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2014 MLB Season thread
- Thread starter quagmire
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Im surprised nobody has said anything about the Pirates/Brewers brawl. Personally, I think both Gomez and Cole were out of line. I didn't see anything to get upset about; everybody stares down a hit they think is a home run. Maldonado threw a vicious cheap shot to Snider in that brawl and I expect him to be suspended for 10-15 games for it. That was completely uncalled for.
In other news, the Red Sox almost won again today.
In other news, the Red Sox almost won again today.
Brewers at the top of the ESPN power rankings. I'd be curious to know the last time THAT happened!
Probably the last time Ryan Braun juiced? I love seeing the traditionally sorry teams succeed, but I just can't root for the Brewers or their fans who gave that cheating d-bag a standing ovation.
There's definitely been a lot of talk about "unwritten rules" today, that's for sure. The #1 rule should definitely be if you're going to showboat, make sure it clears the fence....
Call me old fashioned, but the showboating definitely annoys me - from both the pitchers and batters. I don't care if you're David Ortiz or the back-up shortstop - act like you've done it before. And the same with closers who act like they're having some sort of attack on the mound after a save. Pat your catcher on the head and get into the dugout and celebrate.
waitwaitwaitwaitwait.... wait... A Yankees fan complaining about cheaters??? that's rich
You mean the guy that was suspended for a full season? Or the guy that threw the collector under the bus and failed 2 tests.waitwaitwaitwaitwait.... wait... A Yankees fan complaining about cheaters??? that's rich
waitwaitwaitwaitwait.... wait... A Yankees fan complaining about cheaters??? that's rich
I'm certainly not complaining about cheaters - read anything I've written about A-Rod here. But do you think if A-Rod ever makes it back onto the field that Yankees fans will give him a standing ovation? Would Brewers fans? I don't care if the guy came back and hit 60 home runs - I hate him and always have.
However, what Ryan Braun did - in protesting his innocence so vehemently that he was willing to tarnish the reputation of someone, then getting off on a technicality, then getting caught again - doesn't deserve a standing ovation. In 10 seconds every Brewers fan who stood up told him what he did was ok. And it wasn't. And I'm not just talking about the actual cheating part of it. It was IMO classless all around.
waitwaitwaitwaitwait.... wait... A Yankees fan complaining about cheaters??? that's rich
Same line of conversation we had earlier.
Yankees/Red Sox Fans:
"Well everybody juiced!"
Everyone else:
"Yes, but you were the worst"
(and the numbers agree)
Nothing to gain here.
Yes, that's exactly what I said....
And frankly, criticizing the low hanging fruit (IE Yankees/Red Sox) in an effort to deflect blame is ridiculous. This isn't a problem for 1 or 2 teams. It's an MLB problem - starting with Bud Selig.
But from now on it's nice to know that because I'm a Yankees fan, I'm not allowed to have an opinion on steroids.
Yes, that's exactly what I said....
And frankly, criticizing the low hanging fruit (IE Yankees/Red Sox) in an effort to deflect blame is ridiculous. This isn't a problem for 1 or 2 teams. It's an MLB problem - starting with Bud Selig.
But from now on it's nice to know that because I'm a Yankees fan, I'm not allowed to have an opinion on steroids.
You're certainly allowed to. Hypocrisy isn't illegal
Indeed, the stars that make the huge money are the ones scrutinized. Doesn't mean they were the only ones that had the resources to juice.
The Orioles signing Nelson Cruz. The Jays signing Melky Cabrera. The list goes on and on... However, that really wasn't the point I made. My issue with Braun isn't necessarily the actual steroid use - it was his actions after he got caught. Twice.
I don't think you'll find a whole stadium of people who would give ARod a standing ovation if he ever comes back. And he wouldn't deserve one. How is Braun any different?
He "juiced", he got caught, he paid the price last year - moving on! The guy did the crime and he served his time. He lost millions in salary, millions in endorsements, and went through a national shaming which hasn't let up (and probably never will for some). Still not enough??? I'm not happy about what he did or how he handled it, but I don't think he deserves the proverbial death sentence for it.
First of all, we don't exactly what he took or what type of impact it had on his game. Judging by his performance thus far this year compared to how he has performed historically, I would say it had next to ZERO impact on how he played. He was suffering nagging injuries and he "juiced" in order to recover quicker. He didn't have any type of spike in HR's, stolen bases, anything like that. He took supplements that aided in his health and recovery rate. Still "illegal", I know, but I personally don't see why things like this, when administered by a professional in safe/moderate "doses" are illegal. But that is a different discussion.
I wasn't a fan of how he denied it and how he threw the sample collector "under the bus" either. Maybe if that sample collector would have done his job correctly and sent the samples off as he was supposed to rather than storing them in his basement refirgerator over night, he wouldn't have gotten "thrown under the bus"??
Until any of us are faced with the choice to take a "banned substance" so we can continue to work, with millions of dollars at stake and a whole team more or less on our back and the pressure of the world on our shoulders to perform perform perform, I don't think we deserve to take a "holier than thou" attitude towards the situation. He's a guy in his mid-late 20's with a thousand different people trying to influence him and millions and millions of dollars at stake. Put yourself in that position at that age and tell me you'd make the right choice 100% of the time. And if you didn't make the right choice, you would be ok with NEVER being forgiven for it.
First of all, we don't exactly what he took or what type of impact it had on his game. Judging by his performance thus far this year compared to how he has performed historically, I would say it had next to ZERO impact on how he played. He was suffering nagging injuries and he "juiced" in order to recover quicker. He didn't have any type of spike in HR's, stolen bases, anything like that. He took supplements that aided in his health and recovery rate. Still "illegal", I know, but I personally don't see why things like this, when administered by a professional in safe/moderate "doses" are illegal. But that is a different discussion.
