2012 MLB Thread (Cabrera Gets Triple Crown, first since Yaz 1967)

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by lungs

Not yet. It's going to be a short one in Boston... fly in, catch the game at Fenway, go to sleep, wake up and get on a train for Portland, Maine.

Aaah - that's cool. Bring me some milk!!!

[CleBrownsfan]

The F'n Indians SUCK - that's all - move on...

[CleBrownsfan]

Never knew that PED = Pies Eaten Daily

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by CleBrownsfan

Never knew that PED = Pies Eaten Daily

SI

[cartman]

It is only the 4th inning, but Adrian Beltre already has three homers against the Orioles.

[lungs]

Originally Posted by DaddyTorgo

Aaah - that's cool. Bring me some milk!!!

Cheese!

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by lungs

Cheese!

LOL - i didn't know you had any of the cheese...yeah...MOTHERFUCKIN CHEESE!!!!

[korme]

Pirates fading

[miami_fan]

So now it is being reported that executives throughout the league kind of knew that Colon was on something. I have two questions

1. Can teams ask their own players to take a drug test outside of the MLB policy? If other execs knew, I am assuming Billy Beane knew. If he could test Colon and chose to be willfully ignorant, then he would be condoning the cheating IMO.

2. Can teams ask MLB through official channels to test players that they suspect of cheating similar to the way a manager can ask an umpire to check a pitcher's hat for a foreign substance? Colon has wins against a few teams in the thick of some close playoff races. If you know a guy is cheating and that cheating could keep your team out of the playoffs, you would think someone would have blown the whistle on him earlier instead of waiting for him to get busted.

[MrBug708]

Meh...swept

[Shkspr]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

So now it is being reported that executives throughout the league kind of knew that Colon was on something. I have two questions

1. Can teams ask their own players to take a drug test outside of the MLB policy?

2. Can teams ask MLB through official channels to test players that they suspect of cheating similar to the way a manager can ask an umpire to check a pitcher's hat for a foreign substance?

A player may be served at any time with a request to test for Probable Cause. Within 48 hours he must provide a sample, but may request a hearing to determine whether Probable Cause exists. I would assume for general purposes that the "kind of knew" amounts to "This fat ancient fuck is pitching better than he ever has before", which would likely not stand up to scrutiny as a legitimate rationale.

Otherwise, each player is tested at the beginning of spring training, once during the year on a random date, and an unbounded number of times as one of the 1400 randomly assigned tests perfomed during the year, of which approximately 1/6th occur during the offseason.

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by korme

Pirates fading

SI

[stevew]

Originally Posted by korme

Pirates fading

yeah, for the past 3 weeks.

Can't beat the fucking Padres, wtf.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by stevew

yeah, for the past 3 weeks.

Can't beat the fucking Padres, wtf.

It is tough to have too much of a beef with Clint Hurdle (given our recent history), but his and the FO's management of the bullpen has been a joke the past few weeks. Having Chad Qualls and Daniel McCutchen on the roster AND using them in close/late games is criminal.

[stevew]

They keep throwing that fuck Correia out there when there are better options in AAA. The Wandy trade is looking awful as well, as Locke absolutely should be in the majors. Bryan Morris should be getting innings out of the pen in the majors(out of options next year) instead of Qualls.

And this whole Sanchez trade.....I hope to god we're not looking at this in 2 years and wondering why we gave up the #35(or so) pick for a guy that we kept for 1.5 years and then non-tendered.

And Bedard has been shit for much of the past 2-3 months as well.

[sterlingice]

Apparently ump James Joyce performed CPR and likely saved a woman's life before a game:
Umpire Jim Joyce does CPR, helps to save woman’s life at Chase Field | Big League Stew - Yahoo! Sports

SI

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

So now it is being reported that executives throughout the league kind of knew that Colon was on something. I have two questions

1. Can teams ask their own players to take a drug test outside of the MLB policy? If other execs knew, I am assuming Billy Beane knew. If he could test Colon and chose to be willfully ignorant, then he would be condoning the cheating IMO.

