485052555542535449485E3B0 wrote: Cutch comes up with hit to drive in 4th run 4-0. Cutch now 1-3 but he really looked bad the 1st 2 times up. He looks like he did last year to me. If he has another year like last year we're screwed cause Hurdle will not move him out of the critical part of our batting order. Batting him 2nd and 3rd with the year he had last year was just crazy. As you probably can tell I'm not a big fan of Hurdle.
I'm not sure I agree with that. He got called on 2 really bad strike calls last night. I mean not even close. The games I got to see he came thru with some key hits and was a good run producer.
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
Moderators: SammyKhalifa, Doc, Bobster
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
3532242C2235727E07202A262E2B6924282A470 wrote: Gotta say I'm impressed with the WBC and the way the players and fans treated th game. jimmy Leyland was very emotional. All very cool. Maybe the WBC has a real future.
I wonder how many of the players that refused to play are regretting their decision right now?
Good to see Cutch and JHay part of the scene.
I have a couple of thoughts about the WBC.
First, I thought it was a great showcase. I agree with you. The stars that didn't play are perhaps wishing they had.
Second, I'm as red-blooded American as anybody. I love watching the Olympics, the World Cup, anything with an international competition where you represent your country. That said, I am kind of bored with international competitions in baseball and basketball, because the United States is head and shoulders better than the rest of the world...if we bring our best players. I mean, let's face it. This was in a certain sense our B team, especially as far as the pitching was concerned. No Kershaw, no Bumgarner, no Scherzer, no Arrieta, no Sale, etc. No Trout, no Bryant, and I'm sure there are others. Heck, the Italian and Israeli teams were comprised of mostly American-born players. Manny Machado was born in Florida, yet played for the DR. Dellin Betances was born in New York, I thin. Even Puerto Rico is an American territory, its citizens are U.S. citizens, and are issued U.S. passports.
Here's my point...for this to really take off, at least in my mind, you need to be able to play best on best, and have the rest of the world have a chance. I know that might come across as, "Rah, rah! 'Merica! USA is the bestest country EVER!!!" But, that's not my intention. All I'm saying is that, as it currently stands, the U.S. doesn't field their best team, we give players to other countries to give them a fighting chance, and still win--at least this time around. (I know, Japan and the DR have both won in the past, and the U.S. has been a disappointment until this year.) Hopefully, the day will come when they can do away with the heritage rules that allow Machado to play for the DR, even though he was born in the U.S., or Taillon to play for Canada, or Cervelli to play for Italy. In my mind, you should be able to play for the country where you are a citizen...and that's it.
I feel the same way about basketball. Yeah, when I was a little kid, I thought it was cool when they assembled the first "Dream Team," and Jordan, Magic, and Bird were all on the same team. But let's face it, with few exceptions, Team USA Basketball games are boring. It's not a question of who is going to win, it's by how much. Frankly, I often times find myself rooting for Argentina or Spain, or France, or whomever, when they play the USA in basketball. Not because I want to see the U.S. lose, but because I'm a sports fan, and I find basketball games with 135-42 scores boring and unwatchable.
It's why I much prefer watching Team USA hockey. We can send our best up, and are still underdogs against Canada, Russia, and probably evenly matched with teams like Sweden, and the Czechs. When the outcome isn't in doubt, sports aren't fun. And right now, the WBC has to finagle eligibility rules (and have Team USA not bring their best players) to make sure the outcome is in doubt.
Third, I'd like to see it tweaked in terms of the timing, but I'm not quite sure how. I think it interferes with teams and players getting ready for the season. There are major limits imposed on pitchers. One proposal I've seen floated around is to play the first two rounds as is, and then the semi-finals and finals during All-Star week. That will allow players to be in mid-season form, but then you've got the issue of clubs not wanting to further tax pitchers' arms in the middle of the season. Part of me thinks that the sheer length of the baseball season makes something like the WBC impractical, regardless of when you play. Whether you play in March, July, or November, you're always going to run into the same issue...every pitch thrown is a risk of injury and no-one wants their pitchers getting hurt in what is essentially an exhibition.
Anyway, just some rambling thoughts this Thursday morning...eleven days until Opening Day!
I wonder how many of the players that refused to play are regretting their decision right now?
Good to see Cutch and JHay part of the scene.
I have a couple of thoughts about the WBC.
First, I thought it was a great showcase. I agree with you. The stars that didn't play are perhaps wishing they had.
Second, I'm as red-blooded American as anybody. I love watching the Olympics, the World Cup, anything with an international competition where you represent your country. That said, I am kind of bored with international competitions in baseball and basketball, because the United States is head and shoulders better than the rest of the world...if we bring our best players. I mean, let's face it. This was in a certain sense our B team, especially as far as the pitching was concerned. No Kershaw, no Bumgarner, no Scherzer, no Arrieta, no Sale, etc. No Trout, no Bryant, and I'm sure there are others. Heck, the Italian and Israeli teams were comprised of mostly American-born players. Manny Machado was born in Florida, yet played for the DR. Dellin Betances was born in New York, I thin. Even Puerto Rico is an American territory, its citizens are U.S. citizens, and are issued U.S. passports.
