Mlb '07 - Page 4

See, that's where I think you're wrong -- this Phillies team is the same in that they underperformed to start the season (and again, it's leaving them as chasers and not leaders), but what they're doing now is quite remarkable. Moyer is the only starter who hasn't been injured this season, and they've used a franchise record number of pitchers (28 and counting).

Previous Phillies teams would get close and choke, which is what I assume you were referring to since they had the huge sweep against the Mets and then lose a series to the Marlins. But the Phillies, at this point, are just piecing it together. They get on hot streaks when pitchers like Durbin inexplicably pitch a gem, or when the offense makes the starter's effort null and void. And then there's the bullpen ... I mean, I still can't believe we can still call the Phils contenders when it's almost a guarantee that Jose Mesa, J.C. Romero or Antonio Alfonseca appear once in a game. Every game.

I guess what I'm getting at is this -- as a Phillies fan who is all too familiar with the prognostications and the choking, you can't write this team in the same column. This year the GM set them back, as did injuries, and they're still putting together a remarkable season. We've gotten to the point where Pat Burrell is loved again, and I never thought I'd see the day.

What surprises me most about the Phillies this year is the job their rotation has done, sure, they're by no means excellent, but they've done a great job of keeping their team in the game. Of course, the 800-pound gorilla is their bullpen, but I honestly never expected a rotation with the likes of Adam Everett and JD Durbin to sustain any sort of consistency.

And boy was that four game sweep a reminder, with people complaining about a slide, and God knows what else, all I kept thinking was how the fuck are the Mets scoring two goddamn runs a game in that bandbox. Well, that and how much longer do the Mets have to play in the same division as Pat Burrell.

Burrell had actually cooled off a bit as a "Met killer" until Wagner decided to fuel the fire after becoming a Met.

And yes, the rotation has been surprising, although lately they've been showing just how burnt out they are -- nobody is sniffing the 7th, which is what the team really needs with the bullpen they've got.

Not every autograph request is created equal

"For me, it's a dead ritual, and doesn't make sense. Maybe this is because I know who I am. Because everyday I see the mistakes and shortcomings I deal with that humanize me. I disagree that I am somehow more valuable because I do this job. Fans however, see my clean uniform and their boyhood dreams incarnate. When my hand presses a pen to paper, they find it magical. I don't understand why this works the way it does, but its lack of logic in no way negates the reality of it."

Link grabbed from BBTF's Newsblog.

Now we know why Ankiel is sdoing so well
Just another cheater.

Well, at least your nonsensical ire has been consistent. Theres very little difference between this situation and Barry Bonds', and if you believe Barry Bonds raped your childhood, well, Rick Ankiel just turned that party into a threesome.

Rick Ankiel is the all time home run leader? When the fuck did that happen?

And here I thought the issue with Bonds was that his use of PEDs ruined what would otherwise be considered a momentous achievement, silly me.

Now SI reports Troy Glaus received a 'roid shipment.

Hopefully the dripping faucet starts pouring.

Here's a great story from Baseball America. It's by Rick Hayhurst, a AA reliever in the Padres system, who writes a column called "Non-Prospect Diary."

http://www.baseballamerica.com/today...es/264668.html

How do you still not get it?

The only thing to get is that Barry Bonds comes off as an asshole in public, and that simple fact prevented Bonds from endearing himself to both fans and the mainstream media before, after, and during the BALCO scandal. Now, for most people, thats reason enough to treat one player drastically different from all the rest. To me, I can't justify singling a player out without an underlying logic that I apply with something resembling consistency.

And to be perfectly honest, the only person I've ever seen on these boards even feign consistency here is Anya. The rest try to make up the rules as they go along in order to rationalize their biases.

A lot of his stuff is actually quite good.

Bonds is the symbol. The All-Time HR record is (was) easily the most revered in all of professional sports (well, American sports). As such, he's the face of the problem. He gets the brunt of it because he symbolizes the problem at large, and because he does shit like bring his kids to press conferences to try and excuse his cheating and general douchebaggery.

