MLB 2019

[beantownbubba]

So, my first visit to the ballpark formerly known as skydome. A couple of oddities.

At the box office I made a big deal about wanting to sit in the shade. The sales guy pulled out a map and showed me what my choices were, then made another suggestion and we discussed it an I made my choice. Walked up the ramp to the seats and saw...that the roof was closed. Huh? U think he might have mentioned that? Saved me money, though. There were plenty of better seats in what would have been the sunny areas and I probably would have chosen one if I knew about the roof.

Game started at 3:10. I had to leave no later than 5:15 for another event. I figured I'd see as much as I could see in 2 hours and that would be fine. The game was Jays v. O's so not exactly a scintillating matchup and I was there more to see "a baseball game" and the stadium. As it turns out, when I left the game was in the top of the 9th. What a pleasure! Lord, we were definitely not in Boston, home of the 3+ hour game unless it's against the Yanks when it's 4+. No reason a 9 inning baseball game needs to take more than 2:10 to 2:20.

[oilpiers]

P.S. As of today, the leadoff hitter in MLB with the highest on base percentage, at .415, and the highest OPS, at 1.030, is Tatis. Who is not on the all star team, simply due to an injury, and a clear SD prejudice by MLB.

It's ok. 1.030 will attract a lot of attention from the right people. And a lot of money from people who have it.

He ain't goin nowhere. They have already poured the foundation for his statue next to Tony. He and Manny are the anchor of the left side. Appear to be best friends. Padres would be idiots not to open the vault for him, when necessary.

[oilpiers]

Renfroe. 27 HR's. Tied for 4th in MLB. Anyone else think he is being ignored by MLB? More home runs than Trout.

[Zip City]

I don't know what "ignored by MLB" means

[oilpiers]

I don't know what "ignored by MLB" means

When you have 2 hitters that have more home runs than 5 participants in the HR derby, I would say that is being ignored.

[Zip City]

I don't know what "ignored by MLB" means

When you have 2 hitters that have more home runs than 5 participants in the HR derby, I would say that is being ignored.

I feel like that happens every year, though. The HR Derby participants aren't just the top 4 HR guys from each league

EDIT: The players vote on who they want to see in the derby

https://www.mlb.com/news/players-vote-o ... c239569720

[oilpiers]

Why is Vlad Jr. there? Look at his numbers. Whether or not the players chose him, he does not belong there. Plus, before Yelich dropped out there were 5 NL hitters out of 8.

[chuckrh]

So, my first visit to the ballpark formerly known as skydome. A couple of oddities.

At the box office I made a big deal about wanting to sit in the shade. The sales guy pulled out a map and showed me what my choices were, then made another suggestion and we discussed it an I made my choice. Walked up the ramp to the seats and saw...that the roof was closed. Huh? U think he might have mentioned that? Saved me money, though. There were plenty of better seats in what would have been the sunny areas and I probably would have chosen one if I knew about the roof.

Game started at 3:10. I had to leave no later than 5:15 for another event. I figured I'd see as much as I could see in 2 hours and that would be fine. The game was Jays v. O's so not exactly a scintillating matchup and I was there more to see "a baseball game" and the stadium. As it turns out, when I left the game was in the top of the 9th. What a pleasure! Lord, we were definitely not in Boston, home of the 3+ hour game unless it's against the Yanks when it's 4+. No reason a 9 inning baseball game needs to take more than 2:10 to 2:20.

Glad you enjoyed yourself, Bubba. I agree about game length. Its all the stupid extra stuff that becomes "tradition" that has very little to do with the game, if anything. How do you feel about the "opener" concept? I'm really hating it. Mariners are using it half the starting rotation (they dont do it with the Japanese pitcher every start). I wish they would just leave baseball alone. as with much else, its all about the benjamins. they sell more fenway franks & beer during a 3 hour + game.

[Bill in CT]

I went to the Red Sox-Blue Jays game in Toronto on Tuesday. It ended up 10-6 in Boston’s favor so likely went at least 3 hours but I had a great time. It was “loonie dog” night which meant that a hot dog cost one Canadian dollar all night. I was pleasantly surprised that they chose a Red Sox game for the July event (they do one such game per month) because Red Sox fans travel well.
MLB games last longer now than in “the old days” mainly due to starting pitchers not going as long in games and the increased importance of specialized bullpens.
I am puzzled by the complaints wrt the length of MLB games as I never hear similar complaints about the NFL (3+hours) or college football (3.5 hours minimum).

