Major League Baseball "2006 Season" Talkback (Part 1)

[Duke]

http://library.toonzone.net/talkbacks/sports.jpghttp://library.toonzone.net/talkbacks/mlb.jpg
It's that time again, as 32 teams gather in order to claim victory in October's World Series. After the World Baseball Classic, will these guys be in their top playing forms? Can somebody other than the Red Sox challenge the Yankees for control for the A.L. East? Will the Cubs blow it this year, again? Will the competitive play overpower all the steroid crap? Let's find out! PLAY BALL!

Below is the schedule for all the MLB teams, as provided by MLB.com (http://www.mlb.com), ordered by how the teams placed in the standings last year.

AL East
- Boston Red Sox (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=bos) (Previous Record: 95-67)
- New York Yankees (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=nyy) (Previous Record: 96-67)
- Toronto Blue Jays (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=tor) (Previous Record: 80-82)
- Baltimore Orioles (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=bal) (Previous Record: 74-88)
- Tampa Bay Devil Rays (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=tb) (Previous Record: 67-95)

AL Central
- Chicago White Sox (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=cws) (Previous Record: 99-63)
- Cleveland Indians (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=cle) (Previous Record: 93-69)
- Minnesota Twins (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=min) (Previous Record: 83-79)
- Detroit Tigers (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=det) (Previous Record: 71-91)
- Kansas City Royals (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=kc) (Previous Record: 56-106)

AL West
- Los Angeles Angels of Anahiem (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=ana) (Previous Record: 95-67)
- Oakland Atheltics (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=oak) (Previous Record: 88-74)
- Texas Rangers (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=tex) (Previous Record: 79-83)
- Seattle Mariners (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=sea) (Previous Record: 69-93)

NL East
- Atlanta Braves (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=atl) (Previous Record: 90-72)
- Philadelphia Phillies (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=phi) (Previous Record: 88-74)
- Florida Marlins (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=fla) (Previous Record: 83-79)
- New York Mets (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=nym) (Previous Record: 83-79)
- Washington Nationals (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=was) (Previous Record: 81-81)

NL Central
- St. Louis Cardinals (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=stl) (Previous Record: 100-62)
- Houston Astros (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=hou) (Previous Record: 89-73)
- Milwaukee Brewers (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=mil) (Previous Record: 81-81)
- Chicago Cubs (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=chc) (Previous Record: 79-83)
- Cincinatti Reds (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=cin) (Previous Record: 73-89)
- Pittsburgh Pirates (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=pit) (Previous Record: 67-95)

NL West
- San Diego Padres (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=sd) (Previous Record: 82-80)
- Arizona Diamondbacks (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=ari) (Previous Record: 77-85)
- San Francisco Giants (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=sf) (Previous Record: 75-87)
- Los Angeles Dodgers (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=la) (Previous Record: 71-91)
- Colorado Rockies (http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/schedule/index.jsp?c_id=col) (Previous Record: 67-95)

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers to the series in 2006.

You heard it here first.

[email2003]

NO WAY, Astros go back again to win it for Houston!

[Duke]

Way to open the season, with a multi-hour rain delay. Did they cancel it officially yet?

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Back underway.

Why they bothered after a 3 hour rain delay is beyond me.

[Condiment King]

Both teams are basically forced to start over, particularly pitching-wise, after a three hour rain delay, and the White Sox pull out three runs in a downpour. Sloppy way to begin a season.

[Captain Harlock]

White Sox are basically undefeated at this point. http://zimed.net/forums/html/emoticons/guitar.gif

[silverwings]

I'm not sure if I want to vote optimistically or realistically in the poll...

And Angelos fails, yet again. Why he couldn't go up 1 mil a year to sign Mora I have no idea. :shrug:

[Duke]

And Angelos fails, yet again. Why he couldn't go up 1 mil a year to sign Mora I have no idea. :shrug:
Did he really let Mora go? I haven't heard any news reports to the contrary.

[silverwings]

Did he really let Mora go? I haven't heard any news reports to the contrary.

No, he didn't let him go

Apparently Mora offered 3/30 while the club offered 3/24. Negotations were stalling, and since Mora wanted to sign his new contract by today (this is his last year), he lowered to 3/27, which is the halfway point.

Angelos didn't respond, aka won't budge. Again. Mora is too good to let go.

On game news, though, we tied it up at the bottom of the second. Yay to watching games on Gamechannel! :anime:

[Duke]

On game news, though, we tied it up at the bottom of the second. Yay to watching games on Gamechannel! :anime: Too bad Matos struck out with men on 1st & 2nd. Ah well, plenty of time to score more runs.

In other news, the Phillies and Nats are getting beat, so yay to me!

[sag_2002]

Well, the Cubs are on their recent Opening Day run, as they lead the Reds 12-5.

Jeremy Rollins is 0-2 as he attempts to extend his hit streak (carried over from the end of last season), and the Cardinals have roared ahead 10-0.

And, the Braves have begun their quest for #15 against the Dodgers. Already 4-0 ATL.

[silverwings]

Too bad Matos struck out with men on 1st & 2nd. Ah well, plenty of time to score more runs.

Haha, he made that up. HR! And back to back with Mora. C'mon Angelos, please just suck it up and sign him at 3/27!

6-4 O's. :D

[Punisher]

Too bad Matos struck out with men on 1st & 2nd. Ah well, plenty of time to score more runs.

In other news, the Phillies and Nats are getting beat, so yay to me!Matos made up for it. This is great, I missed watching games on gameday. Doing it right now actually.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Skipping Japanese for the first time ever so I can follow the Tigers game.

Tied up right now, come on boys, pull ahead.

[silverwings]

O's win 9-6! :D

Lopez didn't look so good today, but a win's a win. Here's hoping he can get back into his groove.

Mora did extremely well, which is what he should continue to do if he wants Angelos to budge. Or something. :sweat:

Also, our so-called weak bullpen did amazing! They didn't give up a single run.

[BCVM22]

Hey Chicago, whaddaya say, the Cubs already won today.

Great to see Matt Murton get off to a good start. Not so great to see Zambrano so off his game. A win's a win, though. Let the games begin.

[Duke]

Wow. How pathetic is your pitching when you use your entire bullpen on Opening Day? The Braves such have fallen pitching-wise.

[FireStarterLE]

hey McDowell how's about we get the pitching problems over early so later in the season all we have to worry about is baseball instead.

A win is a win i guess, no matter how you get it

I'm sure John will pitch well enough tomorrow to give these guys some rest


How pathetic is your pitching when you use your entire bullpen on Opening Day? Not all of them .... James hasnt been used. Plus it's not that bad, i mean we get to see who will be able to pitch at what point in the game (Boyer = not in a close game, Cormier = not when you're ahead by 1-2 runs)

*and i still dont like to have a guy as unreliable as Reitsma is as the closer

[New Noise]

The Red Sox won their game against the Rangers by the score of 7-3. Schilling pitched incredible and Coco Crisp had some amazing defensive plays in Centerfield. Oh, and I have to mention Ortiz's homerun and 3 RBI's. I'm very impressed, you guys better look out for the Red Sox this year!

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers win.

Rogers was great in his first game as a Tiger, one earned run. Zumaya makes his big league debut in 2 innings of relief, and did great. Fernando Rodney closes out.

And how about Chris Shelton, 3-4 with 2 homeruns. He's off to a great start, and the guy can mash.

One negative sign: 3-4-5 of Pudge, Maggs, and DMeat Hook get the o-fer. I immagine they'll heat up, its just stuff not falling in.

[FireStarterLE]

if TB and the Os can play the rest of their games with the kind on output they had today, the AL East will be pretty competitive instead of a two team race.

and tomorrow we'll see how the Jays respond

[silverwings]

if TB and the Os can play the rest of their games with the kind on output they had today, the AL East will be pretty competitive instead of a two team race.

and tomorrow we'll see how the Jays respond

Yeah, that would be great. Let's give the Red Sox and Yankees a run for their money.

I really don't care what place the O's come in this year. I'm more concerned about how many games back they end up. It looks like it's going to be a tight division this year, so you could still end up in fourth and only be 4-6 games back.

[Condiment King]

Nationals/Mets: Like most Mets fans, I'll go with the philosophy that "a win's a win", and this is ultimately what I desire the most from a Mets game. However, this was far from the fantastic opener that many Mets fans are spinning this into. Comparing it to the Mets/Reds 2005 Opening Day, yes, its very favorable, but that opening day was pathetic. That entire opening week was pathetic. If you are seriously talking about playoffs, then you have to ask more of your team than just narrowly escaping with a win against the Washington Nationals. It was a controversial win at that with the Reyes relay throw to Lo Duca that's been played over and over again all day with Paul Lo Duca visibly losing control of the ball. I do not understand how the usually argumentative Nationals manager Frank Robinson did not argue this call. Throw in Alfonso Soriano's defensive incompetence, and Jose Vidro trying to stretch a single into a double in the 9th. The Mets got plenty of breaks to pull away with this 3-2 win. Plenty of breaks that won't always be there.

Offensively, the Mets were far from optimum. The money part of the lineup in Carlos Beltran and Carlos Delgado went 0-7. Leadoff hitter Jose Reyes went 0-5. On the other side of the coin, thanks to Soriano, Xavier Nady went 4-4, while the great David Wright jacked one into the stands. Nady is incredibly streaky. I don't expect this to last. Also, the X-Factor nickname is already annoying, though I'll probably end up using it at some point. Pitching-wise, Tom Glavine threw above himself for six innings, getting out of jams and only surrendering a run. The highly-touted Aaron Heilman struggled in two innings of relief giving up one unearned run on five hits. That's not good. Billy Wagner was as close as the Mets were to being dominate today, and even he threw a pitch to Jose Vidro that was smacked into the outfield. 1-0 is encouraging, but I'm not going to overdo it by any means.

As for the rest of today's great day of baseball:

Red Sox/Rangers: Ace Curt Schilling proved that he's "still got it" so to speak with 7 IP and 2 ER. Jonathan Papelbon was great, and Keith Foulke struggled with a generous lead. Coco Crisp had a fine Red Sox debut, putting to bed some of the defensive concerns, and Big Papi was Big Papi. Very encouraging opening day for any Boston fan. Infield remains a question mark to me, though, as does Keith Foulke, of course.

Pirates/Brewers: The best game of the day with a memorable finish as Jeff Cirillo singled home two runs to take a 3-2 lead while Carlos Lee's blast extended it to 5-2. Derrick Turnbow came in and looked very impressive, bringing the heat in his first save of the year. He deserves the new three-year contract.

Cardinals/Phillies: We knew that the Phillies rotation was bad, but is it this bad that Jon Leiber absolutely implodes on opening day? Albert Pujols is still fantastic, blasting two homers off the Phillies ace. Jimmy Rollins barely pushes forward the hitting streak in his last at-bat versus a rookie reliever in the 8th. This makes me very doubtful about Rollins making a serious run at DiMaggio's record.

Diamondbacks/Rockies: The box score of this game makes it look much more interesting than it actually was. Both teams looked awful, even the Rockies in victory. The fact that the Diamondbacks brought in aging Terry Mulholland to hold a 2-1 lead in the 8th is a testament to the amount of talent on these teams. The fact that Mike DeJean was a primary reliever for the Rockies, entrusted to keep the game tied in extra innings, is a testament to the amount of talent on these teams. Regardless, this is your first extra innings game of the year, and the Diamondbacks pull defeat from the jaws of victory.

Braves/Dodgers: The Braves run through much of their bullpen on opening day after opening day starter Tim Hudson falters and leaves the game too early for the Braves bullpen. The Braves merely outslugged the Dodgers and struggled at that. How will the defending NL East champions do against a pitcher that's above the caliber of Derek Lowe? Of course, Chris Reitsma is a shaky closer, but what options do you have when Braves GM John Schuherolz has already went on record as saying the closer would come from the organization? This is a bullpen with John Thomson for crying out loud. I'm not condemning Atlanta after game 1. I'm just saying that there are major problems that need to be fixed.

Marlins/Astros: Another great game. I had no regret watching this game while only occasionally glancing at Giants/Padres. An excellent pitcher's duel between Dontrelle Willis and Roy Oswalt, though mostly on Oswalt's end. Oswalt pitches eight innings, gives up no runs, and hands the 1-0 lead straight to Brad Lidge. Dontrelle left rather early, after five innings and over 100 pitches. Marlins rookie shortstop Hanley Ramirez looked bad defensively with two (really three) errors, showing signs of his former teammate Edgar Renteria. The Marlins rookie bats struggled, as to be expected. Milwaukee's Prince Fielder also had a rough first day, going 0-4 with 4 Ks.

Giants/Padres: ESPN's commentary goes something like "steroids steroids steroids Bonds Bonds steroids steroids steroids". Pedro Gomez continues to be so annoying, merely because his only job is to report this irrelevent news of Bonds and the steroids scandal. Bonds literally is the cancer of baseball at this point, whether he wants to be or not. This story took over baseball in a small way this weekend, and most definitely this game. In the shadow of all that, Jake Peavy pitched superbly, and Mike Piazza hit a homer in his first at-bat as a Padre. The Giants looked badly, further showing that their NL Championship predictions are hopefully unfounded.

[RedNinja84]

My Reds lost today, due to bad defense and errors. I can only hope it gets better from here.

[Duke]

Good to see the A's giving their hometown fans a good show. :yawn:

[FireStarterLE]

it's always nice to see teams helping the yankees with their homeruns :shrug:

*and why DOES it always seem when they hit homeruns its usually in pairs?

13-1 ..... well at least the As pitchers have nothing on our guy Boyer ... Mr. 81.00 ERA :sweat:

[email2003]

Alright Astros!

That's the way to win on the road back to the World Series!

[Nelson]

LET'S GO METS, LET'S GO METS.....

Forget about that other team in the bronx...

[silverwings]

Read the sports illustrated pre-season guide. Had the O's 25/30 and in last place.

Now watching on game channel... the O's have been playing small ball WELL, heck we have 8 runs. Lots of doubles. And Bedard has held Tampa to 2 runs so far.

Maybe it's the early April rush... but SWEET. :anime:

[Duke]

Don't forget that the O's held first place in the AL East until July...

EDIT: I gotta say, the new ESPN GameCast is REALLY nice. I especially love the extra animations.

Gahd damn though, 15-3, with a homer by Gibbons and another by Mora. We're schlocking the Devs.

[silverwings]

Don't forget that the O's held first place in the AL East until July...

EDIT: I gotta say, the new ESPN GameCast is REALLY nice. I especially love the extra animations.

Gahd damn though, 15-3, with a homer by Gibbons and another by Mora. We're schlocking the Devs.

It was June, don't make it worse. :p

15-3! At least we got 3 runs from homers. And Markasis finally hit a ball - for an out, but at least he didn't draw a walk for the 3rd time. :p

[Duke]

Wow. Brower's really sucking tonight. An 11-pitch walk, a single, and then a wild pitch with nobody out. At least he finally got an out. Too bad he allowed a run to come home.

[silverwings]

Wow. Brower's really sucking tonight. An 11-pitch walk, a single, and then a wild pitch with nobody out. At least he finally got an out. Too bad he allowed a run to come home.

Yeah, why was Bedard taken out? It's the one thing gamechannel doesn't tell me. :sweat: And for that matter, why is Gibbons out? :confused:

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Wow, the Tigers crush the Royals 14-3, with amazing hitting led by Pudge's 5-5 for with 3 doubles and a homer. Bonderman pitched a great game as well.

2-0, sitting alone atop the AL Central. Now to take on the Rangers.

[purplehairedwonder]

So the Braves win their first series by the skin of their teeth... and Chipper is already hurting. We really need him to be healthy. With as many runs scored in this series, we know the Braves have the bats, it's just the pitching that needs the work. The biggest concern going into the season was the bullpen - which struggled - but not as much the starting pitching, which has also struggled. It looks like John Thomson may be coming back into the rotation after Ramirez hurt himself running.

Off to San Francisco next...

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers win again!

10 runs behind multi-homer games from Shelton(4 for the year now) and Maggs, and Inge and Thames both get their second while Monroe gets his first.

Solid pitching, too.

3-0, they just keep on rolling.

[FireStarterLE]

So the Braves win their first series by the skin of their teeth... and Chipper is already hurting. We really need him to be healthy. With as many runs scored in this series, we know the Braves have the bats, it's just the pitching that needs the work. The biggest concern going into the season was the bullpen - which struggled - but not as much the starting pitching, which has also struggled. It looks like John Thomson may be coming back into the rotation after Ramirez hurt himself running.

Off to San Francisco next...

well now the pen is the best pitching we have right now ..... 4 games .... no starter has made it past the 5th inning yet. And Sosa continued the trend ... giving up 6!!!! in one inning. Come on Kyle, give us some innings and get us (as well as the starting pitching) a win

[Duke]

Figures that after scoring 25 runs in two games we lay a big, fat, goose egg in the final game. Eh, at least we won the series.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Put another up for the Tigers. Maroth and the bullpen hold the Rangers to two runs, while Shelton and the Tigers score 5 behind Shelton's 5th(!:eek: ) homer of the season. Thames looks solid with 3 hits as well, starting in place of Dmitri Young for some unknown reason that pays off.

