Random Baseball Observations

[YonYonson 156]

i mean the red sox finished the season with the fourth highest run differential at +138. what does this mean? i'm not totally sure, but it seems to me that TB is right, they got unlucky in that they played bad at the wrong times and unlucky in tampa's winning one more game while out scoring their oponents by 40 less runs. but perhaps if they'd gelled, this would all be for not.

[Tactical Bear 3]

Wakefield: Boy I sure wish the team had gelled like previous teams.Wang: WTF is gel?Wakefield: Maybe just me telling myself a story about why the team didn't make the playoffs?Wang: You're just building a narrative out of nothing.Wakefield: I.....just said that. Wang: Why did you... just, what was the point of... why talk in the first place?Wakefield: Beca-Wang: No. Just shut your mouth. You're multi-quoting. Wakefield: Yeah b-Wang: Let's be clear: your whole point was, "I had no point in the first place" and "I am gay" and "everyone already knows I am gay so nobody should expect anything" and "fuuuuuuuuuuuuck I will die alone" and "auto-fellatio is this close" and "[slurp slurp slurp shlurp]"Wakefield: [slurp slurp slurp shlurp]

[timwakefield 68]

Wakefield: Boy I sure wish the team had gelled like previous teams.Wang: WTF is gel?Wakefield: Maybe just me telling myself a story about why the team didn't make the playoffs?Wang: You're just building a narrative out of nothing.Wakefield: I.....just said that. Wang: Oh yeah, I overlooked that, you're probably just ranting because you're pissed that your team missed the playoffs. Understandable. But "gelling" is still retarded. That's how normal human beings converse with each other. You and suited seem to enjoy making yourselves angry for no reason, which to me seems abnormal.

[digitalmonkey 929]

That attempt in left field by Carl Crawford was pansy-assed.

[Dread Aidan 8]

That was the greatest night in baseball history.

I don't know about that, but I am now officially ready for the playoffs. So much fun.

Somebody needs to write a book about sports myths.

I think someone has.

QUANTUM LEAP

Awesome.

Wang: Let's be clear: your whole point was, "I had no point in the first place" and "I am gay" and "everyone already knows I am gay so nobody should expect anything" and "fuuuuuuuuuuuuck I will die alone" and "auto-fellatio is this close" and "[slurp slurp slurp shlurp]"Wakefield: [slurp slurp slurp shlurp]

Also awesome.Tim, I'm rolling my eyes at you. Not like a dice roll or something because that would be weird, gross, and probably not appropriate (and painful, seems like it would be painful (not the rolling part, but the part where you have to get the eyes out of the head)), but the type of eye-rolling that means you're being ridiculous.

[BigDMcGee 3,352]

Simply because the Red Sox lost? Or were you also rooting for the Cards? Because seriously if it's the former, we've been doing that for most of our existence, and have experience much more painful collapses than this one, by leaps and bounds. Having won 2 rings over the last 8 seasons certainly makes this one much less painful, but I mean, have you ever heard of Bill Buckner? Aaron Boone? This one really wasn't so bad, so if your joy is entirely based on the Red Sox losing, your statement is pretty ridiculous.

You have no objectivity about this, because you're a fan of the team that collapsed, but as a neutral fan, watching two teams complete historic collapses was incredibly compelling and dramatic to watch. What boston did, in particular, in the macro of this month, and in the micro of last night, was just..was amazing. It was one of the greatest days in baseball history (in the regular season, at least) from a historical perspective. I'm a neutral fan, and in general I am sympathetic to the Red Sox ( moreso before 2004 when I felt kinship to the Sox fan as a cub can), and as I neutral fan, I wanted to see history. I wanted to see the Red Sox complete the historic collapse. Having them get this close, and then get swept by the Texans would not have been satisfying. But this.. this was historic and memorable, that's all neutral fans want, something to remember.And also, as a neutral fan, I can tell you, no one give a shit about buckner and aaron boone anymore. Trying to play the "woe is me, I'm a sox fan" after the decade of success the Red Sox have had and the payroll they carry is ridiculous. Most neutral fans think of the Red Sox as the Evil Empire 2.0. I know it sucks now, but your team is very well run and spends a lot of money, this is likely the only time you're going to miss the playoffs for the next 10 years. Boo Hoo. I feel sorry for Royals fans, who have had nothing but futility for the past 20 years and nothing to look forward to. But I don't have any sympathy for Red Sox fans anymore, and of course I'm going to celebrate the 2nd lowest payroll triumphing over the 3rd highest.

