MLB News

Post by **streakygopher** » Tue Oct 19 9:33 pm

Suck it Yankees.....Molina with a 3 run jack...after an intentional walk to get to him! :mrgreen:

Hamilton w a 2-out solo shot to go up 6-3 in 7th....nice....so that's what it's like to have guys who come to play.

Post by **gopherguy06** » Tue Oct 19 9:51 pm

Hamilton with a solo shot and now 6-3 Texas...

Post by **gopherguy06** » Tue Oct 19 9:51 pm

How can teams like Texas win and score at will against the Yankees and we get swept out of the playoffs two years in a row? Kind of sad..

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Oct 19 9:59 pm

Some of it's luck but they are a much better hitting team especially in Yankee stadium and aren't choking. Their pitching staff is also slightly better imo.

Post by **streakygopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:12 pm

trixR4kids wrote:Some of it's luck but they are a much better hitting team especially in Yankee stadium and aren't choking. Their pitching staff is also slightly better imo.

To put it bluntly, Texas isn't playing scared. The Twins always do. Hey, if the Twins lost that first game like Texas did, they'd cancel their flight to New York.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:23 pm

streakygopher wrote:
trixR4kids wrote:Some of it's luck but they are a much better hitting team especially in Yankee stadium and aren't choking. Their pitching staff is also slightly better imo.

To put it bluntly, Texas isn't playing scared. The Twins always do. Hey, if the Twins lost that first game like Texas did, they'd cancel their flight to New York.

Hit it on the head streaky. The single biggest difference is attitude. There isn't a single Ranger that thinks they are going to lose, and there isn't a single Twin who thought they were going to win. It filters from the top down, too. I've never once heard Ron Washington say how difficult it was going to be to win, or "how great that ballclub is" or whatever. However, I have heard him say how aggressive his team was going to be. And in one trip to the postseason, he's going to pass Gardenhire in career playoff wins with a club that was no better than ours this year. Think about that for a minute. Pretty interesting.

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Oct 19 10:30 pm

Yeah attitude has a lot to do with it but Texas definitely has better talent. The top of the Rangers order is much more impressive in my opinion and their lineup has less weaknesses (unless Francouer is playing). If Morneau is in it's a bit more even but without him I don't think it's that close.

This isn't saying that attitude isn't a big factor.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:34 pm

trixR4kids wrote:Yeah attitude has a lot to do with it but Texas definitely has better talent. The top of the Rangers order is much more impressive in my opinion and their lineup has less weaknesses (unless Francouer is playing). If Morneau is in it's a bit more even but without him I don't think it's that close.

This isn't saying that attitude isn't a big factor.

I just want to make sure we are talking about the team that we went 7 - 3 against this year, the Texas Rangers. :wink:

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Oct 19 10:36 pm

Right but in a small sample size playoff matchup it doesn't really matter. Pretty sure the Rays swept the Rangers earlier in the year.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:42 pm

trixR4kids wrote:Right but in a small sample size playoff matchup it doesn't really matter. Pretty sure the Rays swept the Rangers earlier in the year.

You are arguing against yourself here. All you are proving is that an inferior team is beating superior teams. And yet the Twins didn't sniff a win. Why? I think it is fair to suggest attitude is a primary reason.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:56 pm

These poor announcers can hardly even talk after the Hamilton homer. 8 - 3 Tex top of 9.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Oct 19 10:57 pm

It's ron darling. The epitome of terrible broadcasting. I'd rather listen to joe buck.

Post by **streakygopher** » Tue Oct 19 10:59 pm

And Texas now with a double digit rout......love the stunned faces on the players, the fans and the manager.....oh, but Nolan Ryan is cracking up....

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Oct 19 11:00 pm

7 is double digits? :poke:

HOLY $h!t THAT STADIUM IS EMPTY!!!!

YouTube · Post by **Jupiter** » Tue Oct 19 11:02 pm

streakygopher wrote:oh, but Nolan Ryan is cracking up....

Probably because he knows that he could still strike out most of the players on the Yankee squad...
:dance:

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Oct 19 11:06 pm

bushwood wrote:attitude is the problem not talent

I guess more talented was a bad way of putting it. In a short series you need favorable matchups to win and the Twins were at a disadvantage. Hamilton and Guerrero are much better at hitting lefties than Thome, Mauer and Kubel. Young hits very well vs lefties but after the first game they didn't let him hit cleanup anymore. Michael Young is definitely better than Hudson and hits for more power. And in the rest of the lineup there just aren't that many holes. Nelson Cruz had a ridiculously good year, like Thome's but he had more at bats and hit vs lefties and righties.

