MLB: 2013 Season Thread

paulelectronica

jack presley wrote: »

I watched all 3 games and the Padres very very poor, especially their starting pitching in the first 2 games. But when they had a pitcher who was just alright (and that's all he was), the Mets hitters struggled and struck out an awful lot which was one of the big fears coming into the season. I'll take 2 out of 3 wins in any series if you offered it to me but the hitting yesterday has me worried going forward.

The Mets have the second easiest schedule in April so in theory should be alright after the first month but even if they are, they're not a very good team and I think that'll all reveal itself by May.

I agree, Harvey looked very good and can't wait to see more of him going forward. Niese and Gee should be alright and will be typical middle of the order starters but there's no depth. Marcum will be on the DL more often that not I'd say and after that we're down to Hefner and Laffey (who?) who will probably struggle. And the pen has me worried too despite them saying it's much better than last season. Familla was awful last night, Hawkins awful the night before and I don't hold much faith in any of the rest of them, bar Parnell.

Another plus/minus last night was that while D'Arnoud apparently was pretty good for Las Vegas last night, Wheeler struggled so he's not the saviour yet!

Just got to see the first 2 myself, Marlins up next and then the Phillies. What did you think of Dickey being traded and Santana being injured , going to be difficult to replace there wins from last season I think.

jack presley

paulelectronica wrote: »

Just got to see the first 2 myself, Marlins up next and then the Phillies. What did you think of Dickey being traded and Santana being injured , going to be difficult to replace there wins from last season I think.

Dickey's a big loss of course but I'm still in the camp that think trading him was probably for the best considering the money he ended up getting. There's no way the Mets in their current financial predicament could give a 38 year old 3 years for that much money even if he isn't a traditional pitcher and probably can pitch at a high level for a few more years. 2013 was always going to be a write-off anyway, with or without him so getting D'arnaud and Syndegard in the trde was probably a better move for 2014 ond beyond (if they pan out as expected of course!).

As for Santana, I think the fact that they have to pay him $31m is a bigger blow to him not pitching. I don't think he has anything left so while his veteran presence in the locker would have been good, I don't think he was ever going to go out and pitch like an ace again and even if healthy, he wouldn't be going deep in games so the bullpen would still be stretched with him.

I'm just looking for a respectable season (I'd be delighted with 70 wins) and then hopefully in 2014 Sandy Alderson's masterplan will begin to take shape. The young players will begin to come through, Santana and Bay's salaries will be off the books so there'll be $45m or so to splash on a couple of veteran players. Of course, if it doesn't work out and they're still rubbish, he'll be run out of town for all the hype he's been feeding us for the past few years.

rockonollie

Loving my Redlegs tonight........bottom 7th, 10-0, bats still swinging (even a double and a single by pitchers).....2 players with multi-homer game.....and Votto who was 1 for 10 after the opening series is now 4 for 14

rockonollie

Was going to edit my last post.....but i think a GRAND SALAMI deserves a fresh post.......14-0, still bottom of 7th.....just batted around, and Dusty Baker has emptied his bench.

jack presley

rockonollie wrote: »

Was going to edit my last post.....but i think a GRAND SALAMI deserves a fresh post.......14-0, still bottom of 7th.....just batted around, and Dusty Baker has emptied his bench.

Shows what a funny game baseball can be. The Nationals give up one run in 3 games against the Marlins then give up 15 in one game against the Reds. And the Marlins who couldn't score to save their lives in the first series bang 7 past the Mets.

And talking of grand slams, how about some praise for Chris Davis of the O's! 16 RBIs already.

jack presley

paulelectronica wrote: »

Mets started of the season well , 2 good wins followed by a poor loss last night. Neise and Harvey are looking good.

See how things can all go pear-shaped in the space of a day or two?

rockonollie

Choo was signed to fix the Reds' leadoff problem......through the first 4 games he has 20PA, is 5 for 15, with 2 walks, 2HBP and reached on an error......that's on base 10 times in 20 trips to the plate......scored 5 runs and already has 2 home-runs.

I think their leadoff issue is resolved.

Itssoeasy

A HDMI cable and MLB.tv and a laptop is a beautiful invention.

jack presley

rockonollie wrote: »

Choo was signed to fix the Reds' leadoff problem......through the first 4 games he has 20PA, is 5 for 15, with 2 walks, 2HBP and reached on an error......that's on base 10 times in 20 trips to the plate......scored 5 runs and already has 2 home-runs.

