general 2021 MLB discussion thread

it honestly doesn't make sense, he'll basically give you an 0-2 count if you want it but no one challenges him

weird! we should be pitching coaches. i'm ready to go talk to the guy on the mound facing him late in the game. "Rookie, you've gotta calm down. Let me squeeze your shoulder. Yes, there. Relent to me. Attack the zone. Throw strikes. If he hits a HR I'll buy you a beer. But he's not gonna hit it. Because I put a curse on him. I'll tell you about it after the strikeout. Throw strikes."

If things don't pan out for me, I would like to be America's Silliest Pitching Coach for some local team

maybe he's just very short

why the camo hats today? is this some militaristic holiday that i've overlooked?

armed forces day

Kelenic's first HR is beautiful.

Did Bogaerts get hurt today, or was he just removed because of the big lead?

Huascar Ynoa out a few months after breaking his hand punching the dugout lmao

Pujols is starting and batting cleanup for the Dodgers tonight, as anyone could have predicted.

I don't think it's likely but how angry would Angels fans be about a LAD Pujols renaissance?

Liking the new red alternate jerseys for the Marlins.

(xpost) Stranger things have happened. Frogs fell from the sky in Magnolia.

so the twins were projected to win 88 games and their division this year

Pujols signing already paid off

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/the-dodgers-addition-of-albert-pujols-didnt-make-sense-until/

tldr; the dodgers have a lot of injuries

I've seen a lot of people mention his expected numbers based on statcast suggest he's getting unlucky or something, but the combination of his pull-everything-into-the-shift approach and his slowness suggest to me this is just who he is

Tony LaRussa fucking sucks

you hear it more and more

larussa sucks but the white sox are good. impressively good considering jimenez and robert are injured and giolito has been mediocre

They haven’t played the Astros, A’s, Yankees, Rays and Jays yet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vjz2UKPdFCU

best part of this is Tim Anderson

alex blandino, #0, third basemen, has a 0.00 ERA through 3.2 career IP

lance lynn (now with the white sox) said it was dumb, too. kind of notable given that he actually played for larussa in his rookie year with the cardinals in 2011, after which larussa left. as a young player on a team managed by larussa that also happened to win the WS that year, he probably has weird feelings about him

"Lance has a locker; I have an office," La Russa said.

when all else fails, just start with the basics

you have the microphone, and we of us here have phones. and many of the fans do as well.

willy adames traded. is it wander franco time? brujan? the other aaa ss guy?

#Rays are calling up ... Taylor Walls

— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) May 21, 2021

meanwhile, who knew that being one the least-vaxxed teams in the league would backfire on the mariners!

The Seattle Mariners have at least one COVID positive, sources tell ESPN, and there is concern within the organization that the relatively low level of vaccination within the clubhouse could be problematic. The Mariners, source said, are among the least-vaccinated teams in MLB.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) May 21, 2021

besides everyone

i have not posted on ILB for five years but the Giants might be relevant again. i only care about one team and one team only. anyways, going into today the Giants have the best record in all of baseball and they finally play the Dodgers in a three game set. going out of my mind waiting. the Giants starter for tomorrow has gone down and now it's TBD, so this first game is so important. Bauer (2.20 ERA) vs. Wood (1.75 ERA).

long past due on ILB from me: RIP Dr Morbius.

Welcome back. You are welcome to stay even when the Giants are not relevant.

hi bee! good to have you back. i think once or twice i made a joke at your expense (while you were still posting on ILB i mean) about your myopic love of the giants. sorry about that. i have an appreciation for the focus!

i sorta follow the other teams in baseball, but not at 1% of the level that i follow the cardinals. if i'm looking into other teams it's usually because we (meaning me, a member of the cardinals) are about to play them

What about the utah jazz KM

I’m all-in with 2 teams (Mets/Isles) and I don’t think I could handle anymore. Some of those down years can hit pretty hard if you linger on them.

i'm all in for two teams too, the other sport that i love is the NFL and i'm a Los Angeles Rams fan. i was a 49ers fan but i moved out of San Francisco, the team also moved out of San Francisco and LA got two new teams. so i switched. i think the regular season of basketball is so waste and now 10 teams make the playoffs, smh. i do watch the playoffs without really having a rooting interest. NHL lost me with all their strikes. got into it and they went on strike, gave it another go and then they went on strike again. haven't been back since.

We are gonna need more Mets fretting with Morbs gone.

Orioles for almost 40 years now and no matter how bad it gets I'll never quit'em, unless they leave Baltimore and change the name, that might really be the end for me (but I think I would then be empty and have no team at all, I can't take on a new one at my age)

the orioles are a great team to root for imo

in 2023, i will turn 40 along with the orioles 1983 championship. i am calling it now - the o's are gonna win it all

by pure coincidence, that will be the year after the very bold chris davis contract ends

only 1 1/2 more years to go on the chris davis contract

Imagine every team in the AL East really good in 2023 - that seems unfair

I care enough to watch the playoff Maple Leafs, otherwise the Blue Jays are the only team I've ever given a rip about (and that is a very large rip). I mean, I also watched the Raps religiously in 18/19 but who wouldn't

Used to be all over the map for sports allegiances until I decided to refocus everything on Toronto. Once nos z’amours are back I’ll switch over to them because local team, and I’d love to see a NBA team in Montreal (unlikely) but there is no way in hell I’m ever rooting for the Habs.

the orioles are a great team to root for imo

― Karl Malone, Friday, May 21, 2021 9:26 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

I don't disagree, I've enjoyed it the whole time

and as surely as i believe in the truth of the god of the christian bible, i say to thee: the yankees will finish last place in 2023. but then they shall come back to win again, some day after that. but at some undetermined but very soon day after that, they will burn in hell forever.

and the people will be happy for 4000 years

First we just need them to have a losing season for once

let's not go that far. some teams need to play above .500 every single year. it inspires the children in the region and keeps some adults occupied