Frayed Knot

Centerfield wrote: I would love to meet Sell the Team NOW!!!!. I mocked him in the late 90's/early 2000's. But these last few years have shown me this man was ahead of his time. I'd love to tell him that I agree with him and that I was wrong. He was an ass then and I bet he's still one now. Or should I say NOW!!!!

I was feeling OK, but now it has come to my attention that there will be no baseball men on my television screen tonight. Does anyone know which government agency I contact to complain about this situation? Will I have to go directly to Hillary?

The thing with the Dodgers is that they're being run now by that ex-TBR guy who inherited Mattingly but would really rather have a manager who's more comfortable with the more Sabermetric kind of stuff they're going to feed him. That as much as anything is what led to a parting of ways. But moving forward, Dusty ain't going to be that guy, and Randolph ain't that guy (and, yes, I know that suggestion wasn't totally serious to begin with). Bud Black maybe (I heard he prefers to stay on the west coast although will almost certainly at least interview with the Nats)

The Yanquis chose Girardi over Mattingly however many years ago and I don't think they're unhappy with Girardi so, no, I don't expect him to wind up in the Bronx anytime soon (at least not until he's an invited guest at the next number retirement ceremony which should be in a few weeks or so ... and then again a few weeks after that.) I do suspect that he'll interview for jobs this winter, maybe a few of the ones currently open in the NL East.

Mattingly walks away from Dodgers. Apparently not a firing but a "mutual parting of ways". Sounds a bit like a Torre situation, where they offer him a deal he could -- and did -- refuse. TEAMMANAGERSIGNED THRUSTATUSHiredMETSTerry Collins201511/23/2010BRAVESFredi Gonzalez201510/13/2010PHILLIESPete MacKanin2016Interim tag removed for 20166/29/15NATIONALSMatt Williams2016 + option �17Fired Oct 201510/13/2013MARLINSDan Jennings2015Will not return - offered front office job instead5/18/15CARDINALSMike Matheny201711/20/2013PIRATESClint Hurdle2017 + option for �1811/15/2010CUBSJoe Maddon201910/31/2014REDSBryan Price201610/22/2013BREWERSCraig Counsell2015-20175/4/15DODGERSDon Mattingly2016Resigned - 10/22/159/17/2010GIANTSBruce Bochy2016Oct 2006PADRESPat Murphy2015Will not return6/15/15DBACKSChip Hale201610/13/2014ROCKIESWalt Weiss201611/7/2012RED SOXJohn Farrell2016Extended thru 201710/20/2012YANKEESJoe Girardi201710/30/2007ORIOLESBuck Showalter20187/28/2010BLUE JAYSJohn Gibbons2015 + option for �1611/20/2012RAYSKevin Cash201912/04/2014TIGERSBrad Ausmus2016 + option for �1711/4/2013INDIANSTerry Francona2016Extended thru 2018 w/options for '19 + �2010/8/2012ROYALSNed Yost20155/13/2010TWINSPaul Molitor201711/4/2014WHITE SOXRobin Ventura201410/6/2011ANGELSMike Scioscia201811/17/1999RANGERSJeff Banister201710/17/2014MARINERSLloyd McClendon201?Fired 10/9/1511/7/2013ASTROSAJ Hinch2017 + '18 option9/29/2014ATHLETICSBob Melvin20166/9/2011

Clippard bailed this team's ass out during the beginning of the stretch run especially. Been a rough time at times since but in no way is he JJ Putz. I get the idea that Murphy's just showing off at this point.

I haven't noticed Geddy (not that I've been scanning the TV shots for him) even though I know he's there often. Where is he, right behind the plate?

There have been sumo matches with less total tonnage than Colon vs Schwarber.

Schwarber's biggest weakness as a hitter? -- He can't hit it to Schwarber.

Wilmer Flores: Causing Chicago Cub outfielders to dive for and miss balls since 10/20/2015

Benjamin Grimm wrote: (Guess where I am now?) Texting from a concert?

So that's a weird call (referring back to the rules conversation CF and I had this morning). I know that the HBP is negated by the swing (on Castro) but I guess it's still a dead ball after it hits him which in turn negates the need to throw down to 1st to complete the out. Not sure I had ever seen or even thought about that sequence before.

Runs follow Lucas Duda.

Lefty Specialist wrote: Maddon not screwing around with the quick hook. Next. When your starter faces 11 hitters and retires just four of them in an elimination game, you can't blame the guy for a quick hook.

