July MLB Game Thread (part 2)

jon abbey

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Having some issues loading the older thread, and other people told me the same via PM, so I locked it and started this one.

Watching TOR/SEA on AppleTV currently, 2-2 in the 9th.
 

jon abbey

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Fun game, Eugenio Suarez wins it with a 3 run HR in the 11th off the carcass of Sergio Romo, SEA wins again (and TOR loses again).
 

jon abbey

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SEA just 2 games behind TOR for the 3rd wild card now, 45-40 to 43-42, two games left this weekend.
 

jon abbey

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SEA, BAL and DET all on six game winning streaks, the list of deadline sellers is shrinking.
 

DennyDoyle'sBoil

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Going to back to the balk thing ….

The balk rule is good. It leads to more exciting baseball. Without the balk rule Dave Roberts is out by 10 feet. You want to have an objective moment where runners believe they can try to steal, or do a hit and run, or take off on 3-2 with two outs, or get secondary leads. If you waited until the ball was actually on its way to the catcher Rickey Henderson would be just another guy.

Someone posted in the old thread last night that it looked like the Rays pitcher was just doing the gesture for “run through the signs again.” I’m not a balk expert, but I think te reason that pitchers always step off the rubber before doing that is so they don’t get called for a balk.

Balks seem unfair when it looks like the runners had no thought about going. In a walk off situation with a man on third and one out though maybe the Reds had a contact play on. Even if they didn’t, the ump can’t know that.

Conveniently sweeping the great balk controversy under the rug
Heh .. our posts crossed! There is no mundane subject I cannot beat into the ground.
 

Yelling At Clouds

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Meanwhile in the NL, the Phillies are now up two for the final WC spot, so I guess Joe G. really was the problem?
 

LogansDad

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Orioles just won their 7th in a row. 2 under .500.
I've been bullish all year on the Orioles being at least competitive within the next couple years. Their offense is deep and underrated, but I didn't think their pitching had it in them quite yet. I was wrong.

Also, the Mariners are awesome and a ton of fun to watch.
 

sean1562

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Marcus Semien and Corey Seager hit back to back HRs. The Rangers are better than I thought they were. +13 run differential, better than the Blue Jays. 38-43 with a pythag of 42-39. Absolutely abysmal in one run games, 5-17.
 

jon abbey

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The Manoah/Ray matchup living up to expectations, 1-0 now in the 7th, on a HR by Springer in the 6th. Ray is out but the recently recalled Brash is in.
 

jon abbey

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Crawford single, Carlos Santana launches one off the scoreboard in right, 2-1 SEA, Manoah all of a sudden mortal.

SEA is 14-3 in their last 17.
 

jon abbey

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I missed it, but evidently Brash and Gurriel had a 13 pitch AB in the 7th, finally Brash Kd him with 99. He was just in for one inning so his average velo was 98-99, up from 95-96 as a SP.
 

jon abbey

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Castillo trying to save it, first time all season a SEA pitcher has gone 3 days in a row. He gets Bichette to pop up, Vlad and Kirk single, Teoscar grounds out and the runners move up, IBB Gurriel.

So it’s 2-1 SEA, two outs, bases loaded, Castillo vs Matt Chapman.

Fake edit: Castillo gets the weak grounder, SEA wins again. Fun series!!
 

LogansDad

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I missed it, but evidently Brash and Gurriel had a 13 pitch AB in the 7th, finally Brash Kd him with 99. He was just in for one inning so his average velo was 98-99, up from 95-96 as a SP.
I am so excited for Matt to be back up. I chatted with him a couple times last year, and he's a really nice kid. His stuff is electric when it is on, and he started the first no-hitter I've been to in person last season (it was combined, but whatever).

That at bat with Gurriel was so frustrating, but he never gave in and the pitch to finish him was filthy. Gurriel fouled off some really tough pitches.

Matt's control looked way better than it did back in April, and I am hopeful that we see him back in the rotation next season, but he also might be a guy whose stuff plays way up out of the pen, too.
 

jon abbey

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It's specific but also 44 innings is a long time, especially when it is the team with three guys who were 1/2/3 in MLB in WAR until recently.
 

Bread of Yaz

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I am so excited for Matt to be back up. I chatted with him a couple times last year, and he's a really nice kid. His stuff is electric when it is on, and he started the first no-hitter I've been to in person last season (it was combined, but whatever).

That at bat with Gurriel was so frustrating, but he never gave in and the pitch to finish him was filthy. Gurriel fouled off some really tough pitches.

Matt's control looked way better than it did back in April, and I am hopeful that we see him back in the rotation next season, but he also might be a guy whose stuff plays way up out of the pen, too.
Could it be that the Ms are showcasing him for a trade? Seems like they could use another starter (Montas, Castillo) as the offense and bullpen are strong. Gonzales may regress and Lewis will have innings limitations
 

Kliq

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Meanwhile in the NL, the Phillies are now up two for the final WC spot, so I guess Joe G. really was the problem?
As a fantasy owner, he can be a tough watch sometimes. But in a league full of guys with high velocity and electric stuff, he manages to stand out as a freak.
 

Marciano490

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It's specific but also 44 innings is a long time, especially when it is the team with three guys who were 1/2/3 in MLB in WAR until recently.
I’m shocked to see Edman has accumulated so much WAR. Is that his defense?
 

jon abbey

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I’m shocked to see Edman has accumulated so much WAR. Is that his defense?
Defense and baserunning, I guess, but yeah it’s confusing to see a guy with a .699 OPS somehow on track for a 8 bWAR season.
 

