MLB Thread

[mojoween]

7 minutes ago, ebk57 said:

Seriously?  Throwing shit on the field during a game??  I thought Canadians were supposed to be so nice...

I was going to say the exact same thing.  That's twice in two years Toronto.  That is not a good look.

[ebk57]

9 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

Saw that. Still wouldn't be the worst thing an opposing fan has done to the Orioles.

Oh thanks for dredging up that memory...

2 minutes ago, mojoween said:

I was going to say the exact same thing.  That's twice in two years Toronto.  That is not a good look.

 Really - do they think they're in Philly?  (sorry to any Philadelphians - I do like visiting there)                                                                                                                                                                                 

[Mittengirl]

I am surprised that they sell anything in bottles these days.  Open-topped cups make lousy projectiles.

 

I am sure I have heard this explained, but obviously didn't take it in.  How do they decide which division winner plays the wildcard winner?

[stealinghome]

The top seed always plays the wildcard winner. So whatever div winner has the best record.

[ebk57]

24 minutes ago, Mittengirl said:

I am surprised that they sell anything in bottles these days.  Open-topped cups make lousy projectiles.

They used to pour the beer into cups and only sell soda in cups.  Then, a few years ago, Bud/Miller decided to make cans shaped like bottles and brand them with team names, etc, so now it's beer cans everywhere.  And soda and water in plastic bottles.  I got a lovely can last season commemorating Cal's 2131 game from a local craft brewer at the ballpark.  Good beer and nice souvenir can.

[ElDosEquis]

The official beer and projectile of Major League Baseball.

( I miss the days of double A batteries raining down from the stands - poor Energizer Bunny.....)

[Artsda]

Jays and Orioles are giving all they got to win this wild card. 

Quote

I am surprised that they sell anything in bottles these days.  Open-topped cups make lousy projectiles.

 

It looked like a plastic Aquafina water bottle. They don't sell beer bottles there.

Edited October 5, 2016 by Artsda

[ElDosEquis]

Wow, that fucker went into orbit.

[Lantern7]

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.

[Mittengirl]

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

[twoods]

At least the O's didn't lose to Boston or the Yanks in the wild card game. Sigh.

I remember when the Jays were playing in front of an empty arena. It's nice to see so many fans there, even the jerks throwing things. Hope they do well in the next round. Better luck next year O's!

[ebk57]

Sigh...  Ah well, it was a good season.  Much better than I had any reason to expect when it started.  I'll just frame the tickets for the rest of the post-season that arrived today... 

[King of Birds]

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.

Edited October 5, 2016 by King of Birds

[ElDosEquis]

14 minutes ago, Mittengirl said:

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

The parrot agrees with everything he says?

 

Gary Sheffield is one of the worst announcers on air.

[Artsda]

That was a great ending, Edwin should have flipped the bat. lol You could tell he had the homerun coming based on the pitcher letting the 2 base hits go already. Pitcher should have been pulled before Edwin.

Next up Toronto vs Texas, they hate each other and brawl everytime they meet. This will be a good series.

[twoods]

1 hour ago, Lantern7 said:

Saw that. Still wouldn't be the worst thing an opposing fan has done to the Orioles.

Lol. That stupid jerk still pisses me off. After that series the O's have stunk in the playoffs. It's as if that kid hexed the whole organization.

Poor Jimenez. The loss was not all on him- the juggernaut O's offense went cold after the 5th inning. He did well the second half of the season so hope he's not that down on himself. I knew that whoever was the home team would win- too bad the O's couldn't have won a few more against the Jays or there may have been a different outcome at Camden. Them playing the Rangers is going to be intense- any bets on how many players are going to get ejected?

Edited October 5, 2016 by twoods

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 5, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[mojoween]

I'm very sad.  This morning on Mike & Mike Greeny said the more you watch Encarnacion's HR you notice other things, such as the reaction of the catcher.

So I watched the video again and I wish I hadn't, because Wieters knew instantly.  I never want to watch anyone react like that to anything ever again.  I want to give him a hug.

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 5, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[rippleintime17]

1 hour ago, mojoween said:

I'm very sad.  This morning on Mike & Mike Greeny said the more you watch Encarnacion's HR you notice other things, such as the reaction of the catcher.

So I watched the video again and I wish I hadn't, because Wieters knew instantly.  I never want to watch anyone react like that to anything ever again.  I want to give him a hug.

Wieters' reaction reminded me of Ryan Hannigan when Buster Posey hit a grand slam off of Mat Latos in Game 5 of the 2012 NLDS. It wasn't in the late innings but it was enough that Hannigan pretty much up and walked away. Moments like that are awesome when they're your team but man, the visible reactions of the other team can be drama. 

I went to a game at Rogers Centre earlier this season and had a really great time. It was fun to tune into this game having been there on a packed random Sunday. The Blue Jays/Rangers series is going to be insaaaaane. I hope the Jays fans (and I know it's only a very small percentage) don't pull any more shenanigans though. 

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

[33kaitykaity]

Congrats Jays.  

I don't feel so bad now about them beating my Mariners out for the Wild Card.  ;(

[Maximum Taco]

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.

