CFB51 College Football Fan Community
The Power Five => Big Ten => Topic started by: OrangeAfroMan on February 09, 2020, 05:50:43 PM
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Spring Training is coming up.
I'm cutting my games schedule to half a week. If anyone needs any Cactus League info, just ask. The ballparks, the parking, the traffic, etc.
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I'm starting out at Camelback Ranch (LAD), then Sloan Park the next day (CHC), a double-header - Camelback (CWS) and American Family (MIL) after that. I can walk to the Brewers games (cheese curds). I'll go out to Goodyear (CIN) next, and finally back to Camelback for my Dodgers again.
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Only do a double-header if the ballparks are close OR if you see a game way out west first and the next is in-town. Otherwise, you'll be arriving in the 2nd inning still fuming from road rage.
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I might miss the Cactus League this year :'(
I'm particularly bummed out as it starts a wee bit earlier this year and I love getting out there before the spring break crowds.
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I'd get out to more non-spring break games, except there aren't many night games. It stinks.
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I see the Brewers are hosting a rare night game on Monday March 9th in Maryvale. Peoria seems to host the most night games in Cactus League. I didn't notice any night games until Feb 28th.
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Yeah, there are especially few night games for the Brewers because it is ghetto here.
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I've never been to a night Maryvale game. I know it's not ritzy Ritz but is it really that big of a problem at night? I've never experienced a problem. Beats hauling out to Goodyear or Surprise. Of course depends where you are staying.
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I'm sure it's fine, but I don't look at it from the fans' perspective. If you're a team and you have your millionaire players around, you're not wanting them in Maryvale at night.
I promise you none of the Brewers' players stay anywhere near their home park while they're visiting.
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I want to say it was Badge847 saying the White Sox would be good/decent last year. I think he was a year too early. The Twins will still win the Central, but the Indians are falling and the ChiSox will finish 2nd.
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watching Don Larson's perfect game - 1956
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Anyone been watching the 5am Korean League games? A former Gator is the best hitter so far!
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3am central?
nope
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Watching Game 6 of the 1995 World Series....the Tom Glavine strike zone is in full force.
The mid-90s strike zone was absurd - not just for Glavine, not just that ump for the Livan Hernandez game - all of it.
It was barely up to the waist and down to the knees, then on the edge of the plate inside and literally 4-6 inches outside. Not sometimes, but always, consistently.
If those hitters in the mid-90s had our current, consistent strike zone, the numbers they'd have put up would've been even more cartoony.
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most pitchers got 4 inches outside - Glavine got the full 6
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most pitchers got 4 inches outside - Glavine got the full 6
Maddox got a few inches out there too. He'd start with pitches right on the edge, then work them out, maybe 1/4 of an inch at a time. When he'd get one called a ball, he's go back to the outer edge of the plate and start working his pitches back outside again.
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ya, I know
stupid umpires
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Hey, so, baseball!
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Happy about it, wish it were sooner but it is slightly complicated.
Looking forward to warm evenings and the MLB ab app for radio.
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https://twitter.com/cdneisler/status/1275890831904387072?s=19
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Meh, I'd appreciate the shorter walk, lol.
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With such a short season, we could very well have a .400 hitter, along with the biggest, fattest asterisk of all time.
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ERA under 1.00? Not likely, but more possible. Fielding percentage 1.000?
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Seems apropos, opening day 2020 and we get a rain delay. Giants at LAD coming up. Won't be raining in LA.
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And we get 2 CGs. With one each for Scherzer amd Cole That would be good enough for 10th place in the big leagues last year.
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First of a lot of blowout wins for LA this year.
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With such a short season, we could very well have a .400 hitter, along with the biggest, fattest asterisk of all time.
I recall a strike shortened season, possibly 1981, where a high school classmate one-year ahead of me was on the cover of Sports Illustrated hitting over .400 in July in minor league baseball. He was a great player. Led the Mustangs to a HS state championship. He stole a lot of bases in the minor leagues, but the Indians brought him up for 41-games his entire MLB career, back when the Indians, were -- the Indians - well after Bob Feller, and long before the new stadium. Times during which the Cleveland Indians were a very bad team.
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Actually watching some baseball. The silence is a little oppressive
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The games I've watched or listened to have had a good amount of ambient sound. Its been helpful.
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The games I've watched or listened to have had a good amount of ambient sound. Its been helpful.
Yeah it's not so much that they need piped in crowd cheers and more they just need piped in crowd noise so it doesn't feel so lonely.
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Mississippi State had plenty of piped-in crowd noise when I visited Stark-vegas about 20 years ago. I was shocked. It was sad.
And hearing "Who let the dogs out" 50 times was actually worse than hearing "Rocky top" 50 times.
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BTW a 60 game MLB schedule? With the Reds having a bit of talent this year, it's the perfect storm of me actually being interested in baseball this year. Currently sitting on my back patio watching baseball while the rest of the family plays in the pool. This is all right.
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So I guess the Dodgers aren't going 60-0.....maybe 59-1.
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So I guess the Dodgers aren't going 60-0.....maybe 59-1.
Tied with the Tigers currently
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Reds bullpen :(
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Tied with the Tigers currently
Huh?
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Huh?
The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Detroit Tigers have identical record, or, are tied.
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Wow, Verlander done for the year. Cheaters down their top 2 pitchers from last year.
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The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Detroit Tigers have identical record, or, are tied.
Nope - LA played Thursday....so you became correct today, for a couple of hours. lol
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Nobody went 3-0, or 0-3 to start the season. Can't say I remember the last time that happened after the first series.
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Nobody went 3-0, or 0-3 to start the season. Can't say I remember the last time that happened after the first series.
First time since 1954 I saw
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Marlins cancelled their home opener today as the team has suffered a complete outbreak, 14 players/staffers have tested positive.
I don't see how baseball finishes, let alone football happens at all.
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Sounds like the Reds have some issues too. Three guys held out yesterday though two hadn't tested yet.
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Inevitable.
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(https://scontent-lax3-2.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t31.0-8/p960x960/27173109_10156324022624274_2748717305330554704_o.jpg?_nc_cat=107&_nc_sid=8024bb&_nc_ohc=Llxfdng1wNAAX9YNtq6&_nc_ht=scontent-lax3-2.xx&_nc_tp=6&oh=46c9e15d92a82829653b437410773597&oe=5F464AC1)
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(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/proxy/PplARw7IztD4k-vmF5a8SYJCIN4dnp079pmhHhDSYlUd7Xnz0gB7y_q941XaU4Nk94cSa6q2fZnWXFrRfzvBjEdy8Thau7OP_rbCSqSY4jGNxhO6wG1r6STMZ0rYqMrKln93_8iuPVAfZkMSIWEJXDuB6pmr)
One of these isn't any better than the others, just because it's real.
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Gilded Age of Baseball series by Rob Bauer is a great anthology of baseball in 1870s-1890. Nicknames and mascots are well chronicled. Stuff that makes the Indians logo seem like PG stuff.
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Orange Afroman, I really enjoyed your memes. That said, I agree with the premise of your post.
But the Cleveland Indians history is such that the Indians name originated from the several Indians on the original Cleveland Indians team. What other MLB team featured native, or minority players at that time? So it has a unique history to consider. On the other hand the symbols used by the Cleveland Baseball Team for many years, actually do suck.
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Well, I'd be all for going back to the Cleveland Naps. (named after star and eventual Player-Mgr. Nap Lajoie). That was sure better than the Blues or Bronchos their other two nicknames.
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There's just no need to name teams after certain groups of people.
More specifically, groups of people who didn't choose who they are.
So an occupation is fine, but not a race.
Former pro baseball mascots:
Bees, Rustlers, Beaneaters, Orphans, Colts, Pilots, Senators, Alleghenys, Gothams, Perfectos, Robins, Bridegrooms,.....maybe Orphans isn't okay, because you don't choose to be that. Alleghenys is like the first Rockies.
Beaneaters would be fine, unless it's a derogatory name or something.
The bottom line is that you have all the nouns and many of the verbs and adjectives to choose from.....there's no need to have races or tribes or whatever.
FSU claims they're okay because they have permission from the Seminole tribe of FL. That's great, except that it's a tiny group compared to the OK Seminoles who were moved, obviously, and aren't okay with being a mascot.
But no matter the histories or discrepancies or whatever, there's no need for it. It's not even an important thing, which may be the argument of the apathetic, but it's also works when you ask the question, "then why do it?"
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Beaneaters would be fine, unless it's a derogatory name or something.
someone, anyone can simply decide they feel a name is derogatory or something
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Beaneaters would be fine, unless it's a derogatory name or something.
How about the Farts?That way the content or aroma would be familiar to you and would resemble your criteria
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There's just no need to name teams after certain groups of people.
More specifically, groups of people who didn't choose who they are.
So an occupation is fine, but not a race.
Former pro baseball mascots:
Bees, Rustlers, Beaneaters, Orphans, Colts, Pilots, Senators, Alleghenys, Gothams, Perfectos, Robins, Bridegrooms,.....maybe Orphans isn't okay, because you don't choose to be that. Alleghenys is like the first Rockies.
