Official 2010 MLB Thread

[FaT_tONle]

Glacial pace is light speed for them. More like a cosmological pace. MLB should just pretend we are still in the 1950's and act as if nothing has changed since.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Glacial pace is light speed for them. More like a cosmological pace. MLB should just pretend we are still in the 1950's and act as if nothing has changed since.

Let's just go with glacial pace, mmmmkay?

 

[FaT_tONle]

Let's just go with glacial pace, mmmmkay?

Not my problem a few billion more years in magnitude is over your head.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Hyperbole doesn't work well if you use jargon.

 

[FaT_tONle]

Hyperbole doesn't work well if you use jargon.

It's not supposed to be jargon and wasn't that much a hyperbole anyhow. Anyone who has had middle school level astronomy knows a cosmological pace is significantly longer than any natural or geological processes on Earth, and that's the pace I feel baseball is moving relative to other things. Sorry you were sleeping that week of science class in grade school.

 

[Kingfish]

Meow.

Anyway, Baseball is treating this like the fifties. With the exception of all those "genius" moves (extra division, wild card, expanded playoffs, home-field advantage, compromising of the postseason schedule to appease network execs, etc.) the attitudes and sensibilities are still rooted in the long, long ago.

Wow. Wonder why people hate Bud Selig after all...

 

[FaT_tONle]

I still think the revenue sharing is the biggest problem. I have been hearing that the big clubs are going to have even more money to spend this year while smaller teams cut back even more. I don't know why we are regressing yet again in that department other than the economic issues. The same 5-6 markets will dominate for the next 50 years. Playoff expansion and wild card is a good thing however. If you don't have at least four teams in each league you may as well just take the top two teams record wise each year in both leagues and go straight to the WS, to put even more credence in 162 games.

 

[Kingfish]

At least then you wouldn't have entire seasons invalidated by a quick little best-of-five series. Expansion was the right idea, but it's not implemented particularly well right now (as in catered to network execs).

 

[FaT_tONle]

You can't do 7, 7, 7 unless you want mid November baseball. Works down there in balmy L.A. Doesn't work in New York and Boston. It's the same in football when a 9-7 team goes to the Superbowl. Teams get hot. Just a fact of life. Going back to two divisions doesn't exactly solve the unbalanced schedule problem since the East coast has the bigger markets. If baseball's whole argument is we don't want to water down the regular season, I say scrap the divisions entirely. Otherwise, expand the playoffs even more with 5 teams each and cut the regular season.

 

[Kingfish]

Under the current format, you can easily do 7,7,7 if you actually start the season on April 1st again instead of pointlessly delaying it to the 7th.

 

[FaT_tONle]

Again, come live up North. Its still in the thirties in the beginning of April up here. April 1st is no less important than October 1st in the grand scheme of things. Besides, the whole point of 5, 7, 7 is to allow small markets to slip by that first round. That's the whole point of the wild card. I get that you American League teams are pissed because you win your division by 10 games or whatever it may be, but if the wild card team comes out of your division you don't even play them. Why is that an issue for you? Haven't the Angels benefited playing the Yanks in best of 5's??? And don't tell me the NL would be better off because there is balance in our league.

 

[Kingfish]

Again, come live up North. Its still in the thirties in the beginning of April up here. April 1st is no less important than October 1st in the grand scheme of things.

Who cares what the weather is like up there on April 1st? Don't start there. Put the opening series in San Diego, Arizona, Seattle, Texas, Atlanta, Florida, etc. Boom, no problem. April 1st is infinitely easier to schedule around than November 1st. If the schedulers are then stupid enough to start, say...the Dodgers at the Phillies, then they're just being even bigger idiots. Starting earlier again would be far better and smoother than running even later every year.

None of this is even mentioning the time that could be saved if they didn't have to take a day off in-between every damn playoff game.

