The boys of summer! (Baseball Thread)

Irishize

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Do it. Well past time.

Probably a done deal after MLB-PA talks. You know the MLBPA is ‘all in’ b/c that’s more job creation for them. Should be a win-win for all involved...owners, players & fans.
 

Rogue219

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Probably a done deal after MLB-PA talks. You know the MLBPA is ‘all in’ b/c that’s more job creation for them. Should be a win-win for all involved...owners, players & fans.

I don't care to see pitchers at the plate. It isn't at the top of my baseball or sports consumption agenda.
 

Legacy

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What to nickname the Cleveland baseball team now....

Flying Fellers
Battered Bastards
Rockers
Flaming Cuyahogans
Black Sox
 

Rogue219

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Cleveland:

1. Spiders
2. Buckeyes (Negro League team in Cleveland back in the day)
3. Blue Sox
 

Rogue219

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would they dare go double buckeyes on ohio?

Merch sales would be crazy I'd assume, right?

Maybe Monarchs then, the KC Monarch of the Negro League. They were a top club.

Spiders would be cool, though. That's gotta be it. Richmond won't care. LOL
 

Irishize

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Merch sales would be crazy I'd assume, right?

Maybe Monarchs then, the KC Monarch of the Negro League. They were a top club.

Spiders would be cool, though. That's gotta be it. Richmond won't care. LOL

Spiders is so obvious. I think they already have logos and mock ups.

Monarchs is a good call. No other major pro sports team has that yet it’s a pretty benign yet respectable name.

I’m not going to lie, when I was a kid growing up in the late 70s i thought the red tops with the crooked letters spelling Indians & the hat w/ the crooked ‘C’ was hideous. Fast forward to today & they are fire when it comes to retro throwback. I remember big ole Boog Powell & Frank Robinson wearing the red tops w/ red bottoms....vomit inducing.
 

Irishize

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With the loss of Hank Aaron, I mentioned on the RIP thread he was joining his younger brother Tommie in heaven. Tommie was a light hitting 1B w/ the Braves in the late 60s but pretty much a role player. Think of Chris Gwynn to Tony Gwynn as far as careers of brothers.

I flippantly included Ozzie Canseco who had a cup of coffee in the Majors but was not impressive other than being an identical twin to Jose. I think his career started as a pitcher TBH.

Anyways Ozzie & Jose being twins was always my basis that steroids/PEDs don’t equal major league success as both Ozzie & Jose ingested their fair share of PEDs. One was a superstar & the other was an afterthought.

Then I listened to a great Malcolm Gladwell podcast where he documented Andy Pettitte’s case of PED use. If you recall Andy’s case he stated that the time(s) he used PED was during stints on the DL to speed up his recovery so he could get back in the rotation and “help my team”. The positive tests & documentation backed this up according to Gladwell.

Gladwell then posited this question: “If PEDs to aid/hasten recovery are frowned upon, why isn’t UCL (Tommy John) surgery in injury situations?” Both treatments/procedure were used to get pitchers back to the game after injury.

Thought it was good food for thought so would love to hear everyone’s opinion on the matter. Yes, I realize that not all players accused or proven to have used PEDs used them during rehab assignments or DL stints. So assume for the sake of argument we are just talking about Pettitte’s situation since his was documented as have only used while injured.
 
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Irish2155

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Just about everyone was on the juice in the 90s and 2000s minus maybe Griffey Jr. Chicks dig the long ball, so the MLB looked the other way. Hell, half my college team were on the juice which kind of pissed me off competing for at bats. I’d use to drop off “the package” from our catcher in Fort Wayne to one of my U of Anderson buddies I played summer ball with...he went on to play centerfield for Team USA in slow pitch softball. Probably gained about 50 lbs of straight muscle too. Miken actually still makes a softball bat in his name.

I do think that Bonds and Clemens should be HofFers though because they cemented that legacy prior to getting huge. And bc the MLB looked the other way for so long. Had they not have done that then I might feel a little differently.
 
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Irish2155

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One of my roommates got on it over Xmas break our senior year (6 weeks about) and came back about 30 lbs heavier and just ripped. He wasn’t going to see much PT until he juiced up and ended being our starting catcher by the end of the year.

On a side note, he was from Cincy and had Tommy John the year before too and rehabbed with then Reds closer Scott Williamson at the Reds complex. He said that Griffey Jr was lazy as shit. He wouldn’t even touch a weight let alone juice.
 

Irishize

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One of my roommates got on it over Xmas break our senior year (6 weeks about) and came back about 30 lbs heavier and just ripped. He wasn’t going to see much PT until he juiced up and ended being our starting catcher by the end of the year.

On a side note, he was from Cincy and had Tommy John the year before too and rehabbed with then Reds closer Scott Williamson at the Reds complex. He said that Griffey Jr was lazy as shit. He wouldn’t even touch a weight let alone juice.

LOL. That’s great. I love Griffey but I always maintained that he was so gifted that he was able to get by on pure athleticism as until he hit his 30s. Once he got older, all those collisions w/ walls start to add up & if he wasn’t staying fit in the training room, it probably cost him those last 4-5 years where he really struggled to be the Griffey of old...much less healthy for 162 games.

