Open WBC Round 2 Games Thread (Part 2)
by ThundaPC on Mar 18, 2009 3:20 PM PDT
Email
PrintRound 2 continues.
========================== Schedule ==========================
Monday 3/16
Pool 2/Game 4 - Venezuela 2, Puerto Rico 0
Pool 1/Game 3 - Cuba 7, Mexico 4
Tuesday 3/17
Pool 2/Game 5 - Puerto Rico 5, United States 6
Pool 1/Game 4 - Japan 1, Korea 4
Wednesday 3/18
Pool 2/Game 6 - United States 6, Venezuela 10
Pool 1/Game 5 - Japan 5, Cuba 0
Thursday 3/19
06:00pm PDT --- Pool 1/Game 6 - Japan vs. Korea [ESPN]
============================================================
Semifinals begin Saturday, March 21st at 6:00pm PDT.
407 comments
|
0 recs |
Do you like this story?
Comments
Probably just scared of Puerto Rico spanking us again.
This is one of the problems that the WBC presents: do you play for national and risk injury or do you forgo this tournament and stay injury-free for the organization that pays you millions of dollars to play baseball? Easy answer for some, not so for others.
Throw the snacks in the bag and I'm ghost like Swayze!
Preserved In All His Greatness - R.I.P. The Reignman 1989 to 1997
Same argument has been happening for years in international football.
That’s one of the reasons why England’s national team under performs: the majority of players don’t put the same effort in that they would for their club.
I was at Shea for the Felix-Slam!
Personal M's record: 5-4.
by EnglishMariner on Mar 17, 2009 9:11 AM PDT up reply actions
Jamie Carragher is a twatbag
’I’d rather miss a penalty for England than Liverpool’. Fuck him and everyone he loves with a hedgehog.
by Graham MacAree on Mar 17, 2009 4:16 PM PDT up reply actions
I'll be honest, I would rather my club do well than my country
Then again, I’d rather both do well
by Indigo_Satellite on Mar 17, 2009 4:46 PM PDT up reply actions
I gotta imagine the Clubs play considerably better than the Countries.
And with the green is where my alligance would lie.
He didn't go.
Penalties are a lame example
I mean, who wouldn’t give full effort on a penalty kick regardless of the level?
England players?
I was at Shea for the Felix-Slam!
Personal M's record: 5-4.
by EnglishMariner on Mar 17, 2009 5:18 PM PDT up reply actions
I took it to mean that if we were losing a blowout game like Saturday, he'd rather forefit then get someone hurt in a lost game.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 9:46 AM PDT up reply actions
To me it sounded more like he wasn't going to make a non-catcher play at catcher
And that he wasn’t all that worried about other positions, which seems perfectly reasonable to me. If I was the manager, DeRosa is the only guy on the roster I would dream of making the emergency catcher. And even then, I would expect an angry call or three from Cleveland.
Yes, this too.
You’re absolutely correct.
However, I think it depends on the game situation.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 1:03 PM PDT up reply actions
True
I’m sure that Johnson would have difficulty forfeiting a game where he had a huge lead or where he had a slight lead but was a couple of outs away from victory. Maybe he would do it, I don’t really know him, but I’m sure it would be harder than forfeiting a game that was well out of hand.
I can't get over the fact that Ted Freaking Lilly is pitching for the US today
A 33-year-old lefty with a career FIP of 4.56 and a Marcel-projected FIP of 4.34. I’d almost rather have Fat Greg Maddux out there. Gil Meche would even arguably be a better choice.
Ted Lilly is good.
Realistically you can’t take the 5 best SPs in baseball because there won’t be enough PT to justify taking them away from ST.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 1:04 PM PDT up reply actions
Ted Lilly's not awful...
…but he’s the 3rd best SP on the US roster. Forget about taking the top 5 US SPs, how about 3 of the top 15? As for PT, I don’t really see why the starting pitchers would even have to travel with the team.
The US has so many good pitchers that it’s pretty ridiculous to be in the 3rd game of a round against a much smaller nation like Puerto Rico and have the pitching matchup be even.
