2014 Baseball season/Off Season Discussion

[Falcon]

[

They couldn't have taken a few moments out of the Jeter infomercial to pay respect not only Gwynn but the others mentioned above who passed?

Coleman was not only a fine player, he was an HOF announcer and decorated war hero - unreal.

Was he? I didn't get a good look at the replay.

I agree, they could've found time to mention those we lost this year.

It was bang bang but he sure looked that way to me.

I'm surprised he didn't challenge then considering this was deciding home field in the WS.

That tells you how seriously the actual participants take the game.

[tim_m]

[

They couldn't have taken a few moments out of the Jeter infomercial to pay respect not only Gwynn but the others mentioned above who passed?

Coleman was not only a fine player, he was an HOF announcer and decorated war hero - unreal.

No kidding lol.

Was he? I didn't get a good look at the replay.

I agree, they could've found time to mention those we lost this year.

It was bang bang but he sure looked that way to me.

I'm surprised he didn't challenge then considering this was deciding home field in the WS.

That tells you how seriously the actual participants take the game.

[pilferk]

My suggestion to "fix" the all star game:

1) It doesn't "count" for Homefield.  WS home field just goes to alternating years. Odd years NL gets it, even years AL gets it. That settles it..and gives MLB all the time they need to "plan" (one of their reasons for making the AS game count).
 
2) No NL vs AL in the AS game.  Instead, you turn it into a fantasy game. 1/2 the team is made up of fan voted players, 1/2 the team is made up of the statistical leaders (we can debate what overall sabermetric helps determine it) at each position.  Both managers draft their teams (2 drafts..one for pitching, one for position players), live, on TV, after the HR derby (which would be shortened and made to move quicker).  You get two teams: red and blue.

3) You can tie SOMETHING to the AS games meaning....or not.  I don't think it matters..to the fans or the players.  If you really wanted to make it compelling, have an independant arbitrator preside over a sealed envelope selection of the DH rule for the WS.  In other words, they create 2 envelopes, a blue and a red. One of them has "DH RULE" in it, the other has "NO DH RULE".  After the game, you open the envelope of the winning team..and there you go: Instant drama.

[tim_m]

My suggestion to "fix" the all star game:

1) It doesn't "count" for Homefield.  WS home field just goes to alternating years. Odd years NL gets it, even years AL gets it. That settles it..and gives MLB all the time they need to "plan" (one of their reasons for making the AS game count).
 
2) No NL vs AL in the AS game.  Instead, you turn it into a fantasy game. 1/2 the team is made up of fan voted players, 1/2 the team is made up of the statistical leaders (we can debate what overall sabermetric helps determine it) at each position.  Both managers draft their teams (2 drafts..one for pitching, one for position players), live, on TV, after the HR derby (which would be shortened and made to move quicker).  You get two teams: red and blue.

3) You can tie SOMETHING to the AS games meaning....or not.  I don't think it matters..to the fans or the players.  If you really wanted to make it compelling, have an independant arbitrator preside over a sealed envelope selection of the DH rule for the WS.  In other words, they create 2 envelopes, a blue and a red. One of them has "DH RULE" in it, the other has "NO DH RULE".  After the game, you open the envelope of the winning team..and there you go: Instant drama.

Or how about just giving the better team the home field in the WS like every other damn sports league does with the exception of the NFL.

[tim_m]

With tonight's start at SS, Derek Jeter will set a major league record for most starts ever at SS passing Omar Vizquel.

[GypsySoul]

Yankees to honor Derek Jeter on Sunday, September 7

The Yankees today announced they will hold a special pregame ceremony to honor the career of Yankees captain Derek Jeter on Sunday, September 7. All fans in attendance for the Yankees' game vs. Kansas City will receive a limited-edition commemorative coin that will recognize the occasion.


Gypsy Note:  Maybe I should have posted this in the NFL thread because September 7th is opening Sunday. 

[tim_m]

I wonder if they plan to honor him the way they did Rivera last year by retiring his number before he even plays his last game.

[Falcon]

Or how about just giving the better team the home field in the WS like every other damn sports league does with the exception of the NFL.

Bingo.

Most regular season wins and some sort of logical tie breaker if needed.

[tim_m]

Or how about just giving the better team the home field in the WS like every other damn sports league does with the exception of the NFL.

Bingo.

Most regular season wins and some sort of logical tie breaker if needed.

Yep nice and simple the better team during the season gets the advantage. I still wish the NFL would do that. I've always hated the neutral site bullshit.

[pilferk]

Or how about just giving the better team the home field in the WS like every other damn sports league does with the exception of the NFL.

I'd be 100% OK with that..but MLB isn't.

They say it's too many variables for scheduling, travel, lodging, and logistics.  They want to at least know which league has home field before the playoffs start.  Selig has said that, even if the AS game didn't determine, they would have moved to alternating years.