Detroit is unstoppable.

[Duke]

Crap. Boston pounded Cabrera and we lost 14-8. Here's hoping we can win the next 2 games (the next one is against Curt Schilling. Yea, we're going under .500).

[Anarky]

I like Seattle's position players but I'm concerned about the rotation & bullpen.

I have no concerns about the Yankees.
I'm really interested to see if the TB Devil Rays will break even this season.

BTW, Not to be a doomsayer but isn't the Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring at the end of this season? If it is, expect to hear a lot of contraction/relocation talkthis summer.

The Marlins are still trying to secure a deal w/ S FL for a baseball-only venue. A group in Charlotte had serious discussions w/ Marlins ownership but the mayor of the Queen City squashed that. Vegas is still an option as is Portland (who nearly acquired the Expos). I'd say Vegas would be the lead candidate. But ultimately, I believe FL will be sans MLB in the near future. The Rays will probably move to Portland within the next 10 yrs.

[silverwings]

Crap. Boston pounded Cabrera and we lost 14-8. Here's hoping we can win the next 2 games (the next one is against Curt Schilling. Yea, we're going under .500).

Seems like the bad Cabrera came out then. Bah.

Though it's Chen vs Schilling. Chen, iirc, was one of our better pitchers last year..

I really think the WBC was not a good thing for our starting pitching. We're probably not going to see much improvement due to Lee until late April as it is.:(

[BCVM22]

BTW, Not to be a doomsayer but isn't the Collective Bargaining Agreement expiring at the end of this season? If it is, expect to hear a lot of contraction/relocation talkthis summer.

The Marlins are still trying to secure a deal w/ S FL for a baseball-only venue. A group in Charlotte had serious discussions w/ Marlins ownership but the mayor of the Queen City squashed that. Vegas is still an option as is Portland (who nearly acquired the Expos). I'd say Vegas would be the lead candidate. But ultimately, I believe FL will be sans MLB in the near future. The Rays will probably move to Portland within the next 10 yrs.

That's correct; the CBA does expire at the end of this year. MLB is very squeamish about putting a major league team in Vegas due to gambling concerns. If the Marlins do eventually move, I think San Antonio's the destination. The city's been trying to attract another professional sports team for years, and Rangers owner Tom Hicks has said he wouldn't oppose a third Texas MLB team. Reportedly Marlins officials met with city officials from SA during the Marlins' series in Houston.
-----
Something of a mixed bag for the Cubs today. Good that Zambrano calmed down since his last start, but not so good are the unearned runs scored on errors by Cedeno and Lee. I'm impressed that Barrett was able to come off the bench and take one out to tie the game with the wind blowing in. As for D. Lee, it's beyond impressive, now you almost expect him to do great things. Great job by the bullpen to keep the Cardinals lineup silent for the last 3 innings on the way to a victory. Not looking like a contender just yet, but playing solid nonetheless.

[Condiment King]

Today's 1:00 game vs the Florida Marlins was postponed due to rain, which allowed me to watch last night's game through the glory of MLB.TV since I was out. This delay is probably good for the Mets since today's game was slated to be a laugher. Yes, the uneven matchup of Dontrelle Willis vs Tom Glavine is still set to happen tomorrow, but will Chris Woodward, Victor Diaz, and Ramon Castro get starts still? With this lineup card and this matchup, it seriously looked like Willie was just conceding this one. The game has been scheduled to be made up on July 8th in Florida.

First, Thursday's finale against the Washington Nationals was an ugly slugfest as the Mets outslugged the Nationals 10-5. Despite Pedro Martinez's bad first start and control problems, the Mets' bats overcame this handicap, which is actually good news for the future. However, this is still relatively subpar competition, and I'm not buying it in execution until I see it against the likes of St. Louis and Atlanta.

In this game, Pedro Martinez beaned three Nationals batters, including Jose Guillen twice. Filthy Sanchez then drilled Nick Johnson. This is coming after Brian Bannister's three plunkings of Nationals hitters on Wednesday. This was also the second night in a row that Nick Johnson made the Mets' pitchers pay with a three run homer following putting these guys on base. I'm hearing alot of the contrary so I'll clarify: Hitting batters is never good. The spins are getting so bad that a team's highest paid player starting the season batting .143 (http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/team/player.jsp?player_id=136860) is being looked at it in a positive light. I'm sorry, but I don't commend Pedro Martinez's actions, intentional or unintentional. I also don't think that hot head Paul Lo Duca's "aggressive calling" is smart either. Of course, the Washington Nationals dealt with all this in the most polite manner:

Jose Guillen charged the mound, bat in hand. Later, he, more or less, threatened his "former friend" with physical harm if it happened again.
Frank sends a reliever who'd worked the past three nights to hit catcher Paul Lo Duca, who'd been calling the pitches for Pedro. He threw two pitches directly at Lo Duca, since, y'know, he missed the first time.
Nationals manager and known miser Frank Robinson wasted five minutes of our lives that we'll never get back trying to explain to an umpire that the obviously intentional infraction above was unintentional. This was all really an effort to get tossed out of the game.

Regardless, there were positives. Filthy Sanchez looked excellent in two innings of relief. I know it must be annoying, but I love that flamboyant jump of his, leaving the mound. The hitting was also great, even Carlos Beltran got into the act with a home run, his first hit of the season! Then, Beltran refuses the curtain call because his feelings are hurt! I'm sick of hearing of this already.

Another feel good game for a Mets fan was Friday night's 9-3 romp against Jason Vargas and the Florida Marlins. David Wright hit his second home run of the year, and Jose Reyes hit his first. Steve Trachsel's 2006 debut was very similar to Tommy Glavine's: 6 IP 1 ER. Mike Jacobs established himself as a Mets killer, being the only offense for Florida: 1 HR, 3 RBIs. We even got another episode of Jorge Julio craziness as he walked multiple batters and gave up two runs in the eighth. I'm just glad that Rick Peterson is finding out that Jorge Julio sucks now and not later. I just hope he's not as dumb with this as he has been with Victor Zambrano.

The Milwaukee Brewers not only have a perfect record of 5-0, but also consistently put on the most entertaining games of the season thus far. Closer Derrick Turnbow got four saves in the first four games, whereas today's offering ended with a Carlos Lee RBI single, scoring J.J. Hardy from second. They are playing the likes of Pittsburgh and Arizona thus far, but the Brewers are definitely a team to watch, especially if Prince Fielder begins to produce to warrant all the hype, as he hit a homer and two singles today. Speaking of Prince, the Diamondbacks commentary team of Thom Brenneman and Mark Grace, one of the best teams in the majors in my opinion, mentioned that Prince Fielder doesn't even have a relationship with his baseball father Cecil. Every time Prince Fielder is talked about, its usually just "well, he gets all this from Cecil" or "the son of Cecil Fielder!" and nothing more. Cecil, a recovering gambling addict, even got some of Prince's signing bonus to pay his gambling debts.

If I'm not ready to get full on the Milwaukee bandwagon, I sure as hell am not ready for Detroit's. They have played the Royals and the Rangers. Let that sink in for a second.

After one game, everyone was ready to crown the Chicago White Sox the world champions again with their win over the Cleveland Indians. Four straight losses later and everyone's wondering what is happening to this team. They managed to lose to a Royals team anchored by Reggie Sanders and Doug Mientkie today. Royals go for the sweep on Sunday.

Atlanta's starting rotation is better than New York's. Why is it doing so much worse? Tim Hudson conceded eight runs to the San Francisco Giants today for his second straight bad outing. I don't think this rotation has seen a starter pitch six innings yet. This is a rotation that just saw Horacio Ramirez go down with injury. John Thomson looks to come back into the rotation, which further weakens an already awful bullpen. Joey Devine could be called up from AAA Richmond, which would reignite one of my dreams.

Eric Gagne once again goes down with injury, which makes me again question why Yahoo! Fantasy Baseball had Gagne ranked above Derrick Turnbow. Speaking of closers, Boston recently unofficially made the switch from Keith Foulke to Jonathan Papelbon, as the Pap cruised over Texas to get an 11 pitch, 2 strikeout save in the finale of that series. This is smart. If Foulke wants to regain some of his past success, let him do it in middle relief. Why risk ninth inning when you have someone more capable? As for the rotation, other teams have worse, especially if Schilling continues to perform.

Wait, Joey Devine is on my television right now. THE DREAM IS STILL ALIVE.

[Duke]

Crap. Schilling's keeping the O's quiet so far.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

The Tigers improve to 5-0 and get off to their best start since 1985.

Shelton hits two triples and continues to amaze. Verlander goes 7 innings giving up no runs off two hits and strikig out 7.

The Tigers are unstoppable. When do series tickets go on sale?

[FireStarterLE]

Wait, Joey Devine is on my television right now. THE DREAM IS STILL ALIVE.

that was no dream, more like a nightmare ..... definitely would have been if had they actually gotten 8 runs (the number of runs SF had before Devine came into the game).

When will the wheels of fate stop turning and the pitching get it in gear?


The Tigers are unstoppable. When do series tickets go on sale? Still a bit longer wait for World Series tickets i'm afraid. But this is good, i've always like the Tigers, probably because they're always at the bottom but now getting some recognition. I hope this continues

[KefkaFloyd]

If Keith Foulke can be effective like he was today over the whole season, the two headed monster of Foulke/Papelbon backed up by Timlin with Hansen and Manny Delcarmen in the wings (and don't forget Jon Lester) will be extremely good.

I feel giddy.

Why was Foulke effective? The changeup had bite, he was being deceptive, and he was getting swings and misses. I'm not asking for the 2004 Foulke, but if he's effective, then almost all of the high leverage innings in the season will be taken up by the two best relievers we have without anyone wearing down.

Hopefully.

Looks like we'll be having another fun year umpiring. Both the O's and Sox had some serious squeezing going on by both Timmins and Cousins.

[BCVM22]

Michael Barrett, with the bases loaded, says "BITE ME ISRINGHAUSEN HELLO WAVELAND!" and the Cubs sweep the Cardinals out of town. Sean Marshall doesn't get roughed up too badly. Bullpen earns their keep with another stellar job. Great win. Great series.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Damn, back to back losses for Tigers after the 5-0 start. 5-2 is still pretty good though, I'll take that. We can contend in the Central, hopefully they take the next two from Chicago and win the series.

[Duke]

Apparently the O's can't win unless we play Tampa Bay.

Then again, considering our past experiences with Tampa, that's SOME kind of plus.

Leo Mazzone is making an instant impact though. Except for an abberation against Boston, our pitching has been really good so far.

[email2003]

Astros still looking good. 5-2 in the Central Division!

Clemens better come back to this team!!:mad:

[silverwings]

So we can finally beat Tampa Bay. Now we just have to work at beating those 'better' teams. (this is not a diss towards tampa. more like... uh... they aren't in the same league as NY and Bos... yeah.. um... :sweat: )

[BCVM22]

Where the HELL did Bronson Arroyo learn how to hit? :(

[Duke]

So we can finally beat Tampa Bay. Now we just have to work at beating those 'better' teams. (this is not a diss towards tampa. more like... uh... they aren't in the same league as NY and Bos... yeah.. um... :sweat: )
At least we're .500 now. :sweat:

[Punisher]

Well, all we need to do is play Tampa the rest of the season and we'll be above .500 for the first time in eight years!

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Damn, the Tigers had a tough sweep at the hands of the White Sox. I'll take a 5-4 start though, especially because we've been in every game.

Need to go 2-2, or preferably 3-1 against Cleveland now.

[Duke]

Wow. Two come-from-behind wins, both charged up by Melvin Mora, in a row, and tonight's against an actual good team! o.o

O's and Angels combined for 8 homers tonight. Amazing. Luckily, most of the ones we've given up have been solo HRs, and aside from them, our pitchers are doing pretty decently. Helluva lot better than Atlanta, that's for sure. :P

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Alright, the Tigers beat the Indians 5-1 and now the 2 teams are tied for 1st.

Shelton continues to mash, and Brandon Inge has 2 Homeruns.

Kenny Rogers pitched great as well.

Taking two of the remaining three games could put Detroit in a very strong position.

[New Noise]

Where the HELL did Bronson Arroyo learn how to hit? :(

That man's amazing... I wish the Red Sox never gave him up for Wily Mo; he's been terrible.

[Dark Vicious]

Where the HELL did Bronson Arroyo learn how to hit? :(

Hmm.... a pitcher that hits well traded by Boston. I've heard that one before.

[KefkaFloyd]

That man's amazing... I wish the Red Sox never gave him up for Wily Mo; he's been terrible.

Aside from one or two defensive gaffes, Wily Mo is tied with Youkilis for second in actual run production on the Red Sox (Big Papi, of course, is in the lead). He's shown massive improvement in the past few games alone, drawing walks, hitting opposite field balls, and yes, hitting some bombs. The guy is only 24. He's gonna be a stud for years to come. Since Trot was hurt, WMP went 5-11, two doubles, a walk, and a dinger. That's not terrible.

Bronson Arroyo is having the benefit of a new league that hasn't learned to lay off his slop and to stack their lineups with lefties.

Trust me, when Jon Lester starts in July (or, god forbid, Clemens comes back)... you'll say "Bronson Who?"

[KuwabaraTheMan]

A tough loss for the Tigers, who drop to 6-5. Bonderman has a bad outing, but its just one game. He'll regain his form.

With Dmitri Young injured and Ordonez, Polanco, and Pudge all having days off yesterday, it was no surprise that the team struggled in the runs department.

[Duke]

As much as these come-from-behind wins the past few days have been awesome, I'd like to see the Orioles actually score first for once...

But hey! The Atlanta Braves finally got one of their starters to get a Win! Yay for them!

[Dark Vicious]

As much as Arroyo is paying off form the Reds right now, he'll slowly fade off into mediocrity after one or two more starts, meanwhile Wily Mo has 40 HR potential and only needs a little discipline training to achieve that.

Anyways, my Cubs are not doing so hot, we can dominate the good teams (i.e. St. Louis) but our woes against bad teams and rookies continue. Whenever they play against a rookie pitcher, they hit like they've never seen a fastball, slider, and changeup before.

[KefkaFloyd]

Red Sox win the early Patriot's Day start (where I was cutting in and out from the break room to catch innings while making printing plates) behind Lenny DiNardo and Mark Loretta's 2-run walk off dinger.

Go away, Seattle, and hello Tampa Bay Double-As and old friend Casey Fossum on Tuesday.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

With a loss today, the Tigers split with the Indians, and 7-6 after 13 games is decent.

Shelton gets his League Leading 9th Homerun.

[Duke]

Wow. So we rule against the Devil Rays, can't even compete against Boston, and now we've taken 3 of 4 from the Angels. The O's are doing pretty damn good. Too bad Newhan broke his leg. Hope he's not out for long.

OK, in the interest of sparking some kind of dicussion other than "My team won/lost because of this! Yay!/Crap!," here's some topics:

1) You think the Mets will continue their winning ways? Or will Atlanta's starters remember how to pitch effectively in time to give them their 15th straight division title?

2) Is Bonds done?

3) Will Pujos, Shelton, and Thome somehow combine for 400HRs this year?

4) Did the World Baseball Classic screw over pitchers like critics say it did?

5) Is it right for Mark Burhle to be forbidden from sliding on the infield tarp during rainstorms?

6) Will Tampa Bay, the Royals, and/or the Brewers get to or above .500?

7) How long until the Cubs are out of the playoff race?

[Condiment King]

OK, in the interest of sparking some kind of dicussion other than "My team won/lost because of this! Yay!/Crap!," here's some topics
Agree.


1) You think the Mets will continue their winning ways? Or will Atlanta's starters remember how to pitch effectively in time to give them their 15th straight division title?
Well, Jorge Sosa was awful tonight with Kyle Davies and John Smoltz on tap. The Mets' lineup is very formidable so if the Braves' starters weren't effective against the likes of San Francisco and SAN DIEGO's lineups, then its going to be harder with New York.


2) Is Bonds done?
Who cares? I hate Bonds. He's batting .170 something with 1 RBI. We know he took steroids, so he's off them and he has warning track power. Big deal. Why isn't anyone talking about Adrian Beltre's futility? He's a West Coaster, who's doing terribly. Why isn't anyone talking about anything else?


3) Will Pujols, Shelton, and Thome somehow combine for 400HRs this year?
No way in hell. I'm assuming this is sarcastic.


4) Did the World Baseball Classic screw over pitchers like critics say it did?
Eh I don't think so. This is a league where we haven't seen a no hitter since the middle of May 2004. The balls continue to fly out of the park as the game is subtly geared more towards it, parks, strike zones, and the like. The only way that it might have would be to give pitchers a false sense of security against some weaker competition like Hee-Seop Choi or Endy Chavez in a starting lineup.


