MLB 2018 Season

[Jockey]

Bob Costas and Jim Kaat?  Have I returned to 1994 or something?

Both called the HR for Aguilara.

[CreightonWarrior]

Both called the HR for Aguilara.

So did Counsell.

Cain finally getting the monkey off his back. Hopefully this can get him going. Need to get some baserunners for Yelich.

[GGGG]

*Looks at MLB Network graphics* yes.

Lol. Yeah. I’d ive had enough of their fun facts too. “Travis Shaw is one of the tallest second basemen ever!”

[Jockey]

So did Counsell.

Cain finally getting the monkey off his back. Hopefully this can get him going. Need to get some baserunners for Yelich.

No, I meant they called him Aguilara instead of Aguilar.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

Back to back runs on a balk and a wild pitch? Ooof

[CreightonWarrior]

No, I meant they called him Aguilara instead of Aguilar.

Ahh, missed that. Counsell did all the HR though.

[Anti-Dentite]

That should do it!

[CreightonWarrior]

The two skinniest guys on the field with monster shots. Coors Field and Rockies exposed.

Crew will have their work cut out for them against an insanely deep Dodgers team. Just keep winning please.

[Anti-Dentite]

Buehler? Buehler? Anybody.....

[wadesworld]

I would want nothing to do with the Brewers after the 1 game WC if I were any other team.  Stacked with veteran hitters and the best bullpen in baseball.

Yup.

I'd want the unproven zero experience brewers over the cubs, cards, dodgers or rockies honestly.

Oops.

We're a wagon right now.

Dodgers scare me.  Go Braves.

[buckchuckler]

Well, that is one way to make sure your bullpen gets the rest it needs.  Just sweep.  Good strategy. 

That seemed like a terrible approach by Muncy in that 9th inning AB.  That 3-1 pitch was a foot outside, Vizcaino was on the ropes and he completely bailed him out.  And after great ABs from Pedersen and Turner.

[Jockey]

https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2018/10/07/mlb-network-broadcast-scoreboard-struggle-brewers-names-facts/1562311002/

As I mentioned earlier, Costas and Kaat were brutal, There is no excuse for this type of utter incompetence - especially from Costas. Just part of the lack of respect the Brewers get (although, MLB Network, in general, has been the one place they have been respected).

ESPN has been especially bad. All year, unless playing the Cubs, Cards, or Dodgers, you had to click on more scores on mobile devices to see the outcome of Brewer's games. They were never listed on the 1st page of scores.

[MU82]

I hope this is the last Brewers game on MLB, because I don't get it. Had to watch highlights later.

Best thing to happen for Brewers would be Braves beating Dodgers.

Second-best thing would be for Braves to at least win Game 4 and force Dodgers to have to use Kershaw in Game 5.

Go Brewers!

[CTWarrior]

It's only "horrifying" if one is a Yankee hater.

What it should be is "educational" for Cora, who will have the choice if there is a Game 5 to skip Price.

Some managers are quite stubborn with this kind of stuff, though. For all their belief in stats, sometimes they refuse to give in. We'll see if Cora goes with somebody else or if he says, "Dammit, Price is due, and he's our man!"

I am a Red Sox fan, and I honestly thought that Price should not have been on the roster against the Yankees, let alone start game 2.  His team had lost all 9 games he previously started in the postseason and the Yankees own him.  Other than keeping Price happy, what is the rationale for starting him in a playoff game against the Yankees?  Absolutely nobody was surprised that he did not get through the second inning, including, I think if he was honest, Alex Cora.

[GGGG]

https://www.jsonline.com/story/sports/mlb/brewers/2018/10/07/mlb-network-broadcast-scoreboard-struggle-brewers-names-facts/1562311002/

As I mentioned earlier, Costas and Kaat were brutal, There is no excuse for this type of utter incompetence - especially from Costas. Just part of the lack of respect the Brewers get (although, MLB Network, in general, has been the one place they have been respected).

