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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Feb 14, 2014 23:55:12 GMT -5
Um, so given that there's already a hockey thread, college basketball thread, American football thread, soccer football thread, etc, I figured I'd go ahead and make a thread for people to talk baseball, since pitchers and catchers are starting to report for spring training. I'm not a huge baseball fan, but have been shifting my sports fandom more and more in its direction given the fact that there aren't so many gratuitous concussions in baseball as there are in American football and hockey. So, yeah, if people actually contribute to this, I'll probably be one of the less knowledgeable commenters, so forgive me for that.
Anyway, as a Yankees fan, there's a lot of question marks heading into this spring training after an uncharacteristic season of missing the playoffs. In the infield, we've improved at catcher with Brian McCann, and Teixera and Jeter should be back, but have a ton of question marks re: ability to rebound from injuries. And as we lost Cano and all our 2nd and 3rd base options are either extremely uninspiring or supremely injury-prone. So our infield looks like possibly the weakest part of the roster. With pitching, we managed to sign Masahiro Tanaka to an enormous contract, and he should be good, but you never know. Meanwhile, who knows whether Sabathia will improve off of an unimpressive 2013, and whether Kuroda and Nova will play like they played in their good half of last season, or their bad half? And it remains to be seen whether Pineda is capable of starting yet (or ever), or whether the fifth starter spot will go to Phelps, Warren, or Nuno. And our bullpen will probably only be worse after the retirement of Rivera. At outfield, Beltran and Ellsbury were cool additions (although one could argue that Ellsbury is just a more expensive, injury prone, and only marginally better Chris Stewart, so eh). Overall if I had to guess, I'd say the Yankees make it back to the postseason in a Wildcard and then lose in the AL Semifinals in 4 games.
So anyway, what do you all think about your respective favorite teams heading into spring training? I'm looking forward to whatever conversation this thread sparks, and getting to be more knowledgeable about the sport.
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Post by Lt. Broccoli on Feb 15, 2014 2:08:18 GMT -5
The Blue Jays are a team that exists. They're not so bad that they will finish last in the AL East, but they aren't good enough for anyone to pay any attention to them.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 15, 2014 10:36:56 GMT -5
The Giants are my team and I'm hoping we continue our trend of alternating crappy seasons with World Series wins. The bullpen is strong and the starters should be better. Bumgarner is the best young lefty not named Clayton Kershaw. Matt Cain should do better after a rough start to 2013. We added Tim Hudson who should be better than Barry Zito. The big question is what do Lincecum (who we overpayed but who cares b/c feelings) and Vogelsong bring to the table. On offense Pence and Belt should carry over their strong finishes from 2013 and hopefully we get healthy seasons from Buster Posey and and Angel Pagan. The rest of the lineup is super iffy. Can you win with a LF platoon of Mike Morse and Gregor Blanco? With the rest of the NL West making moves everything has to go right with little margin for error.
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Post by Desert Dweller on Feb 15, 2014 23:28:24 GMT -5
I love baseball!
I'm just hoping the Diamondbacks can finish better than .500, which is where they've ended up the last two seasons.
I'm also hoping to see the Dodgers really stink and finish in at least 4th place in the NL West. I'm pretty sure I'd now be more likely to root for the Giants than the Dodgers. At least the Giants have players I like, such as Cain and Posey. Though, I doubt this wish will come true.
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Post by ComradeQuestions on Feb 16, 2014 11:58:36 GMT -5
I am also a Yankees fan who isn't terribly optimistic about this season. I feel like this year's team is worse on paper than last year's, though last year's was hugely held back by injuries. The starting rotation looks better, though I'm really skeptical about skinny Sabathia. But I don't think the offense is any better -- although not giving Cano a 10-year contract was the right move, McCann + Ellsbury + Beltran isn't as good as Cano + Granderson + ARod. Tex is the best infielder, but he's been going downhill for years, and coming off wrist surgery he's still a huge question mark. And the only person in the bullpen whose name I can even remember is David Robertson who, let's not forget, after taking over the closer role when Rivera tore his ACL in 2012, pretty much immediately lost it to Rafael Soriano because of poor performance. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Feb 16, 2014 12:16:14 GMT -5
Huge Washington Nationals fan. I am pumped. There are only two seasons: baseball season, and waiting for baseball season.
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Post by flyinggrayson on Feb 16, 2014 14:22:38 GMT -5
I'm a life-long Pirates fan. I know! I wouldn't be surprised if they take a step back this season, especially in the area of pitching, but for once we have enough interesting talent in the minors that I'm optimistic that they'll hang around and be competitive for at least a handful of seasons. It's exciting times! I've become a big hockey fan over my 14 years of living in Buffalo, but baseball is my first and most serious love. I just got my MLB.TV autorenewal email which was thrilling. I went to spring training for a week last year and so wish I was going again this year. *sigh* But it's so fun to see sun and green grass again even in photos.
