Time for a new topic! I saw a clip of Justin Verlander warming up in a Mets uniform, man I sure wish he'd have come back to Houston. Astros should be pretty good again, hard to predict the season as like all sports it will depend on players staying healthy and players contributing to their ability, ie no bad seasons. I imagine the Yankee's along with the Astros will be the AL favorites.
Yankee's trade bust Frankie Montas reported to spring training hurt and will now be slated for surgery Feb. 21 and likely gone for the year. The guy hasn't thrown a pitch since last August.
It will be interesting to see how the new rules play out. 1. Bases are now 18 inches on a side instead of 15....no clue why we needed this rule. 2. Shift is limited...I'm glad to see that, even though the Astros employed as much or more than anybody 3. Time clock on pitchers....Astros starter Louis Garcia will have to figure it out, his weird multistep windup isn't going to work. 15 secs with bases empty and 20 secs with runners on base 4. Runner on 2nd in extra innings is permanent.
Yeah, have to get going on getting myself updated. My annual draft for the fantasy league I am in is April First. My partner is much more informed about Baseball than I am but I am better at manipulating the team within league rules. We. are one of 3 teams that are formidable every year. Really enjoy it.
Pitch clock What it is: Pitchers will have 20 seconds between throws with runners on base and 15 seconds between pitches with the bases empty. A 30-second clock will run between batters. The pitcher must start his motion before the pitch clock expires. The batter must be in the batter’s box and “alert to the pitcher” with at least eight seconds left on the clock. The batter risks an automatic strike if not. The pitcher will be charged with an automatic ball if he fails to start his motion in time. Disengagements What they are: Pitchers are now allowed only two “disengagements” from the rubber during a plate appearance. A third will be ruled a balk, unless there’s an out recorded on the bases. The rule prevents pitchers from stepping off to reset the clock and invites more action from runners on base, who know they can draw a maximum of two pickoff throws without a pitcher potentially being penalized. Bigger bases What they are: Bases are now 18 inches on each side, three inches larger than the traditional size. The league widened them to reduce injuries and increase stolen base attempts. Shift ban What it is: Defenses must have four players on the infield dirt and two players on either side of second base when a pitch is thrown. The penalty for breaking the rule is an automatic ball. Teams are not permitted to send a defender running across the diamond after the pitch or have players switch positions mid-inning. Outfielders are still allowed to shift.
Terry, I had read Jayson Stark's article in The Athletic about the anticipated s--- show (his words) in spring training due to teams becoming accustomed to the rules changes. I think the most contentious is the 8-second limit for the batter to be ready to receive the pitch. As Stark said, it'll change a lot of batters' pre-pitch routines, and, predictably, they're not going to like it. I'm really interested in seeing how teams acclimate to the infield position rule. I, for one, am in favor of outlawing the shift. If they move an outfielder over, they're risking an automatic extra-base hit to the untended field. I may watch some spring games just for entertainment purposes, something I haven't done much in past pre-seasons.
I watched the pitching time clock in minor league play last year. No problems that I noticed and the games were played in less time.
RIP Tim McCarver. Tim McCarver, stalwart catcher for 21 seasons in the major leagues before becoming a Hall of Fame broadcaster, has died at the age of 81. According to a press release from the Hall of Fame, McCarver died of heart failure Thursday morning in his hometown of Memphis. McCarver played 12 seasons with the Cardinals, teaming up with ace Bob Gibson to form the heart and soul of two World Series championship squads in 1964 and 1967. A two-time All-Star in St. Louis, he set career highs with a .295 average, 14 home runs and 69 RBI in 1967, finishing second to teammate Orlando Cepeda in the NL MVP voting. Two years later, he was part of a blockbuster trade to the Philadelphia Phillies, where he would spend nine more seasons. McCarver also played for the Boston Red Sox and Montreal Expos as he became one of the few MLB players to appear in four different decades. Also a top rated HS Footbqall player. Tim McCarver (Memphis Christian Brothers Acad.) picked MLB baseball and the St. Louis Cardinals over his reported two football scholarship finalists- Notre Dame and homestate Tennessee….a highly regarded LB/E in those single platoon days of college football, Tim also had scholarship offers from the likes of Alabama. But McCarver signed a baseball contract for a reported $ 75k (at least one report claimed $85k) As McCarver later was quoted: “it was all about the money” McCarver caught his first game in the majors at age 19
Scott Rolen is going into the HOF as a Cardinal and Fred McGriff will go in without a team logo. He said he played for so many teams that it wouldn't be right to have just 1 team represented on his plaque.
i saw an article which quoted him as saying, When Bob Gibson and I die, We're going to be buried 60 feet 6 inches apart.
I might have thought it would be Steve Carlton, who was the only pitcher he caught in his last years with the Phillies. Also I have noted that there are more than a few people who didn't like him as a broadcaster, I don't really remember him as a broadcaster though so I have no opinion.
Terry, so did I, even after reading the quote, so I looked it up. He caught both. He was Gibson's "favorite" catcher (Wikipedia's words) all through the 60s, then he mentored (again Wikipedia's words) a young Steve Carlton and went with him to the Phillies. He's in the HOF as a broadcaster.
More arm trouble for Lance McCullers Jr. Won't be ready for the start of the season, arm strain. I have to wonder if he'll ever be 100% healthy.
Looks like the Yankees will start the season with about half of their team on the IL for various periods of time. They have about four rookies who have played very well this spring and fans are beginning to clamor for them to start and for the team to begin trading some of the old timers.
Big blow to the Astros with Jose Altuve breaking his thumb when he was hit by a pitch in the WBC. He had surgery and when he will return has not been determined. For now it will 2nd base by committee.