Topic: What a crazy year for baseball...

[b_dubb]

Seems like a good time to invoke the spirit of Hal McRae and the KC Royals

https://youtu.be/GIiYw53nGd0

The runner has to do what he can to prevent the double play. That said there is no tackling in baseball. That is not a slide.

[PB the Deplorable]

The runner has to do what he can to prevent the double play. That said there is no tackling in baseball. That is not a slide.

Yeah, that was a bit much.  The ump should have called McRae out at 2nd for going outside the base path, declared the play dead, sent Patek back to third, and tossed McRae out of the game

[PB the Deplorable]

... Duane Kuiper and Mike Krukow who are simply the best TV/Radio announcers in baseball.

I can't stand them - ugh! - but everyone else around here loves those two so I just accept being wrong.

I thought Joe Morgan was as good as anyone, is he even still announcing?

[PB the Deplorable]

Not a baseball story but the fans at Eagle games are the same 'Boo-Birds' who show up for Philly games

In possibly the most memorable event in the NFL in 1968, they booed Santa and threw snowballs at him.  Frank Olivo, RIP

http://www.phillyvoice.com/santa-clause-hit-snowballs-eagles-game-dies/

[pate]

Travel day, hope baseball can put all the awesome stories behind...

Nice, on the McCrae call out...

[phrodo]

Here's a clip of the cubbies doing what they do best.. hilarious. 

http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/6479266/v98303783/milchc-schafer-scores-on-grounder-after-two-errors/?c_id=mlb

[Open Lines Gerry]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkfmH6ASrOc


I'm not a fan of Rachel Maddow, but somehow this was the only version I could find of this to post.  Mariners color commentator Mike Blowers made an incredibly detailed homerun prediction on the pre-game show several years ago, and watch how it plays out.  This was absolutely amazing.  It's a shame they didn't include more of the at-bat prior to the 3-1 pitch as the stuff Dave Niehaus was saying as the count approached 3-1 was funny too.

[Open Lines Gerry]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OkfmH6ASrOc


I'm not a fan of Rachel Maddow, but somehow this was the only version I could find of this to post.  Mariners color commentator Mike Blowers made an incredibly detailed homerun prediction on the pre-game show several years ago, and watch how it plays out.  This was absolutely amazing.  It's a shame they didn't include more of the at-bat prior to the 3-1 pitch as the stuff Dave Niehaus was saying as the count approached 3-1 was funny too.

If you liked the video above, here is Dave Niehaus's call of the entire at-bat - no video, just the audio.  "I've never been so excited on a 3 and 1 count in my life."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gz6cXETvOdI

[3OctaveFart]

I think history aside, KC-DET is the best current rivalry. Both teams are very well-matched and should co-own that division for the rest of the decade.

[Eddie Coyle]

I think history aside, KC-DET is the best current rivalry. Both teams are very well-matched and should co-own that division for the rest of the decade.

   Neither being close enough to Bristol, CT for the rivalry to actually be noticed beyond ardent baseball fans. ESPN still honoring 1763's Proclamation Line.

[3OctaveFart]

I think the redistribution of power in the AL East has ESPN worried.
I am old enough to remember when both the Yankees and the Red Sox sucked dick at the same time.
Back when ESPN actually used to do games in Toronto.
Before the dark times, before the empire.
This Boston team is bad and the Yankees aren't much better, on paper.

[Eddie Coyle]

I think the redistribution of power in the AL East has ESPN worried.
I am old enough to remember when both the Yankees and the Red Sox sucked dick at the same time.
Back when ESPN actually used to do games in Toronto.
Before the dark times, before the empire.
This Boston team is bad and the Yankees aren't much better, on paper.

   The Red Sox-Yanks rivalry was largely dormant from 1980-1999, especially since Toronto was the division alpha male from 1985-1993. But ESPN's HQ is filled with NorthEast corridor natives and college grads who think it's 1978. I'm stunned they don't air reruns of The Bronx Is Burning on a daily basis.