[wsox8 10]

HEHhttp://www.sbnation.com/2011/9/29/2457836/...-collapse-video

[Poppy_Hillis 11]

Do you believe, honestly, that Jacoby Ellsbury tried less hard when Lackey was on the mound because Ellsbury was like, "Fuck that guy, he's such a demonstrative faggot." Did Youklis say to himself, "Buchholz is being kind of a bitch, so: I'm out for the season."

LOL @ everybody's reading skills. First of all, I excluded both Ellsbury and Youkilis from my "they never gelled" comment, so it's ridiculous to use them as examples of the team not gelling. But, in regards to reading skills:It's seems so unlikely that all of you didn't read that sentence, but it's either that or you're all purposefully ignoring it.

This shit was great.What about Adrian Gonzalez, did he gel? Actually, can you make a list of all the players that gelled and the ones that didn't, so we know who you're talking about.

[digitalmonkey 929]

I can't help but wonder what Ted Williams would have said about Jose Reyes.

[BigDMcGee 3,352]

timmy getting lebo'd in this thread

[Tactical Bear 3]

timmy getting lebo'd in this thread

Perhaps it's ironic that I, of all people, am pointing this out, but the reason Timmy finds himself in so many of these situations (id est, situations in which Timmy is shouting at the top of his lungs and everyone else is averting their eyes, embarrassed and sad for him) is that he holds onto his positions well past the point of reason. He could have said, "Yeah, I'm being an idiot. Get your shots in now. I deserve it." Instead he made a half-admission, and then just kept foaming at the mouth. "I'm stuck in a really bad spot, here, so I think I'm going to up the stakes and intensity!"He holds on too tight. Tighter, I believe, even than yours truly, which is saying something.Say you're wrong. Say it. Just say you're wrong. Say it say it say it say you're wrong. Say you're wrong.

[SuitedAces21 2,722]

holy shit, the mets manager cried while discussing jose reyes' batting title. that is so awesome. i mean what a tool.

[timwakefield 68]

You have no objectivity about this, because you're a fan of the team that collapsed, but as a neutral fan, watching two teams complete historic collapses was incredibly compelling and dramatic to watch. What boston did, in particular, in the macro of this month, and in the micro of last night, was just..was amazing. It was one of the greatest days in baseball history (in the regular season, at least) from a historical perspective. I'm a neutral fan, and in general I am sympathetic to the Red Sox ( moreso before 2004 when I felt kinship to the Sox fan as a cub can), and as I neutral fan, I wanted to see history. I wanted to see the Red Sox complete the historic collapse. Having them get this close, and then get swept by the Texans would not have been satisfying. But this.. this was historic and memorable, that's all neutral fans want, something to remember.And also, as a neutral fan, I can tell you, no one give a shit about buckner and aaron boone anymore. Trying to play the "woe is me, I'm a sox fan" after the decade of success the Red Sox have had and the payroll they carry is ridiculous. Most neutral fans think of the Red Sox as the Evil Empire 2.0. I know it sucks now, but your team is very well run and spends a lot of money, this is likely the only time you're going to miss the playoffs for the next 10 years. Boo Hoo. I feel sorry for Royals fans, who have had nothing but futility for the past 20 years and nothing to look forward to. But I don't have any sympathy for Red Sox fans anymore, and of course I'm going to celebrate the 2nd lowest payroll triumphing over the 3rd highest.

That entire statement I wrote to him was mis-informed. I thought he was the guy who was hating on the Sox earlier, but he wasn't. None of what I said to him was relevant, and I completely understand that it was a great day of baseball. I thought his only interest in it was to see the Sox lose, which would have been a pitiful reason to call it the greatest day in baseball. Again, I was mistaken. I'm surprised nobody has crucified me for it.

[Dread Aidan 8]

Random guesses if I'm wrong/Analytical predictions if I'm right:Yankees > Tigers in 5 (Go go go Tigers!)Rangers > Rays in 4Phillies > Cardinals in 3Brewers > Diamondbacks in 4Yankees > Rangers in 7Brewers > Phillies in 6Brewers > Yankees in 6I also want: Zack Greinke to throw a complete game shutout in Yankee Stadium in game 6 (wait, the NL has home field advantage?) ok in game 5 with the series tied 2-2. I want this more for Poz than myself.

[timwakefield 68]

Perhaps it's ironic that I, of all people, am pointing this out, but the reason Timmy finds himself in so many of these situations (id est, situations in which Timmy is shouting at the top of his lungs and everyone else is averting their eyes, embarrassed and sad for him) is that he holds onto his positions well past the point of reason. He could have said, "Yeah, I'm being an idiot. Get your shots in now. I deserve it." Instead he made a half-admission, and then just kept foaming at the mouth. "I'm stuck in a really bad spot, here, so I think I'm going to up the stakes and intensity!"

That was one of the first things I said. You all just ignored it over and over because you like making fun of somebody.

