Major League Baseball: Where Divisions Come to Battle
I’ll be really interested to check the end of year standings in baseball this season. It seems like every division has a great impending battle that should last all season. The AL East looks to be the most interesting. I know, I sounded so *ESPN* there, right? But this year, I think it’s true. You have the Yankees literally just trying to put breathing bodies on the field right now. Chipper Jones? Ha, he’ll chuckle quietly to himself before he says “No thank you.” The Yankees and the re-building B-Sox, once a given to be the favorite’s to battle all season long in the AL East suddenly find that spot a little crowded. Tampa Bay, Baltimore and now Toronto (who made a brilliant decision to *go for it* in anticipation of a Yankee collapse) all have a better chance of winning the division than either New York or Boston. And the media meltdown in both of those cities will be a joy to watch develop as the year unfolds……
The AL East should also be fantastic theater. I didn’t like the Angels last year and I don’t like them this year. Don’t get me wrong, they’ll be in it all season, I’m not a lunatic. But I think Oakland is for real and while I dislike the A’s I loved what they did last year. Who couldn’t have? Seattle has moved their fences in (puss move) but they have made some sneaky moves and have some left over players who might just coalesce this year. I don’t think Seattle can win the division but I think they’ll finish with a better record than Texas who might finish last in this division…..
I’ll be quite interested to see how the Royals do in the AL Central this year and The Nationals and Braves will trade blows through game 162.
I don’t care much for the NL Central race, but it’ll be interesting to see how the Pirates do this year. I could see them having a nice follow up to last year’s surprise first half run. Jason Grilli came out of a serviceable but undistinguished career to put up dominating numbers last season. Think he’s ready to be a top flight closer? I don’t, but it’ll be fun to see if he can do it.
And of course, you have the NL West set up for one of the great season’s in the history of the division. I will never be sold on the Dodgers until they actually WIN SOMETHING. This is the quarter century anniversary of their last World Series win. Let’s give a 2-flap salute toast to the next 25 years turning out exactly the same way for them………
A Place To Talk About Giants Baseball 
Flavor, the Houson Astros promise to be so bad they’ve slipped under your radar. They’ll be last in the AL west, no matter how bad Texas gets.
(Very nice overview of the upside down AL east, however.)
didn’t forget the ‘Stros just didn’t feel like including them as part of the *competition* in the AL West. 100 losses this year might be considered somewhat of an accomplishment by that squad.
I was thinking the exact same thing with regard to division rivalries. I am fascinated by both leagues’s western divisions – our division for obvious reasons being a Giants fan. I just don’t think the Dodgers know how to win as a team. Frankly, I am only certain about two things: 1. The Giants will repeat as division champions; and, 2. The Rockies will finish last. The 2, 3, and 4th spots are a conundrum for me, but I will go on a limb and say that San Diego will be a dark horse of sorts and finish 2nd, with LA in 3rd, and the Snakes in 4th. Of course, if LA doesn’t finish 1st, heads will roll in that town and you can expect all those high priced contracts to be culled from the Dodgers the following year. I have no idea how they will find another dufus team to take on those contracts, but their must be another idiot franchise or two that will bite.
I actually like the Angels, mostly because of their All World center fielder, Mike Trout, who was on both of my fantasy league teams last year. I have only 3 wishes for next year – The Giants win the NL pennant and face either the Yankees, A’S, or the Angels, i.e., taking revenge from one of their WS loses. Facing any of these 3 teams would be sweet.
Yeah, I could give a rat’s ass about the NL central. Ditto for their counterparts in the AL.
I think the Yankees have their hands full in the AL east and will have a difficult time winning the division or a wild card berth. My money is on Toronto to win the division.I like what Anthopoulos, the GM, has done there and I think they greatly improved themselves this off season. Yankees are old and it will be interesting to see what they do with ARod, who I detest. In my opinion, they could end up in 4th place.
Nice thread. I have caught the high-profile stuff like the Yankmees struggling to field a team of breathing souls, and Toronto going gang-busters, but other than that, I haven’t really followed what is happening with the other divisions. Guess I am just still too busy basking my ass off! And damn…it still feel really good!