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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Feb 16, 2014 18:01:59 GMT -5
I am also a Yankees fan who isn't terribly optimistic about this season. I feel like this year's team is worse on paper than last year's, though last year's was hugely held back by injuries. The starting rotation looks better, though I'm really skeptical about skinny Sabathia. But I don't think the offense is any better -- although not giving Cano a 10-year contract was the right move, McCann + Ellsbury + Beltran isn't as good as Cano + Granderson + ARod. Tex is the best infielder, but he's been going downhill for years, and coming off wrist surgery he's still a huge question mark. And the only person in the bullpen whose name I can even remember is David Robertson who, let's not forget, after taking over the closer role when Rivera tore his ACL in 2012, pretty much immediately lost it to Rafael Soriano because of poor performance. I think Robertson will be pretty good as our closer. Certainly not as good as Rivera, but I think he'll be pretty decent. As for other people in the bullpen, I would hope that at least one pitcher out of Phelps, Warren, and Nuno will make a half-decent long-reliever, and we've got a couple of guys who have shown flashes of brilliant performance, albeit with some horrible stretches thrown in (like Preston Claiborne's meteoric rise to being our second best reliever last year, followed by an utter collapse). Also, how much worse can Skinny CC really be than 2013 CC? |
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Post by Roy Batty's Pet Dove on Feb 16, 2014 18:10:26 GMT -5
I'm a life-long Pirates fan. I know! I wouldn't be surprised if they take a step back this season, especially in the area of pitching, but for once we have enough interesting talent in the minors that I'm optimistic that they'll hang around and be competitive for at least a handful of seasons. It's exciting times! I've become a big hockey fan over my 14 years of living in Buffalo, but baseball is my first and most serious love. I just got my MLB.TV autorenewal email which was thrilling. I went to spring training for a week last year and so wish I was going again this year. *sigh* But it's so fun to see sun and green grass again even in photos. As someone who supports the always-shitty Bills, the usually-mediocre Carolina Hurricanes, and likes the Sabres, and who only seriously supports one consistently good team (that team obviously being the Yankees), I have a ton of sports-fandom respect for anyone who continues to support the Pirates and the Sabres. I didn't follow too much baseball late in the season last year, but it was really cool to see Pittsburgh finally return to the postseason after such an incredibly long drought. |
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Post by Nudeviking on Feb 16, 2014 19:06:43 GMT -5
Grew up with the Mets. Saw them win the World Series in '86. Saw them get their asses kicked in the Subway Series of 2000. I remember Mike Piazza's chainlink fence beard. Suffice it to say, the Ny Mets are my favorite squadron. That being said, it seems like this is going to be a pretty rough year for them. Harvey's out for the season and all the problems that they had last season still persist.
Hopefully the LG Twins (Seoul-based Korean baseball team that I follow) does alright this year. They made it to the playoffs last year, but lost pretty quickly once they got there.
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Feb 16, 2014 19:36:59 GMT -5
As someone who supports the always-shitty Bills, the usually-mediocre Carolina Hurricanes, and likes the Sabres, and who only seriously supports one consistently good team (that team obviously being the Yankees), I have a ton of sports-fandom respect for anyone who continues to support the Pirates and the Sabres. I didn't follow too much baseball late in the season last year, but it was really cool to see Pittsburgh finally return to the postseason after such an incredibly long drought. I actually have sort of a complex about this. I started following the Nationals on Opening Day 2005, so have been a fan since the beginning of this incarnation. But now that they're doing well, I'm - well, still a die-hard Nats fan, but also growing increasingly attracted to...uh...the Astros... |
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Post by Desert Dweller on Feb 17, 2014 0:32:42 GMT -5
I'm a life-long Pirates fan. I know! I wouldn't be surprised if they take a step back this season, especially in the area of pitching, but for once we have enough interesting talent in the minors that I'm optimistic that they'll hang around and be competitive for at least a handful of seasons. It's exciting times! I've become a big hockey fan over my 14 years of living in Buffalo, but baseball is my first and most serious love. I just got my MLB.TV autorenewal email which was thrilling. I went to spring training for a week last year and so wish I was going again this year. *sigh* But it's so fun to see sun and green grass again even in photos. Aw! I was totally rooting for the Pirates last season. I really hope they don't regress too much. It'd be great to see another good season for them. I'd love to see someone take out the Cardinals. I live in Phoenix, so I see a bit of Spring Training every year. I'll be heading out on Tuesday to watch the DBacks workout. The DBacks and Rockies have an absolutely incredible Spring Training facility. And I'm going to a Spring Training game on March 1st. Woo! Baseball is back! |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 17, 2014 13:39:23 GMT -5
