May 8th Gameday Thread

[brian4state]

Mother's Day edition!

[Donacion]

Harper 6 walks the Nats have to find someone who can make a team pay. Ryan Braun maybe.

[Edwards Kings]

Samardizja up to 120 pitches....

[Donacion]

Ryan Zimmerman is going to need major therapy he has left 14 men on base I believe he just broke the record.

[COZ]

Yankees/Red Sox two weeks in a row for Sunday Night Baseball? Geezus, ESPN does not even try to disguise their obvious pandering to the May TV ratings sweeps anymore.

[Steel Lugnuts]

Having Harper in cutline pretty much sucked today, actually, all four games vs the Cubs.

[Deadheadz]

Mother's Day edition!

Mother-F-ing Graveman
6ER in 2 and 2/3 innings

.

[BK METS]

Harper 6 walks the Nats have to find someone who can make a team pay. Ryan Braun maybe.

Tanner Roark killing the Cubs for walking Bryce Harper 6 times, including intentionally walking him with runners on 1st and 2nd.

When you have Ryan Zimmerman hitting behind Harper, Joe Maddon was brilliant by doing what he did, as shown by their series sweep of the Nats. Unless they put someone like Daniel .400 Murphy behind him, this might be a trend for the future and cut in big time to his numbers.

[DOUGHBOYS]

I had that discussion with a baseball friend of mine. We call Madden a genius in walking Harper, but the Nats lineup has actually called for Harper to be walked all year.
Zimmerman is just not a scary hitter. Sure, he gets acclaim for walk offs and is good for a week with five dingers, but Zimmerman is a shell of the hitter he never was.

This brings up something that makes the modern Manager cry. Even an old school Manager like Crusty Dusty Baker.
Putting two left handed hitters in the middle of their lineup together on a daily basis.
Modern day Managers despise doing this.
Even though Daniel Murphy is 12-27 (.444) vs. lefties this year, Dusty and other Managers are more content have a right handed hitter like Zimmerman behind Harper. Even though the homers vs. righties for Zimmerman in 88 at bats, matches the number of times that I have had sex with Jennifer Aniston.
That would be a big, fat round zero for those scoring at home.

Harper and Murphy have been the Nats best hitters.
This weekend's series has shown they need to hit together. The worse case scenario, in Baker's mind, is that a lefty reliever will be called in to face both hitters.
It is not.
The worst case scenario is not having Harper swing a bat at all.
But, I don't think Dusty will get that and resume his same lineup.
And think of himself as smart for doing it.

One more thing, related....
In extra innings, with a right hander on the mound and a runner on second base, the Nats pitched to Anthony Rizzo instead of walking him with first base open.
This, because the hottest hitter of all on the Cubs during the series was Ben Zobrist.
Imagine that.

[Deadheadz]

.

If Maddon is the genius what does that make Dusty Baker?

He's so committed to the L-R-L-R-L batting order he puts the Nats 2nd best producer not behind Harper but behind Zimmerman.

If and when they figure our Murphy should bat cleanup you should start to see opposing pitchers/managers cut down on the free passes given to Harper.


.

[BK METS]

I had that discussion with a baseball friend of mine. We call Madden a genius in walking Harper, but the Nats lineup has actually called for Harper to be walked all year.
Zimmerman is just not a scary hitter. Sure, he gets acclaim for walk offs and is good for a week with five dingers, but Zimmerman is a shell of the hitter he never was.

This brings up something that makes the modern Manager cry. Even an old school Manager like Crusty Dusty Baker.
Putting two left handed hitters in the middle of their lineup together on a daily basis.
Modern day Managers despise doing this.
Even though Daniel Murphy is 12-27 (.444) vs. lefties this year, Dusty and other Managers are more content have a right handed hitter like Zimmerman behind Harper. Even though the homers vs. righties for Zimmerman in 88 at bats, matches the number of times that I have had sex with Jennifer Aniston.
That would be a big, fat round zero for those scoring at home.

Harper and Murphy have been the Nats best hitters.
This weekend's series has shown they need to hit together. The worse case scenario, in Baker's mind, is that a lefty reliever will be called in to face both hitters.
It is not.
The worst case scenario is not having Harper swing a bat at all.
But, I don't think Dusty will get that and resume his same lineup.
And think of himself as smart for doing it.

One more thing, related....
In extra innings, with a right hander on the mound and a runner on second base, the Nats pitched to Anthony Rizzo instead of walking him with first base open.
This, because the hottest hitter of all on the Cubs during the series was Ben Zobrist.
Imagine that.

Crazy stat for you Dan.... Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper are 5th and 6th in OBP in MLB at .439 and .432. The next best National is Danny Espinosa at .316. Both guys are good against left handed pitchers. There is absolutely no reason why they are not batting back to back, 3rd and 4th in the order or 2nd and 3rd in the order.

As far as the Cubs, they are so hot and have so much talent in that order, there is no safe play.

[DOUGHBOYS]

Modern managers have become a slave to today's game.
Number of pitches for Starters, Closers throwing only the ninth hitting. Set-up pitchers throwing the eighth.
Intersperse lefties and righties in the lineup.
It's almost as if they are pilots of a jumbo airline, auto-pilot readily available.

Toronto put Tulo in the leadoff spot and the lineup went crazy.
They've tried Pillar, Saunders, and Ezekial Carrera there since and have never re-gained that magic.
What is wrong with putting Tulo back in the leadoff spot?
That offense needs a jump start.

Anthony Rendon has a .216 batting average and as many runs driven in as (5) as Jeff Samarduhzia.
A creature of habit, Baker will continue hitting him second, then be branded wise (actually, Mattinglyitis)when finally switching him out later in the year.

In Houston, the Luis Valbuena all or nothing experiment is now, nothing.
The Astros can't play left/right games. The only lefty in their lineup that can do any harm is Colby Rasmus.
Tyler White, who went for 100's of dollars in faab money earlier this year went for $35 this week.
The Astro's need AJ Reed badly.

Lorenzo Cain leading off with Alex Gordon hitting second would infuse the KC offense and maybe get Gordon going offensively.

Anybody else?

[NorCalAtlFan]

no one ever accused dusty of being a good manager, or even adequate.*

*except rendon and espinosa

just wait for Maddon to start shifting OF's each batter. dusty, mattingly, fredi, their heads are going to explode.

i've been sitting tulo, so i haven't paid attention to how bad he's been. wowzers! appalling.

we've reached or are close to reaching the super 2 line. glasnow, reed(s), etc coming soon. vroom vroom

[King of Queens]

we've reached or are close to reaching the super 2 line. glasnow, reed(s), etc coming soon. vroom vroom

Bryan, thanks for drafting (and waiving) Reed in the Main Event!

[NorCalAtlFan]

Yw. My analysts felt Cody was further away than initial thoughts. That and I was last overall for a couple weeks necessitating a move.

Dick