MLB 2013 Thread

[Evil Vito]

I thought Milledge had the potential to be very good. Not a HOFer or anything, but a guy who could provide a steady bat in the lineup and a decent glove. Maybe a few All Star appearances here and there. I realized he had "attitude issues" that would have been blown out of proportion in NY, but I figured he'd get through it.

I was devastated when they traded him to the Nats for Ryan Church and Brian Schneider. I thought it was way too early to give up on him, especially since they sent him to a division rival only got marginal pieces in return. It's obvious Willie Randolph didn't like him. I envisioned him killing the Mets for years, but fortunately the trade was a flop for the Nats too.

[Evil Vito]

Also, Blastings Thrilledge was a fantastic nickname.

[The Condor]

Ah, thank you. I remember for a week or two he was all over the place but you could see the holes in his game as well as his attitude.

[The Condor]

Just saw that the Yankees put Youk on the 60 day DL and picked up Travis Ishikawa. Whatever

[RoXer]

There was a piece on him on dead spin last year, I'll find it later l

[The Condor]

There was a piece on him on dead spin last year, I'll find it later l

Mill edge or Travis Ishikawa?

[RoXer]

Milledge playing in japan

[RoXer]

It wasn't about him specifically but he was featured

[RoXer]

http://deadspin.com/5947031/cheerleaders-endless-chants-and-fan+created-performance-art-why-baseball-games-in-the-far-east-feel-like-college-football-games

[RP]

HUGE game for the Cubs. Need another monster from Garza.

[Frank Drebin]

What about Travis Wood? :p

[The Condor]

http://deadspin.com/5947031/cheerleaders-endless-chants-and-fan+created-performance-art-why-baseball-games-in-the-far-east-feel-like-college-football-games

Cool piece. Nice to know Milledge found his place in a way.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I remember Milledge was set to be involved in a trade for Manny like 500 times, most notably at the 2005 trade deadline. The Sox were said to be so set on dealing Manny that the Mets were thought to have offered only Mike Cameron and Milledge and the Sox nearly went for it.

Getting Manny probably would have put the Mets into the 2005 playoffs. They came really close without him. But then again they probably wouldn't have gone on to trade for Delgado in the off-season, which could have altered the hella fun 2006 season.</font>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>NL Home Run Derby team:
David Wright
Carlos Gonzalez
Michael Cuddyer
Bryce Harper

AL Home Run Derby team:
Robinson Cano
Prince Fielder
Chris Davis
TBA

I don't even need to know who the 4th AL guy is to know the AL will be winning comfortably.</font>

[screech]

Michael Cuddyer? Is that for real?

[Frank Drebin]

Hope for an injury. blech. Why not Pedro Alvarez?

Other than that, love Wright/Cano for home town love, and everyone wants to see Harper. Hope the last pick is Trout or Machado as another phenom to go "against" Harper. Probably Miggy or Joey Bats though.

[Bad News Gertner]

Edwin Encarnacion better be the 4th. E5 swings with bad intentions

[Evil Vito]

Michael Cuddyer? Is that for real?

<font color=goldenrod>Wright said he and Cuddyer were childhood friends. So this is his "wildcard pick" so to speak. Would have personally preferred to see Alvarez, Brown, or Goldschmidt though.

Can't go wrong with CarGo (NL HR leader) or Harper (fan vote leader) though.</font>

[DaveBrawl]

4th AL should end up being Verlander just for curiosity sake since he wanted to do it and all and people would watch just to see the pitcher bat.

[The Fraze]

VOTE PENCE

[Bad News Gertner]

STEVE DELABAR!!!!!

[Skippord]

I love Cuddy to death and do not understand why he is on the Home Run Derby team

[Skippord]

Also, vote Ian Desmond for the final vote

[Frank Drebin]

Gonna vote 3rd party and go with Ralph Nader.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Happy that the Mets were finally able to win one of those marathon games. They were 0-for-3 this year of games 15 innings or longer.</font>

[screech]

Phillies are an odd case this year. They're not good enough to be in the hunt, but not bad enough to be out of it. Not sure if it'd be better to buy or sell at the deadline.

[screech]

Would like them to go for a bat, though. Is Giancarlo Stanton still mad enough to be lured outta Miami?

[The Condor]

The Marlins demands for Stanton would be so high as to make the Phillies the Yankees essentially. Trade away 4-5 of your better prospects and hold onto aging guys like Rollins, Utley, Halladay, Howard and soon enough Ruiz will be in the same category. If I were the Phillies I would try to sell the veteran parts off and do a rebuilding with young guys from other organizations. The NL West and Central logjams are probably making some of these teams desperate enough to make a big trade acquisition splash and the Phillies are the perfect partner for that, in my opinion.

[The Condor]

Plus, it's not like the Phil's are small market. They could swing some free agents in, Im sure during the hot stove season

[screech]

I was kinda joking about Stanton. Pipe dream at best.

Michael Young might be the best trade bait right now. Seems crazy.

[Skippord]

I can't wait till the Dodgers trade two minor league relievers for Michael Young

[The Condor]

I was kinda joking about Stanton. Pipe dream at best.


My bad, screech. As a Yankees fan I'm used to people throwing out ridiculous trade/FA ideas without the slightest hint of a joking tone.

[screech]

I can't wait till the Dodgers trade two minor league relievers for Michael Young

:(

[Skippord]

well it is what they do :'(

[Innovator]

My bad, screech. As a Yankees fan I'm used to people throwing out ridiculous trade/FA ideas without the slightest hint of a joking tone.
What are you talking about, I swear Seattle will go for the Hughes/Joba for Felix plus PTBNL

[screech]

Hard to let that deal get away, really

[Triple Naitch]

I really wanna see the Phillies trade Papelbon to the Tigers for Nick Castellanos. Win-Win right there.

[Damian Rey]

Position player for a closer? Hard sell.

[RoXer]

It sucks to be Supreme


<iframe src='http://wapc.mlb.com/shared/video/embed/embed.html?content_id=28729037&width=400&height=224&property=mlb' width='400' height='224' frameborder='0'>Your browser does not support iframes.</iframe>

[Triple Naitch]

Position player for a closer? Hard sell.

Yeah, but closer is basically the Tiger's only need. Getting Pap cements that bullpen and makes them WS favorites.

[Damian Rey]

They're WS favorites anyways. It's not like they're the Nationals right now, who are hoping for a hot streak. They're in first, they've been there virtually all year, and not much is going to change, seeing as, despite both Cleveland and KC getting better, they're not going to overthrow an immensely talented Tigers team.

Not to mention, Benoit has been absolutely dominating. 1.73 era, 11.4 k/9, 1.04 whip. By God, he's been fuckign amazing. Detroit doesn't need a closer. They just need to let Benoit pitch the 9th.

[Triple Naitch]

Then you make the rest of your bullpen weaker by taking him out of the 8th. They're not exactly running away with that division. Blowing 9th inning leads against KC and CLE will kill them.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Shaun Marcum done for the year. Finishes with a 1-10 record. Damn. Sandy may as well have wiped his ass with that $4 million.</font>

[The Condor]

No Vaughn, Roberto Alomar, Luis Castillo, et al... Love the Mets

[The Condor]

Mostly because the Yankees are worse with moves like that but manage to get some championships and even playoff appearances.

[ClockShot]

Word going around is that MLB is going to hand out suspensions to Ryan Braun, Alex Rodriguez, and as many as 20 others due to their involvement with the Biogenesis scandal.

Braun and A-Rod could be looking at 100 game suspensions.

From mlbtraderumors.com

[Innovator]

Perfect timing.

[Emperor Smeat]

According to ESPN, at least with Braun its because he still is refusing to answer any questions related to PEDs to the point MLB no longer wants to waste their time with him.

