Baseball 2014

[The Minsky Moment]

Would have been great see Gordon go for home.
As for KCR as a whole, yeah they lost but that team has a lot to be proud of.

[dps]

So here's hoping that this run means the Royals have turned a page, and they're contenders over the next few years.

This is what I am trying to console myself with the Orioles right now

Hopefully we are both right.  But the Yankees and Sox will not be down long

While it is no doubt going to always be a tough division, my biggest concern if I were an Orioles fan would be whether or not my 3rd baseman is going to keep hurting himself every year.  Well, actually, I guess my biggest worry would be the owner doing something stupid.

[Admiral Yi]

Would have been great see Gordon go for home.

It would be interesting to see the angle of the 3rd base coach watching the left fielder boot it.

[derspiess]

Would have been great see Gordon go for home.

It would be interesting to see the angle of the 3rd base coach watching the left fielder boot it.

They were analyzing that pretty closely on Mike & Mike this morning.  The concensus seems to be that an accurate throw would have gotten him, but that they should have tried for it given how well Bumgarner had been pitching.

[Admiral Yi]

Where was the runner when LF booted the ball? Rounding 2nd?

[derspiess]

Where was the runner when LF booted the ball? Rounding 2nd?

Probably-- I don't remember.  They were saying he wasn't running full speed even to first, thinking that it would be a routine bloop single and took a couple seconds to realize it had gotten past Blanco.

[The Minsky Moment]

They were analyzing that pretty closely on Mike & Mike this morning.  The concensus seems to be that an accurate throw would have gotten him, but that they should have tried for it given how well Bumgarner had been pitching.

Yup.
There were already 3 fielder miscues on that one play, so it's not crazy to think something might have gone awry on the throw to the plate.

[Barrister]

They were analyzing that pretty closely on Mike & Mike this morning.  The concensus seems to be that an accurate throw would have gotten him, but that they should have tried for it given how well Bumgarner had been pitching.

Yup.
There were already 3 fielder miscues on that one play, so it's not crazy to think something might have gone awry on the throw to the plate.

If he gets thrown out though the game is over.  Holding on three is the right call.

[The Minsky Moment]

If he gets thrown out though the game is over. 

Yeah, but letting Bumgarner have another crack at out #3 is game over too.

[alfred russel]

How crushingly deflating would that have been to the Royals had he been thrown out by a mile?

The 3rd base coach would enter Royals infamy.

[derspiess]

How crushingly deflating would that have been to the Royals had he been thrown out by a mile?

The 3rd base coach would enter Royals infamy.

I don't think he'd have been out by a mile.  It could have been close.  In fact, a throw just a little off the mark (or via the relay man) could have meant the tying run.  I don't fault the third base coach for holding him and I wouldn't fault him for sending him. 

One thing's for sure, though.  Had that been Billy Hamilton running the bases, he would have been sent home, he'd be safe and it wouldn't even be close.  That fucker is fast.  Just happens to be on a different team

[Sophie Scholl]

They were analyzing that pretty closely on Mike & Mike this morning.  The concensus seems to be that an accurate throw would have gotten him, but that they should have tried for it given how well Bumgarner had been pitching.

I'm still not sold on Bumgarner as pitching well last night.  I think it was a lot of the Royals psyching themselves out and swinging at horrible pitches they had no business swinging at.  If they had simply sat their bats on their shoulders, especially in his first inning, the Royals could have walked in the tying and winning runs.  The only strikes he was getting were swinging strikes on balls and very, very generous called strikes out of the zone.

[Barrister]

They were analyzing that pretty closely on Mike & Mike this morning.  The concensus seems to be that an accurate throw would have gotten him, but that they should have tried for it given how well Bumgarner had been pitching.

I'm still not sold on Bumgarner as pitching well last night.  I think it was a lot of the Royals psyching themselves out and swinging at horrible pitches they had no business swinging at.  If they had simply sat their bats on their shoulders, especially in his first inning, the Royals could have walked in the tying and winning runs.  The only strikes he was getting were swinging strikes on balls and very, very generous called strikes out of the zone.

Yeah - by the 9th inning it didn't seem like he was hitting the strike zone very well...

[derspiess]

Yeah - by the 9th inning it didn't seem like he was hitting the strike zone very well...

He didn't have to, and in fact he was probably pitching out of the strike zone on purpose.  If they're willing to chase it at eye level or outside, then you pitch there.

[The Minsky Moment]

What you are describing is evidence that he was pitching very well indeed; his delivery and movement was deceptive enough to get batters chasing and the umpires to widen the zone.  That's the very definition of successful pitching, unless you are just going to blow people away with gas or use a trick pitch (knuckler, cutter).