[cortez the killer]

I went to the Red Sox-Blue Jays game in Toronto on Tuesday. It ended up 10-6 in Boston’s favor so likely went at least 3 hours but I had a great time. It was “loonie dog” night which meant that a hot dog cost one Canadian dollar all night. I was pleasantly surprised that they chose a Red Sox game for the July event (they do one such game per month) because Red Sox fans travel well.
MLB games last longer now than in “the old days” mainly due to starting pitchers not going as long in games and the increased importance of specialized bullpens.
I am puzzled by the complaints wrt the length of MLB games as I never hear similar complaints about the NFL (3+hours) or college football (3.5 hours minimum).

MLB = 162-game season + multiple "Best of 5/7-game" playoff series
NFL = 16-game season + sudden death playoff format
College Football = 12-game season + Possible Conference Championship --> Final Four sudden death playoff format or 1-game Bowl

Plus, Football > Baseball.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

Football fans will lap up whatever they are offered and beg for seconds

[Bill in CT]

Football might be better than baseball for a TV viewer (debatable though) but baseball is definitely better in person.

[Bill in CT]

Football fans will lap up whatever they are offered and beg for seconds

I think you’re right about this. Though I think college games drag on and on when I watch on TV and I don’t feel that way about NFL games.

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

You Cub fans are amazing.

[beantownbubba]

I went to the Red Sox-Blue Jays game in Toronto on Tuesday. It ended up 10-6 in Boston’s favor so likely went at least 3 hours but I had a great time. It was “loonie dog” night which meant that a hot dog cost one Canadian dollar all night. I was pleasantly surprised that they chose a Red Sox game for the July event (they do one such game per month) because Red Sox fans travel well.
MLB games last longer now than in “the old days” mainly due to starting pitchers not going as long in games and the increased importance of specialized bullpens.
I am puzzled by the complaints wrt the length of MLB games as I never hear similar complaints about the NFL (3+hours) or college football (3.5 hours minimum).

I don't watch enough college football to say much about it. But pro football? Too long for sure. It wasn't that long ago when broadcasters could confidently pencil the NFL into a three hour slot and rarely have issues. Now the slot is 3:15 or 3:20 and games still often run over. Ick.

There are a number of reasons games are longer and specialized bullpens are only one small part. In fact when it comes to closers and now even "set up guys" the conventional wisdom is to bring them in for full innings only, which actually cuts down on the pitching changes. Of course a 10-6 game is likely to be longer than a 2-1 game (though even that can vary) but we're talking averages here.

The fact that the Jays ran a promotion w/ the Sox in town probably reflects 2 things: It was a wkday series which cuts down on the "travel well" aspect and the team is having a lot of trouble drawing fans.

Speaking of specialized bullpens,

How do you feel about the "opener" concept? I'm really hating it. Mariners are using it half the starting rotation (they dont do it with the Japanese pitcher every start).

I don't have a definitive opinion yet. At first I liked it because it was creative/clever and meshed w/ some of my own thoughts about how some practices are accepted w/out too much thought and not just in baseball. OTOH, I think too much specialization is a problem in a number of sports, of which baseball is one, so that's one strike against. I also think the idea of "starting pitchers" matters to the way the game looks & feels so that raises other concerns. Not so much about the literal description "starter" but to the extent that the "opener" is one more insult to the idea that pitchers regularly going 7+ innings is a good thing. I fully admit that the whole starting pitching thing may boil down to tradition as opposed to compelling strategy so I'm not willing to fully commit to it, but I'm also not willing to fully abandon it either. Very much on the fence.

[Zip City]

Football games will never get shorter, because the league will never give up ad revenue, and they take commercial breaks as often as possible.

- Team A scores
--Commercial
- Team A kicks off, Team B returns kick
--Commercial
- Team B calls a time out
--Commercial

etc.

I really wish they would abolish the 2 minute warning in the NFL. It's just a rule designed for another commercial break

[whatwouldcooleydo?]

How Concrete And Steel Built Baseball

speaking of ballparks

[Bill in CT]

One cool thing about the game in Toronto was the family who had driven from Saskatchewan to Ontario to visit relatives and see games in 5 different MLB parks. I caught four of the parks on their trip: Detroit, Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati. Not sure of the other one.

