Jammer7

I don’t remember you being so jaded. Sorry to see that. Elias has a plan, and a strong conviction to stick to it. Only time will tell, and it does seem to take a lot of time, absolutely. No 2020 minor league season, and really limited opportunities to work on their game overall, certainly hurt every prospect. He is being understandably cautious, I think. All teams have injuries, but he is trying to mitigate them somewhat. For example, look at all of the college pitchers who have been sidelined with major injuries this year. Most of them were in high round consideration. The theory is that they carried too much of a load, too quickly. Most are TJ surgeries. Yikes. I think he could have promoted Adley in July/August last year, but decided to wait. And I thought Bradish should have made the team in camp, but I understand being cautious with him. I also realize we do not have all of the information they do when considering the health of these guys. I would also point out the very aggressive promotions of Stowers, Westburg and Henderson in 2021. These fly directly in the face of all of the criticism Elias gets for being “too conservative.” He truly espouses the nature of player development. I find no fault in that, but I can understand your frustration. Hang in there. By the end of the year, we should have Adley, Grayson, DL, Stowers and Bradish up in the show. I am hoping Westburg, Vavra, Nevin, Neustrom, and a few others make it up this year as well.

I wrote this in another thread, earlier today. Gutierrez’ hands are back to being in a high set at load. That kills him, honestly. When he lowered them in 2021, he made great progress. That was what I had hoped to see more of. He has raw power, as evidenced by the long home runs he hit in 2021. Right now, he hits the ball hard, but on the ground. And he gets around the ball, instead of staying inside it. Too bad, because he is special defensively. The Odor signing was a poor attempt to shoe-horn a LH bat into the lineup. Putting Urias at 3B on a regular basis is along the same foolishness that had Rio Ruiz at 2B full time. Urias is a 2B, who can play some SS and 3B. He is a useful player, when he hits. If Gutierrez can again understand that lowering his hands leads to a better fundamental bat path for hitting the ball with loft, the. He should play everyday. Right now, he does look like a lame duck. I would hate to see him go, because “it” is there. He is a fantastic athlete and seems like a good likeable dude.

Have you actually watched him play 3B? You might want to take a look at him this year. He has apparently improved significantly over there. Tim DeJon and Matt Blood both lauded his improved defense over the past year. Not saying it’s a gold glove, but solid. I’m not a Bannon guy, but good for him to have improved. I don’t like the softball swing he’s using right now, and I don’t think it works in MLB. He’s a 4A guy for me. Gutierrez’ hands are back to being in a high set at load. That kills him, honestly. When he lowered them in 2021, he made great progress. That was what I had hoped to see more of. He has raw power, as evidenced by the long home runs he hit in 2021. Right now, he hits the ball hard, but on the ground. And he gets around the ball, instead of staying inside it. Too bad, because he is special defensively.

I think that is prudent. Keep it at 27 for that extension period, I hope.

The injuries have piled up a bit lately. Hernaiz is out as well, a hamstring I heard. But it is the same in many organizations right now. Unrelated, but look at all of the injuries in the college game. Particularly in the starting pitching crop.

As always, we can count on you for an excellent history lesson. Thanks for that. Personally, I miss day baseball. And Harry Carey singing in the 7th inning stretch after his tenth Budweiser. The innings simply give each team an equal opportunity to score as many runs as they can. They hit as long as they reach base safely. They other team has to stop them. That is why there are innings, not a game clock, IMHO. I don’t know that there is a better way to prosecute a baseball game than that. Unless we want to adopt the little league “5 runs max in an inning rule” for 8 year olds, or make the games an hour and 45 minutes like youth travel ball. Those games usually go about 4-5 innings. (Please note the sarcasm intended, and not directed to you. lol) There are many things that happen during each pitch, especially with runners on. Certainly the game has changed over the years. Pitchers’ velocity has jumped, and command has decreased. More pitches thrown = more time. More runners = more time, and also more excitement. More home runs, more time, more excitement, more tv money, more fans’ butts in the seats. The game has changed because the players have changed. PED’s changed the game, made it longer and more exciting in the 80’s. And it turns out, a lot of people liked it. Pitchers hated it, but baseball never had a bigger fan base. Until morality stepped in. IDK, I guess I’m just a bit old school. And a little tired of being told that everything has to change and have those changes forced down my throat. Baseball is my refuge away from the world for three hours. I think we could all stand to slow things down and put our phones away for three hours. Talk baseball with our sons, daughters, grandkids, spouses and friends. Unplug the pressure cooker for a few hours. What is the rush all about anyway? I know, that notion is antiquated, the world has changed. Sorry for the long post. We kinda jacked this thread. This is what happens when I have a day off. lol