I'm a life-long Pirates fan. I know! I wouldn't be surprised if they take a step back this season, especially in the area of pitching, but for once we have enough interesting talent in the minors that I'm optimistic that they'll hang around and be competitive for at least a handful of seasons. It's exciting times! I've become a big hockey fan over my 14 years of living in Buffalo, but baseball is my first and most serious love. I just got my MLB.TV autorenewal email which was thrilling. I went to spring training for a week last year and so wish I was going again this year. *sigh* But it's so fun to see sun and green grass again even in photos. There might be dropoff on offense but a full season of Gerrit Cole should help the pitching staff. The good news is the farm system is pretty loaded and a few them will likely be called up this season. |
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Post by Little Emma on Feb 17, 2014 13:48:08 GMT -5
I am also a baseball fan. It was bad enough that the Dodgers did well last year, but it also means their ticket prices went up and are selling quickly. Giants/Dodgers games were already pricier ones. I just want to see my boys play.  On the bright side, I was able to split MLB.tv between 6 people again, so it only cost $21. |
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Feb 17, 2014 15:56:46 GMT -5
I am also a baseball fan. It was bad enough that the Dodgers did well last year, but it also means their ticket prices went up and are selling quickly. Giants/Dodgers games were already pricier ones. I just want to see my boys play. On the bright side, I was able to split MLB.tv between 6 people again, so it only cost $21. I haven't seen the Nationals live during the regular season since 2008. I did get to attend two spring training games in Florida in 2012. And now Texas doesn't even have an NL team anymore. Luckily, the radio crew is one of the best in baseball. My favorite radio crews include: SF Giants (#1 for sure), Nationals, Tampa Bay Rays, and Blue Jays on days when Dirk Hayhurst sits in and confuses the rest of the booth with his massive vocabulary. |
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Post by ComradeQuestions on Feb 18, 2014 9:20:36 GMT -5
I haven't seen the Nationals live during the regular season since 2008. I've had a 10-game package for the Nationals for a few years now. I swear to Christ every game I go to it looks like the Nats will handily win it, then blow a big lead in the 8th or 9th, and then the game goes to like 13 innings. It's very aggravating. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 9:26:18 GMT -5
Dodgers are gonna dominate again this year, and maybe next year, but after that, I can't wait... I can't wait.
I liken it to Peyton Manning on the Broncos. Three-year contract, in which they are playoff contenders and then once the three years are done, look out.
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Post by chareth on Feb 18, 2014 15:07:14 GMT -5
Grew up with the Mets. Saw them win the World Series in '86. Saw them get their asses kicked in the Subway Series of 2000. I remember Mike Piazza's chainlink fence beard. Suffice it to say, the Ny Mets are my favorite squadron. That being said, it seems like this is going to be a pretty rough year for them. Harvey's out for the season and all the problems that they had last season still persist. Hopefully the LG Twins (Seoul-based Korean baseball team that I follow) does alright this year. They made it to the playoffs last year, but lost pretty quickly once they got there. Another Mets fan here, and yeah, this is still a team putting the pieces together but I;m hoping it pays off if Wheeler can show progress (hopefully to the same extent that Harvey was able to) and real excited to see what Syndergaard does when he get the call up which should be in June. If they finish at .500 it would be an accomplishment, but they could be fun to watch if that starting pitching works out. |
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Post by Albert Fish Taco on Feb 18, 2014 16:28:34 GMT -5
Grew up with the Mets. Saw them win the World Series in '86. Saw them get their asses kicked in the Subway Series of 2000. I remember Mike Piazza's chainlink fence beard. Suffice it to say, the Ny Mets are my favorite squadron. That being said, it seems like this is going to be a pretty rough year for them. Harvey's out for the season and all the problems that they had last season still persist. Hopefully the LG Twins (Seoul-based Korean baseball team that I follow) does alright this year. They made it to the playoffs last year, but lost pretty quickly once they got there. Another Mets fan here, and yeah, this is still a team putting the pieces together but I;m hoping it pays off if Wheeler can show progress (hopefully to the same extent that Harvey was able to) and real excited to see what Syndergaard does when he get the call up which should be in June. If they finish at .500 it would be an accomplishment, but they could be fun to watch if that starting pitching works out. Same here. I think viewing 2014 as an extended 2015 spring training is the only way to stay positive. But seeing what Wheeler and Syndergaard can do will be fun. Wonder who will be this year's Marlon Byrd? |
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Post by Albert Fish Taco on Feb 18, 2014 16:33:59 GMT -5
I am also a baseball fan. It was bad enough that the Dodgers did well last year, but it also means their ticket prices went up and are selling quickly. Giants/Dodgers games were already pricier ones. I just want to see my boys play. Out of curiosity, would tickets to the Padres be cheaper enough (vs Dodger home games) to make a longer road trip there to see the Giants worthwhile to you? I've heard of Yankee fans from NY that prefer to go to Orioles games because of the cost difference, so going to San Diego seems like it might be a viable option. Also have to imagine Padre games are far less likely to sell out as quick as Dodger games as well. |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 17:13:28 GMT -5
Go White Sox! .500 until the sun goes supernova!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 18, 2014 18:33:43 GMT -5
Red Sox! World fuckin' Champions!
