Major League Baseball: 2016 Season

[JohnBM01]

The next game of New York Yankees at Houston Astros went to the Yankees. The Yankees won 6-3 over my Astros. The Yanks put together some solid innings to be ahead for good. The Astros just couldn't do much of anything while the Yankees kept putting on the offense. So after being 10 games over .500 heading into this series, the 'Stros are heading in the WRONG direction having lost back-to-back games. It was a win for CC Sabathia and a Save from Andrew Miller for NYY. Doug Fister was HOU's loser. One last chance for the Astros to beat the Yanks in this series, and that chance happens tomorrow night.


Congratulations to Tuesday's other winners.

 

[JohnBM01]

The Houston Astros prevented getting swept by winning 4-1 tonight here in Houston. The win went to Lance McCullers for HOU, and he got a Save from Will Harris. Masahiro Tanaka was the NYY loser. We are now 55-46 on the 2016 season.

Up next for the Houston Astros Baseball Club... after we take tomorrow off, a little GTPlanet inner-forum rivalry will happen. This time, it's my Houston Astros ready to entertain some cats in MoTown. So the Astros will head up to Detroit to take on the Detroit Tigers. This would be JohnBM01's Astros vs. Joey D and AnthonyD1993's Detroit Tigers.


Congratulations to Wednesday's other winners.

 

[Ken]

Damn, I was hoping for the sweep over your Astros.

 

[AnthonyD1993]

I'm amazed that Detroit managed to sweep Boston.

 

[Dolph Drago]

I'm stunned the Reds managed to win 2 of 3 at San Fran to take their fourth straight series since the break. What in the world is going on? We have an off day tomorrow, then a 3 game set at San Diego. After that is another off day, followed by what could be a brutal trio of series; 3 at home against the Cardinals, 3 at Pittsburgh, then another 3 against the Cards again, only at St. Louis. We'll see what this team is made of.

Another note. Jay Bruce has homered in 5 straight games, and one of those was a multi-homer game. I like the guy, but now is THE time to trade him. His value has never been higher and we could potentially get a king's ransom for him. I know it will hurt the offense until we get some proven talent up here, but he's not part of the long term plan for the team. Make a deal, Redlegs!

 

[JohnBM01]

The New York Mets were going to win 1-0, until the visiting Colorado Rockies decided to wait until the Top of the 9th to put runs on the board. Colorado won 2-1 at the New York Mets today. Former Astro Jordan Lyles was the winning pitcher for COL and gets a Save from Carlos Estevez. For NYM, Jeurys Familia was the losing pitcher.


As the trade deadline comes up, it will still be interesting to see which teams will ship off which players as the deadline looms. Some teams haven't yet pulled the trigger.

 

[JohnBM01]

The Astros went into the Tigers' Den... and got devoured. 14-6 was the final score as we went into this meat grinder. The Astros went up 2-0 until Detroit belted out six runs. After that, we couldn't do much else. It was Matt Boyd who won for DET while Collin McHugh took the loss. Both teams now with 55 wins on the season. Of course, the Astros were stuck on 55 after this loss tonight. Suit up and play ball again tomorrow night to continue this series in MoTown.


Congratulations to Friday's other winners, including the Chicago Cubs clowning the Seattle Mariners on the north side of Chicago.

 

[IforceV8]

Pirates send all-star closer Mark Melancon to Washington for LHP Felipe Rivero and prospect LHP Taylor Hearn. Bucs get 10yrs of control over two guys that throw 99 mph and the Nats get a closer for 2 months who will be a very high priced F.A. when the season is done.

 

[Ken]

Matt Kemp has been traded to the Braves for 3B Hector Oliveira.

 

[JohnBM01]

Recently wrapped up...

It was Matt Fiers (HOU) vs. Justin Verlander (DET) the pitching match in Detroit tonight. For the Astros, it was heartbreak as they led 2-1 heading into the Bottom of the 9th, only to fall 3-2 thanks to walk-off magic by the Tigers. So back-to-back series losses for Houston. Houston will try to avoid getting swept tomorrow afternoon in the series finale. Justin Verlander was the winner for DET, and Will Harris was HOU's loser. Astros are stuck on 55 wins.


Congratulations to Saturday's other winners. Sad my Astros couldn't be among the winners... again.

 

[Blitz24]

I think the Mets have eliminated themselves from contention. This team is historically bad with RISP and they are basically forcing the pitching to throw shutouts or else they will lose every single game. 5 losses out of the last 6, 3rd place in the division and based on current front office tactics will be even worse in 2017. The team can only score on home runs and is utterly pathetic otherwise.

 

[Dolph Drago]

After a 6-0 win last night, the Reds lost 2-1 in extras tonight to the Padres. Actually it was only 1 batter, as ex-Red Adam Rosales (who really didn't do much of anything with the club back in '08-'09), pounded one out of the park off of big 'ol Jumbo Diaz to lead off the 10th. Apparenly Jumbo didn't get the memo that the bullpen had improved tremendously over about the last month. Either that or he missed the feeling of blowing games late, not that we had a lead, but still.

