2023 Opening Day Chat

March 30, 2023

1:00	Dan Szymborski: BASEBALL BASEBALL BASEBALL BASEBALL

1:00	Jay Jaffe: Hi everybody and a very pleasant good afternoon (or morning) to you wherever you may be. Happy 2023 baseball season and welcome to our Opening Day chat!

1:00	Ross: Describe a realistic scenario where the Mariners win the west?

1:01	Jay Jaffe: Honestly, I don’t think it would take all that much — a couple of key rotation injuries to Houston and a few guys having bigger-than-expected seasons for Seattle while the Angels and Rangers don’t quite get there.

1:00	Davy Andrews: Happy baseball to all.

1:00	Dan Szymborski: The Mariners win a number of games in 2023 that is a larger number than the number of games that the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels win!

1:00	Alex Eisert: Happy Opening Day!!

1:01	CG11: Most anticipated matchup of the day?

1:01	Dan Szymborski: The Who Cares Bowl between the Pirates and Reds, of course

1:01	Hyde: Are you on the Kelenic hype train? I know spring training caveat and all, but he really looks like he finally figured something out.

1:02	Dan Szymborski: I’m not putting my neck out after the last two years! lol

1:01	Walla Walla Ron Washington: Let’s gooooooooooooooo

1:02	Ross: Are the Mariners more likely to have the MVP winner or Cy Young winner?

1:02	Alex Eisert: I think the M’s have candidates for both awards but would say Cy Young because it’s a more wide-open field, especially if deGrom doesn’t last the whole season

1:02	Well-Beered Englishman: It’s November 2023, and everyone is saying, “Wow, I can’t believe the ____ reached the World Series. None of the preseason predictions had them making it.” fill in the blank!

1:02	Dan Szymborski: Arizona Diamondbacks Not that I picked them of course

1:03	Dan Szymborski: Jay, you suggested we use the reply feature, but I feel uncomfortably too organized now!

1:04	Jay Jaffe: With four of us the cross-talk could get confusing! But yeah, I get its it’s not like we’re in the same booth next to each other and able to rely upon visual cues.

1:04	Gia: Who is your prediction for the biggest breakout M’s player and also the biggest disappointment?

1:04	Davy Andrews: Cal Raleigh had such a great year last year. Projections and common sense say that’ll be awfully tough to replicate.

1:06	Jay Jaffe: I’ll say that maybe this really is Kelenic’s year and if it is, that could be a big deal in closing the gap between the Mariners and Astros.

1:05	Matt: Opened some baseball cards with my daughter and now we’re gearing up for the games! What could be better?

1:05	ZacharyA: Are the Red Sox more likely to finish 1st or 5th in the AL East?

1:05	Davy Andrews: I mean, we have them projected for fourth.

1:05	Guest: One player in the yankee system that will surprise everyone this year?

1:05

Alex Eisert: Jhony Brito is already surprising me! That spring performance on Sunday was electric and he seems poised to open the season as the no. 5 starter. Otherwise, for guys still in the minors and likely to stick there this year, I’d say Chaparro; showed some real pop this spring and has the potential to succeed Donaldson at 3B

1:05	Guest: is there an API that we could use with the yearly membership to pull the data? instead of logging in everytime and downloading the excel sheets??

1:06	Dan Szymborski: I don’t think we do, but it’s something I or another one of us could suggest in a staff discussion at some point.

1:07	Alex Eisert: If you use R, the baseballr package has functions for pulling the data

1:06	Vijay: Hi Dan and Jay, Good Afternoon!

1:06	Davy Andrews: I second Vijay. Hello to Dan and Jay. Alex, I got nothing for you.

1:08	Alex Eisert:

1:07

FarhanFan22: small market fans complain about income disparity between market sizes, wouldn’t mlb expansion in cities like Portland, Las Vegas, and Charlotte, shrink the market share of teams like LA, SF, and ATL? SF/OAK have parts of Oregon and Nevada, LA/SD have Vegas in their tv markets. It seems like a more likely way to solve the revenue gap between small and big markets. What do you guys think?

1:07	Dan Szymborski: Probably the best way would be in-market teams. Logically, there should be another team at least in the NY metropolitan area and probably in southern Cal too.

1:09	Alex Eisert: Except that the large market teams wouldn’t agree to that

1:07	leprekhan: If forced to choose, which organization would Szym work for: the Rockies or the Royals.

1:07	Davy Andrews: Publishing this so Dan has to answer.

1:07	Jay Jaffe: If we sent Dan to Kansas City we’d never hear from him again, as he’d be lost in a sea of barbecue.

1:07	Chip Locke: O/U Corbin 19.5 losses on the season

1:08	Davy Andrews: You’ve got to take the under, but after one batter his WHIP is infinity!

1:07	Dan Szymborski: Rockies

1:07	Dan Szymborski: Denver would be up there in cities to live in

1:07	Dan Szymborski: Plus, ease of access to the additional ” help” required to make the job tolerable

1:08	Sophie: Thanks for doing these chats, one of my favorite parts of opening day now

1:08	Appa Yip Yip: The Yankees have more projected WAR, but more of the staff picked the Jays to win the division. What’s up with that? Injury concerns about the Yanks? Projections underrating the Jays bullpen or rotation?

1:09	Jay Jaffe: They’ve already had so much go wrong with their rotation, and while our current assumptions are that Rodón and Severino won’t miss all that much time, complications and additional injuries could be enough to swing the balance.

1:09	Davy Andrews: I personally let my rooting interests affect these things.

1:08	Vijay: @Davy Lets stick with “Good Afternoon Everyone!”

1:08	CG11: How are the Padres so stacked but also Rougned Odor makes the roster?

1:08	Dan Szymborski: The last player or two on rosters is frequently quite awful, even on good teams!

1:09	phanatic7: Which rookie do you think could be a dark horse candidate for a breakout season or ROTY campaign?

1:09	Dan Szymborski: Is Pfaadt dark horse enough or is that too easy?

1:10	Davy Andrews: First chili question of the season just came in!

1:10	Dan Szymborski: If so, I’ll take Jameson instead

1:10	bb: baseball opening day…and no baseball on tv

1:10	ZacharyA: Acuña with a leadoff single. O/U 1.000 BA for him this year?

1:10	Davy Andrews: And 1,000,000 stolen bases.

1:10	Jay Jaffe: The Yankees are underway as Cole misses high to Wade

1:10	A Boy Named Yu: ….and now I know how I will be spending the rest of my afternoon. Thanks for the chat, guys!

1:11	Vijay: @alex you mentioned baseballr for R users to pull some data, any package out there for python users??

1:13	Alex Eisert: I’m partial to R myself but have heard good things about pybaseball!

1:11	Rob: @Vijay East Coast bias! For some of us it’s still a very good morning. 🙂

1:11	Alex Eisert: If it was an East Coast bias he would’ve said hi to Davy and I too since we’re here in New York

1:11	Ruby: Does Albies hitting cleanup seem strange to you?

1:12	Davy Andrews: Take a look at his ISO numbers. Works for me!

1:11	Sirras: Dan S – Are you so excited for Opening Day that you’d eat a bowl of Skyline Chili if the traditional food of Opening Day were Skyline Chili?

1:11	Dan Szymborski: Ah, but I am not culturally conservative, so I would not personally follow traditions! Usually my personal tradition is to cure and smoke my own pastrami, but I got behind on work becuase of being violently ill for most of February, so no pastrami for me this Opening Day.

1:11	Dan Szymborski: I do have my traditional Opening Day Dark and Stormys

1:12	Jay Jaffe: Damn, I don’t have any Opening Day traditions to fall back upon, other than Watch LOTS of Baseball

1:12	Not That Dan: I don’t know how I’m expected to watch the Giants, follow the chat, read some season preview articles, and get any work done today

1:12	Davy Andrews: Who told you you had to get work done?

1:12	5 Run Homer: First stolen base of the season already!

1:12	Orioles2024: Cole high on all four for the walk. LOVE IT!

1:13	Davy Andrews: I’m blacked out!

1:13	Dan Szymborski: Though I’ll try not to have 16 of them like I did at our Cleveland ASG panel. People kept bringing me them! That was the most recent time I was sick from drinking and had to nope out of breakfast with the FG team the next day

1:13	Oaktown Blues: Esteury Ruiz hit a 109.4 MPH home run the other day! Maybe the EV concerns are overblown? Or am I extrapolating too much from a single BBE?

1:14	Davy Andrews: That does make me just a bit more excited.

1:13	Dan Szymborski: Don’t read too much into individual hits!

1:15	Davy Andrews: But also, I’d advise you to listen to Dan more than you listen to me.

1:13	Orioles2024: I’m so excited, I’m peeing my pants. Happy Opening Day to all!

1:13	Dan Szymborski: That’s slightly too excited.

1:14	Yo-Yo: Why is Jordan Walker playing over Dylan Carlson? There’s a huge gap on projected production, and Walker had a good-not-great spring.

1:14	Alex Eisert: I’m wondering that too, since I paid $10 for Dylan Carlson in one of the FG staff Ottoneu leagues

1:15	Alex Eisert: I like Carlson, he’s still young and had a mini plate-discipline breakout last year. Maybe the Cards’ brass is just buying into the hype.

1:15	Jay Jaffe: Carlson hasn’t hit righties very well during his career (91 wRC+) and righty Alex Manoah is on the mound. Might as well get a look at Walker, whom we have as one of the best prospects in the game

1:14	Derek: Most exciting “new face in a new place” today? My vote would be for DeGrom, but mostly just because watching him pitch (for any team) is just mesmerizing

1:14	Dan Szymborski: Turner if I can’t say deGrom

1:15	Dan Szymborski: I suspect Cards are trying to capture lightning in Walker. Those ZiPS upside projections are pretty damn good

1:15	A Boy Named Yu: More likely to happen….Seiya wins NL MVP or Ohtani gets traded to the Cubs?

