[MLB Thread]

10 minutes ago, cleo said:

I meant to say I would rather face the Red Sox. Because they're more familiar, we've beaten them before. I think our pitchers are better.

I watched Sox and Indians into the 5th or so, they don't seem to have any fire. Sorry to the Sox fans.

If they were trading this series blow for blow I'd agree, but for the Jays to face Boston, the Sox would need to win 3 in a row and they'd come in blazing hot and full of confidence. Chances are if they win all 3 games they'll probably have a couple hot batters, and Porcello and Price will have found their games in games 4 and 5. I don't want to face that Boston team.

But the Indians are no cake walk either, if they can get to the Jays bullpen they could very well destroy it, since they are so balanced and half of them are switch hitters.

Neither is all that appealing to face coming in on a 3 game win streak. I just hope the Sox can pull one out at Fenway tonight.

IMO Best case scenario for the Jays has Boston win at least 1 at home, then get bounced by Cleveland in Game 4 or 5.

[MLB Thread]

5 hours ago, kariyaki said:

Yes, Texas had the best record. But I've always maintained that they weren't actually that good. Most of their wins was by a single point, which says to me that they only did just well enough to squeak through. I think they've just been lucky. Til now. 

If you ignore wins and look at run differential Texas was a very mediocre 14th. Compare that to the other teams in the LDS who were the top 7 teams in baseball. Even the other wildcard teams had better differentials than the Rangers, and there were four other teams that also had better differentials (St. Louis, Seattle, Detroit and Houston, who all came very close to the wildcards).

Some people tried to explain this as "clutch-ness." That the Rangers would surrender if they were getting blown out, but if the game was close they'd step up with a big hit and come from behind in the 8th or 9th or extras. The simpler explanation is they just aren't that much better then all the other teams like their record indicates.

Typically good teams are the ones that blow other teams out and when the good teams are beat they're the ones who get edged by a run or two. Texas was the opposite: When they would win they'd edge teams, and when they'd lose they'd get blown out.

To be fair, Texas did edge teams out A TON, and to be fair they finished with the best record in the AL, you can't take that away from them. But they weren't dominating the other teams in the League, they were barely beating them each time. So it's not so surprising they got bounced so quickly.

[MLB Thread]

Wow! Cannot believe that ending, Odor got the error in the end, but all three of the Rangers' fielders messed up. Andrus should've gone to third and cut down Donaldson, Beltre would've had the force out easily, and maybe even had a chance at first. Odor should've obviously surrendered first base and just held the ball. And Moreland should've come off of 1st in order to hold Donaldson on 3rd (or cut him down at home.) Texas forgot all about the man who mattered (Donaldson) and got too focused on turning an inning ending DP that probably would've been close even if Odor had made a perfect throw. 2 outs, Donaldson on 3rd (or Encarnacion on 2nd), Martin on 1st and Tulo at the plate isn't such a terrible scenario for them, especially the way Bush was pitching.

But none of that stuff happened, so thanks Texas! Cause once again I'm happy! We're moving on to the CS first in Toronto! Good thing too, the Jays can really use a few days for recovery. Especially Osuna, I've never seen him pitch so much over the course of 4 games.

Good Luck to the Sox, Indians, Cubs, Giants, Nats and Dodgers. It's Canadian Thanksgiving, and I'm thankful I'm watching all of you play on Monday and not two teams more.

[MLB Thread]

39 minutes ago, Artsda said:

While watching the Boston vs Cleveland game I remembered last post- season David Price was pitching for the Blue Jays and he chose to sign with Boston because they offered much higher contract than the Blue Jays did.  BlueJays were so smart on that move and Boston was just dumb.

Actually the Blue Jays didn't even make Price an offer. Instead they decided to sign J.A. Happ for 36 million over 3 years, and stretch Aaron Sanchez into a starter. This year Happ became only the 6th Blue Jay to win 20 games in a season, and today he collected the win against the Rangers. Sanchez finished with 190+ innings pitched and the lowest ERA in the AL (3.00) and will probably start Sunday at home with an opportunity to close out the series.

At the time almost every Blue Jays fan was questioning them on the decision to not even table an offer on Price and to replace him with Happ (who was seen as a fine 4th or 5th option, but had topped out at 12 wins prior to this year) and Sanchez (who had never pitched more then 92 innings over a season in his career.) Damn do they look like freaking geniuses now.

