April Game Thread

jon abbey

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No one likes Machado, but seriously gutty effort there to tie it.
 

jon abbey

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Benches empty, bullpens empty.

Just let these two teams play all season and send everyone else home.
 

jon abbey

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Cronenworth on the mound, David Price at the plate, Musgrove with the putout in LF for a SF.
 

DeadlySplitter

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This game probably won't mean much at the end, but the Padres blew an opportunity tonight to look relevant. Horrible defense all night long, some rough ABs when the game was on the line.

Cronenworth's debut is a weird one: doesn't cover 1st, Price gets an RBI(!!) on a liner sac fly to a pitcher playing LF ,and his first K ever somehow is Mookie Betts.

Seager to SS (8/$200m), Xander to 3rd, Devers to 2nd.
The starting price is 342M. Have fun.
 

jon abbey

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So that’s the Padres’ weakness, if you can make their ninth pitcher of the game go a second inning, the game is yours.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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DO is a treasure.

I do think the whole benchs and bullpens emptying so everyone can posture and mug and delay the game for 10 minutes is stupid though. I get that tempers will flare and things will be said, but when has the bullpen running in ever solved anything? It's as archaic as the whole throw-at-a-guy-in-retaliation-for-some-broken-unwritten-rule nonsense. Actually kinda surprised that something resulting in 60 guys milling around in close contact while shouting/spitting at each other isn't dealt with more severely with all the COVID protocols in place these days. Between this and the Adam Eaton shoving thing the other day, I'm surprised it hasn't come up.
 

Jim Ed Rice in HOF

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DO is a treasure.

I do think the whole benchs and bullpens emptying so everyone can posture and mug and delay the game for 10 minutes is stupid though. I get that tempers will flare and things will be said, but when has the bullpen running in ever solved anything? It's as archaic as the whole throw-at-a-guy-in-retaliation-for-some-broken-unwritten-rule nonsense. Actually kinda surprised that something resulting in 60 guys milling around in close contact while shouting/spitting at each other isn't dealt with more severely with all the COVID protocols in place these days. Between this and the Adam Eaton shoving thing the other day, I'm surprised it hasn't come up.
It would be pretty simple to put in a rule to the effect of anyone leaving the bullpen is an automatic suspension of x games. Let the guys in the dugouts provide all the milling about doing nothing entertainment.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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It would be pretty simple to put in a rule to the effect of anyone leaving the bullpen is an automatic suspension of x games. Let the guys in the dugouts provide all the milling about doing nothing entertainment.
I'd say that people coming out of the dugouts should be subject to suspension too, like it is in most other sports. But then you're getting into "fair fight" territory when you have nine guys on the field for one team and only between one and five (if you want to count the guy on deck as not in the dugout) for the other.

Then again, if a guy charging the mound has to consider that he might be taking on the whole team without any back-up, maybe we wouldn't have so many incidents. Like would A-Rod have been so mouthy to Arroyo and Varitek that day if he knew the rest of the Yankees couldn't leave the dugout?
 

Jim Ed Rice in HOF

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I'd say that people coming out of the dugouts should be subject to suspension too, like it is in most other sports. But then you're getting into "fair fight" territory when you have nine guys on the field for one team and only between one and five (if you want to count the guy on deck as not in the dugout) for the other.

Then again, if a guy charging the mound has to consider that he might be taking on the whole team without any back-up, maybe we wouldn't have so many incidents. Like would A-Rod have been so mouthy to Arroyo and Varitek that day if he knew the rest of the Yankees couldn't leave the dugout?
I’ll admit it - I like a good baseball brawl every so often. Let the dugouts empty, keep the bullpen guys where they are. Not having Arod/Tek would be sad.
 

Sad Sam Jones

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Atlanta is calling up 36-year-old infielder Sean Kazmar Jr., who last appeared in a MLB game in 2008 and has spent the past 12 years in AAA.

That’s some serious dedication to the game. Jeff Passon has a good thread about this.

View: https://twitter.com/jeffpassan/status/1383433722561654795?s=21
I love this stuff. The record for longest time between MLB appearances is Paul Schreiber, who came out of the Yankees bullpen in 1945 for two appearances 22 years after he'd last pitched for the Dodgers as a 20-year-old. However, Schreiber was employed as New York's batting practice pitcher and hadn't been an active player for over 13 years. His return to the majors only happened because of the depleted major league rosters during World War II. Next on the list is Charley O'Leary at 21 years, but he was also a coach with a history in Vaudville, he came off the bench for the Browns once as a novelty at the age of 58, but to his credit, he became the oldest player ever to get a hit and then also scored a run. Then you have a similar story with Gabby Street, who called upon himself as a pinch-hitter while managing the Cardinals 19 years after he'd retired as a player.

There are three others who went more years between MLB appearances than Kazmar, but two of those, Clay Touchstone and Joe Cicero, were similar to Schreiber in that they were pressed into service during 1945 due to the player shortage. Touchstone had chased his dream for 13 years in the minors after his last MLB appearance and then got his wish three years after his initial retirement. Cicero's MLB days had previously ended as a teenager, so he was only 34 when he made his comeback and had been playing in the minors, but he also had left baseball twice before.

