2013 Official Major League Baseball Thread.

[daydreamer41]

The Blue Jays have a tough schedule coming up, including 4 games against Atlanta, 2 games against San Francisco, 3 games against Colorado and 7 games against Texas. Their easier games in the next 3 weeks are 3 games against Chicago White Sox, 3 games and 3 games against San Diego.

If they don't do well in the next 3 to 4 weeks, I would say Toronto's chances of making a comeback are very slim.

But there's next year. Toronto still has a good nucleus with Jose Reyes, Melky Cabrera, Adam Linn, Edwin Encarnacion and Jose Bautista. They have a couple of good pitchers too. So maybe next year?

 

[Merlot]

Hey boyz,

As for today's stars for the slumping Red Sox, 7-3 in their last 10, go figure. Mike Carp, Pedro Ciriaco, and, mostly, Jose .481 Iglesias. Well, Pedey, too, but he's a star every day.

It was a pretty good effort by Lester despite some shakiness, but I was impressed that this team hung in there with two outs to hit three doubles to take this one right out of Cleveland's hands.

And how about Iglesias? He tore up spring training only to be sent down, then comes back and goes 3 for 4. If he continues to hit like this together with his glove the team has got to find a place for him. I like Middlebrooks but his BA is awful and his strikeouts to walks ratio is disastrous at nearly 8-1. Maybe it's the injury, but if he doesn't snap out of it quickly when he comes back the team simply can't afford to send back Iglesias if he continues to have such great production in contrast to Middlebrooks.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/red-sox-rally-4-8th-214311755--mlb.html

BOSTON (AP) -- The Red Sox and Indians exchanged nearly as many mistakes as runs for seven innings before a string of clutch hits and a friendly gust of wind helped Boston build the decisive rally.

Pinch-hitter Mike Carp drove in the tying run with an eighth-inning double and then scored on a double by Dustin Pedroia to lead the Red Sox past Cleveland 7-4 on Saturday.

Trailing 4-3 entering the bottom of the eighth, Boston scored four times off reliever Vinnie Pestano (1-1) to open the largest lead in a game that featured plenty of chances at the plate but little success for either club.

''It's big,'' said Carp, who broke out of an 0-for-21 skid on Friday night with a three-run homer in Boston's 8-1 win. ''I was in a little bit of a slump. To be able to come out of that and win the ballgame, it means a lot.''

Pedro Ciriaco had three hits, including a one-out double that started Boston's rally in the eighth. After Pestano struck out Jacoby Ellsbury for the second out, Carp batted for Jonny Gomes and lifted a first-pitch fastball to left for a double that easily scored Ciriaco.

Pedroia followed with a shot high off the Green Monster, giving Boston its first lead of the game.

''This was a very good team win and we got contributions from a lot of guys,'' manager John Farrell said.

After Pedroia's hit, the Indians walked David Ortiz intentionally and Mike Napoli followed with a walk to load the bases. Daniel Nava hit a high popup to shallow left field, but the blustery wind turned a routine out into a bloop single and two RBIs.

''There were a couple of balls that were Fenway fly balls. I think the wind plays a factor, and The Wall. There's a lot of things going on out there. That's just a part of this ballpark,'' said Cleveland manager Terry Francona, who spent eight seasons in Boston. ''The wind brought it back 20 feet and it ends up being in no-man's land.''

Junichi Tazawa (4-2) struck out two in a hitless eighth and Andrew Bailey got three outs for his sixth save in seven chances.

Boston starter Jon Lester struck out a season-high eight in seven innings. He also hit a batter with a pitch as Cleveland scored twice to take a 3-1 lead in the third, then threw a costly wild pitch in the seventh.

Mike Aviles and Asdrubal Cabrera hit back-to-back singles in the seventh, then Lester allowed the go-ahead run with a wild pitch to Mark Reynolds that skipped past catcher David Ross. Lester ended up striking out, but Cleveland had regained the lead at 4-3.

''It didn't even make it to the plate. I didn't even give Rossy a chance to block it,'' Lester said. ''I was on the same page as him, just trying to bury a curveball.''

Cabrera had three hits, stole two bases, drove in a run and scored another for the Indians, who lost for the fourth time in five games. Nick Swisher added an RBI double and Carlos Santana a run-scoring single.

Scott Kazmir pitched five innings and struck out six for Cleveland. He gave up two runs, five hits and four walks.

''I thought he had to dodge traffic all day and make some really big pitches. They made him work from the first inning on, but he continued to make pitches,'' Francona said. ''As a team today we just gave them extra opportunities and they took advantage.''

