ribery. Chelsea took down Bayern the year before that despite finishing sixth in the Premier League, and the year before that was the most recent time Guardiola won it, with the Barcelona team that Sir Alex Ferguson said was the best side he'd ever seen.

Since the 2010-11 season, only five clubs have won the Champions League title. What did they have in common?

At first glance, there isn't a lot connecting any of those teams. But using domestic-play data from TruMedia, we can look at the statistical profiles of the past nine winners, see what the minimum benchmarks have been and compare them to all 16 remaining teams in this season's competition. We'll go through a number of categories and eliminate the 2020 teams that aren't up to snuff before landing on our One True Champion.

Let's get to it.

Measurement No. 1: Scoring enough goals

In domestic play, all of the previous nine winners averaged at least 1.7 goals per game. That low-point number, unsurprisingly, belongs to Chelsea. After all, they finished sixth in their own league that season; however, they sported a solid plus-19 goal differential and won the Champions League while Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were at their peaks. We're not talking about a bunch of scrubs here. Plus, including an outsider team such as Chelsea in the numbers makes this exercise more interesting, as it accounts for the possibility of a non-favorite winning the whole thing.

We must say goodbye to Tottenham (1.6 goals), Napoli (1.57), Lyon (1.54), Valencia (1.43) and Atletico Madrid (1.00) at the first hurdle. No big surprises there, as none of those five sides is favored to advance to the quarterfinals, per FiveThirtyEight's Soccer Power Index. Goals, especially given that we're dealing with just more than half a season, can be statistically noisy; in other words, goals aren't necessarily predictive of more goals. But even if we look at expected goals -- a more predictive measure -- only Napoli (1.93) break the 1.7 threshold.

Teams eliminated: Tottenham, Napoli, Lyon, Valencia, Atletico Madrid
Teams remaining: Bayern Munich, Man City, Juventus, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atalanta, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund, Liverpool, RB Leipzig, PSG

Measurement No. 2: Goals against

Defense, it turns out, has tended to win championships over the past decade. Who knew?

Of the previous nine winners, five gave up fewer than one goal per match, and four of them -- both Barcelona sides, Liverpool and Bayern Munich -- were below 0.6. In fact, no team in this season's field is below 0.6 goals allowed per match, with Liverpool landing exactly on that mark. However, weaker defenses have won titles, too. Two of Zidane's Madrid teams, along with Carlo Ancelotti's Madrid team, allowed north of one goal per match. The worst defense, though, was, again, Roberto di Matteo's Chelsea, who let in 1.21 goals per game on their way to the trophy.

Despite that high figure theoretically creating a low barrier for entry into our exercise, four more teams are eliminated at this stage: Barcelona (1.22), Atalanta (1.35), Chelsea (1.36) and Borussia Dortmund (1.52). Dortmund are scoring at a higher rate than any team left in the tournament, a wild 2.82 goals per game, and Atalanta are third, with 2.65 goals per game. Plus, Atalanta are doing it in Serie A, where it has traditionally been difficult to score goals. Both teams should be neutral fan favorites, but their porous backlines mean their opponents are never out of a game.

Chelsea's defense doesn't seem likely to stand up against round of 16 opponent Bayern Munich (second among all teams with 2.76 goals scored per game), and as has been the trend the past few years in Catalonia, it's a shame Lionel Messi can't play defense, too.

Teams eliminated: Barcelona, Atalanta, Chelsea, Borussia Dortmund
Teams remaining: Bayern Munich, Man City, Juventus, Real Madrid, Liverpool, RB Leipzig, PSG

Measurement No. 3: Game control

Rather than looking at pure possession numbers, the next step after goals scored/allowed is to look at how the remaining teams control the field. How good are they at all the things that happen before the ball ends up in the net? To do this, we can see how many passes a team allows in their final third and compare that to how many passes a team completes in their opponent's final third. Then we can take those two numbers and determine a team's percentage share of final-third passes.

Unsurprisingly, Barcelona lead the way among the previous winners, but perhaps surprisingly, No. 1 is Luis Enrique's team, not Pep Guardiola's. The 2014-15 vintage completed 74% of the final-third passes in their matches, compared to the 10-11 side's measly 73.1%. Bayern, Liverpool and 2017-18 Madrid were also all north of 60%. Last place, once again, was Chelsea, with 56.1% of final-third passes.

