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2018 Off-Season/Season

Started by BojackHorsefella, January 12, 2018, 03:51:34 PM

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Crewe

lol good for you man, fun times

thaima1shu

Haha sounds like you should invest in season tickets or some sort of plan.

BojackHorsefella

Yeah, I looked at the 20 ticket one, I think I'll be going to 16 games at most, and 2 of those will probably be when my dad and bro come to see the Yankees, so only paying for 14. At best I'd maybe break even.

BojackHorsefella

Seeing your boys tonight Norm. Sucks I don't get to see Cabrera though.

TheNorm

Enjoy! Always wanted to see a game there, maybe someday.
"But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity." - Martin Luther King, Jr

BojackHorsefella

If you're ever in town you'll have to let me know. Even my stuck up Yankees fan brother (I'm a Yanks fan, but not stuck up) conceded that Safeco is actually great.

TheNorm

Quote from: Bucfever on May 18, 2018, 04:57:48 PM
If you're ever in town you'll have to let me know. Even my stuck up Yankees fan brother (I'm a Yanks fan, but not stuck up) conceded that Safeco is actually great.

For sure! I rarely get to do it now but I love visiting ballparks and stadiums. Each place has its own feel, and I love experiencing that.
"But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity." - Martin Luther King, Jr

BojackHorsefella

Friends of yours Norm?

I'd gloat about the comeback win, but I uh, left at the top of the 7th....look, I have to work early today and I'm not even a Mariners fan, don't judge me!

TheNorm

Lol some of those guys look familiar.
Impressive comeback for sure...I had also turned it off. And actually I only caught a few minutes of the game since it was already a long day and I just can't stay up for West Coast games like I used to.
"But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity." - Martin Luther King, Jr

thaima1shu

I damn near fell out of my chair when Haniger hit that home run. Him and Segura have been absolutely incredible. Could go down as one of the very few trades in Mariners history where we actually didn't get swindled.

BojackHorsefella

The latest acquisition for kiddo's collection. Up 2-0 on Archer right now, who I dropped in my fantasy league and my brother grabbed. So here's hoping he gives up....8 more. 8 more runs.

Crewe

I was going to start a 2018 season thread but might as well keep it here as little as we post, but anyhow, since everyone is talking about it, we might as well too.
The shift.
When the shift started becoming a thing, honestly, I was against it. I said it didn't pan out percentage wise and left your self open for more extra base hits.
Turns out I was half right, the extra base hits part. However, the shift apparently works when you use it on the correct hitters. the Astros, who by the way, have to be the most oft shifting team in the history of baseball, seem to have used it quite effectively last season.
Now there's scuttlebutt banding around that there should be rules limiting shifting via number of times it can be used, where or how many can move and to that I say its all bullshit.
Leave
It
Alone!
Have you learned NOTHING from the NFL? They started tinkering with the rule book and now the game isn't even fun to watch anymore its so convoluted with science, technology and more interpretation.
If a team wants to shift, simply beat the shift.
You are taught in baseball to hit back up the middle, aim for that pitchers head, you do that now, its an out. I get it.
But the fielders adapted to you, now, adapt to them.
"Nah, Id rather change the rules"
Crap I tell you, crap.

And heres why... Bryce Harper said, "I guess guys could bunt down the first base line or third base line if they shift you the other way. But you don't get paid to bunt. If you hit it over all of them, thats how you beat it."
You don't even need to be a great drag bunter to get on with a shift, but, yea, lets hit homers, that'll show em. This mind set is what leads to silly rule changes, and, teams failing to beat the shift. Why the art of bunting has been vacated from baseball is beyond me. No more sacrifice bunts, "I want the homer and two RBI's, fuck just getting him to second with me being out"
It really makes me sad, but Im a traditionalist, so set me out to pasture with the other dying breeds so a new era of selfishness can evolve.

