The Baltmore Orioles: 2012 A.L. East First Half of April Champions!
Print the shirts!
-MJ
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The Baltmore Orioles: 2012 A.L. East First Half of April Champions!
Print the shirts!
-MJ
Is it worth noting that after giving a collective heart attack to all Braves fans by starting 0-4, the team has now ripped off 5 wins in a row?
Naaah, not worth noting.
But, it is worth noting that Chipper Jones is ridiculously productive when healthy. If he can play 100 games in moderately healthy condition, this Braves team will probably win 100 games.
As an aside, I like the Nats but the Phils can go suck it! So, Braves-Nats in the playoffs is fine with me!
-Jason "farewell to Chipper -- a great season to go out on is what you deserve" Evans
It is AMAZING what Chipper Jones' mere presence in the line-up and on the field does for the Braves. Going to the Mets game tomorrow (Tuesday). Makin' a sign that reads something along the lines of "Jonesing for One More Year!"
Also, many Braves fans were upset at the lack of off-season moves. But let's face it, Bourne in centerfield is just as good as an off-season move. This time last year, the Braves were playing with Nate "Bless His Heart" McClouth in center. Good guy, but with Bourne and all he can do (hit, steal bases, field, etc.), what a HUGE improvement Atlanta will enjoy from last season.
And Dan Uggla. Highly doubtful he will begin this season anywhere near as woeful as he did last. So right off the bat (pardon the pun) you get production at two positions for the first half of '12 that you did not see at all in '11. Throw a rejuvinated Heyward in the mix too. I like this Braves team.
Now, if only they can keep the pitchers healthy.
-MJ
The triple play the Dodgers lucked into yesterday seems all wrong. I have to confess, however, that the replay is inconclusive. In real time it looked like a foul ball. Certainly the ump's initial reaction, seeming to signal dead ball, froze the Padre runners. And that's why I think the play is wrong. His hesitancy and misleading signal caused it all. Yet, he may well have been right. Just like me he may have at first thought that in all probability it was a foul ball which had glanced off the batter and bounced forward into fair territory. I think most observers would think that, at least from distance. It certainly happens frequently enough to be common. It's unfortunate that he began his call incorrectly, leading to the runners becoming sitting ducks.
Combined for 9 runs in the 8-11 innings to win in extra innings!
I'm very happy with how Arrieta has pitched thus far. Heck the whole starting rotation. Matusz had a rough time with his command his first time out, got it under control a bit in the second until the 6th inning. There's a lot of young talent on that team, there's just no one who's...won... before, ya know? It was never going to happen, but I was a big fan of trying to bring Buehrle to Baltimore.
Side note, I'm very confused as to how I am leading my fantasy league in quality starts (10), ERA and WHIP but am in last place in wins (3)...
Agreed, and as a side note, I am a diehard Orioles fan; just haven't had much to pull for in the last 12 years or so. My God, you would think they'd be good by accident at least one of those years. I'm 43, and grew up listening to O's games in the car, in the driveway on WTOP when they weren't on TV. I grew up in Burlington, NC and pretty much had to choose between the Orioles and Braves (Braves were on every night). Then Home Team Sports (HTS) came along and I gravitated to them. My room became all-orange, especially after they won it all in 1983. Anyway, been living in Atlanta now for 15 years and have sort of adopted the Braves, but if it were ever to be a Braves/Orioles World Series, I'd have to go with the O's.
You didn't ask, but I felt compelled to share. My poking fun at the O's mini victory in April is just my inner desperate O's fandom coming out. Go O's!
2012! "Why Not!?"
-MJ
I'm originally from Annapolis, moved to NC when I was 9. My parents took me to a lot of O's games. As all good Maryland kids, I grew up a huge Ripken fan. Got Ripken posters and pennants on my walls. Actually went to the Ripken Camp when I was 13 (got to hit BP off of Cal. COOLEST THING EVER). My parents though were Yankee fans so I naturally grew up one as I got older and moved away from good ole' MD. Anyways, went back to Baltimore this past summer for a game(ironically against the Yankees), and it really re-energized my love of the O's.