It rarely makes a difference, true. But it does, and at crucial times. It may be a matter of getting used to it, but I don’t believe it to be necessary. It creates more conflict in the short term, as we have seen in college baseball this season. I like the slower pace of games, at times. But it isn’t a hill I’m willing to die on. In the end, the owners will do what lines their pockets.

Yeah, that’s the narrative. I don’t agree that it should be embraced, but that is the narrative. Again, fitting the game into a neat time slot. That is not baseball. Basketball, football, soccer…they have time clocks. Baseball has innings. It was made that way for a reason. If they keep using the humidors, we’ll see even more strategy and signs being relayed. More bunts, hit and run, etc… When these headsets get throw out because the pitcher can’t hear it, it will go back to multiple sets of signs with runners on.

I have seen several shots off bats that sounded long gone, and most aren’t even to the warning track. Balls with exit velos over 100 mph with a 30 degree angle and they are not gone. Seems a bit of an over-correction.

I struggle with it. And I get why people want it. It is inevitable, I imagine. I will reserve judgement on it until it happens. The players seem to want it. There are some things they have to work out first. There is a delay right now, for instance, that would not make it plausible. I can see the bases and home plate getting increased. The players are bigger, stronger and faster now than ever before. Make the plate slightly bigger, and the bases too. I can see that as a safety need.

Stars don’t get to act however they like. Trey will be the first one to say that. The minute they allow star players to rant and rave and go on and on, many fans will stop coming. What example is that for our kids and grandkids? This is a kids game, after all. Look at the television numbers for baseball. They are not losing one but of a hold, except maybe in Baltimore. lol Replay is one I actually like and was in favor of. The umpires do as well. They just want to get it right. It is not about their egos. The auto nation I am not in favor of is the pitch clocks and things like that. I have seen several batters get called strikes in college games recently. Some were third strikes with runners on. Ridiculous rule. There are things that change with every pitch and the players need moments to adjust their mental processes. Things like that. All good. I respect your opinions. We just disagree. Cool.

I was just going to post this. I had no idea I had a pronator in me. Make that two, apparently. lol It doesn’t sound terribly serious, but he’ll be out a good bit more than 10 days.

Obviously you feel humans are imperfect. Well, so be it. That’s life. I’d rather deal with the nuances of the human condition. To me, that is the culture of the game. I’ve spent a lot of time around the game. I’ve been blessed to have that opportunity. The people are why I love the game. I root for people, not stats. I don’t do fantasy baseball. The grind of a baseball season, the smell of the grass, the mistakes of the human players, coaches and umpires…that is what I love about the game. The culture. And I hate that people keep trying to change the game, make new rules. All of this to “grow the game” or to attract new fans that don’t like baseball and probably never will. Baseball is not for everyone. The casual fan wants it to fit into a neat time slot, but then the casual fan rarely played the game, even as a kid, or goes to many games. Baseball evolves, sure, and endures because of the people. Some changes have been necessary. If MLB goes anymore automated, I’m out. I’ll stick to the SEC. Hell, I’ll go watch local HS baseball rather than watch a watered down game that used to be great. L What will we automate next? The beer guy? Tell me we aren’t going to get rid of Clancy the beer guy too?

It’s no excuse. We all do. Trey won’t make that excuse, not ever. Even he said he deserved to be tossed.

It was a nit-picky call. A judgement call. So be it. I usually take exception to an umpire having his eyes and ears fixated on a dugout. But with a tiny crowd, Trey’s comments were easily heard. Trey went on for several minutes after the play. Even Trey basically admitted he should have been thrown out for his conduct. Watching the game on MASN, Ben McDonald pointed out the umpire looking in. And Kevin Brown said something to the effect that the umpire inserted himself into the game. Tough to know what exactly Trey said, but that umpire is not known to be a jerk from what I know. I have had many conversations, mostly over adult beverages, with several MLB umpires over the years. Most of them would rather you not notice them. There are some exceptions, sure. Most of these guys take a lot of crap from players, coaches and fans. Often for good reasons. They expect it, to a point. But there are lines you don’t cross. And there are limits on how long a player gets to be animated. It’s funny, before the games, the umpires often chat it up with players and coaches behind the scenes. Not all do that, but most. It is quite cordial, normally. Bobby Cox was the one glaring exception I witnessed. He hated the umpires, and he really was a disagreeable jerk. Every umpire I knew, hated dealing with him. I would bet Earl was the same.