I think their leadoff issue is resolved.

We're 5 games into a 162 game season. Nothing gets resolved on the first week. Likewise, I wouldn't be worried if a 'star player' went 0-10 in the first few games. Marathon not a sprint!

Hidalgo

Felix Hernandez fell short for his 100 career win for the Mariners, they lose 4-3 to the White Sox.

Nationals up 7-5 on the Reds, bottom of the 11th

paulelectronica

Good Mets win today

jack presley

paulelectronica wrote: »

Good Mets win today

Yeah. I enjoyed that. Wasn't pretty but a win's a win

Itssoeasy

Mets go to 3-2 after a good win after a good seventh inning. But I need to remember that unlike football a baseball season is 162 games long.

zuutroy

Dickie in the horrors again :rolleyes:

jack presley

zuutroy wrote: »

Dickie in the horrors again :rolleyes:

Strange start to the day for top end pitchers. Not only is RA getting knocked about but Verlander, Strasburg and Cueto have all had a few runs scored against them early on. (And the rookie making his first ever appearance over A ball against the Mets got through his 1st inning in 8 pitches!)

mikemac1

Great performance from the young Marlins pitcher but all for nought

Mets win bottom of the ninth, crazy finish!!

jack presley

mikemac1 wrote: »

Great performance from the young Marlins pitcher but all for nought

Mets win bottom of the ninth, crazy finish!!

Ugly ugly game for the Mets but I'm happy they managed to steal the win. That pitcher was amazing for the Marlins. The Mets couldn't get anything off him the first couple of times around. Hard to believe he's never pitched above A ball before today. Against any other team I would have been rooting for him. He's certainly one to watch the rest of this season.

Hidalgo

White Sox beat the Mariners with a walk off homer in the bottom of the 10th.
Matt Cain pitching for the Giants V the Cardinals.

jack presley

Baltimore went 29-9 in one run games last season. They're already 0-3 this season.

Benimar

jack presley wrote: »

Baltimore went 29-9 in one run games last season. They're already 0-3 this season.

At least the Bullpen didn't chuck this one up.

Getting a 2 run head start (yesterday) and a 3 run one today, and going 0-2 is fairly worrying. Especially as we were playing the 'mighty' Twins.

paulelectronica

Delighted the Mets got to steal a win in the last inning today , Phillies on the road now tomorrow , Matt Harvey pitching for the Mets.

Waitsian

zuutroy wrote: »

Dickie in the horrors again :rolleyes:

It happens to the best of them. He'll come good. As will this team.

Hidalgo

jack presley wrote: »

Baltimore went 29-9 in one run games last season. They're already 0-3 this season.

Going 29-9 was freakishly good. While skill and nerve are involved, you'd have to wonder if a little slice of luck played its role.
If you depend that much on 1 run wins/extra inning wins your on a tightrope.

paulelectronica

Great game from Matt Harvey last night, striking out 9 in 7 innings, has a RBI of 12 now. Beating the Phillies

boccy23

Is Halladay done?

8-10

paulelectronica wrote: »

Great game from Matt Harvey last night, striking out 9 in 7 innings, has a RBI of 12 now. Beating the Phillies

Watched most of it. Harvey is brilliant. Halladay is awful. He actually looked better last night than in his first start but still got hit around.

8-10

boccy23 wrote: »

Is Halladay done?

As elite starter, has to be yes. He has 199 career wins though so he'll be desperate to get to 200 soon. He needs a good start against an average starter and average lineup, Braves are offensively strong and Harvey is pitching well for a Mets team high in confidence.

I reckon a few weeks and the 200th win secured will see a turn around but at very best he's now a 3rd starter. Just needs to solidify a bit. He needs to stop going so deep into games this year also.

BigFatGiant

What was the home base umpire looking at last night when he called this a strike? http://atmlb.com/10F3fNo
Funny reaction from Nathan afterwards, he could not believe he got it.

Waitsian

BigFatGiant wrote: »

What was the home base umpire looking at last night when he called this a strike? http://atmlb.com/10F3fNo
Funny reaction from Nathan afterwards, he could not believe he got it.

I just copied and pasted that to post it! Awful call. I had to laugh at the Rays announcers (WDAE).

Do consistently bad umpires ever get demoted?

jack presley

mod9maple wrote: »

Do consistently bad umpires ever get demoted?

