MLB News: Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, Kevin McGonigle extension, pitcher rankings, Taj Bradley, ABS strike zone

Happy Friday, everyone. The Cubs are back home tonight and looking to keep the good times rolling, and with the struggling Mets coming to town, they might just get their wish. In the meantime, we’ll take a look at what’s happening around baseball. The top stories of the continuing trend of teams extending their breakout rookies, as the Tigers sign Kevin McGonigle to a monster eight-year extension worth $150 million. His (also rich) teammate, Tarik Skubal, teased McGonigle in a press conference, asking if the rookie would be treating the boys to dinner in Boston.

We also look at the thrilling resurgence of Mike Trout, who had an unreal series against the Yankees, and is reminding everyone of the Mike Trout of old, something I think all baseball fans can enjoy. And one Mariners reporter is getting a lot of heat online for trying to use AI to help her craft her questions.

There’s also an updated starting pitcher ranking to look at, while the Rockies are just trying to keep drones out of their airspace.

So let’s just jump right into it, shall we?

• Dan Szymborski assesses how Ben Rice is dominating against the American League.

• Michael Baumann thinks it’s time for a victory lap over the Brandon Lowe trade.

• Sarah Langs looks at the showmanship put on by Mike Trout and Aaron Judge in the recent Angels/Yankees series.