Ciriaco had an RBI single in the second and Gomes' sacrifice fly tied it at 3 in the sixth after an error by Reynolds at third base. Jose Iglesias singled and Ciriaco followed with a bunt that Reynolds barehanded cleanly, but he rushed his throw and the ball skipped out of play, allowing both runners to advance.

So much for the "badly slumping" Red Sox.



Merlot

 

[EagerBeaver]

Great clutch hitting by Brendon Boesch and Brett Gardner to come behind from 3-1 in the top of the 9th. Nuno pitched a great 6 innings before being pulled in the 7th inning. And Mariano picked up his 18 save in 18 save appearances. The guy is simply amazing.

I figured the Yankees had a shot because the Rays' bullpen is terrible and the Yankees' bullpen is better than great. While Gardner and Boesch made cases to be mentioned among the top 4 stars of the game, I decided to go with 3 pitchers out of 4 stars as I felt the Yankees outpitched the Rays in both starting pitching and relief pitching today. Nuno did not deserve to give up 2 runs but Dave Adams got eaten up by a ball at 3rd and then Lyle Overbay missed a line drive that hit his glove. Hard hit balls, but the balls were hit right at them and those plays have to be made. That was really the only downer in the game today.

Regarding Nuno, the Rays clearly got a scouting report to sit on Nuno's off speed stuff and not to look for the fastball. I know this for 2 reasons: (1) in Nuno's last start against Cleveland he had 54 strikes and not a single one was a swing and miss; and (2) He mixed in 2 88 mph fastballs to Zobrist and on both pitches, Zobrist took what looked like emergency swings and fouled the pitches off. The Rays obviously believed that Nuno cannot get any fastballs by them. But they could not hit his off speed pitches, and he spotted the fastball strategically to set up the off speed repertoire. Nuno is mixing it up by working in reverse, using the fastball only for show and to keep the hitter slightly off balance. Looks like a poor man's, junior sized Fernando Valuenza. What he lacks in velocity, he more than makes up for in craftiness, and guile.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Nuno did not deserve to give up 2 runs but Dave Adams got eaten up by a ball at 3rd and then Lyle Overbay missed a line drive that hit his glove. Hard hit balls, but the balls were hit right at them and those plays have to be made.

Then again, maybe Nuno was extremely lucky. Those were not, by any means, the only hard hit at-em balls hit by the Rays yesterday. I didn't turn the game on until the 4th inning, but in addition to those you mention, there were at least three rockets blasted directly at Adams, who impressed me with his handling of them. A couple of inches to either side and Nuno's day would have looked far different.

 

[EagerBeaver]

UConn Wins Big East Baseball Championship

Congratulations to the UConn Huskies who have just beaten Notre Dame 8-1 for the Big East baseball championship on a brilliant complete game 4 hitter by Anthony Marzi who pitched on 2 days rest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LJ Mazzilli, son of former Met and Yankees player Lee Mazzilli, was the offensive star with a 2 run homer. RF Joe Testani made spectacular catches on consecutive outs in the 9th, laying himself out on the warning track for the second catch which is a certain ESPN top 10 webgem.

The win completed a run through the Big East tournament in which UConn raked every pitching staff they faced.

 

[daydreamer41]

Congratulations to the UConn Huskies who have just beaten Notre Dame 8-1 for the Big East baseball championship on a brilliant complete game 4 hitter by Anthony Marzi who pitched on 2 days rest!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! LJ Mazzilli, son of former Met and Yankees player Lee Mazzilli, was the offensive star with a 2 run homer. RF Joe Testani made spectacular catches on consecutive outs in the 9th, laying himself out on the warning track for the second catch which is a certain ESPN top 10 webgem.

The win completed a run through the Big East tournament in which UConn raked every pitching staff they faced.

Congratulations to your Alma Mater, EB. I hope they do well in the rest of the NCAA tournament.

 

[daydreamer41]

Then again, maybe Nuno was extremely lucky.

No, he wasn't lucky. Nuno pitched well. I saw the entire game. Nuno has good potential. He's not overpowering, but he has excellent control. He may be a gem for the Yankees in the future. Time will tell.

 

[EagerBeaver]

I thought Nuno pitched better in the 1st through 4th innings than he did in the 5th and 6th. Let's not forget he had been in the bullpen, then was sent down and had a long time between starts. If he is allowed to pitch regularly and build up arm strength he will be more effective. He looked to me like he slightly lost the plate towards the end of his stint, and was not as effective once he got to the 5th inning. He has an effective repertoire of junk and it was obvious from the 1st pitch that the Rays were not respecting his fastball and were sitting on the offspeed pitches. Nuno threw the fastball on the corners for show. His meat and potatoes pitches are assorted curveballs and changeups which he throws for strikes. He is a very fast worker and appears to be totally unflappable and those qualities may serve him well.

