2011 MLB Season

[Dan Gould]

Personally I think they're all honest men trying to do a good job.

Its just that some are truly incompetent and some (many the same people) are so full of their own self-righteous self-importance that they think they're the people fans come to see.

[Chalupa]

I vote no, its part of the game.

To fix the umpiring I'd rather see them fire the worst, including everyone who makes the game about themselves (and the worst offenders in that regard are usually pretty shitty about things like balls & strikes too).

But bad calls happen and will happen and frankly, should happen. I like that baseball is judged in real time by honest men trying to do a good job.

Bad calls should happen???? Just as long as it's not another Knoblauch phantom tag on Offerman right?

[JSngry]

Personally I think they're all honest men trying to do a good job.

Its just that some are truly incompetent and some (many the same people) are so full of their own self-righteous self-importance that they think they're the people fans come to see.

In my book, that's not being honest, at least not with yourself in regards to your own abilities, and that in turn turns the good job you're trying to do into something more/less/different than providing competent impartial adjudication.

Pretty much like anything else, a problem is best addressed from within. If and when the game is rid of these type umpires, then I'll gladly accept truly honest mistakes in umpiring being as much a part of the game are honest mistakes in player performance. But that's going to require some discipline amongst the umpires' union, and like all unions, when protection of jobs for incompetents takes precedence over maintaining high standards for the trade itself, well, that's a problem that needs to be resolved by somebody. If the umpires don't want a solution imposed from without, they should handle it from within.

[Dan Gould]

I vote no, its part of the game.

To fix the umpiring I'd rather see them fire the worst, including everyone who makes the game about themselves (and the worst offenders in that regard are usually pretty shitty about things like balls & strikes too).

But bad calls happen and will happen and frankly, should happen. I like that baseball is judged in real time by honest men trying to do a good job.

Bad calls should happen???? Just as long as it's not another Knoblauch phantom tag on Offerman right?

Bad calls have always happened (edit to add: because human beings make judgements as events happen and sometimes make mistakes).

Why exactly does it have to change? Because we can change them? So we can have red flags fly out of dugouts? And playoff games stretch to four hours regularly? Or what happens when there is no definitive angle on a call and it stands? Then maybe we'll figure out a way to get more cameras installed.

Call me a traditionalist.

Or a conservative.

PS - I say there are bad calls at home more often because of shitty positioning. Umpires don't move the way they should to get the right view as the play develops and the throw comes in.

Edited July 27, 2011 by Dan Gould

[BERIGAN]

INSTANT REPLAY NOW!!!

I saw nothing wrong with the play, nothing at all!

Actually, as someone that saw innings 10 thru 19, I really didn't want to see the game end that way...especially for a pirates team that is in a pennant race. I also think if that "blown" call(well, Honestly, it did look like he missed with that sweep tag in real time, so it wasn't as bad as the blown perfect game call) hadn't happened, they would still be playing...Both managers really weren't thinking either...any time you get that late in a game, you will have starters pitching, but nope, they were willing to blown out a long reliever's arm or blow the game than have some starter pitch a few innings, weird.

[ghost of miles]

Strong advocate here of limited instant replay, per Jsngry's comment. Seeing a 19-inning game end that way was just ridiculous. Not as bad as the blown perfect game last year, but still another example of why there's no excuse for not having some sort of method to address this stuff, particularly when we have the technology that we have.

Blown call at end of game

Honest, competent people make mistakes too. Good workplaces try to find ways to fix those mistakes and make them good. In this instance, instant replay is an easy and accurate way to do so.

Edited July 27, 2011 by ghost of miles

[ghost of miles]

Yankee fans, take note of Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci piece on the 1998 New York Yankees, which he calls "the greatest team in the history of integrated baseball":

The best team I ever covered

Edited July 27, 2011 by ghost of miles

[alocispepraluger102]

ervin santana of the angels has just no hit the cleveland indians.

Edited July 27, 2011 by alocispepraluger102

[papsrus]

I recall a minor-leaguer had a no-hitter taken away recently when officials reviewed game tape after the game and changed an error to a hit.

I think the play was originally recorded as a hit, then the official scorer changed it to an error (during or after the game, I'm not sure), then it was changed back to a hit after the game when officials reviewed the game tape.

[GA Russell]

Here's an AP article on the Santana no-hitter.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/baseball/angels-santana-throws-no-hitter/article2111702/

[alocispepraluger102]

I recall a minor-leaguer had a no-hitter taken away recently when officials reviewed game tape after the game and changed an error to a hit.

I think the play was originally recorded as a hit, then the official scorer changed it to an error (during or after the game, I'm not sure), then it was changed back to a hit after the game when officials reviewed the game tape.

fascinating--too bad umpire calls cant be corrected!!!!

[Tim McG]

Man, I knew the Giants offense sucked, but not this badly!

From Espn around 7 pm Tuesday...

It's the pitching. The Giants don't score many runs but they don't give up many either.

So far as I know the team leads the Majors in one run wins.

Giants win again, 2-1, over the Phillies!

[Chalupa]

Matt Cain is awesome. He scares me more than Lincecum.

[jlhoots]

Brewers 2- Cubs 0

Brewers back in first place (by 1/2 game).

