I know none of you care but ........ (the Baseball thread)

[UK Redsox]

Monte Irvin, dead at 96

http://baseballhall.org/news/remembering-monte-irvin

[UK Redsox]

DH could be coming to the NL soon

http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/14621054/commissioner-rob-manfred-says-national-league-teams-move-designated-hitter

About time. Its daft that the two leagues have different rules

[Jon Crofts]

Try to go to a US game of some sort.  We went to see the NY Jets play.  The sports themselves are shit, but as an experience it was incredible.

Yeah, can't see why anyone would head to the USA just to watch their sports 

PS.... is anyone else going over for the Minor League Baseball (Single-A Short-Season, New York/Penn League) Staten Island Yankees home opener against the Brooklyn Cyclones on Sat 18 June ?

Forgive my rather flippant answer on the New Yawk thread, interested to know, is the minor leagues where the majority of players come from for the MLB teams or is it straight from College teams?  Or is minor league where the has-beens and not good enoughs ply their trade?

[Comrade Blitz]

is the minor leagues where the majority of players come from for the MLB teams or is it straight from College teams?  Or is minor league where the has-beens and not good enoughs ply their trade?

It is rare for a player to go straight from college to MLB - even the top rated college players usually do a few years in the minors.

The minor league system is the closest we have in the USA to a sporting pyramid (without the relegation). But it does have a well-structured tier-system which promotes talent upwards. It is a fascinating system:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minor_League_Baseball

[UK Redsox]

Yep, even the top young players spend a couple of years in the Minors.

(There's the odd exception, like one of my favourite players, John Olerud)

There's a few old vets playing in Triple-A (the highest level of the Minors), stashed there by their MLB team as insurance in case of injury to someone on the Major League squad.

However, most Minor Leaguers are trying to work their way up the pyramid.

The Brooklyn and SI games I go to are at the second lowest level. The players are normally in their late teens or very early 20s

As well as the two Minor Lesgue games I'm going to in NYC, I'll also be attending some others the following week when I meet up with some friends to travel thro Pennsylvania

http://www.sportstravelandtours.com/WebPackage.asp?RowId=58150000

[UK Redsox]

My list of games I'll be attending this season currently stands as follows......

Sat 18 Jun      Brooklyn Cyclones @ Staten Island Yankees (Minor League - Short Season "A")
Sun 19 Jun      Atlanta Braves @ New York Mets
Mon 20 Jun       Tri City Valley Cats @ Brooklyn Cyclones (Minor League - Short Season "A")
Tue 21 Jun      Chicago White Sox @ Boston Red Sox
Wed 22 Jun      Chicago White Sox @ Boston Red Sox
Thu 23 Jun      Chicago White Sox @ Boston Red Sox
Fri 24 Jun      Los Angeles Dodgers @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Sat 25 Jun      Los Angeles Dodgers @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Sun 26 Jun      Los Angeles Dodgers @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Mon 27 Jun      Los Angeles Dodgers @ Pittsburgh Pirates
Tue 28 Jun      Birmingham Barons @ Altoona Curve (Minor League "AA")
Wed 29 Jun      Bowie Baysox @ Harrisburg Senators (Minor League "AA")
Thu 30 Jun      Harrisburg Senators @ Reading Phillies (Minor League "AA")
Fri 1 Jul      Charlotte Knights @ Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs (Minor League "AAA")
Sat 2 Jul      Kansas City Royals @ Philadelphia Phillies
Sun 3 Jul (poss.)   Kansas City Royals @ Philadelphia Phillies

[UK Redsox]

Joe Garagiola dead at 90

http://www.abc15.com/sports/sports-blogs-local/baseball-legend-former-arizona-diamondbacks-broadcaster-joe-garagiola-sr-dies

[UK Redsox]

A-Rod to retire when his current contract ends after the 2017 season

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/alex-rodriguez-retire-2017-season-article-1.2574984

[The Left Side]

A-Rod to retire when his current contract ends after the 2017 season

http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/yankees/alex-rodriguez-retire-2017-season-article-1.2574984

Interesting... so while we are here should we talk predictions?

[UK Redsox]

Interesting... so while we are here should we talk predictions?

I must admit that I've been a bit neglectful of my normal monitoring of Spring Training this year.

For the first time this century I'm not playing any Fantasy Baseball, so the need to keep in touch with injuries and form hasn't been there.

Hopefully over the weekend I'll get to watch a few games on BT/ESPN.


The Cubs appear to be the trendy pick. If the Red Sox can't win it (and with the Panda still in the line up, I don't expect them to contend), then I'd love to see the Cubs finally emerge as champions

[Comrade Blitz]

Thu 30 Jun      Harrisburg Senators @ Reading Phillies (Minor League "AA")

Spent many summer evenings at Municipal Stadium during school holidays. One time a bloke sitting in front of us took a foul ball in the left cheekbone off the bat of Mike Rogodzinski.

[UK Redsox]

MLB/MiLB article from The Grauniad

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2016/mar/30/baseball-pitching-chris-bassitt-anthony-young-mlb

[UK Redsox]

Panda benched** by the Red Sox

** I hope that they have a strong enough bench

[UK Redsox]

Happy Opening Day everybody

My predictions

AL East - TOR
AL Central - KC
AL West - HOU
WC - TEX & CLE


NL West - WAS
NL Central - CHC
NL West - SF
WC - NYM @ STL

World Series - CHC over HOU


http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/14936299/mlb-projected-lineups-all-30-teams

[usav]

Opening day in Pittsburgh and there is snow on the ground...............