This Week in Baseball 6/8 - 6/14

[alkeiper]

Though the Mets won the game last night, I wonder if some cracks are beginning to appear with Jerry Manuel. Johan Santana vocally disagreeing with the decision to remove him last night and ignoring a bunt call. David Wright arguing with Manuel in the dugout about not arguing a bad call at the plate. Manuel might lose his team soon.

 

[jimmy no nose]

It sure didn't take long for a Charlie Morton vs. Nate McLouth matchup to occur. They couldn't have left him in AAA for one more start?

 

[Smues]

Why is it a bad thing?

 

[zio]

Mets sure are overachieving. Bastards.

 

[zio]

Jimmy Rollins beats that ground ball double play if he was hustling. He never learns.

 

[zio]

Why is Mike Pelfrey throwing a hissy fit? What a little bitch.

 

[naiwf]

I love how Manuel left Pelfrey in to load the bases with no outs in the 7th and then brings in the human gas can Sean Green to try to put out the fire. I hate this team sometimes. A three run lead will become a deficit in 20 minutes time.

 

[Precious Roy]

Francisco Cordero just blew his first save of the year, likely due to a long ass rain delay that came in the middle of the inning. That's bullshit right there, it's the ninth inning with one man down and one man on and you delay the game for over an hour? Just play it out.

Also, Wang.....

 

[Dobbs3K]

The Brewers' offense is terrible right now. When Craig Counsell is their third best player on offense behind Braun and Fielder, you know they're going to have problems. Hart, Hardy, and Hall are all terrible at the plate right now.

 

[Dobbs3K]

Sorry to rumor monger, but I just got a message on Twitter that Brewers GM Doug Melvin has something "in the works." Not sure what that means as of yet. Of note, in today's lineup, none of Hart, Hardy, Hall, or Cameron are starting. Of course, they've all been slumping bad, so it probably means nothing.

 

[jimmy no nose]

The Braves called up and put in their starting lineup today at first base a guy named Barbaro Canizares who's had a really good year so far at AAA. Expect ESPN to fall in love with him immediately.

 

[Vitamin X]

Sorry to rumor monger, but I just got a message on Twitter that Brewers GM Doug Melvin has something "in the works." Not sure what that means as of yet. Of note, in today's lineup, none of Hart, Hardy, Hall, or Cameron are starting. Of course, they've all been slumping bad, so it probably means nothing.

Well it is twitter; maybe Melvin was talking about making a sandwich?

 

[Bored]

The Braves called up and put in their starting lineup today at first base a guy named Barbaro Canizares who's had a really good year so far at AAA. Expect ESPN to fall in love with him immediately.

I wonder if he's prone to broken legs too. Be a damn shame to have to shoot your first baseman.

 

[the max]

He'll end up as the glue that holds the team together.

 

[Smues]

If they do expect the glue they make to be sold in little 3 ounce bottles with a Braves A on it for 30 bucks each.

 

[devo]

I swear, it seems like every year Feliciano earns half his salary pitching against the Phillies.

 

[alkeiper]

Raul Ibanez is a monster.

Still maintain that Phillies/Mets is the new best rivalry in baseball. These two games play terrific games against each other.

 

[alkeiper]

Also, saw the second worst blowout of my live baseball life today. A 16-2 drubbing of the Binghamton Mets. It rained hard and this game should have ended earlier than it did.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_06_11_haraax_binaax_1

 

[Spaceman Spiff]

I think this Ibanez kid is going to work out.

 

[naiwf]

Raul Ibanez is a monster.

Still maintain that Phillies/Mets is the new best rivalry in baseball. These two games play terrific games against each other.

Doesn't one team actually have to win meaningful games for something to constitute a "rivalry"? The Mets are basically Philly's bitch.

 

[zio]

Eh, I'm still not convinced Raul is for real.








Sike.

 

[zio]

Raul Ibanez is a monster.

Still maintain that Phillies/Mets is the new best rivalry in baseball. These two games play terrific games against each other.

Doesn't one team actually have to win meaningful games for something to constitute a "rivalry"? The Mets are basically Philly's bitch.

It seems to me the Mets try really hard to beat the Phillies that that's all they focus on. They have a good record against the Phillies since the collapse two years ago.

 

[naiwf]

I'll just put it like this, even if the Mets are up 5 with 10 to go (and none H2H) this year I STILL expect Philly to win the division because the Mets will find a way to roll over and let Philly surpass them. It's what they do. They do just enough to remain competitive but lose at the end. It's like Yanks/Sox was before "The Comeback", or like Yanks/Sox is in reverse now.

 

[Brooklyn Zoo]

Being a manager has to be the easiest fucking job and yet no one does it right. Okay, 8th inning, 2 men on and the best 3 hitters coming up. No outs? I guess we can't bring Rivera? WRONG. You bring his ass in and deal with the bottom of the order later. But no, WE MUST SAVE HIM FOR WHEN WE GIVE UP THE LEAD.

