2009 Baseball Season/Off-Season Discussion

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

On the field.  Dodgers have the best record in baseball.  Great young pitching and lineup there.  Joe Torre could become another October mainstay for awhile.  On a side but somewhat related note I think I made a mistake in my fantasy baseball keeper league by keeping Scott Kazmir over Chad Billingsley.  He looks legit.  But, good news, I actually was able to pick up Billingsley in our draft anyway so I've got them both AGAIN this year.  Of course, at the end of the year I'll probably be keeping Chad over Kazmir.

Anyhow, how's Manny doing this year?  Must be doing fine but I haven't heard too much, so I assume he's not on quite the tear he was with the Dodgers last year.  I did hear he asked out of a game over the weekend.  That brought back some memories.

Billingsley is great, if he didn't choke in the LCS, he would have had a higher profile.  Clayton Kershaw is great as well, he never gets any run support.  He pitched a gem last Friday night, the game where they won in the 9th inning with a walk-off walk.  1-0.  Very dramatic. 

Manny is OK.  I saw him hit his first two home runs of the year on the first FOX game for the Dodgers.  I called it, too.  He's not on an offensive tear because they are walking him a lot.  He has a great OBP.  And actually, I was at the game on Sunday,  and he had some tightness in his hamstring, but he was available for pinch-hitting duties.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/ba...w_stadium.html

[faldor]

On the field.  Dodgers have the best record in baseball.  Great young pitching and lineup there.  Joe Torre could become another October mainstay for awhile.  On a side but somewhat related note I think I made a mistake in my fantasy baseball keeper league by keeping Scott Kazmir over Chad Billingsley.  He looks legit.  But, good news, I actually was able to pick up Billingsley in our draft anyway so I've got them both AGAIN this year.  Of course, at the end of the year I'll probably be keeping Chad over Kazmir.

Anyhow, how's Manny doing this year?  Must be doing fine but I haven't heard too much, so I assume he's not on quite the tear he was with the Dodgers last year.  I did hear he asked out of a game over the weekend.  That brought back some memories.

Billingsley is great, if he didn't choke in the LCS, he would have had a higher profile.  Clayton Kershaw is great as well, he never gets any run support.  He pitched a gem last Friday night, the game where they won in the 9th inning with a walk-off walk.  1-0.  Very dramatic. 

Manny is OK.  I saw him hit his first two home runs of the year on the first FOX game for the Dodgers.  I called it, too.  He's not on an offensive tear because they are walking him a lot.  He has a great OBP.  And actually, I was at the game on Sunday,  and he had some tightness in his hamstring, but he was available for pinch-hitting duties.

I just checked Manny's stats.  He's doing very well.  Not quite as good as last year, but that's not easy to replicate.  One thing's for sure, he makes that lineup much better.  Andre Ethier has to love having Manny protect him in the order, and my fantasy team is thankful for that.

[tim_m]

I agree, almost 100%.

I agree 100% on the non-Yanks stuff.  I asked earlier if the Torono thing is a fluke or if people think they can run this race til the end.  I'm still not convinced, yet.  Dodgers and KC look legit, so far.  I worry about the Dodgers pitching and KC's offense, over the long haul.   But I picked the Dodgers to win the NL, though I admit I was not a believer in KC til I saw them play.  Now...I think they have a shot at their, relatively, weak division.  The Mariners?  I'll reserve judgment until the Angels are healthy (IF they get healthy).  They're still the team to beat, for me.

Sox have done well, but have had some hiccups (slow start, win 11, then slow down...right up until they play the Yanks again).  It'll be interesting to see how they shape up the rest of the year.

The Yanks have kept the injury train rolling from last year.  Nady, Swisher for a bit with his elbow, A-Rod (who, thankfully, will save us from much more of Pena at 3rd...his error last night really cost them, as did his inability to sac in Melky), Wang (though I'm not sure he's really "hurt), Bruney, and now Posada.  The Posada injury really hurts....because now Arod isn't ADDING a bat, he's just replacing one.  I think if they can hover around .500 for a few weeks, and get EVERYONE back healthy (with the exception of Nady), I think they'll be OK, mostly.

