Frayed Knot

Mets � Willets Point wrote: I may be wrong, but don't some sports - I'm thinking hockey and soccer - limit the number of players on the roster who can "dress" for a game? Yes. Hockey does that I know of. Not sure about soccer. In hockey you can carry up to X number of players (24?) but only suit up 20 for a game. In a baseball scenario that would mean they could have 40 players but the manager would have to submit a list of 25 players to the ump that he wanted eligible for the game. Not to mention take all the lefties out of one game then put them back in the next depending on opposing pitchers or staffs. I like the idea in baseball that a set roster favors the generalists as opposed to having too many specialists. But your idea - or a version of it - is apparently one of the ones being discussed for future September rules. Maybe a team will have their 25-man roster from Aug 31st "frozen" so to speak and then can add up to 3, or 5, or whatever, per game after that from their pool of call-ups. Teams could then change those extra players from game to game but only among the call-ups, not the regulars. Of course in a baseball scenario the immediate loophole that jumps out is that a manager will make all the pitchers in his rotation except for that game's starter ineligible so he can still pack the bench and the bullpen. Gary talked about this kind of roster manipulation last night as apparently the one-game WC play-in game is going to be considered its own playoff "round" and therefore the surviving team can re-do its roster for the upcoming 3-of-5. So, yeah, the mgr can make all the starters except for that day's guy inactive and carry 4 more relievers and/or PH's/defensive replacements just for that one game. I don't like that idea.

Edgy DC wrote: Cain vs Astros: 3 G, 2-0, 1.19 ERA, 22.2 IP, 4 BB, 25 SO. He's also undefeated against Abel.

Oakland and Baltimore start the day tied for the two WC spots -- 4.5 games ahead of Angels; 5.5 up on Tampa; 7.0 up on Tigers And we get a couple cases of competitor vs competitor action going on this weekend. Oakland at Yanx Yanx have a 1 game lead on Orioles. A's just lost 2 of 3 to Detroit and are 4 games behind Texas in the West ChiSox visit Angels Chicago has a 2-game edge on Detroit despite coming off losing 2 of 3 to KC For the A's it's WC or bust The rest: Tigers host Twins Orioles at Boston Rays host Jays Texas at Seattle

Hey, we played 'em even from the 2nd thru 8th innings.

Sudden thought: When Edgin struck-out Wigginton last night we were one out away from a win ... and since that point, 13 of the next 15 Phillies to come to bat reached base. Only the guy after Howard's blast (Brown I think) and the pitcher tonight (GiDP) failed to reach in that 15 batter span.

The 9 hits (so far) matches the number the Phils had for the first two games combined.

Mets last scored >7 runs at home on July 3rd ... against the Phillies.

Mets last scored >5 runs at home on August 12th.

Gary mentions the John Maine 5-pitch game without noting that Maine never threw another pitch in the major leagues again (at least to date).

Over/Under for runs in this inning has been set at 8.2 I'm taking the over.

Didn't Derek Bell at one point threaten to go into 'Operation Shutdown' when he felt he wasn't getting his way? I forget the details on that one.

Insurmountable lead - top 1st

A couple of familiar foes coming up but in between there's Pittsburgh who we haven't seen in so long I forgot what their uniforms look like PHIGroup ProjectWASHbmfc1/Edgy DCMIAGWreck=#00BF00]ATL=#00BF00]Frayed KnotCINEdgyDC=#0000FF]PITT=#0000FF]Edgy DCCHICattgigStLMFS'62HOUMGiMMILWTransMonkLADG-FaFiFSFGFrayed KnotSDPABN-SeoCOLLWFSARZLWFSNYYFMan99BALJCLTORJCLTBRLWFS =#BF0000]At Bat =#0000FF]On Deck =#008000]In the Hole

I note that Keith has been excluding his 'stache from the 'Just For Men' treatment recently to where it's turning white enough to almost disappear on it's own without being shaved off.

Scoscia has a contract through [u:2uq3gtxy]2017[/u:2uq3gtxy] - which kind of argues against an off-season whacking. Leyland, on the other hand, is the subject of speculation in Detroit newspapers today saying that if the Tigers were to miss the playoffs this year that he'd be let go, possibly in favor of Terry Francona.

