MLB - 2008 All Star Break and Beyond!

[Imran Siddiqui]

LA is really teeing off on Zambrano tonight. Martin with a bases loaded double and Manny with a powerful HR are the highlights so far.

[Imran Siddiqui]

7-0 Dodgers now with Kemp's double.

[Imran Siddiqui]

9-1 Dodgers in the bottom of the 8th.

[-Jrabbit]

Yeah, pwned again. The Chubs lok brutal.

[-Jrabbit]

Well, the last time the Cubs made the playoffs, they were up 2 games to one when I had to fly to Mexico on business. They were coming home, with their two aces well rested to pitch against the lowly Marlins. I didn't feel bad about missing the games; after all, how could they lose? As we all know, they imploded.

Guess what? I'm about the head for the airport, heading out of town on business. The Cubs are down 2-0, heading to LA, with two ace pitchers having been kicked all over Wrigley. But I don't feel bad about missing the games; after all, they obviously have no shot.

I'm hoping for some sad, sick symmetry here...

[Theben]

Arrgh. I was thinking the Cubs would fall to the Rays in the Playoffs, but they're not gonna even get that far.

Hopefully the wall in LA is farther back than Wrigley's by a good margin.

[snoopy369]

White sox game, down a run: Three men in the 8th struck out on called 3rd strikes. I don't care if the umpire is smoking some really good *** weed, you don't take a close pitch for strike ****ing three. EVER.

****.

[Fistandantilus]

Well in the 7th with two men on and 0 outs they were unable to score a run.

Too many chances wasted... and the Rays are widening the gap

[snoopy369]

They had 4 innings with 2+ on after the first, and no runs to show for it. I didn't mind only 2 runs with the bases loaded and nobody out, though I hoped for more of course, but 0 runs with 2+ on in four innings other than the first...

And, as usual, Ozzie sticks with his guy one batter too many. (And stuck with Dotel for ... well, any sticking with Dotel is too many.)

[Imran Siddiqui]

Rays

Nice game by Kaz.

[SlowwHand]

Originally posted by Theben
Arrgh. I was thinking the Cubs would fall to the Rays in the Playoffs, but they're not gonna even get that far.

Hopefully the wall in LA is farther back than Wrigley's by a good margin.

I can piss farther than the walls at Wrigley, and I'm not a young man.

[snoopy369]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui
Rays

Nice game by Kaz.

Frankly, not really. The Sox had 2 or more on in nearly every inning (I think 6 innings out of 9) and started the game with three straight baserunners. They quite simply couldn't get that third hit any inning but the first, and even then only got 2 runs with the bases loaded and no outs. He had 37 pitches in the first inning, yet they couldn't get him out before the sixth inning...

This of course has been their problem all season But what can you do... The 2005 Sox would've won that game 8-6 if not by more, and that's not counting the superior bullpen.

I miss Quentin and Crede

[Imran Siddiqui]

They quite simply couldn't get that third hit any inning but the first

And who prevented the White Sox from getting that third hit? Kaz

yet they couldn't get him out before the sixth inning

It may be because he only threw 98 pitches in the game when they took him out in the 6th:

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/ps/y2008/boxscore.jsp?gid=2008_10_03_chamlb_tbamlb_1&c_id=tb

[snoopy369]

Originally posted by Imran Siddiqui

They quite simply couldn't get that third hit any inning but the first

And who prevented the White Sox from getting that third hit? Kaz

yet they couldn't get him out before the sixth inning

It may be because he only threw 98 pitches in the game when they took him out in the 6th:

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/ps/y2008/boxs...amlb_1&c_id=tb

Ummm, no, the White Sox prevented themselves from getting that third hit, as usual. If this wasn't a common occurence I'd give Kaz the nod, but in the sixth inning (or was it seventh? I forget), around two baserunners, three Sox players were called out on strikes. That's just playing dumb.

I'm all for Kazmir, but he didn't have his best stuff Friday. I was complaining that they couldn't knock him out before the sixth precisely because he had only thrown 98 pitches by that point - with 37 in the first inning, you think they could do better than 12 an inning after that (and most of those innings had multiple baserunners!!). But, no ...

The Sox this year have proven one thing: that you can no longer build a team around aging home run hitters and starting pitching alone. Jim, Ken, and Paul just don't have the bat speed anymore necessary to hit for .300, they don't have a leadoff hitter worth anything, and Quentin and Dye were the only consistent hitters on the team all year. Alexei may be a great hitter some day if he learns the strike zone better, but he's not consistent enough (for that reason) this year.

In 2005 we had a solid leadoff hitter, a much higher OBP-style team, and relievers who stepped up when they needed to. This year we have low OBP, no leadoff hitter, and a somtimes-good sometimes-bad relief crew. Hence the difference between the world series and probably a 4 game exit in the first round...

[Fistandantilus]

That's a whip around 2 right? Isn't it uhm, well, horrible?

Kazmir form is bad right now, and you should know as he murdered my pitching stats posting a 8+ ERA in the final of the fantasy baseball league against you

He is much, much better that this, he survived yesterday due to the chisox inability to hit when it mattered or it could have been another 9 runs 3 IP outing like he did against Boston a couple of weeks ago.