Beaneaters would be fine, unless it's a derogatory name or something.
The bottom line is that you have all the nouns and many of the verbs and adjectives to choose from.....there's no need to have races or tribes or whatever.
FSU claims they're okay because they have permission from the Seminole tribe of FL. That's great, except that it's a tiny group compared to the OK Seminoles who were moved, obviously, and aren't okay with being a mascot.
But no matter the histories or discrepancies or whatever, there's no need for it. It's not even an important thing, which may be the argument of the apathetic, but it's also works when you ask the question, "then why do it?"
This reminds me of a situation with German POW war graves. There were German soldiers captured during WWII who were held in the U.S. (We had a POW camp just south of Tulsa that hardly anyone knows about anymore.) A few of them died during their stay. After the war was over, a handful of the dead were not repatriated by their relatives after the war was over, so they were permanently buried in the U.S. Eventually, their graves ended up being the responsibility of the V.A.
The headstones all were engraved with some little epitaph like "They faithfully served their country and their Fuhrer." And the image of the Knight's Cross (an Iron Cross with a small swastika in the middle) was on each stone as well.
Why anyone made the decision to do that with the headstones is hard to fathom at this point. But it was done.
There is now a push to install replacement markers that don't have any reference to der Fuhrer and don't have the image of a swastika on them.
And, on military.com there are people posting in outrage about changing the headstones.
It's desecrating the graves, they say. The men served honorably and shouldn't have their graves desecrated. It may have been a bad decision at the time, but to change the headstones now would be desecrating the graves. The guy pushing to have the headstones changed is a JOOO! How dare A JOOO request that Nazi-favorable imagery be removed. It's bizarre. These guys (or, I hope, Russian bots) have no reason to care about those headstones, much less to resist the de-Nazification of a V.A. cemetery.
But, for some reason, they do.
I think that a lot of the resistance to changing the name of the Washington D.C. Football Team and the Cleveland American League Baseball team is the same sort of thing.
People want to be outraged. They hate P.C., so they get outraged when it looks like the P.C. people are winning, regardless of the rights or wrongs of the issue at hand.
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How about the Farts?That way the content or aroma would be familiar to you and would resemble your criteria
Good one! :PDT_Armataz_01_37:
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Joe Kelly doing what the fans aren't going to be able to...even though he won a WS with a Red Sox team that also cheated.
https://twitter.com/Chandler_Rome/status/1288336176420552704?s=19
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Interesting. The Reds had a player test positive for corona and he was put on injured list. Then two more players felt ill and were held out but tested negative. They are back in tonight.
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First time watching a game at Texas' new park on TV. Quite a bland look on the interior. I get it had to be inside, but man the old park looked so much cooler
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Zac Plesac, the Indians #6 starter, pitched 8 shutout innings, 11 Ks, no walks, but no run support. Pen comes in and gives up 3 in the 9th.
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Sonny Gray was throwing a 1 hit shutout and got taken out with two outs in the 7th up 9-0. Now it's 9-5
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Zac Plesac, the Indians #6 starter, pitched 8 shutout innings, 11 Ks, no walks, but no run support. Pen comes in and gives up 3 in the 9th.
All of the talking heads have been wrong about pitcher usage. They thought managers would baby their starters, giving them 3-4 innings and eventually growing it from there. But plenty of starters have gone 8+ IP in their first starts, which is great.
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Yeah, I miss the chess match of guys facing off for a third time. Just another thing analytics have ruined from a viewership standpoint
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Baseball is most married to its past, which damns it in this way. MLB could combat the fact that the best method to win games seems to vary greatly from the best game to watch, but they won't. Baseball evolves slowly, because of its marriage to the past.
The 3-batter minimum for relievers is great, but minor.
Analytics has revealed some effective strategies that are also boring. This doesn't have to damage the sport, but it has and probably will, going forward.
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IMO, baseball was better before they started trying to bring it into touch with modern times. All things have gone downhill since the DH was introduced.
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I blame the rampant PED usage in the 90s.
Lineups used to have a formula:
leadoff - fast guy
2nd - low power/good contact guy
3rd - best hitter
4th - power guy
5th - RBI guy
6th, 7th - try to get a hit
8th - worse fast guy
9th - pitcher, try to bunt the worse fast guy over
PEDs changed that....every spot in the lineup was a power guy. You had leadoff and 8th hitters hitting 25 HRs in a season. And it produced data that told us that method of hitting was statistically the most effective to winning games. The data also told us that traditional ideas like intentional walks and sacrifice bunts were bad strategy, so their loss was no loss at all.
We've learned that it doesn't matter how fast a guy is if he can't get on base. That stringing together 3 hits to score a run is less likely than getting a guy on (hit or walk) and smashing a HR is. Pitcher's arms fall off after 100 pitches.
And the damn platoon advantage inherent to the sport.
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First time watching a game at Texas' new park on TV. Quite a bland look on the interior. I get it had to be inside, but man the old park looked so much cooler
Can't tell yet wo fan reaction but they have a very thoughtful seating bowl design which mercifully cuts down on the upper decks being in the heavens the way most post Camden parks have been designed to accommodate suites and club levels. I read a rather comprehensive piece on that somewhere. Fans will be much closer to home plate. It certainly wasn't designed from the outside -in so it doesn't impress from a styling standpoint.
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Phillies halt all operations in their stadium
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29564864/phllies-halt-activity-stadium-positive-tests-coronavirus (https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29564864/phllies-halt-activity-stadium-positive-tests-coronavirus)
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Phillies halt all operations in their stadium
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29564864/phllies-halt-activity-stadium-positive-tests-coronavirus (https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29564864/phllies-halt-activity-stadium-positive-tests-coronavirus)
Maybe we were wrong all along. Maybe the source is Phillies stadium
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I didn't even know their stadium was set up to do operations...
Is that elective or non-elective?
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Maybe we were wrong all along. Maybe the source is Phillies stadium
Or just the guy who calls it home:
(https://i.imgur.com/vA1zjdE.jpg)
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Multiple Cardinals test positive, game today against Brewers cancelled
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Zac Plesac, the Indians #6 starter, pitched 8 shutout innings, 11 Ks, no walks, but no run support. Pen comes in and gives up 3 in the 9th.
Indians pitchers have been insane. Mariners have the worst K/BB rate in the AL at 1.56, the Orioles have the 2nd BEST at 3.20. So 14 of the 15 teams are in that range. Then Indians lead at 10.75!
Only 4 teams even have a K/9 rate of 10.75 or higher.
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Reds and Tigers scheduled for a seven inning double header today.
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7 innings, are they using a softball?
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7 innings, are they using a softball?
I wish, maybe the Reds would get a hit
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Just curious about how you all feel about the new tied game rule of starting a runner on 2nd base in the 10th inning
I guess they did it to speed up the game
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Its a crime, and I see why this was instituted.
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is this new rule supposed to be forever or just this year
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It's a crime
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is this new rule supposed to be forever or just this year
For now, just this season. Would need to be part of any future CB arrangement. I know players and umps like it. Not sure if pitchers are big supporters.
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is this new rule supposed to be forever or just this year
Whatever they say, it will be forever.
Coming next: two-platoon baseball.
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All the changes are supposed to be just for this year, but many believe at least some will remain, like the DH in both leagues.
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All the changes are supposed to be just for this year, but many believe at least some will remain, like the DH in both leagues.
DH in both leagues is a lock.
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As a not really fan, I like all the changes. The season is the right length. I don't need the pitcher to hit. I like something extra in overtime. Hell I am digging the 7 inning games.
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So Trevor Bauer throws a seven inning complete game shutout. Want to see the purists talk about that.
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Well, we can ask the estate of Harvey Haddix.
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This is as good a place to put this as any. In my daughter’s softball game today the batter hit a pop up in the infield. The pitcher came off the mound to field it. The batter and pitcher collided right in the first base line and the ball rolled foul without anyone touching it.
You make the call.
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foul ball
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Nope
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bad call, ump got it wrong
I'll wait for the gopher umpire to weigh in
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Does softball have those double lines going down to 1st between which the batter is supposed to run? If so, was she between the lines?
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No double lines. Called the batter out. Said the fielder has to have an unfettered attempt to catch the ball.
I’m not going to swear it was the right call but it may have been. There is a MLB rule that says the fielder has the “right of way” to catch the ball.
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Texted a friend who played baseball through college and he said it was the right call, fwiw.
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I was thinking that baseball and softball might have different interpretations of the rule if softball doesn't have the second line outside the home-to-first baseline.
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I assessed that the White Sox, my team, had a legit chance at the AL Pennant this season, because they now have so many power hitters, and some hitters that hit for average. The hitting department has been so sorely lacking for years. Their season started slow (so did everyone's), but i.e. the W-L record was a slow start. Now the Sox are above .500.
Pitching is a big question, and pitching wins the play-off games, and the World Series.
