2023 previews, a new minor league CBA, remembering those we have lost, the people you see on vacation, ForeverWar, a childhood spent at sea, and my issues with late-period Wes Anderson
I’ve noticed it, but I don’t think I’ve ever clicked it. But as long as I continue paying to read his daily missives, he may safely assume I like them all just fine.
It really should be Josiah Gray, who they got in the Scherzer/Turner trade. Starting Qorbin on Opening Day is a preemptive white flag that’s more about surrendering to his contract and protecting their younger pitchers than anything else. But flags fly forever(?)!
Sorry, deleted the original comment once I read Craig had said much the same thing. It expressed surprise that Patrick Corbin was the Nats opening day starter.
I used that last month (when something DID come up in terms of needing to get my wife to urgent care for an eye infection). I need to maintain my reputation as a straight shooter.
From the plate to the box, from the box to second base,
From second to the outfield, to the bleachers.
Time is of the essence. The crowd and players
Are the same age always, but the man in the crowd
Is older every season. Come on, play ball!
- from “Polo Grounds” by Rolfe Humphries
PS I hope Qorbin gets shelled and the ragtag Nats mount an improbable Opening Day comeback. But I’d settle for the first part because he’s such an ass. If they are going to lose a lot, at least I want to be entertained.
PPS There were news reports yesterday that the Lerners have “paused“ the sale of the Nats because they did not get any offers in their desired range of $2.4 billion. Which is more than Steve Cohen paid for the Mets. They’re blaming the MASN situation but the truth is either Mark Lerner didn’t really want to sell the team and is pulling back now that his dad is out of the picture, or the delusion about MLB franchise values is reaching an all-time high. Or both. (Of course, it looks like the NFL Commanders are going to sell for something like $6 billion despite the decades-long reign of terror from Napoleon on the Potomac so maybe it’s something in the DC water.)
Two of the better suggestions that I've heard of are the Washington Potomacs (not just the river, but one of the local tribes in the area) and the Washington Red Cloud.
As per Wikipedia: "He was one of the most capable Native American opponents whom the United States Army faced in the western territories. He defeated the United States during Red Cloud's War, which was a fight over control of the Powder River Country in northeastern Wyoming and southern Montana."
Added bonus? Check out his portraits - the team could keep the helmet logo with just minor tweaks!
Not really; the Commanders are a distressed asset in a very strong NFL market and are actually getting $6B offers. The highest the Nats got was reportedly $1.4B. That could go a little higher if and when the MASN mess gets resolved but not much. I think the Lerners wanted to get their socks knocked off… And their socks are very much still on.
If it's any consolation to the Lerners, I remember hearing reports that Snyder wanted $7B for the Commanders, so they're not the only ones to overvalue their asset by a billion.
Re: Lerners' sale of Nationals. Also consider the legal and tax complexities caused by Ted's death. As an estate planner (NOT theirs, obviously) who has worked with sports team owners, selling the team before getting an estate tax closing letter is, well, living dangerously. And the Lerners are not "live dangerously" folks.
The Vin Scully ending actually choked me up a bit...and was a nice reminder about what a profound and wonderful life marker each opening day represents. As the game is tinkered with and tweaked to make it conform to a tiktok attention span, I'm happy I've accumulated the memories I have and that I still have the rush of optimism that can last for months or be gone in a few weeks. Go Twins!
David West died? I missed that. He was one of the guys the Mets traded for Frank Viola, a prospect who never quite panned out. Internet tells me he's one of the former Phillies who had brain cancer. That really sucks. (A lot of guys who played in the 90s died last year. That is a cumulative kick in the pants. Though that video was really well done.)
Anyway, it's opening day and we should at least be a little happy and a little optimistic. Though yeah, any team whose opening day pitcher is Qorbin is likely to have some pretty pessimistic fans. Funny how there is still something of a mystique to today's proceedings. Football has made an event out of its opener, as has the NBA, but those don't seem to be news stories. I heard both a preview of the rules changes and a prominent mention of Yankees opening day on WNYC today. Even if baseball is not what it used to be, it still has a resonance when winter turns to spring (or tries to, since it's really cold today in NYC) and the first call of "play ball" is heard.