Then you take into account the pitching rotation and that definitely favors the Rangers.

The Twins had a good year but I'm not going to put much stock into a 7-3 record vs the Rangers. It's a small sample size which just reflects which team was hot at the time. Not to mention Hamilton was hurt for a few of those games.

Post by **streakygopher** » Tue Oct 19 11:07 pm

dxmnkd316 wrote:7 is double digits?

HOLY s**t THAT STADIUM IS EMPTY!!!!

No, but 10 is........ :wink:

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Oct 19 11:08 pm

streakygopher wrote:
dxmnkd316 wrote:7 is double digits?

HOLY s**t THAT STADIUM IS EMPTY!!!!

No, but 10 is........

I guess I always referred to routs by the differential. Whatever. Good guys win!!!!!

Post by **psych** » Tue Oct 19 11:19 pm

trixR4kids wrote:
bushwood wrote:attitude is the problem not talent

I guess more talented was a bad way of putting it. In a short series you need favorable matchups to win and the Twins were at a disadvantage. Hamilton and Guerrero are much better at hitting lefties than Thome, Mauer and Kubel. Young hits very well vs lefties but after the first game they didn't let him hit cleanup anymore. Michael Young is definitely better than Hudson and hits for more power. And in the rest of the lineup there just aren't that many holes. Nelson Cruz had a ridiculously good year, like Thome's but he had more at bats and hit vs lefties and righties.

Then you take into account the pitching rotation and that definitely favors the Rangers.

The Twins had a good year but I'm not going to put much stock into a 7-3 record vs the Rangers. It's a small sample size which just reflects which team was hot at the time. Not to mention Hamilton was hurt for a few of those games.

Mauer are badz against lefties? Not. Even. Close.

In fact, looking up the numbers, Mauer hits for a much better avg. than Hamilton, and seeing as Guerrero is a RIGHT-handed hitter, I would hope he hits lefties better than Mauer, but it isn't by much.

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Oct 19 11:21 pm

His power is way down vs lefties and he walks half as much.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Oct 19 11:26 pm

trixR4kids wrote:His power is way down vs lefties and he walks half as much.

Against lefties? Mauer was walked 20 times vs. hamilton's 13.

Overall it's 65/43 in favor of mauer.

Post by **psych** » Tue Oct 19 11:28 pm

trixR4kids wrote:His power is way down vs lefties and he walks half as much.

Looking @ arguably his 3 best years as a player (2007,2008, 2009), he walked 17% of the time against righties as opposed to 10% of the time for lefties. Fairly big sample size, so I will give you that one. But the HR's he hit are not different at all. I think most of us concede Mauer does not swing for power anyways.

And obviously his stats will go down against lefties for the most part. That is just common sense. The lefty-on-lefty matchup is clearly used all the time. Lefties hit righties better and generally struggle more against lefties.

Edit: Looking @ his years, 2010 was better than 2007, but the numbers are about the same in terms of walks, HR's, etc. against lefties vs. righties.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Oct 19 11:32 pm

http://www.fangraphs.com/graphs/1857_18 ... 101003.png

Post by **Handyman** » Wed Oct 20 12:24 am

Texas winning this series truly makes the Twins meltdown look even more pathetic...it is friggin sad

Post by **jallengarry** » Wed Oct 20 8:43 am

I've had the same feeling. I've been working on some rationalizations to ease the pain. Most are pretty weak like..."The Twins made is so ridiculously easy in the previous series the Yankees felt unbeatable and came in overconfident". I don't bother digging into the numbers and trying to fool myself with empty analysis...that's too much work when I know deep down I'm just trying to pull the wool over my own eyes.

Post by **streakygopher** » Wed Oct 20 8:55 am

Handyman wrote:Texas winning this series truly makes the Twins meltdown look even more pathetic...it is friggin sad

The Twins had it all lined up....Sabathia wasn't sharp (still isn't), Pettite is solid but not lights out as in years past, and the Yanks are having a hard time even finding a solid third starter....plus their bullpen is very hittable, save Rivera.

Cliff Lee is probably the biggest difference maker here (makes Liriano look ordinary), but also the hitters are just unloading on some pretty shoddy Yankee pitching.

With Lee pitching at least one more turn and Texeria out probably for the series, the only way the Yankees could come back is if they were playing the Twins.