5) Is it right for Mark Buerhle to be forbidden from sliding on the infield tarp during rainstorms?
In a way. Its really circumstantial. If Buehrle gets injured, he looks like an idiot. If he doesn't, the White Sox management looks mean and unjustly evil. Look at Aaron Boone. He got injured playing freaking basketball. I'd be pissed off if my investment got injured doing something stupid or extra-cirrecular.


6) Will Tampa Bay, the Royals, and/or the Brewers get to or above .500?
Why are you comparing the Devil Rays and Royals with the Brewers? Milwaukee doesn't even go in the same class with these teams. Many prognasticators have Milwaukee doing well this season, and for good reason. They have a formidable lineup, great bullpen, and good rotation. They might be the most balanced team in the National League right now. As far as I'm concerned, the NL Central has looked wide open thus far with the inconsistent play of pretty much everyone. And KefkaFloyd, kidding aside, Tampa Bay has enough talent to not be kidded as the "Double As". I could easily see them as fourth place this year in the AL East. I know that doesn't sound that optimistic but its a step in the right direction.


7) How long until the Cubs are out of the playoff race?
Eh, around the trade deadline. Maybe August. Don't worry.

[FireStarterLE]

1) You think the Mets will continue their winning ways? Or will Atlanta's starters remember how to pitch effectively in time to give them their 15th straight division title?

2) Is Bonds done?

3) Will Pujos, Shelton, and Thome somehow combine for 400HRs this year?

4) Did the World Baseball Classic screw over pitchers like critics say it did?

5) Is it right for Mark Burhle to be forbidden from sliding on the infield tarp during rainstorms?

6) Will Tampa Bay, the Royals, and/or the Brewers get to or above .500?

7) How long until the Cubs are out of the playoff race?

1. Winning ... probably so. Our starters remember how to pitch. It'll be a slow chain of events. Smoltz pitched the first complete game for the NL on Sat, Hudson will probably be next it getting it together, Thompson afterwards then Davies and if Sosa does not he will be moved out of the starting rotation
2. Hard one to call but, knowing him, probably not
3. Shelton and Thome will probably drop off and end with maybe 30-35 each. Pujols will probably win MVP again
4. Some yes others no. Our pitcher Villarreal pitched for Mexico and he's 4-0
5. NO WAY, thats the only fun part about delays :-)
6. Tampa will be close, Milwaukee probably so, KC not likely
7. All Star game and they're gone

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Wow. So we rule against the Devil Rays, can't even compete against Boston, and now we've taken 3 of 4 from the Angels. The O's are doing pretty damn good. Too bad Newhan broke his leg. Hope he's not out for long.

OK, in the interest of sparking some kind of dicussion other than "My team won/lost because of this! Yay!/Crap!," here's some topics:

1) You think the Mets will continue their winning ways? Or will Atlanta's starters remember how to pitch effectively in time to give them their 15th straight division title?
I'd never bet against the Braves, but I think the Mets are Amazin'.:anime: *gets shot by pun police*

That division will be very competitive.


2) Is Bonds done?
Yeah, but I think people could have expected that.


3) Will Pujos, Shelton, and Thome somehow combine for 400HRs this year?
I think all 3 can reach 40 HR.

Hafner will definitely be up there as well.


4) Did the World Baseball Classic screw over pitchers like critics say it did?
Tough to say, but I doubt it.


5) Is it right for Mark Burhle to be forbidden from sliding on the infield tarp during rainstorms?
Dumb as hell.



6) Will Tampa Bay, the Royals, and/or the Brewers get to or above .500?
Brewers will.

D-Rays will finish in 4th behind Boston, New York, and Toronto. Royals will be in the cellar with 60 wins.


7) How long until the Cubs are out of the playoff race?
August.

[BCVM22]

1) You think the Mets will continue their winning ways? Or will Atlanta's starters remember how to pitch effectively in time to give them their 15th straight division title?
2) Is Bonds done?
3) Will Pujos, Shelton, and Thome somehow combine for 400HRs this year?
4) Did the World Baseball Classic screw over pitchers like critics say it did?
5) Is it right for Mark Burhle to be forbidden from sliding on the infield tarp during rainstorms?
6) Will Tampa Bay, the Royals, and/or the Brewers get to or above .500?
7) How long until the Cubs are out of the playoff race?

1. The Mets don't break a decade-and-a-half streak by dropping money at every position they can.
2. 20-ish HRs, 80-ish RBIs for 2006
3. That would require all 3 to hit 133 HRs each. They will combine for a sizeable yet more reasonable sum, though.
4. No.
5. No. Let Buehrle have his fun outside of the games besides whine about the other team stealing signs. Kenny Williams needs a hobby.
6. Tampa maybe, KC no, Brewers yes.
7. November. :D

[email2003]

9-4 and #1 in the Central Division for now are the Astros!!

[New Noise]

The Red Sox won dramatically yesterday. Guess who was at the game? Me! I had front-row seats! When Loretta hit the walk-off homerun to win the game, I went crazy!

[Punisher]

D-Rays will finish in 4th behind Boston, New York, and Toronto. Royals will be in the cellar with 60 wins.
Haha, I love how since Toronto's front office got some courage and picked up a career .500 pitcher how everyone is picking them to go a long way. New York is only getting older. Nobody ever gives the O's respect but I seriously think we could be a contender for a wild card spot this year. Tampa Bay could finish fourth, but I'll gurantee it won't be the Orioles behind them.

And as for the Cubbies, they'll fall apart around the end of July.

[Duke]

...Why in the world would you throw toothpaste at Bonds, especially for something as stupid as not signing an autograph 15 years ago?

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Haha, I love how since Toronto's front office got some courage and picked up a career .500 pitcher how everyone is picking them to go a long way. New York is only getting older. Nobody ever gives the O's respect but I seriously think we could be a contender for a wild card spot this year. Tampa Bay could finish fourth, but I'll gurantee it won't be the Orioles behind them.

And as for the Cubbies, they'll fall apart around the end of July.

Blue Jays have good players, and New York is getting older, but they'll hold together this year to contend for Wild Card.

Orioles aren't going anywhere with that pitching, and they don't exactly have a lot of promising young players last time I checked either.

AL East this year:
1. Boston
2. New York
3. Toronto
4. Tampa Bay
5. Baltimore

Over the next few years:
1. Tampa Bay
2. Boston
3. Toronto
4. New York
5. Baltimore

[RedNinja84]

Is it me or is the NL central the most interesting division in baseball. Five of the six teams are above .500 and it features the best home run hitters in the league with Pujoles, Lee, Berkman and Dunn. I can't wait to see how the race comes down in the end, although the Cardinals will probaly end up winning again.

[Duke]

Orioles aren't going anywhere with that pitching,
The O's pitching is what's gotten them to 8-5 right now. Bedard is awesome, Lopez and Cabrera are getting it together, and Benson and Chen are pretty decent. Granted, the bullpen isn't all that hot except for Chris Ray, but with our starters getting into the 7th inning or later during almost every start, their damage is minimal. Leo's presence has immediately affected the rotation for the better.

Though we could stand to lose Rleal ASAP.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

The O's pitching is what's gotten them to 8-5 right now. Bedard is awesome, Lopez and Cabrera are getting it together, and Benson and Chen are pretty decent. Granted, the bullpen isn't all that hot except for Chris Ray, but with our starters getting into the 7th inning or later during almost every start, their damage is minimal. Leo's presence has immediately affected the rotation for the better.

Though we could stand to lose Rleal ASAP.

Bedard has a career 1.48 WHIP, and even this year he has a 1.25 WHIP, which isn't great and indicates his success is more luck and will go away. At 27 some improvements can be expected from him, but not enough to make him more then a #4 starter.

Lopez is 30 and has a career WHIP of 1.38. Cabrera has a career WHIP of 1.53, and is actually over that so far this year. Although he's young and might have some upside. Benson's career WHIP of 1.37 is nothing to write home over, and Chen's career WHIP of 1.33 is the best on your team, but not #1 starter material.

All in all, I wouldn't expect your pitching to really take you anywhere.

[Duke]

Since when has WHIP meant anything? Bedard is 3-0 and was our best pitcher back when the O's were #1 in the AL East. Then he got injured and we started sucking.

Cabrera has had two bad outings this season (though the Umps seem to be against him at certain times), but he was great in his first season (Hell, he gave up 2 runs in his first two games in a combined total of 17 innings), and shut down the Angels Monday. Lopez I will admit was iffy. 2 years ago, he rocked as a starter. Last year, he sucked as a starter but excelled in the bullpen, and this year he's gone back to his good-as-starter status.

The pitching's main problem is that they're giving up too many solo HRs. But then again, that's not exactly exclusive to the O's. Hell, already the pitching is better than last year, thanks to Leo. It was thanks to him that we had those 3 1-run wins over the weekend against Tampa and Anaheim.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Since when has WHIP meant anything? Bedard is 3-0 and was our best pitcher back when the O's were #1 in the AL East. Then he got injured and we started sucking.
Since always. WHIP is the best stat for Pitchers. Wins aren't a great stat on their own because they're influenced by a lot of outside factors.

Anyone can win a few games, but with Bedard's stats he'll struggle to get even 10 wins this year.


Cabrera has had two bad outings this season (though the Umps seem to be against him at certain times), but he was great in his first season (Hell, he gave up 2 runs in his first two games in a combined total of 17 innings), and shut down the Angels Monday. Lopez I will admit was iffy. 2 years ago, he rocked as a starter. Last year, he sucked as a starter but excelled in the bullpen, and this year he's gone back to his good-as-starter status.

The pitching's main problem is that they're giving up too many solo HRs. But then again, that's not exactly exclusive to the O's. Hell, already the pitching is better than last year, thanks to Leo. It was thanks to him that we had those 3 1-run wins over the weekend against Tampa and Anaheim.

Yeah, you have had a few good games, but unless all of your guys have career years like the White Sox did last year, the Pitching is still a major weakness. Chen and Benson are the only good guys on your staff, and even then they're not great.

[silverwings]

Our pitching is doing loads better than last year. Because of the WBC, it's just taken Lee a little longer to make an impact. I see good things.

And what's a WHIP? I'm not familiar with a lot of these "newer" stats. :sweat:

[Duke]

And what's a WHIP? I'm not familiar with a lot of these "newer" stats. :sweat:
Walks/Hits per Innings Pitched. A stat only those who play Fantasy Baseball give a crap about.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Walks/Hits per Innings Pitched. A stat only those who play Fantasy Baseball give a crap about.

Or people who analyze the game and stats.

Its the definitive stats for Pitchers.

ERA is even less useful the Batting Average(already a pretty bad stat), and Wins are indicitive of very little.

[Condiment King]

Walks/Hits per Innings Pitched. A stat only those who play Fantasy Baseball give a crap about.
WHIP is extremely important because it basically affects every other realm of pitching. If you have high walks, you have control problems. If you have high hits, you just suck. If your WHIP is low, your pitch count is most likely lower than someone with a high WHIP. You can go deeper into the game and save the bullpen some work. Chances are, a person with a lower WHIP also has a lower ERA since noone is on base when someone homers or rips a double off the wall. WHIP is very important. Great WHIP just flat out translates to great pitching. The leader in WHIP last year? Cy Young candidate Roger Clemens.

Add me to the list of people that think the Orioles aren't very good. The Toronto Blue Jays added more than just AJ Burnett. They also added Bengie Molina, Lyle Overbay, and BJ Ryan. They improved their team in every facet of the game. They are pounding the ball to help out the rotation, which isn't that bad to begin with. The New York Yankees are aging, but for God's sake, that lineup is amazing, and the pitching is at least competent. The Boston Red Sox look like the best team out of that division so far with excellent performances from Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, and Jonathan Papelbon. When Manny Ramirez gets out of his slump, Boston will be on fire. Tampa has tons of talent that are getting more and more experience. Baltimore simply looks like the weakest team in this division with aging veterans and suspect pitching.

[Duke]

The leader in WHIP last year? Cy Young candidate Roger Clemens.
Roger Clemens is a freak anyway.

You people are talking as if I think the O's are the best team in baseball. I know they'll be lucky to even get into the playoffs, as our lineup is far too limp (maybe if Hernandez and Markakis continue to progress and we get somebody, ANYBODY that's a good utility guy to replace Conine). But the O's pitching IS better than last year's (tonight's game nonwithstanding), and provided our middle relief doesn't screw things over (which is what I'm most afraid of), then the O's aren't going to just roll over quietly. I'm predicting 3rd place this year. You people are greatly underestimating Lopez, Cabrera, and Bedard.

For the record, I don't really give a damn about WHIP. I'm more concerned about ERA, BA, Runs, IP, and K's. I hated that damn stat after it screwed me over in Fantasy Baseball and I hate it in real life. WHIP can go drown itself (if it could...) for all I care. I mean, if WHIP is the only important stat for pitchers, why have ANY of the other stats at all and just gush about it on TV all the time then instead of ignoring it outright?


They improved their team in every facet of the game. They are pounding the ball to help out the rotation, which isn't that bad to begin with.
Please don't tell me you're one of those bandwagon-jumpers who think the Blue Jays are the greatest team ever...


Baltimore simply looks like the weakest team in this division with aging veterans and suspect pitching.
Which aging veterans would you be talking about, per say? I hope you don't mean Mora and Tejada.

[Condiment King]

For the record, I don't really give a damn about WHIP. I'm more concerned about ERA, BA, Runs, IP, and K's.
And WHIP affects all those things so saying its unimportant is like saying OBA is unimportant because you can just read Hits.


Please don't tell me you're one of those bandwagon-jumpers who think the Blue Jays are the greatest team ever...

The Boston Red Sox look like the best team out of that division so far with excellent performances from Curt Schilling, Josh Beckett, and Jonathan Papelbon.


Which aging veterans would you be talking about, per say? I hope you don't mean Mora and Tejada.
No, Mora and Tejada are the best offensive players. I'm referring to Javy Lopez, Jeff Conine, Kevin Millar, etc. Plus Corey Patterson sucks.

[Duke]

I'm referring to Javy Lopez, Jeff Conine, Kevin Millar, etc. Plus Corey Patterson sucks.
Well, of all of those, Millar is the only one who's playing regularly. Patterson has been a defensive replacement more often than not, Lopez is splitting time with Hernandez, and Conine...I'm guessing is filler since we never did get a good 1B in the off-season. Although Patterson is getting more playing time since Newhan is on the DL. (Dammit!)

Plus, Perlozzo changes the lineup almost every game (I think he's kept the same exact lineup for 2 games or more in a row only twice this season, so far), so that has an effect as well.

[silverwings]

Well, of all of those, Millar is the only one who's playing regularly. Patterson has been a defensive replacement more often than not, Lopez is splitting time with Hernandez, and Conine...I'm guessing is filler since we never did get a good 1B in the off-season. Although Patterson is getting more playing time since Newhan is on the DL. (Dammit!)

Plus, Perlozzo changes the lineup almost every game (I think he's kept the same exact lineup for 2 games or more in a row only twice this season, so far), so that has an effect as well.

I think he keeps changing the line-up
a)to prevent a midseason collapse like last year due to exhaustion
and
b)because the WBC limited the time he had to pick a solid lineup, he's still experimenting.

And I'm also sick of the *entirely* negative opinion of the O's from everyone. It's like, we're the team that everyone constantly nags on and refuses to see any or all improvement or good players.

We've GOT the talent. All we need are things to fall into place. Yes, I buy the whole "rebuilding" BS the front office puts out. Why? Because we are rebuilding. Players like Markasis are the tip of the iceburg of the improvements being made in the farm system.

Steps are being made, people. So stop with the constant bashing. (note: this is just general frustration to people on this board, other boards, the media, the sports writers, etc so don't take it too personally).

[Duke]

I think he keeps changing the line-up
a)to prevent a midseason collapse like last year due to exhaustion
and
b)because the WBC limited the time he had to pick a solid lineup, he's still experimenting.
Well, it's good for Markakis and Hernandez, so I like it in that respect.

[Duke]

Gahd damn, what happened to pitching tonight? A combined 27 runs, 33 hits, and 5 errors. Granted, we're up 18-9 right now, but still.

Wish I could've seen the game, but ESPN considers Philly too close to Baltimore despite the fact that no Orioles games air up here unless they're on ESPN!

I hate Comcast...

[BCVM22]

Derrek Lee shot in the arm with the midget Dominican bullet named Rafael Furcal. "Sprained right wrist", flying back to Chicago tomorrow to have the doctors take a look.

See you in 2007, folks. :v:

[FireStarterLE]

well it would seem our starting pitching is back on track. 2 complete game wins over the Mets. And all three of the wins our starters have are complete games.

