2022 MLB Season Thread

[ghost of miles]

Quite the brawl in yesterday’s Angels-Mariners game:

 

[Dan Gould]

Would like to see the ... Jomboy breakdown (?). About 10:23:  Dude, that was the gum. What are we gonna do now?

 

Seriously though, didn't the Mariners throw at someone on the Angels? (I didn't have the sound on). I thought that was about the gentlest "right back atcha" pitch I've ever seen. Right in the meaty part of his tush, nowhere near his head, ribs. I mean, you couldn't pay me to stand in and take that myself but they're ballplayers. That didn't necessitate what it turned into.

Oh and anyone else amused by the bullpen guys running in alongside each other?  For once I'd like to see someone mouth off and a fight starts out there. 

 

 

 

[ghost of miles]

27 minutes ago, Dan Gould said:

Would like to see the ... Jomboy breakdown (?). About 10:23:  Dude, that was the gum. What are we gonna do now?

 

Seriously though, didn't the Mariners throw at someone on the Angels? (I didn't have the sound on). I thought that was about the gentlest "right back atcha" pitch I've ever seen. Right in the meaty part of his tush, nowhere near his head, ribs. I mean, you couldn't pay me to stand in and take that myself but they're ballplayers. That didn't necessitate what it turned into.

Oh and anyone else amused by the bullpen guys running in alongside each other?  For once I'd like to see someone mouth off and a fight starts out there. 

 

 

 

Apparently Seattle buzzed Trout’s head the night before. Hilarious observation about the bullpens running in together… imagine a second scrum happening out there as well!   Oh, and 

Jomboy’s working on it

[Dan Gould]

1 hour ago, ghost of miles said:

Apparently Seattle buzzed Trout’s head the night before. Hilarious observation about the bullpens running in together… imagine a second scrum happening out there as well!   Oh, and 

Jomboy’s working on it

I like the guy's work I'll just have to get over the fact he's a Yanks fan.

There's an Angel who does this half-hearted wrasslin-style forearm to the back on the guy who got hit, but the Mariner who reacted to that really laid 'em in there. 

[ghost of miles]

5 hours ago, Dan Gould said:

I like the guy's work I'll just have to get over the fact he's a Yanks fan.

 

Fans on Twitter are awaiting his breakdown of the brawl like it's a Marvel or Tom Cruise summer blockbuster movie. 

... and it just went live!

 

[soulpope]

59 minutes ago, ghost of miles said:

Fans on Twitter are awaiting his breakdown of the brawl like it's a Marvel or Tom Cruise summer blockbuster movie. 

... and it just went live!

 

Funny indeed ....

[Dan Gould]

8:35 - he should have said "so ump does a good job protecting the quarterback"

 

[sonnymax]

Man's quest to play catch 162 times ends with Yankee Stadium finale

[ghost of miles]

Beautiful moment at the end of Clayton Kershaw’s ASG presser:

10-year-old fulfills late grandfather’s wish

[soulpope]

2 hours ago, ghost of miles said:

Beautiful moment at the end of Clayton Kershaw’s ASG presser:

10-year-old fulfills late grandfather’s wish

Indeed ....

[ghost of miles]

Yankees finish their 2022 regular-season match-up against the Astros 2-5 (with four of the seven games at Yankee Stadium) and without having led a single inning (both of their wins came via walkoff hits). Despite their gaudy overall record to date, they are still owned lock, stock and barrel (or should I say lock, stock and trash-can?  ) by Houston… cannot see them advancing past the Astros in the postseason. And how ‘bout them Mariners and Orioles? Lots of AL teams in the hunt for those three wild-card spots. I’ll also be interested to see if anybody lands Juan Soto at the trade deadline. He’s at peak value right now with 2.5 years of team control left… Nats will still get a huge haul for him if they wait till the winter, but perhaps a little less than they’d receive right now, when acquiring Soto could help push a team immediately through the playoffs and to the World Series. 

