MLB Regular Season 22: The Thread

[Gary]

No more lockout, Spring Training starts Friday…I think it’s time for the regular season thread 

[Sport]

The Reds traded Sonny Gray to the Twins for some dudes, they haven't even spoken to Nick Castellanos' agents, and pre-lockout they said they're going to "align payroll with our resources". For real, they said that. That was their pitch to ticket-buyers and fans who might've had an interest in watching a team that won 83 games last year and was a couple guys away from being a division contender. We're going to align payroll with our resources is something you say internally, you don't come out and tell fans "hey our spending got out of control and we accidentally got too good over the last couple years so we're gonna go back to not trying to win. Sorry". 

 

Now a couple stud prospects from the last rebuild like Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo seem ready to go so it'll be fun to finally see them pitch on a team that wins 77 games if we're lucky. 

[DG_ThenNowForever]

If any industry should be immune from late-stage capitalism, it's professional sports. It's a closed market with escalating franchise values, revenue sharing that guarantees a portion of operational costs will be covered, and a CBA to provide predictability for labor costs. And also many (most?) of the venues are publicly subsidized.

 

Like, there cannot be crying poor in any way if you're managing a pro sports team. If that's your excuse for not trying, sell your team. Someone else will try harder.

[gosioux76]

1 hour ago, Sport said:

The Reds traded Sonny Gray to the Twins for some dudes,

 

I guess that's one way of looking at the trade. You could also suggest the Reds gave up a pitcher on the wrong side of 30 who's best years are behind him for a fireballer who was the Twins' top 2021 draft pick.  As a Reds fan, you've got a lot of examples of things that are frustrating, but I think that Sonny Gray deal might be a push for both teams. 

[Dilbert]

Ive always said the Reds are just the minor league system for the rest of Major League Baseball.  Outside of Votto, once a player becomes developed, good and becomes a fan favorite, they trade them away.  Owner Bob Castellini has started to become more hated around here than Bengals owner Mike Brown.  When Castellini bought the team he issued this letter to the fans. Other than community presence he has not fulfilled his promises. He was one of 4 owners who voted against the final offer before the first games were cancelled. Then reports surfaced of how he tried to get hall of fame writer Hal McCoy fired after he wrote an article that Bob didnt like. The fans have had enough and want him gone.

 

[Sport]

15 hours ago, gosioux76 said:

 

I guess that's one way of looking at the trade. You could also suggest the Reds gave up a pitcher on the wrong side of 30 who's best years are behind him for a fireballer who was the Twins' top 2021 draft pick. As a Reds fan, you've got a lot of examples of things that are frustrating, but I think that Sonny Gray deal might be a push for both teams. 

 

The players in this trade are almost immaterial here. I don't care who the trade is for or that we're losing a good-not-great, aging starter like Sonny Gray. It's the message it sends. We went through a 5 year rebuild that netted us two playoff losses and an 83 win season and everyone kept saying 2020 through 2023 would be our window. And it would be with ownership who wanted to win. Instead of pushing to make a good team into a Top 6 championship contender they're going back into rebuild cycle and they've effectively shut their own window. So I'm not sorry that I'm not excited about yet another prospect because A. by the time he's ready for the bigs our current hot prospects will be ready for extensions the team won’t give out and B. a fan can only stomach a rebuild if you are able trust that at the end of it is a plan for sustained winning and the only thing I trust these bozos and misers to do at the end of this next rebuild is to start over with another rebuild. 

 

edit: And they just traded Winker and Suarez to the Mariners for some dudes. this :censored:. 
 

 

[Wings2]

The Reds & A's ownerships should hold hands and just walk off a cliff together. 

[Dynasty]

3 hours ago, Sport said:

The Reds traded Sonny Gray to the Twins for some dudes, they haven't even spoken to Nick Castellanos' agents, and pre-lockout they said they're going to "align payroll with our resources". For real, they said that. That was their pitch to ticket-buyers and fans who might've had an interest in watching a team that won 83 games last year and was a couple guys away from being a division contender. We're going to align payroll with our resources is something you say internally, you don't come out and tell fans "hey our spending got out of control and we accidentally got too good over the last couple years so we're gonna go back to not trying to win. Sorry". 

