DawgTalkers.net Forums DawgTalk Tailgate Forum Surprising Tribe down the stretch

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I would look forward to a one game playoff against the Tigers.

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a three-way tie to end the season would be amazing. Let's do it!

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Scenario #4: If three Clubs are tied for first place in a Division (or Wild Card) with an identical winning percentage at the conclusion of the championship season and the tied Clubs do not have identical records against one another in the championship season, the tie for the Division Championship (or Wild Card) shall be broken as follows:

If the three tied Clubs have identical records against one another in the championship season, the Office of the Commissioner shall supervise a draw that results in the Clubs' being designated Club "A," "B," and "C."

If the tied Clubs do not have identical records against one another in the champoinship season, they will be designated Club "A,""B," and "C" based on their records in head-to- head competition during the championship season as follows:


If Club 1 has a better record against each of Clubs 2 and 3, and Club 2 has a better record against Club 3, then Club 1 shall choose a designation as Club "A," "B," or "C," and Club 2 shall choose a designation from the remaining two designations. Club 3 shall be assigned the remaining designation.
If Club 1 has a better record against each of Clubs 2 and 3, and Club 2 and Club 3 have the same record against each other, then Club 1 shall choose a designation as Club "A," "B," or "C," and the Office of the Commissioner shall supervise a draw between Clubs 2 and 3, the winner of which shall choose one of the remaining two designations. The remaining Club shall be assigned the remaining designation.

If Club 1 and Club 2 have the same record against each other but each has a better record against Club 3, then the Office of the Commissioner shall supervise a draw between Clubs 1 and 2, the winner of which shall choose a designation as Club "A," "B," or "C." The Club losing the draw shall choose a designation from the remaining two designations. Club 3 shall be assigned the remaining designation.

If Club 1 has a better record against Club 2, Club 2 has a better record against Club 3, and Club 3 has a better record against Club 1, then the three Clubs shall be ranked on the basis of overall winning percentage within that three-Club group, and the Club with the highest winning percentage from among that three-Club group shall have first choice among designations as Club"A," "B," or "C," the Club with the next highest winning percentage from among that three-Club group shall have the next choice between the two remaining designations, and the Club with the lowest winning percentage from among that three-Club group shall be assigned the remaining designation. If two or more of the Clubs within such three-Club group have the same winning percentage among the group, the Office of the Commissioner shall supervise a draw between the Clubs so tied to determine priority of selection among the designations.

Club"A" shall play Club "B" at the ballpark of Club "A" on Monday, September 29. The following day (Tuesday, September 30), the winner of the first game shall be the home Club in a second game, against Club "C." The winner of the game between Club"C" and the Club that won the game between Club"A" and Club"B" shall be declared the Division Champion.

Example of Scenario #4: The Chicago White Sox, Kansas City Royals and Minnesota Twins tie for the AL Central Division Championship. The Seattle Mariners have a better record than all three tied Clubs and would be the Wild Card. Based on their head-to-head records through games of September 7 (CWS 7-5 over each Minnesota and KC; KC 11-8 over Minnesota), the White Sox would choose their designation as Club "A," "B," or "C," and Kansas City would choose a designation from the remaining two designations. Minnesota would be assigned the remaining designation.



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Scenario #5: If three Clubs in a League are tied with identical winning percentages at the end of the championship season and two of those tied Clubs are from the same Division and are also tied for first place in that Division and the third tied Club has the highest winning percentage among the second-place Clubs in the remaining two Divisions, the Division Champion shall first be determined by a one-game playoff on Monday, September 29. Any playoff games played to determine a Division champion shall not count in determining which Clubs are deemed tied for a Wild Card designation. Clubs that were originally tied with a Club or Clubs for a Wild Card designation shall still be considered tied.

Example of Scenario #5: The Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals and Florida Marlins all have identical winning percentages at the end of the championship season. The Astros and Cardinals are tied for first place in the NL Central and the Marlins have the highest winning percentage among the second-place Clubs from the NL East and NL West. The Astros and Cardinals would play a one-game playoff on Monday, September 29. The winner shall be declared the Division Champion. Despite the loss, the losing Club would still be considered tied with the Marlins for the lead in the NL Wild Card. Those two Clubs would play a one-game playoff on Tuesday, September 30. The winner of that game shall be declared the Wild Card.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/about/division_ties.shtml

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We're 7-4 against them so far this year. (if I didn't miss any games in the schedule) Even just a series win is good ..... but a sweep in that series would be magnificent.

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We don't have masterson, and carmona, but they don't have verlander.