So when people ask who my team is, I'll usually say "Fan of the Yanks, love the O's."
For those who missed it..
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7HP1...eature=related
Ok, I don't think I know all the rules. So after watching it,, I thought when an umpire ( LA umpires are the same as Carolina Refs BTW ) threw his arms up , like "TIME" out etc.. twice.
Padre runners should have been running no matter what.
Since I think the umpire threw his arms up twice, is that sorta like a double negative and turned the ball in to a fair ball ? :cool:
Is behind home plate fair territory ?
Padre fan, Mariner fans, Oriole fans,, glad we have a thread to vent on lol..
BEAT LA BEAT LA BEAT LA
The way the rule works is that the batters box is in foul territory. So if a bunted (batted) ball glances off the batter and hits him, it's only a foul ball and therefore dead because it hit a player in foul territory. If the bunted ball misses the batter, but hits within the batter's box or other foul ground, it depends on where the ball goes. If it goes into fair territory, it is a fair ball until it goes out of bounds again. That is true of any hit within the infield area. A foul ball may become fair if it rolls into fair territory.
Here, I'm not sure what the ump thinks he saw. It looks like he ruled that it never hit the batter and it was fair either because it hit fair, the plate, or rolled fair after having hit behind the plate. Or, he could have just missed the call but the slow-mo seems to show that the ball did not hit the batter. The ump's hands up signal, however, made the play unfair as that is the dead ball signal; but he then changed his call to fair. We also cannot know what, if anything the ump said. He may have inconsistently signaled dead and said "Fair ball!" The catcher could not have seen the signal, but he acted as if he knew it was fair the whole way. Maybe he heard "Fair" or maybe he just did what the defense is supposed to do, treat it as fair until told otherwise.
If the batter knew the bunt hadn't hit him, he should have been running to first, because he knew the ball was in fair territory.
Some reading
And MLB reviews the play, saying...
I knew it,, typical LA Refs ,, I mean umps LOL..
Thanks Jim3k
Just in case you have any doubts about Rick Ankiel's arm, here an article and video from Yahoo Sports on the throw he made from center field on Sunday. No outfield assist on this one - the runner was smart enough not to bother running. From mid-centerfield - a throw of maybe 300 feet - and the ball hits catcher Wilson Ramos in the chest at home plate. Ramos doesn't even have to move. The comment was made, "How many times do you see a crowd give a standing ovation to an outfielder for a throw that doesn't even get an out?"
http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-bi...134322346.html
Here's the video if you just want to go straight to it.
http://sports.yahoo.com/video/player...ights/28975009
I submit for your viewing pleasure:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_cOj614ohFU
Ankiel was always one of my favorite Cardinals. The first couple years in the Cardinal OF I thought he could make the transition to full time hitter. He had .800+ OPS, but alas he started too late and is past his "prime years". If he had started as a hitter I think he would have been a monster in the OF.
Reminds me of the old All Star games where Dave Parker and Dave Winfield ( of the Padres ) would have contest to see who could throw the best..
But Rick Ankeils throw... wow... "we're not worthy" type preformance.. that was unreal. Loved the runner on third watching lol.
WOW
Yes, as a long-time Cards fan, and now a hometown Nats fan I've always loved Ankiel. It was like living a nightmare to watch him just blow apart as a young pitcher in the playoffs 8-10 years back. But he's easy to root for, and just plain fun to watch him throw. I was watching live that throw vs Houston a couple days ago -- they just don't even bother testing him anymore!
