MLB 2008

[Dan Gould]

Can someone direct me to a National League thread?

I'll join you because now I am committing myself to seeing the Cubs reach the promised land.

They'll have to beat the best player in the game and his team without the aid of the an ump's blown HR call first. :bwallace2:

Number one, Utley has a website? He's gone down a notch in my eyes.

Number two, its a team game, and as a team, the Cubs are better.

Number three, they aren't even in the same division, so talk to me in October.

[Soulstation1]

the tribe = streaky

they win 4 in a row and then lose 6 in a row

[Dan Gould]

Its not much to hang the season on but according to the Herald, Manny has been in the lineup without Ortiz 43 times, and the team is 31-12 in those games with Manny hitting .317 with 13 home runs, 43 RBI and a .665 slugging percentage.

But that will work only so long as Manny stays hot. Those 43 games didn't happen in a row, they were all 1-2 games here and 1-2 games there. If Manny goes cold, look out below.

[papsrus]

Well, Garza did not have his best outing last night. Honestly though Dan, did it seem as though home plate umpire Chad Fairchild was giving a little too much to both pitchers off the plate? The center field camera angle isn't completely in line, but it seemed as though that plate was pretty damn wide -- for both pitchers. Inside, off the plate at the knees. Tough pitch.

Last night's game shows why the Red Sox remain the beasts of the East -- big innings that get away from the opposing pitcher real quick, and the long ball.

And Masterson looks like the real deal.

Edited June 4, 2008 by papsrus

[Dan Gould]

Well, Garza did not have his best outing last night. Honestly though Dan, did it seem as though home plate umpire Chad Fairchild was giving a little too much to both pitchers off the plate? The center field camera angle isn't completely in line, but it seemed as though that plate was pretty damn wide -- for both pitchers. Inside, off the plate at the knees. Tough pitch.

Last night's game shows why the Red Sox remain the beasts of the East -- big innings that get away from the opposing pitcher real quick, and the long ball.

And Masterson looks like the real deal.

We ended up being unexpectedly taken out to dinner by Mom and Sister-in-Law so I missed a good portion of the game, plus I was keeping an eye on the Yankees, too, so I can't comment on the umpiring too much and I didn't see all that much of Masterson either. But I was curious how he came across to you. Two homers allowed is surprising for a guy with such a downward sink on his pitches but he did well enough and the lineup came through (thank God that Hinske was playing left - if he'd gotten any experience there when he was on the team, he might have gone back to the wall and caught Coco's hit). But I thought Masterson wasn't as good as he had been his first two starts so if you think he looks like the real deal, I'm happy!

I like the way he throws so hard with seemingly little effort, and the leg kick and sidearm motion has to be tough on righties. And the way he gets groundballs is really impressive.

[Tim McG]

Zito, 1-9

4.1 IP, 7H, 6R, 5BB, 1K

Can it get any worse?

[ugh]

[Soulstation1]

randy johnson still needs +1K strikeouts to catch nolan ryan's strikeout record

that record will never be broken

[Tim McG]

randy johnson still needs +1K strikeouts to catch nolan ryan's strikeout record

that record will never be broken

Not in my lifetime it won't.

[papsrus]

Well, Garza did not have his best outing last night. Honestly though Dan, did it seem as though home plate umpire Chad Fairchild was giving a little too much to both pitchers off the plate? The center field camera angle isn't completely in line, but it seemed as though that plate was pretty damn wide -- for both pitchers. Inside, off the plate at the knees. Tough pitch.

Last night's game shows why the Red Sox remain the beasts of the East -- big innings that get away from the opposing pitcher real quick, and the long ball.

And Masterson looks like the real deal.

We ended up being unexpectedly taken out to dinner by Mom and Sister-in-Law so I missed a good portion of the game, plus I was keeping an eye on the Yankees, too, so I can't comment on the umpiring too much and I didn't see all that much of Masterson either. But I was curious how he came across to you. Two homers allowed is surprising for a guy with such a downward sink on his pitches but he did well enough and the lineup came through (thank God that Hinske was playing left - if he'd gotten any experience there when he was on the team, he might have gone back to the wall and caught Coco's hit). But I thought Masterson wasn't as good as he had been his first two starts so if you think he looks like the real deal, I'm happy!

I like the way he throws so hard with seemingly little effort, and the leg kick and sidearm motion has to be tough on righties. And the way he gets groundballs is really impressive.

He seemed pretty calm and in control -- steady -- even when the Rays did get to him. Frankly, he seemed a lot more in control of his pitches than Garza, who never did find a rhythm and got himself into trouble more than once. Drew took him deep on a first pitch changeup ... ??

... Hinske in left was kind of a surprise. The Rays outfield looked a little lost at Fenway trying to chase down some balls.

Smoltz to have season-ending surgery. Ouch. Wants to come back next year.