 

Now a couple stud prospects from the last rebuild like Hunter Greene and Nick Lodolo seem ready to go so it'll be fun to finally see them pitch on a team that wins 77 games if we're lucky. 

 

We don't have a sadface emoji for the reaction here, so I'll give you the thumbs up... and a sadface. 

[Seadragon76]

Seattle just made a trade with Cincinnati... anyone know how good Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez are?

 

Because I get the feeling that Seattle is going all in with these moves and the expanded playoffs.

[Dilbert]

[Sport]

Here's why baseball sucks right now - the Reds are voluntarily choosing to close their own window of competitiveness early. When does that happen? We've seen teams rebuild and it doesn't work so they start over, we've seen teams rebuild and they win a little or a lot and then the players get old and they start over, but outside of baseball I can't recall a team actually putting together a decent core of players through a long rebuild and then, for only cheap bastard reasons, choosing not to spend a little more to pursue sustained success on the field. It's not good for the game. 

 

 

12 minutes ago, Seadragon76 said:

Seattle just made a trade with Cincinnati... anyone know how good Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suarez are?

 

Google it.

 

Sigh. Fine. Winker kills right handed pitching, not so great against lefties. He was having the best year of his career last year and was a starter in the All-Star game, but then got hurt in the second half and missed some key time when the Reds were in the playoff race. Always been a great guy who's a good interview and a fun character. I'm glad he's going to my second favorite team. Suarez is a natural third baseman, but the Reds made him play a lot of short last year for many of the same cheap ass reasons they're dealing with now. Couple down years, but he hit 49 home runs in 2019 and he's likely to pop 25-40 home runs for the Mariners. He hit 31 last year for the Reds. Also a fun character, also a good interview. 

 

 

[DEAD!]

3 hours ago, Dilbert said:

Owner Bob Castellini has started to become more hated around here than Bengals owner Mike Brown. 

.... and Bob did not even have to support the Nazis. 

[Seadragon76]

I should of just googled it, but thanks anyway @Sport.

 

This and the Sonny Gray move strikes me as odd moves. Wasn't Cincinnati within striking distance of a playoff berth last year?

[Dilbert]

32 minutes ago, Seadragon76 said:

This and the Sonny Gray move strikes me as odd moves. Wasn't Cincinnati within striking distance of a playoff berth last year?

Yup. But the team can afford to keep players once they become good or well liked. That money has to go to pay Votto. Dont get me wrong, Vottos a good player but IMHO is over payed.  We had Winker, Suarez, Gray,  Nick Castellanos, Wade Miley, Tucker Barnhart and Michael Lorenzen last year. All now gone.

[Sport]

13 minutes ago, Dilbert said:

Yup. But the team can afford to keep players once they become good or well liked. That money has to go to pay Votto. Dont get me wrong, Vottos a good player but IMHO is over payed.  We had Winker, Suarez, Gray,  Nick Castellanos, Wade Miley, Tucker Barnhart and Michael Lorenzen last year. All now gone.

 

Yes that's why this is so infuriating. I don't care if they're strapped because of COVID or any other reason. They put us through a 5ish year rebuild with some of the worst baseball this franchise has ever played. They turned me on the team I've loved since I was a little kid. I am now completely apathetic to the Reds. The worst part is the result of that rebuild was actually a solid core with some really cool young arms on the way, the Rookie of the Year, and they were a fun squad. They were a couple guys away from being a real threat, especially with an expanded playoff, and instead of spending to acquire those guys like a normal franchise they're going in the opposite direction. They closed their own window of opportunity and all we got out of it was two playoff losses (zero runs scored) in the sham COVID playoffs and an 83 win season where they fell apart in September. I'm struggling to think of another team who put together a promising looking roster and then blew it up for no reason. 

 

And I was just reminded that the Field of Dreams Game Part 2 is between the firesale Reds and firesale Cubs. LOL. Nobody's going to watch that sh**. 

[Crabcake]

58 minutes ago, Sport said:

 

I am now completely apathetic to the Reds.

