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Bob James posted:Holy loving tits baseball is almost here. 
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Feb 14, 2017 19:22
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https://twitter.com/CarrieMuskat/status/831566065251397632
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Feb 14, 2017 19:26
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Inspector_666 posted:Real talk: This loving sucks, watching him in the Futures game was amazing. I am a Cubs fan, I hate watching the Cubs lose to the Cardinals, and this kid styled over us last year and was primed to repeat this year, only now as an actual starter. So real talk: This loving sucks, Reyes has phenomenal stuff and watching good pitchers own is always great even if it's against your team. On the first day, too. What the gently caress, baseball gods? 
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Feb 14, 2017 19:50
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Reyes has a partial UCL tear, will probably need TJS.
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Feb 14, 2017 22:23
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YeahTubaMike posted:N: https://twitter.com/AnthonyDiComo/status/831934952304496658 The Mets training staff heard about Reyes needing TJS and, not to be one upped, immediately set about killing their own pitchers. e. In other news Arrieta has apparently reversed course and says he's open to extension talks and would like to remain a Cub: quote:"I think time flies quickly," Arrieta said before the first workout for pitchers and catchers. "It feels like only a few months ago that I was traded over here and starting my career as a Cub in 2013 and had some incredible experiences with that organization. I owe a lot to this team, this organization, the ownership. But I don’t want to see that time come to an end, my time as a Cub. Sydin fucked around with this message at 20:18 on Feb 15, 2017 |
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Feb 15, 2017 20:09
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bawfuls posted:Shockingly, he is less amped to test free agency after having a regression year than he was after having a career-best year. Who could have guessed? As recently as last month he was fairly adamant about not being interested in extension talks, something else is going on besides his down year.
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Feb 15, 2017 21:45
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bewbies posted:goddamn middle aged fat maddux dropping backdoor curveballs in without a windeup on the reigning MVP Maddux: "Okay... middle-away, hit it over the right field fence." Bryant: "Okay." *Meekly fouls away a pitch exactly where Maddux said it would be* Bryant: "...Do it again."
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Feb 16, 2017 19:09
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It's too late for me to actually do the math but considering he's effectively throwing from 57-58 feet from the plate after that jump, the perceived velocity on those pitches has to be bonkers. Especially since he's still somehow hitting the low 90's.
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Feb 17, 2017 09:49
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I wish my little-league coach had been cool but instead he was a hyper-competitive jackass who regularly poo poo on seven year-olds for not being naturally talented as baseball. Unfortunately I fell into this category and after failing to instantly perform at any position I was relegated to LF and never given any form of instruction on anything until I finally quit. Also the only hit I ever got was a weak infield dribbler and after the inning was over coach came up to me and called it a "pussy hit". Manhattan, IL was and probably still is a terrible place.
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Feb 17, 2017 23:28
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Also he apparently spent the entire arb hearing mispronouncing "Dellin" as "Dylan". 
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Feb 18, 2017 19:43
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Fowler well on his way to being the first Cardinals player to be consistently booed at Busch and applauded at Wrigley.
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Feb 19, 2017 20:31
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Kevlar v2.0 posted:Fowler will be the first batter the Cubs face in the 2017 season. And I'm sure it'll be an incredible frustrating 8-10 pitch AB that results in Fowler drawing a lead off walk and eventually coming around to score. And that's fine because Fowler owns.
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Feb 19, 2017 21:03
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I for one am all for Matt Garza being fired from a cannon into the sun, even if his absence makes the Brewers better by default.
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Feb 21, 2017 17:01
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Poque posted:Ask Tommy La Stella Don't forget that he's a ~lefty bat~. In any case it's not that simple though, because TLS has options left but Szczur does not. While I think the claims of Szczur being everyday material are overblown, he's a quality bench bat/fourth OF and there's no way he clears waivers, which means if he doesn't make the 25-man he's probably trade bait. Meanwhile there's a gamble that TLS might fly the coop if he's left in Iowa to start the season and after last year's episode I severely doubt any other teams are interested in trading for him. My hot take is that at least one of them is no longer a Cub by opening day.
