2024 MLB Thread

[guy incognito]

2 hours ago, IdahoBert said:

A metro bus was set on fire in Los Angeles during celebrations and 12 people were arrested for looting stores. 

I would assume Tinseltown rioters are more glamorous than Bubba Helms.

Edited October 31, 2024 by guy incognito

[chasfh]

On 10/30/2024 at 8:00 AM, Motor City Sonics said:

Great gig for Will Venable - coming in as White Sox manager.  He can go 61-101 and it's a 20 game improvement.   

 

Good luck with that, Will.

[Sports_Freak]

4 hours ago, 1776 said:

Interesting article on the Tampa Bay Rays ballpark, present and future. A bond vote has been delayed for the new ballpark pending where the Rays call home the next three seasons. 
 

https://stpetecatalyst.com/storm-impacts-delay-rays-stadium-bond-vote/

Hopefully they can rebuild it before the next hurricane blows it apart again. Just abandon Florida, America's wang.

[oblong]

15 hours ago, guy incognito said:

Looks like we won’t have Bob Costas to kick around anymore. I still think he was a genuinely great announcer when he was working with Kubek back in the day.

http://amp.awfulannouncing.com/mlb/bob-costas-retires.html

 

There's nostalgia for sure but the last few years when he started working playoff games on MLB Network I wasn't a fan.  He lived too much in the past.... he came across as a broadcaster who hasn't done a game in 30 years and assumed his audience hasn't watched a game in 30 years.  He'd say things like "the game is a lot more global now" and once made a reference to Albert Belle.  He kind of reminded me of Mitch Albom... someone who pops in every once in a while in a sport but doesn't have the recent knowledge that a regular sports writer would.  A Lions column written today referencing Scott Mitchell for example.

 

[gehringer_2]

6 hours ago, oblong said:

someone who pops in every once in a while in a sport but doesn't have the recent knowledge that a regular sports writer would.

this exactly. You can keep working a gig like that when you are old if you are in decent condition, but you have to keep working all the time to stay current like Scully did.

[oblong]

Speaking of Scully... I'm pick the off season to start reading basball books.  This year I had Joe Posnanski's book "Why we love baseball" on standby.  His books are so much more than just a list of what happened. When he discusses Koufax's 4th no hitter he focuses on Scully's PBP of the 9th, verbatim.  It's pure poetry.   I'll share some screenshots later from my kindle.

 

[guy incognito]

9 hours ago, oblong said:

There's nostalgia for sure but the last few years when he started working playoff games on MLB Network I wasn't a fan.  He lived too much in the past.... he came across as a broadcaster who hasn't done a game in 30 years and assumed his audience hasn't watched a game in 30 years.  He'd say things like "the game is a lot more global now" and once made a reference to Albert Belle.  He kind of reminded me of Mitch Albom... someone who pops in every once in a while in a sport but doesn't have the recent knowledge that a regular sports writer would.  A Lions column written today referencing Scott Mitchell for example.

 

I remember reading someplace that **** Enberg stayed away from baseball announcing for years even though it was his favorite sport to call, precisely because his full plate with other sports meant that he wouldn't be able to do it on more than an occasional basis and baseball is the type of sport you have to be involved in regularly if you want to do it justice. 

[Tenacious D]

 

[Tenacious D]

[gehringer_2]

2 minutes ago, Tenacious D said:

Not good. Might look somewhat better for the Tigers if you looked at the losses per 9 inning of BP work.

[Tenacious D]

49 minutes ago, gehringer_2 said:

Not good. Might look somewhat better for the Tigers if you looked at the losses per 9 inning of BP work.

I suspect many were a result of our bullpen games.  Not necessarily an indictment.

[gehringer_2]

9 minutes ago, Tenacious D said:

I suspect many were a result of our bullpen games.  Not necessarily an indictment.

great point. I  hadn't even thought about bullpen start days  being included, but they may well have been..

Edited November 2, 2024 by gehringer_2

[Sports_Freak]

Anyone think Skubal will sign a contract with Detroit instead of free agency in 2 years? Blake Snell is also a Scott Boras client and just opted out of a 38.5 million dollar contract for 2025. Unbelievable. 

[lordstanley]

21 hours ago, oblong said:

Speaking of Scully... I'm pick the off season to start reading basball books.  This year I had Joe Posnanski's book "Why we love baseball" on standby.  His books are so much more than just a list of what happened. When he discusses Koufax's 4th no hitter he focuses on Scully's PBP of the 9th, verbatim.  It's pure poetry.   I'll share some screenshots later from my kindle.

 

I finished Posnanski's book last month. Really enjoyed it. I'd say close to half the stories were either unfamiliar to me or else revealed nuggets or twists about incidents I thought I knew about.

[oblong]

38 minutes ago, lordstanley said:

I finished Posnanski's book last month. Really enjoyed it. I'd say close to half the stories were either unfamiliar to me or else revealed nuggets or twists about incidents I thought I knew about.

Exactly… like I never knew that Dave Winfield was a superb pitcher in college, leading his team thru the college World Series.  He could have pitched and hit but didn’t want to play in the minors so he stuck with hitting.  This was in a section about Ohtani and he didn’t claim he would have been as good of a pitcher as he was but still…  

and I didn’t realize that Sid Bream’s walk off was the only come from behind walk off that came at the “last” possible moment of a series. Meaning if he makes an out then it’s over and the other team wins the series.  All the other walk offs we know came with the score tied or not in a game 7.  
 

