LittleHurt05 Posted October 5, 2013 Share Posted October 5, 2013 Two weeks ago the A's had a Thursday night crowd of 11,461. Now suddenly we are supposed to love and admire how intense the fans in the upper deck are? f*** that. Show up at least once during the season. Maybe they are the same people that go to Giants games? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 5, 2013 Share Posted October 5, 2013 Still rooting for them. f*** Detroit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 One hell of a pitching matchup in game 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Guess Verlander's not taking too well to being skipped as the Game 1 starter. Ultimate competitor. Saw some articles saying that Verlander should be in the bullpen and his start should go to Porcello. Really? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swingandalongonetoleft Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 5, 2013 -> 08:59 PM) Guess Verlander's not taking too well to being skipped as the Game 1 starter. Ultimate competitor. Saw some articles saying that Verlander should be in the bullpen and his start should go to Porcello. Really? A joy to watch him pitch, even though the Sox get to deal with him several times a year. Whoever wrote an article like that no doubt saw how the Giants got cute with Lincecum in the pen, and figured why not? Nothing else to write about, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Amazing game... Got to give credit to the rookie hanging in there all game long against Verlander. Lose this game and the A's are probably done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Detroit Tigers Need to Send Justin Verlander to Bullpen from yahoo contributor network COMMENTARY | When the Detroit Tigers made Justin Verlander the highest paid pitcher before the 2013 season, it appeared baseball's best starter was only going to get better. What the team has witnessed this year has been far from a dream: it's a terrible nightmare. Verlander has struggle for much of the year, earning a rough 13-12 record with a 3.66 ERA. Though he has 195 strikeouts, the 30-year-old has yet to find an out-pitch, five months into the season. Maybe it's fans having unrealistic expectations after a 24 win 2011 season capped off with the Cy Young award. Or maybe it's a pure example of a fireballer suffering from wear, tear, and age. But his latest showing, September 18 against the Seattle Mariners, takes the cake. Verlander lasted seven innings, but allowed three earned runs, including a solo homer to Justin Smoak, against a light-hitting Mariners team that won 8-0. With the playoffs just two weeks away, the Tigers will be forced to make some difficult decisions. It's time they start doing that now. Send Verlander to the bullpen. Two years ago, heck, even last year, this would've been a crazy idea. But Verlander has fell so far from those days that even the Tigers' fifth starter, Rick Porcello, has out-pitched him. If the postseason started today, there would have to be some serious consideration to choose Porcello over Verlander, especially with a stronger infield defense anchored by Jose Iglesias. Verlander hasn't been himself at all this season, and the playoffs are no time to try to regain his confidence and ability to overpower hitters with ease. Again, the proof that he's not himself is found in his recent outing against the Mariners. Offensively, Seattle ranks in the bottom nine amongst major league teams. Their .239 average ranks 27. Verlander allowed three walks in the shutout, something that's received attention with his command issues. The Tigers have been shutout 11 times this season. Four of those have occurred with Verlander on the mound. Sure, Verlander only controls one side of that spectrum with him never picking up a bat. He can't account for the run support teammates provide him with. But that's not the point. Verlander's still considered an ace, the type of pitcher whom gives his team an opportunity to win a game every five days. Yet, he hasn't done that consistently this season, as Max Scherzer has taken over that duty Sending Verlander to the bullpen before the playoffs begin could be exactly what he needs. Scherzer had a similar demotion in 2010, but was rather sent down to Toledo to work on his craft. He returned to Detroit a much better pitcher and continues to be on the verge of winning his 20th game. So far, Verlander has avoided that type of demotion, even during his awful 2008 season. Being baseball's highest paid pitcher and having 137 major league wins, bullpen duties might turn out to be an embarrassment, but it could help Verlander turn his game around. At this point, anything's worth a shot. The Tigers are now 3-9 in games started by Verlander since the All-Star break. If they want to make a deep postseason run, it's time the team considers making a change. Ricky Lindsay has followed the Detroit Tigers and Major League Baseball with a close eye from Metro Detroit for several years. He's currently the sports editor for his college newspaper, The Michigan Journal, where he covers the University of Michigan football team on Saturday afternoons from Ann Arbor. You can find him on Twitter @RLindz35. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleHurt05 Posted October 6, 2013 Author Share Posted October 6, 2013 QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 5, 2013 -> 10:59 PM) Amazing game... Got to give credit to the rookie hanging in there all game long against Verlander. Lose this game and the A's are probably done. Gray looks like he is twelve years old Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 What a game. Oakland wins. Thank god. