and I hope today that nobody here is a Tigers fan... they are busy getting their teeth kicked-in by the Twins 11-0 heading in to the bottom of the 5th.
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I think the bigger story is how atrocious the A's pitching was, specifically their bullpen, and how anemic the A's hitters were.
There's also an entire league of teams that still dont feel they got enough of a chance to take out their aggression on Houston for their shenanigans a couple years ago and feel slighted that 2020 took the majority of that chance away. Houston is still going to be a marked team for a while.
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it seems the National's strategy is dig a whole deep enough that you have to play amazing baseball to get out of it. so, here we are with the Nats about to start a series (5 days late) with over 1/2 their lineup out due to COVID and contract tracing. good grief.
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If the bullpen truly is fixed, that would certainly be a welcome development this year. There are definitely some holes, but overall, I feel like they should be on stable ground going forward.
Last year was so wonky I barely paid attention. Completely forgot that Didi was signed and Gabe was replaced by Girardi. Hopefully those improvements pay off a little more this year than they did last year.
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Reds have decided that since everyone hits a home run or strikes out anymore that they don't need any decent gloves just good bats and good pitchers. So far it's working, scored more runs through the first 5 games in (the oldest club in baseball) team history while winning 4 out of 5. Should be interesting to see how this plays out in the big ballparks.
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I'm truly hyped about Jameson Taillon's start today. I hope it goes well. The arms have looked AWESOME so far this season, even though the win/loss record isn't the best thus far. We have a long season ahead of us, and I'm excited to see how my Yanks do this year.
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This new rule is infuriating especially since I didn't know about it until I turned on the Nats game to watch the 8th and 9th innings only to find they lost in 7 innings.
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That explains why there were runs scored in every frame last night in the Rays/Red Sox game. Also, apparently all relievers have to pitch to at least 3 batters before being taken out (barring injury I assume).
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3 batters or end of inning. The 7-inning double header, the 3-batter minimum, and the having a man on start on 2nd base in extra innings are the rules that were reinstated for 2021. The DH in the National League was expected to be reinstated, but never did. But, I think 2021 may be the last year we see a pitcher bat not named Ohtani.
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I love the 3 batter rule for bringing in relief pitchers (unless they get out of the inning in less than 3 batters, in which case they don't have to go back out).
It keeps the game moving, and it requires managers to actually manage their pens and know when it is time to bring a guy in. I'm sure that every team will rue that rule at least once this year, but I'm fine with that as I think it makes the game more entertaining.
The man on 2nd to start extras will be interesting to watch this year. Last year, with the short season, most teams opted to go all out to score. This year, I think we will see more strategy in terms of how often teams bunt/sacrifice to get the guy to third with 1 out
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I like the 3 batter rule too. Nothing slows the game to a grinding halt than a pitching change which prompts a pinch hitter which triggers another pitching change. It also reduce the premium on specialist relievers.
The jury is still out for me on the runner at second extra inning rule. It has the college football OT rule feel to it. It will be interesting to see it's affect on stats related to run production (ERA, runs scored, etc.)
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Jesse Orosco played until he was 46 because he could get out lefties. Now, for better or worse, they'll never be another one like him. His record for appearances (1252) will never be broken.
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yea, there was a whole lot of talk about whether Strasburg is injured post-game. Stras and Davey Martinez both said he's healthy. There is speculation that he was feeling effects of the vaccine does he received yesterday. IDK, but as a Nat's fan, we'll need his dominant presence every 5th game to have a chance this season. The SP depth beyond the starting 5 is pretty week.
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Big Nats fan here. Let's set aside the whole rubble of a record for the moment. Live in NC, have YouTubeTV, MASN notoriously cannot get along with nearly any provider outside of DirecTV. So, last night I free-trialed MLBTV thinking "what better way than that?" Nope. MASN is blacked out there as well and the Cards' broadcast therefore wasn't an option.
What can I do?
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We don't have a team, but are somehow in the media blackout zone for the Nats, Orioles, and Braves. Basically have half the NL East blacked out at any given time, and a hefty chunk of the AL East.
And the kicker is, at least for MASN, there is just no way for us to realistically get that channel. Spectrum doesn't cover it, none of the streaming options do.... We're kinda fubar.
Its the reason I only did a 1 year subscription to MLBTV. What's the point if you're going to actively prevent me from watching the teams I want to watch, especially when their home games are played a solid 5+ hours away from my house.
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Same boat here but we just went ahead got DirecTV and the Reg. Sports Package. However, Caps games on NBCSW are blacked out down here which is equally as stupid as Nats games being blacked out on MLB.tv. Outside of DirecTV I'm not sure you have many options.
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it will take a little effort (and a monthly fee) but if you get a VPN service that can geo-locate you outside of the blackout region it should work fine.
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About that...put the app on my ipad and didn't give it authorization for gps location and boom, all of sudden I'm able to watch MASN. Maybe I can cut that off on my tv.
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Time for some venting... whatever MLB did to the baseball over the off-season - they need to undo it. After last night's no-no from Kluber that's six (or seven depending on whether you count the 7-inning no hitter from Bum) I'm no longer excited about a no-hitter. Yes, it (still) takes a lot of effort and stamina, and a lot of luck, but at the frequency that these are happening (MLB is currently averaging ~1 no hitter per week at the current rate) this is becoming more like an NBA player playing every minute and staying out of foul trouble, rather than a magical combination of dominance, stamina, and luck culminating over 9 innings.
Bring back to the old baseballs!
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The Rangers getting rid of Kluber, a local kid who was supposed to be a future Ranger star, only for him to come back and no hit them is honestly the most Rangers thing ever. And it was on Kluber bobble head night at Globe Life field no less.
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Personally I don't mind that we already got 8 no-hitters already happening this early in the season, (I count Madbum's because the 7 innings counted as an official game, why can't the no hit be official, also don't mind double headers being 7 innings because two straight games in a single day is rough in general especially at that level for the amount of games played in a season).
It's still early in the season and usually in end of May early June is where bats really wake up, also I see it as better pitching in general and players adapting since the game is always changing.
Also 3 teams have been no hit twice, all 2/3 of the teams are bottom tier in thier divisions so that's another thing.
Let me laugh at those three teams but feel bad for Seattle fans for getting dick punched extra hard twice this year.
Edit: Forgot to add in fuck Tony La Russa.
EDIT Edit: Looked at standings and saw Cleveland is fighting for division lead with Chicago White Sox so fixed that being 2/3 of the teams that was no-hit twice are not good. Still fuck Tony La Russa
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Still probably have some more deals before the trade deadline but the Joey Gallo deal sending him to the Yankees is a big one. The Nats look like they're about to deal Scherzer to the Padres. Probably the team I'd most like to see him go to but it stings to see him leave. One of the greatest free agent acquisitions ever and it was a pleasure to watch him pitch in DC for as long as he has. Hoping he can come back after the end of this season🤞
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I love Max Scherzer. Trading him, business wise, makes plenty of sense, but damnit it hurts. Trading Trea on the otherhand...I hate that trade. A young stud SS, just doesn't make much sense to me. Whenever his contract's up, I think he's gonna garner somewhere in the upper $100m if he opts for a relatively long contract, which the vast majority of the teams in the league could swing...idk. I'm sad.
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Trea's contract is up after this season. The Nats have been trying to reach a deal with him and had been unsuccessful. I think they saw the writing on the wall and decided to try and get something for him before he walked for nothing. It sucks. It feels like they should have gotten more back in this deal. I hate that they went to the Dodgers.
