2020 MLB Season Thread

[NewYorkExpress]

Congrats to Mariners along with Tampa Bay and Toronto Blue Jay's, whom share the team colors, they are the minor leaguers of the MLB and will never win a Wrld Series. If there is consolidation which will have to be considered due to ongoing Pandemic,  wouldn't mind seeing all 3 teams cut

The Blue Jay's have already won a World Series... Twice.

Tampa Bay is one of the best teams in the American League, and well yea the M's suck.

Listen, here: if OC says the Blue Jays have never won a World Series, then the Blue Jays have never won a World Series. If OC says Tampa Bay sucks, then they suck.

Who do you think you are, challenging the word of Atlas' lord & savior!?

I must have missed the memo saying OC is the lord and savior of this forum, given the lack of speaking in any intelligible language, let alone English.

[NewYorkExpress]

Lucas Giolito with the no-hitter tonight!

Giolito is proving he's one of the best pitchers in the American League.

He's definitely  the best pitcher in the AL Central (the only real competition is the Indians Shane Bieber).

[NewYorkExpress]

Imagine telling Rangers fans a year ago that the 2020 World Series would be clinched in Arlington in the inaugural year of their new ballpark:

https://twitter.com/patmcafeeshow/status/1299376106269741057

That's just stupid, Why have AL playoffs in NL cities and vice versa?

I'm more miffed that they didn't consider New York, given you know...we have two stadiums in the same city.

A bubble would actually work here.

[NewYorkExpress]

Imagine telling Rangers fans a year ago that the 2020 World Series would be clinched in Arlington in the inaugural year of their new ballpark:

https://twitter.com/patmcafeeshow/status/1299376106269741057

That's just stupid, Why have AL playoffs in NL cities and vice versa?

I'm more miffed that they didn't consider New York, given you know...we have two stadiums in the same city.

A bubble would actually work here.

With them having to play multiple games a day in these stadiums in the early rounds, they didn't want to risk rainouts and the like.  The Texas stadiums have roofs, and it rarely rains in October in Southern California.

I would have gone with a three city bubble. New York, Chicago, LA Metro.

All three areas have more than one stadium available, thus making a bubble work, and generally the weather is relatively okay in both New York and Chicago in October, and as you said, it doesn't really rain in Southern California in October.

[NewYorkExpress]

San Diego is clearly in win-now mode.

The past week they've traded for Trevor Rosenthal, Mitch Moreland, Jason Castro, Austin Nola, and now Mike Clevinger.

They seem to be the team that improved the most at the trade deadline.

Should the Dodgers be worried about their chances to win the division?

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29797239/tom-seaver-hall-fame-pitcher-mets-legend-dies-75

Hall of Fame pitcher Tom Seaver, who led the New York Mets to an improbable World Series victory in 1969, has died at age 75.

The Baseball Hall of Fame announced that Seaver died Monday from complications of Lewy body dementia and COVID-19.

RIP to Tom Seaver, probably the greatest player the Mets ever had (Nolan Ryan doesn't count because the Mets traded him away when he was still young.)

[NewYorkExpress]

RIP Lou Brock.


https://twitter.com/TheUndefeated/status/1302741478117117952

Greatest Cardinal since Stan Musial.

Lou Brock for Ernie Broglio might go down as one of the worst trades in baseball history.

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/why-its-time-for-major-league-baseball-to-ban-the-shift/

CBS Sports's Matt Snyder has an excellent opinion piece up explaining why Major League Baseball needs to ban the shift.

Any chance this happens?

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/mlb-playoff-bubble-mlbpa-league-agree-to-neutral-site-locations-for-2020-postseason-per-report/

Major League Baseball's 2020 postseason bubble plan has been approved by the MLB Players Association, MLB announced Tuesday. The Division Series, League Championship Series and World Series will all be held at neutral-site ballparks where players will be set up in nearby one-location bubbles.

A bubble approach for MLB would help minimize the risk of another coronavirus outbreak. Shortly after the 2020 season began, there was a major coronavirus outbreak among the Miami Marlins. The St. Louis Cardinals also suffered from a team-wide outbreak and both put the MLB season in jeopardy. All in all, the league has been forced to postpone 43 total games on the schedule due to positive COVID-19 cases.

Here are the specific bubble locations for the expanded playoffs:

NLDS: Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas and Minute Maid Park in Houston
ALDS: Petco Park in San Diego and Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles
NLCS: Globe Life Field
ALCS: Petco Park
World Series: Globe Life Field

[NewYorkExpress]

What were the odds in Las Vegas before the season on the Marlins making the playoffs?