Rubber game tomorrow. If the Reds win, we will continue our streak of series wins since the All Star break. Fingers crossed as Homer Bailey FINALLY makes his season debut.

 

[IforceV8]

Lucroy vetoed a trade to the Indians, Stl pick up Zack Duke, NYY get Tyler Clippard, and Cleveland get Andrew Miller from NYY.

 

[JohnBM01]

This was to be a three-game road trip at Detroit. The Astros got swept by the Detroit Tigers after run over in MoTown today- we became roadkill losing 11-0 at Detroit. The winning pitcher for DET in this authoritative annihilation was Mike Pelfrey. Dallas Keuchel was HOU's losing pitcher today. You got us, Detroit. Well played.

Up next for the Houston Astros... stuck on 55 wins and falling back, things may not get much better when my team, your team, AMERICA'S team- the Houston Astros will host Canada's team- the Toronto Blue Jays.


Congratulations to Sunday's other winners.

 

[AnthonyD1993]

This was Detroit's 10th sweep this season as well.

 

[Dolph Drago]

Amazingly the Reds took another series with 2 wins, the capper being a 3-2 victory behind Homer Bailey today, his first win since August of '14. That is 5 straight series wins since the All Star break, which ties the franchise record set by the 1973 (yes, NINETEEN SEVENTY THREE! just prior to the Big Red Machine era) Redlegs team.

Homer pitched very well his first game back. He allowed only 1 run through the first 5 innings (it occurred in the 1st inning), fanning 6 with no walks. He then appeared to start to fatigue a little bit, and walked 3 batters in the 6th. One oddity happened at this point in the game. After his third walk, he was clearly upset with himself and turned away from the mound after the catcher threw the ball back to him. The runner at 3rd base alertly took off for home, as Homer wasn't paying attention and time hadn't been called, and waltzed in to make it a 1 run game. It got a little hairy with Lorenzen pitching in the 8th, but the bullpen did its job and Cingrani breezed through the 9th to get the save. One other note from the game; Jose Peraza hit his first career home run, a blast that hit the second deck of the Western Metal Supply Co. building. And he MAY get a lot more playing time because...

Jay Bruce was scratched from the lineup today (supposedly to help clear his mind from all the trade rumor talks...right). As of now, less than 24 hours until the trade deadline, he is still a Cincinnati Red. Will he still be at this time tomorrow? Supposedly the Dodgers have quite the interest in him. We shall see.

 

[AnthonyD1993]

In the Giants game, Jeff Samarzdija pinch ran for Madison Bumgarner who in turn happened to be pinch hitting for Matt Cain. After Smarazdjia pinch ran, Hunter Pence drove him in with a base hit and additional help from a bad throw from the Nats defense.

My guess now is that Lucroy will only accept a trade that has a long term deal and that deal must include him being a catcher for the long haul. From what it sounded like, the Indians were looking at making him DH and play 1B when in the short term he would have been a free agent next year as a catcher if he stayed.

 

[IforceV8]

Here is a good site to use to keep up with all of the transactions. http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/

 

[JohnBM01]

Before heading into Monday's games, let's see where everybody is in the standings. Try to find your favorite team(s), and set me straight on any details I may have botched:


--- AMERICAN LEAGUE ---
AL EAST: Baltimore (59-45), TOR (59-46), BOS (57-46), NYY (52-52), TB (42-61)
AL CENTRAL: Cleveland (60-42), DET (57-48), CHW (51-54), KC (49-55), MIN (40-64)
AL WEST: Texas (62-44), HOU (55-49), SEA (52-51), OAK and LAA (47-58 each)
AL WILD CARD (Top 5): Toronto (59-46), Boston (57-46), DET (57-48), HOU (55-49), SEA (52-51)

--- NATIONAL LEAGUE ---
NL EAST: Washington (61-44), MIA (57-48), NYM (54-50), PHI (48-59), ATL (37-68)
NL CENTRAL: Chicago Cubs (63-41), STL (56-49), PIT (52-51), MIL (47-56), CIN (42-62)
NL WEST: San Francisco (61-44), LAD (59-46), COL (52-53), SD (45-60), ARI (43-62)
NL WILD CARD (Top 5): Los Angeles Dodgers (59-46), Miami (57-48), STL (56-49), NYM (54-50), PIT (52-51)


So there are your standings as we head into August. Don't forget also that we have a lot of Trade Deadline chatter going. Wheeling and dealing the way only Major League Baseball knows how.

Good luck to all of your teams as the season continues.

 

[IforceV8]

Lucroy to Texas and Bruce to Mets.

 

[Dolph Drago]

Bruce has finally been dealt. Hopefully Dilson Herrera, a 2nd baseman prospect, will be a good addition. That is, if he is ever given a chance. Phillips doesn't seem to want to ever leave Cincy. We also got a young lefty, Max Wotell.

@Blitz24, what are your thoughts on the trade? I honestly don't know anything about the guys the Reds got in the deal.