 

[EagerBeaver]

Congratulations to your Alma Mater, EB. I hope they do well in the rest of the NCAA tournament.

Here are championship game highlights, note the catch by Joe Testani laying out for a ball hit to the warning track in the 9th at 2:57:

http://www.bigeast.org/Sports/Baseball/2013BaseballChampionship.aspx

Team posing with Trophy: http://www.courant.com/sports/college/hc-uconn-baseball-0527-20130526-001,0,6124516.photo

UConn OF Billy Ferriter was MVP of the tournament after batting .600. I thought Mazzilli would get it as he was totally locked in and also made a defensive sparkler on that highlight reel. You will see Mazzilli at 2nd Base for the Minnesota Twins in the near future.

UConn Coach Jim Penders is the only man in Big East history to win the championship as player (on UConn's 1994 championship team) and as coach. Since the Big East is itself history now, that record will never be broken.

 

[Merlot]

Hey Boyz,

...the Yankees' bullpen is better than great.

That's right EB. All Yankees are born on Olympus, a gift from Zeus himself. :lol: Except, your god of the fast ball, the "big horse", had a little misstep...errrrrrr, Crash of the Titan...and got shelled today. Well, even the gods had bad days. At least we respect you as a loyal fan, not one with every excuse to hide his team.

(ready for FPME)

Red Sox:

AMAZING! I checked the alert on my cell while at my brothers barbecue and the score was 5-2 Indians in the 9th. Uggghh! "Well, I doubt there will be a comeback two days in a row. It's still nice to take two from Cleveland at a time when they are very hot." Checked 40 minutes later...WTTTF! WOW! I couldn't believe it. It's soooo nice to be wrong. It's great to see another very late rally and to see Ellsbury come through with the game winning hit. Three wins against the currently tough Indians and two straight late rallies, especially after their last homestand was poor. These Sox can be very scrappy.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/Red-Sox-6-Indians-5-56613855

Updated May 26, 2013 6:47 PM ET

BOSTON (AP)

Jacoby Ellsbury walked to the plate thinking he had an advantage. One pitch later, he was running away from his celebrating teammates.

Ellsbury hit a game-ending, two-run double on Joe Smith's first pitch, capping a four-run, ninth-inning rally that lifted the Boston Red Sox over the Cleveland Indians 6-5 Sunday.

Cleveland led 5-2 entering the ninth, when Chris Perez (2-1) walked Dustin Pedroia leading off. David Ortiz doubled, and Mike Napoli and Jarrod Saltalamacchia hit consecutive RBI groundouts.

Walks to Jonny Gomes and Jose Iglesias around Stephen Drew's single loaded the bases. Perez fell behind Ellsbury 2-1 in the count and left with a shoulder injury. Ellsbury then doubled to left-center, and was chased down by teammates who ran from the dugout to celebrate Boston's ninth win in 12 games.

''His mindset, I would think, is to attack the hitter,'' Ellsbury said in the middle of Boston's clubhouse. ''The last thing I think he's wants to do is walk me and bring in the tying run. I just wanted to be aggressive in the zone and get a pitch I could drive. Fortunately, I got it.''

Boston won three of four against Cleveland, managed by Terry Francona in his first series back at Fenway Park since leaving the Red Sox after the 2011 season. Francona led the Red Sox to World Series titles in 2004 and 2007.

It was Boston's ninth win in 12 games.

''When you think back to the ninth inning, they key at-bat to me was Iglesias' walk,'' Boston manager John Farrell said. ''He fouls off a tough two-strike pitch, takes a close 3-2 pitch to walk. Unfortunately for them, Perez goes out with an injury. We felt like when Smith came in, that arm slot fit Jake's (Jacoby's) swing pretty well, and we saw the reason for it.''

Perez said he's been dealing with some arm pain.

''I felt a little something in the shoulder today out there. Obviously not the best timing there. So, it's something I have to deal with,'' he said. ''On that last pitch to Ellsbury. It kind of pinched on me and sent a little pain down my arm. Then I tried to throw another pitch, and it just wasn't happening.''

Francona knew what a tough spot it was for Smith.

''It's very difficult. That's tough duty,'' he said. ''With a 2-1 count you've got to throw a strike, and he did. To Ellsbury's credit, he put the wood on it and put the barrel on it and now we've got to go regroup.''