Another exciting O's game too late for east coast eyes. - the first good thing here is that this was a Felix Hernandez game. You gotta figure that Yanx fans already had this one in the loss column for the birds. Congrats to O's hurler Joe Saunders who matched Felix inning for inning (1 run over 8) - 3 more scoreless innings for the O's pen to add to there 11-2/3 zeros the night before. I wonder what it's like to live in that world? - The 11th inning HR by (former Mariner) Adam (I'm not Pacman) Jones was his 4th extra-innings HR of the year. Do the Mets even have 4 extra inning runs this season? - After serving up the 11th inning HR, the M's got the first two runners on but first a GiDP, then a walk, then a caught stealing ended the game. I do know what it's like to live in that world.

The Second Spitter wrote: My issue isn't with the player personnel or the roster, per se. The point I was trying to make is that the front office staff have to be as accountable for this debacle as TC and the players. Given that Alderson was previously working for the Commissioner's Office, the same Commissioner's office that made all those friendly loans to Mets that prevented the club going the same way as the Dodgers, I don't think Fred's gonna be in a hurry to chop-off the hand that fed him when his situation was most dire. If you disagree with this fine. Well I'm not sure I can agree or disagree because I'm not clear what your point is. If it's that Alderson -- knowing that Fred is beholden to the MLB office and unwilling to eat any contracts (aside from the ones he's constantly eaten over the years that is) -- feels that he has a job for life which, in turn, makes the players and coaching staff play as if their jobs are all secure for the foreseeable future because they know the GM has no interest in the performance of the team, then I guess I disagree.

The Second Spitter wrote: There's no fucking accountability in this club, because they all know Fred won't eat a contract. I know we're all pissed off here, but this doesn't even remotely make sense. - Is there any doubt that virtually everyone on this team right now is playing for a starting job and/or a contract next year? The individual situations differ, but isn't Bay trying not to get cut loose and see his career end in shambles?; aren't Ike & Duda essentially fighting for the same position?; or Dickey & Wright for possible extensions?; or Hairston for a more substantial role?; or Murphy, or Turner, or Torres, or any and all of the catchers to win or save starting jobs? - and considering that Fred has eaten large portions of the contracts of two of the last three managers prior to this one, plus authorized over $20mil worth of dead wood in Perez & Castillo just one winter ago, exactly how does anyone on either side of the dugout rail get the notion that they're bullet-proof no matter what they do or how they perform?

LeiterWagnerFasterStrongr wrote: Not only are we giving/coughing up games, we're giving/coughing up games to a desperate, playoff-chasing Phils team. We're keeping their postseason dreams on life support. Well it's only fair seeing as how we're keeping the desperate dreams of the Brewers alive too, and that we're contributing to the dreams of the division title for the Braves, and to the dreams of their first ever title for the Nationals. And then next week we can do the same for the Pirates. We're an equal opportunity looser.

If you want someone(s) to blame this on put it, as usual, on the offense 9 hits + 3 walks + a HBP + 2 SBs has to equal more than 2 runs, especially when one of the runs came via one swing of the bat. And, aside from that Brown play there in the 9th, it's not like the Phillies were playing amazing defense either.

Do I even need to mention that Jeter walked tonight on a ball six inches closer to the plate than the one Valdespin just got wrung up on? No I don't, do I?

I had no problem with using Edgin there. With 4 straight* LHBs coming up I would have made the same call. * Rollins is switch but hits much better these days from the left side

Frayed Knot wrote: Gotta get one (or more) of these runners in here. As I was saying.

Gotta get one (or more) of these runners in here.

bmfc1 wrote: Did Harvey say "we've got a good defense" as Murphy made the error? Yup - although not technically an error because Ruiz didn't advance on the play. Harvey was, of course, referring to the two GiDPs behind him earlier in the game but, yeah, that was unfortunate timing on Muffy's part. Nice inning by Parnell - and it seems like a while since I've typed that sentence. Even the one hit was a broken bat bloop and he had to get an extra out due to the bad throw by Murph.