2. Can teams ask MLB through official channels to test players that they suspect of cheating similar to the way a manager can ask an umpire to check a pitcher's hat for a foreign substance? Colon has wins against a few teams in the thick of some close playoff races. If you know a guy is cheating and that cheating could keep your team out of the playoffs, you would think someone would have blown the whistle on him earlier instead of waiting for him to get busted.

Wasn't it already documented that he went through some sort of controversial procedure before last year? I assume the suspicions just ran from there, especially given how well he's pitched.

[stevew]

he's getting closer to making up for that blown Gallaraga call.

[Swaggs]

Originally Posted by stevew

They keep throwing that fuck Correia out there when there are better options in AAA. The Wandy trade is looking awful as well, as Locke absolutely should be in the majors. Bryan Morris should be getting innings out of the pen in the majors(out of options next year) instead of Qualls.

And this whole Sanchez trade.....I hope to god we're not looking at this in 2 years and wondering why we gave up the #35(or so) pick for a guy that we kept for 1.5 years and then non-tendered.

And Bedard has been shit for much of the past 2-3 months as well.

I actually don't mind the Sanchez deal, outside of the opportunity the lost comp pick gave us for more draft cap money. I think he and Jones make an affordable/productive 1B combo (probably be less than $5M, or one Clint Barmes season) and the Snider trade (plus Marte and hopefully a semi-decent Tabata and Presley) gives us some cheap, young, upside-ish guys (some may have to platoon) to play next to Cutch.

Keeping Correia and Qualls around is just silly -- neither are good, both are on the decline, and both will be gone next season anyway. Bryan Morris and Justin Thomas are primed and ready in AAA.

[kingfc22]

Originally Posted by MrBug708

Meh...swept

Third series that has resulted in a sweep this season between the two teams.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by Ksyrup

Wasn't it already documented that he went through some sort of controversial procedure before last year? I assume the suspicions just ran from there, especially given how well he's pitched.

I have not followed it that closely. The cynic in me says that the teams know of or suspect that one of their own is juicing but are okay with it as long as they are producing for the team.

[Chief Rum]

The Angels, playing about as bad in August as they ever have, and having just been swept at home in a four game series against the Rays, come into Fenway and win the first two games of the series with relative ease.

I can take from this one of two things, as the Red Sox are notorious for smoking the Angels at Fenway:

1. The Angels are finally starting to turn it around a little
2. The Red Sox are really, really bad this year

I am gonna go with #2.

BTW, before Bostonites jump on me, I realize that there is a healthy dose of injuries plus perhaps players tanking it a little because they can't stand Valentine and want him fired.

[bhlloy]

It's just another Angels ploy to play really well for a couple series before dashing their fans hopes again and getting swept by the Royals or the Indians

Seriously, I can't remember such a disappointing team. Not just the amount of $$$ being spent but the way they are losing - poor managerial decisions, strange lineups and some seriously unclutch performances.

[SirFozzie]

I'm through with the Sox for this year. After reading that only four players showed up for Johnny Pesky's funeral (and then all showed up for a "Beckett Bowl" drinkfest/charity event the same night), then see Lucchino throw Bruce Mcclure under the bus, insinuating that he was the leakder (and lamenting the breach of the same code of confidentiality that let management leak stories that Terry Francona was a drug addict, badmouth Theo Epstein multiple times, etcetera)

They need a clear out. Lucchino, Valentine and a bunch of players need to be gone.

[Ksyrup]

Originally Posted by miami_fan

I have not followed it that closely. The cynic in me says that the teams know of or suspect that one of their own is juicing but are okay with it as long as they are producing for the team.

It was some sort of stem cell procedure he had done in another country. It became an issue when he came out of nowhere early last year pitching better than he had in 5-6 years, and few years since making his last appearance in the majors.

Not saying that is directly linked to testosterone, but people were obviously aware he was on the cutting edge of "enhancing" his performance.

