Any MLB fans here???

Good group, imo. Especially Smoltzy

 

What's your opinion on the PED-linked guys? Not to start an argument, just curious

 

They should be in with pete rose. It was legal and part of the game. How can you put anyone from baseball in there prior to 2002? How do you know people like hank Aaron didn't do any ped?

 

Spring Training going on now. Watching the Phillies/Yankees Grapefruit League game now.

 

Eventually MLB will understand that there is more money in the long ball and not the ground game.

 

You have to go to the archives, but there is a great book about baseball called Ball Four, by Jim Bouton. Very enlightening. Entertaining. Very revealing. He didn't keep a lot of friends after it was released in 1970. Details of alcohol abuse. Some drugs. Mostly pep pills. Not sure they fit into the PED category.

 

Maybe I should've put this in the WTF thread instead.

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/1...raig-kimbrel-melvin-upton-jr-san-diego-padres

 

Don't even what to talk about this. More than happy to ship off BJ or Melvin or Jr or whatever his name is but Kimbrel? I know we can't afford him after his contract but geez. Good thing we signed 3 other closers this off-season. The only leftovers are freddie, simmons and johnson other than a few pitchers.

 

I feel like the movie Major League, who the hell are these guys?

But letting Kimbrel go? Maybe I'm having too much of a knee jerk reaction but that just ruined what interest I had for the season to start tomorrow. I guess I'm just sick of the way the Braves organization runs. We find and develop these guys into big league players then can't afford them and other teams wind up with them and win championships. It's sickening!

I'm not a basketball fan so I was looking forward to baseball to hold me over until football season. Not so much now.

 

I figured this thread would be alive...

I'm ok with the trade just simply for the fact that I didn't think he would be saving very many games this year with our team. So might as we'l trade him when his draft stock is high...

And I think he's on the decline. I mean yes I know you can only decline when you're the best in MLB, but if I recall correctly his strikeout:ip is on the decline and walks:ip is on the incline...

I guess only time will tell...

 

I know my Giants were terrible in the preseason... I hope they don't have their odd year slump like they've been having lately.

 

I did make that point about not having many games to save on FB. I know they're trying to build for the future, particularly to have a legit team when the new stadium opens but it's hard to swallow giving up the best closer in the game on top of the others. Maybe they know what they're doing, I just don't have a lot of faith in the upper management though. We will see I guess, just not excited to watch today.

 

I found that to be an odd trade, as well, given the fact the new stadium is coming soon. And why the hell the need for the new stadium, anyway?
Isn't Turner Field relatively new, in baseball terms?

 

Giants fan here, as well. Gonna be interesting. Lot of innings pitched last year. That usually equates to tired arms from the pitching staff. We shall see. Hope to see a reinvigorated Matt Cain. And Timmy is on good terms with his old man again, so maybe a resurgence from him, as well. Once again, the big question mark comes from the offense. Who will pick up the slack for the lost power from the fat guy and Morse?

 

I'm a huge baseball fan. Been following MLB since I was a kid. Dislike the DH. Very much dislike Inter-League play. The National League should play the American League in the World Series. That's it. Inter-league play was a gimmick, to generate ticket sales, by the douchenozzle Bud Selig. It has outlived it's usefulness, in my opinion.

Love the tradition of MLB. Liked it very much that Cincinnati was always the Opening Day team. Honoring that franchise for being the oldest team in the MLB. Didn't like it when that tradition was scraped.

But now MLB has really pissed me off. Inter-League play on Opening Day! Asshattery at it's finest.

 

Interleague play every day, since last year. Only way the math works.

 

It's not the only way. But I understand. It still stinks. Easiest way to fix is to go back to the 154 game schedule. No reason the World Series should be pushing up November.

 

It's not so much about the stadium and is a long story so I'll try to give the short version.

The year they're supposed to transition to the new one is when their contract is up with the city or county (I forgot which) but the organization has been apparently trying for many years to expand revenue by adding all sorts of fan experience stuff around the stadium run by the Braves but the city has control and won't allow the team to take in the revenue so they wanted to move.

This move is out of the heart of the city but still in city limits which allows them to remain as the Atlanta Braves even though the stadium wont technically be in Atlanta. And the city it is in is fully cooperative to gain the business there. I don't know what all will be there but supposed to have a lot of shops and restraunts surrounding the stadium for a "better fan experience" but ultimately all controlled by the Braves so more revenue. At least that's what I understood anyway.

I kinda like the move for the revenue so maybe we can afford more talent to compete better and I ultimately like it for the location since I hate driving into Atlanta with so much right together, GA Dome, Phillips Arena, Turner field, the World Congress Center, and even the new Falcons stadium all in the same area. In other words I'd be a lot more likely to go to Braves games at the new location, but not with this years team.

 

Don't get me wrong, not a fan of the interleague play at all for a variety of reasons. But...

With 15 teams per league, most days would see 7 games in each league with one team sitting out. Since games are played in series of 2-4 games, teams would be sitting idle as long as 4-6 days without regular interleague play. Length of season schedule doesn't factor in. Either need a team to switch leagues, or add a new team to each league.

 

I'm not against it, it gives me a chance to see some teams I would otherwise not get to see.