Baseball Playoffs

mbw1024 · Post by **mbw1024** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 9:06 pm

The Cano thing was mind boggling. how anyone could say they thought he was on the bag is beyond me.

It was Swisher not Melky on the Sac fly.

And there was that call from game 1 or 2 on the double play that the Angels didn't get. While perhaps the right call it was somewhat surprising and I was really hoping the game didn't hinge on that play.

and just for the record ... Go Yankees

soxfan22 · Post by **soxfan22** » Thu Oct 22, 2009 9:20 pm

mbw1024 wrote:The Cano thing was mind boggling. how anyone could say they thought he was on the bag is beyond me.

It was Swisher not Melky on the Sac fly.

And there was that call from game 1 or 2 on the double play that the Angels didn't get. While perhaps the right call it was somewhat surprising and I was really hoping the game didn't hinge on that play.

and just for the record ... Go Yankees

Yes, you're right...Swisher, not Melky.

Swisher should've been called out at second on the play before the leaving early play, when Aybar clearly tagged him out, but Dale Scott called him safe.

This Yankees thing happens more than should be tolerable.

On a side note, I'm mildly surprised that Joe hasn't gone to his pen yet (not that he should)...BUT, he's been managing this entire series like he's the one who has been down 2-0, 2-1, and now 3-1.

This is the Burnett that I am more accustomed to. This spot is too big for him.

jmq · Post by **jmq** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 9:51 am

soxfan22 wrote: 1. Tim McClelland has the reputation within the game (managers, players, etc) of being one of the better umpires in MLB. He has notoriously SLOW ball/strike mechanics as a plate umpire, but despite that, he is well respeced.

Maybe living off that rep? BADLY out of position on both calls.

soxfan22 wrote:Does anybody remember the Don Denkinger call in the 1985 World Series that actually cost the Cardinals a championship that year?.

THAT was a bad one.

soxfan22 wrote:My beef is this...Why (other than the Melky call) do the Yanks always seem to come out on top of these close calls in the playoffs? You can go back to the "Jeffrey Maher" HR in '96 by Jeter vs. the Orioles...Then you have the Knoblauch "ghost tag" on Offerman in 1999...And there are many inbetween.

Indeed, Knoblach missed him by about 3 feet! But on Yanks getting the calls, I used to think the same thing about the Dave Cowen and Larry Bird Celtics (yes I am old). And what wouldve happened to Kevin McHale if they had the flagrant foul rules back then? (LOL - like politics, funny how ones affiliation skews ones views about things. PLEASE - not trying to incite or go off topic – just an amusing parallel observation about myself and others.)

Back to this series…

Whats up with Scioscia pulling his best pitcher Lackey with two outs? Yikes. Are Girardi and Scioscia engaged in a new Olympic Demonstration Sport called Over-Managing Ping Pong (as designed by Tony LaRussa?)

Waiting out a slump when it’s Mark Teixeira, who finally came through with a three-run double, is one thing. But Nick Swisher? That said, how do you start him in game 6? Gardner can’t be worse.

First it seemed like Molina was out of rhythm with AJ (although a 58 foot curve ball and fat fastball will make any catcher look bad), but then Posada and Hughes were not on the same page either. Why not, as McCarver pointed out, stick with that nasty curve?

I know there are McCarver haters, but he is uncanny how he can foreshadow things. I’ll never forget how he basically called one of the biggest home runs in recent NYY history 2 pitches before it happened (exactly 13 yrs ago today!) - that Leyritz 3 run shot off of Wohlers in Atlanta in the 8th inning of game 4.

soxfan22 · Post by **soxfan22** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 10:50 am

JMQ...Agree with you on all of your points. And yes, the Bird and Cowens era Celts (2 different era's) DID get the benefit of the whistle more often than not, I'm sure. And McHale could not have been any fun to play against...6'11" and all hips, elbows, and knees coming at you all night long. Loved him though!

McCarver...The funny thing is, every team's fanbase thinks he is biased against their team...Yanks fans, Sox fans, Mets fans (which I don't understand because he was actually their announce in the 80's IIRC)...Supposedly, it is no secret that he has no affinity for Steinbrenner, but man, who has drooled over Jeter, Mariano, and Posada over the last 10 years more than McCarver?

For me, the mark of a good color man is to alert the audience of what *might* or *should* happen in a situation before it actually happens (and then of course, you know, being right once in awhile). Our guy in Boston, Jerry Remy, is great at that. Joe Morgan of ESPN, IMO, is the worst. He is the best though when it comes to explaining the obvious - and then of course relating it back to "when I played"..."you know, in my hall of fame career..."...Can't take him.

I think David Cone does a nice job for YES. Michael Kay? Another Captain Obvious.

jmq · Post by **jmq** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 2:09 pm

soxfan22 wrote:For me, the mark of a good color man is to alert the audience of what *might* or *should* happen in a situation before it actually happens (and then of course, you know, being right once in awhile). Our guy in Boston, Jerry Remy, is great at that. Joe Morgan of ESPN, IMO, is the worst. He is the best though when it comes to explaining the obvious - and then of course relating it back to "when I played"..."you know, in my hall of fame career..."...Can't take him.