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nothing says that this can't be a legit rental. There's nothing that says they can't resign with Washington in the off-season, but the ability to afford both I think is unlikely.
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I think Max re-signing in DC is more likely than Trea. Knowing the Lerners, I'm sure the contract offers Trea has received probably had money deferred for 20-years!
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Trea and Juan would have been great pieces to build around, but that requires Trea actually wanting to be here. I agree, given his reluctance to sign anything we'd previously offered, I am comfortable with dealing him for something instead of letting him walk a la Rendon.
Max on the other hand... heartbreaking. His contract was up so we only had him for another couple months anyways, but damn does it hurt. He'll always be a National to me.
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Trea is signed until 2022. They got a lot back for this deal and it only happens because Trea had another year of contract at low salary. Dodgers will also have the exclusive right to lock him up long term before free agency, if Trea likes LA. It appears he is enjoying the level of notoriety that comes along with playing for Dodgers. He'll be allstar every year if he sticks with LA, even in mediocre seasons.
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Nats got some great prospects for the two and the Dodgers take Max's deferred money in 2028 (nothing earlier though). And like others said, I feel like if there was a deal to be done between the Nats and Trea it would've happened by now. Definitely sucks since he was my favorite player on the team. If anything this seems to signal the Nats are (hopefully) all in on Soto. Would be a huge miss to not sign him to a long term deal. Nats are set up pretty well for the future and if they can make some more moves today that'll speed up the rebuild process.
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I admittedly don't know much about the prospects but it just feel like the haul for a premiere SS (best in the league?) and one of the most dominant pitchers over the past decade should have been more. I'm probably over valuing because of emotional attachment.
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Well probably just about anything was going to seem underwhelming. But we got the top two Dodgers prospects who are now the Nats top two prospects and the other two that we got are both (I think) in our top ten. We can still resign Max but it was pretty clear we weren't going to win anything this season so trading him made sense. And like I said with Trea, it doesn't seem like we were going to come to a deal so better to get something for him than to just let him walk after next season. Losing both of those guys definitely feels like a gut punch and I will hate seeing them in Dodger blue, especially Trea next season.
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St. Louis picked up JA Happ and Jon Lester today. That means the Cardinals starting rotation looks like this:
Adam Wainwright: age 39
Kwong-hyun Kim: age 33
Wade Leblanc: age 36
JA Happ: age 38
Jon Lester: age 37
The average age is 36.6 for all you folks counting at home.
This is fine.
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And the Braves/AA stayed true to form shopping in the bargains aisle, save for Rodriguez from PIT. And what we gave up there was a position (SP) where we are pretty stacked with young talent, and a player (Wilson) who had not shown any consistency at the ML level, though has had shown some potential with some great performances (NLDS). I'd have liked another reliever, but at least we didn't give up too much at all this year, in a year where we aren't really sure if we're a contender or not.
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AA is looking a bit more like a genius with (a) how well his trade deadline pickups have played and (b) how little he gave up for them. The most he gave up is Wilson for Rodriguez, and that is at a position where the Braves have strength (young starting pitching), and the one he gave up is not at the top of that list. I really like where the Braves are sitting right now (4.5 games up over the Phillies).
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yeah that's about what it looked like watching live. The kids that were getting rung-up had a tremendous amount of self-control. Any big league would've lost their f'in mind with some of the calls I witnessed. Credit to the catchers who were doing a great job framing, and the pitchers for dancing around the corners, but they weren't throwing strikes, getting the calls, and they took advantage of it
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I'd rather play the Dodgers, best on paper, but with injuries and lack of cohesiveness, seemingly less of a threat than the Braves playing like they are destined to be WS Champs. In MLB playoffs, it's all about who is hot atm, and many Dodgers are cold, injured, or both.
Best of luck to Dusty. I want him to win, but I also want every ASTRO player to lose.
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As a Houston resident for almost 7 years I have adopted the astros (and boy are they fun to watch), but I also grew up a braves fan. Win win world series for me
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As a Nats fan, was hoping for a Schwarber v. Max/Trea world series. As a baseball fan, I'm happy for Dusty, Freeman, and Rosario, but I have disdain for both Braves and Astros.
I think it's Braves in 6 or 7. Just seems like destiny. But I would be happy for Dusty if he diverted from his curse of never managing a WS championship team, especially after all his close calls.
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I dont care for either team. Atlanta is tolerable, but Houston is still on baseball's sh*t list. Once they advanced from Boston I lost all interest in watching the WS.
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I was able to get two tickets to game 3, and it honestly doesn't feel real yet. I can't believe I'm going to get to see a Braves World Series game. I never thought this would happen in my lifetime (well, in my adult lifetime).
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I'm envious. Wife and I looked during A list yesterday and it just wasn't in our budget. May head down to the Battery just to be there and experience it all. I was happy enough to be in for a walkoff game last series. Enjoy man!
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We had 8 people trying today and only two of us broke through and had a 2 ticket max each so half our crew didn't get tickets, which sucks, but the 8 of us are still going to game and they will watch from the battery if they can't get tickets before then.
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We got SRO tickets to Game 3 of the Nats World Series. Even then it was a blast and a great spectacle to be a part of. I pull for them secondarily as my NL team (though I only loosely follow baseball right now). Win or Lose, it will definitely be something to enjoy as a memory.
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Tried to grab 4 yesterday for game 4 with a hook up presale after A-List but had them taken from me four times. I was 100% going to take the family no matter the cost but they are now at $1200 to $1500 each now on secondary market.
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Way to go, Braves, in winning Game 1. Some interesting firsts in this game:
- First leadoff batter of a WS Game 1 to hit a HR
- First team to score in each of the first three innings of a WS Game 1
Braves looked sharp last night, but it sucks that Morton broke his leg. Not sure how their going to handle his projected Game 5 start, given that chances are Game 4 was intended to be a bullpen game. Maybe it's a good thing that Kyle Wright was added to the WS roster.
And I liked the flashback to Smoltz in the 1996(?) WS where he and the first baseman misread the bunt up the 1st base side. That was a nice followup to the Astros' pitcher falling as he chased the check-swing bunt.
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Bottom of the ninth ball call on the full count on Diaz was definitely the worst pitch call of the night. Seemed like a clear strike on TV. Vindicating to see that on the graphic.
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From Jayson Stark's Weird and Wild column on The Athletic (paywalled, so no link):
Last fastball before he got smoked in the leg: 95.8 miles per hour, according to Statcast Last fastball he threw in this game (15 pitches after he got smoked): 95.9 mph Average fastball velocity after he got smoked: 95.1 mph Strike/ball ratio after he got smoked: 11 strikes, 5 balls
Charlie Morton is a bad motherfucker.
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Seeing how his career has gone, it makes me wonder how he (and the Braves) would have turned out if Atlanta hadn't traded him away the first time... for Nate McLouth.
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And if you're curious, here's the Umpire Scorecard from Game 6. Note that one of the three worst calls was on Soler's HR at-bat. He did end up looking at a strike at 3-1 (which would have been 2-2 if the 3rd pitch was called correctly), but who knows if he would have changed his strategy at 2 strikes.
I don't know who Trevor Plouffe is, but guy's got some stone-cold Nostradamus skills, calling this back in March.