Andruw had 4 homeruns in all of April last year enroute to his 51 total. So far this month, he's up to 8. That's very good to see

[Condiment King]

well it would seem our starting pitching is back on track. 2 complete game wins over the Mets. And all three of the wins our starters have are complete games.
I wouldn't be so sure considering the lineups Kyle Davies and Tim Hudson faced included backups Jose Valentin, Endy Chavez, Chris Woodward, and Ramon Castro. The Mets became a very injured team this week with the injuries to Beltran, Floyd, and Hernandez. I can't wait until Beltran and Floyd get back into the lineup this weekend, and take the pressure off Delgado and Wright.

[Punisher]

Last time I checked, Cleveland was one of the best offenses last year and they continue to be this year. And guess what? The Orioles outhit them. I don't care what anybody else says, the O's will not, and let me repeat that, they will not, finish last this year. The pitchers are doing their job, Bedard threw another great game today. The bullpen kept the Orioles ahead. And this offense has to be one of the best. Gibbons, Tejada, Mora, Roberts. There are too many great hitters so I will just leave it at that.

For God's sake, I wish the O's would get at least some respect. We got none when we were in first last year, and we're getting none now. I really don't think the Yankees can last an entire season, Toronto is not nearly as good as the media hypes them out to be, Tampa Bay is Tampa Bay, and Boston is just off to a hot start.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers had to really fight it out today, but they win the game and the series. Only 1 series loss so far this year(against the defending champs). A shame Bonderman didn't get the win.


Last time I checked, Cleveland was one of the best offenses last year and they continue to be this year. And guess what? The Orioles outhit them.
So is Chris Shelton the best hitter in the AL, then? One series isn't indicitive of a lot. I'm grateful you guys beat the Indians, but it means no more then the Royals taking 2 of 3 from Chicago. Notice how many games they've won since then...

July is when things start shaping up. A strong start helps, but not when its based off of flukes.


I don't care what anybody else says, the O's will not, and let me repeat that, they will not, finish last this year. The pitchers are doing their job, Bedard threw another great game today. The bullpen kept the Orioles ahead. And this offense has to be one of the best. Gibbons, Tejada, Mora, Roberts. There are too many great hitters so I will just leave it at that.
Tejada, Mora, and Roberts are good, but they can't make up an entire offense. And they don't make up for that awful pitching.

Bedard's off to a strong start, but he'll fall back to his career numbers, and that career 1.48 WHIP wouldn't even be good for better then 5th on most teams.

And the bullpen isn't great either.

You guys might be able to compete if you were in the AL West, but you're in the AL East.


For God's sake, I wish the O's would get at least some respect. We got none when we were in first last year, and we're getting none now. I really don't think the Yankees can last an entire season, Toronto is not nearly as good as the media hypes them out to be, Tampa Bay is Tampa Bay, and Boston is just off to a hot start.

You got no respect last year because everyone knew you would fall apart.

And they were right, weren't they? You can't exactly complain about getting no respect when you aren't very good.

Boston is just off to a hot start? Yeah, right... They're one of the top teams in the League, and they'll cruise to winning that division. Schilling will cool off, but on the flip side Manny will heat up.

New York's old, but they'll still stay in it, compete for second with Toronto.

Toronto may be overrated by some, but you can't deny that Lyle Overbay is a better hitter then anyone the Orioles have, and Toronto's pitching is also a lot better then you guys.

And Tampa Bay has all those young guys who will be great. They'll make things interesting, although they'll fall short this year.

They'll emerge as the dominant team in that division starting next year though. Over the next decade they'll put up a string of Division Titles.

[One Radical Dude]

See you in 2007, folks. :v:

Um, not necessarily. It's unknown how serious Lee's injury is, and it doesn't mean that it's over for the team (they came back and beat LA on Wednesday). I know that the team doesn't have Mark Prior or Kerry Wood healthy right now, but at 9-5 (narrowly trailing Houston in the standings), things are going well. It's too early to say it's over -- there's a lot of baseball left.

[Duke]

Tejada, Mora, and Roberts are good, but they can't make up an entire offense. And they don't make up for that awful pitching.
Hence why we have Hernandez, Markakis, and Lopez (who's getting hot). Once Matos and Newhan come off the DL, they'll help too.


Bedard's off to a strong start, but he'll fall back to his career numbers, and that career 1.48 WHIP wouldn't even be good for better then 5th on most teams.
WHIP doesn't tell the entire story. Hell, let's take Cabrera's start a couple weeks ago. The guy had 9 walks and 3 wild pitches, yet also had 10 strike outs and gave up only 1 Run. Though he didn't win the game (Rleal blew the 3-run lead he had), it also shows that WHIP isn't everything. If it was, teams would employ scouts to check out their future opponets to see how their pitchers work.


You got no respect last year because everyone knew you would fall apart.

And they were right, weren't they? You can't exactly complain about getting no respect when you aren't very good.
We fell apart because Lopez and Bedard (who won again today, becoming the first O's pitcher since 1994 to start the season 4-0) went on the DL. Not sure if we would've won the division, but if that didn't happen, we would've competed again. We almost did when Perlozzo became the manager, but then off-the-field problems came and bit the team in the ass. By that time, the O's stopped caring and just wanted the season to end.


And Tampa Bay has all those young guys who will be great. They'll make things interesting, although they'll fall short this year.
Tampa Bay will become good when they actually get a decent payroll and move out of Florida. Sure, they may have good young guys now, but they'll leave Tampa well before they can reach the playoffs.

I mean, hell, usually Tampa Bay is one of those teams that give them trouble, and they've taken all but 2 games so far.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Hence why we have Hernandez, Markakis, and Lopez (who's getting hot). Once Matos and Newhan come off the DL, they'll help too.
Hernandez, Career OBP .328
Markakis OBP .311, though he's young and will eventually get better
Lopez, Career OBP .339(and an OBP of .250 in last 7 games isn't what I'd qualify as getting hot)
Matos, Career OBP .313
Newhan, Career OBP. .319

Of the guys you named, only Lopez has a career OBP of over .330(.339 isn't even great, and he's getting older.



WHIP doesn't tell the entire story. Hell, let's take Cabrera's start a couple weeks ago. The guy had 9 walks and 3 wild pitches, yet also had 10 strike outs and gave up only 1 Run. Though he didn't win the game (Rleal blew the 3-run lead he had), it also shows that WHIP isn't everything. If it was, teams would employ scouts to check out their future opponets to see how their pitchers work.
Anytime you have 9 walks that's a very bad thing. Cabrera has been pitching pretty terrible this year.

WHIP is the best stat for pitchers. The less walks and hits you give up, the better chance your team has to win.



We fell apart because Lopez and Bedard (who won again today, becoming the first O's pitcher since 1994 to start the season 4-0) went on the DL. Not sure if we would've won the division, but if that didn't happen, we would've competed again. We almost did when Perlozzo became the manager, but then off-the-field problems came and bit the team in the ass. By that time, the O's stopped caring and just wanted the season to end.
Lopez had an OBP of .322 and Bedard had an Opponents OBP of .333. Hell, that's a higher number then most of your hitters have for OBP.

Losing two subpar players didn't kill you, it was that you were just getting lucky wins off of flukes to begin with.



Tampa Bay will become good when they actually get a decent payroll and move out of Florida. Sure, they may have good young guys now, but they'll leave Tampa well before they can reach the playoffs.

I mean, hell, usually Tampa Bay is one of those teams that give them trouble, and they've taken all but 2 games so far.
Nah, they're going to start dominating.

The same could have been said about the Angels a few years ago, they were a very small payroll team(aren't now that they started winning though).

[Duke]

Anytime you have 9 walks that's a very bad thing. Cabrera has been pitching pretty terrible this year.
I didn't say it was a good thing. I just said that he also had 10K and gave up 1 run. In other words, giving up walks (and by virtue, having a bad WHIP) doesn't automatically doom you to losing 20+ games a year.


Hernandez, Career OBP .328
Markakis OBP .311, though he's young and will eventually get better
Lopez, Career OBP .339(and an OBP of .250 in last 7 games isn't what I'd qualify as getting hot)
Matos, Career OBP .313
Newhan, Career OBP. .319
Past history means jack squat and you know it. There was little to suggest Barry Bonds would hit 73 home runs a few years ago (he had never gotten above 50 before then), there was little to suggest that the Yankees would go 6 straight years without a World Series title, and there was little to suggest that the Florida Marlins, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and before Game 4 of the ALCS, there was little to suggest that Boston would win the World Series 2 years ago.

History can be a guide, but basing all opinions on them is foolish.


Lopez had an OBP of .322 and Bedard had an Opponents OBP of .333. Hell, that's a higher number then most of your hitters have for OBP.

Losing two subpar players didn't kill you, it was that you were just getting lucky wins off of flukes to begin with.
Yet when we lost them, we started losing and losing, and when we got them back, we started winning some games (before the off-the-field stuff killed our momentum).

Stats aren't everything. Never have been, and never will be.

The same could have been said about the Angels a few years ago, they were a very small payroll team(aren't now that they started winning though).
The Angels had the advantage of having a front office, and a city, that actually cared about their team. The Devil Rays have $35 million payroll right now, second lowest in the majors. I'm sure the Angels were small-market, but I highly doubt they were in the lowest 5 when they won the World Series.

True, you could bring up Florida, but they got lucky twice and all their good players left the year afterwards because of the low payroll the team has. And even then, they STILL can't get people to come to their games.

[BCVM22]

Um, not necessarily. It's unknown how serious Lee's injury is, and it doesn't mean that it's over for the team (they came back and beat LA on Wednesday). I know that the team doesn't have Mark Prior or Kerry Wood healthy right now, but at 9-5 (narrowly trailing Houston in the standings), things are going well. It's too early to say it's over -- there's a lot of baseball left.

I am fully aware that the Cubs came back and beat LA yesterday, as well as everything else that's going on with the Cubs. The point is that if D. Lee is out for any extended period of time, and with his injury as it appears right now, I think 4-6 weeks is the best we can hope for, the Cubs will suffer.

The injuries to Lee and Eyre set off a domino effect for the rest of the team. With Lee out, the weight of providing the bang in the lineup falls to Ramirez and Barrett. Ramirez is hitting .196 right now, and while I have zero doubt that no more than a month from now he'll be back up to .300, not having Lee hitting in front of him is going to hurt him. Defensively, first base likely becomes the split responsibility of Todd Walker and John Mabry. Without Lee's glove at first, there are going to be a lot more errant throws from the left side of the infield, and that says nothing about the fact that on days when Walker is at first base, Neifi Perez, who should not crack any sort of starting lineup more than once or twice a month, will be getting half the starts at second base.

Furthermore, prior to the knee contusion he suffered last night, Scott Eyre hadn't given up a run in 8 innings of work so far this year. He's the most dependable lefty reliever this team has had in years, and if he's gone for any extended period of time, it shakes up the entire bullpen.

The point is that this is one of the worst things that could have happened to the Cubs. Wood and Prior returning soon will help, as no one's saying the rotation's been all-around solid so far, but Derrek Lee is the cornerstone of both facets of this team: The No. 3 hitter, and the first baseman who is able to save at least 2-3 errors per game by expertly picking errant throws out of the air/dirt.

I'm a Cubs fan and I'm pessimistic right now. That should tell you something.

[FireStarterLE]

I wouldn't be so sure considering the lineups Kyle Davies and Tim Hudson faced included backups Jose Valentin, Endy Chavez, Chris Woodward, and Ramon Castro. The Mets became a very injured team this week with the injuries to Beltran, Floyd, and Hernandez. I can't wait until Beltran and Floyd get back into the lineup this weekend, and take the pressure off Delgado and Wright.

well considering the lineup that Pedro had behind him and the one Glavine had behind him. There were 5 players that played all three games (Reyes, Delgado, Wright, Nady and the backup Chavez) who account for 42 of the Mets 74 runs while Beltran, Floyd and Hernandez account for 18 of the 74 runs.

And backups Woodward and Castro both have better avgs. than Floyd, .308 and .300 respectively, compared to Floyds .200. They have played fewer games, yes but in those few games they have done a bit for the team
- 7 games played total, 23 ABs, 2 runs scored, 7 hits, 2 doubles, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 walk and 2 Ks
So Beltran is the one that hurts them most being out of the lineup

By the looks of that, it wasnt entirely the lineup that contributed to those two games. Davies and Hudson played a big part. And dont forget Pedro faced an Atl. lineup without C. Jones and Renteria (maybe a factor keeping the Mets from being swept? we'll never know but should have a good rematch next weekend, hopefully all the current injured players on both sides will be 98-100% so they'll get to face the fully loaded lineups)

[Punisher]

Tejada, Mora, and Roberts are good, but they can't make up an entire offense. And they don't make up for that awful pitching.

Bedard's off to a strong start, but he'll fall back to his career numbers, and that career 1.48 WHIP wouldn't even be good for better then 5th on most teams.

And the bullpen isn't great either.

You guys might be able to compete if you were in the AL West, but you're in the AL East.

You got no respect last year because everyone knew you would fall apart.

And they were right, weren't they? You can't exactly complain about getting no respect when you aren't very good.

Boston is just off to a hot start? Yeah, right... They're one of the top teams in the League, and they'll cruise to winning that division. Schilling will cool off, but on the flip side Manny will heat up.

New York's old, but they'll still stay in it, compete for second with Toronto.

Toronto may be overrated by some, but you can't deny that Lyle Overbay is a better hitter then anyone the Orioles have, and Toronto's pitching is also a lot better then you guys.

And Tampa Bay has all those young guys who will be great. They'll make things interesting, although they'll fall short this year.

They'll emerge as the dominant team in that division starting next year though. Over the next decade they'll put up a string of Division Titles.For one, our pitching isn't god awful. It was a few years ago, but things have changed. Throw out all the numbers, and I would still take Bedard and Cabrera over any pitcher the Tigers have. Cabrera can blow people away with his fastball when he gets into a groove, and Bedard wasn't the best pitcher in the Al for two months(up until he hit the DL) for no reason. Our bullpen has gotten a LOT better. We lost Jorge Julio which can only be a good thing and B.J. Ryan, who blew his fair share of game last year.

Let me name some Orioles hitters that are good whose names aren't Mora, Tejada, or Roberts. It's pretty easy. We have Jay Gibbons, Ramon Hernandez, Javy Lopez, and Nick Markakis. And if that weren't enough Chris Gomez is a reliable backup and Conine and Millar are experienced veterans whom I wouldn't mind batting at any place in the order. Our lineup is one of the best in the entire AL and I see absolutely nothing wrong with it.

The O's are done rebuilding, we are on to winning. I'm sorry if you and everybody else at ESPN and the media don't like that.

[Duke]

Conine and Millar are experienced veterans whom I wouldn't mind batting at any place in the order.
Millar is decent, but I wouldn't depend on Conine very much. He has a decent bat and does well in Camden, but he's around more for his versatility ( he plays virtually every infield position and does it pretty decently) than his bat.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

I didn't say it was a good thing. I just said that he also had 10K and gave up 1 run. In other words, giving up walks (and by virtue, having a bad WHIP) doesn't automatically doom you to losing 20+ games a year.
Getting lucky one time around doesn't change the inevitable. Cabrera is still putting up pretty bad numbers, and just because he got some luck doesn't mean it will last.


Past history means jack squat and you know it. There was little to suggest Barry Bonds would hit 73 home runs a few years ago (he had never gotten above 50 before then), there was little to suggest that the Yankees would go 6 straight years without a World Series title, and there was little to suggest that the Florida Marlins, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and before Game 4 of the ALCS, there was little to suggest that Boston would win the World Series 2 years ago.
Bonds was using steroids, hence the power boost.

And there was plenty to sugges the Yankees WS 'drought'. Myself and most other people paying attention noticed that the Yankees were abandoning their core in favor of the flavors of the month.


History can be a guide, but basing all opinions on them is foolish.
I'm not basing all opinions on them.

But a career OBP of below .330 is attroticous. And skills don't develop overnight.

Aside from Markakis there's nothing to suggest any of those other guys(Hernandez, Lopez, Matos, etc) will ever be anything more then mediocre.



Yet when we lost them, we started losing and losing, and when we got them back, we started winning some games (before the off-the-field stuff killed our momentum).
Doesn't change them being below-average at best.


Stats aren't everything. Never have been, and never will be.
They're the best indication though.

Personal problems can play a role(look at Pudge last year), but stats show who the best players are.


The Angels had the advantage of having a front office, and a city, that actually cared about their team. The Devil Rays have $35 million payroll right now, second lowest in the majors. I'm sure the Angels were small-market, but I highly doubt they were in the lowest 5 when they won the World Series.
They were pretty low, though not bottom 5. I'm just saying Tampa Bay will start reaching the playoffs, which will make the Front Office start paying more.


True, you could bring up Florida, but they got lucky twice and all their good players left the year afterwards because of the low payroll the team has. And even then, they STILL can't get people to come to their games.