I remember hearing stories about Griffey & Pete Rose, Jr going to HS together and competing on who could drive the coolest sports car. I believe they went to Moeller High. I also recall Griffey recounting a time when Bonds visited him at his house in ‘98 when the McGwire/Sosa HR race was captivating America. Griffey said the tv was on and the broadcast was really hyping the race. It was at that moment that Bonds said something to the effect of, “okay, if that’s what they want...its on”. I wish I could remember where that Griffey interview is so I could link it but that’s what I remembered most.

No way Griffey juiced.
 

Irishize

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Just about everyone was on the juice in the 90s and 2000s minus maybe Griffey Jr. Chicks dig the long ball, so the MLB looked the other way. Hell, half my college team were on the juice which kind of pissed me off competing for at bats. I’d use to drop off “the package” from our catcher in Fort Wayne to one of my U of Anderson buddies I played summer ball with...he went on to play centerfield for Team USA in slow pitch softball. Probably gained about 50 lbs of straight muscle too. Miken actually still makes a softball bat in his name.

I do think that Bonds and Clemens should be HofFers though because they cemented that legacy prior to getting huge. And bc the MLB looked the other way for so long. Had they not have done that then I might feel a little differently.

It wasn’t illegal period. I’m not condoning it but I think it’s impossible to weed out every user. We know there are likely users in the HOF already.

Agreed with you on Bonds & Clemens. With Bonds, he was a great all-around player. He could do it all w/ a possible exception of his arm which wasn’t the strongest. That said, I saw him having a Clemente or even Aaron type of career before he buffed up to Herculean size.

If I had to bet when Clemens started it would’ve been when Boston decided not to re-sign him. I think the GM Duquette even criticized him for being past his prime. This had to motivate Clemens b/c he reeled off two phenomenal seasons w/ the Blue Jays and continued to dominate through the end of his career. Maybe it was all about getting past injuries & staying healthy but he never seemed to stop using.
 

Irish2155

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Agreed on Clemens. When he got to Toronto looked like a completely different person. Duquette was an idiot too btw.

Juice or not Bonds was really fun to watch hit in SF. There for awhile it seemed like every strike he saw ended up in the ocean.
 

BobbyMac

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Thomas could’ve easily been an NFL TE.

TE? Him and Barkley could've been NFL OT's.

Barkley would've been physically the greatest OT in history. He was literally built in a lab to play LT in the NFL in 2050.
 

Irishize

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TE? Him and Barkley could've been NFL OT's.

Barkley would've been physically the greatest OT in history. He was literally built in a lab to play LT in the NFL in 2050.

That’s surely a possibility but he signed w/ Auburn as a TE at his HS in GA. Today he definitely looks like an OT.
 

Rogue219

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I have always felt individual MLB awards and the HOF were not really worth my time in getting bent out of shape about, but next year's HOF ballot is going to be high drama.

ARod, Ortiz, Clemens, Bonds along with Curt Schilling. It's like watching a hurricane awaiting to hit land.

I guess if I wanted to see someone get in I'd go with Scott Rolen and Todd Helton.
 

Irishize

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I have always felt individual MLB awards and the HOF were not really worth my time in getting bent out of shape about, but next year's HOF ballot is going to be high drama.

ARod, Ortiz, Clemens, Bonds along with Curt Schilling. It's like watching a hurricane awaiting to hit land.

I guess if I wanted to see someone get in I'd go with Scott Rolen and Todd Helton.

Ought to be interesting but will likely end in an anti-climatic fashion.

I’m torn on Rolen & Helton but to be fair to them that was a tough era to really stand out. I believe Schilling’s last year on the ballot was this season as he requested to be removed from next year’s ballot.

Ortiz probably won’t (& shouldn’t) go in 1st ballot but I bet he gets in before ARod, Clemens & Bonds simply b/c he was more media friendly. Granted, I don’t think there was compelling evidence that he used PEDs like there was against the other 3 mentioned. I do think the perception is he used but avg fans don’t bother to look at the evidence. Just a bonkers era to sift through
 

Rogue219

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Ought to be interesting but will likely end in an anti-climatic fashion.

I’m torn on Rolen & Helton but to be fair to them that was a tough era to really stand out. I believe Schilling’s last year on the ballot was this season as he requested to be removed from next year’s ballot.

Ortiz probably won’t (& shouldn’t) go in 1st ballot but I bet he gets in before ARod, Clemens & Bonds simply b/c he was more media friendly. Granted, I don’t think there was compelling evidence that he used PEDs like there was against the other 3 mentioned. I do think the perception is he used but avg fans don’t bother to look at the evidence. Just a bonkers era to sift through

Ortiz tested positive in 2003. He seems to get a free pass because of likability and his "clutch" moments.

Helton comps to Bagwell and Edgar Martinez. They're both in. I think he goes eventually, and should.

Rolen is a tougher case, but he's right there as far as numbers. No comps other than Ron Santo.
 
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