# MLB: May 2016
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688
**Category:** The Game Room
**Created:** [May 2, 2016, 5:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688 "2016-05-02T17:33:27Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 2
### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 12:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/21 "2016-05-04T12:44:47Z")
> [@dalej42](#):
>
> Steven A. Smith is an insufferable asshole who just throws shit out out there. PEDs don’t help you with pitch location
PEDs also don’t teach you how to hit a curveball but they still helped Barry Bonds.
While PEDs would not teach Arrieta how to locate a pitch, they could help him with velocity, endurance, ability to return from the wear and tear of starting. Of course they can help, that’s why guys use them.
Is Arrieta using? I have no idea, nor does Steven Smith.
---
### Author:  [@gnoitall](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gnoitall)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 1:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/22 "2016-05-04T13:59:27Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#):
>
> Well, the Mariners have been rather surprising so far …
Indeed. Pleasantly so.
The starting pitching is almost uniformly effective, the bullpen isn’t a terrifying funhouse ride of despair and desperation, and somehow the Ms found bats that don’t drive the ball straight into the hands of the fielders, and don’t have big gaping holes in them.
And the phrase “Mariners leading the AL West” is frightening and exhilarating all at the same time. 😃
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### Author:  [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/23 "2016-05-04T14:36:14Z")
Giants pitchers are really taking their batting very seriously this year, [as Jeff Samardzija demonstrated last night.](http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/8878828/v654775583/sfcin-samardzija-strikes-out-breaks-bat-over-leg)
Although it seems [this isn’t a new thing](http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/6479266/v33975823/cinchc-samardzija-imitates-bo-and-breaks-bat) for him…
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### Author:  [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/24 "2016-05-04T14:40:36Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> PEDs also don’t teach you how to hit a curveball but they still helped Barry Bonds.
>
> While PEDs would not teach Arrieta how to locate a pitch, they could help him with velocity, endurance, ability to return from the wear and tear of starting. Of course they can help, that’s why guys use them.
>
> Is Arrieta using? I have no idea, nor does Steven Smith.
For a pitcher, the recovery factor is far more important than building strength. A quick recovery, limited soreness, feeling fresh every 5 days can’t help but improve all aspects of pitching, including locating pitches.
That said, I have no idea what Arrieta has done since Baltimore to last season to become the pitcher he is.
---
### Author:  [@BlankSlate](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlankSlate)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/25 "2016-05-04T15:34:09Z")
Holy jeez, the Yankees suck. I wish I could ignore them but it’s too ingrained. Then again, I endured the 80’s so this is just a bump in the road.
The thing about Stephen Smith: if Arrieta was black, he would never had made that accusation. Everything is viewed through an embittered black/white prism with that guy.
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/26 "2016-05-04T17:12:49Z")
> [@BlankSlate](#):
>
> Holy jeez, the Yankees suck. I wish I could ignore them but it’s too ingrained. Then again, I endured the 80’s so this is just a bump in the road.
The 2016 Yankees are what I expected the 2015 Yankees to be. I am amazed they did as well last year as they actually did, and was not at all surprised when they tanked in September. Joe Girardi should have been Manager of the Year for getting 87 wins out of that roster.
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### Author:  [@DaphneBlack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaphneBlack)
#### Post date: [May 4, 2016, 10:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/27 "2016-05-04T22:39:24Z")
What Arrieta has done is pretty well documented. In Baltimore, they wouldn’t let him throw across his body or throw a cutter. He’s been much, much better since he came over to the Cubs, not just since last June (although that is when his run of incredible dominance began). It’s not some major mystery – Baltimore has an ongoing history of failure with pitching prospects. Jake’s velocity has always been there, and he showed flashes of great potential in Baltimore.
It is lovely to see what the Cubs have been doing, even with the major injury to Schwarber and with Heyward’s offense being absent (his defense has been sweet though!).
The thing that’s crazy to me is that the offense, overall, has not been playing out of their shoes, and we’ve been averaging almost 7 runs a game. This could get better! The pitching will probably regress some (although I think there’s a chance we’ll get an upgrade before the trade deadline), but I don’t think it is at all unreasonable to expect this insane run differential to keep going all season.
The only thing I wish for is that the fanbase stop niggling and being superstitious and just recognize and enjoy this team – not just for this year, but looking good for the future, too.
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### Author:  [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 12:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/28 "2016-05-05T00:28:59Z")
> [@MLB: April 2016](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-april-2016/750845/153):
>
> The only real improvement from last season is that their catcher (Mesoraco) is healthy. So far.
Mesoraco is likely having season ending surgery on a torn labrum.
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/29 "2016-05-05T00:57:08Z")
> [@DaphneBlack](#):
>
> … but I don’t think it is at all unreasonable to expect this insane run differential to keep going all season.
Well, no, it’s pretty unreasonable. Were it to continue the Cubs would not just be the greatest baseball team of all time; they would be the greatest baseball team of all time by a ludicrous margin, a team vastly superior to the 1927 Yankees, 1976 Reds, or any other ballteam ever assembled. They would, easily, be the greatest sports team in the history of major North American pro sport.
Obviously they are not actually going to score more than twice as many runs as they allow. The team ERA isn’t going to be 2.29. Things will go wrong here and there and they’ll return to a normal level, though that could mean “returning” to a level where they end up 101-61.
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### Author:  [@Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frank)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/30 "2016-05-05T01:14:03Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> Things will go wrong here and there and they’ll return to a normal level, though that could mean “returning” to a level where they end up 101-61.
