Offseason baseball Thread

Where does Iole work these days?

 

I'm not invested in that I no longer care if they win or lose. I don't root when I watch a game involving the Pirates. They don't deserve my interest. Being bad is one thing. I can accept being bad. They were bad in the '80s and I was a loyal fan. Not trying? Sorry, no, at that point I'm not going to invest in them emotionally any more.

I am invested in that they are deeply connected to my hometown. I have friends and family members who still watch and go to games. I feel like they are breaking a promise that was made to the city when PNC Park was built. I feel like they are doing a disservice to the residents of Pittsburgh who support them. I don't understand how any fan can support a team that always puts the bottom line first and constantly lies about it. I went to the occasional game before I left Pittsburgh, mostly because I just love to watch baseball and I enjoy the ballpark. I've been there exactly once in the last 14 years, the time since we moved, so my daughter could see the park.

My disillusionment with baseball's financial system comes from being a fan of that team from my early childhood through 1992, watching that team that reached three consecutive NLCS ripped apart by a financial system that favored the big markets and ownership that refused to spend even what it could.

I'm not sure if that was clear or if you even wanted a serious explanation, but there it is. I can't bring myself to care if they win or lose any more, but it does piss me off when they refuse to even try.

 

Looking forward to all the Pirate ticket bargains on StubHub. It's only a two-hour drive to see that beautiful park. I'll be happy coming down to see the Dodgers or Nationals or Cubs. Even two different free shirt Fridays vs. the Cardinals! (Pirates fedora on Saturday, July 7, @Dick Whitman.)

 

Molina would be the first Baseball Hall of Famer with a neck tattoo, right?

 

Molina might be the most successful person with a neck tattoo in history.

 

There should be plenty available, even more than usual. Quite a few Pirates fans are throwing their hands up. Many of them will come slinking back once the games start, but I think this latest purge may have finally been one to many for some folks.

 

Since Iverson blew all his money, it's probably either Molina or Lil Wayne.

 

The Undertaker used to have his former wife's name tattooed on his neck. Now, he has something else on there.

 

25 years ago, (before Internet/Twitter/iPhone) I was at the W's MLK Day game (1 pm start; they were so far from the marquee game its hilarious) and the murmur started rumbling through the crowd about a Giants transaction and yep, heard that the Giants had acquired a Pirates OF, former MVP, Barry Bonds. Now of course Bonds was about 28-29, entering his prime (or pre-PED prime) not a 31 yr old on the downside, but still the parallels are there for McCutcheon.

 

Still Yahoo. Boxing/MMA beats.

 

Giants say Andrew McCutchen to play right field, with Hunter Pence in left

Hmmm ... this is interesting. But then this cools my jets:

The Giants are more likely to seek a less expensive defensive center fielder such as Jarrod Dyson rather than a pricier long-term option such as Lorenzo Cain.

I could live with that, though.

 

Fascinating Jeff Passan story on the whys and hows of the stagnant free agent market:

Here's why baseball's economic system might be broken