2019 Baseball season (4 Viewers)
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Yep. Arrieta is the classic case of being paid for what you have accomplished in the past (one great and two decent seasons with Chicago), as he cashed in as a FA. He hit the market at age 32 and hasn't been anywhere near the same pitcher since signing with Philly. Arrieta will be 35 in 2021 and his history suggests that things won't improve too much. Of course, he's probably capable of a couple of decent years, but he is long in the tooth at this point and the odds would seem against any great improvement. I hope I'm wrong, as I like him. -- Al
As the 2020 MLB season winds down to it's last 3 'regular' season games, my 2 teams (the Nats and the O's) are both locked in a battle for last place in their respective divisions, the NL East and AL East. I'm so proud. The Nats have accomplished the rare feat of going from WS champs to a last place finish and only by sweeping the Mets in the last 3 games can they even tie for last place, so I like their odds on being sole owners of cellar dweller status as Saturday's game has Met's ace deGrom going against the hapless Sanchez for the Nats. The O's are in slightly better shape, having a 2 game lead on the Red Sox to avoid last place in the East, with 3 games remaining against those very Red Sox. The O's need only win 1 of 3 to avoid the cellar, so I like their chances for 4th place, but I ain't betting the farm. What a year...come on 2021. :rolleyes2: -- Al
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jazzeum
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I watched the game last night and most of the Nats infield were peopled with players I had never heard before. David Peterson, who has come out of nowhere this year and leads the Mets with six wins, pitched a fine game. Going into next year I can see him as a fifth starter and Lugo as a fourth starter. That leaves two and three. I’m not sure if Syndegaard will be ready and I don’t know if Sandy Alderson (President to be of the Mets under Steve Cohen) wants to spend big time money on Bauer (although the Mets will finally have the money to spend unlike the Coupons who were always shopping in the bargain basement).
Don't know where I got the schedule screwed up in my head, but the O's are in Toronto to close their season and to try to finish 4th, ahead of the Red Sox who are playing in Atlanta. Doesn't change the numbers any but does change the head to head fight to avoid last place. Still like the O's chances, though it won't be easy. -- Al
Panzer ace
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On one hand I like the fact that under the new playoff scheme the Giants can make the playoffs.
On the other hand, I truly don’t like the idea of a sub .500 team making the playoffs.
On the other hand, I truly don’t like the idea of a sub .500 team making the playoffs.
Warrior
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So in extra innings, each team starts with a runner already on second base; if either team does not score, do they put two runners on second base in the 11th?
That rule and the 7 inning double headers are two of THE dumbest things I've ever seen.
And to think I thought Selig was a horrible commissioner; this boob makes him look brilliant.
That rule and the 7 inning double headers are two of THE dumbest things I've ever seen.
And to think I thought Selig was a horrible commissioner; this boob makes him look brilliant.
I see Hunter Pence has announced his retirement. A SF hero forever. Also see where SF has DFA'ed Jeff Samardzija. Hardly surprising (if a little late) considering they paid him $90 mil for 33 wins over 5 seasons. What a bust he has been. -- Al
Panzer ace
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The Giants really need to concede the fact that their choice to rebuild via free agency rather than a strong developmental farm system has been a disaster.
The 2020 'season' has ended for the teams I follow and it ended on an up note for both the Nats and the O's. The O's beat Toronto in the last game to secure a 25-35 record, good for 4th place in the AL East (baby steps, eh?). The Nats managed to win their last 3 games against the Mets, thus tying the Mets for 4th place in the NL East with 26-34 records, even though it is technically last place, it is a tie for 4th, as well. I'll take what I can get from this 'season'. And congratulations to the Nats Juan Soto for winning the NL batting title with a .351 average. Come on 2021. -- Al
jazzeum
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The era of the Wilpons ended not with a bang but a shellacking by the Nats; it seems quite fitting. They entered Saturday with a chance to make the playoffs and ended up in last place. A team allegedly this talented should do better. However, their SP was decimated by FA, injuries and opt outs, not to mention poor pitching. The bullpen was uneven and the lineup could hit but couldn’t drive runs in. They had some positives — the emergence of Dom Smith — but also a lot of negatives. The only thing that makes the latest failure to make the postseason palatable is that new ownership (with a lot of money) and a new professional management team is coming in, replacing management that in the last two years traded away some good players for little return.
Louis Badolato
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I have no confidence in the Yankees doing anything in the post-season. After their walking wounded returned, they looked like they got their game back in winning 10-in-a-row, but then stumbled to the finish line with a 2-6 record in the last 8 games, with their bats completely silent in the six losses. In fact they went six straight games without hitting a single homer. That was pretty disturbing, considering they have the major league batting champ in D.J. LeMaheiu, and the home run king in Luke Voight (second in the league in RBI's as well). Part of the story is their allegedly all star catcher Gary Sanchez posting the lowest batting average for a qualifying player in major league history (.148). Their bull pen also dramatically underachieved. They needed help from the lowly Orioles to not drop to third place in the East and the 8th cede in the playoffs as they were shut out by a scrappy Marlins team in their last game of the season. I see them getting quietly eliminated in Cleveland. Rays vs. Dodgers in the World Series.
