Frayed Knot

ROAD TRIP!!!! First one of the year (Duh!) - 7:45 EDT Monday Night start:; Clay Holmes vs Kyle Leahy. This will be the third full ML season for the soon-to-be 29 y/o RH Leahy who started in 2024 [33 starts, 4.07 ERA; 1.03 WHIP] then worked almost exclusively out of the bullpen in '25 [62 G, 88 IP, 3.07 / 1.23] As for the rest of the lineup, the Cardinals, after 71 wins in '23, 83 in '24, and 78 in '25, are in full-out rebuild mode under new PoBO Chaim Bloom. Gone from the '25 squad are the likes of Willian Contreras, Brendan Donovan, Nolan Arenado, and Sonny Gray. All of which leaves a mostly under-30* roster all over but not a lot of recognizable names beyond SS Masyn Winn and massive disappointment (to date) Jordan Walker in RF. Even fan fave Lars Nootbaar (cuz who doesn't like a good Nootbaar after lunch?) is on the 60 day IL to start the year. Cards took 2 of 3 in their first series at home vs TBR, all of them high-scoring for whatever that's worth: 9-7 (W), 6-5 (W in 10), 11-7 (L) on Sunday. The only ex-factor is StL being the current home for Ryne Stanek * P - Riley O'Brian, 31; P - Ryne Stanek, 34; 3B - Ramon Urias, 32 ... that's it, that's the over-30 portion of the roster!

So apparently the 'NBC Sunday Night Game' actually means 'Peacock'. Or at least it probably will until the NBA ends once their regular season followed by the 13 month playoff deal finally ends.

With two outs you definitely send him. With one you're more likely to do so. But with no one out you gotta be pretty durn sure he's going to be safe. The Pirates got two good throws off and did so quickly. But while the relay from shallow LF was reasonably accurate it also two-hopped the catcher so it's not like it was a bullet that just nipped him. Bottom line: I want three shots there to tie it from 90 feet (and maybe win it), not two to maybe tie it from 180.

It was a bad send on account of the situation. Don't send and it's tying on 3rd/winning on 2nd, no outs & 3-4-5 due up.

With no one out?!?!?

Hateghostrunner Just keep it at one. And the GiDP definitely helps there.

I thought GKR were over-selling the low-K game 1 performance by Met batters, as if that one game was a sure sign of things to come due to the offensive makeover. Not so much since, including 15 thru 8 frames today.

Six Ks for Soto & Bichette today. Eight if Lindor is included.

Speed kills! (Torrens)

How many relievers are going to be sent down/called up prior to game time? Sorry, just a reflex post based on last year

I didn't think anyone was hitting a homer with the wind blowing in the way it was. But not only did he hit it but it easily cleared the fence with what looked like an effortless swing. And that's been the great temptation of Luis Robert ever since being signed out of Cuba by the White Sox nine years ago and then given a big contract, the one that is still current and runs through 2027, prior to his ML debut in 2020. Injuries* and inconsistencies have led to him not living up to that deal. But the Mets are betting that he can over the next two seasons and, heading into his age 28 season (turns 29 in August) it makes him the right age to bet on. The next 322 games will show whether or not they're right (although if he's terrible they can buy out next season with a mere $2 million). * he's ONCE played over 110 games in five full seasons: 145 G in 2023 when he turned in an All-Star/Silver Slugger/12th MVP season. And right now he's 3/8 w/a GW walk-off HR while Luisangel, also playing CF, has one single in seven ABs so ... Winning!!

And the Yanquis sweep, allowing just one run to SFG over three games.