I mean, I’ll watch the game, and I still love the WBC, but if we’re wondering why there aren’t all that many US fans at the game tonight, I think that “Ted Lilly, SP” is a good place to start. It’s really tough for me to be excited about this roster.
Why do left handers' curveballs look so loopy?
Is it just because the camera angle is coming in from the right side of the mound? Right handers’ curveballs look more tight for some reason, at least to me.
You may not need 95 mph to be dominant
but 87 isn’t gonna cut it.
Rooting for Red Sox players
is rooting for all that is wrong with America.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
That ball was outside to Beltran.
But now hes just one pitch away from getting out of it.
He didn't go.
Yep
I’m not really any more confident in our bullpen, though, especially for this many innings.
Beltran??
I dunno if that would have been a home run, but that’s a fantastic catch.
FUCK YOU, BELTRAN!
Throw the snacks in the bag and I'm ghost like Swayze!
Preserved In All His Greatness - R.I.P. The Reignman 1989 to 1997
Did that camera guy
get nailed? I swear I saw him go down after that ball was fouled up and hasn’t come back up.
Gotta say, didn't see the sac bunt coming from Carlos Beltran.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
I think HR had a good point that if he puts the bunt more down the line...
…he would have had a legit shot at a base hit. He made it awfully close the way it was.
It's honestly insane
that people think bunting with your #3 hitter is a good idea. And it’s not a small group of people, its the majority. Reynolds earlier in the game said your best hitter is your #3, and just loved the fact he bunted…
wat?
Griffey bunted often enough in, say, 1992
that I have a plaque with him bunting on it.
There’s a reason Bill Plummer was fired.
by Two Rs and Two Ls on Mar 17, 2009 6:16 PM PDT up reply actions
Beltran's fast enough that I don't think it's insane
There’s a chance he gets a hit and a chance that Wright throws the ball away and you have 2nd/3rd with no outs. It’s also something where maybe Beltran feels uncomfortable hitting against Bell, so he’s not sacrificing much by not swinging away. Every now and then, Joe Mauer will try to bunt for a hit, but it’s almost always against a left-handed hitter with the third baseman playing deep and off the line. (And for his career, fangraphs lists him at 18 bunt hits on 28 bunt attempts.)
The main problem I would have with it here is that the 6th is probably too early to be playing for one run against the US hitters.
Yeah I suppose it's not insane
but it’s not the right move in my book either.
Scotty Shields coming in. Be good, Scotty.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
McCann needs to stop hitting the ball to dead freakin' center. >_<
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
I all of a sudden have a fondness for Shane Victorino.
That was pretty sweet.
That's awesome
If Victorino’s on the base, I don’t see how they can call anything on him. Perhaps PR might not want to throw the ball that close to a runner who is on a base.
I'm gonna say that was heads up by Victorino. He didn't obviously kick it, and if
you’re not gonna cut it off, don’t whine if it hits the baserunner.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
Anyone have a good hookup for the vid?
Favor the Bold
And all for nought as Youkilis grounds softly to short.
USA running out of time.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
I dunno, some of them are pretty funny.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
How perfect is that
Jeter blows it for the U.S.
To be fair, the ump sucks. But still, Broxton isn't helping himself.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
Shane Victorino:
The only US player who still gives a ****.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
Honestly, I think the entire team is just having fun.
They all care, but not to the extent that they could. And I’m fine with that.
Thanks for nothing, Jeter. (Though it wasn't a bad try.)
Lets go Rollins.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
He used to be the Greek God of Walks, right?
Maybe he can just tie the game with a walk and then Wright can win it.
He can't tie with a walk, thanks to Jeter.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
Or so says Michael Lewis.
Why would I watch Transformers when I can play with them at my house?
by .Taylor on Mar 17, 2009 7:58 PM PDT up reply actions
Agreed, I'll take a game tying single, though.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
I feel the same way about Chipper Jones
I marvel at his skills but I like to mock him anyway.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 8:01 PM PDT up reply actions
I actually like Youkilis. He's the only Red Sox I can say that about.
