Game 93, Mariners at Yankees
DMZ · July 17, 2006 at 3:17 pm · Filed Under Game Threads
Washburn v Wang.
Today’s amazing Hargrove lineup:
RF-L Ichiro!
2B-R Willy “The Ignitor” Bloooooooomquissssst
3B-R Beltre
LF-L Ibanez
1B-R Sexson
DH-B Everett
C-R Johjima
SS-R Betancourt
CF-R Jones
That’s… Hargrove-iffic. So the bench for tonight is
3B/1B-R Dobbs
C-R Rivera
2B-R Lopez
DH/1B/?-R Perez
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Anyone believe the Soriano rumors? What is Bavasi willing to part with as he tries to salvage his sorry run?
Honestly, Lopez could probably use a day off. He’s looked awful lately. And Wang, as an extreme groundball guy with movement, is the kind of guy who can give him fits.
And I actually like moving Beltre to the #3 spot. His game is all about average and power when he’s going well, and Good Adrian is pretty much the prototypical third hitter or fourth hitter.
But man, Willie hitting second… Johjima is hitting .340/.363/.547 on the road. Think putting him beind Ichiro wouldn’t hurt?
Dave’s Ideal Line-up: Ichiro, Johjima, Ibanez, Beltre, Sexson, Lopez, Choo/Snelling, Betancourt, Jones.
Hargrove on the pre-game show, explaining why Willie B is playing 2B tonight instead of Jose Lopez.
“Jose’s plate discipline late in the last 2 games in Toronto wasn’t very good (which is true) and I want him to sit on the bench with him so it doesn’t go past the two games…Willie’s a very good player in his own right and we need to get him at-bats.”
Does this clown want to win or what? We go into New York and he takes out one of our run producers for a guy who’s slugging .290. Why couldn’t Hargrove and Pentland just talk to Lopez instead of punishing the team (and their fans) by pulling him from the lineup???!!!?
Hrm.
Getting Soriano is about as smart as playing C-Rex all the time…
On the radio pre-game, Grover mentioned that he wants to get Bloomquist into the lineup two or three times a week. He would play SS, 2B, and CF. Good times.
Shouldn’t Bloomquist be considered unusable since he warmed up 11 times in-between innings yesterday?
1 – What Soriano rumors?
P.S. Very funny with the poll, DMZ…
#1. no. Why would 2 months of Soriano salvage anything?
can we have a poll on the odds that Hargrove actually uses anyone off the bench?
speaking of Hargrove-iffic; after someone called to bitch about Hargrove & the failure to use Perez, Dobbs, Putz this weekend, Groz actually agreed that he’d been baffled by some of Hargroves moves — and then undercut all he had just said by explaining that he didn’t claim to know more than a veteran manager. sigh.
#7– Ken Rosenthal claims the Ms are talking to the Nationals; J. Stark opined that it was Bowden trying to get the Angels involved in the Soriano sweepstakes via Rosenthal’s column.
Screw THAT. What an idiot. Two or three times a week. Jesus Christ, the guy has lost whatever mind he ever had.
As to Soriano… great a righty power hitter… just what we need.
And Wang is a righty, too, right? Good times. Bloomquist is death on righties.
And calling out Lopez publicly? Really thought that was necessary?
So tired of this joker.
#5– so, does this mean that Bloomquist is joining Carl in the “play ‘em ’til they come good” schema? Just because it worked for AB doesn’t mean it will work for anyone else… just ask Richie. And Carl.
Where would Soriano play? Unhappily in the outfield?
I highly doubt Soriano will land in Seattle, but he would play left and Ibanez would DH.
for the 2 months he was here, and then ask to be the 2nd baseman in his expensive 5-year contract extension…
Here’s the thing that really drives me batty. I’m probably as great an advocate for resting regulars more often, and I see a place on the roster for a guy like Bloomquist to do that. You pick your spots, give your guys a rest in situations where you hope Willy can be used to best advantage.
But Hargrove, even when he has the right idea, does it the wrong way. It’s like if my wife told me to go get some milk at the grocery store and I drove my car two miles in the wrong direction, crashed it, called her to come pick me up, and then blamed Top Foods for the disaster.
We all agree that WFB is not a regular starter. But seeing the regulars at SS,2B,3B,CF get a rest, a day off once every two weeks doesn’t strike me as completely insane.
And the same goes for 1B, LF, DH. A day off every 2 or 3 weeks means Morse (or Dobber) and Perez starts once a week.
I think Rosenthal (whom I like, btw) is smoking crack on this one. I just don’t see a fit, other than adding his offense to an offensively-challenged team.
Derek
You and I more or less agree on giving starters a rest. Why is today such a bad day for WFB to be starting at 2B? Given Dave’s comments above, how is Hargrove making a mistake with today’s lineup?
#17– hence, I think, Stark’s theory of Bowdenesque Propaganda….
Soriano would be a puzzling match for the M’s. Of course, it won’t happen, in so many different ways. I would say that the team should get him if they can. The guy can play, and would definately put seats in the stands. The problem is that he wants to play 2B (where would Lopez go?). If he would play out in left, it solves some problems (Everett goes away).
DMZ – I agree about resting regulars. Grover could have been resting Sexson one out of every ten or eleven games with Petagine on the bench. Give Sexson a rest and play Petagine against a tough righty who would give Sexson trouble. He never did this, and now the option is Dobbs, which, to me at least, is a significant downgrade from Petagine.
The problem is not Lopez getting a rest or even Willie starting once in a while to facilitate that.
My problems:
a) choosing to do it against a righty. Willie’s OPS against righties is what? 400???
b) Putting friggin Bloomqiust in the 2 hole at all, let alone against a righty.
c) Saying he “deserves at bats”, which is idiotic. And trying to get him in the line-up 2 or 3 times a week… which is very different from trying to rest a regular.
Obvious prediction for tonight:
Top of 1st inning:
Ichiro, single up the middle
Ignitor, groudball to Jeter, double play
Beltre, chased a bad ball in the dirt, strike three.
Good thing Hargrove replaced Lopez’s bad plate discipline with somebody with great discipline like Beltre in the three hole.
I can just imagine Hargrove sitting down his young second baseman in his office explaining how he didn’t like how he approached his at bats in Toronto so he’s going to give him the night off. He gives him a pat on the back and sends him out the door. On the way out Lopez takes a look at the lineup and thinks “WTF”.
Adding Soriano to the M’s lineup would transform it; Me driving a 550 Maranello would transform my commute, what’s the end cost for both scenerios? Probably not worth it.
Why would we need Soriano? We already have 9 qualified bunters.
Fox NW pregame feature on switchhitters. I swear, they said that C-Rex does NOT have a weak side!
