2012 MLB Season

[pmoehrin]

Dodgers go up 7-0, win 7-6. Then again, it was at Coors Field.

Phew.

They've been coming back down to earth the last couple of weeks but they have still looked pretty good.

[infrared41]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

No kidding. This type of season was supposed to happen five years after Pujols signed with the Angels, not five months. He'll come around...I hope. Still, a win is a win is a win...and all those other cliches.

[Cujo]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

[STL FANATIC]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

[pmoehrin]

I just think the guy is in an extreme slump.

You just can't lose that much as a hitter in one year and still be in the type of shape he's in.

He's a much better hitter then this and I do think he will turn it around. May not have an MVP type season but I do think he'll end the season with at least 25 HR's.

[HolyStroke]

Pujols did switch leagues, so he's seeing a lot of pitchers for the first time. He'll come around

[Eye]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

What do you base that on?

[Kramerica Industries]

There is probably some natural jading there, but in fairness Pujols OPS has dropped 100 points each of the last two years.

And yes, when your OPS "dips" and it's still 1.000 or even .907, that's still extremely good. But I do think Pujols days as being the best pure hitter in baseball are likely over. His days of being a .560 OPS hitter, however, will also soon be over.

[BrySmalls]

Dear Nationals:

Please score some friggin' runs for me. Even just a couple. Would that really kill you? Really? My ERA is 1.83 and I'm 1-3 on the season.

Sincerely:

Jordan Zimmermann.

P.S.: Stop batting Bryce Harper 7th, Davey. With Zimm and Morse on the shelf, he's the best hitter we've got right now.

I agree with your faux Zimmermann letter! Just to emphasize your case, this season the Nats have typically scored 3.04 runs a game in which Zimmermann starts, except last night was an anomaly (so far). You can blame the bloated run support number on their 7-2 victory against the Padres on April 25. If you take away the victory, then the Nats provide 2.25 runs a game in which Zimmermann pitches. Point being, this guy needs to be nearly flawless each time he's on the mound, so give him some help!!

Also, his record is 1-2 instead of 1-3.

[STL FANATIC]

I just think the guy is in an extreme slump.

You just can't lose that much as a hitter in one year and still be in the type of shape he's in.

He's a much better hitter then this and I do think he will turn it around. May not have an MVP type season but I do think he'll end the season with at least 25 HR's.

He's definitely in a slump. He's not a .200 hitter with no power.

But is he a full season .300 hitter anymore? Will he reach 30 homers in many of the next 10 years? I'm starting to doubt it. He's been declining for the past few seasons. Not to this level by any means, but .285/25/90? I don't know. I'm sure he'll go on a tear at some point, but for how long and how consistently?

He'll likely manage to be pretty good the next couple of years. But ten years is looking a bit crazier than ever. And the way the Angels structured that deal, he'll be making the big bucks (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30 million) in the last years of his contract. But maybe with their income, they just don't care.

[STL FANATIC]

Pujols did switch leagues, so he's seeing a lot of pitchers for the first time. He'll come around

Not a big believer in this one. He CRUSHED AL pitching in interleague play his entire career. Now he's having 0-fers against pitchers like Derek Lowe who he saw in the National League plenty (and knocked around). He's declined and (mostly) he's just out of sync with his swing and plate discipline.

I think it's far more attributable to him than it is to any of the pitchers.

[STL FANATIC]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

What do you base that on?

First off, let me say this. Not being who I thought he was doesn't mean he's not all kinds of good. He's still a good man. He's still a family man. He's still an extremely charitable man. The last thing I want to do is make the guy out to be evil. If I was an outsider to all of this, there'd be little reason to think less of him.

But that's not my perspective.

I thought he was the guy who truly valued his place in an iconic franchise. I thought he meant it when he said as long as the Cardinals franchise is set up to compete than he had no desire to leave for a few million extra per year. In the face of evidence to the contrary, I chose to believe his tantrums and standoffs with the media were him being misunderstood and misreported. I thought he and his family were above needing to be coddled. I thought they were above throwing out the tired refrain of money equals respect.

I thought he was really that one guy that proved all the big money athlete stereotypes wrong.

