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Can't quite believe I'm asking this, but shouldn't the front office be thinking about an extension for Hafner? He's a free agent after next year ...
Nah!
Well ... maybe.
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I love that they let him swing at the first pitch.. bases loaded in the bottom of the last and up by 3 with a pure power hitter at the plate, you know the pitcher doesn't want to fall behind so you know he is going to try to get that first pitch across.. so if Hafner is taking and falls behind, he doesn't see another pitch like that in the at-bat.
yebat' Putin
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Yeah, but at the same time, if I'm that pitcher with a guy like Hafner at the plate, I don't throw anything near the strike zone. I'd rather walk Hafner and walk in a run than let him belt one like that.
I'd hope that maybe he reaches for a couple out of the strike zone, maybe pops up or hits into a double play. I wouldn't take a single chance of putting on his his wheelhouse.
I am unfamiliar with this feeling of optimism
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So on my Daughters 5th birthday, we get a grandslam and win 5-4... August 5th is my sons 4th birthday... I bet the Rangers are shaking in their boots already... 
Am I the only one that pronounces hyperbole "Hyper-bowl" instead of "hy-per-bo-le"?
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Oh I have no doubt that the pitch was a mistake and that he didn't intend to put it there... but still, if the "Take" call is on, Hafner doesn't get to swing at the mistake.. that was my only comment is that is one of those subtle calls that baseball coaches make (or don't make) that they never get credit for..
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I agree. And, most hitters generally take the first pitch anyway to kind of get the feel up there. I'm sure the pitch was a mistake, but you probably feel like you can get away with it for that reason.
I've never understood taking the first pitch, though. Like you said, the pitcher wants to get ahead, so it's usually a pretty good pitch.
I am unfamiliar with this feeling of optimism
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There are situations where taking the first pitch is a good idea, especially if you have a pitcher who is having control issues...
My guess is that what Hafner was doing on that first pitch was looking for something specific, he wasn't going to swing at just anything.. and he got what he was looking for.
yebat' Putin
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You're right. I remember going up against pitchers after the coach has told me "don't even think about swinging until he throws a strike." I'd walk up there and get walked on 4 straight.
But there were other pitchers that, if you'd seen them enough, you knew they were going to groove one early to try to get ahead.
That pitch to Hafner must have looked like it was in slow motion and the size of a beach ball as it was coming in.
Hafner had to be thinking "seriously? you threw THAT pitch to me??"
I am unfamiliar with this feeling of optimism
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I love his instant reaction to it...
Am I the only one that pronounces hyperbole "Hyper-bowl" instead of "hy-per-bo-le"?
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well, he's hitting .347 w/ 8HRs and 35RBIs in 150ABs. I'd say he's back. it's weird to see a season where Hafner, Helton, and Ortiz are back to being feared hitters after years of being left for dead. it's almost as if... ok, not going to go there 
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Quote:
well, he's hitting .347 w/ 8HRs and 35RBIs in 150ABs. I'd say he's back.
it's weird to see a season where Hafner, Helton, and Ortiz are back to being feared hitters after years of being left for dead. it's almost as if...
ok, not going to go there
Big thing there is that Helton has always been a pretty average guy physically.
Ortiz and Hafner are huge. Hafner was the Hulk a few years ago, and is huge again this year.
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Actually, I disagree.
Power hitters generally look for a pitch in a specific zone that they can crush. Anything outside of the zone they are looking for, they take. If he's looking for a fastball, middle in ..... and that's what he gets ..... well then .... see ya. If it's anywhere else, then it's either strike 1 or ball 1.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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j/c
Looks like Asdrubal will be starting in the All Star game since Jeter & ARod aren't going. Nice to see the appreciate the fans that voted for them. I didn't & would never vote for them, but I appreciate it!
Joe Thomas made Justin Timberlake change his name. He didn't want wusses to have the same initials...
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I think that Talbot may have won himself an all expense paid trip back to the Minors with today's performance. 5 innings, 8 ER .... not good. Further, his 5.60 ERA really sticks out like a sore thumb on the starting staff. I thought that he'd be the one to make a big jump this year .... but instead he's made me jump off the Talbot bandwagon. He's killing us in the 4 spot in the rotation, and it's time to see a new face there while Talbot works on his issues in the Minors. Oh ... and we're down 9-3 in the 8th ..... do we have another grand salami type comeback left?  
