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Tridentdawgpound

2014 MLB Season Thread

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Fuck the offseason one, it's over.

 

Go baseball, go Braves.

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Go pitching. Bumgarner, Fernandez, Price, Sale, etc. :devious:

Edited by Bay

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Pedro+Alvarez+Los+Angeles+Dodgers+v+Pitt

 

:smug:

Edited by Sarge

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Ryu is a pretty nice pitcher, so I'm definitely going to watch the 8:00 ESPN game.

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Cashner is good too. I could see him having a pretty nice season.

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Cashner is good too. I could see him having a pretty nice season.

Same.

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1619108_565067686924575_1991838775_n.jpg

 

Pirates Opening Day roster! :rock:

 

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 by Sarge

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Cashner had a good game, and Chris Denorfia has some late game heroics. Nice win for the Padres.

  • Upvote 2

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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

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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.

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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.

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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! :rock:

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Cliff Lee gives up 8 earned runs and gets the W. :yao:

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Cliff Lee gives up 8 earned runs and gets the W. :yao:

 

Further evidence as to why it's a totally useless individual stat.

  • Upvote 1

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My fantasy team will take it. :yep:

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As long as the Padres beat the Dodgers (in games or fights), I'm a happy baseball fan :smug:

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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! :rock:

Rockin' pitchers duel along with Teheran/Gallardo, Lester/Tillman and Wainright/Cueto.

Edited by Bay

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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

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Waino with the best pitching performance of the young season! Let's go! I was so mad we didn't have a game today. :shifty:

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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.

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We are in the Nationals' heads. Never come through against our bullpen.

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Bullpen is dirty as fuck. Avillan looks great..always has but especially this year :wub:

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