I know, I know..everyone else does it.  And yes, I know it only really means, potentially, making plans in 3 to 4 cities, rather than just 2. But...does it really surprise you that MLB can't do something that every other league manages? Not me...

[tim_m]

Or how about just giving the better team the home field in the WS like every other damn sports league does with the exception of the NFL.

I'd be 100% OK with that..but MLB isn't.

They say it's too many variables for scheduling, travel, lodging, and logistics.  They want to at least know which league has home field before the playoffs start.  Selig has said that, even if the AS game didn't determine, they would have moved to alternating years.

I know, I know..everyone else does it.  And yes, I know it only really means, potentially, making plans in 3 to 4 cities, rather than just 2. But...does it really surprise you that MLB can't do something that every other league manages? Not me...

It is ridiculous they can't do it. They have the fewest playoff teams of all the major sports.

[tim_m]

Hall of Fame weekend coming up this weekend. I cannot wait to see the ceremony. So many deserving people going in this year. Torre, LaRussa, Cox, Glavine, Maddux and Eric Nadel being honored with the Ford Fricke award. I of course am looking forward to Torre going in as a Yankee for his incredible tenure as their manager. I only wish i could be there in person

[tim_m]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=156fDMJnvrE&feature=youtu.be This pretty much tells you everything you need to know about Joe Torre.

[tim_m]

Congratulations to Derek Jeter for passing Carl Yastrzemski for 7th on the all time hit list tonight. Next up Honus Wagner.

[tim_m]

After tonight's game Jeter also now has 1,005 career multi hit games. Placing him fourth behind Stan Musial, Hank Aaron and Pete Rose. He's only 41 behind Stan Musial. So he has an outside shot at getting higher on that list.

[pilferk]

So....Yoenis bein' Yoenis?

The Red Sox basically get a young Manny basically for 2 months of John Lester and Gomes?

IMHO, a nice move.

[faldor]

So....Yoenis bein' Yoenis?

The Red Sox basically get a young Manny basically for 2 months of John Lester and Gomes?

IMHO, a nice move.

Yeah, I was shocked at how much major league talent they got in the Lester/Lackey deals. That doesn't happen very often. Allen Craig was expendable for the Cards, so that one wasn't too surprising. I just hope he can regain his stroke at some point because he was a legit run producer the last few seasons. But the A's trading away their cleanup hitter in the middle of a pennant race was a bit shocking. I guess they feel they have enough offense and a Gomes/Vogt platoon will help soften the loss of Cespedes. I thought they had enough pitching to win before, but they must've felt the need for a proven starter who's playoff tested. Lester certainly fits that description.

The Red Sox desperately needed offense and these trades addressed that. However, they now have a pretty large hole at the top of the rotation that'll need to be taken care of in the off season. There was/is thought that Lester could come back, but that rarely happens. There are other options out there and the Sox are loaded with prospects that they're going to have to deal at some point. For now, it's time to take a good luck at some of the young guys these final 2 months to see what they can contribute going forward. For instance, Allen Webster still has a lot of work to do. Solid numbers at AAA, but that work has not translated to the bigs. It seems like he doesn't trust his stuff and is scared to pitch to contact. 6 walks in less than 3 innings is never a good thing.

[tim_m]

It appears help is coming for the Yankees who need it desperately. Pinaeda pitched 3.1 scoreless innings today with 4 k's 1 walk throwing 37 of 58 pitches for strikes. Barring any setbacks i see him back by mid late august at the latest.

[pilferk]

It appears help is coming for the Yankees who need it desperately. Pinaeda pitched 3.1 scoreless innings today with 4 k's 1 walk throwing 37 of 58 pitches for strikes. Barring any setbacks i see him back by mid late august at the latest.

If he's effective, it's a nice boost to their rotation. Especially considering the potential loss of Phelps, as last nights game just smacks of "Tommy John".

But, really...for the most part...pitching hasn't been their problem.  It's been scoring runs.

Now, that rotation may start to lag...all things considered (workload, relatively inexperience, etc)...but that hasn't been there problem to date. 

And I'm not convinced their trade deadline pickups are going to appreciably help their ability to score runs.

[faldor]

It appears help is coming for the Yankees who need it desperately. Pinaeda pitched 3.1 scoreless innings today with 4 k's 1 walk throwing 37 of 58 pitches for strikes. Barring any setbacks i see him back by mid late august at the latest.

If he's effective, it's a nice boost to their rotation. Especially considering the potential loss of Phelps, as last nights game just smacks of "Tommy John".

But, really...for the most part...pitching hasn't been their problem.  It's been scoring runs.

Now, that rotation may start to lag...all things considered (workload, relatively inexperience, etc)...but that hasn't been there problem to date. 

And I'm not convinced their trade deadline pickups are going to appreciably help their ability to score runs.

Their offense looked better the last 2 games, or at least last night. But I'm not sure they deserve too much credit, as Buchholz has been awful of late. Drew can hit, if he can get it going he will help. Of course, he was bad in the playoffs last year and so far this year up until this weekend.