1:15	Dan Szymborski: #1

1:16	Not That Dan: Davy, let’s just say I’m taking advantage of the fact that the boss is coming in late today

1:16	Jay Jaffe: Dan can you show us Walker’s percentile projections?

1:16	Vijay: @alex @rob ohhhhh noo, no bias at all.. I hate east and west both equally

1:16	Orioles2024: I have crab cakes and Busch Light…I can’t stomach Natty Bo.

1:16	Dan Szymborski: I just had four crabcakes from Jimmy’s down on Holabird here this week, but they’re already gone.

1:16	Guest: Any thought on seeing some beyond normal rebounds from top prospects who “graduated” during the pandemic era and haven’t come out of the gate killing it? Kellenic comes to mind, Andrew Vaughn reaching his potential, Jung?

1:16	Dan Szymborski: I had Vaughn in my breakout piece!

1:17	shayne: If you were the Cardinals what would you do with all their outfield depth?

1:17	Dan Szymborski: Use it in baseball games, ideally.

1:17	SH, Jr.: Tossup: Who crawls out of the swamp first, Detroit or KC? And what year?

1:17	Dan Szymborski: Detroit. 2025 or 2026.

1:17	Alex Eisert: I would say KC and 2026. I feel like Det had to reset their rebuild after the Baez/Eduardo Rodriguez debacles.

1:17	A Boy Named Yu: If Bellinger rebounds to above average, does he resign with the Cubs or bolt for mucho money?

1:19	Davy Andrews: I think having success there would obviously predispose him to be more receptive, but elsewhere is way more likely.

1:18	Grape Ape: Hot dog and brat bar is open for business at my house – do I even put the ketchup out since it’s adults only in the house today?

1:18	Dan Szymborski: PUT THAT KETCHUP AWAY

1:18	Craig: Saw some rumors Yankees are trying to trade for a picther? Would Ari have to eat all of Bumgarner’s contract to get any kind of prospect in return?

1:19	Jay Jaffe: first, the move for a pitcher that Boone mentioned is supposedly for a free agent pitcher, and quite possibly a reliever. Second, Bumgarner… man, I can’t see him being more appealing than the internal options given how bad he’s been with the D-backs.

1:20	Jay Jaffe: 1.4 WAR, 4.98 ERA, 5.05 FIP over his last 65 starts.

1:18	Guest: Does Cole have the best FB in MLB?

1:18	Alex Eisert: It’s a good one. But did you know Trevor May’s four-seamer has the best whiff rate in the majors over the past four years??

1:19	Orioles2024: So much for Cole’s leadoff walk…I hate the Yankees.

1:19	Alex Eisert: And then promptly strikes out the side!

1:19	Will: When does G-Rod come up for the Orioles since he didn’t make the roster out of spring?

1:20	Alex Eisert: I see two potential scenarios. 1: the Orioles are competitive and they call him up earlier than expected as a playoff boost. 2: they keep him in the minors as long as possible to keep him ROY eligible for next year so they can get the bonuses that would come with that

1:21	Alex Eisert: It’s the same thing they did with Gunnar last year/this year. But they probably figure he’s their shot at the ROY bonuses for this season.

1:19	Dan Szymborski: Not all choices in life are hard.

1:19	A Boy Named Yu: Let’s just say I’m taking advantage of half of the office, including my boss, the site director, and the HR lady, all being out for spring break this week.

1:20	A Boy Named Yu: Andrew, Greg, or Mo Vaughn?

1:20	Davy Andrews: Mo.

1:20	Oddball Herrera: Atlanta doesn’t get anyone home despite multiple baserunners. Clearly they lack will of warrior, there’s always next year I guess

1:20	Steven: Patrick Corbin CBPOY!

1:20	A Boy Named Yu: You guys need to create a work pass for days like today, a permission slip of sorts.

1:21	Davy Andrews: @MLB did that on Twitter, but they used Comic Sans for the signature, so I don’t think anybody’s buying it.

1:21	Alex: As a SF resident for 31 years, I’ll say it. Chicago Dogs are the best iteration of hot dogs

1:21	Alex: Time to bench Albies? Made an out (ignore xBA) and now let a pop up drop. Hmmmmm.

1:21	Davy Andrews: (Almost) April.

1:21	Not all who Franco are lost: Remote work for the win!!!

1:21	A Boy Named Yu: Favorite Star Wars named player? Hard to beat the OG, Jett Bandy.

1:21	Davy Andrews: This is a really good question and I will think about it for a long time.

1:22	Jay Jaffe: Here comes the Judge

1:22	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: Gotta be Joba.

1:22	Oaktown Blues: Does Skye Bolt count as a Star Wars name?

1:22	GD: Boba Chette!

1:22	Hildebeast: Greinke starting today is fantastic. I wish Cards were starting Wainwright and Yankees were starting Sabathia and my 32 waist pants still fit.

1:22	Alex Eisert: Waino might have been starting if he wasn’t hurt! Cards don’t have all that much rotation depth.

1:25	Jay Jaffe: Wainwright was supposed to start. Instead he’ll be in my roundup of notable starting pitcher injuries, tomorrow.

1:23	Jay Jaffe: Only 62 more to go to break his own AL record!

1:23	Davy Andrews: Already?!

1:23	A Boy Named Yu: Laars Nootbaar is in 2nd for me

1:23	Davy Andrews: I’m sure I see it? Sorry.

1:23	Jay Jaffe: JUDGE RULES THAT OPENING DAY HAS ARRIVED

1:23	Alex Eisert: Not Matt Olson striking out by swinging under a Corbin changeup

1:23	Kwah: AaHRon Judge

1:23	Davy Andrews: It’s like you never left.

1:24	Kwah: SF pitcher wishes he was logan weBB.

1:24	Greg: “Ichiro” sure sounds like the name of someone who is speeding across the galaxy in a ship

1:24	Jay Jaffe: OMG David Cone just dropped an Eric B and Rakim reference on the YES broadcast. “Thinkin’ of a master plan… paid in full.”

1:25	Davy Andrews: Very jealous as a Nats fan.

1:24	Dan Szymborski: Favorite baseball star wars name. Maybe Tirso Ornelas?

1:25	Davy Andrews: Really good.

1:25	Dan Szymborski: Honorable mention to Bligh Madris

1:25	MilwaukeeBeerJays: My dudes! Are any of you into vinyl (records, don’t be wierd)? Jay you somehow strike me as a vinyl guy.

1:26	Davy Andrews: I have a very small collection. I tend not to get a record unless it’s one of my all-time faves.

1:27

Jay Jaffe: I have a ton of music, a lot of it on vinyl — 500 records, maybe more,, and a lot of 7-inchers from the 1990s — but I haven’t really bought any over the past decade as the record player is in the other room and nearly all of my music consumption is from my WFH office so it’s either CDs or MP3s.

1:25	Alex Eisert: Nice piece by Rizzo. If only he’d done that when the shift was actually there

1:26	Dan Szymborski: also Yaya Chentouf

1:26	Kwah: Judge on pace for 672-ish longballs. Underpaid guy in my opinion.

1:26	A Boy Named Yu: Tirso is a good one!

1:26	Yuniesky Betancourt: Yu Darvish sounds Star Wars-ish too

1:27	Davy Andrews: I had this thought, but I didn’t feel strong enough to post it. They do love single syllable first names.

1:27	Dan Szymborski: I already have a Yu Darvish themed Final Fantasy XIV character

1:27	Dan Szymborski: Though not my main

1:27	YorDaddy: I always thought “Framber” was very Star Wars-y

1:27	BCB: Terrin Vavra is my sleeper pick for a Phantom Menace background character

1:27	Davy Andrews: Yes!

1:27	Dan Szymborski: I think Terrin Vavra was one of the pod racers

1:27	RobertoBeers: Touki Touissant

1:27	Appa Yip Yip: Alek Manoah is wearing a button up shirt with the Sandlot movie poster printed on it for opening day fyi

1:28	Davy Andrews: Manoah is an easy guy to love.

1:28	Alex Eisert: Absolute paint from Webb there, way to bounce back

1:28	Tauntaun: Juan Soto makes me think Han Solo

1:29	Davy Andrews: Could be yours! https://www.ebay.com/itm/363964224126

1:28	Jay Jaffe: MLB @MLB That’s No. 1 for The Captain! #OpeningDay 30 Mar 2023

1:29	Jay Jaffe: The Josh Donaldson rebirth is… on hold after he strikes out looking against Logan Webb. That will make him popular in the Bronx.

1:29	Orioles2024: While my DNA includes Yankee hate, even without it, Donaldson makes it easy.

1:29	Alex Eisert: I have no idea why he’s starting, let alone batting fifth. If only Chaparro was closer to the majors.

1:30	Alex Eisert: Apparently he made some swing tweaks during the spring, but I’ll defer to Esteban for that analysis.

1:29	A Boy Named Yu: I apologize for my Star Wars name question hijacking the thread. Had no idea it’d be so popular!

1:30	Davy Andrews: Out of left field questions encouraged.

1:30	Oaktown Blues: Jedd Gyorko?

1:30	Jay Jaffe: Outstanding Lucas-ass name. ($1 to David Roth).

1:30	ZacharyA: Judge is so chill about his greatness. Strolls to the plate, takes one swing, runs around the bases grinning. Like bro you’re facing a groundball specialist in 30 degree weather. This is not supposed to be easy.