Er, the Marlins gave everyone away after 97, but not after 03. Even last year most of that team was still around. Just not Pudge and a few others.


For one, our pitching isn't god awful. It was a few years ago, but things have changed. Throw out all the numbers, and I would still take Bedard and Cabrera over any pitcher the Tigers have.
If Cabrera and Bedard were on Detroit, they wouldn't even be in the rotation. Justin Verlander, our #5 starter, is miles ahead of both of them, and he's a rookie.


Cabrera can blow people away with his fastball when he gets into a groove,
Which explains his career 1.53 WHIP, OOBP .358, etc, right? He's young so he'll improve and could become a solid #3 starter in a couple years, but I wouldn't count on him for much now.

and Bedard wasn't the best pitcher in the Al for two months(up until he hit the DL) for no reason.
Bedard was pretty bad last year. He had an OOBP of .333. Half your hitters can't even manage a .333 OBP...

Our bullpen has gotten a LOT better. We lost Jorge Julio which can only be a good thing and B.J. Ryan, who blew his fair share of game last year.
Your bullpen also still looks shaky to me. And BJ Ryan was still better then some of the guys you have around.


Let me name some Orioles hitters that are good whose names aren't Mora, Tejada, or Roberts. It's pretty easy. We have Jay Gibbons, Ramon Hernandez, Javy Lopez, and Nick Markakis. And if that weren't enough Chris Gomez is a reliable backup and Conine and Millar are experienced veterans whom I wouldn't mind batting at any place in the order. Our lineup is one of the best in the entire AL and I see absolutely nothing wrong with it.
One of the best in the AL? Its not even one of the best in your own division.

Cleveland, Detroit, Boston, Toronto, LA of A, those are the power lineups in the AL.

Lets look at your so called good hitters:
Gibbons: Career OBP .316(that's just awful)
Hernandez: Career OBP .328(not that hot)
Lopez: Career OBP .339(decent, but not great)
Markakis: .311 OBP so far this year(horrendously bad)
Gomez: Career OBP .324(not terrible for a backup, but not great either)
I'll grant you Conine, he's better then most of your team
Millar's pretty good, too, historically

But they're both getting up there in years, and can't be counted on


The O's are done rebuilding, we are on to winning. I'm sorry if you and everybody else at ESPN and the media don't like that.

Power to you if you guys can win with this group of players.

But don't be surprised if you wind up in the cellar.

[Duke]

Doesn't change them being below-average at best.
They may not be Roger Clemens, but they DO affect the team. You can lose a below-average player and then have your entire team suck. That's what happened to the O's last year. We lost a great pitcher on a roll, as well as part of the anchor in the lineup, and then we started to crap out. We got them back, we started winning again. Simple as that.


They were pretty low, though not bottom 5. I'm just saying Tampa Bay will start reaching the playoffs, which will make the Front Office start paying more.
Florida's won 2 World Series in less than 10 years (how many non-Yankee teams have done that recently?) and yet their payroll is still $15 million. In order for the payroll to get bigger, people will need to go to the games and buy Tampa Bay stuff, and that'll never happen as long as they're in Florida (unless the Yankees move down there).

To divert discussion away from this arguement that's going nowhere fast...

I am getting sick of ESPN having the Braves on once a week. The Braves already have their own cable network that virtually all cable/satallite subscribers get, so they don't need to be on ESPN. True, they play the Red Sox, Yankees, and Giants just as much, but I can't see them every day on TBS. I wish they would show more Indians, Mariners, Atheltics, Cardinals, and Marlins games.

[BCVM22]

Millar is decent, but I wouldn't depend on Conine very much. He has a decent bat and does well in Camden, but he's around more for his versatility ( he plays virtually every infield position and does it pretty decently) than his bat.

I don't know why "versatility" is mentioned in the same sentence as Jeff Conine. The man is mediocre at first base, at best, and is atrocious at third base and the outfield. To put him at "virtually every infield position", i.e. a middle infield spot would be a comedy of errors.

[Duke]

I don't know why "versatility" is mentioned in the same sentence as Jeff Conine. The man is mediocre at first base, at best, and is atrocious at third base and the outfield. To put him at "virtually every infield position", i.e. a middle infield spot would be a comedy of errors.
What are you talking about? If you want to discuss the almighty stats, he's a better fielder than Miguel Tejada, who has about 10,000 Web Gems under his belt.

[Condiment King]

I didn't say it was a good thing. I just said that he also had 10K and gave up 1 run. In other words, giving up walks (and by virtue, having a bad WHIP) doesn't automatically doom you to losing 20+ games a year.
WHIP isn't definitive, just like batting average isn't. But you saying that WHIP doesn't matter makes just as much sense as if you said batting average doesn't matter. Andruw Jones had a breakout year at the plate last year, hitting 51 homers and driving in 128 RBIs. Yet his batting average was a bad .263. There are always irregularities in baseball, but that doesn't mean its the rule.


Past history means jack squat and you know it. There was little to suggest Barry Bonds would hit 73 home runs a few years ago (he had never gotten above 50 before then), there was little to suggest that the Yankees would go 6 straight years without a World Series title, and there was little to suggest that the Florida Marlins, the Arizona Diamondbacks, and before Game 4 of the ALCS, there was little to suggest that Boston would win the World Series 2 years ago. History can be a guide, but basing all opinions on them is foolish.
Apparently, history means a little more to the American League East. For almost the past decade, the final standings have been the same: 1. Yankees, 2. Red Sox, 3. Blue Jays, 4. Orioles, 5. Devil Rays. I'm saying Tampa Bay finishes fourth, and I think its a gamble, considering this jarring history. I take Baltimore finishing better than 4th as an equal gamble.


True, you could bring up Florida, but they got lucky twice and all their good players left the year afterwards because of the low payroll the team has. And even then, they STILL can't get people to come to their games.
There's too many instances of the word "lucky" and "fluke" in this thread. Saying the Marlins were lucky winning two world series championships is flat out ridiculous. Plus, your history is wrong. They dismantled the 2003 championship team in 2005, not 2004. This time, it really wasn't out of necessity, but out of choice. No stadium? Save money. Plus, noone freaking gives this organization any credit. Look at the prospects this team has: Hanley Ramirez, Jeremy Hermida, Mike Jacobs, Josh Willingham. Couple those guys with Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera and this team will contend and very well add a third championship in 2008 or 2009. Who cares if noone watches them? That's no cause for disrespect. Noone watches the 14 time division champion Atlanta Braves either.


Last time I checked, Cleveland was one of the best offenses last year and they continue to be this year. And guess what? The Orioles outhit them. I don't care what anybody else says, the O's will not, and let me repeat that, they will not, finish last this year. The pitchers are doing their job, Bedard threw another great game today. The bullpen kept the Orioles ahead. And this offense has to be one of the best. Gibbons, Tejada, Mora, Roberts. There are too many great hitters so I will just leave it at that.
Why are you gloating? If my team had a series where a starter didn't throw a quality start, I would be pissed off (as I am currently about the Mets), not congratulating them. On Tuesday, the Orioles got killed 15-1. On Wednesday, they won one of the ugliest games I've seen all season 18-9 against clumsy Indians middle relief, and Bedard's "good" game today wasn't a quality start, 6 IP 4 ER. Outslugging teams get you nowhere, particularly when you face better pitching.


For God's sake, I wish the O's would get at least some respect. We got none when we were in first last year, and we're getting none now. I really don't think the Yankees can last an entire season, Toronto is not nearly as good as the media hypes them out to be, Tampa Bay is Tampa Bay, and Boston is just off to a hot start.
First place in the first half of the season means nothing.


And backups Woodward and Castro both have better avgs. than Floyd, .308 and .300 respectively, compared to Floyds .200. They have played fewer games, yes but in those few games they have done a bit for the team
- 7 games played total, 23 ABs, 2 runs scored, 7 hits, 2 doubles, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 walk and 2 Ks
So Beltran is the one that hurts them most being out of the lineup

By the looks of that, it wasnt entirely the lineup that contributed to those two games. Davies and Hudson played a big part. And dont forget Pedro faced an Atl. lineup without C. Jones and Renteria (maybe a factor keeping the Mets from being swept? we'll never know but should have a good rematch next weekend, hopefully all the current injured players on both sides will be 98-100% so they'll get to face the fully loaded lineups)
I don't think you can hypothesize that Atlanta could (or should) have swept the Mets with Chipper Jones and Edgar Renteria in the lineup when the Mets had Carlos Beltran out all three games and Cliff Floyd and Anderson Hernandez out the last two.

You can't compare Woodward and Castro with Floyd because of three reasons:
a.) They've had much less ABs, which you said.
b.) Jose Valentin was the starting LF in Floyd's place, not them.
c.) Statistics are relative this far in the season. A week ago, you could have said that Beltran's start means that an absence would do nothing negative to the team. If Floyd doesn't go out of the lineup, he could have easily went on a hot streak like Beltran, and he's much more likely to do so than Jose Valentin. In fact, the last game he played, he blasted a double and scored from second. He was showing signs of coming back, offensively. He expects to play tonight in San Diego, though he might not. Same with Beltran.

I don't mean to take anything away from Kyle Davies and Tim Hudson, but their previous outings were bad, while Tommy Glavine has been consistent in his first three starts of the season. Davies and Hudson most definitely pitched well, two complete games. They pitched excellently. However, I'm not sure if Atlanta's rotation is "back" yet, persay.


Let me name some Orioles hitters that are good whose names aren't Mora, Tejada, or Roberts. It's pretty easy. We have Jay Gibbons, Ramon Hernandez, Javy Lopez, and Nick Markakis. And if that weren't enough Chris Gomez is a reliable backup and Conine and Millar are experienced veterans whom I wouldn't mind batting at any place in the order. Our lineup is one of the best in the entire AL and I see absolutely nothing wrong with it.
Unfortunately, division rival New York definitely has a better lineup, and Boston probably does. Toronto may.

[Duke]

There's too many instances of the word "lucky" and "fluke" in this thread. Saying the Marlins were lucky winning two world series championships is flat out ridiculous. Plus, your history is wrong. They dismantled the 2003 championship team in 2005, not 2004. This time, it really wasn't out of necessity, but out of choice. No stadium? Save money. Plus, noone freaking gives this organization any credit. Look at the prospects this team has: Hanley Ramirez, Jeremy Hermida, Mike Jacobs, Josh Willingham. Couple those guys with Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera and this team will contend and very well add a third championship in 2008 or 2009. Who cares if noone watches them? That's no cause for disrespect. Noone watches the 14 time division champion Atlanta Braves either.
They may very well win another World Series before 2010. It won't increase their payroll any, though, and many of those players will have to leave if they want the big bucks. The vast majority of the state of Florida doesn't give a damn about baseball (except maybe Spring Training).


Why are you gloating? If my team had a series where a starter didn't throw a quality start, I would be pissed off (as I am currently about the Mets), not congratulating them. On Tuesday, the Orioles got killed 15-1. On Wednesday, they won one of the ugliest games I've seen all season 18-9 against clumsy Indians middle relief, and Bedard's "good" game today wasn't a quality start, 6 IP 4 ER. Outslugging teams get you nowhere, particularly when you face better pitching.
We also won 3 of 4 from the Angels over the weekend, by scores of 6-5, 3-2, and 4-2, the former two were come-from-behind wins in the 8th & 9th innings. The former two were also part of a 3-game, one-run, come-from-behind winning streak.

[Punisher]

Why are you gloating? If my team had a series where a starter didn't throw a quality start, I would be pissed off (as I am currently about the Mets), not congratulating them. On Tuesday, the Orioles got killed 15-1. On Wednesday, they won one of the ugliest games I've seen all season 18-9 against clumsy Indians middle relief, and Bedard's "good" game today wasn't a quality start, 6 IP 4 ER. Outslugging teams get you nowhere, particularly when you face better pitching.
Because it's the freaking INDIANS. You know, the team with Travis Hafner? The team who won 93 games last year. They can hit, and they did hit. But guess what? We beat them. I'd consider only giving up four runs to the Indians an accomplishment. And the clumsy middle relief of the Indians didn't blow the game. Their starter fell apart, and the bullpen couldn't put it back together.

[BCVM22]

What are you talking about? If you want to discuss the almighty stats, he's a better fielder than Miguel Tejada, who has about 10,000 Web Gems under his belt.

How is this a relevant comparison? Miguel Tejada is 30 and plays shortstop, the hardest position to play on the defensive spectrum. Jeff Conine is a career corner man who might have been decent in his prime (his career line of .288 BA, .350 OBP, .798 OPS is certainly better than a lot of guys) but now he's a 40-year-old player who is little more than bench filler.

[Duke]

How is this a relevant comparison? Miguel Tejada is 30 and plays shortstop, the hardest position to play on the defensive spectrum. Jeff Conine is a career corner man who might have been decent in his prime (his career line of .288 BA, .350 OBP, .798 OPS is certainly better than a lot of guys) but now he's a 40-year-old player who is little more than bench filler.
First off, I'm not talking about his offense at all. He gets some very timely hits a lot, but he's not, and never was, a focus in the lineup (hence why he's always 8th in the order). As for his fielding, he only gives up errors when he plays all the time (here at Camden anyway, he sucked in Florida), but Perlozzo isn't playing him every day. Conine usually gets 3, maybe 4 games a week, which reduces his error potential and makes him a greater fielder.


Bedard's "good" game today wasn't a quality start, 6 IP 4 ER. Outslugging teams get you nowhere, particularly when you face better pitching.
Actually, it was 3ER. One run was from an error. And 3 of those runs were off HR, which has been the bane of pitchers everywhere, especially this year. And his ERA is only 2.77, with 7 more Ks today.

[silverwings]

O's off to another good start. We've won 4 of our first 5 series (including series against the Angels and Indians who are supposed to be contenders this year) and 8 of our last 10.

We're averaging 6 runs a game! This from an offense that people said would suck. I understand that this doesn't last forever but I'm enjoying it while it does. :D

I know you can't win a title in April, but you can sure lose one if you're off to a bad start. :p

I think our pitching is full of potential and we've got a great guy there to help the young players tap into it. I think our hitting is good to great. Trust me, I'd take a consistant lineup of 9 average-good hitters than a lineup with only a few greats and the rest mediocre. Makes it very difficult to find weak spots.

Also, good team chemistry does more for team wins. The fact that we've come from behind shows some great team mentality and support. It also makes for great games. :D

Though I really wish the O's weren't in this divison. They'd be owning the AL West right now..

And I say pff to the media who says the O's are the worst in baseball. All you have to do is look at Kansas City, the AL West (sans maybe the Angels), Washington, Florida, Pittsburg, the Dodgers, and San Diego to know we are not the worst MLB team out there.

It's still a long season, but damn me for having some early hope and happiness at a good O's team. :p

[Condiment King]

They may very well win another World Series before 2010. It won't increase their payroll any, though, and many of those players will have to leave if they want the big bucks. The vast majority of the state of Florida doesn't give a damn about baseball (except maybe Spring Training).
Why wouldn't it? Things could change for the organization by then. By not trading Willis or Cabrera yet, Florida has already shown that they are willing to keep on their salaries for the eventual increase (assuming they don't trade them). With a payroll of $15 million, its almost impossible for the payroll not to go up by next season.


We also won 3 of 4 from the Angels over the weekend, by scores of 6-5, 3-2, and 4-2, the former two were come-from-behind wins in the 8th & 9th innings. The former two were also part of a 3-game, one-run, come-from-behind winning streak.
Winning series at home is expected and good. Two quality start wins in a four game set is good though. I just don't see the need to trumpet it. The Orioles' rotation contains potential, but they are certainly a weakness on this team. Rodrigo Lopez, Kris Benson, Bruce Chen, bleh. The bullpen is bad with the sole exception of the great Chris Ray. I'm just saying that, with this pitching, the lineup has more pressure to produce, and Baltimore's lineup doesn't stack up well with the rest of the division.


Because it's the freaking INDIANS. You know, the team with Travis Hafner? The team who won 93 games last year. They can hit, and they did hit. But guess what? We beat them. I'd consider only giving up four runs to the Indians an accomplishment. And the clumsy middle relief of the Indians didn't blow the game. Their starter fell apart, and the bullpen couldn't put it back together.
The starter was awful, giving up 9 runs, but the final score was 18-9. If the bullpen isn't equally as awful, giving up another 9 runs, the Indians have a chance to win. The Orioles beat Jake Westbrook, coming off a 15-15 season in 2005 with a 4.49 ERA, and the bad middle relief. Don't overdo it.

[Duke]

Why wouldn't it? Things could change for the organization by then. By not trading Willis or Cabrera yet, Florida has already shown that they are willing to keep on their salaries for the eventual increase (assuming they don't trade them). With a payroll of $15 million, its almost impossible for the payroll not to go up by next season.
Why is it at $15 million though? They won 2 World Series Championships in under a decade! That alone should have given them at least a $30-$50 million payroll. However, since nobody comes to the games and nobody buys their stuff, they can't increase the payroll as much as they like. Their owner isn't helping any, what with trying his hardest to get the team out of Florida ASAP.

