**Official 2014 MLB Regular Season-All over but the shouting (1 Viewer)

[Raider Nation]

This game in Anaheim is never gonna end. If summoning Jeff Francis from the bully to face Trout isn't the cure, I don't know what is.

Edit: Can't believe Jeff Francis gave up a walk-off HR.

Do you ever sleep? And how do you watch every TV show AND every sport?

Multiple TVs. MLB.TV in a quad box on one of them. The DVR comes in handy too.

And yeah... that single thing.

 

[shadyridr]

lucky ####

 

[Long Ball Larry]

This game in Anaheim is never gonna end. If summoning Jeff Francis from the bully to face Trout isn't the cure, I don't know what is.

Edit: Can't believe Jeff Francis gave up a walk-off HR.

Do you ever sleep? And how do you watch every TV show AND every sport?

and post about it all....

and determine who stinks.

 

[Northern Voice]

The Jays have not scored a run in the last 28 innings.

The Cardinals have not allowed a run in the last 27 innings.

huh? jays scored 5 runs yesterday

Yeah, missed a letter. Fixed.

The Jays are undefeated in June when they score a run. Unfortunately they've been shut out 3 times.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Are HR up across the league, compared to this point last season? It feels like they are.

I can't find day-by-day splits for last June, but through May of 2013 vs. through May 2014:

2013: 1 HR/37.35 PA

2014: 1 HR/42.18 PA

Including all of June 2013 and June 2014 so far yields:

2013: 1 HR/37.81 PA

2014: 1 HR/41.79 PA

So it seems like they are down.

 

[the moops]

lucky ####

I don't know. he seems kind of miserable. complains about everything and everyone

 

[shadyridr]

lucky ####

I don't know. he seems kind of miserable. complains about everything and everyone

Imagine how much of a miserable SOB he would be if he WASNT single

 

[Dickie Dunn]

HOSE

For a glove that size, it's amazing he's as terrible a fielder as he actually is. But dude has a cannon. Between he and Reddick, you just don't want to run on Oakland's corner outfielders.

Obviously a great throw, but it is a little unfortunate to me that we have to celebrate OFs who actually can reach home plate on the fly with a throw. I grew up in the era of great OF throwing arms like Dwight Evans, Ellis Valentine, Dave Parker, Andre Dawson, Dave Winfield, Reggie Smith, etc. Vlad Guerrero and Larry Walker are among my all-time favorites, Griffey and Ichiro could gun with the best of them. "Old-timers" like Clemente, Mantle, Mays, Snider, Kaline, Cobb, Speaker and Shoeless Joe all had great arms.

I don't know, I guess I'm just so used to seeing highlights of "throws" that land 20 feet behind the mound and reach the plate on five hops. As someone whose throwing arm was one of my best attributes when I played, it's frustrating.

 

[Celph Titled]

One of the worst things that's ever happened in my life was when I made a pretty awesome throw to home in Little League (it would've been to stop a HR), and the pitcher inexplicably cut it off. Thing was right on line, just whirled and threw it as hard as I could, and it was a bomb by 11 year-old standards.

Yung Yoeni$

 

[Dickie Dunn]

One of the worst things that's ever happened in my life was when I made a pretty awesome throw to home in Little League (it would've been to stop a HR), and the pitcher inexplicably cut it off. Thing was right on line, just whirled and threw it as hard as I could, and it was a bomb by 11 year-old standards.

Yung Yoeni$

I remember making a throw similar to Cespedes' in LL when I was 11, against a team from the next town. From fair territory, but just fired and hit the catcher on the fly to cut down the tying run.

The next day my dad went to work and one of his co-workers said, "I saw you at the game last night. My son was the pitcher for (other team)." My dad simply replied, "My son made that throw."

Thanks, dad. I will never forget that.

 

[Eephus]

Major League Managing 101, by John Gibbons

- We're down 3-0 in the 7th, at home. We cannot possibly overcome that deficit with our offense.

- BRING IN THE KID FROM THE MINORS to pitch the 7th! Sure, he's the worst pitcher anyone has ever seen, but I have a good feeling about him!!!

Never bet on Canadians

 

[rodg12]

Are HR up across the league, compared to this point last season? It feels like they are.

I can't find day-by-day splits for last June, but through May of 2013 vs. through May 2014:

2013: 1 HR/37.35 PA

2014: 1 HR/42.18 PA

Including all of June 2013 and June 2014 so far yields:

2013: 1 HR/37.81 PA

2014: 1 HR/41.79 PA

So it seems like they are down.

