MLB 2017 Season

[copious1218]

I just don't think that's Dusty's style. Also, if this was actually a plan then the GM likely wouldn't have gotten into an on-air argument with a couple sports talk doofuses in DC nor would the team have made their star pitcher look gutless and soft.

I'm leaning towards...the Nats botched the communication of this whole thing.

Didn't hear about the GM dust up.  The more I read today, the more it looks like Strasburg was not going to take the ball and he was convinced that he should. 

[Jockey]

Scoop at its best.

Rip a guy (Strasbourg) as gutless without any facts.

[buckchuckler]

Rip a guy (Strasbourg) as gutless without any facts.

Who is that player?   

Me I suppose.  Well, guilty to a degree.  But at first there were some facts at least.  He wasn't going to take the ball because he was "under the weather".  His manager then went on to talk about how many guys on the team were sick (though Strasburg was the only one sick enough to not play apparently).  He also talked about things more related to allergies than flu-like.

Then after much scuttlebutt about it, all of a sudden he isn't too sick to pitch.  This is also not his first run in with a reputation of being soft. 

But, whatever the case, he took the ball when his team needed him.  He has gone from possibly being a goat and a pariah to possibly being a hero. 

And, as I was a jumping the gun ass-hat in this situation, I apologize to Stephen, his family, fans, baseball and mostly (because they are the only ones that will see it) the scoop community. 

[buckchuckler]

What a start by Strasburg.  Wow.  Healthy, sick or anywhere in between, this has been a great start ( I am assuming he is done after 7IP, 12K and 106 pitches).  Just a complete wow start.  A, this is why we paid him 175 million dollars start. 

[#UnleashSean]

I wish the Cubs could find a reliever besides Davis who could throw strikes in the 8th and 9th innings.

[Jockey]

Who is that player?   

Me I suppose.  Well, guilty to a degree.  But at first there were some facts at least.  He wasn't going to take the ball because he was "under the weather".  His manager then went on to talk about how many guys on the team were sick (though Strasburg was the only one sick enough to not play apparently).  He also talked about things more related to allergies than flu-like.

Then after much scuttlebutt about it, all of a sudden he isn't too sick to pitch.  This is also not his first run in with a reputation of being soft. 

But, whatever the case, he took the ball when his team needed him.  He has gone from possibly being a goat and a pariah to possibly being a hero. 

And, as I was a jumping the gun ass-hat in this situation, I apologize to Stephen, his family, fans, baseball and mostly (because they are the only ones that will see it) the scoop community.

Pardon my fat fingers, Chuckler.

Wasn't picking on you, though. Your one of my favorite posters on the baseball thread.

[buckchuckler]

I know you weren't picking on me, I deserved to be called out.  I called him soft without knowing what was up.  But more importantly he took the ball and dominated.

And I always pardon fat fingers, as I have some sausage fingers of my own.  I just had to be a smart ass before owing up to making a mistake. 

[naginiF]

I wish the Cubs could find a reliever besides Davis who could throw strikes in the 8th and 9th innings.

As a (now) KC fan i love Davis but, to your point, Herrara really made him dominant by owning the 8th

[Jockey]

  I just had to be a smart ass before owing up to making a mistake.

Yeah, I'm got that same problem

[MUBurrow]

I know you weren't picking on me, I deserved to be called out.  I called him soft without knowing what was up.  But more importantly he took the ball and dominated.

Also, to be fair, nothing that Dusty said or that came from other sources yesterday made any damn sense. While Stras may have been unfairly maligned, it seems equally likely that Dusty was just too honest yesterday and now all of the defense of Stras was the real smokescreen. Who knows, but either way, Stras shouldn't have been hung out to dry that way.

[naginiF]

Can everyone agree that after 16 years in the majors, at the age of 37, when you are throwing the hardest you have all season in October, and you are clearly carrying 40lbs of fat............ya need to be drug tested ASAP?

[MU82]

Can everyone agree that after 16 years in the majors, at the age of 37, when you are throwing the hardest you have all season in October, and you are clearly carrying 40lbs of fat............ya need to be drug tested ASAP?