The Bums? They get the Double Flap Salute and the High Hard One…screw ’em. And I agree…until they win something, blah.
It is going to weird as hell with the Stros in the AL…maybe their new unis will spark a cinder…uh, but probably not.
Reminder – Giants on the boob tube tonight against the Padres…Timmy on the bump. Should be interesting.
We all hope the Dodgers finish behind us but some occasional reality should be expected here. They are quite properly considered the front runner and if we switched managers they’d actually win it. But as I’ve posted previously, I expect a three team race with a strong possibility that SF, LA, and AZ all making the postseason.The Padres might hang, as well.
I’ll do more at the other races as we get closer to the season.
The real bummer for me is that my dear Twinkies may approach 100 losses.
The A’s for real? Not if Billy can help it- he didn’t want a contender last year and he’ll see to it that it won’t happen again. They’ll finish third with 80 to 83 wins.
As to the WBC, once again, “Juan Valdez” is expected to lose out to a real person in the prestigious World Barista Championship. I have it on good authority that he’s now Soph’s head coffee picker on her idylic ranch in the Arizona mountains. Fruckie Sanchez is reported to be in the running to poraty Juan at the ranch.
You have a phone number or address for Soph? Maybe I can look her up while down for my spring training visit. (grin)
1-520-555-SOPH
There is no physical address. Get a burro, go into any mountain range and wait for Ronald Coleman to take you the rest of the way.,.
Since the Pirates haven’t had a winning season since 1992 I’m rooting for them just to get over .500!!! Incredible streak of futility.
Yeah, they started out so hot in the first half last year…looked like the real deal…
I would like to get back there sometime for a game. I have heard that their yard is one of the only rivals to ours as the best place to catch a game…
The team chemist quit after the All-Star Break.
The women of Mexico should rise up against Salma, BTW. They might want the world to know that she’s not the only sexy woman in Mexico.
I always thought Katy Jurado defined hot blooded Mexican women. I loved it when she bitch slapped Lloyd Bridges in High Noon. She didn’t take shit from anyone in that flick.
The punchline of the day for the BB of the Day. Keep in mind I don’t go there by law, so these are brilliant but not necessarily relevant to today’s bimbo…
“Now wash your hands and make me a cheese sandwich!”
Or, to use a line from South Park (Cartman): “Now get your bitch ass in the kitchen and make me some pie!”
kinky friedman had a song (which i saw him perform at GAMH) with the line
“git yore biscuits in the oven/and yore buns in bed.”
Kinky Friedman…haven’t heard that name in quite some time…listened to him regularly in high school (mid-70s)…good stuff.
Yeah, I can see where the dogers and snakes make a blood bath in the NL West with the Gmen coming out on top. The dogers have it on paper, but already the boat is springing leaks. The dbacks could be the Athletics of the NL this year.
yankees, bosox and devil rays go no where and Toronto walks to play Detroit for the ALCS.
nolan ryan quietly leaves town as the Texans will play just good enough to give him an exploding forehead.
Atlanta, Anaheim, St. Louis all look to be for real – the reds? not so much.
orange and black, baby!!!
Last week I caught a piece on KNBR (can’t recall if it was the weekday morning or weekend pre-game with Marty), but John Smoltz was on. He was asked about the Bums and the changes they have made. He acknowledged similarly as many here have, that “on paper” the Dodgers look formidable, but he said you cannot underestimate the importance of chemistry on a team (in relation to the Giants).
Skeptical A’s can pull it off again. Beane has been rebuilding his IF for years now, and it still looks like shit. They hit a lot of HRs and got good pitching last year…not sure that formula will hold up. Just don’t think there is enough talent to be more than .500 club.
What was interesting to read was the Matier and Ross column yesterday on the stadium lease with the A’s and an argument over $$ related to parking taxes (dispute with the city) and beer sales (dispute with the raiders). I give a lot of credit to A’s fans for sticking with the program and showing up in force once they really had something of a competitive team to watch. Hope baseball sticks around there somewhere as opposed to san jose, with or preferably without wolff and co.
