nag

nag's Comments

Posted Thursday March 19, 2009, About: Peavy questions lack of WBC interest
This pisses me off to no end. You Classic hating yokels SHOULD feel bad about not caring. Players SHOULD feel bad about not signing to represent their COUNTRY. If any of you would actually take a break from bitching about the classic and maybe WATCH a game or two, you'd see that WBC baseball is a whole new atmosphere. You're just missing out on some fantastic baseball. Oh, and, the US team has been nowhere close to being the team to beat for years, so they need fans to root for them. Our team is struggling to get by and has lost three games already.

Some highlights for you all:
I saw the Cuban middle infield pull off the filthiest play I've ever seen in a ball game. Check out the link: http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?mid=200903193982753

Korea vs. Japan games have more excitement and bad blood in them than Red Sox/Yankees games and with a quarter of the attendance.

Watching the Netherlands scrap out victories against the DR and almost upset Puerto Rico was something to behold. Seeing Australia set the record for offense in a WBC game when they mercy-ruled Mexico wasn't half bad either.

All in all I think you need to watch some WBC baseball before you knock it. I'm a big baseball fan and probably watch over 500 games a year (thank you Mlb.com). I've watched almost every classic game this year and I tell you they are worth watching. The game of baseball is no longer America's game. Where would the Dodgers have been last season without Manny (not American)? How many rings would the Red Sox have without David Ortiz (not American)? New York loves their Mariano Rivera (not American). It's time to face it and realize that America does not provide all the talent in baseball, and that the MLB does not steal all the talent from foreign markets. See it showcased in the WBC.
Posted Tuesday March 17, 2009, About: Chipper upset with WBC format
You people don't know what you're talking about. It's pretty obvious that you haven't watched many of the games so far this classic, because there have been some FANTASTIC and EXCITING ball games. So what if there are pitch counts! So what if there are days off in between games! This isn't major league baseball. It's world baseball, and it has a little bit of a different feel to it. The intensity is different, the style of play is different, but certainly an entertaining thing to watch. Those NED vs. DOM games were incredible games. It's great to see such an underdog and inexperienced team play such high-octane and tight baseball. You don't get to see that during the season.

Also, the Japan/Korea rivalry is almost more exciting to me than Yankees/Red Sox and I'm a die-hard Yankees fan.

So to all you Classic haters out there... you and Chipper Jones can go stick it, because it's been scientifically proven that you all suck.
Posted Tuesday June 24, 2008, About: Pavano may return in August
Anyone notice how Kaz Matsui went on the DL earlier this season with "**** fissure"? I'll bet Mr. Idle will win a cracked anus and another trip to the DL for his crowd-pleasing performance.
Posted Friday May 23, 2008, About: Umps blow another HR call
With the degree of camera footage of every baseball play, you don't need to have instant replay at all. You don't really even need to have umpires on the field at all. They can be in a booth watching multiple camera feeds that give them all the angles they need to see.
Posted Monday March 24, 2008, About: Hampton's comeback complete?
Heh. I don't see Johan Santana suddenly collapsing under the bright city lights of the New York media after holding his own with the #1 pitcher in all of baseball status stamped on his forehead for the past half-decade. As for Hampton looking sharp this Spring, sure I give you that. He's looked sharp against line-ups that aren't full major league quality. I'd say all you have to be happy about is that his arm hasn't fallen off yet from picking up a baseball. Let's revisit the issue in June or July and see how he's doing then.
Posted Thursday March 13, 2008, About: Baldelli's mysterious illness
Sorry to burst your collective bubbles, but I do not think that HGH will be an effective treatment for his condition. Since the defect seems to be restricted to his muscle cells, he probably shouldn't even be playing ball since it may also effect his heart which needs to work all the time. Sounds like a weird enzymatic defect to me, although I don't know why he wouldn't have had these symptoms for his entire life. You'd think someone would have noticed something... Poor kid.
Posted Friday February 29, 2008, About: Bowa ignores new helmet rule
I said one life in a decade to be conservative. It's probably one life in a century. I just wasn't sure how often this has happened historically. We probably have a better chance of being struck by lightning than seeing this happen again in our lifetimes. To put this in perspective, I remember a shortstop took a bad-hop grounder off the throat in the early days of baseball and died from it. Of course, throat guards did not become mandated protective wear and major league shortstops are still free to ply their trade as they always have. This incident and the tragic accident that claimed the life of Mike Coolbaugh have one thing in common: they do not happen often. They do not even happen rarely. In fact they happen NEXT TO NEVER. Each and every MLB employee has a much better chance of dying on their way to work than they do from getting hit with a baseball.

The point I am trying to make is that this freak incident is not indicative of a hazardous work environment for base coaches. From the point of a business manager it makes no sense to piss off all your employees to fix something that isn't broken.
Posted Friday February 29, 2008, About: Bowa ignores new helmet rule
I said one life in a decade to be conservative. It's probably one life in a century. I just wasn't sure how often this has happened historically. We probably have a better chance of being struck by lightning than seeing this happen again in our lifetimes. To put this in perspective, I remember a shortstop took a bad-hop grounder off the throat in the early days of baseball and died from it. Of course, throat guards did not become mandated protective wear and major league shortstops are still free to ply their trade as they always have. This incident and the tragic accident that claimed the life of Mike Coolbaugh have one thing in common: they do not happen often. They do not even happen rarely. In fact they happen NEXT TO NEVER. Each and every MLB employee has a much better chance of dying on their way to work than they do from getting hit with a baseball.