Edited July 22, 2022 by ghost of miles

[HutchFan]

46 minutes ago, ghost of miles said:

Yankees finish their 2022 regular-season match-up against the Astros 2-5 (with four of the seven games at Yankee Stadium) and without having led a single inning (both of their wins came via walkoff hits). Despite their gaudy overall record to date, they are still owned lock, stock and barrel (or should I say lock, stock and trash-can?  ) by Houston… cannot see them advancing past the Astros in the postseason. 

You never can tell, ghost.  Last year, the Dodgers won 4 of 6 against the Braves during the regular season -- but then the Braves shocked everyone in the post-season, winning the seven-game series vs. the Dodgers in 6.

... And then, of course, the Braves went on to beat Houston in the WS. 

I think it depends more on who's playing well at the end of the season. 

 

Edited July 22, 2022 by HutchFan
misspelled word

[JSngry]

29 minutes ago, HutchFan said:

I think it depends more on who's playing well at the end of the season. 

or who's not...

[HutchFan]

1 minute ago, JSngry said:

or who's not...

Yup.

 

[ghost of miles]

Aaron Judge on the trail of Maris ‘61:

Judge is just the fourth Major Leaguer (and second Yankee) to hit at least 43 home runs through his club’s first 104 games of a season, joining Babe Ruth (44 in 1921), Mark McGwire (44 in 1998) and Barry Bonds (45 in 2001).

“Beyond special”: Judge hits #43 in Yankees’ win over Mariners

[HutchFan]

40 minutes ago, ghost of miles said:

Aaron Judge on the trail of Maris ‘61:

Judge is just the fourth Major Leaguer (and second Yankee) to hit at least 43 home runs through his club’s first 104 games of a season, joining Babe Ruth (44 in 1921), Mark McGwire (44 in 1998) and Barry Bonds (45 in 2001).

“Beyond special”: Judge hits #43 in Yankees’ win over Mariners

And unlike McGwire and Bonds, (I would assume that) Judge isn't using steroids.  So, IMO, the only "untainted"/un-asterisked comparison is Babe Ruth.  That makes what Judge is doing even MORE impressive.

 

Another long-standing record recently broken:

How to describe the month that Austin Riley had, the hitter the Braves third baseman has become? He broke a franchise record Sunday for most extra-base hits in any month, a mark that stood for 61 years and belonged to the all-time MLB extra-base hits leader and one of the greatest players who ever lived, Hank Aaron.

Riley not only broke it but also did so with a walk-off double on the first pitch he saw from Arizona reliever Mark Melancon. It was a well-located fastball down and in that Riley somehow lined to right-center, scoring Matt Olson from first base for a 1-0 win and series sweep at Truist Park, where fans chanted “MVP!, MVP!” when Riley strode to the plate.

Full article: https://theathletic.com/3465789/2022/07/31/braves-austin-riley-record-hank-aaron/

On top of that, the Braves signed Riley to a 10-year, $212M contract yesterday.

The Braves long-term prospects are looking VERY good with so much young talent: Riley, Acuña, Albies, Fried, et al.   

 

Edited August 2, 2022 by HutchFan

[ghost of miles]

Juan Soto traded to the San Diego Padres

… they’re going to have a freaking Murderers’ Row in SD with their #2-5 hitters.

[Dan Gould]

And the Red Sox big transaction is taking on an historically bad contract for a total mediocrity named Eric Hosmer.

This former Rays GM doesn't have a g-damn clue, and anyone who thought that Alex Cora is some special manager, gimme a break on that too.

Oh, and don't forget, they got Tommy Pham and his .694 OPS. Playoffs, here we come! Where anything can happen and usually does!!

Fuckin' 

[Ken Dryden]

4 hours ago, HutchFan said:

And unlike McGwire and Bonds, (I would assume that) Judge isn't using steroids.  So, IMO, the only "untainted"/un-asterisked comparison is Babe Ruth.  That makes what Judge is doing even MORE impressive.