Atlanta Braves over the Houston Astros in 6.— Coach Trev (@trevorplouffe) March 31, 2021
You'd think I'd feel pretty confident, with Max Fried and Ian Anderson on normal rest the next two games, and only need to win one. But I gotta admit, the Atlanta Sports Doubt is crashing down on me pretty hard. I've seen this before, with all those division championships in the 90s/00s and only one WS win to show for it, to last year's NLCS, and even the Super Bowl That Shall Not Be Referenced. The Astros look really good with so many of their batters hitting for high averages, that they got the small-ball game down pat, and that worries me. A lot.
So yeah, I'm pretty nervous about the next two games, but I'll keep cheering up to the last minute. #GoBraves #ChopOn
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HUGE congratulations to the Braves and their fans. They were the class of the league the 2nd half of the season and in the playoffs. To beat the Dodgers and Astros (who combined to beat the Cardinals, Giants, White Sox and Red Sox) to win the World Series speaks for itself.
Atlanta has a great core of players, and it looks like they'll be contenders for the next few years.
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Right now it is more likely than not that Freeman will sign with the Braves again. He has been pretty up front that he wants to stay with the Braves and Atlanta saved some money by signing extensions with Albies and Acuña a few years ago.
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Never thought I'd see the Braves win a World Series. What a feeling! So many players etched their name into Braves history as legends this series. I had a calm confidence today because I believed Fried would get it done.
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And, as noted above, I was a nervous wreck. Glad I was able to relax and enjoy it after a few innings based on how Fried was pitching. That was a gem of a performance.
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Well time to see what happens now in the off-season with free agency/trades and predictions for next season.
*Glass Crashing* "CBA expiring in December with the MLBPA, team owners, and MLB Commissioner not knowing what they want with their own heads up their asses and not talking to each other for an agreement"
MOTHER FU- *It's Always Sunny in Philly opening theme plays* "The Gang Wants another Lockout"
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I love baseball's offseason, mainly because of the mathematical/statistical nature of evaluating performance and assigning dollar values to projections, and how this data informs free agent signings and trades. So now I'm really curious about who the Braves are going to keep from their championship team, given that Acuna (and possibly Ozuna, ugh) are coming back. I might come back in a few days with my guesses, but the number one priority should be....SIGN FREDDIE FREEMAN! (5 years, $140M)
My worry with the Freddie contract situation is that giving him a huge deal (particularly LENGTH) that Freddie is probably looking for is completely against AA's philosophy on team building. Right now we are all riding high and saying "give him a lifetime contract," but if we start to see that contract become a hindrance to future team building after a few seasons then suddenly you will see the same people who were saying "give him a blank check!" over the last month start to criticize it. It's just the nature of sports. However, I WANT to keep Freeman like I'm sure almost all Braves fans do. So really, I just don't envy the decisions and negotiations AA is about to make.
If we could get him to take a 5 year deal like you've proposed we should 100% absolutely do it. My concern is that 5 years is less than what Freeman is looking for.
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He's 32. I don't think you can give him more than 5 years. I've seen lots of statistics on age-related decline, and yeah, the start of the decline can vary, but it's always before 37. It's why we didn't give Donaldson the 4 years he wanted. (Well, that, and a guy named Riley.) Still, it depends on the amount of underpay you get in the early years of the contract. If Freeman really overperforms by a lot in the early years, you can theoretically afford to swallow the latter year decline, even if you go 6 years. The AAV would come down a bit if you go 6, though.
Two thoughts about resigning Freeman:
It's possible that winning the World Series this year removes some motivation to go elsewhere, as that's one reason that stars leave in FA.
If the Braves don't sign Freeman, I think it's going to look really bad, given the sweetheart deal savings the team has on Acuna and Albies. There's a perception that the team should be using that savings to put pieces around them to increase the probability of another championship during this "window", and if they don't use those savings to sign Freeman, is the team really trying to remain at a championship level, or are they penny-pinching? Perception matters, especially when it comes to fan engagement.
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It's not as important, given the fully-guaranteed nature of MLB contracts. And given that $1 now is worth more than $1 in the future, then why frontload? There have been frontloaded contracts in MLB, but it's not the norm.
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I was thinking of how some guys play as expected during the earlier part of the contract, but then age comes at them and their production falls way off, but the team still has to pay them way more than what they're worth. Miguel Cabrera comes to mind.
Basically, if Freeman approached age 38 and his production started dropping, his salary wouldn't hamstring the Braves nearly as much if it's frontloaded and they could go out and add someone else without blowing their (laughable) budget.
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1) I think you've successfully made me much more confident that we will re-sign Freeman. I was nervous about how AA would be viewing it but I think this lens presents a viewpoint and risk-level that he might not be as opposed to as I originally thought.
2)
It's possible that winning the World Series this year removes some motivation to go elsewhere, as that's one reason that stars leave in FA.
I think this could be the case, but for whatever reason the feeling I've had is that the opposite thought may be the case: That it's probably easier for Freddie to leave ATL after helping to bring a World Series. He gave us (well, participated significantly in) the the ultimate goal of any player/team. It's sort of like a mission accomplished, where he could leave Atlanta with no regrets and take the bigger contract offer he will almost certainly be able to get from a bigger market team. However, I really believe that he loves living in Atlanta and wants to stay, but that's just a thought that's crept into my mind.
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I would imagine that there would be a few teams to give Freeman a 6 to 8 year contract with the understanding that last few years will be limited to DH/PH roles. He's still so good right now and he's had such good health overall that I have to imagine some teams with cash and space would make that move.
I don't think winning a WS actually has an impact on a player to stay. Didn't seem to impact Mookie Betts, Anthony Rendon, Joc Pederson, at least, but each player is a unique situation. The Nats did resign Strasburg. The Dodgers did resign J. Turner. So, mixed bag, I guess.
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How I know it's the offseason is when I see this and see the Phillies get destroyed because they say "fuck the bullpen, it's not like we need that to be good".
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Bryce Harper wins the NL MVP. Three of the five vote getters were / are Nationals. Harper, Soto and Trea Turner. It's starting to piss me off that the billionaire Lerner's refuse to spend money on star players. I really don't see Soto coming back.
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Did you read Svrluga's column arguing for making Juan the first $500M player? His numbers at the plate are on pace to be historic. If the Nats hadn't sold the farm in July, he would have won NL MVP.
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I don't follow baseball monies as close as the NFL but are the Lerners the only owners that try to defer all the salary hindering their ability to attract free agents and keep their own non injury prone talent? I hear the Junkies bitch about it alot and was curious is this was a baseball norm or not?
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I'm not sure about if other teams do it but it certainly feels like they are the only ones that use that method. Outside of the Mets and Bobby Bonilla....
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The Mets and Bobby Bonilla are highlighted as the reason not to do it. But, it hasn't hindered the Nats yet. One of the best free agent signing of the past decade was Scherzer. So honestly, not sure why people still focus on the albatross of Bonilla and not the brilliance of the Scherzer signing.
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When signing Max Scherzer, a small portion of the money to be paid was deferred. At the time of the signing, most analysts believed the Nationals overpaid (and didn't discount for the deferred money). Notably, that infamous deal ended up being one of the best (if not the best) free agent signing in the last decade.
When offering deals to both Rendon and Harper, the money to be paid included deferred payments. Neither player signed, but they were outbid regardless of the deferrals (and there were other factors on why they didn't stay).
Nobody is on record for turning down the Nats because of the deferred payments. Nobody has said that deferrals has hindered their interest in the Nats. And the Nats have been considered a great place for a free agent to sign since the signing of Jayson Werth. Perhaps that changed with the sell-off this past season, but I doubt it.