My prediction? By Memorial Day, I will be living and dying with the Mets. I will be avoiding score updates before bed by July 4, and jittering with anxious excitement by Labor Day. I can't look, knowing what can go wrong in the blink of an eye. I can't look away, knowing what joys are possible. In short, it will be like last year, like 2015, like 2006. It's so weird having expectations for the Mets. And so good. (Even weirder that all my teams are currently good. I mean, the Mets AND the Knicks are good at the same time? What year is this, 1970?)
I assume the fact that there is only one game at 7:00 and a ton at 4:00 means MLB gave some network exclusive rights to the prime time window. They just can't help shooting themselves in the foot for money.
Though an Opening Day day game doesn't really bother me. But 4 pm EDT is a weird start time unless you're a west coast team.
Yeah, the "we get three hours in prime time all too ourselves" game seems like some ESPN-mandated tomfoolery. But at least my White Sox are involved in the tomfoolery.
Yeah, they've used Ohio as a the all-purpose "this character is a naive and innocent Midwesterner" thumbnail reference for decades. I can tell when someone is gonna be from Ohio before their character even speaks.
I haven't seen most of these but Ohio doesn't seem to be a standin for "hick" so much as "normal conformist suburbia with PTA meetings and white picket fences, with a seedy underbelly that's not what it seems."
I'm thinking of things like "The Out of Towners" an "The Bird Cage" which features staid and unadventurous Ohio couples going to the big city or someplace exotic with the laughs and/or drama being largely derived from the fact that it's the naive Ohioans forced to deal with anything other than white suburbia. Most of these movies and shows feature a scene early on in which the people in question make a point to clearly proclaim "we're from Ohio!" as a shorthand for "oh, shit, they're gonna get rattled soon!"
One of my favorites was Daisy, the Heather Graham character in Bowfinger. Gonna have to rewatch it soon if for no other reason than to see Jiffrenson cross the 405.
1) As someone who worked in the Minors, I’m happy to see that “almost cost of living” raise for the MiLBers. I still can’t get over an industry where you’re allowed to make money and think you don’t have to foot the bill for any expenses the way MiLB is constructed. Those are some shady MFers in the ownership realm…
2) I of course immediately checked IMDB after the Asteroid City trailer was launched to see who was in it - and when I read Jarvis Cocker I thought “good on you for that curveball, Wes.”
Any thoughts on why I’d say in the last I have no idea how many years I don’t really recall hearing about train derailments, especially ones with toxic chemicals, yet I seem to be hearing about one once a week (another this AM) lately.
As a Nats fan, I'm comforting myself with the old Sparky Anderson saying: "Every team will win 60 games and lose 60 games; it's what you do in the other 42 that matters" (or words to that effect)
I'm hoping the Nats can win their 60 and maybe 5-10 more, that Ruiz, Abrams, Garcia, and Robles (he had a good spring) show that they can be a solid up the middle foundation for future teams, and that Gore and Gray continue to develop into future middle of the rotation starters. Would've liked to include Cavalli in that latter list, but alas UCL tears eventually come for all pitchers in the Nats org.
And then I read this, in which Martinez and Rizzo say they want their starters getting 21 outs a night, because “that’s who we are”. Don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or laugh until I cry at that one.
Their 8 man bullpen better bring a book to read if the pen is only going to pitch 2 innings a night. Or 1 inning in games when they don't pitch the bottom of the 9th on the road.
I expect we’ll be once again subjected to a season’s worth of “Don’t have enough guys available in the bullpen tonight to cover all the innings because they were all used yesterday and the day before that”
I forgot the Nats signed Trevor Williams. He would have shored up their bullpen as a valuable long man/swing man, but I guess they need him as a full time starter. His starts with the Mets last year were pretty good, though a lot of them were short. But that could just mean he wasn't stretched out to be a starter.
I don't think there's anything wrong with a mindset that starters should be thinking about 7 innings not 5 innings.
But if you're planning to get 1100 innings from your starters or going to push every starter to 110-120 pitches even when they're getting smashed, that's stupid in both the short and long term.
The piece I linked to makes that point that pitcher usage patterns over the years have evolved to the point where seven innings is no longer expected for starters.
Ten years ago, starters averaged 18 outs per start; last year, one starter averaged more than 6.5 innings per start - Sandy Alcántara, and the Nats only had eight starts all year where the starter went 7 innings or more.
