Baseball

[jdawg]

The Mariners are going to the playoffs this year! Seriously, I see nobody in the west challenging our team. We aren't even finished building the team yet either.


Randy Johnson was such a great pitcher. Him and Griffey will always be among my favorite players. Sad to see a great career come to an end.

[smc]

Maybe Tim Wakefield could be a 300-game winner. He's only got 111 to go, and if his back holds up he could throw the knuckleball for another 10 years!

[jdawg]

Beltre is ace defensively. He's had a real shitty time with injuries though and his offense never really picked up in Seattle. I read that he hated Safeco though which couldve been a reason for the lack of power.

[smc]

Originally Posted by jdawg

Beltre is ace defensively. He's had a real shitty time with injuries though and his offense never really picked up in Seattle. I read that he hated Safeco though which couldve been a reason for the lack of power.

Dave Roberts of stolen-base-against-the-Yankees-that-kept-the-Red-Sox-2004-season-alive fame said of Beltre to the Boston Globe yesterday: "Probably the best defensive player I ever played with. Not just third base, best defensive player, period."

A CORRECTION: I mentioned Casey Kotchman in my earlier Red Sox update. I forgot that he is being dealt to the Mariners (which would not have happened if Beltre had not been signed).

[jdawg]

You guys are getting Bill Hall plus the cash that we got from the Brewers and a minor leaguer. I like the trade for the Mariners as its a nice stop gap solution that could turn into something more. I'm guessing you guys are just trying to get rid of Kotchman and not really expecting much in return.

[smc]

I think I would put it differently: the Red Sox are trying to give Kotchman a chance to be closer to an everyday player (which could happen, eventually, with the Mariners but not in Boston). He was a loyal soldier and filled in nicely when Youk went down in '09. Plus, dealing Casey results in cash for the Beltre deal and keeps the Red Sox close to the luxury-tax threshold.

[ila]

I used to really like baseball. It was an interesting game, but now I rarely watch it because it does take so long to play. The length of time between pitches is interminable and it seems timeouts are too many and too frequent. At one time baseball was an exciting game to listen to on the radio, but now it's one long snorefest.

I realize that it's all about money because the longer it takes to play a game the more revenue is generated from sponsors to the tv stations, but it has killed my love of professional baseball.

[shadows]

Originally Posted by ila

I used to really like baseball. It was an interesting game, but now I rarely watch it because it does take so long to play. The length of time between pitches is interminable and it seems timeouts are too many and too frequent. At one time baseball was an exciting game to listen to on the radio, but now it's one long snorefest.

I realize that it's all about money because the longer it takes to play a game the more revenue is generated from sponsors to the tv stations, but it has killed my love of professional baseball.

The problem are players like A-Roid, Garcioparra, and Jeter(just to name a few) that take forever getting ready between pitches. Adjusting batting gloves(which Garcioparra was notorious for), kicking cleats, taking a deep breath, farting, scratching buttocks, adjusting cup, picking nose, ordering chinese food, belching, etc., etc..

[smc]

Originally Posted by ila

I used to really like baseball. It was an interesting game, but now I rarely watch it because it does take so long to play. The length of time between pitches is interminable and it seems timeouts are too many and too frequent. At one time baseball was an exciting game to listen to on the radio, but now it's one long snorefest.

I realize that it's all about money because the longer it takes to play a game the more revenue is generated from sponsors to the tv stations, but it has killed my love of professional baseball.

Ila, you make excellent points. While my initial post extolled the virtues of baseball's slowness, I don't want to be misconstrued: it has a natural slow pace that is fine, but the addition of more slowness through things like Fox deciding when the next half-inning can start because the commercials aren't over yet makes me want to scream! I would like to see the rules Major League Baseball has made about time between pitches actually enforced.

But even with the enhanced slowness, I still love the game.