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Advantage: Indians

So how does it go, Tomlin tonight, Huff tomorrow, Ubaldo sunday?

Love my chances there.

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While the Nationals and Pirates were patting themselves on the back for jobs well done after their amateur draft signings, baseball commissioner Bud Selig wasn't nearly as impressed. According to people in attendance at the owners meetings in Cooperstown, the two teams were singled out by Selig for overspending.

Selig's pet project is to institute a hard cap for baseball's drafted amateur players. This year's draft, which featured a total guaranteed haul of $236 million, according to Baseball America draft and signing guru Jim Callis, was up 17 percent from last year, giving Selig more ammunition to press hard for a firm cap in this year's CBA negotiations.

"[Selig] is more determined than ever to get slotting," one person who knows Selig well said.

The Pirates led the league in bonuses, handing out $17 million, while the Nats were close behind at $15 million. Both were bonus records. Selig wasn't happy with either, but the Nationals earned his harshest critique. People who attended the owners meeting relayed that Selig made suggestions to the effect that agent Scott Boras must have cast a spell over the Washington organization.

Last winter the Nationals and Boras teamed up for the $126-million, seven-year contract give to Jayson Werth. People who know Selig well said that while he wasn't thrilled with that mega deal, the draft figures especially irk him. Perhaps it's because history shows that only about half of first-round draft choices even make it to the majors. In any case, a new enforceable slotting system is Selig's biggest interest in this year's CBA negotiations, people close to him say.

Union officials aren't tipping their hand about how married they are to the current system in which slot numbers are merely suggestions. Often, though, they have referred to a slot system as a "capping" mechanism, a sure sign they are strongly against it. Conceivably, the union could consider it if they receive major concessions/inroads on other issues. But one person with ties to the union said, "If [Selig] wants it, he'd have to be willing to shut down the game."

Selig's hope that the union would accept binding slots rests partly on a belief that current players aren't concerned about incoming amateur players. He also may be feeling emboldened by the NFL negotiations, which left incoming rookies with significantly lower pay. But union people suggest there is more resistance to the cap system among current major leaguers than MLB officials believe.

In the meantime, Selig will have to come to terms with the multimillion-dollar deals the Nats agreed to with three Boras clients, No. 6 overall pick Anthony Rendon, the Rice third baseman who received a $7.2-million major league deal, junior college outfielder Brian Goodwin, who got $3 million, and Kentucky lefthander Alex Meyer, who got $2 million. The three now take their place alongside other Boras clients Washington has signed in the past, including Werth, Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, Ivan Rodriguez, Rick Ankiel and Alex Cora.

"Give [Nationals GM Mike Rizzo] credit. (Nationals owners) the Lerners are willing to do what it takes," one agent (not Boras) said. Rizzo didn't return a message regarding their draft but he's been talking up his signings big-time in Washington.

It's understandable why these teams have turned to the draft to enhance their chances. The Pirates, in particular, have been burned by sticking to slot recommendations, with their picks of Clemson reliever Daniel Moskos instead of Matt Wieters in '07, and two years later Boston College catcher Tony Sanchez, who was expected to be a mid-to-late first rounder and has been a disappointment so far. (The biggest noise he made was when he was benched a few days for criticizing umpires on Twitter.)

Despite a misstep here or there, both longtime losing organizations have been stockpiling young talent through the draft, especially the Nationals, who have an aggressive draft philosophy and also had the advantage of finishing with the worst record in the years the ballyhooed Strasburg and Harper were draft eligible.

And even with Selig's concerns about overpaying draft picks, it's far more expensive to turn a perennial loser into a winner via free agency. Take Werth, whose $126 million payday was more than the guarantees of all the players in the first round combined. On the other hand, that's often the only way losing teams can attract established big-league stars to sign.

And though the first round has a high washout rate, the record is better for those deemed talented enough to garner bonuses or guarantees of at least $5 million. Not counting the most recent drafts, where it's too soon to tell, the best-compensated draftees usually have been worth it, including David Price, Mark Teixeira, Josh Beckett, Rick Porcello, Buster Posey and J.D. Drew.

In this draft, those players included not only Rendon but also the Pirates' top two picks of Gerrit Cole (the No. 1 overall pick), a 102-mph-throwing UCLA right-hander who set a record for a bonus at $8 million, and Josh Bell, the two-sport, five-tool outfielder who eschewed a University of Texas scholarship for $5 million, the record for a player picked after the first round. Several interested teams passed on Bell, who believed a letter he sent to teams restating his commitment to go to Texas. Now the the Pirates and their fans can celebrate their gamble.

