Topic: The 2008 Baseball Thread

[shemps#1]

And this post here makes it the third thread to hit the 300 mark.

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The 2008 Baseball Thread       300

[curlysdame]

I loved it when the Dodgers came out with the "Los Angeles Dodgers of Los Angeles" in response to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim".

Haha, are you serious?  When was that?

[shemps#1]

Haha, are you serious?  When was that?

It was when the Angels first started calling themselves the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.

[shemps#1]

If the first game was any indication the NLCS should be one hell of a series.

[metaldams]

What a great pitching duel tonight between Dice-K and Shields.  In the regular season, Tampa Bay was 8 - 1 at the Trop and pretty much won all the close games, but come postseason, Boston wins the 2 - 0 classic.  I've never seen anything like Dice-K before, he's the real Houdini.  Let's hope Beckett is his old self tomorrow and Kaz is not his old self.

It's still too early to say, but that Boston Vs. Philadelphia series might happen, and as a Sox fan living in Delaware, things will be tense.

[shemps#1]

What a game one of the ALCS. Dice-K was awesome, Shields was awesome...wow.

It was like Dice-K and the Sox kept giving the Tampa crowd little jabs to the stomach throughout the game. Each and every time Tampa had an opportunity they'd get out of the jam and the crowd kept getting quieter as the game went on. By the time Masterson induced the double play in the 8th and everybody knew Papelbon was coming in to close it the crowd was finally knocked out. Hell, I was absolutely on edge throughout the game but was much more calm in the 9th when Papelbon was on the mound.

What more can I say? 6 no-hit innings, 9 strikeouts....shit. I probably would have done the same as Tito and brought Dice-K out for the 8th (even with his history and with him over 100 pitches) just because he was pitching so damn well. I damn near shit a brick when Masterson came in though.

The big question now is whether or not this young Tampa team can bounce back after such a crushing loss. In the playoffs I would much rather get blown out 19-8 than lose a game 2-0 where we had opportunities to at least tie it. They lost despite a phenomenal outing by the man who has been their ace all year, they lost at home to a team that they beat 8 out of 9 times in the Trop during the regular season, they now face Beckett in game 2 and Lester in game 3, and now they have to win at least one game at Fenway.

Game 2 will be quite interesting.

[shemps#1]

What a great pitching duel tonight between Dice-K and Shields.  In the regular season, Tampa Bay was 8 - 1 at the Trop and pretty much won all the close games, but come postseason, Boston wins the 2 - 0 classic.  I've never seen anything like Dice-K before, he's the real Houdini.  Let's hope Beckett is his old self tomorrow and Kaz is not his old self.

It's still too early to say, but that Boston Vs. Philadelphia series might happen, and as a Sox fan living in Delaware, things will be tense.

He has taken about 30 years off of my life, and I absolutely love it.

[metaldams]

He has taken about 30 years off of my life, and I absolutely love it.

Yeah, but there's the one catch - can you imagine if he DIDN'T walk so many guys and go so deep into counts?  He'd be the best pitcher in baseball, hands down.  As he stands now, he's very very good, not just for the health of Red Sox fans.  I'm so psyched we beat James Shields in Tampa, wasn't sure about this game going in.  Now even if we split the first two, we have home field advantage.

Oh, and despite winning, a tough day for the Phils.  Charlie Manual lost his mother and Shane Victorino his grandmother.  My condolences to both.

[shemps#1]

You gotta remember he's still pretty young and I'm pretty sure he his control will get better (at least I hope so).

As for NLCS, I was puzzled when the "experts" kept talking about how after Hamels the Dodgers have much pitching than the Phillies. As much as I love Derek Lowe, if he's your #1 starter there's something wrong. The Red Sox have 3 aces and the Dodgers have none. How about Brett Myers? He was better at bat than he was on the mound!

[shemps#1]

Thank goodness that game is finally over. Awful game all around in my book, I hate high scoring baseball games. Advantage is still with the Red Sox however, we did what we had to in game one, which was win in Tampa. Now they have to win in Boston.

