2012 MLB Discussion

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I'm not sure what is going on with the A's at the moment with MAnny and Cespedis(sp?) interesting moves to say the least.

In Giants news, looks like Vogalsong is sick and has a hurt back, not digging that at all.
 
I'm actually looking forward to going into a Red Sox season with relatively modest expectations for once. Obviously the taste of how last year ended is still bitter, but they're still bringing back most key pieces from a team that was the best in baseball last year outside of April and September. That said, this still feels like a 3rd place team since I think the Rays and Yankees are both stronger.

Most of all, I'm just excited for baseball to be back! :D
 
[quote name='Brownjohn']Are the new wildcard rules going into effect this year?[/QUOTE]

God I hope not!
 
Oh yeah, baseball time! Yanks traded Burnett to the Pirates the other day. Not totally sure how I feel about that, but def an interesting trade for Pitt. Even if he was bad last year, at least he was always healthy and ready to go.
 
[quote name='vrs1650']God I hope not![/QUOTE]
I heard it they're going to that format next year when they go 15/15 & get rid of divisions. Not sure how I feel about the new format.
 
[quote name='Brownjohn']Are the new wildcard rules going into effect this year?[/QUOTE]

Nope, next season. I don't like the new rule at all. While I don't necessarily object to expanding the postseason, I think a one-game playoff for the two wild card teams is ridiculous in baseball.

I've always felt that MLB should adopt the NBA seeding anyway, though I guess that's not surprising coming from a Red Sox fan. :D
 
[quote name='bvharris']Nope, next season. I don't like the new rule at all. While I don't necessarily object to expanding the postseason, I think a one-game playoff for the two wild card teams is ridiculous in baseball.

I've always felt that MLB should adopt the NBA seeding anyway, though I guess that's not surprising coming from a Red Sox fan. :D[/QUOTE]

They should call it the AL East rule. It is obvious that either the Yanks, Soxs or Rays will be playing in a single elimination game. Great drama!
 
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So apparently the Red Sox asked for Starlin Castro as compensation for Theo Epstein. LOL. did they want a few hundred gold bars too?
 
[quote name='DestroVega']So apparently the Red Sox asked for Starlin Castro as compensation for Theo Epstein. LOL. did they want a few hundred gold bars too?[/QUOTE]

You do know how negotiating works, right? :whistle2:s
 
[quote name='DestroVega']Yeah but I wouldn't start a salary raise negotiation from my company asking for a million dollars first[/QUOTE]

Of course not, go for one billion to start. that way you can counter at a million and seem resonable.

Anyway. Jesus christ, will the Dodgers be sold already, so we can move on in hopefully a positive direction.
 
[quote name='Chronis']Oh yeah, baseball time! Yanks traded Burnett to the Pirates the other day. Not totally sure how I feel about that, but def an interesting trade for Pitt. Even if he was bad last year, at least he was always healthy and ready to go.[/QUOTE]

2009: 13-9, 4.04 ERA
2010: 10-15, 5.26 ERA
2011: 11-11, 5.15 ERA

With the kind of run support he had, those numbers are even more pathetic. And most definitely not worth $16.5 million a season. He was an embarrassment.
 
[quote name='dmaul1114']I don't really see the Braves being any better this year than last, so I'm not all that enthusiastic for this season.[/QUOTE]

Outside of September, one of the best in baseball. September still stings, but since it's not Boston no one noticed.
 
I have a feeling Burnett will do better on the Pirates. Pitching against the AL West and the NL Central are probably going to be like night and day since there's no more Pujols or Prince Fielder. Only time will tell though.

I'm going to post my predictions for this season, well the Rankings atleast.

AL East:
Tampa Bay
Boston
New York
Toronto
Baltimore

AL Central:
Detroit
Minnesota
Kansas City
Cleveland
Chicago (I have a feeling this is going to be an unpopular pick for last)

AL West:
LA Angels
Texas (wild card)
Oakland
Seattle

NL East:
Philadelphia
Florida (Wild Card)
Washington
Atlanta (Another unpopular choice I'm guessing)
New York

NL Central:
Cincinnati
Pittsburgh
St Louis
Milwaukee
Chicago
Houston

NL West:
San Francisco
Arizona
Colorado
LA
San Diego

So yeah, just predictions, I doubt most of them will be right.
 
There's no way in hell the Red Sox finish higher than the Yankees. I'm, not saying Tampa can't or won't win the division, but the Red Sox don't even have a shortstop right now and about 8 huge question marks.
 
Hooray, it's the last season for the Astros in the NL Central.

Then they can move on and get buttfucked in the AL West for a few seasons!