[Logan]

There may still be hope for Mets fans. Matt Harvey has a 2.75 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 10.75 K/9 in his 6 starts. Colin McHugh just made his debut (albeit vs COL) and went 7 innings of shutout ball, giving up just 2 hits and striking out 9. Zach Wheeler is on his way up. Dickey should still be Dickey. Maybe the surgery helps Big Pelf.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

The Angels, playing about as bad in August as they ever have, and having just been swept at home in a four game series against the Rays, come into Fenway and win the first two games of the series with relative ease.

I can take from this one of two things, as the Red Sox are notorious for smoking the Angels at Fenway:

1. The Angels are finally starting to turn it around a little
2. The Red Sox are really, really bad this year

I am gonna go with #2.

BTW, before Bostonites jump on me, I realize that there is a healthy dose of injuries plus perhaps players tanking it a little because they can't stand Valentine and want him fired.

Nobody is going to jump on you - I think pretty much all Sox fans admit that #2 is the case and that this team is just rotten at the core.

[molson]

And man, the MLB season takes FOREVER when your team sucks....when the hell do the playoffs start?

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by molson

And man, the MLB season takes FOREVER when your team sucks....

Ayup. It really drags after the trade deadline. Tho there might be some interesting young players in September. Not that Royals fans are practiced in these matters...

SI

[larrymcg421]

Originally Posted by molson

And man, the MLB season takes FOREVER when your team sucks....when the hell do the playoffs start?

But hey, your team won a championship a few years back. So by the logic of many people here, you should be happy with your team sucking for the next 20 years, because it could be worse and they could be perennial contenders for the next 20 years but never winning it all.

[sterlingice]

When I managed a team in a BBPro league a few years back, I aimed to be the Braves not the Marlins. But we've done this discussion before.

SI

[molson]

Originally Posted by larrymcg421

But hey, your team won a championship a few years back. So by the logic of many people here, you should be happy with your team sucking for the next 20 years, because it could be worse and they could be perennial contenders for the next 20 years but never winning it all.

I think I would have gladly taken 20 years of sucking in exchange for the 2 championships, at least in the circumstance it happened (the championships happened in my 20s, when I cared a lot more, and when I got to be at a lot of the playoff games, including the 2nd world series clincher.) I'd still be into playoff baseball without the Red Sox, and will be this year, but late August baseball definitely has a different feeling when you don't have a rooting interest. Still, I think I'm a happier baseball fan than I would be if I had to have followed good Red Sox teams that could never win in the end for the next few decades, like people older than me did.

[stevew]

I really hate that super 2 kind of kills Sept promotions. I wish they would have redone service time manipulation

[bhlloy]

Well the Angels win 14-13 in extras in a game of "who has the shittiest pitching staff". That was pretty much an exercise in how not to manage a bullpen on both sides.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Well the Angels win 14-13 in extras in a game of "who has the shittiest pitching staff". That was pretty much an exercise in how not to manage a bullpen on both sides.

Good stuff.

I honestly hope this team of assholes loses out the season and ownership decides to bite the financial bullet and just let all of them go except for the 4 who went to the funeral.

I don't think I've ever seen a more unlikeable team.

**Yes I know this will never happen, but it's a great thought**

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by bhlloy

Well the Angels win 14-13 in extras in a game of "who has the shittiest pitching staff". That was pretty much an exercise in how not to manage a bullpen on both sides.

It was an amazing game, but, yes, it's very hard to be excited about anything when you see pitching like this.

I suppose this win could vault the Angels forward into a ton of momentum. We'll see as the go play a key series in Detroit now.

That said, while I never entirely go away from the Angels when they're playing, I pretty much presumed no playoffs this year and started focusing more on football, because it just go so stomach churning difficult to watch this team go out and score runs and then the pitching staff just blows it all up.

[Scoobz0202]

Dusty's flaws were on full display for Reds fans yesterday. Yikes

[sterlingice]

Originally Posted by Scoobz0202

Dusty's flaws were on full display for Reds fans yesterday. Yikes

I beg to differ. Cueto's pitch count was only 111.

