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MLB 2016-2017 Offseason |OT| At Least Next Year is an Odd Numbered Year.

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G

GK86

Homeland Security Fail
Surprised it wasn't posted:

0Dty0sh.jpg
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Edit - Ohh, Zulu did.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
It shocked the world. On the 6th of October, 1993, the world’s most famous professional athlete announced his retirement. But people close to Michael Jordan were not completely surprised. Because for more than a year, he’d been talking about it.

A few months prior, in June, Jordan’s Chicago Bulls had wrapped up their third straight NBA championship. Just over a month later, Jordan’s father James went missing—he had been murdered by two strangers, who stole his Lexus with the UNC0023 license plate. On August 3, a badly decomposed body was found in a swampy South Carolina creek; two days later, the Lexus was found abandoned in Fayetteville, North Carolina. The connection was quickly made, and the Jordan family prepared for a funeral service.

In September, Jordan’s agent informed Bulls (and White Sox) owner Jerry Reinsdorf that Jordan would probably retire. According to Jordan biographer Roland Lazenby, the wavering superstar asked coach Phil Jackson “how the coach would get him through another 82-game regular season, because he had absolutely no motivation, saw no challenge in it. Jackson had no good answer.”

So, in a televised press conference, Jordan announced his retirement from the NBA, saying he’d lost his “sense of motivation, the sense to prove something as a basketball player.”

Reinsdorf said of Jordan, “He’s living the American Dream. The American Dream is to reach a point in your life where you don’t have to do anything you don’t wanna do, and everything that you do wanna do.”

But what did Jordan want to do? He wasn’t saying, yet. But he’d already told Reinsdorf, “I want to play baseball”—James Jordan’s long-held dream for his son.

Sure, Michael had been an outstanding baseball player—as a kid. At 12, he’d been named North Carolina’s “Mr. Baseball” by the Dixie Youth Association. He played Babe Ruth ball, and in high school. But he’d quit baseball two games into his senior season, when he was 18. Now he was 31.

A few other superstar professional athletes had quit while still at the top of their games—most famously, the NFL’s Jim Brown—but none had quit to pursue a career in another professional sport. But that winter in Chicago, Jordan worked out for several weeks with White Sox trainer Herm Schneider and various White Sox players. On February 7, he signed with the White Sox and held another press conference. “This is something that has been in the back of my mind for a long time,” Jordan said, “and something that my father and I talked about often.”

What happened over the next year-plus, on baseball diamonds and in pickup basketball games and during long bus rides, will never be forgotten by the players and coaches and broadcasters and front-office workers who were there, just hanging on for the wild ride that would be Michael Jordan’s baseball career, so brief but no less spectacular, in its way, than his basketball career.
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The Oral History of Michael Jordan's Minor League Baseball Career
 
D

Dmncnby2k9

Banned
WBC notes:

91% of all WBC tix have been sold in Jalisco, Mexico.

USA-DR game in Marlins Park completely sold out. (Two sellouts for them this year)

Tanner Roark will start against DR.

Cueto will not pitch first round.

Teheran will pitch first game for Team Colombia against Team USA with Quintana pitching against Canada the next day.
 
P

PROh1bited

Banned
Silver Arrows said:
I can't wait for Canada to be murdered and have nobody care for Canada Baseball again.
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Has anybody actually really cared for the WBC?

I'd have to google who won the previous 3 tournaments to see who won those to even know.

Hopefully this is the last one because it's even lamer then that Hockey tournament they pulled a few months ago.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
PROh1bited said:
Has anybody actually really cared for the WBC?

I'd have to google who won the previous 3 tournaments to see who won those to even know.

Hopefully this is the last one because it's even lamer then that Hockey tournament they pulled a few months ago.
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Everybody in Latin America and Asia?

Come the fuck on. Of course people care.
 
B

Beckx

Member
there was a full stadium to watch Japan play a practice game against Taiwan (and got a 10 rating on Japanese TV). it's just in north american where MLB doesn't give a fuck and teams actively discourage their players from joining. (not all, of course)
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
Beckx said:
there was a full stadium to watch Japan play a practice game against Taiwan. it's just in north american where MLB doesn't give a fuck and teams actively discourage their players from joining. (not all, of course)
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That's exactly it. Latin America and Asia care for the WBC, both the US and Canada care more for the best being in the Olympics then anything else. And it's been repeated ad-nauseum on why MLB players in the Olympics is a fool's errand.
 
P

PROh1bited

Banned
Silver Arrows said:
I can't wait for Canada to be murdered and have nobody care for Canada Baseball again.
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Well if Canada does get murdered, at least they got this going for them.

https://www.baseball.ca/rogers-and-baseball-canada-partner-to-grow-the-game-from-coast-to-coast

And people in this country would feel more pride in the Jays winning the WS then If Canada won some baseball tournament most would forget in a few months.

And when I said nobody cares for the WBC, I was mostly talking about it here.

Canada being murderized in the tournament won't effect at all the development of baseball in Canada. The Jays are the apex here, and whenever they are doing good on the field, that's when it matters here.
 
G

Grover Cleveland

Member
Red Sox Stats‏
@redsoxstats

Benintendi 3-3, 2 doubles on the day

Trade him for Quintana my ass

Of course, I said the same thing about trading Moncada for Sale...
 
Z

zulux21

Member
Grover Cleveland said:
Red Sox Stats‏
@redsoxstats

Benintendi 3-3, 2 doubles on the day

Trade him for Quintana my ass

Of course, I said the same thing about trading Moncada for Sale...
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unless the red sox give up a package of roughly equal value as the sale package there isn't any chance at all they will get quintana.

while the rest of the league doesn't value quintana a ton, he has an extra year of control over sale and has been as good if not better than sale over the last few seasons (at least according to baseball reference WAR)... he just has hidden behind sale's shadow the whole time *shrugs* white sox know this and don't have any pressing need to move him. as long as he continues to be the same quintana moving him for a nice package at the trade deadline will be easy, especially after he makes the all star game.

(if he isn't the normal quintana then it won't be a great situation, but given the low respect vs actual quality he puts out there it isn't much of a gamble to at least wait until the all star break)
 
Z

zulux21

Member
Grover Cleveland said:
I don't think they go after Quintana is what I'm saying.
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i don't think so either.

with the sale trade they mostly gave up good but spare pieces, to get a similar package they would actually have to give up someone that isn't spare.

I imagine if boston traded for any white sox pitcher at this point it would be Miguel Gonzalez who should be a solid 4-5 guy if he repeats anything close to what he did last year.
 
Z

zulux21

Member
Grover Cleveland said:
Rob Bradford‏Verified account
@bradfo

No surgery for Price. No PRP. Farrell calls it best case scenario. Down for next 7-10 days

200.gif
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im trying to recall, but how many of these they need TJS and the second opinion says they don't, actually have the picture remain healthy.

most of the ones I remember they get that second opinion, pitch a few more times, and then need the TJS anyways o_O


edit:
n a surprising move, the White Sox announced on Friday that they've requested release waivers on infielder Brett Lawrie. Assuming Lawrie clears waivers — a fair bet, given his $3.5MM salary for the 2017 season — he'll become a free agent upon clearing in 48 hours. The Sox, it should be noted, won't be on the hook for the entirety of that salary. Arbitration contracts aren't fully guaranteed until Opening Day, so the Sox will only be on the hook for about one-sixth of that salary (30 days' termination pay) — or about $574K.
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I wonder what this is about. he wasn't great but he was good enough that they should have at least been able to get a decent single A prospect for him.

the white sox aren't in a win now mode... so there has to be more to this story as it would have made the most sense to keep him and hope he returns to a good form and trade him at the deadline o_O.

i mean it's a big whatever move in the grand scheme as the white sox didn't really give up anyone to get him, but it's still weird to just cut a guy worth 1.3WAR last season who is just turning 27 and that was his worst WAR season.


edit 2: ah Carlos Sanchez is out of options, so they likely decided to just go with him from the start as he is younger and under control for longer with let injury problems.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
Some have said that Lawrie was a locker room cancer in Toronto, and was one of the reasons why he was traded to Oakland, and subsequently left to be replaced by confirmed locker room cancer Danny Valencia.

Of course, nobody should really give the benefit of the doubt to unsubstantiated bullshit rumors, but it looks like maybe his time was up with what the Chi Sox had.

Wouldn't be surprised if he either retires, or tries to stamp out a place in Japan.
 
Z

zulux21

Member
Silver Arrows said:
Some have said that Lawrie was a locker room cancer in Toronto, and was one of the reasons why he was traded to Oakland, and subsequently left to be replaced by confirmed locker room cancer Danny Valencia.

