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2020 General MLB off-season


Mo Horn

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These teams benefit from the new schedule

Reds (-.012 easier strength of opposing schedule)
Twins (-.008)
Cardinals (-.008)
Indians (-.008)
Cubs (-.007)
Brewers (-.006)

Right away, you see something interesting: all of these teams are from the two Central divisions. Why? For the NL teams, the answer is easy: They'd originally been slated to face the AL East (.487 expected winning percentage, dragged down by Baltimore) this year in Interleague Play, as well as the NL East (.518) and West (.515) in intraleague play. That's all gone now, so instead of dealing with the Yankees, Dodgers, Nationals, Braves, Rays, Red Sox and Mets (along with some lesser teams, sure) they get the weak AL Central (only a .478 expected winning percentage). That's a nice bonus.

(The Reds especially win out here, because they play 10 games against the Royals and Tigers, while the Cubs and Brewers get only seven. That's because the Tigers are Cincinnati's designated rival this year, meaning they play six times. Throw in 10 more against the Pirates, and the Reds have a full one-third of their schedule against the Royals, Tigers and Pirates -- three teams that combined to play .360 baseball last year.)

For the Twins and Indians, much like the Mariners, it's about the share of their schedule taken up by the three other teams in their division. (That's the White Sox, competitive at a projected .501 winning percentage, and the rebuilding Royals [.433] and Tigers [.405] at the rear.) Previously, they were going to play 35% of their schedule against that trio. Now, it's 50% -- literally half the season -- against three teams projected to collectively post a .446 winning percentage.

In what's expected to be a three-team Central race, even a game advantage due to the schedule could be huge.

https://www.mlb.com/news/2020-mlb-schedule-winners-losers

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does anyone else deal with mlb.tv?

i took a couple years off and used it last year because of roku (instead of reddit) and it was great.  but then this year, on march 3rd, they dinged me for $24.99, which is fine, we thought we were playing baseball (even though it's nonsense to pay for march, but whatevs).  so today i get an email with this nugget:

Payments on your account will continue to be paused until July 23, 2020, when the 2020 season starts and regular monthly billing resumes through and including October.

so it sounds like i'm getting charged on march (already happened), july 23rd, august 23rd, sept 23rd, and oct 23rd?  paying for 5 months when baseball is being played for 2 months sounds a little hinky.  they know the october games are on regular tv, right?

i sent them a strongly worded email about how i will accept no more than one more charge in 2020 or they can cancel my shit right now.

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MLB.tv --> before we knew the season was happening, I tried to get a refund (I pay for the full season) 3 times via their email contact form.  No results, not even an acknowledgement of the email.  So I tried contacting them via twitter, the response/refund was very fast.

Then, right after the refund, they announced the season.  I'm waiting to see  if they offer some kind of deal once the season actually kicks off.

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Happy too know that the country only has 2 cities that matter. 12 nationally televised games on opening weekend. 9 of them involve teams from NY or LA


Thu. 7/23 
Yankees @ Nationals ESPN (7:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers ESPN (10:00) 

Fri. 7/24  
Braves @ Mets ESPN (4:00) 
Brewers @ Cubs ESPN (7:00) 
Angels @ A’s ESPN (10:00) 

Sat. 7/25 
Brewers @ Cubs FOX (1:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers FOX (4:00) 
Yankees @ Nationals FOX (7:00) 
Diamondbacks @ Padres FS1 (9:00) 

Sun. 7/26 
Yankees @ Nationals TBS (1:00) 
Braves @ Mets ESPN (7:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers ESPN (10:00)

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2 hours ago, TonyTexas said:

Happy too know that the country only has 2 cities that matter. 12 nationally televised games on opening weekend. 9 of them involve teams from NY or LA


Thu. 7/23 
Yankees @ Nationals ESPN (7:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers ESPN (10:00) 

Fri. 7/24  
Braves @ Mets ESPN (4:00) 
Brewers @ Cubs ESPN (7:00) 
Angels @ A’s ESPN (10:00) 

Sat. 7/25 
Brewers @ Cubs FOX (1:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers FOX (4:00) 
Yankees @ Nationals FOX (7:00) 
Diamondbacks @ Padres FS1 (9:00) 

Sun. 7/26 
Yankees @ Nationals TBS (1:00) 
Braves @ Mets ESPN (7:00) 
Giants @ Dodgers ESPN (10:00)

I mean, the Dodgers are the team most likely to go 50-10, and the Yankees are playing the defending champs, so not sure what you're bitching about, especially since you can watch your team on local TV.