More from Ryan O'Hanlon:
-- What makes Lewandowski and Werner so good in front of goal
-- The best and worst value transfers in past five PL seasons
-- Is squad depth really an issue for top teams?

Of the remaining seven teams, none of them is below Chelsea's mark. City and Bayern are both above 70%, and Liverpool, Juventus, PSG and Real Madrid are all above 60%. RB Leipzig sit last, with 58.6%.

If looking at how teams tilt the field doesn't eliminate anyone, we can then look at how long a team keeps the ball when they get it. Opta records a statistic called "sequences" -- essentially, an interrupted chain of possession -- and no team that has won the Champions League since 2011 has had an average sequence time below 9.4 seconds. That low (again!) comes from Chelsea, but Ancelotti's Madrid weren't much higher, at 9.6. That means goodbye for Leipzig, whose average sequence time is 8.7 seconds, the second-lowest figure of all 16 knockout-round teams, above only Atletico Madrid's manic (7.3 seconds) approach.

Teams eliminated: RB Leipzig
Teams remaining: Bayern Munich, Man City, Juventus, Real Madrid, Liverpool, PSG

Measurement No. 4: Shots, shots, shots

The six teams left in this exercise are a bit harder to separate. If we look at how they press, all six are above the threshold of the previous winners. The minimum average starting point for all of their sequences -- a proxy for how high up the field they win the ball back -- is 47.7 meters from their own goal. That number belongs to Real, but they're still significantly above 2011-12 Chelsea's mark of 45.9 meters. Man City, for what it's worth, start their average sequence 53 meters from their own goal, which is higher than that of any of the past nine winners.

In terms of how fast they win the ball back -- something known as "passes allowed per defensive action" (PPDA) -- all six are lower than Chelsea's 13.26. Liverpool's high mark of 11.02 is still below where they were last season, when they, you know, won the Champions League. This season's most aggressive pressers are PSG (8.03), but they're still significantly behind Barcelona's mark of 6.98 in 2014-15. That side also scored more goals and gave up fewer goals than any other team in this season's field.

(Side note: Luis Enrique's team really might be the best of all time.)

Looking at how often the teams cross the ball doesn't do us any good either, so we're back to shots: How many do they take, and how many do they allow?

Like in PPDA, Liverpool are at the bottom, with 15.56 shots per game, but like in PPDA, that number is still better than that of last year's title-winning team. Because they're bottom in almost every number we've looked at so far, let us note that 2011-12 Chelsea took more shots (17.66) than all but three of the past nine CL winners.

How about shots against? Finally, some progress! Chelsea gave up 11.82 shots per game during the 2011-12 season, and this season, Juventus are giving up 12.3. That's actually the third-highest figure among all of the round of 16 participants, better than only that of Valencia and Tottenham. FiveThirtyEight's SPI gives Juve just a 3% chance to win the whole thing, and their inability to suppress shots is one of the biggest reasons they aren't in the top tier of contenders.

What about the quality of those shots?

All of the five teams left take above-average shots, in terms of their xG per shot. However, none of the previous nine winners allowed their opponents to take particularly good shots. The worst mark goes to Zidane's 2017-18 team (0.12), but that's right around the Europe-wide average. This season, though, there are two teams living by the mantra of "we don't normally give up shots, but when we do, we give up great ones."

Manchester City are conceding shots with an average of 0.15 per shot (worst among all remaining teams), and Bayern Munich are conceding chances with an average xG value of 0.13, which is third worst. Per FiveThirtyEight, Bayern (20%) and City (17%) are third-favorites for the title behind Liverpool (21%). The low-quantity-high-quality defensive approach works in domestic leagues in which both clubs have a significant talent advantage over almost all of their opponents, but it could implode once the competition heats up.

Teams eliminated: Bayern Munich, Man City, Juventus
Teams remaining: Real Madrid, Liverpool, PSG

Measurement No. 5: Fouls

Listen, we're nitpicking here, all right? One of the only remaining differentiating factors for these three teams is how often they foul their opponents. Among the past nine champs, only one committed more than 12 fouls per match: 2012-13 Bayern Munich, who hacked down the opposition 13 times per match. At the other end sit last season's Liverpool, who committed 8.29 fouls per game.