Of course, nobody should really give the benefit of the doubt to unsubstantiated bullshit rumors, but it looks like maybe his time was up with what the Chi Sox had.

Wouldn't be surprised if he either retires, or tries to stamp out a place in Japan.
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we will have to see, I mean he just turned 27 and he hasn't really had a bad season (he has been above average in general)

it could also be a case of his injuries just being to much... I mean he is still injured from last year.

or perhaps given his injury history he just doesn't know how to play through pain.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
Uhm...

"We're like a bunch of misfits, beer drinkers, and fighters,'' Gagne said, according to ESPN's Jerry Crasnick. "We've got some good pitchers, some good young guys, and some old guys that retired and just want to play. Maybe we'll go out and shock the world."
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This doesn't reflect well on Canada Baseball. At all.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
Jeffrey Loria is reportedly ready to move on from the Marlins, will likely sell the team this year.

The question is no longer if Jeffrey Loria will sell the Marlins. It’s how quickly.

According to people briefed on the situation in the past week, Loria is fully expected to sell the team sometime this year, barring an unforeseen change of heart. He has decided it’s time to move on from baseball.

The Marlins are actively engaged in discussions with four groups and have had additional conversations with two others. MLB is aware of the identity of the Marlins suitors, which include both local and out-of-town investors.

The Marlins, as of Friday, had not struck a deal with any of the six suitors but would like to reach an agreement with someone in the coming months, with closing and MLB approval before the end of the year.

And don’t assume that all these bidders would dramatically increase payroll. That could depend in part on how much Fox is willing to pay the Marlins after their local TV deal expires after 2020. The Marlins pocket the least local TV revenue in baseball.

Loria has consistently declined to comment since sales rumors surfaced.
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S

Silver Arrows

Banned
In relation to the news that Loria could possibly sell the Marlins, Buster Olney provides an interesting take:

Next Marlins owners need Derek Jeter involved

We can never begin to ascertain the potential of the Miami baseball market until Jeffrey Loria completes the sale of the Miami Marlins because of how Loria shadows the perception of the franchise. For a lot of fans, the Marlins without Loria would be the Death Star after the departure of Darth Vader.

Loria is moving forward with sale talks, writes Barry Jackson, and he will soon cash in on his profitable baseball investment.

Whoever the new owners turn out to be, they must recognize the full depth of the fan base's anger toward Loria, who slashed his payroll, often fielded noncompetitive teams and negotiated a ballpark deal that drained taxpayers. Because of this, generations of Miami fans have made a habit of staying away from the relatively young home of the Marlins, which opened in 2012, and refusing to spend money they believed would land in Loria's pockets.

The new owners will need a reset, in the same way the Los Angeles Dodgers did following Frank McCourt's ugly reign. And the Marlins will need instant credibility. The new Dodgers regime got credibility mostly by spending and taking on players like Adrian Gonzalez, but they also rebranded the team. An important step was the inclusion of Magic Johnson in the ownership group, because of Magic's reputation with folks in L.A. His history with the city made fans willing to take him at his word that the new owners were going to spend money and try relentlessly to win. And that's what has happened.

This is why the new owners, whoever they are, should make a strong effort to persuade Derek Jeter to be part of the solution. And MLB should do all that it can to aid in that, to the degree that it requires the buyers to try to make that happen as a stipulation for purchasing the team.
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I guess the rest of the article is Insider bullshit, but two things stick out to me:

1: Jeter has no real ties to the Miami area. Why would he care?
2: Buster raises a good point in that whoever decides to own the team, even if it's Jared Kushner, needs to separate the Loria era and essentially tear the house down, remove all ties to Loria.
 
W

Windu

never heard about the cat, apparently
Looks like the MLB.tv app was finally updated on Xbox one. Not a total POS anymore.
 
S

Silver Arrows

Banned
Rob Refsnyder could be on his way out from the Yankees

http://nypost.com/2017/03/05/the-yankees-are-putting-rob-refsnyder-on-trade-block/

According to a person with knowledge of the situation, the Yankees have let clubs know they are willing to listen to trade offers for infielder/outfielder Rob Refsnyder.

Refsnyder, who turns 26 this month, has started games at first base (21), second base (17), right field (14) and left field (four) in the past two years for the Yankees.

Greg Bird’s return from missing a year due to shoulder surgery and the signing of Chris Carter has boxed the right-handed hitting Refsnyder out of first base.
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