Baseball 2012 (1 Viewer)
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I hear you Sammy. I'm a bit concerned, too. They are in a bit of a hitting/scoring slump, but it is their starting pitching that is going south on them. Three so-so starters are not going to cut it. They need to find at least one more starter, two would be better, and the ones they do have, need to get more consistent. I think Matusz, Chen, and Hammel can do the job, but they need help. Time to bring up Tillman, or Britton, or anyone who can pitch. Throwing the ball is the key. -- Al
It was a frustrating game from the Nats side, too. The bullpen blew a solid lead and the game should never have gone to OT. The Nats bullpen kept trying to give the game away, but the Mets wouldn't allow it, fortunately for the Nats. It was a lucky win. The O's took the same route in their win against Boston. That game also became a 'which bullpen will blow it' the most times. Turns out they both did, but it was Boston that blew it last. Another fortunate win. Both games were frustrating to watch. -- Al
Brad, that is a perfect case of living in a glass house. Ask your son how that Pujols deal has worked out, so far.:wink2:^&grin -- AlMy son (who is an Angels fan -- don't ask me why) had a field day with me this morning: "oh, Bryce Harper owned you guys last night" and so forthGoes with the territory I live in.
Sounds like a good time, Brad. Nothing wrong with a little MLB while on vacation. Pujols will be ok, its just taking him a while to adjust. Took Adam Dunn a whole season with the White Sox to figure out the AL. Even with the adjustment problems, Pujols is 2nd on the Angels in HR's and tied for 1st in RBI's. He will get hot eventually. -- Al
As a Nat's fan, I am very pleased with their season one third of the way in. There is, however, a big worry that no one in DC seems to want to discuss, and that is Ryan Zimmerman's flame out at the plate. He is THE man in DC, face o' the franchise, big bat on campus, and he ain't hitting worth a darn. He has only 2 Hr's, 18 RBI's, is batting .237 and slugging only .333. These are really bad numbers this far into the season. He isn't elevating anything, beats everything into the ground and leads the team in DP's hit into. No explanation forthcoming from the local pundits, the team, manager, or Zimm himself. This guy is a huge part of this team, both offensively and defensively, gets paid huge dollars, so no one wants to be the guy to pop the 'what's wrong' question. All I know is he isn't doing the job at the plate. That needs to change because the Nats can't afford such a hole in the #4 spot of the batting order. -- Al
Interesting revival, of sorts, going on in Pittsburgh. Not only is the team re-born, but so is AJ Burnett (to this point). AJ and Erik Bedard are forming up to be a good righty-lefty pitching combo. Bedard's record is only 4-6 but he is pitching well and AJ's record is an impressive 6-2. Their stats mirroe each other in a spooky way. AJ has 62.2 innings, Bedard has 62.1. Both have given up 58 hits and 25 earned runs. AJ has given up 4 HR's, Bedard 5. Their ERA's are almost identical too, at 3.59 for Bedard and 3.61 for AJ. Going to be fun to watch to see if these two can become a season long 1-2 punch that can carry the Pirates. -- Al
Nationals are having a real good June, so far. 9-2 this month, including 6-0 on the road against the AL East teams, Boston and Toronto, which has left them with a 4.5 game lead in the NL East. The NYY's and Rays come to town for the next 6 games and I suspect these games will be a HUGE indicator for the Nats. If the Nats do well, then the rest of MLB is going to have to pay attention to them. I believe they are legitimate contenders and if the pitching continues the way it has been going, the Nats have to be considered a real threat to get to the WS. So far, everything has gone well this season, despite all their injuries, so I am kind of waiting to see what happens when things go bad for a stretch, and things always go bad at some point in the long season. With 4 very effective starting pitchers, there have been no long bad spells, although there have been a couple of 3 game and 1 five game losing streak. But the losing streaks have always been followed by equal winning streaks so no real damage has occurred. At any rate, the Nats are in a zone right now, helped a great deal by the rookie, Brice Harper. As I say, the next 6 games will let me know if my enthusiasm is warranted.:wink2: -- Al
Been keeping an eye on the NYY's starting pitchers and I have to say I think the rest of the AL East is in for trouble. There are now 5 reliable pitchers firing on all cylinders, and coupled with their never ending barrage of Hr's hit, this team is only getting better from all sides. I think the O's may hang in, but they have to get 2 more reliable starting pitchers, because the 3 they have now need help. If the NYY's get any sharper, they could leave the rest of the AL East in the dust. They haven't even missed a beat with the loss of Rivera, which is scary. Sure, their starting pitching could stumble, and I think this will have to happen for anyone else to stay close, at this point. Who else could have a 40 year old pitcher come back from a season off and pitch like he's never been gone? Now that Hughes has regained his form from 2 seasons ago, this could be the best starting staff in the AL. -- Al
Kind of been following this story. Lee has 11 starts, 7 quality, with a team low 3.24 ERA among the starters, and he has exactly ZERO wins. His record is 0-3. Snakebit is right. How do you figure this? Unbelievable.{eek3} -- Al
maddadicus
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I am a Yankee fan, but have noticed the Nationals to be very competitive because of their young stud starters. Their Punch and Judy hitters will be the death of them as there are no offensive scary types in that lineup...Michael
Hi Michael. The Nats hitting situation has improved over earlier in the season. Laroche was the only threat for a long while, but now there is Harper, Desmond, and with the return of Morse the Nats have a decent line-up. Morse hasn't gotten back on track yet, but when he does, he can crush the ball. The big disappointment for the Nats has been the power failure of Ryan Zimmerman. A lot was expected from him in terms of average, HR's and RBI's, but he has been a bust this season. Hopefully he will pull out of it, but it just might be one of those down years hitters have. The NYY's have looked real good and I think they are the team to beat in the AL East at this point. -- Al
NYY's just completed their sweep of the Nats. The Yanks are on a heck of a hot streak, winning 9 in a row, and 19 of their last 23. The AL East and NL East are the best divisions in baseball, but, the NL East has been beaten up in inter-league play by the AL East with the AL winning 20 of the last 31 games between the two divisions. --Al
sammy719
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Dare I say it Al, but our O's righted the ship and are playing some great ball!! to the tune of the 4th best record in baseball, pitching, good hitting, relief pitching are all doing well, yea I know, it's late June but I have been saying that same line now for 3 months in a row!! come on O's keep on rollin...Sammy
Hi Sammy. I'm thrilled with the way the O's are playing. They have been pretty consistent and both the hitting and pitching have been doing their jobs. I like the bullpen, but I'm still a little nervous about the starting pitching, once past Chen and Hamels. Matusz has recovered from last seasons disaster to become pretty reliable and is a decent #3 and Arrieta have showed some flashes of brilliance, but is still way too hit or miss. It would be a good idea for the O's to find a #4 and #5 starter for the long summer ahead. Arrieta may still do the job, but I'm guessing that if the O's had a viable alternative within their system, that alternative would already be with the club. I sure hope the arms hold up as it sure has been a fun ride this season. -- Al