By pure coincidence I think, Buster Olney had the MLB executive responsible for umpire assessment on the Baseball Today podcast today and it was a good long discussion on how umpires are assessed and judged etc. so it's well worth a listen

paulelectronica

How that was given as a strike is beyond me.

MoyVilla9

What was everyone saying about the Yankees not being able to hit? Vernon Wells might just have something left in him after all.

jack presley

Another rough start for a Blue Jays pitcher (and not being helped by his bull pen either!).

califano

Cubs 5-0 up, and i lose

Coeus

jack presley wrote: »

Another rough start for a Blue Jays pitcher (and not being helped by his bull pen either!).

Yea, their pitching has been awful and the guys they traded for (Buerhle, Dickey and JJ) have been the worst. I thought they would have been alot better

Was watching today, Tigers have a really potent 1 through 4 in their batting lineup and with VMart @ 5 who will eventually start hitting, their pitchers should get plenty of run support this season...

Footoo

jack presley wrote: »

Another rough start for a Blue Jays pitcher (and not being helped by his bull pen either!).

The bullpen has been fine> They've only been giving up lots of runs in games that have been blow outs. Those games have seen the ikes of David Bush, Edgar Gonzales and Esmil Rogers being brought in as long relievers. They are basically single A pitchers. When the games have been close, the bullpen has been pretty good.

Delebar, Loup, Cecil and Jansen all look sold. Oliver and Santos have been fine as well.

The pitching problem soley lies with the with new starters. All three have been awful. Whether it's just a coincindence that these guys are all having a bad run or that it's an endemic problem with the Jays Pitching set up remains to be seen.

I fear for Dickey tbh. I'm never comfortable with the idea of knuckleballers as aces. It never seems sustainable to me. Hopefully I'll be proved wrong.

They're not being helped either by the hitters or fielding. Every
at bat (apart from Reyes) seems to be a HR attempt. Again not sustainable.

And don't get me started the idea of Emilio Bonifacio as a 3rd baseman. I never took that position that seriously until I've seen how badly it can be played.

Rant Over.

BigFatGiant

LA's no2 starter Zach Greinke got himself a broken collar bone last night from Padres Carlos Quentin after hitting him with a pitch. It didnt seem on purpose but apparantly he has hit him 3 or 4 times in the past so this time Quentin lost it. $145 of a picher sitting on the bench for a few moths is not agood way to start the season for LA. Could be a few big suspensions following this one.

jack presley

BigFatGiant wrote: »

LA's no2 starter Zach Greinke got himself a broken collar bone last night from Padres Carlos Quentin after hitting him with a pitch. It didnt seem on purpose but apparantly he has hit him 3 or 4 times in the past so this time Quentin lost it. $145 of a picher sitting on the bench for a few moths is not agood way to start the season for LA. Could be a few big suspensions following this one.

Suspensions probably coming alright but I wonder will the level be dictated by the fact that it was a 'star' pitcher that is now out? If it had been the Astros no.5 starter, would the suspension be the same? Interesting times ahead.

Masked Man

Looks like Kemp went after Quentin in the parking lot and it had to be broken up by security.



Fair ****s to Greinke for standing his ground.

Waitsian

jack presley wrote: »

Another rough start for a Blue Jays pitcher (and not being helped by his bull pen either!).

Coeus wrote: »

Yea, their pitching has been awful and the guys they traded for (Buerhle, Dickey and JJ) have been the worst. I thought they would have been alot better

Footoo wrote: »

The bullpen has been fine> They've only been giving up lots of runs in games that have been blow outs. Those games have seen the ikes of David Bush, Edgar Gonzales and Esmil Rogers being brought in as long relievers. They are basically single A pitchers. When the games have been close, the bullpen has been pretty good.

Delebar, Loup, Cecil and Jansen all look sold. Oliver and Santos have been fine as well.

The pitching problem soley lies with the with new starters.

Last year the Giants started 4-5, and won the whole thing. The Jays are 3-6. We're 2 (!!!) back of Baltimore who are 5-4. A whole 2 games - oh no, trade 'em all. :eek:

There are 153 games left to start winning. This team will be fine. And will be challenging for either the division or the WC. And you can quote me on that come October.

Coeus

Masked Man wrote: »

Looks like Kemp went after Quentin in the parking lot and it had to be broken up by security.

