2011 MLB Season Thread

[Eye]

I'm not denying that the Trop is a hideous mess, but the new Yankee Stadium represents everything wrong with baseball: it's a bandbox where fly balls turn into home runs, the stands are half-empty because the majority of the fanbase has been priced out, it's filled to the brim with restaurants, arcades and other crap that distracts the pink-hats in the crowd from the actual game, and the freaking Yankees play there.

As for good stadiums for the World Series: Kauffman Stadium and Great American Ballpark are awesome stadiums that need some World Series action.

Doesn't Tropicana Field have shorter field dimensions than Yankee Stadium?

Tropicana Field is not a bandbox, it's a Big Lots!.

[Dexter Morgan]

Yankee Stadium doesn't have an arcade, but Nationals Park does.

and it has a playground.

Citi Field has a dunk tank and kiddie field.

Tropicana Field has THIS:

Plus restaurants, and oddly enough, a Cigar Bar.

[JayJaxon]

Are you guys seriously predicting a Phillies/Red Sox/Yankees World Series already? Please go back and look at the games and don't just look at what ESPN says. There are other good teams besides the damn Phillies, Yankees, and Red Sox.

Part of this is me being a homer,and ESPN probably has skewed my opinion, but I really don't think anyone else is going to compete with those three. Look at some of the other division leaders (especially in the AL) who's going to challenge the Yankees and Red Sox? The Indians? The Rangers? I highly doubt that. And even in the NL the only teams that could compete with the Phillies are maybe the Braves and the Giants. But with the way Lincecum's pitching I doubt the Giants can beat the Phillies. Who knows what we will see what happens when we get to October, but right now you've got to say it's going to be one of those three teams. I know it sounds stupid but that's truly what I think.

I'll tell you one thing cameroncrazie07, others can really stand to take note on how you handle criticism for simply being a Yankees fan. I salute you sir. Now back to the debate.

This is what I see as far as competition for the ESPN favorites:

Braves: Make no mistake, nobody wants to play this team. The Braves have won 12 of the last 15 games they have played while batting .230! if (and it's a big if) Dan Uggla starts hitting, they WILL win the division and probably the NL title. Please tell me I'm not the only one that sees this.

Giants: They are going to need some help at the trade deadline. But you can't sleep on pitching. They have the starters to stick with any team in the league. Last year doesn't mean s**t now. But they still have the tools that got them there which is great pitching.

Rangers: They need to do the same thing they did last year (which is get another pitcher) But you can't just count a team out that can knock the ball around like these guys.

Rays: This is probably the most talented team no one is talking about. They have 47 wins in a very tough division and the Sawks and Yanks are not without their faults.

All of these teams can legitimately beat the three ESPN/bandwagon favorites. I did not list the Angels because I don't think they have what it takes to fill their needs at the trade deadline. Atlanta and Tampa are the only teams that do not need to make a trade deadline move.

[NJTank]

Are those actual Rays?

I guess swimming with the Rays would be a bad idea, just ask the Crocodile Hunter

[cameroncrazie07]

Are you guys seriously predicting a Phillies/Red Sox/Yankees World Series already? Please go back and look at the games and don't just look at what ESPN says. There are other good teams besides the damn Phillies, Yankees, and Red Sox.

Part of this is me being a homer,and ESPN probably has skewed my opinion, but I really don't think anyone else is going to compete with those three. Look at some of the other division leaders (especially in the AL) who's going to challenge the Yankees and Red Sox? The Indians? The Rangers? I highly doubt that. And even in the NL the only teams that could compete with the Phillies are maybe the Braves and the Giants. But with the way Lincecum's pitching I doubt the Giants can beat the Phillies. Who knows what we will see what happens when we get to October, but right now you've got to say it's going to be one of those three teams. I know it sounds stupid but that's truly what I think.

I'll tell you one thing cameroncrazie07, others can really stand to take note on how you handle criticism for simply being a Yankees fan. I salute you sir. Now back to the debate.

Thank you for that (I think), and about your point I do agree that the Braves/Giants can/have beat the Phillies, but I just can't see it actually happening. It's just too tough to take down a team that could possibly pitch:Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, and Cole Hamels in three straight games. I know what the Giants have going right now is pretty good, but unless Lincecum gets his crap together they're not winning that series. And as for the Braves, yes I do think they could beat the Phillies if they can get their hitting together.

[DrAwesomeberry]

I'm not denying that the Trop is a hideous mess, but the new Yankee Stadium represents everything wrong with baseball: it's a bandbox where fly balls turn into home runs, the stands are half-empty because the majority of the fanbase has been priced out, it's filled to the brim with restaurants, arcades and other crap that distracts the pink-hats in the crowd from the actual game, and the freaking Yankees play there.

As for good stadiums for the World Series: Kauffman Stadium and Great American Ballpark are awesome stadiums that need some World Series action.

Doesn't Tropicana Field have shorter field dimensions than Yankee Stadium?

They are pretty similar, but Yankee Stadium has wind that can push the ball out farther.

