⚾ The MLB Thread

[InCali]

The Mets have a top farm system! And hundreds of millions of dollars off the books to sign the following players! The Polar Bears' time with the Mets is likely over the slide mark to first base—Acuna at second. Ronnie Mauricio at third. Sterns needs some pieces in the bullpen, the rotation, and the lineup! I hope both teams lose the World Series, but I'd prefer to see the Yanks win over the Dodgers. I'm not going to tune in. Joe Davis had me feeling like I was watching a Dodger broadcast, not a playoff game in October. He is very condescending and irritating. He lacks the professionalism of Gary Cohen, Howie Rose, or even Vin Scully. God rest his soul.

Offseason-needs
Juan Soto
Sean Manaea
Luis Severino
Max Fried
Corbin Burnes
Tanner Scott
Chris Martin
Tyler O'Neill

Not quite sure what you're saying there, but hope I either misunderstood or it came out wrong. If you are saying that Vin Scully was anything other than a consummate professional and probably the greatest baseball announcer ever, I'll politely disagree.

 

[blueharvest]

 

[blueharvest]

 

[TheBatman22]

Not quite sure what you're saying there, but hope I either misunderstood or it came out wrong. If you are saying that Vin Scully was anything other than a consummate professional and probably the greatest baseball announcer ever, I'll politely disagree.

You got it wrong. I never said anything negative about Scully. He was good at his job, unlike Joe Davis. Who is way too damn biased. I'm sure Mets Nation, Padres Nation, and Yankee Nation will agree that he should get regulated to doing commentary in AL playoff games. Only Joe Davis lacks the professionalism that his peers have. Gary Cohen, Howie Rose, and the great Vin Scully

 

[InCali]

You got it wrong. I never said anything negative about Scully. He was good at his job, unlike Joe Davis. Who is way too damn biased. I'm sure Mets Nation, Padres Nation, and Yankee Nation will agree that he should get regulated to doing commentary in AL playoff games. Only Joe Davis lacks the professionalism that his peers have. Gary Cohen, Howie Rose, and the great Vin Scully

It was the "even" part that threw me. "and especially" wouldn't have gotten a response. I think if you read what you wrote, you'll see why I was confused. Anyway, I get you now.

If I don't like the announcing, I often tune into the local radio or just watch with the sound off. It's not like baseball is very hard to follow and I'm usually ahead of the announcers anyway. My wife will laugh when I say something about the pitcher, batter, or ump and the announcer repeats it a few seconds later. You couldn't do that with Scully. He did color and play by play at the same time. Others in the business were in awe of him

 

[blueharvest]

 

[blueharvest]

MLB wants Rays to stay near Tampa amid fears over hurricane-damaged Tropicana

MLB hopes to find the Rays a temporary home for the start of the 2025 season if the damage to Tropicana Field from Hurricane Milton cannot be repaired in time

www.theguardian.com

 

[TheBatman22]

It was the "even" part that threw me. "and especially" wouldn't have gotten a response. I think if you read what you wrote, you'll see why I was confused. Anyway, I get you now.

If I don't like the announcing, I often tune into the local radio or just watch with the sound off. It's not like baseball is very hard to follow and I'm usually ahead of the announcers anyway. My wife will laugh when I say something about the pitcher, batter, or ump and the announcer repeats it a few seconds later. You couldn't do that with Scully. He did color and play by play at the same time. Others in the business were in awe of him

I did that and listened to the great Howie Rose, but the Yankees don't have good radio game commentary, so I'm not watching the World Series. Or tune into their radio broadcast. I'd honestly like both teams to lose, but that's impossible. It's not as easy as it was for me in 2022 when it was Philly against Houston. I was like, go Astros!





Vin Scully was a real one! He put aside his Dodger bias and called great games, and Joe Davis, on the other hand, isn't capable of setting aside the Dodger bias. Joe makes it sound like a Dodger home broadcast in the regular season. Davis can't even remove his biased opinions. To Merely act like a fan is hurting the game. Gary Cohen would be more courteous if he got the honor to do play-by-play for the World Series or NLCS, but it is what it is. I was jabbing at Joe Davis, not Scully, saying he's not him. They both called Dodger games. Both are called playoff games, but only Joe Davis makes me want to punch the TV. Sorry for the misconception. I think the world of the person Vin Scully was baseball is better off having had his contributions.

