The boys of summer! (Baseball Thread)

Some Irish Bloke

Some Irish Bloke

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irishnd31 said:
Your boys are getting the Guardians at the right time. We can't hit situationally to save our lives. What made the Guardians good, is doing the little things when it is needed and the boys can't do the little things right now.

We shall see as there is still some baseball to be played but I would not be shocked to see the Pale Sox, Tigers, and Guardians come down to the wire. After last year, I believe anything is possible.

Good luck pal.
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I was sweating big time in the 9th, I have no idea why they continue to pitch washed up Jansen in leverage innings. He is so, so bad. Couldn't throw a strike to save his life.

Obviously glad the Tigs won last night but that brings the season series to 1-6 in favor of the Guards. We will see how this series shakes out. Tigers are playing good baseball at the right time, but I wouldn't be surprised if Foster Griffin bounces back tn after his first start for Cleveland. He'll definitely want to get that bad taste out of his mouth...Riley Greene got banged up yesterday, too.

Framber Valdez has been a roller coaster all season. Either lights out or gets absolutely shelled.
 
irishnd31

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Some Irish Bloke said:
I was sweating big time in the 9th, I have no idea why they continue to pitch washed up Jansen in leverage innings. He is so, so bad. Couldn't throw a strike to save his life.

Obviously glad the Tigs won last night but that brings the season series to 1-6 in favor of the Guards. We will see how this series shakes out. Tigers are playing good baseball at the right time, but I wouldn't be surprised if Foster Griffin bounces back tn after his first start for Cleveland. He'll definitely want to get that bad taste out of his mouth...Riley Greene got banged up yesterday, too.

Framber Valdez has been a roller coaster all season. Either lights out or gets absolutely shelled.
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I like the Tigs tonight. Until the Guardians start hitting with men in scoring position, we are not much of a threat beyond a few hot hitters. Really happy with how Kwan has bounced back and he looks like one of the top hitters in the league since the start of July.
 
Some Irish Bloke

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irishnd31 said:
I like the Tigs tonight. Until the Guardians start hitting with men in scoring position, we are not much of a threat beyond a few hot hitters. Really happy with how Kwan has bounced back and he looks like one of the top hitters in the league since the start of July.
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Kwan is such a PITA...feel like we never get him out.
 
T-Boone

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What about Joshua Baez for the Cardinals. 3HRs in his first 3 at bats in MLs then not even a hit for his next 21 at bats. Baseball.
 
Dale

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Saw this hypothetical on twitter:

If the worst is true about the Dodgers owner, like he goes to jail for financial crimes AND we get a lockout, is what the Dodgers did worse than the Astros to win a championship?
 
fightingirish26

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Seeing offspeed is arguably the most difficult part of baseball.

Cheating financial rules to assemble a megasquad sucks, but assuming what the players accomplished on the field was above board, i don't know id say one is clearly worse than the other. I mean weve seen the Mets spend like there's no tomorrow and theyll miss the playoffs again this season.
 
Dale

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Pretty crazy: Andrew Ross Sorkin when was with NYT wrote in 2012 (!):

“In addition to their own cash, Mr. Walter plans to use money from Guggenheim subsidiaries that are insurance companies — some state-regulated — to pay for a big chunk of his purchase of the Dodgers. Guggenheim controls Guggenheim Life, a life insurer, and Security Benefit, which manages some $30 billion, among others.

Using insurance money — which is typically supposed to be invested in simple, safe assets — to buy a baseball team, the ultimate toy for the ultrarich, seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen.”
 
Veritate Duce Progredi

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Dale said:
Pretty crazy: Andrew Ross Sorkin when was with NYT wrote in 2012 (!):

“In addition to their own cash, Mr. Walter plans to use money from Guggenheim subsidiaries that are insurance companies — some state-regulated — to pay for a big chunk of his purchase of the Dodgers. Guggenheim controls Guggenheim Life, a life insurer, and Security Benefit, which manages some $30 billion, among others.