[metaldams]

Thank goodness that game is finally over. Awful game all around in my book, I hate high scoring baseball games. Advantage is still with the Red Sox however, we did what we had to in game one, which was win in Tampa. Now they have to win in Boston.

Bartlett should've struck out on that check swing, but it doesn't matter. Timlin was in, the white flag was raised.  Another 5+ hour loss, and the ultimate blame goes to Beckett for his shoddy pitching and Francona for leaving him in way too long.  Tito's been leaving pitchers in too long all post season, and it was bound to hurt us at some point. 

I too am a fan of lower - medium scoring (5 - 4 type) games, and did not care for this one.  I did like the 19 - 17 win over Texas only because of its freakish nature, but generally, I can do without these games. 

Boston still does have the advantage, though.  Lester on Monday, homefield is ours.

[shemps#1]

I was reading a Yankees fan's blog when looking up the new-to-me baseball jargon Special Sauce and the guy predicted the Red Sox in 5 since the Sox should take one in Tampa but Tampa should lose all of the games in Boston, so I guess that was their one.

To be quite honest I was bored and just waiting for it to end. I love pitcher's duels like game 1 and this was anything but. I think the move to Timlin was more about protecting Paps since he took that liner off of his arm.

[shemps#1]

By the way, that's supposed to be "Secret Sauce", not "Special Sauce"...damn that game went on too long.

[JazzBill]

Game 3 of ALCS series just ended. The Red Sox just received a good old fashioned ASS KICKING. 

[Justin T]

Game 3 of ALCS series just ended. The Red Sox just received a good old fashioned ASS KICKING. 

No kidding, that B.J. Upton home run didnt just go over the Green Monster, it went out of the damn park!

Game 4 is going to be very interesting now, they better hope Wakefield does well or they could
be looking at a 3-1 deficit after Wednesday.

Are you Sox fans worried or just concerned after today's game? I was shocked Lester got rocked
so bad, he's been very good this year.

Both LCS's have been very good so far, even though my Yankess aren't around its still fun to watch
some playoff baseball.

[shemps#1]

I'd much rather lose by ass kicking than by a close score...those are easier to shake off.

Hey Justin, are you worried or just concerned that Son of George is going to continue to let the Yankees spiral down the shithole? At least there's baseball in Boston. And Bill? You really shouldn't talk.

Mark my words, if the Sox fail to make the World Series it will be the worst thing for baseball. Love them or hate them, more people will watch the Red Sox than the Rays.

[JazzBill]

I'd much rather lose by ass kicking than by a close score...those are easier to shake off.

Hey Justin, are you worried or just concerned that Son of George is going to continue to let the Yankees spiral down the shithole? At least there's baseball in Boston. And Bill? You really shouldn't talk.

Mark my words, if the Sox fail to make the World Series it will be the worst thing for baseball. Love them or hate them, more people will watch the Red Sox than the Rays.

You got me wrong , I don't have a dog in this fight. I'm just saying Tampa may have a little more than you think. ( Like we found out in Chicago ) I really wouldn't care to watch a Tampa Bay -  Philly World Series. I don't think MLB or the TV station would like to see it either.

[Justin T]

Like Jazzbill, I wasn't trying to imply ill feelings, I was just asking are you concerned about their perfomance.
I didn't say that the Sox are dead, there's still alot of baseball left to play.

If it came off that way I'm sorry.

To be honest, I'm not gleefully hoping the Sox lose. Even though their not my team, the Sox
have a large fanbase and that means higher ratings for the World Series. You are
correct about that Shemps.

A Philly-Tampa Bay Series would be interesting, but who the hell would want to watch it?
The ratings will be low because both cities don't have big fan bases like the Sox and
to an extent, the Dodgers. You know the big wigs at Fox want Red Sox vs Dodgers for
the World Series.

As for the Steinbrenners, I have no love for them and my tolerance for there BS is very low. Do I wish
we had different people owning the team? Yes, but untill they all die off it's not happening.

[shemps#1]

Guys, I was just talking smack, as is common among sports fans. That's what I thought you were doing. I'm the one who should apologize if I came off as genuinely offended. 