1:30	YorDaddy: Surprised no one has mentioned Sith Lord Didi Grigorius

1:30	Oddball Herrera: Josh Donaldson’s goal this year is to do the impossible: pass Chuck Knoblauch as the most hated Twins infield the Yankees have ever acquired

1:31	Jay Jaffe: It’s doable especially if he doesn’t help the Yankees win a World Series or two.

1:31	Dan Szymborski: Naturally, Jay finds the Judge home run while I generate dancing Judge.

1:31	Dan Szymborski:

1:31	Dan: Favorite stadium food?

1:31	Dan Szymborski: Sausage with some level of spiciness and sauerkraut.

1:32	Davy Andrews: Chicken tenders and fries all day. Also, ice cream.

1:34	Jay Jaffe: Bratwurst with sauerkraut and mustard at Miller Park, but I haven’t had one since the end of my first marriage (to a Milwaukee native). I did like the Blue Smoke pulled pork sandwich at Citi Field but that’s gone too.

1:31	Pat: Do any of you know if SaberSim daily projections will be available on player pages this year?

1:31	Dan Szymborski: I have no idea, but may be someone else knows?

1:31	5 Run Homer: Ozhaino Albies is definitely a background Star Wars character

1:32	Davy Andrews: Oh yeah, the full name makes this top 5 imo.

1:32	Dillon: Do you think the shit ban will help lefties significantly more than righties?

1:32	Alex Eisert: Yes. Depending on plate appearance qualifications, the 45 or so hitters shifted the most were all lefties. https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/visuals/batter-positioning?type=player_…

1:34	Davy Andrews: I agree with Alex.

1:35	Jay Jaffe: LOL, shit ban. Man, Rob Manfred ain’t banned that yet.

1:32	Dan Szymborski: I was looking back at old ZiPS prospect list and I had like a half-second of “who the hell is that?” when I came across Albies before he started going by Ozzie

1:32	5 Run Homer: Also Albies’ middle names are Jurdy Jiandro, which is even better

1:33	Well-Beered Englishman: Dan, I’ve got a work conference coming up on the Baltimore harborfront. O’s will be out of town. Any top food/beer recs?

1:33	Dan Szymborski: How Baltimore-food familiar are you? Is this a new Baltimore visit? Because then we have to hit you some basic crabs and pit beef.

1:33	Davy Andrews: Oh, CJ.

1:34	Oddball Herrera: Giants GM is currently thinking he should’ve perhaps added another $50 mil to the Judge offer

1:34	Alex Eisert: And the Yankees are kicking themselves even harder for letting Thairo Estrada go.

1:34	Alex Eisert: In all seriousness, he is a useful utilityman!

1:34	Sophie: For star wars names, a old but good one to me would be Jair Jurrjens

1:35	Davy Andrews: Matt Olson is a large fellow.

1:36	Davy Andrews: And his batting stance is straight out of Major League Baseball Featuring Ken Griffey Jr.

1:36	YorDaddy: Do y’all think Shohei will ever play outfield regularly? That’s the next frontier right?

1:36	Davy Andrews: I don’t think we’ll see it, but we can dream.

1:36	Dan Szymborski: But a good basic first-time Baltimore crawl is getting pit beef at Chaps, walk around Canton and maybe get some oysters at Thames Street Oyster House, get a crab cake at Faidley in Lexington Market — and explore Lexington Market — and then finish the evening at Brewer’s Art

1:36	A Boy Named Yu: Keston Hjerstad?

1:37	Dan: I’m running a star wars game and I’m definitely going to comb this chat for names and see how many I can use before my friends (fans of hockey and football) catch on

1:37	Davy Andrews: I want to hear how this goes.

1:37	Dan Szymborski: That sounds more like a Swedish bond villain

1:37

Guy who asks multiple choice questions: You are touring an open house you are considering buying when you discover a hole in the basement floor, 4-feet in diameter. Do you:

a) Jump in the hole while saying “Geronimo”
b) Throw a glow stick in the hole to see how deep it is (you’d have to go to the store to buy a glow stick)
c) Buy the house anyway and just put a rug over the hole
d) Perform a dance ritual around the hole

1:37	Dan Szymborski: Why plug the hole? You now have a place to keep prisoners.

1:37	Oddball Herrera: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolpertinger “ein volperdinger!” needs to be the Anthony Volpe home run call

1:38	Davy Andrews: Thank you for fueling so many of my future nightmares. I really needed to never sleep again.

1:38	Orioles2024: And a beer at Pickles is a must…game day or no.

1:38	Dan Szymborski: Wolpertinger is a handy minion in pet battles in WoW

1:38	JP: Today Meg decided to have everyone on the FG staff be a beat writer for an MLB team! When considering each teams’ current and future situations, which team would you choose to cover? (and why would you choose Oakland?)

1:39	Davy Andrews: Because I love possums? And Tony Kemp?

1:38	Dan Szymborski: Orioles

1:39	Let’s go 70’s: Rebel pilot Joel Youngblood (kinda looks like Luke Skywalker)

1:39	MikeM: Cole looks nasty today. 6ks through 2 with tons of swings and misses.

1:42	Alex Eisert: And he’s doing it down 1.2 mph from his season average last year.

1:39	5 Run Homer: The existence of Keston Hiura and Heston Kjerstad is incredibly confusing, I’m never sure if I’m getting them right

1:40	Davy Andrews: They do something very particular to my brain where the existence of one makes it harder for me to pronounce the other.

1:39	BCB: Do yall think in-market streaming options will become easier anytime soon? I don’t know much of anything about the TV deals and whatnot. Just a frustrated fan without cable

1:40	Jay Jaffe: I do think this current RSN mess will be the catalyst for some significant changes in broadcasting and streaming, but I wouldn’t hold my breath on it happening overnight.

1:41	Davy Andrews: I think teams will definitely take a long look at what happens with the Yanks.

1:40	Guest: did the giants say why Bart isn’t getting the opening day start behind the plate? seems like a bad sign for their confidence in him

1:40	Alex Eisert: Definitely a strange choice. Perez is certainly a better defender though; maybe they have him in there because Webb spikes a lot of pitches?

1:40	Griff: Gonna be a looooong season in DC. Woof

1:40	Davy Andrews: Sigh.

1:41	Well-Beered Englishman: This will be my first time in Baltimore!

1:41	JP: Opossums are incredibly underrated marsupials and are commonly misspelt. I appreciate the rationale Davy!

1:41	Dan Szymborski: Then what I posted above should work!

1:41	Killing me Smalls: Have you guys noticed a decline in Tommy John surgeries since 2019/20? Where can I look this info up? Great chat like always

1:41	Kwah: Gerrit Cole on pace for 891-ish strikeouts for the season. Underpaid guy in my opinion.

1:41	Dan Szymborski: I haven’t actually. Anyone tally it?

1:42	Davy Andrews: I’m sure there are people doing this, but I don’t know where to look. Alex, do you know?

1:44	Alex Eisert: Are we talking Tommy Johns? I would scour BP’s injury list ledger and also this site: https://www.prosportstransactions.com/

1:41	Eh?: Dan, can you generate a photo of Ohtani on a Sea-Doo with a lizard on his arm?

1:41	Dan Szymborski: Perhaps!

1:42	A Boy Named Yu: On break to get some work done. Feel a little guilty saying that.

1:44	Davy Andrews: Shame. Shame!

1:44	SH, Jr.: how long until the public release of ChatGPT Longenhagen?

1:44	Davy Andrews: I’m not sure Eric would sign off on this.

1:45	Davy Andrews: Hey, first Dom Smith PA! Something to be excited about.

1:45	Davy Andrews: BABIP king, Dom Smith!

1:45

Nice Game, Pretty Boy: Do you think that the infield shift ban adds over/under 5 percentage points to the league BA? Best opening day ever for me was Yankee Stadium 1978 with the thunderous “Reggie, Reggie!” and he homers in the first with all those giveaway Reggie Bars flying out of the stands. What a day!

1:46	Jay Jaffe: 5 points? Yeah, I’d say easily. Man, the Reggie Bars. I’m old enough to remember buying them. They were almost always stale but I kept trying.

1:45	Dan Szymborski: As requested.

1:45	Dan Szymborski:

1:45	JP: @A Boy Named Yu. Just tell your boss that watching Nationals games feels like work!

1:45	Bobbo: Maybe Bart didn’t get the opening day nod because they don’t want him to start 2023 with a golden sombrero?

1:45	Alex Eisert: If it’s about his confidence, not getting the start probably hurts a lot too!

1:46	Dan Szymborski:

1:46	Appa Yip Yip: Top baseball star wars names for me are like, Sleve McDichel, Onson Sweemey, Willie Dustice

1:46	Davy Andrews: Top drawer.

1:47	5 Run Homer: What is going on with the middle infielders in Washington today

1:47	Dan Szymborski:

1:47	Dan Szymborski: The fighting baseball names

1:47	5 Run Homer: Bobson Dugnutt, Todd Bonzalez, etc.

1:48	Alex: Verlander to IL. Uh oh

1:48	Jay Jaffe: New York Mets @Mets Justin Verlander will be placed on the IL with a low grade teres major strain. He will continue throwing at moderate intensity and we will rescan in a week. We will provide an update at that time. 30 Mar 2023

1:48	Davy Andrews: Legitimate bummer, but also rough timing for this article. https://news.yahoo.com/justin-verlander-stronger-ever-130000252.html

1:49	Jay Jaffe: new lead for my starting pitcher injury roundup. Same injury as Triston McKenzie, whom the Guardians expect to be out 8 weeks. This may be less… or more since he’s old

1:49	Bobbo: How great is it that Rizzo’s first base hit of 2023 and the shift ban, he went oppo

1:49	Dan Szymborski: mets aren’t even waiting for games to start before injury gauntlet

1:49	B’ryce Hammer: Wild fielding in DC right now

1:49	Nuggetpalooza: Appears today is the first time in his career that Gerrit Cole has struck out 6 over innings 1-2 of a start. He’d struck out 5 in 13 different starts. Last Yankee to strike out 6 in the first two innings: James Paxton vs BOS (7/26/2019).

