Curse of the Bamdino

"Uh-oh"? More like "Oh, boy!", at least from this viewpoint. This has been an awesome, fun stretch. I say let's keep it going as best we can and keep leaving the "experts" scratching their heads.

I'm thinking the polar opposite after last night (well, more aptly, this morning. :))

What a fun recap to wake up to. Love the spunk the guys are showing. As I said or at least concurred in another thread, I’m perfectly fine with “losing out” on 1:1 and even dropping out of the top 3 or 4 if it means we’ve uncovered some potential gems (or even some fancy trinkets) in the rough.

I believe that's Carlos Bernhardt (our 1B coach that year) on Reb's right. I confess to having no clue who the other fellow is.

Obviously, time will tell, but it feels like a real blueprint has been laid out for this organization from top to bottom, and it's being (or will be followed) to the letter with little to no deviation. And what's more, this team is actually becoming fun to watch. Sure, there've been and will be nights where they get their heads flat out handed to them, but by and large, they've battled, and that's a testament to their own work ethic and to Hyde's direction. So I'd say I'm teetering between content and pleased, but leaning strongly towards the latter. By the way, I suspect I know of at least one poster who will almost certainly vote "embarrassed".

I'll lose no sleep over that, if that's indeed the case. Dollars to doughnuts, none of those guys is going to be around for the turnaround. Way I see it, Mark's been nothing but a pro's pro and a solid citizen since he's been here. Let him go out on his terms, or as close to them as possible. Could look at it as us providing him a mini-showcase of sorts, in hopes of possibly catching on somewhere else. Big picture, other players (O's and non-O's alike) see that and - probably, hopefully - think that this is a team that looks out for its own, even if injured/on the mend.

Nice to see Dylan grind it out last night. I was concerned that he wouldn’t get past that 2nd inning, but he righted the ship and then some. I don’t recall an outing (certainly not a recent one) where he so frequently utilized his offspeed repertoire. Maybe that becomes a “thing” now.

Currently at 1.1 WAR, OPS-ing .803. Nice to see him holding his own in The Show.

And a 9-9 record over that 18-game stretch. Crush is again starting to stir ever so slightly. I’m encouraged. While the Left Coast historically hasn’t been kind to us in recent years, I’m optimistic the guys can keep this spark of momentum going. Frankly, I'm looking forward to some payback at Chase after the debacle out there 6 years ago. (I know we got revenge on 'em in '16 at OPACY, but still.) I’d say that this team would be a whale of a spoiler come September, but after a mid-month series with LAD, it’s nothing but tankers the rest of the way save for the final series in Boston. And who knows; if they continue to stumble along, by that time the Sox may have packed it up and packed it in themselves.

Gut feeling: no one. Maaayyyybe Mychal (which would hurt personally, as he's a favorite), but I suspect they may hang on and see if they can get a bit more in the offseason.

“They’ve lost more than two million fans since their high of 3.7 million in 1997. Even when attendance picked back up, peaking at 2.4 million during the team’s five-year revival from 2012 to 2016, it was evident that many fans from the ’90s weren’t coming back.” Interesting how the writer (in)conveniently omits the fact that another franchise moved into that team’s territory during that time frame, which took (guesstimating here) at least a third or so of its market.

Last year. He's now a nonagenarian.

I honestly felt that Anthony Santander was going to be nothing more than bottom-of-the-roster fodder for this team. In fact, I expected him to be returned to Cleveland – full disclosure, I actually thought that Aneury Tavarez would be the ’16 Rule 5er who stuck.

This is basically where I am. I don’t believe that that team is out there, either…they see the same thing(s) we do. He’s a 5-inning wonder who confuses/misses bats with a plus pitch, and that’s fantastic, but that FIP and (even more so) xFIP still concern me somewhat. But no, I just think that it’s too much of a SSS/thin track record for any team – unless it’s truly in what-the-hey, go-for-broke mode – to give up anything of value. I’d certainly float his name out there anyway, just to gauge the market (if there’s indeed one).

I care little whether Means pitched in the game. Doesn’t matter much in the grand scheme of things, and from all appearances, he (rightly and deservedly) had a blast regardless. On a larger scale, though, I do believe that it’s an indictment of the All-Star selection process.

I’ll be: - anxious as to whether Cash, despite his apparent wishes, is going to continue performing to the point that he pitches himself right onto a new team by month’s end. (I am decidedly conflicted about this.) - hoping that there’s a chance that we’re going to catch a glimpse of Crush over these next 70+ games. Maybe, just maybe, this recent road trip turns out to be the catalyst. Perhaps I'm stubborn, but I continue to hold out hope. - curious to see whether we really have something in Means, or if he eventually turns into a pumpkin. - see above, but re: Wilkerson (to a much lesser degree, obviously). It’s been fascinating watching his OJT CF progression, I’ll say that. - anticipating getting a sustained look at Stewart once he returns from his rehab stint. Extremely SSS this season, but I like his approach at the plate and his surprising (to me) nimbleness with the glove. (BTW, upon Stewart’s return, I’d like to think that’d mean Broxton can be sent packing.) - wondering if Mark will make a cameo before season’s end. I’d like to see him back, even if only for a few ABs. I won’t delude myself into thinking he’ll return next season, but that said, he represented the franchise well and contributed mightily to a postseason-qualifying team. It’d be nice if he can say he went out on his own terms. - looking forward to seeing continued hustle and development out there. I can tolerate the occasional gaffe as long as the effort’s there. From this vantage point, that’s been the case so far.

I'll say this: if he truly wants to stay with us, he hasn't done himself any favors of late.

I rather enjoyed listening to Roch the last couple of nights. Admittedly, I was going back and forth between the radio and TV call, as I'm also a Jim/Bordy fan, but I thought he acquitted himself very nicely. If nothing else, the man is quite the multitasker - has to be challenging to help call a game while tweeting and blogging away all at once! Hopefully that won't be the last time we'll get to hear him in that capacity.

I’m just fine with this. I’ll bet anything that Trey will have more chances to represent us at this game in years to come. I confess that I’m still a bit skeptical as to whether Means can keep it going, but by all means, let him reap the rewards of what’s been a promising first half. The main takeaway for me is this, though - given the tough season this team has had thus far, that we can legitimately debate the All-Star merits of more than one of its players (and I might dare to include Cash in the discussion) is pretty darned remarkable.

I don't care who ya are... ? Nothing wrong - especially in what's shaping up to be a pretty rough season - with a little laugh at ourselves from time to time.

Pleasantly surprised by this. I'd been resigned to his going the Auburn route, given that several HS teammates and, IINM, his brother are all currently on the team. I give Elias and co. credit here: they took a big swing with this pick, and it looks like they connected. Good on them.

I’m warming to Brown. He’s certainly a different taste – lacks Jim’s enthusiasm and connection, obviously, but that’s been cultivated over two+ decades – but it’s growing to become a pleasing one. A great voice to listen to when lazing on the deck in the backyard on a Sunday afternoon. And the more I listen to him, a pretty good one for the other days/times of the week. I’ll be interested to see (hear?) how he evolves over the course of his tenure here. Promising thus far.

I'm just saying...phew! I think we all needed this one. Feels great to get off that schneid.

Don't tell me we lost Bleier, too.

Selfishly, I'd rather not, but I understand and respect the sentiment of those who would. I just hope that he bounces back quickly and that this doesn't linger, because it's darned fun watching him rake when he's locked in.