I wonder how much we improved by putting Beltre in the 2 spot not only because he could hit there but also because we stopped bunting with the no. 2 hitter. That’s why Bloomquist is there, batting second, so he can bunt the runners along. And if we’re going to waste the no. 2 hitter bunting people along all game, it might as well be Bloomquist.
I really hope all this ridiculousness doesn’t strain Ichiro beyond the breaking point. With Lopez behind him at least, he could steal 2nd and get batted in…anyone wondering why so many SBs this year? With Bloomquist, he might as well just let Bloomie bunt him over. Anyway, obviously, he’ll play out his contract, but I want him happy.
Tha’s only because having a weak side implies having a strong side.
Are you kidding me? Rizzs must have had a say in this.
Hey at least Dobbs isn’t getting the start tonight as well. Oh wait, did I give away tomorrow night’s suprise line-up.
It’s been awhile since Willie was in the 2-hole. … I wonder if Hargrove was thinking the same thing.
26, arrggghhh! How does that happen?
“…C-R Johjima
SS-R Betancourt
CF-R Jones”
Cool, Ruppert Jones is back…
So is the second spot the best place for willie if he’s going to play? Why not Betancourt? Or does Grover want to keep things standard where possible?
Cara Capuano of FSN uttered those words. I think she then cited stats from Carl’s past years to back it up, but I was typing more than listening at that time.
Humorous aside: I have two sons, ages 7 and 9. They refer to Willie Bloomquist as “WFB” and Greg Dobbs as “Sweet-Swingin’ Dobbs”. Their baseball discussions never, EVER get old.
For the record, and not defending Hargrove, I didn’t read anything about needing to give willie AB’s….what I read was this:
From RotoTimes: http://www.rototimes.com/index.php?sport=bsball&type=playernotes
Adam Jones (OF) Sea has been handed the starting role in center field for the Mariners, and not just against righties, according to the official team website. Originally it was assumed that Jones would platoon with Willie Bloomquist, but that no longer appears to be the case.
While manager Mike Hargrove said that Willie Bloomquist (SS) Sea will still play at least twice a week, he has likely lost his starting job against lefties in center field…”Willie is going to play some center … Hargrove said. “I really want to give days off to [shortstop Yuniesky] Betancourt and [second baseman Jose] Lopez in the second half. I can see Willie playing at least twice a week, maybe more.”
Manager Mike Hargrove said that the only time Rene Rivera (C) Sea will start during the second half of the season is when there are day games after night games, according to the Mariners website. Rivera is hitting .188 with two HR and three RBI in 48 AB for Seattle.
I agree that resting your regulars is a good thing, and WFB fills that role nicely, but he’s not Mark Mclemore, or even Chone “I spell my name funny” Figgins.
Why does Grover think he “deserves” to play 2 or 3 times a week?
#28 – Had me laughing.
How about a little optimism for this game. The team did play wel against Toronto, and could/should have won 2 games. I’m kind of looking forward to see how they perform against a real good team. But we have to get this game (as Piniero is going tomorrow).
Lopezs’ plate discipline is screwed up because he geared himself for the 2 hole and learned to spray the ball. Beltre failed to fire so they switched. Now he is trying to be a #3 hitter and reverting to last years form. Bletre should have been demoted to 8th and Lopez left alone.
Thingray, I think Hargrove has had a revelation on the use of the bench. Play guys once in a while, and they perform a little better. Its a miracle!
Let’s say the M’s get swept by the Yankees and lose maybe two out of three against the Bosox, does this raise a realistic possibilty that Hargrove could be fired? Is it even realistic that the front office will make a move in season?
By the way . . . “Caught in trainer’s office with frightened ballboys, giant jar of Crisco, bean bag” Ewwww. Thanks for that image.
Maybe Hargrove’s reasoning is that Bloomquist, with his speed and skills, is likely to reach first base safely each at-bat when Posada drops the third strike.
#40: I suspect the only way it happens is if the team totally goes into the tank over the next couple of weeks (with the season on the line) OR there’s some sort of popular uprising amongst the players. Maybe.
As much as I’d like to think Hargrove figured out how to use his bench, I just don’t think that’s the case. Wouldn’t it make more sense to spread the wealth, and have each bench player get some playing time, rather than WFB being the first in line to give everyone a day off?
26, arrggghhh! How does that happen?
Mindless fluff piece – who cares? It’s more concerning that hargrove may actually get willy ballgame in the lineup more than 1x per week.
All players need a certain amount of time off to stay effective. When Sexson started to really slump, Petagine should have played and given him a rest, same with Ichiro, needs a day now and then. Why only a few and not others?
John in LA
1 and 2, good points. #3, I think sometimes what’s said in the Media is a cover story – Hargrove is just staying positive, saying WFB needs at bats rather than saying our regulars are tired and need a rest. 2 Starts a week for WFB means 4 starters rest once very other – so it is the same thing, jsut said differently.
Just like we “saved” Putz for a save opportunity, why not “save” Willie so he will have fresh legs in the event that the Mariners need to bunt some one over in September with the division on the line?
because none of the veterans will ask for a day off, so he just keeps running them out there. Joh needs days off, 1st & 3rd could stand a sit-down, or at least a day at DH, but don’t hold your breath.
I read somewhere that the M’s had no faith in Petagine defensively, so they hesitated to start him in place of Sexson. I’m not sure how they feel about Dobbs, but maybe they have more faith in him with the glove.
Thingray – Lets not get crazy here. Using more than one bench player on a regular basis? Thats pretty radical there. Its like saying the earth is more than 2800 years old.
Gotta save the bench for innings 18-24, anyways.
Petagine won gold gloves in Japan. He only looked so rusty because he never got on the field!
No faith in Petagine on defense? Does that mean Ichiro’s Japanese Gold Gloves are trash? Didn’t Roberto win a few there??
46 – I agree and if Hargrove didn’t put it that way, I retract.
But they aren’t the same thing, really, for a couple of reasons.
1 – Willie shouldn’t be the automatic sub. Perez should at the very least be the sub for Everett.
2 – It his intent that bothers me, because bad decisions will ultimately come from a bad premise. So if his intent is to rest regulars it bothers me a lot less than if his intent is to play Willie.
But if he didn’t say it, as MedicineHat seems to support, then I retract #3.
bunt time
Somebody called the Ichiro single. Will Bloomie sacrifice, or is his bat too good.
stupid valle
calm down guys…playing 2 or 3 games a week means 1 at ss, 1 at 2b and maybe 1 at cf….all three positions are filled with young guys who could use days off….CALM DOWn
A walk to Bloomie? Gritty must be scary.
Jeter sucks.
young guys don’t need days off! I hope that was sarcastic, but the bad caps at the end makes me unsure.
According to Gameday…Wang is really hitting the outside corner
No, Mr. Valle, Willie’s slide did NOT take out Jeter. It was just too slow a grounder and turn to get Beltre.