At least 10 guys are rumored to be getting the 100 games while the other 10 would just get the 50 games either because they admitted to it or didn't bother stalling.

[Frank Drebin]

Ill bitch about my tickets, but today I went to the park on a nice summer night and saw the next Mickey Mantle (Mike Trout), a future HOFer in Pujols, and a crazy story complete with comeback in Josh Hamilton.

Travis Wood was dealing again.

[The Condor]

Travis "Gives Drebin" Wood

[Bad News Gertner]

Fuck I hate my Jays. Can't even remember being this frustrated with my Leafs.

[ClockShot]

There used to be a time we could beat the Royals with ease. Even with a depleted roster.

[Frank Drebin]

Travis "Gives Drebin" Wood

I'm sure I have an old "We got Wood" tshirt from the Kerry Wood days around here somewhere. I'll wear it, and only it, just for you.

[RP]

Break up the Cubs!

Oh wait. They're going to.

[road doggy dogg]

I really wanna see the Phillies trade Papelbon to the Tigers for Nick Castellanos. Win-Win right there.

Win-win for the Phillies, right? That would be a terrible trade.

[Bad News Gertner]

Jays got shut out last night by Ubaldo Jimenez

Yup. That happened.

[road doggy dogg]

Tigers gave up 23 hits to the White Sox.

At home.

With Verlander pitching.

Alex Rios had 6 hits.

Sports makes sense.

[Innovator]

What happened to Verlander this year, rdd? Is his velocity down or just getting hit more?

[road doggy dogg]

http://www.fangraphs.com/statss.aspx?playerid=8700&position=P

His K/9 is still very, very good. He is a power pitcher who still can throw it past guys better than almost anyone. The velocity IS down a touch but it clearly hasn't had too much of an effect. He can still dial it up to the high 90s if need be, even late in games. One of the "trademarks" of JV has always been his ability to almost seamlessly switch from a 98 mph fastball to 91 mph and back again, within 3 pitches. He hasn't lost that, though I don't think he's been throwing any 101mph pitches in the 8th inning this season (much like he did last year).

What is alarming to me is his BB/9 and BABIP stats. His walk rate is way above his normal.

The BABIP suggests bad defense, but that isn't exactly a startling revelation with this Tigers club. Though I think it shows more that he's been "unlucky" this season as opposed to seasons past where he's been much "luckier" in terms of balls hit in play. Interestingly, Scherzer has a .266 BABIP this season. Also oddly, Scherzer tends to get much better run support. Maybe the team just plays better when Scherzer's on the mound? /shrug Maybe JV is a dick.

I mean.. his home runs and ground ball rate are still very good. He hasn't even really been pitching badly. He had an issue with his mechanics earlier in the season that's supposedly been fixed with the pitching coach, and he has had a couple good outings since then (before last night).

I think it's mostly a combination of simple regression from human cyborg pitcher to just human pitcher, getting his dick wet with Kate Upton, and the millions upon millions of dollars he is swimming in. IDK. I'm not really worried, let's see how he pitches in September before raising any alarms imo.

[Damian Rey]

God damnit, RDD. I offered nearly the same exact analyses a few pages back, you swine!

He's only walking one extra batter per 9. It's not like his walk rate has doubled. Maybe that one walk per is hurting him, but, like you said, k/9 is great, babip is high, walks are a bit. Nothing really wrong, imo.

Although, I find it funny how easy it is for nobodies like all of us to go on baseball reference, look at his numbers, and realise that walking an extra batter every 9 innings and seeing a spike in his babip is really the reason behind Verlander's "off" year, but, on MLB Network, schlub analyst Mitch Williams is busy breaking down three videos of Verlander's delivery that look completely identical, and reaching to show us "why" Verlander was different in each one. Schmucks, some of these guys are.

[road doggy dogg]

Oh, I tend not to really actually *read* these gargantuan threads, and maybe only check the previous 10 or so posts before chiming in with my ALMIGHTY VOICE OF REASON. It is a behavioural problem I have had since my internet forum posting infancy.

Anyway. I agree, I don't think anything is "wrong" per se, we're just so used to such a high standard with JV that him posting "pedestrian" numbers seems unnatural to what we're accustomed to. Compounded in that is the huge contract extension he just received, so people expect/demand him to keep up at an incredibly unsustainable pace.


And yeah, sportscasters in general are kind of dopes. It amazes me how some people get these jobs.

[Bad News Gertner]

Have you ever listen to Buck Martinez and Pat Tabler contradict themselves 50 over a game?

Still better than Jamie Campbell.

[Emperor Smeat]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>David Ortiz has broken the all-time MLB record for hits by a DH. Ortiz now has 1,689 career hits as a DH, 1 more than Harold Baines.</p>&mdash; ESPN Stats &amp; Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/statuses/355154872158519299">July 11, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Bad News Gertner]

Kawasaki!!!!

[Corndad]

#LetsGoBucs

[The Condor]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>David Ortiz has broken the all-time MLB record for hits by a DH. Ortiz now has 1,689 career hits as a DH, 1 more than Harold Baines.</p>&mdash; ESPN Stats &amp; Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/statuses/355154872158519299">July 11, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

I would still take Edgar and Molitor in their primes over Ortiz in his

[Frank Drebin]

Paul Molitor was a pimp. Feel like this generation has largely forgotten him.

[The Condor]

Paul Molitor was a pimp. Feel like this generation has largely forgotten him.

Undoubtedly. I remember as a kid watching him in Toronto and then Minnesota. Guy was about 40 and still lit it up at the plate.

[Skippord]

Have you ever listen to Buck Martinez and Pat Tabler contradict themselves 50 over a game?

Still better than Jamie Campbell.
Buck Martinez sounds exactly like Rockies color commentator George Frazier

it's super jarring whenever I watch Blue Jays broadcasts

[ClockShot]

He's baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack!

[Innovator]

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,
The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won,
The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,
While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;
But O heart! heart! heart!
O the bleeding drops of red,
Where on the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;
Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills,
For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding,
For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;
Here Captain! dear father!
This arm beneath your head!
It is some dream that on the deck,
You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,
My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,
The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,
From fearful trip, the victor ship comes in with object won;
Exult O shores, and ring O bells!
But I with mournful tread,
Walk the deck my Captain lies,
Fallen cold and dead.

[Innovator]

Minus the cold and dead part, JETERRRRRRRRRRRRRR

[road doggy dogg]

I admit to feeling really bad over sweeping the ALCS last year because of the Jeter injury. Nobody wants to win that way.

[Innovator]

Eh don't worry, the rest of the team sucked. They finished the season hot, then the bats showed up ice cold for the playoffs.

[road doggy dogg]

It's pretty remarkable just how well they're playing this season, considering the injuries they've suffered and some of the god-awful talent they're fielding some days. That team would be scary if even one or two of those major injuries hadn't occurred.

[Innovator]

The pitching is really what has kept them going. The 5-9 hitters could have been the worst 5-9 in the AL, 4-9 depending on if Hafner or Wells are in there.

[The Condor]

SuperNova may have found his groove. Definitely a big + for the good guys.

[Innovator]

IchiroJeter
Cano
Wells
Overbay
Almonte
Nunez
Cruz
Romine

[Skippord]

Derek Jeter's the second best shortstop who wears the number 2 to make his glorious return today

[Innovator]

Jeter singles in his first at bat, all is right.

[RoXer]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>If Jeter plays well this weekend, he should make All-Star Game. <a href="https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Puig&amp;src=hash">#Puig</a></p>&mdash; Batting Stance Guy (@BattingStanceG) <a href="https://twitter.com/BattingStanceG/statuses/355220515000029185">July 11, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Triple Naitch]

I would still take Edgar and Molitor in their primes over Ortiz in his

Lol get out of here. Check out Ortiz's numbers from 2003-07. Top 5 in MVP every year. Edgar only finished in the top 5 once in his career. No one is better at DH than Big Papi.

