Major League Baseball 2010

[Kabukiman]

2010 Milwaukee Brewers: Bad team, or the worst team?

This is the most frustrated I've ever been following baseball. And to tell you the truth, with Bob Uecker out for 12 weeks from the radio broadcast, I'm only reading box scores the next day at this point.

 

[Grenouille]

The Sox have been frustrating to watch so far this year, but not because of the offense like most thought. The pitching staff has been mediocre to awful for the most part especially the pen.

Matsuzaka is still a mystery. He can go out and dominate one game and then the next he'll have 100 pitches by the third. Yeah he's got a ring, but what a horrible waste of money he's turned out to be.

I've thought Beckett was hurt for a while, hopefully he pitches up to his potential after he comes back rested up.

 

[hairlesswookiee]

 

[Grenouille]

It's not even funny how much of a discount the Rays have Longoria for right now.

This guy is going to obliterate the bank when he reaches FA.

 

[316what]

reds are in first place in the NL central

Not anymore thanks to their total collapse today, lol.

9-3 lead going into the bottom of the 9th and can't get anyone out. Pinch hit grand slam by Conrad for the Braves win. That's 2 games in a row lost in the bottom of the 9th, hahahaha.

 

[firefly2121]

It's not even funny how much of a discount the Rays have Longoria for right now.

This guy is going to obliterate the bank when he reaches FA.

Longoria is a pretty good player and probably not at his peak yet...He has a 9 year deal with the Rays for $44 million...that averages at $4 mill per year, that is cheap for a player at this caliber. He is making $900k this year...He'll be 32 when he can re-sign or test free agency...IMO his agent douched him a bit...When you see players at Evan caliber like Utley ($15 mill this year) & David Wright ($10.5 mill) making that type of cash, I think he got screwed.

 

[hairlesswookiee]

It's not even funny how much of a discount the Rays have Longoria for right now.

This guy is going to obliterate the bank when he reaches FA.

NO kidding. I love the guy and he's an excellent player, but I have a nasty feeling that when that day comes he'll be shipping out. The Rays have been notorious for doing this....they recruit great young talent from their camps, let play a few years paying them next to nothing until they start to get really good....then when it comes time to re-up their contract they ditch them because they're too cheap to pay the $$$.


~~Upton is also having a pretty decent season so far. I tend to not like him because IMO he's a lazy basterd, but he seems to have finally opened his eyes and realized its time to play serious.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

Not anymore thanks to their total collapse today, lol.

9-3 lead going into the bottom of the 9th and can't get anyone out. Pinch hit grand slam by Conrad for the Braves win. That's 2 games in a row lost in the bottom of the 9th, hahahaha.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

the reds need to bring up chapman

 

[risingstar]

Longoria is a pretty good player and probably not at his peak yet...He has a 9 year deal with the Rays for $44 million...that averages at $4 mill per year, that is cheap for a player at this caliber. He is making $900k this year...He'll be 32 when he can re-sign or test free agency...IMO his agent douched him a bit...When you see players at Evan caliber like Utley ($15 mill this year) & David Wright ($10.5 mill) making that type of cash, I think he got screwed.

Very few players, if any, are really worth $15 a year... They're only worth that much to a handful of elite big market teams. IMHO, Baseball hasn't been as much fun to watch for a long time because there's no salary cap and players don;t seem as engaged to the game as they once were. Players enter the league essentially hoping to eventually play for the Yankess or Red Sox.

 

[firefly2121]

Very few players, if any, are really worth $15 a year... They're only worth that much to a handful of elite big market teams. IMHO, Baseball hasn't been as much fun to watch for a long time because there's no salary cap and players don;t seem as engaged to the game as they once were. Players enter the league essentially hoping to eventually play for the Yankess or Red Sox.

