Joey Self

I came to love the Braves' crew in the 80's--Skip, Ernie, and Pete, none of which were designated "color guys." I'm more interested in ability to communicate than I am what ability a guy had on the field. I've only heard Previn when he filled in for Bremer and a few times when traveling and listening on XM. I think he'll be fine.

Yep. I just avoid the score (most of the time) and watch the game the next day on MLB. Or at least, I think I did. Maybe I never saw those Apple games, or maybe I saw them on a simulator site. JcS

Last year, I had minor league games as part of my MLB package--or maybe I paid for it and didn't realize it. It gets charged to the credit card, the wife asks "You DO want the baseball package again this year?" and pays it. I don't know what it cost! :) JcS

Well, yes...and no. If he had laid off them, he would have walked a lot...until the pitchers understood he was laying off them, and then he wouldn't have seen them with the frequency he did when he would not swing at those pitches. He adjusts, they adjust.

I am a Twins fan in Arkansas, and have had the MLB Extra Inning package (or whatever it is called now) for years. The closest MLB team to my front door is Kansas City--over 4 hours away. Arlington is about 4.5, St Louis and Houston are 7+. And I'm blacked out from Royals, Rangers, Astros and Cardinals games. Until last year, I was unable to see 19 Royals/Twins games and how many of the other games were played against AL teams, plus the Cardinals when the Twins had them on the schedule. The balanced schedule helped a little last year, but I still found myself either having to wait until an hour and a half after a game to see it (meaning I don't see any updates on Twitter/X), or find it on a simulator on my laptop. Add to that the games on Apple or some other site, and it occurred to me that I'm paying for a full season of games but only getting about 80% of what I'm paying for. The blackout rules make no sense for me; when I decide to go to a live game, I go for a full series. I decided last year that I can make do with a simulator site in 2024, but I'll be watching to see what this Twins fan WAY out of their market can get with the paid package. JcS

When I saw the announcement, I wondered if this was Bremer's choice. The more I read about it, the more I suspect it was not. I thought of the Richard and Linda Thompson song "Did She Jump Or Was She Pushed?"

Yep. The question is not if the robo ump is perfected, the question is whether it is better than we now have. Hitters will arrive at the stadium knowing what the strike zone will be that day. Pitchers won't have to nibble the edges to find out. Most importantly, catchers won't be yanking pitches out of the zone to fool the robot. The sooner the better.

Uh, both the Twins and the Dodgers are down 1. But I was glad I wasn't a Dodgers fan yesterday morning.

Saved me some typing, because I was coming to make this very point. Buxton on the field and not on the bench during the defensive half of the inning is key to a whole lot of things. Well, OK, two things--it opens up the DH spot for someone that would otherwise be out of the lineup, and it gets MAT out of the everyday lineup. JcS

Surely there are some stats to back that up; I don't trust the "eye test" on things that can be measured.

Ahhh, I see that now. Thanks.

I put the numbers in for ease of reference. 1. You put your finger on why I didn't dislike the Mahle trade at the time--which is the only fair way to judge it. When overstocked in one position, deal with a team that needs help there. 2. I didn't like it at the time, but I saw more in Cano than you did, I think. 3. I hated the Arraez trade, and still do. 4. That means that the team is playing guys that no one else wanted. The other 29 teams aren't run by dummies. 5. But if what they were offered--if anything--in return for the players they were willing to move was insufficient, then the management did what it should do: Nothing. Making a move just to make one (unless it was getting rid of Gallo!!) is not the answer. JcS

You can only trade with teams when you're offering something they want, and you are willing to give up what they want. Imagine my surprise that the Twins couldn't move Gallo or Kepler or Pagan (who has been better lately, I know) or (insert name of player you'd have liked to see gone) for (insert name of player you wanted to be on the roster). I didn't like the Lopez deal last year, and I'm not saying that because of how it turned out--he had one hot half a season, and the price was too high for the gamble. That Baltimore was willing to give him up for prospects told me they thought it was a fluke. Mahle was a better trade, and it just didn't work--them things happen. But the front office should take the tacit advice from 29 GMs--Gallo and Kepler aren't good enough to help their team, and shouldn't be playing on yours. JcS (who assumes those two were offered with no takers)

I don't think Gordon can be optioned to St. Paul. Not sure where I read that, but it was in connection with Lewis and Polanco coming back, IIRC

Don't you need a sucker...I mean, an interested team in order to do that?