[beantownbubba]

One cool thing about the game in Toronto was the family who had driven from Saskatchewan to Ontario to visit relatives and see games in 5 different MLB parks. I caught four of the parks on their trip: Detroit, Toronto, Pittsburgh, and Cincinnati. Not sure of the other one.

Cleveland seems most likely with the other possibilities being Minny, Milwaukee and the 2 Chicago parks. Cool trip.

[Tequila Cowboy]

I wish I was into the HR derby, but I really am not. I did watch last year mostly because I was out of town with nothing else to do and the whole "Harper's last hurrah in Washington" thing was cool, especially since he shared it with his dad, but beyond that it's just not that fun to watch. I did watch a little bit of the Future's Game yesterday which is a lot of fun, seeing guys who I've mostly just followed by their numbers (I've watched YouTube video of most of the top 20-30 overall prospects but that's about it), but when it comes right down to it the ASB is really just a chance to take the week off of baseball and the inherent stress that comes with it.

[Zip City]

I would say that Guerrero Jr. belongs in the derby

[oilpiers]

I would say that Guerrero Jr. belongs in the derby

Monday evening quarterbacking? If batting practice with a juiced ball is a qualification, then yeah. Certainly not based on game performance, though.

[Zip City]

I would say that Guerrero Jr. belongs in the derby

Monday evening quarterbacking? If batting practice with a juiced ball is a qualification, then yeah. Certainly not based on game performance, though.

Isn’t that what the derby is?

[oilpiers]

I would say that Guerrero Jr. belongs in the derby

Monday evening quarterbacking? If batting practice with a juiced ball is a qualification, then yeah. Certainly not based on game performance, though.

Isn’t that what the derby is?

Obviously. But what are the qualifications? Season performance, or batting practice performance? Vlad Jr. is TIED for # 182 in MLB home runs. Think about that.

[Tequila Cowboy]

Obviously. But what are the qualifications? Season performance, or batting practice performance? Vlad Jr. is TIED for # 182 in MLB home runs. Think about that.

I think the only qualifications for the HR Derby are who will give the fans the best show. This is a competition that most years struggles to get enough players in the first place. The honor is in playing in the game not the Derby, and that is of course a whole other can of worms.

[beantownbubba]

When I think of the home run derby, I inevitably and unavoidably think of Josh Hamilton and that story is just too sad for words. Even given the inherent silliness and staginess of the derby, his performance that year was awe-inspiring and provided a hint of the talent that had been squandered by his addictions and the talent that remained, for which many would have given up all they owned. He was out of baseball, what? either the next winter, or the year after that.

[oilpiers]

Obviously. But what are the qualifications? Season performance, or batting practice performance? Vlad Jr. is TIED for # 182 in MLB home runs. Think about that.

I think the only qualifications for the HR Derby are who will give the fans the best show. This is a competition that most years struggles to get enough players in the first place. The honor is in playing in the game not the Derby, and that is of course a whole other can of worms.

Well, I won't argue with that, I was just holding my ground for a comment I made pre derby. I was very impressed by Vlad. But I never have seen his BP, so I went on his actual stats. I know of at least 2 players with at least 3 times his homers that wanted to do the derby real bad. Never a mention of either in the whole broadcast. MLB took a gamble on the Vlad name, and won.

[oilpiers]

As gimmicky as it is, I dig the players talking to the announcers during at bats, or when in the field. Bellinger and Yelich can even talk to each other. Freeman talked all through his at bat. Please never use this outside of the All Star Game.

[bovine knievel]

As gimmicky as it is, I dig the players talking to the announcers during at bats, or when in the field. Bellinger and Yelich can even talk to each other. Freeman talked all through his at bat. Please never use this outside of the All Star Game.

I agree. It’s cool for the All-Star game but let’s leave it at that.

[beantownbubba]

As gimmicky as it is, I dig the players talking to the announcers during at bats, or when in the field. Bellinger and Yelich can even talk to each other. Freeman talked all through his at bat. Please never use this outside of the All Star Game.

I thought it was a new low and highly ironic following as it does immediately on the "this time it counts" era. I convinced myself that it's just the all star game so I didn't have a fit about it, but I wouldn't have thought that's the message MLB wants to send.

I will say that almost all the players (wasn't paying enough attention to be definitive) confirmed the general sense that baseball players are pretty good guys and generally pretty funny. Lindor was a pleasure to listen to.