Using insurance money — which is typically supposed to be invested in simple, safe assets — to buy a baseball team, the ultimate toy for the ultrarich, seems like a lawsuit waiting to happen.”
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This is one of those dumb statements that feels good because #fucktherich

Professional sports teams in big markets appreciate YOY and DOD (decade over decade), even more so when they are winning and assembling a cast of superstars. The baseball team without the 'creative payroll' is still a safe asset that has massive cash flow generation.

It doesn't sound like he's being charged with 'unsafe investments' but rather, potentially fraudulent loands/disclosure about the origins of the money. Is that right? Is anyone following this closely? I did a quick google to try and understand what the suspected charges are based on the current investigation.
 
Veritate Duce Progredi

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Dale said:
Saw this hypothetical on twitter:

If the worst is true about the Dodgers owner, like he goes to jail for financial crimes AND we get a lockout, is what the Dodgers did worse than the Astros to win a championship?
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Astros by a massive margin. The Astros actually cheated in the game. The Dodgers owner, if guilty, attempted a 'loophole' strategy to assemble a roster of megastars and was hoping to not have forensic accountants find his fraudulent sources of money? I still need to better understand what he did before I make final judgement.

One team cheated in the games
One team, potentially, cheated in the finances/loans/paperwork

Surprised they would release this now, just before the playoffs. Seems like they could've operated in the shadows for a few more months until post-season was completed.
 
fightingirish26

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Veritate Duce Progredi said:
Astros by a massive margin. The Astros actually cheated in the game. The Dodgers owner, if guilty, attempted a 'loophole' strategy to assemble a roster of megastars and was hoping to not have forensic accountants find his fraudulent sources of money? I still need to better understand what he did before I make final judgement.

One team cheated in the games
One team, potentially, cheated in the finances/loans/paperwork

Surprised they would release this now, just before the playoffs. Seems like they could've operated in the shadows for a few more months until post-season was completed.
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Dodgers fan btw ^
 
Veritate Duce Progredi

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fightingirish26 said:
Dodgers fan btw ^
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I'm a fan of my kids enjoying watching baseball with their dad. My oldest son loves Ohtani so we've gravitated to watching Dodgers games and they have a cast of players that are easy to root for.

I didn't grow up a Dodgers fan, I grew up in the midwest and watched the Cardinals and the Reds as a kid.

If someone finds out the Dodgers cheated on the field, akin to anything the Astros did, I'd lose all of my respect for the team. Of course, they are so loaded, I doubt they need to cheat to win. Seems like a Michigan thing to do.

And I always hated megateams, usually rooted for the underdog. My kids have forced me to flip that script.
 
Dale

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Veritate Duce Progredi said:
Astros by a massive margin. The Astros actually cheated in the game. The Dodgers owner, if guilty, attempted a 'loophole' strategy to assemble a roster of megastars and was hoping to not have forensic accountants find his fraudulent sources of money? I still need to better understand what he did before I make final judgement.

One team cheated in the games
One team, potentially, cheated in the finances/loans/paperwork

Surprised they would release this now, just before the playoffs. Seems like they could've operated in the shadows for a few more months until post-season was completed.
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I think the thing here is, if we have a lockout in 2027, it’s not just about the championships. The legacy will be the Dodgers exploits were directly a cause of a lost season of baseball
 
Veritate Duce Progredi

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Dale said:
I think the thing here is, if we have a lockout in 2027, it’s not just about the championships. The legacy will be the Dodgers exploits were directly a cause of a lost season of baseball
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Fair.

If the owner is guilty.
If there is a lockout.
If the lockout is attributable to owner's guilt.

Then we can blame the Dodgers organization for killing a year of baseball.

Until then...... I'm excited to see some playoff baseball.
 
Jiggafini19Deux

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The sale of the Lakers happened quickly and without bidding process. There are talks that Walter and Boehly are looking to sell their shares in Chelsea FC as well, and their business dealings with Chelsea are a tad shady.

I don't think Walter sells the Dodgers, but even if he did, I don't think it really has anything to do with a lockout. Not as much as we all think anyway.

