I mean, Dusty played in an era where that's how vets treated rookies I'm sure. I'm not really all that surprised at all.MaxPower said:
That was my takeaway. Kind of interesting Dusty thought these kind of shenanigans still left machete untouchable.
I mean, Dusty played in an era where that's how vets treated rookies I'm sure. I'm not really all that surprised at all.MaxPower said:
That was my takeaway. Kind of interesting Dusty thought these kind of shenanigans still left machete untouchable.
Depends. If there's a runner on that can advance then the single has more value. Can't think of a scenario where a walk has more value than a single (maybe increasing pitch count).AustinCountyAg said:a walk is as good as a screaming line drive to the outfield.W said:
however Singleton needs more bat flip worthy AB's
BA down to .213
slugging down to .371
the walks are saving his stats for now
I never said it has more value. In many instances it provides the exact same value though.MaxPower said:Depends. If there's a runner on that can advance then the single has more value. Can't think of a scenario where a walk has more value than a single (maybe increasing pitch count).AustinCountyAg said:a walk is as good as a screaming line drive to the outfield.W said:
however Singleton needs more bat flip worthy AB's
BA down to .213
slugging down to .371
the walks are saving his stats for now
Batter hits a single and tries to extend it into a double and gets thrown out. What do I win?MaxPower said:Depends. If there's a runner on that can advance then the single has more value. Can't think of a scenario where a walk has more value than a single (maybe increasing pitch count).AustinCountyAg said:a walk is as good as a screaming line drive to the outfield.W said:
however Singleton needs more bat flip worthy AB's
BA down to .213
slugging down to .371
the walks are saving his stats for now
Beat40 said:I think this is the most overrated stuff fans buy into for every manager. Also, it's an opinion based on subjectivity and perception from the fan's viewpoint. You aren't in the clubhouse. You aren't on the field. You don't hear the conversations. People assume jackass, angry tirades are passion.superaggie73 said:
Had some time while waiting in my truck and listening to Stan Norfleet on 790 for the first time in a while. This dude is so clueless about the game of baseball (or any sport for that matter). How tf does he actually have a job? He's trying to blame Espada and Blanco for not only breaking the rules, but not knowing the rules. And apparently it's Espada's fault for it happening because he should have either put a stop to it or explained what not to do. Is this little league baseball? Is Blanco not a grown ass man?
Now I do hate Espada for his lack of passion and his lack of ever sticking up for his players, but this is not even close to his fault. The only thing he did wrong was not go crazy sticking up for Blanco.
Adolis Garcia has "passion" and guys attribute that to steroid use anger problems.
If the only definition of sticking up for your players is always being a jackass and getting yourself ejected from a game, well that's just stupid.
Espada said he asked if Blanco could just switch gloves like we've all seen happen time and time again. Is that not sticking up for Blanco?
You wanted Joe to go crazy last night in the 3rd inning - well, he gets himself ejected and who is making the moves in innings 4-10 last night? Arguably all of those moves won the game. Fans are short sighted and not getting paid to win games.
Please guys, stop buying into managers that go out there and yell at umpire are the only ones who are "passionate" and "sticking up for their players."
All I do is Nguyen said:
You hate to see itThe Rangers have lost 5 in a row pic.twitter.com/Jj1A20l7NG
— Michael Schwab (@michaelschwab13) May 15, 2024
agreed. not to mention the precedent has already been set in these same situations where players are allowed to go wash their hands and return to the game. Not saying he should've flipped last night, but I think he had every reason to if he wanted to.....but this goes back to the rule and general lack of consistency with the umpires which is a different conversation.Ag_07 said:
Look I'm not saying I want Espada to be the second coming of Scott Servais where he's fired up about every single play but I am in the camp that thinks he needs to show some fire.
Especially given how lethargic his team had looked since they broke ST.
Hinch was pretty damn low key (even too low key for some) but even he had his moments where he wasn't afraid to get chippy. Same for Dusty
This is my only complaint about Espada so far.
Beau Holder said:Beat40 said:I think this is the most overrated stuff fans buy into for every manager. Also, it's an opinion based on subjectivity and perception from the fan's viewpoint. You aren't in the clubhouse. You aren't on the field. You don't hear the conversations. People assume jackass, angry tirades are passion.superaggie73 said:
Had some time while waiting in my truck and listening to Stan Norfleet on 790 for the first time in a while. This dude is so clueless about the game of baseball (or any sport for that matter). How tf does he actually have a job? He's trying to blame Espada and Blanco for not only breaking the rules, but not knowing the rules. And apparently it's Espada's fault for it happening because he should have either put a stop to it or explained what not to do. Is this little league baseball? Is Blanco not a grown ass man?
Now I do hate Espada for his lack of passion and his lack of ever sticking up for his players, but this is not even close to his fault. The only thing he did wrong was not go crazy sticking up for Blanco.