[MyAimIsTrue]

2 hours ago, Maximum Taco said:

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.

It's been 20 years since my vacation in Toronto but I loved looking down on the Dome from the CN tower as well.

[topanga]

On 10/2/2016 at 6:17 PM, ebk57 said:

Vin Scully - a class act to the end.  That was a lovely goodbye.

I don't know him well, but I hear a couple of comedians call him "Racist Vin Scully." Is he racist? Or has he said things that be offensive? 

I do like that hearing his response questions about what he's going to do after he retires. He said that when you're 65, you plan to take vacations, play golf, etc. But when you're 89 (?), after you retire, you plan to try to stay alive. 

[Ms Blue Jay]

13 hours ago, Maximum Taco said:

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.

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.  

Edited October 5, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[jennifer6973]

Other baseball news per the MLB Network ticker

The Marlins picked up the option for Ichiro.

and the Tigers picked up Brad Ausmus' option for 2017.

 

I don't hold anything against all fans of one team for something one idiot did, except for Yankees fans.  (Hey I'm an O's fan, that jackass Yankee fan still needs to be waterboarded somewhere.)

[Lantern7]

Got the latest Sports Illustrated in the mail. The cover is basically "This Will Be The Cubs' Year, And We Mean It This Time." Just wanted to warn any Cubs fans in here. Also, a baseball has 108 stitches, one for each year of futility. Discuss.

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 5, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[ElDosEquis]

7 hours ago, topanga said:

I don't know him well, but I hear a couple of comedians call him "Racist Vin Scully." Is he racist? Or has he said things that be offensive? 

I do like that hearing his response questions about what he's going to do after he retires. He said that when you're 65, you plan to take vacations, play golf, etc. But when you're 89 (?), after you retire, you plan to try to stay alive. 

yes, he only liked black and oranges.

[Ms Blue Jay]

4 hours ago, Maximum Taco said:

That's true for almost every ball park.

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.  

Edited October 6, 2016 by Ms Blue Jay

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 6, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[mojoween]

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

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 6, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[stealinghome]

This is a GREAT game. I will feel so, so bad for whatever team/pitcher loses. Is there a way we can somehow advance both to the DS round??

Some great defensive plays already this postseason. That was a fantastic catch by Granderson.

I have to think Syndergaard is done for the night--yeah, they're saying he's done. Well, he couldn't have done anything more for his team than he did tonight.

[Maximum Taco]

WOW. What a walk.

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

Edited October 6, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[lilwhitelion]

23 hours ago, Artsda said:

Jays and Orioles are giving all they got to win this wild card. 

It looked like a plastic Aquafina water bottle. They don't sell beer bottles there.

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.  

[Maximum Taco]

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.

[stealinghome]

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.

[Maximum Taco]

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.

[stealinghome]

8 minutes ago, Maximum Taco said:

Also Bumgarner is still pitching.

Bochy: "His pitch count is at 1,000? No problem, he can go a few more innings!"

[Maximum Taco]

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

This one feels over. Prove me wrong Mets.

Edited October 6, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[mojoween]

I feel like Gillaspie did something important in Sunday's game against the Dodgers but I can't remember what.

I'm surprised that I'm kind of rooting for the Giants because I always thought I hated them but I realized it's Panda I could not stand.

I don't know how I feel about the Cubs.  I'll believe them as a WS champion when I actually see it happen.

[twoods]

Those ridiculous boo birds are why I can never root for the Mets. What a bunch of POS fans. You should be applauding your team for getting to this game. And if it wasn't for Familia's 51 saves, your dumb asses would be home being the loser armchair assholes that you are. Too bad they had to play against a bad ass pitcher who is unbeatable in the playoffs.

Same armchair assholes who cuss and scream racial slurs at baseball players. What is wrong with people? It's a damn game- I can't imagine others around them who are trying to enjoy a game but find it difficult to when there are a few drunk jerks who are screaming and being rude. 

Edited October 6, 2016 by twoods

[caracas1914]

Listen I get pitch counts, but I still think for a wild card game you let Thor at least start the 8th...

cough...cough.....*Even year*....cough...cough... (I know all other fans are annoyed by this saying)

[stealinghome]

Congrats to the Giants, but my heart is breaking a little bit for the Mets. Poor guys.

[Lantern7]

Good thing I'm detached, or tonight would've hurt. Arrow, Survivor and NYCC prep were priorities. I turned to ESPN long enough to see Thor give up his first hit. Seriously, the elimination might be best for the Mets, since now they can't be injured on the field anymore. And at least they did (slightly) better than the Yankees.

[mojoween]

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.)

Edited October 6, 2016 by mojoween

[Maximum Taco]

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.

Edited October 6, 2016 by Maximum Taco

[Silver Raven]

Bochy is trying to kill me.  Why would he even think of having Casilla warming up in the ninth inning?

[choclatechip45]

Such a rough loss. Familia showed tonight he can't pitch in high pressure play off situations. I hope they trade him in the off season. I was fine with Collins taking Noah out he was gassed by the end. I also didn't want another Harvey situation. I felt bad for Noah at the end guy pitched one of the best games of his career.