Louis Badolato
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I agree completely. Everything about this season felt wrong, especially the ridiculous rule changes. It just wasn't baseball.
Panzer ace
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For the final game of their season the Giants were in a “win and you are in” playoff situation, they lost.
Therefore, this season was a complete joke and should have never been played. ^&grin
Therefore, this season was a complete joke and should have never been played. ^&grin
jazzeum
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Get used to it. The man on second in extra innings is here to stay; there is little sense in playing inning after inning - this rule gets rid if it. The 7 inning double headers is a possibility and there will be some sort of expanded playoffs although maybe not in this guise.
Correct! A complete joke and a waste of time. Especially after the Nats went on a 1-10 tear in late August/early September, leaving them at 12-24 and totally DOA for the playoffs. :wink2:^&grin I want a do-over!:rolleyes2: -- Al
Louis Badolato
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Brad,
I hope to god you are wrong! While there may be some rationale for expanding the playoffs, 7 inning double headers, and randomly placing runners on second base in extra innings in a 60 game season that had to be played in 65 days, these fundamentally wacky changes make no sense over the course of a 162 game season, with plenty of days off, and no expectation of multiple games being delayed due to Covid.
Baseball needs other changes, like taking ball and strike calls away from umpires and using an "electric eye" to get called balls and strikes correct 100% of the time, which would solve the related problem of hypersensative (and generally bad) umpire's right to throw people out of the game for arguing balls and strikes. I watch these games with the electric eye box in place, and the Umpires get close calls (within about 6 inches of the edges of the box) wrong about 50% of the time. Its especially bad where the catcher needs to reach for the ball. A pitch well within the strike zone will almost always be called a ball if the catcher has to reach across the plate to catch it. And don't get me started on how easily the umpires are fooled by catchers framing pitches. In the 80's and the 90's the strike zone was called incorrectly wide, now it is called incorrectly high and low. Getting the strike zone correct, so it is fair for pitchers and hitters every day, and does not change with a mercurial umpire's mood, is essential as far as I'm concerned. The other day an umpire called a pitch that literally crossed the plate at the top of Aaron Judge's ankle guard (at least 8-10 inches below his knee) strike 3. Umpires are not the "human element" of the game I pay for season tickets to see. If a highly skilled player makes an error or baserunning mistake, that is the "human element" I am willing to accept. Umpires changing the outcomes of games by screwing up the strikezone needs to go.
Another critical change baseball needs is banning the shift and requiring players to start each play where their position indicates they should. I am so tired of seeing line drives caught on a hop in short right field by a short-stop or second basemen playing half-outfielder, and well hit balls back up the middle, which for 150 years were basehits, turned into outs by a short stop playing second base. In addition to punishing players for hitting the ball on the screws the way they are supposed to, this boring strategy, which is incredibly frustrating to watch, has turned baseball into a game which overvalues walks, strikeouts and homers, and devalues basehits, hitting for average, moving the runners with productive outs, bunting, basestealing, going from 1st to third on a single, basically 90% of the action that makes baseball watchable. Baseball they way it is played now, with players swinging for the fences on 2-strike counts, and thus striking out an average of 15% to as much as 40% of the time (Gary Sanchez), is an annoying snooze fest. It artificially elevates pitchers strike out totals, while simultaneously removing half of the action you would expect to see with runners on base. For example, the Yankees got their first sacrifice bunt in the second to last game of the 60-game season. Their opponents only got down 4 sacrifice bunts against them during the 60-game season, so its not just the Yankees. Baseball the way these ridiculous bean counters have forced it to be played is basically unwatchable. I watched about 15 games this summer, while normally I watch every Yankee game, and go to at least 20 home games each season. I think the MLB is killing its core audience. At least the NFL had safety concerns to blame for ruining football by taking out the hitting and changing the rules to make playing defense next to impossible, baseball has no reason for making the game boring and unwatchable.
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Lots of truth in these points, Louis. I also lament the death of 'inside' baseball and despise the 'homer happy' game that has evolved over the past 25 years. The pity is that there is a whole generation of fans that have no idea what 'inside' baseball is and just how exciting the small plays and strategy of their use can be. And, I absolutely HATE defensive shifts. -- Al
jazzeum
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Louis,
The extra inning rule is going to stay and I like the rule; it shortens games.
As far as the doubleheader rule, I’m not sure about that surviving because relief pitchers are worried it might reduce their number and if that’s the case, the Union won’t agree.
As far as expanded playoffs, hard to say but the NBA and NHL have half the teams make it so there may be changes.
I don’t like the shift but baseball is a numbers driven game so I don’t expect it to disappear. Any team that doesn’t have a large analytics department is in trouble.
Brad
The extra inning rule is going to stay and I like the rule; it shortens games.
As far as the doubleheader rule, I’m not sure about that surviving because relief pitchers are worried it might reduce their number and if that’s the case, the Union won’t agree.
As far as expanded playoffs, hard to say but the NBA and NHL have half the teams make it so there may be changes.
I don’t like the shift but baseball is a numbers driven game so I don’t expect it to disappear. Any team that doesn’t have a large analytics department is in trouble.
Brad
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