2012 MLB Season

[BigBubba]

Mind you, Bautista signed that after 2010, so he didn't get as much because of the huge risk of him being a one-year wonder. Their executives were split exactly 50/50 on whether or not to give hi a big deal, and Anthopolous was the swing vote.Needless to say, he'd have gotten more if it was after 2/3 big years.

[Dexter Morgan]

things way too close to the batters eye

Pretty sure that's only going to come up when a home run is hit so its not going to be in the way of the batter's eye.

Come up? No. They just use it's animated features when a HR is hit.

[pmoehrin]

things way too close to the batters eye

Pretty sure that's only going to come up when a home run is hit so its not going to be in the way of the batter's eye.

Come up? No. They just use it's animated features when a HR is hit.

Everything I've heard about it says its retractable.

Scratch apparently its not.

[Still MIGHTY]

No, that thing's not going anywhere...

Unfortunately...

God that thing is atrocious.

[The_Admiral]

FLAMINGOS ARE A GO

[epper]

This had me in stitches:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s983TpLdTdU

[patsox]

oh me too i just posted on facebook its freakin awesome!

[BrySmalls]

The Marlins new stadium puts the ug in ugly

And Citibank put the ":censored:ty" in Citi Field

[BrySmalls]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

[bosrs1]

The vivid colors really help to distinguish it from Miller Park, so that's a plus. Not that I don't like Miller Park, I do, I just don't want them to look alike.

It wouldn't look like Miller anyway. It's design is more reminiscent of Minute Maid Park and Safeco Field than the weird fan roof the Brewers have up at Miller Park. That said it doesn't look much like any of the existing retractable roof stadiums so much as it looks like a cousin of National's Park with a roof put on it.

[Kramerica Industries]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

Huh?

MLB tried that 15 years ago when they expanded to the LDS playoff format, and it only lasted a few years before the more logical 2-2-1 format was launched.

This keeps getting worse.

[BrySmalls]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

Huh?

MLB tried that 15 years ago when they expanded to the LDS playoff format, and it only lasted a few years before the more logical 2-2-1 format was launched.

This keeps getting worse.

No kidding! MLB is further rewarding mediocrity!

[FiddySicks]

The vivid colors really help to distinguish it from Miller Park, so that's a plus. Not that I don't like Miller Park, I do, I just don't want them to look alike.

It wouldn't look like Miller anyway. It's design is more reminiscent of Minute Maid Park and Safeco Field than the weird fan roof the Brewers have up at Miller Park. That said it doesn't look much like any of the existing retractable roof stadiums so much as it looks like a cousin of National's Park with a roof put on it.

Speaking of that, is there any division with newer parks than the NL East? Every single team has a park that's practically brand new except for the Braves, and even their park is still relatively new.

[STL FANATIC]

I don't feel like the Marlins park is going to age well (visually). I think in 15 years it's going to look really, really dated. But we'll see. I applaud them for trying something, but a long-term building structure is a risky thing to experiment with. (And again, I'm just talking aesthetics. I'm sure the building itself will hold up just fine.)

As for Molina, it's an interesting contract, and it certainly raises the bar on the catching position. But I wonder if that's not a bar that should have been raised a long time ago. Everyone preaches the importance of having a good defense catcher with super excitement if they can hit, but nobody expects to pay anything substantial for that position. It's probably the most important defensive position on the field, though. So if you have someone who's an absolute master at it (and not exactly a slouch at the plate), shouldn't they be rewarded for such.

Defense will always be hard to quantify, and that's doubly true for things like leadership and handling a pitching staff. But Yadier Molina excels in those areas. Probably as much as any catcher ever has, or at least as well as any of this generation (maybe tied with Pudge?). This defines a market more than it raises a previously existing one, I think.

[RyanB06]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

Huh?

MLB tried that 15 years ago when they expanded to the LDS playoff format, and it only lasted a few years before the more logical 2-2-1 format was launched.

This keeps getting worse.

No kidding! MLB is further rewarding mediocrity!

Relax, guys - the 2-3 format is only for this year. Next year they go back to 2-2-1. They did it because the 2012 schedule didn't allow enough time for the extra WC game.

[STL FANATIC]

The vivid colors really help to distinguish it from Miller Park, so that's a plus. Not that I don't like Miller Park, I do, I just don't want them to look alike.

It wouldn't look like Miller anyway. It's design is more reminiscent of Minute Maid Park and Safeco Field than the weird fan roof the Brewers have up at Miller Park. That said it doesn't look much like any of the existing retractable roof stadiums so much as it looks like a cousin of National's Park with a roof put on it.

Speaking of that, is there any division with newer parks than the NL East? Every single team has a park that's practically brand new except for the Braves, and even their park is still relatively new.

If the NL Central gets to throw a team out to get down to five, they're right there.

Cardinals - 2006

Reds - 2003

Brewers - 2001

Pirates - 2001

Astros - 2000

Cubs - 1914

Of course, in a year it's actually the Astros that get kicked out, and then that crappy ballpark in north Chicago has to count against the Central.

[The_Admiral]

I don't feel like the Marlins park is going to age well (visually). I think in 15 years it's going to look really, really dated. But we'll see. I applaud them for trying something, but a long-term building structure is a risky thing to experiment with. (And again, I'm just talking aesthetics. I'm sure the building itself will hold up just fine.)

That's a valid concern. Isn't Miami the kind of city that, aside from the old Art Deco district, likes to architecturally reinvent itself on a fairly regular basis? certainly more than other cities? I could see where that modernism may not age well.

I think one of their biggest mistakes is underbuilding the place. I know, I know, the worst seats cost the least to fill and the most to build, and supply and demand, but capping your daily attendance at 37,000 or whatever for the next forty to fifty years seems dreadfully low if you're really aspiring to be a major player in this league. Or it could be that so many people will take to watching baseball in HD at home that these will all just be half-billion-dollar soundstages and actually attending a game will be a thing of the past. Still not sure how the economics of that will work out; they're still very much in the beer-selling business.

So it may not age well in Miami, but in the meantime, vis-a-vis the rest of the parks in the majors, it's a welcome respite from the endless neo-retro fakery we have today.

[rams80]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

Huh?

MLB tried that 15 years ago when they expanded to the LDS playoff format, and it only lasted a few years before the more logical 2-2-1 format was launched.

This keeps getting worse.

1 year only feature because of scheduling features and the sacred TV deal.

[DaytonBlue]

Love the new postseason format, hate the 2-3 LDS round and crazy playoff travel, even for one year. If the LCS/World Series dates were set in stone, they should have waited until 2013.

But I love the importance this places on winning the division.

And I love how close we are to playing ball!

[cmm]

It will be pretty sweet to win the Wild Card berth as the victor will host the #1 Seed for Games 1 and 2 in the LDS. However, the #1 Seed team hosts Games 3, 4, and 5, if necessary. The #2 Seed versus the #3 Seed also follows the new LDS setup.

So it is now possible for two teams in the same Division to face each other in the LDS?

Yes: Jayson Stark article

Remember, there are no longer rules that would prevent a wild card from facing a team in its own division in the LDS.