2019 MLB Season

[pmoehrin]

The Orioles do have a solid front office.

I think they're just in a situation where things are going to keep getting worse before they start to get better.

 

Virtually any halfway decent vet aside from Mancini was unloaded last year or in the offseason, and their farm system depth ranks among the worst in the league.

 

There's nothing that team can do to improve in the short run, so there's no point even trying. All Baltimore can do at this point is stockpile prospects and hope at least four or five of them turn into pieces you can build a team around.

 

In two-three years, the O's can reevaluate their situation, but this year, the next year, and likely 2021 are going to be lost seasons.

 

The critical thing to remember is that things can go to the other extreme as well. Teams have lost 100+ games and have gone on to make or win the World Series within five years. Its all about proper planning, and knowing how to play the cards given to you. Picking first in this years' draft should help the Orioles acquire some of those cards.

 

One liberating thing about being in Baltimore's situation is that because every position can be viewed as a potential need, talent and salary are the only two factors that need to be considered when drafting, signing or trading for a player.

 

I've also had a second MLB team contact me about a potential front office job. (Not Baltimore, although they are in the same division.) Will let people know if it works out or not.

[Crabcake]

16 hours ago, pmoehrin said:

The Orioles do have a solid front office.

I think they're just in a situation where things are going to keep getting worse before they start to get better.

 

Virtually any halfway decent vet aside from Mancini was unloaded last year or in the offseason, and their farm system depth ranks among the worst in the league.

 

There's nothing that team can do to improve in the short run, so there's no point even trying. All Baltimore can do at this point is stockpile prospects and hope at least four or five of them turn into pieces you can build a team around.

 

In two-three years, the O's can reevaluate their situation, but this year, the next year, and likely 2021 are going to be lost seasons.

 

The critical thing to remember is that things can go to the other extreme as well. Teams have lost 100+ games and have gone on to make or win the World Series within five years. Its all about proper planning, and knowing how to play the cards given to you. Picking first in this years' draft should help the Orioles acquire some of those cards.

 

One liberating thing about being in Baltimore's situation is that because every position can be viewed as a potential need, talent and salary are the only two factors that need to be considered when drafting, signing or trading for a player.

 

You hit the nail on the head with pretty much everything. Also not helping is the fact that the previous regime, headed by Dan Duquette, pretty much screwed up every decision they could from the Chris Davis contract on. That contract and waiting to deal Machado and Britton until the absolute last minute were killers. It’ll set the rebuild back a year or two probably. 

[OnWis97]

The Twins, who are decades removed from being known for power, became the second team to hit 100 home runs in their first 50 games.  They should score a lot of runs all year but the pitching has probably over-achieved a bit.

[Shumway]

Is there a reason why ESPN has mentioned and cut-in to Manny Machado's "return to New York" multiple times during the Marlins/Nationals game? I get that the Yankees wanted to sign him, but really, who cares? There's nothing unique about a guy who's opposed the Yankees a hundred times playing once again as a visitor.

[Red Wolf]

8 minutes ago, Shumway said:

Is there a reason why ESPN has mentioned and cut-in to Manny Machado's "return to New York" multiple times during the Marlins/Nationals game? I get that the Yankees wanted to sign him, but really, who cares? There's nothing unique about a guy who's opposed the Yankees a hundred times playing once again as a visitor.

 

Because there's nothing ESPN hates more than actual sporting events, the one thing people tune into their channels for anymore.

[WJMorris3]

Bill Buckner has died; he was 69.

 

2715 hits over a 22 year career with 5 teams; he won the 1980 NL batting title with the Cubs; he had 100 RBIs in a season three times.

 

His career is too good to have been only remembered for one error.

[AustinFromBoston]

R.I.P Buckner

 

Definitely a shame that he ends up as one of those amazing players remembered only for 1 colossal up.  

If Red Sox won that World Series, he's very likely a Hall of Famer

[habsfan1]

I also read that when it happened, he was playing injured at the time.

 

 

[pmoehrin]

2 hours ago, habsfan1 said:

I also read that when it happened, he was playing injured at the time.

 

 

 

Bill Buckner had been playing injured since 1976.

 

You would not know judging from his stats that he was doing everything he could for the last decade-plus of his career just to stay on the field. Let alone win a batting title, and have another year where he led the league in at-bats.

 

Before he was a broken down first baseman, Buckner was a five-tool corner outfielder on par with Reggie Jackson in terms of potential. That’s not an exaggeration of how high his ceiling was.

 

The partially torn left Achilles he was playing on in the ‘86 World Series had been injected with cortisone nine times just that year.

 

That was after ten years of taking daily pain pills and spending at least an hour in the trainer’s room before and after each game.

 

Under today’s medical guidelines, I’m not sure if he would be have been medically cleared to play at any point after 1983. Buckner didn’t retire until 1990.

 

People talk about desire and love for the game. I’m not sure if anybody had more than Bill Buckner. His body called it quits on him years before he stopped playing. He found a way to push through it, and still be a productive Major League player long after he had any right being one.

[Sport]

John McNamara should've never even had Bill Buckner on the field. And I've always thought that Mookie Wilson probably beats out the play anyway. 

 

 

On 5/25/2019 at 12:08 AM, OnWis97 said:

The Twins, who are decades removed from being known for power, became the second team to hit 100 home runs in their first 50 games.  They should score a lot of runs all year but the pitching has probably over-achieved a bit.

 

I'm pulling hard for the Twins this year mostly because of what it means for the Indians. Cleveland, this offseason and last, didn't do anything to upgrade the team, thinking they'd coast to the Division title again and take their chances in the playoffs again. Hoping they finally get bit for that. 