TheNorm

I don't get why bunting has gone away, either. It's a part of the game, fucking use it. Only time it drives me insane is in an attempt to get a runner on base late when a pitcher has a no-no going.

Also in total agreement with you: don't change the rule, teams need to figure out a way to beat the shift.
"But it is not enough for me to stand before you tonight and condemn riots. It would be morally irresponsible for me to do that without, at the same time, condemning the contingent, intolerable conditions that exist in our society. These conditions are the things that cause individuals to feel that they have no other alternative than to engage in violent rebellions to get attention. And I must say tonight that a riot is the language of the unheard. And what is it America has failed to hear? It has failed to hear that the plight of the negro poor has worsened over the last twelve or fifteen years. It has failed to hear that the promises of freedom and justice have not been met. And it has failed to hear that large segments of white society are more concerned about tranquility and the status quo than about justice and humanity." - Martin Luther King, Jr

Crewe

Quote from: TheNorm on July 18, 2018, 11:02:03 AM
I don't get why bunting has gone away, either. It's a part of the game, fucking use it. Only time it drives me insane is in an attempt to get a runner on base late when a pitcher has a no-no going.

Also in total agreement with you: don't change the rule, teams need to figure out a way to beat the shift.

this is the big thing for me. Im even reading where they are looking to change rules making it more hitter friendly because of the pitcher uprising this year, despite the fact last year was the home run of homerun seasons, all time.
The other factor is what you saw in the All Star game, I call it the Aaron Judge effect, or if you're an old school guy, the Harmon Killebrew effect, you either strikeout or hit a homerun.
You don't need to change the freakin rules.

BojackHorsefella

#44
A lot of this comes from the Moneyball era and sabermetrics. Simply put, a bunt, even a sacrifice bunt, a lot of times does get an out, and no matter what you only get 27 outs in a game (well, unless you get one of those dropped strikeouts or whatever and the guy gets to first).

Now, obviously, there are guys who are REALLY good at bunting, and that's great. And yeah, maybe there are times when a squeeze bunt or sacrifice bunt make sense (I mean, a tie game, runner on third, 1 out, why not?) But for the most part, that's why bunting has gone out of vogue.

As for the strikeouts to home runs thing, that also comes from sabermetrics. Guys are extremely patient at the plate these days, that's why there's also more walks (hi, Mike Trout!) Sure, even the best hitters get into slumps (hi, Bryce Harper!), but still. Yes, Judge does strike out a lot, but his batting average and his OBP have never suffered for it. The fact is, a lot of guys view it simply as an out. Whether you groundout, fly out, pop out, an out is an out.

Now, obviously, situation-wise, that can be problematic. If there's 1 out, a man on 3rd, and I've got Judge up there, I'd rather him  put the ball into play to at least give that guy a chance to score. But, man on first, man on second......out's an out.

That being said, again, I agree with what you're saying about not changing the rules. That's stupid. The shift is a valid defensive strategy and, like you said, perfectly fine for employing against the right kind of hitter (Joey Gallo, it was somewhat good against David Ortiz back in the day), but like Harper said, you either hit it over them or you work on your swing so you don't hit into the shift, or you bunt down the line.

The LA Angels, as much as I hate them, played some of the best small ball back in the early 2000s. They were absolutely Yankees killers, and a large part of that was because of little guys like David Eckstein, guys who could make contact, lay down bunts and get on base (partially so Vlad Guerro could then bring them in with a home run). As much as every team has sort of followed along with "an out's an out," I wouldn't be surprised if we DO see some sort of correction returning to the middle, where, as we've now moved far right (or left?) of center with the homerun/strikeout thing and the shift, we can see it returning to center by bringing back things like the bunt and that sort of small ball style.

That's one of the funnest things about baseball, is the way the game is always evolving in different ways, as new generations come into play.


For more on this, see Moneyball, Keith Law's Smart Baseball or, especially for my LA Angels reference, www.firejoemorgan.com.