MLB Baseball 2009 Season Thread

bulls23 · Post by **bulls23** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 12:39 pm

XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:OMG, How will the Cubbies every recover from the fourth loss of the season and being 2 games back with only 153 games remaining. what is the Cards magic number

No reason you shouldnt win the division by a pretty safe margin but I will never pass up taking a shot at the Cubs

Go White Sox!

What a revolting picture. The only thing worse would be Lou Pinella kissing a goat. Good thing we'll never see that happen.

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 12:46 pm

bulls23 wrote:What a revolting picture. The only thing worse would be Lou Pinella kissing a goat. Good thing we'll never see that happen.

Or Tony LaRussa kissing a bottle of scotch before he drives...wait, that DID happen. But that picture is pretty revolting...yikes.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 2:48 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:
bulls23 wrote:What a revolting picture. The only thing worse would be Lou Pinella kissing a goat. Good thing we'll never see that happen.
Or Tony LaRussa kissing a bottle of scotch before he drives...wait, that DID happen. But that picture is pretty revolting...yikes.

....That was the idea

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 4:43 pm

dbdynsty25 wrote:
bulls23 wrote:What a revolting picture. The only thing worse would be Lou Pinella kissing a goat. Good thing we'll never see that happen.
Or Tony LaRussa kissing a bottle of scotch before he drives...wait, that DID happen. But that picture is pretty revolting...yikes.

Well at least Tony waited till the car was stopped to fall asleep.

Gangrel · Post by **Gangrel** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 4:49 pm

Nats win! Nats win! Nats win!

Oh, sorry, the last winless team in baseball finally won.....

carry on.

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 5:02 pm

XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:Why would anyone ever throw Soriano a fastball?
Major league pitchers will never be confused with rocket scientists.

Add the Cardinals staff to the list of idiots.

greggsand · Post by **greggsand** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 5:32 pm

TheGamer wrote:
XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:Why would anyone ever throw Soriano a fastball?
Major league pitchers will never be confused with rocket scientists.
Add the Cardinals staff to the list of idiots.

That was a slider... At least he was thinking out of the box

I wonder who on the cubs is getting plunked tomorrow for hitting pujols on the elbow??

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 5:45 pm

maybe I should say fastball or anything on the inside part of the plate.

I do suspect somebody to get hit tomorrow as LaRussa's paranoia knows no end. He'll think it was intentional even though Marmol did hit 5 batters in spring training.

greggsand · Post by **greggsand** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 5:55 pm

TheGamer wrote:maybe I should say fastball or anything on the inside part of the plate.

I do suspect somebody to get hit tomorrow as LaRussa's paranoia knows no end. He'll think it was intentional even though Marmol did hit 5 batters in spring training.

LaRussa is nuts, but he's not a big payback guy. THAT SAID, I have a feeling someone MR will probably go 'freelance' and plunk someone.

bulls23 · Post by **bulls23** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:09 pm

TheGamer wrote:
XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:Why would anyone ever throw Soriano a fastball?
Major league pitchers will never be confused with rocket scientists.
Add the Cardinals staff to the list of idiots.

If a healthy Chris Carpenter was the starter, the "fastball" would've never happened because it would've been a complete game shutout STL win.

The Cubs got a break because we started a rookie. That won't happen tomorrow or Sunday.

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:11 pm

bulls23 wrote:
TheGamer wrote:
XXXIV wrote: Major league pitchers will never be confused with rocket scientists.
Add the Cardinals staff to the list of idiots.
If a healthy Chris Carpenter was the starter, the "fastball" would've never happened because it would've been a complete game shutout STL win. The Cubs got a break because we started a rookie. That won't happen tomorrow or Sunday.

I remember when Cub fans use to talk like that about Mark Prior and Kerry Wood.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:14 pm

TheGamer wrote:
bulls23 wrote:
TheGamer wrote: Add the Cardinals staff to the list of idiots.
If a healthy Chris Carpenter was the starter, the "fastball" would've never happened because it would've been a complete game shutout STL win. The Cubs got a break because we started a rookie. That won't happen tomorrow or Sunday.
I remember when Cub fans use to talk like that about Mark Prior and Kerry Wood.