The point I am trying to make is that this freak incident is not indicative of a hazardous work environment for base coaches. From the point of a business manager it makes no sense to piss off all your employees to fix something that isn't broken.
Posted Friday February 29, 2008, About: Bowa ignores new helmet rule
You know, this helmet rule is unbelievably silly. Any arguments that base coaches shirking the rule would adversely influence our children are also cockamamie. We're talking about grown men here, not dependent children. They can make decisions concerning their safety in this manner on their own and don't need to be forced into it by a MLB mandate if it doesn't suit them.

Just because a coach just recently died from a line drive, doesn't make the incident any more frequent. I believe the term used is "freak accident", meaning a rare, improbable occurrence. Regardless of what they are doing on the field or what they are paying attention to, the fact is that base coaches are a good deal further from the plate than say a pitcher (who despite facing the plate get struck by batted balls much more often and suffer major injuries as a result). But you don't hear people clamoring to save our pitchers. The new rule is clearly a first-rate example of political grandstanding and is pretty superfluous. I doubt the helmets will save more than one life a decade.
Posted Wednesday December 12, 2007, About: Sources: 50 players in Mitchell Report
I'm surprised the buzz-meter for this rumor isn't higher. Even if it's only 50 players, that's still quite a large number (it probably turns out to be over 5% of active players over the time period covered I bet). And even if they tried to protect big names, some big names will be on the list. Big names that people trusted and wore (or still wear) on their backs with pride. It constitutes the single largest aggregate admission of guilt we've seen in this sport so far. With upper reports of 60-80 players being named, this will be the dog and pony show we all wanted.

And not a moment too soon. There are things like the sanctity of the Hall of Fame at risk here. How many cheaters can get in before it starts to lose its meaning? When a man like Pete Rose is banned for life for his exploits off the field, how can we allow these steroid-filled cretins who decided to do their cheating ON THE FIELD for the personal gain of the social gift of FAME and sports immortality?
Posted Thursday September 20, 2007, About: Big Mac's tip helps Holliday
So on the topics of steroids, the idea of branding Barry Bonds's #756 ball with an asterisk before sending to Cooperstown has piqued my interest. Few ballplayers have epitomized the steroid era as much as Bonds (McGwire is another one). Washington has responded to steroids with inquiries, hearings, and congressional panels. MLB has responded with a tougher drug testing program. The press has responded with a torrent of articles and the promise by some sports-writers that they will not punch Barry Bonds's first ballot for the HOF.

With all that said, what have the fans done? We are as much a part of this game's legacy as the players who play it, the managers that manage, the writers and announcers that cover it. What have we said for ourselves in how we have handled the steroid era? What has our response been? We've talked a lot of trash, and we personally voted Mr. Bonds into the All-Star game (though he's arguably not of All-Star caliber anymore). We make an impact on how the game is played, especially in the internet age where our feelings and comments are a click away from being broadcast across the country. We're the money that fattens the owners' pockets and drives them to the decisions they make. We buy the tickets, the jerseys, and boost the television ratings that make the game go 'round. We're the heart of this great American past-time and when it comes down to it, we've done nothing of any lasting value in response to the threat that steroids bears against the sanctity of our sport.

Voting to brand a big fat asterisk on that ball and sending it off to Cooperstown to be enshrined for all history would send the message that has been so sorely lacking. It would say that whether Bonds juiced or not, he is still the symbol of the steroids era and that baseball fans will not stand for illegal steroids use in our game. It would tell the players, the owners and the government that this is OUR game and that this is OUR statement, and this statement will be there for all to see 100 years from now.
Posted Wednesday September 19, 2007, About: Pettitte: Yankees or out in 2008
I beg to differ about the Moose being gone. Maybe you guys haven't watched his last two starts. I was just as I said, he was in a funk, and needed a little break. Anyway, I think a rotation of Wang, Pettite, Moose, Hughes, and Joba/Kennedy looks pretty good. I think it's time the Yankees stop trying to fix pitching woes with costly free agent signings and go in-house. This allows them to handle the contractual issues they have upcoming with Posada, Rivera, and the lot.
Posted Saturday September 08, 2007, About: SI: Glaus received steroids
I'm tired of all this steroid bickering. Anabolic steroids and HGH have always been viable medical treatments promoting recovery from injury. In fact, prescription of these steroidal supplements is not uncommon medical practice for patients who have suffered major joint injuries. Just because illegal steroid use for performance-enhancing purposes is such a big political issue at the moment does not make it ethical to deny sound medical treatment to professional ball players. The fact that Glaus only ordered steroidal compounds during his convalescence is merely indicative of medical treatment for a severe shoulder injury, and not of cheating. There is no evidence that he took steroids while on active duty as a major league ball player.
Posted Wednesday August 29, 2007, About: Sox to replace Lowell with A-Rod?
I really don't think A-Rod will wind up leaving New York. He's the game's best player and I think he enjoys playing on the game's biggest stage in the good ole NYC.

