The MLB 2007 Thread

NewYorkSpider said:
How do you know they have that many posts in here? :huh: Is their a way to look?

Congrats to the Red Sox and Cubs on winning the divisions.

Edit: Nevermind Fran
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I actually didn't know you could check other posters posts in said thread? I am so behind.
 
sorry to gloat yankees fans, but that last night was awesome. i seriously didn't think the yanks would lose that game. it feels good to finish the regular season on top. i'm sure i'll be disappointed in the playoffs, but i'm gonna enjoy this moment for a little while.

congrats cubs fans, even gr87.
 
why isnt soriano and his 13 september homers being considered for mvp?
 
If they make it in, the key to the Phillies success in the post-season will be their bullpen. Most notably Tom Gordon, JC Romero, and Brett Myers. If those three can pitch well, and pretty much close out every game after the 6th, or 7th inning, they'll be in pretty good shape. But if something happens, and they're forced to rely on the arms of Jose Mesa or Jeff Geary or Antonio Alfonseca, things could get ugly. Especially against teams with high powered offenses.
 
sinewave said:
sorry to gloat yankees fans, but that last night was awesome. i seriously didn't think the yanks would lose that game. it feels good to finish the regular season on top. i'm sure i'll be disappointed in the playoffs, but i'm gonna enjoy this moment for a little while.

congrats cubs fans, even gr87.
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I don't think you will have anything to be disappointed about.
 
pretty good article on big papi.

ESPN.com's Rob Neyer said:
Papi's been better than you think

Look, I did know that David Ortiz is having a great year. I have to admit, though, that until reading Richard Lally's brain dump today, I didn't realize how great ...

Last night in my local pub, a Boston Red Sox fan -- a great guy, who rather than simply say "Hello," often greets me with his team's latest score as in "5-3, 5-3, we're down by two runs..." -- was bemoaning David Ortiz's disappointing season. "His home runs are down," he said, "he's hurt, he doesn't have Manny [Ramirez] protecting him." Last night in Fenway Park, the apparently washed-up David Ortiz went 4 for 4 in a 5-4 loss to the Twins. He hit his 34th homer and his 51st double and walked in the ninth to reach base safely in nine consecutive plate appearances. This morning in the world as we know it, David Ortiz leads the American League in on-base percentage by 14 points (.444), ranks third in slugging (.615) and leads the AL in OPS (1.059), rendering my friend's comments into one more piece of evidence for the prosecution that Red Sox fans compose one tough room to work ... If I had an MVP vote -- and everyone is thankful that I don't -- Ortiz would rank fourth behind Alex Rodriguez, Magglio Ordonez and Jorge Posada. That's some disappointing season.

From 2003 (his first season with the Sox) through 2006, Ortiz finished fifth, fourth, second and third in the MVP balloting. His OPS+ this season is better than in any of those seasons. Yet I will predict with great confidence that he'll fare worse in the voting this year than he has since joining the Red Sox.

Why? Two reasons, both of them related to perception as much as performance.

One, there's a perception -- as articulated by Lally's friend at the pub -- that Ortiz simply isn't the dangerous hitter that we've come to expect. After all, he's hit only 34 home runs. That's one objective truth. Here are others: he's batting .330, he leads the American League in walks, and he's got 51 doubles. All of which add up to a 1.059 OPS, the highest in the league (yes, even higher than A-Rod's).

Two, there's a perception that Ortiz isn't delivering in the clutch as we've come to expect. After all, it's all those clutch hits that got him noticed in the first place. Remember, in 2005, Red Sox owner John Henry presented Ortiz with a plaque that named him "The Greatest Clutch Hitter in the History of the Red Sox." OK, so that was a bit over the top ... but all Ortiz did was come back in 2006 and deliver a bunch more game-winners.

