Centerfield

A Boy Named Seo wrote: Farewell to the name disabled list, a smart and thoughtful move that will surely piss someone off for some stupid reason . As far as we all know, the length of stay is still 10 days? I read grumblings they wanted to go back to 15. Tons of idiots reacting online about how the PC movement is destroying baseball/America/the world. Can't imagine what type of person looks at people with disabilities and thinks "Hey, let's respond to them with snark and dickheadedness".

Good job by baseball. Fully support the change.

Well, first of all, climate change. Eventually there will be no such thing as winter. In the interim, the answer is simple. All cold-weather teams pick a warm weather destination to play the first few months of the season. Sure, you can be boring and pick your spring training facility. But forward thinkers will pick Aruba. Bermuda. Curacao. The Virgin Islands. Fans will plan their vacations around them. Invigorate the local communities. YEAR ROUND BASEBALL.

https://www.gannett-cdn.com/presto/2018/10/30/PNJM/932239ec-2ff5-482c-b2bc-589d537ffc0e-103018_Queens_METS_01.JPG?width=534&height=401&fit=bounds&auto=webp> I meant what I said about eliminating the "ifs". We now have "ors", which I feel are good. A few "huh?"s and a few "wtf"s sure. But no "ifs".

=G-Fafif post_id=2526 time=1549563884 user_id=55] When I think of LOOGYness, I think of Dario Alvarez coming into face Bryce Harper in a tie game on Labor Day 2015, when the NL East hung in the balance, and Alvarez striking him out on a full count to end the inning. The next half-inning brought three Mets runs, the third of them punctuated by the iconic David Wright fist pump. We won the game, swept the Nats in that series and all but nailed down the division. Alvarez's one-batter appearance was a true pivot point, LOOGYing at its best. For all the hurry up and wait pertaining to multiple pitching changes, I'd prefer a moment like that -- and a role like that -- not be disappeared from baseball.

Good, smart move.

Looks like we have a case of premature speculation. Miami said to be holding out for a third piece to add to the deal.

Per Ken Rosenthal. Jorge Alfaro and Sixto Sanchez going the other way. I've never heard of either. But I'm guessing they're not as good as Noah Syndergaard. (Which is not to say they're not good prospects. From what I'm reading it seems like a pretty fair trade and the Marlins got pretty good value.)

Benjamin Grimm wrote: I guess we should be grateful for the past 46 years that we had without the DH. I think it makes the game less interesting. I remember Art Rust Jr. (remember him?) saying that fans don't want to see "a chess match" but I happen to like that aspect of the game, trying to think along with the managers. I bet the sport's most loyal fans DO want to see a chess match. Benjamin Grimm wrote: I do agree that the one-batter reliever adds tedium to the game. I kind of like the idea of the three-batter minimum, as it would add a new element of strategy to the game. I'm not a huge fan of LOOGYs, but I believe the manager and GM should decide which players to use and how to use them, not the league front office. Yes the LOOGY adds tedium, but so do replays, fouling people, kneel-downs, and the last two minutes of a close football or basketball game taking half an hour of real time. And yet the NBA and NFL aren't looking to tweak absolutely everything. Benjamin Grimm wrote: The change to the trade deadline is supposed to somehow deter teams from cashing in their chips. By making the buyer-or-seller decision have to come earlier, I guess they're hoping that fewer teams will opt to be sellers. I'm not so sure that that will have much of an effect, but perhaps we'll see. I don't have a problem with teams who stop trying to win in July. I have a problem with teams like the Pirates, who stopped trying to win in 1993. If the league wants more people to go to games, start with that. And then go on to address the two star free agents in their prime that nobody seems to want. Like I said before, there will be more than a year between pitches if Manfred cares more about doing stupid shit that nobody really wants than in addressing the real problem. smg for commish.

We saw it in 3D. I rarely like that format but a buddy of mine said this was the way it had to be seen. Really was stunning.

Here's my proposal to make baseball better. Get rid of the offseason. After the WS everyone takes a week off. They've earned their rest. Another week for trades, free agency etc. Nov 15 everyone stops fucking around and reports to spring training. Games start January 1. Do it Manfred.

=41Forever post_id=2494 time=1549540124 user_id=69] I don't Like the DH at all. But I don't think it makes any sense to have half the teams playing with different rules, especially when there is at least one interleague game a day. I'd rather see the AL eliminate it, but I don't think it will ever happen. So I'm resigned to DHs in the NL.