[Dan Gould]

He seemed pretty calm and in control -- steady -- even when the Rays did get to him.

That was the other thing I've noticed. Doesn't ever seem to get rattled, if he gives up a hit or a walk he just goes on to the next guy. He trusts his stuff (I haven't really noticed but I wonder if he almost always goes to the sinker when he gives up baserunners - Its almost as if he figures, OK - you got a hit but this next guy is going to bounce out so who cares?).

[BERIGAN]

Yeah, was surprised about the news on Smoltz today! He threw 95 the last time out, pitching 3/4's....appears to hurt him doing everything with that arm.....If anyone can come back from whatever they find(Short of a torn rotator cuff-and he did have an MRI about a month ago) Smoltz can, even at this age...

[WorldB3]

Yeah, was surprised about the news on Smoltz today! He threw 95 the last time out, pitching 3/4's....appears to hurt him doing everything with that arm.....If anyone can come back from whatever they find(Short of a torn rotator cuff-and he did have an MRI about a month ago) Smoltz can, even at this age...

210 Wins, 154 Saves. HOF?? Considering it was a hitters era I think he gets in.

[Dan Gould]

Yeah, was surprised about the news on Smoltz today! He threw 95 the last time out, pitching 3/4's....appears to hurt him doing everything with that arm.....If anyone can come back from whatever they find(Short of a torn rotator cuff-and he did have an MRI about a month ago) Smoltz can, even at this age...

210 Wins, 154 Saves. HOF?? Considering it was a hitters era I think he gets in.

only one to reach those milestones, plus the sixteenth to 3000 Ks. He's a first ballot HoF in any era.

*************

More injury news, and its bad for the Rays: Carlos Pena is on the 15 day DL with a broken finger.

[BERIGAN]

Yeah, was surprised about the news on Smoltz today! He threw 95 the last time out, pitching 3/4's....appears to hurt him doing everything with that arm.....If anyone can come back from whatever they find(Short of a torn rotator cuff-and he did have an MRI about a month ago) Smoltz can, even at this age...

210 Wins, 154 Saves. HOF?? Considering it was a hitters era I think he gets in.

Don't forget the 15 post season wins either....It's a shame...hitters that do well in the Post season seem to be remembered more so than pitchers...I HATE Jack Morris, but he was money when it mattered most, so I think he should be in the Hall for what he was able to do in the post season...

[papsrus]

Ah, the Rays are gonna drop this one, too. But nice throw by Upton from center field on a rope to home plate to nail Manny to end the 7th!

(I know, it was Manny tagging at third, but still.)

... and, now he just got himself thrown out of the game arguing a called third strike. ...

Edited June 5, 2008 by papsrus

[Dan Gould]

Weird slide by Coco - it will be interesting to see if he gets dusted and what happens if he is. I seriously do not believe that he was trying to hurt the second baseman.

[zen archer]

Weird slide by Coco - it will be interesting to see if he gets dusted and what happens if he is. I seriously do not believe that he was trying to hurt the second baseman.

He was sending a message , when he had slid into 2nd on a previous play the SS put his

leg in front of the bag. Crisp thought he could get injured because of that , you know broken finger...

anyway in his post game interview he was not a happy camper.

He pretty much said you try to hurt me and i'll hurt you .....Dave McCarty backed him up on the post game .

[Quincy]

Whew doggies, Seattle manager John McLaren unleashed a stream of profanities regarding the team play at the after game press briefing (sorry, no link.) Almost shades of

except it wasn't directed vs. the fans but the players. Food, beer & towels were removed from the clubhouse to force the players to talk to the press right after the game without the usual 10 minute cooling off period. Kind of glad to see the team put the pressure on the players, rather than just knee-jerk fire the manager before summer.

[Dan Gould]

Whew doggies, Seattle manager John McLaren unleashed a stream of profanities regarding the team play at the after game press briefing (sorry, no link.) Almost shades of

except it wasn't directed vs. the fans but the players. Food, beer & towels were removed from the clubhouse to force the players to talk to the press right after the game without the usual 10 minute cooling off period. Kind of glad to see the team put the pressure on the players, rather than just knee-jerk fire the manager before summer.

Well, here's the closest I could find:

"We’re playing our (expletive) off every day and got nothing to show for it," he said. "I’m tired of (expletive) losing, I’m tired of getting my (expletive) beat, and so have those guys. We gotta change this (expletive expletive) around and get after it. And only we can do it. The fans are (expletive) off, and I’m (expletive) off, and the players are (expletive) off. And that’s the way it is. There’s no (expletive) easy way out of this, can’t feel sorry for ourself, we gotta (expletive) buckle it up and get after it. I’m tired of (expletive) losing this, (expletive) every night we bust our (expletive). It’s gotta be a total team (expletive) effort to turn this thing around, and that’s it."

That was 14 curse words, or about one per every three seconds. What was this, Lee Elia Appreciation Day?