But he’s still fun to make fun of.
Chipper can suck one.
by Aaron Campeau on Mar 17, 2009 8:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Guess who I am
BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP
A robot umpire?
Why would I watch Transformers when I can play with them at my house?
by .Taylor on Mar 17, 2009 8:07 PM PDT up reply actions
Bobby Valentino
I fucking hate you Mariners
In his defense, theres not much of a zone.
Plugging the upside since 2006.
Never give up, never surrender!
Who are all of those guys in the dog pile?
Surely not American players, because everyone keeps saying that they don’t care.
It's not that I don't think they care it's that I don't think they take it as seriously as the other countries
and I don’t think it’s nearly as important to us as it is to the other countries.
by Aaron Campeau on Mar 17, 2009 8:05 PM PDT up reply actions
Rooting interests in sports are totally subjective.
I don’t think it’s possible for something to be beside the point.
by Aaron Campeau on Mar 17, 2009 8:08 PM PDT up reply actions
Sure, you can root for whoever you like
Just to throw this out there, though, WIllie Bloomquist would probably care more about this than Derek Jeter. Would you be more inclined to root for the US if Willie was the starting SS?
I guess I think the whole “US players don’t care” angle is pretty overblown.
They went to Romero to close it out?
what the fuck did they expect?
by Bearskin Rugburn on Mar 17, 2009 8:08 PM PDT reply actions
Bum Ho Lee?
Really, there’s a dude named Bum Ho Lee?
Awesome.
You can't hide from the omnipresent eye.
God dammit I don't get MLB Network.
I thought it was free with comcast, but I guess not. They can jack up your price all they want, and still charge you extra where they can.
Of course, your channel numbers are probably different
But I don’t pay anything extra for it, you sure you don’t get it?
As long as you have a box you should probably get it.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 8:17 PM PDT up reply actions
Make sure your cable is screwed all the way into the wall and to the box
I had that problem with mine, for weeks a lot of the digital channels weren’t working very often if at all, then I went and tightened the cable into the wall and they all suddenly worked perfectly.
by OlSalty on Mar 17, 2009 8:21 PM PDT up reply actions 2 recs
Do you just have expanded basic cable?
We’ve had that for years and we JUST FOUND OUT about a week ago that we needed the boxes. I can get to MLBN, but a message comes up that we don’t have authorization for it.
by Two Rs and Two Ls on Mar 18, 2009 10:08 AM PDT up reply actions
I just called Comcast about an hour or two ago and they said we don't get MLBN unless we pay up for preferred cable.
by Two Rs and Two Ls on Mar 18, 2009 1:00 PM PDT up reply actions
Yea, I was paying for preferred cable.
So they simply loaded it on my tv, and now its working. It will come in handy now that march madness is going, I assume that the finals will be MLBN.
It comes with certain levels of Comcast
..starting with Digital preferred. If you get Digital starter, you are SOL, as I know from experience.
My computer hates the other one more than the beta
by Aaron Campeau on Mar 17, 2009 8:23 PM PDT up reply actions
For some reason the other one is buggy
but it works in IE for me.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 8:24 PM PDT up reply actions
The new flash player has the nasty habit of jumping back 3 seconds and repeating something
When I’ve tried it. AFAIK, they’re aware of this bug and hopefully it gets taken care of, because otherwise it is really great.
For me it can't settle on a picture quality and when I try to manually set it
it freeezes up. that and my computer is 5 years old and slows down when I run massive amounts of flash.
by JI on Mar 17, 2009 8:39 PM PDT up reply actions
That's why...
You need a Kawasaki/Nishioka DP combo.
Favor the Bold
For once
throwing MORE fastballs seems like a better idea.
So, here's the thing.
Occasional foreign language comments are fine, notably if they are some form of meme, but if you are making a habit of commenting in a way that severely limits the number of people that can understand you, we’re going to ask you to post in English or take your comments somewhere more appropriate.