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Feb 21, 2017 17:59
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bawfuls posted:lol like the mlb.tv stream never does this The delayed stream with all the DVR functionality isn't bad but god help you if you want to watch the loving live stream. Some days it is loving unwatchable, and the support is a joke: : "The stream is constantly freezing and skipping." : "Go to settings and uncheck standard video.": "That puts me on a ~30-45 second delay though, I want the live stream.": "Okay I'll make our support engineers aware of the issue in the meantime you can resolve the issue by unchecking standard video. Have a nice day!" e. Also what's doubly insulting about it is the old player let you select the quality level you wanted which helped a lot, but the new version dynamically sets it based on bandwidth. So every loving time it starts skipping and finally gets down to a quality level where it plays smoothly, it lasts for all of 10 seconds before it bumps the quality back up and immediately starts buffering again. 
Sydin fucked around with this message at 19:07 on Feb 21, 2017 |
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Feb 21, 2017 19:05
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N: https://twitter.com/BillShaikin/status/834147670377713664 https://twitter.com/BillShaikin/status/834148180115681280 V: Suck it Manfred.
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Feb 21, 2017 22:57
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Also apparently the CBA has language in it that lets the owners implement rule changes without MLBPA approval or input from the second year onward. If you can't stop it from happening anyway, might as well... stall it for now I guess? idk.
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Feb 21, 2017 23:34
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Ice To Meet You posted:90% of the rule changes Manfred has proposed are terrible or accomplish nothing so I can't wait for his dictatorial reign to begin https://twitter.com/JeffPassan/status/834148876445687808
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Feb 21, 2017 23:43
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seiferguy posted:Jeff Passan did some good reporting on Garrett Richards' recovery from a partial tear using stem cells and avoiding TJS: Garrett Richards posted:“Science, bro,” Richards said. “I’m a believer now.” 
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Feb 22, 2017 00:57
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The sign to IBB somebody should be something innocuous and easy to do by accident, and make sure there are no take-backsies. I want an endless parade of walks because managers keep loving up the sign.
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Feb 22, 2017 05:09
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ALFbrot posted:I'm still not sure how to reconcile the goals of "make games shorter" and "increase offense" Probably something like pitch clocks + batters can't leave the box when calling for time + smaller strike zone. It all probably wouldn't add up to games being significantly shorter in total time, but the pace would certainly pick up. As a lot of people have pointed out here, it's the dead air between pitches that causes the feeling of the game dragging, not the total time itself. Meanwhile a smaller zone would theoretically generate more offense, although I'm not a fan of it personally. That's also a package of some pretty significant changes and if people aren't happy with something as innocuous as automatic IBB's, I'm not sure how all that would go over.  Poor kid.
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Feb 22, 2017 18:38
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I'm not sure if it would really work, but Olney has an interesting idea of rewarding players who pick up their pace instead of implementing harsh rule changes:quote:Rather than focusing on putting teeth into the rules and trying to think of ways to penalize the violators, Major League Baseball could financially reward the players who are compliant, so they gradually build new habits and a faster-paced culture... Let's say that every hitter who does not leave the batter's box for at least 10 plate appearances in a given week gets an envelope of $1,000 in cash. Let's say that every pitcher who works at least two innings a week and averages 22 seconds or less between pitches gets an envelope of $1,000 in cash. That would mean that every Sunday, the traveling secretary for each team would walk about the clubhouse and hand out those envelopes. Wade Miley (who averaged 17.8 seconds between pitches last year), here you go, thanks for helping out. Doug Fister, here's some cash, have fun in the poker game on the flight to Seattle. Gary Sanchez, thanks for staying in the batter’s box between pitches -- kudos... this would appeal to the human nature of a lot of players: young players, who have been making almost nothing in the minors; older players, who'd like a little extra money on the road; players who'd like to pass on the cash to their favorite charity.
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Feb 22, 2017 21:38
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El Gallinero Gros posted:Ichiro has gotta be amongst the all time coolest actual great players, right? I don't see how - when the time finally comes - a single voter leaves him off their HoF ballot. On the field he's done everything a position player needs to do to get in, and off the field he's one of the most magnanimous, humble, cool dudes to ever play the sport.
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Feb 23, 2017 03:08
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TheFlyingLlama posted:not quite true Wouldn't this have been right in the middle of his steroid scandal?