[MLB Thread]

And yet again the clock strikes midnight on David Price. Sorry (but not sorry) Red Sox, you spent 217 million on a pumpkin.

Well I'm happy again today, Blue Jays counter Hamels and Darvish with Estrada and Happ (not his best outing, but the W is why we love him), and now Sanchez is waiting back at the Skydome.

Let's Go Blue Jays! Let's end this on Sunday.

[S01.E03: Beanball]

6 hours ago, BabyVegas said:

I'm bummed that the ratings are no good. I really enjoy this show and Kylie Burnbury is charming as hell. This was, I thought, the best episode so far. Everyone seems to have settled into their characters.

It does seem like they're setting Lawson up to be a romantic interest, but that could just be the way the actors are playing it. I don't think I'd mind it either way, as long as the story stays good. 

It's not on a great night.

I mean it's a sports drama that airs the same time as Thursday Night Football, and now the ALDS.

I skipped it tonight and PVR'D it cause there was no way I was missing the Cleveland/Boston game. Real baseball trumps dramatized baseball.

[MLB Thread]

Estrada is a postseason god. I have no idea how he continues to do it, I just hope he never stops. We are not worthy Marco.

Grabbed one in Texas, that's what we needed and now our 20 game winner takes the mound tomorrow, playing with house money.

Let's Go Blue Jays!

[MLB Thread]

23 minutes ago, mojoween said:

Can't co-sign that Lantern.  The Yankees were 89-73 and the Mets are 87-76.

(Yes I am that fan.  It's what I do.)

Maybe I'm missing something here but the Yankees were 84-78 this year.

If they had been 89-73 they would've tied the Jays and O's and created a 3 way wildcard tie.

[MLB Thread]

Wow. Gillaspie, not only with the 3 run shot, but that keeps Bumgarner in the game.

This one feels over. Prove me wrong Mets.

[MLB Thread]

Just now, stealinghome said:

At this point, I wouldn't be surprised if we all wake up tomorrow morning, the Giants and Mets have played through the night, and it's STILL scoreless.

Also Bumgarner is still pitching.

[MLB Thread]

6 minutes ago, lilwhitelion said:

It was a can.  When they came back from commercial and showed the stands with the police there looking for the culprit, you can see other fans holding beer cans.  

Yeah it's odd. After the Texas incident last year, they stopped selling the cans and poured the beer into cups for the ALCS against Kansas City. I have no idea why they went back to giving the cans out afterward.

Probably to save money, but I'm sorry if you're selling a 2-3 dollar beer for 10-11 bucks, you can afford to give away a 5 cent plastic cup with it. I'm guessing they'll resume that practice now.

[MLB Thread]

WOW. What a walk.

That was a ridiculous at bat. I cannot believe the calls that the Giants are getting here.

[MLB Thread]

4 minutes ago, mojoween said:

The longer this game goes, the less I want either of these teams to lose.

This is so freaking intense.

It is a shame one of them will end their season tonight.

Syndergaard is at 100 pitches, and just walked a guy, I wonder how long they leave him in.

EDIT: Blevins up, guess that answers my question.

[MLB Thread]

43 minutes ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

Yeah but are parks are full or near full for every SINGLE game since the Tulo/Price trade in 2015.  So that's a very big difference from many other ball parks.  Would you stereotype a town of 50,000 based on the actions of 1 person from it?

I think people's ignorance of Canada leads them to stereotype.  Would people stereotype all of America based on 1 American?  Would people stereotype all of New York City based on DONALD TRUMP?   No!  And NYC is 8 million compared to Canada's 35 million.

You're never going to convince me it's okay to stereotype thousands or millions based on the actions of a few.  

Lots of parks are full. St. Louis didn't even make the playoffs and they outdrew the Jays in attendance this year. The Dodgers also did. The Yankees regularly draw huge crowds, as do the Red Sox and the Cubs, whether they are good or not. And yet it's happened twice in two years at Skydome. It also happened in 2013 when a (presumably different) jerk threw a beer at an Orioles outfielder, that time it wasn't even a playoff game, it was a game in May, and it was a year we finished LAST in the AL East. So it's also not just because tensions run high, and it's not just because the arena is full.

We have a problem at Skydome. And we're getting a reputation.

I'm not saying it's ok to stereotype, I'm saying it happens. And the first step to prevent it from happening is acknowledging it.