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There is a cash penalty and loss of draft position for going over the threshold. They would have definitely gone over keeping Harper (even at the amount the Lerner's offered and Harper turned down).
Besides two MVP seasons, Harper has been a below average player making MVP money. Can he become a perennial MVP? I don't know, but I wouldn't pay Harper MVP money for his inconsistency.
The cheapness of the Lerner's is overstated by Nats fans. Every team has the same competitive balance tax threshold. Further, buying championships hasn't existed since the Yankee dynasty of the 90s. How many WS rings do the Dodgers and Yankees each have since 2000?
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I'm not salty about Harper or even Rendon (in hindsight) but shipping Turner out really stung. SSs with his plate presence/offensive upside don't grow on trees.
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Yea. He is a stud. But, I get why he was on the table and traded. This offseason has the most SS free agent value in a long while. The list includes: Trevor Story, Marcus Semien, Cory Seager, Carlos Correa, Javier Baez, and Andrelton Simmons.
Four of those players are of the same talent-level as Turner. The other two would be serviceable, but you would need to sign key players in other positions to make up for the loss of Turner.
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So I'm not good at finding who comments where, but I knew you did comment here without having to go back to the fishing thread. Just wanted to say I respect all the business you do and how much you give back in the fishing community and give a wealth of knowledge to the folks here. Just bought a pair of earrings for my wife and I know she will love em. Awesome spread you have. If I ever get back into hunting water fowl (job permitting) I'll let you know feather wise for your needs.
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Just wanted to say I respect all the business you do and how much you give back in the fishing community and give a wealth of knowledge to the folks here.
Thank you very much for the compliment, HokieinGA. I really appreciate it! I'm happy to help wherever I can and raise a little hell too. Looks like you didn't use the 25% off TKP coupon, so check your email for a partial refund.
This business is fun to run and actually quite profitable but damn I am swamped. You are the 18th order the past three days. I'll get it out ASAP but realistically looking at a week from today before it hits the mail.
Would love to have more feather suppliers! My neighbors have chickens and ducks, I'd hate to have to kill one for some of their plumage. Thanks again, I really appreciate it!
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Thanks man, I forgot about the discount. I appreciate that. It isn't a super pressing order but I know not to wait last minute on stuff. Glad to hear the business is going well. Swamped can be good, just takes time away from the water and other fun stuff.
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Harper genuinely deserved it. Probably the only reason the Phils had a legit chance at the playoffs late in the year, and even then it wasn't good enough. And they had a Cy Young Finalist as well in Wheeler, but nope. Still not good enough.
One of these days they will realize that the bullpen actually matters. One day. I hope
At least 2008 happened. I'll always have that
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Are they waiting for the new CBA? I can't imagine years or money is an obstacle. Especially with the DH coming to the NL. Only a matter of time on that. Easily extends him to the years he is looking for.
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Give the man his year. He earned it before the ship. I know they don't want to get tight on money and need pitching. They already got some great deals on other guys. It isn't a Bonilla style contract.
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Great article. I saw some articles suggesting the Braves try to engineer a trade for him, and I was hesitant due to his availability issues, but damn, this guy is seriously good. He had as much WAR in 61 games as Acuna did in 82 games last year, and Acuna still led his team into September! And that's on top of his defensive ability in center. (Great web gems in the article.)
Twins fans gotta be excited about keeping that guy home!
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I haven't been active on the Twins boards recently but if my excitement is any way to gauge then, yes, the hardcore fanbase is ecstatic about this. The big concern going in to this specific negotiation was the massive amounts of money the big market teams could be throwing at him and the rumors of 7 years/$175M being the target. He's a great player and HOF makeup... IF he can play. His durability has been a huge issue for all but one year, so to keep him and do it at a base salary that is below his value is a huge credit to front office. I dont like this deal - I love it!
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and I hope today that nobody here is a Tigers fan... they are busy getting their teeth kicked-in by the Twins 11-0 heading in to the bottom of the 5th.
Best part about baseball season is the start. Everybody has hope
As a Phillies fan I'm not expecting much, but 3 dominant pitching performances against the Braves to sweep them is something to cheer for
Just want to point out that the Astros are 4-0 with a +26 run differential. And that's on the road without any trashcans in the dugout. ;-)
I think the bigger story is how atrocious the A's pitching was, specifically their bullpen, and how anemic the A's hitters were.
There's also an entire league of teams that still dont feel they got enough of a chance to take out their aggression on Houston for their shenanigans a couple years ago and feel slighted that 2020 took the majority of that chance away. Houston is still going to be a marked team for a while.
The As fans were certainly giving it to the Astros, and it didn't seem to matter clearly.
I don't imagine it really will bug those cheaters much no matter what reception they get.
where does Dusty throw out his tooth pick?
it seems the National's strategy is dig a whole deep enough that you have to play amazing baseball to get out of it. so, here we are with the Nats about to start a series (5 days late) with over 1/2 their lineup out due to COVID and contract tracing. good grief.
Annnd we're starting with a doubleheader. Just what ya want!
That is their MO, isn't it?
And Soto sends the Barves to 0-4 even with half the starters on the COVID list
Woohoo! Still the 162 game champs!
4-0 the dream
Philly bullpen, which was historically bad last season, has only given up 1 run in 4 games with the Braves/Mets.
Encouraging
If the bullpen truly is fixed, that would certainly be a welcome development this year. There are definitely some holes, but overall, I feel like they should be on stable ground going forward.
Last year was so wonky I barely paid attention. Completely forgot that Didi was signed and Gabe was replaced by Girardi. Hopefully those improvements pay off a little more this year than they did last year.
I'm guessing this was posted before they gave up 6 runs yesterday...
Reds have decided that since everyone hits a home run or strikes out anymore that they don't need any decent gloves just good bats and good pitchers. So far it's working, scored more runs through the first 5 games in (the oldest club in baseball) team history while winning 4 out of 5. Should be interesting to see how this plays out in the big ballparks.
5-1 heading back to the orange juice park
I'm truly hyped about Jameson Taillon's start today. I hope it goes well. The arms have looked AWESOME so far this season, even though the win/loss record isn't the best thus far. We have a long season ahead of us, and I'm excited to see how my Yanks do this year.
https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.truebluela.com/platform/amp/2021/2/8/22...
This new rule is infuriating especially since I didn't know about it until I turned on the Nats game to watch the 8th and 9th innings only to find they lost in 7 innings.
That explains why there were runs scored in every frame last night in the Rays/Red Sox game. Also, apparently all relievers have to pitch to at least 3 batters before being taken out (barring injury I assume).
3 batters or end of inning. The 7-inning double header, the 3-batter minimum, and the having a man on start on 2nd base in extra innings are the rules that were reinstated for 2021. The DH in the National League was expected to be reinstated, but never did. But, I think 2021 may be the last year we see a pitcher bat not named Ohtani.
I love the 3 batter rule for bringing in relief pitchers (unless they get out of the inning in less than 3 batters, in which case they don't have to go back out).
It keeps the game moving, and it requires managers to actually manage their pens and know when it is time to bring a guy in. I'm sure that every team will rue that rule at least once this year, but I'm fine with that as I think it makes the game more entertaining.
The man on 2nd to start extras will be interesting to watch this year. Last year, with the short season, most teams opted to go all out to score. This year, I think we will see more strategy in terms of how often teams bunt/sacrifice to get the guy to third with 1 out
I remember when college softball had the person on 2nd in extras rule. It sucked
I like the 3 batter rule too. Nothing slows the game to a grinding halt than a pitching change which prompts a pinch hitter which triggers another pitching change. It also reduce the premium on specialist relievers.