Craig Breslow (2-0) allowed one run and two hits in two innings. Red Sox starter Felix Doubront gave up four runs - two earned - and five hits in six innings with eight strikeouts.

Boston trailed 4-3 in the eighth inning of Saturday's 7-4 win.

''It shows the desire of this team the last two days,'' Gomes said.

Cleveland's Corey Kluber gave up one run and three hits in 6 2-3 innings. Nick Swisher and Jason Kipnis hit solo homers for the Indians.

Carlos Santana's two-run single hit a two-run single in the first after Ellsbury dropped Kipnis' fly to center for an error.

Daniel Nava had an RBI single in the third after Stephen Drew snapped an 0-for-17 slide with a double. Kipnis homered off the Pesky Pole in right in the fifth, and Swisher homered in the Green Monster seats in left leading off the sixth. Swisher's sacrifice fly made it 5-1 in the eighth, and Iglesias had a sacrifice fly in the bottom half.


Note: Pedroia is the only player in the MLB who has not missed a game this year and is still hitting .337. His MVP chances are only improving.

Cheers,

Merlot

 

[daydreamer41]

Hey Boyz,



That's right EB. All Yankees are born on Olympus, a gift from Zeus himself. :lol: Except, your god of the fast ball, the "big horse", had a little misstep...errrrrrr, Crash of the Titan...and got shelled today. Well, even the gods had bad days. At least we respect you as a loyal fan, not one with every excuse to hide his team.

(ready for FPME)

Red Sox:

AMAZING! I checked the alert on my cell while at my brothers barbecue and the score was 5-2 Indians in the 9th. Uggghh! "Well, I doubt there will be a comeback two days in a row. It's still nice to take two from Cleveland at a time when they are very hot." Checked 40 minutes later...WTTTF! WOW! I couldn't believe it. It's soooo nice to be wrong. It's great to see another very late rally and to see Ellsbury come through with the game winning hit. Three wins against the currently tough Indians and two straight late rallies, especially after their last homestand was poor. These Sox can be very scrappy.

http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/Red-Sox-6-Indians-5-56613855

Cheers,

Merlot

Maybe, the Red Sox were "extremely lucky", a phrase your friend rumps uses, in this win over the Cleveland Indians.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Maybe, the Red Sox were "extremely lucky", a phrase your friend rumps uses, in this win over the Cleveland Indians.

There's often luck involved. A pitcher totally fools a batter, he checks his swing, the ball hits his bat and drops over the third baseman's head. Is that luck? Sometime. But you can also say that the batter controlled the bat well enough to at least spoil it. I suppose there might have been an element of luck involved. Was Jason Kipnis lucky when he homered off Doubront today? He hit the ball good and hard and in any other park, it would have been a foul ball. In Boston, it tucked in around the pole in right, a 305 foot home run.

The Sox might have been lucky in that Perez, who they'd made work very hard, got hurt on his last few pitches and had to leave the game. They were lucky that Perez was off his game today. But also, Iglesias, who never walks, managed to work a seven or eight pitch walk off Perez. They were lucky that Joe Smith, a very good pitcher, grooved a fastball to Ellsbury on his first and only pitch of the game...but you miss even mistakes more than half the time.

A beautiful win for the Sox, who remain hot, and are back in a first place tie. The Sox have, indeed, been lucky over the course of the season. Their third order adjusted standing suggests that they've won one more game this season then their run differential and strength of schedule say they should have.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

There's been a fair amount of panic in the New York press about the performance of CC Sabathia over the last month. The noise is getting louder.

From the New York Post's George King:

"Skidding Sabathia struggles as Yankees fail to sweep Rays
ST. PETERSBURG -- Two years ago the Yankees' rotation was dubbed "CC & The ? Marks.''

Today, the biggest question in the rotation is the largest member. And if CC Sabathia doesn't discover answers quickly the "Smoke & Mirror Act'' that has carried the Yankees across the first seven weeks won't be enough.

"I am hurting the team, I am not helping the team out,'' Sabathia said after absorbing an 8-3 loss to the Rays on Sunday in front of 24,159 at Tropicana Field. "I need to get better.''

Sabathia hasn't won since April 27. Since then he is 0-2 with a 4.86 ERA.

When the Yankees' clubhouse door was opened pitching coach Larry Rothschild was sitting with Sabathia at the pitcher's locker.

Sabathia and Rothschild said their discussion "is private.'' Yet, Sabathia's struggles are very public.

