BASEBALL!

[AtLast]

[quote=Yellow band;366610]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

We swept the Indians!! WOOT!!

The Indians are my second favorite team.....That Bumgarner took us all by surprise with 11 K's. I never heard of him before last week, when he pitched 2/3 of an inning and gave up what (?) 9 hits/8 runs. Sorry for my Indians. They also are a small market team, with a low payroll and nothing great about them, just fundamental baseball. They started out very well, and now....they are struggeling. They had 16 strike outs. I think that is a major problem!

I hate to say it Atlast, I really stopped paying attention to the Giants because of Barry-Roid-Bonds. He disgraced baseball. Just my opinion. (also a former pirate)

Oh, Bumgarner's mess with that twins game was a very unusual game for him. Poor guy. He is quite a pitcher all around. Even Lincecum went through a slump for awhile- all players do. I was glad to see Bumgarner get his stuff back- Isshhh... the Twins in that game hit everything he threw!! My jaw dropped to the floor because I have followed him (rookie last year and a big part of the Giants winning the WS).

Oh, Bonds was hard to take as a long time Giants fan. Yes, he disgraced the team and the game. Still is as far as I'm concerned. I do remember him early on when he first started out, but he became a primadonna fast and then the steroids. I guess it is kind of like die-hard Reds fans and dealing with Pete Rose- the team is not one player. I could smack Bonds and when he is at a home game, I wish they didn't even put him on the camera.

I have been watching the Giants since they arrived in SF in the 1950's (yup, I was 7 or 8 when they moved here from NY= my parents courted by going to see them back in new York before that). Been with them through thick and thin and Bonds and won't leave them due to one ass.

Probably the most rewarding thing about the team since Bonds left is that it is a team again, no stand out stars really. I love that about them even though there are a few players that I guess are top in the entire league- but there are those players on every team. It made my heart fly to see a bunch of scruffy guys out there last year working together, none of which was a super star and playing together. many are still on the team, but not all. But, the "style" of the ball club is very much post-Bonds and "lets not let the Bonds era take us down." There is a lot of sensitivity about him here and what he did and the pandering to his conceited, superficial self. I guess as an earlier player, the guy did have talent, but I remember him looking like he only needed to hit home runs and that was it. The guy moved like a snail in the out field and at times it looked like he felt like he didn't have to do his job other than hit balls and that he was the only reason the Giants ever won a game. The guy was good enough to be a great hitter actually without steroids- and look at all of the "star" players throughout the MLB that have been nailed for using them. Thinking of Mike McGwire, too. It is sad, but bonds is not the only one.
I never thought his defensive play was all that great.

I hate having my team associated with Bonds but have to remember other greats that were nothing like him like Willie Mays, Will Clark, Urebe, Willie McCovey, and Juan Marichal to name a few.

Gotta stick with my team, but there are some other players out there on other teams that I love to watch, too.

[Dominique]

[quote=AtLastHome;366632]

Originally Posted by Yellow band

. The guy was good enough to be a great hitter actually without steroids- and look at all of the "star" players throughout the MLB that have been nailed for using them. Thinking of Mike McGwire, too. It is sad, but bonds is not the only one.
I never thought his defensive play was all that great.

I hate having my team associated with Bonds but have to remember other greats that were nothing like him like Willie Mays, Will Clark, Urebe, Willie McCovey, and Juan Marichal to name a few.

Gotta stick with my team, but there are some other players out there on other teams that I love to watch, too.

A very public moment in Pittsburgh was the spring training confrontation Jim Leyland had with Bonds, as you said *primadonna* and Leyland got in his face and screamed *I'm tired of kissing your ass* Bonds was traded at the end of that season. Mark McGuire, even more disgusting than Barry- Roid, is in a coaching position some where in baseball. After being on television and adamently denying any involvement of steroid use.......I was also very turned off on Baseball after the *strike*, it took years for it, (the sport) to recover from that.

We have a very young and extremely talented center fielder named Andrew McCutchen. Last I looked, he wasn't in the running for the All star Bid, and thats a shame, as he is outstanding. He runs, Bats and throws. Some have said he is a reminder of a young Barry Bonds......I hate to say being good, when he was young (barry-roid) went to his head.....but will end on a pun. Did you ever notice the disproportionate size of his head near the end of his playing days?

[AtLast]

[quote=Yellow band;366668]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

A very public moment in Pittsburgh was the spring training confrontation Jim Leyland had with Bonds, as you said *primadonna* and Leyland got in his face and screamed *I'm tired of kissing your ass* Bonds was traded at the end of that season. Mark McGuire, even more disgusting than Barry- Roid, is in a coaching position some where in baseball. After being on television and adamently denying any involvement of steroid use.......I was also very turned off on Baseball after the *strike*, it took years for it, (the sport) to recover from that.