“I give a lot of credit to A’s fans for sticking with the program and showing up in force once they really had something of a competitive team to watch”
Huh? On their last homestand when they were driving toward the front, they drew 16+, 21+ three strright times,and finally drew over 30 only when they pulled into a tie on the second to last day of the season. They were fourth worst in MLB in home attendance for the season.
…in a tarped off stadium and a team beane tried to dismantle. Playoff atmosphere there was cool. I’m sure lew wolff points up what you said as further evidence for why they should be allowed to leave immediately. I hope attendance picks up there this season and they can stick around pennant race, and in Oakland, for a while.
Well, your statement was not factual. Showing up for the last two games and the playoffs does not support what you said.
Nip 10:55 last night (coupled with flav reply) has to be POTD.
Uh, hope everthing is cool, in whatever time zone you are in, my man.
Nice read from Baggs – highlight’s Vungo’s struggles to get back on the field, and his struggles at the plate, yesterday (busted a bat over his knee). Also, a good rundown on some of the battles for a spot, and some of the youngsters…
http://tinyurl.com/aoa96gs
thx, that was a good read. Only caveat I would have is neither baggs nor anyone else knows if peguero or any of the other guys he mentioned are 4A guys or not. If he hits .360 in ST and makes the club that’s great. But I’m gonna reserve judgement until he faces ml pitching and defense and plays in a ml park in games that count in the standings.
Peguero and Hembree (maybe others) have been up for their cup of coffee. Peguero was up last year…17 games, 16 PA, hitting .188, 3 stolen bases. Small sample.
Overall I agree…time will tell.
The Dodgers are sort of an interesting case. A bunch of players collected together who, although have achieved some individual success, have the whiff of underachievement and collapse about them as “team players” in their careers.
If they are underachieving by the middle of this season, 2-Trips will be the one to go, and he knows it.
Who are the team leaders amongst the players? When the going gets tough, how do they hang together? We’ll see. Could be interesting.
The biggest misreading of the early ’70s A’s and the late ’70s Yankees is something like “the players on those teams didn’t like each other, they had bad team chemistry, and they won anyway, so it proves team chemistry is way over-rated.” All I’ve read about those teams show they were VERY united in their hatred for their team owners.Maybe it’s a weird way for a team to get unity, but there was a form of strong unity amongst those two franchises. More than it gets credit for, anyway. In other words, those truly were TEAMS, and not just a collection of talent.
So you don’t buy that we were the best team last year and in 2010, we just had better chemistry than the other teams?
There were teams that looked better “on paper.” But the Giants defeated “the paper.” I know SABR people aren’t real big on “intangibles,” but the Giants have talent AND intangibles.
SABR doesn’t have a stat (other than wins) for things like heart, mental toughness, players holding each other accountable and also picking each other up. Zito picked Timmy up last year, and that’s one of the many cool things about the Giants. And all during Zito’s lost years, the Giants players never threw Zito under the bus.
I don’t mean to downplay Bochy’s role. Bochy is now in the Hall of Fame conversation.
Actually, if I’m a “SABR people”, I’m still into “intangibles” “as much or more than probably than most here. Being conversant with the numbers that are now used by the most advanced front offices does not preclude having the feel for the soul of the game that I’ve had since I’ve been a child.
But there’s a difference between understanding the soul of the game and it’s players and cornball claptrap. Many teams, in fact almost almost all teams, share what some call “chemistry”, it’s home boy nonsense that our team has a corner on it.
And Zito didn’t “pick up” Timmy, he pitched about the same as he had in in his previous two non-injury years, the team picked *him* up by providing him with great defense and run support.
Z, you’ve either read very little or paid attention to very little of what I’ve posted since the Splash was born if you can even insinuate ( as you do constantly) that I am only a numbers person- sometimes it seems that you think that actually knowing what’s going on is a sin.
The team never threw him under the bus because they’d have to pay his estate the remainder of the contract. That’s why they abandoned the shark plan. Here team employees were doing the mock up of the desired aftermath…
The players? They put up with it, as if they had a choice.