ESPN has been especially bad. All year, unless playing the Cubs, Cards, or Dodgers, you had to click on more scores on mobile devices to see the outcome of Brewer's games. They were never listed on the 1st page of scores.

I don't think it's a lack of respect thing.  It's a "Bob Costas is overrated and Jim Kaat is a barely warm corpse" thing.  Costas is a fine host, but he just hasn't done enough play-by-play lately to make it work. 

My favorite part was when Kaat said something like "as you know, in the 1950 World Series..."  No Jim.  I actually don't know a damn thing about the World Series that took place 68 years ago.

Oh and them talking about the shift like it's something revolutionary, but you could almost hear the derision in Costas' voice.

[MU82]

I am a Red Sox fan, and I honestly thought that Price should not have been on the roster against the Yankees, let alone start game 2.  His team had lost all 9 games he previously started in the postseason and the Yankees own him.  Other than keeping Price happy, what is the rationale for starting him in a playoff game against the Yankees?  Absolutely nobody was surprised that he did not get through the second inning, including, I think if he was honest, Alex Cora.

Lots of managers and coaches are very stubborn. Remember Lovie's insistence upon playing Rex Grossman, no matter how bad the QB was (and he was). Lovie even denied that many great coaches had made QB changes over the years to spark a team, including Shula, Landry, Noll, Parcells and many others far with far more knowledge than him. Conversely, some others managers/coaches have very quick "trigger fingers." But it's always interesting to see a seemingly intelligent manager like Cora say, "Screw history and data, I'm sticking with 'my man.'"

[MUBurrow]

I am a Red Sox fan, and I honestly thought that Price should not have been on the roster against the Yankees, let alone start game 2.  His team had lost all 9 games he previously started in the postseason and the Yankees own him.  Other than keeping Price happy, what is the rationale for starting him in a playoff game against the Yankees?  Absolutely nobody was surprised that he did not get through the second inning, including, I think if he was honest, Alex Cora.

Curious for your take - how would you set up the pitching staff for this series if you were Cora? BoSox's bullpen problems have been well documented, so he's got less flexibility than most. Assuming you pitch Sale on short rest until his arm falls off, that's 1 & 4. Eovaldi's velocity probably makes him the right call for game 2, but can you bring him back on short rest given his health history?  I know Price has been brutal in the playoffs, but is that enough to completely shelve him in favor of Porcello?

[CTWarrior]

Curious for your take - how would you set up the pitching staff for this series if you were Cora? BoSox's bullpen problems have been well documented, so he's got less flexibility than most. Assuming you pitch Sale on short rest until his arm falls off, that's 1 & 4. Eovaldi's velocity probably makes him the right call for game 2, but can you bring him back on short rest given his health history?  I know Price has been brutal in the playoffs, but is that enough to completely shelve him in favor of Porcello?

I would have started Eovaldi, Sale, Porcello, Wright, Eovaldi/Sale.  As it turned out, Wright was hurt, so that threw that idea out the window.  With Wright out, I would have used Hector Velazquez as the game 4 starter and make it a bullpen game (Velazquez isn't even on the roster.)  There weren't great options, but just giving away a game with Price is a bad idea.  He had to start Price in game 2 because he is even more atrocious against the Yankees in NY, as he works the outside corner and the Yankees just hit those lazy fly balls that are easy outs in Fenway but are 10 rows deep in Yankee Stadium.

I thought going in they would lose this series in 4, and I still think that.  The Yankees are a bad matchup for the Red Sox because they take away Price and Rodriguez, who are two of their better starters.  And the weird thing is, they don't hit Eovaldi, who otherwise isn't that good so you don't have a ton of faith in him, either.