Tested for what? Cheeseburgers and fried Twinkies?

[MU82]

The too-good-to-be-true postseason storyline for the 2016 Cubs was that they were saved by the rain delay in G7 of the WS. It stopped Cleveland's momentum, refocused the cubs, gave Heyward the opportunity to give an inspiration speech, etc.

Wouldn't it be ironic (or maybe just coincidental) if the postseason storyline for the 2017 Cubs was that they were done in by the Oct. 10 rainout? Instead of getting to face a horsecrap pitcher, they had to face a dominant Strasburg.

Of course, the Cubs still have the chance to write their own 2017 postseason history. Then again, so did the Indians last year.

[wadesworld]

The too-good-to-be-true postseason storyline for the 2016 Cubs was that they were saved by the rain delay in G7 of the WS. It stopped Cleveland's momentum, refocused the cubs, gave Heyward the opportunity to give an inspiration speech, etc.

Wouldn't it be ironic (or maybe just coincidental) if the postseason storyline for the 2017 Cubs was that they were done in by the Oct. 10 rainout? Instead of getting to face a horsecrap pitcher, they had to face a dominant Strasburg.

Of course, the Cubs still have the chance to write their own 2017 postseason history. Then again, so did the Indians last year.

Especially considering their choosing to call a game for rain on an 85 degree sunny day earlier this year because they were playing bad baseball, the team they were chasing in the division and playing against was smoking them in the series, and they had an off day while the Brewers could come to Chicago on a day off a few weeks later and then head to NYC after that game.

Karma is a b.

[brewcity77]

The too-good-to-be-true postseason storyline for the 2016 Cubs was that they were saved by the rain delay in G7 of the WS. It stopped Cleveland's momentum, refocused the cubs, gave Heyward the opportunity to give an inspiration speech, etc.

Wouldn't it be ironic (or maybe just coincidental) if the postseason storyline for the 2017 Cubs was that they were done in by the Oct. 10 rainout? Instead of getting to face a horsecrap pitcher, they had to face a dominant Strasburg.

Of course, the Cubs still have the chance to write their own 2017 postseason history. Then again, so did the Indians last year.

Just coincidental. The 2016 storyline had no direct relation or impact on this potential 2017 storyline.

[Skitch]

Picked Indians vs Diamondbacks in the World Series.  Oops.

[wadesworld]

Picked Indians vs Diamondbacks in the World Series.  Oops.

I didn't pick the Diamondbacks, but I certainly didn't see the Yankees in the ALCS.

[Skitch]

Tested for what? Cheeseburgers and fried Twinkies?

Yes because no one who looks like him could ever be suspended for PEDs

[buckchuckler]

I didn't pick the Diamondbacks, but I certainly didn't see the Yankees in the ALCS.

I have to wonder to myself, does seeing the Yanks in the ALCS get to Brewer fans a little bit?  The only thing that stopped the Brewers from making the playoffs was their own complacence.  They had every chance to add guys like the Yanks, but chose to just really tinker.  The Yankees had one of the best bullpens in baseball and added Kahnle and Robertson.  The Brewers certainly could have gotten them and had them stacked up before Knebel. That would have been pretty devastating.  I think a package around a guy like Corey Ray is pretty equivalent to what the Sox got from the Yankees (Blake Rutherford).

They could have gotten Quintana (Brison, while not equal to Jimenez in prospect standing, is no slouch and would have been a great centerpiece -- I am thrilled with the Sox return here and don't think anyone would have done better, but maybe could have acted earlier) .  They could have gotten JD Martinez (two mid level guys and a promising 18 year old)  Heck, they could have gotten all of those guys, and the only one that is a rental is JD, and the prospect price for him was pretty darn small.  I know the chorus all season has been "a year ahead of schedule" but the Yankees were in the same boat.  They were a year ahead of schedule, and had a loaded farm system.  They were able to use it, while keeping their top guys and get to the ALCS.  I know the Brewers added, but from memory, just Walker and Swarczak right?  Moves that could buoy a team, but not really move the needle. 