That is the sentence that should terrify baseball.  Because it is becoming increasingly obvious through a combination of factors, some of which MLB can control (marketing itself to young kids) and some of which it can't (the rules baked into the game that simply cannot be changed if you want to still call the sport baseball), that baseball is not the sport of the modern era.  The modern sports fan has a lot more reasons to spend money on, talk about, and care about basketball than baseball.  The NFL is on a completely different plane and the NHL is still too much of a niche sport to threaten MLB right now (and if the NHL does ever threaten MLB for third place, it will be because MLB has done nothing to save itself from free falling, not because the NHL suddenly shot up in popularity).  But MLB is getting laughed out of the gym by the NBA for second place.  I personally am not a huge NBA fan, but I know way more NBA stars (and their personalities, and their skillsets) than MLB stars.  I'm too cheap to buy either, but if I had to pick between buying a Giannis jersey or a Mike Trout jersey I'm taking Giannis 10 times out of 10.  That. Is. A. Problem.  Especially for someone like me, who grew up a bigger Orioles fan than Ravens fan and led the Orioles to 4 straight World Series in my backyard.  MLB is bleeding adult fans and doing nothing to replace them.  They're irrelevant in 15 years if they don't do something soon.

[Digby]

Well, I just saw that Fenway Park is adding another bar and drink rail section atop the bleachers for this season, so I'll go back to baseball's future being the most unique and expensive after-work bar in town.

[Brian in Boston]

55 minutes ago, Digby said:

Well, I just saw that Fenway Park is adding another bar and drink rail section atop the bleachers for this season, so I'll go back to baseball's future being the most unique and expensive after-work bar in town.

"Cheers is filmed before a live stadium audience."

[speedy]

2 hours ago, Digby said:

Well, I just saw that Fenway Park is adding another bar and drink rail section atop the bleachers for this season, so I'll go back to baseball's future being the most unique and expensive after-work bar in town.

 

I guess this makes it easier to get concessions rather than walking down 35 flights of steps? Seems like it was inevitable they were going to do something like this once they started building that music venue. I'll reserve judgement, as they have usually done a really good job with additions, but it sure does look out of place.

[Sport]

1 hour ago, Digby said:

Well, I just saw that Fenway Park is adding another bar and drink rail section atop the bleachers for this season, so I'll go back to baseball's future being the most unique and expensive after-work bar in town.

 

I like to think of it as a very weird dinner and improv theater. I love baseball, ballparks, hot dogs, and beer and it's why I will still probably go to 5 Reds games this year even though I'm mad at them. 

 

13 hours ago, Crabcake said:

That is the sentence that should terrify baseball.  Because it is becoming increasingly obvious through a combination of factors, some of which MLB can control (marketing itself to young kids) and some of which it can't (the rules baked into the game that simply cannot be changed if you want to still call the sport baseball), that baseball is not the sport of the modern era.  The modern sports fan has a lot more reasons to spend money on, talk about, and care about basketball than baseball.  The NFL is on a completely different plane and the NHL is still too much of a niche sport to threaten MLB right now (and if the NHL does ever threaten MLB for third place, it will be because MLB has done nothing to save itself from free falling, not because the NHL suddenly shot up in popularity).  But MLB is getting laughed out of the gym by the NBA for second place.  I personally am not a huge NBA fan, but I know way more NBA stars (and their personalities, and their skillsets) than MLB stars.  I'm too cheap to buy either, but if I had to pick between buying a Giannis jersey or a Mike Trout jersey I'm taking Giannis 10 times out of 10.  That. Is. A. Problem.  Especially for someone like me, who grew up a bigger Orioles fan than Ravens fan and led the Orioles to 4 straight World Series in my backyard.  MLB is bleeding adult fans and doing nothing to replace them.  They're irrelevant in 15 years if they don't do something soon.

 

Baseball is the only one of the North American team sports where every team is not trying to win a championship. In the NFL, NHL, NBA, and MLS there's various levels of competency and some teams take a year or two off to tank, but every team feels like they're doing all they can to pursue this year's or a near future year's championship. Circle the 2025 World Series and ask how many teams right now have a plan to compete for that? It might be fewer than 20. That's really bad for the sport when a whole third of the league simply exists to fill a schedule and act as a shiny tax loophole for some rich dickhead.