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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Wasn't sure if this belonged here or in the basketball thread....
Anybody else catch Sportscenter tonight where they showed a montage of the 8 earned runs that Talbot gave up with spliced in footage of LeBron saying "Not 1, not 2, not 3, not 4" etc? And the shot of Manny Acta before he pulled Talbot and put in Chad Durbin and freeze-framing it and putting the words "The Decision" above Manny's head? Keep it classy, ESPN.
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"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college"
GO ROCKETS
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The Mitch Talbot experiment needs to end, and the Jeanmar Gomez experiment needs to begin. It would also be nice to see Alex White come back sometime soon ... jeez, it was a sprained finger wasn't it?
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The Mitch Talbot experiment needs to end
he has gotten knocked around in every start since coming back from injury. it's not his fault, either he's not 100% or he's just not ready to pitch at this level.
he hasn't even given the team a chance, it'd be nice if the team could make a move for a veteran guy, doesn't have to be a top-end guy, just someone kinda like how we had paul byrd back in 2007, a guy who can be a 3-4 man in the rotation and give you a chance.
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I would bring up either Scott Barnes or Jeanmar Gomez at this point.
Barnes has been spectacular at Columbus. He's a lefty, and has a 3.61 ERA, going 7-3 so far, with 85 strikeouts in 82 innings pitched. I think he'd make a nice addition to an all righty starting staff.
Jeanmar Gomez has been even better at Columbus. he's 9-3 with a 2.40 ERA, but doesn't have the strikeout numbers. (only 75 in 93 innings pitched) I just think that a lefty who can strike people out would be a more solid addition at this point.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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I think Kevin Millwood is still out there (free agent). Jeremy Bonderman too. I'm not sure I wouldn't rather go with our young guns at this point. To tell you the truth I'm not sure if this team is contenders or pretenders ... too many damn holes in the lineup, and Carrasco's last outing bothered me.
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Quote:
I would bring up either Scott Barnes or Jeanmar Gomez at this point.
Barnes has been spectacular at Columbus. He's a lefty, and has a 3.61 ERA, going 7-3 so far, with 85 strikeouts in 82 innings pitched. I think he'd make a nice addition to an all righty starting staff.
Jeanmar Gomez has been even better at Columbus. he's 9-3 with a 2.40 ERA, but doesn't have the strikeout numbers. (only 75 in 93 innings pitched) I just think that a lefty who can strike people out would be a more solid addition at this point.
Gimmee Gomez and get White back...Send Carmona packin'...I just can't stomach watchin' this dude anymore...And the MLB Package ain't cheap...
Go Browns!!!
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I'd get the MLB package, but the Indians are considered a "local" team, and thus are not available for me to watch live.
It's just not as much fun watching a game 3 hours later.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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Lost 3 of 4 to the Jays. Someone needed to remind the Indians that the All-Star break starts tonight, not last Thursday night. Why did we pitch to Bautista with an open base?
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Dunno.
Carasco is pitching like a young pitcher. He's lights out for a nice little stretch, then he hits some bumps and loses a few badly. Hopefully he'll regroup over the break.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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Quote:
Sun Jun 19 2011 08:00 PM
I suppose the pirate faithful will have to put away their disco platform shoes and "We are Family" 45's now. They're not that good.
Indians - 47-42, .528, .5 GB in ALCentral
Pirates - 47-43, .522, 1 GB in NLCentral
Just thought the All Star break would be a good time to bring back this nugget. Like I asked then, if we're not very good - what are you?
GO BUCS.
"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college"
GO ROCKETS
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I have to admit that the Pirates are doing very well this year.
They actually look a lot like the Indians. Very young team, with talent in the starting rotation, some decent (although not quite as good as the Indians) arms in the bullpen,
We've scored a few more runs than the Pirates, but they've got a slightly better ERA. (expected given the fact that pitchers hit in the NL)
Both teams have a lot of young players. Neither team has a huge payroll. Both are having a better year than anyone expected.
Micah 6:8; He has shown you, O mortal, what is good. And what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God.
John 14:19 Jesus said: Because I live, you also will live.
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I know, and I'm not hatin' on your Tribe... just this particular response from Molly - and the one after - rubbed me the wrong way a month ago and I didn't forget about it.
Not saying we're gonna win it all this season, hell it could all crash down after the break - I doubt it but I guess it could happen - but this first half is the most fun I've had watching my Pirates since I was 17 and the best the team has played since I was 12; I'm 31.