I'm not expecting much, if they can manage to win more than 70 games (I'm thinking they'll win somewhere in the ballpark of 63), I might consider the season somewhat successful.
 
Braun won his appeal, the first time a player has had a PED-related suspension overturned. From what I hear, it had something to do with an error in the testing method.
 
Because of how long it took for the sample to get tested he gets off saying that the sample got tampered with.
 
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[quote name='bigdaddybruce44']Braun won his appeal, the first time a player has had a PED-related suspension overturned. From what I hear, it had something to do with an error in the testing method.[/QUOTE]

From a fantasy perspective as well as a fan perspective I am glad he did. He's always been a class act and he maintained his innocence through the whole process. I firmly believed he didn't use PED's. He's one of the players I enjoy watching (along with Tulo and a few others) when my Yankees are not on.

I normally hate anything that comes out of Ozzie Guillen's mouth but his tweet earlier put it best. Good day for baseball, for Braun, lets get back to playing and have fun.

Also anyone else here play fantasy baseball?
 
The whole season is going to boil down to one fucking strike. I better get my one fucking strike. With 5 dollar gasoline, maybe the bullpen won't soak the fucking mound and the third time will be the charm.
 
[quote name='CaseyRyback']The whole season is going to boil down to one fucking strike. I better get my one fucking strike. With 5 dollar gasoline, maybe the bullpen won't soak the fucking mound and the third time will be the charm.[/QUOTE]

How optimistic are you about making the World Series a third year in a row when your division got a little tougher?
 
[quote name='DestroVega']There's no way in hell the Red Sox finish higher than the Yankees. I'm, not saying Tampa can't or won't win the division, but the Red Sox don't even have a shortstop right now and about 8 huge question marks.[/QUOTE]

I agree that the Yankees are better positioned than the Sox, but I think you're overstating the extent of their problems. It's still a very talented team that returns all the major pieces of an offense that lead the league in runs last year. And whatever they get out of the 4th and 5th spots in their rotation can't really be any worse than what John Lackey and the pu pu platter of 5th starters gave them last year.

I'm certainly not preaching wild optimism, but "no way in hell" is just as unrealistic. The truth, as usual, probably likes somewhere in between.
 
It wouldn't blow my mind if the Red Sox ended up winning the division this year. To me, they're coming into the season the way the Yankees came into last season...lots of question marks and lots of experiments. Who would have thought the Yankees would finish with the best record in the AL after seeing Pettitte retire, Lee shun them for the Phillies, Joba get hurt, Hughes get "hurt", and Burnett just get worse and worse? Nobody saw Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia, or Ivan Nova saving the Yankees season in February.

The same thing could happen for Boston this year if the Yankees don't live up to expectations (or suffer lots of injuries). If it does, I can almost guarantee that it won't work in the playoffs (just as it didn't work for the Yanks) because more talented teams usually win. But that doesn't mean they couldn't surprise a few people along the way. I can't count out Boston until they finish in last place a few years in a row. Then, I'll be happy to dance on their grave. This would be a nice year to start that trend though. :)
 
[quote name='n8rockerasu']It wouldn't blow my mind if the Red Sox ended up winning the division this year. To me, they're coming into the season the way the Yankees came into last season...lots of question marks and lots of experiments. Who would have thought the Yankees would finish with the best record in the AL after seeing Pettitte retire, Lee shun them for the Phillies, Joba get hurt, Hughes get "hurt", and Burnett just get worse and worse? Nobody saw Bartolo Colon, Freddy Garcia, or Ivan Nova saving the Yankees season in February.

The same thing could happen for Boston this year if the Yankees don't live up to expectations (or suffer lots of injuries). If it does, I can almost guarantee that it won't work in the playoffs (just as it didn't work for the Yanks) because more talented teams usually win. But that doesn't mean they couldn't surprise a few people along the way. I can't count out Boston until they finish in last place a few years in a row. Then, I'll be happy to dance on their grave. This would be a nice year to start that trend though. :)[/QUOTE]

This 100%. That is why they play the game.

I like the pick ups of Pineda & I think the bigger move was getting Kuroda. The guy throws strikes and just didn't get run support in LA.

Saying the Red Sox have no chance in hell is just an ignorant statement and I hate the Sox. It isn't like they lost anybody too major. Papelbon maybe but I think Bailey was a good pick up for them if he stays healthy. Crawford if anything is their biggest question mark after their first 3 in the rotation. And as always they have a pretty decent farm system. From what I have been reading Jose Iglesias has a legit glove and is their future SS but his bat isn't MLB ready. Aviles & Punto will be adequate for the time being.