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4 hours ago, MC Fresh Breath said:

MLB.tv --> before we knew the season was happening, I tried to get a refund (I pay for the full season) 3 times via their email contact form.  No results, not even an acknowledgement of the email.  So I tried contacting them via twitter, the response/refund was very fast.

Then, right after the refund, they announced the season.  I'm waiting to see  if they offer some kind of deal once the season actually kicks off.

I got an email from MLB saying that they are only going to charge $45 for this season and that the balance of the $122 full season price is available as a credit for next season’s subscription or you can apply for a refund of that balance.   

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24 minutes ago, ss13 said:

There’s not a team that has benefited from the the sabbatical more than your boys. Judge/Giancarlo/Paxton/Hicks all good to go now. 

Giancarlo “good to go” hurts the Yankees, a lot. Just in a scrimmage he already nearly killed one of our best pitchers. I can’t imagine how bad he will be having not faced game pitching in so long. Really wish I had made that 10 homer season bet. I doubt he even hits 8 in these 60 games. 

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I mean, the Dodgers are the team most likely to go 50-10, and the Yankees are playing the defending champs, so not sure what you're bitching about, especially since you can watch your team on local TV.
Because nobody gives a shit about the Yankees except a bunch of fucking yankees, so fuck them.
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5 hours ago, Beau Vine said:

I mean, the Dodgers are the team most likely to go 50-10, and the Yankees are playing the defending champs, so not sure what you're bitching about, especially since you can watch your team on local TV.

50-10 still wouldn’t match the Dodgers’ all-time best stretch over 60 games

51-9 in 2017.

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1 hour ago, ss13 said:

There’s not a team that has benefited from the the sabbatical more than your boys. Judge/Giancarlo/Paxton/Hicks all good to go now. 

Maybe on game 1 but not so sure about that come game 60 + postseason.

I’m still liking the sabbatical for my Astros after playing 180 games in 2019.

JV, McCullers, Grienke in particular, not to mention 102 fewer chances for Correa to have some random fluke injury. 

Edited by UTexasFight
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39 minutes ago, Helobious said:

Giancarlo “good to go” hurts the Yankees, a lot. Just in a scrimmage he already nearly killed one of our best pitchers. I can’t imagine how bad he will be having not faced game pitching in so long. Really wish I had made that 10 homer season bet. I doubt he even hits 8 in these 60 games. 

lol, I enjoy your hatred for the guy. For his career he’s hit 308 HR in 1162 games...or, about 1 HR every 4 games. 

I don’t think I’d bet on any player’s numbers over just 60 games, but the way you regard Stanton (who has a higher career OPS than Bryant, Arenado, Harper, Betts or Yelich) as a scrub is entertaining. 

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1 minute ago, Helobious said:

His career numbers are drastically inflated from his time in Miami. He’s been injured garbage since he came to the Bronx and had to actually play in games that mattered.

I’ll give you the injury thing - he has missed a lot of time throughout his career. 2019 was a wasted year for him.

But he was good in 2018. Not great, but good. He’s not worth the $30 million or whatever he’s making, but (a) everyone knew that when the Yankees acquired him, and (b) he is still a good player. Anyway I know you’ll disagree and discount anything he’s accomplished, which is what I’m here for.

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22 minutes ago, Helobious said:

His career numbers are drastically inflated from his time in Miami. He’s been injured garbage since he came to the Bronx and had to actually play in games that mattered.

Dont matter. Sox are still going to kick your ass. Yep, I said it. Season is right around the corner, lets bring on the hate. Gentleman's beer on who wins whatever we call divisions this year? 

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I got an email from MLB saying that they are only going to charge $45 for this season and that the balance of the $122 full season price is available as a credit for next season’s subscription or you can apply for a refund of that balance.   

I got an email this morning for “former subscribers” offering the season for $45.
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8 hours ago, Helobious said:

His career numbers are drastically inflated from his time in Miami.

How so?  Was he facing minor league pitching?  Does Marlins Park have Little League dimensions?  Does Miami’s altitude allow the ball to carry farther?

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1 hour ago, TonyTexas said:

How so?  Was he facing minor league pitching?  Does Marlins Park have Little League dimensions?  Does Miami’s altitude allow the ball to carry farther?