While the highlight of the Real Madrid season so far is Federico Valverde's game-saving, last-minute, last-man, red-card tackle on Alvaro Morata in the final of the Spanish Supercopa, the team's wider penchant for foul play earns them the boot from our list. Zidane's team commits 13.22 fouls per match.

For whatever reason, none of the recent winners other than Bayern has fouled anywhere near that much. It could speak to a larger lack of control that then shows up in other areas of the game. It could lead to too many set pieces, which lead to the kind of scripted moments that often decide knockout games. Or, as Madrid fans will surely be hoping, it could be totally random.

Teams eliminated: Real Madrid
Teams remaining: Liverpool, PSG

Measurement No. 6: Passes

And then there were two: Liverpool and PSG, who played a pair of the more thrilling group-stage matches in last season's tournament.

It sure seems as if PSG are trying to find a new absurd way to exit the competition every year. First, it was La Remontada, when they blew a 4-0 first-leg lead to Barcelona. Then they bought Neymar, the Barcelona player who led that comeback, only for him to miss the second leg of their round of 16 matchup with eventual winners Real Madrid. Then last year, of course, Neymar didn't play in either match against Manchester United, and despite winning the first leg at Old Trafford 2-0, PSG were eliminated by a last-minute penalty awarded by VAR for a handball on a shot that probably wasn't going to end up anywhere near the goal frame.

However, this season's PSG have more in common with the previous nine Champions League winners than anyone else, including last year's champ. None of those teams completed fewer than 84.5% of their passes, with both Liverpool and Chelsea tied at the bottom of the threshold. This season, Liverpool have dropped down slightly, to 83.7%, a barely perceptible shift that, for the purposes of this exercise, eliminates them from the list.

PSG, meanwhile, are completing 89.9% of their passes, which is a higher percentage than that of any other team left in the competition. Sure, they play in the worst league among the Big Five, and yes, they have an incredible resource and talent advantage compared to their domestic opponents. But is it really a surprise that a team with Neymar and Kylian Mbappe -- arguably the two best non-Messi players in the world right now, the kind of talent who can decide a tie all on their own -- has the profile of a Champions League champion?

As long as they're both out there, PSG can beat anyone. Of course, they've played together in only one Champions League knockout match since they joined the team in the summer of 2017.

PSG kick off the round of 16 against Dortmund next week, and like clockwork, Neymar hurt his ribs and hasn't played a league game in more than two weeks. (Mbappe is also skipping this weekend's game vs. Amiens.)

We'll give them one more shot, but depending on how things go over the next few months, next season's version of this exercise might include another filter, one that says "Not PSG."

Faf du Plessis has been included in South Africa's T20 squad to play against Australia, after stepping down from captaincy on Monday morning. The team will be led by Quinton de Kock and also includes a return for Kagiso Rabada, who was rested for the limited-overs matches against England, and Anrich Nortje. AB de Villiers was not named in the squad despite coach Mark Boucher's indication that he will be considered for this year's T20 World Cup

Squad: Quinton de Kock (capt & wk), Temba Bavuma, Faf du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen, David Miller, Pite van Biljon, Dwaine Pretorius, Andile Phehlukwayo, Jon-Jon Smuts, Kagiso Rabada, Tabraiz Shamsi, Lungi Ngidi, Bjorn Fortuin, Anrich Nortje, Dale Steyn, Heinrich Klaasen

More to follow

The Atlanta Braves on Monday announced the promotion of general manager Alex Anthopoulos and a contract extension for manager Brian Snitker.

Anthopoulos will now be the team's president, baseball operations and GM, and had his contract extended through 2024.

The contracts for Snitker and his coaching staff have been extended through the 2021 season.

Snitker, 64, is entering his fourth full season as Atlanta's manager and 44th season in the organization. He is 318-292 as manager and has led the Braves to two straight NL East titles.

Anthopoulos, 42, has been Atlanta's executive vice president/general manager since joining the organization prior to the 2018 season.

Last week, Major League Baseball officially announced its rule changes for the 2020 season that we had heard about several months ago. These include the three-batter minimum for relievers (unless the inning ends), longer minimum stays for pitchers on the injured list (from 10 days to 15), a longer minimum option period for pitchers sent down to the minors (from 10 days to 15) and a 28-player roster standard for September.

The most intriguing MLB rule change, however, is the change from a 25-man roster through Aug. 31 to 26 players. I've long advocated for a change in roster size, an acknowledgement that pitcher usage -- and the number of pitchers rostered -- has changed dramatically in the last two-plus decades.

For example, in 1977, six teams maxed out at 13 pitchers used the entire season. In 1978, no team used more than 18 pitchers. In 2019, 20 teams used at least 30 different pitchers with the Mariners maxing out at 42. The Cardinals used the fewest with 23. The days of the nine-man staff are ancient history and even 11-man pitching staffs almost feel like another generation ago.

As teams increasingly carried more pitchers on the roster -- most teams carried 13 for much of the season last year -- that meant fewer position players on the bench. The best aspect of the new rule is that teams will be limited to 13 pitchers, so the 26th man will be an additional position player.

That means more flexibility in roster utilization and in-game strategy, which is a big positive. Here are ways teams may deploy that 26th man.

The professional pinch hitter

Past examples: Lenny Harris, Mark Sweeney, John Vander Wal, Dave Hansen, late-career Rusty Staub

Current possibilities: Matt Joyce, Matt Adams, Mike Ford, Nick Martini, Matt Beaty, Phil Gosselin

In doing some research for this, I was surprised to discover the professional pinch hitter isn't exactly dead. In fact, Ichiro Suzuki set the single-season record for pinch-hitting appearances in 2017 with the Marlins, with 109. That year he played 136 games while batting just 215 times. In 2018, Tommy La Stella had 90 pinch-hit appearances for the Cubs. He batted just 192 times while playing 123 games. The Braves had two players last season who were primarily used as pinch hitters in Joyce (85 pinch-hitting appearances) and Charlie Culberson (58). Those two ranked 1-2 in the majors in pinch-hitting appearances.

In general, however, if you only have three or four bench players, it's difficult to carry a player who just pinch hits because one of your bench players has to be the backup catcher and your other two (or three) had better have some positional versatility. Compare that to how Staub was used at the end of his career with the Mets in the 1980s. Over his final three seasons, he played just 90 innings in the field.

The new rules make a guy like Adams interesting. The Mets signed him to a minor league contract, which seemed like an odd move given that they have Pete Alonso entrenched at first base with Dom Smith as the backup. Maybe Adams, who hit 20 home runs last season for the Nationals in a part-time role, makes the team as a pinch-hitting specialist. Martini, now with the Phillies, has had trouble earning time in the majors because he lacks the power you want from a corner outfielder. But he can hit, doesn't strike out much, and would be a nice bat off the bench. Beaty doesn't have a road to much regular time with the Dodgers, but could become that lefty bat off the bench.

Of course, once the National League finally adopts the designated hitter, there will be far fewer pinch-hitting opportunities, but that doesn't mean this type of player can't still be used. Managers should be more willing to hit for that light-hitting shortstop or catcher earlier in the game with the extra bat available.

The pinch runner/defensive specialist

Past examples: Matt Alexander, Miguel Dilone, Otis Nixon, Mike Squires, Rafael Belliard, John McDonald

Current possibilities: Billy Hamilton, Myles Straw, Andrew Stevenson, Travis Jankowski, Roman Quinn, Tim Locastro, Jorge Mateo

The heyday of the pinch runner came in the 1970s, when the sport became obsessed with speed and stolen-base speedsters. Under Charlie Finley, the Oakland A's actually rostered players whose only job was to pinch run. Herb Washington was the most extreme example, a world-class sprinter who appeared in 105 games for the A's in 1974-75 without ever batting (he stole 31 bases, but was caught stealing 17 times). Don Hopkins stole 21 bases for the A's in 1975 while batting just eight times. Alexander played in 374 games over nine seasons in the majors, but batted just 195 times.

The record for pinch-running appearances came in 1978, with 1,360. That total had dwindled to just 699 by 2019. Likewise, the pure defensive sub is a relic of the past. As a bench player with the Braves from 1993 to 1997, Belliard played in 370 games and batted just 633 times. The fewer bench spots has left fewer options to carry a speed specialist or light-hitting defensive replacement like Belliard.

Nobody is going to carry a pure pinch runner anymore, but the 26th spot will allow teams to have a hybrid speed/defensive type. Hamilton is a good example. His lack of offense has made him a marginal big leaguer -- he managed only a non-roster invite to spring training with the Giants this year. But as a 26th man, he could pinch run, serve as a defensive replacement in center field or draw the occasional start when a fly ball pitcher is starting.

