MLB '24 Regular Season Thread

That is absolutely remarkable, and something that nobody even dared to dream of a generation ago. Not even Mantle had that combination of power and speed. Not Mays.

 

I've always kind of low-key enjoyed the Brewers. I went to a game at then-Miller Park in 2010. A random mid-week August game against the Dodgers. Brewers were already under-500 and not going anywhere fast. Still drew like 35K for a fucking Tuesday night special. I left thinking that house is fun place to be when those guys are good.

 

Make it 6-for-6 with 10 RBI. And two steals.
My initial reaction was that this has to be the greatest single-game performance in MLB history. Then I checked to make sure. Hard-Hittin' Mark Whiten went 5-for-5 with four HR and 12 RBI in the second game of a doubleheader on 9/7/1993. Handsome Jim Bottomley had a 6-for-6, two-HR, 12 RBI game 100 years and three days ago. Neither of those slackers stole a base in those games, however.

 

The biggest thing for me with Ohtani is that I'm glad fans can universally enjoy him and what he's doing. I admit to enjoying the wild "steroid" era of the late 90s and early 2000s. I liked them all, but I absolutely understood why people were turned off by it.

But Ohtani....How can not enjoy this guy? In such a short time he's given so many great performances. Whether it was pitchng the ninth and closing out the WBC or his MVP seasons and now 50/50. This is the guy that we tell our grandkids about the way our grandfathers told us about the guys they grew up watching.

 

Ohtani becomes the first player to drive in ≥ 8 runs while stealing multiple bases in a game. Previous record for RBI in a multi-steal game (7) achieved by three players: Mickey Mantle, Brandon Phillips and Gary Sheffield.

 

Anthony Rendon had 14 RBI in 206 at bats this season. Sho had 10 RBI in six.

Oh Angels

 

The Ohtani stuff is sick, sick, sick. Super cool to watch.

 

Rocky Top!

 

Doesn’t field, throw or pitch. Seems pretty average to me.

 

WAR. What is it good for? According to Wins Above Replacement, Ohtani's season thus far is roughly the 500th best in history. His WAR before today was 7.3 -- appreciably less awesome than the unforgettable 2017 campaign of the Angels' Andrelton Simmons (7.9).

 

I was in Detroit for my grandparents' 50th wedding anniversary in 1975. Dad decided to take us boys to Tiger Stadium for one game. So I was there when Fred Lynn had the three-homer, triple, single, 10 RBI night in a 15-1 romp by the Red Sox over the Tigers.

Every ball he hit that night was a rocket, including one off the roof in right. However, unlike Ohtani, he did make one out.

That's the closest I come to seeing that kind of performance.

 

It's because he's dinged for being a DH. He'd be closer to 9.0 if he played the field.