2008 MLB General News Thread

[trashtalkr]

Oh shut up, A. You don't understand the thrill that baseball brings! The Philly's did dominate the resumed game and Brad Lidge was lights out like also. He never missed a save opportunity all year - that's impressive

[darklighter1]

Kind of ironic that there was EXACTLY 76 meatheads arrested and it wasn't even an NBA championship, huh?

[erokero85]

I love baseball, but I agree w/ Kumicho. The season is just too dang long. Even the playoffs are getting stretched out. Next year's schedule is already out and the WS is going to be in November!?! All because of TV. WTF!!!

Do you really need to play each team in your division 17-19 times a year? I'm sure you could cut down the season by 3 or 4 series thus cutting out 9-12 games, if not more, and the best teams each year will still end up at the top of the standings.

[darklighter1]

I love baseball, but I agree w/ Kumicho. The season is just too dang long. Even the playoffs are getting stretched out. Next year's schedule is already out and the WS is going to be in November!?! All because of TV. WTF!!!

Do you really need to play each team in your division 17-19 times a year? I'm sure you could cut down the season by 3 or 4 series thus cutting out 9-12 games, if not more, and the best teams each year will still end up at the top of the standings.

Can't cut out the games. It would screw with the record books and the biggest factor of all money! Who's going to give up the extra revenue? Players? Owners? TV? None of em will. The problem is they play practically every night for the entire 6 months then they spread out the post season like three weeks. They should only get one day off per series so they can wrap things up faster. Play two home games, day off then 5 straight if need be till it's over.

[erokero85]

I know it will never happen because of the money. But the don't give me the "records" excuse. Look at the playoffs for one. While I think the wildcard was a great idea, I hate the fact that the first round it a best-of-7 series now. I hear tons of the talking heads say it's unfair to the teams who play good all year, just to lost game one of a best-of-5 and lose the home field and then have to win 3 out of 4 to win the series. Well suck it up then. If you're the better team you shouldn't lost the first game at home should you? If you can't win 3 out of 5, you probably weren't the better team. I feel the same way about the stupid NBA playoffs where the first round is not 7 games too. Tho that was good for your Celtics last year DL.

Ok, back to the records thing. You have extra games/rounds thus bloated stats. Besides as little as 20 years or so ago, ok not so little, all the playoff rounds were best-of-5 except maybe the WS. I don't remember anyone back then saying one fo the WS winning teams didn't deserve to win? Hell, at one point the WS was a best-of-9 series. MLB came to their senses and cut it down then, so they can now, if they weren't such money gubbers.

They also expanded the season before they expanded the number of teams. A season's a season regardless of length. BB still has the record of 73 HR's in a season, a 162 game season, while Ruth got his 59 in a 154 game season. I'm sure BB had more through 154 games just like McGuire did, but the season record is still the total after 162 not 154, thus the number of games will not change how we see a season. Will a longer or shorter season change the chance of in season records being broken? Yes, but then again, since the crackdown on roids, just how many 50-60 HR season have there been? And does anyone really think someone will get anywhere close to Vince Coleman's 100+ stolen base record?

[trashtalkr]

Mike Mussina To Retire

As expected, New York Yankees pitcher Mike Mussina has decided to retire, according to a baseball source with knowledge of the situation. Mussina informed the Yankees last week he would give them a decision by the end of this week.

Mussina, who turns 40 next month, spent the last eight seasons with the Yankees after pitching for the Baltimore Orioles for the first 10 years of his career. His 270 wins rank second among all active right-handers, behind only Greg Maddux. In the final start of his career, he pitched six shutout innings against the Boston Red Sox to finish off the first 20-win season of his career.

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he's just the fifth pitcher since 1900 to win 20 games or more in the final season of his career -- and the first since Sandy Koufax in 1967. He's the only pitcher in that group to win his 20th game in his final start.

The Yankees had indicated they were interested in bringing Mussina back if he wanted to keep pitching. But they had also suggested they might need to wait to see if they could accomplish their goal of signing at least two other free-agent starters this season -- an indication they weren't counting on Mussina to return from the beginning.

Source: ESPN

Moose is such a classy player - it's sad to see him retire

[trashtalkr]

Free Agent Signings and Trades

Free Agent Signings
Mets sign Fransisco Rodriquez (3 yr, $37 million)
Dodgers sign Casey Blake (3 yr, $17.1 million)
Dodgers sign Mark Loretta (1 yr, $1.25 million)
Brewers sign Mike Lamb (1 yr, $400,000)
Giants sign Edgar Renteria (2 yr, $18.5 million)
Mariners sign Russell Branyan (1 yr, $1.4 million)
Cubs resign Ryan Dempster (4 yr, $52 million)
Astros sign Mike Hampton (1 yr, $2 million)
Yankees sign CC Sabathia (7 yr, $160 million)
Indians sign Kerry Wood (2 yr, $20 million)

Trades
Cardinals acquire Khalil Greene from Padres for Mark Worrell and another player
Tigers acquire Gerald Laird from Rangers for 2 minor league pitchers

[erokero85]

Holy crap did the Yankees overpay for CC. Not that they had much of a choice. And now an offer to Burnett for 5 yrs? At least there's an opt-out after year 3 in CC's deal, which I'm pretty sure regardless of how he does, he uses. Hell, I would. That team is getting old, and if he does get them over the hump and wins a WS title, then why not ask for more money, or even just bolt for the west coast or the NL like he wanted?

But how about the deals the Mets made? Just like the yanks, out bidding themselves for K-Rod, and trading for JJ Putz from the M's! Wow did they upgrade their pathetic bullpen. And they still kept what little prospects they have. All it cost them is money for K-Rod, an under performing whiner in Heilman, and a supersub Endy Chavez who took a big step back with his bat.

[trashtalkr]

Yankees did pay a lot for CC, but he's a great pitcher who still have greatness in him (unlike Pavano or Kevin Brown who we overpaid for also). And yes, AJ Burnett is not a Yank for 5 years, $85 million. They are trying to get Andy Pettitte back or will be signing Ben Sheets to finish out their rotation.

I hope the Yankees do trade Melky Cabrera for Mike Cameron. Cameron provides the strong defense and a decent bat for us as well. They all say that the Yanks are still in the running for Tex, but I doubt they'll be able to afford him. We need him really bad...

But, instead of trading for all of these superstars, the Yanks need to revamp their farm system and get some good talent in there and develop the players young. That's one of the reasons we saw a Rays/Phillies WS - farm system developed players.


With the Mets, I don't think they overpaid for K-Rod. They actually got him at half the cost he was projected to go. He's not the best closer (he allows too many base runners), but he is solid and will be better than Wagner. Getting JJ Putz was a great deal as well

[darklighter1]

Well I'm impressed the Yanks got both CC and Burnett but CC still has to prove he's more than a regular season wonder to me. He hasn't been all that great in the playoffs. And Burnett has all the health issues, so it could be like another Pavano signing. But it is indeed a major upgrade over their pitching he last few years. I agree though they need to get a better farm system rolling but the expectations in New York make that pretty tough.

What a division though with them Boston and Tampa and even Toronto huh?