I thought today would be a good day to bring back rants and raves… although there is not a lot to rave about. The MLB owners and the MLBPA are evidently intelligent enough to know that posturing in the media will not have a good effect on the fans. So we have seen very little of that… except by Robber Manfred in the beginning. “Shut up in the press and negotiate behind closed doors.”
Kirsten Watson Revisited
I know that a lot of Dodger fans were very disappointed when the great Alana Rizzo left the Dodgers to be with her family on the East Coast and ended up working with the “Mad Dog.” Kirsten Watson was her replacement and frankly… she was timid, too soft and quiet, and very uninteresting… in the beginning. Many of us were quick to point that out. Maybe she was listening… someone was listening because Kirsten started evolving. She started being a little more bold, confident, a little less soft, and more outgoing. With each passing day, it seemed that her screen presence got better and better until she was pretty dang good. I am a Kirsten Watson fan and while I will never forget Alana (and she will never forget the Dodgers) Kirsten is now our girl. You go, Girl! We love you! If you haven’t watched the video below… enjoy!
Dodger Baseball
- Well, in case you haven’t noticed, no news is not good news. It’s the last day of January and the DA has not made a decision as to charging Trevor Bauer… or maybe they have and just have not announced it. This falls into the category of “very strange.” Of course, the whole case falls into the category of “stanger.” When/if the DA announces anything, then we have to wait for the lockout to end to find out the disposition.
- The longer I think about the Texas Rangers paying Corey Seager $325 Million the dumber it sounds. You can’t fix stupid. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Corey, but $325 Million? Ha, Ha, Ha!
- Does Will Smith take another step forward in 2022 and become the best catcher in baseball? He’s on that path.
- I have talked to several baseball people who think Diego Cartaya is a very special “generational player” who may get a callup in September and be ready in 2023. He will be 21 this year – 22 in 2023. I would not be inclined to say no.
- On the other hand, Ryan Pepiot (who just become a Boras Client) will be 25 this year. His time is now… and I think it is in the bullpen.
Other Baseball News
- The Sugar Land Skeeters have completed their rebrand. The Astros’ Triple-A affiliate is now the Sugar Land Space Cowboys, with a brand new logo and uniforms.
I Can’t Hear You
While I won’t single out people by name, it is pretty obvious that many people have left this site. Many used to do “drive-by shootings” on Trump and how awful he was. “He has killed hundreds of thousands.” Biden Has Killed More! “He writes mean tweets.” Biden can’t put a coherent sentence together. “Trump divides the country.” Biden’s Presidency has been nothing but a trainwreck! So, you have nothing to bitch about and no Fake Russian Collusion to tout… and you are gone! Good! You can’t handle the truth. That said, I hope Donald Trump disappears off the face of this earth and I would vote for Bill Maher – at least he has some sense!
Discussion (8)
Disagree, not disagreeable
Latest report in MLB Trade Rumors is that the Union and MLB are still very far apart and that it’s looking more and more like the season may not start on time. “According to Rosenthal and Drellich, the MLBPA views the proposals thus far made by MLB as less favorable to players than were the terms of the 2016-21 CBA.”
If in fact the Union views MLB’s proposals as worse than the last CBA, they aren’t getting closer to agreement – they may be farther away.
MLB really doesn’t see the problem or just doesn’t want to address it.
If veteran players aren’t going to be compensated for their seasons after age 30 because stats show that they get less productive after that, then there has to be a way to compensate players earlier in their careers.
If one third of the teams (or more) tank every season leaving fewer available jobs for veteran players and no reason to watch teams that are trying to lose on purpose, and the rich teams subsidize the “small market” teams, then there should be more money in player salaries required.
If they can’t figure these problems out, then MLB will go the way of the dodo bird.
Not going to respond to the political stuff. But as to Watson, I think female sideline reporters are one thing every team could do without. Most are there for their looks. Alanna was a decent interviewer and she had some baseball knowledge, Watson may have improved her delivery, but she does not have very much knowledge of the game. Her in game interviews never interested me. In fact, I could go all year, never see another in game interview by anyone and be very happy. Now, in game injury updates, that is fine. Stick to the action on the field. I need more Vin type announcing and much less Orel and Kirsten.