We have a very young and extremely talented center fielder named Andrew McCutchen. Last I looked, he wasn't in the running for the All star Bid, and thats a shame, as he is outstanding. He runs, Bats and throws. Some have said he is a reminder of a young Barry Bonds......I hate to say being good, when he was young (barry-roid) went to his head.....but will end on a pun. Did you ever notice the disproportionate size of his head near the end of his playing days?

Yes, Bonds really stands out when you see footage of him pre-roids. I did see him play in SF then a few times at the park and later- why the hell his use didn't get discussed much earlier is amazing. I just hope the hell that he (and many others) didn't mess up their hearts and we hear of early deaths.

Mainly, I want to see the raw talent and love of the game for the game out there. Baseball is really a game of athletic ability and strategy that takes brains to be good at it. I really appreciate watching how managers know their guy's strengths and how and when to use this on the field to try and score or defend.

[Dominique]

As Kobi said, younger No Named guys are coming up and displaying talent. I'm enjoying the shock factor of it. Also, baseball seems to be going to the seasoned Managers....The names elude me right now, but the Washington Nationals manager who gave the team a half a day to resign his contract (and they did not) and then they brought in Oldie, but Goodie. I agree, again (good points Atlast) we are seeing stratagies become part of the game again and it not be the roid filled home run ball. I'm wondering when and if Jose Bautista has been tested.....(?) from a career nothing to a something......(? Hmmmm) No baseball for me . To be honest, I'm still recovering from my big week end. I have not had so much fun as a Pirate fan, since, well the 70's, when we were winning all the time. And I enjoyed those games with my Dad. Funny, waving my broom around on Sunday, SO reminded me of WHO I got my passion for baseball from!

[AtLast]

Cubs v. Giants in 54 minutes....

It is raining hard here today, so I am glad SF is not playing at home. Guess I better check the pre-game show and see what the wheather is like in Chicago! Hummm... do they have a dome field?

[Kobi]

ALH.

Wrigley Field isnt domed. Was built back in the early 1900's and is the second oldest stadium in MLB. Very pretty tho. I like the ivy covered walls.

The rookie crop this year includes:

Beachy and Kimbrel of Atlanta - Beachy is a starter, Kimbrel is the closer
Espinosa 2b/ss of the Nationals - wish I had held on to him
Turner 2b/3b and Gee p of the Mets
Trumbo 1b Angels
Pineda p Mariners - very impressive

Those are the ones I am watching.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Kobi

ALH.

Wrigley Field isnt domed. Was built back in the early 1900's and is the second oldest stadium in MLB. Very pretty tho. I like the ivy covered walls.

The rookie crop this year includes:

Beachy and Kimbrel of Atlanta - Beachy is a starter, Kimbrel is the closer
Espinosa 2b/ss of the Nationals - wish I had held on to him
Turner 2b/3b and Gee p of the Mets
Trumbo 1b Angels
Pineda p Mariners - very impressive

Those are the ones I am watching.

I know, I'm an idiot! I thought after I posted then logged off- "Wait! They have Wrigley Field!!!" As soon as I tuned into the second game yesterday, I remembered the wonderful ivy walls and those "roof" seats are something. I am having such a good time being able to see away games on TV this season.

WOW, the Giants hit yesterday! And Zito's return on the mound after injury was a great start for him.

Ah, yes! Pineda of the Mainers is a rookie to watch along with Weeks of the A's! Nt favorite SF rookie, Brandon Crawford (SS) got some hitting going yesterday. He is the Giants rookie that came up after Fontenot got hurt. Again, he demonstrated keen skill defensively, but he has work to do with at bats. He started his very first ML at bat with a Grand Slam last month! First pitch. Then did some very consistent hitting until a couple of weeks ago. But the last 3 games he has improved. Hope this continues. Kind of a cute thing that happened at his first home game for SF was that his Mom caught one of his foul balls! He is a local kid and his folks and sisters come to all the home games- been SF fans forever as well as high school friends coming to root for their "hero." A few were even in Chicago yesterday. Makes it more fun.

When we play the Mets, Nationals and Atlanta, I will zero in on the guys you list. The Mets are coming up soon here at home. And I am looking foreward to seeing the Tigers after we finish up with the Cubs. They are tearing things up this year. I think they will give my Giants a run for it.

I'm trying to get my 2 nephews that live in the San Jose area to come up for a game in SF again soon. Even though you see much more on TV, I do love the feel of going to the ball park. AT & T is a really fun park to go to and has easy acess via public transit for me from here in the East Bay.

