I agree with those of you who said the national tv announcers are just looking for the largest market teams to make the playoffs, it’s all about the ratings and, ultimately, the bucks (not Joe).

Ahhh, statistics, stats, sabremetrics, sis boom baa…… as one of the “older” fans here, I’ll admit I don’t get heavily into alot of the newer stuff, but I’m not going to criticize you young-uns for doing it. If an article or comment gets too stat-happy for me, I’ll just skip it :-0

By the kind of standards some people are spouting, Rollins isn’t playing the game the right way either, because he, too, doesn’t bunt all that often, and has a really crappy OBP in the bargain, or that Ryan Howard plays the game wrong because he’s bad at throwing to second and strikes out a lot, or that Utley doesn’t play right because he made some bad throws in the ’09 post season.

Victorino is a .290 hitter, a gold glove winner, has tied and won important games, makes very few errors in the outfield despite not always taking the best route to the ball, and appears to be giving every play his best effort. In what way is that playing the game wrong?

I’m paraphrasing, but he wrote that there are three types of announcers:

1) Gus Johnson – the type who gets overly excited about every big play, acting like a super-fan

2) Joe Buck – the type that rarely gets excited for anything, tries not to sway one way or the other, attempts to be bias-free

3) Jim Nantz – the type that mixes those two; doesn’t pick a side but will “get up” and raise his octaves for a big play.

Just thought it was worth mentioning.

I’m not a big Joe Buck fan…..but, to be fair to him, just because he doesn’t “get excited” for certain plays in whatever game he’s doing….that doesn’t translate into him being a TERRIBLE announcer. Because he doesn’t have a “true routing interest” simply means that he’s REPORTING what he’s seeing. It’s really no different than a professional news journalist reporting on whatever story he/her is reporting on.

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I think that “_______ plays the game the right way” is legit..

Guys that do the small things (“Professional hitters”), etc.. they “play the game the right way”

Among the reasons, I really am not a big Shane Victorino fan.. is that he doesn’t do things for the good of the team. He’s arguably the fastest player on the roster.. yet he never bunts .. which could either move a runner up.. or just to bunt for a hit, to have the corner infielders be on their toes a little more.. open up some room for him to hit one through..

We would all say that Utley, Derek Jeter, etc play the game the right way

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somebody mentioned it before, but there is no secret that FOX wanted Dodgers-Red Sox as the World Series, because it was a much more interesting story than Phillies-Rays. Can’t say I blame them… since sports (and the personal lives of athletes) has become a 24-7 Drama series, etc.. they wanted to see Manny vs. Boston …..more than they wanted to see the two best teams of 2008.

Joe Buck has said before.. he’s a Cardinals fan.. and while I don’t think he has a true routing interest in any other team.. I can’t help but think he wants the biggest story, and the most eyes on him.. so to a degree.. #5 would be marked TRUE on a test

Yeah, THAT’S what he’s called. Just like “A-Rod” and “Dice-K”

Are we maybe nitpicking too much here??

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George, good point about the “psychological” effect of certain closers. And it can go the other way, too….just ask Jonathon Broxton about that.

There is probably a psychological thing going when a team has a really effective closer. Braun, Fielder, and Hart might be pressing more in the eighth because they know that the bottom of the order guys don’t stand a chance against a Trevor Hoffman, a K-Rod (sorry about that “cliche” nickname, but that’s what people call him) or an ’08 Lidge. If the batters are trying too hard to get something done, it probably gives that second tier setup guy a big advantage. Confidence–or its lack–definitely plays a part in any game.

I’ll take BOTH sides in the “national announcer” thing. Many times the announcer has to have ratings in mind, or he’ll be canned by the network. This sometimes involves playing up the underdog and being overly dramatic when there’s a scoring threat. At the same time, some of their comments smack of hostility toward a given team, player, or manager. We’ve all heard this; it’s not so much what is said, but the inflections of voice when it’s said.

As far as closers pitching in other situations, it’s been tried, and usually found wanting, for whatever reason. “Closer by committee” has been a failure in almost every case, and in tie games, when the closer has been brought in to pitch the ninth against top hitters, the game is lost in the tenth because some lesser reliever gives up a hit to a bench warmer. Ninth inning closers have evolved; years ago the relief specialist sometimes pitched three innings. This was too much, so setup men came along, then lefty specialists, righty specialists, etc. While makes sense on the surface to have your best guy pitch to their best guys, in practice it doesn’t seem to always work. Setup men (remember last year’s Madson?) don’t always do well in the ninth, even against Craig Counsel.

“Innings eater” is not only a useless description of “average,” but has been so overused it’s definitely a cliche, and should be banished from the baseball lexicon. Call a guy “decent,” “adequate,” “fourth starter,” or even “healthy,” but heaven forbid, don’t call him “innings eater.” Same for “plays the right way,” If he didn’t, he’d be in an independent league, the restricted list, or jail.

Stats are fine, but stats are flawed. The “advanced metrics” (Pecota, Chone, whatever) don’t always entirely agree with each other. They also make boring reading for a lot of people. Even though I can see their value in presenting a clearer picture of the usual stats, I don’t enjoy reading the explanations of just what they’re indicating or how they’re indicating it. Generally, when you watch a player, it’ll soon be obvious whether he’s good or not, why he bats second or third or eighth, or why he starts or relieves.