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As someone who has lived through the international tiebreaker rule a couple of times I think it works the opposite of the OT rule in college football. I think it is more advantageous to hit first and play defense second.
I’d rather go into the bottom of the inning knowing how many runs I can give up as opposed to knowing how many I need to score.
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Red Sox pitching a disaster, worst in baseball so far. Blew it to the Yankees last night. 3-7 W/L and last in the AL East.
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Red Sox pitching a disaster, worst in baseball so far. Blew it to the Yankees last night. 3-7 W/L and last in the AL East.
Sale and Rodriguez gone for the year, Price given away.
From a bunch that was #19 in ERA a year ago
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As someone who has lived through the international tiebreaker rule a couple of times I think it works the opposite of the OT rule in college football. I think it is more advantageous to hit first and play defense second.
I’d rather go into the bottom of the inning knowing how many runs I can give up as opposed to knowing how many I need to score.
Depends.
If you can shut out the team in the top, I like knowing you can go sac bunt-sac fly-win.
If you do that in the top, you are basically punting any chance at scoring 2, so you need to know you don't need 2.
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DYERSVILLE — The Field of Dreams game between the Chicago White Sox and St. Louis Cardinals will been canceled, according to MLB reporter Ken Rosenthal.
Rosenthal tweeted Monday the game, that was intended to be play near the original movie site on August 13th, was canceled due to a logistical problem.
He says it is not believed to be tied to a recent string of positive coronavirus tests on the Cardinals.
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Tigers-Cardinals series cancelled.
Thanks St. Louis
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Only ten games into the season, have the Mets and Braves ONLY played each other (rhetorical question)? Way too much Mets Vs Braves on TV this past week.
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Nothing like wrapping up the week with a 17-13 baseball game between two of the worst offenses in the majors
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Depends.
If you can shut out the team in the top, I like knowing you can go sac bunt-sac fly-win.
If you do that in the top, you are basically punting any chance at scoring 2, so you need to know you don't need 2.
I meant to reply to this earlier and forgot. Your point is valid but I would still rather bat first and play defense second. One reason is I’ve never really thought you can plan for a sac fly. You can hope for one but getting one is a totally different story. Depending on where I was in the lineup I would still feel comfortable bunting that runner over in the top half of the inning.
I just like knowing beforehand if that runner standing on second is going to beat me, tie me, or just reduce my lead.
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That's a good point - where you are in your lineup. That is the real edge/deficit to extra-inning baseball - both the tradition kind and the newfangled kind.
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Yeah, what if Miguel Cabrera got the final out. Do you pinch run for him next inning?
The other one, is if a team is tied in the bottom of the inning, has anyone seen them intentionally walk the first batter, being irrelevant, just to put a double play in play?
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Yes, teams have issued an intentional walk. I don't know how it turned out.
The guy on 2nd thing is VERY statistically effective in shortening the game, and that's all it's designed to do. We're looking for little strategies to gain an advantage, but it's all about who's coming up to bat.
The Fangraphs podcast I listen to, Effectively Wild, pondered that with the additional roster spot, do you want to have a pinch-runner player for that 10th inning. It might make sense, and yes, you remove your big hitter on 2nd BECAUSE the situation is designed so that his batting spot doesn't come back around again. The game will be over 99%+ of the time.
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Relaxing game between Indians and White Sox last night. First time I’ve watched the new Extra Innings Rules play out. Both team given runners at second to start the inning, scored as bases on errors to avoid giving the pitchers earned runs. Really incentivizes a lot of hitting strategy. For instance the Indians incorporated bunting to score the run that put them ahead 4-3. 5-4 Indians eventually outlast White Sox after a rain delay.
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Reds player tests positive, remainder of weekend series vs. Pirates ppd
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As a division opponent, I hate him, but Jose Ramirez is so much fun to watch
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Reds player tests positive, remainder of weekend series vs. Pirates ppd
:(
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Cardinals have played 8 games.
Most everyone else: 23 games.
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Thank God Chicago traded Tatis Jr. to San Diego for James Shields. This lineup is crushing us enough without him
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Speaking of Tatis I caught some of the Padres/Rangers game last night. Padres are beating them 10-3 late in the game and have bases loaded, and Tatis is at the plate with a 3-0 count. So, they buzz him a fastball which he hits out for a grand slam.
The Rangers got all butthurt because Tatis had the gall to swing away on a 3-0 pitch in a blowout. The unwritten rules of baseball gives me diarrhea.
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All these stewards of the unwritten rules of the game are supposed to be old-school hard-asses, but things like the Tatis situation and not stealing a base when you're up big fly in the face of playing hard for 9 innings.
It's traditional BS. Just another instance of something having perceived value solely because it's been around a long time.
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Reds announcer Thom Brennaman caught on the hot Mic calling somewhere the "f*g capital of the world."
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Reds announcer Thom Brennaman caught on the hot Mic calling somewhere the "f*g capital of the world."
And got removed midgame
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A most surreal apology
https://twitter.com/AllaireMatt/status/1296254640812699648?s=19
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"My dad got me this job...but he can't save it."
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I loathe Thom and frankly the entire Reds broadcasting outfitz. Tv, radio. They are all such self hating nihilists.
The whole batch of em are crusty cranks. I get a lot of Reds games here locally in Indy on TV and radio.
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"My dad got me this job...but he can't save it."
I'm just amazed that while he is signing off on his career the Reds hit a home run, which he dutifully calls before going back to apologizing. Maybe the Reds could use him as a rally monkey - when they need a run put him up to apologize again.
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I loathe Thom and frankly the entire Reds broadcasting outfitz. Tv, radio. They are all such self hating nihilists.
The whole batch of em are crusty cranks. I get a lot of Reds games here locally in Indy on TV and radio.
When they play the Indians we can choose between both broadcasts. I actually watched the Indians broadcast because they talked a lot more baseball
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When they play the Indians we can choose between both broadcasts. I actually watched the Indians broadcast because they talked a lot more baseball
The Indians have one of the best broadcasts in MLB
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The Reds have an LGBT-friendly mascot that looks like Tickle Me Elmo, after a three year bender.
(https://blogapi.uber.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2016/03/RedsMascots.jpg)
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I bet that he was talking about Columbus.
We will probably never know....
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13K, no hitter, has to rate pretty high on the game score
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For Giolitto, I think it was a case of when, not if, he did something like that.
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Giolito gave up just one walk in his no-no. 101 pitches, 74 strikes. It was an easy night on the pitch count.
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Jayson Stark mentioned a universal rule when you get the DH in both leagues...but only in place of the starting pitcher. Once the starting pitcher comes out, you lose the DH spot. I kind of like that. There's an incentive to keep your starter in longer, prevents fans from having to watch pitchers hit, but still implements late game NL strategy.
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That makes me think 2 things:
1 - I don't think it would matter much, as you're effectively just saying only relievers can hit for themselves, which they almost never do already, and
2 - this sort of double-punishes a team.....if their defense (pitching) sucks, you're then downgrading their offense (pulling the DH).....wouldn't that lead to more blowouts, if teams did leave their starters in longer than they normally would?
I don't think it changes play enough to warrant it as a rule.
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#1 - I don't think you'd ever really see pitchers hit. The "NL strategy" thing is only a thing late in games. Early in the games it's basically a free out. So you keep the late game strategy, while removing the early game pitcher hitting.
#2 - That is the one issue I can see. However, you are talking, what, 2 ABs a game? So you just have to start moving guys around early, as NL teams have always done when a pitcher got shelled. I would also allow the DH to be shifted, so you could move, for example, the DH to 1B, and have the relief pitcher sub in for the 1B
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But when starters have gotten shelled early in a game, that long man will routinely hit twice, as long as he's keeping them in the game.
I'm not married to the DH either way, but I'd probably just like both leagues to be the same. I will say I really like the 3-batter minimum - values and keeps quality pitchers rostered instead of guys who can do one thing well.
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just get rid of the DH
problem solved
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just get rid of the DH
problem solved
Pitchers don't bat at any level anymore. Watching them try it in the majors isn't fun, isn't really strategy, it's just bad baseball.
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If the majors get rid of the DH, all the incentives to have it at lower levels disappear and eventually you get modern-day Don Drysdale and Bob Gibsons and Whitey Fords hitting game-winning big flies.
Adding the DH was the first of many stupid steps that MLB has taken in the last 60 years to kill its own game.
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Pitchers don't bat at any level anymore. Watching them try it in the majors isn't fun, isn't really strategy, it's just bad baseball.
Get rid of the DH and they will start hitting on every level.
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plenty of pitchers hit in Iowa high school baseball - many are the better hitters on the team
same with small colleges
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Right, they do everything better than their teammates, which is why they get to the majors as pitchers or second basemen, etc.
Like probably 50%+ of elite college WRs played a lot of QB and/or RB in high school because they were the best on their team at all of those positions.
It's correct that pitchers would gradually become competent hitters, but it would take decades.
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plenty of pitchers hit in Iowa high school baseball - many are the better hitters on the team
same with small colleges
And probably the best player on their football, basketball and track teams.