As for Mike Lowell, I thought the Sox were screwed when they brought him over in the Beckett trade, but he's done well for them. With the lineup the Sox already have, would replacing Lowell with A-Rod even score them enough extra runs or win them enough extra games to justify the astronomical price they'd have to pay? I don't think A-Rod will opt out (he's really not that kind of guy), but even if he did, I think Cashman would find a way to keep him in the Bronx. They certainly have quite a bit of dead weight lying around that they can clear up or trade off (read Pavano and Giambi). I actually do not think that Abreu will be able to pull down anything close to his current monster contract and Mariano Rivera shouldn't cost that much more than he already does due to his age. You factor in the addition of Chamberlain into the rotation next year along with what should be a more successful sophomore run for Philip Hughes, and the Yank's rotation doesn't look all that bad for next year.

This season for the Yanks has been one in which they suffered the consequences of some bad free agent signings they made in past years (read Giambi, Pavano, Wright). They needed to retool and replenish their farm system (especially with pitchers) and Cashman managed to do that while getting rid of some expensive baggage (Wright, Sheffield, and Johnson). The injuries aside, it's not all that surprising that the Yanks have struggled this season, nor was it unforeseeable at the start of the season. However, if you look at the retooling efforts of some other clubs (the Braves, Detroit, Cleveland, Arizona, etc.) the Yanks really aren't doing that bad. In fact, even while rebuilding and trying to shed overpaid, over-aged talent they're still in the mix for the post-season. And, frankly, between you and me, I give them a more than decent chance of overcoming Seattle for the WC. Seattle just isn't that good of a club.
Posted Wednesday August 29, 2007, About: Will the Yankees dump Moose?
The Moose is too good of a pitcher with stuff that's too good to be done yet. He still has more juice left in him. Maybe his arm is just tired or he's psyching himself out. His breaking stuff is good enough to carry him despite a loss in velocity. His knuckle-curve has just been crap as of late. I haven't seen him throw one in his last three starts that hasn't gotten mashed.

I think the Yanks just need to either send him down to AAA for a start or two or let him come out of the bullpen so he can regain his confidence and just trust his stuff. Everybody always starts screaming the moment a good pitcher starts sucking, but even Maddux, Pettite, Martinez, and Glavine have gone through stretches where they were just getting destroyed every time they took the mound. Clemens hasn't looked to good either for that matter. It just takes some time for a pitcher to figure out what to do with his age. Until he does, he's gonna give up some runs.
Posted Thursday July 05, 2007, About: Reeling Yankees could deal A-Rod
Please, New Yorkers. Stop trying to trade A-Rod. He's a fundamental part of this Yankees team. He's been nothing but a talented and dedicated Yankee since he came to New York. Even last year when he was getting BOOED AT YANKEE STADIUM and in the worst funk of his career, he still went out there and played his hardest every day. He accepted being dropped in the lineup without complaint. He's been good for this club and without him, the Yanks record this year would be even more pitiful then it already is.

Besides, you can't trade A-Rod to the Angels, or to any other team, b/c they might trade him to the Angels. The Angels are enough of a thorn in the Yankees side as it is. I bet you you could take the Royals or the Pirates, dress them up in Angels uniforms and have Mike Soscia manage them and they'd beat the Yanks 9 games out of 10.
Posted Thursday July 05, 2007, About: Pedro on the comeback trail
Your 1st Amendment rights don't really apply when you're posting on a privately owned website, THE TRUTH. Just so you know.

I think Pedro's return will give the Mets some much-needed momentum. With Pedro starting every 5th day, they should be able to hold on to the NL East pretty easily. I mean, the only competition they have is the Braves, the Phillies, and the Marlins. The Braves have Andruw Jones and a heart attack for a closer weighing them down. The Marlins have a lot of young talent, but I don't see them putting it all together well enough to make a serious run. And the Phillies, well they're a Philly team and I think that should preclude them from winning.
Posted Thursday July 05, 2007, About: Scouting White Sox fire sale
Contreras going to the Mets, would be nice wouldn't it... I don't see it happening though. The Mets really don't have any talented middle relief they don't desperately need at the moment.
Posted Wednesday June 27, 2007, About: Tigers to wait on Rangers deal
Either Gagne or Otsuka going to the Tigers is a scary concept.
Posted Wednesday June 27, 2007, About: Pedro making rehab progress
A rejuvenated Pedro only adds legitimacy, experience, and another top-of-the-rotation starter to a pitching staff everyone thought was loaded with blanks, but turned out to put holes in people right good. Now if only Glavine can get out of that run of bad luck and reach win #300...
Posted Wednesday June 27, 2007, About: Angels DH wants out of L.A.
The Yankees have enough leftovers on their plate without adding Hillenbrand to the mix.

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