gusguyman

No, you wouldn't have, you'd have found some other obscure stat to avoid any sort of hope or expectations. I like ya Jack but you do this non-stop. And for the most part, that's fine. We may not believe you, but if this is truly the way you get the most enjoyment out of baseball, then more power to you. But I draw the line at trying to suck the rest of us down into your Eeyore fandom. You constantly come on here looking for validation of your latest theory on why the White Sox actually suck at baseball. It is exhausting and just creates massive arguments that spiral into toxicity. I totally respect your need to manage your own expectations, but I don't think its too much to ask to stop using us as a fun house mirror during the process. Find a way to separate your monumental pessimism from your posting.

Eat enough White Castle and you won't need the blender.

I sure hope Goodwin sticks around, I could see him being this year's Geoff Blum

Nitpicking a bit, but I just want to push back on this specific argument, because it is common and really unfair. These guys don't have any negotiating power. They aren't allowed to say "I don't want to be controlled for 6 years" and try to negotiate that away. Their choice is to either sign the contract, or not play at all. And while technically the MLBPA represents them in labor discussions, it has been clear for decades that the MLBPA has no interest in fighting for any sort of major rights or protections for minor league players. So they don't really even have an avenue to collectively bargain a better deal for themselves. This isn't the case of a guy negotiating a contract, signing it, and then regretting it because it turned out not to be as advantageous as they hoped. This is someone who has been strong-armed into a terrible contract with no other options other than to quit.

I completely agree with the general point you are making here about the minors and releasing blocked players, but I'll add the caveat that common-sense compromises are still the best way forward. By that I mean that, in this case, Yermin realized he was blocked sometime in the few weeks leading up to the trade deadline. Consequently, I think it is completely fair for the team to say "we will grant you a release if we can't trade you by the deadline to a team with a clearer path." No clue if any of that happened here, but I don't think that approach would be unfair at all.

This game could be very telling for Cease (inasmuch as a single game can ever be that telling). He has definitely shown stretches of good improvement this year, but he still hasn't really shown the ability to find his stuff when it disappears for an inning, or when he doesn't have it from the start. He's lucky to have a shutout right now, but he can't really be trusted as more than a 4 until he can find his way to his B stuff when the A stuff isn't there right away.

He's blocked by TA7

Madrigal is on the IL, I don't think anyone else needs a booster

"Daddy, where do Drake LaRoches come from?"

Our replay booth sucks ass

They aren't showing the replay, did he just miss him with the tag?

https://media1.giphy.com/media/d7TJ3yhA8eVkCFzK6Y/giphy.gif

I brought it with me from San Fran, so I'm used to it lol

First home game in 3 years! I missed this park.

I'm here for a good time, not an accurate time

Apparently no one wants the gamethread after yesterday's beatdown. Ye of little faith. I'll guess I can handle the next few days of gamethreads ? Pitching probables are LHP Hard Carl Rodon vs RHP Luis Garcia. Garcia was the Astros 13th ranked prospect last year, but he's having a solid season. He has 63.1 IP across 13 games, 11 of those starts. He has compiled a 2.98 ERA, but it is a half run better than his 3.40 xERA, and a full run better than his 3.83 FIP. He throws a 93 MPH fastball almost 50% of the time, then mixes in 21% cutter, 15% slider, 9% changeup, and 8% curveball. His statcast numbers are solid, but definitely not special. Rodon on the other hand has absolutely been special. He has a 1.89 ERA, a 2.53 xERA, and a 2.42 FIP. His statcast numbers are elite across the board.... except for exit velocity and hard hit%, strangely. It will be interesting to see if that is a problem for him against an Astros team that is in the middle of a massive power surge, with 10 straight games of 2+ home runs, led by Jose Altuve, who has 8 HRs in his last 10 games. Oh, and fuck the Astros, they are dirty dirty cheaters. EDIT - Lineups:

Liam has to be the first player I've seen who yells, screams, fist pumps, and stomps around just as much on the field as I do in my living room while watching.

He says while cheering for a team whose best pitcher (by fWar) has been Carlos Rodon.

Mendick is the latest in a long line of super-subs who either stay on the bench or in AAA as the hero, or become starters long enough to become the villain. Leury, Yolmer, etc. Maybe he'll breakout, but he's probably just a serviceable ballplayer (and that is just fine considering he is like the 6th man up!)

A cop in Phoenix begs to differ

YAAAAAAZ QUEEN!

Jason is PISSED and I am loving it

Not knowing who the home plate umpire was is the highest compliment you can give him.

Is this what it means for "the clubhouse to handle it"? Because I'd much rather Tony get himself ejected than Gio