The 2023 Running Baseball Thread

He's got a shot, but I wonder if they go Betts has an MVP, so I'll vote for the guy who doesn't have an MVP

 

If the Guardians can’t fix you, you’re done. Syndergaard now pitches like a beer league softball pitcher. He cannot use his legs. No plan of attack and he cannot locate anything. If you look at his outings with Cleveland they don’t look terrible numerically, but the outs were incidental. Absolute slop stuff and isn’t crafty enough for it to work.

 

A bunch of Tigers fans were on Twitter/X last night debating the possibility of trying to fix him.

He turns 31 tomorrow. His WAR this season is -0.9. He's been in more doctor's offices than a malpractice lawyer. His last real good season was last decade. It's time to drop the hammer on Thor.

Hard pass.

 

I remember reading the Mets wanted Aaron Sanchez in the Dickey trade and the Jays turned that down and offered Syndergaard instead. Sanchez had a terrific season in 2016 but has played for four teams since leaving Toronto and is scuffling in AAA for the D'backs this season.

 

Maybe its already been mentioned, but since when did Little League stop calling batters out for throwing the bat?

Louis Lappe's walkoff home run

 

There's only one destination for a pitcher that broken down: the Giants.

 

I hope so too. The city is spending a lot of money to repair and update Rickwood. I can't help but think that it would be a helluva moment for Willie Mays to walk into that old ballpark and see it looking all shiny and crisp. That game is going to be a very big deal around here. I hope to catch the game but that's going to be a very tough ticket indeed. If nothing else it's a giant boost to the preservation of one of the cathedrals of the game. So many legendary players played on that field.

 

Betts definitely has a shot. Both are putting up insane numbers for great teams. Acuna obviously has a massive advantage in stolen bases. Everything else offensively is relatively close, with Betts having an advantage due to his edge in home runs. Don't sleep on the defensive component, specifically Betts playing at second base and shortstop as well as the outfield. They needed his versatility after losing Gavin Lux for the season. That should be a factor in his favor.

 

It’s Acuña’s to lose. If he gets on first, two pitches later he’s on third and by then the Braves offensive machine is primed.

 

I just watched Acyna personally in RF yesterday, he didn’t do anything with the bar or anything special defensively but you can see the bat speed, the wrists, they way he patrols RF, it was a joy to watch.

Even so, Betts has raised his BA over 40 pts as the year has gone on. That’s really hard to do. He’s now giving Ohtani a run for the OPS title. His D is probably even better than Acuma’s D. Forget past awards, he’s the MVP.

 

I thought about that. Also, on the Curacao grand slam, the kid stopped and had a hug-a-thon with the first-base coach. Not supposed to do that, either.

 

I don't remember the team, and it was early in the LLWS. But a catcher held onto a throw from the outfield, blocked the plate, tagged out the runner and proceeded to pump his fist twice near the face of the runner.

Now, his coach did read him the riot act as he returned to the dugout. But I thought that was a really bad look.