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2008 MLB Season
- Thread starter zioxide
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We have a winner. They finished 70-91, good enough for eighth place. Of course in a way they weren't a true expansion team, since they'd played for years before they were promoted as members of the PCL.
I'm not sure I'd call it a promotion, since just the name was left over from the PCL though. All the players were from an expansion draft and spring tryouts, not from the old minor-league team. The Padres did the same thing when they joined the NL in 1969, adopting a local minor-league team's name, although with the Padres the same guy owned both. From the fans' standpoint, it qualified as a promotion though!
The reason that I guessed it was the Angels is that I did remember reading that the Angels were actually in first place almost to the All-Star break in their first season, something that was really baffling in the first-ever expansion year for MLB.
I believe some of the first players were PCL Angels players, and they originally played at the old Angels park, though technically only the franchise name was original to the club. I knew someone (quite a bit older than myself) who grew up in Los Angeles and who was always a rabid Cubs fan. This mystified me for a while until I asked him, which earned me a lecture about the origins the Los Angeles Angels as a farm team of the Cubs. I could easily forgive myself for not knowing this having grown up on the East Coast and after this era ended, but I'm not sure he ever did.
I can't believe the A's let Harden go!
it's not like they're out of the playoff chase. At the same time, i wonder if Beane has something else up his sleeve...
I can't believe the A's let Harden go!
my thoughts exactly... or maybe they believe the Rays are untouchable and have opted to begin rebuilding(somewhat) for next year...?
The Cubs also held spring training on Catalina Island for a time. Great location, but who else did they play exhibition games against?
CBS
Holy ****. It only took them like 7 years to realize that trading prospects for veterans is not the way to go. If they want to get better, they should do exactly the opposite: trade their veterans for prospects.
I'm sure they could find a team that's contending for the playoffs but needs that ace closer that would give up a bunch of good prospects for Mariano Rivera who's having his best year in a few years (3-3, 1.12, 23SV), and they could probably get some decent prospects for guys like Abreu, Damon, and Matsui.
Obviously, this isn't going to help them win this year, but that's not going to happen anyways. By doing this, they'd set themselves up to back to being one of the powerhouses in the AL East in like 2 years. If they keep trying to stick with these veteran guys then they're just going to fade away and become irrelevant for the next few years.
Who will take Matsui who is hurt? Giambi is on his last year of contract. Never going to trade Rivera, I think he as a no trade anyways and he won't want to leave. We have a lot of money coming off next year.
Yankees win 2-1 in 10
If you think the Yankees are going to give up on the last season at the stadium you are mistaken. They are going to get big crowds for the rest of the season and into next season. The Yankees want to end on top this year and next. Right now the team has a nice blend of young and old. If you trade off all the old now you have a lopsided team for a few years. I don't see the Yankees doing that. Plus who is going to take all that contract of older players that only have 2 years left at the most.
The bigger questions for the Yankees are do you give Giambi another year and Mussina another year. Are they worth the risk. Mussina might have reinvented himself but for how long, and what goes Giambi have left.
Yankees win 2-1 in 10
If you think the Yankees are going to give up on the last season at the stadium you are mistaken. They are going to get big crowds for the rest of the season and into next season. The Yankees want to end on top this year and next. Right now the team has a nice blend of young and old. If you trade off all the old now you have a lopsided team for a few years. I don't see the Yankees doing that. Plus who is going to take all that contract of older players that only have 2 years left at the most.
The bigger questions for the Yankees are do you give Giambi another year and Mussina another year. Are they worth the risk. Mussina might have reinvented himself but for how long, and what goes Giambi have left.
He was supposed to come in the package with Torre but he begged off at the last minute to deal with a divorce. The Dodgers put him on "special assignment" or some such thing in the meantime. Mattingly will have his hands full turning around the Dodger offense. Andruw Jones all by himself is a full-time project.
I worry more about the pitching holding up. The two hitters who have missed the most time with injuries are Jones and Nomar, neither of whom have hit well so far this season. The one injured hitter who I have at least some confidence in (Furcal) might be back for September, but who knows how much he could contribute. So I think it's a stretch to think the veterans will lead an offensive resurgence. I think the young guys can and will hit better than they have been.
Frankly I'm stunned that the Dodgers lead the NL in ERA. Penny is out and hasn't been effective. Kiroda has been up and down and injured part of the season. Proctor is hurt and can't be the bullpen workhorse Torre would like. Schmidt can't be counted on to help in an LA uniform ever again. It feels like the pitching staff is keeping them in games, but I don't feel good about them keeping it up for the rest of the year. If said pitchers slack off a bit, does improved hitting make up the difference?
Maybe it's all moot and the Dodgers' pitching staff seems impressive because the NL is just weak this year. In which case it's even more of dice roll than usual!
I'm not too worried about the pitching for some reason. Pitching staffs are all getting tired by the middle part of the season, and injuries are routine. After all, they were able to send Kershaw back down to AA after only a few starts, and he didn't do so badly at all considering his age and inexperience. I do worry more about the bats, especially the young ones. Kemp was the picture of futility last night. He needs more and better instruction if he's going to be an effective lead-off hitter. Even Martin, who looks like he was born to stand in a batter's box, is obviously frustrated sometimes. Somebody needs to work with Jones.
Maybe Mattingly will be part of the solution. I don't know, but I can hope.
Beckett only got me 8 points though.
Edit: Julian Tavarez has signed with the Braves. 3 teams in one season. I wonder what the record is...
Edit 2: Columns are: H/AB, R, 1B, 2B, 3B, HR, RBI, SF, SB, CS, BB, K, E, CYC (cycle), fantasy points.
I hope so too. I haven't seen much evidence that hitting coaches have much of an impact on a team's hitting though. But at the very least, one would think the young hitters would respect him and get their confidence built up.
As of now the Dodgers have scored a similar number of runs as KC, Toronto, SF and Seattle. I feel like they have a better lineup than those teams, which makes me think that they will progress toward the mean and improve a little bit on their own.
One thing I do feel good about at this point is their ability to compete in their division. The division title could go to someone with 85 wins and right now the D'backs are the only other team that's really in contention. I like those odds. Is it sad that all I hope for is a playoff berth and a chance at the postseason crapshoot?
I might agree if I wasn't feeling much the same way myself.
Speaking of progressing (and regressing) to the mean, I see nearly everyone on this team as underperforming their abilities for most of the first half. The fact that they haven't been blown out suggests that averaging out might work well for the team in the second half.
It's also been a loooooonnnnnngggg time since the Dodgers had this many young players at the same time, which is a nice change. I figure that at least two of the old-guy triad of Kent, Nomar, and Lowe won't be back next season, which means they'll be getting even younger unless they trade for another veteran. I'm looking forward to seeing how many of the youngsters turn into something special.
I just don't want to continue looking forward, if you know what I mean. Twenty seasons since the last World Series is a lot of looking forward.
Kent will retire for certain at the end of the season, if he's any kind of man of his word. Nomar is a coin-flip. If he returns to form in the second half and stays off the DL, he might just make the Dodgers a hometown offer they can't refuse. He likes playing here and we can't say he's not versatile when healthy. I believe the Dodgers have a one year option on Lowe, or maybe it's Penny. The odds always seem to be in favor of exercising options.
Of course all of our youth movement calculations might come to nothing if they decide to make a trade.
we stink. two nights after nearly getting perfect gamed, it's happening again! perfect game through six for lowe.
It is unprofessional and childish is what it is. I don't know why he hasn't been fined for this crap yet.During a pitching change in the 6th inning of the Sox/Twins game yesterday.
crazy mother****er.
Globe