I sometimes wonder if there's ever any chance he'd come back as a pitcher again... Hmmm. But I can dream about the Nats having the best "emergency pitcher" in the majors, should they run out of bullpen help in a long game some day. :rolleyes:
But, did I not tell y'all in the preseason that the Nats were going to be "strongly up and coming" this year, and the next few? That pitching is just amazing. :D Their average pitch speed for the first 12 games, from among their 5 starters, is OVER 93mph (!). (Front of the Sports section article in today's Post had it all researched.) Detwiler, who is actually their 6th or 7th best starter when everyone is healthy, is the only starter averaging under 93mph (!!). With a collective ERA under 2.00 , I believe, it is easy to see why the Nats - who once again came back and won another low-scoring affair yet again tonight (3-2 over Hou) - are 10-3 and in command of the NL East. Bring on those lowly Braves hitters... Strasburg, Gio Gonzalez, Zimmermann, E-Jax and Det will be waiting... :cool:
In all seriousness, I am wondering if the Phils will be able to keep it close enough until their big bats come back healthy again, in 2-3 months. Their starting pitching is their only hope. I'd love to see a rivalry develop between ATL and DC. After all, it was a couple of former Braves guys who formed the core of the Nats' braintrust in originally coming up with this "pitching-first" development strategy the Nats are employing so well. Now, if we can just get (Closer) Storen and LF Morse back from injuries before the end of June (which is about the time Harper will likely show up too).
This Phillies/Giants game is absurd! Cain threw 9 shutout innings on 91 pitches, Lee threw 10 shutout innings on 102 pitches. Phillies have go ahead run on third with 2 outs in the top of the 11th. Still tied 0-0
Tonight, in an amazing display of control, Bartolo Colon of the A's threw 38 straight strikes against the Angels. This feat had never been accomplished before (insofar as is known, due to record keeping issues). Plus, he shut out the Angels over 8 innings, allowing only 4 hits in a 6-0 victory. Over 80% of his pitches were strikes.
The A's are now just one game under .500 and seem to have found their mislaid bats, getting 10 hits, including 2 HRs, a 3-run shot by Cespedes in the first and a solo blast by Gomes in the 6th.
Although the linked article doesn't mention it, the A's broadcast team reported that the last pitcher to throw 30 straight strikes was knuckle-baller Tim Wakefield in 1988 against Cleveland. (Oh, here's the Star-Tribune on that.)
The disputed triple play against the Padres -- controversial because the homeplate ump screwed up and made a deceptive signal -- reminded me of something I just read about the 1947 season.
The Dodgers and Cardinals are locked in a tight battle for the NL pennant. They are playing a big game in Sportsman Park in late July. The Cards take a 2-0 lead into the bottom of the eighth when Ron Northey -- a former Duke baseball player -- smashes one that hits near the top of the wall in front of the right-centerfield stands. Dodger centerfielder Pete Reiser jumps for the ball, misses and (as he was wont to do) knocks himself silly against the ball, which richocets back toward the infield with rightfielder Dixie Walker chasing it.
Northey is running full speed, but he's not the fastest guy (his nickname was "The Round Man"), anyway as he rounds third, gunning for an inside the park homer, third-base ump Beans Reardon, one of the best umps in the NL, says, "Why are you running hard? It's a home run." Northey slows to a trot ... Walker gets the ball, throws it in and when Northey reaches home plate, catcher Bruce Edwards tags him and homeplate ump Larry Goetz calls him out. Naturally a rhubarb ensues ... the umps huddle and while Bearndon thinks it was a home run, both Goetz and first-base ump Jocko Conlon (later a hall of famer, but a fairly young ump at this point) claim it hit just below the top of the wall and didn't go out and come back. Since it was Conlon's call, that's what they went with and Northey was out.
That call became very important when the Dodgers rallied for three in the top of the ninth and won 3-2. The Cardinals protested on the basis of Reardon's misinformation and Ford Frick agreed with them -- he ordered the game replayed from the beginning. The Dodgers won the replay and the pennant.
I think that if baseball admits that the Padres were spoofed by the homeplate ump's mistake, they should order a replay of that game. The rule in every sport is clear -- you stop when the ref/ump orders play stopped -- no "Well, I better keep running because he might not really mean it."