As the game has evolved to its current state of max effort on every pitch, getting seven innings on a regular basis ain't gonna happen. Maybe now with the pitch clock, guys won't be able to give max effort on every pitch, and they'll learn how to go longer, but I'm not sure 7 innings is a reasonable expectation for anyone.
UPDATE: He got nine (9) outs. Defense didn’t help him (4 runs, only 2 earned), but he also gave up seven hits, three walks, and a couple of rockets for outs. He’s already in midseason 20-loss form.
Sounds like a sudden retirement is your best option.
I’ve noticed it, but I don’t think I’ve ever clicked it. But as long as I continue paying to read his daily missives, he may safely assume I like them all just fine.
It really should be Josiah Gray, who they got in the Scherzer/Turner trade. Starting Qorbin on Opening Day is a preemptive white flag that’s more about surrendering to his contract and protecting their younger pitchers than anything else. But flags fly forever(?)!
Sorry, deleted the original comment once I read Craig had said much the same thing. It expressed surprise that Patrick Corbin was the Nats opening day starter.
If he gets shelled and only lasts an inning and a third today, he'll be the opener this year too.
Well, he did a bit better than that. But it was still more or less what we expected.
Incredible color palette in that trailer.
“Dropping” is definitely the right verb there.
Happy New Year, everyone!
Happy Opening Day to Craig and the Cuppa Crew!
Very excited! Who's got tix? Whatcha got planned?
Me? I'm headed back to bed--it's 4am.
I scheduled a meeting for 4 pm today, opposite the Mets game. I doubt I can beg off my own meeting.
“Something came up.”
I used that last month (when something DID come up in terms of needing to get my wife to urgent care for an eye infection). I need to maintain my reputation as a straight shooter.
"I woke up with a fever this morning..."
Or you could always go the Joey Tribbiani route: "There was this raccoon..."
Time is of the essence. The shadow moves
From the plate to the box, from the box to second base,
From second to the outfield, to the bleachers.
Time is of the essence. The crowd and players
Are the same age always, but the man in the crowd
Is older every season. Come on, play ball!
- from “Polo Grounds” by Rolfe Humphries
PS I hope Qorbin gets shelled and the ragtag Nats mount an improbable Opening Day comeback. But I’d settle for the first part because he’s such an ass. If they are going to lose a lot, at least I want to be entertained.
PPS There were news reports yesterday that the Lerners have “paused“ the sale of the Nats because they did not get any offers in their desired range of $2.4 billion. Which is more than Steve Cohen paid for the Mets. They’re blaming the MASN situation but the truth is either Mark Lerner didn’t really want to sell the team and is pulling back now that his dad is out of the picture, or the delusion about MLB franchise values is reaching an all-time high. Or both. (Of course, it looks like the NFL Commanders are going to sell for something like $6 billion despite the decades-long reign of terror from Napoleon on the Potomac so maybe it’s something in the DC water.)
Happy Opening Day!
I can see the banners now: WE MUST PROTECT THIS BRICK HOUSE.
The Commodores were my first-ever concert in 1979 at the old Capital Centre!
I'm not a football fan at all so maybe I'm missing something, but what's wrong with Commanders? It seems fine, if a bit generic.
I personally prefer WTF
That was too easy so we’re gonna have to mark you down for a low degree of difficulty.
Two of the better suggestions that I've heard of are the Washington Potomacs (not just the river, but one of the local tribes in the area) and the Washington Red Cloud.
As per Wikipedia: "He was one of the most capable Native American opponents whom the United States Army faced in the western territories. He defeated the United States during Red Cloud's War, which was a fight over control of the Powder River Country in northeastern Wyoming and southern Montana."
Added bonus? Check out his portraits - the team could keep the helmet logo with just minor tweaks!
If the Commanders are worth that much, it's not unreasonable to expect $2.4 billion for the Nats. Absurd, but strangely logical.
Not really; the Commanders are a distressed asset in a very strong NFL market and are actually getting $6B offers. The highest the Nats got was reportedly $1.4B. That could go a little higher if and when the MASN mess gets resolved but not much. I think the Lerners wanted to get their socks knocked off… And their socks are very much still on.