Post by **Next Crosby** » Wed Oct 20 8:57 am

hrbekroenick wrote:This pretty much sums up jagoff Yankee fans

That pretty much sums up Jersey and NYC, bunch of meat head Italians.

Post by **SouthTexGopher** » Wed Oct 20 10:19 am

Next Crosby wrote:
hrbekroenick wrote:This pretty much sums up jagoff Yankee fans

That pretty much sums up Jersey and NYC, bunch of meat head Italians.

Any other groups you'd like to make sweeping generalizations about while you're at it? :confused2:

Post by **momo** » Wed Oct 20 12:30 pm

Next Crosby wrote:
hrbekroenick wrote:This pretty much sums up jagoff Yankee fans

That pretty much sums up Jersey and NYC, bunch of meat head Italians.

we prefer to be called meat head dagos.

Post by **Next Crosby** » Wed Oct 20 12:59 pm

SouthTexGopher wrote:
Next Crosby wrote:
hrbekroenick wrote:This pretty much sums up jagoff Yankee fans

That pretty much sums up Jersey and NYC, bunch of meat head Italians.

Any other groups you'd like to make sweeping generalizations about while you're at it?

Ask and you shall receive me boy.

All flag waving god fearing people from the south are hicks. Git R Done. :ahhh:

See I put the wink so you don't get offended.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Wed Oct 20 9:36 pm

SouthTexGopher wrote:
Next Crosby wrote:
hrbekroenick wrote:This pretty much sums up jagoff Yankee fans

That pretty much sums up Jersey and NYC, bunch of meat head Italians.

Any other groups you'd like to make sweeping generalizations about while you're at it?

Sad thing is, his generalizations are generally right

Post by **Chris83** » Sat Oct 23 7:44 am

Very cool to see the Rangers take out the Yankees last night.

As for the NLCS, I'm pulling for the Giants; I don't dislike the Phillies, but a Texas-San Fran World Series would be a lot of fun.

Post by **Greyeagle** » Sat Oct 23 9:17 pm

Chris83 wrote:As for the NLCS, I'm pulling for the Giants; I don't dislike the Phillies, but a Texas-San Fran World Series would be a lot of fun.

Agreed.....and Utley just turned a hell of a double play.

Post by **momo** » Sat Oct 23 9:28 pm

Chris83 wrote:Very cool to see the Rangers take out the Yankees last night.

As for the NLCS, I'm pulling for the Giants; I don't dislike the Phillies, but a Texas-San Fran World Series would be a lot of fun.

not if you owned the television rights to broadcast it.

Post by **Greyeagle** » Sat Oct 23 9:39 pm

Ummmmmm, Harry Kalas' grandson can carry a tune.

Post by **davescharf** » Sat Oct 23 10:40 pm

momo wrote:
Chris83 wrote:Very cool to see the Rangers take out the Yankees last night.

As for the NLCS, I'm pulling for the Giants; I don't dislike the Phillies, but a Texas-San Fran World Series would be a lot of fun.
not if you owned the television rights to broadcast it.

I guess we'll see since it's officially going to happen now.

Post by **Dances With Gophers** » Tue Oct 26 11:46 pm

Cliff Lee's wife harassed in NY
LOL @ NYY for probably pissing off Lee so much that he won't sign with them...

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Mon Nov 01 9:31 pm

NICE!!!!

Giants win!

Post by **SouthTexGopher** » Mon Nov 01 9:32 pm

dxmnkd316 wrote:NICE!!!!

Giants win!

Post by **MATT** » Mon Nov 01 9:33 pm

SouthTexGopher wrote:
dxmnkd316 wrote:NICE!!!!

Giants win!

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Mon Nov 01 9:35 pm

SouthTexGopher wrote:
dxmnkd316 wrote:NICE!!!!

Giants win!

Sorry STG... I like the rangers (sans hamilton), but this year I had to pull for the Giants.

Post by **Orion** » Mon Nov 01 9:39 pm

Go Giants!

Post by **psych** » Mon Nov 01 9:47 pm

Crap, does this mean the NL > AL? :ahhh:

(must be noted that I was cheering for the Giants as well)

Post by **trixR4kids** » Mon Nov 01 10:13 pm

I thought that was true all year.

Post by **Bigbeer** » Tue Nov 02 12:05 am

Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Post by **Armadillo** » Tue Nov 02 12:18 am

Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh, I'm sure he was talking about the legendary San Francisco fog.