That leaves Fred Johnson, who pitched in 17 games for the 1938 St. Louis Browns at the age of 44 as the only player who has gone more than 13 years between MLB appearances while continuing to chase the dream the entire time. His previous last appearance had come in 1923 with the New York Giants at the age of 29, but he'd pitched professionally every year since then, including nine straight years in the Southern Association. Since 1950, Jim Baumer is the only player to really earn a shot in the majors more than a decade after his last appearance. Two others have technically accomplished it, but both -- Minnie Minoso and Satchel Paige -- were publicity stunts.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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I’ll admit it - I like a good baseball brawl every so often. Let the dugouts empty, keep the bullpen guys where they are. Not having Arod/Tek would be sad.
Brawl? Sure. Who doesn't enjoy one of those every once in a while?

But last night wasn't so much a brawl as a staring/shouting contest. Same with the White Sox and Indians on Thursday (other than the initial shove of Gimenez by Eaton). And Reds-Cardinals last week. The 30+ guys with puffed out chests "m-f-ing" and "oh yeah"ing each other for 5-10 minutes is lame and generally a waste of time.
 

Sad Sam Jones

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The Cubs have scored 13 runs with 6 home runs through 6 innings today (Willson Contreras and Kris Bryant have both homered twice). They had scored 11 runs on 4 home runs in their previous six games total.
 

loshjott

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The only way this Nats team works is if Scherzer, Strasburg, and Corbin are good. Not an encouraging start.
True enough but the staff gave up 0 and 2 runs the past two days. Scherzer was Scherzer yesterday and Fedde was good today over five. Joe Ross pitched well his last start too. They need those guys to help out the big 3 and see what Lester gives them.
 

Sad Sam Jones

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Indians with runners on the corners and no one out in the 8th inning against the Reds. Josh Naylor hit a low line drive towards first, right where Joey Votto was positioned. Votto snagged it and beat Franmil Reyes back to first base. Eddie Rosario (the runner at third) apparently thought the ball hit the ground and ran home, so Votto threw to third for the triple play.
 

jon abbey

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It’s really amazing, he has allowed just one ER total in his first three starts, and the Mets are about to go 0-3 in those games (and 5-1 in their other games!).
 

Sad Sam Jones

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Cleveland was up 2-1 in the 9th. Emmanuel Clase coaxed three straight grounders to first base where Josh Naylor is playing for the first time this year. He made the play on the first two, both of which had some degree of difficulty. The third one was completely routine... and went through his legs. The Reds ended up tying the game and we go to extra-innings.
 

jon abbey

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Oh, this Mets rally is all off Daniel Bard, he looks awful today.
 

The Gray Eagle

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These games have both been fantastic. Playoff intensity in April. Of course Mookie saves the day with an incredible catch.
 

Petey Bienel

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MadBum's contract with the DBacks is headed toward being an all-timer. They are paying him $19m this year, then owe him $60m over the next three years.

Last year he had 9 starts, threw 41.2 IP with a 6.48 ERA and 1.4 WHIP.
This year, in three starts, his WHIP is 2.195 and he's only managed to go 13.2 IP.

He's 31, by the way.

I'm sure it's just a coincidence, but neither Tim Lincecum nor Matt Cain pitched an MLB game after age 32.
Well, with Strasburg missing last year due to carpal tunnel, and him going to the 10 day injury list with shoulder inflammation after being lit up his last start, the Nats have $210 million in costs for him through 2026 and $106 million in Patrick Corbin through 2024. If you can only vote for one worst contract, MadBum might benefit from Nats fans splitting their votes
 

jmcc5400

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View: https://twitter.com/lindseyadler/status/1383631914779615242


Lindsey Adler on Twitter: Imagine the catch Financial Flexibility would have made in this spot though
Am I only the one who’s more than tired of these “clever” barbs? I *love* Mookie and was irate that they painted themselves into the payroll corner they did, but enough already. I don’t need to imagine the catch “financial flexibility” would have made, because I watched Alex Verdugo make nearly as good a game saving catch three days ago.
 

E5 Yaz

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Am I only the one who’s more than tired of these “clever” barbs? I *love* Mookie and was irate that they painted themselves into the payroll corner they did, but enough already. I don’t need to imagine the catch “financial flexibility” would have made, because I watched Alex Verdugo make nearly as good a game saving catch three days ago.
Sports commentator snark is past its prime
 

soxhop411

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Am I only the one who’s more than tired of these “clever” barbs? I *love* Mookie and was irate that they painted themselves into the payroll corner they did, but enough already. I don’t need to imagine the catch “financial flexibility” would have made, because I watched Alex Verdugo make nearly as good a game saving catch three days ago.
Yup. This shit is getting Tiresome. It was pretty clear he did not want to be here
 

trekfan55

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Yup. This shit is getting Tiresome. It was pretty clear he did not want to be here
Also Covid changed things last year. If not for Covid Mookie is looking for the Tatis/Lindor deal and probably gets it. Do the Red Sox pay that?