 

[TheBatman22]

I agree!

 

[InCali]

Believe me......there are a LOT of people who are going to tune in. It'll be interesting to see what the ratings are, but I can guarantee you that the MLB front offices are very happy. They are going to hype the rivalry until you can't keep your dinner down anymore.

I wonder how Valenzuela's passing is going to play in this series. Things like this can add to motivation. The guy was an absolute hero down here and was universally loved. For my part, I wish he was still with us and the WS matters so, so little in comparison.

RIP Fernando. A good guy and worthy of all the adulation.

 

[Spider-Fan]

I am sure that it will get high ratings. But I don't really watch sports or movies and say to myself "Gee, I am glad the billionaires are getting what they want." I care about what I want lol

 

[blueharvest]

 

[TheBatman22]

Believe me......there are a LOT of people who are going to tune in. It'll be interesting to see what the ratings are, but I can guarantee you that the MLB front offices are very happy. They are going to hype the rivalry until you can't keep your dinner down anymore.

I wonder how Valenzuela's passing is going to play in this series. Things like this can add to motivation. The guy was an absolute hero down here and was universally loved. For my part, I wish he was still with us and the WS matters so, so little in comparison.

RIP Fernando. A good guy and worthy of all the adulation.

I have to say the Dodgers are a very classy organization for honoring one of the best pitchers in the history of the MLB. I have no doubt the ratings will be huge. It's two huge markets, and not only that, but Japan probably has access as well. I'm sure they will be watching.

 

[InCali]

View attachment 108846
I have to say the Dodgers are a very classy organization for honoring one of the best pitchers in the history of the MLB. I have no doubt the ratings will be huge. It's two huge markets, and not only that, but Japan probably has access as well. I'm sure they will be watching.

The Dodgers have generally been out front and treated players well. I mean, this is the team that broke the color barrier and really pioneered scouting in all parts of the world. Back in the early days, they had their own team jet to help the players avoid some of the travel hassles. The fan base is also exceedingly loyal and they consistently draw about 4M per year.

They aren't alone, but definitely are a class organization (before and after Frank McCourt that is..... LOL).

 

[blueharvest]

Chicago Cubs Could Attempt to Sign World Series Ace in MLB Free Agency

The Chicago Cubs head into the offseason looking to improve their weaknesses and bolster their strengths, just like every other team in Major League Baseball.

www.yardbarker.com

 

[InCali]

Chicago Cubs Could Attempt to Sign World Series Ace in MLB Free Agency

The Chicago Cubs head into the offseason looking to improve their weaknesses and bolster their strengths, just like every other team in Major League Baseball.

www.yardbarker.com

So, a couple of things. First off, if the Dodgers starting rotation can get healthy, and it's admittedly a big question mark, losing Flaherty wouldn't be a huge loss for them (but it would definitely hurt some). Next year, they will have Ohtani, Glasnow, Yamamoto, May, Gonsolin, Kershaw, and Buehler. While Kershaw may be finished, I wouldn't count him out just yet. That being said, he certainly can't be counted on to be injury free.

Here's the other thing. Rumor has it that the Dodgers have their eye on Roki Sasaki. For those of you who aren't familiar with him, he's probably the top pitcher in Japan and appears to want to play in the MLB. He's believed to have a contract that allows him to choose where he wants to play. He's 22, has a 100MPH fastball, a 92MPH splitter with about a 30 inch drop, strikes out about 13 batters per 9 innings, walks about 2, has a WHIP under .8, and a 1.7 ERA.

At his age and experience level, he would probably get in the neighborhood of 30M per year and he would probably be most comfortable in Dodger blue. So, yeah, Flaherty is a valuable pitcher and would be a good fit for the Cubs, but I think the Dodgers are so deep in starting pitching that it wouldn't be a disaster if they lost him. He's had a great year, but he's also had some not-so-good ones. Let's see how he does tonight. In his last start, he lost about 3-4 MPH off his fastball and didn't look very good, but he's gotten some rest and that'll hopefully give his arm a little more life.

If he can give the Dodgers a win in game 1, they'll have a huge advantage (which can disappear in one bad game....hey, it's the playoffs) going into game 2 and it'll boost his worth in the off season marketplace.

