You know we’re going straight for the cheap seats, even at a minor league baseball game.
Once Dominant Red Sox Reliever Daniel Bard is On the Comeback Tour
Yahoo! Sports – For a time, Daniel Bard was one of baseball’s most effective and feared relievers. Now the 31-year-old right-hander is scratching and clawing for one more opportunity in the big leagues, which he hopes will come this season with the St. Louis Cardinals.
I admit I had completely forgotten about Daniel Bard. The once heir apparent to the best closer in Red Sox history, Jonathan Papelbon. Guy was absolutely lights out as a setup man and then the Red Sox fucked everything up. Seriously, don’t mess with success.
Remember when the Yankees had the same EXACT situation on their hands with Joba Chamberlain? Guy was an absolutely dominant reliever who was in line to take over as closer for Mariano Rivera. Nope, Yankees tried to move him into the starting rotation and the guy folded. Admittedly he had some sparks of dominance as a starter. I was at a game at Fenway he started and the guy went 7-8 innings and struck out 10. But for whatever reason, his build, his control, his endurance the guy unraveled and was ruined as a pitcher. They had a specific set of rules called the Joba Rules to keep this guy in tact for christ’s sake. Probably not the ideal guy to be messing with his whole workload and mindset. But I digress…
This is the latest team in a long list of teams kicking the tires on Bard. Theo was the first to try and resurrect Bard’s career unsurprisingly, picking him off the scrap heap in 2013 after the Sox placed him on waivers. He signed with the Rangers next season before actually re-signing with the Cubs organization in 2015, signed with the Pirates organization in January 2016 and didn’t even make it to April before getting released. Bard ultimately signed with the Cardinals last year and that’s where the comeback tour rolls on.
Reports say Bard seems to have his control back and is still throwing 96 mph. And this isn’t from some scrub St. Louis reporter, by “reports” I mean that this is coming from Peter Gammons, the human Britannica of baseball himself. So that’s gotta count for something.
Daniel Bard’s new delivery with 96 mph gas as he preps for spring training in Cardinals system https://t.co/yIw5dvkwor #Cardinals pic.twitter.com/Qq0j1DGVfZ
— Gammons Daily (@GammonsDaily) February 24, 2017
With guys like Bard who were absolutely filthy for a short stint and then flamed out just as fast, it always reminds me of the Stellan Skarsgard quote from Good Will Hunting.
Best of luck, Dan.
MLB Can Fuck Right Off With Putting a Team in Las Vegas
CBS Sports – MLB commissioner Rob Manfred seems increasingly to have expansion on his mind. While the general sense of things is that Manfred and MLB will look to expand their international footprint in the next round of expansion, you should also consider Las Vegas to be in the mix of potential locations. In fact, Manfred himself said as much to Michael Kay on Tuesday.
MLB can fuck right off with putting a team in Las Vegas after sandbagging Pete Rose for all these years. The most sanctimonious, anti-gambling league in all of sports is now considering putting a team in the gambling capital of the world.
Las Vegas is a viable option for an MLB team.https://t.co/VRuQSoFUEX
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) June 21, 2016
I applaud the Knights and potentially the Raiders for finally putting a team in Vegas, but holy hell MLB be more hypocritical. The guy with the most hits in the history of your sport isn’t even recognized by baseball because he was placing bets on his *own* team.
And now they’re gonna waltz into town and drop a team in the same spot that Pete Rose has basically been banished to. The guy signs autographs in Vegas every day for a living. Did you know he’s signed so many autographs that its basically worthless on the resale market now?
That would be some fucked up irony if I ever saw it. One of the best players of all time banned by his sport for gambling, ironically takes up residence in a city that is known solely for gambling, and then years later that same sport puts a team in said gambling city, right in his backyard? Holy shit, Pete Rose might legitimately drop dead.
So put a pitching clock in, speed up the game, put a goddamn guy on second base to start extra innings, I don’t care, but get the hell outta my face with putting a team in Sin City.
Is Manny Playing Japanese Independent Island League Baseball at 44 Sad or Awesome? Lets Make the Case
ESPN – “Former major league outfielder Manny Ramirez has agreed to terms with the Kochi Fighting Dogs of Japan’s independent Shikoku Island League.”
Guys this is sad. This is Manny Ramirez. The guy who never seemed to give a shit about baseball or his teammates or about much at all seemingly can’t quit the game. Manny was one of the greatest hitters of my generation, maybe of all-time, but the guy was so frustrating. It was like babysitting at times, but in the end it was worth it because when he was going .300/40/140 you’ll put up with a lot of shit. It was just “Manny being Manny.”
The thing about this though is its not like Manny needs the money. And its not like he’s expecting to make a MLB comeback at age 44. Hell he’s actually raking over there. He hit.352 with eight home runs and 43 RBIs playing in Taiwan in 2013. So he’s probably doing it just because he loves to play baseball. Maybe he’s like an old man who’s just now looking back and regretting not caring more? Maybe he misses the good old days? Or Maybe he just wants to swing through his goddamn shoes every at bat. I mean thats why I play beer league softball. Not to pad my OBP; I want to try and hit a HR every single at bat, regardless of my debatable power.
Alright, I think I’ve come full circle and changed my mind. You do you, Manny. Have a beer or 6 and swing for the fences. Thats what mens league/Japanese Independent Island League baseball is all about.
Cue the highlights!
With New MLB CBA All-Star Game Will No Longer Decide Home Field for the World Series
ESPN – The league that wins Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game no longer will get home-field advantage in the World Series, which instead will go to the pennant winner with the better regular-season record.
Lot of big changes to the Major League Baseball Collective Bargaining Agreement that the players and owners essentially agreed to at the 11th hour. Which is a shame because I was full on rooting for a Winter Meetings that was exclusively focused on Minor League Baseball because those guys were going regardless. Would have loved to see GMs wheeling and dealing players that make 28K a year over cocktails in the hotel bar. Catch the fever.
But anyways, of all the changes to the CBA the biggest has to be the ALl-Star game will no longer decide which league gets home field advantage in the World Series. And thats good because it never made any sense other than it was just a way for the league to drum up interest in a boring exhibition game. But to penalize a team and take away home field advantage in the World Series because fucking Dan Uggla let a ball go through his legs in July is asinine.
All the owners can cut the shit though about how this is a great change like its some great burden lifted off their shoulders. These assholes voted 30-0 on this when it was introduced in 2003. THIRTY TO ZERO! So they all thought it was a good idea, every single one of them. Ironically enough, the Cubs may not have even won the World Series if not for this bullshit parlor trick of a rule. If the Cubs have home field advantage its one less game without the DH spot, so one less game they can play Kyle Schwarber, who only had ya know massively clutch hits in Game 7 in Cleveland. Yet, NL baseball fans still will never admit the DH is necessary and awesome. We do not need to see pitchers take 3 strikes and walk back to the bench. Get out of my face with that nonsense. Cubs fans know it now, but maybe next year its different?
Careful what you wish for guys!
The 300s 