Random MLB News & Discussion 2015–16

[tmwiese55]

There was a share of people out there ripping Scherzer, kind of calling him a whiner, pansy, and that he knew it when he signed the contract etc.., turns out the media spun it all to drum up a story.

[trwi7]

Bumgarner was the biggest douche in all of it saying with all the contract offers he had he chose to go to the NL. He could have gone to the AL. Blah, blah blah. Bumgarner would be a perfect fit on the Cardinals for the douche factor alone.

[Ennder]

Adding the DH to the NL would only put teams like the Brewers further behind big market teams who can afford to pay a 9th hitter to be their DH.

 

 

Very few teams actually do this anymore. The DH is used to rest players more than anything else.

 

As for the adding strategy, how often are you actually making a difficult strategic decision when PH for a pitcher? Maybe 1 in every 10 games or so.

 

In the early 1900s a pitcher might get 125-150 PA a year. Now they get like 50-75. It just isn't enough repetition to expect a pitcher to be able to hit these days. Add in that every other league nationwide except a single Japanese league uses the DH in some way and it just doesn't make any sense anymore. The game changes, it is part of life and this is a long overdue change at this point.

[Thurston Fluff]

I thought this was pretty well done. http://www.brewcrewball.com/2015/4/30/8514863/brewers-since-u-been-gone

[trwi7]

Gary Thorne calls Adam Jones' double like a golf shot at the Masters.

 

http://awfulannouncing.com/the-locker/this-is-how-weird-an-mlb-broadcast-with-no-fans-sounds.html/

[logan82]

Over the last few years batting stats for DH have gone down quite a bit. In the AL this year SS and catcher are the only positions that do not out hit the DH.

[topper09er]

 

As for the adding strategy, how often are you actually making a difficult strategic decision when PH for a pitcher? Maybe 1 in every 10 games or so.

 

The strategy implications go far beyond just deciding whether to pinch hit for the SP with 2 outs in the 7th of a tie game. There are many times when you have to weigh leaving a pitcher in if his spot is due up in the next inning, and to avoid that decision double switches are done. Even in the scenarios where you obviously will pinch hit choosing the player matters, again with double switch and defensive implications.

 

The fact that the pitchers have to hit impacts how you use pitchers on the mound basically every game

[Baldkin]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

[Thurston Fluff]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

 

If we follow that line of thinking I guess baseball should have separate players for defense and offense for every position. After all why should we have to watch Kotsay play center just to get his bat in the lineup? Why did we have to watch Rickie Weeks or Prince on defense? It would have been a hell of a lot more fun watching prince hit and Ishikawa field. I can just imagine how great it would be to see nothing but pure hitters hit and pure fielders field.

It would have made it a heck of a lot easier to find a first baseman the past two years as well. Maybe also get rid of that rule that says once you leave the game you can't come back.

[3and2Fastball]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

 

If we follow that line of thinking I guess baseball should have separate players for defense and offense for every position. After all why should we have to watch Kotsay play center just to get his bat in the lineup? Why did we have to watch Rickie Weeks or Prince on defense? It would have been a hell of a lot more fun watching prince hit and Ishikawa field. I can just imagine how great it would be to see nothing but pure hitters hit and pure fielders field.

It would have made it a heck of a lot easier to find a first baseman the past two years as well. Maybe also get rid of that rule that says once you leave the game you can't come back.

 

hey if you go that route then Marcus Hanel could've played MLB as a "Catcher Only"

 

for what it is worth, a team doesn't have to DH for the pitcher. They can DH for anyone in the lineup

 

I like the rules the way they are

[topper09er]

 

for what it is worth, a team doesn't have to DH for the pitcher. They can DH for anyone in the lineup

 

No you can't, you can only DH for the pitcher. Rule 6.10(b)(1)

 

"A hitter may be designated to bat for the starting pitcher and all subsequent

pitchers in any game without otherwise affecting the status of the pitcher(s) in

the game."

[igor67]

Actually the football equivalent would be more like letting the kicking team immediately sub out the kicker/punter for a tackling specialist in the event of a block.

[Ennder]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

 

If we follow that line of thinking I guess baseball should have separate players for defense and offense for every position. After all why should we have to watch Kotsay play center just to get his bat in the lineup? Why did we have to watch Rickie Weeks or Prince on defense? It would have been a hell of a lot more fun watching prince hit and Ishikawa field. I can just imagine how great it would be to see nothing but pure hitters hit and pure fielders field.

It would have made it a heck of a lot easier to find a first baseman the past two years as well. Maybe also get rid of that rule that says once you leave the game you can't come back.

 

Because nobody is asking for anything like that so it really is no argument against anything. If I ask the city to build more bike lanes they don't respond "why don't we just outlaw cars" and ignore me.

[Thurston Fluff]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

 

If we follow that line of thinking I guess baseball should have separate players for defense and offense for every position. After all why should we have to watch Kotsay play center just to get his bat in the lineup? Why did we have to watch Rickie Weeks or Prince on defense? It would have been a hell of a lot more fun watching prince hit and Ishikawa field. I can just imagine how great it would be to see nothing but pure hitters hit and pure fielders field.