But you're right about the bullpen.  It SUUUUUCCCCKKKKKKSSSSS....and I have no clue how you address it, now.  As for why they didn't address it in the offseason...well, it wasn't NEARLY that bad last year.  Bruney was fine in the 8th, Coke and Veras were solid, Ramirez was inconsistent, but not NEARLY the abomination he's been this year, and Mo was (is?) Mo.  While it might not have been a spectacular calvacade, they certainly proved to be, at the very least, solid and serviceable.    But this year?  Yikes, they suck.  Part of it, I think, is not having  true long man in the pen...that's not doing them any favors.  But the rest is just the fact that they can't seem to pitch their way out of a paper bag.  Now, the defense hasn't done them a whole lot of favors, either (witness Pena, last night)...but most of the burden falls squarely on the pitchers in the pen.  If we can't get their heads screwed on straight, and get some consistency out of them...it's gonna be a very long season. 

I also agree:  If Hughes pitches well, and Wang comes back and looks like Wang....I'd put Joba right back in the pen, pitching the 8th inning.  They won't do it because they're stubbornly committed to making him a starter.  But I can tell you that a LOT of Yanks fans feel exactly the same way we do:  He helps the team, right now, more as a reliever than he does as a starter.  I understand they're reluctant to put a STUD pitcher in the pen when he can be an effective starter, but for me it's all about what's best for the team.  And Joba in the pen seems to be a no brainer when using that litmus test.

The fact their is no safety net is going to put a lot of pressure on the rotation, and a lot of pressure on Girardi to get the starters to go longer than maybe they should. That could bite them in the ass, down the road.

Joba went 5 2/3's last night, and 4 2/3's of it was stellar baseball.  If he doesn't throw 30-ish pitches in the first inning, he sticks around for one more, too.  But he's on a STRICT pitch count (100 pitches), and with a strike out pitcher, which is what he's shaping up to be, it's gonna be hard to get much more than 6 out of him...maybe an out or two more. 

Joba was on fire last night after that first inning. I can only imagine how many K's he would have had if it wasn't for that first inning. 10 of his 15 recorded outs were strikeouts including his last 8! After that first inning he made boston hitters look very bad. I think part of his problem is he is pacing himself early on and not attacking hitters. Once he starts attacking them well you see what can happen 10 out of 15 batters go down on K's.

[pilferk]

Report: Manny tested positive for performance enhancers...50 game suspension.

Edit: More info, now.

Manny and Boras have known about this for at least a week...the Dodgers found out within the past 24 hours.  Manny decided not to appeal the decision.

He claims the positive test is the result of a perscription drug given to him, by a doc, for a personal medical condition.

Reports are that drug is hCG, a WOMEN'S fertility drug.  It's also popular amongst roid users to jump start the body's testosterone balance after a cycle of roids.

The only male uses (that I know of) are in treating hypergonadism (which can occur due to long term steroid exposure) or low sperm count/infertility (likewise, which can be a symptom of long term roid use).  There are also other (more common, many say better) options to treat low sperm count than hCG, many of them NOT #55 on the banned substance list. 

To think that Manny took a perscription for a drug who's main purpose is to manipulate testosterone, and for him to NOT think it might cause a problem, seems a bit far fetched.  I want to hear more before I rush to judgement, but his explanation seems to be getting further and further from "the sniff" test.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

What an idiot! 

[faldor]

Trading Manny for Jason Bay is making Theo Epstein look like a genius more and more everyday.  And so many people thought the Sox got hosed in that deal.  The only one who misses Manny on the Sox is Ortiz.

[faldor]

Check out #42 on this list of top 50 better ways Manny could've blown 7.7 million dollars.

http://coedmagazine.com/2009/05/07/50-better-ways-manny-ramirez-couldve-blown-7-7-million/

42. Cover the production costs on 7 tracks from Chinese Democracy

[GypsySoul]

Check out #42 on this list of top 50 better ways Manny could've blown 7.7 million dollars.

http://coedmagazine.com/2009/05/07/50-better-ways-manny-ramirez-couldve-blown-7-7-million/

42. Cover the production costs on 7 tracks from Chinese Democracy

That's classic!!! 


Manny's E.D. defense sheds new light (at least for me) on those Rafael Palmeiro Viagra commercials 

[faldor]

Check out #42 on this list of top 50 better ways Manny could've blown 7.7 million dollars.

http://coedmagazine.com/2009/05/07/50-better-ways-manny-ramirez-couldve-blown-7-7-million/

42. Cover the production costs on 7 tracks from Chinese Democracy

That's classic!!! 


