ashbury

Oh good grief. Totally ninjaed.

I can't bear to watch this game live via mlb.tv, but monitoring occasionally via MLB Gameday, I can only think of this: I. Also. Like. To. Live. Dangerously. /edit - grievously ninjaed. I can't bear to keep up with game threads on a game like this either.

You mentioned Cole Sands in reference to low leverage, which immediately reminded me of USAFChief's principle that in modern bullpen usage there are no low-leverage arms. However, I checked the numbers, and if there is a poster child for correct usage, Sands is it. baseball-reference.com provides a "Leverage" category in its splits page (for team or for player). By definition, a lot of innings by starting pitchers qualify as low leverage and I am not going to go into that. But if you rank Twins pitchers by batters faced (PA) in low leverage situations, Sands is behind only Ryan/Lopez/Ober/Paddack. When the game is out of hand or safely put away, Sands is the arm Rocco prefers to go to. (Funderburk and Jay Jackson rank highly too, and now they are gone.) With medium or high leverage, Sands drops behind Duran/Jax/Alcala in batters faced. And the clincher for me is this: when you slice and dice the numbers for Sands, the pattern of results is stark: Low Leverage: 127 PA, .497 OPS Medium Leverage: 29 PA, .661 OPS High Leverage: 30 PA, .798 OPS Yes, this is Small Sample Size. I would not stake a lot on this. But the trend is consistent with Sands being used correctly. .798 OPS is losing baseball (from the pitcher's perspective). I am happy for Sands that he is putting together a nice season. But I don't trust him in an important role and I would not call him a top setup man. It seems that Rocco prefers to avoid such a role for Sands except when the bullpen is otherwise depleted.

Philly would have presented him with a bigger challenge.

I said you could look it up. I didn't expect anyone would actually do it.

Detroit Tigers. July 12, 1979 You could look it up. / or, I could just tell you. Disco Demolition Night in Chicago. Forfeit.

The approximately 130 feet from where the shortstop positions himself is the relevant distance.

Conversely he's part of the problem against right-handers. This goes beyond him and applies to most of the guys facing righties from the left side of the plate. Only because our RHB have fared actually pretty well against the right-handers has it not become a full-blown disaster. Kepler, Julien and Santana are tasked with pulverizing RHP and they just aren't doing it.

I'm skeptical the Twins will free up both the necessary salary space and the prospect capital to make Kikuchi happen. Much better option than Paxton, though. I was intrigued by Paxton's availability yesterday, but this morning I wouldn't bother with him. When in doubt, don't bet against the Dodgers' player evaluations. I don't care at all for the other pitchers named in this thread as alternatives either, the common thread being low strikeout rates, and/or high walks, and/or current ERA fueled by a stretch of favorable BABIPpery that I don't believe will be sustainable.

I just hope the league doesn't decide on contraction for the Twins franchise after the debacle tonight.

Rocco mismanaged the bullpen yet again. Renowned Phillies-killer Cole Sands will be unavailable for the coming game.

There's a big difference between mostly fluent and all fluent.

I want to clarify that Designated For Assignment is not the same as being on Waivers. For a team to do the latter, the former needs to occur; but not vice versa. Waivers take 3 days; this has to occur sometime within the 7-day DFA window. DFA just lets the team remove the player from the 40-man roster, freeing space for someone else. What happens during those 7 days can vary, including a trade, or waivers in preparation for an outright assignment to the minors or unconditional release. I haven't seen any reports that Paxton is on waivers as yet. We're not in a situation where we can just claim him. The Dodgers surely are in "listen to trade offers" mode. He might not be "cheap and easy to get" - our Twins could easily get outbid in this environment. MLB themselves maintain a very good Glossary on all kinds of baseball terms, including a group of them that pertain to transactions: https://www.mlb.com/glossary . I use it frequently to try to fact-check myself a little. (And I nevertheless mess up.)

I also speak fluent Police Squad, Abbott and Costello, and Princess Bride when called for.

Always keep your eye on the ball.

"Nobody shops there. Too crowded."

He kind of crow-hopped as it was. He just needed to throw harder and straighter and less sidearm, easy peasy.

Those who listed Wegmans among their grocery options, I hope you count your blessings.

"High cheese from Sands" I'll take unexpected ninth-inning phrases for $200, Alex.

They knew, but the umpire was surprisingly reticent about making eye or verbal contact with anyone to confirm. Last thing you want as a runner is making highlight reels over a misunderstanding of some type.

Phillies Daily must be losing their collective **** right about now. Season Over.

I Also Like To Live Dangerously.

I've got Raley's, Grocery Outlet, and Pray For Rain.

Hero time, Manuel!

District Attorney Castillo has been taken off the case.