But he wasn't. He's still a very good man, but he's as prone as any of them that desire for fame. Don't get me wrong, he earned his money. I just thought he wasn't only after it. He had every right to take it. I have every right to hold a grudge.

I'll continue to appreciate what he does off the field. And I'll never wish him ill-will off of it. But I'd be a happy man if he never got a hit and never sniffed a World Series again.

I thought this blog post really captured my perspective. It was written a couple days after he left.

http://www.cardsdiaspora.com/2011-articles/december/open-letter-to-albert-i-love-you-f-you.html

This is sports. So he gets to take whatever contract someone is willing to offer him. And I get to be upset that he left a pretty darn good contract, an adoring fan base, and a great organization behind.

[Sport]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

What do you base that on?

First off, let me say this. Not being who I thought he was doesn't mean he's not all kinds of good. He's still a good man. He's still a family man. He's still an extremely charitable man. The last thing I want to do is make the guy out to be evil. If I was an outsider to all of this, there'd be little reason to think less of him.

But that's not my perspective.

I thought he was the guy who truly valued his place in an iconic franchise. I thought he meant it when he said as long as the Cardinals franchise is set up to compete than he had no desire to leave for a few million extra per year. In the face of evidence to the contrary, I chose to believe his tantrums and standoffs with the media were him being misunderstood and misreported. I thought he and his family were above needing to be coddled. I thought they were above throwing out the tired refrain of money equals respect.

I thought he was really that one guy that proved all the big money athlete stereotypes wrong.

But he wasn't. He's still a very good man, but he's as prone as any of them that desire for fame. Don't get me wrong, he earned his money. I just thought he wasn't only after it. He had every right to take it. I have every right to hold a grudge.

I'll continue to appreciate what he does off the field. And I'll never wish him ill-will off of it. But I'd be a happy man if he never got a hit and never sniffed a World Series again.

I thought this blog post really captured my perspective. It was written a couple days after he left.

http://www.cardsdiaspora.com/2011-articles/december/open-letter-to-albert-i-love-you-f-you.html

This is sports. So he gets to take whatever contract someone is willing to offer him. And I get to be upset that he left a pretty darn good contract, an adoring fan base, and a great organization behind.

How dare he leave after only winning two world series, right? This is why you're fanbase is constantly being attacked.

You and other Cardinals fans are being ridiculous. You're not Cleveland and this isn't Lebron. You got more out of Pujols than he got out of you as fans. He owes you nothing. Be happy with your two fluke championships and move on.

[STL FANATIC]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

What do you base that on?

First off, let me say this. Not being who I thought he was doesn't mean he's not all kinds of good. He's still a good man. He's still a family man. He's still an extremely charitable man. The last thing I want to do is make the guy out to be evil. If I was an outsider to all of this, there'd be little reason to think less of him.

But that's not my perspective.

I thought he was the guy who truly valued his place in an iconic franchise. I thought he meant it when he said as long as the Cardinals franchise is set up to compete than he had no desire to leave for a few million extra per year. In the face of evidence to the contrary, I chose to believe his tantrums and standoffs with the media were him being misunderstood and misreported. I thought he and his family were above needing to be coddled. I thought they were above throwing out the tired refrain of money equals respect.

I thought he was really that one guy that proved all the big money athlete stereotypes wrong.

But he wasn't. He's still a very good man, but he's as prone as any of them that desire for fame. Don't get me wrong, he earned his money. I just thought he wasn't only after it. He had every right to take it. I have every right to hold a grudge.

I'll continue to appreciate what he does off the field. And I'll never wish him ill-will off of it. But I'd be a happy man if he never got a hit and never sniffed a World Series again.

I thought this blog post really captured my perspective. It was written a couple days after he left.

http://www.cardsdiaspora.com/2011-articles/december/open-letter-to-albert-i-love-you-f-you.html

This is sports. So he gets to take whatever contract someone is willing to offer him. And I get to be upset that he left a pretty darn good contract, an adoring fan base, and a great organization behind.

How dare he leave after only winning two world series, right? This is why you're fanbase is constantly being attacked.