Sure. And I think his frustration has built up on his slow start.

If your assessment of the umpire were correct, Trey and Hyde would have been thrown out much sooner. Probably within seconds after they began arguing. Although that does happen, on occasion, it is rare in MLB. The umpires of today generally display a lot less ego than those of years gone by. Trey needed to let it go. The umpire explained it to them, and calmly told them to go watch the play and “you’ll see.” Trey might have done this intentionally to fire up his team, not certain of that, but it is possible.

This was a questionable call, and really comes down to “intent.” The application of it is generally if the runner makes any aggressive movement in the direction of 2B. That did not actually happen, but I can see how the umpire thought so, in the moment. Trey made a quick movement in a straight line, along the foul line. He sort of hop-skipped quickly, but it was straight along the line. He turned to his left, did not advance toward 2B, and walked back to the base. That quick movement, I think, was what the umpire saw. I think the fundamental thing of simply “turning right” would have made this a non-factor. I was yelling “back” at the tv when he did it. Because why even leave it to interpretation by the umpire. It’s pro ball, yeah, but a really nice play by the catcher, Murphy. The “free speech” argument, umm, he didn’t get arrested or fined by the government. He was thrown out of a game in a discipline action by a MLB representative, who has the authority, granted by the rules from Trey’s employer, to do so. There are consequences in private entities to free speech. Kinda like the consequences the guy on the airplane received when he was intentionally heckling Mike Tyson. lol

Ok.

Kremer, Vavra and Diaz are on the 40 man, and they did say this kind of soft tissue injury would be a concern from the short spring. The work ups were shorter. With Stowers, we don’t even know what it is yet. I think this is normal for pro ball these days. The athletes are more dynamic than ever before.

Coby is a dude, plain and simple. I’m kinda old school, but to me there was nothing wrong with the bat flip. The helmet thing, it was brief, and it looked like he tipped his helmet to the bench or maybe the crowd. IDK which bench his team was in, I would guess away team is in 3B side. Either way, I have no problem with it, and I doubt anyone does from the other team. To be clear, when you celebrate as you make your way to first with a moderate flip like that, today’s generation finds that normal. Now, if he stood there and watched for more than a second, or taunted the other team in some way, ok. He should wear one next time up. But I find what he did very benign. Besides, we need some swagger. That is the game today. I tell my guys, if you know you got it, go ahead and flip it. But you better be right. If you flip a non-homer, you owe your teammates and coaches. And the bill gets paid next practice, lol.

Thanks for looking that up and posting. Crazy day at work. Lopez was understandably emotional last year, but I do wonder if he has the mental toughness to handle this role long term. Maybe he just needs confidence and some success should help. Their mental skills coach must have had a role with him.

Lopez’ toddler son had a very serious illness, and had to undergo a scary procedure. He pitched most of the year with that on his mind. I do not recall the details, but it could have been a fatal situation.

It was long overdue. A team like Oakland or Cincinnati might take a shot at him. I doubt he draws much trade interest. I hope he finds regular at bats somewhere. Maybe a different philosophy will help him. At 28, I wouldn’t say he’s old, but I don’t think that is young.

All good. I think I took out of that what you meant. I look forward, like everyone else, to see Adley come up and take over the starter position. He’ll have some speed bumps, but his play will help in the same ways. And with a much better bat. It is interesting to see what their change in philosophy will have over 162 games. And, will Zimmermann, Akin, Baumann, Tyler Wells, Kremer, Alex Wells and Zac Lowther benefit from the new philosophy and improved catching. Will they cement themselves as major league pitchers, finally? I don’t expect all of them, maybe 4-5 of them. The others will move to make way for Bradish, Rodriguez, Brnovich and perhaps, DL Hall. Will the Orioles actually develop young pitching? That is the biggest curiosity for me.