MLB 2018

Discussion in 'Miscellaneous' started by HatterDon, Feb 24, 2018.

  1. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    Yesterday featured the first of the spring training games, and I watched parts of two of them on MLB network. This season should be interesting -- it may even feature a huge lawsuit and/or a player walkout over the owners' seeming collusion over signing free agents.

    The Astros had a great off-season, making few changes to their 2017 juggernaut, while the Marlins completely dismantled their roster. The flashiest signing was Stanton going to the pinstripes, but the most improved franchises were in National League with two last place clubs revamping to go from last to playoffs -- the Giants and Phillies. And we're likely to see a player have 25 starts on the mound and 350 at bats.

    My predictions? There'll be entirely too much of the Yankees and the RedSox on Fox, MLB, and ESPN. The Cubs will have real competition from the Brewers and the Cardinals. The Yanks won't be as good as everyone in the media prays they will. Arizona won't make the playoffs. Minnesota will be the class of the AL Central. The Astros and Nationals will lead their respective leagues in wins. Games will continue to get longer because of video replays and constant trips to the mound by catchers, and blame for it will be placed on aspects of the game that have remained unchanged since the days when the length of the average 9-inning game was around 2 hours.

    Let's play us some baseball!!!!!!
     
    #1
  2. dcheather

    dcheather Administrator

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    I thought they were limiting the trips to the mound this year to 6 per 9 innings. And in extras, they get 1 per inning?

    Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
     
    #2
  3. dcheather

    dcheather Administrator

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    #3
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  4. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    Well, that's brightened my day a bit. Thanks, Senator! Now if they'd just get rid of TV replay ... .
     
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  5. jumpkutz

    jumpkutz Well-Known Member

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    They didn't improve the club much (yet), but never, EVER, count the Cardinals out.
     
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  6. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    #6
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  7. BarryWhite

    BarryWhite Well-Known Member

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    #7
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  8. SoCalJoe

    SoCalJoe Well-Known Member

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    Happy Opening Day!!

    Opening Day today, Fulham resumes promotion/playoff push tomorrow, Final 4 Saturday, Easter Sunday....Life Good!
     
    #8
  9. jumpkutz

    jumpkutz Well-Known Member

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    Opening Night in St. Louis. That means the Clydesdales, Hall of Famers in red blazers and World Series trophies.
    It’ll be a tall order for this group to challenge for any new trophies this season. Lost their opening series at New York 1-2, won the last one 2-1 at Miller Park.
    Management hasn’t improved the club enough, especially the pitching but, really, in all areas. Biggest pickup is Marcel Ozuna from Miami, but that’s pretty much it. Unless a lot of guys have career years, I’m not optimistic about this season. And if they miss the postseason again, look for Mike Matheny to be replaced by Jose Oquendo, who’s back in the 3rd base coaches box after 2 seasons away, Many fans believe his absence is the primary reason for our recent struggles. It’ll be interesting to see if his return makes a difference.
    Hoping to find a stream of the pre-game ceremonies tonight. They’re usually quite good, even if you hate the Redbirds.
     
    #9
  10. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    NBCSports.com's MLB headline: "Tebow Homers in AA Debut"

    Pssst, the "ML" stands for MAJOR LEAGUE.
    :mad::mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:
     
    #10
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  11. SoCalJoe

    SoCalJoe Well-Known Member

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    Shohei Ohtani has lived up to the billing after a tough spring. Three Home Runs in his last 3 games, batting .389, and in his lone start he went 6 innings, striking out 6 while giving up 3 hits. The last player to hit 3 HRs between starts? Babe Ruth
     
    #11
  12. astroevan

    astroevan Well-Known Member

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    Also... the last player to attempt 3 HRs between starts: Babe Ruth.

    I’m not trying to downplay Ohtani’s talent or the hype surrounding him, but this is only news because of the specialist nature of baseball these days. High schoolers play both ways every day. But professional baseball management forces players into pitching or hitting early and there is no crossover after that. I’m not a baseball purist like some, but I’d love for baseball to put in some rules that prevent specialists (e.g., the left handed pitcher that is only brought in to face a single left handed batter). The DH makes the offenses more exciting but, in my opinion, if you’re a baseball player you should have to compete in all aspects of the game - both hitting and defending.

    Full disclosure: I am an Astros fan and don’t like seeing the division rivals garnering so much media attention.
     
    #12
  13. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    I've bored many people on here railing against the DH, and I've been an Astros fan since their first game ever ... but HatterMom was a Junior Angel at the age of 13, so our house is happily divided, and we both love what Ohtani is doing.
     
