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Baseball!

Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
Spring training is in gear. Anyone planning to attend any preseason games?

2007 Preseason Schedule
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Comments

  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    I have a "connection" for spring training tickets and some regular season Yankee tix. Only two problems. One, since I was a Mets fan and not a fan of the DH, they don't hold any magical power over me. And the other problem is that I'm still waiting for all the guys involved in the'94 strike to begone from the planet before I go back to major league baseball :mad:
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    How the heck many guys are there still around from the 94 strike? Yeah, I know there's still a fair number but not only does the number continue to decrease but their production so they are much easier to boo.....

    Of course with the Mets there must be half the team over 40 so that enters into things. Of course the other half of the team is under 25. Not many 30 year olds there....

    Now I was at game 1 against the Cardinals last year but it was my first time in the park in years. I watch almost all the games on TV but if I want to go to a live game we have a bundle of minor league teams in NJ (all but two are independent leagues, but hey.). Watch guys that really have the fire if not the refined ability and the parks are insanely family friendly and the food is comparatively cheap!

    The nearest one to me is the top A team of the Phillies, the Lakewood Blue Claws. My favorite local park was the Trenton Thunder who used to be AA for the Red Sox but they have since gone to the dreaded Yankees so it's not the same. Tickets are tighter, too.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Oh, I used to LIVE baseball. During the'91 season I got curious, so I kept a log of games I went to, watched on TV, or listened to on the radio. I only counted games that I could basically tell you what happened during the game. Knowing just the final score did not count.

    429 games was the total count for that season. I would listen to Expo game in French at night on AM stations I could pick up from Quebec. Nighttime was a great timeto pick up the clear channel stations and hear Detroit, St Louis, and Cincinnati and their home announcers. Then came '94 and I cut them out completely. No TV, no radio, no going to the ballpark. Mykids had never been toa major league game so in 2003 we took them to one in Pittsburgh while on vacation. Not that you would call the Pirates major league :P

    But other than that one time, I haven't given them the time of day. And it's too bad, because I love the game itself.
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    When 94 came everyone I know said they weren't going back. I said I'd be there. Let's face it - they are going to do what they are going to do. Why should I make myself miserable? The stuff is in my blood.

    Next to the Internet the worst thing anyone has done to me to make me miserable about doing useful things with my time was to put all the Mets games on TV with a pretty basic cable package. "yeah, dear, I'll get to that at the end of the inning"......

    I will hate to admit this (actually not, but my wife won't let me say this was perfectly normal) but when we were on our honeymoon we drove to Nova Scotia. We arrive on the ferry and check into this little motel before checking out Yarmouth which is where the ferry docks. (BTW, this turned out not to be much. I think the big attraction in Yarmouth was the Kmart....) Anyway, she goes off to teh bathroom and of course I check out the TV and find an Expos game in French. She wasn't out more than two seconds when she made me turn the TV off.......

    I'm with you on the NL. If God had wanted designated hitters he would have found a position in the field for them!

    Heck, with Al rules you would never get something like the 1969 Mets when they won both ends of a doubleheader with the pitcher hitting a home run in each game to account for the only run! Don Cardwell and Jerry Koosman of all people.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    Heh... back in the day on WOR channel 9, the Mets broadcast like 120 out of 162 games.

    Cardwell and Koosman sweep Pitsburgh with those HR's
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    There is something wrong with the Mets now being on channel 11 now. It just isn't right.

    I remember watching that doubleheader. I also remember that Koosman and Seaver always has various bets going concerning their hitting. That's why DHs are evil.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Vacation in Arizona the 1st week of April... The Cactus League is over, and the Diamondbacks are out of town.. :(

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  • SylviaSylvia Member Posts: 1,636
    I'm not a Barry Bonds groupie but I do like to go and watch the game. Not talk, not eat, not glam for the passing camera but in earnest WATCH the baseball game. I'm up for a few San Fran games this year - yeah!
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    My favorite team in the NL West. The Mets have my complete loyalty but on some divisions I have teams I like - the Giants (despite the incredible head), the Red Sox......well, those are the big ones.

    I think the Giants will not be in for a good yea, but they had a pretty good run for a while and now have to experience a bit of retooling time. They have a great GM which makes all the difference. Bochy is a wild card in this. He could fool me and get one more year out of this crew. Ya can't hate having Zito. I can hate you for having him but that is a different story. The Mets were ready to pay him but the Giants gave him an out of the ballpark deal. They wanted him more and in some ways needed him more. The Mets have a lot of super young guys coming up either as starters or good trade bait to get a frontliner.

    I'm surprised but at this point in the spring they seem to have established a rotation until Pedro comes back - Glavine, El Duque, Perez, Maine and Pelfry. Add a dynamite bullpen and it's looking good.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    Go Mets, go Mets, go Mets!!! :P

    (Rabid fan since the late '60s... :blush: )
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I grew up listening to Cardinal's baseball and met Daffy Dean when I was a kid. Fatigue set in - after seeing the Mets beat the Cards in '69 and then go all the way, well, I've been a Mets fan ever since.

