MLB 2018

[progeezer]

There was quite an AB yesterday. It took 21-pitches, 12 minutes and 45 seconds, and 16 two-strike pitches for Giants’ Brandon Belt to finally fly out on Sunday against Los Angeles Angels pitcher Jaime Barria.

Not nearly the disciplined hitting feat of Belt's but Saturday night in the bottom of the 9th Brewer Jesus Aguilar (highest batting avg. in MLB right now but barely has enough at bats as a position player to stay qualified for a whole season barring injury to Thames or Santana) hit a walk off HR after going 0-2, working it to a full count and fouling off 7 pitches during the AB before connecting.

[DocProgger]

The great Albert Pujols is 8 hits from 3000. He will join Aaron and Mays as the only players with 600 HR and 3000 hits. What an incredible career this legend has had and is still having.

[ronmac]

Twins' center fielder just took the mound in NY

[Lou]

Interesting baseball tidbit here...

Going into today's games, there have been 5326 base hits. There has also been 5702 strike outs. This will be the first time in
major league history where KO's will be greater than hits for a calendar month!

[DocProgger]

Interesting baseball tidbit here...

Going into today's games, there have been 5326 base hits. There has also been 5702 strike outs. This will be the first time in
major league history where KO's will be greater than hits for a calendar month!

And the Saber-Geeks will try to defend that and explain to everyone in earshot how that is "good". LMAO.

[Lou]

And the Saber-Geeks will try to defend that and explain to everyone in earshot how that is "good". LMAO.

Yeah. Nothing like NOT seeing the ball put into play.

[Facelift]

And the Saber-Geeks will try to defend that and explain to everyone in earshot how that is "good". LMAO.

There's nothing inherently wrong with it.

[DocProgger]

There's nothing inherently wrong with it.

And right on cue.... . Not surprising that you can't figure out what is wrong with it, from both a purely baseball qualitative level as well as a fan aesthetic level. Validates my statement (and Lou's observations) a thousand fold. Stan Musial (696 career Ks in 12,718 plate appearances), Joe DiMaggio (369 career Ks in 7672 PAs), Ted Williams (709 career Ks in 9788 PAs) and Tony Gwynn (434 career Ks in 10,332 PA) are rolling in their graves right now.

[NogbadTheBad]

Baseball is inherently better as a spectator sport when the ball is in play and isn't just a progression of strike outs and HR's. I want to see double plays, steal, base running, sac flys, runners advanced on bunts.

[Scott Bails]

Shohei Otani has now struck out the AL MVP and hit a home run against the AL Cy Young Award winner.

[DocProgger]

Baseball is inherently better as a spectator sport when the ball is in play and isn't just a progression of strike outs and HR's. I want to see double plays, steal, base running, sac flys, runners advanced on bunts.

Exactly. And doubles into the gap, and screaming triples off the OF wall, runners batted in and being advanced and driven in with batted balls, activity on the basepaths. That is what makes baseball exciting, and the lack thereof in today's game due to the increasing frequency of Ks, walks and cheap homers is a far more serious issue and problem in keeping the younger and future generations motivated to attend and interested than the number of mound visits.

[Obscured]

Cespedes goes deep-
https://www.mlb.com/news/yoenis-cesp...un/c-273711420

[Facelift]

Baseball is inherently better as a spectator sport when the ball is in play and isn't just a progression of strike outs and HR's. I want to see double plays, steal, base running, sac flys, runners advanced on bunts.

OK... you have a personal aesthetic preference for less strikeouts and more balls in play.

Fine, but that doesn't invalidate my point that there isn't anything inherently wrong with it. Certainly, from a player production standpoint, having a lot of strikeouts isn't bad in and of itself if you also get on base a lot and have a lot of total bases.

And Paleo-Progger's lumping of Tony Gwynn in with actual immortal greats like Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio is itself evidence of how blinding the stupid adherence to strikeout aversion can be, from player production standpoint.

But hey - if you aesthetically don't like watching quality pitching, and would prefer to see balls in play all the time, that's as valid a preference as any. I guess there are NBA fans who don't like to watch dunks and 3 pointers, but would rather watch guys make 15 foot jump shots. Not sure why, though.

[NogbadTheBad]

I love watching a well pitched game, I love a low scoring duel where both pitchers are finessing their way to victory. Greg Maddux is probably my favorite pitcher. What I don't like is pitchers getting easy strike outs because the batter is still swinging for the fences on an 0-2 count. I'm a soccer guy, nothing wrong with a 1-0 scoreline, can still be a wonderful game.