I thought Petagine had one “Golden Gloves” in Japan as well. I was looking back trying to find which scribe had said that they didn’t like his glove, but I can’t find it.
And Benno, I’d almost think you’re Hargrove in disguise from the bench comment, or C-Rex due to the earth comment!
Crap. Petagine had “won” Golden Gloves, not “one”…
#57 agreed. Those guys need time to rest.
If only we had a better bench.
calm down guys…playing 2 or 3 games a week means 1 at ss, 1 at 2b and maybe 1 at cf….all three positions are filled with young guys who could use days off….CALM DOWn
yeah, but can’t you use different players when you give a dude a day off?
I’m actually Mike Everett, the player/coach who can’t hit AND makes poor in game decisions. The best of both worlds.
what different players would play 2b,ss, or cf????? a roster move would have to be made and maybe it should…but with the current roster willie is your only option
I love listening to the home team play by play guys on mlb.tv. They don’t pull any punches describing the M’s. The toronto guys dogged hargrove, and the ny guys just said sexson has been a “colossal disappointment” this year.
Ibanez!!! And Beltre to third!
Damn, Sexson.
#64: Jeter’s won a Gold Glove. You think he’s actually a good defensive SS?
Petagine shouldn’t even own a glove. He’s that bad at 1B.
I’m not sure what Richie is trying to argue, that pitch was down the middle.
Most commercials are pretty banal, but this new “Evel Kneival” scratch commercial is pretty good.
#69: I love listening to the home team play by play guys on mlb.tv. They don’t pull any punches describing the M’s.
Dont worry; Kay et. al. will pull plenty for the Yankees. “Tough hop to Jeter” == “routine play.” Etc.
George Posada? I guess Valle doesn’t believe in different countries.
what different players would play 2b,ss, or cf????? a roster move would have to be made and maybe it should…but with the current roster willie is your only option
seems like 2b and ss would be harder to sub, but how often are lopez and betancourt going to need days off?
Kay likes to give Jeter many “mouth hugs” from the booth.
And there is the big difference between the M’s and the Yankees. They have Jeter, and we have Bloomquist.
The problem is 2-3 starts a week for Willie plus other substitutions = 130 PAs or so. That works out to maybe 100 games, 270 plate appearances for a guy whose lifetime OPS is in the low 600s.
That’s an awful lot of life to suck out of your offense. Add in Carl Everett and a very questionable Adam Jones, and…well…
That call was terrible.
Fun Fact: sacrifices in 2006
Willie Bloomquist: 1
Jose Lopez: 8
Why doesn’t anyone call Jose Lopez “gritty”?
#76 – Everyone on the Yankees calls Posada “Georgie.” I’ve actually heard a lot of announcers call him “George” and I’m pretty sure Posada himself has okayed it.
What’s the over/under on beers Valle had before the game? I’m going with 7.
another solid at bat from the position specializing in batting
I hope Betancourt never loses that hustle. He speeds right out of the batter’s box even on a routine fly ball.
57 – C’mon, man, don’t be that guy. That’s just sad. No one needs to calm down. There are stupid decisions being made, none of which are “giving guys some rest” or even playing Willie.
Of course, you ignored the points that were actually the concern, so I’m not shocked that all you had left was “calm down.”
Who would you rather have as our DH, Bernie Williams, or C-Rex?
Bernie, 8 days a week.
$9 mill/year doesn’t buy you as much in starting pitching as it used to.
Who would you rather have as our DH, Bernie Williams, or C-Rex?
not sure – how much are they paying williams?
boom goes the dynamite!
Did anyone on the M’s staff scout the BOTTOM of the Yanks’ order?
I thought I’d listen to the Yankees broadcast because I’d think it’d be better. Nope. They’re ripping statheads because “they’re not actually watching the game.” This is because Miguel Cairo is not a career 680 OPS guy.
head.desk
That’s three unearned runs so far.
gosh.
Unearned runs? What was the error?
That’s three unearned runs so far.
Perhaps Ignitor should have been playing 1st base, today.
91 – Bernie gets $1.5M + incentives.
wow! you can fly to Boise for US$49? I might need to book me some plane tickets.
not sure – how much are they paying williams?
$1.5M plus $1.5M in incentives, according to cot’s contracts. Actually, if Bernie was walking at the same rate he did last year, he’d be posting something like a .280/.350/.413 line. That’s not good, but somewhat defensible for a $1.5M contract, I’d say. Unfortunately for the Yanks, Bernie’s actually posting a .280/.322/.413, which is fairly worthless for a guy with no defensive value left.
90. AMEN!
US$49
Why the “US” qualifier? Does Idaho use some other sort of currency?
91 – Bernie gets $1.5M + incentives.
not much of a debate then. i thought he was stil in the 8 figure range
97: There was an error on Richie. Even though Valle decried the official scoring on the play, the ball bounced off of Richie’s wrist and the official scorer was correct to call it an error.
The error and the falling apart at the seams. Seems so Freddy-esque.
103: I always use the US$49 qualifier because I always carry Canadian currency as well. It’s useless in Idaho but a good investment.
105. CBS Sportsline GameCenter has an error for Posada, but none for the Mariners.
CBS SportsLine GameCenter is wrong.
Freddy was a relative bargain at 6.875 million or whatever it was he was making.
wuld this be an example of ‘a winning team’ and ‘taking advantage of a mistake’?
msb, to quote Ed McMahon, “You are correct sir!”
87- I was only talking about the wfb 2-3 times a week not being a big deal…which you seam to agree with …. I have been very critical of the late game PH or lack of pinch hitting on Hargrove…
btw, weren’t we talking about how it would benefit Richie to have a day off every now & then?
114 – Suddenly, I imagine it’ll happen more with Dobbs on the roster than when we had Petagine. Just because it’ll frustrate the hell out of us.
I bet Hargrove reads the blog and is just a cynical dude.
It’s funny listening to the Yankees’ announcing crew trying to talk themselves into the idea that Ponson still has some utility left.
If they are going to give Sexson a day off, please use Dobbs as his sub! At least he has some redeeming qualities to his swing.
well, the way the Ms luck has gone (lets get the Yanks on the upswing!) Ponson will suddenly find something and pitch a no-no…
Beltre avoided the tag anyway, but that’s one of the few instances where sliding into first would’ve not been the most terrible idea ever.
I hate it when Niehaus calls Sexson Sexy/
At the rate this game is going, it will be over before I get out of the office in about 10 minutes!
120. I used to call Sexson, “The Brush Prarie Basher”. Not this year…
Looks like as long as we hit it at Bernie, we’ll be okay.
unfortunately, Wang is getting groundball outs.
Thanks Carl “Rally Killer” Everett. Makes me want to move to a different city so I don’t have to see his name around.
and another quality at bat, from the position specializing in batting
Anyone notice that Weaver’s new digs in St. Louis don’t seem to have cured him–he just gave up a five spot to the Braves.