From a pitchers perspective, giving up a homer to Stanton in his marlin days meant you might win the game 9-1 instead of 9-0. Who cares. Now that he’s on a good team, everyone pitches him much more carefully. He can’t adjust to it, hence his mighty struggles since arriving in NY. He’s also just too mentally weak to handle playing in a big game or batting in a big moment.

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1 hour ago, TonyTexas said:

How so?  Was he facing minor league pitching?  Does Marlins Park have Little League dimensions?  Does Miami’s altitude allow the ball to carry farther?

No kidding -- "inflated"  Lulz.

1 hour ago, TonyTexas said:

How so?  Was he facing minor league pitching?  Does Marlins Park have Little League dimensions?  Does Miami’s altitude allow the ball to carry farther?

 

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12 minutes ago, Helobious said:

From a pitchers perspective, giving up a homer to Stanton in his marlin days meant you might win the game 9-1 instead of 9-0. Who cares. Now that he’s on a good team, everyone pitches him much more carefully. He can’t adjust to it, hence his mighty struggles since arriving in NY. He’s also just too mentally weak to handle playing in a big game or batting in a big moment.

Only because I enjoy your schtick:

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=stantmi03&year=Career&t=b#clutc::none

and

https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/split.fcgi?id=stantmi03&year=Career&t=b#outcb::none

Some of my favorites:

198 HRs in 2466 PAs in wins, 110 HRs in 2431 PAs in losses

0.966 OPS when game is tied, 0.889 OPS when margin is >4 runs

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4 hours ago, Pig Bellmont said:

What are the odds we have a player finish above .400 this season? Or a pitcher with a ridiculously low ERA because he only pitched 12 games? Will there be asterisks in the record books?

It all counts. No asterisks. But get ready for every article from now to eternity to discount every 2020 record with “excluding the pandemic shortened 2020 season.”

But I too would get a kick out of some middle of the rotation guy like Kenta Maeda or Dakota Hudson going on a tear for 2 months and breaking the 0.86 single season ERA record held by the oh so famous Tim Keefe.

Edited by UTexasFight
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57 minutes ago, TeddyBearStallion said:

Now we are just waiting on word as to whether they will allow fans into the stadiums for the first games or if they'll start off playing in empty stadiums with only players.  

Well, maybe you're waiting

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29 minutes ago, UTexasFight said:

It all counts. No asterisks. But get ready for every article from now to eternity to discount every 2020 record with “excluding the pandemic shortened 2020 season.”

But I too would get a kick out of some middle of the rotation guy like Kenta Maeda or Dakota Hudson going on a tear for 2 months and breaking the 0.86 single season ERA record held by the oh so famous Tim Keefe.

Nah if Boston or the Yankees win it all, it's legit.

If Houston wins, it'll be astericked, discounted, barely counts, etc. etc. 

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If you want a laugh at the Astros’ expense.

 

https://www.sfgate.com/sports/amp/The-Astros-are-a-team-of-Karens-It-s-a-tragedy-15392509.php

 

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I was looking forward to this opportunity. I have no problem being an Ambassador of Shame. I gladly would have gone to Nats Park this past spring to boo the Astros to death, spike their watercooler with baby shark urine, and ask their wives in the stands how they can live with CHEATERZ. That would have made for a deeply pleasant afternoon. I was hardly alone in relishing the opportunity.

 

And now it’s gone. The Astros are not only still postseason-eligible in MLB’s bastardized season format, but they won’t have to deal with angry fans ONCE in those sixty-plus times they take the field. Thanks to the ceaseless gifts of access journalism, they won’t even have to deal with ESPN announcers roasting their cheating asses during national telecasts. Instead, they will be blissfully isolated from the rest of us. Because MLB regionalized the coming season, they’ll only have to travel to a half-dozen different places as a visiting team: Anaheim, Arizona, Colorado, San Diego, Arlington, and Oakland. OHHHHHHHH, how an Oakland crowd at the Coliseum would have dragged their sorry asses. Correa would have walked off the diamond after the top of every inning covered in innards from a dozen chicken Caesar salad wraps. It would have been GLORIOUS.

 

Would have been. Now the Astros get to blend back into the baseball landscape unblemished. They’re just another team navigating through Rob Manfred’s tattered masterplan, dealing with botched testing schedules (though Houston will probably cheat on those tests anyway) and quietly earning their keep as vagabonds in cleats. They’re probably even gonna win the World Series, because the worst people win everything now.”

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8 hours ago, dbecks said:

If you want a laugh at the Astros’ expense.