[Bad News Gertner]

Stupid fucking Blue Jays

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Freddie Freeman and Steve Delabar win the Final Vote. Matt Moore replaces Yu Darvish on the roster.</font>

[Innovator]

#HighSocksGotRobbed

[Bad News Gertner]

YYYYYYYYYYYYEAH BUDDY!!!!!


Steve Delabar!!!!

[Adder]

https://si0.twimg.com/profile_images/895173426/Curry1_ehwallop_normal.jpgJack Curry ✔ @JackCurryYES (https://twitter.com/JackCurryYES)
<iframe allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" src="http://platform.twitter.com/widgets/follow_button.1372833608.html#_=1373580435991&id=twitter-widget-1&lang=en&partner=null&screen_name=JackCurryYES&show_count=false&show_screen_name=false&size=m" class="twitter-follow-button twitter-follow-button" title="Twitter Follow Button" data-twttr-rendered="true" style="padding: 0px; margin: 0px; font-size: 12px; line-height: 16px; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Arial, sans-serif; vertical-align: baseline; list-style: none; border-width: 0px; outline: rgb(0, 0, 0); ██████████ absolute; top: 6px; right: 8px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255); width: 60px; height: 20px;"></iframe>Jeter injured quad running to 1st in the third at bat. Said he has to wait on the MRI and he is "hoping for the best."
<time pubdate="" class="dt-updated" datetime="2013-07-11T20:20:51+0000" title="Time posted: 11 Jul 2013, 20:20:51 (UTC)">1:20 PM - 11 Jul 2013</time> (https://twitter.com/JackCurryYES/statuses/355421449156165633)

[RoXer]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>ESPN's Jayson Stark reports Yasiel Puig will start All Star Game over Matt Harvey.</p>&mdash; MLB Fake Rumors (@MLBFakeRumors) <a href="https://twitter.com/MLBFakeRumors/statuses/355450726887075841">July 11, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[parkmania]

Hope for an injury. blech. Why not Pedro Alvarez?


Ask and ye shall receive:

Alvarez replaces CarGo in HR Derby (http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20130711&content_id=53461900&vkey=news_mlb&c_id=mlb)

[The Condor]

Lol get out of here. Check out Ortiz's numbers from 2003-07. Top 5 in MVP every year. Edgar only finished in the top 5 once in his career. No one is better at DH than Big Papi.

I don't think that's an LOL argument. Ortiz went from bench player in Minnesota to steroids in Boston hitting in front if another steroided beast. All during those peak years. Why does Papi get a pass on the 'roids?

[DaveWadding]

The Cubs and the city reached an agreement to put up a fucking JumboTron in Wrigley. Fuck my life.

[DaveBrawl]

I don't think that's an LOL argument. Ortiz went from bench player in Minnesota to steroids in Boston hitting in front if another steroided beast. All during those peak years. Why does Papi get a pass on the 'roids?
Because he's lovable.

[road doggy dogg]

So since it's Friday and I'm wittling down the week 'til the weekend I figured I'd check on my futures bets and see where I'm at...

Toronto under 89
Currently on pace for: 78
This one seemed like a no-brainer from the start. Got a little shaken during the big win streak but it was ridiculous to think they'd improve by like 15 wins from last year. Next year though I think they'll be better.

Texas over 86.5
Currently on pace for: 93
I think this one will pull through. Yu Darvish etc etc etc

LA Angels under 91.5
Currently on pace for: 79
Thank god they don't play my Tigers every week, they've been crushing us this season inexplicably.

Detroit over 92.5
Currently on pace for: 89
Was a homer pick anyway. I like to have at least one so I have more excitement cheering on the team season-long. Besides, they still have 15 games against the White Sox (even though they incredibly just lost a series against them) so the number can be skewed a bit. SHMEH


Looks like the only one that I'm probably going to miss on is the Tigers, and even then they'll still cruise to an AL Central title so it's win-win for me.

[Bad News Gertner]

Jays fail to sign their first round pic Phil Bickford.

Good times.

[Frank Drebin]

Theyl have two first rounders next year including #11 though, right?

[Emperor Smeat]

Yeup, according to S.I.'s article they are guaranteed the #11 pick as compensation.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Good lord Terry Collins is an idiot. Jeremy Hefner's been amazing lately, tonight included. 78 pitches through 7 innings. Collins pinch hits for him in the bottom of the 7th in a tie game.</font>

[YOUR Hero]

Jays fail to sign their first round pic Phil Bickford.

Good times.
you read anything that says what happened to cause the failure to sign?

[Bad News Gertner]

Yeah, he was asking WAY over slot. It did allow them to sign a couple other guys who were considered hard signs in Brentz and Tellez who has big power potential so I hope not all is lost.

[Skippord]

Lol Rowdy Tellez!!!

[Bad News Gertner]

Greatest name ever

[Shisen Kopf]

So since it's Friday and I'm wittling down the week 'til the weekend I figured I'd check on my futures bets and see where I'm at...

Toronto under 89
Currently on pace for: 78
This one seemed like a no-brainer from the start. Got a little shaken during the big win streak but it was ridiculous to think they'd improve by like 15 wins from last year. Next year though I think they'll be better.

Texas over 86.5
Currently on pace for: 93
I think this one will pull through. Yu Darvish etc etc etc

LA Angels under 91.5
Currently on pace for: 79
Thank god they don't play my Tigers every week, they've been crushing us this season inexplicably.

Detroit over 92.5
Currently on pace for: 89
Was a homer pick anyway. I like to have at least one so I have more excitement cheering on the team season-long. Besides, they still have 15 games against the White Sox (even though they incredibly just lost a series against them) so the number can be skewed a bit. SHMEH


Looks like the only one that I'm probably going to miss on is the Tigers, and even then they'll still cruise to an AL Central title so it's win-win for me.

Tigers will be better second half. I think they'll win 93-97 games

[The Condor]

I like Detroit's chances of coming near 93 wins or so. Especially if Verlander picks it up a bit in the second half. Verlander, Scherzer, Fister is pretty good three and that offense speaks for itself. I don't expect them to continue scuffling like they did for 5 months last year.

[Frank Drebin]

They have 22 games left against the White Sox and Twins, so....yeah.

[road doggy dogg]

Yeah the schedule was weird this year. This past week was their first series against the Sox, and it's July. :wtf: Somehow they managed to drop 2 of 3 though, lolwut. They do this every year though. I'm actually kinda happy for the Tribe to be contending still at this point but by August they'll be effectively out of the hunt

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Tigers will go far this year with that pitching starting. I imagine they'll make a move to bring a reliever in at the deadline as well.

They've reportedly been interested in Bobby Parnell for ages. Not sure the Mets would move him though unless he was a part of a trade package for an impact bat. He's still under team control for 2 more years and seems like he could be the closer of the future now that he's developed beyond just throwing 100 MPH with no movement.</font>

[road doggy dogg]

A closer with a 100mph fastball and nothing else? We already have that with Rondon! I'm actually cautiously optimistic with Benoit in the closer role right now (never been a Benoit guy), but the rest of their pen is atrocious. If we could pitch Smyly 2 innings in relief every game we'd be set... haha

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Parnell was all about the fastball and was getting burned regularly because of it, but when the Mets brought back Jason Isringhausen in 2011 he taught Parnell the knucklecurve and Parnell's been amazing since then. Actually allowed him to focus on pitching rather than just throwing. Quadruple F (fat fuck Frank Francisco)'s been starting rehab again but I don't really see a point in even bringing him back to the Major League roster. Parnell's not gonna lose the closer role at this point.

Jesse Crain will probably be the most sought after reliever on the market. Wouldn't be surprised if the Sox try to overcharge Detroit though since it's a division rival.</font>

[Damian Rey]

Frank can just be used in low leverage, mop up situations.