#72 # LB said “Petagine shouldn’t even own a glove. He’s that bad at 1B.”
And you base this on what, exactly? Petagine played a handful of innings in spring training games and started two games at first during the regular season (one of which was not on TV). Where and how often did you watch him play first base?
I think I’ll go with the writers in Japan who voted Petagine three Gold Gloves rather than whatever sources you’re using to claim that Petagine’s not good enough to play a couple of times a month at first base. This is the team that played Bucky Jacosen at first base — now there was a guy that didn’t belong anywhere but DH. He could barely move…
As Mariner fans we find ourselves succumbing to the fact that if we lose, it’s a less of a chance that we sell off the future for an overpaid hack that we probably don’t want to re-sign anyway. Huh.
Anybody see the guy starting for Tampa Bay tonight?!?!
I hate the fact the M’s rarely broadcast day games on tv during the week.
Designated “Hitter” my left maple nut. More like Designated @*^$(&^$!!
you mean Fox.
Petagine looked fine at first base when I saw him during the spring. He wasn’t John Olerud, but he wasn’t Raul Ibanez either. Think Scott Spiezio level defense.
Hey, if you can rake, I’ll sacrifice some glove work for it. There aren’t (weren’t) many like Olerud that can do both at such a high level.
#128: I watched Petagine on TV when he was with the 2005 Boston Red Sox. He played 10 games at first base. Thank you for asking.
Those writers in Japan who you feel to be such astute judges of fielding talent awarded a couple of Gold Gloves to Hideki Matsui. Enough said.
Matsui is good with the glove.. Not Cameron-esque, but a very good fielder none the less.
Those writers in Japan who you feel to be such astute judges of fielding talent awarded a couple of Gold Gloves to Hideki Matsui. Enough said.
*cough*Rafael Palmeiro*cough*
who votes the Japanese GGs? is it the writers, or is it the managers/coaches/bat boys as in the States?
That is a good point. We all know that Gold Gloves can have very little to do with defensive prowess, even though hitters have their own award.
#136: Matsui is good with the glove.. Not Cameron-esque, but a very good fielder none the less.
I understand that UZR has H. Matsui ranked as of the worst defensive outfielders in baseball. I don’t have the numbers at my fingertips, and, you know, there is a game on right now.
BTW, as if the Mariner’s don’t have rough enough travel schedules, I guess the baggage loader for their plane caught fire right before they were supposed to leave Toronto.
What’s with them and fire? Remember the Ted Willams Tunnel bus fire a while back?
Where do you see Betancourt offensively in a couple of years? I am hopeful that he could hit .280 10-15 HR’s 75 RBI.
Ooooooohhh… more like E-Rod.
Pay-Rod is no Graig Nettles.
Wow, second error today! What happened to A-Rod’s defense this year?
As for Yu-Bet, I could easily see him reaching those numbers (RBI depends on spot in the batting order).
Game time for WFB, Mr RBI in the clutch
Watching Betancourt develop is one of the few reasons I still watch this team.
Valle: “Willie Bloomquist and the way he can handle the bat…”
Sigh.
Is anyone watching the YES broadcast? John Flaherty just said Ichiro is 6′3″.
um, ok. Is Matsui 7 foot, then?
6′3″????? Is he wearing heels?
I see Wang is 6′3″, maybe he shuffled his stat sheets…
#148 Willie can handle a bat just fine. He just can’t use it to hit for any power.
Let’s light this walk on fire and burn down the path to first base.
Ignitor!
OBP machine!
Way to go willie….looks like he has learned to walk this year
Wille has gotta be the single WORST hitter against righties on the team. How much lower do you go than a .436 OPS?
Wang just walked Will-Blow
HAHAHA!
153 – or for average, or against right handers or…
Damn! Another potential rally dead.
Should we take pleasure in knowing that Hargrove probably dies everyday he’s forced to put Jones into the lineup? Especially considering he could play Bloomquist every day if he didn’t.
so, just how many men have been LOB this year? I think they must be rivalling 2002 at this point….
On Yankees radio, they were amazed that Ichiro was not stealing, given his steal percentage and the fact that “at this stage of his career, Bloomquist is not much of a hitter.” Wang should concentrate on getting Bloomquist out, “because he’s not going to hit it out of the park anyway.” If Ichiro is caught stealing, Bloomquist leads off the inning rather than being in an RBI situation. “A good power hitter in Beltre is up next.” They were amazed that Wang walked, of all people, Bloomquist. “You can never figure that, can you?”
This is a pretty good analysis of the mess Hargrove has made of the lineup by hitting Bloomquist behind Ichiro. Don’t look for it on the Mariner broadcast anytime soon.
Giambi seems to have gained back those, ahem, 4 lbs he lost at the beginning of last season.
Entering the game Beltre has had 89 ABs with runners in scoring position and has posted a .202/.311/.292 line with no homers. Probably still in small sample size theatre, but that is not good.
Big article in SI.com about him today, on how he is finally out of the “steroids spotlight” and having a great year.
164 firova said: Don’t look for it on the Mariner broadcast anytime soon.
Especially with Rah-Rah Rizzs on the mic. What a homer.
Another Yankees radio nugget: according to scouts, Washburn is only now getting over his elbow problems caused by his cross-delivery, a reason the Angels were afraid to give Washburn a long-term deal.
Do the M’s announcers ever talk to scouts? Have they ever mentioned JW’s elbow? I hate the Yankees, but it is good to get something besides the inarticulate company line once in a while.
And then Giambi hits a bomb.
My anger has blanked out my memory. Have we gotten ANY hit with the bases loaded this 2006 season? I recall some sacrifice flies and nothing else.
Giambi never said, “I did it.” He never wanted to implicate himself.
I’m amazed that Rizzs went the entire bottom of the 5th without bringing up ‘95. Or did he?
I know there was a couple HR’s this year after intentional walks, but frustration has clouded my brain.
#169: Very courageous of those Yankee broadcasters to take Steinbrenner’s money and then dis the M’s on the air.
Giambi was the guy who apologized, but wouldn’t say what he was apologizing for!
Try that one at home!
Sexson has 3 grand slams this year, so there’ve been a few hits.
172. Give it time and you’ll be hearing about ‘95. I am just waiting for a Black Jack reference.
This season the Mariners are 11th out of 14 in BA with the bases chucked.. they are hitting .250/.292/.350 in 76 ABs In comparison the Indians are leading the league and are hitting .405/.404/.784 in 2 less at bats
175. That type of apology will earn you a night on the sofa.
Remember, the Yanks are our rivals because of ‘95! They just don’t know it in NY…
why would you knit at the park? gads!
Granted, I don’t watch many Yankee games, but could someone please explain to me why Bernie Williams plays RF?
Good Sexson showed up tonight, yay!