Yeah. Me too...I always enjoyed it.

bulls23 · Post by **bulls23** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:28 pm

Oh well, I love a good beat down of the Cubs Ace. If that's the best Zambrano can give, this game won't matter. I must admit, I didn't expect a Milton Bradley meltdown this early.

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 6:35 pm

Well, we'll see how the Cards like 2 of the Cubs other 3 aces Dempster and Lilly. Zambrano is the #1 because he's been there the longest, but at this point Dempster, Lilly and Harden are performing better.

Outside of that, you don't really think the Cards are going to outlast the Cubs over the whole season?

dbdynsty25 · Post by **dbdynsty25** » Fri Apr 17, 2009 7:50 pm

TheGamer wrote:Well, we'll see how the Cards like 2 of the Cubs other 3 aces Dempster and Lilly. Zambrano is the #1 because he's been there the longest, but at this point Dempster, Lilly and Harden are performing better.

Outside of that, you don't really think the Cards are going to outlast the Cubs over the whole season?

They will both be in the same place when the world series is being played...at home. So it really doesn't matter who has a better record at the end of the year really. So quick y'er bickering. Cub and Cardinal fans...wow. Going at it when they aren't even playing. Thankfully ESPN hasn't latched on to their nuts like they have the Yankees and Red Sox or ESPN would be an eliminated channel on my DirecTV receiver.

pigpen81 · Post by **pigpen81** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 12:32 am

More from Tony Gwynn at SDSU...his hitting insight is an awesome read:

http://www.619sports.blogspot.com/

ALBURQUERQUE, NEW MEXICO---Gray skies, mini snow flurries, and howling winds greeted the Aztecs as they arrived here for a critical three-game conference showdown with New Mexico. The team (and it's announcer) flew in yesterday afternoon on Southwest, with a turbulent bumpy landing that led pitching coach Rusty Filter to rename our flight choice "Knuckleball Airlines", and led head coach Tony Gwynn to consider the merits of making the 11-hour drive instead of the 90-minute flight.

The team immediately went from the airport to the University of New Mexico to stage a practice, using the team's half-astroturf, half-grass field. Coach Gwynn placed a screen inside the batting cage, behind the plate, and then sat on a chair behind that screen, instructing his hitters not to hit the ball out of the park (not an easy feat, given the icy but blasting wind, mile-high conditions, and inviting fences). Instead, the hitters were told just to work on their swings, the plane of the bat traveling through the strike zone, and hitting the ball the other way. Trying not to do too much at the plate is a constant refrain from the coaching staff, pounding the message home to try and counter the natural, youthful tendency to pull and hook the ball in search of a homerun. It was a good practice to help acclimatize the young kids into the thin air while also getting the blood flowing after a day of travel.

What's there to do in Albuquerque? Well, I'm sure there's something, but it doesn't exist around the team hotel. The Drury is actually very nice, with a hot, free breakfast buffet and complimentary wings and drinks for Happy Hour. It just happens to be in the middle of an industrial complex. I asked the clerk at the front desk where the nearest sundry store was. He told me it was "a block" down the street at a Chevron station. 1 mile+ later, I found it, after walking past dozens of empty office buildings. Oh, and there's a Clear Channel radio multiplex across the street. Yay, dark reminders!

This morning provided a fascinating glimpse into Coach Gwynn's teaching style. The team bused to the Albuquerque Baseball Academy after breakfast, an indoor hitting facility. After 7 or 8 rounds of BP, Gwynn huddled the team around a video monitor, where the Academy had frame-by-frame recordings of the swings of various MLB players.

"Head behind the ball, head behind the ball," said Gwynn, "doesn't matter who you put up there (on the screen), you'll see their head is behind the ball."

Up popped Joe Mauer, A-Rod, Giambi, Soriano, Carlos Lee, and others. Sure enough, at the point of contact, the head was always behind the ball, the arms were extended in the hitting V, the eyes were watching the ball into the hitting zone.

"Look at the bat plane through the zone now," as the next frames clicked into place. "Flat. Flat. Flat. Look at the knob of the bat. The knob of the bat goes to the ball, the barrel follows. Watch."

