2020 MLB Season Thread (user search)
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Author Topic: 2020 MLB Season Thread  (Read 14008 times)
NewYorkExpress
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« on: May 11, 2020, 02:09:46 AM »

https://www.bleachernation.com/cubs/2020/05/10/national-league-expected-to-add-designated-hitter-this-year/

It appears the last professional American baseball game ever has been played. Game 5 of the 2019 World Series. The President was in attendance and stole the show, but no one knew that it would be the last game ever. Breaks my heart. 💔💔💔

Oh, come on. The only thing bad about the DH is that it takes away the comedy of seeing pitchers strike out all the time.

However there are plenty of good things about it. For one, it's an extra roster spot for someone who otherwise never be on a major league roster (like Albert Pujols after this season, or to use a New York area example, Clint Frazier, whose path to playing time is being blocked by five other players). Pitchers are a lot safer now that they don't have to bat, as getting hit by thrown balls, and hurting oneself swinging the bat is common, and it'll help with roster construction.

Besides...nothing is stopping a team from using a pitcher as the DH, for example, the Mets could do that with half their starting rotation right now. Or as another example Shohei Ohtani is probably guaranteed a roster spot with pretty much any team (since he can be both a pitcher and a DH...just not on the same day), and you could sign another pitcher or bench player and use an extra spot that way.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #1 on: June 01, 2020, 03:42:19 AM »


"Welcome to the 2020 World Series between the Minnesota Twins & the Chicago Cubs. It's December 4th & the temperature is currently minus 10 here at Wrigley Field. Now let's play ball!"

Honestly, If I were the Union, I wouldn't have made another offer. I would have just started the proceedings for a strike.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #2 on: June 24, 2020, 05:18:44 PM »

Honestly, if I were running the MLBPA I would have called for a strike, and I would have refused to even come to the bargaining table for a new CBA. It's clear the owners have no interest in negotiating in good faith, and probably would like to reinstate  the reserve clause if they can.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #3 on: June 27, 2020, 05:56:01 PM »

A little early to be making predictions (especially since the season can still theoretically be canceled), but I'll take a whack at it.

AL East:

1st New York Yankees: 53-7 (The Yankees are far and away the best team in the division, and the only trouble they'll have is with injuries)

2nd: Tampa Bay Rays:  40-20 (The Rays are the second strongest team in the division, but that has more to do with the weakness of the division than their strength. Much of their playoff chances will depend on just how far Tyler Glasnow has come from his arm injury)

3rd: Boston Red Sox: 32-28 (The Red Sox are beginning a rebuilding era. Mookie Betts's trade and Chris Sale's injury puts paid to any chance of the Red Sox making the playoffs. Don't be shocked if they trade Rafael Devers if it looks like they are out of contention at the deadline)

4th: Toronto Blue Jays: 26-34 (Outside of the Yankees and Rays, the Blue Jays are the team in the AL East most likely to make the playoffs, because of their young core. However, other than Hyun-jin Ryu, they have practically no pitching staff)

5th: Baltimore Orioles: 4-56 (The Orioles easily could go 0-60 in this format, as it's rather clear they aren't even trying to put a competitive team on the field)

AL Central

1st: Chicago White Sox: 41-19 (I honestly think the AL Central is going to be really close the whole way. Chicago probably has the edge based on their ability to make trades and probably being more willing to do so than their closest rivals, Cleveland and Minnesota)

2nd: Minnesota Twins: 40-20 (The Twins dramatically overachieved in 2019, largely because of the home run. They certainly can make the playoffs again, as they made a very shrewd offseason signing in Josh Donaldson. Still, between them and Tampa for that second Wild Card spot, Tampa will probably win on tiebreakers...a procedure which will be drastically different this year, admittedly)

3rd: Cleveland Indians: 39-21 (The Indians are also beginning a rebuilding phase. However, unlike the Red Sox, they have enough talent on the roster for one more run at a playoff spot)

4th: Kansas City Royals: Kansas City Royals: 15-45 (The Royals are at least a year or two away from competing from a playoff spot, and it wouldn't stun me if they traded Whit Merrifield either)

5th: Detroit Tigers: 0-60 (Like the Orioles, the Tigers are very capable of going 0-60 this season, and it won't shock me if they do so. The big question is, will Miguel Cabrera get to 3,000 hits this season. He needs 185, which is close to impossible in a 60 game season, as he'd need to average just over three a game...but it is doable.)