Straw is a perfect 26th man. He can play shortstop and outfield and stole 70 bases in the minors in 2018. His complete lack of power makes him a stretch as a regular, but as a multi-positional player with speed, he's a nice weapon off the bench. Now you can carry a player like him. Jankowski is another speedster. He's part of the crowded outfield picture in Cincinnati, but he's a better defender in center than Nick Senzel or Shogo Akiyama, and that could earn him a roster spot.

An extra platoon bat

Past examples: John Lowenstein, Garth Iorg, Dave Bergman, Dave Magadan, Olmedo Saenz

Current possibilities: Domingo Santana, Ryan Zimmerman, Ji-Man Choi, Aristides Aquino, Austin Riley, Josh Naylor

Teams hit with the platoon advantage 52.9% of the time in 2019. In 2009, that figure was 55.2%. In 1989, it was 60.5%. With more roster spots taken up by relievers, managers can get the platoon advantage in the bullpen, knowing the opposing team doesn't have as many options on the bench. The 26th man could help create more platoons and more pinch-hitting situations (especially when combined with the new three-batter minimum for relievers).

This hitter could most likely come at first base, left field or right field. Those are three positions where you used to see more platoons: guys who could hit some but weren't exactly Gold Glovers. With fewer bench players, teams required more positional versatility.

The extra bench player should allow for more platoon possibilities this year. The Indians could look to compensate for an undermanned outfield by platooning all three positions, including new addition Domingo Santana. The Rays will love using the extra man and will have platoons all over the place at first base, DH and the outfield. With Eric Thames and Howie Kendrick already on the Nationals' roster, there might not have been room for Ryan Zimmerman to return to Washington, but he can still hit lefties and now the Nats have a spot for him. The Braves can have a platoon at third base with Riley and Johan Camargo and still carry Adeiny Hechavarria as the backup middle infielder.

A third catcher

Past examples: Johnny Oates, Jamie Quirk, Steve Lake

Current possibilities: Willians Astudillo, Zack Collins, Russell Martin, Alex Jackson, Garrett Stubbs, Andrew Knizner, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Kyle Farmer

The third-string catcher began disappearing in the 1980s as teams began rostering more pitchers. This guy didn't play much, usually in mop-up duty or if the other two catchers had already been used, and usually wasn't much of a hitter. Oates played just 115 games over his final four seasons in the majors as a third-stringer with the Dodgers and Yankees and hit .218. Hey, somebody had to warm up the relief pitchers. (No, seriously. The bullpen catcher didn't really exist until the 1980s.)

I'm not sure if many teams will deploy a third-string catcher in 2020, unless it's a player who can fill in at another position as well, like Astudillo, Stubbs or Kiner-Falefa. It would be nice to see Martin, who is still unsigned, get a job. He could almost serve as a player-coach, helping to mentor a young staff or young catcher.

Collins is the type of player who fits here. A first-round pick of the White Sox in 2016, he's now blocked by Yasmani Grandal and James McCann. Factor in that his defensive skills behind the plate are shaky and the bat may be a little light for first base and he's a tough guy to roster. But as a 26th man? Maybe there's a role for him and carrying him as a bench guy could allow the Sox to use Grandal at DH when he's not catching and not worry about not having a backup behind the plate (although the White Sox have a full-time DH in Edwin Encarnacion).

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Kiner-Falefa is another case since the Rangers have the anemic Jeff Mathis as one of their catchers. With three catchers, you can have much more aggressive pinch-hitting for a weak-hitting backstop. Catchers hit just .238/.309/.408 last season, but managers are reluctant to hit for the catchers because they're worried about burning the backup. That's always been a silly philosophy. How often does the backup get in the game and then get injured? Through the end of August, teams used a pinch hitter just 356 times for the catcher -- or about once every 11 games. If you carry a third catcher, you can hit for the light-hitting backstop if he comes up in a big situation earlier in the game.

The two-way player

Past examples: Brooks Kieschnick

Current possibilities: Jake Cronenworth, Jared Walsh

I'm not talking about Shohei Ohtani or Rays rookie Brendan McKay, who is one of the best pitching prospects in the game and reached the majors last year. Those aren't 26th-man types. I'm thinking of a player who may not otherwise be rostered. Given the new rules on IL stints and minor league options, the roster churn we have seen recently for pitchers won't be as turbulent, which means having a 14th pitcher who can soak up some low-leverage innings would be useful.

