casimir

Chicago Bulls (39-26) vs Detroit Pistons (18-47)

Seems par for the course.

Ugh….. we jinxed Hayes.

5-5. He had a three in the first half, but it was later ruled to be after the shot clock. He’s having a nice game.

So a middle infielder will just be up the middle, or will stay off of the line a bit and time themselves moving to the other in tandem with the windup so that they cross the imaginary line legally but are still in a shift type of alignment. Seems ridiculous to govern since that extra IF is pretty close to the middle anyway. I guess keeping all 4 IFs on the grass will be a bit different. Those shifts have the 2B or 3B out in short RF for LHHs, but RHHs typically have all 4 IFs on the dirt. But again, if that's what the defense wants to do, have at it.

Rutgers is a #4 seed in the Big Ten men's basketball tourney? Strange times, indeed.

You're right, but it doesn't fit the current grip it & rip it offensive culture.

Atlanta Hawks (31-32) vs Detroit Pistons (17-47)

Don’t eat from the one that Moises Alou brought.

Virtual fist bump over zoom.

A lot of people might take umbrage with this, but it makes sense if one considers the location of where the running lane is on the 1st base line.

Listen, I feel shame about the whole fiasco, but in my defense (defence for our friends up north), I don’t get out much, and so as one might imagine, I’m not all that cultured.

Just ban batting gloves altogether. Take the Moises Alou approach to toughening hands.

I don't like the one foul ball after strike two idea. I think a hitter's ability to foul away borderline strikes to stay in the box for another pitch is a skill to not be punitive. I think it goes along with the idea that you don't abolish the shift, you expect the hitters to deal with it and hit away from it. We are probably biased, but we wouldn't have the Dave Bergman at bat in our memories if this rule were in place. An at bat that gets extended in time by foul balls also gets a shot of adrenaline with each pitch. I think that adrenaline is what people find enjoyable while watching a game (the actual foul ball, not the 30 seconds of unnecessary wandering around the mound and batting glove adjustments that might come along with it). As far as calling time outs and being back in the box, etc, if a batter doesn't move their feet on a pitch, there shouldn't be much of a delay in between pitches. Heck, even if they swing and stay in the box and maintain balance, there shouldn't be much delay. A pitch up and in that pushes a batter back and out of the box, you have to be reasonable. A batter gets a bug in his eye or a contact comes loose or something like that, you've got to acknowledge those issues come up. I think umpires probably have a decent idea as to who is milking it in those situations. You have to give the umpires the power to keep things moving along. (And, yes, I realize I am lumping Angel Hernandez into this using good judgement scenario, but I didn't claim my idea to be fool proof.) As for the in field non pitching mound visit conferences, put a limit on those like mound visits?

Good points.

Sure, maybe they should be losing to help out draft status. And, yes, last night they didn't have to deal with Myles Turner. But its been so long since they've had a 6-2 run where they've been in all of the games. And they won games on back to back nights without a good bench piece (Frank Jackson) at their disposal.

Bunts? Haha….. how quaint.😆

I hadn’t thought about defenses moving their shift on certain counts with a pitch clock in play, but if they want to risk guys moving around when the pitch is thrown, that’s on them.

Can you be certain it was a wig?

"Hurts" is a relative term. I guess ultimately these numbers being tossed around are just way outside of my realm of comprehension. We got a commissioner crying about owning a team being a financial drain rather than a financial investment (that gets to syphon off funds from state/county/city governments either directly or indirectly). We got players deciding $35M/season ain't enough to play if there's a higher bidder out there. We got both sides claiming the fans are the top priority, which, sure, OK. The economics of pro sports is ridiculous.

My Dearest Olga, I regret to write to you that the battle continues. There had been a raising of spirits heading into the last skirmish, and I was ready to embrace the possibility of the peace pipe. Alas, ink could not be out to the paper, and the rapscallions retreated to the tree line over the ridge without appropriate compromise. Our troops remain vigilant in the hopes that surrender is ultimately not ours to offer, but that a reasonable compromise can be attained. If you could not be bothered to due so, please send a few extra rations of the salted meats. Pvt Scherzer has taken quite a liking to it. Cpl Clark, MPLBA Regt

Casimir 3:16

Indiana Pacers (22-42) vs Detroit Pistons (16-47)

And if they end up surrendering on the battlefield, then what?

Its somewhat amusing to hear that there's still time to sign a deal, start a week late, and just make up the first week somewheres along the line with doubleheaders, just as simple as that. The Tigers were supposed to play in Seattle (4 games) and Oakland (3 games). Traveling out there for doubleheaders on single days ought to be a treat, or, more realistically, there will be rescheduling gymnastics that will have domino effects on other series throughout the season.