The second step, which we've thankfully done, is identifying the culprits and making sure everyone knows this kind of behaviour is gonna result in at least a lifetime ban from the stadium and at worst criminal charges. It's not enough to say we're not all like this, we need to publicly condemn the people who are. But in addition to that we need to police ourselves, see something and say something at the game if possible. And also get better security and liquor control at Skydome. Cause I've seen it, you can be stumble down drunk and most vendors there are happy to charge you 10.50 for a beer if you can produce some ID. 

The third step, will be to convince people through our behaviour that Canadians and Blue Jays fans are largely nice people who don't want to put the Orioles in the hospital, they just want to send them home for the fall.

[MLB Thread]

2 hours ago, Ms Blue Jay said:

I can.  The Dome holds almost 50,000 people.  Whatever.  I do blame anyone who would judge all Canadians (30 Mil) and Blue Jays fans on that.  

That's true for almost every ball park.

The fact remains it's happened at Skydome twice in two years now, it doesn't matter if it's just a few jerks, it impacts badly on all of us. Academically I'm sure not every Philadelphia fan is a violent psychopath, but I'm still not eager to walk into an Flyers (or Eagles, or 76ers or Phillies) game flying enemy colours. That's because I've heard a bunch of horror stories. I really don't want Toronto to be seen like that. It's like the expression goes: "a few bad apples spoils the barrel."

We need to be better at self policing (and perhaps real policing) at Skydome. Unless we want to just let the bad apples spoil it.

[S04.E03: Coral Palms, Pt. 3]

So wait, is the new Captain still in charge? I have to assume he is since he's transferring everyone to night shift, but what does that mean for Holt?

I guess he might be on disability because of his gaping leg wound.

[MLB Thread]

24 minutes ago, rippleintime17 said:

Also, has there been any word on what happened to Osuna?

The word is just some shoulder tightness. They didn't want him to risk injury so that's why they brought in Liriano and pulled Osuna for precautionary reasons.

Osuna said he's fine and will be ready to go against Texas. Gibbons says he doesn't expect Osuna to miss any time.

[MLB Thread]

9 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Nice to see SkyDome Rogers Centre rocking. Last time I was there, the place wasn't as packed. I will say that the place looks like a jewelry box from the top of the CN Tower.

It's wild having the Dome right under CN, I went on Edgewalk while a game was being played once; seeing the seemingly tiny players round the tiny bases is so freaking trippy.

9 hours ago, Mittengirl said:

Why is that guy wearing a parrot on his arm/shoulder?

It's an Encarnacion thing. Whenever he hits a homerun he sticks his right elbow out and rounds the bases. Everyone started commenting on why, and the one that stuck was that an imaginary parrot was perched on there. Hence the stuffed parrots, and signs that say "Take the parrot for a walk" etc.

It's weird, we're weird in Canada, but it's also fun.

9 hours ago, King of Birds said:

Damn. Why did the O's pitch to Encarnacion? Sure, Bautista is next, but ...  And where the hell was Britton? Baffling. I felt pretty bad for Jimenez.

I'm still baffled that Britton didn't get into the game. I mean it's obvious that Showalter was trying to save him for a save situation where they got the lead, but we were into extras and there was a man on third. They needed grounders (or Ks) and that's Britton's bread and butter. All I can say is I'm glad Showalter is an old school guy, if Britton gets into that game we might have had a different outcome.

Not surprised they pitched to Eddie though, it was either him or Bautista and Joey had already hit a homer and has a penchant for the dramatic.

[MLB Thread]

Good News: My Blue Jays won!!!!!

Bad News: I don't think I have ever been more embarrassed to be a Blue Jays fan as when I saw some jerk and idiot throw a full (or almost full) beer can at Hyun Soo Kim. I hope said jerk and idiot gets some manner of crippling diarrhea whilst in the jail cell I hope he occupies tonight for the assault he committed on Kim and never ever gets to watch another baseball game in his pathetic life.

I hope everyone can realize we aren't all idiots and jerks up north, but as this is the second time in two years as something like this has happened, I can't blame anyone who does.

[MLB Thread]

Jays are my team; always have been, always will be. In the other wildcard I'm going for the Mets, went to school in New York and I always preferred getting out to Queens to see the Mets instead of heading to the Bronx.

