MLB Game Chatter Thread

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

For the Dunn fans, if you haven't read my column, check it out. I give Dunn a good writeup.

 

As for the games, we've got the A's and Angels tied, and they play three at the Coliseum this weekend. The playoffs start early this year. It doesn't get much better than this.

[Guest tpf85]

The Twins look like they don't want the homefield advantage in the first round.

[sfaJack 0]

Also, people in chicago must hate Austin Kearns. Without him in the lineup there is a decent chance they would have won 3/4 and be playoff, and possibly World Series, bound.

Well, I can't speak for the people in Chicago since I'm 1,200 miles away, but I don't hate Austin Kearns.

 

I hate the Cubs' pathetic offense for blowing multiple scoring opportunities. With just ONE key hit in each game the last two days, the Cubs would likely have taken 3/4 and not be on life support now, Austin Kearns or no Austin Kearns.

 

This will annoy Al, but the Cubs proved these last two days that clutch hitting is not necessarily a myth.

[mike546 0]

Stupid Vazquez.

 

Alright, I've made an observation.

 

For the last three years, I always see the Twins bullpen come in with awesome numbers. But EVERY time we play them, we knock em' around.

 

So this is a question. When your favorite team has played the Twins, how has your offense done against their bullpen?

[Guest Staravenger]

Yankees win! The-e-e-e-e-e-e Yankees win! Walk off home run by Bernie Williams and the Yanks are the AL East Champions (and we sweep the big bad Twins)

[mike546 0]

How ironic that the game winning homer that gives the Yankees its 7th straight division title comes from the guy whos been here the longest.

[The Czech Republic 0]

There's really no irony at all.

[Guest Staravenger]

I'm not great on definitions, but for an example, irony is the Yankees losing the AL East on a walk off home run last year, and winning the AL East on a walk off home run this year. I think...

[EVIL~! alkeiper 0]

For those of you interested, here are the rosters for the Arizona Fall League.....

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/leagu...aflrosters.html

[mike546 0]

Damn, wrong word.

 

Um, alright, fine.

 

How special is it that the game winning homer that gives the Yankees its 7th straight division title comes from the guy whos been here the longest.

[Guest Anglesault]

Boo yeah and stuff. Or something.

 

And Matsui's total Beastocity is overshadowed when Bernie goes boom, breaking the 1961 record. It HAD to be Bernie to break the record. It just did.

[Vern Gagne 0]

Gardenhire is doing a horseshit job this last week. Radke and Santana should of pitched their normal amount of innings. There's no need to limit their innings.

 

 

The good news i guess is the Yankees are much more likely to take the Twins for granted after the sweep.

[Guest Staravenger]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

[Bored 0]

Dodgers clinch the West on David Ross' game winning homerun in the 11th. I'm very happy for GM Paul DePodesta who took all that shit at the trade deadline. Dodgers are in the playoffs and the Marlins are not.

 

Assholes by the Bay won so they're tied again. Cubs need miracle. Go Astros.

 

Edit: Wait they kept on saying on Baseball Tonight that the Dodgers clinch the division with the win. I actually assumed they knew what they were talking about. I'm so ashamed. Dodgers haven't officially clinched the West.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Over on 720, Steve Stone has cryptically announced there will be a major personnel change within the Cubs organization immediately following season's end. I don't know if this means that Hendry, Dusty Baker, Sosa, Hakwins, Alou, or Stoney himself is gone, but something is gonna happen.

[Guest Staravenger]

I doubt Stone will be fired, otherwise he'd have been gone already.

[The Czech Republic 0]

Stoney 4 Manager, d00d. The Kosher Cubs will go all the way.

[Guest Staravenger]

Stoney 4 Manager, d00d. The Kosher Cubs will go all the way.

Ha! Cubs management admiting Stone knows what the hell he's talking about? Odds are better for George Steinbrenner rehiring Billy Martin as manager of the Yankees when Torre retires.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

The exact phrase was "big move." So I'd assume it's not so much of a trade as it is a move involving someone currently with the club. Stoney usually doesn't talk out of his ass, either, so I'm curious.

[Guest GreatOne]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

But remember, they can play with the Yanks and Sox you know, cause THEY WON A SERIES AGAINST THEM IN AUGUST, OO OOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

[The Czech Republic 0]

Stoney 4 Manager, d00d. The Kosher Cubs will go all the way.

Ha! Cubs management admiting Stone knows what the hell he's talking about? Odds are better for George Steinbrenner rehiring Billy Martin as manager of the Yankees when Torre retires.

Especially if he fires the corpse of Billy Martin just weeks later.

[geniusMoment 0]

There is a very nice article on the tribune website about what Steve Stone said. He does not pull any punches, and admits the problems he and Chip are having with many of the players. He says Kent Mercker called the press box in the middle of a game where the cubs lost to the astros 15-7 to complain.

He says there will be major changes with the players, some due to the bad relationship between the popular broadcasters and the players.

[Vern Gagne 0]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

What excuses? The Yankees are the better team, and the Twins pulling their best two starters out after 5 proved they really could of cared less about winning. It really has nothing to do with New York. They would of done it against KC, Detroit or any team. It's not like it hasn't happened before. The last 2 years they've packed it in.

[Vern Gagne 0]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

But remember, they can play with the Yanks and Sox you know, cause THEY WON A SERIES AGAINST THEM IN AUGUST, OO OOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

...and this series meant more how?