I dunno, maybe it's just a bullshit excuse or attempt to make sense of why we didn't win 95+ games

"I'm being an idiot" and "I'm just making bullshit excuses" are pretty similar. And I wasn't foaming at the mouth, sir. At no point did I get angry or upset with any of you, nor did I express any angry emotional outbursts. So...I dunno why you're pretending I did.

What about Adrian Gonzalez, did he gel? Actually, can you make a list of all the players that gelled and the ones that didn't, so we know who you're talking about.

And I'm the one being accused of not letting go and acting like a cunt? You guys are weird.

[CobaltBlue 662]

Oh God, you Braves Fans.

Yup.

QUANTUM LEAP

I nose-laughed. (You know that thing where you don't LOL but you just kind of exhale loudly while smiling.)

[uncooper 1]

http://www.sportsclubstats.com/MLB/America...kePlayoffs.html

[timwakefield 68]

http://www.sportsclubstats.com/MLB/America...kePlayoffs.html

Jesus, at one point we were 99.93%. On the other side of the coin of course: http://www.sportsclubstats.com/MLB/America...kePlayoffs.htmlAnd as long as we're doing those: Braves, Cardinals.

[Tactical Bear 3]

Perhaps it's ironic that I, of all people, am pointing this out, but the reason Timmy finds himself in so many of these situations (id est, situations in which Timmy is shouting at the top of his lungs and everyone else is averting their eyes, embarrassed and sad for him) is that he holds onto his positions well past the point of reason. He could have said, "Yeah, I'm being an idiot. Get your shots in now. I deserve it." Instead he made a half-admission, and then just kept foaming at the mouth. "I'm stuck in a really bad spot, here, so I think I'm going to up the stakes and intensity!"He holds on too tight. Tighter, I believe, even than yours truly, which is saying something.Say you're wrong. Say it. Just say you're wrong. Say it say it say it say you're wrong. Say you're wrong.

That was one of the first things I said. You all just ignored it over and over because you like making fun of somebody. "I'm being an idiot" and "I'm just making bullshit excuses" are pretty similar. And I wasn't foaming at the mouth, sir. At no point did I get angry or upset with any of you, nor did I express any angry emotional outbursts. So...I dunno why you're pretending I did.And I'm the one being accused of not letting go and acting like a cunt? You guys are weird.

Wow. This is like playing backgammon with a nine-year-old.Wang: "Tim please stop foaming at the mouth. You're embarrassing yourself. Just... let it go, man."Tim: "Foaming at the mouth? Embarrassing myself? Let it go?! I'll show you how to le- [inaudible]"Wang: "What?"Tim: [inaudible]Wang: "I have no idea what... oh my... Oh my God!"Tim: "Slurp slurp slurp shlrup"Wang: "Please... stop doing that."Tim: "Slurp slurp slurp shlrup shluuuuurp"But, really: please stop. For your own sake.You just keep going. You said something stupid. You were mocked for it. But, instead of giving up and letting it die, instead, for some fucking reason, you keep calling attention to yourself, to your own stupidity.You understand how stupid you look, right? When you keep engaging those of us that have the high ground?I'm a sniper. I shot you in the head. Boom you're dead. You respawned in the same spot, so: boom, you're dead. How many times are you going to pop up in my sights before you realize how futile it is? Give up. Move on. Please. You're embarrassing yourself.

[timwakefield 68]

You understand how stupid you look, right? When you keep engaging those of us that have the high ground?I'm a sniper. I shot you in the head. Boom you're dead. You respawned in the same spot, so: boom, you're dead. How many times are you going to pop up in my sights before you realize how futile it is? Give up. Move on. Please. You're embarrassing yourself.

And you realize how much of a dickface you have, right?You're the one who never lets anything go. It's impossible for you to not get in the last word. Absolutely impossible. I let it go a long time ago - you're the only one making a fuss about anything now. The whole thing had moved on. Everybody had shut up about it, and had moved on to discussions about, oh, baseball. Except you, who are somehow blaming me for being unwilling to move on. Like I said, I was already entirely done with it, despite the fact that I think you and a few others were acting like complete fools. I'm done with it now, regardless. You are not done, as evidenced by your above post. This will no doubt be further evidenced by your next response, cuz you can't ever not have the last word.

[Tactical Bear 3]

Yes but perhaps John Lackey sucking did impact the way our hitters might have fed off the strength and optimism and winning attitude of their starting pitcher. The same with hitters feeding off of other hitters (a concept you ignored). But then we'd have bum-ass Carl Crawford come up and kill all our momentum with a weak grounder to the pitcher. Baseball really isn't an individual sport, even for the team batting (have you ever heard of a sacrifice, or a hit-and-run, or a squeeze play?). And once the ball is in play it is undoubtedly a team sport, at least for the team defending. Lastly, the notion that we had "no pitching" is obvious hyperbole. If Clay Buchholz had come back we would have had three dominant starters. Instead we had 2. That's still a lot more than none.