[NewYorkExpress]

AL:

Rays defeat Blue Jays in three

A's defeat White Sox in three

Twins defeat Astros in two

Yankees defeat Indians in three


ALDS:

Rays defeat Yankees in Five

Twins defeat A's in Five

ALCS:

Rays defeat Twins in Four


NL:

Dodgers defeat Brewers in two

Braves defeat Reds in two

Marlins defeat Cubs in three

Padres defeat Cardinals in three

NLDS:

Dodgers defeat Padres in four

Marlins defeat Braves in five

NLCS:

Marlins defeat Dodgers in seven


World Series:

Marlins defeat Rays in seven

[NewYorkExpress]

Marlins aren't gonna defeat Dodgers, the only teams that Dodgers lose to are AL teams due to DH and both leagues are using DH, which is to Mookie Betts and Seagars advantage, Betts is from the Red Sox, an AL team, Dodgers will win Weld Series. There's a lot of dislike for Dodgers due to fact Lakers are gonna win Title. But, look how many Boston won with Brady and Red Sox

Need I point out the Marlins have yet to lose a postseason series. Until such a thing happens, I will pick them to win the World Series every time they are in the postseason.

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/30026719/hall-famer-bob-gibson-st-louis-cardinals-ace-dies-84

Baseball Hall of Famer Bob Gibson died Friday at age 84, the St. Louis Cardinals confirmed to ESPN.

Gibson, who was born in Omaha, Nebraska, played all of his 17 MLB seasons with the Cardinals, from 1959-75.

Gibson announced in July 2019 that he had pancreatic cancer.

[NewYorkExpress]

Tampa Bay 100 percent deserved to win tonight, and it's amazing the Yankees got to swing for the lead in the ninth - but CB Buckner was the absolute worst home plate umpire I have seen in about 15 years. He gave Happ way too many strikes too. Every pitcher was getting it. Just less fun to watch pitchers get every single call without question.

Yankees tried to pull a gimmick with their #4 starter to get favorable match-ups. Appreciate the effort to fake it while a serious underdog against a stud throwing gas. Not a bad time to take the L. Kevin Cash is an elite manager who manages the game the way I wish we would manage it. A+ effort to seal it.

Boone taking a lot of heat for that strategy but for once I do not question him. Idiotic to let Sanchez hit in the ninth against a guy throwing 99, but the pitching decisions were fine given the pieces to work with.

I love Kevin Cash, and he's a great manager (and I hope he gets the Mets job, if the new ownership decides to part ways with Luis Rojas), but I think Charlie Montoyo should be the AL Manager of the Year.

In the NL, the manager of the year is obviously Don Mattingly. I don't think anyone predicted the Marlins being a playoff team before the season (I didn't have them winning a game, so I have to eat crow)

[NewYorkExpress]

https://www.cnn.com/2020/10/12/us/joe-morgan-death/index.html

Hall of Famer Joe Morgan, part of Cincinnati's Big Red Machine and one of the best second basemen to don a glove, has died, the Reds said in a statement. He celebrated his 77th birthday last month.

According to the San Francisco Giants, where he also played, the two-time World Series champ died Sunday at his home in Danville, California, a 30-minute drive east of the Oakland high school where he played as a teen.

"The Reds family is heartbroken. Joe was a giant in the game and was adored by the fans in this city," team CEO Bob Castellini said. "As a cornerstone on one of the greatest teams in baseball history, his contributions to this franchise will live forever."

MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred called Morgan "a symbol of all around excellence" and said he one of the game's best-ever "five-tool players," meaning he excelled at hitting, hitting hard, running, fielding and throwing.

The 10-time All-Star was inducted into the Reds' Hall of Fame in 1987 and into the National Baseball Hall of Fame three years later. He also served as vice chairman of the Hall's board of directors from 2000 until his death.

[NewYorkExpress]

The Rays may be the third team this century without a Hall of Famer to win a title after just 1 (maybe 2) last century. (Blake Snell has an ok shot, hard to say so early with pitchers. Angels had Lackey and K-Rod and you just can't count on it. Glasnow will need to be a very late bloomer.) To do so, they will need to beat a third superteam with at least 4-5 likely Hall of Famers. Can't say they wouldn't have earned it!

I could argue each of the Rays last three general managers (including the current one) are likely going to end up in the Hall of Fame if the Rays keep doing what they are doing with so little payroll.

[NewYorkExpress]

Congratulations Dodgers fans.

Also, congratulations to Clayton Kershaw, who just became a first-ballot hall of famer with this World Series win.