Cronenworth and Walsh are two obvious players who fit. Cronenworth was a two-way player at Michigan when the Rays drafted him in 2015. He had a breakout season at Triple-A in 2019, hitting .334 with 10 home runs as a shortstop/second baseman, but he also returned to the mound for the first time since his Michigan days and allowed two unearned runs in 7⅓ innings. He went to San Diego in the Tommy Pham trade and could make the team as a backup infielder/mop-up pitcher.

Walsh reached the majors with the Angels last year, getting 87 plate appearances and pitching five times in relief. He hit 36 home runs at Salt Lake and had a 4.15 ERA in 13 relief outings, so he's a legit power bat who has held his own on the mound.

Sounds like the perfect 26th man.

Major League Baseball will roll out several rule changes for the 2020 season, the most dramatic being the three-batter minimum for pitchers. MLB and the players' union agreed to the changes in March 2019, so they have been out there for a while, but the league just announced its implementation for the coming season at the start of spring training.

The new three-batter rule, which requires pitchers to face at least three batters or finish a half inning, will have the biggest impact on game action, but the other changes should have a notable impact as well. Here is how they will all work:

Three-batter minimum

Pitchers will be required to either face a minimum of three batters or pitch to the end of a half-inning, with exceptions to be made in case of injury or illness. Currently, Rule 5.10(f) states that the starting pitcher must pitch to one batter until that batter is put out or reaches base, and Rule 5.10(g) states that any reliever must pitch to one batter until that batter is put out or reaches base, or the offensive team is put out.

Why make the change? The new rule means no more managers bringing in a pitcher in the middle of the inning, having him face one batter, then trudging back out to the mound to make another change. Setting strategy debates aside, who could complain about that? No one enjoys the dead time of a pitching change, particularly when there is a parade of them in one half-inning.

In 2019, there were 649 appearances that would not have been allowed had the new rule been in effect, based on numbers provided by Elias Sports Research. In 2018, there were 712 such appearances, and in 2017, there were 720. The 649 appearances this past season accounted for the lowest total since 2000, when there were 647.

That figures to one would-be violation in every 3.74 games, which may not seem like a lot, but the presence of the rule seemingly would impact decision-making with regard to relievers and pinch hitters on a much wider range than that.

Roster size

The number of active players on each team's roster will increase to 26, up from 25, through Aug. 31 and for the postseason. Rosters will expand to 28 on Sept. 1, a big change from the 40-man limit of the past. Carrying a 28-man roster for September will be mandatory for all clubs.

Additionally, teams will be allowed to carry a 27th player for doubleheaders. Teams had been allowed a 26th player for doubleheaders the past few years.

The number of pitchers a team can carry on its active roster will be capped at 13 through Aug. 31 and at 14 for September.

Why make the change? In addition to pushing the limits of common sense -- why play by one set of rules for five months and a different set when the games matter the most? -- the expanded rosters in September created a competitive imbalance and, with a rise in pitching changes, helped make games tedious and interminable when the intensity should be at its highest. The issue had gotten worse in recent years, as some teams carried upward of 20 pitchers. Additionally, while some teams used most of the added roster spots, others added just a player or two. Under the new rules, all teams will have 28 players in September.

It will be interesting to see how teams use the extra spot when rosters are finalized at the end of spring training. Will teams add an extra bullpen arm? A power bat off the bench? A defensive or baserunning specialist?

Position players pitching

In conjunction with the limit on the number of pitchers a team can carry, players must be designated as a pitcher, position player or two-way player prior to each player's first day on the active roster, and the designation cannot be changed for the remainder of the season. To qualify for the two-way designation, a player must have pitched at least 20 innings and started at least 20 major league games as a position player or designated hitter (with at least three plate appearances in each of those games) in the current or prior season.

Position players who are not designated as two-way players will not be allowed to pitch in a game unless the run differential in the game is seven or more, or if the game is in extra innings.

Why make the change? The number of position players pitching has risen dramatically the past couple of years, with a record 90 appearances in 2019 and 65 appearances in 2018. For comparison, there were 26 instances in 2016, 14 in 2013 and just eight in 2011. What had been a fun novelty grew into a blight on the game, to the point where some were concerned about players getting injured during their forays on the mound.

