The Official MLB 2007 Thread
 

Less then 24 hours until the Mets kick off their season!!

I love the way some parity has been bought to the league, it should be a great season. Since I moved I am 10 minutes from Great American Ballpark so I plan on going to alot of games.

Too bad the Reds have to play in those games (ducks before Shorty sees me).

I personally think SI's (the mag, not the FOFCer) pick of the Angels over the Dodgers in the World Series is part of the East Coast master plan to jinx the West Coast and try to give creedence to the East Coast bias they alreayd live and die by. :)

At least they didn't pick the Yankees

That reminds me- we don't have a projection thread. Hell, let's put them here.

SI

I would kill just to see the Angels and Dodgers play in a World Series. Yeah, I'd be rooting for the Dodgers all the way, but my uncle is nearly as big an Angel fan as I am a Dodger fan...that would be a FUN 4-7 games.

Mets over the Red Socks in 7.

yes I'm a homer and not ashamed of it.

Location: Cincinnati.

I'm guessing that either Lathum's use of 'homer' calls for a "you keep on using that word..." reference, or else he's a NY native. :D

Time for the WORLD CHAMPIONS to defend their title!!

I have tickets for Tuesday's, championship ring replica night! Wonder if I could use that to pick up the ladies? (as long as my wife lets me go out to the bars) :)

But Todd, isn't that what got Tony in trouble? ;)

Too bad they're not even going to win the division... :p

I'm wayyyy ahead of him in that department. :D

Oh no you didn't! ;)

They will definitly finish ahead of the Astros! :p

ESPN's 18 predicting experts came up with 17 different world series teams. I'm pretty sure that a higher range than what was predicted for Super Bowl teams last August.

There's just no way that's legit in what people really believe.

SI

Yeah, but they'll both lose to the... Reds? No. Brewers... maybe, if everything goes right. Cubs? Nope. Pirates- yeah, that's gotta be it! Man, the NL Central sucks again

SI

I hate being on the WI/MN border. No White Sox games for me and I can't afford mlb.tv :(

The only one that was an obvious goof was the Cubs/White Sox prediction. But as pointed out in another thread, there's really only 7 or 8 teams who have NO shot at the playoffs. And any playoff team can get through a couple of short series to get to the playoffs.

Sucks? I think it's going to be quite a competitive division this year and I also think record wise every team but the Pirates will be within the rest of the NL leaders.

We'll see about that, my fine feathered friend...

My lock predictions:

AL EAST: Yankees
AL CENTRAL: Tigers
AL WEST: Angles
AL WILD CARD: Red Sox

NL EAST: Phillies
NL CENTRAL: Cardinals
NL WEST: Dodgers
WILD CARD: Padres

ALCS: Red Sox over Yankees
NLCS: Dodgers over Cardinals

World Series: Red Sox over Dodgers

1 hour and 42 mins before the Cardinals take the field!

you have lost all credibility with me by not picking the Mets to make the post season.

Figures... we don't get ESPN on basic here *mutter* No baseball for me.

how the hell can you have basic cable with no ESPN?

Sopcast is your friend.

Besides, isn't women's basketball on ESPN?

That's what I want to know. I get 2 MTV channels and other likewise lame shit, but no ESPN.

Well, I meant for later tonight.

i think women's basketball is still on ESPN.

Baseball is on ESPN2 but let's face it, if they don't have ESPN with the basic package, it's highly unlikely they have ESPN2.

/tk

Yeah, ESPN must have sold its soul to the NCAA for its football rights, so in return, they must be obligated to put the women's NCAA tournament on ESPN, relegating the first MLB game to the year to ESPN2. Embarrassing.

And the Women's Final will get better ratings than probably any ESPN Sunday Night Basebal game this year. I think last year the Women's Final Four's ratings were 3X the Opening Night game on ESPN2.

I can't imagine any circumstance under which I would watch women's basketball. Maybe with my daughters, since I'd like them to learn how to play.

And opening night of baseball really deserves a big spotlight. I think they should start the season on Sunday afternoon, actually.

Baseball's here. That's awesome.

GO CARDINALS!!

And it should damn well start in Cincinnati

SI

Absolutely.

I am currently reading a collection of essays by Roger Angell, one of the best baseball writers of all time and here's what was said in the intro by Richard Ford:

"The game offers regular-sized humans performing oversized, occassionally glorious feats with grace and precision, all of it viewable in normally nice weather, pretty surroundings, and in real time....Meanwhile, the game's nature doesn't change much over a lifetime but maintains its casual, elemental sturdiness reminiscent of pastoral, patriotic origins."

I am always happy when baseball season arrives. It may not be the most exciting sport, esp. televised, but it is a welcomed change of pace after a season of football 'roid rages. Baseball has truly marked the time when it begins in the newness of spring.

M-E-T-S METS METS METS!!!!!!

lets run this thing up on carpenter baby!!!!!

We're going 162-0 !!

Absolutely. Gotta love the timely hitting from guys like LoDuca and Green.

The defense has been stellar. If we can play D like this all year that will make up for the marginal starting pitching

"Marginal" starters is such an exaggeration. Do you remember some of the names that were sent out there last season? Gonzalez, Lima, Soler...not to mention the definition of mediocrity, Steve Trachsel. Those spots are being filled by Maine (excellent stuff and was great under pressure in the playoffs, I expect a great year out of him), Perez (will surely be erratic, with some great games and some bad ones mixed together), and Pelfrey (who could have a Verlander-like impact).

Yes, El Duque will surely break down eventually...but by the time that happens, Pedro will be back and I think he'll be at full-strength. As long as nothing catastrophic happens between now and July, I think his surgery will end up being a blessing in disguise. He'll be fresh and will be as good as any deadline addition could be.

I'm honestly not the homer-type who can't see flaws in his team...and that said, I'm not in any way worried about the starting pitching this season.

If you think you're going to be getting the old Pedro back when he comes back, you're going to be setting yourself up for heartbreak.

He'll be good, and he'll win his share of games, but 3.50-4.00 sounds more realistic than 2.00-2.50 to me in terms of his ERA.

Well condisering their lineup that is just fine.

I really don't think Pedro comes back at all, or if he does, it's 1-2 starts before he shuts it down. An early demise has been predicted for him for a long time now, just like for his brother.

He's not exactly known for his timely return from injuries. He'll milk it until early September, and then bitch when the NYC media puts the heat on him.

Herb Carneal died today, I know most probably don't know who he is, but he was the voice of the Twins for 45 years though the last few were on part time duty. RIP Herb

One of your starters is a reject from the Pirates and you aren't worried?

While it is embarrassing...nothing to do with football. The conferences and individual bowls sell rights to the games. The NCAA basically makes nothing on NCAA I-A football television rights.

Nowhere in that did I say that he was going to be the Pedro of Expos/early Sox days. When I said full-strength, I meant that it will be like he's coming out of spring training, and by starting later in the season he won't break down by August. Your description is exactly what I'm expecting...and yes, that will be enough.


He's a month ahead of schedule already, so his return has been moved up from August to July. Again, not worried. Feel free to bump this post in August though.


This statement by itself should be why I'm not worried. No, it doesn't concern me that an organization like the Pirates took a guy who throws 98 mph and tried turning him into a finesse pitcher. Plus, one of their last rejects was Jason Schmidt. He turned out okay.

Anyone else going to the Nats game today?