"If it weren't for my horse, I wouldn't have spent that year in college"
GO ROCKETS
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mccutchen has been one of my favorite players to watch this year. he's been fantastic.
your pitching staff is likely to fall apart at some point much like ours is pitching over their heads as well (outside of karstens for you and masterson for us), but heck, it's good to have interesting baseball this late in places that haven't for awhile.
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Agreed. It has been a fun first half to watch. I was looking forward to watching our young players mature this season, but I didn't expect this.  Thanks to playing in a crappy division, we could possibly contend for the balance of this season. It's all good! 
[color:"white"]"Never argue with a fool, onlookers may not be able to tell the difference."
-- Mark Twain [/color]
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j/c Yaayyy! The Indians just got better today. Mitch Talbot is on the DL because he gives Manny Acta lower back pain everytime he was scheduled to pitch. Wait, that's not what the release says? Well, I'll bet it's close to the truth. http://cleveland.indians.mlb.com/news/ar...le&c_id=cleQuote:
CLEVELAND -- The revolving door that has been the Indians' starting rotation continues to turn in light of injuries. The latest pitcher to vacate his spot is struggling starter Mitch Talbot, who is now sidelined with a lower back strain.
On Wednesday, one day before Cleveland opens the season's second half with a four-game set in Baltimore, the Tribe placed Talbot on the 15-day disabled list with the back issue. For the time being, the Indians have recalled outfielder Ezequiel Carrera from Triple-A Columbus to provide some extra help off the bench.
The makeup of the rotation remains undecided.
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I would like to point out that our 'lefty-dominated' lineup will be facing RHP in 10 of the next 11 games and that the one LHP is roller-coaster Liriano.
this would be a good time to run off a winning streak and give us some room to operate down the stretch.
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I have seen some reports that suggest Cleveland has interest in Ludwick. Michael Cuddyer & Josh Willingham were also brought up in regards to Cleveland
They are all better than Kearns bumness.
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obviously they are all better than kearns. the question is what do we need to give up in order to get them.
i don't want to giveup any key piece of our future for a rental OF, but am willing to giveup alot of the glut we have in AAA that are not destined to be with the team long-term.
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I have heard all of those names too. I can't see Cuddyer getting traded when they're only 6.5 GB.
I've also heard Hunter Pence, which would be who I would want out of all of them, but who knows how much it would take to get him.
Joe Thomas made Justin Timberlake change his name. He didn't want wusses to have the same initials...
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Just some names to throw out there.
Hiroki Kuroda, Aaron Harang, Erik Bedard & Rich Harden
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I like Kuroda. Harang would be alright and definitely an upgrade over Talbot or Carmona. Harden & Bedard would definitely be upgrades too if they can stay off the DL.
Joe Thomas made Justin Timberlake change his name. He didn't want wusses to have the same initials...
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Seattle would have to go into a losing streak right out of the break to trade Bedard + he's on the DL (and I think they may be hesitant to trade with us)
Kuroda is terrible.
I'd be interested in a Harang/Ludwick combo trade. Wonder how much they would want as both players would likely be FA after the season (Harang has a mutual option)
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Pence is the face of Astro baseball right now. As bad as they are playing, they are still #17 in attendance and would be risking a huge drop from the fan backlash of trading their most popular player.
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Quote:
Kuroda is terrible.
3.06 ERA & 1.22 WHIP isn't terrible. His career numbers are 3.50 ERA & 1.19 WHIP.
Joe Thomas made Justin Timberlake change his name. He didn't want wusses to have the same initials...
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Quote:
Quote:
Kuroda is terrible.
3.06 ERA & 1.22 WHIP isn't terrible. His career numbers are 3.50 ERA & 1.19 WHIP.
Add ~0.5 to the ERA for the jump to the AL. And another addition for leaving Dodger Stadium (not sure how much for that one).
I don't like him because he's old(36), he doesn't strike many people out (6/9IP), he gives up too many HRs(0.9/9IP), and throws too many wild pitches that advance runners (leads MLB with 11 this year).
also, his BABIP and LOB% show that he has been getting lucky this year (his FIP is 3.73 and his xFIP is 3.66 --- then add the 0.5 to adjust to the AL).
his benefit is that he doesn't walk many batters, so that's always good. but, I wouldn't want him. no.
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