Baseball managers are fucking retards who think they're doing something and don't do squat. They think they're thinking and making moves but do the same tired shit without any thought that might seem a little bit outside the box cause you play it by the fucking book that doesn't even exist.

 

[naiwf]

Being a manager has to be the easiest fucking job and yet no one does it right. Okay, 8th inning, 2 men on and the best 3 hitters coming up. No outs? I guess we can't bring Rivera? WRONG. You bring his ass in and deal with the bottom of the order later. But no, WE MUST SAVE HIM FOR WHEN WE GIVE UP THE LEAD.

Baseball managers are fucking retards who think they're doing something and don't do squat. They think they're thinking and making moves but do the same tired shit without any thought that might seem a little bit outside the box cause you play it by the fucking book that doesn't even exist.

I agree with you completely. The vast majority of real life games could be managed by the virtual managers in the most recent iteration of video games and the moves would match 99% of the time.

 

[KingPK]

Being a manager has to be the easiest fucking job and yet no one does it right. Okay, 8th inning, 2 men on and the best 3 hitters coming up. No outs? I guess we can't bring Rivera? WRONG. You bring his ass in and deal with the bottom of the order later. But no, WE MUST SAVE HIM FOR WHEN WE GIVE UP THE LEAD.

Baseball managers are fucking retards who think they're doing something and don't do squat. They think they're thinking and making moves but do the same tired shit without any thought that might seem a little bit outside the box cause you play it by the fucking book that doesn't even exist.

If they had anything resembling a decent setup guy in that bullpen, they wouldn't have had to trot CC out there for one more inning, which is what got them into trouble in the first place. And if Brett Gardner didn't inherit Johnny Damon's arm while trying to throw Drew out on a very shallow fly.

I really think Boston should think about selling high on Brad Penny right now; his stats aren't all that impressive, but he's had some good starts and they might be able to finagle some decent prospects out of a team hurting for pitching in order to open up a spot for Buchholz or Bodden, who are tearing it up in Pawtucket right now.

 

[NYU]

Well it's not officially a Mets baseball season until John Maine ends up on the disabled list. Spectacular. Guess that means we're trotting out Livan Hernandez and Nelson Figueroa for the first two games against the Yankees. Nope, can't see this going terribly wrong.

 

[naiwf]

At least this season will be out of reach by early August and it won't be a punch to the nuts when we get mathematically eliminated.

 

[Brooklyn Zoo]

Being a manager has to be the easiest fucking job and yet no one does it right. Okay, 8th inning, 2 men on and the best 3 hitters coming up. No outs? I guess we can't bring Rivera? WRONG. You bring his ass in and deal with the bottom of the order later. But no, WE MUST SAVE HIM FOR WHEN WE GIVE UP THE LEAD.

Baseball managers are fucking retards who think they're doing something and don't do squat. They think they're thinking and making moves but do the same tired shit without any thought that might seem a little bit outside the box cause you play it by the fucking book that doesn't even exist.

I agree with you completely. The vast majority of real life games could be managed by the virtual managers in the most recent iteration of video games and the moves would match 99% of the time.

Joel Sherman finally brought this up on the Michael Kay show. The whole show "Uh well you can't bring Rivera in the 8th, then he'll get mad if you take him out in the 9th!" Joel was like shut the fuck up Michael Kay. All managers have this same fallacy where they need to get their closers saves when sometimes the most important part of the game is in the 7th or 8th where the big three hitters are coming up. Geez! I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

 

[naiwf]

Joel Sherman finally brought this up on the Michael Kay show. The whole show "Uh well you can't bring Rivera in the 8th, then he'll get mad if you take him out in the 9th!" Joel was like shut the fuck up Michael Kay. All managers have this same fallacy where they need to get their closers saves when sometimes the most important part of the game is in the 7th or 8th where the big three hitters are coming up. Geez! I feel like I'm taking crazy pills.

The other move that they don't make routinely that pisses me off is when they leave a starter in to try and get him a win, or to coax an extra inning or two out of him to rest the bullpen.

If your team was up 6 heading into the 5th and the starter can't make it through the inning that sucks for him, but don't blow the game for your team because you're trying to pad his stats. Similarly Manuel leaving Pelfrey in a few nights ago cost the Mets the victory and everyone watching knows that guys like Pelfrey, Maine & Perez are about as weak minded as anyone who has ever played the game. If they don't have it to start an inning they're not going to work through it. The Pedro/Grady Little game is the best example of this that everyone should know.

Another one I can't stand is when a manager brings in a shitty lefty to face a lefty simply because the book says to do it. Ken Takahashi has been getting pounded by lefties (.400+ BAA) all year and yet Manuel decides to go to him to face a lefty. I'd rather leave in a right hander than bring in a guy who is over 40% likely to give up a hit there because he throws from the left side.