Yeah. Brandon Phillips is an idiot. Now the Little Bitches have already won the series and tied the Reds for the division lead. Reds need to shut up and play ball. Well, Phillips needs to shut up, and the Reds need to play ball (better).
Rangers beat the Yankees in a dramatic walk-off hit from David Murphy 4-3. And if it hadn’t been for a couple of walks and an error, it wouldn’t have needed to go 10 innings. Looking forward to the game tonight, as Cliff Lee is pitching.
And the Mariners are 2-0 under new (interim) manager Daren Brown 
King Felix struck out a career-high 13 batters. I like this bit from the article on the M’s site:
I haven’t posted to these threads this year because of work/travel, but I did want to say the Whiny Little Bitches looked good in the sweep of Ex-Cardinals.
FoieGrasIs Evil, what’s the commentary from blogs/radio/newspapers in the Queen City about this?
Its mixed. Some people are defending Brandon’s comments as just merely trash talking and that it was Molina that escalated things, some think (like me) that Phillips should have just shut his mouth. I mean, maybe saying something like “I hate those guys” would have been okay, but calling another professional team a bunch of “little bitches”, and claiming that all the other players in MLB know it too is pretty bad. I’m never in favor of giving other teams bulletin board fodder. Especially when your division rival is right there with you in a tight division race.
Another thing that’s embarrassing for me as a Reds fan is that Phillips didn’t back up his talk. He went 1-13 in the series.
My take (and the video is on MLB.com of the brawl…OK, here it is: http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=10842801&topic_id=8879976&c_id=mlb) is that the two biggest offenders are Chris Carpenter and Reds pitcher Johnny Cueto. The situation appeared to be under control, thanks to Scott Rolen and the umpires (and its funny watching Dusty Baker and Larussa go at it, those guys HATE each other!), then you can see Carpenter come over and say something rude to Baker when the situation was about to be over, and Rolen erupts and they tangle. Most disturbing is seeing Johnny Cueto lashing out with kicks as his back is to the net…he kicks Jason LaRue (former Red) right in the face with his spikes, and some reports say he got a concussion.
Anyway, the Reds got punked any way you look at it and its the worst possible outcome of this series for them. I’m pissed at Phillips, Carpenter and Cueto. I think someone is going to get suspended (Cueto) and its only going to hurt the team, and it needs all the help it can get as we’re now a game back.
Thanks for the reply. I think you nailed it. If this were the “OLDEN DAYS” per some dumb commercial, Tony and Dusty would be pistols at dawn and neither would pull their shot, they would aim to kill.
If you watch the video, it all starts with that “respectful love tap” that batters often give to catchers on their shin pad (or maybe its just Molina? not sure how widespread that practice is), and as Brandon does it to Molina, Molina kicks the bat away in a “don’t touch me” maneuver. Then Molina gets in Phillip’s face when Brandon steps back into the box and the “hilarity” ensues.
What’s interesting to me is that Phillips made his unfortunate comments prior to the first game of the series, and by all accounts LaRussa was aware of them…so why did the Cards wait to retaliate until the second game of the series?
Anyway, it turned out well for the Redbirds and lousy for my Reds. I’m just desperate for them to make the postseason…its been 14 years, I’m ready!
Speaking of the Cards-Reds game today:
Just before the rain delay, Baker apparently put in pitcher Arthur Rhodes. Immediately after the rain delay, Masset comes out to pitch. The box score lists them both, Rhodes with a line of goose eggs.
How does this not violate the “pitcher must pitch to at least one batter” rule? Does the rain delay affect that rule?
To add: I was only watching on MLB’s iPad app, so it’s possible it and the computerized stats that compile the box score got it wrong and Baker never actually put in Rhodes. That’s why I waited to ask, to check the box score.
I got back to the game too late to hear if the Cardinals announcers mentioned anything about it after the delay (though their failure to certainly wouldn’t be any indication of its legality or lack of).
4 homers in a row by the D-backs this evening.
And the Rangers lose this one to the Yanks 7-6 in the top of the 9th due to an overload of errors. < sigh > I knew they shouldn’t have pulled Lee.
Man that was exciting. The lead off triple against Rivera by Andrus…I was sure it was going to extras or a loss for the Yanks.