177 – oh I know its coming. I can feel the pressure building behind the dam. Soon there will be a small leak, possibly a reference to the 15 inning game 2. Then another, probably an Edgar comment. Then, holy lord, the dam will burst and he’ll fire anecdote after anecdote without an end in sight.
182: Because they are flat out of OFers.
174. Actually they didn’t dis JW at all. They said he was a good pitcher who had taken a very long time to get past elbow problems. They didn’t really criticize Bloomquist but said that Hargrove should send Ichiro in order to maximize getting something out of WFB’s at-bat since he isn’t an RBI guy.
I don’t get the “Steinbrenner’s money” comment.
What do big men do, Carl?
wow
180. The Yanks got their revenge in the 2000 & 2001 ALCS.
Carl can’t even make the right type of out.
Imagine if Doyle had been hitting instead of Everett……
182 – Torre wants to play Bernie in the smaller field. I know there’s a lot less ground to cover in Yankee Stadium in right than left…but it’s still painful to watch. He’s got to have the worst arm of any rightfielder ever.
For one specializing in hitting, a shallow fly out is preferable to a deep fly-out as it causes the outfielders, positioned deep, to run more.
What is that? Like the 24th double play or probably DP we have hit into tonight?
#181– why not?
when when when does Carl hit the Hargrove Wall? When is too much?
191
That’s what I figured, but jeez, when it comes to throwing he makes Damon look like Jay Buhner.
Griffey woulda had it…
#185: Yankees broadcasters are on the payroll of the Yankees, owned by Mr. George Steinbrenner (who is technically not a criminal because he got a presidential pardon) just as M’s broadcasters are on the M’s payroll.
My comment was in light of #69 and #169. I’m not watching or listening to the NY feed today.
On Yankees radio and TV, seldom is heard a discouraging word about the team that — get this — has won the most world championships in the history of professional sports.
Go Joh!
A good prop for Kenji from the Yankeecasters: “His adaptation to America and to American League pitching has been phenomenal.” After all the grief from the likes of Jeff Brantley, nice to hear some praise for Kenji from the east coast.
Gah … that was a bad read by Jones on that fly to center …
wonder what it’d take to get DeJesus from KC …
196. Adam Jones looks like a young Eric Davis but he doesn’t hit the wall like him.
We have another error in center field for Jones!
199
I’d settle for So Taguchi…
#191: He’s got to have the worst arm of any rightfielder ever.
Meet Mr. Randy Winn, who plays RF for the SF Giants.
#169: Very courageous of those Yankee broadcasters to take Steinbrenner’s money and then dis the M’s on the air.
Yeah, well somebody has to dis the M’s — you’ll never hear a bad word about them on the Mariners broadcasts. Listening to Jim Kaat, Michael Kay and Flaherty has been a treat compared to listening to Valle, et al. Most nights it’s a toss up on what pisses me off
more — the way the M’s play in the game or the blatantly wrong things Valle and Rizzs say on the air to defend them.
And to think all I had to do to be able to watch/listen to the Yankees broadcast was call Direct TV and “move” my account out of the area. Not only will I be able to watch Wednesday’s day game on YES instead of having to listen to the radio, but tonight’s game is on HD for everybody not in Seattle. Since MLB doesn’t want us watching the NY feed, they make DTV black out the HD feed of the game. Baseball looks so much better in HD, even when the M’s are losing. F*** You MLB!
Ichiro can clean up the little mess…
Man we need two runs like… like… something clever I can’t think of.
206.. like Adam Jones needs a hit?
I’m watching the game on mute now…so glad I couldn’t hear that little exchange where Valle held up the fan.
Plus, on YES you get to hear the announcers bash the Mariners for stupid decisions on signing Beltre, Washburn and Sexson to long-term deals. But apparently some people that listen to M’s games want to hear Rizzs and Valle tell you the Adrian is an All-Star and that you should ignore his .202 BA with runners in scoring position. And be sure to come out for that crucial series with Texas in late September, because TICKETS ARE GOING FAST (yeah they only have 32,000 of them left!)
If we’re serious about winning we should PH Petagine here… aw– wait– whoops.
202 Me too at this point.
If you guys think the M’s crew is totally homeristic, try listening to Hawk and DJ on the White Sox crew sometimes.
If Everett can just get to Spiezio’s ‘05 numbers could we be done with him then?
There is no excuse for Doyle not being our DH right now.
Adam Jones has, what, 80-something games at center now?
so, there are 11 teams in the Al with more men LOB, but interestingly, they all also have much better OBP than the Mariners as a team. hmm.
Adam Jones has just looked completely overmatched so far.. although I guess anything is better than Reeds ABs.. especially against LHP
We’re now just two outs away from Mariano Rivera. Torre will bring him in for the 8th if the setup guys aren’t getting the outs.
Ugh, I am so torn when Bloomie gets a hit.. similar to C-Rex
steal
you still haven’t mentioned the objective and/or negative remarks about the home team made by the YES boys….
197. I had no idea . . . the broadcasters are paid by the teams? Are you sure?
Come on Beltre. Tie this thing.
Maybe Willie is the Mariners solution to the no amphetimine policy instituted this year. Instead of having your players wear down in the 2nd half with no pick me ups, they have the human pick me up, Willie, substitute in on a regular basis.
Idiot.
Willie you friggin idiot.
MMhmmm theres the aggressive gritty baserunning right there… Good to see nothing is changing.
WFB strikes again!
WAY TO GO WILLIE!!!!!!!!
thanks, Willie.
That Randy Johnson is a handsome devil.
People better stop calling Willie a good baserunner. He has been one of the worst baserunners on the team this year. So many stupid, stupid mistakes.
I’m going to start calling those “Willie Outs”, kind of like a “Ricky (Henderson) Run”.
F U WFB!!!
#229– it’s just that he’s rusty from all that bench-sitting…
Arrgh! WFB! Ignition Failure!
211. Agreed. Hawk/White Sox are the worst. Dave Niehaus is still one of the best at maintaining some level of objectivity. Just don’t get to hear him enough.
Theoretically, if this team continues the slide that has followed the June surge, what would you guys rather see happen? Try and trade away a guy with some value and other pieces that could help in the future (Jones for example) for an impact bat, trade our major leaguers who are having good years (Ibanez, Meche for example) or just stand pat and hope Ibanez and Meche and those guys have similar years next year and we can hit FA hard in the offseason to continue to rebuild
doubt seriously Ibanez is going anywhere– who’s left? and Meche, Pineiro, Everett, Mateo? WHo would anyone want of that crew?
Strategy for the 8th, 9th: bunt/hit grounders to A-Rod. Seems like he’s having a tough time down there.
#220: Absolutely no doubt whatsoever.
Paraphrasing what you’ve hear 100 times or more: “This telecast is a copyrighted presentation of [your team name here]. Any reproduction of the pictures, accounts, depictions, or descriptions of this game without the express written permission of [your team name here] are strictly prohibited.”
