Frayed Knot

I managed to stay up for the 10:10 start vs LA but the Giants don't start their home games until 10:15 EDT, not sure I can handle the later start. Giants are once again Pence-less (as they were during our earlier series) but now are also Aoki-less which changes things a bit as I believe he had 43 hits against us last month alone. Justin Maxwell and/or Gregor Blanco have been getting the fill-in time at the corner OF spots and they've even moved Brandon Belt out to LF on days when Posey plays 1B. After Heston tonight (we owe this guy an ass-kicking and he's been pretty ordinary since his no-no: 1-2 in 4 starts) ... we'll see Matt Cain [Tues 10:15] in just his second start since hitting the DL in the middle of last season. He didn't look good in Start #1 vs the Marlins last week: 5 ER on 7 hits + 4 walks over 5 innings. On Wednesday (3:30 start) we get Jake Peavy in just his 4th start of the year. He lost his first 3 looking bad against SD [4 ER on 4 Hits in 4 IP], even worse vs Arizona [4 ER on 8 Hits in 3.2] and then less bad at the Nats [2 runs over 6.1]

The thing about Mejia is that he was more lucky than good during much of 2014, particularly in the second half when he was (for the most part) preventing runs despite allowing baserunners galore. For his year as a whole, which included some early season starts, his WHIP was up around 1.5 and down the stretch 2 or more runners/outing became almost the norm for him even if he came away unscathed more often than not. Nice trick if you can get away with it but you usually don't for very long. He'll probably get slotted right into the 8th inning role (but you have to slot guys y'know) but it's not like we're getting a sure-fire set-up guy here. The one good thing is that having him in a non-closing role will hopefully tone down his post-inning dance act. As for replacement: - if they intend to train/use/market Verrett as a starter at some point that point isn't going to be anytime soon and there'll be plenty of opportunity to "stretch him out" later. Right now he's very quietly been near perfect so there's no way I send him down. Hell, challenge Mejia to displace HIM as the 8th inning man rather than just hand it to him. In fact a three-headed set-up crew of Parnell, Verrett, and Mejia will be a helluva lot more effective than assigning the job to just one. - ATorres is probably safe until Blevins returns by virtue of using his left wing but probably very UNsafe afterward. - I was surprised that Robles's peripheral numbers looked as ordinary as they do. He seems like he's been doing better than his digits suggest. He may be the odd man out just by virtue of having his 'role' taken.

Harvey - 2.5 CTorres - 0.6 Gilmartin - 0.3 Flores - 1.6 Duda - 1.0 Plawecki - 1.0 Murphy - 1.0

Matz - 3.6 Verrett - 1.2 Flores - 2.7 Murphy - 1.5 Granderson - 1.0

And a winning series which was definitely needed. Still a lot of problems remain. The run scoring was thin in the first two games but it was also Kershaw & Greinke so you can't be too critical on that front. But they then got to the lesser part of the rotation and pen and put up 11 runs over the final 11 innings. And now on to San Fran.

Anyone who bet the 'Over' on Logan Verrett ABs this year, step up now to the window to collect your winnings.

This is one of those games that's starting to worry me in that it feels like it should be more than a 4 run lead and the Dodgers still have four innings left vs a starter with a high pitch count who's probably done after this inning.

Edgy MD wrote: Scully making a lot of unforced errors these last few days. Vin has been increasingly error-prone in recent years. Not enough necessarily to get the hook out and pull him off the stage yet and I suspect he'll be able to recognize when enough is enough. But in case he isn't, I hope there's someone around him who is both willing and able to tell him when it's time to hang 'em up. As of now he's taking things year to year but I'm sure no one in Dodger town wants to be the one to tell when the option to return is no longer going to be his choice.

A three run deficit is such a huge gap these days. And against Greinke even more so.

This was a Bumgarner start today. Nats kicked off the 1st inning HR - 2B - HR and it was all downhill from there. Their only problem is that Strasburg walked off the mound in the middle of the 4th with some as yet undisclosed ailment. This early morning (11 AM) July 4th start thing the Nats now have going is a decent emerging tradition. With the Giants in town that means an 8 AM TV appointment for their fans out west which is kind of cool too. Game over by 11 AM and your whole day in front of you.

