Author Topic: 2022 MLB Thread formerly the 2021 thread.. (Read 72298 times)

Cool Chris · « **Reply #350 on:** December 11, 2020, 08:14:21 PM »

I care so little about MLB these days, but I will always find discussions about the HoF and who should/should not be in fascinating.

TAC · « **Reply #351 on:** December 13, 2020, 08:01:02 PM »

Apparently, the Cleveland Indians are likely to announce they're dropping the "Indians" name as soon as this coming week.

pg1067 · « **Reply #352 on:** December 14, 2020, 10:15:44 AM »

Quote from: TAC on December 13, 2020, 08:01:02 PM

Apparently, the Cleveland Indians are likely to announce they're dropping the "Indians" name as soon as this coming week.

I saw something about that somewhere....

Sad.

King Puppies and the Acid Guppies · « **Reply #353 on:** December 27, 2020, 12:57:12 PM »

Phil Niekro just died.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30605849/hall-fame-pitcher-phil-niekro-famous-signature-knuckleball-dies-81

pg1067 · « **Reply #354 on:** December 28, 2020, 09:53:01 AM »

Quote from: Puppies_On_Acid on December 27, 2020, 12:57:12 PM

Phil Niekro just died.

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30605849/hall-fame-pitcher-phil-niekro-famous-signature-knuckleball-dies-81

One of the ultimate stat collectors. He began his major league career before I was born, and he retired when I was 20. I cannot recall ever thinking he was an elite MLB pitcher. Of course, part of that is because he pitched for the then perennially shitty Braves.

T-ski · « **Reply #355 on:** January 22, 2021, 09:33:22 AM »

RIP Hammerin Hank Aaron.

pg1067 · « **Reply #356 on:** January 22, 2021, 09:40:27 AM »

Quote from: T-ski on January 22, 2021, 09:33:22 AM

RIP Hammerin Hank Aaron.

I literally just started a separate thread about this.

pg1067 · « **Reply #357 on:** January 27, 2021, 11:55:06 AM »

A day late with this one, but baseball writers demonstrated yet again that they are a bunch of numbnuts. No one was elected to the Baseball HOF this year.

https://am570lasports.iheart.com/content/2021-01-27-there-wont-be-any-inductees-in-the-baseball-hall-of-fame-class-of-2021/?Sc=editorial&Pname=local_social&Keyid=socialflow&fbclid=IwAR18DkYmUSyKQOJfMa1FWy-TVjpmvDo9e_oY_h2wUqjkv87EJaWVP_SdAuk

Dream Team · « **Reply #358 on:** January 28, 2021, 10:12:16 AM »

Quote from: pg1067 on January 27, 2021, 11:55:06 AM

A day late with this one, but baseball writers demonstrated yet again that they are a bunch of numbnuts. No one was elected to the Baseball HOF this year.

https://am570lasports.iheart.com/content/2021-01-27-there-wont-be-any-inductees-in-the-baseball-hall-of-fame-class-of-2021/?Sc=editorial&Pname=local_social&Keyid=socialflow&fbclid=IwAR18DkYmUSyKQOJfMa1FWy-TVjpmvDo9e_oY_h2wUqjkv87EJaWVP_SdAuk

Yup, they are always referring to a "character clause" originated by a racist while half the guys in the hall were drunks, wife abusers, drug abusers, racists, etc. A pathetic group of men and I'm glad Schilling went off on them. And the use political differences in their votes too.

pg1067 · « **Reply #359 on:** January 28, 2021, 03:56:39 PM »

It would be better if someone other than Schilling could take up this battle. Schilling wants to believe his politics are keeping him out of the HOF, but the reality is that he is, at best, a borderline case for the HOF.

The Baseball HOF is a private organization. It is not bound go give 100% of the primary voting power to the Baseball Writers' Association of America, and it's high time that the voting power was spread out among other groups (along with the BBWAA.

pg1067 · « **Reply #360 on:** January 28, 2021, 04:18:46 PM »

Interesting...