I hate saying it, because they were so fucking hot for so long, but it has come time for my Padres to sell, and, because I like to read all of my great ideas, I'm going to state who they should trade, and what they absolutely need to look for in return.

Chase Headley has got to go. They likely missed a huge opportunity to move him in the off season, and waiting has lead to Headley's value likely being a lot less than it was a year ago. But I still think he has a ton of value since 3rd base is a black hole in the National League. And he's not going to hit in the 230s all year.

If/when they move Chase, they need to prioritize getting back a legitimate top of the rotation starter who's close to being MLB ready, if he isn't already. Part of the problem this year with the Padres, especially in the current slump, is that their starting pitching has been abysmal. Andrew Cashner has been solid until a recent slump, but he was never a starter until the Cubs toyed with the idea, and the Padres got serious about it last year. He's definitely got the upside to be a really good #2, but they need to add another arm that's close and further along the development timeline than Cash.

Kyle Blanks. I don't think they will trade him in season, namely due to all the position player injuries and because he's been the second best offensive player on the team while filling in. But, with Yonder Alonso back, Blanks has to move to the outfield to get consistent reps, and local manager Buddy Black enjoys benching Blanks in favor of out machines Will Venable, Jesus Guzman, Alexi Amarista, and Mark Kotsay. It's infuriating, because Blanks could legitimately hit for more power than anyone not named Quentin on the team, but his future looks bleak if there's no first base opening. I'd shop him to a team, likely AL, as a DH/1B bat with pop, and try to recoup a young arm.

Luke Gregerson. He's been worked a ton, maybe even a bit overworked, but still sports a 3.00 era, 4/1 k/bb ratio, 8k/9, 1.05 whip, with 3 saves, and 11 games finished total. I can see him being extremely attractive to a team like Detroit, who could use one more reliable late inning reliever with a good track record (Gregerson career 2.93 era, 9.1k/9, 3/1 k/bb ratio, 1.1 whip) and, considering they are legit contenders to win the World Series, will likely be not balk, depending on the player or players to be given up. I don't know their system, but, you could never have enough pitching.

Chris Denorfia. Love this guy. Absolutely love him. Does a little of everything. Can play all three outfield positions, runs the bases well, gets on base, hits for decent average. Really nice player for a team looking for an extra bat with some versatility and the ability to rake lefties and be well above average. He's 32, so there's no upside, but he's got great secondary skills.

I'm begging for the Padres to make a move. Whether that's a move to improve the rotation this year, even though I think they're well, well out of it, or a move to improve not just this year, but a handful of years in the long run, by all means, PLEASE, PADRES!

[The Condor]

Damian Rey, your analysis of the Padres is not only clever and insightful but refreshing as a lot of fans do not like to be honest about their teams. Good stuff. Also, the last 2 weeks I have not been able to watch an SD game. Seems I missed nothing but ugliness.

[Damian Rey]

Thanks, Edgar. I actually went to school to study journalism, with an emphasis on broadcasting. I eventually found analyses much more fun, especially with all the new advance metrics coming out.

Appreciate the comment, man.

And yeah, it's been so bad. Heartbreaking, because there was a legitimate moment where I was telling myself that making a move to get a solid starter would actually make sense. Oh well. Their offense is good when healthy. I expect good things next year when their Tommy John victims get back in the rotation.

[Skippord]

Tyler Chatwood pitched incredibly today and still lost

fucking Rockies and their great pitching but terrible offense

[DaveWadding]

A-Rod could be facing a 150 game suspension for this Biogenesis thing. :eek:

[Skippord]

I've never rooted so hard for someone to lose a no hitter as I am right now

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Tim Lincecum no-hitter</font>

[Emperor Smeat]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Tim Lincecum lost in Homer Bailey's no-hitter. The only pitcher who was the loser in a no-no &amp; then threw the NEXT one was Mal Eason (1906).</p>&mdash; ESPN Stats &amp; Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/statuses/356274116434722817">July 14, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>


A-Rod could be facing a 150 game suspension for this Biogenesis thing. :eek:
Was wondering why it went up and apparently the MLB uncovered soo much stuff and dirt on him that he could have been banned for life if MLB felt it. CBS Sports hinted the 150 suspension is MLB being "nice" instead while also getting rid of him for almost another year.

[The Fraze]

"IT'S A NO HITTER FOR TIM LINCECUM" Watch the final out http://t.co/TdoMtbZvfe #SFGiants (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23SFGiants&src=hash) #FreakNOHitter (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23FreakNOHitter&src=hash)
— San Francisco Giants (@SFGiants) July 14, 2013 (https://twitter.com/SFGiants/statuses/356285609674936320)
<script async="" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[The Fraze]

FreaKKKKKKKKKKKKK

<iframe src="//instagram.com/p/bvFzshhmcu/embed/" allowtransparency="true" frameborder="0" height="710" scrolling="no" width="612"></iframe>

[ClockShot]

I'll be damned, The Freak still got a little magic in him.

And this was gonna be the year clubs will either see him as a starter or a closer in the future when his contract is up after this season.

[ClockShot]

Oh, and I see Scherzer got one in the loss column.

[The Condor]

Was wondering why it went up and apparently the MLB uncovered soo much stuff and dirt on him that he could have been banned for life if MLB felt it. CBS Sports hinted the 150 suspension is MLB being "nice" instead while also getting rid of him for almost another year.

I hope he never plays again. I hit my A-Rod fatigue/hate a few years ago and now I just wish he would go away.

[Damian Rey]

Thank God Scherzer lost. Not that I was rooting against him, because, personally, I've always liked him, thought the Tigers hosed the DBacks when they moved him, and am glad he's been so good.

But...I'm sick and tired of hearing how he's so good because he's undefeated, when Scherzer himself has stated several times his win loss record is more of a fluke than anything of his doing because of so many other factors taken into it.

And fuck me, but is the All Star break here yet? The Padres have looked fucking awful for two weeks plus now. The starting pitching is abysmal, the bullpen, and the few good arms that are in there, are taxed because no one can go more than 5 plus innings, and the offense has been abysmal.

Also, cue the silly "the Freak is back" talk that is surely to follow after the no hitter.

[Damian Rey]

I hope he never plays again. I hit my A-Rod fatigue/hate a few years ago and now I just wish he would go away.

I hope we see ARod again. I have a hard time seeing the union allowing MLB to suspend anyone without any real, tangible proof of drug use outside of testimony of a desperate, dire drug pusher who only agreed to talk to MLB officials when getting to the end of his rope.

To be honest, while I condemn the use of PEDs, I try my best to be objective with the players that use them. I don't think PEDs or lack thereof change who ARod was destined to be. Baseball is an extremely specialized skill driven sport. PEDs are not going to improve plate discipline, plate selection, swing path, footwork, etc. Those are skills that are developed and maximized with a combination of immense talent and hard work. PEDs don't effect those. The only thing anyone can factually say PEDs effect is strength and endurance. After that, it's speculation with zero evidence to say otherwise.

Now, with that said, I again state I'd love to see Alex Rodriguez again. He's one of the greatest infielders of all time, would have been the greatest offensive shortstop of all time, and can still be an above average contributor, IMO, if/when he eventually gets back.

[The Condor]

Arod is done I think. I really think his body is too broken down and fragile at this point.

[Damian Rey]

Well, he's playing now. He's not going to be great defensively, but, if his hips are healthy, he can contribute. Jeter has been "done" defensively, for years, and his bat has still played. I think ARod can still contribute. He's gotten far enough to play, I don't see why he can't make another step and get back to the bigs.

[The Condor]

I realize I just don't like ARod the guy, but I'll be damned if he is even a contributor. He can play, sure, so can Marwin Gonzalez and Will Rhymes. ARod will not be a boon to the Yankees if he comes back, it's a gut feeling.