    Now I live in the same town as Bill Buckner (who just happens to own a car dealership in another town an hour up the road) - go figure.
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    I was AT game 6 of the 86 Series. Never been in a louder park in my life. What a night!

    Steve - that must be Idaho, right> I knew he was more or less run out of New England which was lousy on the part of the Red Sox Nation.

    Heard Bill about a year ago on the sports talk station in New York. He still wants nothing to do with Red Sox things like when in 2004 they tried to give him a pardon but says the one thing he got hat was positive out of it is that he and Mookie Wilson started doing card shows together. He said if I hand't missed that I wouldn't have Mookie Wilson for a friend. He considered it worth the price. They're really good buddies now.

    BTW - even if he fielded it Mookie would have beaten the throw. And it was already toed.... You want a goat, Boston. Try Bob Stanley. Or (former Met) Calvin Schiraldi.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Yeah, Buckner supposedly has a subdivision development here in Boise called Fenway Park. And yeah, he got the bum's rush after being a major part of why the team got to that position in the first place.

    Now the minors is where the fun is for us. We saw a bunch of Alaska league games when we lived up there and now make a few Boise Hawks games (Cubs farm team). We did stumble into a Detroit spring training game last year down in Lakeland that was a treat though.
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Yep. That's what I thought.

    I loved being there for that fame but I hate what it did for Bill who was playing a borderline Hall of Fame career up to that point.

    I caught a Phillies - Red Sox game in Clearwater a bunch of years ago. And the farm teams here in Jersey are a load of fun.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Bill Buckner was a great, great hitter and a great player.. It isn't right that he is defined by one play.

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  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Buckner deserves a far better fate than was handed to him. I'd have taken him in the Mets anytime.

    I'm just pleased to see that he's apparently happy as a clam these days (as long as you aren't a Red Sox fan wanting to talk about THAT) and he and Mookie are apparently genuinely close.

    There have been a bunch of players of that caliber where you forget how good they were because they weren't quite Hall material - Bill Madlock, Bobby Bonds *like his son his own worst enemy), Matty Alou (the best bat of the Alou brothers).

    Under two weeks until opening day! (Or, thanks to the boneheads at MLB, opening night.)
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Another pet peeve.. Opening Day should be Monday afternoon, and by tradition, the first pitch should be in Cincinnati..

    If you haven't been to Cincinnati for Opening Day, you are missing an event.. :)

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  • rockyleerockylee Member Posts: 14,014
    Are they going to win the World Series, this year ?

    -Rocky
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Depends on if the Mets decide to show up..... They haven't shown signs of that since May unlike the Tigers.

    The Tigers may well be the best team in baseball at the moment.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    As long as the Yankees don't win it, I'll be happy.

    Go Reds! :blush:
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Absolutely. I always like whoever is playing the Yankees.

    God bless the Devil Rays....
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • joel0622joel0622 Member Posts: 3,299
    The Tigers may well be the best team in baseball at the moment.

    The moment has passed :D
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    It could happen!!

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  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    The pathetic thing is you're right - it could happen. The NL is one weak league. My Mets are the class of the league but any of half a dozen teams need only to get a little hot to muck it up again.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Hopefully they can sustain their momentum, though the Pirates swept them in a double header last night. The pattern the last couple years has been make a late season move, then fall apart the last couple weeks.
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Yeah... I didn't say I would bet on it... ;)

    The doubleheader sweep was a cold splash of water in the face.. :(

    Actually, the only reason it is up for discussion is the pitiful record of the whole division.. In any other division, we would have dumped salary before the trade deadline.

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  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Hey, on the other hand after what the Cards did last year anybody remotely in it has hope.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    I can't believe no one has mentioned the play-offs at all. Must not be many BB fans here? :confuse:
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    The season ended for me and Fezo a few days ago. :sick:
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    I think if Johnny Bench gets hot, he can carry the Reds through the playoffs.. Plus, their defense is so strong up the middle, it makes the pitching that much better..

    Oops.... Sorry, wrong year.. :sick:

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  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    Oh, you speak the truth, my friend.

    Ouch! I will say, however, that I was braced for the collapse since July. Doesn't feel better but maybe I'm further along in the grieving process...

    Let's let the Indians or the Cubs have this one. Get another jinxed franchise off the list.
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • rockyleerockylee Member Posts: 14,014
    Well if my Tiger's couldn't make it :sick: then go Cubs !!!! :)

    -Rocky
  • rockyleerockylee Member Posts: 14,014
    My Detroit Tiger's acquired Miguel Cabrera, Dontrell Willis, and Edgar Renteriez !!!! :P

    Get em' while they are hot !!!!!! :P

    -Rocky
  • fezofezo Member Posts: 10,384
    I was wondering how long it was going to take for your comment on that. Nice deal!
    2015 Mazda 6 Grand Touring, 2014 Mazda 3 Sport Hatchback, 1999 Mazda Miata 2004 Toyota Camry LE, 1999.
  • Karen_SKaren_S Member Posts: 5,092
    Pro baseball athletes use steroids??!!! Oh gee, what a shock. You can tell just by looking at some of them that their "talent" was not naturally acquired.

    http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3153509&campaign=PSGeneral
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    I agree - for many of them, just the change in their physical appearance over the years gives them away. Many of the reports I've seen claim to be "most shocked" that Roger Clemens is on the list.

