Morning Mound Visit: MLB to submit a return-to-play proposal within the week

MLB to announce an actual plan; revisiting replacement level; a quick introduction to Finnish baseball

Jeff Passan | ESPN: MLB is expected to submit a return-to-play proposal within the week. The most optimistic vision has the season starting in early July and with teams playing in their home ballparks. There are numerous obstacles to that start date including the ongoing pay disputes and public health concerns.

Russell Carleton | Baseball Prospectus: Teams are utilizing multipositional players more than ever before, and our WAR models haven’t kept pace with this shift in philosophy. WAR undervalues players who can slide over to another position, and it doesn’t account for the flexibility it adds to roster construction. Russell Carleton aims to fix that.

Cat Silverman | Mile High Hockey: We’re all enamored the KBO League, but Finland’s brand of baseball might be even better. Pesäpallo resembles baseball, but the field is larger, narrower, and the basepaths go in a zig zag pattern. Oh, and the field is also occasionally surrounded by a moat.