[The Condor]

And I apologize for my lack of hard, scientific evidence.

[Damian Rey]

Lol, it's okay. The way you feel about Arod, I feel about Barry Bonds. Hated that guy.

In better news, Crush Davis just went yard. 37 on the year. Holy fuck. Cabrera has 30. Cabrera has been every bit better this year than he was last year, further proving that the triple crown is a context dependent fluke that Cabrera had zero influence over, therefore making it dumb to vote him MVP simply because of it.

The MVP debate may get even hotter this year than last year. Trout had two blatant disadvantages; he didn't hit for as much power as Cabrera and he missed a month because the Angels are stupid.

This year, Miguel Cabrera is blowing everyone out of the water with a ridiculous 367/458/678 slash line. That's absolutely amazing. Davis' avg/obp is great (313/391), but it's not astoundingly so. His 708 slugging is another story. That's Babe Ruth territory.

[Bad News Gertner]

Josh Johnson can fuck right off

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Fucking awesome seeing Syndergaard and Montero starting opposite each other in the Futures Game. Can't wait for them to hit the big leagues at some point next year.</font>

[Damian Rey]

Hey Vito, you have any info on how Syndergaard has improved over the course of the season to this point? I have read he needs work on throwing a consistently solid off speed or breaking pitch, but info seems limited.

[ClockShot]

I never expected CC Sabathia to have a down year like this.

[Damian Rey]

Other than being a bit more homer prone this year, CC's current line of numbers are pretty much in line with what he's typically done during the course of his career. Not really having a down year, just a bad start for him, today.

[Evil Vito]

Hey Vito, you have any info on how Syndergaard has improved over the course of the season to this point? I have read he needs work on throwing a consistently solid off speed or breaking pitch, but info seems limited.

<font color=goldenrod>Syndergaard's change-up and curveball have both improved. Not big league ready yet but the numbers following his Double A promotion suggest improvement. His best pitch is still his heat, which he can throw between 96 and 98 but he uses his 6'6" frame to create a downward plane on the pitch, really helping out with getting ground balls. He's also been working on a slider.

He still doesn't turn 21 until next month. His heat is electric but I imagine Alderson won't be rushing him. I'm figuring around June/July next year he'll get bumped up to Triple A and MAY get a September call-up in 2014. Otherwise they'll hold off on debuting him until a month or two into 2015.</font>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I don't see Rafael Montero being called up this year, either - although he's more big league ready than Syndergaard. The Mets already have a 40 man roster crunch so I think they'll let Montero finish the year in Triple A and start there again next year.

I think the Mets may already have their 2014 rotation in place, actually. Harvey, Wheeler, Niese, Gee, and Hefner. All under team control for next year so barring somebody being moved in a trade for a bat I think they'll all be back. Gee and Hefner in particular have quietly been outstanding the past month and a half.</font>

[Damian Rey]

For all the issues they have had with guys like Davis, the Mets' pitching looks really, really bright. Harvey is the number 2 pitcher in the National League, and he's barely been around for a year. Wheeler is going to be a 1a for them, and Neise, Syndergaard, etc will fill in a very deep back end of the rotation.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Some more All Star Game changes. Jeff Locke and Jordan Zimmermann scratched on the NL side, replaced with Mark Melancon and Sergio Romo. Freddie Freeman will also miss the game but a replacement has not yet been named.

Justin Verlander will not pitch in the game, and Leyland replaces him with Chris Tillman. Guarantee Leyland didn't look any further than Tillman's 11-3 record, has an ERA pushing 4. Derek Holland sits at home again after just shutting down Leyland's Tigers.</font>

[Boomer]

McCann is replacing Freeman.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Makes sense. Gives the team a 3rd catcher in case an injury happens and doesn't give the Braves fans the shaft.</font>

[Damian Rey]

Pffft. Why have millions of people vote, get a guy in, then, when the guy gets hurt, not put in the second man in the running? I want Puig in the AS game damn it. He's on a tear, people obviously want to see him there, and it's a great way for MLB to continue to showcase it's ridiculously young up and coming talent.

[Skippord]

I wanted Ian Desmond to win that final vote thing really badly

love that guy

[Damian Rey]

I like Desmond, but, oddly enough, short stop in the NL is a pretty solid bunch, at the moment, with Tulo, Desmond, Cabrera and Segura. Unfortunately, Desmond's the odd man out, even though he deserves to go.

There's a ton of snubs, though. Evan Longoria and Josh Donaldson are both having better years than Manny Machado, and neither are going. The All Star game being a popularity contest hurts players, sometimes.

[road doggy dogg]

All Star stuff is boring.

In other news, went to the game today and JV pitched a gem. Had a no-no going for 6.2, ended up with a 7.0 1H 3BB 3K line. Excellent game, my voice is gone after yelling MATT TUIASOSOPO for 3 hours straight.

[Nervous Ferret]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Was told Valdespin had a confrontation with Terry Collins and called the manager a &quot;c - - ksucker&quot; and demanded to be placed on the DL.</p>&mdash; Mike Puma (@NYPost_Mets) <a href="https://twitter.com/NYPost_Mets/statuses/356590265609367556">July 15, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[Damian Rey]

I'm guessing Collins will now send Valdespin to bat and tell him to lean into one. That relationship went down the toilet the minute Collins ran him up to bat knowing Valdespin was going to get plunked. Way to protect your players, you twit.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Collins hates Valdespin. His refusal to play Valdy every day in the first two months when he was shit hot says it all.

But then again Valdy does some really stupid shit when he plays. Lapses in concentration. And his teammates don't respect him. There's a reason not a single Met lifted a finger when he got plunked.</font>

[The Fraze]

http://i.imgur.com/8NvxfEd.gif

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Acid reflux?

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Midseason Awards

NL MVP: Paul Goldschmidt, ARI. The heart and soul of the first place Diamondbacks lineup. Great all around numbers and a shitload of power. Knew he had potential but didn't know he'd be this good.

NL Cy Young: Clayton Kershaw, LAD. Sub-2 ERA at the break to go along with the expected strikeout totals. I LOVE Matt Harvey and think he should start the All Star Game in NY, but Kershaw has been slightly better.

NL Rookie of the Year: Jose Fernandez, MIA. I don't care that the Marlins suck. What this 20 year old kid is doing having never pitched above Single A before this year is astounding. I imagine he'll be shut down by September and Shelby Miller will pass him, but still what a great first half.

NL Manager of the Year: Clint Hurdle, PIT. This is really a no brainer. The Pirates have been good in the first half the past couple of years, but nothing like this. If the Pirates make the playoffs, he's a lock to win the award.

NL Comeback Player of the Year: Marlon Byrd, NYM. Never thought Byrd would be the second best hitter in the Mets lineup. .267/15/50 at the break. Way better than I ever expected and there haven't really been any other clear-cut candidates.

AL MVP: Miguel Cabrera, DET. His numbers are just fucking ridiculous. Can't even begin to imagine what they'll look like at the end of the year. No disrespect intended to Chris Davis, who's right behind him. Still feel like Davis is bound to slow down at some point but it'd be sick to see him go for the HR record.

AL Cy Young: Max Scherzer, DET. Tough choice between him and Felix Hernandez. I don't put a lot of stock in the wins stat, but 13-1 through 19 starts looks sexy. Beyond that, he's got the second lowest WHIP in the league and a boatload of strikeouts. Could see King Felix passing him by before the year is up, though.

AL Rookie of the Year: Cody Allen, CLE. Ugh, can I just leave this blank? Nothing against Mr. Allen but a set-up guy winning ROTY just feels weird. But really as I look up and down the AL there haven't really been any impressive rookie seasons. Now that Profar's back in the big leagues maybe he'll take it over.