Who was that A’s player who bragged how Charlie Finley never figured out who’d thrown a bean ball at him from the dugout?
Speaking of hated owners….Comiskey.
“in 1919, Eddie Cicotte rebounded to win 29 games and once again lead the league in wins, winning percentage, and innings pitched, as well as in complete games. His 1919 salary was $6,000, but he had a provision for a $10,000 bonus if he won 30 games. Legend has it that as the season drew to a close, owner Charles Comiskey ordered manager Kid Gleason to bench Cicotte for 5 games, denying him a chance at a 30-win season and the bonus money.”
“Eight Men Out,” available on NetFlix. (grin)
New post on my blog . . . Good night all. 🙂
In what many Vatican scholars are calling a shocking but welcome concession to reality, it’s been revealed that the next Pope will officially be dubbed “The Head Ped”…
Good post, but I think the Angels are going to have a good run this year and take the AL West. The A’s continue to be all about dismantling any type of contending team. The AL East is going to come down to Baltimore and Toronto, believe it or not. And the NL West is a very underrated division–Sabean even said it himself during the WS victory parade speech. It’s going to be a very tough division this year and I wouldn’t even count the Padres out of it at this point–they looked pretty good towards the end last year. I still think the Giants take it, though–the Doggies have the bucks but not the chemistry and no other team is in the Giants’ league right now, IMO.
Agree, Shaman. Good to see ya here, again.
So, think I have asked you this before. Is the 138 a reference to Section 138 at AT&T?
It’s from a Misfits song, actually.
If the A’s need anymore incentive to play under Billy,they could get a hottie puzzle poster and strip off a piece after each win.Kind of like Major League.Works better then using Billy or Lew that’s for sure.
The A’s were so united in their hatred for Finley, they created a chemistry so unshakable that they decided to screw the old fart by winning a bunch of championships to make him an even richer man..
I am nearly sold on Peguero. Great bat, glove and speed. I hope he makes the team.
received a package from Twin today (non-exploding variety 🙂 ) that included 2 Zito cards (one a rookie and the other signed when he was a rivercat) as well as a very cool signed pic of Scott McClain that I am to send over to Snarkk.
Both cards and pic are in mint condition.
Classy, creative gifts Twin, thank you.
You’re welcome. As I said privately to both Craig and Tom- the gifts were not because I think payback is needed for a doing me a good turn and I never would think they expected it, I just wanted to exhibit a small gesture of appreciation to both.
mission accomplished. thanks again.
He’s just the greatest!!!
It’s still early to expect Tim to be throwing max velocity, but his fastball speed still bears watching as he had the biggest drop in baseball from 2011 to 2012, over 2 MPH. There are many theories, poor conditioning among them. Supposedly he’s had a new regimen and a better diet. BP’s theory was he lacked the athleticism necessary to consistently coordinate the 80-grade momentum that has become his trademark, while a lack of timing sapped the efficiency of his torque.
Loo already made jest with the analysis. but I think it makes sense.
Timmy’s lack of velocity is still a concern. It seems to be related to his control and confidence problems. It all starts with an excellent fast ball mixed in with off-speed pitches. It did not happen for Timmy for most of last year.
It’s a challenge for him losing some speed on his fastball. He has to be more of a control pitcher, and he never had to do that before. His stuff was so good, batters were up there flailing away. And if some runners got on base, he had high confidence that he could strike out the next batters.
It’s probably just a product of getting older. He’s having to make the adjustment, and find a way to keep the flexibility he needs to do his complicated motion. His success has always been a marvel at what he gets from his small size. Here’s hoping he can make the adjustment.
No one said it wasn’t a concern- but it’s too early to expect his best yet. What it *starts* with, however, is the conditioning to be able utilize the mechanics of his motion to throw the pitches where he needs to.
He’s had to make an adjustment in conditioning; he obviously wasn’t pleased with the regular season last year, but there’s no evidence that he’s ever shown up with “poor conditioning.”
HE has said that he suffered because of that diet that you boys trashed me for saying would hurt him. He gained too much weight in 2011 and then tried to lose it over the winter. He was in poor shape last year. There’s literature on it. Don’t get butt hurt over the truth, pal.
