Drop it! Drop it! Drop it!

[A Boy Named Seo]

You guys see this?



https://www.mlb.com/news/mike-minor-rangers-200-strikeoutshttps://www.mlb.com/news/mike-minor-rangers-200-strikeouts



Mike Minor is in the 9th inning, at 120+ pitches, and sitting on 199Ks. The Rangers are leading the Red Sox 7-5. With one out, Minor induces a pop-up in foul territory near first base. As the first baseman Guzman jogs in to catch it, Minor yells at him to drop it, and Guzman does. Minor Ks the next dude to get to 200, then gets removed at 126 pitches so a reliever can get the last out. Yay 200 Ks.



Aftermath: Red Sox think it's bush league. Rangers Manager and ex-Met Chris Woodward said he didn't love the dropped pop-up, but 200 Ks is special, and if you're going to accuse the Rangers of not trying to win the game, then you can say the same about the Red Sox because they swung at the first pitch 3 batters in a row down by 2. Whoa, egregious.



1) Do you care?



2) Why or why not?



I don't give a shit about 200Ks. I feel like if it was a Met pitcher chasing it, I'd be pissed if Alonso dropped the ball and gave the batter another chance. Whatchoo guys think?

[Benjamin Grimm]

I agree that it's bush league. Teams should be trying to win, not pad the stats of individual players.



Did Guzman get charged with an error on the play? I guess his fielding percentage isn't as important as Minor's strikeout count.

[seawolf17]

1) Nope, and I think the faux outrage is stupid.

2) Because (a) why the hell not, it's just a game; and ( the Sox' actions the previous inning.



If it didn't work? Reason to be angry, maybe. But this late in the season, in an "otherwise worthless" game? Sure, go for it. Minor still had to execute.

[kcmets]

Put me down for totally bush.



(not the canned beans, the political family, the rock band or the shrub - the league)

[A Boy Named Seo]

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I agree that it's bush league. Teams should be trying to win, not pad the stats of individual players. Did Guzman get charged with an error on the play? I guess his fielding percentage isn't as important as Minor's strikeout count.

Guzman was charged with an error.



BTW - I don't know if it's fact, but I read that there was not a $$ bonus in play for Minor for hitting 200 Ks. Just the milestone.

1) Nope, and I think the faux outrage is stupid. 2) Because (a) why the hell not, it's just a game; and ( the Sox' actions the previous inning. If it didn't work? Reason to be angry, maybe. But this late in the season, in an "otherwise worthless" game? Sure, go for it. Minor still had to execute.

I don't have outrage faux or otherwise. And I don't think the Sox swinging first pitch in any way indicates they weren't trying to win. But I guess I know how I feel about the whole thing b/c I wish the Sox would've scored 3 runs after the dropped ball and won it because yelling at your teammate to drop a pop fly so you can chase a personal milestone is lame.

[Vic Sage]

its bass-ackwards of how stats are supposed to work. 200 strikeouts is an indicator of a power pitcher who has dominated throughout a season. Its something you assess after the accomplishment, not a line of demarcation that a player should be striving for in and of itself. Its a consequence, not a reason. 200 is just a round fucking number and these guys are INTENTIONALLY dropping balls in the 9th inning of a close game? If you have demanded that a teammate throw an out away to achieve a personal (and meaningless) goal, then i would fucking trade you.



is my outrage "faux"? Go faux yourself.

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Bush on everyone's part

[Benjamin Grimm]

I would have caught the ball and pretended I didn't hear the pitcher shouting. I would have said afterwards, "My bad. Just strike out the next guy if it's that important to you."

[seawolf17]

Minor wasn't even the guy yelling! It was the catcher.

[A Boy Named Seo]

Nah, Minor said in the article that he yelled at him to drop it.

[Ceetar]

it's lame, but I still like it. go for it. it's a game and a meaningless one at that. It would've been less lame if he'd had money on it. If I could drop the ball on a project so a coworker gets an extra 10k or something? I'd do it.



Also it's Chris fucking Owings. I could strike him out.

[Frayed Knot]

Lame and bush

In fact, it wasn't merely bush league, one could say it was minor league. (I totally crack myself up sometimes)

[Centerfield]

I think it's lame. And I'm usually a "let the kids play" guy. I'm good with bat flips and fist pumps, and cool intro music and stealing bases in blowouts and all sorts of things that make the "play the game the way it was meant to be played" crowd crazy.



Throwing away an out to artificially pad an individual statistic is dumb. And I get the Minor maybe never reached 200 strikeouts before, but in my mind, he still hasn't.

[Edgy MD]

That said, Woodward's not wrong. Swinging at the first pitch playing catch-up ball in the ninth, from a competitive standpoint, is crazy.

[Valadius]

They gave the guy another swing. I don't get the complaining.

[G-Fafif]

Not asking Lugo to give up two runs in the ninth so Alonso gets another crack at 53.

[nymr83]

=G-Fafif post_id=23168 time=1569636581 user_id=55]
Not asking Lugo to give up two runs in the ninth so Alonso gets another crack at 53.

[Fman99]

Total bush.

[Frayed Knot]

=Fman99 post_id=23177 time=1569666300 user_id=86]Total bush.

[Fman99]

Frayed Knot wrote: =Fman99 post_id=23177 time=1569666300 user_id=86]Total bush.

Are we still talking about the dropped pop-up?