SI

[SackAttack]

Okay, this is pretty funny. I was reading the 'power rankings' article on Yahoo! Sports, and the author said "since June 27, the Astros have seven wins. Jered Weaver has nine."

Turns out he's bad at math. The Astros have *eight* wins since June 27 (yeah, Weaver's got nine).

[MizzouCowboy]

Huge weekend series for the Cardinals/Reds. IF the Cards can get 2 of 3 or somehow sweep the Reds, it could make for an interesting September. If the Cards get swept or lose 2, I can see them getting drilled by the Pirates and Nationals in the next 2 series. Hopefully Dusty will be pull several Dustys.

Yep the Astros look horrendous. I can't imagine how bad it will be in the AL next season. Maybe Rocket can save 'em.

[Vince, Pt. II]

Anyone else hear about the Dodgers claiming Adrian Gonzalez? I caught a snippet on the radio but only the tail end and I can't find a source.

[Chief Rum]

Originally Posted by Vince, Pt. II

Anyone else hear about the Dodgers claiming Adrian Gonzalez? I caught a snippet on the radio but only the tail end and I can't find a source.

I presume Red Sox will pull him back, and if they negotiate at all with the Dodgers, it will take a king's ransom to get him.

[molson]

Originally Posted by Chief Rum

I presume Red Sox will pull him back, and if they negotiate at all with the Dodgers, it will take a king's ransom to get him.

Or a reverse king's ransom (Gonzalez, Crawford, and Beckett for a bag of baseballs with Dodger logos on them). I think that's like a billion dollars though.

Edit: Some Red Sox fans seem like they'd be OK with letting him go, if only because it would give them the financial flexibility to eat other contracts and clean house. You can always throw $100+ million at some other first baseman, it's not like Gonzalez is a bargain.

[Scoobz0202]

Originally Posted by sterlingice

I beg to differ. Cueto's pitch count was only 111.

SI

Putting Valdez and Cairo in the same lineup against Hamels. But that bullpen management.. yikes.

[Ksyrup]

Damn, Phillies should have put Howard through waivers. Dodgers don't have enough ex-Phillies as it is.

[DaddyTorgo]

Originally Posted by molson

Or a reverse king's ransom (Gonzalez, Crawford, and Beckett for a bag of baseballs with Dodger logos on them). I think that's like a billion dollars though.

Edit: Some Red Sox fans seem like they'd be OK with letting him go, if only because it would give them the financial flexibility to eat other contracts and clean house. You can always throw $100+ million at some other first baseman, it's not like Gonzalez is a bargain.

I wouldn't think it'd be the worst thing in the world if they let him go. As long as it's accompanied by a wholesale house-cleaning.

[Eaglesfan27]

Originally Posted by Scoobz0202

Dusty's flaws were on full display for Reds fans yesterday. Yikes

That was a great game to watch in person. Longer night than I expected, but it was a blast. Love the new ball park. So many fun things to see around the park - the memory lane, the team HOF stuff, the kids attractions, the trivia games, etc. Good food too!

[Chief Rum]

Wasn't lungs at last night's Red Sox-Angels game? Nice game to go to.

[MrBug708]

Punto, Agon, Beckett, and Crawford

[molson]

Originally Posted by MrBug708

Punto, Agon, Beckett, and Crawford

Gordon Edes actually tweeted:

"Blockbuster: red Sox, Dodgers working on deal that would send AGon, Crawford, Beckett and Punto to LA. Hurdles remain, but closing in"

The Boston media loves to say "closing in" after every reported trade rumor, so that means nothing, but this would be pretty awesome.

Edit: And Jon Morosi (I don't know who that is) tweets:

Source confirms @GordonEdes report: #Dodgers "close" to obtaining Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett, Carl Crawford, Nick Punto."

I do feel dirty citing twitter though. I just want to remember the names of these "insiders" who report shit that doesn't go down for future reference. (Who was it that reported Oregon would be punished by the NCAA last week?)