Red Sox are an odd 108 win team.  They are not a complete team.  They have big holes, as they were in the very bottom 2 or 3 in MLB in WAR at three positions (2B, 3B, C).  The bottom 3rd of their order is basically a free inning for the other team.  I know Cora is a candidate for manager of the year, but basically he took a team that was always going to win a lot of games and he won a lot of games and then some, but then he took his foot of the gas in September so they headed into the playoffs not clicking on all cylinders for the first time all year and he had already over-used his best bullpen guys so they are not what they were earlier.  I did not like John Farrell much as the manager, but the one thing he could do was manage the bullpen.  I had much more confidence in past Red Sox teams with much worse records heading into the playoffs than I do with this one.

[MU82]

I would have started Eovaldi, Sale, Porcello, Wright, Eovaldi/Sale.  As it turned out, Wright was hurt, so that threw that idea out the window.  With Wright out, I would have used Hector Velazquez as the game 4 starter and make it a bullpen game (Velazquez isn't even on the roster.)  There weren't great options, but just giving away a game with Price is a bad idea.  He had to start Price in game 2 because he is even more atrocious against the Yankees in NY, as he works the outside corner and the Yankees just hit those lazy fly balls that are easy outs in Fenway but are 10 rows deep in Yankee Stadium.

I thought going in they would lose this series in 4, and I still think that.  The Yankees are a bad matchup for the Red Sox because they take away Price and Rodriguez, who are two of their better starters.  And the weird thing is, they don't hit Eovaldi, who otherwise isn't that good so you don't have a ton of faith in him, either.

Red Sox are an odd 108 win team.  They are not a complete team.  They have big holes, as they were in the very bottom 2 or 3 in MLB in WAR at three positions (2B, 3B, C).  The bottom 3rd of their order is basically a free inning for the other team.  I know Cora is a candidate for manager of the year, but basically he took a team that was always going to win a lot of games and he won a lot of games and then some, but then he took his foot of the gas in September so they headed into the playoffs not clicking on all cylinders for the first time all year and he had already over-used his best bullpen guys so they are not what they were earlier.  I did not like John Farrell much as the manager, but the one thing he could do was manage the bullpen.  I had much more confidence in past Red Sox teams with much worse records heading into the playoffs than I do with this one.

Interesting take, CTW.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

I don't think it's a lack of respect thing.  It's a "Bob Costas is overrated and Jim Kaat is a barely warm corpse" thing.  Costas is a fine host, but he just hasn't done enough play-by-play lately to make it work. 

My favorite part was when Kaat said something like "as you know, in the 1950 World Series..."  No Jim.  I actually don't know a damn thing about the World Series that took place 68 years ago.

Oh and them talking about the shift like it's something revolutionary, but you could almost hear the derision in Costas' voice.

I used to really like Costas back in the day, but it is clear he's completely lost his fastball.  It was like they told him he was going on the air the night before and the entirety of his research was listening to Uke tell stories.

[CTWarrior]

Is there a professional sport that doesn't allowed players traded midseason to go to the playoffs?

I forgot to get back on this.  NFL trading deadline for postseason is after week 8, which is halfway through the season (or less as some teams will only have played 7 games at that time.  The current MLB deadline would be the equivalent of letting NFL teams trade players after week 14 for postseason play (3 games to go) and let them play in the postseason.  Don't you think the NFL playoffs would be hugely different if that were the case? 

The NBA trade deadline is after about 50-54 games.  The NBA equivalent of the MLB deadline would be after about 68 games (14 to go).

If they set the postseason deadline at July 31 in MLB, it would be the rough equivalent to the NBA and still much later than the NFL.  I just don't see why you should let a guy who has been on another team for the first 82% of the season play for you in the postseason.

[TAMU, Knower of Ball]

I forgot to get back on this.  NFL trading deadline for postseason is after week 8, which is halfway through the season (or less as some teams will only have played 7 games at that time.  The current MLB deadline would be the equivalent of letting NFL teams trade players after week 14 for postseason play (3 games to go) and let them play in the postseason.  Don't you think the NFL playoffs would be hugely different if that were the case? 