Joe Shlabotnick

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Orioles now a game under .500
My wife is a Baltimore girl and watches most O’s game. I will grudgingly acknowledge that they are vastly improved. They have a solid offense, and their relief pitching has been lights out. Being shitty for so many years has resulted in Baltimore drafting high and they have used those picks wisely. They are due for a slump and some injuries at some point, but right now, they are playing better than the Sox. Of course, missing 4 starting pitchers has something to do with that.
 

Jason Bae

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Twelve consecutive 7+ inning starts for Sandy Alcantara. He has a 1.73 ERA in 130.1 IP in 18 starts.
 

Yelling At Clouds

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Toronto, who a lot of people thought were the best team in the AL back in April, are now tied for the third WC and have to be considered the second-biggest disappointment in the AL so far (Chicago being #1). They’re certainly capable of turning things around and they’re aggressive with move-making, so I’m not about to count them out. But the possibility of that team missing the playoffs seems just bananas to me.
 
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Jason Bae

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Toronto, who a lot of people thought were the best team in the AL back in April, are now tied for the third WC and have to be considered the second-biggest disappointment in the AL so far (Chicago being #1). They’re certainly capable of turning things around and they’re aggressive with move-making, so I’m not about to count them out. But that team missing the playoffs seems just bananas to me.
That rotation has been a pretty big disappointment. Berrios has gone from being a very solid pitcher to replacement level, and Ryu/Kikuchi pitched poorly before hitting the IL forcing Stripling into the rotation. Even Chapman's been a pretty disappointing pickup for them.
 

Bob Montgomerys Helmet Hat

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Toronto, who a lot of people thought were the best team in the AL back in April, are now tied for the third WC and have to be considered the second-biggest disappointment in the AL so far (Chicago being #1). They’re certainly capable of turning things around and they’re aggressive with move-making, so I’m not about to count them out. But the possibility of that team missing the playoffs seems just bananas to me.
Many said that last season too. Maybe the total is less than the sum of their parts, for whatever reason.
 

Sad Sam Jones

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Carlos Santana goes deep twice today. Granted, I've always been a big fan*, but this was a really underrated pick up by the Mariners in exchange for some organizational garbage. I've said it several times before, but always ignore what Santana's batting line is in May.

*It was absolute robbery when Cleveland acquired Santana from the Dodgers by paying for the last couple of month's on Casey Blake's contract. Getting any actual prospect in exchange for one of my all-time most hated Cleveland players was good enough. Blake was a dolt who always came up small in big situations, ran the bases like Manny Ramirez and couldn't field grounders… and then would try to pass it all off with an "aw shucks" folksy attitude. The summer following the trade, I watched a lot of games at Akron where Santana was named Eastern League Player of the Year.
 

Jason Bae

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Carlos Santana goes deep twice today. Granted, I've always been a big fan*, but this was a really underrated pick up by the Mariners in exchange for some organizational garbage. I've said it several times before, but always ignore what Santana's batting line is in May.

*It was absolute robbery when Cleveland acquired Santana from the Dodgers by paying for the last couple of month's on Casey Blake's contract. Getting any actual prospect in exchange for one of my all-time most hated Cleveland players was good enough. Blake was a dolt who always came up small in big situations, ran the bases like Manny Ramirez and couldn't field grounders… and then would try to pass it all off with an "aw shucks" folksy attitude. The summer following the trade, I watched a lot of games at Akron where Santana was named Eastern League Player of the Year.
Santana's been in the top 10 in walks twelve years in a row.
 

Bread of Yaz

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Could the Orioles actually be buyers? They certainly have the farm system to make some significant moves.
Montas would be the perfect get: Os have good offense & pen but lack reliable starters; his cost will be deflated a bit because of his injury; the Os can treat him with kid loves rest of year.
 

Jason Bae

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Yordan Alvarez hit the 10-day IL with hand inflammation. Hopefully it doesn't affect his hitting, he's been destroying the ball (.377/.469/.795 with 14 homers in his last 145 PA).
 

Sad Sam Jones

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Shane Bieber gave up a run on a hit-by-pitch and two weak singles, but threw a complete game 3-hitter on 95 pitches.
 

dynomite

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Padres calling up Esteury Ruiz and staring him in CF tonight.

His numbers in 77 games at AA/AAA are Ricky Henderson-esque — .333/.467/.560 with 13 HR and… wait for it… 60 SB. Yes, you are reading that right.

This isn’t him just picking on AA catchers either. He’s got 23 steals in his 28 games at AAA. Insanity.
 

Scoops Bolling

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Padres calling up Esteury Ruiz and staring him in CF tonight.

His numbers in 77 games at AA/AAA are Ricky Henderson-esque — .333/.467/.560 with 13 HR and… wait for it… 60 SB. Yes, you are reading that right.

This isn’t him just picking on AA catchers either. He’s got 23 steals in his 28 games at AAA. Insanity.
The Rangers' Bubba Thompson isn't at quite the same pace, but his efficiency (40 stolen bases...caught stealing twice) is incredible. I'd love to see one of these burners pan out and have someone out there stealing 60+ bases at the MLB level.
 

jon abbey

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Maton for HOU with the very rare .1 0 4 0 1 0 line, a HBP and two errors behind him and then the next reliever allowing his runners to score.