AL West

1st: Houston Astros: 54-6 (Even without Gerrit Cole, the Astros are the favorites in the AL West. It'll be interesting to see how many of their hitters get hit by pitches this season after the scandal)

2nd: Los Angeles Angels: 42-18 (The Angels have no pitching, which will hurt them in October, but their offense will get them to October)

3rd: Oakland Athletics: 37-23 (The A's would probably do quite a bit worse if this was a full 162 game season, but in a shortened season, they can make a run at a playoff spot)

4th: Texas Rangers: 30-30 (The Rangers also would probably do significantly worse in full 162 game season, but in a short season, they are good enough to play .500 ball)

5th: Seattle Mariners: 2-48 (The last of the AL teams not trying to win. Seattle might look to move players like Dee Gordon, Kyle Seager and Mitch Haniger in trades)

Wild Card Round

Tampa Rays defeat Los Angeles Angels

ALDS

Houston Astros defeat Tampa Bay Rays in 4
New York Yankees defeat Chicago White Sox in 4

ALCS

New York Yankees defeat Houston Astros in 7

NL East

1st: Atlanta Braves: 45-15 (I wouldn't be shocked if Roland Acuna Jr. is the NL MVP this year)

2nd: Washington Nationals: 45-15 (The Nationals lose the division to the Braves on a tiebreaker, but easily claim a wild card spot. They also should be considered one of the overall favorites in the National League)

3rd: Philadelphia Phillies: 43-17 (The Phillies have a strong enough roster that they dramatically underachieved last season. That will change this season)

4th: New York Mets: 21-39 (I could easily see the Mets doing at least 10-15 games worse than this, but this is the record the talent on the roster should get)

5th: Miami Marlins: 0-60 (When was the last time the Marlins seriously tried to win games?)

NL Central

1st: St. Louis Cardinals 42-18 (The Cardinals are favored, but this is a weak division)

2nd: Chicago Cubs: 34-26 (The Cubs playoff window has closed, and the rebuilding era has begun)

3rd: Milwaukee Brewers: 33-27 (The Brewers got very lucky to get a Wild Card berth last year, and I think this record is closer to what their level of talent actually is)

4th: Cincinnati Reds: 29-31 (The Reds could win the division, or they could finish 15 games under .500. Their probability outcome range is quite wide)

5th: Pittsburgh Pirates: 7-53 (I'll give Pittsburgh credit, they are trying to put a competitive team on the field. Unfortunately, you need to spend money to do that, and they aren't spending money)

NL West

1st: Los Angeles Dodgers: 58-2 (Their only hole might be their pitching staff, and that can be covered up. Also, they did great work fleecing Boston for Mookie Betts, and if he resigns there, they have the wonderful luxury of four starting outfielders (Betts, Joc Pedersen, Cody Bellinger and A.J Pollock) for three spots.)

2nd: San Diego Padres 36-24 (Good enough to contend for a Wild Card, not quite good enough to win the Wild Card spot...at least not with pulling off a big trade. Maybe next year?)

3rd: Colorado Rockies: 25-35 (No real pitching, as usual, but having Nolan Arenado, Trevor Story and Charlie Blackmon makes for a pretty good offense)

4th: Arizona Diamondbacks: 10-50 (Arizona isn't really trying to put together a competitive team this year. The big story for them will be whether Madison Bumgarner is registered as a two-way player this year (he can in fact, hit and is one of the better hitting pitchers in the league...it makes sense to register him as a pitcher/DH just for that reason.)

5th: San Francisco Giants: 9-51 (The Giants also aren't seriously trying to win. The big story for them is Buster Posey's pursuit of 1,500 hits. He's 120 hits away, which is difficult in a 60 game season, as he'd need to average two hits a game, but it is doable.)