[OnWis97]

2 hours ago, McCarthy said:

John McNamara should've have even had Bill Buckner on the field. And I've always thought that Mookie Wilson probably beats out the play anyway. 

Until recently, I had not known that he left Buckner on the field rather than replacing him with a usual 9th-inning defensive replacement so Buckner could be on the field to celebrate (at least I recently read that; not 100% sure it's true).  If that's true, that's just terrible managing...it's a sport without a clock.  Of course there are a couple other things people forget about:

• Relief pitchers Calvin Schilarldi (sp?) and Bob Stanley allowed the Mets back in the game.
• The game was TIED.  The lead had already been blown.  If the play is made, it's still, in theory, a 50/50 prospect, with the Mets riding momentum.

He received far too much blame for that loss.

[pmoehrin]

I prefer the more straightforward explanation of the bullpen just blew it.

 

Any pitcher in baseball should be able to close down a two-run lead, with two outs and nobody on base.

 

It's fair to say McNamara could have done a better job, but there's only so much a manager can control. If players don't execute, it doesn't matter who you have in the dugout.

 

Grady Little leaving in Pedro after 100 pitches was far more egregious than anything McNamara did in game six in my view.

 

The Buckner error cost the Red Sox to lose that game just much as Stanley's wild pitch or any of the hits put up by Carter, Mitchell, and Knight. You needed all of these events to happen in order to set up the scenario.

If Stanley doesn't throw the wild pitch, Buckner would have been holding Knight at first and playing in. Buckner would have been in perfect fielding position to make a play on Wilson's chopper. All he would have to do is cleanly field it, and step on the bag to seal the win.

 

That wild pitch forced Buckner to play back, and I agree 100% with the notion that it wasn't a given Buckner would have been able to beat Wilson to the bag. I count about three seconds between the point of contact and the ball reaching Buckner. He's about 15-20 feet behind the bag, but Wilson has to be roughly halfway down the line at full speed by that point.

 

At most Buckner has about 2.5 seconds to make the play cleanly, and run to first base. I don't know if is the only answer I can give with any confidence as to whether or not I think he would have been able to do it.

[WJMorris3]

Odubel Herrera has been arrested on a domestic violence charge. Hugely disappointed in the Phillies that he hasn't already been released.

[Kramerica Industries]

It also gets forgotten that there was still Game 7 to play afterwards as well, a game the Red Sox led 3-0 with 12 outs left to get. It's always easiest to scapegoat one single person for everything that went wrong; guess you could say Buckner wore the goat horns about as well as anyone could've under the circumstances. And I agree with the idea that it's no sure thing that the out at first would've been made anyway (the pitcher wasn't gonna win the foot race for a flip play), but that gets lost in the heat of the moment of course.

 

3 hours ago, willmorris said:

Odubel Herrera has been arrested on a domestic violence charge. Hugely disappointed in the Phillies that he hasn't already been released.

 

Can we at least pretend to let due process play out before we talk about cutting players? 

[BBTV]

Read an article today where it listed previous domestic violence suspensions, and they were between around 30-80 games. I’m pretty sure you can’t just release someone for it, even if you wanted to. CBA and such. You 1) let him go on the “admin leave” list while things get sorted out, 2) let him get a big suspension - the bigger the better. 3) look to trade him at the end of the suspension (there will be takers). 

 

Based on what’s come out so far, it doesn’t look good for him. The Phillies are one of the more “family oriented” teams out there, and I can’t imagine they’d put someone who’s guilty of this out there in front of fans (correct me if they ever gave).  He’s a complete idiot both on and off the field, and I certainly don’t want to see him out there again either way, but you just don’t instantly “release” someone hours after an allegation. 

[BBTV]

The Phillies have been working with MLB to have Odubel's name removed from the All-Star ballot.  He called and apologized to the team.  You usually don't apologize unless you've done something wrong.  My guess is he's done with the Phillies.  

[kroywen]

3 hours ago, BringBackTheVet said:

Read an article today where it listed previous domestic violence suspensions, and they were between around 30-80 games. I’m pretty sure you can’t just release someone for it, even if you wanted to. CBA and such. You 1) let him go on the “admin leave” list while things get sorted out, 2) let him get a big suspension - the bigger the better. 3) look to trade him at the end of the suspension (there will be takers). 

 

Based on what’s come out so far, it doesn’t look good for him. The Phillies are one of the more “family oriented” teams out there, and I can’t imagine they’d put someone who’s guilty of this out there in front of fans (correct me if they ever gave).  He’s a complete idiot both on and off the field, and I certainly don’t want to see him out there again either way, but you just don’t instantly “release” someone hours after an allegation. 

 

And there's a good reason the CBA is written that way - it gives both the team and baseball a chance to fully investigate the situation, and allow due process to play out, before any final decisions are made.

 

Frankly, it's how the rest of the world should operate - if someone is accused, put them on administrative leave, investigate the situation, and try to determine the best course of action based on the preponderance of the evidence. Don't tolerate those who commit acts of domestic violence or sexual assault, but at least allow for due process before calling for their heads.

[BBTV]

According to Athletic:

"Odúbel Herrera caused "minor injuries" to his girlfriend that included “hand print markings to her neck area and small scratches to her arms,” according to a court document."

 

[The_Admiral]

5 hours ago, BringBackTheVet said:

I’m pretty sure you can’t just release someone for it, even if you wanted to. CBA and such.

 

[BBTV]

22 minutes ago, BringBackTheVet said:

According to Athletic:

"Odúbel Herrera caused "minor injuries" to his girlfriend that included “hand print markings to her neck area and small scratches to her arms,” according to a court document."