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Feb 23, 2017 18:36
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N: https://twitter.com/CarrieMuskat/status/834831654401110016 V:
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Feb 23, 2017 19:50
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cis autodrag posted:But do they help you see a fast-moving ball and hit it precisely? Because just having big muscles doesn't mean you can hit a ball. Balls hit hard are less likely to be converted into outs than balls hit softly. Steroids give players bigger muscles, which means that when they get hits they're hitting the ball harder than they would have without said bigger muscles, which means balls that might have been routine ground/line outs find holes, which is how steroids add to a players BA without giving them a "better eye". Basically what I'm saying is that it's been firmly established that taking steroids makes you a better hitter.
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Feb 24, 2017 01:51
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N: Cubs sign Strop to an extension through 2018, with a team option for 2019. $5.85m in 2018, $6.25m if the option is picked up in 2019 with a $500k buyout. V: I am okay with this.
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Feb 24, 2017 19:06
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Timby posted:Top 5 is probably pushing it. Wade Davis was a great get, and Strop is probably one of the best setup men in baseball, but Rondon regressed badly last year (admittedly, no one knows how long he was really hurt) and the rest of the bullpen behind them is a bunch of question marks -- Edwards badly needs to get his changeup worked out, Grimm is a classic Jekyll and Hyde type guy and ... who the hell else do they have? Uehara's rapidly aging carcass? Scenario 1: Davis remains healthy for the full season which gives the Cubs one of the most elite closers in the game. Strop and Rondon bounce back from their injuries and are an elite pair of setup men to put in front of Davis. Meanwhile Edwards continues to develop and be a high impact arm, Uehara posts yet another super low WHIP, and Anderson actually stays healthy for once which means Montgomery spends the bulk of the season in the pen. In this case the Cubs arguably have one of the best bullpens in baseball. Scenario 2: Davis' elbow issues resurface and he needs to be shut down. Strop and/or Rondon continue to struggle and can't find their footing. Edwards BB/9 issues that plagued him so much in the minors finally resurface and he takes a step backwards. Uehara's extreme flyball tendencies get him beat up in the very hitter friendly confines of Wrigley. Anderson dies like he always does and Montgomery has to take the bulk of fifth starter duties, leaving the lefty bullpen work to Duensing. In this case the Cubs arguably have one of the worst bullpens in baseball. Obviously these are extremes, but the point is that the Cubs bullpen is built on a lot of risk and while there's a very high ceiling, there's also a very, very low floor.
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Feb 24, 2017 21:44
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That's legit funny.
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Feb 25, 2017 01:17
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CubsWoo posted:We left the second Clayton Richard came out of the pen (and we were right to do so!) Currently listed as the Padres #1 starter on their depth chart! My roommate and I have decided we're going to a Padres game sometime this year when he starts and I am going to wear my Cubs hat and heckle the poo poo out of him. And by heckle I mean I'm going to hold up a sign that says "I'm sorry that Maddon broke you."
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Feb 25, 2017 07:17
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Timby posted:Edit: I just don't get Cubs fans' fascination with him. Sure, he's goofy, but he also, you know, kinda sucks at baseball. I understand where you're coming from that Baez is overhyped by the fandom (he is) but saying he sucks at baseball is a swinging way too far in the opposite direction. As others have pointed out he's shown some of the best IF defense in the league at three separate positions in the diamond, he has plus speed on top of great baserunning instincts and tagging technique and sliding technique which means he can steal bags and be aggressive on the bases. At the plate he cut his K% down by 6 points from 30% in 2015 to 24% in 2016. He still doesn't walk much no, but that's because Baez got a lot better last year at making contact by shortening up his huge loopy homerun swing to get the ball in play. See Exhibit A: https://streamable.com/wx62 I mean look, Javy is never going to be Ben Zobrist. He's always going to have tons of swing and miss, he's never going to walk much, and he's always going to be aggressive. He also has an absurd amount of power, good baseball instincts once he's on base, and he at least used 2016 to learn how to shorten up and have an actual 0-2 approach, something he didn't have in 2014-15. He's also still a little rough around the edges since he didn't get much exposure to the majors in 2014-15 due to injury, and my guess is he eventually shakes out into a guy who posts a mid .200's AVG, low .300's OBP, steals 20 bags and hits 20 bombs a year. That's not exactly a Kris Bryant superstar ceiling, but it's not "sucks at baseball."