The jury is still out for me on the runner at second extra inning rule. It has the college football OT rule feel to it. It will be interesting to see it's affect on stats related to run production (ERA, runs scored, etc.)
Jesse Orosco played until he was 46 because he could get out lefties. Now, for better or worse, they'll never be another one like him. His record for appearances (1252) will never be broken.
I'm sorry to any mets fans in here but I hope the marlins beat the hell outta the mets tomorrow😂
Anyone keeping an eye on Cards/Nats? What is the Washington broadcast saying about Strasburg? He didn't seem right for about three innings.
they didn't say anything in depth. Just that his mechanics were off, not hitting his landing spot, straining, etc.
Ok that's about what they were saying here too. I did see his fastball velocity was significantly down so I hope he's not injured.
yea, there was a whole lot of talk about whether Strasburg is injured post-game. Stras and Davey Martinez both said he's healthy. There is speculation that he was feeling effects of the vaccine does he received yesterday. IDK, but as a Nat's fan, we'll need his dominant presence every 5th game to have a chance this season. The SP depth beyond the starting 5 is pretty week.
Big Nats fan here. Let's set aside the whole rubble of a record for the moment. Live in NC, have YouTubeTV, MASN notoriously cannot get along with nearly any provider outside of DirecTV. So, last night I free-trialed MLBTV thinking "what better way than that?" Nope. MASN is blacked out there as well and the Cards' broadcast therefore wasn't an option.
What can I do?
You can get MLB radio for $20 a year and listen to the games.
They had audio as an option, but damn...
NC is the worst for blackouts.
We don't have a team, but are somehow in the media blackout zone for the Nats, Orioles, and Braves. Basically have half the NL East blacked out at any given time, and a hefty chunk of the AL East.
And the kicker is, at least for MASN, there is just no way for us to realistically get that channel. Spectrum doesn't cover it, none of the streaming options do.... We're kinda fubar.
Its the reason I only did a 1 year subscription to MLBTV. What's the point if you're going to actively prevent me from watching the teams I want to watch, especially when their home games are played a solid 5+ hours away from my house.
Same boat here but we just went ahead got DirecTV and the Reg. Sports Package. However, Caps games on NBCSW are blacked out down here which is equally as stupid as Nats games being blacked out on MLB.tv. Outside of DirecTV I'm not sure you have many options.
I feel ya. Even though Nats are my #1 team, I live less than 5 miles from Angel Stadium and don't have any way to watch their games.
MLB + VPN...
it will take a little effort (and a monthly fee) but if you get a VPN service that can geo-locate you outside of the blackout region it should work fine.
About that...put the app on my ipad and didn't give it authorization for gps location and boom, all of sudden I'm able to watch MASN. Maybe I can cut that off on my tv.
I'm sure I won't be saying this for long, but my Mariners are in first place in the AL West after beating up on the O's!
Time for some venting... whatever MLB did to the baseball over the off-season - they need to undo it. After last night's no-no from Kluber that's six (or seven depending on whether you count the 7-inning no hitter from Bum) I'm no longer excited about a no-hitter. Yes, it (still) takes a lot of effort and stamina, and a lot of luck, but at the frequency that these are happening (MLB is currently averaging ~1 no hitter per week at the current rate) this is becoming more like an NBA player playing every minute and staying out of foul trouble, rather than a magical combination of dominance, stamina, and luck culminating over 9 innings.
Bring back to the old baseballs!
The Rangers getting rid of Kluber, a local kid who was supposed to be a future Ranger star, only for him to come back and no hit them is honestly the most Rangers thing ever. And it was on Kluber bobble head night at Globe Life field no less.
Personally I don't mind that we already got 8 no-hitters already happening this early in the season, (I count Madbum's because the 7 innings counted as an official game, why can't the no hit be official, also don't mind double headers being 7 innings because two straight games in a single day is rough in general especially at that level for the amount of games played in a season).
It's still early in the season and usually in end of May early June is where bats really wake up, also I see it as better pitching in general and players adapting since the game is always changing.
Also 3 teams have been no hit twice, all 2/3 of the teams are bottom tier in thier divisions so that's another thing.
Let me laugh at those three teams but feel bad for Seattle fans for getting dick punched extra hard twice this year.
Edit: Forgot to add in fuck Tony La Russa.
EDIT Edit: Looked at standings and saw Cleveland is fighting for division lead with Chicago White Sox so fixed that being 2/3 of the teams that was no-hit twice are not good. Still fuck Tony La Russa
Still probably have some more deals before the trade deadline but the Joey Gallo deal sending him to the Yankees is a big one. The Nats look like they're about to deal Scherzer to the Padres. Probably the team I'd most like to see him go to but it stings to see him leave. One of the greatest free agent acquisitions ever and it was a pleasure to watch him pitch in DC for as long as he has. Hoping he can come back after the end of this season🤞
Scherzer and Turner to the Dodgers is such a kick in the bean bag. I hate the Dodgers. Not like this..,
All the Nats fans waking up today realizing they can no longer pick on Baltimore for sucking so bad is too funny.
I love Max Scherzer. Trading him, business wise, makes plenty of sense, but damnit it hurts. Trading Trea on the otherhand...I hate that trade. A young stud SS, just doesn't make much sense to me. Whenever his contract's up, I think he's gonna garner somewhere in the upper $100m if he opts for a relatively long contract, which the vast majority of the teams in the league could swing...idk. I'm sad.
Trea's contract is up after this season. The Nats have been trying to reach a deal with him and had been unsuccessful. I think they saw the writing on the wall and decided to try and get something for him before he walked for nothing. It sucks. It feels like they should have gotten more back in this deal. I hate that they went to the Dodgers.
nothing says that this can't be a legit rental. There's nothing that says they can't resign with Washington in the off-season, but the ability to afford both I think is unlikely.
I think Max re-signing in DC is more likely than Trea. Knowing the Lerners, I'm sure the contract offers Trea has received probably had money deferred for 20-years!
Trea and Juan would have been great pieces to build around, but that requires Trea actually wanting to be here. I agree, given his reluctance to sign anything we'd previously offered, I am comfortable with dealing him for something instead of letting him walk a la Rendon.
Max on the other hand... heartbreaking. His contract was up so we only had him for another couple months anyways, but damn does it hurt. He'll always be a National to me.
They let Rendon walk, but we wouldn't have a WS banner without him. Sucked to see him go, but didn't break my heart.
Trea is signed until 2022. They got a lot back for this deal and it only happens because Trea had another year of contract at low salary. Dodgers will also have the exclusive right to lock him up long term before free agency, if Trea likes LA. It appears he is enjoying the level of notoriety that comes along with playing for Dodgers. He'll be allstar every year if he sticks with LA, even in mediocre seasons.
Nats got some great prospects for the two and the Dodgers take Max's deferred money in 2028 (nothing earlier though). And like others said, I feel like if there was a deal to be done between the Nats and Trea it would've happened by now. Definitely sucks since he was my favorite player on the team. If anything this seems to signal the Nats are (hopefully) all in on Soto. Would be a huge miss to not sign him to a long term deal. Nats are set up pretty well for the future and if they can make some more moves today that'll speed up the rebuild process.
I admittedly don't know much about the prospects but it just feel like the haul for a premiere SS (best in the league?) and one of the most dominant pitchers over the past decade should have been more. I'm probably over valuing because of emotional attachment.