The team owns the broadcast. The team employs the broadcasters.
why in the world would you consider trading Ibanez…he is locked up to a very reasonable deal.. and will be an asset for the next 4 years
so, where does one find the list of AL pitcher’s run support to find where Moyer & Washburn rank on it?
#239: Ryan Franklin’s website?
That’s it, if we lose, this game is entirely Willie’s fault!
234 – Good question. Right now I’m not sure I would trade Raul not because I think he’s a swell clubhouse guy but simply because he is the only hitter on the whole team that can hit at Safeco. Meche is a totally different story.
As I type this Willie blows the DP. I know I can’t wait to see more of that in the lineup 2-3 times a week …
Why would you consider trading Ibanez? He is 34 years old, and is having a career year while his peripherals are all not exactly stellar like his stats are showing so to expect him to continue to perform at this level for years to come is absolutely silly. If you are not going to be anywhere near the race, and if this slide continues, that wont be too far away, then you dont want a 35 year old leftfielder who is terrible defensively and is in line for a decline in stats, on your team when you are trying to rebuild.
#240– Dear Diary, I still get no run support, even with a league change…..
and again, Thanks, Willie.
237. I don’t believe you.
an asset for the next four years? I bet he gets DFA’d in the middle of ‘09…This breakout sould be followede by another more normal year and then a slightly less good year before falling on his face in 09
That is exactly why we need Willie in the line up 2+ times a week. Willie might be what we have needed for along time. With his help, Hargrove will be out on his ear in no time!
Go Boom-Boom!
Terrible at defense is an absolute lie
PLEASE tell me Grover isn’t bringing in Mateo to pitch to A-Rod.
#245: Okay. I’m crushed.
so, why was Washburn still in there for the 7th when his pitch count was in the Washburn Danger Zone and it is a humid 90 degrees? Because the bullpen is tired? Because Grover wants his veteran to be in there to get a win?
Man, on days like this, I wish Willie was a lazy sonuvabitch.
Oh, it’s definitely not Mateo. Yeebus. Even Washburne looked over and shook his head in amazement.
#245: Go read Thinking Fan’s Guide to Baseball, by Leonard Koppett.
The Yankees own the YES Network. Steinbrenner also has final say over who the broadcasters are.
248. OK, ill scrap terrible for extremely below average and replaceable with just about anyone, hows that
#255: I bet he/she won’t believe you either.
Nice K on A-Rod there…got him to chase the high gas
Few things are better than hearing A-Rod booed in his own yard.
Woooheeee! Nice pitching from the 12 y.o.!
Guys, Firova has been being sarcastic from the beginning.
#255– and if you believe Bob Raissman’s media column in the Daily News, they even tell the broadcasters when to rag on a player instead of praise them
I heart Lowe.
#261: Thanks, I’m bad with names but I never forget a face…
Good job Lowe. Can this guy stick for a while? Seems to have a better immediate future than Mr. Jones.
so, who is the Mariner outfield coach equivalent to Roger Hansen? Will he be spending his off-hours chasing poor Adam into the outfield wall, just so he gets used to it?
Bases loaded, one out, Yankee Stadium, in to face A-Rod and Posada? Yeah, I’d say the guy can pitch under pressure.
Hey, if Alex has run out his welcome in NY we’ll be more than happy to take him back.
Wow. I’d like to see Hargrove bench A-Rod.
everett sucks.
This has got to be some kind of low point for A-Rod. I was in NYC a couple of weeks ago and they were all over him then. During the Mussina-Dontrelle battle they booed him every time up and he’s the reigning MVP. Tonight: three errors, can’t deliver against a rook, takes a seat late in the game . . . not good.
He’s getting a bad deal from the press and fans, though. There’s nothing wrong with his game. The personality stuff may be catching up with him though.
maybe everett should just pass out bats and baseballs to the fans at games.
268. Yeah, I could easily forgive Pay-Rod. I do think he’s playing out of position.
Everett throws his bat way better than he hits with it. Can we create a new Olympic event just for Carl?
Could Carl have looked any worse?
268: That is heresy.
#271: The boos are in A-Rod’s head. 50% of this game is 90% mental, somebody once said.
#246 David J. Corcoran said:
an asset for the next four years? I bet he (Ibanez) gets DFA’d in the middle of ‘09…This breakout sould be followede by another more normal year and then a slightly less good year before falling on his face in 09
Ibanez got a two-year extension which will expire after the ‘08 season.
Now of course they’ll extend that if he continues to hit well. This year he’s almost outhitting Vladimir Guerrero, believe it or not!
Ibanez .280 21 HR 71 RBI
Vladi .309 20 HR 68 RBI
They’re not trading Ibanez and wouldn’t trade him even if he wasn’t tearing it up. But if they fall 8 or 9 games out in the next couple of weeks and that looks possible, look for Meche to go. If Jason Schmidt doesn’t get dealt (and right now the Giants are 2 1/2 out in a weak division), Meche would be the top starter available, which would give Seattle more leverage than they’ve typically had.
Nobody’s going to give anything for a pile of crap like Everett or really anybody else the M’s would want to trade, so if we’re selling it’ll be Meche and maybe Mateo, just to get out from his guaranteed money for ‘07.
The ‘07 ‘pen is looking pretty strong with these 4 guys — Putz, Soriano, Lowe and Sherrill, although I think next year is the time to move Soriano to the rotation. That way they’d only have to pick up one starter in the off-season (Schmidt? Matsuzaka?) assuming Moyer returns…
274. Thanks for playing, Carl. Enter Sandman.
“There’s nothing wrong with his game. The personality stuff may be catching up with him though.”
Exactly what personality stuff? I guarantee he’s no worse than any other professional athlete.
All this BS Alex is getting is just proving 99% of sports fans and media are dumb when it comes to sports. Those baseball savy fans from New York and Boston are just so insightful.
#271– Joe Buck made a comment during the All Star Game to the effect that Alex as a person was so concerned with people liking him, that the constant negativity in NY had to be getting to him…
I’ll happily trade Beltre for A-Rod. I’ll even but A-Rod at short, move YuBet to 2nd, and Lopez to 3rd to accomodate him.
276
With open arms, no second thoughts. I’d even give him the key to the city.
277. No, they were in my ear, drowning out even the overbearing PA system at Yankee Stadium.
ok, so tonight they mount the big dramatic comeback against Mariano!
or not.
Has Lowe started earlier in his career…looks like he has enough pitches…could he be converted?
280. Oh, I agree. The media there is an absolute circus, as a cursory glance at the papers shows. The cardinal sin in the minds of the NY media is to be perceived as a fake. (Because they consider themselves authentic?) He’s a little behind on that count.
He’s got plenty of game, though.