Manny's E.D. defense sheds new light (at least for me) on those Rafael Palmeiro Viagra commercials 

Good point, apparently using steroids leads to poor performance in the bedroom.  Now Manny's got a good 2 months to correct those problems.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

Check out #42 on this list of top 50 better ways Manny could've blown 7.7 million dollars.

http://coedmagazine.com/2009/05/07/50-better-ways-manny-ramirez-couldve-blown-7-7-million/

42. Cover the production costs on 7 tracks from Chinese Democracy

That's classic!!! 


Manny's E.D. defense sheds new light (at least for me) on those Rafael Palmeiro Viagra commercials 

Good point, apparently using steroids leads to poor performance in the bedroom.  Now Manny's got a good 2 months to correct those problems.

Bow-chicka-bow-bow. 

[faldor]

For the last couple weeks on The Howard Stern Show they've been discussing the fact that show producer Baba Booey was going to throw out the first pitch at the Mets game this Saturday.  Gary was all nervous and worried he'd make a fool of himself out there.  Well I'm not sure he could've done any worse.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PVMjvs0yttY

I can't wait to hear them grill him on the show tomorrow.  He's never gonna live that one down, epecially after making such a big deal about it.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

That was definitely intentional.

It sure looked like it.  Throwing it in the dirt is more acceptable than going Ankiel on everyone.

[faldor]

I think he's just a really bad athlete, that's all it comes down to.  I couldn't understand why he was so nervous about it.  I mean, it's really not that hard to do.  He spoke to a sports psychologist about it and worked with a trainer.  He said he'd throw it well enough in practice 90% of the time but occasionally was way off.  I guess that was one of the 10%.  I know it's probably a little nerve racking in front of 40,000 fans, but there is NO excuse for that.  No able bodied man should ever do that poorly.

[D]

wasn't that bad. He did better than Carl Lewis who was an olympic God

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

I think he's just a really bad athlete, that's all it comes down to.  I couldn't understand why he was so nervous about it.  I mean, it's really not that hard to do.  He spoke to a sports psychologist about it and worked with a trainer.  He said he'd throw it well enough in practice 90% of the time but occasionally was way off.  I guess that was one of the 10%.  I know it's probably a little nerve racking in front of 40,000 fans, but there is NO excuse for that.  No able bodied man should ever do that poorly.

80 year old Vin Scully pitched one right down the middle on Opening Day.

[faldor]

wasn't that bad. He did better than Carl Lewis who was an olympic God

That's probably still better than his attempt at singing the National Anthem.

[Layne Staley's Sunglasses]

wasn't that bad. He did better than Carl Lewis who was an olympic God

That's probably still better than his attempt at singing the National Anthem.

Roseanne.

[faldor]

wasn't that bad. He did better than Carl Lewis who was an olympic God

That's probably still better than his attempt at singing the National Anthem.

Roseanne.

Roseanne was bad, taste wise, but she was intentionally trying to sound bad.  Or at least not trying to sound good.  Carl Lewis actually thought he could sing, I think.

By the way, The Daily News rated Baba Booey's first pitch as the worst ceremonial first pitch ever.  It was all over the NY news, and obviously not in a good way.  At least it's good publicity for the show I guess.

[pilferk]

Before I post their availability elsewhere...all for the Stadium, obviously:

I have one single bleacher seat in 235, row 16, for Thursday June 4th, 1:05 PM, vs Texas.  I was originally going to go, but then my wife picked up a couple of seats ON the batters eye for June 6th, for my birthday....so I'm going to skip this one.

I have one single bleacher seat in 203, row 10, for Thurday June 18th, 1:05, vs the Nats.  As an added BONUS..I'll be in row 3, same section, with my step-father, that game.  You can buy me a beer!

Freebies, FYI...but YOU gotta use 'em.  No stubhubbing them....

I've got the tickets in .pdf format....

Post here that you want one (or both) of 'em, and then I'll PM you to get your email addy, and I'll send along the ticket(s). 

If there are no takers by Thursday morning (and I know..not many Yanks fans in the thread), I'm gonna offer 'em up elsewhere.

PS: If you're not a HTGTH regular (not necessarily a regular to the thread, just the board), please don't bother.  I'm not going to give the tickets to someone who just hops on in just to get them...largely because I suspect they'd end up on Stubhub.