[Vern Gagne 0]

There is a very nice article on the tribune website about what Steve Stone said. He does not pull any punches, and admits the problems he and Chip are having with many of the players. He says Kent Mercker called the press box in the middle of a game where the cubs lost to the astros 15-7 to complain.

He says there will be major changes with the players, some due to the bad relationship between the popular broadcasters and the players.

Happen to have a link?

[Guest Staravenger]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

What excuses? The Yankees are the better team, and the Twins pulling their best two starters out after 5 proved they really could of cared less about winning. It really has nothing to do with New York. They would of done it against KC, Detroit or any team. It's not like it hasn't happened before. The last 2 years they've packed it in.

It proves they are careless. If the Yankees (or Red Sox) have your number, it's time to pack it in. You don't want to give ANY possible playoff opponents any sort of edge going into the series. I can understand playing like crap against bad teams (which NY will most likely do vs. Toronto) but not a team that can win the World Series because they are on a hot streak against other playoff teams.

[Slayer 0]

Damn, missed the late games last night

 

I really want to see Anaheim go to the playoffs instead of Oakland, since Anaheim plays real well against the Yankees but not against the Red Sox.

 

That and I'm getting tired of Choakland.

[Guest GreatOne]

Excuses, excuses. The Twins shouldn't take the Yankees for granted you mean. You don't see the Yankees taking starters out in 5 innings when they pitch good, which means they don't take ANYONE for granted, even when they are in the playoffs.

But remember, they can play with the Yanks and Sox you know, cause THEY WON A SERIES AGAINST THEM IN AUGUST, OO OOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

...and this series meant more how?

What, you used that as your basis that they could play with the Yankees and now you're dismissing its'--according to you anyway--importance?

[sfaJack 0]

It proves they are careless. If the Yankees (or Red Sox) have your number, it's time to pack it in. You don't want to give ANY possible playoff opponents any sort of edge going into the series. I can understand playing like crap against bad teams (which NY will most likely do vs. Toronto) but not a team that can win the World Series because they are on a hot streak against other playoff teams.

If you're enough of a dumbass to risk possibly blowing out one of your top pitchers or having an injury strike a key player by going all-out to win a regular season game that means nothing (and it doesn't, don't kid yourself) just because you think you have to "prove" that you can play with a particular team, then you deserve whatever might happen to you.

 

It isn't as if the Twins could have overtaken the Yankees for home-field (which is overrated anyway), so what is there to play for? "Confidence" against an opponent?

 

If the Yankees beat the Twins in the playoffs, it won't be because the Twins lost 3 straight to them in late September and were emotionally devastated by it--it'll be because the Yankees are the better team.

[The Czech Republic 0]

There is a very nice article on the tribune website about what Steve Stone said.  He does not pull any punches, and admits the problems he and Chip are having with many of the players.  He says Kent Mercker called the press box in the middle of a game where the cubs lost to the astros 15-7 to complain.

He says there will be major changes with the players, some due to the bad relationship between the popular broadcasters and the players.

Happen to have a link?

Cubs broadcaster Steve Stone lambasted the Cubs in an interview with WGN-AM radio after Thursday's 12-inning loss, painting the club as chronic complainers.

 

Stone told interviewers David Kaplan and Tom Waddle that the Cubs reminded him of a Jack Nicholson line from the film, "A Few Good Men."

 

"You want the truth? You can't handle the truth," Stone said. "Let me tell you something, guys, the truth of this situation is [this is] an extremely talented bunch of guys who want to look at all directions except where they should really look, and kind of make excuses for what happened.

 

"At the end of the day, boys, you don't tell me how rough the water is, you bring in the ship. The best eight [teams] go on, the other teams go home. This team should have won the wild-card [playoff berth] by six, seven games. No doubt about it. They have the talent to do that. They're life-and-death right now."

 

Stone said the "defining moment" of the Cubs' collapse was their 15-7 loss to Houston on Aug. 27 at Wrigley Field when they could have extended their wild-card lead over the Astros to eight games. That game featured a confrontation between Michael Barrett and Roy Oswalt. It also included the press box phone call from Kent Mercker to complain about Stone and Chip Caray and Mercker's taunting of umpire C.B. Bucknor that netted him a suspension.

 

"The one game that defined this season, that allowed a team that was dead to get back in was one of the days that started a lot of problems for my partner and I, one of the best partners in the game," Stone said. "That is the Roy Oswalt game, when Kent Mercker hit him in the sixth inning. That illuminated the Houston Astros.

 

"They were left for dead. The Cubs beat them the first game in a three-game series, they knocked Kerry Wood out in the fifth inning, they hit four home runs [off Wood], Oswalt pitched eight innings on a day the heat factor being 95 degrees. They won 15-7, took the next two games against the Cubs.

 

"Instead of being buried, they got back in the race. And guess what? They're up by one game now. The Cubs had a chance to put their foot on their throat, and good teams do that. When you have a chance to eliminate a team, you don't take a personal vendetta out until that team is dead. Kill them, then you have plenty of time for personal vendettas. The Cubs didn't do that and it's coming back to haunt them."

 

Stone also predicted the Cubs would make some "blockbuster" moves this off-season, implying some trades would be directly tied to the team's ongoing battles with the broadcasters.