So does Bavasi pull a Woody and trade Lowe and our best prospect at catcher for a Boston mid-reliever this year?
I know… that was cornball.
Lowe looks pretty gosh darn good tonight.
7 errors!?!
What a well-played game.
That was pretty freakin’ cool there Jonesy.
Um. Wow.
the only problem with the A-rod trade would be who goes to the NYY?
Meche and Joel? Sure.
But Felix? Is that that good trade?
288. It would not suprise me.
294: Beltre!
How about this.. Joh walks, Yubet singles, Jones gets his first major league hit as a HR off of Rivera
Ah its good to be in a dream world hah
Nice, Lowe comes through under pressure.
Okay. Mr. Jones has skills.
I just want to add that the NY media circus is not just about sports–they treat everyone the same way. Anybody with something to hide, anyone perceived as hypocritical or fake–they’re going down. If it is a celebrity, all the better. The Michael Strahan divorce case, Bernie Kerik’s antics, and the Brazilian bombshell “Midtown Madam” effectively kept politics and war off the front page (save for the NYT) during the two weeks I was there.
Pretty much anyone outside of Felix, Putz, or Ichiro.
The obvious ones: Betancourt, Beltre, Jones, Clement… forget it.
That Soriano stuff is just B.S. started by the Nationals to drive up Fonzie’s price.
“Baseball is ninety percent mental and the other half is physical.†–Yogi.
I haven’t been paying attention to the game today, since I’ve been busy with work. Seven errors? I’d just love to see Willie’s “missed catch” I’m sure. Is his poor playing ability now a contagion?
Worse thing is, seven hits and four error (by Yanks) results in two runs for us. That’s not taking advantage.
Get your Mike Hargrove Seattle Pilots game worn uniform today at the Mariners website. What a joke.
Joh doubles, Yubet walks? Then Jones HR?
#301: “Half the things I said, I never said.”
Rivera is a special talent but, the media forgets to mention his failures. Check the 97 ALDS, 2001 WS & 2003 ALCS.
Nice leadoff base hit by Johji! NYs OF is sooooo bad.
YuBet!
Cmon Jonesy!
Lopez hits for Jones… which means, should the lineup roll over, WFB “hits.”
So far, so good.
304 might be onto something ….
#306: Check the 2004 ALCS.
Perez?
Perez against a RH?!!?!????!?!?
So would A-Rod have had that one?
Go Eduardo.
Er.. not JOnesy cmon haha Perez.. against a righty.. hmmm
I Think a more Mariners-esque ending would be Perez K and then a GIDP to end it..
312. That’s what I meant 2004, Dave Roberts.
Brillant bench usage as always.
Perez against a righty as he has a ridiculous average against Rivera. Of course, he has precious few ABs this season…
#314: Rivera’s cutter breaks a lot of LH bats. Sending up a RH PH is a smart move. (Probably an accident.)
perez is a solid .091 against righties, so its a good hargrove decision
That was a Mariono call. Boo.
Part 1 down… GIDP? It is sad when this team is becoming that predictable again.. I honestly hope we can get some magic against Mariano here. PLEAASE!
and he’s called out on a ball. thanks ump.
Don’t righties hit Mariono better than lefties?
So much promise.. so much getting the hopes up.. so much for that..
Where’s Jose Lopez?!?
He can’t let WFB hit!
F U Hargrove!
Is it too much to ask for a silver lining of the firing of Hargrove if we lose this one?
What a waste of Perez since the trade. A .900+ season OPS wasting away.
Willie needs to think about HBP here…
Willie is DUE for a HR right about now!
#328– getting the day off. it would tax him too much to pinch hit.
WILLIE BLOOMQUIST?
Down by two with two on and two out in the ninth and you leave it on WILLIE FRIGGIN BLOOMQUIST?
Jesus, we don’t deserve to win. Probably better that we don’t and end up reinforcing this idiocy.
The blind squirrel doesn’t always find the nut, moron.
And… failure.
What a predictable mariners finish in the 9th..
Aaaaand Willie kneels before Zod.
Willie is such a pansy. He should have stepped into that 1-2 pitch and taken one for the team.
Nevermind.
I won’t ask why Perez was batting for Jones, and why neither Perez nor Lopez wasn’t batting for Willie.
Damn Hargrove’s stupidity.
Nevermind.
I won’t ask why Perez was batting for Jones, and why neither Perez nor Lopez was batting for Willie.
Damn Hargrove’s stupidity.
Unreal.
A chimpanzee could manage this team better.
Start spreading the news. Man, Jose Lopez could have done that.
Wouldn’t this have been a good situation for him to show that he learned from his Toronto failures? A good chance to give the kid an opportunity to show something, but instead the game comes down to the worst run producer on the team.
Willie is DUE for a HR right about now!
Yeah, once every 250 AB or so he’ll have one… Except I think two of his three career ones were very close, so maybe it’s more like once in every 400 AB.
By the way, I chose ‘Turns in lineup card so bad umpires forfeit game’ in the poll.
so, three in a row essentially just given to the opposition…. sigh.
I shall try to summarize the upcoming, predictable post-game radio show as follows:
1. Washburn gets no run support. Boo hoo.
2. Lowe is the second coming of Randy Johnson.
3. The M’s were too tired coming off extra inning games
4. A-Rod stinks! Man, I’m glad he doesn’t play for us anymore.
5. Bloomquist’s uniform was dirty
#364.4– well, as Edgar & Blowers share the 4 errors in a game record (with others) there was no dissing of Alex & his errors
There is no longer any joy in seeing how the game will be turned into a loss by the absurdity that is Mike Hargrove, so I will be avoiding watching or following the live games until Hargrove is relieved as manager. I can follow my faves just as happily in replays, and I do wish the players well – none of this is there fault, especially.
Since I won’t be watching, I’ll also avoid complaining about my unhappiness here on the game threads as well, but I can be assured many others will say all I could hope to say, if not more.
Disgusted is the one feeling no franchise should allow its fans to feel for more than a few days, if it gives the least f— about them and their money.
I think ownership should let the fans manage a la Bill Veeck. We couldn’t do any worse.
5. Bloomquist’s uniform was dirty
But…but… That dirt weighed him down to cause him to miss the catch.
It also sunk his bat too low when he swung at a pitch at his shoulders!
Luckily OAK lost, so we are still only 4 back.
346 – #4 was the correct answer. It was pretty hilarious when Krueger called out A-Rod for not tagging WFB on the rundown attempt. Nevermind that it was 100% Willie’s fault for trying to take 3B in the first place …what a bunch of saps.
perez is a solid .091 against righties, so its a good hargrove decision
And he’ll this result to justify sitting perez for the rest of the season….
Suppose you hit for Bloomquist and tie or take the lead. Who plays CF in the bottom of the 9th? Perez? According to baseball-reference.com, the last time he played CF in MLB was never.