[Kobi]

Originally Posted by AtLastHome

Oh, Bumgarner's mess with that twins game was a very unusual game for him. Poor guy. He is quite a pitcher all around. Even Lincecum went through a slump for awhile- all players do. I was glad to see Bumgarner get his stuff back- Isshhh... the Twins in that game hit everything he threw!! My jaw dropped to the floor because I have followed him (rookie last year and a big part of the Giants winning the WS).

Oh, Bonds was hard to take as a long time Giants fan. Yes, he disgraced the team and the game. Still is as far as I'm concerned. I do remember him early on when he first started out, but he became a primadonna fast and then the steroids. I guess it is kind of like die-hard Reds fans and dealing with Pete Rose- the team is not one player. I could smack Bonds and when he is at a home game, I wish they didn't even put him on the camera.

I have been watching the Giants since they arrived in SF in the 1950's (yup, I was 7 or 8 when they moved here from NY= my parents courted by going to see them back in new York before that). Been with them through thick and thin and Bonds and won't leave them due to one ass.

Probably the most rewarding thing about the team since Bonds left is that it is a team again, no stand out stars really. I love that about them even though there are a few players that I guess are top in the entire league- but there are those players on every team. It made my heart fly to see a bunch of scruffy guys out there last year working together, none of which was a super star and playing together. many are still on the team, but not all. But, the "style" of the ball club is very much post-Bonds and "lets not let the Bonds era take us down." There is a lot of sensitivity about him here and what he did and the pandering to his conceited, superficial self. I guess as an earlier player, the guy did have talent, but I remember him looking like he only needed to hit home runs and that was it. The guy moved like a snail in the out field and at times it looked like he felt like he didn't have to do his job other than hit balls and that he was the only reason the Giants ever won a game. The guy was good enough to be a great hitter actually without steroids- and look at all of the "star" players throughout the MLB that have been nailed for using them. Thinking of Mike McGwire, too. It is sad, but bonds is not the only one.
I never thought his defensive play was all that great.

I hate having my team associated with Bonds but have to remember other greats that were nothing like him like Willie Mays, Will Clark, Urebe, Willie McCovey, and Juan Marichal to name a few.

Gotta stick with my team, but there are some other players out there on other teams that I love to watch, too.

I never got to see Bonds play even on tv, but what you describe sounds very much like what we went thru here in Boston with Manny Ramirez. The press used to call it "Manny being Manny". First it seemed like a personality thing but then when he was fluffing in the outfield and on the bases and claiming he was hurt but refusing tests, it got very distracting in the clubhouse and brought down the morale of the team.

The players showed themselves to be a class act when they refused to address the problem publicly. But there was a very noticeable change on the field once he was traded to the Dodgers.

And then Manny tested positive for banned substances in LA and was suspended for much of the season. He was never the same player again. He was good in his day but was it talent or substances? Is there a way to distinguish between the two?

Seems a lot of old timers are having problems this year i.e. Dunne, Guerrero, Abreu, Posada.....is it age?

I love watching these new guys...Jemile Weeks of the Athletics is on my radar for my fantasy team. Very fast, good base stealing stats.

[AtLast]

Originally Posted by Kobi

I never got to see Bonds play even on tv, but what you describe sounds very much like what we went thru here in Boston with Manny Ramirez. The press used to call it "Manny being Manny". First it seemed like a personality thing but then when he was fluffing in the outfield and on the bases and claiming he was hurt but refusing tests, it got very distracting in the clubhouse and brought down the morale of the team.

The players showed themselves to be a class act when they refused to address the problem publicly. But there was a very noticeable change on the field once he was traded to the Dodgers.

And then Manny tested positive for banned substances in LA and was suspended for much of the season. He was never the same player again. He was good in his day but was it talent or substances? Is there a way to distinguish between the two?

Seems a lot of old timers are having problems this year i.e. Dunne, Guerrero, Abreu, Posada.....is it age?

I love watching these new guys...Jemile Weeks of the Athletics is on my radar for my fantasy team. Very fast, good base stealing stats.

You are right on. The "talent v. substances" question will always cloud any achievement players like Bonds have. Really sad when you think about all the players, old and new that are so good at playing and really work hard to play their best.

I so agree about some of the new guys out there. Weeks is going to be a good one I think, too. He not only has speed, he has hands! Seems comfortable out there and yes, he might be one of the greats in progress. I like it that he and one of my other favorite rookies, Crawford are both with Bay Area teams. I'll be able to watch them a lot.

Although, I'm a die-hard Giants fan, I miss Tony La Russa as the A's manager here. He is just a good human being. His support for his daughter and standing up about date rape a few years ago, plus his work for shelter animals puts him in my way good guy column.

The giant organization this season during Pride Month has also backed the Glenn Burke story of being a gay player (as well as POC). http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/201...rke/index.html. Kudos to the organization!

Hey- who are some of the other rookie year players that interest us? It would be fun to see who other posters are watching.