AL Manager of the Year: Terry Francona, CLE. Again this seems to be a bit of a no-brainer. He's done a great job of turning the Indians around and keeping them right on Detroit's ass in the AL Central.

AL Comeback Player of the Year: Mariano Rivera, NYY. I don't know why I didn't pick him in my pre-season predictions really. I always assumed he'd be great again, I guess I just sorta looked past his injury. I figured an everyday player like Lance Berkman would have a good campaign and win the honor but it hasn't happened. Mo should get this as a parting gift.</font>

[Bad News Gertner]

Jason Grilli could be considered a comeback player of the year

[Bad News Gertner]

Here's a report from the Futures Game for Noah Syndergaard by Keith Law for you Vito

Syndergaard started for the US in the Futures Game and "didn't disappoint," per Keith Law (ESPN Insider Only). More deets:

- Easy 93-97 velo
- Very clean arm action w/ no trouble repeating
- Threw a couple of solid-average curveballs with good two-plane break and some depth
- Size and delivery point to durability

[Evil Vito]

Jason Grilli could be considered a comeback player of the year

<font color=goldenrod>That would be dumb. He had a very solid season last year for the Pirates. He wasn't their closer, but he had a good year as a set-up guy.

Comeback Player is meant to be for people coming off of really shit years or injuries.</font>

[Evil Vito]

Here's a report from the Futures Game for Noah Syndergaard by Keith Law for you Vito

Syndergaard started for the US in the Futures Game and "didn't disappoint," per Keith Law (ESPN Insider Only). More deets:

- Easy 93-97 velo
- Very clean arm action w/ no trouble repeating
- Threw a couple of solid-average curveballs with good two-plane break and some depth
- Size and delivery point to durability

<font color=goldenrod>So fucking stoked for him.</font>

[ClockShot]

AL Manager of the Year: Terry Francona, CLE. Again this seems to be a bit of a no-brainer. He's done a great job of turning the Indians around and keeping them right on Detroit's ass in the AL Central.

John Farrell and that wacky ass Red Sox team might have something to say about that.

[road doggy dogg]

I think Farrell's gotta get the edge for now. Being that it is just a "midseason award" though Francona would get some consideration. But let's see the Tribe keep it up through August, where they traditionally fall apart.

[Evil Vito]

I think the Red Sox still had a really talented roster going into the year, and in general I has a hard time seeing the team being a massive disappointment again. The Indians meanwhile I thought could be a sneaky team but was nowhere near as confident as I was with the Red Sox being better.

For the year-end award it's gotta go to Francona if the Tribe make the playoffs. But if they fade, Farrell is a good choice.

[ClockShot]

Matt Harvey and Max Scherzer are your starters for the All-Star Game.

[Corndad]

HAHAHAHA

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/V0D8V0dCbf8" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Well...at least Wright got more than Cano.</font>

[The Condor]

Manager of the year should be changed to "Manager that made a shitty team surprisingly competitive award."

[road doggy dogg]

That could be said about any professional sport though. (unless that's your point)

[road doggy dogg]

Cespedes is kind of good at hitting home runs.

[The Condor]

That could be said about any professional sport though. (unless that's your point)

:y:

[road doggy dogg]

Also, good job America on showing why everyone still hates you.

http://deadspin.com/people-were-angry-about-espns-bilingual-interviews-of-794474276

[Bad News Gertner]

Ron the Dial thinks Chris Berman is wonderful during the all-star game.

Want to show him who's boss?

Vote Gertner for King of the Forum

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Some of those Cespedes shots were fucking ridiculous.</font>

[Bad News Gertner]

Steve Delabar's story is amazing.

Broke his elbow in 09
Out of baseball in 2010. Was a sub teacher and coach. Played a game of softball and gave it another shot.
2013 he's a friggen all star. Delabar, McGowan and Cecil all used the weighted ball system in the off season. Check out their ERA's. All under 2.

[Frank Drebin]

Manager of the year should be changed to "Manager that made a shitty team surprisingly competitive award."

Manager of the year is more of a joke than the gold gloves. The criteria seems to simply be "Which team over performed the most" except in the odd cases like Dusty Baker where you must be a good manager when your team has the Cy Young winner (Jason Schmidt) and league MVP (Barry Bonds).

[road doggy dogg]

Ron the Dial thinks Chris Berman is wonderful during the all-star game.

Want to show him who's boss?

Vote Gertner for King of the Forum

That's a pretty serious allegation. Don't say things you can't take back!





(in all seriousness though Berman is the absolute worst)

[Emperor Smeat]

http://i.imgur.com/qXcRIyv.png

http://assets.sbnation.com/assets/2918711/cespedesflip.gif

[Emperor Smeat]

According to the Players Union, none of the upcoming bannings related to the Biogenesis clinic will be served this year and instead will only start for next season. Main reason is the appeals and arbitrator decision is expected to take several months making any ban issued this year a bit useless in enforcement.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/9482862/mlbpa-says-players-suspended-biogenesis-investigation-likely-serve-bans-2013

[The Condor]

Manager of the year is more of a joke than the gold gloves. The criteria seems to simply be "Which team over performed the most" except in the odd cases like Dusty Baker where you must be a good manager when your team has the Cy Young winner (Jason Schmidt) and league MVP (Barry Bonds).

Hate seeing the Torre's and Bobby Cox' of the world be overlooked continually for sustained excellence. In football Belichick is continually overlooked because every 3 years Marvin Lewis will "save his job" with a 9-7 record and get the award.

[parkmania]

Hate seeing the Torre's and Bobby Cox' of the world be overlooked continually for sustained excellence. In football Belichick is continually overlooked because every 3 years Marvin Lewis will "save his job" with a 9-7 record and get the award.

I get what you're saying, but it's called "Manager of the YEAR", not "Lifetime Achievement Award".

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>hahaha Cliff Lee no-selling the boos during intros</font>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Harvey hits Cano in the knee and Cano limps off the field.

Sorry Yankee fans.</font> :o

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I normally like good pitching, but through 6 innings this is just boring as hell.</font>

[OssMan]

Can we get a "Well, the NL is never winning one of these things again" post from Big Vito please

[Shisen Kopf]

Neil "baseball" Diamond

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>I get Leyland's thinking for putting Mo in now...but come on.</font>

[Evil Vito]

:lol: <font color=goldenrod>McCarver sounded high rattling off the lyrics to Enter Sandman.</font>

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Astros secure home field advantage for the World Series. Lock it up.</font>

[Emperor Smeat]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Mariano Rivera career in All-Star Game: 9 IP, 1 R (unearned), 5 H, 5 K, 0 BB</p>&mdash; ESPN Stats &amp; Info (@ESPNStatsInfo) <a href="https://twitter.com/ESPNStatsInfo/statuses/357336727683211265">July 17, 2013</a></blockquote>
<script async src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[The Condor]

For the first time in years I didn't watch the AllStar game. And I don't feel that bad, actually.

[The Condor]

I get what you're saying, but it's called "Manager of the YEAR", not "Lifetime Achievement Award".

Point taken, but I feel it's the easy way out to choose a Joe Girardi(Marlins)or Tony Pena(Royals) as MOtY. Because their teams weren't garbage they HAD to have the best managerial years? Sometimes, sure, it makes sense, but I feel most years it is a cop out.

[OssMan]

For the first time in years I did watch. Should I count it towards my total of games watched this year? I think that would bring the number to 7.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Astros, Padres, and Cubs all had one rep make the All Star Team and none got into the actual game.

Oddly enough Bochy only used Posey from how own team. The other 3 Giants he had named to the team on his own (Bumgarner, Scutaro, and Romo) went unused, although Romo was warming up when Chapman appeared to be struggling.</font>

[DaveWadding]

For the first time in years I didn't watch the AllStar game. And I don't feel that bad, actually.

Me neither.

[ClockShot]

American League wins the All Star Game.

