04/16/24
October 17, 2004
BOS-NYY Game 4 thread : -- let's get it on...
posted by lil_brown_bat to baseball at 07:31 PM - 57 comments
Millar shaved his stupid goatee off. Guess it must have been the reason they lost those 3 games.
posted by Bernreuther at 07:59 PM on October 17, 2004
ZING!!!
posted by rocketman at 08:03 PM on October 17, 2004
The sight of that green monster seems to work on Rodriguez like a red rag on a bull, don't it? Top of the third, 2-0 Yankees, and the Red Sox fans are up to their silly shit of throwing the ball back over the wall. Wishful thinking...
posted by lil_brown_bat at 08:15 PM on October 17, 2004
do any other switch hitters besides bellhorn wear the helmet with the 2 flaps anymore?
posted by goddam at 09:19 PM on October 17, 2004
my favorite line out of the "My Big Fat Obnoxious Boss" promos is "I think I could kill you."
posted by jerseygirl at 09:29 PM on October 17, 2004
He can hit! He can run! Go go Godzilla!
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:31 PM on October 17, 2004
do any other switch hitters besides bellhorn wear the helmet with the 2 flaps anymore? Dunno; Posada doesn't. It does kind of look like an especially dorky hunting cap.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:33 PM on October 17, 2004
Fucking Bellhorn.
posted by jerseygirl at 09:39 PM on October 17, 2004
Question on that play where Williams got thrown out at third: is it okay for Mueller to completely block the bag like that? It looked like he was kneeling and had his leg across the bag so that there was no way a sliding runner could possibly get there. Is this legit? Is this not legit? Is this asking for a really good bone-deep spiking?
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:40 PM on October 17, 2004
It's fine. If ARod had done it, McCarver would have left the booth to attempt to impregnant ARod between innings.
posted by jerseygirl at 09:45 PM on October 17, 2004
oh, please. they gave props to mueller for the play.
posted by goddam at 09:47 PM on October 17, 2004
Indeed they did, but you know, McCarver and all.
posted by jerseygirl at 09:47 PM on October 17, 2004
Oh my god. What a bunch of blue meanies. The Foxtards just showed a series of clips of Red Sox fielding screwups, to the tune of "It's a Hard Knock Life". Now that's funny.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:48 PM on October 17, 2004
End of the sixth, and thank God -- I was just about to say, "Whatever happened to double plays?"
posted by lil_brown_bat at 09:54 PM on October 17, 2004
the one thing that yankee and red sox fans have in common is their hatred for mccarver.
posted by goddam at 09:56 PM on October 17, 2004
Fuck, tie ball game. I'm going to bed. The Yankees are going to win it, it's just a question of how many innings.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 11:06 PM on October 17, 2004
Tie game!
posted by dusted at 11:07 PM on October 17, 2004
lil_brown_bat, your comments are more grating than usual tonight.
posted by dusted at 11:08 PM on October 17, 2004
i agree. quit jinxing us.
posted by goddam at 11:20 PM on October 17, 2004
this game is making me mad. All four Sox runs have been players that walked, right? This is ridiculous. And I want to be in bed right now. Quite badly. No end in sight. Damn it. At least it's 3-0 though. I had originally expected 7 games like this. I was thinking it'd be a very rough 9 days. Now, not so bad.
posted by Bernreuther at 12:17 AM on October 18, 2004
DAVID ORTIZ DID IT AGAIN!
posted by jerseygirl at 12:24 AM on October 18, 2004
David Ortiz just ended it at 1:30 AM. They live until later today.
posted by brent at 12:28 AM on October 18, 2004
The Yankees are going to win it, it's just a question of how many innings. I'd venture to say that they'll need at least nine more.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 12:39 AM on October 18, 2004
lil_brown_bat said: The Yankees are going to win it, it's just a question of how many innings. HAHA! THAT was a fun little ball game. Started watching around the seventh inning. Didn't imagine I'd still be sitting there two hours later... Ortiz RULES! Best signs of the night were "Manny-Fest Destiny" and "Make History or We're History", especially when in the ninth, the person had taped over the second part:) Fox suck. Talentless cockknockers.