[Big Al]

Rangers score 20 runs on Monday, then lose the next two to lose the series. Meanwhile, the Angels toss a no-hitter but still give up a run in the process (albeit unearned) to gain ground on the first-place Rangers.

That's the way baseball go. (I'm gonna make that my signature. Seems appropriate, not only in baseball but also just about everywhere else.)

[JSngry]

Rangers score 20 runs on Monday, then lose the next two to lose the series.

Four game series, this one is, Al. One more tonight, so hope for the split!

(but last night's performance took the luster off Dollar Hot Dog Night for real. Inexcusable!)

[Dan Gould]

Sox scored one run in sixteen innings Monday then scored 25 in the next two games against KC. You just never know ...

BTW they are now 62-28 since that horrific 2-10 start. That's 90 games @ a .689 winning percentage. Kind of reminscent of the Yankee stretch of success in 2009, hopefully it will culminate in the same kind of celebration.

[BERIGAN]

Brewers 2- Cubs 0

Brewers back in first place (by 1/2 game).

It's gonna be a wild NL central!

[Tim McG]

Carlos Beltran is traded to the Giants for a minor league pitcher, Zack Wheeler.

Beltran to Giants

On the one hand, I like the idea of getting some pop back into the line-up. OTOH, Beltran will go to free agency at the end of this season. In short, a "rental player" for hire.

So, we wait and see if this works out for us.

[Dan Gould]

Carlos Beltran is traded to the Giants for a minor league pitcher, Zack Wheeler.

Beltran to Giants

On the one hand, I like the idea of getting some pop back into the line-up. OTOH, Beltran will go to free agency at the end of this season. In short, a "rental player" for hire.

So, we wait and see if this works out for us.

And we'll also wait to see if Giant fans lasting memory of Beltran is of a bat left on the shoulder.

Cheap shot at Met fans?

Interesting thing I saw somewhere this morning - basically pointed out that measured by OPS, the corner outfield spots are the bright-spots for the Giants offense , so how much of an upgrade exactly is Beltran? Surrounded by 7 guys with OPS below .700, its not like he's going to do a lot of damage suddenly, or make a huge difference over the other guys who've played RF.

[Tim McG]

Carlos Beltran is traded to the Giants for a minor league pitcher, Zack Wheeler.

Beltran to Giants

On the one hand, I like the idea of getting some pop back into the line-up. OTOH, Beltran will go to free agency at the end of this season. In short, a "rental player" for hire.

So, we wait and see if this works out for us.

And we'll also wait to see if Giant fans lasting memory of Beltran is of a bat left on the shoulder.

Cheap shot at Met fans?

Interesting thing I saw somewhere this morning - basically pointed out that measured by OPS, the corner outfield spots are the bright-spots for the Giants offense , so how much of an upgrade exactly is Beltran? Surrounded by 7 guys with OPS below .700, its not like he's going to do a lot of damage suddenly, or make a huge difference over the other guys who've played RF.

Fair enough.

But with Freddy Sanchez and Buster Posey out, Beltran does bring some badly needed offense to an otherwise mediocre group of hitters. Perhaps Beltran's hitting prowess will rub off on the other guys and help them elevate their game. I know with Posey and Sanchez in the line-up [or when Huff and Sandoval are hitting] the other guys tended to step up.

Bottom line? The Giants needed to do something to spark some offense.

Edited July 28, 2011 by GoodSpeak

[Quincy]

Interesting thing I saw somewhere this morning - basically pointed out that measured by OPS, the corner outfield spots are the bright-spots for the Giants offense , so how much of an upgrade exactly is Beltran? Surrounded by 7 guys with OPS below .700, its not like he's going to do a lot of damage suddenly, or make a huge difference over the other guys who've played RF.

He could be blowing smoke (or deeply inhaling some), but Mets manager Collins claims Beltran can play CF. I guess it wouldn't take too many games to see if that's more adventure than a club wants or not. Maybe he can do so adequately.

[Tim McG]

Interesting thing I saw somewhere this morning - basically pointed out that measured by OPS, the corner outfield spots are the bright-spots for the Giants offense , so how much of an upgrade exactly is Beltran? Surrounded by 7 guys with OPS below .700, its not like he's going to do a lot of damage suddenly, or make a huge difference over the other guys who've played RF.

He could be blowing smoke (or deeply inhaling some), but Mets manager Collins claims Beltran can play CF. I guess it wouldn't take too many games to see if that's more adventure than a club wants or not. Maybe he can do so adequately.

Bochy is putting Beltran in RF and moving Sheirholtz to LF. His arthritic knees would prevent him from playing in CF.

Besides, CF belongs to Rowand and Torres.

Edited July 28, 2011 by GoodSpeak

[papsrus]

Meanwhile, Rays are in the tank, getting crushed night after night.

Pretty ugly. Shields served up batting practice for the A's last night -- they were swinging on just about every first pitch he threw in the fourth and nailing it every time. Yeesh.

Davis got tagged for five runs in the first today.

This six-man rotation thing ain't working out, I don't think.

[JSngry]

This is sad...

Hideki Irabu found dead; suicide suspected

http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/07/28/hideki-irabu-found-dead-suicide-suspected