Post by **psych** » Tue Nov 02 12:26 am

Armadillo wrote:
Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh, I'm sure he was talking about the legendary San Francisco fog.

Clearly.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Nov 02 12:34 am

Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh good for him. Way to set an example. :roll:

Post by **Armadillo** » Tue Nov 02 12:40 am

dxmnkd316 wrote:
Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh good for him. Way to set an example.

Dude, it's SAN FRANCISCO.

And TIM LINCECUM.

I don't think anybody had to be resuscitated after hearing him say that.

Post by **Bigbeer** » Tue Nov 02 12:41 am

dxmnkd316 wrote:
Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh good for him. Way to set an example.

We can't all be role models. Look at Lebron...and most of the people on TMZ.

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Nov 02 1:09 am

dxmnkd316 wrote:
Bigbeer wrote:Lincecum being interviewed on ESPN was asked what he thought was going on back in San Fran and he said, "I hope the beer is flowing and some smoke is in the air". It's not PC, but as a current beer geek and former pothead...nice.

Oh good for him. Way to set an example.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Nov 02 6:18 am

Post by **Golden FE Ranger** » Tue Nov 02 8:35 am

I have to say I agree with DX on this one. I don't expect everyone to be a role model, but it seems one would not have to go out of their way to be an idiot either.

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Nov 02 12:43 pm

If some team in the area won and someone said something about how they hope the fans are having some drinks or w/e, I doubt anyone would have a problem with this. If you do then I guess we'll just have to agree to disagree.

Post by **GopherFan85** » Thu Nov 04 1:08 pm

Hall of Fame skipper Anderson dies at 76

Post by **Ballz** » Tue Nov 09 1:14 pm

Jon Miller and Joe Morgan will no longer be on Sunday Night Baseball
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5782045

Post by **sunbone** » Tue Nov 09 3:03 pm

Ballz wrote:Jon Miller and Joe Morgan will no longer be on Sunday Night Baseball
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5782045

Joe Morgan was one of my favorite players and one of my least favorite announcers of all time. I don't like anybody who says "back in my day" more often than I do.

Post by **Ballz** » Tue Nov 09 3:27 pm

sunbone wrote:
Ballz wrote:Jon Miller and Joe Morgan will no longer be on Sunday Night Baseball
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=5782045

Joe Morgan was one of my favorite players and one of my least favorite announcers of all time. I don't like anybody who says "back in my day" more often than I do.

Agreed. I also think Jon Miller wrote the book on "drop off in professionalism as career ages." The intros and storylines each broadcast were painful to watch.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Nov 09 6:42 pm

Lawls. I can't wait for an article written by FireJoeMorgan to come out about this subject. It's going to be epic.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Tue Nov 09 6:50 pm

dxmnkd316 wrote:Lawls. I can't wait for an article written by FireJoeMorgan to come out about this subject. It's going to be epic.

That site hasn't existed for about two years. If you are going to see them comment somewhere, it will most likely be on somebody else's blog as a guest.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Tue Nov 09 6:53 pm

They wrote some Deadspin articles about a month ago and basically announced they were coming out of retirement if only temporarily.

Post by **MATT** » Tue Nov 30 12:29 pm

per kelly theiser tweet/retweet, mike redmond will manage a blue jays minor league team.

Congrats to Red. Great guy. RT @jonmorosi #BlueJays announce that Mike Redmond will manage their #Lansing affiliate.

Post by **Beauner** » Tue Nov 30 12:50 pm

Troy Tulowitzki to sign monster deal (7 year 120+ million they said).
He is an extremely good player. That being said, the last time Colorado had a player sign a huge contract like that it totally backfired for quite a while.

Post by **Zwak** » Tue Nov 30 12:54 pm

Beauner wrote:Troy Tulowitzki to sign monster deal (7 year 120+ million they said).
He is an extremely good player. That being said, the last time Colorado had a player sign a huge contract like that it totally backfired for quite a while.

Mike Hampton??

Post by **Beauner** » Tue Nov 30 12:59 pm

Zwak wrote:
Beauner wrote:Troy Tulowitzki to sign monster deal (7 year 120+ million they said).
He is an extremely good player. That being said, the last time Colorado had a player sign a huge contract like that it totally backfired for quite a while.

Mike Hampton??

Him, and Todd Helton too.
After they signed Helton to that huge deal they couldn't afford anybody else.