posted by Drood at 12:48 AM on October 18, 2004
Gahd. That was... excruciating. Still, the right result. Stick Bellhorn in the bullpen for this afternoon's game. He has more chance of making an impact from the mound than at the plate right now.
posted by etagloh at 02:59 AM on October 18, 2004
I think Fox has gotten worse at covering baseball this year. I didn't know that was possible after they spent five minutes last year interviewing the "star" of the second Joe Millionaire.
posted by rcade at 06:16 AM on October 18, 2004
I'd like to thank both Fox and the Sox for my zombie-like state. Agreed on Bellhron (as one of his supporters); why not just play Pokey tonight? What's the worst Pokey could do? Go 0-4 and pick up the ball when it rolls to him? I did think the "Manny-fest Destiny" was a nice show of some thought on the part of a fan.
posted by yerfatma at 06:24 AM on October 18, 2004
Due to a nasty cold and the power of NyQuil, I have not been able to stay up and watch the ending of the last two baseball games. Dear MLB, Please start your night games at 7pm during the playoffs. I'm sure lots of people would like to see the end of them during the same day they started. Love, Tired Man
posted by grum@work at 07:02 AM on October 18, 2004
What yerfatma and grum said. 7 pm would be great, but if they'd actually started at 8 pm, it would have been a big improvement. Plus, it's starting to get cold up here in the northern climes. I don't think it's improving the level of play to have to run/field/hit in 40 degree weather.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 07:06 AM on October 18, 2004
Does anyone else think it's time to retire the idea that Mariano Rivera is unbeatable in the playoffs? With this loss and game 7 of the Diamondbacks/Yankees World Series, he's been beaten twice in two huge games. He's still great, of course, but I don't think opposing hitters go up to the plate in the ninth thinking "game over" when they see him. Also, on another subject, does anyone know if the National League is holding playoffs this year?
posted by rcade at 07:08 AM on October 18, 2004
I think, as you point out, that he was proven beatable in 2001; however, I don't think that it was a case of choking, either then or last night. Every pitcher loses it sometimes -- I wouldn't count on Rivera to hand out any gifts tonight. Also, on another subject, does anyone know if the National League is holding playoffs this year? Ha. I was hoping some of the NL people would start a thread re: yesterday's game. The Killer B's came through, and I was fully impressed by Brad Lidge.
posted by lil_brown_bat at 07:32 AM on October 18, 2004
I've been thinking about this one for a while now... Why the hell didn't they pitch out in the ninth? Everyone in the stadium knew Roberts was going. Even McCarver knew it. The throws over were close, he had a huge lead, he was itching to go... it was obvious. Posada is not a great gun, give him a chance to throw the guy out. Fuckin walks. Glad last night's was set to start at 7:30, but didn't happen till 8:30 - OK, so they had to delay it so they could show the NL game... which was done at about 7:45. Was another 45 minute dely so Fox could play all their stupid music and overdone reply montages again really necessary? People who showed up at 7:30 had to sit there in the cold for 6 hours. I would have felt bad for them if they weren't Sox fans...
posted by Bernreuther at 07:49 AM on October 18, 2004
Fox said it was scheduled for 7:30, but AFAICT the actual scheduled gametime was always 8:15, which is around when it went off. Past that... argh. The hope thing kills ya. Every sane person in Boston knows this thing is over, knew it was over saturday night, regardless of outcome sunday. Trouble is, at this point, there are no sane people left in Boston...
posted by tieguy at 08:23 AM on October 18, 2004
Question on that play where Williams got thrown out at third: is it okay for Mueller to completely block the bag like that? It looked like he was kneeling and had his leg across the bag so that there was no way a sliding runner could possibly get there. Is this legit? Is this not legit? Is this asking for a really good bone-deep spiking? If the defensive player is making a play with the ball coming (IE: throw from where ever), yes. You are allowed to block the base. And yes you can get spiked pretty bad.
posted by oicnub4 at 08:52 AM on October 18, 2004
Every sane person in Boston knows this thing is over I'm en route to the sanitarium. I think the Sox can win today too.