Wild Card Game

Nationals Defeat Phillies

NLDS

Dodgers defeat Nationals in 5

Braves defeat Cardinals in 5

NLCS

Dodgers defeat Braves in 4

World Series

Dodgers defeat Yankees in 7
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #4 on: June 27, 2020, 11:00:18 PM »

Let's go Tigers .000 winning percentage baby!

If it weren't for the fact there's four other teams clearly not trying to win, I'd say you guys are locks for the #1 overall pick in next year's draft.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #5 on: July 01, 2020, 10:11:52 PM »

https://www.sportico.com/2020/leagues/baseball/a-rod-jlo-among-seven-mlb-approved-mets-bidders-145/

Quote
Major League Baseball has pre-approved seven groups as qualified bidders for the franchise, a person with direct knowledge of the matter told Sportico. The person was granted anonymity because the process is private.

The preliminary approval grants the groups, all of which must sign non-disclosure agreements as part of the process, access to a so-called data room that allows the prospective bidders to begin their due diligence.

Will the Mets be sold this year?
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #6 on: July 20, 2020, 09:56:53 PM »

Get ready for the whiny petulant tweetstorm! lol


Trump would be right in this instance. It's really inappropriate for Fauci to be throwing the first pitch at a Nationals Game, and he should know better than that.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #7 on: July 26, 2020, 07:50:57 PM »

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29544264/report-astros-ace-justin-verlander-done-season

Justin Verlander is out with a forearm strain, and may be done for the season.

Of course...If Houston makes a run in the playoffs, Verlander might return...
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #8 on: July 27, 2020, 05:56:00 AM »

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29542203/marlins-starter-jose-urena-late-scratch-phillies

Marlins Jose Urena, Jorge Alfaro, Garrett Cooper and Harold Ramirez have tested positive for COVID-19.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #9 on: July 27, 2020, 06:27:24 PM »

https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/27/us/anthony-fauci-baseball-card-spt-trnd/index.html

Quote
Dr. Anthony Fauci threw an abysmal first pitch to kick off the historic 2020 Major League Baseball season. But fans of the renowned disease expert clearly don't mind.

A Topps baseball card with a masked Fauci mid-pitch just became the bestselling card in the history of ToppsNow, the company's collection of limited-edition cards.

ToppsNow cards are available for only 24 hours on the Topps site. More than 51,500 Faucis were sold when the card hit the site last week, the company said Monday.

Would you buy a Fauci Baseball Card (or did you?)
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #10 on: July 28, 2020, 11:54:51 PM »

Why MLB hasn't shut the season down is beyond me.

State Governments (especially those in states where Governors are taking COVID seriously) need to step up, and refuse to allow the teams to play.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #11 on: July 30, 2020, 03:13:14 PM »

I was so excited for baseball & the Marlins' dumbassery resulting in their being off for almost a week has kinda torpedoed that excitement for me :/

They are bad so it's ok... Smiley

Yeah, but us Marlins fans live on the annual 'beginning-of-the-season' hope that "this might be the year they're not as bad."

The Marlins have fans?
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #12 on: July 31, 2020, 08:57:02 PM »

Manfred needs to do the right thing and cancel the season.

The NBA and MLS should also realize that a "bubble" is no protection and shut down too.

There should be no sports until there is a safe, proven vaccine.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #13 on: July 31, 2020, 11:34:53 PM »

The bubbles are working, though. The right thing for Manfred to have done would've been to fight for one in their negotiations with the players.

Yes, because Major League Baseball Players, the most selfish and overpaid players in all of sports (not that the owners are any better) would have agreed to the conditions that came with a bubble.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #14 on: August 01, 2020, 01:08:57 AM »

Today would be a great day for John Henry to sell the team to someone who cares.

He's doing great with Liverpool FC, to be fair. Didn't they just win the English Premier League?
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #15 on: August 02, 2020, 12:22:02 PM »

Just heard on the radio that TV networks are being told to find alternate programming for next week & that Manfred is going around saying that if this weekend doesn't go well, then that might be it. So yeah, the season is probably gonna be halted or outright canceled.