Yeah, offense is down across the board this year (again).

 

[Raider Nation]

Major League Managing 101, by John Gibbons

- We're down 3-0 in the 7th, at home. We cannot possibly overcome that deficit with our offense.

- BRING IN THE KID FROM THE MINORS to pitch the 7th! Sure, he's the worst pitcher anyone has ever seen, but I have a good feeling about him!!!

Never bet on Canadians

I have the under 9.

No way I should have to be sweating this out.

 

[Smack Tripper]

Trevor Bauer is garbage

 

[Billy Bats]

Sorry if this was posted and I missed it, heard today that Bo Porter put his LH reliever Sipp into RF so he can come back and face another LH bat after Goldschmidt in the order. Interesting, and dangerous, strategy but it worked Monday night.

http://msn.foxsports.com/arizona/story/astros-sipp-plays-right-field-between-mowing-down-d-backs-lefties-060914

 

[Celph Titled]

Sorry if this was posted and I missed it, heard today that Bo Porter put his LH reliever Sipp into RF so he can come back and face another LH bat after Goldschmidt in the order. Interesting, and dangerous, strategy but it worked Monday night.

http://msn.foxsports.com/arizona/story/astros-sipp-plays-right-field-between-mowing-down-d-backs-lefties-060914

I don't think Sipp's bad enough against righties to warrant burning a pitcher and an outfielder (and secondarily, taking a hit in OF defense for one AB) just to get him to Montero and duck Goldschmidt. Cool strategy though.

 

[Gopher State]

Wow, this Morales dude is either very good or on a hot streak. 3 hits, 3 rbi today, batting 462 in limited at bats. He might lead a few Fantasy baseball teams to titles, for those who were wise enough to pick him up

 

[BobbyLayne]

That #79 seems like a pretty decent slugger.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

Wow, this Morales dude is either very good or on a hot streak. 3 hits, 3 rbi today, batting 462 in limited at bats. He might lead a few Fantasy baseball teams to titles, for those who were wise enough to pick him up

yes, he will be good, as long as he can stay away from home plate celebrations.

 

[Limp Ditka]

If Reid Brignac hitting walkoff shots doesn't bring MOP back, nothing is.

 

[Raider Nation]

Gonzo wanted NO part of Chapman in a 5-0 game.

Strike one, looking. Strike two, looking. Waived at strike 3 and missed it by two feet. All triple-digits on the gun.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Mike Olt has scored 14 runs this year, and has nine home runs.

That would even make Dave Kingman blush.

 

[Dickie Dunn]

Mike Olt has scored 14 runs this year, and has nine home runs.

That would even make Dave Kingman blush.

I love looking up random weird stuff like this on Baseball Reference's Play Index (recently it was fewest RBI in a season for anyone who qualified for the batting title ... the immortal Enzo Hernandez had 12 in 618 PA in 1971).

So I plugged this one in ... HR >= 10 plus R <= 20.

It's been done 19 times since 1914. Todd Greene had 10 HR and only 15 R in 2002 for TEX. Amazingly, Ted Williams had 13 HR and just 17 R in 1953, which seems impossible to believe.

There have been 10 players to hit at least 20 HR and score fewer than 40 runs. Incredibly, three of them currently play for the Red Sox -- Jonny Gomes (39, 2009 with CIN), Mike Napoli (39, 2008 with LAA) and David Ross (37, 2006 with CIN). Daryle Ward holds that "record" with just 36 on 20 HR in 2000 for the Astros.

 

[RnR]

Mike Olt has scored 14 runs this year, and has nine home runs.

That would even make Dave Kingman blush.

I love looking up random weird stuff like this on Baseball Reference's Play Index (recently it was fewest RBI in a season for anyone who qualified for the batting title ... the immortal Enzo Hernandez had 12 in 618 PA in 1971).

So I plugged this one in ... HR >= 10 plus R <= 20.

It's been done 19 times since 1914. Todd Greene had 10 HR and only 15 R in 2002 for TEX. Amazingly, Ted Williams had 13 HR and just 17 R in 1953, which seems impossible to believe.

There have been 10 players to hit at least 20 HR and score fewer than 40 runs. Incredibly, three of them currently play for the Red Sox -- Jonny Gomes (39, 2009 with CIN), Mike Napoli (39, 2008 with LAA) and David Ross (37, 2006 with CIN). Daryle Ward holds that "record" with just 36 on 20 HR in 2000 for the Astros.