Frayed Knot wrote: The "solution(s)" I often hear from those in the sports media who dislike baseball (iow: most of them) always seems to involve their ideas for there being significantly less baseball going forward (shorter games, shorter seasons, fewer teams, more off-days, no overlap with any other sport ever, etc.). I'll pass on that whole line of thinking if you don't mind. This.

The talent is not diluted. The population is exponentially more than it was before expansion. Players are coming from all over the world. It's harder than it's ever been to make the major leagues.

With pink writing!

This is getting out of control. No Tebow, no Frank Howard. You must have appeared in at least 1 game as a NY Met. Minor leagues and coaching doesn't count. It's like you guys have never done fake football/baseball before. Amateurs.

Seriously? Is he now allowed to remember the things he previously forgot?

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: Blevins was pretty much shit last year, and really only does 1 thing well, so it makes sense in the whydfml world of specialist relievers. No doubt he's capable of recapturing the mojo but how much would you bet? I'm ok with taking a pass. I feel like a real successful LOOGY is one that has a slider that breaks away from the lefty. Blevins with his high 80s fastball and ok curve doesn't have much margin for error.

Original thread was here: http://www.thecranepool.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=27654http://www.thecranepool.net/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=27654 I echo 41F and mm. Terrific movie. My daughter's favorite part was the pig.

Butch is captain of my defensive line. And duh. DJ Dozier. I suck at NFL GM-ing.

Due to complaints about the pace of play, Rob Manfred announces that all MLB teams will play football this year instead of baseball. To appease disappointed baseball fans, he says you can use his DeLorean to grab any player from your team's history. Construct our roster NOW!!!! QB: We can go a few different directions here. We can go with our current 6'6" viking who throws 100 MPH. Alternatively, we can ride back to '99 and pick up Pat Mahomes. The 2018 NFL MVP got it from somewhere. RB: Jose Reyes? Jay Payton? I'm guessing '99 Henderson would be too old. FB: I'm thinking Benny Agbayani. I'm also thinking the '99 Mets would have been pretty good at football. WR: We'll need a few. I think you start with Darryl Strawberry. Tommy Agee. I think Ryan Thompson actually played football. TE: Big strong guy with soft hands. I'm looking at you Jim, our Monstrously Huge Batboy. Offensive Line: Defensive Line: Start building around Butch Huskey. Linebackers: Yoenis Cespedes is basically a Mike Singletary clone. Defensive Backs: Safety: FG Kicker: Armando Benitez. He'll make 35 out of 36. When he misses one in the playoffs we can bitch about how he misses them AT THE WORST POSSIBLE TIME. Punter:

Really? A man crush over Gio Gonzalez? I mean, I think he's better than Vargas too. But he may not be that much better. His WHIP over his last four seasons: 2015: 1.423 2016: 1.342 2017: 1.179 2018: 1.444 Three of the last four he's not been great. And even in 2017 when he had a good year, he led the league with 79 walks. Tons of baserunners, high pitch count, taxes the bullpen. Kinda seems like a late career Al Leiter once his cutter stopped working. His WHIP in 2018 was actually worse than Vargas, though the ERA was better. I mean, on a one year deal it's probably worth a go, but I would view this more as a "Hey let's try to make sure Chris Flexen starts as few games as possible" than "Let's bolster our rotation." I demand more of my man-crushes.

Glad to see Cecchini back. He won't make the club out of spring training because of the logjame, but I think he'll make some noise at Syracuse this year. Provided he's healthy.

Yes. Draft picks were a big part of the rebuild, but tanking to get an early pick played a small role. Early picks were Correa and Bregman. That's it. Springer was 11th overall. Altuve dropped out of the sky. And Keuchel was a 7th rounder. None of the prospects used to get Verlander were early picks. McCullers was 41st. Morton was a journeyman who put it together late in his career and Gurriel is international. Did they tank? Absolutely. Did they tank their way to a championship? Hardly. They wasted away as many high picks as they capitalized on. Maybe if they picked 10th those years they would have been better. Rebuilding is crucial for a small market team. Tanking? Not so much.

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: Well it was a lot more than draft picks that got them there, so that's not absolute either. Not anything close to an absolute. They had three #1 overall picks in a row and only one of them (Carlos Correa) ended up a star. One is out of baseball and the other got hurt and is now in the Cleveland system. They also hit with their #2 pick overall (Alex Bregman), but their #11 overall is pretty good too (George Springer). All of which illustrates the point FK has made over and over, it's nice to pick first, but draft order is not nearly as important as the owners make it out to be.