Whenever there's a controversy like this, there's always one person/group who will take on the position as the 'leader' or 'figurehead'. From this point on, baseball records are blemished. Over time, people take the knowledge they have gained and move on. Rick Ankiel will never get the hate that Bonds gets because this isn't new and he's not one of the first. His great story has taken a hit, but the effort in demonizing him won't be there because we're used to it now. No one is surprised anymore. He's just another baseball player that cheated, and now we all understand how he became such a great power hitter so fast.

The next dogfighting scandal won't draw as much attention, either. That's the way it goes. It's not because everyone hates Vick more than any other player, it's because we was the first and became the symbol of the problem. If McGuire had kept playing when he was found out, and was approaching the all-time record, he would have felt a shitload more heat and maybe taken Bonds' position.

Which assumes this all started recently, when, in fact, this bias started well before people thought him eclipsing the HR record was a foregone conclusion, before BALCO, even.*

That inherit bias still stems from his very public douchebaggery.

Put another way, I don't buy that this could have happened to anyone. Even Vick's story will subside in due time, I can't imagine another player, in similar circumstances, generating this sort of ire. Imagine if instead of Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr. was the poster boy, can you honestly imagine the same sort of coverage? I certainly can't.

People wanted there to be a story, people wanted Bonds to be a cheater.

* In reference to steroid rumors, coverage, what have you.

That's because he broke the greatest record in sports. That's why he's the main target.

Of course people hated Bonds before BALCO. He treats people like shit, so that's how it goes.

It was basically a perfect storm of shit for Bonds. Known douchebag, gets huge on roids, threatens the greatest record in sports, denies everything, media becomes evermore sensationalist by the day, etc.

The season is coming to an end, and the only end of season award with any sort of juice is the NL MVP. With a decent number of choices, and no standout story for the media to follow, its certainly the biggest award up for grabs.

Now, being a Mets fan, I can't see a legitimate case to be made for anyone else. David Wright has been a machine since his slow start (April line of .244/.370/.311), posting a blistering .355/.470/.609 line since the All Star break, carrying an offense that suffered through injuries to Moises Alou and Carlos Beltran... let alone a struggling Carlos Delgado. Wright has put up the best all around* ** offensive season in the NL this season, all the while drastically improving his defensive play.

Then again, I'm a crackpot that thinks the reverse of conventional wisdom, I actually believe that playing in NY is a negative. If Gooden can't win the MVP in '85, Straw in '88, Jeter in '99 or '06, I don't know... I just can't see there being much love for awarding the MVP award to two third basemen from NY.

*.315/.412/.542, 28 HR, 98 R, 96 RBI, 35 2B, 31/4 SB/CS
** The biggest caveat here is Hanley Ramirez, who is putting up what is probably the best offensive season in the National League on a team that hasn't been a factor all year. Given how poorly he is in the field, though, I'd still give the edge to Wright even if the Marlins were in the hunt.

I vote Wright. Offense is only part of the game. His defensive skills put him over the top.

Twins GM Ryan to resign after 12 seasons

Well that was certainly out of the blue... I always thought Ryan was one of the better general managers in all of baseball.

Milton Bradley is a fucking idiot. Makes great board games, though.

Milton Bradley is obviously at fault for his actions, but it sure seems like he had quite a bit of help according to ESPN.

No way it happens, but how fuckin great would it be to see the Rockies somehow make it into the playoffs. Even if it means Clint Hurdle gets to keep his job for another 5 years.

Bad link but still all Bradley's fault. He acts like an ass hole running after the ump, no matter what he said, and now for his trouble he has a torn acl. Shoulda just acted like an adult.

Could definitely happen, what with the Padres beginning the suck all of a sudden.

With Winters hurling expletives, I refrain from completely blaming Bradley. Under no circumstances should an umpire be instigating any sort of conflict, its just unprofessional and should be dealt with.

And here is the broken link:
http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/recap?gameId=270923125

Umpire Suspended After Incident
Good for MLB, but, its pretty obvious that nobody cares about this story because its not as sexy if Milton Bradley was provoked, rather than, say, just another crazy black guy.

If the Rox hold on tonight against LA...and sweep the D-Backs...they would win the west and potentially have the best record in the NL...fucking INSANE.

I just got back from tonight's Phillies-Braves game. You should have been in the stadium when the scoreboard flashed that the Mets had lost. Near pandemonium. And then, when the Phillies won, full pandemonium. It was awesome.