posted by YukonGold at 09:02 AM on October 18, 2004
Past that... argh. The hope thing kills ya. Every sane person in Boston knows this thing is over, knew it was over saturday night, regardless of outcome sunday. Trouble is, at this point, there are no sane people left in Boston... Finally, someone who understands.
posted by blarp at 09:02 AM on October 18, 2004
OK, so they had to delay it so they could show the NL game Except that's complete BS on Fox. They could have done the affiliate/ FX deal they used earlier in the playoffs to get both games going. They probably think the advertising dollars are higher this way, but I doubt it. Speaking of advertising, is there a chance MLB might grow a pair and stipulate in the next TV contract that if you're going to project ads onto the backstop, they need to work correctly? In one of the late innings the Bank of America (white background) ad made Bernie Williams look like Obi Wan Kenobi come back from the dead, what with the fuzziness and the blue, etc. And Fox's technology is 10x better than ESPN's; the average ESPN game looks like it's running with "-noclipping" turned on. You are allowed to block the base. Can someone find this in the online rules? It's my understanding it's illegal for a catcher to block the plate and the rule simply is not enforced, so I'm wondering why things would be different at other bases.
posted by yerfatma at 09:20 AM on October 18, 2004
blarp: I've been in Cambridge for four seasons now, and before that was a Duke fan in Durham, who are just as obsessive as Sox fans here, though better-rewarded. And I've taken courses in the psychology of religion and the psychology of political group-think. So, yeah, I grok. And of course, when I say 'there are no sane people left in Boston', I type it from the other side of the river... I'm just as nutty as everyone else, for at least 10 more hours.
posted by tieguy at 09:23 AM on October 18, 2004
Did anyone catch Dennis Leary's portrayal of a Red Sox fan? Funny as hell. He nailed it.
posted by BoSoxFan at 10:16 AM on October 18, 2004
Can someone find this in the online rules? it's only illegal if there is no play at the plate. 7.06 "...NOTE: The catcher, without the ball in his possession, has no right to block the pathway of the runner attempting to score. The base line belongs to the runner and the catcher should be there only when he is fielding a ball or when he already has the ball in his hand."
posted by goddam at 10:16 AM on October 18, 2004
"...NOTE: The catcher, without the ball in his possession, has no right to block the pathway of the runner attempting to score. The base line belongs to the runner and the catcher should be there only when he is fielding a ball or when he already has the ball in his hand." My understanding is that "fielding the ball" refers to ONLY retrieving bunts/squibblers from the batter. That's the general rule for all fielders (free from harrassment by runners), and nothing special for catchers. I'm pretty sure you can't block the plate BEFORE you have the ball. In other words, on a close play if the base runner slides into home and makes contact with the catcher before the ball gets there (and the catcher is in the base path), he should automatically be declared safe, even if the ball arrives a split second later and a successful tag is made. However, if the ball reaches the catcher before the base runner makes contact (usually the case), then it's fair game.
posted by grum@work at 10:30 AM on October 18, 2004
see the obstruction entry. If a fielder is about to receive a thrown ball and if the ball is in flight directly toward and near enough to the fielder so he must occupy his position to receive the ball he may be considered "in the act of fielding a ball." it's a judgement call though.
posted by goddam at 11:02 AM on October 18, 2004
Thanks for the clarification, goddam. or "Thanks for the goddam clarification."
posted by grum@work at 11:09 AM on October 18, 2004
fielder ... must occupy his position to receive the ball he may be considered "in the act of fielding a ball." Baseball rules or homoerotica. You make the call.
posted by yerfatma at 11:25 AM on October 18, 2004
Baseball rules or homoerotica. You make the call. There's a difference? Grum a/k/a Tired Man, sometimes there're advantages to living on the West Coast.
posted by billsaysthis at 11:51 AM on October 18, 2004
Grum a/k/a Tired Man, sometimes there're advantages to living on the West Coast. Except nobody seems to have the passion for it out here. Neighbor though I was crazy as I sat on the back porch and wept like a little girl as Ortiz was circling the bases... Wife dragged me to (her home) Tucson last year from Boston. Miss the fans.
