Tridentdawgpound 1,043 Posted March 30, 2014 Fuck the offseason one, it's over. Go baseball, go Braves. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bay 2,003 Posted March 30, 2014 (edited) Go pitching. Bumgarner, Fernandez, Price, Sale, etc. Edited March 30, 2014 by Bay Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 30, 2014 (edited) Edited March 30, 2014 by Sarge Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bay 2,003 Posted March 30, 2014 Ryu is a pretty nice pitcher, so I'm definitely going to watch the 8:00 ESPN game. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 30, 2014 Cashner is good too. I could see him having a pretty nice season. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bay 2,003 Posted March 30, 2014 Cashner is good too. I could see him having a pretty nice season. Same. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 30, 2014 (edited) Pirates Opening Day roster! My prediction: 88 wins and a wildcard. McCutchen is still a great player. There's a chance he regresses just a little bit from last year. Ditto for Marte. Right away you're thinking, but Sarge, if your team's best 2 players from last year regress even a little bit AFTER losing Burnett, how can they be a playoff team? Answer: Gregory Polanco looks to be an impact talent in RF as of June. When he arrives, the Pirates will have by far the best defensive outfield in all of baseball. He should provide help at the plate as well. Our pitching as a whole will experience regression, but not that much. Along with the aforementioned best defensive OF in baseball, we also have one of the top defensive catchers in baseball. The way he handled our staff last year was amazing. He's also a durable player who offers some power at the plate still. Pedro Alvarez and Neil Walker continued to improve defensively last year. They both could easily improve at the plate this year, too. If Alvarez improves even a little bit with his plate discipline, he will turn into an extremely dangerous hitter. Walker had a rough season last year, but he should be better in 2014. Clint Barmes provided valuable defense at SS last year, but he was one of the worst offensive players in the league. Jordy Mercer has a solid bat but needs to improve some on defense this year. I see it as a decent possibility that we get much more value from the SS position overall this year. First base is definitely the one hole on the team. We are starting off with a platoon of Travis Ishikawa and Gaby Sanchez. Sanchez crushes left-handed pitching, but Ishikawa's offensive production doesn't look to provide much for the Pirates against right-handed pitching. This won't be the situation all year. Either Andrew Lambo will get back on track in Triple A and replace Ishikawa internally, or there will be a trade at the deadline to acquire help at first base. Speaking of internal options, we also have them in case our latest reclamation project, Edinson Volquez, totally flops right off the bat. Francisco Liriano, Gerrit Cole, Charlie Morton, and Wandy Rodriguez can definitely anchor our pitching 1-4. We have Stolmy Pimentel who can be a starter, and also Jeanmar Gomez who pitched very well for us last year. We have plenty of solid bullpen arms already on the roster, but also more in Triple A should we need them due to injury or under performance. tl;dr version Outfield: Slight regression possible from both McCutchen and Marte, but Polanco's arrival provides a big boost. More valuable to the team than last year,even if only slightly. Infield: Solid defense everywhere. SS defense a question mark. Need more offense from this group than last year, but definitely possible. Definitely will get more offense from SS. 3B Alvarez needs to improve plate discipline just a bit. Look for a bounce back year from 2B Walker. C Martin is an elite defender. Anything they get from him at the plate is a bonus, but he can still swing a power bat at times. First base likely a hole until the trade deadline. Overall outlook: Slightly more valuable than last year. Rotation: Cole in his 2nd year. Should be a good pitcher. Liriano unreliable year to year, but PNC park + Pirates defense will help. Morton a solid #3 option. Induces a lot of ground ball outs but has the stuff for strikeouts when needed. Wandy Rodriguez provides a valuable LHP at the back end of the bullpen if healthy. #5 spot a question mark with Volquez starting out with the spot. Options available both in MLB bullpen (mainly Pimentel) and Triple A to replace him or other injured starters. Overall outlook: Slightly less valuable than last year. Bullpen: Grilli, Melancon, and Wilson should be hard to beat at the back end. Watson is a solid left-handed situational reliever. Pimentel, Morris, Gomez provide mid-long relief options. Pimentel could also start if needed. Options available for replacement if needed. Pitched lights out last year. Even with great talent, slight regression expected. Overall outlook: Slightly less valuable than last year. So the Pirates pitching will take a step back from last year, but the overall offensive output should take a step forward. They won 94 games last year, but admittedly, there was some luck involved. I could see them starting out a bit slow, but Polanco + trade deadline will beef them up to finish at or around 88 wins in contention for a wildcard spot. Edited March 30, 2014 by Sarge Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 31, 2014 Cashner had a good game, and Chris Denorfia has some late game heroics. Nice win for the Padres. 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 31, 2014 Pirates Opening Day Lineup 1. Starling Marte LF 2. Travis Snider RF 3. Andrew McCutchen CF 4. Pedro Alvarez 3B 5. Russell Martin C 6. Neil Walker 2B 7. Travis Ishikawa 1B 8. Jordy Mercer SS 9. Francisco Liriano P Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
southgadawg 52 Posted March 31, 2014 Braves will starting soon. Unfortunately with no cable I won't be watching it. Thank goodness the Braves have the largest radio network in sports. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bay 2,003 Posted March 31, 2014 Paul Konerko not starting for the White Sox. Bay sad. One of my favorite players over the years. Ends streak of 16 straight opening days. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 31, 2014 Liriano dominates, bullpen shuts the door, and Neil Walker wins it with a walk-off HR in the bottom of the 10th. Raise the jolly roger! Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tridentdawgpound 1,043 Posted March 31, 2014 0-162 confirmed. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
SteVo+ 3,702 Posted March 31, 2014 Cliff Lee gives up 8 earned runs and gets the W. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tridentdawgpound 1,043 Posted March 31, 2014 Cliff Lee gives up 8 earned runs and gets the W. Further evidence as to why it's a totally useless individual stat. 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Sarge+ 3,436 Posted March 31, 2014 My fantasy team will take it. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
BJORN 679 Posted April 1, 2014 As long as the Padres beat the Dodgers (in games or fights), I'm a happy baseball fan Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bay 2,003 Posted April 1, 2014 (edited) Liriano dominates, bullpen shuts the door, and Neil Walker wins it with a walk-off HR in the bottom of the 10th. Raise the jolly roger! Rockin' pitchers duel along with Teheran/Gallardo, Lester/Tillman and Wainright/Cueto. Edited April 1, 2014 by Bay Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bangy 19 Posted April 1, 2014 Paul Konerko not starting for the White Sox. Bay sad. One of my favorite players over the years. Ends streak of 16 straight opening days. Same Paulie has been a warrior for the ChiSox for years, to see him not start an opening day makes me sad. My favourite memory baring the 2005 WS was the back to back 300 he and Jermaine Dye hit. Happy that De Aza stepped up last night he showed a lot of promise last season Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tridentdawgpound 1,043 Posted April 2, 2014 The first win of the year feels so good. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Favre4Ever+ 4,476 Posted April 2, 2014 Waino with the best pitching performance of the young season! Let's go! I was so mad we didn't have a game today. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
southgadawg 52 Posted April 2, 2014 Nice to see Harang pitch a good game against the Brewers today. Chris Johnson dropped the barrel of the bat on a knee high pitch from Garza and gave the Braves their only run but it was enough. Braves had lost 9 of 10 straight games in Milwaukee until the last two wins there. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Tridentdawgpound 1,043 Posted April 4, 2014 We are in the Nationals' heads. Never come through against our bullpen. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
ATL_Predator+ 1,196 Posted April 4, 2014 Bullpen is dirty as fuck. Avillan looks great..always has but especially this year Share this post Link to post Share on other sites