Well probably just about anything was going to seem underwhelming. But we got the top two Dodgers prospects who are now the Nats top two prospects and the other two that we got are both (I think) in our top ten. We can still resign Max but it was pretty clear we weren't going to win anything this season so trading him made sense. And like I said with Trea, it doesn't seem like we were going to come to a deal so better to get something for him than to just let him walk after next season. Losing both of those guys definitely feels like a gut punch and I will hate seeing them in Dodger blue, especially Trea next season.
We are in 100% agreement.
And there go Harrison and Gomes. This is quite the fire sale.
Any Cubbies fans on here? Ouch. Krimble, Baez, Bryant, and Rizzo all gone. Talk about a rebuild.
Lol the Nats traded away more than 30% of their roster in the past two days. Crazy.
St. Louis picked up JA Happ and Jon Lester today. That means the Cardinals starting rotation looks like this:
Adam Wainwright: age 39
Kwong-hyun Kim: age 33
Wade Leblanc: age 36
JA Happ: age 38
Jon Lester: age 37
The average age is 36.6 for all you folks counting at home.
This is fine.
And the Braves/AA stayed true to form shopping in the bargains aisle, save for Rodriguez from PIT. And what we gave up there was a position (SP) where we are pretty stacked with young talent, and a player (Wilson) who had not shown any consistency at the ML level, though has had shown some potential with some great performances (NLDS). I'd have liked another reliever, but at least we didn't give up too much at all this year, in a year where we aren't really sure if we're a contender or not.
This comment didn't age very well.
AA is looking a bit more like a genius with (a) how well his trade deadline pickups have played and (b) how little he gave up for them. The most he gave up is Wilson for Rodriguez, and that is at a position where the Braves have strength (young starting pitching), and the one he gave up is not at the top of that list. I really like where the Braves are sitting right now (4.5 games up over the Phillies).
For those not tracking - the Field of Dreams game is finally happening tonight at 7pm ET
https://www.mlb.com/news/field-of-dreams-game-guide
Watching the LLWS and the wiiiiiiiide strike zone, and I can't help but think Angel Hernandez is behind the plate today.
Oh yeah, that fucking guy.
yeah that's about what it looked like watching live. The kids that were getting rung-up had a tremendous amount of self-control. Any big league would've lost their f'in mind with some of the calls I witnessed. Credit to the catchers who were doing a great job framing, and the pitchers for dancing around the corners, but they weren't throwing strikes, getting the calls, and they took advantage of it
Just want to go on the record saying it feels weird rooting for the Braves, so that my Astros can play the Braves in the World Series.
I don't mean any disrespect to the Braves by any means (they're playing great this postseason), but I really don't want to play the Dodger$.
Holy fuck, Matzek in the 7th. I've never seen a more dominant inning for a reliever in such a clutch spot.
Maybe I don't want to play the Braves...
Did you hear that he was out of baseball a few years ago completely, and played for the Texas AirHogs?
Media is overplaying that like Boykin's XXXL gloves or Hodges' 6'7" height.
I'd rather play the Dodgers, best on paper, but with injuries and lack of cohesiveness, seemingly less of a threat than the Braves playing like they are destined to be WS Champs. In MLB playoffs, it's all about who is hot atm, and many Dodgers are cold, injured, or both.
Best of luck to Dusty. I want him to win, but I also want every ASTRO player to lose.
Let's go Bravos!
My football teams may be utter crap this year. But at least my Braves are giving me something to cheer about.
Not once did I go to a Flying Squirrels game. I prefer to remember The Diamond as the home of the R Braves.
Fuck the barves, that is all I have to say about that.
Sox out good, Houston in bad. Dodgers out good, Braves in...meh. go braves?
Cubs fan?
Yankees
Ahhh, for some weird reason when you said Sox I though White Sox. Makes sense now.
As a Houston resident for almost 7 years I have adopted the astros (and boy are they fun to watch), but I also grew up a braves fan. Win win world series for me
LETS GO BRAVES!!!
As a Nats fan, was hoping for a Schwarber v. Max/Trea world series. As a baseball fan, I'm happy for Dusty, Freeman, and Rosario, but I have disdain for both Braves and Astros.
I think it's Braves in 6 or 7. Just seems like destiny. But I would be happy for Dusty if he diverted from his curse of never managing a WS championship team, especially after all his close calls.
I dont care for either team. Atlanta is tolerable, but Houston is still on baseball's sh*t list. Once they advanced from Boston I lost all interest in watching the WS.
I was able to get two tickets to game 3, and it honestly doesn't feel real yet. I can't believe I'm going to get to see a Braves World Series game. I never thought this would happen in my lifetime (well, in my adult lifetime).
That's awesome. These opportunities are rare and fleeting. Enjoy.
I'm envious. Wife and I looked during A list yesterday and it just wasn't in our budget. May head down to the Battery just to be there and experience it all. I was happy enough to be in for a walkoff game last series. Enjoy man!
We had 8 people trying today and only two of us broke through and had a 2 ticket max each so half our crew didn't get tickets, which sucks, but the 8 of us are still going to game and they will watch from the battery if they can't get tickets before then.
We got SRO tickets to Game 3 of the Nats World Series. Even then it was a blast and a great spectacle to be a part of. I pull for them secondarily as my NL team (though I only loosely follow baseball right now). Win or Lose, it will definitely be something to enjoy as a memory.
Tried to grab 4 yesterday for game 4 with a hook up presale after A-List but had them taken from me four times. I was 100% going to take the family no matter the cost but they are now at $1200 to $1500 each now on secondary market.
Congrats man! As an Astros fan I'm hoping it's 0-2 for the Braves going into your game, but I hope you have a great time and may the best team win.
The Braves are playing scary good right now, and watching them handle the Dodger$ they way they did terrifies me.
Way to go, Braves, in winning Game 1. Some interesting firsts in this game:
- First leadoff batter of a WS Game 1 to hit a HR
- First team to score in each of the first three innings of a WS Game 1
Braves looked sharp last night, but it sucks that Morton broke his leg. Not sure how their going to handle his projected Game 5 start, given that chances are Game 4 was intended to be a bullpen game. Maybe it's a good thing that Kyle Wright was added to the WS roster.
And I liked the flashback to Smoltz in the 1996(?) WS where he and the first baseman misread the bunt up the 1st base side. That was a nice followup to the Astros' pitcher falling as he chased the check-swing bunt.
Umpire Scorecard from last night is interesting. "Overall Favor: +1.62 runs for HOU"
Thanks for sharing this. Hadn't ever come across this account on Twitter before. Pretty cool stats.
Bottom of the ninth ball call on the full count on Diaz was definitely the worst pitch call of the night. Seemed like a clear strike on TV. Vindicating to see that on the graphic.
Yeah, I was screaming at that one too in realtime.
And Rob Friedman had some gems up last night as well.
Charlie Morton's last 16 pitches, including the K to Altuve, were with a BROKEN FREAKIN' LEG.
And he's 37.
As if this series didn't need more storylines.
From Jayson Stark's Weird and Wild column on The Athletic (paywalled, so no link):
Charlie Morton is a bad motherfucker.
Seeing how his career has gone, it makes me wonder how he (and the Braves) would have turned out if Atlanta hadn't traded him away the first time... for Nate McLouth.
I don't know, but I surmise that he wouldn't have been a Brave alongside Freeman all this time. He'd have been traded for prospects after 2014.