If the Marlins want a bigger payroll, they need to move, and the sooner the better. Especially since apparently the only one who gives a damn about them inside their own state is Dan LeBetard.

[Duke]

Hoo boy, that 9th inning scared me for a while there. When the count went to 2-1, I was almost afraid Ray was gonna walk the tying run home.

Oddly enough, when I was watching Baseball Tonight, the O's started sucking, and when I was watching the Cubs/Cards game, the O's did well. :sweat:

I wonder if Boston/Toronto will still be playing when I wake up to watch Pokémon tomorrow morning...

[silverwings]

YES! Now that was a game! Exciting to watch until the finish! Go O'S! :D

Though I bet the detracters will tell me 'It's only April..' Well, :p to you!

Should be an exciting series. Hope Cabrera brings out the good stuff tomorrow.

[BCVM22]

It's only April.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Another good win for Detroit. Maroth has been unfreaking believable this year. Nice to see him having success.

The Tigers really should sweep the Mariners, after all.

[RedNinja84]

Reds win again, now they are 11-6.

[Condiment King]

What a freaking night of baseball last night. Mets/Padres, Orioles/Yanks, Blue Jays/Red Sox, all down to the final out. Other great pitching matchups like Rich Harden in Oakland, Santana with Minnesota, etc. Probably the best night of baseball thus far.

[Dark Vicious]

I hate Rafael "DWI" Furcal and Dusty Baker.

That is all

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Another great win for the Tigers. For the second night in a row the pitching was great.

[One Radical Dude]

Greg Maddux goes 4-0, and he now has an 0.99 ERA -- nearly untouchable.

[KefkaFloyd]

Keith Foulke is making a great argument for forcing Papelbon to return to the rotation. Aside from a BS call on Friday night, Foulke has been nearly untouchable in his last several appearances after a slow start. He's come into the multi-inning setup role with fire in his belly. He's got something to prove after last year, and he's really nailed it, IMO.

The double-headed dragon of Foulke and Papelbon ensures that 95% of the high leverage innings the Red Sox need to pitch are taken care of. The next question is whether Timlin will finally decline (possible), whether Julian Tavarez can be kept from going batshit insane (improbable), and whether Rudy Seanez can do anything without screwing up (very improbable).

Fortunately, Manny Delcarmen, Craig Hansen, and Jon Lester are waiting in the wings.

The Red Sox could have easily taken two out of three from the Blow Jays, but fail to once again. On Tuesday they travel to Cleveland to take on the Injuns at the Jake. Big Schill, Wakefield, and Beckett are expected to pitch and hopefully mow down them down.

I'm missing Coco Crisp dearly (and so are my fantasy teams). The Willie Harris/Dustan Mohr platoon is killing me. I'd rather wait and let Coco heal completely rather than rush him back, though. Getting Coco back in leadoff and bringing Youkilis down in the order to do the Bill Mueller Turnover will really help get this offense going.

[Condiment King]

Keith Foulke is making a great argument for forcing Papelbon to return to the rotation. Aside from a BS call on Friday night, Foulke has been nearly untouchable in his last several appearances after a slow start. He's come into the multi-inning setup role with fire in his belly. He's got something to prove after last year, and he's really nailed it, IMO.

The double-headed dragon of Foulke and Papelbon ensures that 95% of the high leverage innings the Red Sox need to pitch are taken care of. The next question is whether Timlin will finally decline (possible), whether Julian Tavarez can be kept from going batshit insane (improbable), and whether Rudy Seanez can do anything without screwing up (very improbable).
I...completely disagree. Keith Foulke's stats are coming from mostly mop-up work, whereas Jonathan Papelbon is facing the ninth inning. I mean, Foulke was working games when the Sox were trailing for awhile and has only now worked up to the middle relief in close situations role. Papelbon hasn't even blown a save yet. He's 8/8 in save opportunities. Moving him to the rotation greatly weakens a bullpen with the likes of Julian Tavarez and Rudy Seanez. You don't know exactly what you get if Foulke starts closing again, and you don't know what you'll get from Papelbon as a starter exactly. You definitely don't know if he'll be as excellent as he has been in the role.

As far as the fifth starter goes, the rotation is already fairly solid with Schilling, Beckett, and Wakefield. Clement has had some sloppy outings but is good enough as a fourth starter. The fifth starter doesn't need to be excellent, particularly if it takes away from the bullpen. Besides, if the Marlins do trade Dontrelle Willis, the Sox could package two of their pitching prospects to get him, and there's your rotation. Pulling Papelbon from the closer role would really be unfair to him most of all.

[Duke]

Y'know, I complain about this every year, but still. I'm getting sick of watching the O's play against the AL East. I can't wait until the end of May when they play the Nationals, Mariners, and Angels all in a row. Too bad we then have to go back to Tampa Bay, New York, and Toronto immediately afterwards. Luckily, after their mid-June series against Toronto, the O's don't travel back to the AL East until the end of July, and even then, it's just one series until the beginning of August.

So...yea. Can't wait until the end of May.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Alright, Tigers pull out the Broomsticks and sweep the Mariners. Verlander pithces 7 strong innings, and Rodney and Jones both pitch great out of the pen.

Catching the White Sox will be tough, especially with the Tigers going into Anaheim to face Los Angeles.:sweat:

[KefkaFloyd]

I...completely disagree. Keith Foulke's stats are coming from mostly mop-up work, whereas Jonathan Papelbon is facing the ninth inning. I mean, Foulke was working games when the Sox were trailing for awhile and has only now worked up to the middle relief in close situations role. Papelbon hasn't even blown a save yet. He's 8/8 in save opportunities. Moving him to the rotation greatly weakens a bullpen with the likes of Julian Tavarez and Rudy Seanez. You don't know exactly what you get if Foulke starts closing again, and you don't know what you'll get from Papelbon as a starter exactly. You definitely don't know if he'll be as excellent as he has been in the role.


You haven't been watching the past few days, have you? Those situations have not been "mop up work." The past week hasn't been mop-up work for Foulke at all. He's being put into higher and higher lev situations and succeeding (especially coming in with runners on today and slamming the door for almost two innings). My saying "making a great argument for forcing Papelbon to return to the rotation" does not equate "I want Paps back in the rotation this year." Just that his performance coming back has been that good. I do have a flair for the hyperbole sometimes. ;) Nothing in my post said that I wanted Paps back in the rotation, in fact, it was commenting on how having Foulke and Papelbon at top form equals a lock for almost all of the high leverage relief innings. I'm totally cool with that.

Besides, Julian and Rudy will not last the year. They will most likely be replaced by the likes of MDC, Hansen, or Lester.

[RedNinja84]

Reds bash the Brewers 11 to nothing, turn about is fair play. Reds are now 12 and 7.:)

[Condiment King]

You haven't been watching the past few days, have you? Those situations have not been "mop up work." The past week hasn't been mop-up work for Foulke at all. He's being put into higher and higher lev situations and succeeding (especially coming in with runners on today and slamming the door for almost two innings). My saying "making a great argument for forcing Papelbon to return to the rotation" does not equate "I want Paps back in the rotation this year." Just that his performance coming back has been that good. I do have a flair for the hyperbole sometimes. ;) Nothing in my post said that I wanted Paps back in the rotation, in fact, it was commenting on how having Foulke and Papelbon at top form equals a lock for almost all of the high leverage relief innings. I'm totally cool with that.

Besides, Julian and Rudy will not last the year. They will most likely be replaced by the likes of MDC, Hansen, or Lester.
But its not making a great argument at all. Foulke stringing together outings recently does not throw him back into a competition for the closer's role, especially when Papelbon is succeeding as much as he is. I saw Foulke on Friday in extra innings when he took the loss, despite it being Rudy Seanez's fault, it was his runner on first. I saw him today pitch the 6th and the 7th, but he's still below Timlin and Papelbon on the hierarchy to Francona. I've seen Foulke be hit hard as well, but right at some outfielders. I'm not saying you are saying that Papelbon should go back into the rotation. I just don't understand the argument.

[KefkaFloyd]

But its not making a great argument at all. Foulke stringing together outings recently does not throw him back into a competition for the closer's role, especially when Papelbon is succeeding as much as he is. I saw Foulke on Friday in extra innings when he took the loss, despite it being Rudy Seanez's fault, it was his runner on first. I saw him today pitch the 6th and the 7th, but he's still below Timlin and Papelbon on the hierarchy to Francona. I've seen Foulke be hit hard as well, but right at some outfielders. I'm not saying you are saying that Papelbon should go back into the rotation. I just don't understand the argument.

Foulke is being used as a Jamesian relief ace. I am not saying to make him "the closer." He got screwed in extras on Friday by a terrible call (that batter he walked was on strike 3 which was admittedly a better pitch than the one called strike two), and today he came in WITH RUNNERS ON and one out when Tito should have just let him start the inning and mowed down the BJs and had back to back Ks on Wells and Glaus. That, my friend, is cojones, and it's stuff. Papelbon cannot pitch all the high leverage innings. If you have Foulke pick up the rest, you've got one heck of a bullpen. He's been much better than either Rudy or Julian, and Timlin's still going to have trouble with inherited runners. The game was won today in the sixth inning when Foulke shut the opponents down and gave the Sox the time to score some insurance.

The word "closer" is a bad word in my book. I don't really care about saves, I care about getting outs in high leverage situations. If Foulke has regained even 90% of his effectiveness (which it looks like he has) he will be a very good weapon out of the bullpen even if Tito doesn't use him in save situations, and in fact, that might be a good thing - Foulke came in today and slammed the door when the game could have gotten out of hand. It let Timlin set up an inning with no runners on and it let Pap finish it out in the ninth. Sometimes the game is won or lost in the sixth inning, and today was an example. The sixth inning was the high leverage situation, and Tito used Foulke correctly.

[KefkaFloyd]

The game isn't even over and I'm pissed enough to write this. Even if the Sox win tonight, it'll feel like a loss to me.

Moronic basepathing. Tek especially. Tito leaving Schill in FAR too long. Foulke comes in the seventh and looks good (bailing out Schilling in the process by K-ing Hafner with a man in RISP and notching even more good outs) but Willie Harris costs him the 1-2-3 in the 8th as he botches a good play, and Tito takes him out in Favor of Timlin who has terrible problems with inherited runners and isn't pitching very well tonight either. Why not just bring in Papelbon to get four outs? I mean, really? Yesterday was a freaking off day. Sure, Timlin manages to get out of a jam that he helped create, but only by the skin of his teeth. You could have just had Paps come in and blow it by them.

WHY TITO WHY. Manage like a sane human being. This is making me insane.

Oh, and Theo? Kill Willie Harris. Thanks. There's nothing he can't do that Adam Stern can't do.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

After having a tough loss on Monday(a shame since Rogers was the superior pitcher in that game), the Tigers bounced back.

Bonderman shut down the Angel's bats, and Magglio Ordonez had a strong outing. 13-8 now for my Tigers, which is pretty good. We're going to keep putting pressure on Chicago, Detroit ain't going away this year.

[RedNinja84]

Reds swept the Nationals, Arroyo went 8 innings and allowed 0 runs with just 1 hit. He's now one of the best pitchers in the National League and the Reds are now 15-7. Cant wait for the weekend when Astros come to town, it will be a great series.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Crap, Tigers offense doesn't even show up and they lose the series. Still a 6-3 roadtrip is great, and 13-9 after 22 games is pretty good.

The Offense needs to start coming out more, though.

[RedNinja84]

Here's an update for the new month, Reds are 18-8 with the best record in the majors, beating the Astros and Cardinals.

[Shining Swellow]

Guess Arroyo is dealing in the NL Central, and for a sec. I thought the Mets had the best record but let's wait until September to really debate the Good Teams it always happens.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Alright, 4 straight wins for Detroit. The pitching and hitting has been cruising.

17-9, with one of the best records in baseball, and far and away the best pitching of any team.

[BCVM22]

Guess Arroyo is dealing in the NL Central, and for a sec. I thought the Mets had the best record but let's wait until September to really debate the Good Teams it always happens.

Sense? In this thread?

[Shining Swellow]

I need to explain my post. Okay Last time I checked Bronson Arroyo the Former Boston Red Sox was doing pretty good for the Cincinatti Reds also has hit a couple of Homeruns. The Last Time i read or watched TV about Baseball the Mets were in the lead for the Best Record but i wouldn't debate that yet only when July comes around and the True teams come out that could make a huge push for October.
My Favorite Team is the Yankees for a couple of Reasons, CT the state that i live in has areas that are Boston Fans, Yankee Fans and Mets Fans, and lastly One of my Aunt's and Uncle is a Huge Boston Fan, Aunt and Uncle are Huge Met's fans so i thought to go inbetween and be a Yankee fan.

[BCVM22]

I was agreeing with you. This thread seems to be dominated by people ready to appoint the Mets, Orioles and the Tigers as co-World Series champions. Wait until the All-Star break at least to buy your World Champion t-shirts, people.

[Duke]

I was agreeing with you. This thread seems to be dominated by people ready to appoint the Mets, Orioles and the Tigers as co-World Series champions.
Dude, the O's will be lucky to even reach the playoffs, let alone the World Series. I knew that coming into the season.

Doesn't mean we can't be excited when our team wins though.

[Captain Harlock]

Here's an update for the new month, Reds are 18-8 with the best record in the majors, beating the Astros and Cardinals.
18-7 White Sox. :)

[RedNinja84]

18-7 White Sox. :)

OK, well they had for a hour anyway. Hry Im a Reds fan and Im going to enjoy this run while it lasts, which will hopefully be in October. You gotta admit though Arroyo is pitching lik an ace, 5 wins, ERA under 3 and has 30 K's. Plus the Reds lead the league in runs, home runs, and on base percentage.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

I was agreeing with you. This thread seems to be dominated by people ready to appoint the Mets, Orioles and the Tigers as co-World Series champions. Wait until the All-Star break at least to buy your World Champion t-shirts, people.

Hey, the Tigers are playing great right now, that's all I'm saying. Another win tonight and they improve to 18-9, a half game behind Chicago. Mike Maroth is sporting a cool 1.78 ERA after 5 starts.

I think those two teams will really go at it in the Central this year.

Mets are good, but they will have to fend off Atlanta.

Orioles could make 4th place if the team plays over their heads all year.

[Tanooki]

Hey, the Tigers are playing great right now, that's all I'm saying. Another win tonight and they improve to 18-9, a half game behind Chicago. Mike Maroth is sporting a cool 1.78 ERA after 5 starts.

I think those two teams will really go at it in the Central this year.

Mets are good, but they will have to fend off Atlanta.

Orioles could make 4th place if the team plays over their heads all year.sadly, i agree

during the twins game a couple nights ago, they put up a graphic showing how the yankees and the red sox have both had slow starts to end up making it pretty far if not winning the whole thing. that's when i know it's over for the twins. when they compare them to the "out of our payroll" teams

[Captain Harlock]

OK, well they had for a hour anyway. Hry Im a Reds fan and Im going to enjoy this run while it lasts, which will hopefully be in October. You gotta admit though Arroyo is pitching lik an ace, 5 wins, ERA under 3 and has 30 K's. Plus the Reds lead the league in runs, home runs, and on base percentage.
By all means, celebrate it up. I'm tired of seeing the Cardinals atop the NL Central. Teams like Cincinatti, Milwalkuee, and Pittsburgh have all the talent to compete, but they just have difficulty in putting it together.

[Duke]

Well, the O's called up two pitchers from Triple-A to replace Brower and Eddy Rodriguez. Thank God. No need for Brower to ruin yet another good pitching performance.

The one pitcher, Kurt Birkins, is 1-3 with a 3.20 ERA and the other, Julio Manon, has 8 saves with a 0.75 ERA in AAA. Both will be used as long relief/set-up men, though Birkins will be used more for situational pitching, where as Manon, a former starter, is a long man.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

6 in a row for the Tigers as they get a win against the Angels. Although it was a good pitchers duel between Nate Robertson and Jeff "Pothead" Weaver.


19-9 baby!

[KefkaFloyd]

So... how bout them Yankees?

:shrug:

Shemp breaks his wrist, gets surgery tomorrow, and will be out for at least three months if not more. One of the few Yankees I had respect for, and a terrible thing to happen on a freak play, breaking his streak of consecutive games played (and what a gut punch way to break it).

Sox are 3-4 against the Yankees so far this year. Let's hope they keep it up. This weekend isn't looking good for baseball at the fens vs. Texas, as it looks like tomorrow and Saturday might be a washout.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

A shame for Matsui, hes a pretty good player and that'll hurt NY.

Detroit got their game cancelled today(if the weather in Baltimore was anything like it was in Northern VA its understandable why...), but that frees up Kenny to pitch the first game against Cleveland. A crucial series, Detroit can really bury Cleveland by taking 2 of 3.

