MLB: July 2012

[Enlightening_Meditation]

Will Bobby V be the first manager fired in 2012? The Red Sox have improved since their rough start, but the veteran players supposedly hate him and there’s little if any team cohesiveness. The strict asshole policies of Valentine are likely a stark contrast to the lax style of Francona, a 2-time World Series champion manager. I predict a 2012 meltdown in Beantown that will be even worse than the 2011 meltdown…and this one won’t have the almost-clinched-playoff-spot-narrative. MLB Baseball: News, Videos, Stats, Highlights, Results & More - NBC Sports - NBC Sports

It’s nice to see some fresh excitement in the MLB with the surges of the Orioles, Pirates, and Nationals.

The Cubs and Astros are in a really tight race to the bottom of the NL Central central, possibly the most exciting race in baseball right now. I predict the Cubs barely edge out for 6th place at season’s end.

@RickJay

about how runners should be aggressive on the basepaths, but it’s funny how they never say anything when it costs you. In the first six innings of the game, “aggressive” baserunning caused the Jays to throw away FOUR baserunners…

I’m on board with RickJay’s baserunning comments…wow, four runners lost to caught stealings in one game…that’s bad. The Earl Weaver no-small-ball approach should be implemented in Toronto among other MLB clubs. Earl is still alive…maybe it’s time for a comeback.

There are situations where attempted base stealing is worth the risk at the MLB level, but it depends on the runner’s speed/smarts, the pitcher’s delivery, catcher’s arm, the batter, number of outs, inning, score. In a close game or at least one within reach, it really really sucks as the hitting team to lose a baserunner and gain an out.

[QUOTE=Freddy the Pig]

[QUOTE=RickJay]
The baserunning thing just mystifies me. I have been to 4 games this year and two were lost because of bad baserunning - well, probably. I’ve seen another few games on TV that were very likely blown due to bad baserunning. I cannot remember the last Jays game I saw that was WON because of aggressive “making things happen” baserunning.
[/QUOTE]

Wow, they took it to a new level today, getting thrown out trying to advance a meaningless base while two runs down in the ninth inning.
[/QUOTE]

Holy shit, that’s insane.

[QUOTE=Cumbrian]
Am sure people will have seen this but, in case not, here’s what happens if you were to pitch a baseball at 90% of the speed of light.

Relativistic Baseball

[/QUOTE]

Oh, cool. I like the xkcd comics, but I hadn’t seen that. The caption at the end declaring a hit-by-pitch ruling is funny. But, the umpire wouldn’t be alive to make the call. The game would officially end and not declared official unless at least five innings were completed prior to the near light speed fastball.

Go Giants!

[Bullitt]

GO GIANTS!!

Giants win, 3-2 in 11!

[mhendo]

Both my teams won in pretty crazy fashion today.

The Orioles took a 4-1 lead early over the Tigers, gave up 3 in the top of the 9th to send it to extras, gave up and then overcame a 1-run lead in the 11th, and then did the same in the 13th before also hitting a 2-run homer in the 13th for a walk-off win.

The Padres were down 6-5 with two outs and two strikes in the top of the 9th, when Everth Cabrera stole home, the throw went to the screen, and Will Venable scored to give San Diego the lead. They then got the Dodgers in order in the bottom of the 9th to win 7-6.

Home plate umpire Greg Gibson initially called Cabrera out, even though the catcher never even caught the ball. He then overturned the call, and got into position in time to call Venable safe.

Video here.

[Yorikke]

@echo7tango

GO GIANTS!!

Giants win, 3-2 in 11!

Oh, I felt literally sick to my stomach on that strikeout/wild pitch/wild throw debacle. I thought they were going to waste that gem from Lincecum. What a great win, though in 12 innings, not 11.

And then I saw how the Dodgers lost!!!

Joe

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Man I hope the Reds sweep the Cardinals today. That would be awesome!

[RickJay]

Yiu know, before the season started I accused Bill Beane and Oakland of basically shanking the 2012 season by trading away two young affordable ace-level starting pitchers AND a young relief ace. They can’t possibly win 60 games, I said. There is no way these are baseball trades, I said.

Well, the A’s currently have the best team ERA in the American League. Their pitching is fantastic and it’s keeping them in the playoff mix. I was quite wrong.

[mhendo]

@RickJay

Well, the A’s currently have the best team ERA in the American League. Their pitching is fantastic and it’s keeping them in the playoff mix. I was quite wrong.

That pitching will need to stand up over the rest of the season, because they also have the lowest runs-per-game of any AL team, and i don’t see that improving very much with the hitting lineup that they have.

