gehringer_2

But if you can't tell the difference at all, it really makes no difference whether you swing or not does it? If all you can do is guess, then you have a finite chance of running into it, as compared to the chance the pitcher is going to miss. So sure, it comes down to understanding who the pitcher is and what his command is like and seeing whether he is stuggling to throw strikes or so sharp he is just toying with hitters. But the trend of some things is still knowable. If a batter is constantly down in the count without having swung the bat over hundreds of AB, he is giving himself no chance.

well, the dumb part about the War Powers act is that the President can veto the resolution, which then means it you need an override super majority - which ain't gonna happen anyway. We used to think that having a Constitution instead of just a precedent guided Parliament like Britain was an advantage. I just don't think it's true anymore. The US Constitution and its recent SCOTUS interpretations are hindering US democracy far more than they are helping to achieve it.

absolutely. But guys develop tendencies and if you are going to be a good hitter you have be aware yourself and fight falling into habits where the problem is your brain as much as your ability to hit the ball. It's probably a good question whether when hitters cycle in and out of performance level how much is luck, how much is mental, how much is physical. With batted ball metrics we can sort of figure out the luck part now, the split between physical fatigue plus sub clinical injury vs just losing your mental edge is probably unknowable.

C.a.v.e.a.t E.m.p.t.o.r

They say average hitters aren't good enough to get much advice from great hitters, but FWIW, Cabrera also swung at a lot of 1st pitches.

exactly. Search for the perfect being the enemy of the good etc? I think taking too many strikes early has been Tork's weakness ever since he got the the majors. It can lead to walks, but the walks aren't worth the cost to the rest of his production. I've always thought that in general you want to be aggressive early in the count because that is when pitchers are most motivated to throw strikes to get ahead. Maybe it's because there is still an offensive push to try to drive pitch counts. Maybe that was a good idea once, but the way pitching has changed in recent years, there are too many teams with bullpens so good it doesn't help you enough to chase a starter early any more.Not to mention that getting on base and running more batters to the plate is also a nice way to drive a pitch count!

Also not a good sign that Vest's FB was down 2mph or a bit more from yesterday. Vest is not the guy we need him to be if he isn't dialing up 98mph consistently.

but that's why baseball is so screwed up. The Dodgers or Mets don't care if they spend the money - it's not stupid for them, they can make it back, but Pittsburgh has to try to play on the same playing field. Is there any other sport with that kind of imbalance in the options available between the franchises?

no doubt the injuries are the over all killer for total wins and losses, but recently there have been issues of basic execution by Riley, Tork, McK, Perez and on the pitching side Valdez and Flaherty. Those are your regulars - or close to regulars in Perez' case. It's like a contagion.

I think the narrative is that there is at least a subset of owners who are demanding cost control. Think of all those teams that had Fox/Bally/FanDuel collapse out from under them, do you believe they were able to shift over MLB production without taking a cut in revenue? Or a least a cut from what they could previously project future revenue to be? That has probably never happened before. I tend to think this round is about issues between/among the owners. The question being how the dynamic plays out between small market, middle market and the rich clubs. I'm sure the clubs with big money aren't looking for a stoppage, and if they hold sway there won't be. They have the option of agreeing to more revenue sharing which would probably satisfy the rest of the clubs. But if not, and a big enough subset of small and middle market teams stand their ground together, it's a different calculus. The union won't give anything back so I see it as coming down to how much more the teams with money agree to share.

I guess I would qualify what I mean, there are bad teams that just don't have talent and there have been worse teams in the league than this one (at least we hope that will be proven true by the end of the season) but there are teams that have enough talent to do better that can't get out of their own way. When I say this team is inept, the latter is what I mean - can't execute.

also true. The running game all around has turned to dross. This season so far we are losing too much on the bases.

that's all fair.

That's is certainly something that has always been arguable with Hinch - he does not seem to believe in short term trends at all. He's a long 'track record' guy all the way. I don't know if there is a mathematical right or wrong on the issue because different players have different kinds of performance/consistency arcs.

you could, and the BP has certainly been less than stellar overall, but OTOH, on more general principle I'm not going to knock a pitching staff that give up one run to Cleveland in 9 innings.

but what do you do when they guys that are supposed to be your offensive leader have stupid AB. Swing the damn bat and defend the plate when you are down 2 strikes and there is a man on 2nd. That kind of thing isn't a so much even a matter of talent - it's lack of game IQ.

another one before the 9th would have mattered in this one. 🔚

If there has been a more inept team in the league in the last 10 years I'd be surprised.

I guess talent is no defense against playing stupid. He and Tork can now both share the distinction of taking a called third in maybe less than week with a man on second in a walk off situation.

Vest needs a K

If your talking about LA, the fire and brimstone didn't work just because they were playing badly, it worked because it was a sloppy, undisciplined, and unserious clubhouse. If that were a problem here it would actually be easier. If anything, this team may to too serious and prone to pressing.

nobody is going to make money on going to Mars unless it's on sweetheart contracts to really stupid US government. ....oh, wait, nvm.

Poor defense opens the door, Cleveland declines to walk through I'm surprised at how poorly Workman has played in the field. Not like I've followed his career closely but I do remember when he was drafted the glove was not seen as a liability. He's a big guy, maybe he outgrew his fielding coordination from his 2020 scouring report: Fielding: Solid defender with excellent instincts and a strong, above-average throwing arm. While the Detroit Tigers drafted him as a third baseman, many scouts felt he had the athleticism to handle shortstop or second base if needed. Fielding: Solid defender with excellent instincts and a strong, above-average throwing arm. While the Detroit Tigers drafted him as a third baseman, many scouts felt he had the athleticism to handle shortstop or second base if needed.

without doing more research than I have time for right now, does his comment about the lower 50% paying 3% of taxes count only the Income tax or FICA (plus the employer contribution) as well because that could be significant difference in that %

We didn't lose that many in the Iraq war did we? Of these a good many lost on the ground I suppose