The video of A-Rod would back up two frames, and there it was. The knob, then the bat barrel.

Next, Gwynn asked the video tech to put up some different players. Derrek Lee, bad bat plane, rolling over on a fastball and hitting a grounder to third.

"See? That's the bad, low bat plane I get on you guys about, and look at the result."

Then, the video tech had to smile at the next group of hitters Gwynn asked to see on the screen. The tech said, "nobody's asked us to look at the David Eckstein video before!"

But there was little Eck, with the Cards, taking (as Gwynn put it) "97-mile-an-hour cheddar" to right field.

"Here's a Punch and Judy guy, but look again. Head behind the ball, he's choking up on the bat, but the bat plane is flat, and he takes that pitch (a Bartolo Colon fastball) on a line into right field."

I've always heard about Gwynn's exploits as "Captain Video", but to watch it in person as a lesson imparted to his hitters was fascinating for a seam-head like me.

The last message delivered to the team was one of focus, heightened awareness, staying on the little things that lead to success, and trusting your ability. I don't know what SDSU's results will be this weekend in New Mexico. I do know that they are ready to play. Catch all the action on goaztecs.com, I'll have the call at 5pm (Pacific Time) tonight and tomorrow, and 11am on Sunday.

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 7:48 pm

Wow what a great win today by the Cubs. coming back after being down all game.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 7:51 pm

TheGamer wrote:Wow what a great win today by the Cubs. coming back after being down all game.

I think an even bigger loss for the Cards. They would need any and all breaks they could get to stay with the Cubs. This loss combined with yesterdays has to have messed with them.

10spro · Post by **10spro** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:17 pm

Who are these Jays?

bulls23 · Post by **bulls23** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:28 pm

XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:Wow what a great win today by the Cubs. coming back after being down all game.
I think an even bigger loss for the Cards. They would need any and all breaks they could get to stay with the Cubs. This loss combined with yesterdays has to have messed with them.

Ridiculous. The Cubs are defending DIVISION champions and favored to win the Central (some say be in the World Series). The Cardinals are by most experts "rebuilding". For the Cardinals to be leading in all three games and lose by a run or two to the Cubs, going for a split tomorrow, means bad news for the Northsiders.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 8:56 pm

bulls23 wrote:
XXXIV wrote:
TheGamer wrote:Wow what a great win today by the Cubs. coming back after being down all game.
I think an even bigger loss for the Cards. They would need any and all breaks they could get to stay with the Cubs. This loss combined with yesterdays has to have messed with them.

Ridiculous. The Cubs are defending DIVISION champions and favored to win the Central (some say be in the World Series). The Cardinals are by most experts "rebuilding". For the Cardinals to be leading in all three games and lose by a run or two to the Cubs, going for a split tomorrow, means bad news for the Northsiders.

Nah. No where near ridiculous. The Cards need all the mo they can get coming out of the gate to compete against a vastly more talent laden team . They have had back to back heart breaking losses.

Dont misunderstand. I want the Cards to win!

Gangrel · Post by **Gangrel** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 9:58 pm

Wow, the Nationals bullpen sucks major youknowwhat......

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 10:29 pm

I don't think you can put so much emphasis on a series within the first 2 weeks of the season. I was really trolling when I was talking about this being a great win. I know there are a lot of Cards fans on this site. So I was really just trying to give those guys s**t. Cards have a great lineup, I just don't think they have the pitching to keep up with the Cubs. Especially with Carpenter being out for the next 2 months. Even without the current injury I don't think he was going to be 100% anyway. Even if the Cubs win tomorrow, it means nothing this early in the season. Cubs/Cards series are always great and very competitive no matter what part of the season though. I really enjoy this rivalry, much more so than Cubs/Sox.

XXXIV · Post by **XXXIV** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 10:32 pm

TheGamer wrote: I was really trolling when I was talking about this being a great win. I know there are a lot of Cards fans on this site. So I was really just trying to give those guys s**t. .

Thats the spirit

TheGamer · Post by **TheGamer** » Sat Apr 18, 2009 10:34 pm

I'm from Springfield, Il. Either you're a Cubs or Cards fan there. I put up with a lot of crap down there growing up, especially in the 80s. Its all in good fun though.