1:50	SH, Jr.: when does Cohen actually have to finalize and wire his CBT payment this year? Or does he get to physically deliver it to each team, like in a semi full of nickles and pennies?

1:50	Jay Jaffe: They’ve installed one of those pneumatic tubes between Citi Field and MLB HQ so he can just keep sending money in a continuous stream.

1:50	Dan Szymborski: What Game Are You Binging? Yankees/Giants (48.3% \| 43 votes) Braves/Other (33.7% \| 30 votes) Both (17.9% \| 16 votes) Total Votes: 89

1:50	A Boy Named Yu: Can Castellanos play 1B? Credibly?

1:51	Davy Andrews: Just let them Phillies, man.

1:51	Jay Jaffe: If I were a baseball mitt I’d take out a restraining order against Castellanos

1:50	Dan Szymborski: Does he play OF credibly?

1:51	Jay Jaffe: no, Dan, he does not.

1:52	Alex Eisert: But Davy and I enjoy writing about Castellanos in the OF!

1:51	Well-Beered Englishman: Braves/Other. Harsh but fair!

1:51	Dan Szymborski: This would be an odd time for the Phillies to start asking themselves if someone can play a position

1:51	5 Run Homer: Tell ‘em, Wash

1:51	5 Run Homer: Teres major?

1:52	Jay Jaffe: “the lat’s little helper” as I learned earlier today https://www.physio-pedia.com/Teres_Major.

1:53	Davy Andrews: Also a pretty good Star Wars name.

1:52	Dan Szymborski: Poor Hoskins in left looked like Scott Bakula in the first 30 seconds of an episode of Quantum Leap

1:52	Schwejk: What is more likely? 5 pitchers or 2 hitters from the Marlins at the ASG?

1:52	Alex Eisert: I’d say 2 hitters. Arraez and Chisholm.

1:53	Dan Szymborski: Wait, so the teres major is Diazepam?

1:53	Well-Beered Englishman: Mookie Betts is a Star Wars name.

1:53	Dan Szymborski: Or a dodgy sportsbook started by Mookie Wilson

1:54	Davy Andrews: Wow. Missed opportunity.

1:53	MilwaukeeBeerJays: Trevor May – great fastball and funny dude. You guys should hire him after he’s done pitching.

1:53	Alex Eisert: I support this. Feel like him and Sporer would get along.

1:54	Dan Szymborski: True story: I’ve only talked with Trevor about video games and never baseball

1:54	Alex Eisert: I love that for you Dan.

1:54	Jay Jaffe: You can get to the Mookie Betts window at the Lars Nootbaar on Tattoine.

1:54	Jay Jaffe: Here it is, the start of the Anthony Volpe era.

1:54	Davy Andrews: This is why we can’t give up on Victor Robes.

1:55	Jay Jaffe: The kid works the count full against Logan Webb, and draws a walk on an outside fastball

1:55	Dan Szymborski:

1:56	Davy Andrews: Pronounced: Fan-Gurf

1:55	JP: If Fangraphs decided to have a “Writers’ Weekend” like the MLB Players’ Weekend used to be with players having chosen nicknames on the backs of their jerseys instead of the usual last names, what would the back of your “Fangraphs” jersey read?

1:56	Davy Andrews: That’s my answer: 1-900-FANGRPH

1:59	Jay Jaffe: I’ll go with “DJ JAWS” based on a very silly mockup from MLB Network several years ago

1:55	Dan Szymborski: I didn’t get to use our 1980s joke ad before Kevin went to the Twins! lol

1:55	jefflindy: Cole starts the season with 7 strikeouts in a row… is that a record? Ended up with 8 strikeouts in the first three innings. One walk.

1:56	Dan Szymborski: Pablo Lopez has the game now at nine

1:56	Dan Szymborski: Don’t know who has record to start a season

1:56	BCB: Has Ken Burns ever said anything about doing another Inning chapter?

1:57	Davy Andrews: Wow, I would love that. I met him on the street once and fully fanboyed. I don’t think it happens to him all that often because he was on the phone and he still took the time to stop and chat.

1:57	Dan Szymborski: It’s been nearly 30 years since Ken Burns’ Yankees and Dodgers

1:57	Kwah: Is it too early to declare that these bigger bases are contributing to too many strikeouts? The rules changes have failed, obviously.

1:57	Kwah: Did Jonathan Swift write the script for this game, because Gerrit Colliver’s Travels is making these Giants look more like Lilliputians.

1:58	Bobbo: If LeMahieu stays healthy will he score 120 runs?

1:58	Alex Eisert: I’d say no. He’s never done that before in his career. 100 runs I could see, but all the projections are taking the under.

1:58	Not all who Franco are lost: If Volpe grows a beard, he’ll get my vote for automatic ROY.

1:58	Oddball Herrera: It does feel like the speculation about teams being aggressive on the basepaths is playing out as expected

1:58	Well-Beered Englishman: Webb blowing a throwover while the runner is standing on the first and the 1B isn’t, then cringeing. Great little comic detail

1:58	Derek: if these two games so far are any indication, stolen bases really will skyrocket this season

1:58	Dan Szymborski: I will vote for any player who spends his entire rookie season doing a Ming the Merciless cosplay.

1:58	Davy Andrews: Maybe, but I would caution that it’s still early.

1:59	Not That Dan: Is it possible to binge watch a live sporting event?

1:59	Dan Szymborski: Yeah you don’t let your eyes LEAVE THE SCREEN FOR ANY REASON

1:59	Davy Andrews: Question for everybody: What are you most excited about this season?

1:59	Dan Szymborski: GUNNAR

2:00	Alex Eisert: The inevitable Brendan Donovan power breakout.

2:01	Davy Andrews: So Cardinals Devil Magic is your answer?

2:13	Alex Eisert: Yes, and the Marucci performance lab.

2:00	Jay Jaffe: The very silly mockup I referenced above, in response to the “Writers Weekend” question. I had no part in planning this

2:00	Not all who Franco are lost: Homer answer, but I’m most excited for the Rays rotation once Glasnow is back.

2:01

Dan Szymborski:

Who Are You Most Excited About This Season?

Padres (18.1% | 24 votes)

Yankees (12.8% | 17 votes)

Braves (13.6% | 18 votes)

Mets (6.0% | 8 votes)

Astros (5.3% | 7 votes)

Dodgers (4.5% | 6 votes)

Cardinals (3.7% | 5 votes)

Orioles (9.8% | 13 votes)

Being a year closer to the sweet embrace of oblivion (15.1% | 20 votes)

Rockies (10.6% | 14 votes)

Total Votes: 132

2:01

Mike Pagliarulo: Can’t get anyonne there to address this. Is the chat schedule just a suggestion? When you click on Jeff Zimmerman’s link, it just reloads the home page. Jay Jaffe’s last chat was 3/14. Paul Sporer’s time is listed as 2pm though this week it was held at 9am. Dan Szymborski’s last chat was 3/16. And finally, Eric Longenhagen’s last chat was 12/16/22, more than 3 months ago.

It is hard to participate when you have to guess when a chat may actually occur. Would it be possible to keep the schedule more up to date?

2:03

Jay Jaffe: Sorry about that. WBC finals (for which I chatted with the group) and travel prevented me from hitting that spot in the two weeks since after making several in a row. I do try to keep readers abreast via Twitter (@jay_jaffe) for the days I have to skip my chat, and truthfully, it’s the first thing to go if my schedule is overcrowded (I think that goes for a lot of us.)

2:02	Kwah: Anthony Volpe on pace for 1.000 OPB and 648-ish stolen bases. Properly paid rookie player in my opinion.

2:02	Dan: Most excited for visiting new parks! Planning to go to Citi (from NJ), Nats Park (my current home park), PNC, and Fenway

2:02	Dan Szymborski: I didn’t chat last week becuase I did a long one as I was doing the chat for the WBC finale and I did the whole game

2:02	Oddball Herrera: Currently two votes for the Rockies coming in from Kris Bryant’s parents

2:02	Alex Eisert: Excuse me but who is excited for the Rockies?

2:02	Davy Andrews: Zac Veen is a-comin’.

2:03	Davy Andrews: But mostly their parents.

2:03	Alex Eisert: I mean they’re basically the Padres, just missing a few guys, right?

2:02	Dan Szymborski: I don’t usually chat when I do another long chat the same week. It’s not difficult to get too much of me.

2:02	Alex Eisert: Thank you Oddball

2:02	Dan Szymborski: In fairness, the last two poll options are the same

2:03	Guest: I voted for the Rockies just for the chaos.

2:03	Guest: chat chaos, not on the diamond, obviously they’ll provide none of that

2:03	jayse: also a homer answer, but I’m real excited to see Tatis back

2:03	Teres Major Bummer: Verlander to the IL with a teres major strain!

2:03	Orioles2024: Dan’s WBC chat performance earned him a bye…well deserved.

2:04	explaining myself: I’m excited to see how badly they can be run, plus I don’t like any of the other teams

2:04	SH, Jr.: Re: Gimenez extension … are any of the CLE “blocked” MI high-level prospects desireable enough that the long-rumored consolidation trade is now any more likely? I love Rocchio et al but feel as though none of them is the impact piece that brings back big league help a la Noelvi Marte.