The mid-season look at how the answers to these pre-season questions are trending. Two of the 'On Roster All Year' answers were officially put into the books with the Gee and Recker demotions. Several others all but officially over. QUESTIONRESULTSTRENDINGGRANDY LEADS TEAM in HRs21 of 24 = NO'YES" as he's in the lead by 3MEJIA LEADS TEAM in SAVES18 of 24 = YES'NO', unless something REALLY radical happensGEE to STAY on TEAM ALL SEASON16 of 24 = YESRecent demotion means ’NO’ wins this contestCOLON ON ROSTER ALL SEASON16 of 24 = NOStill hanging in thered’ARNAUD ON ROSTER ALL SEASON22 of 24 = YESStill a YES despite the injuriesRECKER ON ROSTER ALL SEASON16 of 24 = NORecent demotion means ‘NO’ winsMUPRHY ON ROSTER ALL SEASON12 said YES, 12 said NOSuddenly we’re discussing next year as an optionTEJADA ON ROSTER ALL SEASON16 of 24 = NOStill 'YES' and he's even starting nowNIESE ON ROSTER ALL SEASON24 of 24 = YESStill a ‘YES’ but there are rumors …COLLINS IN CHARGE ALL SEASON23 of 24 = YESSo far so good, but they are on the west coast …DUDA OVER/UNDER 29.5 HRs11 of 24 = OVER'UNDER' - on pace for 20CUDDYER OVER/UNDER 119.5 Games Played16 of 24 = OVER’OVER' - on Pace for 146MEJIA OVER/UNDER 19.5 Saves15 of 24 = OVERDecidedly looking like ‘UNDER’FLORES OVER/UNDER 449.5 PAs18 of 24 = OVER’OVER - on Pace for 540COLON OVER/UNDER 17.5 Starts14 of 24 = OVERNeeds just 2 more to secure the ‘OVER’WRIGHT OVER/UNDER 21.5 HRs19 of 24 = OVERI think ‘UNDER’ is pretty much been declared the winner hereNIEUWENHUIS OVER/UNDER 199.5 PAs9 of 24 = OVER’UNDER’ - although ‘Over’ is once again technically possibleSYNDERGAARD OVER/UNDER 19.5 Starts2 of 24 = OVER’OVER’ - 10 down with 14 or so more out there for the takingMATZ OVER/UNDER 9.5 Starts4 of 24 = OVER’OVER’ - See SyndergaardNIMMO OVER/UNDER 49.5 PAs6 of 24 = OVER’UNDER” - but next call-up?MURPHY or HERRERA: More PAs22 of 24 = MURPH’MURPHY’ by a better than 2-to-1 ratioNIEUWENHUIS or MAYBERRY: More PAs15 of 24 = MAYBERRY’MAYBERRY’ by a landslided’ARNAUD or PLAWECKI: More PAs24 of 24 = d’ARNAUD’PLAWECKI’ retains a 2-to-1 edge - this one could go down to the wirePARNELL or FAMILIA: More Saves15 of 24 = FAMILIAA 22-1 edge for ‘FAMILIA’GILMARTIN or LEATHERSICH: More IPs18 of 24 = GILMARTIN25 to 11 lead for ‘GILMARTIN’

Syndergaard - 3.8 Robles - 1.2 Familia - 0.8 Mayberry - 1.0 Duda - 1.0 Plawecki - 0.6 Tejada - 0.3 Flores - 1.3

Son of the late WC guitarist Tommy Tedesco makes a documentary film of the loose confederation of legendary LA-based studio musicians known informally (and mostly in retrospect) as 'The Wrecking Crew' who played on every single record ever recorded during the 1960s (or so it seems at times). A combo of survivors recollections, home movies, and archive footage galore, it's as much a celebration/tribute as a pure documentary.

A childless 40-something couple starts hanging with and even imitating a pair of 20-something hipsters because millennials are so free and open and fun and non-materialistic. Or are they? Ben Stiller & Naomi Watts play the oldsters; Adam Driver & Amanda Seyfried the younger pair. Supporting/cameo roles by the likes of Peter Yarrow, Adam Horovitz, Charles Grodin, Dree* Hemingway "It's like their whole apartment is decorated with all the stuff we've thrown out!" * daughter of Mariel, g-granddaughter of Ernest

Would it be too much to ask for the rest of the AL East not to suck so badly? Yanx suck lately but are alone in 1st place thanks to Baltimore and Toronto each sucking in 4 of their last 5 games, and the Rays sucking for 6 straight. Boston has a few wins lately but mostly at the expense of the other AL East teams but they lost to Houston in extras last night and already had the biggest claim to the suck title. Rays blew a 3-run lead in the 8th then a 2-run lead in the 12th to win the suck prize of the night. They should have had bigger leads each time except that they decided to suck instead. And just in case the 'replay is only going to be used to correct egregiously bad calls' argument wasn't already dead and buried, Evan Longoria easily cruises into 2nd with an 11th inning double last night, but when replay shows that his foot loses contact with the top of the base ever so briefly and maybe by the length of his spikes following his pop-up slide he gets punched out following the requisite 27 minute review.

Friday July 3rd NL East results: Mets beat Dodgers 2-1 Nationals beat Giants 2-1 Marlins beat Cubs 2-1 Braves beat Phils 2-1

If Granderson was any deeper for Ethier he would have needed a ticket.

Nice battling AB by Tejada but no result. Be nice if Ceciliani can get a nice slap-n-run hit here. oe: Nope, went swinging for the fences.

Edgy MD wrote: Duda looks like an 800-lb. gorilla. Now that's just plain mean.

- We're fucking up this dude's ERA & WHIP - two leadoff doubles brought around in the same game. Maybe the worm is starting to turn - these are our first two non-Granderson or pitcher driven-in-runs since last Thursday

Good thing Jansen muffed that one cuz Duda was hung out to dry otherwise.

There have been a whole lotta pitches this inning for just one out so far. Far too many. And it all started with a (say it with me folks) Play. Not. Made.

Whattyaknow, we score following a lead-off double and they don't. What a concept!!

Nice. But do you mean to imply that Plawecki is a zero?

I'm declaring this weekend's series with the Rays to be the Yanx first BIG series of the year. With Tampa & Toronto tied a game behind the also tied Yanx and Orioles this division isn't looking like a runaway for anyone, but a good showing by the Rays this weekend in the Bronx could throw the Yanx into some degree of turmoil, especially if Tanaka & Sabathia get beat again. So far in Game 1 Chris Archer is out-dueling Tanaka thru 7, both starters now out of the game. 3-0 Rays - top 8. Toronto is in Detroit this weekend. Orioles at ChiSox. BoSox hosting Houston.