I am not a fan of Kirsten Watson, I think her questions after the game are insipid, and she is not close to Alanna Rizzo in talent, but she did improve a bit.
Trump said the virus was a hoax, had his people hide data; and encouraged people to ingest insane remedies including bleach. He also mocked masks.
The GDP was recently up 6.4%, an incredible figure. Unemployment is down to 3.9%, which the Fed Chair originally appointed by Trump said is essentially full employment. The only economic problem is inflation, which is worldwide, and mostly due to companies not being able to meet increased demand, so raising prices. The United States is the only major country which has shown positive GDP growth since the pandemic. The infrastructure bill is leading to many building projects, desperately needed. A “trainwreck?” Oh, the stock market is up 10,000 points since Biden somehow took office, despite the people who tried to stop it, and have martial law declared.
Biden is by no means a great speaker, but his sentences are certainly coherent. Clinton was a great speaker, and Republicans hated him for being too smooth. It is never going to change. The country would be in good shape, if it weren’t for the many groups who are threatening violence, and who apparently want a fascist state, even though they love to declaim about freedom. They may well get it, with the voter suppression they are pushing. I don’t think that anyone here would like living under it, as soon as they realized it, but that is almost always too late.
I will probably follow the baseball season, but I am not following any baseball news right now. I would actually like to get Freeman, I would want the Dodgers to do very well now, rather than wait for a rebuild. Good wishes to everyone here.
I wonder if the Dodgers experiment with Will Smith at different positions this ST to get a feel for it. From what I read and hear, Cartaya has a plus arm with high baseball IQ and possibly the better long term defensive catcher. l’m sure the team loves Smith’s bat and his ability to come thru in high leverage spots, so I assume they’ll keep both, but I hope the team explores Smith’s ability to help elsewhere, beside DH. The small sample size at 1st last year wasn’t too impressive, but 2nd base could be a fit.
I’m coming to terms with life without Seager trying to look at the brighter side. For one, I’ve grown really tired of the average to below average defense at SS, and inserting an athletic more nimble handed SS will at least improve my entertainment value. Good to great defense is highly entertaining, at least in my estimation, and Seager hasn’t awed there in years. I’d like to see Lux get some run there this spring, as I’m still not sold on Turner for our team. If the team is really going to chase Soto in a few years (which I HIGHLY endorse), paying Turner similarly to what Seager got could make that difficult. I do think the Rangers panicked. New stadium and fans complaining for years about not spending. They went overboard. I’m not even sure where Seager transitions, because Josh Jung might be the long term 3rd baseman. 300 million for a DH is a Yankee move.
Congratulations to the Rams proving there is more than one way to win in the NFL.
Excellent article today on ESPN.com by Doug Glanville. The former outfielder gives his reasons why Barry Bonds and the other steroid era superstars do not deserve enshrinement in the Hall of Fame. Well written and thought out. Glanville states what many of us think.
No news is boring.
Well, Scott Boras is very good at finding some GM or owner to buy into his nonsense and giving an outrageous contract to some player who has no chance of actually playing up to the dollars being spent. As much as I like Corey, he’s not worth that kind of money. Makes no sense. Money spent simply doesn’t equate to what the player produces on the field.
How many big contracts actually pay off for the team?
Over Trevor Bauer. Yes, Cartaya is getting a lot of buzz and may land on the big league roster sooner than later.
When compared to the negotiations, baseball suddenly looks like a fast played game. Okay, I guess we’re going to skip spring training. Need time to plan a trip. On hold again. Why bother?
Space Cowboys? Seriously? Like Skeeters better.
In LA County, big effort to recall the DA.
Go Rams !! thanks Mark and all contributors for keeping this great site alive !!
Hopefully full baseball season right around the corner !!
I was at that 9ers Rams game yesterday. That was an awesome atmosphere, with 50-50 fans screaming all day.
Fantastic to end SF season. AGAIN!!