I just learned that the Baseball HOF does not -- and has not since 2001 -- allowed players and managers to select which cap appears on their plaques. Apparently, the change was made in part because of rumors that players were receiving compensation (e.g., money or a retired number) in exchange for selecting a particular team to appear on their HOF plaque cap. In particular, there was a story (which he vehemently denied) that Wade Boggs's contract with the Devil Rays required him to select a Rays cap to appear on his HOF plaque. This came into play with guys like Gary Carter and Andre Dawson. They wanted their plaques to depict, respectively, Mets and Cubs caps, but the HOF decided both would have Expos caps. It does appear, though, that the HOF will give greater deference to a player who wants to be depicted with no logo on his plaque cap (e.g., Tony LaRussa and Greg Maddox).

Notwithstanding my dissatisfaction with the selection process, visiting the HOF was awesome, and I need to do it again. I went there in January 1996, during the week leading up to my wedding in Albany. I went with one of my groomsmen who wasn't as into it as I was, so we only spent a couple hours there.

TAC · « **Reply #361 on:** January 28, 2021, 06:50:40 PM »

Thread title changed.

SoundscapeMN · « **Reply #362 on:** January 28, 2021, 10:33:21 PM »

I visited the HOF as a kid, the Summer of 1986, and distinctly recall spending the better part of 2 days there, and yet did not get to see everything. Some 35 years later, I can only imagine one could spend at least a week there before seeing more or less everything.

pg1067 · « **Reply #363 on:** January 29, 2021, 09:45:34 AM »

Quote from: SoundscapeMN on January 28, 2021, 10:33:21 PM

I visited the HOF as a kid, the Summer of 1986, and distinctly recall spending the better part of 2 days there, and yet did not get to see everything. Some 35 years later, I can only imagine one could spend at least a week there before seeing more or less everything.

And that's just the stuff that's actually on display. I would be like a kid in a candy store if I could get access to the HOF archives.

gmillerdrake · « **Reply #364 on:** January 29, 2021, 08:48:57 PM »

Wow. Cardinals have been taking some heat foe being cheap asses and taking advantage of a loyal fan base.....especially the past few years as the Blues ownership has shown them what real owners look like.

They just made a heck of a move.

TAC · « **Reply #365 on:** January 29, 2021, 08:55:59 PM »

I just saw that..Nolan Arenado? WOW!

King Puppies and the Acid Guppies · « **Reply #366 on:** January 29, 2021, 09:14:59 PM »

Quote from: TAC on January 29, 2021, 08:55:59 PM

I just saw that..Nolan Arenado? WOW!

Yeah, I was really hoping the Giants would make a move for him.

TAC · « **Reply #367 on:** January 30, 2021, 07:18:54 AM »

Was he on the block? I wasn't aware of that.

T-ski · « **Reply #368 on:** January 30, 2021, 09:14:05 AM »

This Arenado trade is maddening. Rockies don’t get any of the Cards top 5 prospects and the Rockies are picking up $50M of his salary. Arenado does appear to have an opt out at the end of ‘21 and ‘22, which I guess I can see the reluctance of the Cards giving up more, but still, absolute steal for St. Louis.

gmillerdrake · « **Reply #369 on:** January 30, 2021, 09:27:12 AM »

Quote from: T-ski on January 30, 2021, 09:14:05 AM

This Arenado trade is maddening. Rockies don’t get any of the Cards top 5 prospects and the Rockies are picking up $50M of his salary. Arenado does appear to have an opt out at the end of ‘21 and ‘22, which I guess I can see the reluctance of the Cards giving up more, but still, absolute steal for St. Louis.

I’ve read that the opt out clause will be removed.......that it was one of the things the Cardinals requested to make the trade happen.

TAC · « **Reply #370 on:** January 30, 2021, 09:33:04 AM »

In other news, the Red Sox jerked off yesterday.

TAC · « **Reply #371 on:** February 07, 2021, 08:46:59 PM »

Damn!

https://bleacherreport.com/articles/2930387-espn-reporter-pedro-gomez-dies-at-age-58

romdrums · « **Reply #372 on:** February 14, 2021, 07:04:14 PM »

Quote from: TAC on January 30, 2021, 09:33:04 AM

In other news, the Red Sox jerked off yesterday.

Along with 20 other teams that have no desire to field a competitive team. MLB needs a salary cap and a salary floor.

TAC · « **Reply #373 on:** February 14, 2021, 07:10:47 PM »

It's odd, but of all of the sports without fans this past year, I found baseball the hardest to witch without them.

pg1067 · « **Reply #374 on:** February 15, 2021, 11:32:15 AM »

Quote from: romdrums on February 14, 2021, 07:04:14 PM

MLB needs a salary cap and a salary floor.

