BASE-BALL

[TheCatalyst31]

Plus the World Baseball Classic is happening, so you can watch meaningful baseball right now if you want.

[mgk920]

Plus the World Baseball Classic is happening, so you can watch meaningful baseball right now if you want.

And a very good USA/Mexico game on Monday. too 

Mike

[Henry]

Today, it's Opening Night, with the Yankees in San Francisco, and tomorrow, it'll be Opening Day, with the Mariners hosting the Guardians, and the Nationals visiting Wrigley. And I can't wait to see the new Sunday Night Baseball on NBC, with tomorrow's doubleheader (Pirates vs. Mets, Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers) becoming the preview for it. For NBC, it'll be the first MLB regular-season games to be televised since 1995 (when The Baseball Network--a joint venture with MLB and ABC--was dissolved after only two years), and the first of any kind since 2000.

[gonealookin]

And I can't wait to see the new Sunday Night Baseball on NBC...

Some of the Sunday Night Baseball games, including those on the first two Sundays, are relegated to Peacock, as late-season and playoff NBA games and then Sunday Night Football in the fall take precedence on the big network.  I believe the Peacock-exclusive games will be simulcast on the revived NBC Sports Network, which has limited distribution (I think just Youtube TV and Comcast's Xfinity cable systems for now).

[Henry]

And I can't wait to see the new Sunday Night Baseball on NBC...

Some of the Sunday Night Baseball games, including those on the first two Sundays, are relegated to Peacock, as late-season and playoff NBA games and then Sunday Night Football in the fall take precedence on the big network.  I believe the Peacock-exclusive games will be simulcast on the revived NBC Sports Network, which has limited distribution (I think just Youtube TV and Comcast's Xfinity cable systems for now).

Yeah, that makes sense. But still, I'd rather watch NBC than ESPN, as its quality is way better than anything ESPN has ever put out (even FOX has them beat too). And the old-school graphics they did a while back for the NBA were true to the spirit of the originals.

[gonealookin]

I've seen the ball/strike challenges in action at AAA level in Reno.  Now we've brought that to the major leagues.  The statistics on it are going to be interesting.  After watching one game today:

-  I bet the catchers are pretty good on the challenges.  They have an excellent view.  Pitchers can challenge, but will probably be told not to do that, leave it to your catcher.

-  Some batter is going to challenge 15 strike calls and lose every time.  His manager is going to tell him, I'm sorry, your privilege to do that is revoked.

-  And there's going to be an umpire who is totally exposed because he runs away with the leadership in most ball/strike calls reversed.

[ModernDayWarrior]

-  And there's going to be an umpire who is totally exposed because he runs away with the leadership in most ball/strike calls reversed.

My money is on CB Bucknor.

[mgk920]

Brewers 162-0!   

Mike

[Flint1979]

-  And there's going to be an umpire who is totally exposed because he runs away with the leadership in most ball/strike calls reversed.

My money is on CB Bucknor.

There was a game last June where CB missed 28 calls in a single game, that was the record for last year. Angel Hernandez had a lot of calls overturned before he finally retired.

[NWI_Irish96]

Brewers 162-0!   

Mike

Sorry but you only get to play the White Sox 3 times.

[mgk920]

Brewers 162-0!   

Mike

Sorry but you only get to play the White Sox 3 times.

Darn . . . (hehehe)

Mike

[gonealookin]

-  And there's going to be an umpire who is totally exposed because he runs away with the leadership in most ball/strike calls reversed.

My money is on CB Bucknor.

There was a game last June where CB missed 28 calls in a single game, that was the record for last year. Angel Hernandez had a lot of calls overturned before he finally retired.

In CB's first game behind the plate, Saturday in Cincinnati, his calls were challenged 8 times, with 6 being overturned.

It might have been worse, but the Red Sox challenged 3 times in the first 3 innings, won only 1 of those, and therefore had no challenges for the remainder of the game.

The best part was when CB called "Strike Three!" on consecutive pitches to Eugenio Suarez.  Suarez challenged both and won both:  https://x.com/CBoxSports/status/2038019886987804681.  He eventually grounded out to end the inning.

[mgk920]

I guess that the real 2026 season will now begin for the Brewers.   

Mike

[TheCatalyst31]

I guess that the real 2026 season will now begin for the Brewers. 

Mike

Hey, the White Sox just beat an undefeated team, so maybe they're not all that terrible. Just don't look up who the undefeated team was or why they're undefeated.

[jlam]

I guess that the real 2026 season will now begin for the Brewers. 

Mike

Hey, the White Sox just beat an undefeated team, so maybe they're not all that terrible. Just don't look up who the undefeated team was or why they're undefeated.

Said reason-to-not-be-named just decimated a previously-undefeated pennant winner, so maybe the White Sox' vanquished opponents' claim to undefeatedness wasn't all too embarrassing.

[gonealookin]

And I can't wait to see the new Sunday Night Baseball on NBC...