 

[Blitz24]

Bruce has finally been dealt. Hopefully Dilson Herrera, a 2nd baseman prospect, will be a good addition. That is, if he is ever given a chance. Phillips doesn't seem to want to ever leave Cincy. We also got a young lefty, Max Wotell.

@Blitz24, what are your thoughts on the trade? I honestly don't know anything about the guys the Reds got in the deal.

Herrera was the player the Mets got back for Marlon Byrd a few years ago. Touted to be our next second baseman, he injured his finger last year during a short call up and never made it back to the majors. I am a bit disappointed that they dealt him away because the organization doesn't really have another 2B. In addition, if Herrera was all that stood in the way of getting Lucroy then it might have been better to go and get Lucroy. Possibly an offseason deal can be made for another 2B.

 

[Dolph Drago]

Herrera was the player the Mets got back for Marlon Byrd a few years ago. Touted to be our next second baseman, he injured his finger last year during a short call up and never made it back to the majors. I am a bit disappointed that they dealt him away because the organization doesn't really have another 2B. In addition, if Herrera was all that stood in the way of getting Lucroy then it might have been better to go and get Lucroy. Possibly an offseason deal can be made for another 2B.

Thanks for the info. 👍 I certainly hope he comes around and the finger isn't an ongoing problem for him. Good luck with Bruce out there. He's been smacking the ball around with authority this season. It was nice to see while we had him.

 

[Blitz24]

This deserves it's own post (sorry for double):
Two of the dumbest trades today were orchestrated by NL East teams. First one is the Mets trading Antonio B****o to the Pirates for Jonathon Niese. Both players go back to the teams they left (Niese, traded from) in 2015. The Pirates effectively gave away Neil Walker.

This one is even better. A few days ago the Marlins acquired pitchers Andrew Cashner and Colin Rea (and pitcher Tayron Guerrero) from the San Diego Padres for Josh Naylor, Luis Castillo, starter Jarred Cosart injured fireballer Carter Capps. One day after the trade, Rea pitches for the Marlins, goes 44 pitches and injures his elbow. The injury is bad enough that he has to be placed on the DL. The Marlins (@Omnis can attest to this) being the Marlins, blame the Padres for lying about Rea's medicals. This goes as far as the two teams actually reversing part of the trade today, so Rea goes back to San Diego and the Marlins get back Luis Castillo. This is one of the most hilarious things that has occurred in a trade since 2005, when John MacDonald was trade from Detroit to Toronto as a Player to Be Named Later in a deal where Toronto traded MacDonald to the Tigers earlier in the year.

 

[Omnis]

Once he was forced to shave his beard the Marlins discovered that he was actually a slack jawed slaggit

 

[IforceV8]

This deserves it's own post (sorry for double):
Two of the dumbest trades today were orchestrated by NL East teams. First one is the Mets trading Antonio B****o to the Pirates for Jonathon Niese. Both players go back to the teams they left (Niese, traded from) in 2015. The Pirates effectively gave away Neil Walker.

You can have Niese and his Trump for President branded scooter back and keep Walker and his barely above league avg 104 OPS+ for $10.5 mil. Dr. Ray will fix Bastardo (again) and we can flip him and his salary in the off season. One issue for Niese and Walker is Neil and his wife have been living in Niese's apartment so somebody will be moving to the couch.... maybe

 

[JohnBM01]

Quick note from last night... we defeated Toronto 2-1 last night. This one needed 14 innings after the Astros led 1-0 late in the game. A Blown Save by the Astros in the Top of the 9th led to us being tied 1-1. This series continues tonight here in Houston with R.A. Dickey (TOR) vs. Lance McCullers (HOU).


Good luck to all of your team(s).

 

[JohnBM01]

Well, the score in Houston was 2-1; but this time, the Blue Jays won and in regulation. Lance McCullers went down with an injury. The Astros' hopes of winning went with this injury. Your winner for this one was R.A. Dickey for TOR and a Save from Jason Grilli. For the Astros, HOU's loser was Lance McCullers.


Congratulations to Tuesday's other winners, including the Kings of Queens smacking the Bronx Bombers in their Subway Series in Flushing.

 

[Dolph Drago]

Wow! Who needs Jay Bruce? It was 9th inning heroics for the Reds after the Cards had taken a 1 run lead in the 8th inning at GABP. Scott Schebler, who had just been called up (I have no idea why, but Peraza was sent down), played left field tonight, with Duvall taking over in right at Bruce's longtime spot. With 2 on and 1 out, Schebler absolutely, positively clobbered the ball out of the park to give the Reds a 7-5 win over our foes.

We've won the opening game of each series since the break. Hopefully that means we'll take a 6th straight series win as well. I just want to add that Votto extended his hitting streak, now up to uhhh....17 games...I think? I'm not sure. He went 4-4 today, bringing his average up to .293. I remember when he was scuffling along at a .210-.220 clip for a good month or two at the start of the season. The man has been a beast, especially since the break.

 

[AnthonyD1993]

The battle for the AL Central looks to be heating up again. It's starting to get close between Detroit and Cleveland.