I never underestimated the Rays, in fact if you look back I picked the Sox in 7 and was very uneasy about the pick. I'm still standing by my pick. If Lester had pitched well and lost a nail biter I'd be worried, but a horribly pitched game like last night can be shrugged off as an anomaly and definitely not expected come game 7. Nine times out of ten I'll go with Lester will top Garza, that was the one. It is the so-called "experts" that have underestimated a team that won 97 games and took first place in MLB's toughest division.

What I said about the World Series however was true. With the Red Sox most people will have a horse in the race, either they will be cheering for the Sox or against them. With Tampa most people won't care and you'll get very low ratings. Since there is no chance for Red Sox/Cubs a Red Sox/Dodgers series is the big get. I don't believe for a second it would be at all competitive (no matter what the match-up the AL should sweep the NL), but it would draw in the most casual viewers and would be the best for baseball. The Rays would get a collective snore from most of the country, only the front-running gomers in Tampa that have very suddenly called themselves "fans" would watch, and I truly wonder how many of them will.

I've been planning on writing an article about the "anti-Northeast bias" among sports fans and baseball fans in particular, which pertains to both the Red Sox and Yankees. If it comes out the way I'm planning it it should be an interesting read.

[Justin T]

Guys, I was just talking smack, as is common among sports fans. That's what I thought you were doing. I'm the one who should apologize if I came off as genuinely offended. 

I never underestimated the Rays, in fact if you look back I picked the Sox in 7 and was very uneasy about the pick. I'm still standing by my pick. If Lester had pitched well and lost a nail biter I'd be worried, but a horribly pitched game like last night can be shrugged off as an anomaly and definitely not expected come game 7. Nine times out of ten I'll go with Lester will top Garza, that was the one. It is the so-called "experts" that have underestimated a team that won 97 games and took first place in MLB's toughest division.

What I said about the World Series however was true. With the Red Sox most people will have a horse in the race, either they will be cheering for the Sox or against them. With Tampa most people won't care and you'll get very low ratings. Since there is no chance for Red Sox/Cubs a Red Sox/Dodgers series is the big get. I don't believe for a second it would be at all competitive (no matter what the match-up the AL should sweep the NL), but it would draw in the most casual viewers and would be the best for baseball. The Rays would get a collective snore from most of the country, only the front-running gomers in Tampa that have very suddenly called themselves "fans" would watch, and I truly wonder how many of them will.

I've been planning on writing an article about the "anti-Northeast bias" among sports fans and baseball fans in particular, which pertains to both the Red Sox and Yankees. If it comes out the way I'm planning it it should be an interesting read.

Totally agree about the World Series, and that article about "anti-Northeast bias" sounds interesting. I'll look foward to reading it.

[metaldams]

The thing with Lester last night is he only had one bad inning.  A tip of the hat to Tampa for getting to him.

I also don't think there's a single Red Sox fan who's confident going down 2 games to 1 with Wakefield pitching.  I cheer for the guy big time, but it's been so long since he's stepped up in a big game.  I hope he can do it tonight.  The offense looks really bad now, and even the 8 run game was mostly because of Pedroia, Youklis, and Bay.  Drew is the only one outside of those three I feel confident in producing runs for us right now.  I think every Sox fan knew with out and men on second and third, Varitek and Cora would not drive in a run.

That said, credit where credit is due, Tampa Bay is a young and hungry team with no weaknesses I can see.  There's still time for Boston to turn this ship around, but they're looking old and beat up right now.

[shemps#1]

Tampa does have weaknesses: their starting pitching after Shields is questionable (despite Garza's one good outing in game 3), they don't have a solid closer.

[metaldams]

A 3 run 1st. Pena and Longoria are beasts.  I hope Tito has a short leash for Wakefield in the 2nd. 

[shemps#1]

Pena is alright, Longoria however is a beast...4 or 5 tool guy. Looks like Wake's knuckler has started to dance more.

[metaldams]

Pena is alright, Longoria however is a beast...4 or 5 tool guy. Looks like Wake's knuckler has started to dance more.

A couple of these outs have been deep flies, but if he can keep putting up zeroes through six, I'll be happy with him.

We just have to get to Andy Sonnastine.  We finally figure out Kazmir, and they throw another guy who owns us.