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Right, they do everything better than their teammates, which is why they get to the majors as pitchers or second basemen, etc.
Like probably 50%+ of elite college WRs played a lot of QB and/or RB in high school because they were the best on their team at all of those positions.
It's correct that pitchers would gradually become competent hitters, but it would take decades.
Baseball has time on it's side
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When is the last time the Cubs and Sox were in 1st place on Aug. 31?
Could we finally see the "Red Line World Series" between the loveable losers and the South Side Slammer Bangers?
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Marquis Grissom came up as a pitcher. He was obviously a terrific athlete, and usually those guys pitch when younger as noted above. He told me they moved him to CF and he worked for hours each day on fielding. He'd play very shallow in CF and have some coach fungo balls over his head.
He's a really nice guy, lots of interesting stories, big grin. I have yet to get picked by him, which is a thing I keep egging him about. He claims I go too high, ha.
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When is the last time the Cubs and Sox were in 1st place on Aug. 31?
Could we finally see the "Red Line World Series" between the loveable losers and the South Side Slammer Bangers?
This did happen. 1906
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When is the last time the Cubs and Sox were in 1st place on Aug. 31?
Could we finally see the "Red Line World Series" between the loveable losers and the South Side Slammer Bangers?
What's the "Red Line" reference, Hawkinole?
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What's the "Red Line" reference, Hawkinole?
Train line which connects the north and south sides of the city. Has stops near both stadiums.
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What's the "Red Line" reference, Hawkinole?
The Red Line is a north-south CTA elevated train in Chicago. It is underground downtown. It has stops within about 2-blocks of each baseball stadium. If you stay in a downtown hotel it is a great way to go to a game, as driving in this area can be stressful. As a young guy I was a tour bus driver and drove to Wrigley Field numerous times. I can still handle the driving, but I prefer less stress; I am a White Sox fan.
"The Red Line" featuring Chicago in the back ground, was a dramatic mini-series in 2019 that followed CBS 60-Minutes.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65/169915427_1d4adf3851_k.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/g1RWk)Chicago: Addison St "L" Station (https://flic.kr/p/g1RWk) by Wally Gobetz (https://www.flickr.com/photos/wallyg/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/3939/15455545559_adf5686620_k.jpg)Sox and 35th (https://flic.kr/p/pxKHer) by Stewart Cutler (https://www.flickr.com/photos/swryv/), on Flickr
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That station pretty much sits where the South Side Park II was built for the Chicago Pirates of the failed Players League of 1890. This was the league formed by mostly former NL'ers that ran off to form their own league (Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players) in a failed attempt to...well do a lot of things, they could not do or control as players in the NL. It was really the birth of the first Baseball players union. Of course the original Comiskey Park was also located in this immediate area some twenty years later. Covid has afforded me a lot of time in catching up on my 19th Century baseball reading. Comiskey btw, was the Manager of the PL Chicago Pirates.
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That station pretty much sits where the South Side Park II was built for the Chicago Pirates of the failed Players League of 1890. This was the league formed by mostly former NL'ers that ran off to form their own league (Brotherhood of Professional Base Ball Players) in a failed attempt to...well do a lot of things, they could not do or control as players in the NL. It was really the birth of the first Baseball players union. Of course the original Comiskey Park was also located in this immediate area some twenty years later. Covid has afforded me a lot of time in catching up on my 19th Century baseball reading. Comiskey btw, was the Manager of the PL Chicago Pirates.
South Side Park was the home of the Chicago American Giants and was located about 4-blocks south of the old Comiskey Park, if my hx lesson is correct, and continued to serve as the Chicago Negro League Team home at least into the 40s, am I right? South Side Park was the 1st home of the Chicago White Sox, (after they moved to Chicago from Sioux City where they were the Cornhuskers to St. Paul to Chicago).
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The Red Line is a north-south CTA elevated train in Chicago. It is underground downtown. It has stops within about 2-blocks of each baseball stadium. If you stay in a downtown hotel it is a great way to go to a game, as driving in this area can be stressful.
stayed near the Billy Goat Tavern at a Marriot downtown with my daughters, took the train to Wrigley.
Took a cab back, daughters thought they were going to enjoy their first cab ride. They did not.
Met Burnt Eyes at the Billy Goat for a few drinks...
another Horn poster we don't see any longer
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Well, at this point I guess the Tigers will at least be playing relevant games in September
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I like how Vin Scully's first tweet is a one minute video and the cadence is like a game is about to begin. He's the master of the English language.
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South Side Park was the home of the Chicago American Giants and was located about 4-blocks south of the old Comiskey Park, if my hx lesson is correct, and continued to serve as the Chicago Negro League Team home at least into the 40s, am I right? South Side Park was the 1st home of the Chicago White Sox, (after they moved to Chicago from Sioux City where they were the Cornhuskers to St. Paul to Chicago).
That was actually South Side Park III (which looked awesome to me, at least the photos I remember seeing). You are right, it was a bit further south (39th St. which I think is Pershing Ave now I believe), but west of the Dan Ryan. The Negro League Team did play there once the AL White Sox moved to Comiskey in 1910, until 1940, the park burned down on Christmas Day I remember reading.
South Side Park (I) was really short lived, Chicago had a brief Union League team, that didn't even play a full season there. I think the team left town on a road trip and never returned in the summer. I think they reorganized that team in Pittsburgh or Philly (guessing 1884 which was the league's only season.) I think that park was a bit further east of the present day Dan Ryan Expressway.
I think it was both South Side II and III which owners of the clubs were trying to build the park closer to Ohio Street downtown, but had fierce opposition from NIMBYs and the hoi polloi of Chicago. Street car lines were also big motivating factors for where to build.
The NL Chicago White Stockings (later the Cubs) eventually moved out to West Side Park (II) in 1893 I believe, which is where UIC-Med School is today. Some great stories involving that park in Crazy '08, one of my favorite baseball books. They played there before moving to Weegman (Wrigley) in 1916. It was actually the Federal League Chicago club that first played at Weegman the first two seasons.
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Well, at this point I guess the Tigers will at least be playing relevant games in September
It's been a minute since I've been pissed at the Tigers for choking. Kind of feels good
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The Red Line is a north-south CTA elevated train in Chicago. It is underground downtown. It has stops within about 2-blocks of each baseball stadium. If you stay in a downtown hotel it is a great way to go to a game, as driving in this area can be stressful. As a young guy I was a tour bus driver and drove to Wrigley Field numerous times. I can still handle the driving, but I prefer less stress; I am a White Sox fan.
"The Red Line" featuring Chicago in the back ground, was a dramatic mini-series in 2019 that followed CBS 60-Minutes.
Thanks, Hawkinole.
My problem is that "Sox" made me erroneously think of that team in Boston. I couldn't think of a red line that connected them.
I spent a summer in Chicago once, so I know about the El. I didn't remember the lines being color-coded though.
I thought that the White Sox were cool when they were the only team to wear powder blue, rather than grey, road unis.
I didn't care so much for the 19th-century look with the baggy shorts.
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Thanks, Hawkinole.
My problem is that "Sox" made me erroneously think of that team in Boston. I couldn't think of a red line that connected them.
I spent a summer in Chicago once, so I know about the El. I didn't remember the lines being color-coded though.
I thought that the White Sox were cool when they were the only team to wear powder blue, rather than grey, road unis.
I didn't care so much for the 19th-century look with the baggy shorts.
I wish they'd go back to the powder blue road uniforms. The 1972-75 White Sox uniforms were the best in my lifetime.
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We'll see. Guys won't get the innings, or the wins, but K rates are up.
If Cole hadn't spent the start of his career in a place that taught pitch to contact, he could have done it
Just to get this back into the baseball thread, Kershaw just became the 3rd youngest pitcher (behind Nolan Ryan and Walter Johnson) to get to 2,500 last night
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So apparently the Tigers know the Target Field ground rules better than the Twins do?
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Listening to the Cardinals' broadcast, their announcers seem completely oblivious to the fact that the Cardinals' issues are of their own doing...as opposed to the other teams, whose schedules they screwed up
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Wait, I assumed the Tigers-Cardinals were doing a DH today, to make up earlier games, as part of a weekend series. They literally flew to St. Louis for a day, to play a DH, that was cancelled because the Cardinals were dipshits, and now go to Chicago to face the White Sox this weekend?
How does that make any sense? If they were going to cram this one in, at least force St. Louis to travel. Cardinals and Marlins should have forfeited all of those games.
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Singer on KC almost threw a no-no tonight. He's a Gator.
In a rotation with AJ Puk and Dane Dunning (both higher prospects), Singer was the ace much of the time.
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Wait, I assumed the Tigers-Cardinals were doing a DH today, to make up earlier games, as part of a weekend series. They literally flew to St. Louis for a day, to play a DH, that was cancelled because the Cardinals were dipshits, and now go to Chicago to face the White Sox this weekend?
How does that make any sense? If they were going to cram this one in, at least force St. Louis to travel. Cardinals and Marlins should have forfeited all of those games.
