MLB 2024

[thisheregiraffe]

Alonso was having a sub-par season, and hadn't had an extra base hit for over 2 weeks. That one home run made him a lot of money next year in free agency.

Even in a “down year”, he smacked 34 homers. And he doesn’t miss games. I’m sure somebody will make him a nice offer. Lots of teams could use his power and run production. I’d honestly be a bit hesitant as he’s approaching 30 and his strikeouts have been trending up the last couple years. And he doesn’t add any value with the glove or base running. But the power is tempting. You figure the Mets won’t keep him around?

 

[dbsfgyd1]

OK, time for the new thread for the upcoming season. Congratulations to Texas and all that. But that was a while ago. I'm slacking.

I'm optimistic about the Mariners' pitching staff, provided they don't get wiped out by injuries or bone headed GM moves. So far, the bone headed GM moves haven't been so bone headed these days. Some worked out, some didn't. What they really need is to make contact when they are up to bat. A couple of high average bats would make the Mariners formidable. They have JP Crawford back, and he's really rounding into a just under the radar beast. Julio will be back indefinitely, and I don't see him doing much besides get even better with time, injury notwithstanding. The rest of the lineup isn't perfect, but it has promise.

On to the hot stove league.

The Pirates for the last 30 years feverishly living up to their name holding people up for gain while pretending to be a Major League Baseball team.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Even in a “down year”, he smacked 34 homers. And he doesn’t miss games. I’m sure somebody will make him a nice offer. Lots of teams could use his power and run production. I’d honestly be a bit hesitant as he’s approaching 30 and his strikeouts have been trending up the last couple years. And he doesn’t add any value with the glove or base running. But the power is tempting. You figure the Mets won’t keep him around?

The Mets seem to want him back (as do I) but likely will not overpay. Question is, will Seattle, Chicago, or San Francisco, who all need power (and star power) overpay? Add in the fact that with Vientos, they have someone who can step in.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

The Mets seem to want him back (as do I) but likely will not overpay. Question is, will Seattle, Chicago, or San Francisco, who all need power (and star power) overpay? Add in the fact that with Vientos, they have someone who can step in.

That’s the tough part about baseball contracts and free agency. Teams often overpay in free agency for past production. Alonso’s best (most valuable) years might be behind him already. This year he got $20.5 million in his final arb. year. Gotta figure he and his agent will want at least that much next year, and as many years as they can get on a contract. Obviously he’s been a good story and it will be nice if NY can keep him, but they’ll be smart to set a limit on how much they’re willing to pay him and not go past it to match another team’s offer.

 

[Gaolee]

The Mets seem to want him back (as do I) but likely will not overpay. Question is, will Seattle, Chicago, or San Francisco, who all need power (and star power) overpay? Add in the fact that with Vientos, they have someone who can step in.

The Mariners sure could use a DH who can occasionally get a base hit. They have been a DH black hole for what seems like years.

 

[Bassball Fever]

Bummer about the Brewers. No reason to think they won’t be competitive again next year though IMHO. There’s always next year!

Impressive stuff from the Mets too of course. I expected them to lose some steam after having to play that double-header. Some of their guys are banged up too. They kept rolling and getting clutch hits.

They have a good, young core. We'll lose Adames, and that'll hurt in the clubhouse as well as the 30+ hr and 100+ RBI loss. I think Hoskins will be back. But we still have Contreras, Churio, Turang (should be in the running for GG), Frelick, and Ortiz. If Woodruff and Yelich can come close to what they were before their surgeries, we'll be in great shape.

Losing when we were 2 outs from moving on really stings, though. I'm still licking my wounds. If you had told me at the beginning of the season that I would be this upset at a WC loss, especially with the injuries they suffered, I would have called you crazy. But here we are.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

ALDS and NLDS start tomorrow! What have you got advancing to the Championship Series???

Detroit @ Cleveland (CLE won season series 7-6)
I think Cleveland is the smarter pick. They hit more HRs, steal more bags, have a better bullpen overall and perhaps the best closer in the entire league. But I am for sure cheering for the Tigers. They've been on such an exciting run. If there's such a thing as momentum, they've got it and I think they'll be coming into this series hot. They're a scrappy bunch that is well managed (Hinch seems to be pulling all the right levers). And they have Skubal on their side. Go Tabbies!

Kansas City @ New York Yankees (NYY won season series 5-2)
I am rooting against NY but I feel like the party stops here for the Royals. KC's starters have been legit good all year. Names like Lugo, Ragans, and Wacha don't exactly jump off the page... but they have been very effective. I am very curious to see how these guys manage against the team that hits so many HRs. Feels like it may not end well for KC's pitchers Neither team has a lights-out bullpen but NY probably has the edge in that department. And NY's starting pitchers are no slouches either. Regrettably, I'm picking the Yanks to win this one.

New York Mets @ Philadelphia (PHI won season series 7-6)
For Philly, it's gotta be World Series or bust. Anything less than a WS win would be a failure for this team. I feel like the Phils take this series -- but I am not so sure about betting against the Mets again either Both teams hit a lot of HRs. Both teams have pretty respectable starting pitching, though Philly has the best starter of the two teams (Wheeler). I also like Philly's bullpen better than New York's. It's not a slam dunk but I'm taking the Phils.

San Diego @ Los Angeles Dodgers (SD won season series 8-5)
This is the year for the Dads. It is happening. The Dodgers have Ohtani, Betts, and Freeman, not to mention several other solid players. But they also have quite a few guys missing due to injury. Pitching is an area of weakness for sure. The Dads have it all going on right now. It won't be easy but they are knocking the Dodgers off and advancing to the NLCS!

 

[Gaolee]

Go Tigers! Go Royals! Go Mets! Go Padres!

I always go all in for the lost cause. It is a Mariners fan's great super power.

 

[buldog5151bass]

Senga is starting today for the Mets. Not sure how far he can go, but it should be a lift for the team, and he looked great in his one start this year.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

Tough start to the ALDS for the Tabbies

Senga went two innings for the Mets. Only one run. Could have gone a lot worse! He can be an option for them if they keep pushing deeper into the postseason. His pitch count is probably going to be low, but every little bit helps.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

Nice to see that both NLDS will not end in a sweep! Can’t believe Philly almost blew it yesterday But they retook the lead at the end.

The situation is looking nice for both the Mets and Dads as they’re heading home for the next two games.

 

[BadJazz]

Tuned in just time time to see all of the offense.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

Another excellent start from Skubal. I’m happy for Detroit.

 

[BadJazz]

KC raining! 4-1 in the fifth.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

KC evened their series up to 1-1. No sweeps happening in any DS. And we will get one more four-game day on Wednesday!

 

[lowplaces]

I want to see a Philadelphia - Detroit Series.

 

[thisheregiraffe]

Padres and Mets in the driver’s seat.

Impressive start by Manaea! And Alonso homered again.

I hope the Phils can win tonight and stretch it to five games. But in the Padres/Dodgers series, I’d rather see the Dads finish the job tonight in game #4 instead of losing and going to a fifth game.

 

[Bent77]

Yep rooting for the dads, hoping they don’t become the duds

 

[Bent77]

Regular season HRs aren’t helpful in October

 

[thisheregiraffe]

I know the Yanks have been in the postseason quite a bit since Judge came into the league, but they haven't had many deep runs. I think two ALCS appearances and of course no World Series appearances; otherwise, the farthest they've made it was the ALDS. I guess I figured he hadn't reached 200+ plate appearances in the postseason yet. Baseball Reference says he's up to 207 postseason PA's now. Huh. He posted some nice batting numbers in the 2018 and 2019 postseasons. Since then, not so hot.