2:04	Joe: How soon will we know if there is a “new ball” this year?

2:04	Alex Eisert: That Judge homer already has me thinking some thoughts…

2:04	Dan Szymborski: I’d wait and see what happens with Rosario

2:05	Where in the World is Diego Castillo?: It’s not officially Opening Day until Eric Hosmer grounds out to first

2:05	Jay Jaffe: it’s his core skill.

2:05	Davy Andrews: JOEY MENESES.

2:06	Davy Andrews: Life has meaning.

2:06	Dan Szymborski: Just be happy the Mets don’t have the Wilpon-era doctors. They already would have removed one of Verlander’s kidneys.

2:06	Al: I’m excited to soon be moving to an MLB city for the first time in over a decade. Unfortunately it’s Cincinnati.

2:06	Dan: Why does MLB TV have a “Free Game of the Day” that is still subject to blackout restrictions

2:06	Dan Szymborski: DONT GET TRICKED, ITS NOT CHILI

2:06	Pumpsie Green: Logan Webb has seven strikeouts, which is tied for the second most in baseball this season.

2:07	BCB: Follow up question to before: What do yall think would go into the next Ken Burns Baseball chapter if it existed? Astros scandal, Giants dynasty, Cubs WS, Statcast are just a few I thought about

2:07	Dan Szymborski: Mostly Derek Jeter.

2:08	Davy Andrews: Right. I think the sabermetric revolution would have to be a big theme. Also, Dan’s right. Derek Jeter. But just his time as a front office exec.

2:07	Jay Jaffe: 9 K for Cole, ties the Yankees Opening Day record, tying Tim Leary, who must have been tripping balls at the time in 1991

2:07	Guest: Plagiarizing Grant’s tweets? Shame!!

2:08	Hire Joe Morgan?: I just opened the chat and saw the Mets are removing kidneys now? Strong start to the year, people!

2:08	A Boy Named Yu: I’m back. I quickly did enough work things to calm my guilty conscious.

2:08	Joe: So it looks like the Nats can’t sell. Does this whole situation break the local blackout deal and RSNs?

2:08	Dan Szymborski: I have no idea what the hell is going on with broadcasts and blackouts all year with the RSNs.

2:10	Davy Andrews: The MASN situation has been in the mud for so long. I don’t think anybody knows what finally gets things moving there, so it’s hard to know what effects it will have.

2:10	Alex Eisert: David Cone is raving about Cole’s slider shape, but to nitpick, the movement is a bit off last year’s numbers so far

2:11	Alex Eisert: The change is getting a lot more run though.

2:10	Jay Jaffe: and there’s the record with Cole striking out Little Yaz with a changeup for his 10th K

2:10	Dan Szymborski: Still trying to get the AI to do Ohtani on a ski-doo, it still thinks it’s a jetski

2:10	Davy Andrews: Ski-doo isn’t a kind of jet ski?

2:11	Dan Szymborski: It’s a snowmobile!

2:11	Davy Andrews: Sea Doo! My bad.

2:11	Dan Szymborski: Sea-Doo is the water one

2:11	Dan Szymborski: It’s tricky since there’s water skiing but there’s not snow boating

2:12	I DVR games: Is that Friday Apple Tv exclusive game nonsense over and done with?

2:12	Jay Jaffe: No, it’s back but you will at least be able to choose the audio of the home and away teams’ local radio broadcasts

2:12	Davy Andrews: It’s back and you have to pay for it this year.

2:12	Where in the World is Diego Castillo?: Which roster has the biggest cliff? Rangers? Going from that top to late career Robbie Grossman, late career Brad Miller, and Josh H. Smith is mighty something.

2:12	Alex Eisert: I’d still give it to the Angels. They have less of a cliff from last year since they added guys like Urshela and Drury but it’s still a big one.

2:13	Dan Szymborski:

2:13	Chip Locke: RE: Apple TV broadcast, it’s my favorite exclusive cast. The booth is pretty fun and they actually enjoy the game.

2:14	A Boy Named Yu: Will the almighty Meg be joining us today?

2:14	Dan Szymborski: I don’t believe Meg’s joining chat today. She’s done like twice the work of anyone the last two weeks!

2:14	Dan Szymborski: Ben, Kyle, and Leo are scheduled to come in at 4

2:14	MilwaukeeBeerJays: If you guys could change 1 RULE, what would it be? Mine would be reintroducing the collisions at the plate are okay, but the fielding team could block home plate with as many players as they want. Like rugby.

2:15	Davy Andrews: Boring answer, but I’d just finally fix the instant replay tag thing.

2:14	Orioles2024: Man, I can’t miss Orioles opening day, but would love to see where Cole’s performance ends up.

2:15	Dan Szymborski: HOME RUN GLOBUS

2:15	Jay Jaffe: Happy Gleyber Day to those observing

2:15	Storming the Mountcastle: HR Adley

2:15	Jay Jaffe: and one for the Orioles fans too

2:15	Dan Szymborski: You know what’s annoying? Because fo the players on Yankees/Mets, it’s actually hard to root against those teams

2:15	Davy Andrews: Adley! Man, it is so exciting to have some hope for the O’s.

2:15	Dan Szymborski: Even t hough every fiber of my Orioles fandom wants me to hate the Yankees!

2:15	Alex Eisert: GLEYBER DAY

2:16	Derek: ADLEY!!!!!

2:16	Dan: ADLEY

2:16	5 Run Homer: Very pleased with how unobtrusive the pitch clock has been. The game is moving noticeably faster but without anything taking me out of it

2:16	Alex Eisert: Really glad it’s not in view anymore.

2:16	Davy Andrews: MASN shows it when it gets down to 12 seconds, I think. But it’s also pretty small and unobtrusive. I think they’re doing a good job with it.

2:17	Jay Jaffe: It’s zipping along — we’re in the bottom of the fourth inning already — but honestly it’s a little hard to keep following and chatting at the same time. LOL

2:19	Alex Eisert: I think the clock is a net positive for the game, but I used to enjoy multitasking with a game on in the background more than I do now!

2:17	5 Run Homer: Adley Rutschman is good

2:17	Kwah: Goneber ToHRHRes

2:17	Mikey: I’m late to the party having just joined this chat so this has probably already been said but man does Cole look FILTHY today

2:17	Davy Andrews: Yeah, turns out he’s good.

2:18	Davy Andrews: Albies guiding one through the 5.5 hole. Man do I love that when it’s not against my team.

2:18

Guest: Hi

2:19	Christian: Which Opening Day pitching matchup are you looking forward to the most?

2:19	Davy Andrews: Kyle Kishimoto vs. opening day pitching matchups. Kyle wins every time.

2:19	Dev: So, every run so far has been scored via HR?

2:19	Jay Jaffe: Everybody has a 100% Guillen Number

2:20	Mikey: This is already an appreciably better product than last year because of the faster pace. I wasn’t able to watch a ton of ST and it’s really pleasing to see the clock having a positive effect

2:21	5 Run Homer: These Orioles goatees are giving real late 90s bullpen vibes

2:21	Jay Jaffe: Baltimore Orioles @Orioles ADLEY RUTSCHMAN JUST HOMERED ON HIS FIRST OPENING DAY!!! 30 Mar 2023

2:21	Knuckleball: When do we expect to see our first game where the pitch clock actually becomes an issue in the regular season. obviously their were some yips in the preseason, but that didn’t matter too much.

2:21	Knuckleball: Outside of two mistakes by Webb over the plate, Webb is dueling Cole quite well.

2:21	Davy Andrews: Just saw the MLB the Show commercial. More Rakim & Eric B.

2:21	Dan Szymborski: True, but the two mistakes were homers, so it’s a bit of “except for that brief interruption, Our American Cousin is going well!”

2:22	Davy Andrews: You sockdologizing old man-trap.

2:22	Dan: Forget where I heard this but tend to agree: Why do you get an RBI for making 1 out but not when you make 2? I get that you made an extra out but…

2:22	Dan Szymborski: I’ve long given up trying to make RBI better!

2:22	Mat: I <3 baserball

2:22	Mike: Anyone else celebrating opening day by going to the dentist for the first time in too long? Sigh.

2:22	Dan Szymborski: That seems less than ideal.

2:22	Alex Eisert: Saving that for next week!

2:24	David Fletcher’s Power Swing: Who is the worst opening day starter this year?

2:24	Davy Andrews: Hello. I am a Nationals fan.

2:24	Davy Andrews: Fried looks like he’s grabbing his left hammy.

2:25	Davy Andrews: And he’s out after three and a third. Hopefully it’s very minor.

2:26	Alex Eisert: The only explanation for him giving up a run to your Nats 😉

2:24	Alex Eisert: Roberto Perez with the single against a dealing Cole! Guess that’s why he started instead of Bart.

2:24	Dan Szymborski: I have to admit I do like the Brewers blue alternates

2:26	Oddball Herrera: Speaking of uniforms, not usually one to gripe but the new Twins hat is pitchforks and torches material

2:26	Davy Andrews: I’m not a huge fan, but I know people who like it.

2:26	Dan Szymborski: It’s easier to root for the Brewers as they’ve transitioned in recent years towards the Morally Superior 80s Uniforms

2:26	Christian: As a Mariners fan I havent been this excited for Opening Day in at least 15 years

2:27	Jorginho: adding megill? verlander’s gone

2:27	Alex Eisert: Definitely. I already have him on a couple teams. Ignore the spring numbers.

2:27	Oddball Herrera: It looks like the Twins stole the Marlins’ old hat and put a star on it!