And if this season stops, then it's over, because there's certainly no time left for a 2nd relaunch with actual protocols & a bubble to become a reality. They better focus on figuring something out for next season, because 1/3rd of this country are proud science-deniers & are still acting like f**king children.

So NBA & NHL it is, I guess! But hey, glad we at least got our 3 games in! What a tease.

Oh, & football is never gonna work either, & I doubt NBA & NHL are gonna play a whole season in the bubble next year either, so let's all hope that a successful COVID vaccine is found among the current candidates, because I don't see how sports successfully navigates all of this without one.

This sounds like literal fake news. Would love to see a source that isn't speculative reports radio chatter, which is right precisely never. The only people on Twitter demanding this termination are nobodies with an agenda to make everything look as bad as possible. The players do not want it. The owners definitely don't want it. Yesterday's words were clearly an empty threat to players to make them stop going to casinos and strip clubs (sounds like this is an America problem, not a baseball problem that dangerous indoor establishments are open). If the players had any respect for their managers and coaches, they would cut it out.

https://twitter.com/JonHeyman/status/1289632548339900416?s=19

This is Rob Manfred we're talking about here. Given his habit of saying one thing one day then saying the opposite only days later, I'd be very surprised to see the season last another week. Basically none of the players are following any protocols, masks aren't mandatory (90% of the players in the dugouts are maskless), & they're still able to go out. Nobody (be it the players or the league) act like they actually give a sh*t about distancing.

So, yeah. The season is doomed.

Manfred never should have put a schedule in place, especially if he wasn't willing to commit to a bubble.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #16 on: August 02, 2020, 04:00:12 PM »



Here's hoping other players follow suit.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #17 on: August 03, 2020, 06:12:35 AM »
« Edited: August 03, 2020, 06:16:28 AM by NewYorkExpress »

Today would be a good day for John Henry to sell the team to someone who gives a ****.

Again, he clearly gives a damn about Liverpool FC, the soccer (football) team he owns in England. They just won the Premier League easily.

https://www.radio.com/sports/mlb/mets-trade-for-speedy-outfielder-billy-hamilton-with-giants

We've also got an honest to goodness trade, something I thought we might not see (outside of teams clearly not trying to win).

The Mets traded Pitcher Jordan Humphreys to the Giants for Outfielder Billy Hamilton.

The Mets also traded Pitcher Tyler Bashlor to the Pirates for cash.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #18 on: August 04, 2020, 07:34:44 PM »

Ugh. Yadi, DeJong, and 5 other Cardinals players tested positive for COVID-19.



If Rob Manfred does not cancel the season, Congress should step in and do it for him.

Same with Roger Goodell and the NFL.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #19 on: August 06, 2020, 12:50:30 PM »

Ugh. Yadi, DeJong, and 5 other Cardinals players tested positive for COVID-19.



If Rob Manfred does not cancel the season, Congress should step in and do it for him.

Same with Roger Goodell and the NFL.

"Congress should step in and do it for him"

I am pretty damn sure congress does not have this power.

Congress has given itself all sorts of powers over the years that it doesn't actually have.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #20 on: August 07, 2020, 12:33:14 PM »

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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #21 on: August 08, 2020, 07:54:17 PM »

Castellanos and Trevor Bauer are single handedly lifting my fantasy team to victory

Meanwhile, my fantasy team is losing this week because Jack Flaherty and the Cardinals have been idle this past week.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #22 on: August 09, 2020, 09:37:35 PM »

Freddie Freeman literally just lifted my fantasy team to victory this week.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #23 on: August 15, 2020, 01:18:31 AM »

https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29665016/cincinnati-reds-player-tests-positive-coronavirus

Another positive COVID-19 test, this time on the Cincinnati Reds.
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NewYorkExpress
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« Reply #24 on: August 20, 2020, 04:08:36 PM »

https://www.northjersey.com/story/sports/mlb/mets/2020/08/20/ny-mets-game-vs-florida-marlins-postponed-due-covid-case-mets/5618620002/

Mets/Marlins will be postponed because of a positive COVID case on the Mets.
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