[Natey]

Im a Rockies fan and it feels real odd to be winning you division and winning on the road. Even though we just lost to the Houston Astros today and were on a 3 game skid were still at the top of the NL west. tied with padres, game behind Arizona n 3 games behind Giants and Dodgers. Close Division. I think the Rockies can pull it of and make the playoffs. Do you? When the season began i thought they would start sucking as they anually do. But that gang has suprised me.

[Fan of Sponge]

I went last night to a Reds game against Philadelphia. The Reds did something new last night by doing Saturday night games starting at 6:10 p.m. The game went by fast since both pitchers were in a duel and the game was over by 8:30 p.m. The Reds finally caved in through an error. The game didn't get really exciting until the bottom of the ninth and then Adam Dunn struck out as the last batter and could've won the game. It was also an Adam Dunn promotionial night by the way. The Reds are starting to follow into the path of losers once again.

[Duke]

You know, I haven't actually paid attention to much baseball in the past couple weeks. Did Bonds pass Ruth already?

[Condiment King]

You know, I haven't actually paid attention to much baseball in the past couple weeks. Did Bonds pass Ruth already?
No and I hope it drags on for as long as possible to show how bad Bonds is.

PS: Bonds is on pace to break Aaron's record in early 2008.

[Punisher]

No and I hope it drags on for as long as possible to show how bad Bonds is.

PS: Bonds is on pace to break Aaron's record in early 2008.
All we can do now is hope.

P.S. The Orioles have got to be the worst pitching team in the whole freaking league.

[silverwings]

All we can do now is hope.

P.S. The Orioles have got to be the worst pitching team in the whole freaking league.

Nah, I think KC is worse. :p Still, it was a great come-from-behind today.

Getting to go see the O's/Sox game tomorrow (first of the year for me). I hope, whoever wins, that it's a good game.

[Punisher]

Nah, I think KC is worse. :p Still, it was a great come-from-behind today.

Getting to go see the O's/Sox game tomorrow (first of the year for me). I hope, whoever wins, that it's a good game.Rodrigo's been good against the Sox in the past, but with that insane ERA, I wouldn't bet on him. But in a positive light, ONLY TWO GAMES UNDER .500!!

[KefkaFloyd]

Rodrigo's been good against the Sox in the past, but with that insane ERA, I wouldn't bet on him. But in a positive light, ONLY TWO GAMES UNDER .500!!

Lopez hasn't beaten the Red Sox since the middle of last year.

That being said, pray the game won't be a washout.

[Duke]

Lopez hasn't beaten the Red Sox since the middle of last year.
Well, he USED to be good against the Red Sox.

Personally, I'd just want Cabrera to actually be consistent for once. Ever since his first two games in the majors, he's been completely unpredictable.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers sweep the Indians. Really putting pressure on the Sox for the division.

The pitching remains dominant.

[Duke]

OK, I HAVE been out of the loop. Who's Fahey? Is Roberts on the DL, or is this just a day off?

[BCVM22]

OK, I HAVE been out of the loop. Who's Fahey? Is Roberts on the DL, or is this just a day off?

Transaction wire says he was recalled on April 30.

[Mr.HeathBell]

When Coco Crisp comes back and starts off slowly (1-11), I'm expecting ESPN to be going START WILY MO crazy. It didn't really matter what Lopez did in years past against the Sox anyways. He's doing BAD right now.

[KefkaFloyd]

When Coco Crisp comes back and starts off slowly (1-11), I'm expecting ESPN to be going START WILY MO crazy. It didn't really matter what Lopez did in years past against the Sox anyways. He's doing BAD right now.

Wily Mo will surely get at bats, Tito has been pretty high on him and between giving Trot, Manny and Coco blows here and there, Wily Mo will get consistent time.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

TIGERS TIED FOR FIRST!

Woot! Its a good time to be a Tigers fan. Those years of mediocrity are coming to an end.

[BCVM22]

TIGERS TIED FOR FIRST!

Woot! Its a good time to be a Tigers fan. Those years of mediocrity are coming to an end.

Despite myself, I will admit the Tigers are showing some teeth, if you'll pardon the expression, but for cripe's sake, it's MAY. There are still four and a half months to play in the season. You do not win the freaking division by being in first place on May 16.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Despite myself, I will admit the Tigers are showing some teeth, if you'll pardon the expression, but for cripe's sake, it's MAY. There are still four and a half months to play in the season. You do not win the freaking division by being in first place on May 16.

Er, I know that. Where did I say they won the division?

Do you know the last time the Tigers were in first place at this point in the season or later?

1993

I'm saying its a good time to be a Tigers fan. They've had losing season after losing seaso.

I said 'its a good time to be a Tiger's fan'. How is that not true? They have the best pitching in baseball(by far), have been enjoying great success, and have been scoring a lot of runs, too.

Sheesh, can a guy whose team hasn't been to the playoffs since the year he was born not get a little excited about some success?

[Vidfreak]

Tampa Bay will become good when they actually get a decent payroll and move out of Florida. Sure, they may have good young guys now, but they'll leave Tampa well before they can reach the playoffs.

I mean, hell, usually Tampa Bay is one of those teams that give them trouble, and they've taken all but 2 games so far.
Why would they do that?

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Tigers with the best record in baseball. The pitching is doing great, aside from Bonderman's poor outing on Friday.

[Moto Pete]

Tigers with the best record in baseball. The pitching is doing great, aside from Bonderman's poor outing on Friday.

I Just Can't get excited till August . WE Have See this Before 1990,1993

Good 1984 seems like so so long. Th Pistons Winning in 2004 was GREAT Red Wings Handfull of Cups since 1996. Who could ask for more? ( Well it would nice to not bow out in the 1st round 2 years in a row). The Lions god they are hopeless!!!!!!!!! But the Tigers are Baseball my Dad and Uncle talk about How Great '68 and '84 were, I was 5 I did get to go to 2 games but it's not the same( Lived in St Clair Shores/ Groose Pointe). I Have been to the World Seris (1993 Phillies vs Blue Jays) but i want to see the Tigers Succeced but it is too soon for me

[KuwabaraTheMan]

I Just Can't get excited till August . WE Have See this Before 1990,1993

Good 1984 seems like so so long. Th Pistons Winning in 2004 was GREAT Red Wings Handfull of Cups since 1996. Who could ask for more? ( Well it would nice to not bow out in the 1st round 2 years in a row). The Lions god they are hopeless!!!!!!!!! But the Tigers are Baseball my Dad and Uncle talk about How Great '68 and '84 were, I was 5 I did get to go to 2 games but it's not the same( Lived in St Clair Shores/ Groose Pointe). I Have been to the World Seris (1993 Phillies vs Blue Jays) but i want to see the Tigers Succeced but it is too soon for me

True, but 1993 we did win 85 games. While it isn't the playoffs, that's better then anything since then.

There's still a lot of season left to play, but for the first time in a while the Tigers look like legitimate contenders. Not to mention they have the foundation of a very strong team with that great starting pitching.

[sag_2002]

Well, the Cubs suck, as usual. Zambrano had a no-hitter going after 6, now we're about to lose, yet again. Looks like it's "Wait 'til Next Year" yet again.

[Moto Pete]

True, but 1993 we did win 85 games. While it isn't the playoffs, that's better then anything since then.

There's still a lot of season left to play, but for the first time in a while the Tigers look like legitimate contenders. Not to mention they have the foundation of a very strong team with that great starting pitching.

Well this is a good week Test Wise
5/26-5/28 vs Clev
5/29-6/1 vs NYY
6/2-6/4 vs Boston

7-3 Would be Great

anything more is just amazing 13 wins in 14 games is already crazy. As long as we maybe build a 3-4 game lead on Chicago

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Well this is a good week Test Wise
5/26-5/28 vs Clev
5/29-6/1 vs NYY
6/2-6/4 vs Boston

7-3 Would be Great

anything more is just amazing 13 wins in 14 games is already crazy. As long as we maybe build a 3-4 game lead on Chicago

Yeah, this has been crazy. We've got a chance to bury Cleveland this weekend. Its been frustrating that everytime we win, the White Sox win, though.

I think we can beat the Yankees with their bad pitching(Moose aside) and beat up offense. Boston and Chicago are the tests to get through.

[BCVM22]

Well, the Cubs suck, as usual. Zambrano had a no-hitter going after 6, now we're about to lose, yet again. Looks like it's "Wait 'til Next Year" yet again.

This team continues to show nothing, and so much of it. It's all one big, ugly chain reaction. With Derrek Lee down, the dynamics of the offense changed dramatically - when your third-hole hitter goes from D. Lee to Todd Walker, it affects the rest of your lineup, including placing increased pressure upon Aramis Ramirez, Michael Barrett, and Jacque Jones to provide the power in the lineup, none of whom have stepped up.

With the offense struggling, the pressure was placed upon the starting pitching, which, with the exception of Carlos Zambrano, has struggled mightily, including Sean Marshall and Greg Maddux of late. Both Angel Guzman and Rich Hill struggled in their starts, and both are back in Iowa right now. This team doesn't actually have a 5th starter! Glendon Rusch, getting the occasional inning out of the pen, is the closest thing we have. That's about as bad as you can get.

With the starting pitching and the offense both in a slump, the bullpen receives fewer and fewer meaningful innings to pitch in. Both Scott Eyre and Bob Howry, the two big offseason additions to this bullpen, are still solid, but neither are looking quite as sharp as they did early in the season when wins happened more than once a week.

And finally, the last stage has arrived: Ryan Dempster, going sometimes more than a week without a save opportunity, has begun to falter. This was his second straight blown save, and his third in the last two weeks, after being near-automatic in 2005, and in what few opportunities he received early this year. It's all one big, bad chain reaction, and it's going to continue to get worse, because not even the return of Derrek Lee and (ha) Mark Prior can help the problems this team has. It hurts. It really does.

[Punisher]

The bad luck with the O's continues. Jay's mother passed away the other day, although he was able to play through it and came up with a key RBI. Hayden Penn, immediatley after we call him up, get appendicitis, so we only have four starters now. Our manager Perlozzo said it will stay that way until June 3rd, which is crazy.

Well, it should be interesting to see what happens tonight as the Angels are sucking this year but so is Bruce Chen. Can his over 8 ERA pull out his first win of the season? Rodrigo surprised us yesterday, and all we can do is hope Chen will step up.

[KefkaFloyd]

The bad luck with the O's continues. Jay's mother passed away the other day, although he was able to play through it and came up with a key RBI. Hayden Penn, immediatley after we call him up, get appendicitis, so we only have four starters now. Our manager Perlozzo said it will stay that way until June 3rd, which is crazy.

Well, it should be interesting to see what happens tonight as the Angels are sucking this year but so is Bruce Chen. Can his over 8 ERA pull out his first win of the season? Rodrigo surprised us yesterday, and all we can do is hope Chen will step up.

The four man rotation is generally a better idea than a five man, but it depends on a good bullpen and a manager with a smart hook. The O's have neither (then again, most major league teams don't).

[sag_2002]

Cubs 1
Braves 2

Loss #20 in our last 26. We might as well just forfeit the 2007 season the way our team sucks this year.

[Anarky]

Cubs 1
Braves 2

Loss #20 in our last 26. We might as well just forfeit the 2007 season the way our team sucks this year.

I've often declared as a matter of civic pride that the better team play their home games at Wrigley while the other plays at US Cellular Field (unless the name's changed this week?:shrug: ). If that were the case, the ChiSox would OWN Wrigley. Maybe then the Cubs will wake up and realize how good they have it. Cubs Fans are the battered wives of MLB Fandom.

[Moto Pete]

anything more is just amazing 13 wins in 14 games is already crazy. As long as we maybe build a 3-4 game lead on Chicago

I didn't mean so FAST already 3.5 Games up on the Chi Soxs. This is getting Scary

[BCVM22]

I've often declared as a matter of civic pride that the better team play their home games at Wrigley while the other plays at US Cellular Field (unless the name's changed this week?:shrug: ). If that were the case, the ChiSox would OWN Wrigley. Maybe then the Cubs will wake up and realize how good they have it. Cubs Fans are the battered wives of MLB Fandom.

So you're attempting to say what, exactly?

[Red]

and Barry Bonds just hit 715.

Darn

[Condiment King]

That Cubs/Braves game was easily the worst game I've watched all year. A battle of futility that included five errors, two starters that deserved losses, and a hilarious collapse in the 9th to force extras.

[sag_2002]

Remember that thing I said a couple days ago about forfeiting 2007? Well, we might as well take the rest of 2006 off. 13-12 loss to the Braves is our 6th straight and 21st in 26.

Ugh. Forget about 2007. At this point, it'll be 3007 before we win it all.

[FireStarterLE]

well at least we dont have to wait long to forget about the (former?) closer's weekly collapse with the 1PM game tomorrow

The only good thing about after the 9th was that we got the win and the top of the noggin pop Aramis took to put the winning run in scoring position

[BCVM22]

well at least we dont have to wait long to forget about the (former?) closer's weekly collapse with the 1PM game tomorrow


Word on the postgame here was that your Mr. Ray will be receiving the bulk of the save opportunities from now on.

[Condiment King]

Pedro Martinez vs Brandon Webb was the best game I've watched this year. 13 inning pitcher's duel, 1-0 Mets victory on an RBI single from Endy Chavez. What's really amazing is we didn't even burn our bullpen as Pedro went 8, Wagner went 2, and Filthy Sanchez went 3 and picked up the win. Hooray.

[One Radical Dude]

It looks like Roger Clemens will be back in baseball and with the Astros. Why am I not surprised?

[Duke]

I'm just glad that story's over with. It was getting annoying having the PTI guys say basically the same damn thing every week the story was brought up.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Big win for Detroit tonight.

Although when you can close out May with a four game losing streak and still have the best record in Baseball, that's always phenomenol.

Tough week though, with Maroth out until at least July. He's been a big part of the team's success. Bonderman will have more pressure on him now, as will Robertson. And the team needs another starter.


But that come from behind win was major stuff. Hopefully they can take two of three from the Red Sox this weekend.

[Anarky]

The Rays remain devilish...for now. The new ownership of the Tampa Bay Devil Rays have decided to keep their moniker for the '07 season but are seriously considering renaming the club for the '08 season. On a related note: the organization is near completion constructing a devil ray tank in the outfield...(in falsetto) awkward!!!

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Freaking Todd Jones!:mad:

I swear, the Tigers were an out a way from beating Boston, and then he gives up the two run bomb and loses it. And after Rogers pitched such a gem.(Schilling did, too, but Rogers stood to be the winning pitcher).

Hopefully Leyland will make Fernando Rodney the closer, he's much better then Jones.

[Damien]

I hope Tampa keeps the name. Or at least change it to "Manta" or "Sting". I'm not too happy with them right now. Anyone catch what happened in the last inning of the Toronto game? It went from 4-3 to 13-3 in an inning. Come on, Tampa! Step up!

Friend of mine has gotten me watching some baseball. She's a huge Yankees fan. At first I could only watch games with her (not a big fan of baseball), but I'm getting there.

Anyway, that's where I'm at.

[Moto Pete]

Freaking Todd Jones!:mad:

I swear, the Tigers were an out a way from beating Boston, and then he gives up the two run bomb and loses it. And after Rogers pitched such a gem.(Schilling did, too, but Rogers stood to be the winning pitcher).

Hopefully Leyland will make Fernando Rodney the closer, he's much better then Jones.

yeah i was p issssssed this morning

I was watching the game on MLBtv. Well my power went out in the top of the 9th (Storm). When i woke up an d got online i was like $%$^#$%#$%#$%#$# Byut then again the Pistons Choked so it made it great night anyway.

[KefkaFloyd]

Freaking Todd Jones!:mad:

I swear, the Tigers were an out a way from beating Boston, and then he gives up the two run bomb and loses it. And after Rogers pitched such a gem.(Schilling did, too, but Rogers stood to be the winning pitcher).

Hopefully Leyland will make Fernando Rodney the closer, he's much better then Jones.

Man, the Tigers are a big bunch of hackers. Throw any slop outside and they swing. I mean, they let Rudy beat them. ;) The only bat hard to strike out is Polanco. If they're going to stay in it long term they need to learn some plate discipline fast.

[Moto Pete]

Man, the Tigers are a big bunch of hackers. Throw any slop outside and they swing. I mean, they let Rudy beat them. ;) The only bat hard to strike out is Polanco. If they're going to stay in it long term they need to learn some plate discipline fast.

Andy Van Slyke needs to calm them down.

[email2003]

My Astros are sucking up since they were 19-9 to begin the season. Since then, we have gone 8-19 and that is crap. The offense cant even hit, the relief pitchers blow the lead and the game all together, its just terrible overall.

I really dont see this team making that so called "late run" this year.:shrug:

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Man, the Tigers are a big bunch of hackers. Throw any slop outside and they swing. I mean, they let Rudy beat them. ;) The only bat hard to strike out is Polanco. If they're going to stay in it long term they need to learn some plate discipline fast.