All four of those guys make sense. Two were back-up/part-time catchers and two were big pop bats off the bench. I haven't looked to verify this, but I'm guessing all four also had large platoon splits that rendered them useless against same-handed pitchers.

 

[pollardsvision]

David Ross is equally useless no matter which hand the pitcher scratches his balls with.

 

[Limp Ditka]

Wouldn't it make sense to give Tulo days off when they're on the road, instead of at home?

 

[Dickie Dunn]

David Ross is equally useless no matter which hand the pitcher scratches his balls with.

Forgot to mention it, but Ross also appeared on the 10/20 list ... 10 HR (in only 140 PA) and 19 R in 2003 with the Dodgers. He also had a 17 HR/32 R season for

the Reds in 2007.

If I have time later (my Play Index login is on my machine at work), I may mess around with some career numbers and see what they show.

 

[Raider Nation]

I have two possible (probable) stupid questions:

1) Why doesn't Colorado draft for and construct an entire pitching staff of sinkerballers who throw strikes? The mental image in my mind of a perfect Rockies pitcher is Dan Otero of the A's. He throws bowling balls up there, and has given up only TWO home runs in 91 career innings. Is the answer as simple as... guys like that don't grow on trees? Seems to me if you can find capable pitchers who feature the sinker as their best pitch, you already have a decided advantage 81 times a year.

2) How valuable would a guy be who could spoil pitch after pitch and raise pitch-counts at will? Going against one of the best starting pitchers in the game? If that guy is throwing 95 or better, how annoyed would he be with a guy who could foul off a dozen pitches intentionally in each plate appearance? In theory, it should be fairly easy for a pesky infielder type to just tap a crapload of pitches foul, no? Or am I off my rocker here?

 

[Raider Nation]

I love Abreu's game plan at the dish. Swing at everything and try to hit a home run every time, regardless of the situation.

 

[Annyong]

I love Abreu's game plan at the dish. Swing at everything and try to hit a home run every time, regardless of the situation.

Can't blame the guy for loving to mash dingers

 

[Long Ball Larry]

I have two possible (probable) stupid questions:

1) Why doesn't Colorado draft for and construct an entire pitching staff of sinkerballers who throw strikes? The mental image in my mind of a perfect Rockies pitcher is Dan Otero of the A's. He throws bowling balls up there, and has given up only TWO home runs in 91 career innings. Is the answer as simple as... guys like that don't grow on trees? Seems to me if you can find capable pitchers who feature the sinker as their best pitch, you already have a decided advantage 81 times a year.

http://www.denverpost.com/rockies/ci_25645442/sinkerball-has-become-best-friend-colorado-rockies-pitchers

"Inducing groundballs has become an essential part of the Rockies' baseball bible. "Thou Shall Throw Sinkers" has become one of the "absolute" commandments of manager Walt Weiss and his coaches."

 

[Long Ball Larry]

2) How valuable would a guy be who could spoil pitch after pitch and raise pitch-counts at will? Going against one of the best starting pitchers in the game? If that guy is throwing 95 or better, how annoyed would he be with a guy who could foul off a dozen pitches intentionally in each plate appearance? In theory, it should be fairly easy for a pesky infielder type to just tap a crapload of pitches foul, no? Or am I off my rocker here?

guys like Ben Revere, Aoki, Kurt Suzuki, Denard Span probably do have some of their value in being able to do this. Ultimately, how many pitches can a guy realistically foul off? 10-12? 2 times a game? I'm not sure that that contribution would outweigh being unable to hit the ball out of the infield. (though AOki and Revere are probably trying to prove me wrong with that.)

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Aoki sucks

 

[Doctor Detroit]

I really hope Altuve is ok.

 

[Raider Nation]

Elias with a fabulous outing.

Unless it was completely horrible.

 

[Celph Titled]

I have two possible (probable) stupid questions:

1) Why doesn't Colorado draft for and construct an entire pitching staff of sinkerballers who throw strikes? The mental image in my mind of a perfect Rockies pitcher is Dan Otero of the A's. He throws bowling balls up there, and has given up only TWO home runs in 91 career innings. Is the answer as simple as... guys like that don't grow on trees? Seems to me if you can find capable pitchers who feature the sinker as their best pitch, you already have a decided advantage 81 times a year.

2) How valuable would a guy be who could spoil pitch after pitch and raise pitch-counts at will? Going against one of the best starting pitchers in the game? If that guy is throwing 95 or better, how annoyed would he be with a guy who could foul off a dozen pitches intentionally in each plate appearance? In theory, it should be fairly easy for a pesky infielder type to just tap a crapload of pitches foul, no? Or am I off my rocker here?