2:27	Alex Eisert: And for the jersey, they took the Angels’ city connects!

2:27	Craig: Hey everyone from the UK, this is my first season as a fan. I found baseball during the last games of the WS, fell deep, been waiting all offseason for this!

2:27	Davy Andrews: Welcome, Craig!

2:27	5 Run Homer: Disagree, the new Twins hat with the M (and the whole new uniform set) rules

2:27	J: This Cubs lineup has to have one of the largest ever disparities in defense up the middle vs. at the corners

2:27	Davy Andrews: Just enjoy Treric Hosmini.

2:28	Dan Szymborski:

2:28	Oddball Herrera: I am all about the classic unis. Still wishing the Broncos and Bucs could go back to their old ones. Maybe this is just what happens when you get old

2:28	The Gyorko Store Called: Arquimedez Pozo was the first pilot Obi-Wan approached in the Mos Eisley cantina.

2:28	5 Run Homer: Speaking of Star Wars names

2:29	Mikey: I’m from the UK and discovered baseball in 2012. When Anthony Volpe was 10 ffs

2:29	Derek: I do appreciate the mid-atlantic battle for least inspiring opening day starter – Patrick Corbin vs. Kyle Gibson.

2:29	Alex Eisert: There’s no battle there — Gibson is easily the better pitcher. Phillies just messed him up with their bad infield defense last year.

2:30	Davy Andrews: So what you’re saying is the Nats win. We’ll take it where we can get it.

2:29	Davy Andrews: Kyle Gibson wiht a 50% K rate so far.

2:29	Lorenzo: Could Judge end up getting the Bonds treatment with IBB and BB this year?

2:30	Davy Andrews: People think about IBB too differently now.

2:29	Dan Szymborski: Gotta be Corbin. Gibson is a major leaguer at least, if a meh o ne.

2:30	Borg: Any interest in Michael Grove while he’s the 5th starter?

2:30	Dan Szymborski: Not personally, but Dodgers are creepy good at finding performance

2:30	Dan: I have that problem with the Astros and Dodgers. I don’t want them to make the playoff but also they have some fun and good players that I don’t want to root against.

2:30	SH, Jr.: 2023: Return of the Pitch-Out?

2:30	Oddball Herrera: Yeah I was going to throw in Grienke as least inspiring opening day starter but I’d probably be more comfortable trotting him out there than Corbin

2:31	Dan: Who is the best defensive player starting at DH today?

2:31	Alex Eisert: Gleyber’s up there!

2:31	Dan Szymborski: I have to admit I switched the active window from a baseball game to a commercial because I saw Tormund

2:32	Dan Szymborski: Any time Keibert Ruiz does something, you almost feel like the broadcasters I trying hard not to pronounce his name Q*bert.

2:32	Borg: Gunnar is DHing today, gotta be him

2:32	Mike: As a Twins fan, I do not like the new hat.

2:32	Orioles2024: Webb matching Col K for K…

2:32	Jay Jaffe: Eep Mark Bowman @mlbbowman Max Fried exits with what might have been a hamstring twinge he felt while covering first base 30 Mar 2023

2:33	Rule question!: If the catcher tries to pick off the runner on 1B does that count toward the limit for the pitcher?

2:33	Davy Andrews: I don’t think so, and on a recent EW someone was theorizing that that could be a way for the catcher to buy the pitcher some extra time on occasion.

2:33	Dan Szymborski: Cal Ripken is so old 🙁

2:33	Mikey: These mid inning HOF ads are really making me want to plan my first visit to the hall

2:34	Jay Jaffe: It’s so worth it even if you aren’t Extremely Online when it comes to the annual voting. If you can get there in wintertime, you might even get the real treat of having the plaque gallery to yourself. So unbelievably cool if you can swing that.

2:34	Orioles2024: Hyde said before the game he wanted Urias at third, Mateo at SS for defense. I mean….Gunnar ain’t no slouch

2:34	Davy Andrews: He ain’t no joke. It’s a Rakim chat, Orioles2024. Get with the theme.

2:34	Dan Szymborski: Scotts Turf Builder must have made a big buy – the Tormund commercial seems to be rotation among my four windows

2:34	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Will we get a pitch clock violation on Opening Day?

2:34	Dan Szymborski: Yeah

2:34	Christian: Of the teams to receive 0 playoff votes from Fangraphs staff (A’s, Tigers, Royals, Red Sox, Rockies, Cubs, Pirates, Reds, Marlins, Nationals) which do you fear most sneaking into the playoffs?

2:34	Alex Eisert: I would say the Cubs. I think they have the best combo of decent major-league talent and interesting young guys who could come up and make an impact.

2:35	Dan Szymborski: Red Sox probably, they’re not that bad. If Marlins miraculously get offense, the pitching could be enough.

2:35	Davy Andrews: Cubs, Sox, Marlins in order for me.

2:36	Jay Jaffe: I don’t think I’d use the word fear but the Red Sox strike me as the team that could do it

2:34	Orioles2024: Urias was a GG, Mateo should have been, but still…..

2:35	J: we have already had pitch clock violations

2:35	Orioles2024: I don’t know this Rakim dude of which you speak. I’m 59 years old…does that matter?

2:36	Davy Andrews: You are hereby excused. He’s a legendary rapper and he’s 55 (thanks Wikipedia).

2:36	Jay Jaffe:

2:37	Jay Jaffe: One of the high points in the history of recorded sound right there, and I’m not even joking in the least.

2:36	Dan Szymborski: Eric B. & Rakim have been around since the mid 80s!

2:36	Derek: it’s such a bummer to see Adam Frazier starting for the O’s… Vavra, Westburg, Norby, Joey Ortiz, Urias w/ Gunnar at 3rd all would have been more exciting (not to mention that could have used the $$$ to get some more actual pitching)

2:36	Dan Szymborski: Frazier was a signing I didn’t understand.

2:36	Dan Szymborski: He literally brings nothing the O’s don’t have, why him for the “big” signing.

2:37	Dan Szymborski: I remember at the time, some people who like the trade were all HE CAN PLAY LEFT TOO. What infielder can’t cover left?

2:38	SH, Jr.: Follow up to Gimenez / blocked prospects / consolidation trade question… What if I don’t want to wait to see what happens with Rosario? TELL ME WHAT HAPPENS WITH ROSARIO, SZYMBORSKI.

2:38	Davy Andrews: He puts up 2.4 WAR for the third season in a row.

2:38	Orioles2024: Agree….Westberg was my hope.

2:38	Dan Szymborski: I don’t think the Guardians end up re-signing Rosario and he hits FA

2:39	Orioles2024: As my screen name implies, the Orioles “lift off” is next year in my opinion. Let’s get Westburg, Norby, Ortiz, Cowser some reps in the show THIS year. I know there’s only so many positions, but Frazier was a useless signing.

2:39	Harmon: The people who love the Twins hat are probably Marlins fans …

2:39	ryan: TELL ME THE SECRET TO HAPPINESS, SZYMBORSKI.

2:39	Dan Szymborski: Morally correct chili.

2:40	Davy Andrews: I know it’s 88 mph, but Kluber’s sinker is mesmerizing.

2:40	5 Run Homer: deGrom’s first Rangers start coming at the same time as my Blue Jays is very rude, to me

2:40	Dan Szymborski: Considering Verlander and Fried are already injured, should they just hold off on deGrom for game two?

2:40	Alex Eisert: I just don’t understand why this year couldn’t have been liftoff for the O’s. Do they really want a better draft pick for next year that badly? At the risk of wasting a year of Adley control??

2:41	Orioles2024: And I seem to be in the minority, but I’d take Stowers and Cowser over Hays…he’s frustrating at the plate.

2:41	Dan Szymborski: I’m with Alex

2:41	Dan Szymborski: Though in hindsight, my desire to have the O’s sign Rodon wouldn’t have been off to a great start

2:42	B’ryce Szymbobski: Dan, do you have any plans to release zips percentiles at any point? Really could use the upside bars for destroying my fun league.

2:42	Dan Szymborski: I released all the 20s and 80s!

2:42	Jay Jaffe: Folks, I have to duck out early to do some work myself (shakes fist at Justin Verlander) but since we’re past the fifth inning, it’s an official chat from me.

2:42	Orioles2024: It could have been, but John Angelos wasn’t gonna spend while the family lawsuits were pending. Problem is, there’s not alot of good arms in the free agent class next off season.

2:42	Boids: What is the most important position to have a superstar at to give you the greatest probability at a deep playoff run?

2:42	Alex Eisert: Fair enough re Rodon. Even so, bringing up all of their young guys instead of spending still would have improved their standing

2:43	Alex Eisert: … But they did neither

2:42	Dan Szymborski: Just SOMEWHERE. I don’t think it’s necessarily important to have your superstar at X rather than Y or Z

2:42	B’ryce Szymbobski: Sorry, where did this get dumped? I missed it Dan!

2:43	Dan Szymborski: It was added to the standard ZiPS team-by-team charts this yera!

2:43	Well-Beered Englishman: Hmmm, MLB TV in browser just kept showing more ads until I refreshed the page and discovered the game was mid-inning.

2:43	A Boy Named Yu: Stroman clean thru 2, 4 Ks, 1 H 1 BB

2:44	Dan Szymborski: Should there be the opposite of a quality start? Three innings or fewer while allowing six or more runs?

2:44	Dan Szymborski: We could call that a Corbin start, though he didn’t throw a Corbin today.

2:45	Oddball Herrera: It’s also about context with the Orioles. You can squint and see every team in the AL East having some issues this year, and in that division that’s seldom true. This isn’t the Rockies who start the season playing for last place.