     I always loved games from Exhibition Stadium, because without fail, the signal would be lost and the game would become grainy audio behind a "WSBK-Boston 38 is experiencing technical difficulties" screen as Rance Mulliniks or Garth Iorg won the game with a pinch hit blooper off Bob Stanley. Never Jorge Bell or Jesse Barfield, always a Damaso Garcia type for the win.

[3OctaveFart]

The Toronto championship years have been cited as reason for the utter failure of the CBS contract and also of the game's dip in popularity in the early '90s, pre-strike. Those were the Stump Merrill lost Yankee years in New York, Jack Clark era in Boston. Awkward time for both franchises. That TV deal was the worst signed in baseball and maybe sports history.

[Eddie Coyle]

The Toronto championship years have been cited as reason for the utter failure of the CBS contract and also of the game's dip in popularity in the early '90s, pre-strike. Those were the Stump Merrill lost Yankee years in New York, Jack Clark era in Boston. Awkward time for both franchises. That TV deal was the worst signed in baseball and maybe sports history.

   I remember thinking in the Spring of 1990 what a colossal drop off CBS was in the coverage. I can recall innumerable NBC Games Of the Week and ABC Monday Night Baseball, but CBS had low-key coverage and completely half-assed scheduling. Their pennant chase coverage was invisible as the US Open, College Football and NFL were prioritized. It really was a bad deal.

    Jack Clark, wrecking his back permanently in Anaheim on Aug 24, 1991 breaking up a batting cage brawl between Mike Greenwell and Mo Vaughn. The latter being perhaps the most insufferable self promoter imaginable. Constantly letting the world know about his charity works, all of which required a camera crew.

[3OctaveFart]

There were many weeks you couldn't even find a game.
It was a technical, artistic and financial failure. CBS lost half a bil.
Then the game's salary structure explodes right at the time CBS went all-in.
The federal recession didn't help. It was a clusterfuck that took a long time to unfold.
It gave us Jack Buck on a national stage, which thence gave us his egghead son.

[Eddie Coyle]

  CBS, whose coverage rarely rose above lackluster, did have the misfortune of getting the contract in a malaise period for the game. 1990's postseason was horribly blah, and outside of the 1991 and 1993 World Series, the playoffs during the CBS era were forgettable affairs. A season like 1992 had zero spark. The Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers and Mets all sucked. The A's were eclipsing in '92, the Braves were ascendant but Ted Turner made them off putting. And as you noted, the repeat champs were in Toronto and MLB didn't revel in that.

[3OctaveFart]

Sorry to ramble about the early '90s.
I have kicked around a baseball book on the period.
It was a strange time for the game and weird time being a fan of the sport.
My favorite baseball year is 1984, and that was a totally different landscape than, say, 1991.

[Eddie Coyle]

Sorry to ramble about the early '90s.
I have kicked around a baseball book on the period.
It was a strange time for the game and weird time being a fan of the sport.
My favorite baseball year is 1984, and that was a totally different landscape than, say, 1991.

  Started watching in '79 and I consider 1984-87 my favorite period by far. The post seasons of 1985-87 were awesome. My favorite individual team are the '84 Cubs. It was a better time. Sports Radio was confined to a few hours on weekends, This Week In Baseball was appointment watching for me.

[3OctaveFart]

The 1984 Cubs had the league MVP, Cy Young, Silver Slugger and Manager of the Year. They scored almost 800 runs (a lot for the era). They should have gone to the World Series. The 1984 Padres were a crazy team. Hall of Fame manager and two future managers on the roster; one got fired last week in Milwaukee, the other is probably going to the Hall of Fame. They had Birch Society members, addicts and a future AIDS victim. One of their relievers was ambidextrous. Ed Whitson later punched out Billy Martin in a bar fight. Dave Dravecky's arm snapped while he was throwing a pitch years later. Luis Salazar lost an eye when he was nailed in the head by a foul ball, as a coach. A fifth of their World Series roster is dead.