Where once his fastball was clocked between 95 and 97 mph, it's in the 89 to 91 range. And since it's been almost two months and 11 starts it's safe to describe the 32-year-old lefty as a pitcher in transition."

Note King's acknowledgement of the "smoke and mirrors act" that has been the hallmark of the Yankees' season to date, leaving them at the moment with five wins more than their third order adjusted standings say they should have.

Here's The Daily News.
"What's going on with CC? Sabathia gets roughed up in 8-3 loss to Rays ... winless streak hits five for Yankees' ace

And ESPN:
Sabathia didn't sound frustrated or puzzled or angry.

He sounded dejected.

"I'm not helping the team out," he said. "I just need to get better."

Sabathia's record of struggles at Tropicana Field are not new; since becoming a Yankee, he is 3-10 here with a 4.08 ERA and hasn't won in this ballpark in more than three years. Nor is his track record of slow starts.

But rarely has Sabathia endured a run of futility, both at The Trop and in one month, as he did Sunday and in May 2013. Sunday's game closed out a month in which he went 0-2 with three no-decisions and carried an ERA of 4.80. Overall, he is 4-4, 3.96, and his velocity, which everyone was sure would creep back into the low-to-mid-90s by now, remains mired in the 89-91 range.

When the media was allowed into the Yankees' clubhouse following the game, Sabathia and pitching coach Larry Rothschild were huddled in conversation at his locker, the subject of which both men preferred to keep private.

But clearly, there is concern over the way Sabathia has pitched so far this season, and the fact that rather than improve over time, he might even be regressing.

Asked what he thought the problem was, Sabathia said, "It's just everything. Not being able to make pitches with two strikes, fastball command, location. I just need to work and make certain I can get better and try to help the team."

Sabathia spoke in a barely audible whisper, and at times his voice seemed to shake. What clearly bothered him most of all was that his performance took the Yankees out of a game they might have been able to pull out after Rays starter Alex Cobb, who was brilliant, left the game with one out in the ninth. The Yankees rallied for three runs after Cobb left, but it wasn't nearly enough to climb out of the hole Sabathia had left them in."

 

[daydreamer41]

You have to put Sabathia's game in perspective in which he . He allowed 7 Hits and 1 Walk in 7 innings. That would be a 1.00 WHIP, right. However, of those 7 hits, 2 were 2 2-run HR's, and 1 was a 1-run double. Two runs came in on singles.

The problem was he gave up 7 ER, which indicates the Rays were able to connect on the long ball and get key hits with men on base. It wasn't that Sabathia was getting smacked around alot. It was that Sabathia was inefficient when he needed to come up with the big pitch.

By the way, Alex Cobb, who is an excellent young pitcher, does not have exceptional speed. He fast ball maxes out in the low 90s. Cobb is able to effectively change the speed of his pitch to keep the batters off balance.

Sabathia's loss of speed may mean he has to compensate with other pitches to make up for his loss in velocity.

 

[daydreamer41]

A beautiful win for the Sox, who remain hot, and are back in a first place tie.

Extremely lucky.

 

[rumpleforeskiin]

Agreed, DD, you do have to put Sabathia's game in perspective. And the perspective of the media watching him is that he's pitched like dogshit for the last month.

 

[EagerBeaver]

If you look at Sabathia's numbers over the last 4 seasons he has been very consistent in the final numbers he puts up, but he can be a little streaky. He has been lousy the past month, but he is also capable of reeling off 8 wins in a row. I am not too worried about it. I recall Mike Mussina having a month where his ERA was over 9.0 and then he won 20 games the next year at age 40. CC will get hot and it may start next weekend against the Red Sox.

 

[daydreamer41]

If you look at Sabathia's numbers over the last 4 seasons he has been very consistent in the final numbers he puts up, but he can be a little streaky. He has been lousy the past month, but he is also capable of reeling off 8 wins in a row. I am not too worried about it. I recall Mike Mussina having a month where his ERA was over 9.0 and then he won 20 games the next year at age 40. CC will get hot and it may start next weekend against the Red Sox.

Definitely against the Red Sox. Pitchers that have been cold as ice have been known to turn around 180 degrees when pitching against the Red Sox. :thumb:

 

[Special K]

CC will get hot and it may start next weekend against the Red Sox.

Have you seen his career numbers against the Sox? Hahaha. I'll leave them for you to digest but will just say, NOT GOOD!

 

[daydreamer41]

Agreed, DD, you do have to put Sabathia's game in perspective. And the perspective of the media watching him is that he's pitched like dogshit for the last month.

You mean like how John Lackey has been pitching for most of his career? :lol: