The Official 2018 MLB Thread!

[JBrax]

I think it’s going to be a long season for my Royals. Duffy looked good for the first three innings and then lost velocity on his fastball. Many people suspect he’s got some arm issues and I wouldn’t be surprised to see him go to the DL. I think we’ve patched together a decent lineup and might surprise with our offense but that bullpen is gonna be a weak spot. It might be awhile before we truly contend again.

 

[Todd Anderson]

We might have to share in the misery together... Baltimore has been little more than a speed bump for Minnesota and Houston. Yankees and Red Sox are up next.

I need to find my rally cap, asap!

 

[Todd Anderson]

Great weekend for the O's... took three of four from the Yankees in NYC. Two games went extra innings. Lots of exciting baseball.

PHEW

That Yankee team is crazy imposing!

 

[tripplej]

Astros are doing well so far. First in the AL West.

 

[JBrax]

I’d love to exude confidence in my Royals but I think it’s going to be a long year for us. We have 4 picks in the top 50 of the draft and really need to nail them. The Yankees are stacked and taking 3/4 is quite the accomplishment Todd. Maybe they’re going to be better than people thought? As for Houston they’ll be in the mix for another title barring a plethora of injuries.

 

[tripplej]

Benches clear twice in Red Sox-Yankees; 2 players, 1 coach ejected

 

[tripplej]

Another bench clearing ..Rockies-Padres benches-clearing

 

[Todd Anderson]

Made it to my first game last week.

Ugh. It's a grisly scene at Camden Yards. Tons of injuries. No hits. Small crowd.

 

[Todd Anderson]

@JBrax

Our teams are going to clash next month... sure feels more like a race to the bottom!

 

[JBrax]

Yes sir! It’s all about tanking and moving players for prospects now.

 

[Todd Anderson]

depressing

 

[Todd Anderson]

@JBrax

Can it get any worse in Baltimore? I am in utter disbelief at how terrible the O's are. And that word is being kind.

 

[JBrax]

I feel your pain Todd. That was a shallacking last night! I was surprised by the lack of people in the stands watching all of the HR highlights. Might be a race between just a couple teams for that first pick in the draft.

 

[Todd Anderson]

Anyone watched the leaked video of Terry Collins going crazy after Noah Syndergaard threw some heat at Chase Utley?

Intense!!

You can still find the full video on YouTube...

MLB is not happy about the leak... breaks the collective bargaining rules the Umpire Union has with MLB. But, wow, fascinating stuff.

The attempted bean ball was a result of Utley injuring Mets SS Tejada with a crazy slide in the playoffs the year before. Obviously Terry Collins and the Mets wanted blood and decided to dip into the Code for retribution!

 

[JBrax]

Wow, that was intense! I had not seen the video but thanks for the heads up.

 

[Todd Anderson]

I agree... I understand why they don’t want things like this leaked, but it’s so raw and real, I think this actually think it re-establishes some intrigue and raw reality of the MLB. Makes it more human.

“You gotta give us a shot, Tommy!”

Love it!

 

[JBrax]

A transparent and unfiltered look inside no doubt. Well, it’s looking like the Royals and O’s are neck and neck for that #1 pick. We expected a down year but not quite this. We did infuse some nice pitching talent in the draft though. Much needed I might add.

 

[Todd Anderson]

This season has been beyond awful.

What’s most upsetting is that Chris Davis, who the O’s still owe some $100 million, is the worst hitter in all of baseball. It’s a nightmare.

I think we’re aboit to see a fire sale here in Baltimore and the team is going to be bad for a long time. :-/

I know the Royals are having an equally tough time. Painful!!!!

Looks like the consensus #1 pick for next year is a kid name (SS) Bobby Witt Jr. good timing, because we’re going to need a SS here! ;-)

 

[JBrax]

He’d look much better in a Royals uniform! It just so happens we could use a SS as well.

 

[Todd Anderson]

So, I'm curious, Jeff... what's the KC media saying about the Herrera trade?

The Washington Post is playing it off as a steal/rental... where the Nats didn't have to give up much at all.

 

[JBrax]

The overall consensus here locally is that we pulled the trigger too soon. However, there is speculation that he may be hurt as his velocity was down in his last start. Who knows? I guess we’ll just have to trust the scouting department. Stay tuned more trades to come.

 

[JBrax]

Herrera sure didn’t look hurt to me in his debut. His fastball touched 98 with good movement. We won’t know for quite awhile how the trade really worked out. I remember the return we got for Grienke was viewed as underwhelming at the time. It ended up providing cornerstones for our back to back World Series teams.

 

[JBrax]

Well, @Todd Anderson today the Royals are officially the worst team in MLB. Sad but I check the results daily hoping the O’s won. Please don’t trade Machado!

 

[Todd Anderson]

Well, the O's are destined to battle them for that honor in the coming months.

Pretty sad state of affairs. There was a feature article in the Baltimore Sun addressing rumors that the Orioles may move to another city. Not sure how much credence there is to that... but never good to have smoke in that department.

 

[JBrax]

@Todd Anderson, I sure wish your O’s could win a few games! As far as the moving topic it’s usually just leverage for a new stadium. I know nothing about the situation but if I were a betting man I’d guess no way they move. Fan support is high when they’re winning and it’s a good size market. So revenue shouldn’t be an issue.

 

[Todd Anderson]

Camden is one of the crown jewels of the MLB, so it's not a stadium issue.... a lot of it has to do with the Nats and the loss of the immediate DC market. The O's and Nats are in court battling over TV $$$ income rights. It's a mess.

The O's can't seem to buy a win right now... and rumors are percolating that a deal with the Yankees (for Manny Machado) might be in the works. Then you have Chris Davis, who is owed some $100 million over the next 4 years AND he's having one of (if not THE worst) statistical seasons of any MLB player ever. I read the other day that his WAR is approaching -3. That's roughly the same WAR that a position player would achieve if they pitched 160 innings in a year!!!

To put it bluntly: This season has been the Titanic on steroids.