Adolis Garcia has "passion" and guys attribute that to steroid use anger problems.
If the only definition of sticking up for your players is always being a jackass and getting yourself ejected from a game, well that's just stupid.
Espada said he asked if Blanco could just switch gloves like we've all seen happen time and time again. Is that not sticking up for Blanco?
You wanted Joe to go crazy last night in the 3rd inning - well, he gets himself ejected and who is making the moves in innings 4-10 last night? Arguably all of those moves won the game. Fans are short sighted and not getting paid to win games.
Please guys, stop buying into managers that go out there and yell at umpire are the only ones who are "passionate" and "sticking up for their players."
Post of the day.
Hating a guy for not being as hotheaded as a TA poster who has no consequences for what they say when you have zero clue what's going on in the dugout or on the field is so odd to me.
Some people are less reactive and more mindful in how they speak and act. It's generally actually a very good trait. The only people whose opinion on it matters are the players. Did Ronel feel fought for?
I don't disagree that some heated discussion between umpires is warranted every now and then. I just think it's massively overrated and not correlated to team performance.Ag_07 said:
Look I'm not saying I want Espada to be the second coming of Scott Servais where he's fired up about every single play but I am in the camp that thinks he needs to show some fire.
Especially given how lethargic his team had looked since they broke ST.
Hinch was pretty damn low key (even too low key for some) but even he had his moments where he wasn't afraid to get chippy. Same for Dusty
This is my only complaint about Espada so far.
Ag_07 said:
I don't disagree with most of that thinking.
I think a little fire from the manager sets a tone and gives the team a bit of urgency. Not that it makes them hit or throw better but just gives them a sense of 'OK it's time to get to work'.
IMO Aaron Boone has the perfect balance between not taking **** from umpires but also not being a hot head a-hole. Granted he's a Yankee so he has a longer leach to work with than say Espada.
And for the record I don't think last night was the right situation and i have no problem with him not throwing a fit. Now at his media availability afterwards or today is a different story.
I also don't disagree with a lot of what you're saying.Ag_07 said:
I don't disagree with most of that thinking.
I think a little fire from the manager sets a tone and gives the team a bit of urgency. Not that it makes them hit or throw better but just gives them a sense of 'OK it's time to get to work'.
IMO Aaron Boone has the perfect balance between not taking **** from umpires but also not being a hot head a-hole. Granted he's a Yankee so he has a longer leach to work with than say Espada.
"We gotta figure out a better way than this"
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) May 15, 2024
After Ronel Blanco's ejection, @aj_pierzynskiFT says MLB needs a better system for identifying & testing the "sticky substances" pic.twitter.com/u5ip5lwrSw
OK - but there were many, many times fans on this board were pissed at Hinch for not showing much "fire." You're revising history. He did it when he thought it was necessary but did it far less than fans wanted him to.superaggie73 said:Ag_07 said:
I don't disagree with most of that thinking.
I think a little fire from the manager sets a tone and gives the team a bit of urgency. Not that it makes them hit or throw better but just gives them a sense of 'OK it's time to get to work'.
IMO Aaron Boone has the perfect balance between not taking **** from umpires but also not being a hot head a-hole. Granted he's a Yankee so he has a longer leach to work with than say Espada.
And for the record I don't think last night was the right situation and i have no problem with him not throwing a fit. Now at his media availability afterwards or today is a different story.
Exactly…and as mild mannered as Hinch was, let's not forget he would dish it out when an ump got out over his skis. Don't forget what happened with Ron Kulpa.
EastCoastAgNc said:"We gotta figure out a better way than this"
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) May 15, 2024
After Ronel Blanco's ejection, @aj_pierzynskiFT says MLB needs a better system for identifying & testing the "sticky substances" pic.twitter.com/u5ip5lwrSw
Thank you
I think my takeaway from all the glove incidents the past couple of years is that AJ said - there needs to be a better system. It's pretty subjective right now and has massive implications. Umpires should never base anything on "stickiest I've ever felt." The human brain misremembers stuff all the time.EastCoastAgNc said:"We gotta figure out a better way than this"
— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) May 15, 2024
After Ronel Blanco's ejection, @aj_pierzynskiFT says MLB needs a better system for identifying & testing the "sticky substances" pic.twitter.com/u5ip5lwrSw
Thank you
Astros-Brewers probables:
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) May 15, 2024
Fri: Hunter Brown vs. Freddy Peralta
Sat: Justin Verlander vs. Bryse Wilson
Sun: Spencer Arrighetti vs. Colin Rea
Quote:
MLB may have to act on strike-stealing after catcher's gruesome injury: 'Classic risk-reward'
. . .
When a swing from New York Mets designated hitter J.D. Martinez fractured St. Louis catcher Willson Contreras' left forearm May 7, the obsession with and inherent problems stemming from framing pitches and stealing strikes came into stark relief.