    #13
  14. SoCalJoe

    SoCalJoe Well-Known Member

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    Evan, eventually time wins out and the Astros & Halos are finally becoming divisional rivals. Every ‘expert’ had the knives sharpened and wanted to send Ohtani to the minors after Spring Training. His second start stats: 7 innings, first 6 1/3 PERFECT, 1 hit, 0 Runs, 1 walks, 12 strikeouts.
     
    #14
    Last edited: Apr 9, 2018
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  15. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    Which idiot devised the April schedule? First of all the Giants and Dodgers play each other in three series this month. Second of all the Yankees and the Mets were BOTH in NYC for fun in the snow, and today's schedule calls for both the White Sox and the Cubs playing at home today -- BOTH GAMES ARE DAY GAMES.

    Is MLB trying to cut back on attendance? Screwiest schedule ever.
     
    #15
  16. nevzter

    nevzter Well-Known Member

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    Indeed - why in the world do nice-weather, west coast teams open the season against each other? So stupid - at least the Giants are catching a wounded Dodgers squad.

    Oh yeah, Otani is pretty good. Stupid Angels (still smarting over '02...)
     
    #16
  17. astroevan

    astroevan Well-Known Member

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    This is also why I also don't give Trout all the credit that he deserves. The guy only played 70% of the time last year due to injuries, but still ended up 4th in MVP voting!

    Yeah, I should just keep my mouth shut. I'm going to end up jinxing the Astros. Ohtani's probably going to throw that perfect game now... in Houston.

    PS. I still hate Pujols (or Poopyholes as my wife once heard me say and has never let it go).
     
    #17
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  18. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    and, somehow, the White Sox lost in 9 innings this afternoon ... and, somehow, in the same city, the Cubs game was postponed due to snow.

    WTF?
     
    #18
  19. jumpkutz

    jumpkutz Well-Known Member

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    The Cardinals suck. I know it's early, but they suck. 4-6 and virtually every player is underperforming, except Yadi. Paul DeJong has three homers after they signed him to a big, long term contract after last season, but he's struck out 15 times. Dexter Fowler and Marcell Ozuna are not getting it done. Adam Wainwright appears to be past his prime as a curveball pitcher. His control has faded and his fastball isn't good enough to keep hitters honest. Same with Michael Wacha, whose ERA is about the same. The would be closer, Luke Gregerson, got hurt in Florida and has 2-3 more rehab starts in the minors. His replacement, Greg Holland, walked four straight in his debut last night, leading to an extra inning loss to the Brewers. Pitching, defense, bullpen, baserunning are all very substandard, belying the infamous "Cardinal Way." It was much the same last season. Many hoped the return of Jose Oquendo to the coaching staff would solve some of the fundamentals execution but, so far, no dice. We were overdue for a stinker of a club. We now appear to have it. Expect changes before the All Star break, if not before.
     
    #19
  20. HatterDon

    HatterDon Moderator

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    Was doing about 52 things earlier today when the Minnesota v. Cleveland game was on FS1. I don't know who the color guy was, but the announcer asked him if strikeout records for pitchers have been devalued because batters no longer see a problem in striking out. The color guy -- obviously a former pitcher -- said no, strikeout numbers today mean nothing. The announcer then said that the average relief pitcher today -- AVERAGE -- has a better K per inning ratio than Koufax did.

    Later on -- down to about 25 things doing -- the Cubs and Mets were playing and THAT announcer said that Rizzo was rare among modern players in that he took a different approach to hitting when he had two strikes. Stand by for OFR [old fart rant].

    I've loved baseball since I was a little kid, and I especially like minor league ball, but the stats asshats have about ruined it for me. "Launch angle" "escape velocity" "spin rate" -- all breaks down to "baseball consists of home runs and strikeouts." Now this is fine for a video game, but the artistry in the game disappears when -- using a Texas team for an example -- a guy can hit 35 homers and struggle to escape the Mendoza line and have a "successful season." The Rangers had that last season with their first and second basemen. Joey Gallo draws a shift that basically leaves the entire 3rd base line and the 20 yards of fair territory next to it unmanned and he REFUSES to slap the ball and get his team an easy double. Instead, he continues to hit .200 and the occasional homer for a last place club.

    By contrast, the Astros play BASEBALL, and are fun to watch. They go for gappers more than sky scrapers. They still hit home runs, but they also have players who do so while hitting at or near .300. They also play solid fundamental baseball -- one reason why their pitching staff has such amazing ERA stats. Everywhere else in the majors, I see players making 7 figure salaries incapable of executing a simple relay from outfield to catcher, playing individual and team defense at a level that would have been unacceptable for my high school team, not to mention a corporate unwillingness to go for productive outs.

    AND, those damn kids keep stomping all over my lawn.
     
    #20
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