True, that I don't think these athletes should be paid this much, but that is the way it is. All sports have them. I do believe that Football players should be paid more...
I just love baseball, regardless on who makes what and what players are on which teams (however, I do hate the Red Sox)....As far as players wanting to play for the Yanks or Sox, not true. Ryan Howard, Longoria, Braun, Wright, etc signed long term deals to stay with their teams. The problem is that owners don't want to pay their players, they don't care for their fans and their team...They just love the money. Teams like the Yankees, Red Sox want to win, they want the rings, they have HUGE fan base and a great product, thats why their disliked by many.
As for salary caps...So what? The baseball players union is strong...the NFL is weak...Again, who is at fault?

 

[risingstar]

True, that I don't think these athletes should be paid this much, but that is the way it is. All sports have them. I do believe that Football players should be paid more...
I just love baseball, regardless on who makes what and what players are on which teams (however, I do hate the Red Sox)....As far as players wanting to play for the Yanks or Sox, not true. Ryan Howard, Longoria, Braun, Wright, etc signed long term deals to stay with their teams. The problem is that owners don't want to pay their players, they don't care for their fans and their team...They just love the money. Teams like the Yankees, Red Sox want to win, they want the rings, they have HUGE fan base and a great product, thats why their disliked by many.
As for salary caps...So what? The baseball players union is strong...the NFL is weak...Again, who is at fault?

Sadly, not every city in the league can support a $200 million payroll. There's a reason why once-proud teams like Pittsburgh have had losing records for nearly 20 years straight. What's the point in having a 30 team league if it basically always comes down to the same three or four teams gunning it out at the end? While it's great to see the occasional low payroll team play way over their heads to squeak into the playoffs, you pretty much know they'll be blown out in the end.

Fans become disengaged too as a result of watching their team lose every year. Also, given the economy, it's probably hard for a lot of fans to support a player(s) who thinks being paid $15 million a year isn't nearly enough. He wants a $25 million, a private plane, and wants to charge $50 per autograph.

The owners had a chance at a salary cap during the 2003 lockout. Clearly, the louder voices in the room prefer the status quo as it keeps them on top of the standings. The more silent voices prefer that their profit sharing millions to keep coming in. The MLB is like a miniature G7 summit.

 

[Darthrazz]

. What's the point in having a 30 team league if it basically always comes down to the same three or four teams gunning it out at the end?

Actually salary cap or not there's actually been a lot of parity within the 4 major sports , when it comes to different teams winning, not so much in the NBA. I see your point of teams not competing, but many owners of teams have much deeper pockets than the Yankees or Red sox. They choose to not reinvest in their teams. The Yankees and Red Sox also pay huge amounts in "luxury tax" to the rest of the league every year. What are teams doing with this money?


Since 2000 there have been 8 different teams that won the World series.

Since 2000 there have been 5 different teams that won the NBA championships.

Since 2000 there have been 8 different teams that won the NFL Superbowl.

Since 2000 there have been 7 different teams that won the NHL Stanley Cup championships.

 

[risingstar]

Actually salary cap or not there's actually been a lot of parity within the 4 major sports , when it comes to different teams winning, not so much in the NBA. I see your point of teams not competing, but many owners of teams have much deeper pockets than the Yankees or Red sox. They choose to not reinvest in their teams. The Yankees and Red Sox also pay huge amounts in "luxury tax" to the rest of the league every year. What are teams doing with this money?


Since 2000 there have been 8 different teams that won the World series.

Since 2000 there have been 5 different teams that won the NBA championships.

Since 2000 there have been 8 different teams that won the NFL Superbowl.

Since 2000 there have been 7 different teams that won the NHL Stanley Cup championships.

What owners are doing with the luxury tax money isn't the issue. There's no obligation to put that money back on the field. The issue, I think, is for MLB to find a way to create and sustain an equal playing field, despite it, which there presently is not. Sadly, the MLB is stuck with having to work within the mindset of the many present owners who appear inclined to only spend a certain amount of money. Are they rebelling against players who appear to think they're worth $30 million a year? Probably. Wouldn't you?

