MLB 2015

[rah]

I couldn't help myself.

But it needed to be done. Pitchers and Catchers are reporting this month.
And more important. There's some actual optimism in Chicago this year. On both sides of town.
GMS aren't claiming that our teams are not trying to win.
There have been worse years.

[SlowwHand]

When are we going to draft?

[Sava]

I couldn't help myself.

But it needed to be done. Pitchers and Catchers are reporting this month.
And more important. There's some actual optimism in Chicago this year. On both sides of town.
GMS aren't claiming that our teams are not trying to win.
There have been worse years.

Should be interesting.

[H Tower]

In other baseball news, Chicago's Jackie Robinson West team was stripped of their US Little League Crown. Apparently the recruited players from outside their area. It's the Chicago way.

My favorite quote from the Tribune article was:

Green said she “can’t even imagine that this has happened.” She said she wondered if the team’s title would’ve been questioned if the kids weren’t African American.
“Would they rather the boys be killed in the Chicago streets than actively engaged in the sport they love?” she said. “My breath is taken away.”

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/chi-jackie-robinson-west-little-league-20150211-story.html

[-Jrabbit]

Give me a break. Area opponents say this has been going on for years.

They cheated. They got caught. They got punished. And I'd say that is an appropriate lesson for these young athletes to learn.

[Demonbinder]

Exactly!! This is not a race issue but Pflegler and Jackson want to make everything about race. This was just parents and coaches doing what other parents and coaches (who are living vicariously through their kids) trying to get that extra edge for their kids to succeed. But now other kids are suffering for what the adults did. The adults should now be showing them how to handle this and realize that this is not the way they should be when they get older.

[rah]

Definitely. When you get caught with your hand in the cookie jar, just scream race to cloud the issue. A great lesson that Jackson has been teaching for decades.

[rah]

Well pitchers and catchers have reported to camp. Let the fun begin.
The first sign of spring. Which is really needed with it being below zero here.

[H Tower]

That was an interesting game last night. At least the ballpark looked ready, even if it wasn't. The bleachers being under construction were tastefully covered with the Ernie Banks tribute. The Cubs product on the field was clearly not ready. Soler was laughable in right, and Lester needs another 2 weeks of healthy spring training that he isn't going to get. Poor fundamentals, the same old story of the Chicago Cubs.

[pchang]

Adrian Gonzalez on pace for a 270 HR season!

[rah]

Yeah, not one person hit 5 home runs off them all last season. It only took him 3 games.

[-Jrabbit]

Coming home from a meeting today, I heard on the radio that they had postponed today's ChiSox-Orioles game due to the rioting. That's 2 games lost to non-weather reasons in a tightly scheduled season. I was wondering about game 3 tomorrow when, about an hour later, I saw this...

White Sox-Orioles game will be first one ever played without a crowd
Posted: 04/28/2015, 03:00pm | David Just

A Major League Baseball source said Tuesday that Wednesday’s White Sox-Orioles game will be the first contest played without fan admittance.

After consulting baseball historians on the subject, the source said none of them could point to a game ever being played without any crowd.

The first two games of the series were postponed Monday and Tuesday due to safety concerns as riots broke out near the ballpark. The Orioles decided to play Wednesday’s game at Camden Yards without fan admittance and make up the first two games as part of a doubleheader in May.

There are several examples of MLB games in the modern era that were played in front of tiny crowds. Back on April 17, 1979, the Mariners played the A’s at the Coliseum in front of 653 people, at least according to the official attendance. Reports indicate there were roughly 250 people actually in attendance.

The Marlins and Reds played a game in front of a reported 347 fans after Hurricane Irene in 2011. It was the first game of a doubleheader, and the official attendance counted tickets sold for both games.

U.S. Cellular Field played host to a pair of sparsely attended games between the Marlins and Expos back in 2004. The teams played two games at the Cell in September 2004 because of Hurricane Frances. Only 4,003 showed up for the first game, and 5,457 came for the second game.

Weird stuff.

[rah]

Well this shouldn't seem that new for the White Sox when you compare their average home attendance against that other team in Chicago.

[Demonbinder]

What a night for the Cubs, esp. Kyle Schwarber. 4/5 tonight, 3R and 2RBI! Bryant got a gift from a positional player acting as pitcher and hit a GS to make the final score 17-0! Denorfia is also still hitting the ball well. I know it can't last but it's fun to watch most nights.

[SlowwHand]

WTF was StL thinking?