BTW, have you apologized for calling my friend a liar when he and Ron Fimrite confirmed that Joe was not only at Reno’s funeral, but was one of the pallbearers.You took the hatchet job story as truth.
Do you enjoy being spoken to like a 5 year old, Zumie?
Timmy had a great 2011 season. With decent run support, he could have won 20 games that season. He showed up fit last season, and had his first bad season as a Giant. He was as surprised as anyone. He learned from the experience. You want to make it a “character” issue, because that’s the way you roll when it comes to Lincecum. Whatever.
As for your friend. Who cares? There’s as much evidence that your friend was telling the truth as there was that he was lying. Why I should I trust your friend? I never met the guy. Unless you want to post a photo of a program from the funeral showing DiMaggio listed as a pall-bearer.
And for the record, for the umpteenth time, all I did was ask a QUESTION about a 70 year old man being a pallbearer. Someone then said that caskets can be put on carts, and the whole pallbearer thing can just be symbolic. So I said that could be the explanation. The end. You’re the one that has a strange need to keep dredging up old stuff like that. You’re the one that files and catalogs all your past butt-hurts.
“Tim Lincecum reportedly lost 30+ pounds in the 2011-2012 offseason and used a counter-current swimming pool to slim down, along with a tight diet. Sounds good, right? Well, not really. As noted baseball trainer Eric Cressey (and many others) have pointed out, increased bodyweight is positively correlated with increased fastball velocity. Lean body mass has a strong positive impact on pitching velocity, as well as durability.
Swimming is mostly an aerobic activity, and combined with a caloric deficient diet, leads to catabolism (loss of muscle mass). Additionally, swimming in a pool isn’t exactly the most friendly activity for pitchers – depending on the stroke used, the athlete in the pool could be creating laxity in the anterior portion of the shoulder, which can reduce stability in the area. It shouldn’t be much of a surprise to connect the dots; a loss of stability in the shoulder can lead to decreased velocity and command of the baseball when release point tolerances are very tight.”
There’s a lot more. This doesn’t make him a bad person, ferchrissakes, he made some poor diet decisions and poor decisions on how to fix it.
Ron Fimrite confirmed that Joe was there, pal. Ever hear of him? And I never made Tim’s conditioning a “character issue”.
And I do remember outrageous comments like the ones about my friend. I don’t catalog them. I just have a great memory, which works to your disadvantage.
.
The only point I wanted to make about Lincecum was that he didn’t show up with “poor conditioning.” Doing a bunch of swimming and losing weight may have been a bad decision on his part, but it would hardly be called “poor conditioning.” Maybe it’s semantics. But I’m sure you’ll have the last word on that.
As for your friend….I’m glad it’s all as you tell it. Because God knows, you’ve done nothing but tell the truth on this blog.
If you want an apology, then fine, here it is: I’m sorry I questioned your friend’s story. I’m sure he’s a great dude.
I’m not trying to be a jerk. I just post stuff sometimes quickly, and not necessarily deeply researched.
You are still ignoring that Ron Fimrite confirmerd it. Why do you have a problem with that? And I don’t lie and never again suggest that I do.
.
.
Twin, Many of us are tired of your boorish behavior. If you’re zapping and editing Loo’s comments it is lame.
Z, he did show up in poor condition. I didn’t say that was his intent, fergawds sake.
Herer’s the first one I deleted, referring to the seizure I suffered while posting.
Enjoy, pal. Pass it along,.
“DJLoo said, on March 12, 2013 at 7:33 pm
If you had any friends, you wouldn’t be calling for help on a baseball blog, pal.”
I saw the post when it was first displayed. While i agree it is n poor taste, you aren’t final arbiter of taste on this blog. Let’s leave that to Big Flavor.
I’m the final arbiter on a post like that one.
Then maybe you should check yourself at the same time.
And Craig was informed of what was going to happen. Instead of jumping me, why don’t you pay attention to the information you can get from my factual comments? Or be a pussy and complain that I was mean to poor Zumie.