2:45	Orioles2024: Webb, 12 K and 85 pitches. Cole, 11 K and 95 pitches. Impressive stuff

2:45	Bobbo: Decidedly-Not-Quality Start

2:45	Dan Szymborski: The hot dog place was out of hot dogs, which strikes me as a poor business model

2:46	Dan Szymborski: So i ordered hot dogs from the ice cream place. I’m a little worried that their chili might be Cincinnati

2:46	A Boy Named Yu: I call that a Zambrano special.

2:46	Dan Szymborski: Carlos, Victor, or both?

2:46	Boids: Skyline Start

2:46	J: I think aesthetically more balls in play is nice but the pitch clock helps make 3 true outcomes more engaging than before by far. Even sequencing on Ks is easier to follow with pace.

2:46	Dan: How many teams will miss the playoffs by less wins than combined WAR of Josh Bell and Chris Martin?

2:46	Alex Eisert: I’d say three. Probably one each of: Phillies/Brewers, Mariners/Angels/Rangers, and Twins/Guardians

2:48	Alex Eisert: Based on my predictions I guess I’d have to say Phillies Mariners Angels Rangers actually!

2:47	Dan Szymborski: I tend to be a bit of an old fogey on rules and stuff, but I’ve come to accept that rule changes that may encourage more varied styles of offense are a good thing on balance

2:47	A Boy Named Yu: Clean for me means scoreless. 3 up, 3 down is a perfect inning IMO.

2:47	Davy Andrews: Respectfully disagree.

2:47	Dan Szymborski: My first radio appearance was at 15 on WBAL radio complaining about the wild card

2:48	Davy Andrews: Mine was on WHFS, getting a record store gift certificate from Gina Crash for knowing the most requested songs of the day.

2:48	Dan Szymborski: back when Josh Lewin was in Baltimore

2:48	Alex Eisert: The Thairo Estrada revenge tour continues

2:49	Dan Szymborski: I haven’t intentionally done an old fashioned radio listener call-in since my late teens

2:49	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: I find your lack of faith disturbing.

2:49	Greg: Is it blasphemy to say that Rakim’s best work was not done with Eric B.? I don’t think I’m the only one.

2:50	Davy Andrews: It is blasphemy, but that doesn’t make it untrue.

2:49	Dan Szymborski: I say intentionally, because back in January, I called into the wrong St. Louis radio station, for some reason they stuck me on the air, I was literally the only person that thought I was the guest, which was incredibly ackward

2:50	Davy Andrews: That’s amazing.

2:49	5 Run Homer: Thairo Estrada seems like a dude who could just put up like a 4-5 WAR season out of nowhere

2:49	Alex Eisert: Nah, without more power/another juice ball he’s capped at 2-3

2:50	Dan Szymborski: It was the most awkward moment of my career.

2:50	Birds: I really like the idea of the baseball zen ads, but my lord the sound editing is terrible

2:51	Davy Andrews: I definitely appreciate what they’re going for! But I agree that they don’t always nail it.

2:51	Dan Szymborski: I was confused why the hosts weren’t introducing me or asking me questions and thought I had a question.

2:51	Well-Beered Englishman: Update on MLB.TV in browser (Chrome, Mac): it looks like they’ve programmed in that thing where ads pause if you tab away, and resume when you tab back. So if you tab away, the new inning won’t come up until you refresh. Good time to use a two screen setup if you have one

2:51	Davy Andrews: Extremely helpful, thanks!

2:51	Dan Szymborski: and I just got more confused from there until they apparently felt I had gone on too long and cut me off.

2:51	Dan: I have to go to a meeting. If anything cool happens in the next 30 minutes I’m relying you kind people to tell me.

2:51	Dan: Hosmer grounded out

2:52	Davy Andrews: Say it isn’t so.

2:52	Dan Szymborski: 2023 HAS BEGUN

2:52	mike: The lack of names on the back of jerseys…..why is this still a thing? Most people see games on tv, and often, often, not their favorite team.

2:52	Dan Szymborski: tradition

2:52	Dan Szymborski: I personally prefer names

2:52	Jim Dugan: Is Gibson really Bal #1 starter???

2:52	Alex Eisert: Grayson Rodriguez should be. Otherwise, Dean Kremer has the highest WAR projection.

2:53	Alex Eisert: But Kremer isn’t far ahead of Gibson either…

2:52	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Don’t make me destroy you!

2:53	Davy Andrews: Mike Elias is being interviewed right now on MASN.

2:53	Dan Szymborski: Adley was this close to tearing something horribly on that slide

2:54	Davy Andrews: When I was 15, I took a cleat to the face on that exact same kind of slide. I still have a tiny scar.

2:54	Dan Szymborski: Adley kinda slid early and tried to do like this somersault thing and get his hand in there and almost tsunamied Arroyo’s face

2:54	mike: Rautcshmann with the worst slide ever.

2:54	Dan Szymborski: At first, it looked like he might have done a Jason Kendall ankle thing and that’s why the slide looked like that

2:55	Dan Szymborski: Thank goodness that was not the case

2:55	5 Run Homer: Oof, Adley just kicked Christian Arroyo in the head on an awkward slide

2:55	Orioles2024: I saw that slide and closed my eyes and muted the TV

2:55	Nat: christian arroyo was this close to losing an ear

2:55	Davy Andrews: Elias: We’re going to be competitive all year in my estimation, and my goal is that this team makes the playoffs.

2:55	Alex Eisert: He’s so full of it lol.

2:55	J: Injuries on opening day have me once again appreciating how ZIPS seems to account for depth pretty well. Feels like a lot of projection systems underestimate the important of having a couple cromulent starters in reserve.

2:55	Dan Szymborski: It’s very hard to do the ZiPS methodology daily

2:56	Davy Andrews: Elias saying that they expected Grayson to make the roster, but the other starters were sharper.

2:56	Davy Andrews: I do not understand why he’s been talking about it this way.

2:57	Alex Eisert: It’s so clearly service time manipulation

2:56	Dan Szymborski: ESPN was always surprisingly nice at my sprinkling in of my weird preferred words. Cromulent, pwned, cemused.

2:56	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: I’ve skipped work for the last 15 years on opening day. Don’t tell my boss

2:57	Davy Andrews: The Emperor?!

2:57	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: I tell you what’s NOT sharp is Elias’ lying ability

2:57	Hildebeast: Daulton Varsho batting clean-up for the Jays according to baseballpress lineups If true, is that wise?

2:57	Alex Eisert: Looks like Kirk to me? If they hit Varsho cleanup though, I’d allow it for the purpose of mixing up their lefties/righties

2:57	marginal utility player: Would there be any value in a stat like Fielding Independent Hitting? Basically a hitting stat based only on HR, BB + HBP, and K

2:58	Alex Eisert: I think xWOBA does the best job of that.

2:57	Dan Szymborski: Because of the CBA, there’s this thing called a Baseball Lie that nobody believes, nobody believes anybody believes, but everyone plays pretend because you can only get in trouble if you actually say the thing

2:57	Derek: I’m increasingly convinced that Joey Meneses is just good. What a wild developmental story.

2:58	Dan Szymborski: If he has an arbitration fight with the Nats in a few years, I get dibs on the article title The Battle of First Meneses

2:59	Davy Andrews: I was so bummed that Baumann didn’t say the Phillies had a stars and Stubbs roster in the Positional Power Rankings.

2:58	Boids: how are people replying to others posts?

2:59	Dan Szymborski: We’re able to

2:59	Orioles2024: Its not service time manipulation. GRod couldn’t get through lineups a second time. He didn’t earn it, but telling a kid he sucked without telling him he sucked isn’t wise.

2:59	Dan Szymborski: I’d rather he take his lumps in the majors.

2:59	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Braves are somehow on their 3rd pitcher in the fifth inning

2:59	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: I think Fielding Independent Hitting doesn’t exist hitters have much more control over their BABIP than pitchers?

2:59	Dan Szymborski: Much more, but it’s still volatile and regression is heavy

2:59	Alex Eisert: Same. Even if Grayson has some sharpening to do it’d make more sense to do it in the majors

2:59	Dan Szymborski: Just not near the degree it is with pitchers

2:59	Greg: Is today the busiest day of the year for the MLB Transactions page? Every rostered player who was wearing a number like a post-millennial hockey star on his back all spring finally gets to switch.

3:00	Orioles2024: Agree….think his language is overly harsh for a young kid. Unless he thinks that’s gonna motivate him.

3:00	Davy Andrews: This is sort of where I am. There are much gentler ways to peddle this particular notion.

3:01	Alex Eisert: My friend, a former college player, said that motivating through belief in a player is better than doubting them.

3:00	A Boy Named Yu: My MLB The Show is old enough it still has the DH in the NL. I’ve been playing a lot lately getting excited for the season and then watching this game today was very confused when the pitcher didn’t come up aftet Turang to bat.

3:00	Dan Szymborski: Grayson frigging dominated AAA in a huge offensive season when he was back. It’s too easy for him for him to get practical experience taking those lumps

3:01	Alex Eisert: Definitely. And even an unrefined version of him would probably be the O’s best starter this year

3:00	Nat: Ohtani striking out Trout on the Baseball Zen

3:01	Davy Andrews: I look forward to seeing that!

3:02	Dan Szymborski: Grayson isn’t going to learn to play in the majors by mowing down Bryan Lavastida and Roman Quinn

3:02	Greg: Dan is talking like someone who doesn’t own Tyler Wells in Sim League. Oh wait a minute, that is the normal perspective…

3:02	B’ryce Szymbobski: G.Rod in the minors makes sense from an innings limit perspective though… especially if you’re trying to spike this season into a wild card birth

3:02	Dan Szymborski: He’s not replacing any good starters!