Got it, but ファッキンディフェンス could be a meme, I guess.
by shinallsrevenge on Mar 17, 2009 9:07 PM PDT up reply actions
Not unless you explain what it means to people.
Be open and inviting to others.
Sound it out, it's phonetic Japanese
by shinallsrevenge on Mar 17, 2009 9:13 PM PDT up reply actions
I'm sorry, it was an honest mistake, I misunderstood you.
I’m not trying to be sarcastic/patronizing
by shinallsrevenge on Mar 17, 2009 9:18 PM PDT up reply actions
Is it just me, or is the strike zone a mess?
Favor the Bold
Yeah, Petco a bandbox it ain't.
Favor the Bold
Watching Bong succeed is getting on my nerves.
Bong sucks shit.
I like how the umpire expects Johjima to not only hear him, but understand English
He should’ve talked slower and louder with extra emphasis on each individual syllable.
What the hell?
I missed Johjima get ejected? What for?
3-2 count, ball on the low outside corner, but ump called it a strike
Johjima immediately spun around and dropped his bat in disbelief/disgust, umpire yelled at Johjima to pick the bat up because it was near home plate, Johjima kept walking away like he was ignoring/didn’t hear him, and the umpire threw him out as Joh walked to the dugout.
there's no need for the 6th game really
Venezuela is 2-0, they should win the pool.
For anyone who missed Darvish.
Here are some flight paths. His stuff is disgusting.
(Credit to Harry at BTB for the charts)
I haven't seen many of these charts...
…but it seems like it would be really, really tough as a hitter to distinguish between this 4-seamer and 2-seamer, since they start out almost exactly the same.
Supposedly Selig said they'll play the game
if they have to stay up all night to do it.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
Huzzah for Jeremy Guthrie
Amazing pitching depth for the US.
I'd have an easier time believe this was fixed
if Guthrie wasn’t on the team.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
Yeah it's not like they're going to get Roy Halladay to agree to be the long reliever.
by JI on Mar 18, 2009 6:02 PM PDT up reply actions
Well I know this
I’m just saying for people who think its fixed, if the team had crazy shit like Halladay as a long reliever it’d be easier to believe them.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
It's not literally fixed
but it’s hard to deny that the US has had an easy road the last two seasons.
by JI on Mar 18, 2009 6:24 PM PDT up reply actions
I don't buy into the notion that the US doesn't care.
If they didn’t care, they wouldn’t have dog piled one another the other night. The US goes into this with a HUGE target on their backs. EVERYONE wants to beat the all-mighty USA.
Illegible
They had arguably the toughest group in the first round and opened against Canada in Canada
Although I don’t think that home-field advantage really matters in this tournament. Their second round group “should” have included DR-PR-Ven or DR-PR-Can, which would easily be as difficult a group as J-K-Cuba-Mexico. I don’t really see that as a deliberately easy road for the US, unless you think that HFA is a really big deal. And as it has played out, the US has only played one of the second-rate teams, and that was Netherlands in the second round.
As for easy roads, Japan had two pushovers in their pool and hosted. Mexico had South Africa and an Australia team that was probably about as good as Italy, and they hosted. PR hosted and had Panama and the Netherlands in their group.
Even the first year with US-Canada-Mexico-S.Africa, there were three teams in their pool who you could legitimately expect to advance out of the first round.
And besides all that, if someone was going to seed the tournament, the US would wind up with a high seed, so they arguably should have an easy road even if you think that they have had an easy road.
This and Johjima's hitting
are the only things I really hope carry over to the regular season.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
15 after 5
Sounds like the fastest way to end this game, especially with Ven as the home team.
I predict the US comes back and wins this.
What happens with a rain out? Do they schedule a time to resume play, or go with the score at the time?
Illegible
I'm almost positive I heard last night
that they will play the whole thing no matter how long it takes.
You know what? Fuck you Sports Gods, fuck you.
LaTroy Hawkins is the only player ever who I would say should not close on account of not having a closer's mentality.
Hey, and look, his stuff ain’t what it used to be.
Sorry Ichiro, but I really don't want to see Japan vs Korea AGAIN. So Let's Go Cuba!