While the vast majority of the instances of position players pitching would still be allowed under the new parameters (83 of the 90 appearances in 2019 and 60 of the 65 in 2018, according to ESPN Stats & Information), this change seems likely to at least keep the numbers from growing at such a rapid rate.

What about Shohei Ohtani? A celebrated two-way star as a rookie in 2018, Ohtani did not pitch in 2019 after having Tommy John surgery, and the Angels have said they don't plan on using him as a pitcher until mid-May. Even without qualifying as a two-way player at the start of the season, Ohtani could be designated as a pitcher and still serve as a DH -- there's no restriction on pitchers serving as position players, just the other way around. And once Ohtani appears in 20 games as a hitter and reaches the 20 innings pitched, he would qualify for the two-way designation for this season (and 2021).

As a designated two-way player, Ohtani would not count toward the new 13-pitcher limit, essentially giving the Angels the option of carrying an extra pitcher. The Angels will have another benefit: General manager Billy Eppler recently said on MLB Network Radio that Ohtani could go on a rehab assignment as a pitcher without being placed on the injured list, making him eligible to serve as a hitter. "We'll be able to send Shohei on an actual rehab assignment as a pitcher, and then the very next day, if we so choose, we can use him in a major league game as a hitter," Eppler said.

Reds reliever Michael Lorenzen was closest to qualifying for two-way status last season. He played 29 games in the outfield, but only started six. However, Lorenzen's success as a hitter dropped off considerably in 2019 (.208/.283/.313 and one home run in 48 at-bats after hitting .290/.333/.710 with four homers in 31 at-bats in 2018) and with the Reds bolstering their outfield this offseason, there may not be a need to use Lorenzen much in that role.

Injured list

Pitchers placed on the injured list will have to miss a minimum of 15 days, rather than the 10-day minimum for position players. The minimum IL stay was changed from 15 to 10 before the 2017 season. (The seven-day concussion list will be unchanged.)

Why make the change? While the shortened list was intended to allow teams to rest players with less serious injuries rather than potentially rush them back, teams frequently used it to create a kind of taxi squad, particularly for pitchers. Starters could be placed on the 10-day IL, skipping just one turn through the rotation, while teams brought up fresh bullpen arms, leading to more pitching changes and negatively impacting the pace of play. Trips to the injured list have topped 700 every season since 2017; there were 563 DL stints in 2016.

Length of minor league options

With some exceptions for injured list or bereavement list placements, all players optioned to the minors have had to stay there for at least 10 days before being recalled. In 2020, minor league options for pitchers will switch to a minimum of 15 days; the option period will remain 10 days for position players.

Why make the change? Making pitchers remain in the minors for at least 15 days before being recalled is another step to prevent teams from repeatedly rotating fresh arms on and off the major league roster, designed to curb the rising number of pitching changes.

Abbott World Marathon Majors event on March 1 will only feature elite action due to coronavirus

This year’s Tokyo Marathon on March 1 will no longer feature a mass race, with only the elite action set to take place due to new cases of coronavirus having been confirmed within Japan.

In a statement released on Monday, organisers said: “We have been preparing for the Tokyo Marathon 2020 (Sunday, March 1) while implementing preventive safety measures, however, now that case of COVID-19 (coronavirus) has been confirmed within Tokyo, we cannot continue to launch the event within the scale we originally anticipated and we regret to inform you the following: The Tokyo Marathon 2020 will be held only for the marathon elites and the wheelchair elites.”

The Tokyo Marathon forms part of the Abbott World Marathon Majors series, with around 38,000 participants having been expected to take part. But now only around 200 elite athletes will race in the event.

It is the biggest disruption to a Marathon Majors event since the New York City Marathon was cancelled in 2012 due to Hurricane Sandy.

For ‘semi-elite, general, charity, and 10km’ runners who were set to race in Tokyo, entry fee refunds will not be given but participants have the option of deferring their place to next year’s event.

The World Athletics Indoor Championships is also among the events to have been affected by coronavirus, with the event which had been due to take place in Nanjing, China, from March 13-15 having been postponed to 2021.

This summer’s Olympic Games marathon action will take place in Sapporo rather than Tokyo, due to heat concerns, with those races set to take place on August 8 and 9.