> [@MLB: April 2016](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-april-2016/750845/152):
>
> I would never bet on a team to win or lose 100 games. I will always, always take the under.
Heh.
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### Author:  [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/31 "2016-05-05T02:00:07Z")
> [@Frank](#):
>
> Mesoraco is likely having season ending surgery on a torn labrum.
Ditto Pablo Sandoval, though it might not be his labrum.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
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### Author:  [@DaphneBlack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DaphneBlack)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 10:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/32 "2016-05-05T10:49:23Z")
> [@RickJay](#):
>
> Well, no, it’s pretty unreasonable. Were it to continue the Cubs would not just be the greatest baseball team of all time; they would be the greatest baseball team of all time by a ludicrous margin, a team vastly superior to the 1927 Yankees, 1976 Reds, or any other ballteam ever assembled. They would, easily, be the greatest sports team in the history of major North American pro sport.
>
> Obviously they are not actually going to score more than twice as many runs as they allow. The team ERA isn’t going to be 2.29. Things will go wrong here and there and they’ll return to a normal level, though that could mean “returning” to a level where they end up 101-61.
Yeah, ok, I guess I didn’t mean literally at this pace. I’m at a point now where I think I’d take the over on 101 though. And it’s not as if thinsgs haven’t gone wrong already, injury-wise at least… I sure hope we don’t see any more of that.
It’s bizarre to feel this positive as a Cubs fan.
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 2:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/33 "2016-05-05T14:00:54Z")
> [@Frank](#):
>
> Heh.
Heh what?
On April 1 absolutely I take the under on the Cubs to win 100 games.
But now they’re 20-6. Just using Bayesian logic, it is now much likelier they could win 100 games, because
1. They are ahead of a 100-win pace. To win 100 games you must play .617 ball. The Cubs must now play .588 ball the rest of the way, equivalent to a 95-win season, which is close to what they did last year anyway.
2. There is nothing about the team suggesting they are insanely lucky. They are somewhat lucky; Hammel isn’t really this good, for instance, and all the bench players have hit like Eddie Mathews, which won’t continue, and Dexter Fowler isn’t going to finish the year with a .470 OBP. But their run differential suggests a genuinely excellent team. They aren’t 20-6 because the breaks have gone their way, they’re 20-6 because they are kicking the crap out of everyone. Teams with dominating run differentials are usually going to keep it up or maybe even get better, like the Blue Jays last year.
So right now I’d probably say the Cubs are even money to win 100 games. They’re not going to go 124-38 (their current pace) but all evidence suggests they are an excellent team with room for a few things to go wrong and still win many ballgames. A 20-6 run is not an unusual stretch in the season of a team that goes, say, 97-65; the aforementioned Blue Jays in August last year were pretty much the same, going 21-6 and basically annihilating the league, outscoring opponents 177-83. It was ridiculous, but you can’t do that all year.
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### Author:  [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/34 "2016-05-05T14:37:16Z")
As a Cubs fan who was 9 at the time, I remember the 1984 Tigers very well. They started an insane 35-5. Finished at 104 wins.
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### Author:  [@Ulf\_the\_Unwashed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ulf_the_Unwashed)
#### Post date: [May 5, 2016, 9:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/35 "2016-05-05T21:57:12Z")
> [@pulykamell](#):
>
> As a Cubs fan who was 9 at the time, I remember the 1984 Tigers very well. They started an insane 35-5. Finished at 104 wins.
Right, at 20 and 6 the Cubs can match the greatest start in my lifetime (and I’m older than you by a goodly margin) if they go…let’s see…15 and negative 1.
Or something.
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### Author:  [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2016, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/36 "2016-05-06T01:58:19Z")
Quite a game going on in Baltimore right now: scoreless in the bottom of the 10th between the Orioles and the Yankees.
Edit: And now it’s over! O’s win 1-0 on a sac fly in the 10th.
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### Author:  [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2016, 3:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/37 "2016-05-06T03:47:07Z")
History made in Chicago tonight:
The Nationals played the Cubs
The White Sox hosted Boston
First time in history that 4 first-place teams have played in the same city on the same night.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
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### Author:  [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2016, 5:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/38 "2016-05-06T05:32:56Z")
The Giants gave up 13 runs in the 5th inning tonight against the Rockies. Last Friday, they gave up 12 runs in a single inning to the Mets.
Yet somehow, they will still be tied for first place in the NL West at the end of the night.
Baseball is weird.
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### Author:  [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Barkis_is_Willin)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2016, 1:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/39 "2016-05-06T13:13:53Z")
> [@Superdude](#):
>
> History made in Chicago tonight:
>
> The Nationals played the Cubs
> The White Sox hosted Boston
>
> First time in history that 4 first-place teams have played in the same city on the same night.
>
> Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using Tapatalk
Hard to believe that’s never happened before and what is perhaps more surprising is that the city to host the first place teams was Chicago rather than LA or NY.
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### Author:  [@Suburban\_Plankton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Suburban_Plankton)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2016, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/mlb-may-2016/753688/40 "2016-05-06T13:30:51Z")
> [@Barkis\_is\_Willin](#):
>
> Hard to believe that’s never happened before and what is perhaps more surprising is that the city to host the first place teams was Chicago rather than LA or NY.
It wasn’t possible before interleague play, since there were never 4 first place teams in one league.
And it still can’t happen in LA. They only have one MLB franchise. The Angels, despite their name, play in Anaheim.
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