Post by **MATT** » Tue Nov 30 1:32 pm

Beauner wrote:Troy Tulowitzki to sign monster deal (7 year 120+ million they said).
He is an extremely good player. That being said, the last time Colorado had a player sign a huge contract like that it totally backfired for quite a while.

some more details:
under contract for 2011-2013, $16M in 2014, $20M/yr 2015-2019, $14M base in 2020 + $6M in escalators, $14M team option for 2021 + $6M in escalators (or $4M buyout).

he will be 26 for most of the 2011 season, 29 in his 16M season, 30-34 for his 20M years, and 35 & 36 in the last two years...

Post by **trixR4kids** » Tue Nov 30 2:58 pm

IDK what the deals with Helton and the other guy were but I think Tulo is definitely worth the money. Solid at defense, definitely a solid hitter. His swing and quickness probably won't decline with age as rapidly as someone like Helton either. And generally age 30 is the prime of an MLB career (at least that's what other people who know more about baseball than I do have stated).

Post by **Beauner** » Tue Nov 30 10:34 pm

trixR4kids wrote:IDK what the deals with Helton and the other guy were but I think Tulo is definitely worth the money. Solid at defense, definitely a solid hitter. His swing and quickness probably won't decline with age as rapidly as someone like Helton either. And generally age 30 is the prime of an MLB career (at least that's what other people who know more about baseball than I do have stated).

It's not like Helton had a bad career (.324 BA career, .424 OBP, .555 SLP, 333 HRs...) His defensive prowess is fantastic (.996 lifetime fielding percentage), but his contract made it very difficult for the Rockies to sign anybody else (especially after the Mike Hampton back-fire).
Helton's contract was for 9 or 10 years and 140 million IIRC, I think it expires around the same time Tulo's kicks in.

Now that I say that, I guess Tulo's contract is probably just going to replace Helton's so my worry becomes fairly pointless.

Post by **Dances With Gophers** » Mon Dec 13 11:24 pm

Cliff Lee to return to Phillies

Pitcher Cliff Lee reached an agreement on a deal with the Philadelphia Phillies late Monday night, a team source told ESPNDallas.com's Richard Durrett.

Lee's agent informed the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers that they're out of the running for the free agent left-hander.

ESPN's Buster Olney confirmed that the Yankees received word late Monday that they're no longer in the picture for Lee, while Durrett confirmed that the Rangers have also been eliminated from the Lee sweepstakes.

Post by **Bushwood Gopher** » Mon Dec 13 11:28 pm

Dances With Gophers wrote:Cliff Lee to return to Phillies

Pitcher Cliff Lee reached an agreement on a deal with the Philadelphia Phillies late Monday night, a team source told ESPNDallas.com's Richard Durrett.

Lee's agent informed the New York Yankees and Texas Rangers that they're out of the running for the free agent left-hander.

ESPN's Buster Olney confirmed that the Yankees received word late Monday that they're no longer in the picture for Lee, while Durrett confirmed that the Rangers have also been eliminated from the Lee sweepstakes.

Crazy because I had just read Heyman's piece at SI about an hour ago saying this could happen tomorrow and I thought it sounded far fetched.

This has to be about the best rotation ever assembled in MLB history. How about Roy Oswalt and Cole Hamels as your 3rd and 4th starters? Sick.

dxmnkd316 · Post by **dxmnkd316** » Mon Dec 13 11:30 pm

Easily giving the Braves a run for their money when they had the absolute cream of the crop in the world series years.

Post by **Alby22** » Mon Dec 13 11:39 pm

When your 4th starter is your former ace and World series MVP in Cole Hamels id say thats pretty sick. I see them as a threat to win 105-110 games in the NL next year. Who starts opening day?

Post by **jallengarry** » Tue Dec 14 12:25 am

Halladay opens.

Post by **Handyman** » Tue Dec 14 12:32 am

Jesus the arms race is getting out of hand. I am the number 1 guy who likes to say money isnt the issue (although I more say it to show how pathetic it is the Twins dont get out of the first round while other lower payroll teams do) but what fun is this?

I already know what the counterargument will be and yes you are right loading up doesnt guarantee anything, but now with Crawford leaving Tampa for Boston and Lee going to Philly it is a double whammy because those guys were big reasons why Tampa and Texas made runs.

Major League Baseball is becoming the BCS more and more every year.

Post by **Eckes** » Tue Dec 14 8:05 am

At least it's not the yankees... and at least for my keeper league team he went to the NL!