If both of them fall out today I'll probably end up rooting for the Nats, my uncle is a huge fan. But I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

For now: Let's Go Blue Jays!

[S01.E02: The Interim]

Finally got around to watching this one, was busy with real life baseball yesterday.

Good Stuff

- Ginny didn't play! I don't mean that the way it might sound, obviously this show is about Ginny as a ball player and we will focus on her a lot, but it's nice to see that we can have an episode where she doesn't get in a game and the episode hums along, maybe even better then the pilot.

- Ginny's brother. Nice to meet her brother, although I feel they might have missed some drama opportunities. He doesn't seem to hold a grudge against his dad, and they have a nice sibling bond. Not saying there's anything wrong with that, but it's a little boring is all. But I really bought the chemistry between the two, hopefully we see more of him.

- Lawson's marital issues. Nice to see us expand on characters other then Ginny, again, acknowledging she's the main piece is fine, but we need to buy all of her supporting players, the most important of which is probably Lawson. We got a lot of depth to his character in this episode.

- Lawson/Amelia. I like this pairing, at least temporarily. It'll cause some friction in the dressing room, and with Ginny's biggest ally. They're also both broken people, so I can see why they might be attracted to each other. I buy it.

- Interim Manager - While I hope they keep Dan Lauria around, because he's awesome, I like the idea of this storyline. Clash between management and ownership, and the players (even Ginny) obviously backing Luongo. Great opportunity for some great storylines.

Bad Stuff

- Mixed Messages - Ginny is both being sold as "the boss" (her brother encourages her to shake off both catchers and her agent), but also as someone who needs to learn to rely on others (conversation with Lawson about her shaking off his signals.) Not saying both can't be true, but it's a little confusing to have both, seemingly contrary, messages in the same episode. Also she maintains she's not a spokeswoman, but an athlete, and then proceeds to make a statement on the rape case anyway. I don't know I wasn't a fan. She seems like she's flip flopping a lot; she seems like a people pleaser, but she also seems like a strong independent person. It's confusing, they need to get a little more firm with how they want her character to be.

- Blip and Mrs. Blip - Alright, I get the need for a little bit of light heartedness in a show, and I can see why Blip's search for his lucky T-shirt might have seemed like a good idea when pitched in a writers meeting. But was I the only one sitting around like "who cares?" whenever Blip came on this episode? Can't have just been me. Maybe they should've saved this storyline for later on when we do care more about Blip, and the team needs him to produce to get a playoff spot, and it's not just about him getting a spot in the All Star Game. 

- Lawson/Ginny - Yeah I see where this is going. I'm not a fan, as she said in this very episode she shouldn't be hooking up with team mates. It's a bad idea, and while I acknowledge the amount of drama it would cause, it's extremely low hanging fruit, and I'm not a fan of the writers going down this path. Hopefully I'm wrong about the obvious tension that we saw this episode.

Overall a great second outing.

[Adventure Time Is Set To End In 2018]

Two more years of Adventure Time? Sweet.

Also if they've already set an end date they are going to have an epic ending planned. It'll no doubt be mathematical!

[MLB Thread]

17 minutes ago, mojoween said:

A TEX MESSAGE FROM TEXEIRA!

Too bad the Orioles ruined everything.

I know, I'm so annoyed with my Blue Jays.

Of course we wouldn't even make the Sox win the East, we'd just hand it to them by blowing the lead in the 9th.

[S01.E01: Pilot]

12 minutes ago, missbonnie said:

I'm sorry, I should have clarified myself. What I meant was why on earth was she wearing one and that obviously wasn't the ASG. 

The team that hosts the All Star Game gets to wear a patch on all of their jerseys for the whole year. She's a Padre, so she gets a patch on her jersey.

That picture is from yesterday's (Sept 27th) game. See the patches?

[MLB Thread]

8 hours ago, ebk57 said:

I don't know what kind of gifts the teams have been giving Ortiz during his whirlwind farewell tour, but I did like the Os gift last week - the phone that he destroyed in the dugout 3 years ago after some unfortunate incident on the field.  He didn't seem really enthused about receiving it...  It made me smile though.

I know the Blue Jays gave him a pair of Canada Goose jackets (retail price $1000 each), one of them was custom made in Red Sox red. It's a sweet coat.

I guess the joke they can make there is it'll keep him warm when he's back in Toronto for the ALDS/ALCS. It's cold in Blue October, Papi.