casimir

Guess what we were discussing at work (a manufacturing facility) today?

Seeing the green of the field as you come through the walkway..... That's what the lawn looks like in heaven.

My understanding is that NBA has a pretty direct oversight of the G. MLB doesn’t have quite the same authority over MiLB, but it seems to be increasing. I think the G league article mentioned a $50K salary. Call a minor league roster 30 players (extra players for injuries), and a minor league team is at $1.5M in player salaries. Each MLB team has, what, 6 minor league teams? They can’t cover $9M in reasonable minor league player salaries?

Then you’re in the right place.

I think there's a way to unionize the minor leaguers such that they can get more reasonable pay & benefits. And if MLB is taking over more of the direction of MiLB, it seems like the MLBPA might have more interest in how its minor leaguers are handled.

I guess I got lost here. Do mean differences between the sports or differences between majors/minors? Or is it the difference on both variables?

There’s a line there in that Hayes punched a student and Howard went after a coach. I just assume that with all of the legality today that UoM would suspend in the short term, complete it’s “due diligence”, and then offer a chance for Howard to resign or be fired.

Its a shame. I really liked Howard as the UoM basketball coach. I understand this hasn't been a great season, but he seemed like a great follow up to Beilein. Automatic suspension for the rest of the year is an easy call. If he continues to show no remorse, jeez, how can you keep him?

I think the Finnish cross country skier in the Olympics could give this a run.

But Boras is agitating for it, and Boras rhymes with morals.

When pigs fly, Chuck, when pigs fly.

Why doesn't the MLBPA stump for unionization in the minor leagues? The NBPA helped form the BPU for the G League in professional basketball during the pandemic.

Cancun?

I heard this on MLB radio the other day. If MLB ballparks start adding concerts and other events to their 2022 Julian calendars.....

And planes and automobiles.

The thing that I love about the idea of MLB & promotion/relegation is that if you ask anyone on favor of it how it should be handled, there is not recommendation on how to do it.

It is because I'm an idiot, but you people should already'of picked up on that.

So much urgency that they are taking the weekend off from the negotiating table? I guess what else what else should we expect from a sport that won't address its lackluster pace of play issues. Manfred is strolling around the mound, gets back on the mound. Clark steps out of the box, plays with his batting gloves, gets back in the box. Manfred needs to go through the pitching signs again with his catcher because he can't remember what the one is and what the two is. Once the catcher gets back behind the plate, a midge flies in Clark's eye, so he steps out again and the trainer has to visit him with some eye wash. Clark gets back in, but Manfred now has to get the rosin back. Clark then needs some more pine tar. But I guess this us more activity than there was in December and January, so do we call this progress?

Let's get this 4 teams per division malarky out of here. The one good thing of the 1994 strike ending the season was that it prevented a playoff team with a losing record (I'm looking at you 4 team AL West). The fewer teams per division leads to more chances that a losing team becomes a division winner (its just straight math, homey) and it also becomes tougher to set divisions up with some semblance of all around logic. So, if/when expansion occurs, I'd go with 4 divisions of 4. Las Vegas/Portland and Nashville seem like reasonable choices. I'd like to see Montreal get back into it because I miss Youppi, but that's just me. (Baseball in the gambling capital of the world, yeah, let's keep going with the about face on the cardinal sin of the sport). The two western divisions are easiest to set up. Maybe these teams Pacific/Western - SEA, OAK, SF, LAD, LAA, SD, AZ, LV/POR. This has everybody on the west coast accounted for. Everybody is in the Pacific time zone except for Las Vegas which never sleeps anyway. And it doesn't matter which locale the western expansion team lands in, both cities fit comfortably here. Central/Midwest - CO, TX, HOU, KC, SL, CHC, CWS, MN. The pretty much takes care of everybody else west of the Mississippi. It keeps the Cubs and Cardinals together. Lets be honest, along with realignment, there needs to be some tradition upheld, and that's easier to handle with 8 team divisions rather than 4 team divisions. Now the two east divisions have some more choices to make. I think this is where looking at teams in smaller pools of teams does help make those choices. So you've got NYY, NYM, and BOS together. You've probably got PHI, BAL, and WAS together. TB & MIA. CLE & CIN. Div 1 - MIL, DET, CLE CIN, ATL, TB, MIA, NAS Div 2 - NYY, NYM, BOS, PHI, BAL, WAS, PIT, TOR or Div 1 - MIL, DET, CLE, CIN, NYY, NYM, BOS, TOR Div 2 - ATL, TB, MIA, NAS, PHI, PIT, BAL, WAS In any of the above, I guess Milwaukee looks out of place since they aren't in a division with the Chicago teams despite their proximity. But there's going to have to be a line somewhere, and Milwaukee isn't completely out of place with DET, CLE, and CIN. Its not nearly as goofy as when CIN & ATL were in the NL West and CHC & SL were in the NL East. Sadly, this kills the Leyland Ash Tray as a traditional divisional battle trophy, but again, lines have to be drawn somewheres.

That's a lot of poop on the car.

Might there be some momentum on the horizon?

Hey, I’m an idiot. Shocking, right? I read “non-zero” as “near zero”. I apologize. I think the best way to realign is start with Seattle and work towards the East. It’s probably reasonable to assume nothing happens until expansion. MLB has plenty of other items to deal with. But I think if you group Seattle, the Los Angeles teams, San Francisco, Oakland, and San Diego, that’s 7 teams in a division. That helps the Ms avoid those trips to Texas as a division foe. Plus, there’s wiggle room for an 8th team, either an expansion team or Arizona. As far as the Eastern corridor is concerned, there’s probably a way to construct it such that teams still have a bit of travel to deal with to even things out with other divisions. Obviously they’d put the New York’s and Boston together. Washington, Baltimore, and Philadelphia probably get grouped together. From there, it’s a matter of who gets grouped up with teams like Detroit, Toronto, Cleveland, Cincinnati, and Pittsburgh, vs Atlanta, Miami, and Tampa. Again, expansion teams could affect things, maybe Tampa relocates.

I thought the interchangeability angle makes sense.