Dom Smith - walk-off Grand Slam - Braves They went into the 9th down 2-0, and scored six with just one out. BB - 1B - PO - RBI 1B - BB - RBI 1B (off pitcher) - GS

Philly scored three after two out and no one on in bottom 9 to tie the game [K, GO, 1B, BB, E-foul popup, 2-RBI double, RBI single] ... and then promptly lost it in the 10th (allowed two but only countered with one). - Nats got thumped by Cubs (the reverse of Thursday's opener) - Marlins won their second vs Colorado

One might say that story is a Bohmshell. Also, the widow of longtime Philly announcer Harry Kalas isn't happy with the club. "Harry the K's" has been a section in LF which has existed since the park opened in 2004 and continued after Harry died in early 2009. The widow has been being paid $20,000/yr for the use of Harry's 'name, image, likeness' (as they'd say in college sports these days) but the Phils recently decided to sell the naming rights of that area to 'Ghost Energy' which, in the opinion of the aggrieved widow, "betrayed him". “Taking down that sign takes away everything he did for the city,” Eileen Kalas told The Inquirer. “I think they betrayed Harry. It’s not about me. It’s about what they’re doing to Harry. I think they betrayed him for everything he did for them.” The club missed the deadline to break the contract this year so she'll still get paid in 2026 but not starting in 2027. Wondering what they'll do with the statue of Harry she said, "I'll take that too if they no longer want it ... I'll send a truck and pick it up"

If you've got something to say about the minor league teams or players then just say it, and if there's not an existing thread then start one. We usually just put it in the baseball forum. .

Couple of thoughts: - if not Manaea here (in any one of four or five different spots) then when? That smells of non-trust, at least for now anyway. - I wondered about leaving Benge in to bat and bunting in place of PH'ing Vientos. That said I can make a case for Vientos also and have no idea if Benge ever bunted in his life. - but after Swaggy V got the single, I'm not sure I liked pr'ing Young there when that run didn't matter, with a shrinking bench, and with such a tiny upside (slightly better shot at breaking up a potential GiDP ball). It didn't hurt in the long run but me still no like. - I, and probably most of you, had a bunch of KAHNfidence as soon as we saw Torrens come up to bat. He just seems to thrive in those sort of situations. - Holding the runner at 3rd on those two consecutive singles was absolutely the right call. Neither was even a close call IMO - on the flip side, Ozuna holding at 1st wasn't the major crime there, not sending Reynolds was!! We never saw a good overhead view to see exactly where he was when Young, not Benge, picked up the ball along the wall there in RF, but I was stunned that they held him. I saw that as a run scoring hit from the very beginning. - and how 'bout that Louie Bobby!!!

Braves now up 4-0 in the 5th and the Marlins up 2-1 after six. Philly & Washington, like us, are waiting until Saturday for their Game #2

Jason Heyward has made, or is about to, his retirement official. He wasn't as good as some of us thought he was going to be from the outset. But spending sixteen years in the major leagues is a helluva 'naccomplishment on its own, so a tip of the cap to Heyward and his six Gold Gloves, #2 RoY, and three seasons with MVP votes.

That works. We sometimes like to revive months, or even years, old arguments so a search feature helps up dredge up old disputes.

The Giants have hosted the Yanx for their first two games and will go into tomorrow's game still looking for their first run scored. Shut out 7-0 on Wednesday and now 3-0 today on a whopping four total hits.

As I mentioned in another thread about Hack Wilson.

90 year old!! Sandy Koufax is in the stands for LAD opening day game. He looks every one of his 65 years old. On the NL East front, the Phils and Nats both won so we're tied with them. The Braves and Marlins are two of the six teams that don't start their seasons until Friday.

So this place doesn't seem to have any kind of search feature (unless I'm missing it). The old place had one where one could enter, say, 'Sandy Koufax' into the search bar that would scan all the threads within whatever sub-forum you're in (the Baseball Forum for instance) and quickly find the Koufax-centric thread we had six months or a year (of nine yers) ago

Agreed. Pham turned 38 a few weeks back so he's unlikely to get a guaranteed job anywhere. But he seems to have a knack for getting hits when needed so as a fill-in/PH/DH/sub you could do worse.