This year, though? Not so much. He's got just one walk-off homer all season (in this game). He's actually done well in most "clutch" situations this season ... except the most visible situation: when the game's been "late and close" -- that is, with the Red Sox tied, ahead by one, or the tying run at least on deck -- Ortiz has batted .263 with just the one home run in 89 plate appearances. By comparison, in 2005 he hit 11 late-and-close homers.

That doesn't bother me, and it shouldn't bother anybody else. After all, all of Ortiz's hits before the seventh inning count, too. But Ortiz just hasn't been showing up on SportsCenter this season as we're used to, and that's going to hurt him in the MVP balloting. He's a victim of his own past success. There's simply no way that he could continue to do, year in and year out, what he's done in the last inning of close games. Even if he really does have some sort of magical clutch ability, he was bound to have a down year eventually, if only because the sample sizes are small.

Make no mistake, though: while Ortiz isn't going to get a lot of love from the baseball writers this weekend when they're filling out their MVP ballots, when you watch him in October you'll still be watching one of the most devastating hitters in the game.
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http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?name=neyer_rob
 
So is that playoff pool still on? The A.L is pretty much set no? My early predictions for the A.L playoffs

ALDS:

Red Sox vs Angels

Winner: Red Sox 3-2

Yankees vs Indians

Winner: Indians 3-2

ALCS:

Indians vs Red Sox

Winner: Indians 4-2

Just something magical about those teams in the Central. I'm probably way off but we'll see.
 
the indians are the only team i'd want to win it all if the sox can't do it.
 
I was over my friend's house but it seems the Met game was crazy. There was a bench clearing fight. Plus the Mets scored 11 runs and Maine has struck out 13.

If the Phillies lose (which is very possible since Eaton sucks), it will be a tie.
 
The Mets are angry.

Shame they weren't angry a week ago.
 
They may have been juiced from the benches clearing. The Phillies have possibly the worst starter in baseball pitching for them today.
 
Why, in Gods name, do they still have Eaton starting?

I'd easily take Durbin over him.
 
Eaton already got hooked. The glorious Philly bullpen is going to have to keep them in the game.
 
Oh the irony! The Padres were winning 3-2 in the bottom of the 9th. They were up to their final strike with a guy on 2nd and Tony Gywnn, Jr. hit a triple to tie it.


UPDATE: Phillies gagged today so they're tied with the Mets again.
 
Phillies need to win tommorow....The Mets don't deserve a trip to the playoffs
 
So, Dan, the Phillies were really dominant today, weren't they?
 
I see it coming down to a tie when its all said and done....what happens then...one game playoff?
 
I think so, not sure how they decide who gets home field. Guess it would be whoever won the season series.
 
darkdonnie said:
Phillies need to win tommorow....The Mets don't deserve a trip to the playoffs
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Phills don't deserve it... most people in that city could care less about that team. Hopefully its Pedro, Orlando, Wagner sealing the deal on Monday.
 
darkdonnie said:
Phillies need to win tommorow....The Mets don't deserve a trip to the playoffs
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The Phillies don't deserve it either if they gag.

If there's a tie, there will be a playoff game on Monday at Philly. It will be Pedro vs. Kyle Kendrick (unless Manuel has Hamels go on short rest).

Patent Pending said:
I think so, not sure how they decide who gets home field. Guess it would be whoever won the season series.
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There was a coin flip earlier in the month. It will be at Citizen's Bank. You may say the Phillies have the advantage since it's at home but the Mets have been better on the road all season.

FaT_tONle said:
Phills don't deserve it... most people in that city could care less about that team. Hopefully its Pedro, Orlando, Wagner sealing the deal on Monday.
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I wasn't going to say this since it's me, but you're right about the fans. Most of them don't care about the Phillies which is unfortunate. I'm not accusing anyone here of being them, but the majority of the people who go to the games couldn't care less about the Phillies.

I have a cousin in Philly. He said that when the Phillies were only 1 back, all that was being talked on TV and the radio was the Eagles. He also jokes that there are no Phillies fans, just Eagles fans who go to the wrong stadium.
 
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