The NBA trade deadline is after about 50-54 games.  The NBA equivalent of the MLB deadline would be after about 68 games (14 to go).

If they set the postseason deadline at July 31 in MLB, it would be the rough equivalent to the NBA and still much later than the NFL.  I just don't see why you should let a guy who has been on another team for the first 82% of the season play for you in the postseason.

Gotcha. So your issue isn't that players traded midseason get to go to the playoffs, it's how late the trade deadline is. I personally have no issue with the current deadline but also wouldn't be upset if the deadline was moved earlier. How I was reading your original post was that only players who were in your organization for opening day should be eligible for the postseason which doesn't make sense to me.

[HouWarrior]

I forgot to get back on this.  NFL trading deadline for postseason is after week 8, which is halfway through the season (or less as some teams will only have played 7 games at that time.  The current MLB deadline would be the equivalent of letting NFL teams trade players after week 14 for postseason play (3 games to go) and let them play in the postseason.  Don't you think the NFL playoffs would be hugely different if that were the case? 

The NBA trade deadline is after about 50-54 games.  The NBA equivalent of the MLB deadline would be after about 68 games (14 to go).

If they set the postseason deadline at July 31 in MLB, it would be the rough equivalent to the NBA and still much later than the NFL.  I just don't see why you should let a guy who has been on another team for the first 82% of the season play for you in the postseason.

The Non Waiver trade deadline in MLB is actually July 31 ....so you are happy , yes? Guess not....

What you apparently complain of is waiver wire deals made from August 1 to August 31 (last day  that a traded player may also can qualify for the post season roster).....BUT  ....waiver wire deals during this 30 day window are NOT sure things ....far from it.
   For instance, if Team A wants to trade a player to Team B after the July 31 nonwaiver deadline, that player must first be offered to each team in reverse order of the standings. The claiming order begins with Team A’s league, worst record to best, and then continues through the opposite league, worst record to best. In other words, the team with the best record in Team A’s league has dibs before the worst team in the other league. These are called "trade assignment waivers."

So long as all the clubs in front of Team B pass on the player, that player can be traded without interference. If, however, a team claims the player before he falls to Team B, then Team A — the team who wanted to trade him in the first place — has a decision to make. They can pull the player off waivers and not trade him (that’s why this particular waiver flavor is referred to as being "revocable") or they can work out a deal with the team that claimed him.

If no deal can be worked out with the new team, then Team A can, in essence, pull off a "force trade." That means the team that claimed the player must assume his contract and kick in $20,000 to his original team (that would be Team A). This has happened often, including August 2010 when San Francisco claimed outfielder Cody Ross, the eventual NLCS MVP, from cost-cutting Florida.

A recent well known waiver wire trade that actually went through was Justin Verlander. Houston held their breath...but all the other teams failed to claim him and assume his big salary (Their thinking in not claiming him?....too old too much money and Detroit wont make our waiver claim  deal unless we match the houston trade package..ie Detroit will just pull him back off waivers...so ok we dont waiver claim). Verlander cleared waivers by the other 28 teams just minutes before the Aug 31 deadline and the Astros pulled off a very rare waiver wire clearing trade in August. Verlander trade was an outlier...someone else should have claimed him....but didnt.

This 30 day waiver trade window is the category of which you complain ....but rarely are August trades this key or high profile. Because August waiver trades are used to clean up, release 40 men roster baggage, and dump salary ....this period will stay as is.  And actually rarely are August trades made for key playoff roster additions...again Verlander being an exception

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

I would have started Eovaldi, Sale, Porcello, Wright, Eovaldi/Sale.  As it turned out, Wright was hurt, so that threw that idea out the window.  With Wright out, I would have used Hector Velazquez as the game 4 starter and make it a bullpen game (Velazquez isn't even on the roster.)  There weren't great options, but just giving away a game with Price is a bad idea.  He had to start Price in game 2 because he is even more atrocious against the Yankees in NY, as he works the outside corner and the Yankees just hit those lazy fly balls that are easy outs in Fenway but are 10 rows deep in Yankee Stadium.