If it's any consolation to the Lerners, I remember hearing reports that Snyder wanted $7B for the Commanders, so they're not the only ones to overvalue their asset by a billion.
I'm sure they're saving that money for the total indemnification he wants.
A billion may not be enough.
Re: Lerners' sale of Nationals. Also consider the legal and tax complexities caused by Ted's death. As an estate planner (NOT theirs, obviously) who has worked with sports team owners, selling the team before getting an estate tax closing letter is, well, living dangerously. And the Lerners are not "live dangerously" folks.
Good catch. Hadn’t even considered that.
The Vin Scully ending actually choked me up a bit...and was a nice reminder about what a profound and wonderful life marker each opening day represents. As the game is tinkered with and tweaked to make it conform to a tiktok attention span, I'm happy I've accumulated the memories I have and that I still have the rush of optimism that can last for months or be gone in a few weeks. Go Twins!
David West died? I missed that. He was one of the guys the Mets traded for Frank Viola, a prospect who never quite panned out. Internet tells me he's one of the former Phillies who had brain cancer. That really sucks. (A lot of guys who played in the 90s died last year. That is a cumulative kick in the pants. Though that video was really well done.)
Anyway, it's opening day and we should at least be a little happy and a little optimistic. Though yeah, any team whose opening day pitcher is Qorbin is likely to have some pretty pessimistic fans. Funny how there is still something of a mystique to today's proceedings. Football has made an event out of its opener, as has the NBA, but those don't seem to be news stories. I heard both a preview of the rules changes and a prominent mention of Yankees opening day on WNYC today. Even if baseball is not what it used to be, it still has a resonance when winter turns to spring (or tries to, since it's really cold today in NYC) and the first call of "play ball" is heard.
My prediction? By Memorial Day, I will be living and dying with the Mets. I will be avoiding score updates before bed by July 4, and jittering with anxious excitement by Labor Day. I can't look, knowing what can go wrong in the blink of an eye. I can't look away, knowing what joys are possible. In short, it will be like last year, like 2015, like 2006. It's so weird having expectations for the Mets. And so good. (Even weirder that all my teams are currently good. I mean, the Mets AND the Knicks are good at the same time? What year is this, 1970?)
Yeah, there's some question about the prevalence of brain cancer among players who played on the artificial turf in Philly.
Happy Opening Day, everyone! A day all of us can celebrate that our team is in first place..
Until about 330pm in DC ;)
I’m really hoping this is the last year for MASN. It’d be nice to see some games since I refuse to pay for cable.
I assume the fact that there is only one game at 7:00 and a ton at 4:00 means MLB gave some network exclusive rights to the prime time window. They just can't help shooting themselves in the foot for money.
Though an Opening Day day game doesn't really bother me. But 4 pm EDT is a weird start time unless you're a west coast team.
I think Miami often starts at 4 pm because it's too hot at 1 pm.
That seems like a moot point since they rarely open the roof.
I forgot they had one.
It's Always Sunny (Outside) In Miami!
Today's forecast: 72 and fluorescent.
I don't miss the season always starting in Cincinnati thing. It might be more of a tradition if it was a national sport like the NFL.
Yeah, the "we get three hours in prime time all too ourselves" game seems like some ESPN-mandated tomfoolery. But at least my White Sox are involved in the tomfoolery.
You also can't avoid characters in movies and TV shows being from Ohio.
Yeah, they've used Ohio as a the all-purpose "this character is a naive and innocent Midwesterner" thumbnail reference for decades. I can tell when someone is gonna be from Ohio before their character even speaks.
Interestingly, I don't think we ever quite saw that on WKRP, but that was a lifetime ago and also a very smart show.
Which has it ass backwards. IRL we Ohioans transplanted to another place know what friggin time it is. And then some.
Shows set in Ohio:
-The Drew Carey Show
-Glee
-Family Ties
-WKRP
-3rd rock from the Sun
-Harry's Law
Movies set in Ohio
-Heathers
-Major League
-A lot of other movies
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Category:Films_set_in_Ohio
I haven't seen most of these but Ohio doesn't seem to be a standin for "hick" so much as "normal conformist suburbia with PTA meetings and white picket fences, with a seedy underbelly that's not what it seems."