Order has been restored to the universe.

[road doggy dogg]

I didn't watch the game either, but it wasn't for any lack of desire to or anything. Had PRIOR COMMITMENTS and was out of the house. Heard Prince got a triple though, woo!

It is funny to see Leyland mismanage his bullpen, even in the ASG. It's just like watching my Tigers play! Glad Mo got his recognition though, guy is a friggin' legend. So glad I got to see him pitch this season (first time), felt like that would've been a huge wasted opportunity if I never got the chance.

[Evil Vito]

I watched the whole thing but I did kinda stop caring after Harvey was done. When the NL had that huge losing streak I always watched to see if it would end, and the Mets have been right in contention in most of the years since they've rolled out the home field advantage rule so I always though "maybe it will help later" but this year they're so far out of it it doesn't really matter.

Glad Harvey pitched well and Wright got one of the few NL hits. Rivera was the highlight. I get why he was used in the 8th but still I kinda feel like Joe Nathan was reliable enough to not blow it in the 8th. I think if Greg Holland had put up a 1-2-3 inning in the 7th Leyland would have been comfortable enough using Nathan, Delabar, Cecil, etc to bridge the gap.

No matter, it was a great send off. It's no secret I hate the Yankees, but Mo is just insanely good at what he does and has never been anything less than a class act.

[Boomer]

Glad I missed the game. Completely forgot about it. Did watch some of the Derby though, which was probably more entertaining.

[Damian Rey]

Hate seeing the Torre's and Bobby Cox' of the world be overlooked continually for sustained excellence. In football Belichick is continually overlooked because every 3 years Marvin Lewis will "save his job" with a 9-7 record and get the award.

That "sustained excellence" has more to do with the teams their given to work with over what they actually bring to the table. Freddi Gonzalez seemingly has not had a problem "stepping in" to Cox's shoes and seeing success, much like Matheny stepping in for LaRussa, and Girardi for Torre.

Naming a Yankee manager Manager of the Year would be ridiculous 99% of the time. If they make the playoffs this year, I think there could be a strong argument made for Girardi considering the depleted roster he's had to run out there all year.

But naming a guy like Joe Torre, who walked into a winning situation with New York, and was given legitimately the best players in the game at the time, is ridiculous. There's not much for him to do other than write all of the studs on his roster into the lineup, and, more times than not, let them do their thing.

[road doggy dogg]

Uhhh if Yankees somehow scrape into a playoff spot this year Girardi should 100% be MotY (no offense to Francona or Farrell)

[Damian Rey]

I think Francona has the inside track, at the moment. Farrell shouldn't even be considered. He was given a team that featured Mike Napoli, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Clay Buccholz, John Lester and David Ortiz. All sorts of talent on that roster.

Really, there's no real competition at the moment in the AL after Francona and Girardi.

If the Dodgers make the playoffs, I can see the narrative being spun into Donny baseball "saving his job" and galvanizing a ridiculously talented and expensive team into winning. Which would be dumb.

Clint Hurdle's a shoe in if the Pirates finish with a winning record. That team is near or at the bottom of damn near every statistical offensive category, and are getting ridiculous career years out Jeff Locke and Fransisco Liriano, on top of using the shit out of their bullpen. They finish above .500, it's Hurdle.

[Frank Drebin]

I dunno, Dale Sveum has had nothing but shit on a plate. Shouldn't he win just for being forced to have Luis Valbuena hit leadoff this year or Joe Mather hitting third last year?

(Note: this is a joke. Relax.)

[Emperor Smeat]

I think Francona has the inside track, at the moment. Farrell shouldn't even be considered. He was given a team that featured Mike Napoli, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dustin Pedroia, Clay Buccholz, John Lester and David Ortiz. All sorts of talent on that roster.

Really, there's no real competition at the moment in the AL after Francona and Girardi.

If the Dodgers make the playoffs, I can see the narrative being spun into Donny baseball "saving his job" and galvanizing a ridiculously talented and expensive team into winning. Which would be dumb.

Clint Hurdle's a shoe in if the Pirates finish with a winning record. That team is near or at the bottom of damn near every statistical offensive category, and are getting ridiculous career years out Jeff Locke and Fransisco Liriano, on top of using the shit out of their bullpen. They finish above .500, it's Hurdle.

Disagree with the Farrell part since he's done a great job in revitalizing the pitching which has been a huge sore spot for the Red Sox the past few years. They were predicted to finish dead last this year in the AL East and instead have the best record so far.

He's the same as Giradi where you consider them as options but shouldn't win it in the end. Giradi has just as much star power on his team but just so happens they are performing worse than last year. To give Giradi the award and not consider Farrell as a legit choice for doing the same would be a pretty bad decision.

Right now I think the real race is between Francona, Bob Melvin, and Joe Maddon for the AL.

[Bad News Gertner]

So happy Cecil and Delabar got into the game and both struckout their batters. I think Leyland recognized that this will probably be their one and only all-star game.

[The Condor]

That "sustained excellence" has more to do with the teams their given to work with over what they actually bring to the table. Freddi Gonzalez seemingly has not had a problem "stepping in" to Cox's shoes and seeing success, much like Matheny stepping in for LaRussa, and Girardi for Torre.

Naming a Yankee manager Manager of the Year would be ridiculous 99% of the time. If they make the playoffs this year, I think there could be a strong argument made for Girardi considering the depleted roster he's had to run out there all year.

But naming a guy like Joe Torre, who walked into a winning situation with New York, and was given legitimately the best players in the game at the time, is ridiculous. There's not much for him to do other than write all of the studs on his roster into the lineup, and, more times than not, let them do their thing.

Spoken like a true, bitter Padres fan. Never forget '98 :)

[Frank Drebin]

Whoever wins the World Series should be manager of the year. A couple of years ago when the Cards played the Brewers, I thought for sure the Brewers were going to win. They had the better team. Then LaRussa ran circles around Roenoke. I used to subscribe to the view that the managers don't really win games until I saw that series. Now I think they're quite important in the playoffs.

[Frank Drebin]

Managerial move that stands out was Lou Pinella around 2009 I wanna say. Cards had lefty, righty, lefty due up and Lou only had one lefty in the pen (Sean Marshal). So he brings Marshal in for the first batter, then pulls his leftfielder and moves Marshal out into left while he brings in another reliever, then puts Marshal back to pitch and brings in a normal position player in left for the third batter.

I dunno, you don't see that everyday so its always stuck out. Sounds like something Ozzie Guillen doesn't even know he can do.

[ClockShot]

MLBPA head Michael Weiner said in an interview with the NY Daily News that the union is "not interested" in protecting players involved in the Biogenesis scandal.

<!-- end mod-article-title --><!-- begin story body -->
MLB Union Won't Protect PED Users



The baseball players' association may not go to bat for every player involved in Major League Baseball's latest drug investigation.
Union head Michael Weiner told the New York Daily News (http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/i-team/weiner-warns-drug-cheats-face-major-road-block-article-1.1401845) that the MLBPA is "not interested" in protecting players for whom overwhelming evidence exists that they used performance-enhancing drugs.

Although he did not refer to any specific players in his interview Wednesday with the Daily News, Weiner emphasized that the union has prioritized a clean program. He told the paper that the union will attempt to "make a deal" for players with overwhelming PED evidence against them.

"I can tell you, if we have a case where there really is overwhelming evidence that a player committed a violation of the program, our fight is going to be that they make a deal," Weiner told the Daily News. "We're not interested in having players with overwhelming evidence that they violated the [drug] program out there. Most of the players aren't interested in that. We'd like to have a clean program."

Former MVPs Alex Rodriguez (http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/_/id/3115/alex-rodriguez) and Ryan Braun (http://espn.go.com/mlb/player/_/id/28721/ryan-braun) are among the more than one dozen players under investigation for ties to Biogenesis, a closed anti-aging clinic in Florida linked with the distribution of performance-enhancing drugs. MLB officials have been interviewing players, who have been represented by the union and their own lawyers.