Straight to the vulgar insult eh Twin? It’s what I would expect from you. There are a lot of variables to your real and imagined slights but only one constant.
Sleep tight sunshine. I’ll check tomorrow for your inevitable response as a childish last word.
I said nothing that attacked anyone.
Pussy? That’s your vulgar insult? You’re a hoot. The only constant that you refer to is that I provide factual imformation, and some can’t handle that. Don’t count on everything you’re counting on, BTW.
Good luck to Timmy. I hope his form as a starter reminds us of the Timmy of 2010.
Gio Gonzalez is pretty darned good. The Nationals could be pretty darned good again this season. Can’t wait for that Giants trip to Washington. Not because of the sweltering mush-pit of humidity, but because of the Giants getting to meet the President again, with a very cool get-together in the East Room of the White House. That was most excellent last time. The Giants Magazine had some photos from that, and I cut them out and made a collage out of it. I look at those photos a lot, and just…….BASK!!!!!!
Can I borrow it for “show & tell” next week?
You can make your own collage, bruh. (grin)
I’m not sure that link worked correctly. Oh well. I tried. (grin)
Oh, no! It looks like Posey doesn’t have the gear on to catch tonight. That can only mean . . . . Jackshit.
btw, happened across a great post-cowpunk band in LA who call themselves Jackshit. Check em out on youtube.
I love cowpunk. There’s a pretty cool band called Nashville Pussy. I kid you not.
I remember women cowpunk bands coming up from LA to open for the Blasters and Los Lobos back in the 80s. Always great. Dave Alvin sat in with Jackshit last weekend and he noted it on his FB page. Thus, my intro. I think the closest thing to a mainstream cowpunk band I know is the Notorious Cherry Bombs, all men, of course, and famous for the song: “It’s hard to kiss the lips at night that chew your ass out all night long.”
Nice first inning from LIncecum.
fuck. “all day long”
Hah! From Ted Nugent’s live version of Wang Dang Sweet Poon Tang . . .
Speaking of Kinky Friedman, I’m stuck in Texas one more night.
Did get to hit Papadeaux tonight though. Hilight of the trip. . .
We will need another big year from him this year to compete with a loaded LAD team and a surging AZ team.
That is a very good parody.
I caught the last batter timmy faced in the first inning–sound was off so I didn’t hear what K/K were saying but he looks fantastic physically. Saw him throw a 94 mph heater and then a sick off speed pitch for a swinging K
Fuck that, how’s the haircut?
It was a good idea.
WBC is on MLB.tv here. Are the Giants on nationally? (Loo, are they on where you are?) Oooooops! MLB just gave a promo. 9pm YOUR time and midnight here???
Feck! It’s DELAYED on the East Coast????? Feck!
To illustrate where the formerly august NY Yankees are: Hess gas stations in Syracuse, NY are offering FREE YANKEES TICKETS if you buy something like 4 fill-ups, 12 six-packs of Pepsi, or a case of Diet Pepsi, or some such bizarre combo. As Jack Paar used to say, I kid you not.
Tl does look in great physical condition.
Lincecum’s first two innings will be worth seeing even on time delay. He pitched well. One of the hits that found a hole on the left side was off a perfect groundball off-speed pitch. Just snuck (I really can’t write sneaked) through. On the other hand, Tenaka has played himself out of a job in 3 innings. When Kruk & Kuip are comparing you to Steve Sax on the air you are gone.
The two-run third inning was weird. Lincecum still looked ok, but the results sure didn’t reflect it. I write that off.
Funny to hear that S. Sax is first base coach for the DBacks. He’ll see the routiine 2B to 1B throw game after game, a million times over the season. That torture may wear on him.
Ahhhh, the “Orel Sax” chants from the right side of the Stick were too funny. The anticipation of a throw into the stands/dirt/dugout was palapble.
Chuck, where were you in TX?
When I lived in Houston, I used to go fairly regularly to the various Papadeaux restaurants. They’ve got an empire in Texas.
The mahi mahi platter was good, but I’m partial to that fish. The three-way crawfish platter was huge and good, and the crawfish etouffee was always outstanding…