JoeC

I guess my fundamental disagreement is in the definition of "exploitive" practices. In the examples you give, the rules are in place to prevent "exploitive" practices (your word). My fundamental issue is that the league is, in essence, telling everyone "whelp - there's literally no better way to counteract this tactic that's existed since before Ted Williams. We'll just tell people they aren't allowed to do it." To go back to my response to your "look at other sports" point, I understand and acknowledge your point, and you're right. That said, in most other sports there is a clear trade-off in employing certain tactics for the benefit of a defensive strategy, and the sports in each instance at least made some semblance of an effort to adjust before saying "there's literally nothing we can do." Baseball is the only one of the sports you've mentioned where the prevailing strategic adjustment to "there's a wall there" has been "I'm going to keep beating my head into that wall."

I asked for defense for hockey, football, and soccer. Football has strict formation requirements. Once the ball is snapped, all bets are off.

So I must ask you - what is your purpose as a coach, if coaches (as you say) have no impact? Don't get me wrong - players need to be able to motivate and fix themselves, but the overall strategy and approach are defined by the coaching staff. The data that get fed (on the whole) to the players come through the coaching staff. Yes, it's up to the players to execute and develop the tactics, but if they're not living up to their talent, it's up to the coaching staff to figure out why and to give them the resources (information or otherwise) to succeed. If this failure is endemic to the team, then the coaching staff needs to change their approach.

Can you give me the examples for hockey, football, and soccer, specifically for defense? As long as play is active, defensive players can go wherever they damn well please. There are restrictions on what they can or cannot do during said play, but there's nothing in the NHL rule book that theoretically prevents five defensive players to lay on top of each other and form a wall behind their goaltender. Do I like the shift? No, but I think a movement to ban the shift (which goes back, albeit to a lesser degree, well beyond any of our lifetimes) seems like a shortsighted move without forcing teams / players to develop strategies and tactics to defeat them.

I guess what constitutes a “shift?” would it be illegal for a shortstop to start sprinting toward the 2B bag so that by the time the ball reached the hitter, he would be in a position to field the grounder to the right of the bag? if MLB goes through with a shift ban, expect them to miss some glaring loophole.

Would this also extend to moving an outfielder into the infield to get a 5-infielder configuration with a winning run on 3rd in a walk-off situation?

Hell - if they do, good for them (and him). Was doing us no good by being here. If he can turn it around somewhere else (especially in the NL), then great.

that he was... but lower comedic value by not having been directly quoted.

(update - I now realize it was Eaton who called Drake a "leader," not Sale)

No, I think Drake LaRoche's leadership has led to a growing-up of sorts for Sale.

Random thought - the next addition to the 40-man (not off of the IL) should be a 3rd catcher. If TLR keeps up this "DH Grandal and PH for McGuire late in the game" crap (which shouldn't happen to begin with since Grandal shouldn't be DHing), pretty soon we'll get ourselves into a shitty situation with a reliever hitting for himself and Leury behind the dish in the 11th inning.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/06/white-sox-sign-mike-wright.html Not sure if it belonged here or in the FutureSox board. Org depth signing.

To me Sheets in a no-brainer.

I’d want to break out too, if I had any place better to go.

If it were 2 or 3 guys underperforming, that’s on the players. if it’s 2/3 (or more) of the offense underperforming, that’s on the coaches. the team is far more talented than this. Coaches are paid to extract the most out of their players. Period.

That right there is hindsight managing. you get ready to play BEFORE the series. That way you don’t have to get mad.

You win the internet today.

Time to let Bummer finish Lopez's implosion.

This obviously didn't age well.

Gotta rest 'em for winnable games.

I have more faith in Lopez than most at this point maybe.

Moncada with an RBI single to get us JUST close enough to make this game more painful.

Glad I'm 100% wrong so far.

Guessing third pitch 0-2 pop-up. First pitch down the pipe with a fastball for a taken strike. Second pitch chases a breaking ball in the dirt for 0-2. Third pitch gets under a fastball elevated in the strike zone for the pop-up.

Twice! In one play!