I seen no evidence St. Louis plays CWS this weekend.
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I seen no evidence St. Louis plays CWS this weekend.
Detroit had to lose a day off, to fly to St. Louis for a DH, then turn around and go to Chicago to start a series with the White Sox tonight...because the Cardinals went to a casino
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Giolito and Mize locked in a scoreless draw in the 6th. Might see this in the Division for a few years
Also love seeing Giolito in there at over 100 pitches, sweating it out the third time through the order. The SP dual is what makes baseball. I don't know the answer to it though, other than to contract rosters.
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We just need some rules to set the parameters of the type of baseball that tilts towards the entertainment side of things and away from ideal winning strategies.
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I am a complete homer when it comes to MLB, my team being the White Sox-.644.
I have to say this year's team is the best White Sox team since I became a fan in the late-1960s, even better than the 2005 World Series champion White Sox that went 11-1 in the playoffs and World Series. That team had good pitching, and timely hitting, while playing small ball.
This team has a lot of pitchers, with two really good starters, and powerful hitting. I would guess in terms of dominance that this team is the best White Sox team since 1917 that went 100-54 and finished 9-games ahead of the Red Sox before defeating the NY Giants 4-2 in the World Series.
Now that I posted this, they'll probably look like the 1969 Cubs. Their remaining games are with:
4-games v. the 2nd place Twins-.617
2-games v. the Cincy Reds-.435
4-games v. the Cleveland Indians-.565
3-games v. the 1st place Cubs-.574
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The Sox were always going to have a big year of advancement, we just didn't know when it would be. 847Badge thought they'd win the division last year, but he was a year off.
I also think, and this is not a knock, that they have a wealth of early-to-mid-20s players who tend to have really bad, over-corrected 2nd halves to their seasons...which they'll avoid in this 60-game season.
Hopefully they'll avoid that sharp regression to the mean throughout the playoffs.
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Da Braves keep finding pitchers somewhere, even with a lot of injuries to their starters.
I recall the good ol' days when they would throw Glavine/Maddux/Smoltz/Avery and then Pete Smith at you. I have been on teams coached by Avery and Smith in Fantasy League, great fun, good guys. I wonder how well I will be able to throw this year daily, and in the middle of the night sometimes.
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ANAHEIM, Calif. -- Albert Pujols needed nearly five weeks to tie Willie Mays for fifth place on the career home run list. It took only five days for the Los Angeles Angels slugger to pass him.
Pujols hit No. 661 in the fifth inning on Friday night against the Texas Rangers to break the tie with Mays, then connected again in his next at-bat in the 6-2 victory.
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I sincerely doubt it, but I truly hope Pujols has no idea that the advanced metrics have him being a horrifically shit player, going on 3 years now. I hope he produces those nice, round numbers that meant you were good some years ago and that he feels like he's contributing to the team.
I hope none of the writers or TV guys have let slip the secret that he's setting the Angels franchise back years and embarrassing himself.
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I sincerely doubt it, but I truly hope Pujols has no idea that the advanced metrics have him being a horrifically shit player, going on 3 years now. I hope he produces those nice, round numbers that meant you were good some years ago and that he feels like he's contributing to the team.
I hope none of the writers or TV guys have let slip the secret that he's setting the Angels franchise back years and embarrassing himself.
I'm sure he knows, but doesn't care. Same with Miggy. He said his goal was to hit .300 this year. A .300 hitter with no speed and little power, doesn't do much for ya. And that was his best case scenario.
And at least the Tigers are bad right now with or without him, so I don't mind (not my money) overpaying to see him hit milestones in Detroit. The Angels have a lot of talent, and can't build it up because of how much they have sunk into Pujols.
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Who is the best all-time first baseman? If Pujols doesn't surpass Gehrig, then no one will, right?
I literally haven't compared their stats until posting them here.
Gehrig
114 career WAR (accumulation stat)
179 OPS+
no bonus for fielding or baserunning (zero or near-zero in both)
Pujols
101 career WAR
146 OPS+
plus baserunner (but near zero) and elite defender
I don't think the argument can be made that Pujols was BETTER than Gehrig, but due to his additional volume and playing now rather than back then, you could say he had a better CAREER:
3200+ hits (2700+)
662+ HR (493)
2099 RBI (1993)
669 doubles (534)
148 career fielding runs (~10 total runs per win, if you believe that sort of thing, and if you don't, his total is massive, especially for a first baseman)
2 fielding runs for Gehrig.
No, we don't know how long Gehrig would have played for if he'd stayed healthy, but Pujols has been playing on zero feet for about 5-6 years now.
The disparity in OPS+ is wiiiiiiide, and Pujols has fallen off a cliff. He's done what Frank Thomas almost did and played himself out of a .300 career batting average.
Pujols is an all-time great, obviously, he's better than Foxx or McCovey or McGwire or whoever else you want to slot in behind Gehrig, but I don't see how anyone could surpass #4.
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Where does that Pujols deal rank among all time worst decisions? It’s gotta be up there. And the thing is, it’s not like no saw it coming. Before the ink was dry that deal was being called a mistake.
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I respectfully disagree that it is worst ever. I wish I had more time to provide a more detailed response. Maybe later.
Its a bad deal, clubs knowingly pay these deals to capture the first half WAR.
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Pujols' first 5 seasons in Anaheim.
Age, year, WAR, salary
32, 2012 4.8...12,000,000
33, 2013 1.6...16,000,000
34, 2014 3.9...23,000,000
35, 2015 3.0...24,000,000
36, 2016 1.5...25,000,000
So setting aside the net negative WAR the past 4 years at the cost of $110,000,000 (that's a lot to just bypass), that's 14.8 WAR for $100,000,000.
If we set the value of 1 WAR at $8,000,000 (that's what people are saying, fabulous people), then the first 5 years worked out.......at the cost of an additional $110,000,000. For replacement-level production.
Sorry, I don't buy the "we sign the guy for what he contributes on the front end" crap. It inevitably hamstrings your franchise for the 6-8 years after that. Why in the hell should there be a hundred million dollar "tax" on a prudent, first five years of a contract?!? That's some bullshit a player's agent blows up your ass.
I've said it a bunch of times, mostly on the Bill James forum: LET ANOTHER TEAM MAKE THE MISTAKE OF SIGNING A 30+ YEAR OLD PLAYER TO A 10+ YEAR CONTRACT!
No, the Pujols deal wasn't the worst ever - you have guys with negative WAR for the duration of their $100 million contract (Ryan Howard) out there preventing Pujols' from being the worst, but that is one steep tax to get 5 years of good/not great production.
3 WAR per year (on the front end) isn't the return the Angels were looking for, trust me. Using WAR, Pujols' best season in Anaheim wasn't as good as his worst in St. Louis. And THAT is why people suggest it's the worst deal ever, because of how far below expectations he performed. Nevermind that the expectations were absurd.
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MLB screwed around and got a Cole-Bieber 1st day matchup
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The Dodgers just played the equivalent of 116-win baseball and now face a sub-.500 team in a best of 3 playoff.
From a competition standpoint, it's lunacy. A team that just played .717 baseball for the abridged season has like a 40% chance of getting bounced in the first round. What sense does that make?
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How did doing the legwork for the conversation end the conversation? Hmmph.
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The Dodgers just played the equivalent of 116-win baseball and now face a sub-.500 team in a best of 3 playoff.
From a competition standpoint, it's lunacy. A team that just played .717 baseball for the abridged season has like a 40% chance of getting bounced in the first round. What sense does that make?
happens with playoffs
I'm not much of a fan of playoffs that allow teams that aren't worthy
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I'm mildly offended the NL is allowed to put teams in the postseason. Haven't they lost like 17 of 18 interleague series?
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was chukking about this with my brother. We were reviewing some of the teams that have started 29-31 (or worse) over the years. There have been some pennant winning clubs in that sampling. including WSH last year starting 27-33.
It took the Brewers about four minutes to email me about ordering my postseason gear. Only if its a shirt that says "First ever sub .500"
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I saw a ridiculous story recently boasting how the NL was set to outscore the AL for the first time 50 years.
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I enjoyed the novelty of inner league play, when it was limited to a couple weeks in the middle of summer. But with 15 teams in each league, necessitating year-round interleague play, and assuming both leaks now have the DH, I think it's time to consider totally resetting it geographically.
I sort of wish each league would add a team, they go back to very limited in early play, and keep the separate DH rules. I like the pros and cons of both, and I like having the option
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Shane Bieber picked a bad time to not be the best pitcher in baseball
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I can't get my head around a franchise losing 17 consecutive playoff games. Stunning.
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like the Dallas Cowboys?
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Man, Twins going out again in sweep fashion. The Ks in this Reds Braves game are out of control. Hard to believe this is the longest a game has gone scoreless in major league postseason history. Freeman ends it in 13th.
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Da Braves, finally, one would have to think the Reds had plenty of chances, as they did.
1-0.
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So who did ya want CD?
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I've been a Braves fan since they moved to ATL. I go to their fantasy camp every year now. It's a blast.