Elia, a Mariners special assistant, will always be remembered for his expletive-laced blowup as the Cubs manager 25 years ago. Now McLaren is a candidate for the YouTube Hall of Fame.

He’ll have to do some lobbying for induction, however. Get past the profanity, and his message is too thin, too late and too inconsequential.

The Mariners have been a corpse for a few weeks. The only intrigue left is where they will be dumped. They need to be overhauled, and they will improve only when they realize there is no remedy.

McLaren’s antics felt forced. The entire postgame was a strange, calculated event.

The Mariners’ public-relations staff advised the media to go to the clubhouse immediately after Wednesday’s 5-4 loss to the Los Angeles Angels. Normally, when the clubhouse opens, the manager speaks first and then the players talk. On this day, we were told to talk to the players, and in the surprise of the season, most all of them were sitting at their lockers.

It felt like a firing. Reliever Arthur Rhodes threw a tantrum, kicking and throwing gear. For most everyone else, there was an eerie silence, an anticipation of bad news.

And then it was time for McLaren to speak.

The nice man did his best Al Pacino impression before storming away without taking any questions.

[papsrus]

Weird slide by Coco - it will be interesting to see if he gets dusted and what happens if he is. I seriously do not believe that he was trying to hurt the second baseman.

He was sending a message , when he had slid into 2nd on a previous play the SS put his

leg in front of the bag. Crisp thought he could get injured because of that , you know broken finger...

anyway in his post game interview he was not a happy camper.

He pretty much said you try to hurt me and i'll hurt you .....Dave McCarty backed him up on the post game .

I didn't see the first play at 2nd, but I don't believe playing in front of the bag is generally regarded as intent to injure. The defensive player is supposed to do that, no? (He shouldn't completely block the bag though, and if he was moving his leg to the bag as Crisp was reaching it, then I see that as dangerous.) Crisp's slide was pretty aggressive. I know the need to send the message that we're the big bad Red Sox and don't fuck with us at Fenway, but Crisp could have easily injured Aki on that slide, it looked to me. ... But like I say, I didn't see the play that apparently sparked the retaliation. ...

Remember, too, these teams do have something of a history dating back to the Pedro days.

Edited June 5, 2008 by papsrus

[zen archer]

Weird slide by Coco - it will be interesting to see if he gets dusted and what happens if he is. I seriously do not believe that he was trying to hurt the second baseman.

He was sending a message , when he had slid into 2nd on a previous play the SS put his

leg in front of the bag. Crisp thought he could get injured because of that , you know broken finger...

anyway in his post game interview he was not a happy camper.

He pretty much said you try to hurt me and i'll hurt you .....Dave McCarty backed him up on the post game .

I didn't see the first play at 2nd, but I don't believe playing in front of the bag is generally regarded as intent to injure. The defensive player is supposed to do that, no? (If he was moving his leg to the bag as Crisp was reaching it, then I see that as dangerous.) Crisp's slide was pretty aggressive. I know the need to send the message that we're the big bad Red Sox and don't fuck with us at Fenway, but Crisp could have easily injured Aki on that slide, it looked to me. ... But like I say, I didn't see the play that apparently sparked the retaliation. ...

Well, I believe it was the SS put his whole leg down in front of the bag . Coco was sliding head first

with his hand out in front and nothing but LEG !.....the ball did get away .

Usually you don't see a player put his leg in front of the bag so you cant get at it , the player is usually in front of the bag and swipes at the player with his glove .

Coco was probably upset cause if you remember he broke his his finger a few years back sliding into 3rd. You know

if players slid in with their spikes this wouldn't be a concern , the guy would get spiked !

Edited June 5, 2008 by zen archer

[Dan Gould]

Had nothing to do with "big bad Red Sox" vs Rays. If that was the purpose, it would have been Beckett dusting someone like Pedro used to do. There is a history between these clubs but it has seemed to quiet down since Pedro left (if it wasn't so dangerous, the Devil Rays ongoing effort to use Brian Daubach as a pinata would have been pretty funny - every time he came up, the ball was coming in high and tight. It was funny and ridiculous at the same time).

But I've never seen anyone block second base on an SB attempt. And Coco did jam his thumb on that slide, which was described as a 'sprain'. So IMO, Coco was justified except that it was unfortunate that it was Aki and not Bartlett covering on the subsequent play.

[papsrus]

But I've never seen anyone block second base on an SB attempt. And Coco did jam his thumb on that slide, which was described as a 'sprain'. So IMO, Coco was justified except that it was unfortunate that it was Aki and not Bartlett covering on the subsequent play.

Agreed.

[jlhoots]

Brewers have won 6 in a row.

Swept the Diamondbacks.

[Dan Gould]

Well Yankee fans must be happy for about the first time all season.

The rest of us want to

but Yankee fans must be happy.