Umpire Scorecard from Game 2:
That's 8 straight (and 11 out of 12 total) where the Braves have been hurt by ball/strike calls.
Not sure if it's just bad luck or d'Arnaud has some framing work to do but I'm ready for the robot zone.
On the other end LA was incredibly lucky with calls at home (and that doesn't even account for check swings).
I'm sure framing does affect it somewhat, but you're right, 11/12 against is a statistical outlier.
There was a good twitter response to the scorecard regarding bots:
Ump Scorecards for Games 3, 4, and 5:
If you're scoring, that makes it 13/15 against the Braves.
And if you're curious, here's the Umpire Scorecard from Game 6. Note that one of the three worst calls was on Soler's HR at-bat. He did end up looking at a strike at 3-1 (which would have been 2-2 if the 3rd pitch was called correctly), but who knows if he would have changed his strategy at 2 strikes.
I'm okay with it. ;^)
I don't know who Trevor Plouffe is, but guy's got some stone-cold Nostradamus skills, calling this back in March.
You'd think I'd feel pretty confident, with Max Fried and Ian Anderson on normal rest the next two games, and only need to win one. But I gotta admit, the Atlanta Sports Doubt is crashing down on me pretty hard. I've seen this before, with all those division championships in the 90s/00s and only one WS win to show for it, to last year's NLCS, and even the Super Bowl That Shall Not Be Referenced. The Astros look really good with so many of their batters hitting for high averages, that they got the small-ball game down pat, and that worries me. A lot.
So yeah, I'm pretty nervous about the next two games, but I'll keep cheering up to the last minute. #GoBraves #ChopOn
THAT!
JUST!
HAPPENED!
Go Braves!
HUGE congratulations to the Braves and their fans. They were the class of the league the 2nd half of the season and in the playoffs. To beat the Dodgers and Astros (who combined to beat the Cardinals, Giants, White Sox and Red Sox) to win the World Series speaks for itself.
Atlanta has a great core of players, and it looks like they'll be contenders for the next few years.
What about Freeman? Does he resign with Atlanta?
Right now it is more likely than not that Freeman will sign with the Braves again. He has been pretty up front that he wants to stay with the Braves and Atlanta saved some money by signing extensions with Albies and Acuña a few years ago.
Congrats Braves fans and thanks for taking out the Trashstros
Never thought I'd see the Braves win a World Series. What a feeling! So many players etched their name into Braves history as legends this series. I had a calm confidence today because I believed Fried would get it done.
And, as noted above, I was a nervous wreck. Glad I was able to relax and enjoy it after a few innings based on how Fried was pitching. That was a gem of a performance.
Yep. He went from narrowly avoiding a bad injury (see Tim Hudson a few years back on a similar play) to arguably pitching the best game of his life.
Well time to see what happens now in the off-season with free agency/trades and predictions for next season.
*Glass Crashing* "CBA expiring in December with the MLBPA, team owners, and MLB Commissioner not knowing what they want with their own heads up their asses and not talking to each other for an agreement"
MOTHER FU- *It's Always Sunny in Philly opening theme plays* "The Gang Wants another Lockout"
I love baseball's offseason, mainly because of the mathematical/statistical nature of evaluating performance and assigning dollar values to projections, and how this data informs free agent signings and trades. So now I'm really curious about who the Braves are going to keep from their championship team, given that Acuna (and possibly Ozuna, ugh) are coming back. I might come back in a few days with my guesses, but the number one priority should be....SIGN FREDDIE FREEMAN! (5 years, $140M)
https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/atlanta-braves/yearly/payroll/
My worry with the Freddie contract situation is that giving him a huge deal (particularly LENGTH) that Freddie is probably looking for is completely against AA's philosophy on team building. Right now we are all riding high and saying "give him a lifetime contract," but if we start to see that contract become a hindrance to future team building after a few seasons then suddenly you will see the same people who were saying "give him a blank check!" over the last month start to criticize it. It's just the nature of sports. However, I WANT to keep Freeman like I'm sure almost all Braves fans do. So really, I just don't envy the decisions and negotiations AA is about to make.
If we could get him to take a 5 year deal like you've proposed we should 100% absolutely do it. My concern is that 5 years is less than what Freeman is looking for.
He's 32. I don't think you can give him more than 5 years. I've seen lots of statistics on age-related decline, and yeah, the start of the decline can vary, but it's always before 37. It's why we didn't give Donaldson the 4 years he wanted. (Well, that, and a guy named Riley.) Still, it depends on the amount of underpay you get in the early years of the contract. If Freeman really overperforms by a lot in the early years, you can theoretically afford to swallow the latter year decline, even if you go 6 years. The AAV would come down a bit if you go 6, though.
Two thoughts about resigning Freeman:
Can they front-load the contract? And if they can, would they?
It's not as important, given the fully-guaranteed nature of MLB contracts. And given that $1 now is worth more than $1 in the future, then why frontload? There have been frontloaded contracts in MLB, but it's not the norm.
I was thinking of how some guys play as expected during the earlier part of the contract, but then age comes at them and their production falls way off, but the team still has to pay them way more than what they're worth. Miguel Cabrera comes to mind.
Basically, if Freeman approached age 38 and his production started dropping, his salary wouldn't hamstring the Braves nearly as much if it's frontloaded and they could go out and add someone else without blowing their (laughable) budget.
1) I think you've successfully made me much more confident that we will re-sign Freeman. I was nervous about how AA would be viewing it but I think this lens presents a viewpoint and risk-level that he might not be as opposed to as I originally thought.
2)
I think this could be the case, but for whatever reason the feeling I've had is that the opposite thought may be the case: That it's probably easier for Freddie to leave ATL after helping to bring a World Series. He gave us (well, participated significantly in) the the ultimate goal of any player/team. It's sort of like a mission accomplished, where he could leave Atlanta with no regrets and take the bigger contract offer he will almost certainly be able to get from a bigger market team. However, I really believe that he loves living in Atlanta and wants to stay, but that's just a thought that's crept into my mind.
I would imagine that there would be a few teams to give Freeman a 6 to 8 year contract with the understanding that last few years will be limited to DH/PH roles. He's still so good right now and he's had such good health overall that I have to imagine some teams with cash and space would make that move.
I don't think winning a WS actually has an impact on a player to stay. Didn't seem to impact Mookie Betts, Anthony Rendon, Joc Pederson, at least, but each player is a unique situation. The Nats did resign Strasburg. The Dodgers did resign J. Turner. So, mixed bag, I guess.
One of the bigger clues is who a player has for their agent.
It's not Scott Boras, so I feel pretty good.
If referring to Boras, of the 5 I listed only Strasburg and Rendon are his clients. And one stayed and one left. So, still a mixed bag.
Lifelong Braves fan and TBS kid. Dale Murphy was the man...remember all the lean years, great to see them back on top!
Congrats to the Braves, City of Atlanta, and the great state of GA. Chop Chop!!
Happy for the Braves and their fans. Even happier that those cheating bastards didn't win. I love baseball!
You might like this nugget, then.
The last three World Series have been decided in
HoustonTexas. Houston has won zero of these.WUT? The last three World Series deciding games have been played in Houston? They didn't play in the World Series last year.
I don't even know what point your trying to make with your "nugget" here here TBH.
See papilgee's comment. I thought the covid-bubble games were in Houston, when they were really in Arlington. My bad.
*psst* the 2020 WS was held in Arlington, not Houston
Fixed it.
What a maroon.
Arlington, Houston....same thing right? /s
I'm sure I got exes in both.