Stay tuned......

EDIT: With a healthy staff, Flaherty would be, at best, the #4 starter in the Dodgers rotation.

 

[InCali]

Holy Fing S***!!!

That game 1 was a great game. I was giving the Yanks their props and Freeman pulled a Kirk Gibson.

Big mistakes by both managers. With 2 strikes, Roberts pulls the infield in and the Yanks take the lead. Then Boone, who I have the utmost respect for, puts in a guy who hasn't pitched in over a month. Freeman just crushed the first pitch.

This has got to let the air out of the Yankees tires. If it doesn't, hats off to them. This was a game they should have won. You can't give these away in a 7 game series. Yanks have got to, got to win game 2.....I know a lot of folks weren't interested in watching this series, but whether you like the teams or not, this was one of the best games on the big stage that I've seen.

 

[Another_Fool]

Great game. Terrible ending for me. Didn't like going to Nestor at the end there. I don't know Tim Hill saves the game but I could've lived with that more.

I'm most concerned about Aaron Judge. He had a really bad at-bat the top of the 9th. Yankees scored the run to go up 3-2 but Judge's struggles really suck right now.

 

[InCali]

Great game. Terrible ending for me. Didn't like going to Nestor at the end there. I don't know Tim Hill saves the game but I could've lived with that more.

I'm most concerned about Aaron Judge. He had a really bad at-bat the top of the 9th. Yankees scored the run to go up 3-2 but Judge's struggles really suck right now.

Yeah......I like Boone and if I was the manager, the Yanks would probably be chillin' in Hawaii, but I didn't like that pitching call. Nor did I like Roberts pulling the infield in after getting 2 strikes with Treinen on the mound. There's no way they try to bunt with a guy on 1st and 3rd with one out, but, hey, baseball is a weird game and sometimes the wrong call ends up being the right call.

 

[blueharvest]

Blue Jays rumored to land Yankees slugger for more than $500 million | Sporting News

The Toronto Blue Jays are in a unique position this offseason. They have the capital to acquire one of the best players in baseball.

www.sportingnews.com

 

[Lily Adler]

 

[InCali]

When the Yanks walked Mookie Betts to load the bases, I told my wife "There's no one I would rather have at the plate than Freddie Freeman". If I need a home run, I want Ohtani, but Ohtani has bad at bats and you can get him to chase pitches outside the strike zone. When he gets one, forget it, it's leaving the yard. Freeman also has power (but less), but is very disciplined at the plate and almost never has a bad at bat; especially in a clutch situation. He almost always makes solid contact and with the bases loaded and down by 1, that's exactly what you need. The pitcher was just trying to get ahead in the count to put pressure on him and try to entice him to chase one later, but put it right in Freeman's wheel house (down and slightly in) and he just killed it. That was a no doubter the second it left the bat.

EDIT: Watch Freeman's reaction right after he hits it. He KNOWS it's gone and is just holding his bat up. That was a 423 foot line drive that got out in a hurry and it didn't matter where he hit it.

 

[blueharvest]

Ohtani-mania: Los Angeles’s Little Tokyo is booming with baseball fans

The superstar Dodgers player has brought a swell of tourists to this endangered historic neighborhood

www.theguardian.com

 

[blueharvest]

 

[InCali]

You could literally feel the air being sucked out of the city when this happened. They are saying the prognosis is good. He had complete mobility with strength in his injured left shoulder. He's also a right-handed thrower (not that it matters this year as he's a FT DH).

As far as last night's game goes, I can't tell you how many times I've seen this happen. Solid pitching by the Dodgers and then constant pressure by the Dodgers offensively. When you make a mistake, they generally make you pay. They just grind pitchers down. I thought Rodon was generally doing okay and was very efficient early, but he made some mistakes and half of the hits went out. Edman's HR was grooved, he got one up to Hernandez, and, for some reason, put a ball over the inside half of the plate to Freeman. Speaking of things I've seen a lot of times, I'll add Dave Roberts yanking his starter too early and getting his team in trouble. The Dodgers are winning, but Roberts is making it difficult.

Game 3 is going to revolve around how well Buehler can command his pitches. His velocity has been good, but he's had a long layoff and I don't see him being able to spot his pitches early. Look for him to have a rough time.