posted by BoSoxFan at 11:58 AM on October 18, 2004
You know, I was wondering why I wasn't quite as irritated by Tim McCarver last night, and I found the answer in today's Toronto Star: we should thank Al Leiter. (BugMeNot may be required.) Possibly his biggest contribution, however, is the calming effect [Leiter's] had on Tim McCarver, who is normally so terrified of dead air that he fills every second with comments ranging from painfully obvious to insightful. There are times when you wonder if he's going to tell you that second base comes after first.
posted by DrJohnEvans at 12:37 PM on October 18, 2004
And if I see one more meaningless stat. They actually gave this completely worthless tidbit last night..."Only one team in the LCS has ever been down 3-0 and won in extra innings..." It's getting to the point of absurdity. The monkeys in the truck must be laughing their a**es off as they pass this crap on. Tonight we'll hear; "No team has ever forced a game 6 when the opposing team wore away uniforms on the third monday in October with a right hand pitcher works with 3 days rest and the temperature is below 50 degrees when game 5 is less than 24 hours after game 4." Or something close.
posted by BoSoxFan at 12:53 PM on October 18, 2004
Grum a/k/a Tired Man, sometimes there're advantages to living on the West Coast. You don't have to tell me about that. Multiple visits to Vancouver (and a couple to Las Vegas) make me realize how wonderful it must be to know the final score of every sporting event before going to bed. That, and "brunch-time football".
posted by grum@work at 01:04 PM on October 18, 2004
"No team has ever forced a game 6 when the opposing team wore away uniforms on the third monday in October with a right hand pitcher works with 3 days rest and the temperature is below 50 degrees when game 5 is less than 24 hours after game 4." Seriously, does anyone, anywhere, EVER watch a baseball game just because such and such a color commentator is on? Seems to me the networks could save a shitload of money by firing the worthless asses of the color commentators and just going with a play-by-play announcer. When I was a kid, I used to turn down the sound and listen to the game on the radio... it was much purer. I may return to that practice.
posted by psmealey at 01:41 PM on October 18, 2004
I find Sox game much more watchable because of their excellent commentary pair. But that's probably unusual.
posted by tieguy at 02:50 PM on October 18, 2004
When I was a kid, I used to turn down the sound and listen to the game on the radio... it was much purer. I may return to that practice. If you've got a TiVo and an available internet connection you can. I've been watching with mlb.com's radio feed through my laptop (I forked out the 9.95). The only catch is that the internet feed is on a 10-second delay. The solution is to pause your TiVo at a noticable event and press play when you hear the audio. A bit convaluted, but well worth it to silence that dolt McCarver.
posted by YukonGold at 03:35 PM on October 18, 2004
I've been listening to mlb's radio feed, too. The guys calling the game on the Boston radio station are really good. They remind me of Chick Hearn calling Lakers games: definitely a "homer" perspective, but calling the game as it is. The contrast with the sensationalist Fox coverage is stark.
posted by dusted at 03:53 PM on October 18, 2004
Boston's baseball announcers are at the top of the heap, both TV and Radio. Trupiano's "Way Back" can get a bit overused, especially when it's real emphatic and followed by "...foul". I think Joe Buck is very good, it'd be interesting to hear him fly solo on Fox. Does he do games alone in St. Louis?
posted by YukonGold at 04:02 PM on October 18, 2004
I think Joe Buck is very good, it'd be interesting to hear him fly solo on Fox. Does he do games alone in St. Louis? I thought he only did Bud commercials with "Leon".
posted by BoSoxFan at 04:08 PM on October 18, 2004
Seriously, does anyone, anywhere, EVER watch a baseball game just because such and such a color commentator is on? Two words: Buck Martinez As a Toronto Blue Jays fan, I miss the hey-days of TV broadcasting with Dan Shulman and Buck Martinez.
posted by grum@work at 04:31 PM on October 18, 2004
Bottom of the first and with two on and two out, we just got Scooter, and now the Fox Asstards, explaining to us what a curve ball is. I think that's a big ol' indicator of how this game is gonna go, broadcast-wise. Baseball-wise? Duque, please find the strike zone. It's right there.