Congrats to all the Braves fans! Awesome feeling. I remember that feeling in 2019.
The cheatin' Asstros have now lost two world series at home!
Braves winning again makes me happy.
How I know it's the offseason is when I see this and see the Phillies get destroyed because they say "fuck the bullpen, it's not like we need that to be good".
Bryce Harper wins the NL MVP. Three of the five vote getters were / are Nationals. Harper, Soto and Trea Turner. It's starting to piss me off that the billionaire Lerner's refuse to spend money on star players. I really don't see Soto coming back.
Did you read Svrluga's column arguing for making Juan the first $500M player? His numbers at the plate are on pace to be historic. If the Nats hadn't sold the farm in July, he would have won NL MVP.
Did not read it but heard about it on the Junkies. No doubt they should pay him. Losing Turner really fucking hurt.
I don't follow baseball monies as close as the NFL but are the Lerners the only owners that try to defer all the salary hindering their ability to attract free agents and keep their own non injury prone talent? I hear the Junkies bitch about it alot and was curious is this was a baseball norm or not?
I'm not sure about if other teams do it but it certainly feels like they are the only ones that use that method. Outside of the Mets and Bobby Bonilla....
The Mets and Bobby Bonilla are highlighted as the reason not to do it. But, it hasn't hindered the Nats yet. One of the best free agent signing of the past decade was Scherzer. So honestly, not sure why people still focus on the albatross of Bonilla and not the brilliance of the Scherzer signing.
Agree. The Scherzer signing has been highlighted as one of the best FA acquisitions in sports history. I miss Max :(
They seem to be from what I understand. And they are the wealthiest owners in baseball.
Partially true, mostly false.
When signing Max Scherzer, a small portion of the money to be paid was deferred. At the time of the signing, most analysts believed the Nationals overpaid (and didn't discount for the deferred money). Notably, that infamous deal ended up being one of the best (if not the best) free agent signing in the last decade.
When offering deals to both Rendon and Harper, the money to be paid included deferred payments. Neither player signed, but they were outbid regardless of the deferrals (and there were other factors on why they didn't stay).
Nobody is on record for turning down the Nats because of the deferred payments. Nobody has said that deferrals has hindered their interest in the Nats. And the Nats have been considered a great place for a free agent to sign since the signing of Jayson Werth. Perhaps that changed with the sell-off this past season, but I doubt it.
There is a cash penalty and loss of draft position for going over the threshold. They would have definitely gone over keeping Harper (even at the amount the Lerner's offered and Harper turned down).
Besides two MVP seasons, Harper has been a below average player making MVP money. Can he become a perennial MVP? I don't know, but I wouldn't pay Harper MVP money for his inconsistency.
The cheapness of the Lerner's is overstated by Nats fans. Every team has the same competitive balance tax threshold. Further, buying championships hasn't existed since the Yankee dynasty of the 90s. How many WS rings do the Dodgers and Yankees each have since 2000?
I'm not salty about Harper or even Rendon (in hindsight) but shipping Turner out really stung. SSs with his plate presence/offensive upside don't grow on trees.
Yea. He is a stud. But, I get why he was on the table and traded. This offseason has the most SS free agent value in a long while. The list includes: Trevor Story, Marcus Semien, Cory Seager, Carlos Correa, Javier Baez, and Andrelton Simmons.
Four of those players are of the same talent-level as Turner. The other two would be serviceable, but you would need to sign key players in other positions to make up for the loss of Turner.
So I'm not good at finding who comments where, but I knew you did comment here without having to go back to the fishing thread. Just wanted to say I respect all the business you do and how much you give back in the fishing community and give a wealth of knowledge to the folks here. Just bought a pair of earrings for my wife and I know she will love em. Awesome spread you have. If I ever get back into hunting water fowl (job permitting) I'll let you know feather wise for your needs.
Just wanted to say I respect all the business you do and how much you give back in the fishing community and give a wealth of knowledge to the folks here.
Thank you very much for the compliment, HokieinGA. I really appreciate it! I'm happy to help wherever I can and raise a little hell too. Looks like you didn't use the 25% off TKP coupon, so check your email for a partial refund.
This business is fun to run and actually quite profitable but damn I am swamped. You are the 18th order the past three days. I'll get it out ASAP but realistically looking at a week from today before it hits the mail.
Would love to have more feather suppliers! My neighbors have chickens and ducks, I'd hate to have to kill one for some of their plumage. Thanks again, I really appreciate it!
Thanks man, I forgot about the discount. I appreciate that. It isn't a super pressing order but I know not to wait last minute on stuff. Glad to hear the business is going well. Swamped can be good, just takes time away from the water and other fun stuff.
Harper genuinely deserved it. Probably the only reason the Phils had a legit chance at the playoffs late in the year, and even then it wasn't good enough. And they had a Cy Young Finalist as well in Wheeler, but nope. Still not good enough.
One of these days they will realize that the bullpen actually matters. One day. I hope
At least 2008 happened. I'll always have that
Goddammit, Alex Anthropoulos (Braves' GM), what is the holdup on resigning Freddie Freeman?!?
Braves Report: Little progress in talks with Freddie Freeman since World Series
Are they waiting for the new CBA? I can't imagine years or money is an obstacle. Especially with the DH coming to the NL. Only a matter of time on that. Easily extends him to the years he is looking for.
Word on the street is that the sixth year is the holdup. =^/
Give the man his year. He earned it before the ship. I know they don't want to get tight on money and need pitching. They already got some great deals on other guys. It isn't a Bonilla style contract.
Scherzer just signed with the Mets for 3 years, $130 million.
What the fuck. I want to puke as a Nats fan.
https://media.tenor.com/images/267fd08ae9ff9dc051d6133d8a602960/tenor.gi...
I'm not computer savvy. I'm not sure how to put a GIF in properly besides a link.
Copy the link that ends in (dot)gif and then click the insert image button and paste in to the url box.
I figured that's why but damn it hurts as a Nats fan.
Now he's getting deferred money from the Nats while pitching against them.
$47 mil a year for dead arm in the playoffs 🤣
This was his first season his arm essentially died in the playoffs. Dude is a work horse. He should just start pitching in June every year.
As a Yankees fan first and a Nats fan second....double puke
Meh, I wouldn't worry about it. He's now a lolMet. lolMets gonna lolMet it up, somehow.
Scherzer and DeGrom going to set records for combined 1-0 losses
I'm hoping the majority of those are at the hands of the Braves and Nats.
This is exactly the outcome I was hoping for with Buxton - Stays home, big pay increase that is below full potential value, and massive amounts of bonus incentives.
Great article. I saw some articles suggesting the Braves try to engineer a trade for him, and I was hesitant due to his availability issues, but damn, this guy is seriously good. He had as much WAR in 61 games as Acuna did in 82 games last year, and Acuna still led his team into September! And that's on top of his defensive ability in center. (Great web gems in the article.)
Twins fans gotta be excited about keeping that guy home!
I haven't been active on the Twins boards recently but if my excitement is any way to gauge then, yes, the hardcore fanbase is ecstatic about this. The big concern going in to this specific negotiation was the massive amounts of money the big market teams could be throwing at him and the rumors of 7 years/$175M being the target. He's a great player and HOF makeup... IF he can play. His durability has been a huge issue for all but one year, so to keep him and do it at a base salary that is below his value is a huge credit to front office. I dont like this deal - I love it!
After yesterday's free agent frenzy, how much better is Wander Franco's deal looking now from the Ray's perspective?