 

https://www.sfgate.com/sports/amp/The-Astros-are-a-team-of-Karens-It-s-a-tragedy-15392509.php

 

“I don’t know about the rest of you, but I was looking forward to this opportunity. I have no problem being an Ambassador of Shame. I gladly would have gone to Nats Park this past spring to boo the Astros to death, spike their watercooler with baby shark urine, and ask their wives in the stands how they can live with CHEATERZ. That would have made for a deeply pleasant afternoon. I was hardly alone in relishing the opportunity.

 

And now it’s gone. The Astros are not only still postseason-eligible in MLB’s bastardized season format, but they won’t have to deal with angry fans ONCE in those sixty-plus times they take the field. Thanks to the ceaseless gifts of access journalism, they won’t even have to deal with ESPN announcers roasting their cheating asses during national telecasts. Instead, they will be blissfully isolated from the rest of us. Because MLB regionalized the coming season, they’ll only have to travel to a half-dozen different places as a visiting team: Anaheim, Arizona, Colorado, San Diego, Arlington, and Oakland. OHHHHHHHH, how an Oakland crowd at the Coliseum would have dragged their sorry asses. Correa would have walked off the diamond after the top of every inning covered in innards from a dozen chicken Caesar salad wraps. It would have been GLORIOUS.

 

Would have been. Now the Astros get to blend back into the baseball landscape unblemished. They’re just another team navigating through Rob Manfred’s tattered masterplan, dealing with botched testing schedules (though Houston will probably cheat on those tests anyway) and quietly earning their keep as vagabonds in cleats. They’re probably even gonna win the World Series, because the worst people win everything now.”

Oh man i can hardly believe the Astros are still the only team who cheats.

Oh wait, Bosotm.  Or the Yankees fighting to keep their cheating under wraps. 

What a bitch made bitch who wrote that. 

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He absolutely has to get it now, right? That last paragraph is fucking repulsive. 

Quote

In the aftermath of comments made by veteran umpire Joe West, the Major League Baseball Umpires Association on Thursday issued a statement saying that "recent public comments" do not reflect its stance regarding the coronavirus pandemic.

"Our nation, and the world, has suffered greatly from this deadly virus," said the union's statement, which did not mention West by name. "In the midst of continued suffering, umpires are attempting to do our part to bring the great game of baseball back onto the field and into the homes of fans everywhere."

The 67-year-old West said he doesn't believe the death total being attributed to the coronavirus -- which has surpassed 130,000 in the United States -- is an accurate figure.

"Those statistics aren't accurate, I don't care who's counting them,'' West told USA Today Sports. "When country music [singer] Joe Diffie died, they said he died of the coronavirus. He had Stage 4 lung cancer. The coronavirus may have accelerated his death, but let's be realistic.

"Our system is so messed up they have emptied hospitals because there's no elective surgery. The government has been giving these hospitals extra money if someone dies of the coronavirus. So everybody that dies is because of coronavirus. I don't care if you get hit by a car, it's coronavirus.''

The MLBUA statement says the union "fully supports" the safety protocols agreed to by Major League Baseball and the MLBPA and that "regardless of any umpire's personal views, when we report for a resumed spring training and 2020 season, we will conduct ourselves as professionals and in accordance with the health and safety protocol."

West was found to be at high risk for COVID-19 by MLB and was offered full pay and service time to opt out of this season, but he has told MLB deputy commissioner Dan Halem that he will return to work during the shortened 60-game season.

A source told ESPN's Buster Olney that MLB umpires were tested Tuesday and will be tested again Friday. If they test negative, they will be on the field Sunday, the source said.

"I don't believe in my heart that all these deaths have been from the coronavirus," West told The Athletic. "I believe it may have contributed to some of the deaths. I said [to Halem], 'I'm not going to opt out. I'm going to work. And I'm going to work until you take me off the field or I get hurt, whatever. I'm working.'"

West needs to umpire 65 games to break the all-time record for most regular-season games worked by an umpire, which is held by Bill Klem (5,375). He told USA Today Sports that he's "being cautious, just like everyone else," but he's never thought about not working this season.

"I think I shocked [Halem] when I said, 'No, I'm working,'" West told The Athletic. "... If this game hasn't gotten me by now, no virus is going to get me. I've weathered a bunch of storms in my life. I'll weather another one.

"... You know I'm chasing the rainbow. I'm chasing the end of this record. I'd like to be young enough to enjoy it."

 

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