Interestingly, as the Pirates duo of team president Frank Coonelly and GM Neal Huntington rebuild through the draft to the commissioner's concern, it wasn't long ago that Coonelly helped originate slot recommendations as an MLB suit before going to Pittsburgh he was an originator -- and supporter -- of the slot recommendations.

Realistically, while it may not please the commissioner to take these sort of million-dollar gambles on mostly unknown entities, it's probably the best hope for teams such as the Nationals and Pirates. For free agents, they truly have to overpay, as was the case with Werth, whose $126 million payday was more than the guarantees of all the players in the first round combined.

Around the majors
• Mike Jacobs' test for HGH is a big victory or MLB and will likely cause league powers to push harder for testing at the big-league level. "It'd be hard for the union to say testing doesn't work," one management source said. Jacobs, a Rockies minor leaguer with 97 RBIs, became the first U.S. athlete to fail a test for HGH. He said he took it to heal back and knee injuries, a major step for honesty. Insiders say that while steroid use is out, HGH remains a major player in the big leagues.

• The Orioles are the second-most improved offensive team in the American League and the bullpen has been OK, but as GM Andy MacPhail admitted, "The starting pitching has really gone backward." About Zach Britton, Jake Arrieta and the disappointing Brian Matusz, MacPhail said, "We've got to get these guys back to where they were before." Some Orioles people believe former pitching coach Mark Connor's early-summer departure was a setback for the staff.

• MacPhail wouldn't address his own situation. His contract is up, and some wonder whether he'll opt to return. Some are speculating he may opt out, but he wouldn't tip his hand. MacPhail didn't hint at anything bad, but others have noticed that manager Buck Showalter has gotten close to Peter Angelos. The job of Orioles GM may be the hardest one in baseball.

• Mark Buehrle finally lost his streak of not allowing more than three runs in a game in a 4-1 defeat to the Indians. He will be one of the most coveted free agents this winter. He's 32, but as a high 80s thrower and not someone reliant on a big fastball, he may have a lot of years left in him. Previous suggestions he may retire are off base, according to people who know him.

• One scout said that Johnny Cueto's new "Luis Tiant twist" has enabled him to hide the baseball from hitters, increasing his effectiveness. He still needs to work on his maturity, though, some say. It was Cueto who ended Jason LaRue's career by kicking him in the head and giving him a concussion in a Reds-Cardinals fight.

• Jeff Francoeur deal for $13.5 million and two years seems like an overpay for the Royals, who've had trouble attracting free agents and need a positive veteran presence with their talented young nucleus. On the bright side, at least Francoeur can recoup some of his tip money.

• Clayton Kershaw is working his way into the Cy Young race, and he didn't hurt his cause by shutting down the red-hot Brew Crew Thursday.

• Austin Kearns' year with Cleveland ended predictably -- with a release. it started with the revelation of a winter DUI in Spring Training. Then he hit .200 with seven home runs for the year.

• The Mariners made headway in the negotiations with No. 2 overall pick Danny Hultzen by assuring him that they intend to bring him to Spring Training next year with a chance to make the team. Mariners people have said the same behind the scenes.

• One GM predicts no stars and only role players will be traded in August.

• Red Sox people love their new catcher, Ryan Lavarnway. It can't hurt that he's a Yalie, like his boss Theo Epstein.

• The Braves look smart to have held onto their top young pitching talent, as Mike Minor, Randall Delgado and Arodys Vizcaino have contributed in the race.

• Danny Espinosa is winning admirers, and while Ian Desmond is having a rough season, one scout said the Nats' DP combo of Espinosa and Desmond "could be Trammell and Whitaker."

• Scouts say the Marlins prospect ranks are thin and they could use Logan Morrison back. Maybe he's learned whatever lesson it was he was supposed to learn by now.

• All the misses on big contracts (Carlos Zambrano, Alfonso Soriano, Milton Bradley) caught up with Jim Hendry as the Cubs dismissed him as GM on Friday morning and replaced him with Randy Bush. In addition to Bush, possible candidates to replace Hendy could include Pat Gillick (though he's said he hed'd prefer a team president job) plus Brian Cashman, Andrew Friedman, Ned Colletti, Rick Hahn and Josh Byrnes. As for Cubs manager Mike Quade, his contract runs through next year, and nothing more has been said about his status with the team.



Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/jon_heyman/08/19/draft-cap/index.html#ixzz1VVSllQxd

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As I said when the trade was announced....horrible

SHAME SHAME SHAME

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