MCO'sFan

Plus, Ohtani is staying out west. It will be the Dodgers or the Angels with SF as a dark horse. I can't see anyone else signing him.

Overall, I like it. As others have said, they should have put Charm City on the front.

He was bad but fairly consistent. O's definitely benefited in some situations.

Thanks Frobby. I hope you know the impact you have on this board and the folks like me who rely on your insight and detail oriented posting.

Thanks for staying on top of this Frobby. I have a strange question. Do you know under the terms of the MASN deal who actually owns the TV rights to the Nats. For instance, could MASN sell or outsource the broadcast rights to another RSN?

Dead Horse here!! I've been on the Mountcastle goes brain deed on throws in the dirt since last year. He will use good mechanics until he doesn't. No other explanation than he just goes to sleep on plays. Maybe he needs some of CD's Adderall? (I hope I didn't just break a OH rule).

Anyone else think it is weird that Watkins didn't pitch? With the BP do overused, I was surprised. I guess they were waiting to see if Bradish could make his next start but still seems like a wasted chance to get a fresh arm up.

Once again Frobby makes a completely coherent and precise post with no ego or gravitas. There is just no room for that here on the OH. Seriously, this is a great message board with the occasional over the top post that usually gets called out pretty quickly. Kind of like a veteran clubhouse that polices' itself.

A classic from the past!

You absolutely can and should. That’s like saying a catcher doesn’t have to be good at blocking pitches because the pitcher shouldn’t be throwing balls in the dirt. It’s a part of what 1B need to be able to do. I’ve been pointing out RM poor technique since last year.

This is absolutely false. There are coaching techniques that can be taught that put the fielder in the best position to pick the ball. It’s not all luck. It’s just like any other defensive play. Using the proper fundamentals will provide a better chance of making the play successfully.

I’ve said this many times. His technique on picking balls is inconsistent and when he doesn’t use good fundamentals he sinks at. Some have pushed back blaming the throws. But balls in the dirt are always poor throws. He can be good at it but he is inconsistent and when he is bad he’s very bad.

As I watched this series unfold, it struck me that the A's are the O's from a few years ago. No matter what they did they find a way to lose.

At least he got the HR out of the way early.

You're just being silly now. I'm done.

Many pitching coaches will tell you that "throttling it down does not directly lead to better control. It is about whether you are under control and using sound movement patterns. IIRC GR has a history of having solid if not plus command.

That's what a troll would say. I don't take trolling serious enough to be annoyed by it. I just call it out. You act like he has wasted the last five years of his life by not trying to learn to locate his fastball. I think many people have pointed out that your premise is flawed. If it was easy anyone could do it.

Okay, now you're just trolling us.

I was being sarcastic when I said he was a SS. That is why I had the emoji but should have been more clear. I know he was not a real SS prospect. I have made my evaluation of his ability to pick the ball pretty clear and often. He is good when he sticks to the proper technique. He is an abomination when he doesn't. That's why I said he needs to be more consistent. I don't know if he loses focus or what but sometimes his fundamentals on the throws in the dirt completely break down.

He has the chance to be a plus defender, maybe even more, if he can become more consistent. He CAN do everything well, he just isn't consistent enough. He is a former SS so he should be a plus defender at 1B.

Thanks, that's what I thought but with all the angst I was thinking that I missed something and the new CBA changed it.

Quick question... the service time issue only comes into play if he stays up, correct?

I wouldn't be surprised to see a change or two in the pen to bring in some fresh arms.

Interesting read. Thanks for posting.

Way too early to hit the panic button. The pitching was not great but it is truly hard to tell exactly how bad or good because this was the worst defense I have ever seen in a 3 game series. Virtually every player either made a physical error or a mental error and it prolonged innings and put pressure ion the pitching that shouldn't have been there. They obviously would have taken the first game much easier than they did with better defense and won the second game rather easily as well. They may have even been able to eek out a win yesterday. I'd say the fiasco in Boston was 70/30 on the defense over the pitching. When you have average (at best) pitching, you have to have above average defense. This was comical, if it wasn't so sad.