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pettie4sox Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 DOWN GOES DETOILET! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Except the Billy Beane Cult will start up again if they win the World Series. Still, that would be better for baseball, and maybe get the A's a new stadium. Just wonder if the A's have enough offense with Moss, Cespedes and Donaldson. Reddick's had a disappointing year....still with Lowrie and Crisp, they've got some pesky hitters. That catcher Vogt, another example of a player who was available to every GM in baseball. White Sox were forcing Flowers into the catcher's position at that point, when he was released. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleHurt05 Posted October 6, 2013 Author Share Posted October 6, 2013 QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Oct 4, 2013 -> 11:33 PM) Still rooting for them. f*** Detroit I concur. f*** Detroit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 (edited) QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 6, 2013 -> 04:40 AM) Except the Billy Beane Cult will start up again if they win the World Series. Still, that would be better fMinnesota,aseball, and maybe get the A's a new stadium. Just wonder if the A's have enough offense with Moss, Cespedes and Donaldson. Reddick's had a disappointing year....still with Lowrie and Crisp, they've got some pesky hitters. That catcher Vogt, another example of a player who was available to every GM in baseball. White Sox were forcing Flowers into the catcher's position at that point, when he was released. Rays are the only bearable AL representative and they are down 2. I think Detroit, Red Sox and Oakland.would be my 4th, 5th, and 6th teams I least want to win a world series. Cubs, Minnesota, and Cleveland being worse. Really those are the only 6 I would care negatively about winning and half of them happen to be in the AL playoffs. Edited October 6, 2013 by Buehrle>Wood Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swingandalongonetoleft Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Oct 5, 2013 -> 10:40 PM) Except the Billy Beane Cult will start up again if they win the World Series. As the fan of a team that has Hawk Harrelson as the TV play-by-play man, that could potentially result in endless fun during Sox 2014 broadcasts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 (edited) I want the Pirates because their bench coach, Jeff Banister, was our manager in 1995 when we won the South Atlantic League championship with Augusta. That, and Pirates fans have been suffering for over two decades (Sid Bream/Terry Pendleton!) and it's one of those Rust Belt cities that deserves good things....well, unlike Cleveland and Detroit, haha. Finally, after reading the article about defensive positioning....they're showing the signs of a progressive organization that isn't trapped in Hawk Harrelson-ish "old school" baseball cliches. The adapted, they changed, they moved into the future, something I wish the White Sox would do more of. From most desired to least desired World Series winners... 1. Pirates 2. Dodgers (Puig Mania) 3. A's (so they'll get a new stadium deal finally) 4. Rays (I would have had them higher but with Price no longer dominant, can't imagine them getting far...beware Longoria in last game of the season though, my God...finally, of the small market franchises, the Gold Standard for success despite sub 20,000 in attendance on a nightly basis) 5. Cardinals (my favorite NL team growing up, you gotta admire 10/14 playoff appearances and how they've carried on without Pujols, the overall job Matheny and Mozeliak have done) 6. Braves (meh...don't want to see Greg Walker become a cult hero because it's their pitching that has carried them all season, kind of like Billy Beane's early 00's A's teams with Mulder, Hudson and Zito) 7. Red Sox 8. Tigers Edited October 6, 2013 by caulfield12 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nickofypres Posted October 6, 2013 Share Posted October 6, 2013 Anyone but Detroit. f*** those assholes. Detroit sports fans are the epitome of bandwagon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pettie4sox Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Reddick goes yard. 2-0 A's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pettie4sox Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Hitting is contagious, Vogt with a triple. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Sanchez looks like s***. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pettie4sox Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Crisp with a sac fly. 3-0 A's. Top 4th Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almagest Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Tigers rallying. 3-1 after Hunter single, Fielder single, Victor Martinez double. Runners on 2nd and 3rd, 1 out. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almagest Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Tied after Peralta single. 3-3. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LittleHurt05 Posted October 7, 2013 Author Share Posted October 7, 2013 QUOTE (almagest @ Oct 7, 2013 -> 01:39 PM) Tied after Peralta single. 3-3. Looks like a good move to play him in left field Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Buehrle>Wood Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Moss with a bomb. Believe Sanchez lead the league this year in lowest hr per nine. Now given up two today. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
almagest Posted October 7, 2013 Share Posted October 7, 2013 Seth Smith with a 2 run homer. 6-3 A's. Woo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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