You and other Cardinals fans are being ridiculous. You're not Cleveland and this isn't Lebron. You got more out of Pujols than he got out of you as fans. He owes you nothing. Be happy with your two fluke championships and move on.

You're right, it's not LeBron-Cleveland. LeBron situation was completely different. Cleveland reacted differently. There weren't mass jersey burnings in St. Louis. St. Louis took it in stride.

But you're telling me we don't have a right to hold a grudge? Really?

I appreciate what he did here. And I'm upset that he didn't appreciate what he had here enough to stay.

You're right that he owes me nothing. But why do I owe him something, then?

Like I said, we've both got rights. He had his to get as much money as he could. I have mine to begrudge him that.

I don't really think the Cardinals fan base is all that frequently attacked, but if it is it's because it's very large and the team is very successful. Those things make people look for the worst in fan bases. I know it, because I do it to opposing fan bases in other sports.

[Sport]

Also, Albert Pujols still can't hit to save his life.

Ten-year guaranteed contract? Yeah, pretty sure Puj doesn't give a damn.

He cares. A lot. And at this point that's probably working against him.

He's not who I thought he was, but he's still a good guy and he certainly cares about being a good baseball player. I imagine at some point he will be again, although I legitimately wonder if he'll ever be dominant again. His .300/30/100 days may be behind him for good.

But I'm not even remotely above enjoying it. I wish him no personal ill-will, but if on the baseball field he never hits a home run again, I won't feel even a little bad for him.

What do you base that on?

First off, let me say this. Not being who I thought he was doesn't mean he's not all kinds of good. He's still a good man. He's still a family man. He's still an extremely charitable man. The last thing I want to do is make the guy out to be evil. If I was an outsider to all of this, there'd be little reason to think less of him.

But that's not my perspective.

I thought he was the guy who truly valued his place in an iconic franchise. I thought he meant it when he said as long as the Cardinals franchise is set up to compete than he had no desire to leave for a few million extra per year. In the face of evidence to the contrary, I chose to believe his tantrums and standoffs with the media were him being misunderstood and misreported. I thought he and his family were above needing to be coddled. I thought they were above throwing out the tired refrain of money equals respect.

I thought he was really that one guy that proved all the big money athlete stereotypes wrong.

But he wasn't. He's still a very good man, but he's as prone as any of them that desire for fame. Don't get me wrong, he earned his money. I just thought he wasn't only after it. He had every right to take it. I have every right to hold a grudge.

I'll continue to appreciate what he does off the field. And I'll never wish him ill-will off of it. But I'd be a happy man if he never got a hit and never sniffed a World Series again.

I thought this blog post really captured my perspective. It was written a couple days after he left.

http://www.cardsdiaspora.com/2011-articles/december/open-letter-to-albert-i-love-you-f-you.html

This is sports. So he gets to take whatever contract someone is willing to offer him. And I get to be upset that he left a pretty darn good contract, an adoring fan base, and a great organization behind.

How dare he leave after only winning two world series, right? This is why you're fanbase is constantly being attacked.

You and other Cardinals fans are being ridiculous. You're not Cleveland and this isn't Lebron. You got more out of Pujols than he got out of you as fans. He owes you nothing. Be happy with your two fluke championships and move on.

You're right, it's not LeBron-Cleveland. LeBron situation was completely different. Cleveland reacted differently. There weren't mass jersey burnings in St. Louis. St. Louis took it in stride.

But you're telling me we don't have a right to hold a grudge? Really?

How can you hold a grudge for a guy who won you 2 World Series wins, another world series appearance, multiple playoff appearances? HOW? That's incredibly greedy if you ask me.

and have you taken it in stride? From what I've read your fans have handled Pujols leaving very poorly. Lebron was in Cleveland for 8 years and won a championship starved city nothing. Pujols was in St. Louis for 11 and won you two championships in a city that has a pretty good championship history. See the difference?

I appreciate what he did here. And I'm upset that he didn't appreciate what he had here enough to stay.

You're right that he owes me nothing. But why do I owe him something, then?

2 World Series wins, another world series appearance, multiple playoff appearances.

Like I said, we've both got rights. He had his to get as much money as he could. I have mine to begrudge him that.