I'm thinking of things like "The Out of Towners" an "The Bird Cage" which features staid and unadventurous Ohio couples going to the big city or someplace exotic with the laughs and/or drama being largely derived from the fact that it's the naive Ohioans forced to deal with anything other than white suburbia. Most of these movies and shows feature a scene early on in which the people in question make a point to clearly proclaim "we're from Ohio!" as a shorthand for "oh, shit, they're gonna get rattled soon!"
One of my favorites was Daisy, the Heather Graham character in Bowfinger. Gonna have to rewatch it soon if for no other reason than to see Jiffrenson cross the 405.
Hochul's been a clown show but the Bills money is OK b/c her husband is in business w the Bills or something.
A clown show and yet with Adams at the local level, she looks like Mario Cuomo next to him.
once a cop always a cop
The only thing saving her in the last election was her opponent being a Republican
1) As someone who worked in the Minors, I’m happy to see that “almost cost of living” raise for the MiLBers. I still can’t get over an industry where you’re allowed to make money and think you don’t have to foot the bill for any expenses the way MiLB is constructed. Those are some shady MFers in the ownership realm…
2) I of course immediately checked IMDB after the Asteroid City trailer was launched to see who was in it - and when I read Jarvis Cocker I thought “good on you for that curveball, Wes.”
Back in the '90s I would've loved it if Pulp had been on a Wes Anderson soundtrack, but it was all '60s stuff.
Now if he uses Pulp, the youth of today will feel like I did in my own youth.
Happy Opening Day !
Any thoughts on why I’d say in the last I have no idea how many years I don’t really recall hearing about train derailments, especially ones with toxic chemicals, yet I seem to be hearing about one once a week (another this AM) lately.
A. Safety standards have eroded; and B) the media is probably noticing this more than it used to because of East Palestine.
As a Nats fan, I'm comforting myself with the old Sparky Anderson saying: "Every team will win 60 games and lose 60 games; it's what you do in the other 42 that matters" (or words to that effect)
I'm hoping the Nats can win their 60 and maybe 5-10 more, that Ruiz, Abrams, Garcia, and Robles (he had a good spring) show that they can be a solid up the middle foundation for future teams, and that Gore and Gray continue to develop into future middle of the rotation starters. Would've liked to include Cavalli in that latter list, but alas UCL tears eventually come for all pitchers in the Nats org.
And then I read this, in which Martinez and Rizzo say they want their starters getting 21 outs a night, because “that’s who we are”. Don’t know whether to laugh, cry, or laugh until I cry at that one.
https://wapo.st/3G3cYbk
D. All of the above.
Their 8 man bullpen better bring a book to read if the pen is only going to pitch 2 innings a night. Or 1 inning in games when they don't pitch the bottom of the 9th on the road.
I expect we’ll be once again subjected to a season’s worth of “Don’t have enough guys available in the bullpen tonight to cover all the innings because they were all used yesterday and the day before that”
I forgot the Nats signed Trevor Williams. He would have shored up their bullpen as a valuable long man/swing man, but I guess they need him as a full time starter. His starts with the Mets last year were pretty good, though a lot of them were short. But that could just mean he wasn't stretched out to be a starter.
I don't think there's anything wrong with a mindset that starters should be thinking about 7 innings not 5 innings.
But if you're planning to get 1100 innings from your starters or going to push every starter to 110-120 pitches even when they're getting smashed, that's stupid in both the short and long term.
The piece I linked to makes that point that pitcher usage patterns over the years have evolved to the point where seven innings is no longer expected for starters.
Ten years ago, starters averaged 18 outs per start; last year, one starter averaged more than 6.5 innings per start - Sandy Alcántara, and the Nats only had eight starts all year where the starter went 7 innings or more.
As the game has evolved to its current state of max effort on every pitch, getting seven innings on a regular basis ain't gonna happen. Maybe now with the pitch clock, guys won't be able to give max effort on every pitch, and they'll learn how to go longer, but I'm not sure 7 innings is a reasonable expectation for anyone.
It's not too unreasonable for Sandy Alcántara.
UPDATE: He got nine (9) outs. Defense didn’t help him (4 runs, only 2 earned), but he also gave up seven hits, three walks, and a couple of rockets for outs. He’s already in midseason 20-loss form.
Well, at least you got half your wish.