...and Clayton Richard, he is the guy in the grey jumper. Pity he pitches Sunday and will not pitch in next weeks series!

jack presley

Just when you think the A-Rod story goes away...

http://deadspin.com/reports-it-was-a-rod-naturally-who-bought-ped-eviden-472713547?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_twitter&utm_source=deadspin_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow

....back it comes.

Coeus

jack presley wrote: »

Just when you think the A-Rod story goes away...

http://deadspin.com/reports-it-was-a-rod-naturally-who-bought-ped-eviden-472713547?utm_campaign=socialflow_deadspin_twitter&utm_source=deadspin_twitter&utm_medium=socialflow

....back it comes.

This guy is so tainted now, I wonder now if the Yankees will want anything to do with him if/when he comes back. They are doing a good job at ignoring him for now and rightly so...

I'm just reading on Twitter that Quentin will be suspended for 8 games. He has the right to appeal which if he does should allow him to play in the series against the Dodgers starting Monday.

jack presley

mod9maple wrote: »

Last year the Giants started 4-5, and won the whole thing. The Jays are 3-6. We're 2 (!!!) back of Baltimore who are 5-4. A whole 2 games - oh no, trade 'em all. :eek:

There are 153 games left to start winning. This team will be fine. And will be challenging for either the division or the WC. And you can quote me on that come October.

Yeah I know it's very early days yet and I wasn't ruling them out. Losing Reyes must be a big blow for you though?

jack presley

http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?cid=mlb

Nice triple play from the Yankees last night.

Waitsian

jack presley wrote: »

Yeah I know it's very early days yet and I wasn't ruling them out. Losing Reyes must be a big blow for you though?

A huge blow but as is often said no team is a one man team. This team is laced with talent, they just need to step it up. He'll be missed for sure, hopefully it won't be for too long.

jack presley wrote: »

http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?cid=mlb

Nice triple play from the Yankees last night.

As much as I can't stand the Evil Empire, kudos to them, quick thinking on their part.

One of my favourite plays in all of baseball. Pity Oscar missed it live!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-A2zB-e3mro

jack presley

mod9maple wrote: »

A huge blow but as is often said no team is a one man team. This team is laced with talent, they just need to step it up. He'll be missed for sure, hopefully it won't be for long

I don't know whether it was the Mets medical staff's fault or not but speaking from previous experience of Reyes injuries, whatever timeframe they come out with for recovery, you can probably add a chunk of extra time onto it!

I was back loving Jose this season. I couldn't root for him as a Marlin but now that he's out of the division, it was great to see him play, both as a hitter and in the field. Hopefully he'll be back soon enough.

And hopefully RA will get back on track tonight too. Look at me, I'm sounding like a Blue Jays fan!

padraig_f

Watching some of the videos from the 2013 Sloan Sports Conference, I thought the baseball analytics panel was very good. Jonah Keri, Voros McCracken, and a guy I didn't know before, but who was very good, Farhan Zaidi, who works in the front-office at the Oakland A's....

Baseball Analytics 2013

smackbunnybaby

Is it a bird?
Is it a plane?
No, it's Ben Revere....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=pZr_fSKG4Ks

jack presley

https://twitter.com/MLB/status/323941884777078786/photo/1
https://twitter.com/harding_at_mlb/status/323926280657571840/photo/1

I don't know how common it is to get snow like this in April but going forward, MLB should really only schedule inter-division games in cold weather cities in April.

If they did, as teams play each other 18 or so times a year, there is ample opportunity to make up a game if its lost to snow. However teams from outside your division or teams from the other league only visit once a year so the rescheduled games have to be squeezed in to a day was to be a travel day.

Time zones aren't really an issue going east to west but when the day off is always appreciated when going the other way but as the Mets game in Minnesota was snowed out on Sunday, they'll now have to stop off there on their way back from San Diego in August, therefore losing their travel day.

And after the snow in Minneapolis, they flew to more snow in Denver and another game cancelled. At least this time it was the first game so they can play a doubleheader but there's still a good chance that one of the 4 games they have over the next 3 days will be lost to snow as well meaning they'll have to find another day somewhere in the schedule to play it.

If the Twins had been scheduled to play the White Sox and the Rockies the D'backs, all of this could have been avoided. I know interleague games every day make it a bit more difficult for the schedule makers but I don't think it'd be rocket science.

As I'm typing, I've just seen on Twitter that the 1st game of the doubleheader has been delayed as they're still clearing snow off the field!