I actually had a lot of fun when they were terrible and on WTBS every game. If they lost, it didn't matter and if they won it was cause celebre.
And they lost a lot, and were entertaining in so doing, somehow. When they got good, there was too much pressure. It was akin to being a K State fan and having fun and suddenly they turn into Alabama and every game is too intense. Bama fans after a 51-7 drubbing of Arkansas are still unhappy.
I don't think Da Braves are at the top level this year. They lost too much starting pitching.
It was "fun" to watch that Reds' starter spin his spell though, he was really really good, it was like watching Maddux pitch in a different way. That was pitching, not throwing.
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Go Braves
of course I've disliked the Reds since Pete Rose played there
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The Reds have one inning to not only keep their season alive (down 3-0) but to keep from getting beat in a playoff series without scoring a run.
I wonder if that has ever happened before. Braves now up 5-0.
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lots of history, I'd guess it's happened
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The Reds don't have much offense with runners on base.
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lots of history, I'd guess it's happened
Probably, but sometimes you get surprised. I had the Cowboys game on Sunday and it flashed that it was the first time in NFL history that a game had a score of 23-15 at the half.
The stat, though meaningless, surprised me. The fact that someone bothered to look that up and found the answer so quickly shocked me.
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Just saw the Reds are indeed the first playoff team to not score while playing multiple games.
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The entire 1905 World Series was five shutouts.
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You have a lot of time on your hands
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You have a lot of time on your hands
Most baseball fans do. Only sport I'm aware of that is more boring than watching golf.
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You have a lot of time on your hands
If in reference to me, I've read a ton of books on deadball and 19th century baseball. The '05 Series was really the Christy Mathewson show. 3 CG SHOs. The other hurlers were no slouches either. Chief Bender, Eddie Plank, Joe McGinnty all Hall of Famers. Only one start was made by an also ran. The Phillies scored 3 in their lone series game win. Giants scored 15 in their 4 wins.
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What I thought 3-weeks ago was the best White Sox team in hx since the 1917 World Series Champions, just rode off into a cloudy sunset like he 1969 Cubs.
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If in reference to me, I've read a ton of books on deadball and 19th century baseball. The '05 Series was really the Christy Mathewson show. 3 CG SHOs. The other hurlers were no slouches either. Chief Bender, Eddie Plank, Joe McGinnty all Hall of Famers. Only one start was made by an also ran. The Phillies scored 3 in their lone series game win. Giants scored 15 in their 4 wins.
On one of these cable stations there is a program called "Strange Inheritances" - pretty interesting.Anyway there was some guy here in Cleveland who collected Baseball Memorabilia.He was at some hoity-toity Christmas Party and started talking to some other guy who happened to collect also and the guy brought out a scrap book with with old pictures many pre-20's.This was in I think 2006,There was a signed 1911 "Shoeless"Joe Jackson picture the year he hit 408.He played for Cleveland from 1910-1915,there were many other pictures of him and "dead ball" era players
So the one guy asked the other if he'd be intersted in selling the scrap book.The guy really didn't want to part with it but after much pestering the scrap book sold for $15,000 which pissed the new owners wife off.However the guy who sold it warned the buyer that he wasn't sure the signatures were legitimate as Jackson was reportedly illiterate.
Around 2014 the guy passes away unexpectedly.When they settled his estate the wife and adult children decided to sell off his collection along with the 15k scrap book.They had everything checked out/authenicated by auction houses/museum curators and signature experts.Evidently there was quite a buzz in the memorabilia community because this was the only signature of jackson on a picture known to exist.
Turns out out Jackson could write a little - enough to sign contracts or checks and cash them.So it was authentic,Well the collection went to auction a couple of years ago and the scrap book fetched $ 300,000.Not a bad return for old cards and snap shots
P.S I think they mentioned a picture or card of Matthewson in there
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Most baseball fans do. Only sport I'm aware of that is more boring than watching golf.
False
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Fernando Tatis is not boring to watch at all
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Every sport can be boring is you don't get into it a bit I think. Basketball is replete with action and scoring, but I bet it's not that much fun to watch if you don't understand it. I lost interest in it when they started ignoring traveling and team play.
Baseball is more of an acquired taste for sure. I think if kids don't watch and play when they are 6-10, they will often never develop any interest in it.
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False
I watch golf if I want to nap
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I watch golf if I want to nap
Unless Fuzzy Zoeller,Lee Trevino and Feherty were on the Tee together
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Bill Murray, Charles Barkley, Michael Jordan, and John Daley
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I have no longing to see Jordan the other 3,specially Sir Charles and Long John would be interesting
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Jordan would bring the cigars
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Ya but he'd bring himself also
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hah, at least he thinks highly of himself
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During quarantine, did anyone watch the Tiger & Brady vs Phil & Manning match? That was fun. I'd watch them again.
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yes, and it was entertaining
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Cubs are the Marlins' bitch
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Central Divisions got a combined 7 teams in, they are a combined 2-13, and could possibly all be eliminated tonight.
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There seems to be a long gap between the series here, Da Braves play Tuesday. I guess that is due to CFB/NFL competition. It's interesting to me that the games now are played in neutral sites so to speak.
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seems odd, neutral sites
what's the logic?
fake fan noise is annoying
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I think the logic is to keep each team on a constant controlled "bubble" insulated from risk of COVID.
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Yeah, if they were going to bubble, the highest seeded team from each side should have gotten to at least host the bubble for each league. That would have been Tampa and LA.
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The two gay gap was to get bubble ready, plan for possible rain outs in WC and yes it does skip over Sat Sunday .
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I think in an empty stadium, there isn't much home field advantage other than batting second.
Perhaps they also want to eliminate rain out possibilities.
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Hoosier native and Oakland University product Mike Brosseau with some sweet revenge on A Chapman.
Rays down Yankees in 5. That was a fun series.
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Ooh, fans at a MLB game.
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Ooh, fans at a MLB game.
Fans at a neutral site game seems stupid. Are people in San Diego or whatever going? Feels like this is just begging fans to travel to go.
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I don't know % but some portion of tickets were offered to the Rangers base. No doubt the secondary market is doing its thing.
11,000 and change.
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Alcs has no fans, CA.
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Selig was pretty sneaky with his game of three card Monte that resulted in the Brewers and the Astros swapping leagues.
downright diabolical...
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I never understood this claim that those moves were sinister in any way. Franchise realignment is hardly novel across pro sports, its happened in 3 different centuries now in professional baseball, and countless times in other leagues.
The two more recent, Stros and Crew (1998) were done with a broader purpose than simply moving Houston and Milwaukee. In 98, it had to happen to keep even #s following expansion. In Houston case, The owners wanted a division structure as we now have it, with even # of franchises in each league. Of course that means all year interleague series,, a mild nuisance. You may recall, there were much more radical ideas floated in the 90s, which were roundly denounced, mostly by the Cubs.
Moving the Brewers was quite sensible and it minimized disruption. Milwaukee did have a 13 year NL history from 53-65, was hardly a blue blood franchise as the Brewers and the Royals, first approached, weren't interested in moving. Fans were overwhelmly supportive in Milwaukee. Can you name anybody else that wanted to move? I cant.
I'm less sharp on the backstory with why MLB settled on Houston, seemed more geographical in motivation in alignment with the present day post season format and scheduling. I think Houston was compensated in some fashion of course.
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Yeah, I think Texas was complaining about being the lone non West Coast team in the West Division.
I liked the couple weeks of interleague play in the middle of summer. Not a fan of the season long thing now that 15 te leagues necessitates
Granted assuming the DH is here to stay in the NL, going to a strictly geographic split might make sense considering there is no reason to keep up any AL/NL fake wall. It will be weird to get rid of league specific records though. That is something kind of unique to baseball. You never hear about a basketball player setting a western conference scoring record, or a football player having the most rushing yards in a game by an NFC player
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What would those divisions look like?
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Off the top of my head....
SEA, SF, OAK, LAD, LAA
COL, ARI, HOU, TEX, SD
BOS, NYY, NYM, PHI, TOR
WAS, BAL, ATL, TB, MIA
DET, CLE, CIN, PIT, MIL
CHC, STL, MIN, CWS, KC
Something like that?
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Studying the map, it cannot be done. At least not without breaking up teams that "should" be in the same division; either in the same state or really close together.
I would have a California division. They have five teams, might as well keep them together.
I would have a Southern division; Miami, Tampa and Atlanta are obvious, then for the other two you could either do Texas/Houston or Washington/Baltimore. Texas/Houston is preferable, imo.
You'd have to scrape together another western division outside of Cali. Seattle, Arizona and Colorado are obvious. For the other two you could do Texas/Houston, but I like them better in the South. You can't really do St. Louis/KC because it screws up the Midwest/Northeast if you do that, so your best remaining option would be to split up the Missouri teams, and have KC/Minnesota round out the western division. No matter what you do, that division sucks. It either stretches from Seattle to Houston, or Arizona to Minnesota.
