2025 MLB Season Thread
The Tokyo series is March 18-19th, will air on FOX, and is between The Cubs and The Dodgers.
The Regular Season starts Ma
. When a ball misses the corner by 1/16" but gets called a strike anyway, all we see is they got the call wrong.
What I'm more concerned with are the calls on balls that are several inches off the plate -where it makes you wonder if the ump had something in his eye (or has a bet on the game 😀. Way more of those in the games I watch compared to past seasons (and I've watched a lot of games since I retired from full time work a few years ago).
People have complained about officiating for as long as sports have been played. I'd argue umps are better now than they've ever been, we just have more technology available to us now which let's us see every mistake, big or small. Though yes, that also means we have the technology to get the calls right, but that's a different discussion imo. People, especially on the intern
Working the plate is incredibly hard. There are some really good umpires. The problem is there is no accountability. Bad umpires don't get fired and work the plate just as often as good umpires. The plate is way harder and way more important than the bases. Pay the food plate umpires a bonus and give them the plate more often.
Bad umps need to be able to fired. The best umps should be working the playoffs and the best of the best for the world series. Even rotating 6 umpires for the playoffs/ world series is stupid. As you said we have all of the data now. Take the best 2-3 plate guys and just have them work the plate in the WS. No sense in having them twiddling their thumbs working left/right field.
I just looked up that trash heap Laz Diaz. He's worked 3 world series, 4 lcs and 7 division series. That's inexcusable. A pitch 1/16th of an inch of the plate at 99 mph being called a strike doesn't bother me at all. Clowns like Diaz still having a job does.
break up the rockies, where are these wins suddenly coming from
5 losses in a row for the Yanks and 3 wins in a row for the Rocks. What is going on here?!?
baby steps
What I'm more concerned with are the calls on balls that are several inches off the plate -where it makes you wonder if the ump had something in his eye (or has a bet on the game 😀. Way more of those in the games I watch compared to past seasons (and I've watched a lot of games since I retired from full time work a few years ago).
I obviously can't speak to what you have and haven't seen but I'd need to see some kind of proof that more calls on pitches way off the plate are missed than in past years. There may be some confirmation bias at play here.
Working the plate is incredibly hard. There are some really good umpires. The problem is there is no accountability. Bad umpires don't get fired and work the plate just as often as good umpires. The plate is way harder and way more important than the bases. Pay the food plate umpires a bonus and give them the plate more often.Bad umps need to be able to fired. The best umps sho
Agree with all of this. I think umpires as a group do a better job than ever, but there are clearly some that have no business behind the plate. Not putting them back there seems like an easy fix.
Here's my list of ways to fix the ball/strike problem:
1)MLB has the stats to know who are and aren't good behind the plate. Stop putting the bad ones back there. Have a max of two umps on each crew that work the plate. How that gets split up, how they have to adjust pay for the more demanding workload, and how they handle an injury or whatever is up to MLB to figure out. And yeah, only the best work the playoffs. Not just some schmuck because he's been in the league forever and may have been good once upon a time
2)In lieu of going fully automated, stay with the challenge system but greatly increase the number of challenges. It takes like 2 seconds to check. Why not make an effort to get it right every time? Whether that's 15 per team, one per AB, one per player....whatever. Figure it out. And the catcher can challenge as well(or is that already a thing?). Not the pitcher, though he could signal to the catcher if he thinks it should be challenged. Again, it's taking almost no time to check.
3)Give the umpire an earpiece so he knows what pitch is coming.
Tigers-Pirates rained out, so doubleheader tomorrow. Neither team flipped their starters and as such they are depriving us of a Skubal vs Skenes game. Bastards.
I obviously can't speak to what you have and haven't seen but I'd need to see some kind of proof that more calls on pitches way off the plate are missed than in past years. There may be some confirmation bias at play here.Agree with all of this. I think umpires as a group do a better job than ever, but there are clearly some that have no business behind the plate. Not puttin
All good ideas
Don't look now but Acuna is sneaking up on .400 halfway thru June. 😀
Mets on the edge of the cliff. Lost 6 in a row, sending a kid out to pitch who got shelled last time he tried, 2nd try against wheeler. Tied for first staring into the abyss, gonna need 10+ runs fellas or things could start getting ugly.
Mets on the edge of the cliff. Lost 6 in a row, sending a kid out to pitch who got shelled last time he tried, 2nd try against wheeler. Tied for first staring into the abyss, gonna need 10+ runs fellas or things could start getting ugly.
I swear they put something in the water when the Mets go to Atlanta. TJ Eckleburg is probably behind it.
Skenes needs to demand a trade tonight
And Cruz can **** right off
Mets have lost 7 straight.
I should prolly start attending games again. They’re 4-0 for when I’ve been there this season.
It’s okay. I’m a Tigers fan now.
Sorry McMuffin, but this was pretty cool.
https://youtu.be/dfWgswhXChQ?si=6kZog3Nu...
Embedded version:
Sorry McMuffin, but this was pretty cool.https://youtu.be/dfWgswhXChQ?si=6kZog3Nu...Embedded version:
I’ll allow it.
Spoiler
Was pretty ****ing cool.
Lindor/Nimmo/Soto
Back to Back to Back HR's
Spoiler
No, I am not at the game.
If Kershaw, Scherzer, and Verlander all hang it up after this year, Gerrit Cole at just 153 wins is the next active leader.
There are ONLY 19 active pitchers with 100+ wins. That seems remarkably low. And many of those guys have been barely active or in a few cases haven't appeared in an MLB game this year like Rich Hill or Yu Darvish. Or they seem cooked like Nola or Morton.
How about this. For pitchers under the age of 30, Logan Webb's 62 wins is in the lead.
We could conceivably soon see a league where only a couple of pitchers with 100 wins are active. 200 wins is the new 300 that's for sure.
I think Verlander wanted a shot at being the last 300 game winner, but without a win so far this year it looks like that's out of reach.
Elly broke his bid for a zero triple season today. Having a great year but that stat was anomalous.
Tuma having started this thread is awesome.
Guy knows baseball, Guy loves baseball, Guy is baseball.
Mets probably going to win 15 of their next 20 games now. They're back! They're getting Doug back!!!
Spoiler
The Hangover reference
Mets made a MLB record 7 solo home runs today.
Way to BREAK OUT from a losing streak!!!
