2024 MLB General Chat

AEW Champion

AEW Champion

Notre Dame = 2025 National Champions
Man, the smaller player names on jerseys around the league just look cheap and bush league. Whoever decided that would be a good idea should be fired.

Lots of bad baserunning yesterday. Jesse Winker, a perpetually bad baserunner, got nabbed easily trying to stretch a single into a double. Ohtani got himself thrown out at 3B by not paying attention to Mookie Betts in front of him. Henry Davis for the Pirates got himself in a pickle between 3B and home plate. New Giants CF Jung Hoo Lee got picked off by Yu Darvish.
 
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Who had predicted the Tigers and Pirates being the last two unbeaten team in the MLB?
Answer: Nobody

With the Bucs losing yesterday, Detroit stands alone. Crazy game.
 
Pirates got off to a great start last year, then reverted to being the Pirates. I don't see them in it for the long haul. I think with baseball especially, you see some of these young, inexpensive teams have success early because????..... it's not early for many of their guys, they are playing for their baseball lives everyday, so you get max effort. For veteran teams, you see some sit guys and there is no sense of urgency. This always drives me nuts because honestly, a game in April is worth just as much as a game in September, 1 game. You can't win the division in April, but you sure can lose it by going 8-20 or something like that.
 
The White Sox might set some modern-era records for offensive futility this year. They’ve only scored 13 runs in 7 games and Luis Robert just left tonight with a potentially severe hip-flexor injury. He missed around 3 months in 2021 with the same injury, so we’ll see how bad this one is.

It’s sad to see Jerry Reinsdorf and the bumbling front office destroy the franchise.
 
wolves82 said:
Who had predicted the Tigers and Pirates being the last two unbeaten team in the MLB?
Answer: Nobody

With the Bucs losing yesterday, Detroit stands alone. Crazy game.
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I can't claim that, but in another thread my two losing teams from 2023 that will contend for their division in 2024 with winning records were the Guardians (AL) and Pirates (NL). Both benefit being in terrible divisions.
 
AEW Champion said:
The White Sox might set some modern-era records for offensive futility this year. They’ve only scored 13 runs in 7 games and Luis Robert just left tonight with a potentially severe hip-flexor injury. He missed around 3 months in 2021 with the same injury, so we’ll see how bad this one is.

It’s sad to see Jerry Reinsdorf and the bumbling front office destroy the franchise.
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The killer for the White Sox is that stadium. It's too big and has absolutely zero charm. I believe they built it right before Camden Yards set the trend for the new style ballparks? At least old Commiskey Stadium was compact and had old school charm. Any chance Chicago builds a new home for the Sox?
 
cjb5656 said:
It won't be empty in Vegas. A lot of families in LV now and they will fill the place for most games.
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You are correct. But I wish nothing for the worst for the As ownership. Not because they are moving the team, but because they are not playing productive players who are rocking merch from a bar that has been critical of the ownership.
 
Orin Swift said:
You are correct. But I wish nothing for the worst for the As ownership. Not because they are moving the team, but because they are not playing productive players who are rocking merch from a bar that has been critical of the ownership.
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I thought it was crappy of ownership to completely gut the team so it was unwatchable, starting a couple seasons ago, then using the (expected) poor attendance as justification to move.
 
Rough 24 hours for some big names:

Spencer Strider complained of elbow discomfort after his start last night and will undergo an MRI.

Luis Robert came up lame running out a double and suffered a hip flexor injury, same one he hurt in 2021.

Trevor Story injured (dislocated maybe?) his shoulder diving for a ball between short and third.

Shane Bieber is out for the year to have elbow surgery after coming back from his elbow issues last year.
 
cjb5656 said:
The killer for the White Sox is that stadium. It's too big and has absolutely zero charm. I believe they built it right before Camden Yards set the trend for the new style ballparks? At least old Commiskey Stadium was compact and had old school charm. Any chance Chicago builds a new home for the Sox?
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It’s not a great stadium, but it’s not bad either. After they shaved off some upper deck rows at the top of the stadium a couple decades ago, the stadium holds around 40,000 capacity, less than many stadiums around the league. The food is great. The Red Line stops right next to the stadium.

The problems are:
1. Lack of entertainment options surrounding the stadium.
2. Terrible gate flow/procedural problems that cause massive queues near game time if it’s a crowded game.
3. Stupid rule that people with 500 level tickets aren’t even allowed to enter the lower concourse.
4. And most importantly, a terrible owner and atrocious front office.

Will they get a new stadium in Chicago? It’ll come with a fight, but probably. The 78 parcel in the South Loop would be as good a choice as any for a new park since it would be around a lot more entertainment/restaurants, in a nicer neighborhood, and not far from the Roosevelt Red/Green/Orange Line L station.
 