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Post by mratfink on Feb 18, 2014 23:51:25 GMT -5
sigh i'm a Phillies fan. i'm more excited for whoever the Phillies pick in the draft this april than i am for watching this years major league team. and that person wont be a major leaguer for 3-5 years if ever. this is just a sad team with the only person who doesnt realize how old the players is the GM. i think this season is a success if the organization changes gms.
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Post by ganews on Feb 18, 2014 23:52:33 GMT -5
Go Braves. The whole state needs at least one of its teams to stop choking short of a title.
Baseball is far and away the best sport to watch live. (Around me) Nationals, Orioles, Baysox, college, little league...it'd all a good way to spend your time.
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Post by Albert Fish Taco on Feb 19, 2014 6:53:43 GMT -5
sigh i'm a Phillies fan. i'm more excited for whoever the Phillies pick in the draft this april than i am for watching this years major league team. and that person wont be a major leaguer for 3-5 years if ever. this is just a sad team with the only person who doesnt realize how old the players is the GM. i think this season is a success if the organization changes gms. Yeah the whole NL East is kinda awful. Three teams in dire rebuilding states and two that underperform or fade down the stretch. You're probably right that a quick enough change in the front office could leave the Phillies in good shape for 2015 at least (I'd have to assume of the three rebuilding teams you have the least awful owners). |
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2014 10:36:17 GMT -5
I grew up paying attention to baseball, reading the box scores in the newspaper, following the likes of Kirby Puckett and Tony Gwynn, even Cal Ripken Jr. I loved Gary Sheffield's batting stance, with his bat flicking. I used to go to the College World Series with family, sat in the cheap seats, took home some a few batting practice balls over the years.
But I haven't been a baseball fan in years. At some point, let's call it 1994, I guess I found other interests, and the market structure of baseball lead to an uncompetitive league. The whole Yankees - Red Sox "rivalry" seemed like fraternity intramurals that I couldn't be bothered to care about, or maybe a version of "Caddyshack" where even the 'slobs' are asshole millionaires.
Maybe this will change. It's not that I'm opposed to baseball in general, as my problems with the sport seem to be more administrative than conceptual. If I lived near or grew up with one of the half-dozen teams that can afford to throw money at their problems, maybe I'd be interested? I don't know. There are enough other things going on through the warm months that I probably won't miss baseball anytime soon.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 19, 2014 11:00:52 GMT -5
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Post by Little Emma on Feb 19, 2014 11:20:27 GMT -5
I am also a baseball fan. It was bad enough that the Dodgers did well last year, but it also means their ticket prices went up and are selling quickly. Giants/Dodgers games were already pricier ones. I just want to see my boys play. Out of curiosity, would tickets to the Padres be cheaper enough (vs Dodger home games) to make a longer road trip there to see the Giants worthwhile to you? I've heard of Yankee fans from NY that prefer to go to Orioles games because of the cost difference, so going to San Diego seems like it might be a viable option. Also have to imagine Padre games are far less likely to sell out as quick as Dodger games as well. Interesting idea. I've never looked into it, but they might be cheaper. I'd have to look into ticket prices vs. cost of gas while traveling 131 miles instead of the 14 miles to Dodger Stadium. The other issue is that I'd have no one to go with. My boyfriend is a Dodgers fan, which can be terribly annoying, but at least he'd go to Giants/Dodgers games with me. |
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Post by Albert Fish Taco on Feb 19, 2014 11:35:43 GMT -5
Some benevolent owners are expected to keep the quality of the current pension offering intact, potentially including the Colorado Rockies. Others, like the Kansas City Royals, who are owned by former Wal-Mart CEO David Glass, would appear likely to greatly reduce or eliminate their employees' pension benefits, according to sources.
Wow a Wal-Mart guy cutting benefits! I'm as shocked as you.
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Post by Ron Howard Voice on Feb 19, 2014 11:37:56 GMT -5
the market structure of baseball lead to an uncompetitive league. "since 2008, the Yankees have won the most games in baseball, with 564. The Rays have won the second-most games in baseball, with 550. Over that span, the Yankees have out-spent the Rays by more than nine hundred million dollars." - Jeff Sullivan on FanGraphs
The famously low-budget Oakland A's are my pick for World Series champs this season. |
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