Sounds like a game I was at back in '99, when the Mets beat the Pirates to qualify for a play-in game against the Reds. Of course, being Mets fans, pandemonium inevitably turned into Yankee hatred, as, out of the blue, everyone at the park chanted Yankees Suck! for no reason whatsoever.

What a game, Frank! Although I actually started laughing after the pandemonium over the Mets loss turned to grief when Francoeur hit that first-pitch homer. Glad Myers eventually shut the door, though.

What a great end to the season!

"How's this for a wild final weekend? With three games to go, seven teams were fighting for the National League's four playoff spots.

Philadelphia tied the New York Mets for the NL East lead for the first time since the season began, the Chicago Cubs held a two-game lead over Milwaukee in the NL Central and Arizona was one game in front of San Diego and two ahead of Colorado in the NL West.

The East and West teams also were in play for the wild card, which the Padres led by one game over the Mets, Phillies and Rockies." - Yahoo Sports

Go Padres!

It was funny. Earlier in the game, the Braves finally point some points on the board in the form of a 2-run homer, and everyone starts booing. I turn to the guy next to me and say, "Hey, why's everyone booing? 2 runs in six innings ain't bad." Then, on the next pitch, bam! Another home run!

I booed, too.

I am so angry with the Dodgers right now, I just can't even come up with the right words to describe it. I go on vacation on the 15th with my team 1.5 games back and when I get home we're almost mathematically eliminated.

All the Rockies fans can thank my shitty team for giving them that glimmer of hope.

Grady Little can go suck a fuck.

eta: lots of vitriol for that 400th post! yeah!

The wacky playoff scenerios are still in effect for the Mets/Phillies/Padres/Rockies. I kind of hope we see it to screw up the rotations for those teams and tire them out. All to help the Cubs.

NY/Clev should be a fun series. I'm thinking alot of runs. I also hope ARod chokes again to get him to the Cubs next year. Assuming the next Canseco book doesn't link him to HGH and ticket prices don't go up to $50 for bleachers.

I've noticed that national coverage has been focused on how poorly the NL East frontrunners are doing, as opposed to how well the Nats are doing. Granted, last night the Phillies did much to beat themselves, but my boys are doing the ol' town proud.

Why would anyone focus on a team 15 games out?

Mets are fucking up the playoff scenerios. Go Brewers and Rockies. Be nice if the Phillies lost now too.

Looks like A SD/Col playoff game as Col is up 4-1(and counting) in the 8th. SD didn't want to throw Peavy on 3 days rest incase of a playoff game Monday. The better strategy would be to throw him and not have the playoff.

The Cubs get Arizona and the Phillies get the SD/Col winner whose rotations will be all screwed up.

Z vs Webb. Lilly vs Davis?

Should be more than a few Cubs fans in Arizona.

I have to root for the Diamondbacks for two reasons. One, they are one the teams I've been following all year, and I enjoyed the games I went to this year. And two, because I want a Red Sox/Diamondbacks World Series so I can go to game 4 in Phoenix.

So, Jimmy Rollins basically has the MVP sewn up, right? It is pretty strange, Philadelphia really is going to have back-to-back MVP award winners, and neither time will it be awarded to their best player.

Don't count out Matt Holliday...in fact I would go as far as to say...Holliday SHOULD win it.

And I will be going to the game tomorrow night at Coors Field...this is surreal...it's almost like "Major League"

Well, the only reason I discount Holliday is because the Rockies potentially winning the Wild Card isn't the biggest story this September, it really has nothing to do with who should win it. Rollins proclaimed the Phillies to be the team to beat in the NL East back in the spring, contrary to popular belief, and helped lead his team to a historic upset in the final weeks of the season. A compelling "story" is even bigger than things like RBI to most writers.

We do it in the hopes that one day, it will be loud enough for it to be heard in the Bronx. I guess that will be awhile from now.

Utley will win one. If he stayed healthy this year, then he would have been a lock. He had 48 doubles and missed 35 games. Just amazing.

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3045585

I knew I hated Schusioagfhasegiowz for a reason.

Best part? He ordered the shit in his own name, and had it delivered to the ballpark. Scot Schoeneweis, or criminal mastermind, you be the judge.