I think David Cone does a nice job for YES. Michael Kay? Another Captain Obvious.

Exactly right about the job of a good color man. Thats why Hubie Brown is THE BEST in basketball (maybe all sports?) whereas someone like Billy Packer was AWFUL - thank goodness he retired. And oh man you are right on about Morgan - insufferable. Remy is TV or radio?

Cone is coming along nicely. Kay seems more like that now that he is restricted to play by play on TV, but was actually a pretty good color man when he worked with John Sterling on the radio. He comes from a newspaper background and can actually be quite opinonated & insightful like he is on ESPN radio. He kept Sterling a little more grounded, whereas the current radio team of Sterling and Susan Waldman is, lets just be nice and say is an "acquired taste", whereas the Mets have great crews working both radio and TV.

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jmq · Post by **jmq** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 2:52 pm

SJfromNJ wrote:Susan Waldman is the biggest homer I have ever listened to.
Cone is OK, Lieter not so much.

Whenever the topic was Roger Clemens with Waldman, it made you reach for the vomit bag. In her eyes, he could never ever do any wrong.

Leiter can be tedious.

If you randomly tune into the Yanks on the radio, and if Sterling doesnt give the game score within say, 5-6 minutes, you can safely assume the Yanks are losing. Whereas if the Yanks are winning, you'll get the score every other minute.

jmq · Post by **jmq** » Fri Oct 23, 2009 3:31 pm

Two more things, one media and one playoffs:

> If I'm a suit at TBS, I hire some local talent for the playoffs, like Soxfan approved Jerry Remy to work color or Kim Jones from YES to work the sidelines/dugout. She is a very good interviewer (has a newspaper background) and extra bonus is she that is easy on the eyes - then we dont have to deal with that clown Craig Sager.

> If tomorrow is a rainout, its a no brainer that you start CC on Sunday. Makes no sense to "save" him for a possible gm 7 or WS.

jmq · Post by **jmq** » Sun Oct 25, 2009 7:21 pm

For the record I reinserted my brain and starting Petite tonite makes a lot more sense for lotsa reasons, no matter the outcome.

mbw1024 · Post by **mbw1024** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 12:45 am

Woo Hoo!!!!!!!!!!

California Girl · Post by **California Girl** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 10:17 am

Congrats to you Mary Beth, and all you other Yankees fans! Your guys played a good game!

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soxfan22 · Post by **soxfan22** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 1:37 pm

SJfromNJ wrote:Let the Turnpike Series begin!

As a NY Met fan, I can't possibly root for either team.

May the team who makes the fewest errors, pitches better, and gets the most bad call breaks by the umps win!

Wake me up for pitchers and catcher 2010.

You're in a tough spot, SJ!

As for this series, Mike Francesca just opened up this afternoon saying the Yanks are "overwhelming favorites"...Really? I think people are seriously underestimating the Phillies. The Yankees haven't seen a lineup like this all year, except for back in interleague play when they played...The Phillies (I think the Phils took 2 of 3).

Cliff Lee is a career AL'er, and in fact won the Cy Young in the AL last season. He will pitch three games in this series, and will not be intimidated by the Yanks.

If you can tell me that CC Sabathia is going to pitch to a 1.10 ERA against the likes of Howard, Utley, Rollins, Werth, et al...Well then I agree, they are prohibitive favorites. I just don't see that.

These Phillies are not the Angels, and they certainly are not the Twins. We shall see how it all plays out, but the defending champs are really getting underestimated here.

JMQ - I hear ya regarding the sideline reporters...Sager is pretty tough to watch. Interesting note...I read last week that he was actually at home plate as Hank Aaron circled the bases after breaking the record - waiting to interview him. And who was in left field for the Dodgers that night? SJ's favorite first baseman of all time...Billy Buckner.

In the Angels - Sox series, the play by play was handled by Don Orsillo. He's actually the TV voice of the Red Sox (Remy is his color man on TV), and did a great job playing it down the middle.

Oh, and I'll take our sideline reporter (sox) over yours (yanks) any day of the week, and twice on Sundays. Her name is Heidi Watney...See below...

<a href="http://s351.photobucket.com/albums/q480 ... watney.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i351.photobucket.com/albums/q480 ... watney.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

mbw1024 · Post by **mbw1024** » Mon Oct 26, 2009 4:31 pm

Sox is correct Phils took 2 of 3 and probably should have swept. I am biased of course but don't find this Series to be a slam dunk at all. Yankees bullpen is picking the wrong time to flake out. And they are flaky at best right now.
Should be a good series.

For the record Kim Jones is awful in my opinion. I watch near every game and all she does is fawn over Jeter. She makes a jackass out of herself on a regular basis. And she needs to buy a brush .. just sayin'

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Baseball Playoffs