I certainly not an NBA fan, they are probably the most supreme athletes on the planet but all the isolation plays, lack of passing, and focus on AAU style play bores me. It's hard to get excited about someone scoring a basket when there's literally another coming along in 30 seconds and a team will score upwards of 40 baskets in a game. It's just too damn easy to score and devalues the act of scoring.

[Facelift]

I certainly not an NBA fan, they are probably the most supreme athletes on the planet but all the isolation plays, lack of passing, and focus on AAU style play bores me. It's hard to get excited about someone scoring a basket when there's literally another coming along in 30 seconds and a team will score upwards of 40 baskets in a game. It's just too damn easy to score and devalues the act of scoring.

My personal favorite era of basketball play was the late '80s through late '90s, when teams were allowed to beat the shit out of each other. Basketball is much more interesting to me as a physical endurance test than the flurry of baskets that we have now.

[ronmac]

I consider hockey players to be better athletes than basketball players. I also hate the clock games in the last two minutes.

And I think baseball requires more skills.

Speaking of skills, the Bronx Bombers have been living up to their name and are almost clicking on all cylinders. Pitching still needs help, especially the pen, with Dellin Betances doing everything he can to get sent down or traded. But, that lineup could be the best I've seen in quite some time. Didi is tearing things up. 27 RBI in the first 22 games.

[Scott Bails]

My personal favorite era of basketball play was the late '80s through late '90s, when teams were allowed to beat the shit out of each other. Basketball is much more interesting to me as a physical endurance test than the flurry of baskets that we have now.

Ugh. No thanks. Basketball is not a contact sport. I'm not a fan of thuggery in sports.

[Facelift]

I consider hockey players to be better athletes than basketball players. I also hate the clock games in the last two minutes.

And I think baseball requires more skills.

Speaking of skills, the Bronx Bombers have been living up to their name and are almost clicking on all cylinders. Pitching still needs help, especially the pen, with Dellin Betances doing everything he can to get sent down or traded. But, that lineup could be the best I've seen in quite some time. Didi is tearing things up. 27 RBI in the first 22 games.

The bullpen as a whole has been doing better in the last week. Betances isn't doing much worse than any of them. Two of his nine outings this season were dreadful, but the aggregate numbers of his other seven appearances are quite good (6.1 innings pitched, 1 earned run, 4 hits, 4 walks, 10K). I do remain a bit surprised the Yankees didn't trade him in the offseason, considering his problems last year and the strength of the rest of the bullpen. He wasn't worth as much in November as he was in July, but he was still worth a good bit.

[ronmac]

The bullpen as a whole has been doing better in the last week. Betances isn't doing much worse than any of them. Two of his nine outings this season were dreadful, but the aggregate numbers of his other seven appearances are quite good (6.1 innings pitched, 1 earned run, 4 hits, 4 walks, 10K). I do remain a bit surprised the Yankees didn't trade him in the offseason, considering his problems last year and the strength of the rest of the bullpen. He wasn't worth as much in November as he was in July, but he was still worth a good bit.

He's totally lost.

[polmico]

Yeah. Nothing like NOT seeing the ball put into play.

And SABR supports this how? Are you claiming SABR dislikes balls in play?

[Facelift]

He's totally lost.

If Betances' two terrible outings out of nine is enough to render him "totally lost," what would best describe Sonny Gray? Do words for that even exist?

[DocProgger]

And SABR supports this how? Are you claiming SABR dislikes balls in play?

I think you missed his point. How does a K put a ball in play?

[ronmac]

If Betances' two terrible outings out of nine is enough to render him "totally lost," what would best describe Sonny Gray? Do words for that even exist?

So, two players can't be lost at the same time? Don't be silly. This is not a competition. They are both liabilities right now.

[ronmac]

Meanwhile, Didi Gregorious continues his tear. Another dinger tonight (four games in a row, nine for the month), 29 RBIs and batting .372.

[Facelift]

So, two players can't be lost at the same time? Don't be silly. This is not a competition. They are both liabilities right now.

Right, but Betances has mostly been excellent.

Gray has been terrible every time out on the mound except for one. The two are miles apart right now. So, if Betances is totally lost, I'm wondering what that makes Gray, since Gray is consistently bad, whereas Betances is mostly good, but only occasionally terrible.