So what do we think about all these pitching injuries, I've got my own opinion but I'll wait and see what the masses think.
 
14Red said:
So what do we think about all these pitching injuries, I've got my own opinion but I'll wait and see what the masses think.
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I think the injuries were pretty frequent before the pitch clock. Certainly the pitch clock could be adding more stress which can impact a person's tension and maybe lead to some injuries, but not enough is known yet to blame the clock.

Here is what I think:
I think the biggest source of the injuries is the emphasis on velocity and spin rates. Pitchers are exerting maximum energy on every pitch, and using intense grips on the ball to get the spin. This is the primary cause of pitching injuries the last decade or two IMO.

I think the rules eliminating the sticky substances that pitchers used (SpiderTack, etc) a couple of years ago made it worse. I have read quotes from pitchers (Tyler Glasnow sticks in my head) where he said after they eliminated the sticky stuff, he had to alter his grip to squeeze the ball harder with each pitch to impart a similar amount of spin. This certainly sounds like a recipe for more injuries.

For me, the pitch clock is a distant 3rd in the blame, until we know more.
 
Agreed 100% with wolves’ post. I read an article, I think from ESPN, where a surgeon who performs UCL surgeries on MLB pitchers said he can tell from an MRI whether the pitcher frequently throws a sweeper. That pitch has become popular in recent years, meshing with the spike in injuries.
 
wolves82 said:
I think the injuries were pretty frequent before the pitch clock. Certainly the pitch clock could be adding more stress which can impact a person's tension and maybe lead to some injuries, but not enough is known yet to blame the clock.

Here is what I think:
I think the biggest source of the injuries is the emphasis on velocity and spin rates. Pitchers are exerting maximum energy on every pitch, and using intense grips on the ball to get the spin. This is the primary cause of pitching injuries the last decade or two IMO.

I think the rules eliminating the sticky substances that pitchers used (SpiderTack, etc) a couple of years ago made it worse. I have read quotes from pitchers (Tyler Glasnow sticks in my head) where he said after they eliminated the sticky stuff, he had to alter his grip to squeeze the ball harder with each pitch to impart a similar amount of spin. This certainly sounds like a recipe for more injuries.

For me, the pitch clock is a distant 3rd in the blame, until we know more.
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Good analysis. The art of throwing hard versus the art of pitching.
 
AEW Champion said:
Agreed 100% with wolves’ post. I read an article, I think from ESPN, where a surgeon who performs UCL surgeries on MLB pitchers said he can tell from an MRI whether the pitcher frequently throws a sweeper. That pitch has become popular in recent years, meshing with the spike in injuries.
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I've seen pitches referred to as a sweeper, but what is it? Do you know if they grip it differently or torque their elbow more?

I just always assumed it was a big breaking curve ball. Did not know it was a new pitch.
 
wolves82 said:
I've seen pitches referred to as a sweeper, but what is it? Do you know if they grip it differently or torque their elbow more?

I just always assumed it was a big breaking curve ball. Did not know it was a new pitch.
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A sweeper is pretty much a slower slider that breaks more horizontally than a regular slider. Here’s some info on it:

www.mlb.com

Sweeper (ST) | Glossary | MLB.com

The Official Site of Major League Baseball
www.mlb.com www.mlb.com
 
maybe these guys have pitched to many pitches for the duration of their lives. most have probably pitched since they were allowed to. and with the influx of travel ball, some of those guys have been pitching year around for a long time. arm can only throw so many times.

jtk
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www.espn.com

Feds accuse Ohtani ex-interpreter of $16M theft

The former interpreter for Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani stole $16 million over more than two years from Ohtani to pay off gambling debts to an illegal sportsbook, according to an affidavit filed by federal authorities Thursday.
www.espn.com www.espn.com

Ohtani off the hook as a victim? Still in jeopardy if more info comes out in trial?
 
Ok, pitching. First of all there is no thing as a sweeper, it's a slider. You can throw a curve ball or slider from different arm slots and different speeds. If you want to give each pitch a different name fine, but it's kind of silly.
About 10-12 years ago, pitch counts became the thing because there was this perception that too many pitchers were getting hurt. Now I'm not dismissing that, but I also feel part of the issue was bigger money pro athletes were making and the "plan" was to keep guys healthy to get to their first contracts. Going back, there have always been pitchers that threw their arms out. However, there were also many pitchers who used to throw 250-300 innings a season in the majors, with a 4 man rotation and throwing 120-150 pitches per start.
My feelings is most of today's youth and young men do not throw enough. Now I also think that we need to get away from this "max effort" style of pitching and more to endurance. We need to TRAIN our young pitchers to throw, 6-7 innings, 130 pitch starts. Heck most high school pitchers throw more pitches in starts that major league pitchers do?
I don't think the pitch clock has alot to do with the recent injuries, most high school and college games paces are like the major league games and they don't have pitch clocks.
I use this example, if you're going to run a marathon, you don't rest for a week before you run, you train for it weeks / months in advance. We train our pitchers currently by restricting their throws from the time they are 10 years old through college??? Recipe for disaster.
 