It would have made it a heck of a lot easier to find a first baseman the past two years as well. Maybe also get rid of that rule that says once you leave the game you can't come back.

 

Because nobody is asking for anything like that so it really is no argument against anything. If I ask the city to build more bike lanes they don't respond "why don't we just outlaw cars" and ignore me.

 

I'm not the one who used a football analogy to show how bad an idea it was to have a pitcher hit. All I did was show why the analogy was off base.

[trwi7]

Fox Sports San Diego has the best Keys to the Game ever and I'm being completely serious because every Keys to the Game I've ever seen is incredibly stupid.

 

 

[reillymcshane]

Fox Sports San Diego has the best Keys to the Game every and I'm being completely serious because every Keys to the Game I've ever seen is incredibly stupid.

 

 

 

Those are great.

 

Growing up, Mike Hegan was the color commentator for years for the Crew. I remember him saying things like, "If the club hits well, plays good defense, and pitches well, the Brewers should win."

 

So insightful.

[TooLiveBrew]

That's hilarious. Love it.

[jerichoholicninja]

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/122322828/blue-jays-hitting-coach-brook-jacoby-suspended-14-games-will-appeal

 

Blue Jays hitting coach Brook Jacoby has received a 14-game suspension from Major League Baseball for his "postgame conduct toward the umpire crew" assigned to Wednesday's game against the Red Sox at Fenway Park.

 

Apparently Jacoby and the rest of the coaching staff got into it with the umps as they exited through the visitors dugout after the game. Not much for details but unless we're talking a physical confrontation 14 games seems pretty ridiculous.

[Baldkin]

I liked Joe Posnanski's line on it.

 

The added strategy of watching an awful player hit would be like making a 5'9, 120lb guy play offensive and defensive line in the NFL. Make that a rule.

 

Sure, it adds strategy, but I don't want to see it.

 

If we follow that line of thinking I guess baseball should have separate players for defense and offense for every position. After all why should we have to watch Kotsay play center just to get his bat in the lineup? Why did we have to watch Rickie Weeks or Prince on defense? It would have been a hell of a lot more fun watching prince hit and Ishikawa field. I can just imagine how great it would be to see nothing but pure hitters hit and pure fielders field.

It would have made it a heck of a lot easier to find a first baseman the past two years as well. Maybe also get rid of that rule that says once you leave the game you can't come back.

 

Yes, that's exactly what I was saying. Pitchers don't hit for YEARS going through the minor leagues. They are awful, awful hitters. They have no business swinging a bat, and I have no desire to watch the Ben Sheets of the world hit.

 

If you want to DH for everyone and keep 25 man rosters, that's perfectly fine by me. You honestly think teams could find a way to do that? That all of these great hitters are just sitting out there unsigned waiting for their chance? Pretty sure those guys would be on the bench for a team already if they were out there.

[reillymcshane]

Interesting article on pitching coach Leo Mazonne, who oversaw the Braves staffs of the 1990s/early 2000s.

 

There's some good discussion on his pitching programs and so forth - something I find interesting with all the arm injuries suffered nowadays.

 

Also interesting that no one has hired him after his rough stint in Baltimore. I would have thought someone would have taken a chance on him.

 

http://www.sbnation.com/longform/2015/5/13/8585249/leo-mazzone-profile-feature

[RightFieldCoder]

If you want to DH for everyone and keep 25 man rosters, that's perfectly fine by me. You honestly think teams could find a way to do that? That all of these great hitters are just sitting out there unsigned waiting for their chance? Pretty sure those guys would be on the bench for a team already if they were out there.

It's not about finding all of these great hitters. Most of the current hitters would become the DHes. We would need to go find people that can play defense for the Fielder/Weeks/Braun/Davis of the world. Teams will have no trouble finding these defensive players. Most of your AAA depth is made from these players.

 

[sarcasm]Why should someone not be allowed to re-enter the game? I don't want to see someone foul one off his foot and try to keep hitting. You should be allowed to sub in and out without restrictions. Let someone else finish the at bat. Have him come back in when his foot is feeling better.

 

Why limit roster size to 25? We should increase it to 35. 15 pitchers, 10 offensive players, and 10 defensive players.

 

Scores are too low. Each run should be worth 3 points. You get a bonus 4 points on a HR. This would increase scoring overnight. Goodbye 4-2 ballgames, hello 28-10 games! So much better.[/sarcasm]

[trwi7]

https://pbs.twimg.com/tweet_video/CFY8bduUIAArdRq.mp4

[Patrick425]

I was browsing through the Brewer franchise history page on Baseball-reference and noticed that in 1977 and 1978 the Brewers used a total of 13 pitchers (starters and relievers) in each of those years. 13!! Man, I miss those days.

[ELCABALLO45]

Prince Fielder is having a monster season so far. Happy for him.

[dlk9s]

But, but, he's too fat!