2012 MLB Season Discussion: Off-Season

Kush15 wrote:

Verlander: 8IP, 1BB, 1H, 0ER, 81 pitches

And then came the 9th inning...........................

Go Rays!

Hellickson got taken to the hospital because he got hit in the head in the dugout during Tigers batting practice. Hope he is ok!

I just realized that bean town didn't lose yesterday!

Spoiler:

They had an off day.

Opening Day in St. Louis, if they can avoid the rain.

IMAGE(http://d3j5vwomefv46c.cloudfront.net/photos/full/559884433.jpg?key=600757&Expires=1334344567&Key-Pair-Id=APKAIYVGSUJFNRFZBBTA&Signature=nVcDGunh36cvPwX~yXGvfH9Q3OIeyng7JFNVVk7k0FBM7xkw4bpUf8jnujL-54-o3DrqRTh8soBEmaAt9LT6PCGfQsCRL6IF8Ix1EG2-3syiAsScJfHkmKcJwIjfqyA2k35tDFqud1JSBAhJy1t6OSNH7URKgQOadvBZ0upTpq4_)

Popeyes in Boston:
IMAGE(http://static03.mediaite.com/sportsgrid/uploads/2012/04/popeyes-e1334334042938.jpeg)

So the White Sox tried to cheat today.

Batter's box was drawn too far forward of the plate. Game delayed in the first inning to re-draw it properly.

Aaron Harang gave up a lead off single tonight. He followed that up by striking out the next 9 batters. What the heck is the record? That's amazing, I wonder if he can keep it going.

Especially since I picked him up for my fantasy team today

10 is the record

Anyone using the MLB.TV app for their Xbox 360? Is there away I can pick which stream I watch? I was watching the A's Mariners game last night and I had to watch it on Root (ewwww) TV instead of my (old) local comcast stream which I can do on my iPad.

I'm trying really hard not to freak out, but if the Blue Jays bullpen blows another game any time soon I'm going to melt down. This crew was supposed to represent a significant upgrade.

Trying to predict bullpen effectiveness is pure folly, man.

I love watching the Cards take a series from the Cubs. (And those two incredible blondes behind the right hand batters box were an added bonus.)

Ugh, dysfunctional, Rays sweep the Yanks then get swept by the Boston. A race to the end I guess.

Haakon7 wrote:

I love watching the Cards take a series from the Cubs. (And those two incredible blondes behind the right hand batters box were an added bonus.)

How about Matt Carpenter? I am loving this start by the Redbirds.

Carpenter had a huge day. And that was his first big league home run, so good on him. He absolutely stroked that triple as well.

I just saw a video on Deadspin featuring the Marlins' new ballpark. Looks great!

But what is up with that monstrosity in center field? It's like a big carnival ride that they fire up after a Marlins home run. It is the stuff of nightmares.

karmajay wrote:

Ugh, dysfunctional, Rays sweep the Yanks then get swept by the Boston. A race to the end I guess. :(

Yeah disappointing weekend. Especially the giving up 13 and 12 runs... sheesh.

So..what do people in Atlanta do other than attend Braves games??

TheGameguru wrote:

So..what do people in Atlanta do when they're busy not attending Braves games

FTFY..

Tanglebones wrote:
TheGameguru wrote:

So..what do people in Atlanta do when they're busy not attending Braves games

FTFY..

Instead of attending Braves games or Hawks games, and when they're not busy chasing away hockey teams, Atlantans are busy paying $24 for burgers with no fries in outdoor cafes uptown.

Have I mentioned what a beast Cespedes is? I know he's trade bait, but I really wish the A's would keep him.

The White Sox were down 5-3, bases loaded two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Alex Rios is up and...strikes out looking in 4 pitches. This guy drives me nuts

Ulairi wrote:

Have I mentioned what a beast Cespedes is? I know he's trade bait, but I really wish the A's would keep him.

Is he? I don't follow as closely as I used to (no cable til Saturday), why would they sign him for four years just to trade him so soon?

Crazy goddamn stat: In addition to be the oldest man to register a win, Jamie Moyer has faced 8.9% of all MLB batters, ever.

Saw that in a deadspin article. Holy sh*t!

I can't believe he's still playing. And as a pitcher. You'd think his arm would have fallen off by now.

mindset.threat wrote:

The White Sox were down 5-3, bases loaded two outs in the bottom of the 9th. Alex Rios is up and...strikes out looking in 4 pitches. This guy drives me nuts

Can anyone else think of anything worse in baseball than a player striking out looking with the bases loaded to end the game? Awful!

Blind_Evil wrote:
Ulairi wrote:

Have I mentioned what a beast Cespedes is? I know he's trade bait, but I really wish the A's would keep him.

Is he? I don't follow as closely as I used to (no cable til Saturday), why would they sign him for four years just to trade him so soon?

I think the idea was to sign him and hopefully get the move to San Jose approved (I hate the Giants) and it would take 4 years to get the new ballpark and he'd be a major draw for that new season. The league keeps screwing over the Athletics and they will never be able to seriously compete on a budget of 55,000,000. But! They did destroy the Angels who have a 150mm+ budget.

Ulairi wrote:
Blind_Evil wrote:
Ulairi wrote:

Have I mentioned what a beast Cespedes is? I know he's trade bait, but I really wish the A's would keep him.

Is he? I don't follow as closely as I used to (no cable til Saturday), why would they sign him for four years just to trade him so soon?

I think the idea was to sign him and hopefully get the move to San Jose approved (I hate the Giants) and it would take 4 years to get the new ballpark and he'd be a major draw for that new season. The league keeps screwing over the Athletics and they will never be able to seriously compete on a budget of 55,000,000. But! They did destroy the Angels who have a 150mm+ budget.

Eh, the A's went to the playoffs quite a few years in a row in the early-aughts with a lower payroll. They just need to strike gold on talent evaluations again.

Blind_Evil wrote:
Ulairi wrote:
Blind_Evil wrote:
Ulairi wrote:

Have I mentioned what a beast Cespedes is? I know he's trade bait, but I really wish the A's would keep him.

Is he? I don't follow as closely as I used to (no cable til Saturday), why would they sign him for four years just to trade him so soon?

I think the idea was to sign him and hopefully get the move to San Jose approved (I hate the Giants) and it would take 4 years to get the new ballpark and he'd be a major draw for that new season. The league keeps screwing over the Athletics and they will never be able to seriously compete on a budget of 55,000,000. But! They did destroy the Angels who have a 150mm+ budget.

Eh, the A's went to the playoffs quite a few years in a row in the early-aughts with a lower payroll. They just need to strike gold on talent evaluations again.

Everyone is playing out of the same playbook now. They could get lucky but it's really hard when your payroll is $55MM and you're going up against teams with $150MM+ payrolls. They need a new stadium and in San Jose they will become real contenders.

Yep. I remember everyone asking what would happen after the book Moneyball came out. While you have a significant number of folks that didn't understand the book and called it flawed, the reality is that the philosophy spread throughout baseball and the hidden bargains disappeared.

Once teams understood what Billy Beane was doing, it was not hard to use more money to put up roadblocks.

I can't agree fully, you see it happen from time to time with other teams. The Rays come to mind, D-backs and Rockies in recent years. The White Sox won their Series back in '05 without many big free agent acquisitions. A big budget helps a lot, but it (or the lack of one) doesn't guarantee anything.

And a lot of the A's success was due to solid drafting, not bargain bin pickups. Moneyball painted them as scrappy underdogs but they developed a couple MVPs, at least one Cy Young, and many All-Stars without having to flex any financial muscle.