The reason the new Yankee Stadium is getting more home runs is because they moved the wall out in right-center up about 15 feet.

[Lights Out]

Yankee Stadium also doesn't have catwalks that can interfere with the path of the ball. Hell, balls have been lost up in the B-ring before.

[philly97flyer]

I'm as big a Phillies fan as there is, and have been my entire life (yes even the down years!) and I cannot stand ESPN. All you need to know.

[raysox]

I guess swimming with the Rays would be a bad idea, just ask the Crocodile Hunter

Touch tank.

[RyanMcD29]

This Yankee Stadium talk reminded me of a really interesting article the Wall Street Journal had about the differences in dimensions between Yankee Stadium and Citi Field and how a lot of the homers to RF in the former wouldn't be homers in the latter.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304584004576418142641741566.html? (click on interactive for the fun stuff)

Now that being said I can barely stand how deep RF is at Citi Field (ahem, the "Mo Zone"). Doesn't take away the fact that Yankee Stadium's a bandbox, either. But it's funny how one ballpark in the city's a bandbox and the other's a canyon.

[Breakwood]

Horrible call

[loogodude90]

Horrible call

Agreed, blown call.

I could have sworn that on SportsCenter they said this was the first game of the season that ended with a runner being thrown out at the plate, which would make it even worse.

[Dexter Morgan]

There are 7 ballparks in MLB yielding more home runs this season than Yankee Stadium. Yankee Stadium is not yielding a lot more home runs than most stadiums in MLB, and hasn't the last 2 seasons. You think they are because of ESPN's coverage during the first few weeks of the stadiums inaugural season. A lot of home runs were hit that first month, but that rate didn't last.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor/_/sort/HRFactor

[Lights Out]

2009: Yankee Stadium - 1st in the league in home runs (1.261 per game)

2010: Yankee Stadium - 3rd in the league in home runs (1.420 per game)

And so far this year, 1.165 home runs per game have been hit at Yankee Stadium.

It's a bandbox. And by the way, that supposed "bandbox" in Tampa has ranked 22nd, 17th, and 22nd (so far) in the past three years.

[Dexter Morgan]

2009: Yankee Stadium - 1st in the league in home runs (1.261 per game)

2010: Yankee Stadium - 3rd in the league in home runs (1.420 per game)

And so far this year, 1.165 home runs per game have been hit at Yankee Stadium. (That's 8th in the league, no surprise you failed to mention that)

It's a bandbox. And by the way, that supposed "bandbox" in Tampa has ranked 22nd, 17th, and 22nd (so far) in the past three years.

Tropicana isn't a bandbox, but it is a sh-t hole.

Baseball is full of bandboxes, they have always had them. Chase Field, Cellular Field, Citizens Bank Park, Great American Ball Park, Minute Maid Park, Ballpark in Arlington, Rogers Centre, among others.

Why is Yankee Stadium singled out? Even when they aren't the biggest band box in baseball, and haven't been for the last 2 seasons. Why is U.S. Cellular or Rogers Centre never called a band box?

[NJTank]

Minute Made Field use to be called Home Run Field

Great American Ballpark is called Great American Small Park

So Yankee Stadium is not singled out, they just got compared to Citi Field National Park, and compared to Citi Field Yankee Stadium is Kiddie Field.

[Dexter Morgan]

Minute Made Field use to be called Home Run Field

Great American Ballpark is called Great American Small Park

So Yankee Stadium is not singled out, they just got compared to Citi Field National Park, and compared to Citi Field Yankee Stadium is Kiddie Field.

Good point on MMF and GABP.

The difference between CF and YS is so great also because the Mets don't hit home runs anywhere, and the Yankees consistently lead baseball or are near the top in home runs. If the Mets played all their home games in Yankee Stadium the ballpark factors would look a lot different.

[RyanMcD29]

Minute Made Field use to be called Home Run Field

Great American Ballpark is called Great American Small Park

So Yankee Stadium is not singled out, they just got compared to Citi Field National Park, and compared to Citi Field Yankee Stadium is Kiddie Field.

Good point on MMF and GABP.

The difference between CF and YS is so great also because the Mets don't hit home runs anywhere, and the Yankees consistently lead baseball or are near the top in home runs. If the Mets played all their home games in Yankee Stadium the ballpark factors would look a lot different.

Why are you so defendant about everything Yankees? The link I posted is about how some home runs by the Yankees at YS weren't home runs at Citi

[HedleyLamarr]

2009: Yankee Stadium - 1st in the league in home runs (1.261 per game)

2010: Yankee Stadium - 3rd in the league in home runs (1.420 per game)

And so far this year, 1.165 home runs per game have been hit at Yankee Stadium.

It's a bandbox. And by the way, that supposed "bandbox" in Tampa has ranked 22nd, 17th, and 22nd (so far) in the past three years.

That's because the Rays aren't a power-hitting team. The Rays could play at Yankee Stadium 81 times a year and the ballpark would become middle-of-the-road in homerun stats.

[CS85]

The cubs almost played a whole inning without sucking. Almost.