Just because an owner has $50 million dollars to spend doesn't mean he has to spend it, especially if he believes it's insane to do so.

The stats posted above mean very little if you take into account that there is a handful of teams who always seem to have a better chance of making it all the way simply because of their financial structure. While there is no guarantee that they'll make the World Series, they do have a better chance, at least that is what the numbers show. The teams who squeak in either by chance or by playing over their heads generally disappear the following year because those teams can no longer compete with the Yankees' ability to pay their free agent reliever $20 million a year. All this to say that the MLB used to be more fun to watch.

 

[Grenouille]

Good lord, is there anybody at the Rays game tonight? They're 32-13 and still can't draw flies.

Can't wait until October when the place is packed and all the morons can ring their cowbells.

 

[Grenouille]

What owners are doing with the luxury tax money isn't the issue. There's no obligation to put that money back on the field. The issue, I think, is for MLB to find a way to create and sustain an equal playing field, despite it, which there presently is not. Sadly, the MLB is stuck with having to work within the mindset of the many present owners who appear inclined to only spend a certain amount of money. Are they rebelling against players who appear to think they're worth $30 million a year? Probably. Wouldn't you?

Just because an owner has $50 million dollars to spend doesn't mean he has to spend it, especially if he believes it's insane to do so.

The stats posted above mean very little if you take into account that there is a handful of teams who always seem to have a better chance of making it all the way simply because of their financial structure. While there is no guarantee that they'll make the World Series, they do have a better chance, at least that is what the numbers show. The teams who squeak in either by chance or by playing over their heads generally disappear the following year because those teams can no longer compete with the Yankees' ability to pay their free agent reliever $20 million a year. All this to say that the MLB used to be more fun to watch.

Couldn't the cheap owners just sell if they don't find their little bauble of a franchise worth investing in? Most don't though because they're still making tons of money because of teams like the Sox and the Yankees. Ownership is tricky. You want someone somewhere in the middle of Mark Cuban (fan) vs Jeremy Jacobs (money first) for instance to borrow from other sports.

Ever since John Henry and his group bought the Sox from the Yawkey Trust things have been great for the Sox, partly in my opinion because they strike the mid-ground in the fan vs money issue.

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Good lord, is there anybody at the Rays game tonight? They're 32-13 and still can't draw flies.

Can't wait until October when the place is packed and all the morons can ring their cowbells.

Maybe nobody cares to see the Red Sox? Fact is the Trop is a crappy location, and most people don't go to games because its a pain to drive to St. Pete (where the stadium is located), which for most is too far a drive to justify the $$$ it would cost to attend a game.

 

[risingstar]

Maybe nobody cares to see the Red Sox? Fact is the Trop is a crappy location, and most people don't go to games because its a pain to drive to St. Pete (where the stadium is located), which for most is too far a drive to justify the $$$ it would cost to attend a game.

The Olympic stadium in Montreal had the same problem.
It was located way too far for too many people to want to bother.

 

[Sweet Rabbit]

Maybe nobody cares to see the Red Sox? Fact is the Trop is a crappy location, and most people don't go to games because its a pain to drive to St. Pete (where the stadium is located), which for most is too far a drive to justify the $$$ it would cost to attend a game.

I'm probably 20ish miles from great american ballpark

 

[hairlesswookiee]

Yeah I can understand what the city of Tampa was thinking when they decided to put the Rays where they are because Tropicana stadium was the Thunderdome (home of our hockey team before they got a new stadium many years ago) and had been sitting there for a good part of a decade and just needed renovation.

But it baffles me how they have the Tampa Bay Rays' stadium in St. Petersberg, which if you're 95% of the Tampa population you have to drive across a bridge to get there from any direction. In my case I have to either go through 3 different interstates to travel out to said bridge, or I can take a Crosstown and pay $5 in toll each way and cross a different bridge.