Yeah, his successful Mets managerial career seems to have lasted 12 games, and it's been all downhill since then. An over/under of 80 or 90 games seems about right.
WTF? $10 million per year for this clown? He was vastly overrated in 2015-2016, and has only gotten worse since then. I understand that the intention is to keep him away from the 9th inning, but I still don't see this being worth the money.
Yeah, I don't get this, they already brought in a closer. Aren't they concerned about wasting money? I guess Familiar will be a set up guy from now on, but yeah he's been declining steadily since 2015.
The Mets seem to be collecting second basemen - McNeil, Cano, and now Lowrie. He's been solid at the plate the last two years as a second baseman, but he's played very little at first, third, or short, and has way too little power to be a regular first or third baseman. Lots of injury problems in 2015-2016, but not in the last two seasons; he will, however, be 35 in April. He has 74 career postseason plate appearances, with a truly pathetic OPS of .452. Sounds okay, I guess. It doesn't sound like someone worth $20 million, but it's not my money.
Maybe. And I'm not saying that these signings are bad ones (same with Familia), just that I worry that the cost will prevent the cheapskate Wilpons from doing things that are more important. Today's Newsday is saying that Lowrie is "expected to be an everyday player," and I just don't see him being good enough to do that anywhere other than second base, and that's one of the few positions where they're already in good shape. https://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/mets/jed-lowrie-luis-avilan-sign-1.25787612
https://bleacherreport.com/articles...et-bryce-harper-manny-machado-remain-unsigned I get that these owners are making more money. So in theory so should the talent(?) but these guys are being delusional. They aren’t gonna win the hearts & minds of the fans on this issue. You aren’t gonna get fans to sympathize.
Wow, what incredibly tone deaf comments from Longoria. Is he seriously trying to invoke the "it's not your money" argument to the fans? Guess what, Evan? Fans don't give a rat's ass about what players think they are "deserving of." They want to be entertained, but they recognize that all of sports is ultimately so unimportant that they don't think there's an athlete in any sport who "deserves" $300 million to play a game. It's funny - they're not even trying to blame the owners and claim there's collusion between them; now they're blaming fans for not demanding that owners spend far more than a player actually brings in value. As you say, this is delusional, and will only result in more backlash. And considering that Longoria has hardly been a star for most of the last five years, conveniently just about when his salary doubled, he's not exactly in a reasonable position to make his case.
Bryant and Longoria aren’t the only players chirping. With the cba expiring 2021 All I know is if a strike should happen they will do Irreparable damage to league.
Very delusional. In what world is the White Sox offering 180 million dollars to Machado something bad? The players are crazy, fuck them “There is a widespread lack of interest among clubs, who can well afford to do so, in improving their rosters through free agency. This unwillingness to compete is bad for players, fans and the game itself.” https://www.washingtonpost.com/spor...-warmer-baseballs-tepid-hot-stove-is-tension/ How is it bad for the fans - the players are going to sign no matter what, right? I don't give a crap if they make 8 million instead of 20. Seriously, fuck them
Agree. I know I'm in the miniority but I love having pitchers hit. Double switches strategy. Going to the DH you won't see as much. We already don't have anymore bunting or stolen bases. I agree with speeding up the game but some of these other ideas can't say I'm a fan of it.
I'm an old guy and traditionalist, so I've always hated the DH. Having said that, I've come to believe that it's simply not sustainable to have different rules for the two leagues, and since the DH is never going away I've become resigned to it being in both leagues. And I do recognize that while the lack of a DH does make for interesting strategic issues sometimes, the fact is that most of the time pitchers coming to bat is boring and a buzzkill. I have absolutely no problem with the 20 second clock. If Gio Gonzalez or Yu Darvish doesn't like it they can find another line of work. In what universe is the way Jacob deGrom or Chris Sale pitches not overwhelmingly more appealing? I am 100% against legislating against strategy, so I am against any rule that forces pitchers to pitch to more than one batter. And on another topic that has been brought up, I'm completely against legislating against the defensive shift. You're a professional hitter - do your homework, and figure out how to best address whatever the opposition throws at you, whether it's curve balls in the dirt or an overshift. Either be like Ted Williams and decide that you're better off still hitting the same way even against a shift, or be like George Brett and go the other way until they stop shifting on you. Not capable of doing either of those things? Well, I guess you're not cut out to be a major league baseball player then.
Agreed, Jeff. I like the idea of the 20 second clock as well, too much of baseball is just waiting for the pitch. Also, while I like the strategy of having pitchers hit, they should have consistent rules between the 2 leagues and it makes sense to put DH in both leagues if they want to increase the offense, speed up the game and protect pitchers. I also completely disagree with lowering the mound, or mandating 3 batters per pitcher, as it removes important strategy from the game. Increasing offense and speed is a good thing, but not to the point where it devalues the pitchers. Good post.
They better not put that bullshit designated hitter in the National League. It's such a bogus rule, everybody who plays should have to hit, including the pitcher. IMO what MLB should do is get rid of the DH in the American League
Manny Machado Signs with the Padres 10 years $300M Wonder what Harper gonna get? He turned down the Nats 10 for $300 What does Mike Trout get? $500M
I think Harper will get somewhere between 330 and 350 for 10 years. It would really suck to see him on the Phillies, but that is looking more and more likely at this point. I'm still waiting for the Mets to swoop in and surprise us all but the chance of that is less than .01% considering ownership and their cheapness. That would make them a playoff contender instantly, right now I feel they are on the fringe and still need one more big piece to put them back in the playoff race.