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Feb 25, 2017 19:42
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Timby posted:He sucks at baseball. You're right, of course. His 2015 success, 2016 success, and postseason success have all been smoke & mirrors and we fans + the Cubs front office are fools to not see the truth you've seen: Baez is a bust and is actually not good.
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Feb 26, 2017 00:04
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New Concept Hole posted:Although citing a season where he had 80 plate appearances isn't much better. I looked at his stats on Fangraphs and thought that was 80 games not 80 PA's.  At the time I thought "80 games that doesn't feel right" but then I had another beer and didn't care.And anyway numbers can never take away Baez absolutely styling over the Giants and Dodgers, even if he did flame out in the WS. TheChaosPath posted:We need This is spring training we have to practice our Cubs poo poo posting so we're read for the regular season N/V threads.
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Feb 26, 2017 02:14
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JeterianGiftBasket posted:Of course it is! Best Swing Of His Life. Heyward's been hyping the Best Swing Of His Life for months and so far it's resulted in two lazy flyouts, a grounder to second, and two strikeouts. I mean it's early spring training so it means less than nothing, but it is pretty funny. 
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Feb 27, 2017 18:57
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Inspector_666 posted:MLB does a terrible job of marketing him in the least. It's ridiculous. The Angels as a team don't help things, but still, the NFL has stars on lovely teams. As does the NBA, and the NHL, and pretty much any other major sport. Baseball is just terrible at marketing their players in general. And then when Harper tried to self promote himself last year, he got completely and utterly poo poo on from every direction. Guys like Kershaw/Harper/Trout/Bryant/etc should be plastered everywhere as the faces of the brand. Der Meister posted:I went to a Trout vs Kershaw game last year My roommate and I are going to drive down to see an Angel's game this year, the only reason being we realized that neither of us had ever seen Mike Trout in person and it was our duty as baseball fans to go at least once so we could say we saw one of the best players of all time in their prime.
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Mar 1, 2017 17:36
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Inspector_666 posted:MLB is pushing Rizzo and Bryant pretty hard, which I think is good since they're young handsome fellas who clearly have fun playing the game. Maybe they're learning? And hey, one guys even has an actual personality!
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Mar 1, 2017 17:49
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Salvor_Hardin posted:The NBA is incredible at promoting its stars, what the hell? That's... what I was trying to say? Almost every other major sport besides the MLB is fantastic at promoting stars, even on teams that are otherwise not good.
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Mar 1, 2017 20:13
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YeahTubaMike posted:I swear to god I'm not trying to burn anyone here, but I have to ask -- which one? Rizzo, albeit "has a personality" by MLB standards. Bryant has a huge passion for baseball and... not much else, so he comes off a a bit one note.
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Mar 2, 2017 00:27
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^ e. Yes it was the Dodgers. I remember because it came up when the manager of the other team noticed it and threw a big sad over technology ruining the game and giving an unfair advantage. It was still in the news cycle when the Dodgers came to Wrigley to play the Cubs, and when they asked Joe about it expecting him to add fuel to the fire, he was just kind of like "uh... who cares? Sounds pretty smart, actually." and then the media (mostly) shut up about it. howe_sam posted:Teams were using laser pointers to position outfielders last season. Weren't they only doing it before games as part of pre-game drills though? Is the rule targeted towards that, or is it only saying you can't use markers during the course of play? Because the latter makes total sense while the former is dumb as hell. Grittybeard posted:Didn't people drool over Mark Prior's mechanics too before Dusty Baker killed him? Maybe it wasn't Prior, I remember hearing a lot about it with one of the guys in those Baker Cubs rotations. Prior's mechanics were touted by scouts as being "the perfect delivery" and being absolutely effortless. Then as soon as he got injured Actual DoctorsTM pointed out he was actually torquing the every loving poo poo out of his pitching elbow. Sydin fucked around with this message at 17:52 on Mar 2, 2017 |
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Mar 2, 2017 17:49
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Your Taint posted:JHey is 0-13 this spring. I know nothing about hitting, but I was at the games today and yesterday, and noticed that while he's starting with his hands lower, he brings them up back to where they were last year as the pitcher starts his windup. The hitch is still there, too. Thankfully, that's what spring training is for!
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Mar 5, 2017 02:39
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