    Um, huh? Look at his body and his age. Taking drugs is the only thing that makes sense, unfortunately.

    My local news interviewed a couple of local professional ball players who say that this report is barely the tip of the iceberg, this is rampant throughout the profession. I'm not surprised. It's so easy to trade the perceived rewards of the day for future consequences that can easily be blown off at the time.

    But there always comes a time when you have to pay the piper.
  • rockyleerockylee Member Posts: 14,014
    Many laughed at Jose Canseco, for also accusing people like Roger Clemens, taking roids but those same people aren't laughing now are they ?????

    It goes to show you that we as a society sometimes jump to conclusions and disregard the credibility of people like Jose Canseco, who I consider one of the best baseball players to ever play even though he used roids. I personally believe like some of you this is only the tip of the iceberg. NFL, NBA, NHL, Pro Soccer, etc, etc, are juicing as well !!!! ;)

    -Rocky
  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Many of the reports I've seen claim to be "most shocked" that Roger Clemens is on the list.

    He's about the last guy I would have suspected of juicing. Ya never know. :lemon:
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • rockyleerockylee Member Posts: 14,014
    I actually would not be surprised ifroger, was hitting the juice. Just because you are loved by millions and have the fictional bigger than life character like a Brett Favre, doesn't mean they aren't cheaters. Jose Canseco, was a disliked ball player because of his character but we can't say he was a liar. ;)

    -Rocky
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    I'm just saying that his physical appearance and age should have raised suspicion - or maybe I should just say they did for me.

    Andy Pettitte was one surprise to me. But it sounds like his situation was a little different.
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Went to the game tonight...

    Arroyo pitched a complete game... Pitch count was under 100! Game time was 2 hours, 10 minutes.. REDS won 6-1..

    It was like being back in the '60s-'70s.. The way baseball used to be played!

    :D

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  • PF_FlyerPF_Flyer Member Posts: 9,372
    I'm all for raising the mound back up, taking the body armor off the batters, and letting them know the pitcher just might be pitching inside.

    Maybe, just maybe we can get past this infantile obsession with home runs :sick:
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Yeah... bring back 1968!

    Bob Gibson with an ERA of 1.12, and YAZ winning the batting title at .301 avg.

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  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Pitch count was under 100

    Pitch count... that's for little leaguers. I don't quite understand the, "let's take him out once he throws so many pitches" mentality. If it's so important then just throw 20 pitches in warm up instead of 50... less between innings as well. Pitchers only throw every 4th or 5th day, Managers are to quick to yank a pitcher who gives up a hit or two and is approaches the magical 80-100 pitches
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Well.. you missed the point... guess that's what comes from watching baseball in a minor league town.. ;)

    The pitch count is reflective of how well he pitched, and the shortness of the game... He only faced four batters over the minimum, which was reflected in his pitch count..

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  • jipsterjipster Member Posts: 6,244
    Well.. you missed the point... guess that's what comes from watching baseball in a minor league town..

    I'll take beautiful Slugger Field, in Louisville, over those big major league ballparks any day of the week. You can have the big crowds, $6 hotdogs, $8 beer, and being stuck in traffic 2 hours after a game. ;)
    2020 Honda Accord EX-L, 2011 Hyundai Veracruz, 2010 Mercury Milan Premiere, 2007 Kia Optima
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    I can walk home from GABP in under an hour.. :)

    Can't argue with the beer prices, though... :(

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  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    I have just the deal for you - you may have to walk it off though:

    All-You-Can-Eat seats include unlimited ballpark fare - hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts and sodas include unlimited ballpark fare - hot dogs, popcorn, peanuts and sodas - all for one low price.

    AZ, Cleveland, Houston, LA and MN have similar offers.

    Beer isn't included. :P
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    Yeah..it's not a bad deal, if you have the type of family that runs to the concession stand every inning...

    They do have Diamond Club seats... Those are right behind the screen behind home plate.. Dinner buffet before the game, plus unlimited concessions all game long (including beer/drinks!).

    But, at $200+ per ticket, I'm afraid that getting my money's worth would entail taking a cab home, and staying in bed the next day.. :sick:

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  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 235,181
    edited May 2011
    Went to the game, yesterday.... the Reds had one hit in the first 8 innings, and went into the bottom of the 9th, down 2-0..

    Leadoff walk, then four straight hits, and everyone goes home happy!

    Went again today (free ticket!), and they won 10-4...

    Pretty soon, the Reds are going to pay me, to go to the games! lol

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