ESPN's "Outside the Lines" has reported that Rodriguez and as many as 20 other players are expected to be suspended for their relationship to Biogenesis founder Anthony Bosch, who allegedly provided performance-enhancing drugs to the players. Rodriguez has denied the allegations.
Weiner said Tuesday that any suspensions resulting from the Biogenesis investigation likely won't be served until 2014, if the discipline is challenged before an arbitrator. He said he expects MLB to present its findings to the union "within the next month."

Weiner also said the commissioner's office isn't bound by the terms of the joint drug prevention and treatment program -- which calls for 50- and 100-game suspensions followed by a lifetime ban for three failed drug tests -- because the players involved in the Biogenesis case did not fail tests and are being investigated for "non-analytical" reasons.

"In theory, [the players] could be suspended for five games or 500 games, and we could then choose to challenge that," Weiner said Tuesday before the All-Star Game. "The commissioner's office is not bound by the scale we have in the basic agreement."

Weiner also told the Daily News that some grievances, including those involving PEDs, are settled privately before a suspension is publicly announced. He hopes that MLB will adhere to that procedure in the Biogenesis case.

"This is a somewhat new situation, but some of those grievances have been disciplinary grievances as well," Weiner told the Daily News. "They just don't get the play that the Biogenesis case did."

Weiner also said symptoms have increased in the last month from a brain tumor he was diagnosed with last summer. He currently can't move his right side or right arm and must use a wheelchair.

Weiner said the union will appoint a deputy executive director within a week or two.



This is huge, imo.

[DaveWadding]

heheh...MLBPA head Michael Weiner...heheh

[The Fraze]

Nothing worse than having the night off & the #SFGiants (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23SFGiants&src=hash) aren't playing. Don't worry, I work through their next week's worth of games. #Waste (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23Waste&src=hash)
— Matt Fraser (@TheFraze408) July 18, 2013 (https://twitter.com/TheFraze408/statuses/357960627802750977)
<script async="" src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

[ClockShot]

Big Game Garza might be shipped off to Texas by day's end.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Whoever wins the World Series should be manager of the year. A couple of years ago when the Cards played the Brewers, I thought for sure the Brewers were going to win. They had the better team. Then LaRussa ran circles around Roenoke. I used to subscribe to the view that the managers don't really win games until I saw that series. Now I think they're quite important in the playoffs.

Manager of the Year is about the regular season not the playoffs.

[Frank Drebin]

I understand, just saying in my mind that's who the manager of the year is.

[Emperor Smeat]

:cool: Red Sox beat the Yankees.

[Innovator]

Not that hard these days, just score at least 2 runs

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>The Mets only have 4 off-days remaining with 70 games left to play. Holy shit.</font>

[Innovator]

Chris Stewart, I see you

[Innovator]

I'm gonna miss Mariano, so much.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Erik Bedard had a no-no going into the 7th but he had walked 5 and gave up 2 runs. Had to be pulled as his pitch count was too high.</font>

[The Fraze]

http://25.media.tumblr.com/f216df7d42e2fb059ca710618498151a/tumblr_mq9sfseXCU1rrldiro1_400.gif

[road doggy dogg]

Tigers took a game from the almighty Royal tonight to avoid the sweep!!!!!!!!

[ClockShot]

Now batting 4th for the Yankees, Lyle Overbay.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Matt Harvey.</font>

[Bad News Gertner]

Fuck the Blue Jays, fuck Gibbons, fuck their 7-8-9 hitters, fuck Dickey, Johnson, Buehrle, Lawrie, Arencibia, every position player not named Encarnacion, Reyes and Rasmus. Hate this fucking team so much!

[Shisen Kopf]

Rays have won 16 of 18. Think they could win the East. Also, lol at Reyes' injury.

[Frank Drebin]

Rays are always bad ass. Really want to see the haul the get for Price in the offseason.

[Skippord]

Fuck the Blue Jays, fuck Gibbons, fuck their 7-8-9 hitters, fuck Dickey, Johnson, Buehrle, Lawrie, Arencibia, every position player not named Encarnacion, Reyes and Rasmus. Hate this fucking team so much!
Finally giving up on Kawasaki?

[Bad News Gertner]

Kawasaki is in AAA. Therefore excluded.

[SlickyTrickyDamon]

Bautista?

[Bad News Gertner]

Bautista has sucked balls for the majority of the season.

[Skippord]

Kawasaki is in AAA. Therefore excluded.
I did not know they sent him down again

why would they do that? he's the best

[Bad News Gertner]

They thought some asshole named Jose Reyes would be better at SS

[Skippord]

I agree with that, but who's playing second right now for the Jays

Lawrie?

[Bad News Gertner]

They tried Lawrie for some God forsaken reason for like 3-4 games and he was horrible. Back to the dynamic duo of Maicer Izturis and Emilio Bonifacio who must have naked pictures of Alex Anthropolous, because he's the worst fucking player in the league.

[Skippord]

jinkies, I'd go with Kawasaki over those dudes because he's fun and only because he is fun

[Skippord]

Although I do love Maicer Izturis

[Bad News Gertner]

Izturis did a hell of a job striking out with the bases loaded yet again this weekend.

[Bad News Gertner]

Mune Kawasaki's picture is still my facebook display picture. Fucking love Kawasaki.

[Shisen Kopf]

He's like a Jap Brandon Inge

[Bad News Gertner]

Inge was never remotely as entertaining as Mune. Used to love listening to Tigers fan defend him to the death.

[ClockShot]

Yankees gave away that one last night.

[The Condor]

Fuck the Blue Jays, fuck Gibbons, fuck their 7-8-9 hitters, fuck Dickey, Johnson, Buehrle, Lawrie, Arencibia, every position player not named Encarnacion, Reyes and Rasmus. Hate this fucking team so much!

But, hey, at least the Jays have that sweet ass bullpen, huh?

[road doggy dogg]

Did someone say Inge?!?!?1?!?

[road doggy dogg]

brb puking

[Hanso Amore]

Bye Bye Braun

[DaveWadding]

Braun only gets 65 games. Should have gotten the full hundred.

[ClockShot]

<iframe height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qFrO8HHh3mk" frameBorder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>

Kinda surprised it's only Braun in the crosshairs. But it's only the first in many dominoes to fall. Unless suspects start flipping.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>Throw him out of the league.</font>

[ClockShot]

Everybody's favorite trade deadline pitcher got traded today.

Cubs trade Matt Garza to the Rangers for Mike Olt, Justin Grimm, C.J. Edwards, and a PTBNL

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>That's a steep overpay by the Rangers.</font>

[Emperor Smeat]

<iframe height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/qFrO8HHh3mk" frameBorder="0" width="420" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>

Kinda surprised it's only Braun in the crosshairs. But it's only the first in many dominoes to fall. Unless suspects start flipping.

Either A-Rod's reps are still negotiating with MLB or MLB felt it was a lot better for each big name to have their own "shame" day as an extra punishment.

[Bad News Gertner]

Ugh, Josh Johnson.

[Bad News Gertner]

Lol Logan Morrison's tweet

Logan Morrison: "You know we're clean. We haven't scored a run in 37 innings." #marlins (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23marlins&src=hash) #braun (https://twitter.com/search?q=%23braun&src=hash)

[Boomer]

Braves are probably getting no-hit tonight.

[Boomer]

Braves are probably getting one-hit tonight.

[Boomer]

Can't believe the Mets didn't walk the bases loaded with one out in the 9th after the pass ball to force an out at every base. Basically just handed the Braves a run.

[Evil Vito]

<font color=goldenrod>What a waste.

Game's not over yet but Kimbrel is pitching so it basically is.</font>