2015 MLB Season - post your thoughts and predictions here

[JohnS]

Oh crap.......a Gnat fan......I thought this board had better standards.

Go Dodgers!

I sympathise...the Dodgers have been promising for so long!

[Kyoung]

Grew up in Washington State. Been a life long mariners fan. Loved the moves they made in the offseason! Excited to see what they can do this year

[JohnS]

In 2015, fans can vote for the Four Greatest Living Players in Major League Baseball history .The players from each group receiving the most votes will be honored at the MLB All-Star Game in Cincinnati. The players are:

1. Hank Aaron
2. Sandy Koufax
3. Johnny Bench
4. Pedro Martinez
5. Barry Bonds
6. Willie Mays
7. Rickey Henderson
8. Tom Seaver

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2015/franchise_four.jsp?c_id=greatest_players

[JohnS]

Fans can also vote for the FOUR most impactful players who best represent the history of each franchise. The players from each group receiving the most votes will be revealed on July 14 at the All-Star Game in Cincinnati - 7:30pm ET on FOX.

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2015/franchise_four.jsp

Some franchises are easier than others. Some are impossible. The New York Yankees are but one example. How do you vote for four from the following?

1. Yogi Berra
2. Derek Jeter
3. Joe DiMaggio
4. Mickey Mantle
5. Whitey Ford
6. Mariano Rivera
7. Lou Gehrig
8. Babe Ruth

[DrunkenMonkey]

In 2015, fans can vote for the Four Greatest Living Players in Major League Baseball history .The players from each group receiving the most votes will be honored at the MLB All-Star Game in Cincinnati. The players are:

• Hank Aaron
• Sandy Koufax
• Johnny Bench
• Pedro Martinez
• Barry Bonds
• Willie Mays
• Rickey Henderson
• Tom Seaver

http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/events/all_star/y2015/franchise_four.jsp?c_id=greatest_players

No Pete Rose?

[zrotfus]

No Pete Rose?

Man I had the same thought...MLB is gonna hold that grudge till the end of time it seems. And Barry Bonds is on there! Oy.

[JohnS]

I agree with you guys. No Pete Rose but Barry Bonds is there. I would think Hank Aaron, Sandy Koufax and Willie Mays will be three chosen for sure.

[DrunkenMonkey]

I was looking over some stats after seeing this. Hank Aaron is just a bad man. Pete Rose should be on the ballot, as the hit king and most entertaining baseball player ever. But Aaron hit for a higher career avg., plus all the home runs and RBIs. And 6,856 total bases. That's insane.

[JohnS]

You would think that Hank Aaron will get voted in. The question is...who will be the fourth voted out of that group, because Koufax and Mays have to be there as a result of their careers. Who knows Rickey Henderson could get in for being a Stolen Bases maverick or Tom Seaver, the only Mets Hall of Famer and 300 game winner!

[JohnS]

Colon produces unlikely tying run while tossing seven

Bartolo Colon continues to surprise, and not just in his pitching feats this season, but with his hitting! Colon's season high RBI total is 3, achieved in 2002 when playing for the Expos, he already has two this season. On Friday he helped tie the game with a bases-loaded sacrifice fly to center field, swinging at the first pitch. Colon went on to get the win to become the first pitcher this season to get three wins. His ERA improved to 2.25 and the Mets defeat of the Marlins extend their win-streak to 6, the first time the Mets have won six in a row since April 2011.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/118904364/new-york-mets-defeat-miami-marlins-to-keep-win-streak-alive-at-6

[JohnS]

Trout goes deep; youngest to 100 HRs, 100 SBs

Mike Trout became the youngest player to hit 100 Home Runs and achieve 100 Stolen Bases in a career on Friday when he hit two home runs in the Angels 6-3 win over the Astros. At 23 years and 253 days, he is 56 days younger than Alex Rodriguez in achieving the feat.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/118949336/angels-outfielder-mike-trout-smashes-100th-career-home-run

[stunod]

I'm a Mets fan and so far so good. The season is long and the Mets don't have an luck with staying healthy. Baring injury, they will go far.

[JohnS]

Colon legs out RBI double for 3rd hit of 2015

The world may always wonder if Bartolo Colon could have reached third. Colon's third hit of the season was unlike either of the previous two, screaming up the middle in the second inning of Sunday's Mets game against the Marlins. Because center fielder Ichiro Suzuki was playing so close to home plate and shaded toward right field, the line drive -- which left Colon's bat at 96 mph, as tracked by Statcast -- scooted past him and rolled to the wall. (Colon, it should be noted, has not thrown a pitch that fast in over two years).