Yeah...I agree.

Quote from: TAC on February 14, 2021, 07:10:47 PM

It's odd, but of all of the sports without fans this past year, I found baseball the hardest to witch without them.

That's probably because fans show up in pretty much every shot, including every pitch from the centerfield camera. Hockey's a close second, though.

Cool Chris · « **Reply #375 on:** February 22, 2021, 09:28:05 PM »

There is no worse professional sports team than the Seattle Mariners. In 44 years, they have 14 winning seasons, 4 playoff appearances, and zero pennants. They are the only current MLB team to never play in the World Series. And as someone who spent their first full year of life in the same year the M's did, I cannot honestly say they have had any extended period of time where they were committed to winning. A past president has gone on record saying that their primary goal was to put an entertaining, competitive team on the field, not winning a championship. Now a (former) CEO has been on record saying that they purposefully manipulate players' service years (everyone does it, they just don't brag about it) and paying for the interpreters of foreign born players (who apparently speak terrible English) is annoying

If there is a worse professional sports franchise, please tell me what it is.

King Puppies and the Acid Guppies · « **Reply #376 on:** February 23, 2021, 12:56:20 AM »

Quote from: Cool Chris on February 22, 2021, 09:28:05 PM

There is no worse professional sports team than the Seattle Mariners. In 44 years, they have 14 winning seasons, 4 playoff appearances, and zero pennants. They are the only current MLB team to never play in the World Series. And as someone who spent their first full year of life in the same year the M's did, I cannot honestly say they have had any extended period of time where they were committed to winning. A past president has gone on record saying that their primary goal was to put an entertaining, competitive team on the field, not winning a championship. Now a (former) CEO has been on record saying that they purposefully manipulate players' service years (everyone does it, they just don't brag about it) and paying for the interpreters of foreign born players (who apparently speak terrible English) is annoying

If there is a worse professional sports franchise, please tell me what it is.

The Detroit Lions or the Cleveland Browns might have a claim to the title of "worst professional sports franchise". Neither team has even been to the Superbowl. The Lions haven't placed first in their division since 1993 and have only done so 3 times in the Superbowl era. If you count the pre-Superbowl era, they've only placed first 8 times going all the way back to 1930...

Or maybe the Arizona Coyotes...

Or the LA Clippers

But I agree, the Mariners are a sorry team.

pg1067 · « **Reply #377 on:** February 23, 2021, 10:29:31 AM »

Quote from: Cool Chris on February 22, 2021, 09:28:05 PM

There is no worse professional sports team than the Seattle Mariners. In 44 years, they have 14 winning seasons, 4 playoff appearances, and zero pennants. They are the only current MLB team to never play in the World Series. And as someone who spent their first full year of life in the same year the M's did, I cannot honestly say they have had any extended period of time where they were committed to winning. A past president has gone on record saying that their primary goal was to put an entertaining, competitive team on the field, not winning a championship. Now a (former) CEO has been on record saying that they purposefully manipulate players' service years (everyone does it, they just don't brag about it) and paying for the interpreters of foreign born players (who apparently speak terrible English) is annoying

If there is a worse professional sports franchise, please tell me what it is.

You know...I heard what the guy said last night (whatever sports talk scrub was on during the 8:00 hour), and I kept waiting for him to say something that I thought was really bad. Don't like paying for non-English speaking players' interpreters? Don't blame him (and I'm shocked that the teams, rather than the players, pay). Manipulate service time? As you mentioned, everyone does it. Anyhoo...

One of the shows the MLB Network runs with some regularity during the off-season is an hour long documentary about the 1995 Mariners, and the theme is that they were the team that saved baseball in Seattle. As I was watching it, I came to the realization (which you mentioned) that the Mariners are now the only team that has never played in a World Series. So many teams have broken through that barrier in the last 20 years: Rockies, Rangers, Rays, Nationals, Angels, D-Backs and Astros.

Quote from: Puppies_On_Acid on February 23, 2021, 12:56:20 AM

The Detroit Lions or the Cleveland Browns might have a claim to the title of "worst professional sports franchise". Neither team has even been to the Superbowl. The Lions haven't placed first in their division since 1993 and have only done so 3 times in the Superbowl era. If you count the pre-Superbowl era, they've only placed first 8 times going all the way back to 1930...