Benjamin Grimm wrote: PiggiesTomatoes wrote: Matz is pounding the zone. No shitting around here. That goy from Long Island is pretty good. (Good thing he didn't go to his local state university!) Wait, you mean he's not Jewish?!?!?! Matz actually had a scholarship to Coastal Carolina University that he was going to use if the negotiations with the Mets didn't work out (and they went down to the wire). Clearly the admissions team for the university he grew up practically down the street from were asleep on the job.

I have no explanation for it but I totally smelled that Duda HR coming, even to the point where I was happy to see Cespedes walk because I wanted to get Lucas to the plate. Hey Batty!

El Segundo Escupidor wrote: Yeah, I wasn't gonna stake the family ranch that the pitcher's duel was going to persist. David Price warming up with a 5-0 lead. Confirmation that Gibbons manages his pitchers with a dartboard. Yeah I don't get that. You've got a 5-0 lead in the 7th with your starter tossing a one-hitter on a decent pitch count and David Freakin' Price is warming up like a madman. What, you don't think you might need him in games 6 or 7? I guess I just didn't realize that the Jays traded away multiple prospects at the deadline back in July to get a mop-up man.

Scratch all that about the pitcher's duel ... and about the quick game as Tulowitski clears the bases.

Plus an AL game along swiftly. I KNOW no one saw that coming.

d'Kong76 wrote: Fowler, CF Soler, RF Bryant, 3B Rizzo, 1B Castro, 2B Schwarber, LF Baez, SS Hammel, P Ross, C Schwarber stays in vs the Lefty but moves down in the order. Also Montero out in favor of David Ross - making that 8-9 hole a bit of a black hole for the Cubbie bears.

Royal Quiz Who is Queen Victoria? Am I right? What do I win?

dgwphotography wrote: Frayed Knot wrote: The problem with rookie (and sometimes not so rookie) announcers is that they think saying something is better than saying nothing. It's not. And that even applies to ones who were smart ballplayers taught at the knee of their baseball lifer father and have been in the game for more than a 1/2 century. I always get the feeling that Ripken feels the need to add something whenever Ron makes one of his astute points. It's why three-man booths (IMO) rarely work, the two color guys get in competition with each other for most air time, best zingers, etc. Ron & Keith pull it off but that kind of personal and professional familiarity isn't there with thrown-together network "teams", many of which contain guys who are often there more for their name than for their announcing resumes.

After being drafted by and reaching the major leagues with the Rays, Hammel made stops in Colorado and Baltimore before signing a one-year deal with the Cubs as a FA in Feb of 2014 But after just 1/2 season they dealt him away (along with Jeff Samardzija) to Oakland in the deal that brought them (the currently injured) Addison Russell. He then quickly re-signed with the Cubs after the season was over in what seems almost like a pre-arranged thing. Pitched against the Mets in May of this year, getting a ND by giving up just 1 run on 5 hits over 8 innings in a game where the NYM pen blew a 7-inning Harvey shutout.

The problem with rookie (and sometimes not so rookie) announcers is that they think saying something is better than saying nothing. It's not. And that even applies to ones who were smart ballplayers taught at the knee of their baseball lifer father and have been in the game for more than a 1/2 century.

Edgy MD wrote: Poor Montero, man. He was like a goaltender that whole at-bat. But credit to Cespedes for putting pressure on the defense and exploiting an obvious flaw in the shift deployment. If the nearest defender is 50 feet from third base, the runner can take a 50-foot lead. The pitcher also acted like he wanted no part of Conforto. Wan't trying to walk him necessarily but desperately wanted to get him out without throwing anything near a strike, so after three bounced pitches in a row where, like you said, Montero was desperately throwing himself around there, it was almost like the K/WP thing was more inevitable than flukey. And for all our 'Conforto over Cuddy' chants lately, Conforto is something like 1-fer-14 in post-season so far. But we've also remarked a number of times in the short duration that he's been up how he gives you the 'wise beyond his years' vibe up there and usually takes good ABs even when the results aren't always there. He also knew to immediately look behind him to see if the ball got away and then get on his horse. In fact my first thought after that was to think that if the roles were reversed there (Conforto on 3rd, Cespedes at the plate) would the result have been the same? Mebbe not. "Is this something you knew? Or did you have to look it up?" -- I guess instinctively knew it would be the best answer, in that the force trumps everything. For example if a bases-clearing double with two outs were to end with the team successfully appealing that the batter missed 1st it would negate all the runs on the idea that he never legally attained to 1st base. But the same scenario where the batter missed 2nd would end the inning but the runs would count because now it's a non-force after the fact, more akin to him being called out trying for 3rd. "I think it's crazy that after more than 30 years of playing/watching/coaching this game, there are still parts of baseball that baffle me." -- I certainly still find instances where I have to stop and think things through and even then don't always come up with the correct solution.