Good read on the sad end of Eric Show.
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/otl/news/story?id=5543839

[Eddie Coyle]

   The August 12, 1984 brawl between the Padres and Braves is the best I've ever seen, live on a sunday afternoon thanks to WTBS. With the death curse looming large as the two main combatants, Pascual Perez and Champ Summers dying in recent years.

   Eric Show's 1987 beaning of Andre Dawson would be incendiary today, especially with Bircher Show famously declaring he'd never pitch in Wrigley again because he expected to be shot by El-Rukns/NOI. It really says something when Steve Garvey is one of the less interesting members of the team.

[Open Lines Gerry]

Meatie Pie and Eddie Coyle, what are the best games that the two of you have witnessed in person?

The best game I ever attended was the 1995 ALDS Game 5 (of a 5 game series) - NY Yankees at Seattle Mariners.  Down 2 - 0 in the series after losing both games in New York, the Mariners won the next three in a row at home to go on to face the Cleveland Indians in the ALCS.  Game 5 went into extra innings, Randy Johnson came out of the bullpen - pitching on pure adrenaline alone, and Ken Griffey Jr. scored the game winner - coming all the way around from first on an Edgar Martinez double to left field.  The game featured 3 Cy Young award winners (Johnson, David Cone, and Jack McDowell), and I'm not sure how many great players, HOFers or future HOFers (Griffey, Johnson, Martinez (future?), Derek Jeter in his rookie season, Bernie Williams, Cone, Mattingly, Boggs, etc., etc.). 

That magical season saved baseball in Seattle, and it was the catalyst to the beginning of the Joe Torre-era in New York after Steinbrenner fired Buck Showalter.  I'd need to do a little digging as we've moved several times since then, but I know I have the ticket stubs for all three Seattle games somewhere (with my old baseball cards) if you guys need proof.

[3OctaveFart]

Game 6, 1986 WS. Boston fukked that game up about ten different ways, not just the infamous conclusion.

[Eddie Coyle]

Meatie Pie and Eddie Coyle, what are the best games that the two of you have witnessed in person?

The best game I ever attended was the 1995 ALDS Game 5 (of a 5 game series) - NY Yankees at Seattle Mariners.  Down 2 - 0 in the series after losing both games in New York, the Mariners won the next three in a row at home to go on to face the Cleveland Indians in the ALCS.  Game 5 went into extra innings, Randy Johnson came out of the bullpen - pitching on pure adrenaline alone, and Ken Griffey Jr. scored the game winner - coming all the way around from first on an Edgar Martinez double to left field.  The game featured 3 Cy Young award winners (Johnson, David Cone, and Jack McDowell), and I'm not sure how many great players, HOFers or future HOFers (Griffey, Johnson, Martinez (future?), Derek Jeter in his rookie season, Bernie Williams, Cone, Mattingly, Boggs, etc., etc.). 

     GREAT series in '95. Edgar Martinez should be in the HOF, and he was incredible that series. The Grand Slam in Game 4 gets forgotten a bit due to the Game 5 heroics.

     Best Game I've seen in person...7/20/1988, during the "Morgan Magic" winning streak, Todd Benzinger hits a "walk off"(nobody used the term then) home run against Twins in bottom of 10th to win 9-7. Strange team, despised from April to July, became beloved after MacNamara's firing and went on incredible streak in July/early August...but played terribly final week of season and swept by Oakland in ALCS. '89 was a detestable team. Entitled veterans, selfish.

     Dave Henderson should have been the hero of Game 6 of the 1986 WS.

[Open Lines Gerry]

     GREAT series in '95. Edgar Martinez should be in the HOF, and he was incredible that series. The Grand Slam in Game 4 gets forgotten a bit due to the Game 5 heroics.

