MLB Hot Stove 2019-20

[DegenerateDish]

Curt Hennig is hanging around Oakland this afternoon.

[WI inferiority Complexes]

Curt Hennig is hanging around Oakland this afternoon.

Check out Mr. Jinxy Jinxerton over here.

[Jockey]

Renteria is is not playoff ready.

At 95 pitches, you don’t send him back out.

[Lennys Tap]

I think this is the year that changes; however, my predictions are wrong all the time.

Twins just lost their 17th consecutive playoff game. 17th!!! That’s almost impossible. Almost.

[CreightonWarrior]

17 straight playoff losses for the Twins. Wow.

[tower912]

Lions-esque.

[buckchuckler]

Bieber vs Cole is such a great matchup. 

With that said, I completely expect a 12-10 game.  Hahah.

Welp.  I got the 12 right.  12-10 would have at least been an intersting game. 

[buckchuckler]

Renteria is is not playoff ready.

At 95 pitches, you don’t send him back out.

While I believe your main point about Ricky, honestly, I would have sent Gio back out there.  He was still cruising at that point, and will have significant time before his next start.  And in a 3 game series with no days off, that bullpen needs to be as fresh as it can possibly be.  I think the Sox are probably planning for basically a bullpen type game for game three (if necessary), since all their possibilities for game 3 starters have completely bombed out lately. 

With that said, I would have pulled him right after the walk, as you his control was obviously gone.  Hopefully Keuchel can get them a solid 6 tomorrow, then the flamethrowers can come in. 

[JWags85]

17 straight playoff losses for the Twins. Wow.

The second he got pulled off second, you knew there was ZERO chance that Altuve was getting retired with no damage there. That’s just how things go. The walk was just even more brutal

[rocky_warrior]

Anybody else feeling like there's TOO much baseball with this expanded playoff/wildcard?

I'd normally tune into a lot of games, and probably will again wit the DS/CS, but for wild card I'll probably just watch the Cubs and follow scores.

Maybe they were trying to create a NCAA vibe with the mass of games, but with a 2-3 game series it's too much, IMO.

[BM1090]

Anybody else feeling like there's TOO much baseball with this expanded playoff/wildcard?

I'd normally tune into a lot of games, and probably will again wit the DS/CS, but for wild card I'll probably just watch the Cubs and follow scores.

Maybe they were trying to create a NCAA vibe with the mass of games, but with a 2-3 game series it's too much, IMO.

I don't think that there is too much baseball, but that may be because I can only watch a game or so per day.

I did feel like a lot of the playoff intensity was missing without fans. I didn't notice it as much during the NBA playoffs but thought the on-air product suffered during the Twins-Astros game yesterday. 

[wadesworld]

Anybody else feeling like there's TOO much baseball with this expanded playoff/wildcard?

I'd normally tune into a lot of games, and probably will again wit the DS/CS, but for wild card I'll probably just watch the Cubs and follow scores.

Maybe they were trying to create a NCAA vibe with the mass of games, but with a 2-3 game series it's too much, IMO.

I didn't get why they didn't space out the 4 games better yesterday.  You could've started games at (using central time zone) noon, 2:00 (or 3 and then push the last 2 games back by an hour as well), 5:00, and 8:00.  Instead I think it went something like 1:00, 2:00, 4:00, and 6:00.

I don't think that there is too much baseball, but that may be because I can only watch a game or so per day.

I did feel like a lot of the playoff intensity was missing without fans. I didn't notice it as much during the NBA playoffs but thought the on-air product suffered during the Twins-Astros game yesterday. 

I didn't watch much of yesterday's games, but I do think this will be a problem for me.  I find regular season baseball to be the most boring of the 3 major professional sports, but honestly the baseball Playoffs might be my favorite Playoffs in all of sports.  The tension in the stadiums from first pitch to the end, and then the silence when a road team takes over a game, is awesome to me.

[DegenerateDish]

Winds blowing out in Minneapolis/Chicago/Cleveland today at 20-25 mph. Wrigley and Target Field are both blowing straight out to left/center. Could be an interesting afternoon for both those games.

[shoothoops]

Devin Williams will not be on Milwaukee's playoff roster per Jeff Passan, arm issue.

[buckchuckler]

Devin Williams will not be on Milwaukee's playoff roster per Jeff Passan, arm issue.

That's brutal for the Brewers.  That dude is a K machine. 

And while Bieber- Cole fell on its face, Bauer- Fried has been as good as could be.

[PGsHeroes32]

Twins offense is so bad.

Playing for homers simply doesnt work this time of the year.

[cheebs09]

Devin Williams will not be on Milwaukee's playoff roster per Jeff Passan, arm issue.

Brewers have had horrendous luck with breakout pitchers having injuries at the end of the year. Nelson a few years ago. Woodruff last year. Burnes and Williams this year.

[WI inferiority Complexes]

Anybody else feeling like there's TOO much baseball with this expanded playoff/wildcard?

Yes. There should be two, non-division winners per league, who play a one-game playoff for the right to face the best team in a 5 game series.

MLB got the playoff format right IMHO, then COVID hit, and players wanted the extra playoff money. I understand why it was tweaked this season, but definitely prefer the “exclusivity” of previous postseasons.

[MUBurrow]

Anybody else feeling like there's TOO much baseball with this expanded playoff/wildcard?

I'd normally tune into a lot of games, and probably will again wit the DS/CS, but for wild card I'll probably just watch the Cubs and follow scores.

Maybe they were trying to create a NCAA vibe with the mass of games, but with a 2-3 game series it's too much, IMO.

I wouldn't like this format all the time, but I'm ebracing the covid-yness of it all.  The exclusivity of the MLB playoffs is great, but it relies on the ups, downs, and need for depth during a 162 game season.  In a 60 game season, we don't get any of that, so having an expanded playoffs works for me. And it creates the possibility for weirder storylines.  If the Crew or Marlins or Jays or someone makes a run, that's fun.  Yankees-Dodgers is great, but its a little less meaningful after 60 games than it is after 162. So what the heck, let's get weird.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

I think there are ways you could do something like this but weight it for the higher seeded team.  For instance, have a two game series where the higher seed only has to win one, but the lower has to win both.

[WI inferiority Complexes]

And it creates the possibility for weirder storylines.  If the Crew or Marlins or Jays or someone makes a run, that's fun.  Yankees-Dodgers is great, but its a little less meaningful after 60 games than it is after 162. So what the heck, let's get weird.

How about the 29-31 Astros eliminating a division winner after only two playoff games?  To me, that's not so much "weird" as it is just plain $hitty.

I know the Twins could prevent this by winning a postseason game every decade or so, but it still devalues the regular season.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

Devaluing a regular season that is about 40% of a normal regular season anyway?  One that saw no fans in the stands and whose playoffs from here on out are going to be played at neutral sites?

Can't really get all that upset about that.

[Lennys Tap]

Twins just lost their 17th consecutive playoff game. 17th!!! That’s almost impossible. Almost.

Make it 18. The beat goes on.

[CreightonWarrior]

Not that they ever had a chance but dear lord Suter. That was brutal.

[dgies9156]

Cardinals won today!!!