You can't hide from the omnipresent eye.
I finally got a chance to get the feed for the US/Ven game tuned in
nice to hear the mlb boys for a change, but they haven’t gone over what happened earlier
"sea smoke"
Can’t say I’ve heard fog described as this before. Thanks for expanding my verbal repertoire Gary Thorne or whatever this announcers name is.
He didn't go.
It doesn't matter if the second baseman touched the bag or not!
Umps should just assume that he could have if he wanted to!
I usually like HR
But that was wretched
by Robert Lintott on Mar 18, 2009 8:26 PM PDT up reply actions
I feel like ESPN should be using him more often
It was a really great interview
by Robert Lintott on Mar 18, 2009 8:45 PM PDT up reply actions
Forget that.
I want FSN NW to hire him. Now he’s doing a great interview with Dave Winfield.
True story
Best sideline reporter I may have ever seen on ESPN (SSS caveats apply)
by Robert Lintott on Mar 18, 2009 10:15 PM PDT up reply actions
I'm watching it on Mlb.tv
And I think that Gary Thorne is one of my top 5 announcers (Uecker, Jon Miller, Scully, Thorne, and of course, Niehaus). It’s one of the few benefits of living out here in DC; I get to watch baseball on TV, and even though it’s crappy (stupid orioles) it’s got great announcing.
Definitely not a guy I'd want to share a clubhouse with.
Acts like nothing is his fault.
He didn't go.
I'd like to get in a bar fight alongside Pierzynski.
I’m not one to fight anymore, but I’d bet it would be fun.
Illegible
South Korea should have planted their flag on the Tokyo Dome mound.
That would’ve been funnier than shit
Oh Jesus Christ.
hu·mor (hymr)
n.
1. The quality that makes something laughable or amusing; funniness: could not see the humor of the situation.
2. That which is intended to induce laughter or amusement: a writer skilled at crafting humor.
3. The ability to perceive, enjoy, or express what is amusing, comical, incongruous, or absurd. See Synonyms at wit1.
4. One of the four fluids of the body, blood, phlegm, choler, and black bile, whose relative proportions were thought in ancient and medieval physiology to determine a person’s disposition and general health.
5. Physiology
a. A body fluid, such as blood, lymph, or bile.
b. Aqueous humor.
c. Vitreous humor.
6. A person’s characteristic disposition or temperament: a boy of sullen humor.
7. An often temporary state of mind; a mood: I’m in no humor to argue.
Illegible
by kevin_ess on Mar 18, 2009 9:53 PM PDT up reply actions 3 recs
I think what he meant...
…though obviously not what he said, was that Ichiro would have more hits than Rose if you combine his MLB totals with his totals from Japan. Otherwise he’d still have 2,400+ hits left to go and, yeah, even Ichiro can’t do that.
The Cuban manager looks like he's dressed in his pajamas
I feel like this observation has been made before
I'm waiting for the swimsuit issue.
Illegible
by kevin_ess on Mar 18, 2009 10:05 PM PDT up reply actions 1 recs
Okay Ichiro
I know we go through this every year, but really it would be okay if you’d start hitting.
Is there any reason that WBC games tend to take longer than MLB games?
Or do you think it’s just a coincidence?
Cuba tends to play at a very slow pace.
You’re right, though. This has got to be the longest 5-0 game I’ve ever seen.
Well it's not just this game.
There have been several games that went way over 3 hours, and this is only the second game I’ve caught featuring Cuba.
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
User Tools
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
In Association With
Big League Stew - MLB - Yahoo! Sports
- Photo: Padres fan regrets letting mother capture moment with Trevor Hoffman
- Marlins agree to unretire No. 5 for Logan Morrison, who will honor his father’s favorite player
- Weatherman Derek Holland does Dallas TV
- Ask Alex: Will Julio Teheran or Matt Moore win rookie of the year?
- Ku Klux Klan, umpires and bowling: Why the minor leagues tossed out Jim Evans academy
Certain photos copyright © 2012 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