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/127719972/bartolo-colon-legs-out-rbi-double-for-3rd-hit-of-2015

Well, hitting coach Kevin Long tried to get four hits out of Colon in 2015, double the two he got in 2014 and Colon aimed for three. And what an entertaining three they've been! Colon is, by far, the most entertaining at-bat amongst pitchers in the big leagues!

[JohnS]

A-Rod passes Bonds on all-time RBI list

Alex Rodriguez drove in the 1,997th run of his career on Friday, surpassing Barry Bonds for second place on baseball's all-time RBI list, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Rodriguez lined a sharp single to right-center field off Angels right-hander Jered Weaver in the fifth, driving home Brett Gardner after his one-out triple.

Henry Aaron is first on baseball's all-time RBI list with 2,297, according to Elias, the official statistician of Major League Baseball.

Because RBIs became an official Major League statistic in 1920, Elias' tally begins at that date. Due to the uncertain nature of record-keeping in the early part of the 20th century, some discrepancies may exist between the stats provided today by different historical data providers.

MLB.com utilizes different statistics than Elias. By MLB.com's count, Rodriguez is third on the all-time RBI list behind Aaron (2,297) and Ruth (2,213). MLB.com takes into account RBIs accumulated by Ruth before 1920. The hit also marked the 2,989th of Rodriguez's career, as he stands just 11 hits shy of becoming the first Major Leaguer to reach 3,000 hits since former teammate Derek Jeter in 2011.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/128827136/a-rod-passes-bonds-on-all-time-rbi-list

[JohnS]

Switch-pitcher Venditte fires two shutout frames

Pat Venditte, the first full-time switch-pitcher in the modern era of Major League Baseball, made his big league debut in the A's 4-2 loss to the Red Sox on Friday night.The A's selected the ambidextrous reliever from Triple-A Nashville on Friday, and he tossed 28 pitches over two scoreless innings after entering in the seventh.

Venditte induced a groundout from Brock Holt from the left side to begin the seventh, and he then turned around and threw with his right arm and allowed a single to Hanley Ramirez before getting an inning-ending double play ball from Mike Napoli. Venditte faced the minimum in the eighth, striking out switch-hitter Blake Swihart, who was batting left-handed, with his right arm to end the frame.

http://m.mlb.com/news/article/128749374/switch-pitcher-pat-venditte-fires-two-shutout-frames

Yes, Venditte is the first switch-pitcher since Greg Harris last played major league baseball in 1995. His rare abilty has induced the following addition to the rules of Baseball:

Venditte's rare ambidextrous abilities prompted the Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation (PBUC) to issue a new rule for dealing with ambidextrous pitchers, limiting the number of times that a switch-pitcher and switch-hitter can change sides during one at-bat. After consulting with a variety of sources, including the Major League Baseball Rules Committee, the PBUC issued its new guidelines on July 3, 2008. OBR Rule 8.01(f) currently reads:

• A pitcher must indicate visually to the umpire-in-chief, the batter and any runners the hand with which he intends to pitch, which may be done by wearing his glove on the other hand while touching the pitcher’s plate. The pitcher is not permitted to pitch with the other hand until the batter is retired, the batter becomes a runner, the inning ends, the batter is substituted for by a pinch-hitter or the pitcher incurs an injury. In the event a pitcher switches pitching hands during an at-bat because he has suffered an injury, the pitcher may not, for the remainder of the game, pitch with the hand from which he has switched. The pitcher shall not be given the opportunity to throw any preparatory pitches after switching pitching hands. Any change of pitching hands must be indicated clearly to the umpire-in-chief.

Both NCAA and the National Federation of High School (NFHS) have adopted similar rules. NCAA rule 9-2k and NFHS rule 6-1-1.

To view Venditte's 8th-inning work of relief follow the link below:

http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/33965510/v146366183/oakbos-switchpitcher-venditte-makes-his-mlb-debut

Venditte threw an average of 86 mph right-handed and 71 mph left-handed in his inning of relief.

[nick2021]

Interested to see how the Astros and Cubs progress.....

[JohnS]

Interested to see how the Astros and Cubs progress.....

The Astros are doing very well coming up to the All-star break. They are 4 games ahead in the AL West (who would have thought that at the beginning of the season?). The Cubs are doing better than their long-suffering diehard fans had hoped for during Spring Training. They are 5 games over .500 and only 1 game behind in NL Wild Card.

[JohnS]

Matz becomes 1st pitcher with 4 RBIs in MLB debut

NEW YORK -- Turns out all the Mets' flagging offense needed was … another starting pitcher.

Steven Matz cracked a two-run double in his first big league plate appearance Sunday, en route to a three-hit, four-RBI day in his Major League debut. Three innings after his double, Matz grounded a single through the left side to improve to 2-for-2. An inning after that, he singled home two runs to tie the franchise records for hits and RBIs in a game by a pitcher in the 7-2 Mets' win.