The Brewers have 7 guys on MLB top 100 right now (including this years top pick Hiura-- so they couldn't have traded him). But they had plenty of capital to make a move and still have talent on the farm, but for the most part it appears they were content to contend next season.

You guys have any regret over how it played out?  Or are you happy with the state of the farm and the outlook for the future (which does look pretty good, but it still could have...)

Just the musings of a guys whose team nearly lost 100.  Ah well. 

[buckchuckler]

Oh, and the Indians have lost 6 straight gamessage in which they could have eliminated their competition.  Ouch.

[wadesworld]

I am beyond thrilled with how the Brewers season went and where they currently stand.

[Vander Blue Man Group]

Especially considering their choosing to call a game for rain on an 85 degree sunny day earlier this year because they were playing bad baseball, the team they were chasing in the division and playing against was smoking them in the series, and they had an off day while the Brewers could come to Chicago on a day off a few weeks later and then head to NYC after that game.

Karma is a b.

Seek help.

[wadesworld]

Seek help.

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLL

[MerrittsMustache]

You guys have any regret over how it played out?  Or are you happy with the state of the farm and the outlook for the future (which does look pretty good, but it still could have...)

About a month ago I posted about how I don't view the Brewers as being "ahead of schedule" on the rebuild but that they look more like a "lightning in a bottle" team. They're not as young as fans tend to believe and they had a number of late 20s/early 30s guys who all had career years or at least extended hot stretches. That's not necessary the recipe for sustained success.

In addition, one of the biggest hurdles the Brewers are going to face is being consistently better than the Cubs. If they're not, they're going to be stuck playing in a 50/50 game just to get into the NLDS. Pittsburgh had a 3-year stretch where they won 94, 88 and 98 games yet had only one NLDS appearance to show for it and that was in the year before the second WC was added.

I do think that the Brewers are going to be good going forward. I just don't think they're as close as many others do.

[MUBurrow]

I have to wonder to myself, does seeing the Yanks in the ALCS get to Brewer fans a little bit?...

The Brewers have 7 guys on MLB top 100 right now (including this years top pick Hiura-- so they couldn't have traded him). But they had plenty of capital to make a move and still have talent on the farm, but for the most part it appears they were content to contend next season.

You guys have any regret over how it played out?  Or are you happy with the state of the farm and the outlook for the future (which does look pretty good, but it still could have...)

Absolutely fair thought experiment, but this Brewers fan is okay with things as they stand. The payroll thing gets tossed around a lot, for better and worse. The worse is when small market fans use it as some sort of badge of honor to try to portray themselves as "better" fans than fans who happen to root for a high payroll ceiling team. It gets very Cardinal-esque in a hurry.

But when you back away from the emotional part of Milwaukee's financial situation, I think they need to hoard their stockpiled depth on the farm for now, and couldn't afford to trade even from depth this year. The real benefit of having a lot of money is knowing you'll be able to use it to shore up the 5-6-7 spots in the lineup, the 3-4 spots in the rotation, and the pen. When you look at the 2011 Crew, those batters/pitchers were guys like McGehee, Lucroy, Hart, Gomez, Morgan (all homegrown, 1 for 1 trades, or reclamation projects) and Randy Wolf, Narveson (amazing how healthy the rotation was until Marcum's arm fell off), and maybe the best cobbled together bullpen I've ever seen - Hawkins, Saito, Loe, Axford. They used their meager $ and their prospects for the type of pitchers small-market teams can't afford the injury risk to pay - Greinke, Marcum, K-Rod when closers still got big money, even CC going all the way back.

So even if they deal from depth this year and leave, say, their top 5 prospects alone, you have to assume (hope) they're probably trading away something along the lines of (in 2018-19 terms) one SP, one solid bullpen pitcher, one 5-6 hitter, and a couple pieces that could be used to get a a top line starter and a #3-ish starter. The problem is the Brewers can't afford to chuck market deals at a bunch of guys like Headley, Zobrist, Jason Heyward, Lester, Chapman, etc. So I think its vital they be patient waiting for their window, because in aggregate $$ and prospect capital, it can only realistically be about two years long, and they have to go all-in when the biggest mass of their current prospects are hitting their prime.