I wasn't a fan of how he denied it and how he threw the sample collector "under the bus" either. Maybe if that sample collector would have done his job correctly and sent the samples off as he was supposed to rather than storing them in his basement refirgerator over night, he wouldn't have gotten "thrown under the bus"??
Until any of us are faced with the choice to take a "banned substance" so we can continue to work, with millions of dollars at stake and a whole team more or less on our back and the pressure of the world on our shoulders to perform perform perform, I don't think we deserve to take a "holier than thou" attitude towards the situation. He's a guy in his mid-late 20's with a thousand different people trying to influence him and millions and millions of dollars at stake. Put yourself in that position at that age and tell me you'd make the right choice 100% of the time. And if you didn't make the right choice, you would be ok with NEVER being forgiven for it.
The difference is, Peralta owned up to his mistake and took his suspension without a fight.
I have a lot more respect for the PED users who admitted they screwed up and didn't try to fight their suspension, unlike Braun, who lied about it twice and threw the collector under the bus and ruined his reputation.
I don't care about the showboating. I don't think it's a big deal. Batters stare at balls they think are home runs even in high school now. It's just part of the game. I'm not sure why this incident was a big deal since it's literally part of the game now. The bat flips might be debatable but I still think it's not a big deal. I like that the players show a little passion - referring to the closers - because if they didn't the game wouldn't be as exciting. I played baseball for 12 years so I might be biased but that's what I'm used to seeing.
I don't see Ortiz as much of a showboater though. Pierzynski would be a better choice. He's on our team and I'm still not a fan of him.
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http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...-milwaukee-brewers-pittsburgh-pirates-scuffle
Maldonado only gets 5 game suspension and a $2500 fine. I think he got off a little light.
Yes, that's exactly what I said....
And frankly, criticizing the low hanging fruit (IE Yankees/Red Sox) in an effort to deflect blame is ridiculous. This isn't a problem for 1 or 2 teams. It's an MLB problem - starting with Bud Selig.
http://sports.yahoo.com/news/10-deg...lYwNzcgRwb3MDMQRjb2xvA2JmMQR2dGlkA1ZJUDM3MF8x
THIS is a real MLB problem. It's a long article, but interesting.
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Anyways, I'm excited to watch Tanaka for the first time tonight. I know he has lived up to his hype so far so I hope the Red Sox offense got a little inspired to start producing over the last 2 games.
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1) What is everybody's view on the instant replay system so far? As a Sox fan, it's not been favorable to us so far this year. I like the idea of a replay system but they desperately need more cameras from every angle on every base to do this thing the right way. Another thing, these umps need to follow the NFL and NCAAF rules when it comes to replays; if there is not indisputable evidence to overturn the call then keep the original call on the field. I've seen calls overturned on plays that there is no way to tell the right call from the replays, or they're too close to call.
2) This transfer rule is absolutely insane and needs to be changed fast. Teams are losing games because of this rule and almost every incident I've seen have been clear catches. It's stupid that this rule is overpowering common sense.
The showboating doesn't bother me, even if a batter admires his home run, it's still less showboatey than other sports. If the MLB was like the NHL, all of the offensive players (assuming it wasn't a solo HR) would hug and high five each other a few feet in front of the pitchers mound while all the players on the bench banged on the dugout railing with baseball bats. And no one seems to be bothered by goal celebrations in hockey.
I can only wish to see a celebration like the ones I see when watching a European soccer match. Could you imagine some of the stuff we would see. It'd be like every home run is a walk-off. Now that's showboating.
I like the idea of instant replay - I haven't really gotten a chance to see it in use much because the Cardinals are now the only team to have not used a challenge (much to my annoyance on some close plays). But, I don't get what the point of a challenge system is if teams can have someone in the clubhouse watching replays and calling the manager in the dugout to tell him whether or not to use a challenge. I've seen a lot of stalling to buy time while waiting for the call from the clubhouse.
IMO, they should've had a 5th umpire off the field at each stadium who can immediately go to the replay after any close play, and then send a page or message of some sort to the crew chief to indicate if the play is correct or not. Anything that needs another set of eyes can then go to New York for review, like how the NHL has the in-arena video judges and the Toronto war room.
That's not a bad idea. I like the NHL style replay system, it's quick and efficient. If they do keep the current system, it needs some upgrades. At least install extra cameras at fixed angles (pointing towards 1st, 2nd, 3rd, home) in every stadium so we can see the play from all sides. Angles that aren't picked up by TV cameras. It's not hard to install robotic cameras. Also, they need to have a simultaneous split shot screen option with two different angles playing at once for those bang-bang plays at first. It's too hard to call the really close plays from a single angle. Having the split screen option in the dugout should cut down on the stall time as well.
The Cardinals might not have to use the replay system, but I swear the Red Sox use it every other game.
Maybe. I will give him credit for that. Peralta lost I believe about $1.8 million during that 50 game suspension. He got $7 million per season pay raise. Now tell me you wouldn't trade that $1.8 million for $7 million..... The payday is what I have a problem with. Won't stop PED use if players still get paydays. The 100 game 1st game offense helps a bit, but more work still needs to be done.
Yep. ARod and Braun used the scorched earth strategy. Destroy everyone in order to get out of the suspension. ARod deservedly gets booed. Braun? Nope, gets cheered, says he served his time, etc. Both are scum.
The problem with the replay is that even after replay clearly overturns a call the umps say they don't have enough evidence. How is that possible when everyone clearly saw it. What are they looking at in NY?
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A-Rod never failed a test and got a year, Braun failed 2 and is still on the field.