1) I think this is more or less what Colorado's going for. They're fifth in the league in groundball rate, and they don't really have many guys who throw curves, which typically don't work in the thin air. Going a step further, they seem to be focusing on infield defense lately (esp re: Arenado, but LeMahieu's good too). Their home hitting BABIP is something stupid like .355, but their pitchers have allowed a BABIP of like .290 or something reasonable. They were way, way better at home than on the road last year. But yeah, I think they're a team that needs to have certain principles that run throughout their entire organization: no curveballs, no flyball pitchers, infielders who can defend, etc. The trade for Lyles was puzzling as he uses his 17% of the time, but he's cut it down to 11% this year. The Butler kid who just came up doesn't throw one, but Gray does. Which is weird. But it does seem like they've been phasing out cb pitchers since around 2010 or so.

I've always thought that if you're going to build a new stadium, it should be one that you can specifically tailor a team to, so as to gain more of an advantage.

2) Somewhat valuable, but I don't think you could just foul off pitches at will without legitimately trying to hit them. I think it's a function of being a good contact hitter, not a skill in and of itself.

 

[Celph Titled]

How high will Justin Verlander's ERA have to get before Kate Upton stops allowing him to jizz inside of her?

 

[Dickie Dunn]

How do we know that "Yoko" Upton isn't the problem?

 

[JZilla]

Poor guy's probably spent.

 

[Limp Ditka]

She's a beard

 

[Billy Bats]

Quintin Berry hits a single, gets ejected by the first base ump, then leaves on his terms.

http://deadspin.com/quintin-berry-gets-ejected-runs-bases-slides-into-hom-1590526408

 

[fred_1_15301]

Quintin Berry hits a single, gets ejected by the first base ump, then leaves on his terms.

http://deadspin.com/quintin-berry-gets-ejected-runs-bases-slides-into-hom-1590526408

Love it!

 

[fred_1_15301]

Quintin Berry hits a single, gets ejected by the first base ump, then leaves on his terms.

http://deadspin.com/quintin-berry-gets-ejected-runs-bases-slides-into-hom-1590526408

That's the kind of #### you see in a movie.

 

[MAC_32]

Briefly considered benching Masterson. Almost started Arrieta.

Oops.

 

[Raider Nation]

I think this is the most impressive HR I've ever seen. Canseco's 5-decker shot in Toronto may have gone farther, but this one was just jaw-dropping. You have to figure that McGwire beautifully squaring up a RJ 100-mph fastball is just about the perfect storm for a mammoth shot.

 

[Raider Nation]

SI.com

Phillies fans are the biggest bandwagon riders in all of baseball.

A study conducted at Emory University that analyzed consumer demands in baseball from 1998-2014 found that Phillies fans are the least tolerant of losing in all of Major League Baseball. The “fan sensitivity rankings” were based on “statistical models of consumer demand.” The models were built to gauge how fans respond to ticket prices and winning percentages.

The Orioles, A’s, White Sox and Dodgers rounded out the top five, respectively, in the rankings of biggest bandwagon fans based on the model.

On the other end of the spectrum, the teams with fans most likely to attend games and support the team despite ticket prices and winning percentages: Yankees, Cardinals, Marlins, Red Sox and Diamondbacks.

I can almost hear Phillies fans cursing out this study. Almost.

Congrats!

 

[Raider Nation]

Uh oh. Tulo just left the game after pulling up lame at 1st base. Left ankle would be my guess.

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Romo's a homo

 

[Eephus]

SI.com

Phillies fans are the biggest bandwagon riders in all of baseball.A study conducted at Emory University that analyzed consumer demands in baseball from 1998-2014 found that Phillies fans are the least tolerant of losing in all of Major League Baseball. The “fan sensitivity rankings” were based on “statistical models of consumer demand.” The models were built to gauge how fans respond to ticket prices and winning percentages.

The Orioles, A’s, White Sox and Dodgers rounded out the top five, respectively, in the rankings of biggest bandwagon fans based on the model.

On the other end of the spectrum, the teams with fans most likely to attend games and support the team despite ticket prices and winning percentages: Yankees, Cardinals, Marlins, Red Sox and Diamondbacks.

I can almost hear Phillies fans cursing out this study. Almost.

Congrats!

Marlins? Statistically insignificant sample size

 

[Doctor Detroit]

Romo's a homo

Season ERA went from 3.00 to 4.61 in 1/3 inning pitched tonight.

The .167 BABIP caught up with him all at once.