Contreras, in the second year of a five-year, $87.5 million contract, will miss about 10 weeks due to the injury, a big price for the struggling Cardinals especially when the benefit was simply gaining one extra strike for his pitcher.
The obsession with pitch framing strike-stealing, or strike-preserving, depending on one's perspective isn't going away, at least in the absence of a fully automated strike zone. Yet Major League Baseball's concern with the problem which predates the Contreras-Martinez incident may prompt the league to bring the matter before its competition committee if teams and players cannot correct the rise in incidents themselves, according to a person familiar with the league's thinking who spoke to USA TODAY Sports on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly.
The league has reason to act: Catcher's interference calls are at an all-time high.
Through Sunday, there have been 35 violations for catcher's interference, which is called when a batter's swing strikes the catcher's glove before coming through the strike zone.
With the season barely one-quarter complete, the 35 violations already exceed the entire 2015 season's total of 33. After that season, catcher's interference calls began a steady rise, and increased 57% from 2021 to 2023, when it peaked with 74 violations a mark that will be obliterated this year, perhaps by the All-Star break.
That line of demarcation is probably no coincidence: 2015 was the first year MLB produced Statcast data, which, in concert with third-party tools such as high speed cameras and other tech, changed the way the game is analyzed, valued and ultimately played.
For catchers, it's meant creeping ever closer to the batter, largely aiming to stop the ball's flight before it dips below the strike zone. No matter the danger.
"I think at the end of the day, nothing will change because it's valued so much in terms of what you bring to the position, value to your team and ultimately to yourself in terms of getting paid," catcher Tucker Barnhart, an 11-year veteran, told USA TODAY Sports. "It's kind of a double-edged sword: If you don't do it, you don't play and you don't get paid.
. . .
Barnhart debuted in 2014, when, he said, framing was "kind of an afterthought" after blocking balls, nabbing basestealers and then receiving ability.
Now, he says, "It's the complete inverse."
The tools of ignorance have given way to countless contraptions. More than a dozen teams have invested in a Trajekt Arc pitching machine, a robot that's loaded with Statcast pitching data for both opponents and teammates. A catcher can test-drive a pitcher's repertoire and know exactly where to set up to snag a strike or two.
Advance scouting meetings are replete with information on how to best set up a hitter, which may involve creeping closer to his stance. And there's plenty of dirt on the guys with the longest, and ostensibly most dangerous swings.
"Hey, you have to be aware," says Baltimore Orioles veteran catcher James McCann. "Anyone can get you at any one time. But there are more guys that, based on their swing types, are a little more prone than other guys.
"One of the things we talk about before a series this guy has multiples (catcher's interference); be aware. It doesn't mean you change anything; just maybe don't go that far inside on him."
Indeed, the book was already out on Martinez a 6-3, 230-pounder who is particularly effective at letting the ball travel and pounding it to the opposite field. Shohei Ohtani, Luis Robert and Kyle Tucker are similarly long-limbed, long-swinging sluggers who consistently rank among league leaders in reaching base via interference.
. . .
Yet even before Contreras' injury, MLB had sounded the alarm on the rise in catcher interference. Now, in the wake of the Contreras injury, it again must ponder if it must intercede if teams don't change their habits.
. . .
You could also simply sort by batting average, pick out the lightest-hitting catchers and know why they're around. The Cleveland Guardians brought back Austin Hedges as a backup even after he batted just .172 over the previous four seasons.
"Hedges is always elite, maybe the best in the league," says Walker. "I remember taking some at-bats and him framing a breaking ball low and getting the call and looking down and his glove was in front of me. That's how they're doing it they're going and getting it.
"If they're willing to take the chance that the hitter's not swinging the bat and want to be vulnerable and go and get the pitch props to them. That's the classic risk-reward it sucks that it can come at the (expense) of a real injury. It sucks for Contreras; it's terrible. But also, you kind of know what could happen if that's the game we're playing."
The cat-and-mouse between pitcher, catcher and batter won't be going away soon. But nobody wants to see another Contreras situation.
To that end, MLB officials visited all 30 training camps this past spring and, as Arizona manager Torey Lovullo put it, "clearly defined the rules of where a catcher could set up and said they were going to monitor how close that catcher was to the batter."
. . .
Yet it seems either teams, managers or catchers are not listening. The league made it a point of emphasis during sessions with all 30 managers at the winter meetings, and then again during spring training. But with the rise in catcher-bat contact, the league may present catcher's interference to its competition committee as a potential safety issue.
The committee would then decide whether and how to legislate the issue and enforce it. The committee is comprised of six club representatives, four MLB Players' Association reps and one umpire.
. . .
Astros vs. A’s RHP Brooks: pic.twitter.com/cWvxbh08sN
— Matt Kawahara (@matthewkawahara) May 15, 2024