The Midwest/Northeast is just a nightmare to come up with three more divisions of five. There are six teams along the eastern seaboard in Boston, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Baltimore and DC. There is an ideal cluster in the middle of Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburg, Detroit and Toronto, but that isn't going to work because of the other teams. And then there are four teams west of that, Milwaukee, Cubs, White Sox and St Louis.
So the best I could do was a Northeast Division of Boston, Mets, Yankees, Phillies and Toronto.
A Midwest Division of St Louis, Cubs, White Sox, Milwaukee, and Detroit.
And then a garbage division of DC, Baltimore, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, and Cleveland. That division also sucks.
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NHL has two 8 team divisions and two 7 team divisions. I also think they are going to 32 eventually, so that impacts things. Nashville or Charlotte would be an obvious south addition. My guess is the other addition is out west. Vancouver? Portland? Vegas?
EAST: Blue Jays, Mets, Yankees, Red Sox, Phillies, Orioles, Nationals, Pirates
MIDWEST: Cubs, White Sox, Twins, Brewers, Tigers, Indians, Reds, Rockies
SOUTH: Rangers, Astros, Braves, Rays, Marlins, Cardinals, Royals, Nashville/Charlotte
WEST: Mariners, Athletics, Giants, Dodgers, Angels, Padres, Diamondbacks, Portland/Vegas/Vancouver
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nice try by the Dodgers
Go Braves
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The funny part about MLB realignment......the closest MLB city to Atlanta is.....CINCINNATI!
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Studying the map, it cannot be done. arrogant At least not without breaking up teams that "should" be in the same division if this is a deal-breaker, then why bother in the first place? lol; either in the same state or really close together.
I would have a California division. They have five teams, might as well keep them together. okay, but...
I would have a Southern division; Miami, Tampa and Atlanta are obvious, then for the other two you could either do Texas/Houston or Washington/Baltimore. Texas/Houston is preferable, imo.
You'd have to scrape together another western division outside of Cali. Seattle, Arizona and Colorado are obvious. For the other two you could do Texas/Houston, but I like them better in the South. You can't really do St. Louis/KC because it screws up the Midwest/Northeast if you do that, so your best remaining option would be to split up the Missouri teams, and have KC/Minnesota round out the western division. No matter what you do, that division sucks....you painted yourself into this corner, lol It either stretches from Seattle to Houston, or Arizona to Minnesota.
The Midwest/Northeast is just a nightmare to come up with three more divisions of five. There are six teams along the eastern seaboard in Boston, Mets, Yankees, Phillies, Baltimore and DC. There is an ideal cluster in the middle of Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburg, Detroit and Toronto, but that isn't going to work because of the other teams. And then there are four teams west of that, Milwaukee, Cubs, White Sox and St Louis.
So the best I could do was a Northeast Division of Boston, Mets, Yankees, Phillies and Toronto.
A Midwest Division of St Louis, Cubs, White Sox, Milwaukee, and Detroit.
And then a garbage division of DC, Baltimore, Pittsburg, Cincinnati, and Cleveland. That division also sucks. No ownership or fanbase is going to agree to being in a "garbage division"
This post reeks of "BLEH, I CAN'T DO THIS JOB IN 5 MINUTES OR LESS, SO IT'S IMPOSSIBLE!"
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Buzz off.
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The funny part about MLB realignment......the closest MLB city to Atlanta is.....CINCINNATI!
I think Nashville is considered a home market for both the Reds and Braves for tv blackout rule purposes
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Don't get me started on that fing blackout map. I pity the folks in Iowa, Vegas among other locales. Freaking El Paso is a Dodgers market, blocked!
Vegas gets blocked out of half the West franchises. I am blocked from Cubs and Sox, but do have Reds broadcast on cable so indy is legitimately a reds tv market. Milwaukee area gets Cubs and Sox on EI and is half as far from market than I am in Indy. I have seen more Cubs v Brewers games in person over past 12 years than I have on TV.
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Vegas is the worst blackout city - no OAK, SF, LAD, LAA, SD, ARI, or COL.
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Vegas is the worst blackout city - no OAK, SF, LAD, LAA, SD, ARI, or COL.
FIFY
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walk off for the Stros!
here they come
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Nothing would confirm the legitimacy of this season more than the Dodgers losing in the playoffs to an inferior team
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I think an ALCS win by Houston would be worse. LAD in the past week went from pitching depth to uh oh pretty fast while ATL has been pretty damn dominant save one game out of nine.
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I said legitimacy, not illegitimacy
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I said legitimacy, not illegitimacy
Too much booze tonight.
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Too much booze tonight.
I bought a 4 pack of limited brew brown ale pints. Finished those, moved onto bourbon. NO EXCUSES, PLAY LIKE A CHAMPION!!!!
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Man, Ozuna mashes the ball.
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I never liked the Dodgers
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I liked the Manny Dodgers, and I respect this incarnation, but they aren't that fun. The Braves, on the other hand...
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Da Braves lost half their planned starting pitching during the season. I did not give them any chance.
I have seen rookie pitchers stymie pros for a few games.
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ALCS Game 7 coming up!
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Looks like we've got a pair of series now
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ALCS Game 7 coming up!
we must have fixed the sign stealing machine
I wondered where it was
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I have a bad feeling about Da Braves.
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not me
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I have a bad feeling about Da Braves.
Could be 1988 all over again - no on saw that coming
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I didn't think I was being selfish for just wanting this adjusted-season, expanded playoff World Series for the Dodgers, but I guess I was.
This isn't fun.
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Braves up 3-2 but they just completely beefed a potential big inning by literally running into two outs with bonehead baserunning.
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And then da Braves get out of a major jam to retain their lead. They have had chances to blow this a bit open and whiffed, and they had chances the other way and didn't.
I can't watch.
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I'm fascinated that they can detect the difference between a four seam and two seam fastball. I'm pondering experimenting with a three seam fastball.
Of course, that only matters if you can throw 80 mph or higher.
I have hit a few times off a real 90 mph and the ball makes evil sounds. Fortunately I knew the pitcher had good control.
Even a straight fastball at 90+ moves a lot.
I cannot hit a good curveball, I can hit a hanging curve very well. Hats for bats, keep bats warm.
A right handers curve breaks in to me and I can't pick it up and adjust. Of course I am old. But leave that bad boy out over the plate and whack, I will nail it.
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Betts just robbed Freeman of a HR. He has been outstanding in RF this series. Game changing plays.
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The problem with using so many pitchers is one is likely to have a bad day.
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Good game
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Damn you, Cody Bellinger.
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That strike zone box on tv really illustrates how good these umps are at calling balls and strikes.
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Not a dog in the fight but always good to see #1s square off even if it was a 60 game reg season.
Lots of front office relationships bt the Rays and Dodgers. Thank God we won't need to see the tropic dome .
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Whew.
You gotta respect a WS with two 1-seeds. I don't care how wacky this season is, the Dodgers need a WS!
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(https://ballparkdigest.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/Tampa-Bay-Devil-Rays-e1566832580738.png)
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Of course, that only matters if you can throw 80 mph or higher.
A couple years back, my best friend was getting married at Buffalo Trace in Kentucky. Really cool wedding venue actually--highly recommend if you know anyone getting married to check it out.
But on topic, my wife and I ended up staying one night in Louisville when we arrived in Kentucky as that was where we flew into, and we got to go to the Louisville Slugger museum. Also a really cool place if you're in the area.
They had a pitching cage attraction, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean, I know I'm not throwing 80, but I'm 6'5" and was under 40 at the time, I figured I could at least hurl 65-70 mph. How hard can it be, right? I mean, I knew I wasn't going to be throwing strikes, but uncontrolled velocity can't be that hard?
Nope. 55 mph was the best I could muster, and I damn near threw my arm out trying to get there.
I can't even begin to imagine what it must take to get that ball up into the 100 mph range and how must stress it puts on your entire arm and shoulder.
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Whew.
You gotta respect a WS with two 1-seeds. I don't care how wacky this season is, the Dodgers need a WS!
Dodgers fans out here in LA are already wondering how they'll choke this year.
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A couple years back, my best friend was getting married at Buffalo Trace in Kentucky. Really cool wedding venue actually--highly recommend if you know anyone getting married to check it out.
But on topic, my wife and I ended up staying one night in Louisville when we arrived in Kentucky as that was where we flew into, and we got to go to the Louisville Slugger museum. Also a really cool place if you're in the area.
They had a pitching cage attraction, so I figured I'd give it a shot. I mean, I know I'm not throwing 80, but I'm 6'5" and was under 40 at the time, I figured I could at least hurl 65-70 mph. How hard can it be, right? I mean, I knew I wasn't going to be throwing strikes, but uncontrolled velocity can't be that hard?
Nope. 55 mph was the best I could muster, and I damn near threw my arm out trying to get there.
I can't even begin to imagine what it must take to get that ball up into the 100 mph range and how must stress it puts on your entire arm and shoulder.
Saw this a lot when I worked at the ballpark. If your not throwing a baseball regularly you're not going to do much better than that. Even folks who do play catch on ocassion. You've got to get warm and do some long toss in too. Guys think they swing their arm around a few times and get loose. I remember going to Tiger Stadium before it closed with my skinny little brother who pitched for years andwas playing club baseball through college and he was humming it high 70s, low 80s and it really galled these big tall guys who were blaming the gun as they tapped out at 61 or whatever.
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Really fun series. Happy Kershaw has performed. Loved that attempted straight steal of home. Very reminiscent of the last straight steal attempt, with another HOF pitcher, Don Sutton almost getting caught napping with Lonnie Smith hustling home. Simmons sold the tag, Smith was likely safe.
Margot was really close, that tag was there but nearly missed the guy.
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Watching baseball is a great activity while cutting thousands of cards.
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Watching baseball is a great activity while cutting thousands of cards.
Better be my order!
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Still working on the tail end of the sale week, tbh.
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Tough way to close out a very intriguing series. SABR disciples will take a beating over the snell hook, which will confuse the fisherman amongst us.
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Dodgers didn't Dodger?
2020 is a weird year...
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Turner comes out in the 8th, w CV positive test.
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FINALLY!!!!!!!!
whooooo hoooooo
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Dodgers didn't Dodger?
2020 is a weird year...
They'll be World Series Champs forever, since the virus is about to take us all!
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hate the Dodgers, but congrats on the championship
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1st time since '88 I remember watching that.Happy to see the Fall Classic end before November.Maybe the NFL could somehow finish before Ground Hog Day
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I'm not a big MLB fan, but if I have "a team" then it would be the Dodgers. When I was living/working in Orange County, one of my local peers was a big Dodgers fan so I went to games with him pretty regularly. I've certainly seen more Dodger games than any other MLB franchise, next closest would be the Astros.
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hate the Dodgers, but congrats on the championship
Yes, very glad for a well deserving Kershaw:
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1321301929327239172
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Yes, very happy for him.
I don't dislike the Dodgers, they are just so boring. They are like the late 90s Yankees to me there. Pre Clemens and A-Rod. The Jeter, Bernie, Posada group
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I was pulling for the doyers, always had a soft spot for them but I couldn't tell you why as I don't like any other LA franchise.
Plus as a Stars fan I didn't want to see Tampa win another title.
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Yes, very happy for him.
I don't dislike the Dodgers, they are just so boring. They are like the late 90s Yankees to me there. Pre Clemens and A-Rod. The Jeter, Bernie, Posada group
That's what made it exasperating that they hadn't won a WS yet. They've been like clockwork since Murdoch sold the team - a metronome - always so good, but never the 'best' as a champ. Having great on-field results AND a top 5 farm system....having money AND having a smart front office....but they finally broke through in this dumpster-fire of a year.
I'll take it!
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LA was obviously the team with the best odds to win the WS this year (and most previous years, recently), but due to the expanded playoff, they had a relatively low shot at it in a vacuum. Of course that means they win it this year, lol.
The 116-win equivalent Dodgers beat the 108-win equivalent Rays in a good WS. We have been lucky and spoiled that a 60-game sprint of a season ended that way. It very easily could have gone awry.
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I haven't been posting the results here, because people barely care about the simulated football season. But I also did it with baseball, using the 538 projections, and the Dodgers beat the Rays there too.
It was also Rays over Astros in the ALCS, although the Dodgers got by the Reds in the NLCS. The Yankees weren't great, they lost to the Twins in the Wildcard game. The Braves didn't even make the playoffs. They barely held off the Phillies to maintain third in their own division. I think they and the Cardinals were probably the teams that underperformed the most compared to their actual results. The Cardinals finished 4th in the Central
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10/23/79
Billy Martin gets into a bar fight with a marshmallow salesman in a bar in Minneapolis. The altercation ends up getting him fired and he ends up in Oakland where he revitalizes the A's and leads them to the playoffs in 1981.
I can't tell you how many times I've thrown hands with marshmallow salesmen. Those guys are assholes.
(https://scontent.ffod1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/122507256_1490676961127525_6141464161986895758_n.jpg?_nc_cat=111&ccb=2&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=l86cjbbmyBUAX8Q7n6f&_nc_ht=scontent.ffod1-1.fna&oh=03d1300876cbb91c468016115a11cae3&oe=5FC0276F)
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As no doubt many of you have heard, 76-year old Tony LaRussa is the 2021 manager of the White Sox.
The oldest manager to win a World Series was Jack McKeon at age 72 in 2003. He managed the Marlins at age 80 in 2011 for part of a season.
Is 76 the new 66, or is this a mistake?
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mistake
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He looks 100.
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10/23/79
Billy Martin gets into a bar fight with a marshmallow salesman in a bar in Minneapolis. The altercation ends up getting him fired and he ends up in Oakland where he revitalizes the A's and leads them to the playoffs in 1981.
I can't tell you how many times I've thrown hands with marshmallow salesmen. Those guys are assholes.
(https://scontent.ffod1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/122507256_1490676961127525_6141464161986895758_n.jpg?_nc_cat=111&ccb=2&_nc_sid=730e14&_nc_ohc=l86cjbbmyBUAX8Q7n6f&_nc_ht=scontent.ffod1-1.fna&oh=03d1300876cbb91c468016115a11cae3&oe=5FC0276F)
Sports misses characters
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(https://scontent.ffod1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-0/s640x640/128991924_1670340426487639_2881660114791933986_n.jpg?_nc_cat=1&ccb=2&_nc_sid=8bfeb9&_nc_ohc=l1skUSn7kAQAX9o3qe7&_nc_ht=scontent.ffod1-1.fna&tp=7&oh=1c7450bab39e54afc84fc7612b1618d7&oe=5FEF442A)
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People forget about all that stuff with Ruth.....in the "if he played today" argument, I'd say he wouldn't make it to the majors. He'd be in and out of jail his whole life.
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it was a different time, an different world, different culture
the ball, the bats, the gloves, the ballparks were different
better or worse, doesn't matter
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[img width=259.091 height=640 alt=Image may contain: 2 people, text that says 'In 1917 Ernie Shore once threw a]https://scontent.ffod1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-0/s640x640/128991924_1670340426487639_2881660114791933986_n.jpg?_nc_cat=1&ccb=2&_nc_sid=8bfeb9&_nc_ohc=l1skUSn7kAQAX9o3qe7&_nc_ht=scontent.ffod1-1.fna&tp=7&oh=1c7450bab39e54afc84fc7612b1618d7&oe=5FEF442A[/img]
I'd say the each had a perfect game.
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the umpire may disagree
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Len Kasper bails on Cubs TV, takes White Sox radio gig. That's a score for the Sox.
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Len Kasper bails on Cubs TV, takes White Sox radio gig. That's a score for the Sox.
A frog with laryngitis is an upgrade from Hawk.
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He did retire a couple years ago, but no less true. Kasper is very good. Rumor is Chris Myers is lead on Cubs gig. Eeyeah.
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He did retire a couple years ago, but no less true. Kasper is very good. Rumor is Chris Myers is lead on Cubs gig. Eeyeah.
Between MLB radio and Extra Innings, I'm fairly familiar with all local broadcasters, and he was/is/will be the worst
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Yep. My wife even chimed in on this as she overheard him. He was so dreadful. Negative WAR..
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life just gets better
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(https://scontent.fdsm1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-0/p552x414/129287359_1673831446138537_6804947747827682788_n.jpg?_nc_cat=1&ccb=2&_nc_sid=8bfeb9&_nc_ohc=O1Xh2db5YJ8AX_3IHw5&_nc_ht=scontent.fdsm1-1.fna&tp=6&oh=d0d2650a13e7000c1a79a4fa0b90d1f9&oe=5FF36202)
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A pitcher could walk 100 batters a season for 27 years and have fewer walks than Nolan Ryan.
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A pitcher would need to strikeout 212 batters a season for 27 years to have more Ks than Nolan Ryan.
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The walks would be harder to do. You're not going to have a job that long, walking 100 batters a season.
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I'm guessing both records are safe
as is the 7 no-no's
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Mlb could aggregate complete games thrown for the next decade and still be hundreds behind Cy Young's career total.
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a great decade - Tony Oliva was my favorite player
(https://scontent.ffod1-1.fna.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-0/p526x296/142998927_3889435817768552_3641248874760296083_n.jpg?_nc_cat=103&ccb=2&_nc_sid=8bfeb9&_nc_ohc=0WMb1saOAsEAX_qOQGo&_nc_ht=scontent.ffod1-1.fna&tp=6&oh=e0e29754319e91e366eab3ae4e09de5e&oe=60384342)
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Oh, 847, 2021 is the year to pick the White Sox to win the division.
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Should be comfortably. Royals and Tigers aren't back yet, Twins seem to be treading water, and I think the Indiana's cheapness may finally have caught up to them.
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How can Indiana's frugalness have a negative effect on the Minnesota Twins?
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How can Indiana's frugalness have a negative effect on the Minnesota Twins?
Autocorrect. Granted it won't be a problem after this year