Here's my point...for this to really take off, at least in my mind, you need to be able to play best on best, and have the rest of the world have a chance. I know that might come across as, "Rah, rah! 'Merica! USA is the bestest country EVER!!!" But, that's not my intention. All I'm saying is that, as it currently stands, the U.S. doesn't field their best team, we give players to other countries to give them a fighting chance, and still win--at least this time around. (I know, Japan and the DR have both won in the past, and the U.S. has been a disappointment until this year.) Hopefully, the day will come when they can do away with the heritage rules that allow Machado to play for the DR, even though he was born in the U.S., or Taillon to play for Canada, or Cervelli to play for Italy. In my mind, you should be able to play for the country where you are a citizen...and that's it.
I feel the same way about basketball. Yeah, when I was a little kid, I thought it was cool when they assembled the first "Dream Team," and Jordan, Magic, and Bird were all on the same team. But let's face it, with few exceptions, Team USA Basketball games are boring. It's not a question of who is going to win, it's by how much. Frankly, I often times find myself rooting for Argentina or Spain, or France, or whomever, when they play the USA in basketball. Not because I want to see the U.S. lose, but because I'm a sports fan, and I find basketball games with 135-42 scores boring and unwatchable.
It's why I much prefer watching Team USA hockey. We can send our best up, and are still underdogs against Canada, Russia, and probably evenly matched with teams like Sweden, and the Czechs. When the outcome isn't in doubt, sports aren't fun. And right now, the WBC has to finagle eligibility rules (and have Team USA not bring their best players) to make sure the outcome is in doubt.
Third, I'd like to see it tweaked in terms of the timing, but I'm not quite sure how. I think it interferes with teams and players getting ready for the season. There are major limits imposed on pitchers. One proposal I've seen floated around is to play the first two rounds as is, and then the semi-finals and finals during All-Star week. That will allow players to be in mid-season form, but then you've got the issue of clubs not wanting to further tax pitchers' arms in the middle of the season. Part of me thinks that the sheer length of the baseball season makes something like the WBC impractical, regardless of when you play. Whether you play in March, July, or November, you're always going to run into the same issue...every pitch thrown is a risk of injury and no-one wants their pitchers getting hurt in what is essentially an exhibition.
Anyway, just some rambling thoughts this Thursday morning...eleven days until Opening Day!
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dogknot17@yahoo.co
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
This is the first time I ever watched and got into the WBC. I really enjoyed it. The fans were into the games, the players were into the games, and it was really good baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
I think the timing is perfect for the WBC. These are veteran players for the most part facing great competition to get ready for the season. I sure hope they are still getting their workouts in between games. Now that is it over and there is still a week and a half left to get with their teams.
11 more days...
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
I think the timing is perfect for the WBC. These are veteran players for the most part facing great competition to get ready for the season. I sure hope they are still getting their workouts in between games. Now that is it over and there is still a week and a half left to get with their teams.
11 more days...
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SammyKhalifa
- Posts: 3642
- Joined: Fri Jul 01, 2016 4:19 am
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
6368606C6968733630477E666F6868296468070 wrote: This is the first time I ever watched and got into the WBC. I really enjoyed it. The fans were into the games, the players were into the games, and it was really good baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
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dogknot17@yahoo.co
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
44767A7A6E5C7F767B7E7176170 wrote: This is the first time I ever watched and got into the WBC. I really enjoyed it. The fans were into the games, the players were into the games, and it was really good baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
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SammyKhalifa
- Posts: 3642
- Joined: Fri Jul 01, 2016 4:19 am
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
3F343C3035342F6A6C1B223A3334347538345B0 wrote: This is the first time I ever watched and got into the WBC. I really enjoyed it. The fans were into the games, the players were into the games, and it was really good baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
per capita? I am guessing they are. I have no fault in people being proud of where they're from.
China really isn't interested in baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
per capita? I am guessing they are. I have no fault in people being proud of where they're from.
China really isn't interested in baseball.
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
5D6F63637745666F6267686F0E0 wrote: This is the first time I ever watched and got into the WBC. I really enjoyed it. The fans were into the games, the players were into the games, and it was really good baseball.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
per capita? I am guessing they are. I have no fault in people being proud of where they're from.
China really isn't interested in baseball.
Not yet. When and if that market gets cracked open, watch out. MLB trying to expand the game into Europe is such a waste of time compared to Asia, in my opinion. Australia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan have a nice little pacific championship going. The game is growing in Asia.
I hear you about the US being dominant or being even better if other stars played. That comes into play when other countries start running their mouths and bragging about who is the best.
The Dream Team is probably the best team ever assembled in the history of sports. The US sent amatuers in the past and got beat. Countries thought they were better. The US fixed that in 1992. The non pros winning was special. That is why everyone loves the 1980 Hockey Team. But why is it fair for other countries to send their pros and not the US?
Well there are like 350 million people in the United States. Obviously there are going to be more of us that are good at baseball than from the 10 million dominicans or whatever. Not to mention the economic advantage.
Then they shouldn't run their mouths or brag how they are the best in the world. Ha ha, go team America. (China lost too)
per capita? I am guessing they are. I have no fault in people being proud of where they're from.
China really isn't interested in baseball.
Not yet. When and if that market gets cracked open, watch out. MLB trying to expand the game into Europe is such a waste of time compared to Asia, in my opinion. Australia, Japan, Korea, Taiwan have a nice little pacific championship going. The game is growing in Asia.
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SammyKhalifa
- Posts: 3642
- Joined: Fri Jul 01, 2016 4:19 am
Unofficial OBN WBC Thread . . .
You're making sense. Europe is already pretty spectator-sport saturated, I'd think.