I suppose it seems weird that there have been 3 perfect games and a no-hitter already this year, but I'm with Frink on this one. PEDs helped both sides. I think it's just a coincidence.
Nearly related to the thread topic...
This made me laugh and cry at the same time...
they should have let that billy goat into Wrigley.
Road trip to Arlington in September. Really hope I get to watch Lee pitch.
That blockbuster probably puts the brakes on the Roy-O to Texas rumors though. I was hoping for that one to get done.
I'm a somewhat Rangers fan since they're close and their games are shown locally here a few times a month. They've been fun to watch this year.
Roy probably goes somewhere though, right?
I think he'll be traded alright, but maybe not to Texas (which was a persistent rumor). Honestly, at this point I can't begin to imagine where he'll end up. I like the guy a lot, but we have a few fellas that could really bring in some prospects and future building blocks. It would certainly be weird seeing him in something other than an Astros uniform, but for whatever reason, I would be fine with it. Maybe because I think he should be on a much better team.
the Phillies had quite the comeback last night. They went into the bottom of the 9th, down 1 to 7 and came back and tied the thing. They won with a homer in the 10th.
ARod is still without the precious 600. If he does this well with the pressure, imagine how great he will be in the post-season.
I was traded a lemon! ;-)
http://www.theonion.com/articles/florida-marlins-delay-game-until-their-fan-shows-u,17891/
lol.
Give Steve a Bat Day! Nice!
I'm not sure what everyone else thinks, but I think Ron Gardenhire, manager of the Minnesota Twins, should be shot for taking out pitcher Kevin Slowey after 7 innings of a no hitter. After a pitcher gets that far into a no hitter or perfect game, it should be theirs to lose. I had pitched 7 innings of a no hitter and I found out the manager was taking me out, I'd throw one more pitch: at the manager's head.
I don't know if there were any Minnesota fans cheering Ron Gardenhire at the tail end of Sunday's victory over Oakland – all I heard was boos. But if I were a Twins fan, I'd tip my cap at the skipper, a wise man who clearly understands that baseball is a game about the long haul.
Kevin Slowey's(notes) first start back off an elbow problem went well – actually, too well. He no-hit the Athletics over seven innings (three walks, five strikeouts) and needed just 106 pitches to get those 21 outs. Normally you'd let your starter keep working in this position, but Gardenhire wasn't about to risk an important pitcher just returning from an injury. Jon Rauch(notes) pitched the eighth (and quickly lost the no-hitter and the shutout), and the home fans emphatically showed their displeasure for the move.
"I would boo me too," Gardenhire admitted. "I took a pitcher out with a no-hitter going. But I would do it 1,000 times the same way. … We're not going to come close to risking this guy."
Say this for Slowey – he gets it too. Maybe it's something in the Minnesota water system – this team always seems to have grounded, even-tempered ballplayers. While Slowey admitted some disappointment, he also appreciates that his team is looking out for him.
"I was encouraged by the way it was presented to me," Slowey said. "I was encouraged by the fact that Gardy and (pitching coach Rick Anderson) care a while lot about me as a person and as a pitcher in the long term than they do about winning one game or having one accomplishment. I think that said a lot about them, and it says a lot about our organization."
If Slowey blows out his elbow, then you can shoot Gardenhire.
what are the odds he would have blown his elbow by pitching 3 more innings? GIVE HIM THE CHANCE AT THE NO HITTER!
Dude, it was his first start back from an elbow problem. I'd say the odds are pretty good he would get seriously hurt if you let him throw 30-40 more pitches.
if his elbow is such a concern, why even let him pitch 7 innings?
Pitchers coming off arm trouble are put on pitch counts for their first start or two all the time. It's done to make sure the arm is holds up before putting a larger workload on it.
I'm sorry but pitch counts should go out the window in a no hitter or perfect game.
Werth to the Nationals for 7 Years?!! Who signs guys for that long anymore? Crazy. Not to mention, Werth has to hate going from a playoff team to a cellar-dweller, no matter what the salary is. Man, top-to-bottom with the stroke of a pen.
*sigh*
Cliff Lee, Warb?
Warb, if the Phillies don't win the 2011 World Series - I'm going to assume the games were fixed.
To the rest of the baseball guys around here; Is this the greatest rotation of all time? And for the record, I seldom (if ever) use that term, but I'm going to have to ponder some of the rotations I've seen through the years and think if any were as loaded 1-4 as the Phillies are now. Glavine, Maddux, Smoltz, Millwood comes to mind quickly - or Palmer, Cuellar, Dobson, McNally.
One more thought. Hats off to Lee for leaving millions of dollars on the table to instead play where he wanted to.