I thought going in they would lose this series in 4, and I still think that.  The Yankees are a bad matchup for the Red Sox because they take away Price and Rodriguez, who are two of their better starters.  And the weird thing is, they don't hit Eovaldi, who otherwise isn't that good so you don't have a ton of faith in him, either.

Red Sox are an odd 108 win team.  They are not a complete team.  They have big holes, as they were in the very bottom 2 or 3 in MLB in WAR at three positions (2B, 3B, C).  The bottom 3rd of their order is basically a free inning for the other team.  I know Cora is a candidate for manager of the year, but basically he took a team that was always going to win a lot of games and he won a lot of games and then some, but then he took his foot of the gas in September so they headed into the playoffs not clicking on all cylinders for the first time all year and he had already over-used his best bullpen guys so they are not what they were earlier.  I did not like John Farrell much as the manager, but the one thing he could do was manage the bullpen.  I had much more confidence in past Red Sox teams with much worse records heading into the playoffs than I do with this one.

As a Yankee fan I was surprised Price pitched second because the Yanks always pounded him.
Sale is a different story.  I don't think the Yanks ever hit him so the formula is to up his pitch count and then pound the underwhelming Red Sox bullpen.

[CTWarrior]

The Non Waiver trade deadline in MLB is actually July 31 ....so you are happy , yes? Guess not....

What you apparently complain of is waiver wire deals made from August 1 to August 31 (last day  that a traded player may also can qualify for the post season roster).....BUT  ....waiver wire deals during this 30 day window are NOT sure things ....far from it.
   For instance, if Team A wants to trade a player to Team B after the July 31 nonwaiver deadline, that player must first be offered to each team in reverse order of the standings. The claiming order begins with Team A’s league, worst record to best, and then continues through the opposite league, worst record to best. In other words, the team with the best record in Team A’s league has dibs before the worst team in the other league. These are called "trade assignment waivers."

So long as all the clubs in front of Team B pass on the player, that player can be traded without interference. If, however, a team claims the player before he falls to Team B, then Team A — the team who wanted to trade him in the first place — has a decision to make. They can pull the player off waivers and not trade him (that’s why this particular waiver flavor is referred to as being "revocable") or they can work out a deal with the team that claimed him.

If no deal can be worked out with the new team, then Team A can, in essence, pull off a "force trade." That means the team that claimed the player must assume his contract and kick in $20,000 to his original team (that would be Team A). This has happened often, including August 2010 when San Francisco claimed outfielder Cody Ross, the eventual NLCS MVP, from cost-cutting Florida.

A recent well known waiver wire trade that actually went through was Justin Verlander. Houston held their breath...but all the other teams failed to claim him and assume his big salary (Their thinking in not claiming him?....too old too much money and Detroit wont make our waiver claim  deal unless we match the houston trade package..ie Detroit will just pull him back off waivers...so ok we dont waiver claim). Verlander cleared waivers by the other 28 teams just minutes before the Aug 31 deadline and the Astros pulled off a very rare waiver wire clearing trade in August. Verlander trade was an outlier...someone else should have claimed him....but didnt.

This 30 day waiver trade window is the category of which you complain ....but rarely are August trades this key or high profile. Because August waiver trades are used to clean up, release 40 men roster baggage, and dump salary ....this period will stay as is.  And actually rarely are August trades made for key playoff roster additions...again Verlander being an exception

Not rare at all.  Justin Verlander was acquired on Aug 31 last year for the Astros and pitched the same number of starts and more innings for them in the postseason than he did in the regular season.  To claim a player would require you to eat the salary should they accept the claim.  This year the Indians got Josh Donaldson (who was injured, somehow breaking that rule) the same way on Aug 31.  He is playing in the postseason for them after all of 60 plate appearances in the regular season.  They should limit postseason play to players acquired by July 31.