14Red said:
Ok, pitching. First of all there is no thing as a sweeper, it's a slider. You can throw a curve ball or slider from different arm slots and different speeds. If you want to give each pitch a different name fine, but it's kind of silly.
About 10-12 years ago, pitch counts became the thing because there was this perception that too many pitchers were getting hurt. Now I'm not dismissing that, but I also feel part of the issue was bigger money pro athletes were making and the "plan" was to keep guys healthy to get to their first contracts. Going back, there have always been pitchers that threw their arms out. However, there were also many pitchers who used to throw 250-300 innings a season in the majors, with a 4 man rotation and throwing 120-150 pitches per start.
My feelings is most of today's youth and young men do not throw enough. Now I also think that we need to get away from this "max effort" style of pitching and more to endurance. We need to TRAIN our young pitchers to throw, 6-7 innings, 130 pitch starts. Heck most high school pitchers throw more pitches in starts that major league pitchers do?
I don't think the pitch clock has alot to do with the recent injuries, most high school and college games paces are like the major league games and they don't have pitch clocks.
I use this example, if you're going to run a marathon, you don't rest for a week before you run, you train for it weeks / months in advance. We train our pitchers currently by restricting their throws from the time they are 10 years old through college??? Recipe for disaster.
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That’s an awful lot of words to say “they need to stop babying pitchers”.

As for your comment “perception that pitchers are getting hurt”. It’s not perceived it is real. Pitchers have been getting hurt more. I explained why above. We all know you claimed Hunter Greene wasn’t hurt last year. Do you think all these injuries are faked and a conspiracy? If so get meds for paranoia.
 
wolves82 said:
That’s an awful lot of words to say “they need to stop babying pitchers”.

As for your comment “perception that pitchers are getting hurt”. It’s not perceived it is real. Pitchers have been getting hurt more. I explained why above. We all know you claimed Hunter Greene wasn’t hurt last year. Do you think all these injuries are faked and a conspiracy? If so get meds for paranoia.
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I think "injuries" are diagnosed earlier than ever, and there is very little patience in having guys work though it. Why? The contract. I'd also be curious to see how these guys get paid. I mean maybe someone on here has some knowledge on career ending injuries are treated. If a player is injured, does an insurance policy kick in for them to get paid rather than the ball club paying them, like typical company short term/ long term disability policies?
If that's a factor, it may behoove the teams to NOT take chanced with guys with injuries because of the financial ramifications?
 
14Red said:
I think "injuries" are diagnosed earlier than ever, and there is very little patience in having guys work though it. Why? The contract. I'd also be curious to see how these guys get paid. I mean maybe someone on here has some knowledge on career ending injuries are treated. If a player is injured, does an insurance policy kick in for them to get paid rather than the ball club paying them, like typical company short term/ long term disability policies?
If that's a factor, it may behoove the teams to NOT take chanced with guys with injuries because of the financial ramifications?
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The quotes around "injuries" indicate that you do think players, teams and doctors are faking it!! Incredible. I'm guessing you have a tin foil hat. They are not faking injuries.

a) Players want to play, they want to compete, they want to win. It is how they got to an elite level.
b) Teams eat the $$$ on this. Fully guaranteed contracts in the MLB. There is zero reason for teams to fake injuries and still pay guys.

Re: your questions about insurance. The only time insurance kicks in is if a team buys an insurance policy on the player's contract, to help offset the risk. Teams do not buy policies on every player's contract; it is too expensive. Some teams buy no insurance ever, others buy it on their most risky contracts only.

The premiums cost about 10% of the annual contract. So if you give a player a $10M per year contract for 3 years, the Premium would be about $1M per year for the insurance policy. Expensive insurance - adds 10% to your team payroll to cover every contract. Also, the policy does not cover 100% of the player's salary - they usually cover 50%-80% of the player's salary, depending on the policy. So the team pays the player the full amount, and the insurance pays part of it back to the team when the claim is settled.

So no, teams would not allow fake injuries for financial reasons. And if they did want to fake an injury when they have a players' contract insured, that would be insurance fraud. I can 100% guarantee you if a team tried to make a $30M insurance claim, the insurance company would send in their own doctors, and somebody would be going to jail.

So please just drop the crazy conspiracy theory.
 
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