I only read like half of this, before. I'm emphasizing it now because: wow.Bolded #1) I honestly have no idea what you're saying. None. It's... please, just somebody stand up and...? "Perhaps John Lackey sucking... DID impact the way... our hitters... might have fed off... the strength... and optimism... and winning attitude... of their starting pitcher." THAT IS BARELY A SENTENCEBolded #2) Yes. Yon Yonson ignored the concept of hitters feeding off each other. He and I both, regrettably, forgot about when the 2011 Red Sox got stuck in the Chilean Mountains. And had to eat each other. For food. RIP former Red Sox Trot Nixon and that one midget Pedro always brought around. Bolded #3) Again, you are correct. Baseball is just like soccer, football, basketball, and hockey, because almost every single play somebody is laying down a sac bunt, hitting a sac fly, or, I don't know, pulling some hidden-ball-trick stuff. (Note: Wakefield is gay and will die alone and is thiiiiiis close to being able to suck his own penis)Bolded #4) "No pitching" is "a hyperbole?" I disagree. As far as I know, not a single person on the Red Sox's 40 man roster -- let alone the 25 man roster -- was a pitcher. You literally had NO PITCHING.

[Tactical Bear 3]

And you realize how much of a dickface you have, right?You're the one who never lets anything go. It's impossible for you to not get in the last word. Absolutely impossible. I let it go a long time ago - you're the only one making a fuss about anything now. The whole thing had moved on. Everybody had shut up about it, and had moved on to discussions about, oh, baseball. Except you, who are somehow blaming me for being unwilling to move on. Like I said, I was already entirely done with it, despite the fact that I think you and a few others were acting like complete fools. I'm done with it now, regardless. You are not done, as evidenced by your above post. This will no doubt be further evidenced by your next response, cuz you can't ever not have the last word.

Oh man. You're going to HATE the post above this. Also: people like me more than they like you (probably because: you suck)EDIT: Somebody make a poll about who sucks more, Wakey or Me. I'll even let Wake freeroll me. Joey? ARE YOU OUT THERE?!EDIT2: Please, somebody parse the Wakefield post that's quoted above. For me?EDIT3: Wakefield has now posted below. He writes "I mostly just post nonsense..." He also writes "I don't care who likes me..."I will grant the first point. Yes to: nonsense. I will not grant the second point. No to: Wakefield doesn't care who likes him. Anybody who honestly and truly did not care would never write something like "I don't care who likes me" in the first place. QED: Wakefield is lame

[timwakefield 68]

Haha.EDIT: Damn, I meant that to follow your previous post, which as you suggested, I probably HATE. I didn't bother reading it.

Also: people like me more than they like you

On the internet. That's a big deal for you I'm sure, and I'm sure you work hard at it. I mostly just post nonsense about tv shows and music and sometimes baseball. I don't really care who likes me because: internet.

[mrdannyg 274]

Wow. This is like playing backgammon with a nine-year-old.Wang: "Tim please stop foaming at the mouth. You're embarrassing yourself. Just... let it go, man."Tim: "Foaming at the mouth? Embarrassing myself? Let it go?! I'll show you how to le- [inaudible]"Wang: "What?"Tim: [inaudible]Wang: "I have no idea what... oh my... Oh my God!"Tim: "Slurp slurp slurp shlrup"Wang: "Please... stop doing that."Tim: "Slurp slurp slurp shlrup shluuuuurp"But, really: please stop. For your own sake.You just keep going. You said something stupid. You were mocked for it. But, instead of giving up and letting it die, instead, for some fucking reason, you keep calling attention to yourself, to your own stupidity.You understand how stupid you look, right? When you keep engaging those of us that have the high ground?I'm a sniper. I shot you in the head. Boom you're dead. You respawned in the same spot, so: boom, you're dead. How many times are you going to pop up in my sights before you realize how futile it is? Give up. Move on. Please. You're embarrassing yourself.

You really are embarassing yourself. This kind of post was funny the first time. Maybe the second two. The last dozen are just getting sad.

[brvheart 1,752]

holy shit, the mets manager cried while discussing jose reyes' batting title. that is so awesome. i mean what a tool.

Of course, I also saw that on DLHQ, but you know, he was probably crying because of all the stuff that he's been hearing about sitting him throughout the day. If you mix in the insult with a sensitive heart, that can happen. It looks really bad, but it's possible that there was a mix of other stuff that we aren't privy to.