[Southern_Yankee]

@Enlightening_Meditation

Will Bobby V be the first manager fired in 2012? The Red Sox have improved since their rough start, but the veteran players supposedly hate him and there’s little if any team cohesiveness. The strict asshole policies of Valentine are likely a stark contrast to the lax style of Francona, a 2-time World Series champion manager. I predict a 2012 meltdown in Beantown that will be even worse than the 2011 meltdown…and this one won’t have the almost-clinched-playoff-spot-narrative. MLB Baseball: News, Videos, Stats, Highlights, Results & More - NBC Sports - NBC Sports

Valentine is a joke. He may be baseball-smart, but he* thinks* he’s much smarter than he is.

This is amazing. Really? This is on Youkilis?

Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine placed the onus for his strained relationship with Kevin Youkilis on the former Boston infielder Sunday morning.

“I think the comment I made early, he made a big issue out of, and I don’t think he ever wanted to get over it,” Valentine said in response to a question about Youkilis, who will return to Fenway Park on Monday as a member of the Chicago White Sox, the team to which he was traded June 24.

Here’s what he said then, that Youkilis didn’t “take right.”

I don’t think he’s as physically or emotionally into the game as he has been in the past for some reason..

Valentine blames Youkilis for poor relationship

[Bullitt]

There’s trouble in Beantown.

But hey, the Giants won again, and the Dodgers lost again, so all’s right with the world today!

(Well, things could always be better: we could have NFL games and if the Cowboys and the Raiders also lost, it would be the most perfectest day ever!)

GO GIANTS!!

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

@FoieGrasIsEvil

Man I hope the Reds sweep the Cardinals today. That would be awesome!

Wish granted!

[Barkis_is_Willin]

@RickJay

Yiu know, before the season started I accused Bill Beane and Oakland of basically shanking the 2012 season by trading away two young affordable ace-level starting pitchers AND a young relief ace. They can’t possibly win 60 games, I said. There is no way these are baseball trades, I said.

Well, the A’s currently have the best team ERA in the American League. Their pitching is fantastic and it’s keeping them in the playoff mix. I was quite wrong.

Yeah, trading Andrew Bailey to Boston for Josh Reddick keeps looking more and more brilliant. Reddick is having a very nice year and Bailey hasn’t thrown a pitch all year.

[Tom_Scud]

@Barkis_is_Willin

Yeah, trading Andrew Bailey to Boston for Josh Reddick keeps looking more and more brilliant. Reddick is having a very nice year and Bailey hasn’t thrown a pitch all year.

Did Boston make any trades this off-season that worked out? Melancon for Lowrie is looking slightly less horrible than it was earlier in the season, but still flat-out awful.

[RickJay]

@mhendo

That pitching will need to stand up over the rest of the season, because they also have the lowest runs-per-game of any AL team, and i don’t see that improving very much with the hitting lineup that they have.

Which it might not, but I figured at this point they’d be something like 29-57. They knew their assets a hell of a lot better than I did.

Right now the trade of Bailey to the Red Sox for, amongt others, Josh Reddick is looking like the heist of the year.

[Tom_Scud]

@RickJay

Which it might not, but I figured at this point they’d be something like 29-57. They knew their assets a hell of a lot better than I did.

Right now the trade of Bailey to the Red Sox for, amongt others, Josh Reddick is looking like the heist of the year.

Although Mark Melancon for Jed Lowrie and another warm body gives it some competition.

[Tom_Scud]

@Tom_Scud

Although Mark Melancon for Jed Lowrie and another warm body gives it some competition.

(Above written before I caught up on the weekend’s news and learned that Lowrie had suffered yet another injury; dude can’t stay on the field).

[Hawkeyeop]

I think both are outdone by Melky Cabrera for Jonathan Sanchez

[FoieGrasIsEvil]

Damn. Joey Votto out 3-4 weeks with a torn meniscus. This could not have happened at a worse time. And the Reds lost to the Dbacks last night, snapping a 6 game win streak. Well first place, it was nice flirting with you.

[Southern_Yankee]

@FoieGrasIsEvil

Damn. Joey Votto out 3-4 weeks with a torn meniscus. This could not have happened at a worse time…

Looks like Batista got hurt last night too. Injured his wrist on a swing. No word on how serious but they say it might be an “extended” absence.

[RickJay]

Unbelievable. Why not just shoot Edwin Encarnacion and Brett Lawrie now. Everyone else is hurt.

Apparently they’re gonna bring up Anthony Gose and bypass Travis Snider entirely, which means, I assume, they have given up on Snider, which I do not understand.

[ekedolphin]

My Nats: First in East.
When will the other shoe drop?
Or is this for real?