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Post by CentreHice on Sept 22, 2012 17:14:52 GMT -5
Yeah, the Habs' Montreal link to the Expos still lives in my psyche.
Wrapped up their first playoff spot since moving from Montreal after the 2004 season.
How many are still ticked at Loria and stepson Samson? Could it have worked in Montreal?
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Post by Skilly on Sept 22, 2012 18:59:46 GMT -5
I haven't watched baseball since ... I look at the highlights and give a silent "yay" when I see the Nats winning. I miss Montreal baseball.
In fact, I have tickets to see the Angels play the Rangers next weekend, it will be the first baseball game I watched in its entirety since my beloved Expos went bye bye .... Oh, and I still am of the opinion MLB stole the World Series from the Expos because they could not stand the title going to Canada for the third year in a row
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Post by jkr on Sept 22, 2012 20:17:08 GMT -5
.... Oh, and I still am of the opinion MLB stole the World Series from the Expos because they could not stand the title going to Canada for the third year in a row Agreed . I've believed this this since 94 & nothing will change my mind. But I have no connection to Washington at all. |
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Post by CentreHice on Oct 15, 2012 10:19:44 GMT -5
Just can't beat that Cardinal playoff magic.
Meanwhile, Joe Girardi....screaming now for instant replay everywhere on the field, because of a missed tag call at second base vs. Detroit in Game 2.
If it'd been the Yankees who were safe on a play like that, it'd be, "Well, that's baseball. Human error is part of it...always has been."
They lost Jeter. Now it's excuse time. I don't feel sorry for that team at all.
Since 2003, when the luxury tax system was implemented, the Yankees have paid around $228 million in tax...or 95% of contributions. (They've exceeded the payroll limit every year....and after doing so twice, have paid 40% of the excess in tax since 2005.)
They apparently have plans to reduce payroll to the $189 million-level expected to be set for 2014. Don't hold your breath. While I commend an organization for their commitment to put a championship team on the field every year, I don't think it's good for the league to have a Goliath-market team that consistently rips other fans' hearts out by plucking their stars away from them year after year.
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Comic Doug Stanhope: "The Yankees are supposed to win. They buy their team. Cheering for the Yankees is like going to a casino and cheering for the house, and bein' an a__hole about it! Just set up shop behind a blackjack table, and go, 'Oh yeah...the dealer busted your a__! That's MY dealer!'...."
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Post by seventeen on Oct 15, 2012 10:50:42 GMT -5
I'm totally with you, CH. In the long run, you can't have a league where only a few of many teams have a chance to win. Hockey's one of the few sports where management can make a big difference. Big enough to overcome money, anyways.
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Post by CentreHice on Oct 15, 2012 11:09:13 GMT -5
Yep, seventeen....it's time for a baseball "cap"....and they likely should've done it in 2003.
Hard cap it, too. An NBA-style "soft cap + luxury tax" system would be treated the same way by the Yankees.
I just can't see how fans can stay with teams that get to the MLB playoffs once every 20 years, if that....let alone getting to the World Series that often.
I like the NFL system...right down to the no-guaranteed contracts. It seems as if every fan can put some stock in their team getting off to a great start or turning the season around.
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Post by Doc Holliday on Oct 15, 2012 11:30:49 GMT -5
Money completely killed this sport for me.
I used to be a huge fan. Carter, Dawson, Rogers, Cromartie, Raines and company were childhood heroes.
The 1994 strike (thanks Donald) and the ensuing years of Brochu and Loria when we couldn't afford a real team and just fed other teams, did it for me. Magic is gone. Haven't watched a game in over 10 years and don't feel drawn to it in any way or form.
NHL is slowly but surely getting there for this fan.
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Oct 15, 2012 11:33:44 GMT -5
If I'm a Nationals fan I'm probably feeling a tad ripped off. Shutting down Stephen Strasburg was a mistake, IMHO. He's an ace who showed no signs of any reoccurring injury and I believe he would have taken his team further in playoffs.
I hope the Nationals make to the playoffs again next year. It's tough to get back these days and if they don't ownership and management have no one to blame but themselves.
Cheers.
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Post by seventeen on Oct 15, 2012 12:23:48 GMT -5
I didn't understand that either, Dis. I can see having concern over his arm due to the surgery, but surely a month's rest was enough to alleviate any danger. Then again, if you can't put a team away when you have a 6 run lead, or when you're up by two and down to their last strike, maybe you don't deserve to win. The Cardinals have sure had barrels of horseshoes up their arses the last couple of years. A comeback here or there is normal. Their comebacks have "I sold my soul to the devil" written all over them. I was quite disappointed to see both the Nats/Expos and the A's lose. I like 'poor' teams stickin it to the man. I loved the Tigers win over the Yanks after they tied up the game 4-4 in the ninth. Get rid of Valverde, bring in some real pitchers and eventually win the game after the Yanks use up their pitchers. Managing pitchers reminds me a lot of stock trading. The best guys at it know when to cut their losses. Good managers not only know when a pitcher just doesn't have it, they have the guts to go out there and pull him. Often, that's quickly, before you're down so far the hole is too deep to climb out of. I didn't see the early part of the Giants-Cards game, but you have to wonder if the manager left the starter in there too long. Big innings win games and the more you can make big innings small innings, the better chance you have to win. I'm such a nerdy analyst.  |
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Post by Disgruntled70sHab on Oct 15, 2012 14:10:44 GMT -5
Money completely killed this sport for me. I used to be a huge fan. Carter, Dawson, Rogers, Cromartie, Raines and company were childhood heroes. The 1994 strike (thanks Donald) and the ensuing years of Brochu and Loria when we couldn't afford a real team and just fed other teams, did it for me. Magic is gone. Haven't watched a game in over 10 years and don't feel drawn to it in any way or form. NHL is slowly but surely getting there for this fan. I feel your pain, Doc. I remember discussing the Expos with BC in what seems to be many years back. Regardless what Jim Rome and the rest of his bandwagon jumpers say, it was very hard being an Expos fan. I remember the Expos team you're talking about. They were arguably the strongest team in baseball when the strike was called. The Blue Jays had won back-to-back World Series' and the Expos were on deck to take the Championship back to Canada for a third straight year. But it only took a week for the Expos to clean house once the strike was called. We lost Marquis Grissom, Kenny Hill and John Wetland all within a week. An all star outfielder, a bonafide starter and one of the best closers in baseball were all gone just like that. But the Expos were the victims of more than inept ownership. The Blue Jays had significantly affected the American interest in baseball because of their dominance. Overall interest in the post-season waned significantly in the USA and if the Expos had won everything in '94 it would have been even more disastrous. The Expos winning the World Series simply wasn't going to be allowed to happen. The team never recovered from that and, I dare say, many fans failed to recover from that as well. Cheers. |
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Post by CentreHice on Oct 16, 2012 20:20:48 GMT -5
Game 3 Yankees-Tigers.
I don't know who's doing the play-by-play, but you'd swear it's the Yankees network.
Haven't heard such a one-sided call since the last Leafs' game.
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