He is first pitcher on record (since 1914) to have 3 hits and 4 RBIs in his MLB debut and he's the only pitcher with 4+ RBIs in his MLB debut, regardless of hits.

Matz became the first player in franchise history to drive home four runs in his debut, including position players, and the first pitcher period to do it in any game since Dwight Gooden in 1990.

The latest in a long line of pitching uber-prospects that began with Matt Harvey in 2012, Matz began his afternoon with some obvious nerves, firing his first big league pitch to the backstop and allowing a home run to the first batter he faced, Brandon Phillips. But Matz settled down to retire six of the next seven batters heading into the bottom of the second.

An error and two groundouts prompted Reds starter Josh Smith to intentionally walk Eric Campbell with two outs that inning, bringing Matz to the plate with runners on the corners. The Long Island native took a healthy swing and miss at the first pitch he saw, before belting a double over center fielder Billy Hamilton's head. As two runs came around to score, Matz stood at second base, animatedly pumping his fist.

Three innings later, with a man on first base, Matz grounded a single through the vacated left side of the infield to give the Mets runners on the corners in a one-run rally. Then he came to the plate with the bases loaded in the sixth, knocking a two-run single over Phillips' head.

Before this season, Matz had never recorded a professional hit in 20 plate appearances. But he batted .304 with three RBIs in 25 plate appearances at Triple-A Las Vegas -- also posting a 2.19 ERA on the mound -- before earning his call-up Sunday.

Source: http://m.mlb.com/news/article/133449240/steven-matz-first-pitcher-with-4-rbis-in-debut

[Lant63]

Tigers won a walk of thriller. With Victor martinez, Justin Verlander and Bruce rondon now healthy I expect them to have an outstanding July.

Sent by telepathic super powers

-Stogie Boy

[JohnS]

Yes, for those Tigers fans...James McCann did it again!

http://m.mlb.com/video/topic/11493214/v207342483/must-c-clutch-mccann-cranks-walkoff-homer-in-9th

[Destino30]

The Cubbies are certainly improved this year but they just got a stark lesson in what it means to be a real baseball dynasty. Go Cards!

[Benry]

Let's go Mets!! The battle to stay above .500 post all star break has almost begun.

[JohnS]

MVP Trout fuels AL's third straight ASG win

CINCINNATI -- An unquestionably successful All-Star experience in Cincinnati saw some its most memorable moments delivered by two guys from New Jersey. Third baseman Todd Frazier of the host Reds, with an assist from a new format, provided the drama and energy while winning the Gillette Home Run Derby sponsored by Head and Shoulders on Monday. Then, Angels superstar Mike Trout added his own sizzle on Tuesday to the 86th All-Star Game presented by T-Mobile.

Trout hit a leadoff home run and scored two runs, setting the tone for the American League in a 6-3 victory over the National League before 43,656 fans at Great American Ball Park. It was the third straight All-Star win for the AL, which will have home-field advantage once again in the World Series.

Trout became the first back-to-back winner of the All-Star Game MVP Award presented by Chevrolet.

"It means a lot," Trout said. "Obviously, [we] came out with a 'W.' That's the biggest thing. When I go out there, I play my hardest every day. … It's just an incredible honor to be a part of the All-Star Game and win the MVP twice. It's something special, for sure."

Source: http://m.mlb.com/news/article/136689908/key-moments-from-86th-mlb-all-star-game

[JohnS]

HOW IS YOUR TEAM GOING IN 2015 UP TO THE ALL-STAR BREAK?

Well, we are at the halfway (or slightly over) point of the season...so how is your team faring? I guess there's only three options when answering this question...above expectations, as expected or below expectations.

My team, The New York Mets, is 47-42 and boy have we been on a ride this year! It's been entertaining as always to be a Mets fan. I guess I'm happy being above .500 at this point, especially as we've had to do without our Captain, David Wright for most of that time due to injury. Every team has to battle with injuries, it's 'part and parcel' of following baseball, isn't it? We've had Dan Murphy injured also for a significant time, and Zack Wheeler was out for the season before it began!

I wish we had more hitting, but the success story for the Mets has been the pitching...Matt Harvey, Jacob de Grom, Noah Syndergaard (Yeah...the guy they call Thor) and of course Stephen Matz (who would you believe has an injury just after making his MLB debut!). Don't forget Jeurys Familia, who has been a sensation as closer after Jenrry Mejia was suspended this year.

And how about Bartolo Colon? For 41 years of age, he still gives it his all, even if he gets 'touched up' every second game. He has a winning record and got his 2 hits this year!

[ChanceSchmerr]

Lets go Blue Jays!