You spend and win, you enjoy higher attendance and revenue. Most teams would see support if a product was on the field that was any good. The Mets spend a lot and they're bad. Salary cap is not the answer. That's an excuse to pay players less money. Your billionaire owner signs a player to a crazy deal, let him do it. The deferred payment stuff is what has to go. The players union will fight that too, but even as someone who is pro player more often than not, I think it sucks and needs to get reeled in.
 
Some Irish Bloke

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I'm all for a salary cap. level the playing field. To act like what the corrupt Dodgers are "allegedly" doing to acquire these players and bankroll this whole thing could (or should) be done by any other team is a farce.

Every other major sport has a cap. A cap would also probably raise the floor for the amount of money younger players make. Why do I care if Ohtani makes $300M instead of $1Bn?
 
IRISHDODGER

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Some Irish Bloke said:
I'm all for a salary cap. level the playing field. To act like what the corrupt Dodgers are "allegedly" doing to acquire these players and bankroll this whole thing could (or should) be done by any other team is a farce.

Every other major sport has a cap. A cap would also probably raise the floor for the amount of money younger players make. Why do I care if Ohtani makes $300M instead of $1Bn?
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It’s not a “farce” b/c it’s happened before but w/ less “name” teams. Casual fans have no clue that the 2001 Arizona Dbacks were able to convince more than half of their roster to defer contracts in order to maintain their elite roster. They, of course; went on to end the Yankees World Series reign that year. But who can hate on the D’backs?!

A cap will not magically make cheapskate owners all of the sudden invest in winning. The Pirates will still suck & be what the Kansas City Athletics used to be prior to free agency: a farm team for the better teams.

IMO, the Brewers are the best team in baseball right now. They’re my pick to win it all. Their payroll is $130M. The irony is, their idiot former owner; was able to be named Commissioner by his cronies & was in charge when MLB was trying to properly handle the Dodgers bankruptcy case. It wasn’t handled well & the courts ruled vs MLB giving the Dodgers that sweetheart TV deal they currently enjoy.

That’s the answer: end deferments & find a solution to the TV revenue discrepancies. My guess is the MLBPA would agree to limit deferrals but not eliminate them (I’m for eliminating them). Regarding TV revenue, it’ll require compromise from the big media markets like NYC, LA & Chicago along w/ a requirement for that revenue to be directly re-invested into the team instead of the pockets of the cheapskate owners that so many fans defend.
 
ACamp1900

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Some Irish Bloke said:
I'm all for a salary cap. level the playing field. To act like what the corrupt Dodgers are "allegedly" doing to acquire these players and bankroll this whole thing could (or should) be done by any other team is a farce.
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Even without the fraud, the idea that all these other teams could easily be running the Dodgers' payroll but they're all a bunch of cheapskates who just don't want to win is laughably flawed... over each of the past few years, the Dodgers' payroll exceeded almost EVERY OTHER TEAM's total revenue, so no, they couldn't just spend like that if they really wanted to... the vast majority of the league cannot keep up without losing tens of millions of dollars a year, and for like half the league, it's hundreds of millions. This is not comparable to the Yankees of the 2000's or a one-off season like the D-backs.
 
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NDLS_USMC

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ACamp1900 said:
Even without the fraud...
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@ACamp1900 Is the fraud referenced how Walter is funding the team? So you're referring to the stuff in the WSJ/press about borrowing from insurance companies he controls via related party transactions w/o proper disclosure? Or is something else like structure of player contract in issue?
 
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ACamp1900

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NDLS_USMC said:
@ACamp1900 Is the fraud referenced how Walter is funding the team? So you're referring too the stuff in the WSJ/press about borrowing from insurance companies he controls via related party transactions w/o proper disclosure? Or is something else like structure of player contract in issue?
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Yeah, I'm referring to how many are only now seeing a potential issue... I saw one long before any of that noise. So that could end up being a nothing burger and it changes nothing for me.
 
Irish2155

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rtrn2glory said:
As a red Sox fan....I don't think they're good enough to win it all but I'm not sure I've had more fun watching them play than the last 2 and a half months.
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Another come from behind W last night.

I’m certainly not saying that they are the favorites, but I do believe that they can win any series within the field. They’ve already swept TB, LA, and NY within the last month or so.
 
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