Or maybe the Arizona Coyotes...

Or the LA Clippers

But I agree, the Mariners are a sorry team.

The Clippers? I'd say the Kings, Suns and Knicks are much worse (especially the Knicks, who have pissed all over their history and have no excuse). Arizona's probably the best choice in the NHL, although they were in the playoffs in 2020. Sabres have the longest playoff drought (9 years), but the Coyotes (fKa Jets) are one of only four teams who have never played in the Stanley Cup Final (and the franchise has been in existence twice as long as the other three teams). And, of course, there's the Maple Leafs, who have the longest Cup drought.

Cool Chris · « **Reply #378 on:** February 23, 2021, 07:51:39 PM »

I was curious how much play this is making nationally. I have heard his comments about service time will torpedo the next round of contract negs. It will be the MLBPA's exhibit A.

Locally, the radio waves are seething, and mostly with the long-time fans, who have endured mediocrity for so long. We are also a region who lost their popular NBA team over 10 years ago. And the Mariners should be aware if you walked around the streets Seattle (at your own risk...) you'd see Kraken garb outnumber M's garb 10-1. And the Kraken have yet to play a game. If what he said wasn't that bad, it is seen here as just another part of a pattern of behavior that has existed with this franchise for so long.

Also, you have to recognize our large Asian population here. Paying an Asian dude's interpreter's salary pays off a hundred fold in what that player brings to the table, both tangible and intangible.

I wasn't old enough to appreciate what the franchise was going through in 1995, but they have had multiple owners who wanted to relocate, and Seattle is a very fair-weather fan town who has little interest in investing dollars or time in to a flailing franchise. It's not too much of an exaggeration to say Edgar's double kept the team here.

pg1067 · « **Reply #379 on:** February 24, 2021, 09:54:18 AM »

Quote from: Cool Chris on February 23, 2021, 07:51:39 PM

I was curious how much play this is making nationally. I have heard his comments about service time will torpedo the next round of contract negs. It will be the MLBPA's exhibit A.

Exhibit A should be Kris Bryant. In 2015, he was one of the top prospects in baseball and hit 9 HR in 40 spring training at-bats but wasn't on the Cubs' opening day roster. The MLBPA made a stink about it, and it's been widely known at least since then that teams did this. If the MLBPA doesn't like it, then yeah, it should be a subject of negotiation.

Quote from: Cool Chris on February 23, 2021, 07:51:39 PM

If what he said wasn't that bad, it is seen here as just another part of a pattern of behavior that has existed with this franchise for so long.

Fair point.

TAC · « **Reply #380 on:** March 08, 2021, 04:44:25 PM »

https://www.radio.com/weei/sports/red-sox/former-mlb-reliever-rheal-cormier-dies-at-53

Damn. I remember him playing for the Sox. Way too young.

pg1067 · « **Reply #381 on:** March 08, 2021, 04:46:58 PM »

Quote from: TAC on March 08, 2021, 04:44:25 PM

https://www.radio.com/weei/sports/red-sox/former-mlb-reliever-rheal-cormier-dies-at-53

Damn. I remember him playing for the Sox. Way too young.

Damn...only six months older than I am. Cancer sucks.

jingle.boy · « **Reply #382 on:** March 10, 2021, 02:46:30 PM »

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/texas-rangers-plan-to-allow-full-capacity-of-fans-for-2021-mlb-opening-day/

Only in Texas.

This ought to end well.

T-ski · « **Reply #383 on:** March 10, 2021, 03:29:06 PM »

Quote from: jingle.boy on March 10, 2021, 02:46:30 PM

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/texas-rangers-plan-to-allow-full-capacity-of-fans-for-2021-mlb-opening-day/

Only in Texas.

This ought to end well.

Brewers play their final two spring trading games there. Awesome.

T-ski · « **Reply #384 on:** March 24, 2021, 12:52:51 PM »

20 years ago today.....

https://youtu.be/1PyCpG06138

News: Video of online chat between fans and members of Dream Theater: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sx8cLlXnHpA&feature=youtu.be (*no chickens were harmed during the filming of this chat)

Author Topic: 2022 MLB Thread formerly the 2021 thread.. (Read 72298 times)