Frayed Knot

bmfc1 wrote: Terry can pitch [Harvey] next Saturday and keep him on 4-day rest as Thursday is an off-day. That sounds like what they're going to do. If so I'd say it's almost certain that he starts the ASG

Ricky Nolasco goes to the Dodgers for three minor leaguers--pitchers Josh Wall, Steven Ames and Angel Sanchez. Remember in ST when the Dodgers had too much starting pitching? Earlier this week, the same LA Dodgers acquired released Cubs reliever Carlos Marmol.

The only real question about Harvey is whether or not he starts that final Sunday prior to the ASG. Pitchers who pitch that day are supposed to be ineligible so as to not clog up the roster only to declare themselves 'unavailable'. That's why Bochy has said that he'll start Harvey as long as the Mets cooperate.

MFS62 wrote: All that, and he doesn't even resort to the old "adjust the batting gloves" routine? Actually, he does that too. I just forget to mention it. Reminds of the Jim Bouton line about how if they just outlawed Velcro they'd shave 20 minutes off each game.

Byrd between Ike & Nieuwy keeps the LHBs separated. As for Ike over Satin, it's not just the money. You don't want to bring Ike back just to sit him so, for a while anyway, I think he'll be in there every day vs RHPs and some days against Lefties. Eyebrows will get his ABs; at 1B, maybe at 2B or 3B, PH-ing, and maybe in an OF spot.

The 12-second rule is supposed to be for pitchers with the bases empty - so none of that would apply here. What should apply is the rule --suggestion is more like it-- that batters are supposed to keep at least one foot in the box. That gives them the ability to hold back the pitchers pace if he's going too fast for them but without taking a stroll in between each pitch. Problem is that only some of this is even codified in the rule book and even the parts that are aren't enforced. The players and managers object to being held to strict limits which is why half of this stuff are merely suggestions or "guidelines" and not hard and fast rules. The umps don't want to enforce anything because it puts them in the spot of being the bad guys. And because these aren't really rules there aren't really penalties for the umps to hand out even if they wanted to call something. There are goofy things in the rule book covering if say a batter refuses to step into the box (like if he's still steaming about the last call and won't shut up). In that case the ump has the power to tell the pitcher to deliver the pitch and he will call it a strike even if it flies to the backstop. But when was the last time anyone saw that called (I never have) and that's not what's happening here anyway. Hafner isn't refusing to get in the box, he's just not being asked to get there in the first place because, again, the ump doesn't want to play the heavy trying to keep a batter from doing something he's been allowed to do every day for the last decade or more. I timed two of Hafner's ABs today; he's taking about 30 seconds per pitch - and these are middle of the game, non-pressure situations, not 9th inning game-deciding ones that require extra prep work.

Speaking of Hafner, there's a guy who deserves a 50 game suspension. Not for PEDs (although maybe he does those too) but for constant delay of game. I was flipping over to the Yanx game every once in a while last night including during one of his ABs. And after Every. Single. Pitch. he first smoothes the dirt in the box with his feet; then leaves and walks towards the 1B dugout until he gets to the outermost edge of the dirt circle some 20 feet away; at this point he takes a couple of practice swings, stretches a bit, spits once or twice, then slowly walks back towards the plate where of course the dirt needs smoothing again. Only then is his ready to dig his feet in allow the pitcher the honor of throwing the next pitch. The Mets/Brewes game must have gone through two or three batters in the time Hafner's AB alone took. And I know it wasn't just this one time because I've seen him do this before.

I don't have to speak Korean to know that every guy on that bench was saying some form of: 'Holy shit she must be hot in bed'

Ollie Perez notched his second save of the season last night. Came in to start the 9th inning with a 2-run lead in Cincinnati and K'd the side (Jay Bruce, Todd Fraizer, Derrick Robinson) on 11 pitches.

Edgy MD wrote: Gomez, with his .039 walk rate and his triples-dependent slugging percentage, seems poised to come back to earth. Somebody is going to find a pitch he can't touch and it's going to get around the league in five minutes. Mebbe. 'Guys' made reference to his high 'BaBiP' rate the other day, and certainly his home ballpark helps more than a bit (20 of his 32 HRs since the beginning of 2012 were in Miller Park). Still, he's a vastly improved player both from what we saw and what the Twins sent away for a SS (JJ Hardy) who they then dealt away for even less. Funny thing about those Twins. They have a rep for a consistent organizational strategy that their almost extreme continuity* keeps alive. But I think sometimes that sort of thing can breed a kind of narrow-mindedness where players like both Gomez and Big Papi were banished fairly quickly after Minnesota couldn't mold them into the type of player they thought they should be and wound up stifling what turned out to be each player's better assets. * Since 1987 have had TWO managers and just three GMs with both the previous mgr & GM still on the staff as senior advisors and each replacement GM was promoted from within. Also, if you can get your hands on the July 1 SI, with LeBron James on the cover This is confusing. Don't ALL SI issues have LeBron James on the cover?

Shit, let's take turns sending everyone on the roster to Vegas for a spell.

Another long one. Doesn't look like this game is even going to get in under the 3-1/2 hour mark

This game still has the potential to get ugly.

Not sure if Burke and home plate are in the same zip code.

Too early to call anybody "cured" at this point, but both Kirk & Ike are looking better since their respective returns from Vegas.

What's that now, two Milwaukee runners cut down at 3rd and two more at home so far? Between their running and their defense, they're doing us a bunch of favors tonight.

Go-Go Gomez has done that a couple of times this year. Being fast and 6' 4" with Ups has its advantages.

Niice quiick iinniing froom Aardsma.

Not sure that second steal was the best strategy. With Buck lately, a Sac Fly is sometimes the best you can hope for. And as I'm typing Buck smacks one up the middle. Cue Emily Lattila

At 60 pitches thru 3 innings, this isn't a good beginning considering our worn-out bullpen. And I assume that Torres is unavailable for the evening.

Edgy MD wrote: Gomez has the blinky eyes and twitchy tongue of a guy who's wired on energy drinks. I heard those energy drinks cause people to double-post too.

Seven runs in less than an inning and a half and I don't think there's been a hard hit ball from either side yet.

Swan Swan H wrote: This Hellweg is, as Lindsey Nelson used to say, a long drink of water. So if he gets angry I guess he becomes Hellweg and the angry 81 inches?

Look at those middle of the lineup batting averages ... Davis - .161 Nieuwenhuis - .179 Lagares - .233 Buck - .205

We're going to have to hit to win this series. Even minus Braun the Brews can still put some runs on the board so it's not likely that either side is going to be pulling out 3-2 wins.