That said I am more scared of Tampa than I am of Boston at this point because their rotation is much better IMO, but again that is why they play the game.
 
[quote name='Beatofficer']How optimistic are you about making the World Series a third year in a row when your division got a little tougher?[/QUOTE]

If they stay healthy they should still win the division. They are 7 deep in the rotation, have a loaded farm system, and solid at every position (Moreland is healthy so 1B shouldn't be a glaring hole this year). The Angel's are relying on Trumbo and Morales to protect Pujols, and that is somewhat iffy since one is young and the other has missed two seasons. The Angels are solid, but their lineup is still weak especially if Vernon Wells hits like he did last year.

Detroit is the only team that really scares me at this point. If Cabrera loses weight they could be solid. I don't think they are substantially better than last year, but Texas isn't either so it should be another solid matchup between two clubs.

The Yanks/Sox certainly are capable, but injuries have gotten the better of them the past two years and I don't know if they can reverse that trend since father time seems to be wearing them down.
 
[quote name='CaseyRyback']If they stay healthy they should still win the division. They are 7 deep in the rotation, have a loaded farm system, and solid at every position (Moreland is healthy so 1B shouldn't be a glaring hole this year). The Angel's are relying on Trumbo and Morales to protect Pujols, and that is somewhat iffy since one is young and the other has missed two seasons. The Angels are solid, but their lineup is still weak especially if Vernon Wells hits like he did last year.[/QUOTE]

The Angels have one of the best rotations in baseball but their bats even with Pujols leave a lot to be desired. Now, if Morales is healthy and returns to his old form than all bets are off.
 
[quote name='kill3r7']The Angels have one of the best rotations in baseball but their bats even with Pujols leave a lot to be desired. Now, if Morales is healthy and returns to his old form than all bets are off.[/QUOTE]

The problem is they put so much pressure on those pitchers that they wear them out before they close in on October. Look at last year. They had Texas in their sights in the middle of Sept. and couldn't take over the division because they started sending them out there on short rest and killed their staff. Texas then went on to win the division by something like 10 games.

They have to hit or Texas will beat them. They also have to play better in the division. Texas killed Oakland and Seattle and the Angel's didn't.
 
[quote name='CaseyRyback']The problem is they put so much pressure on those pitchers that they wear them out before they close in on October. Look at last year. They had Texas in their sights in the middle of Sept. and couldn't take over the division because they started sending them out there on short rest and killed their staff. Texas then went on to win the division by something like 10 games.

They have to hit or Texas will beat them. They also have to play better in the division. Texas killed Oakland and Seattle and the Angel's didn't.[/QUOTE]

With Wilson they now have 4 legit starters. But I do agree with you that the Angels have to dominate the weaker teams in the division. I think the AL is wide open this year and anyone can win it.
 
[quote name='kill3r7']With Wilson they now have 4 legit starters. But I do agree with you that the Angels have to dominate the weaker teams in the division. I think the AL is wide open this year and anyone can win it.[/QUOTE]

Texas rode Wilson really hard last year. I think that might be part of the reason they let him go (along with his stellar postseason record). I don't know if he will be the same pitcher in Anaheim that he was in Texas.

That said, if he is the same pitcher he will win the Cy Young this year. To do what he did in that ballpark was flat out phenomenal.
 
Looks like we're getting expanded playoffs this year after all. In a year where the Sox might well be the 3rd best team in the AL East, I can't say I'm too disappointed with that.
 
[quote name='Chronis']Oh yeah, baseball time! Yanks traded Burnett to the Pirates the other day. Not totally sure how I feel about that, but def an interesting trade for Pitt. Even if he was bad last year, at least he was always healthy and ready to go.[/QUOTE]

haha jinx
 
So Pettitte is coming back to the Yankees. Don't know what to think. He does give us another lefty with CC. Guess this means Hughes or Garcia is going to be keeping the 5th spot in the rotation warm for him.
 
Anybody have any info on when the mlb.tv app is supposed to arrive on 360? Everywhere I've seen says "mid-March", with the season only a couple weeks away I was hoping it would be out by now.
 
[quote name='Beatofficer']Cannot be more happy about the Cain extension. Good amount of time and I'm happy with him finally getting a payday.[/QUOTE]

I was surprised by how much he got.
 
Can't wait for opening day. My fantasy teams are itching to score some points.

Not to mention I can't wait to start watching games that actually count. With the addition of MLB.TV on Xbox (finally) this season should be pretty awesome for me, and it may actually help me to keep interest during the season for a change. I tend to taper off around the All Star break but keep track of my fantasy teams throughout. Hopefully this year is different.
 
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