Besides, the whole point of 5, 7, 7 is to allow small markets to slip by that first round. That's the whole point of the wild card. I get that you American League teams are pissed because you win your division by 10 games or whatever it may be, but if the wild card team comes out of your division you don't even play them. Why is that an issue for you? Haven't the Angels benefited playing the Yanks in best of 5's??? And don't tell me the NL would be better off because there is balance in our league.

The Wild Card was invented to make the playoffs longer so MLB could sell the networks more big games. Nothing more, nothing less.

As for why I would mind my team playing a WC from my division. Huh? Not even sure what point you're trying to make there, but it's a ridiculous rule as well. Team with the best record should get to play the WC, regardless. That's just basic slotting. Pretty clear that the only reason that rule exists is so the Yankees/Red Sox, Cardinals/Cubs, and even Dodgers/Giants can't eliminate each other early, setting up bigger Championship series.

 

[FaT_tONle]

The Wild card is usually the second best record in the AL on many occassions. That's why its stupid having Yanks/Sox round one. No one would give a **** if they allowed Angels/A's round one. I get your argument that you hate to see two heavy weights between Yanks/Angels/Sox decided in a best of five, but as I said, I think the Angels have benefited having short series against those teams. I don't mind expansion to 7 if they start earlier, my whole argument is that with the off days and the late start it can't be done. But I don't mind a best of 5 because it allows the small markets a better opportunity to advance.

 

[Dark Donnie]

According to one site:

Pos Player Team GG

P Adam Wainwright StL 1st

C Yadier Molina StL 2nd

1B Adrian Gonzalez SD 2nd

2B Orlando Hudson LA 4th

3B Ryan Zimmerman Was 1st

SS Jimmy Rollins Phi 3rd

OF Matt Kemp LA 1st

OF Shane Victorino Phi 2nd

OF Michael Bourn Hou 1st

Utley is the one glaring miss. Albert and Adrian are debatable...

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Pujols was actually average this year. Only a 1.3 UZR and 0.8 UZR/150. Adrian was much better with a 3.8 UZR and 3.4 UZR/150.

Ryan Theriot and Rafael Furcal had better UZR and UZR/150 than Rollins. I'm having a hard time thinking of other good defensive NL shortstops

 

[Kingfish]

Rollins isn't as bad as Jeter yet, but he is cruising on his reputation. Tulowitzki got robbed by him again.

Orlando Hudson and Ryan Zimmerman are terrible selections. Kouzmanoff should have won at third. Even Casey Blake should have won over Zim. Brandon Phillips beat out Hudson at everything and he didn't get benched for Ronnie Belliard.

 

[Spidey-Bat]

It's not Hudson's fault that Torre fell in love with a crappy player.

 

[omid17]

looks like Griffey going to stay another year with the Seattle

 

[Poeman]

Griffey planning on averaging .200 this upcoming year

 

[Dark Donnie]

Rollins isn't as bad as Jeter yet, but he is cruising on his reputation. Tulowitzki got robbed by him again.

Orlando Hudson and Ryan Zimmerman are terrible selections. Kouzmanoff should have won at third. Even Casey Blake should have won over Zim. Brandon Phillips beat out Hudson at everything and he didn't get benched for Ronnie Belliard.

Rollins was certainly deserving last year as he posted the highest UZR and UZR/150. He was at least in the top 5 in most categories this year....Jeter has won before and not even been close.

Victorino probably shouldn't have gotten it....Utley at 2B is the biggest joke though. No 2B is even close. I think he has a rep as being average...when in reality he's improved his defense tremendously.

Here's Zimmerman's #'s Link He's like 10 points higher then the 2nd place guy.

 

[ChrisBaleBatman]

Griffey is still hanging on. Gotta respect that. I think he could have easily retired years ago and taken the easy way out.

 

[omid17]

dear god, Steve had an affair this chick?

Woman breaks silence about affair with ex-ESPN analyst

 

[omid17]

Braves' Hudson gets 3-year, $28M deal

 

[Immortalfire]

Braves' Hudson gets 3-year, $28M deal

 

[Spidey-Bat]

Now if only they could dump Lowe. That signing didn't get anywhere near the criticism it deserved.