Neither team made an error. 
17 Yankees K’d in the game too. I was sure it was over by the 7th.
Well, it’s business as usual in Met Land. The team hasn’t won two consecutive games since late June. The ostensible face of the franchise is in the midst of a 2-twentysomething slump and is openly questioning the team’s commitment to winning. Their $19M centerfielder is hitting .185/.295/.296. There’s a $13M pitcher handling mop-up chores at the extreme end of the bullpen. The last personnel move of any significance made by their General Manager was to hand $16M a year to a poor defensive outfielder who is slugging .402 on the season. Their ace pitcher is being accused of sexual impropriety and the team’s closer spent last night in a holding cell at CitiField after repeatedly punching his own father in law in the Mets’ family lounge after a loss to the Rockies. And right fielder Jeff Francoeur is unhappy with his playing time and wants to go to a team where he will start every day.
Jeff…
He…
I…
Jeff. Shut up, Jeff. Just shut up. Or if you absolutely must talk to the media, here’s what you should do. You should set up a small shrine to god or fate or Jobu or whoever you hold responsible for your existence, and each night when the reporters come, you should fall down on your knees and you should give thanks to the cosmos that not only did it produce a man stupid enough to believe that you belong on a major league roster and a man stupid enough to put you in a major league lineup on a semi-regular basis, but it also put them on the same team.
Do you have any idea how bad you are? Well, let me give you an idea: you absolutely blow. Among Mets who have been allowed more than 200 plate appearances, the only one with a slugging percentage lower than yours is Luis Castillo, and you could replace him in the lineup with Frankie Rodriguez’s father-in-law and no one would notice the damn difference. The only one with a batting average lower than yours is Rod Barajas, and I’m pretty sure he may have passed away in mid-May.
You want to go somewhere where you will play every day? Where would that be? Durham? Certainly nowhere in the majors. The Royals right fielder is better than you are. So is the Indians’. Seattle, a bad team with a bad offense, has Ichiro in right. The Pirates have Lastings Milledge, who is having a terrible year - and who is still better than you are. And he makes LESS THAN ONE FIFTH YOUR SALARY, YOU DOUCHE.
Seriously, Jeff, shut up. I can’t take it any more.
Somebody, please, fire Omar Minaya. The nightmare must come to an end.
Oh I was talking about the wild pitch and the fly ball that got between Hamilton and Cruz because no one took control. I know those aren’t defined as errors, but I consider them such. Also, all the walks. Agravating game. :mad:
Could be worse. They could add on Isiah Thomas as a consultant.
Remember when I said Moore was a worse gm than Minaya? I was completely and utterly wrong.
Oh and there is no way Francouer would start for Durham. They got way better outfielders than that.
I don’t wish ill on the Mets but I was laughing when they signed Bay. Fenway made him look better than he was and I thought everyone knew his fielding was pretty weak.
Minaya really is terrible, nearly as bad as the dopey owners.
I had no clue Francouer was that bad.
That was a nice comeback last night by the Yanks but did Rivera have to make it that interesting? That lead-off triple looked terrible of course. A great catch by Kearns really helped and it was good to see Berkman really contribute last night. I thought his 9th inning 12 pitch walk rattled the kid closer and really set the inning.
Actually, I was just thinking that the last bit was a bit odd, even for a Mets Meltdown. It’s been basically reported that he was really pissed that he didn’t get put in as closer last game, he thought he could save it… then later he beat up his father in law.
When the players are getting that pissed over the managing, it’s actually a bit unusual. Most of the time, the Mets Meltdown is more of a community effort.
Well, it’s not that weird. I know when I am pissed at my boss my first instinct is always to go beat the crap out of my father-in-law. It just makes sense.
My beloved Braves are still in the race for the division.
I really wish they could open up some distance between themselves and Philly because Philly’s big boys are coming back real soon and with Oswalt they will be a handful.
The knee injury to Chipper Jones is going to hurt the Braves quite a bit.
The MRI was supposed to be done this morning (Thursday 12 Aug 2010) but I still haven’t heard anything.
You’d think they would call my cell or something, right?
I can only hope that it will only be a 15 day DL because as I said, the Phillies are not done yet.
But at least this is an interesting season.