If he's got that right and youre going to give that to him then you can't begrudge him for that.

I don't really think the Cardinals fan base is all that frequently attacked, but if it is it's because it's very large and the team is very successful. Those things make people look for the worst in fan bases. I know it, because I do it to opposing fan bases in other sports.

Fair.

[STL FANATIC]

Here's the thing McCarty. I don't owe him anything for those World Series, etc.

I DO appreciate them. I really do. I also note that he was part of a team. It's a stretch to say HE gave them to us. It'd also be a huge stretch to say we didn't need him. He was the best player on those teams, without question.

That aside, here's why that notion bothers me. I hear over and over again that it's a business and that's why I'm not supposed to care. And that's true. It is a business. And he got paid for doing his job well.

THAT'S what he was owed. He put up good numbers. He won games. So he got money.

I don't have to give him additional support. He can't deserve that money (from another club no less) and my unending appreciation. By being the player he was, he earned something. And he took it. And that was money.

If baseball is a business, then Pujols was just doing his job. No reason I should look at it any other way, right?

[STL FANATIC]

I also want to add this.

We're not talking about life/death. If someone has any perspective at all, we're never talking about ACTUAL hate. (When the term gets thrown around, I hope it's always meant to be in quotes.)

What we are talking about sports. Sports. Where we get to be emotional. We get to be reactionary. We get to feel wronged by things that have no bearing on our day-to-day life, and we get to feel immense satisfaction from other things that also have more or less no bearing on our actual day-to-day life. It's ok. It really is.

That's why I love that ESPN ad campaign.

It's not crazy.

It's sports.

[McCall]

Here's the thing McCall. I don't owe him anything for those World Series, etc.

I DO appreciate them. I really do. I also note that he was part of a team. It's a stretch to say HE gave them to us. It'd also be a huge stretch to say we didn't need him. He was the best player on those teams, without question.

That aside, here's why that notion bothers me. I hear over and over again that it's a business and that's why I'm not supposed to care. And that's true. It is a business. And he got paid for doing his job well.

THAT'S what he was owed. He put up good numbers. He won games. So he got money.

I don't have to give him additional support. He can't deserve that money (from another club no less) and my unending appreciation. By being the player he was, he earned something. And he took it. And that was money.

If baseball is a business, then Pujols was just doing his job. No reason I should look at it any other way, right?

*clears throat*

I think you mean McCarthy.

And btw, every fan has a right to be upset about anything with their favorite team. It's part of sports. I'm very grateful for what he accomplished here in St. Louis. That's why I still have his jersey hanging in my closet. But, with the way he chose to leave, I might not where it again, at least not for awhile. I'd also be lying if I said wasn't a little happy about how he's playing right now. Sorry, but it's part of being a fan. And no, Cardinal fans did not go nearly as far off the deep-end as Cavs fans. Yes, there were a few strays that did some jersey and/or cap burnings on Youtube, but there's always gonna be some of those.

Objectively speaking, despite what he might say, he his pressing too much. The Angels signed him for what they expect him to do based off what he did for the Cardinals. So far, he's not meeting those expectations and he's trying to hard to get past it. It'll probably come, but who knows how long. If he had stayed with the Cardinals, he would've been paid for what he had already done for them, basically a reward. That's less pressure. They're still expecting a lot out of you, but not as much as a team that you've done nothing for in the past. Psychology plays a much bigger part in sports than some may think.

[BigBubba]

The Blue Jays have won the series vs. Texas, the first time the Rangers have lost back-to-back games this year. They've got a boatload of young pitchers, and it's good to see a guy like Hutchinson get some experience with Cecil and McGowan out of commission. They obviously can't all get starting jobs, so perhaps one or two could become the answer to the team's bullpen woes?

Re: Lawrie. This guy is so much fun to watch, he is honestly my favourite player on the team. I hope he's a Blue Jay for years to come.

[NEW.ERA]

I think Lawrie will be a staple at third base for the Jays for many years to come. Also, he's the next great Canadian star!

Huge series win, lets take this into Anaheim now!