He sprinkles anecdotes in like that when discussing other things.  Any baseball fan should read his books. You WILL learn something. I promise. 

[monkeytargets39]

Gerrit Cole opting out apparently.  

[Dan Gilmore]

His contract is such that the Yankees can tag on another year (at $$) to override his opt out.

[casimir]

22 hours ago, guy incognito said:

I remember reading someplace that **** Enberg stayed away from baseball announcing for years even though it was his favorite sport to call, precisely because his full plate with other sports meant that he wouldn't be able to do it on more than an occasional basis and baseball is the type of sport you have to be involved in regularly if you want to do it justice. 

Enberg called a few Tiger games.  I looked it up, one game in 2016 and two games in 2017.  I don’t recall much of an announcement ahead of those games, but I enjoyed hearing him handle the 2017 games (which I recall because they were back to back).

[casimir]

3 hours ago, oblong said:

Exactly… like I never knew that Dave Winfield was a superb pitcher in college, leading his team thru the college World Series.  He could have pitched and hit but didn’t want to play in the minors so he stuck with hitting.  This was in a section about Ohtani and he didn’t claim he would have been as good of a pitcher as he was but still…  

How about this, Winfield was drafted by four teams in three different sports (MLB, NBA, ABA, NFL).

I always feared him as he was a Yankee and had that enormously hulking stature and he was just a beast at the plate when I really got into baseball as a kid.  But you listen to him in interviews and he seems quite engaging and personable rather than threatening.

[1776]

16 hours ago, Dan Gilmore said:

His contract is such that the Yankees can tag on another year (at $$) to override his opt out.

The Yankees would be smart to hold the door open for him on the way out. I believe the number to bring him back is around $35 million for a year. He’s doing them a favor.  

 

[1776]

19 hours ago, Sports_Freak said:

Anyone think Skubal will sign a contract with Detroit instead of free agency in 2 years? Blake Snell is also a Scott Boras client and just opted out of a 38.5 million dollar contract for 2025. Unbelievable. 

Snell wants a top line, multi year deal. He sees himself as possibly the best pitcher in baseball. The second half of this season he was absolutely dominant, including a no-hitter. Now is his last chance to go for that rocking chair contract and that’s what he’s going for. I wouldn’t want him. Whoever gets him is likely going to overpay. Boras cost him money last year by keeping his ask too high for too long. Boras did the same thing with Jordan Montgomery and Montgomery left Boras for a new agent. I’d definitely look at Montgomery as a rotation guy for the Tigers this year. 
 

I think the Tigers will find a way to keep Skubal if he maintains his level of productivity and stays healthy. 

[ICroupier]

1 hour ago, 1776 said:

Snell wants a top line, multi year deal. He sees himself as possibly the best pitcher in baseball. The second half of this season he was absolutely dominant, including a no-hitter. Now is his last chance to go for that rocking chair contract and that’s what he’s going for. I wouldn’t want him. Whoever gets him is likely going to overpay. Boras cost him money last year by keeping his ask too high for too long. Boras did the same thing with Jordan Montgomery and Montgomery left Boras for a new agent. I’d definitely look at Montgomery as a rotation guy for the Tigers this year. 
 

I think the Tigers will find a way to keep Skubal if he maintains his level of productivity and stays healthy. 

For the life of me, I don't understand the love the board has for Montgomery.

He's had 2 good seasons in 10 years. In the other 8 years, his combined WAR is 0.8. He's on the wrong side of 30. And he's making $22.5 million.

There is absolutely nothing to like about him.

[SoCalTiger]

2 hours ago, ICroupier said:

For the life of me, I don't understand the love the board has for Montgomery.

He's had 2 good seasons in 10 years. In the other 8 years, his combined WAR is 0.8. He's on the wrong side of 30. And he's making $22.5 million.

There is absolutely nothing to like about him.

He is a strong bounce back candidate especially with Fetter. I proposed trading Maeda for him to bring the cost down to 12.5 and since the Diamondbacks owner publicly criticized him they might agree to take Maeda. Tenacious D suggesting getting a competitive balance pick as well. 

[Sports_Freak]

4 hours ago, 1776 said:

Snell wants a top line, multi year deal. He sees himself as possibly the best pitcher in baseball. The second half of this season he was absolutely dominant, including a no-hitter. Now is his last chance to go for that rocking chair contract and that’s what he’s going for. I wouldn’t want him. Whoever gets him is likely going to overpay. Boras cost him money last year by keeping his ask too high for too long. Boras did the same thing with Jordan Montgomery and Montgomery left Boras for a new agent. I’d definitely look at Montgomery as a rotation guy for the Tigers this year. 
 

I think the Tigers will find a way to keep Skubal if he maintains his level of productivity and stays healthy. 

38.5 million dollars for one season should be rocking chair money. And Snell only pitched 20 games last season. I think he's crazy for turning down that much money and I really hope nobody signs him for close to that money.

[1776]

2 hours ago, Sports_Freak said:

38.5 million dollars for one season should be rocking chair money. And Snell only pitched 20 games last season. I think he's crazy for turning down that much money and I really hope nobody signs him for close to that money.

He’s opting out now for a longer term contract. He won’t be viewed with as much value next year with another year’s wear…and possible health concerns.
I hope the Giants leave him alone. They’ve got too much youth in the pitching pipeline to get tied up with Snell.