I was almost going to mention Game 4 in my post too, and since you mentioned it, I'll add a comment.  Obviously the ending of Game 5 will be considered the top moment of the series, but to me, the grand slam in Game 4 almost matches it.  Edgar popped a foul ball down the right field line a pitch or two (or three) prior to hitting it.  It landed over by the bullpen mounds, which were "in play" as there was no separate bullpen area in the Kingdome, but nobody could get to it in time to catch it.  How different things might have been if it had just been a foul ball pop out!  (No Game 5? - the Yankees did score in the top of the 9th.)  When he connected, it was absolutely smoked to dead center.  I was sitting in the third (top) deck between home and third, so had a great viewing angle.  I think Bernie Williams turned around, but it got out so fast there was nothing he could do about it, and then you could see the ripple in the batter's eye tarp beyond the centerfield wall as the ball hit it.  Edgar was never one to show much emotion, but even he was fired up about it!  The electricity in the Kingdome was palpable - an incredible moment, and one of my favorite baseball memories.

Just found this video of it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wonlOyT7hGE

[3OctaveFart]

The AL East was so screwy that '88 year the Indians were in first place in midsummer. Most of them had a share of it throughout the season.
The Indians that sucked on toast for 30 years and didn't just win in the '90s but needed to be raised from the dead to do it.
Ed, I would get on well with you over beers, I think. Your eidetic memory serves you well in olden baseball.

[Eddie Coyle]

The AL East was so screwy that '88 year the Indians were in first place in midsummer. Most of them had a share of it throughout the season.
The Indians that sucked on toast for 30 years and didn't just win in the '90s but needed to be raised from the dead to do it.
Ed, I would get on well with you over beers, I think. Your eidetic memory serves you well in olden baseball.

   People seemingly only get along with me when I'm drinking. They may be enablers, but it makes things more pleasant for them.

    That '87 SI cover with Carter and Snyder was a year and half early. They looked good in June, I remember the deadass Sox playing them in late June and the Indians were at least 8 games up on them. Of course, order was restored and that team that won 40 of their first 70, managed to win only 78 games after all.

     Fun to watch that '88 AL East quagmire. The Orioles were eliminated by late April. The Tigers last gasp until 2006, they did little at the deadline and while their drastic fall off in '89 was stunning, watching them in Aug/Sept '88 bore little resemblance(Gibson winning MVP in NL had to sting) to that '87 team that rallied...as the Jays choked. Jimy Williams failing to get that wagon to the playoffs from to 86-88 spoke volumes. And their getting hot when Cito was hired was no accident. Yankees were a paper tiger. Jack Clark was a bust, Mattingly's back problems drain his power in a big way. Winfield had best season since '84, but he was almost A-Rodian in never winning the fans over.

     And they all seemed nothing more than a speed bump for the A's.

[3OctaveFart]

Back when Fenway looked its age.
And middle infielders were 170 pounds.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLDY-Frmw3c

[Eddie Coyle]

    The lasting memory of that brief series from Oct 5 through Oct 9, 1988 was the "ster-oids" chants coming from the stands, and Canseco's flexing in response. The NLCS and Jay Howell's glove was the better series.

[Mind Flayer Monk]

After finding his juiced baseballs were accidentally replaced with normal baseballs, new MLB commissioner Manfred took swift action:

"NEW YORK -- Major League Baseball pumped up security for its game balls this season in the wake of the Tom Brady flap.
Starting this year, an MLB representative watches the baseballs while a clubhouse assistant carries them from the umpires' room to the field.
And if the supply runs low during the game, an MLB security person is now sent to retrieve more from the umps' room.
In the past, a ball boy or ball girl did those jobs alone.
"

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/12870376/mlb-pumps-ball-security-tom-brady-deflategate-flap

[Mind Flayer Monk]

    The lasting memory of that brief series from Oct 5 through Oct 9, 1988 was the "ster-oids" chants coming from the stands, and Canseco's flexing in response.

Twenty years later we find the crowd was just asking Canseco to give Clemens some steroids.