Granderson walks a lot, but also strikes out a lot.

I do agree that the team needs to strike out a lot less.

So far its been pitching and the long ball, the team needs to get another on base guy(trade Monroe for someone).

[email2003]

Great, Astros lose again with Pettitte on the mound. This is really a horrible team. I'm afraid now to go to a home game and watch them get spanked in 3 innings.

Since being 19-9 the Astros have now gone 8-20. Thats just crap!:o

I'm starting to lose faith in this team now.:shrug:

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Bonderman had a great outing, and Maggs came up big in the 8th to keep Rollercoaster from coming in to mess it up.

The Tigers continue to maintain the best record in baseball.

Maroth's out, but the rest of the staff is dominating. Their other 4 starters all are within the Top 20 ERA in the AL. You can't overstate how huge that is.

Verlander, Bonderman, and Rogers are also in the Top 20 for WHIP, with Robertson just outside in 21st.

Right now the biggest concern is with the offense, which is still somewhat shaky. But pitching wins championships, after all.

[FireStarterLE]

My Astros are sucking up since they were 19-9 to begin the season. Since then, we have gone 8-19 and that is crap. The offense cant even hit, the relief pitchers blow the lead and the game all together, its just terrible overall.

I really dont see this team making that so called "late run" this year.:shrug:

hey, we should get together next weekend for a 4 game series or something like that and compare suckieness

[Moto Pete]

Well the Tigers loss endiing the "Test" @ 4-6 not good but then again ChiWS are 3-7 aganst Weaker offense's. So we got lucky. Well Detroit has a Nice seris @ Chi Tue-Thur. Ideally a sweep would be great but i'll take 2/3.



I Heard a Rumor on Baseball Today ( 6/2) Podcast That Jim Leyland has Talked about trying to bring in Barry Bonds to to DH/OF.

My Question is How Do Tiger Fans Feel about this? I Thought wow that would be werid but as i thought that would be a great bat and if he DH's he will be heathier. It makes sense because he is worn down in SF and a F/A this year at Least they would get something a prospect or player for him instead of NOTHING. If the Tigers are STILL in the RACE in Late July i Say get it Done

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Bonds would give the Tigers a lefty bat, but he's not exactly at his prime strength, and could be a problem(even though he and Leyland are buddies).

As he's rather injury prone and not really hitting the ball, I'd prefer to look for a healthier and more athletic answer for a lefty bat.


Against the Sox, we'll send out Robertson, Verlander, and Rogers, so we've got the pitching down. We just need to get some timely hitting against them. 2 out of 3 would be great, and that would give us a 3.5 game lead.

[email2003]

Hey another day, another game another Astros loss! This is getting really boring!

Now it's 8-21 since being 19-9 to start the season.

I guess the Cubs are gonna sweep us away too in the next 4 home games.

[purplehairedwonder]

Yeesh, four game sweep of the Braves by the D-Backs, first one for them since 1995. Now that is just embarrassing. They were doing so well before coming home, which is where they usually dominate. What is with this 1-6 nonsense? They're a game under .500 again and 6 games back. This is getting bad. We need consistency. Pitching and hitting in random spurts is not going to cut it. Maybe they'll pick it up again against the Nats. There's no way Bobby Cox is going to let this lackluster series slide.

[Moto Pete]

Bonds would give the Tigers a lefty bat, but he's not exactly at his prime strength, and could be a problem(even though he and Leyland are buddies).

As he's rather injury prone and not really hitting the ball, I'd prefer to look for a healthier and more athletic answer for a lefty bat.


Against the Sox, we'll send out Robertson, Verlander, and Rogers, so we've got the pitching down. We just need to get some timely hitting against them. 2 out of 3 would be great, and that would give us a 3.5 game lead.

He may be heathier if he doesn't play the field.

Robertson (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7014) (5-3) vs Garcia (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6168) (7-3)
Verlander (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7590) (7-3) vs Contreras (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7043) (5-0)
Rogers (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=3974) (7-3) vs Garland (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6396) (4-2)

Verlander Named ROM May'06
http://tsn.ca/mlb/news_story/?ID=167926&hubname=

[email2003]

Good god! The Cubs pitcher Zambrano hit a homer on the Astros!!!!!!

Thats the last straw!!!!!!!! WE SUCK BIG!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:

[Jex]

:) Hooray! Yanks win it 13-5 against Boston.

[Damien]

How 'bout them Yankees, huh?

And how 'bout them Rays? They beat the Angels 4-0. Guess they must've read my last post. ;)

[BCVM22]

Good god! The Cubs pitcher Zambrano hit a homer on the Astros!!!!!!

Thats the last straw!!!!!!!! WE SUCK BIG!!!!!!!!!!!!:mad:

You can't stop Big Z; you can only hope to contain him.

Seriously, though, Zambrano has hit 3 of his 5 career homers at Minute Maid. It has somewhat less to do with the current Astros roster and more to do with Big Z enjoying hitting in Houston. He hit one off Roy Oswalt there last year, and Wade Miller in 2003, and I don't see anyone chucking the evil red smiley and the exclaimations at Oswalt or 2003-era Miller. Don't take this one homer as a concrete measure of your club.

(That said, go Cubs!)

[Moto Pete]

yeah without great pitching and hitting on dl they just keep winning

[RedNinja84]

The Reds are red hot winning five in a row:D . They are only two games back and are leading thw wild card. Im happy they got Esteban Yan in the bullpen now and that Griffey decided to start playing like his oldself. Hopefully the Reds will be in it till the end.

[Moto Pete]

Rodney BLEW a 3-1 lead on a a Alex Citron 3 run Homer Hey tigers you can't in the divison if you don't beat the Chisoxs

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Rodney BLEW a 3-1 lead on a a Alex Citron 3 run Homer Hey tigers you can't in the divison if you don't beat the Chisoxs

DAMMIT.

We need a new bullpen.

[Captain Harlock]

So bases loaded with Thome and Konerko resulted in nothing for my Sox, but it took an Alex Cintron home run to win the game?

I can live with it. Just don't want it to become commonplace to have the big hitters fail.

[Bowles]

It's odd for me to be happy about the Rangers at this point, although the last two years have made it less weird. But this time we're in 1st place without our second best pitcher (Eaton) and our second best hitter (Teixeira) hasn't even caught fire yet.

By the way, if you've never seen Michael Young hit - wow. That guy's fun to watch.

[email2003]

The streak is over!!! Astros finally win! Man, seemed like a long time since the last win.

[purplehairedwonder]

After a five game losing streak, the Braves finally pull out a win. And on a night that the Mets lost, meaning we gained a game. So we're what, only one game under .500 now? Yeesh, we were like 3 games over only a few days ago.

But I'm glad that Horacio Ramirez is looking healthy after his injury. And Ken Ray really has been a good addition to our weak bullpen. It's sad when the closer is getting booed by the home fans :rolleyes:

I missed the game on TV today, but I'm hoping to see the new hair styles that the team was sporting tomorrow.

[RedNinja84]

The Red's streak continues and are now only one game back.

[Captain Harlock]

Comedy of errors in Chicago. Luckily, the Sox were the ones to come out on top. Only one more for a sweep. ;)

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Comedy of errors in Chicago. Luckily, the Sox were the ones to come out on top. Only one more for a sweep. ;)

Dammit, this is getting old fast.

Two close losses.

The Tigers need to make a trade. Preferably for a lefty bat that can walk.

[Duke]

The Tigers need to make a trade. Preferably for a lefty bat that can walk.
Hmm...a lefty bat that can walk...

I wonder who they could possibly get...


I Heard a Rumor on Baseball Today ( 6/2) Podcast That Jim Leyland has Talked about trying to bring in Barry Bonds to to DH/OF.
Well, you wanted a lefty bat that could walk...

[FireStarterLE]

After a five game losing streak, the Braves finally pull out a win. And on a night that the Mets lost, meaning we gained a game. So we're what, only one game under .500 now? Yeesh, we were like 3 games over only a few days ago.

But I'm glad that Horacio Ramirez is looking healthy after his injury. And Ken Ray really has been a good addition to our weak bullpen. It's sad when the closer is getting booed by the home fans :rolleyes:

I missed the game on TV today, but I'm hoping to see the new hair styles that the team was sporting tomorrow.

and the losses keep coming :sad: ... the only thing that can keep this day positive will be if NY looses. But the Phillies won so now we're 3 1/2 back of them!!!!!

John's fu manchu isnt like some of the other guys it just looks like normal facial hair, but Jeff's and Adam's are very noticable

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Hmm...a lefty bat that can walk...

I wonder who they could possibly get...


Well, you wanted a lefty bat that could walk...

Someone a little healthier, preferably. I'm more interested in Raul Ibanez.

And the Baseball Today thing was just Buster Olney speculating, not based on anything.

[Moto Pete]

Dammit, this is getting old fast.

Two close losses.

The Tigers need to make a trade. Preferably for a lefty bat that can walk.

This is a Young Team ,Making Young Mistakes

I would like a guy that has experince that can calm the batters down. i watched the game last night they just made fundmental errors


Alex Citrion is enemy #1

[RedNinja84]

Reds are now tied for first. I can't believe the swept both the Astros and the Cardinals, Reds are going to be around for awhile.

[Bowles]

I'm not sure if I see the Tigers keeping pace for the rest of the season. They're young and in the same division as the world champs, so all things considered that's not too bad of a deal. I think that they will be good enough to win it all the next few years as long as they don't overuse their good young pitchers - which it looks like they're going to do. This kind of reminds me of the 2003 Cubs, actually...

Luckily the AL West isn't as strong this year and the Rangers might be able to pull it out if they can stay in first until the rest of our team gets hot.

[email2003]

Reds are now tied for first. I can't believe the swept both the Astros and the Cardinals, Reds are going to be around for awhile.
Yeah, you guys swept us! That was cause we're in a stage of suckness right now. Everyone believes here that its the second half of the season where the Astros begin to click. And it maybe true since they've done it for 2 years now.

[Captain Harlock]

Bad defense and a bad Garland make for a loss.

Anyone want a pitcher? I'm having a Garland must go sale. Cheap.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

Good win for the Tigers. The offense finally came out, and Kenny Rogers pitched a strong game.

Of course now Rodney and Jones have good outings.

[Punisher]

We split with Toronto. Holy crap, we may be getting better. Jay Gibbons will be off the DL soon, maybe we'll get to that hard-to-reach .500 mark.

[purplehairedwonder]

Yeesh, 1-7 in June after an 18-11 May. What is this? Another loss. And it doesn't help that this massive slump is coming when the rest of the division is playing well. 7.5 games back and counting :sad: Sheesh, I know the Braves are a better team than this.

[Duke]

While it was great that we came back to beat the Blue Jays (how the hell we got 7 runs when we kept getting unlucky breaks I still don't fathom), I was annoyed at ESPN's ticker for the game. Their main O's stat? Fahey went 0-3. Why they went with that is just as confusing as the one game where their pre-game stat was how well Jeff Conine did against Kevin Millwood.

[Bowles]

The whole Astros second half thing really confuses me... Why can't this team do well in the first half? It's not like they're trying to get their chemistry together; this team has largely remained the same for the last three years (although Rocket wasn't there this year, but he's coming back, and anyways, they wasted most of his starts and only won half of them). It's like they have what Lance Berkman had for the beginning of his career, except the opposite... instead of fading out at the end, they fade out in May and June and then come roaring back.

[email2003]

The whole Astros second half thing really confuses me... Why can't this team do well in the first half? It's not like they're trying to get their chemistry together; this team has largely remained the same for the last three years (although Rocket wasn't there this year, but he's coming back, and anyways, they wasted most of his starts and only won half of them). It's like they have what Lance Berkman had for the beginning of his career, except the opposite... instead of fading out at the end, they fade out in May and June and then come roaring back.
Well that makes 3 in a row for the Astros. Hope that surge comes early before the All-Star break.

[Moto Pete]

These are teams the Tigers should and need to beat

Fri. 9 at Toronto (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tor)----Bonderman (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7106) (6-4) vs Chacin (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7463) (6-2)
Sat. 10 at Toronto (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tor)--Miner (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7783) (0-1) vs Lilly (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6223) (5-6)
Sun. 11 at Toronto (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tor)--Robertson (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7014) (5-3) vs Taubenheim (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7765) (0-2)

Mon. 12 Tampa Bay (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tam)--Verlander (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7590) (7-4) vs Kazmir (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7292) (7-4)
Tue. 13 Tampa Bay (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tam)--Rogers (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=3974) (8-3 vs McClung (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7108) (2-8)
Wed. 14 Tampa Bay (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tam)--Bonderman (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7106) (6-4) vs Hendrickson (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6978) (3-6)
Thu. 15 Tampa Bay (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/clubhouse?team=tam)---Miner (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=7783) (0-1) vs Fossum (http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6772) (1-2)



CHICAGO -- Radio station WDFN-AM (1130) reported Thursday that Tigers designated hitter Dmitri Young has entered the Betty Ford Center, a drug and alcohol rehabilitation facility in southern California.
WDFN cited an unidentified source close to Young as the basis of its report.
WDIV-TV Local 4 reported Young entered rehab, citing unnamed sources.


iI hope he gets better, It's a shame so much wasted talent

[Fan of Sponge]

The Reds once again win, but I don't believe this team will stay around for awhile. Most of the time, they are pretenders. If they do, then they need to get a pitcher and a good one at best.

Speaking of pitchers, The Rocket played down in Lexington a few nights ago with his son on the same team. Hopefully he gets up to majors by the expected time the Astros play the Twins on the 22nd. The Astros are going to make a serious run the second half with Cardinals. The race won't heat up until the after the All Star break.

[RedNinja84]

The Reds once again win, but I don't believe this team will stay around for awhile. Most of the time, they are pretenders. If they do, then they need to get a pitcher and a good one at best.

Speaking of pitchers, The Rocket played down in Lexington a few nights ago with his son on the same team. Hopefully he gets up to majors by the expected time the Astros play the Twins on the 22nd. The Astros are going to make a serious run the second half with Cardinals. The race won't heat up until the after the All Star break.

The Reds starting pitching have the second lowest ERA in the NL. The new owner and GM have really invigerated the team and Brandon Phillips is one the of the best second baseman in the league. They need help in the bullpen though but they have bench depth and I think the GM will pick up a good reliever for the stretch run. So don't count the Reds out yet.;)

[Punisher]

While it was great that we came back to beat the Blue Jays (how the hell we got 7 runs when we kept getting unlucky breaks I still don't fathom), I was annoyed at ESPN's ticker for the game. Their main O's stat? Fahey went 0-3. Why they went with that is just as confusing as the one game where their pre-game stat was how well Jeff Conine did against Kevin Millwood.Can you really expect that much from the same people who show EVERY Yankees-Red Sox game?

[email2003]

The Reds once again win, but I don't believe this team will stay around for awhile. Most of the time, they are pretenders. If they do, then they need to get a pitcher and a good one at best.

Speaking of pitchers, The Rocket played down in Lexington a few nights ago with his son on the same team. Hopefully he gets up to majors by the expected time the Astros play the Twins on the 22nd. The Astros are going to make a serious run the second half with Cardinals. The race won't heat up until the after the All Star break.
Glad to hear you guys aren't counting out the Astros. Though I have my doubts about them this year but I did have doubts about them last year when they were 15-30 and look where they ended up in the end.:sweat:

[Moto Pete]

Guess who blew a 5-2 lead in the 8th






"Jones and Rodney"

[Mr.HeathBell]

This isn't just based on the fact that Rodney & Jones couldn't register an out against Toronto. Because quite honestly, it's shocking to me that they can get outs against anyone. I don't know why Joel Zumaya isn't the closer on that team. That being said, Toronto is winning the world series. They have been without A.J. Burnett and Josh Towers tried to commit treason against the team, and they were fine. They stomped a mudhole in Boston and have been perfectly fine against every team that isn't Colorado. The only question is if Roy Halladay can stay healthy.

[email2003]

Mark down another win for the Astros. 4 in a row! Since being 27-31, now we're back at .500 with a 31-31 record. Hope we keep this hot streak going till Clemens arrives on June 22.

[KuwabaraTheMan]

What a horrendous loss.

Walker should not have been taken out when he was. Leave him in for the 8th and the Tigers would have won.

Its really shocking how Rodney has been blowing up this week. Up until now he had been lights out.

Tigers need an additional reliever along with that lefty bat.

[Duke]

Wow. When LaTroy Hawkins screws up, he screws up big. If he had covered first instead of worrying about the runner at third, the O's would've won, Lopez would've gotten his 4th straight win, and the bullpen would be rested. Instead, the O's lost, Lopez got a no-decision, and the bullpen got even more tired out stretching the game into the 12th.

The damn, trigger-happy umpire didn't help us out any. I still can't believe the 9th and 11th innings went practically the same way.