Your bench at that point consists of: Rivera, Lopez, and Dobbs. Lopez will have to play 2B, so he’s out. You want to put Ichiro in CF and stick Dobbs in a corner? Try asking Ichiro to play CF. Apparently, that just isn’t done.
Once Hargrove hit for Jones, Bloomquist was not coming out of that game. Bash Grover all you want, but there was no other card for him to play.
354
Doesn’t matter. You have to get to the ninth first.
Perez goes to right, Ichiro to center.
Texas Lost, Oakland Lost, Los Anaheim up 3-1 early but a rookie pitcher not named Weaver going.
#355: To a fan, it doesn’t matter. When you are managing a major league baseball team, it matters.
And Ichiro doesn’t go to center. You can’t even ask the man. It just isn’t done.
OMG, they mentioned Everett hasn’t hit for 2 months on the post game show right now.
Of course, they are ALSO mentioning trading for Alfonso Soriano. Using Joel as part of the package.
Jeebus.
I’m sure Ichiro would go to center to finish out the game.
#359: Hell, I’d like to see him start a few games in CF. Won’t happen.
Still doesn’t let Hargrove off the hook for using Perez against Riviera. Using Lopez THERE wouldn’t have tied his hands.
Yanks are hardly the model of great FA signings with the likes of Pavano and Wright, though they have a solid enough core and a most likely under valued farm (with all the bash on how bad Yanks do their farm system… today they have 5 out of 8 fielders and the pitcher being home raised… not to meantion their usual 2B is also a farm product…)
Still though, fire Hargrove!!!
#361: Perez for Jones is not a bad call, because of the way Rivera’s cutter shatters LH bats. Small sample size, but Perez does have a HR against Rivera.
It’s silly to worry about potential defensive alignments when you are down in the ninth inning with two outs (of course it’s even sillier to have no backup OFs on the bench). It’s like the playoffs when a team is facing elimination and they roll out their best starter ahead of his scheduled start. You do what you can to give your team the best chance to win, worry about what you’re going to do later when (and if) it comes.
#364: Maybe it’s silly, but MLB managers do worry about it. Last year, Terry Francona let Alex Cora face Mariano Rivera (I cannot recall who the potential PH was, but it was an upgrade over Cora) because there was no one available to play 2B if the game went into extra innings.
And he said this even though Bill Mueller had played 24 games at 2B for the Red Sox in the prior two years.
Major league managers aren’t playing a strat-o-matic game.
#361: Perez for Jones is not a bad call,
Not my argument.
Lopez for Jones brings a better batter than Perez against righthanders to the plate, and still preserves your defensive flexibility.
Furthermore, saying that major league managers worry about is an argument from authority.
Major league managers didn’t worry about OBP and SLG before; now, they do.
What major league managers forget (and certainly hargove forgot) is that you have to get to the bottom of the ninth inning to worry about your defense. The difference in batting ability, I think, more than makes up for the defensive weakness you’d be introducing.
#367: Call it what you will if it makes you feel better. My argument meant to counter this: “Hargrove is an idiot; if we had a smarter manager, he would have hit for Bloomquist and maybe we would have won the game.”
The issue is that the space of (realistic) candidates for the M’s manager position does not intersect with the space of blog readers. The Red Sox are as sabermetrically correct a team as you are likely to find. Terry Francona is as sabermetrically correct a manager as you are likely to find. But given the chance, he played it the same way Hargrove did.
Bash Hargrove all you want, but you’re not likely to get a different decision about hitting for Bloomquist in today’s game from anyone else who’d be occupying Hargrove’s seat.
Bash Hargrove all you want, but you’re not likely to get a different decision about hitting for Bloomquist in today’s game from anyone else who’d be occupying Hargrove’s seat.
If you were talking only about Hargrove, you might be correct. However, there are enough managers who aren’t as hidebound…and longtime baseball fans HAVE seen late inning defenses that have been…well, jerry rigged would be a kind word. You’re wrong on that point.
Here’s something from the Tacoma game.
3 catchers in the lineup tonight. Jeff Clement batting 4th and catching (2-4 with a single, and a 3 RBI double). Guillermo Quiroz batting 5th and DH-ing (0-4), and Rob Johnson batting 6th and playing left field (1 for 3 with an RBI double, and a hit-by-pitch).
Left field? Yes, I kid you not, with Choo (going right back to hitting the tar off the ball) playing center and Jon Nelson in right. Very strange, but it worked.
“Argument from authority” is a fallacy, he was explaining why your argument was incorrect.
Now, of course, your argument has shifted from should have/had to to everyone else is doing it.
To say nothing of the fact that a guy with a friggin .436 OPS against righties shouldn’t even have been allowed to be in the line-up. Let alone batting second.
But Hargrove can keep doing things his way and we can keep losing, and hopefully he can stupid his way right out of a job and we can move on.
#361: Perez for Jones is not a bad call, because of the way Rivera’s cutter shatters LH bats. Small sample size, but Perez does have a HR against Rivera.
Jones isn’t a left-handed batter, and the only person that I’ve seen suggested instead of Jones was Lopez, who isn’t a left-handed batter.
The whole discussion about a defensive replacement would be a moot point if Grover would of just started Lopez over Willie.
I actually think the Perez for Jones move was a good one cause of the way Rivera’s cutter works and that Perez has a pretty good history of Mo Rivera. But if Lopez would of started then you have Perez, Ichiro and Beltre, even though Adrian isnt having a great year I would much rather have him up than Willie. Then if we do tie it up Willie comes in at CF.
Also im surprised on why Grover feels Lopez needs a day off?? If he wants to sit struggling players then he needs to look at Sexson (who actually had a nice game) and C-rex.
#372: Perhaps I could have been cleared: Perez (instead of, say, Dobbs, to get the conventional platoon advantage, see comments #314, #316 and #322) was not a bad choice to PH against Rivera, even though he is RH, cutter, breaks LH bats, etc.
#373: Very kind of you to explain argument from authority for me. If you didn’t get my point when I elucidated it in #368, there’s no point in my repeating it.
And you know, I’m quite sure I never defended having Bloomquist in the starting lineup, in this game thread or any other.
We’ll all celebrate if/when Hargrove is gone, and then within a month we’ll be b!tching about the stupidity of the guy who replaces him, because really, any one of us could do a better job.
#374: Darn, I even spell-checked my comment and got it wrong. Ahem.
“Perhaps I could have been clearer: blah blah blah.”
#373: My post wasnt to harp on you, I was mainly stating a point for everyone. I actually agree with you that he couldnt pinch-hit for Willie cause the defense would of been messed up without any CF, my point was just to say that I felt Lopez should of started.
2 for 5 doesn’t count as a “pretty good history vs. Rivera.”
“Pretty good anecdote” perhaps.
hey, he’s hitting .400