 

Another long-standing record recently broken:

How to describe the month that Austin Riley had, the hitter the Braves third baseman has become? He broke a franchise record Sunday for most extra-base hits in any month, a mark that stood for 61 years and belonged to the all-time MLB extra-base hits leader and one of the greatest players who ever lived, Hank Aaron.

Riley not only broke it but also did so with a walk-off double on the first pitch he saw from Arizona reliever Mark Melancon. It was a well-located fastball down and in that Riley somehow lined to right-center, scoring Matt Olson from first base for a 1-0 win and series sweep at Truist Park, where fans chanted “MVP!, MVP!” when Riley strode to the plate.

Full article: https://theathletic.com/3465789/2022/07/31/braves-austin-riley-record-hank-aaron/

On top of that, the Braves signed Riley to a 10-year, $212M contract yesterday.

The Braves long-term prospects are looking VERY good with so much young talent: Riley, Acuña, Albies, Fried, et al.   

 

Matt Olson has had a great season as well. While he doesn't hit for average as well as Freddie Freeman did, he's been an extra base hitting machine.

Glad to see them DFA Robinson Canó, who no longer seems to be able to hit or field. The Mike Ford experiment has ended with his return to the minors. It is puzzling what the Braves saw in him to promote him, let alone sign him, with his lack of success at the major league level over the past several years. It was odd the other night with 3 guys hitting under .200 in the starting lineup.

 

Edited August 2, 2022 by Ken Dryden

[Dan Gould]

I am amazed David Ortiz looks to be in better shape, today, than Ken Griffey Jr. There's only a six year difference in ages.

If you missed the field of dreams pre-game here are some photos. His dad looks no worse than Junior.

https://www.google.com/search?q=ken+griffey+junior+field+of+dreams&sxsrf=ALiCzsZmnx5pVhFh4wdzqQemFh3JA4z7Iw:1660309804350&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjMt-uAsMH5AhVwZjABHbApABQQ_AUoA3oECAEQBQ&biw=1229&bih=603&dpr=1.56

[HutchFan]

The Braves just extended the contract on another talented young player, Michael Harris II: Braves’ new contracts set them up for long-term success

Also: After losing 4 games out of 5 to the Mets in NYC, they Braves beat the Mets 3 times out of 4 in Atlanta.  They really needed that to have any hope of catching the Mets in the division race.  The Braves play the Mets three more times -- in the final week of the season (in Atlanta, thankfully!).  The division championship could well come down to those 3 games.

 

In less happy news, Braves outfielder Marcel Ozuna got arrested for DUI last night.  Ugh. Not good.

 

[JSngry]

RIP Maury Wills (who's not in the HOF?)

https://www.mlb.com/news/maury-wills-dies

[Ken Dryden]

I hope the Braves realized their mistake with not re-signing Freddie Freeman early and get Dansby Swanson’s contract renewed with a big raise. Matt Olson’s power and fielding is fine but the nearly .100 difference in batting average between him and Freeman is troublesome. Of course, it was Freeman’s bonehead agents that made a demand that he did’t approve to cause the Braves to trade for Olson. A safe bet is that Ozuna, Jansen, Duvall and Morton won’t be given new contracts.

[Ken Dryden]

The Braves had an unusual situation in tonight’s win over the Nationals. They appealed three calls at first and all were overturned in their favor. The replays clearly showed the ump was wrong on each of them, but that is never a guarantee with the erratic judgement of those reviewing the plays in New York. 

[ghost of miles]

Yankees clinched the AL East and the 2nd seed in AL playoffs with tonight’s win over Toronto. Aaron Judge had 4 BB and a hard-hit line-out in his five PA. Blue Jay pitchers giving him almost nothing in the strike zone.

 

Aaron Judge pitch chart vs Toronto 9/27