Some of the Sunday Night Baseball games, including those on the first two Sundays, are relegated to Peacock, as late-season and playoff NBA games and then Sunday Night Football in the fall take precedence on the big network.  I believe the Peacock-exclusive games will be simulcast on the revived NBC Sports Network, which has limited distribution (I think just Youtube TV and Comcast's Xfinity cable systems for now).

Yeah, that makes sense. But still, I'd rather watch NBC than ESPN, as its quality is way better than anything ESPN has ever put out (even FOX has them beat too). And the old-school graphics they did a while back for the NBA were true to the spirit of the originals.

I watched the Cardinals vs. Tigers Peacock/NBCSN telecast this evening.

They had four announcers:  Jason Benetti (PxP), Brad Thompson (booth analyst, from the St. Louis local telecasts), Andy Dirks (booth analyst, from the Detroit local telecasts) and Adam Ottavino, serving as a pitching-specific analyst.  Ottavino was positioned outdoors, at the base of the left-field foul pole, for reasons unclear.

It's a lot of voices on one telecast.  ESPN has been accused of turning a lot of its live game broadcasts into talk shows, and that's kind of what this was.  None of the analysts has ever worked together before so Benetti's job was to distribute the commentary load, as much as handling the nuts and bolts of the game.  I didn't see any comparison to the old NBC telecasts which just had PxP, one booth analyst and at times a field reporter who was only called on a few times a game (Ottavino spoke multiple times each half-inning so he's effectively a third full analyst).

If I understood right they are going to use five announcers for NBC's first telecast, which is Cleveland vs. Atlanta next week:  Benetti and Ottavino, plus Corey Kluber, C.C. Sabathia and Andruw Jones.

[NWI_Irish96]

Da Pope's team with a sweep on Easter weekend!

[mgk920]

Da Pope's team with a sweep on Easter weekend!

 

Mike

[mgk920]

And the Brewers are now 7-2.  (Hath hell frozeth over?)

Mike

[oscar]

What is the franchise's logic behind denying that the A's for the time being represent Sacramento?

Probably because they know ahead of time that this move to Sacramento is temporary.

I have not seen any explanation of it by management, but would say RZF has it right.  Phrasing it my own way, "Oakland Athletics", "Sacramento Athletics" and "Las Vegas Athletics" is a lot of branding switches over a short period of time, so perhaps they prefer to abbreviate it to the constant part, "Athletics", until "Las Vegas" becomes part of the permanent branding.

And none of that changes the fact that they are indeed playing in Sacramento.  Might as make the best of it rather than draw attention to the fact that the host city can't get a mention in the team name.

FWIW, I saw the A's players with Sacramento on their jerseys (I think one of their home games last weekend vs. the Astros).

As noted above, the team unis include a patch featuring the Tower Bridge (unsigned CA 275) between Sacramento and West Sacramento. The team store also sells T-shirts featuring that bridge and that it's in Sacramento.

[gonealookin]

What is the franchise's logic behind denying that the A's for the time being represent Sacramento?

Probably because they know ahead of time that this move to Sacramento is temporary.

I have not seen any explanation of it by management, but would say RZF has it right.  Phrasing it my own way, "Oakland Athletics", "Sacramento Athletics" and "Las Vegas Athletics" is a lot of branding switches over a short period of time, so perhaps they prefer to abbreviate it to the constant part, "Athletics", until "Las Vegas" becomes part of the permanent branding.

And none of that changes the fact that they are indeed playing in Sacramento.  Might as make the best of it rather than draw attention to the fact that the host city can't get a mention in the team name.

FWIW, I saw the A's players with Sacramento on their jerseys (I think one of their home games last weekend vs. the Astros).

As noted above, the team unis include a patch featuring the Tower Bridge (unsigned CA 275) between Sacramento and West Sacramento. The team store also sells T-shirts featuring that bridge and that it's in Sacramento.

Your quotes are from a discussion in early 2025.  At that time ownership was downplaying Sacramento because of its status as a temporary home.  They got a lot of negative blowback on that last season and the marketing people realized the team would benefit in 2026 and 2027 by being more embracing of the Sacramento community which is hosting them for these three seasons.  So they have a "Sacramento Saturdays" theme for their Saturday home games this season and I expect the players will wear the script-Sacramento jerseys on those days.

[gonealookin]

Looks like the Kansas City Royals came up with another plan for a new ballpark near downtown, this one in the Crown Center area:



That proposed ballpark is bounded by Gillham Road on the east, and East 25th and East 26th Streets on the north and south.

It would require a decent amount of public funding, which the Royals have been denied before, so it's nothing more than pretty pictures for now.

[ET21]

South Side Samurai was at least tied with leading the majors in HRs.

The White Sox.... actually don't suck as much?! 

[Henry]

Looks like the NL is being superior to the AL again, with the Cubs and Braves battling it out for the best record in the majors...what I wouldn't give for an encore of 2016 (time to bring another championship to the North Side)!

[Flint1979]

The AL Central is garbage as usual.