3:02	Alex Eisert: Wells isn’t bad by Stuff+

3:02	Anonymous: It’s honestly so insane that half the Astros all-stars got hurt in March and they still found a way to bat Kyle Tucker in the bottom half of their lineup

3:02	Boids: are there ballclubs that focus on mental health development in a significant amount?

3:03	Alex Eisert: A lot of teams have “mental performance coaches” or sports psychologists on staff.

3:03	Davy Andrews: I don’t know any specifics, but I suspect that there is a huge disparity between the team that invests the most in it and the team that invests the least.

3:04	Alex Eisert: That’s true too, Davy. Especially if a team were to hire me; then they’d be way ahead of the curve in terms of psychological analysis 😉

3:05	Davy Andrews: You hear that, teams? Alex Eisert will lead you to the promised land.

3:05	Alex Eisert: That’s right

3:03	Kiermaier’s Piercing Green Eyes: Now marks the annual tradition where I discover that the Rays had 100% turnover in the bullpen this offseason and everyone is named Chaysen or something.

3:03	Dan Szymborski: I forget the Peter Fairbanks Name joke someone made in playoff chat a year or two ago

3:04	Dan Szymborski: something like you can generate your Rays reliever name by taking the first name of your friend with the whitest sounding name and your state capital

3:05	Dan Szymborski: So my Rays reliever name is Jim Columbus

3:05	Boids: Mason Jefferson

3:05	Bobbo: George Austin. Tyler Sacramento.

3:05	Christian: with how positively players talked about WBC plus iconic moments like Ohtani striking out Trout do you think playing in the next WBC becomes a legit goal for all-star tier players?

3:06	Davy Andrews: I am cautiously optimistic about that.

3:06	Dan Szymborski: I certainlly HOPE SO

3:06	Well-Beered Englishman: Austin Austin

3:06	B’ryce Szymbobski: I am not saying G Rod should be in the minors… but if I’m trying to squeeze out every advantage possible, wouldn’t I want to take my weaker starts early in the year when weather limits offense?

3:06	Alex Eisert: That’s an interesting perspective. But G Rod will still be pitching in the minors, which will impact his innings limit, and he’ll probably still be shut down by the end of the summer.

3:06	Dan Szymborski: And I think it works. If the Rays suddenly had a reliever named Tyler Sacramento who you never heard of with a 2.76 ERA, would you actually be SURPRISED?

3:06	John Denver: John Denver

3:06	Davy Andrews: Henderson with his second walk.

3:06	B’ryce Szymbobski: Kyle Austin def sounds like a rays reliever

3:06	Hildebeast: David Boston…who is an actual human

3:07	mike: tried to go on chatgpt and generate star wars baseball names, but signup is blocked for an hour for me. oh well.

3:07	Orioles2024: Kremer, Wells, and Bradish are all decent arms….GRod’s time will come, but I think it was wise not to hand it to him like some golden child. But the “he kinda sucked” narrative is what gets me.

3:07	Alex Eisert: I agree that the argument to option him is nuanced and the argument about the narrative is not!

3:07	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Best matchup of the day: Scherzer/Alcantara, Nola/deGrom, or did we already see it with Cole/Webb?

3:08	Davy Andrews: I’m taking Scherzer/Alcantara, just because they both have a better shot of going pretty deep.

3:08	Dan Szymborski: Here’s the time I had the neural network generate new team names for each team.

3:08	Dan Szymborski:

3:09	Boids: re: Star Wars –Jett Bandy

3:09	B’ryce Szymbobski: Who. The. F. is Miles Mastrobouni?!?!

3:09	Craig W: Big base coming into play there at Fenway!

3:09	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: As a ginger living in Oakland I am thrilled with the Oakland Gingers!

3:10	Raffy Scoops: Assuming Red Sox rotation is fully healthy by May who goes to the pen? Paxton?

3:10	Davy Andrews: I suspect their performance in April will have a bearing on that decision.

3:10	Jfast: Interesting that Astros have Jake Meyers in starting CF spot on opening day, after McCormick’s fantastic catch in WS G5 and his general above-average play over last two years

3:10	Alex Eisert: I get it, Meyers has the platoon advantage and while he struggled with the bat last year, he was coming off a shoulder injury and tore up the minors and still played good D in the majors.

3:10	Christian: I’m biased but I think people are sleeping on Bieber vs Castillo

3:10	Dan Szymborski: Mike, here’s ChatGPT’s attempt.

3:11	A Boy Named Yu: Dansby drives in the first Cubs run of the season. Pretty good way to ingratiate yourself to your new fanbase, right?

3:11	Dan Szymborski:

3:11	Davy Andrews: Riegning AL stolen base king Jorge Mateo gets his first bag of the season.

3:12	Guest: what will be the maximum number of stolen bases a team gets in a game today? How about all year?

3:13	Davy Andrews: Four? Eight?

3:13	Davy Andrews: Please don’t hold me to either of those.

3:13	Boids: Sicnarf Loopstok

3:14	Davy Andrews: You know what, MadBum is a good call and I don’t think any of us had it.

3:14	Kwah: Mayor Eric Adams joins the YES booth and suddenly the Yankees score multiple runs… #4MoreYears!

3:14	Davy Andrews: Don’t even joke about this.

3:15	White Sox Hank: The Guardians might steal 12 on Yasmani Grandal at some point

3:15	Hank: Where will Rays rotation rank after Glasnow comes back?

3:15

Alex Eisert: Ben Clemens had them at no. 8 to start the season, right behind the Padres. I could see them moving ahead of the Friars if Glasnow comes back and stays healthy, but not climbing anymore than that (the Braves, at no. 6, are definitely better in my mind unless the Fried injury is significant).

3:15	Kwah: I was a Maya Wiley voter, to be clear.

3:16	Alex Eisert: I was a Garcia voter

3:16	Dan Szymborski: Back, my hot dogs were at the door

3:16	Orioles2024: Adley about to go yard for the second time. Just watch…..

3:17	Alex Remington: Who are the best baseball players with the same first and last name (unrelated; not senior and junior) currently active? Best of all time?

3:18	Guest: Braves puzzle me sending down Grissom, and now extending Arcia. What stopped them from moving Albies to SS (he played there in the minors until deferring to Swanson) and installing Grissom at 2B?

3:18	Alex Eisert: I think that there’s a lot of hesitancy for teams to move established players to tougher positions once they’re already in the majors.

3:18	Dan Szymborski: I would assume right now, the Wills Smith?

3:18	Alex Remington: For best players with same first and last name, I think the Luis Garcias are quite strong. Of all time, I love Bobby J. Jones and Bobby M. Jones, but I think the Frank Thomases might be the best?

3:18	Orioles2024: Frank Thomas

3:18	Dan Szymborski: so all time they don’t have to play together?

3:18	Dan Szymborski: Gotta be Frank Thomas

3:18	Dan Szymborski: lesser Frank Thomas was much better than lesser Frank Gibson

3:19	Dan Szymborski: err bob gibson

3:19	LFC Mike: Did the hot dogs knock or ring the doorbell?

3:19	Dan Szymborski: Just showed up at the doorstep and texted me

3:19	B’ryce Szymbobski: Zack Kelley feels like the most vanilla middle reliever name in the history of non rays baseball

3:20	Royals fan: I liked it better when the neural network suggested “Asthma Pimps” as a new name for Cleveland. Big missed opportunity in my opinion.

3:20	Alex Eisert: What kind of phone do the hotdogs have

3:20	Dan Szymborski: Ah, that was the time I just generated Cleveland names

3:20	Davy Andrews: Are you just having lunch now, Dan?

3:21	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: He’s as clumsy as he is stupid.

3:21	Alex Eisert: Different time zone I believe?

3:21	Dan Szymborski:

3:21	Dan Szymborski: I’m in ET

3:21	Dan Szymborski: but I go to sleep late and wake up late, so this is lunchtime fo rme

3:21	Alex Eisert: Oh okay! I respect a late lunch!

3:21	Alex Eisert: As do I lol. The life of a work-from-home writer

3:22	Dan Szymborski: Also, the hot dog place was out of hot dogs, so it took longer because I had to redo the order with a hot dog place that had hot dogs

3:23	Davy Andrews: That’s a surprisingly important part of running a hot dog place.

3:22	The big three: Not players but same name legendary musicians: Carlos Santana, Kenny Rogers, Jim Morrison

3:23	Davy Andrews: Scott Radinsky.

3:25	Davy Andrews: (Yes, I know it’s the same guy!)

3:23	Dan Szymborski: Back in the pre-wikipedia days, I tricked a friend into thinking pitcher Bob Welch and Fleetwood Mac Bob Welch were the same guy and Welch left music to pursue his athletic career

3:23	Uncle Spike: Why do teams wait till the last minute to move players to the IL? Like ones that we’ve known are going to start the season on the IL for months?

3:24	Davy Andrews: You can make it retroactive, so seems like there’s no upside to doing it early.

3:24	Alex Eisert: You have to make a corresponding roster move right away, so they’re likely waiting to figure out what that corresponding move will be.

3:24	Alex Eisert: At least for 60-day IL placement.

3:24	B’ryce Szymbobski: Maybe it’s just me, but I feel like the Yankees bullpen strategy is to just churn out a bazillion mid tier starters in the minors, and rotate them through the pen. Always feels like it’s a handful of no names, but it winds up being highly effective

3:24	5 Run Homer: I still can’t believe I didn’t know until last year that Tim McGraw is Tug McGraw’s son

3:25	Orioles2024: HTF a hot dog place run out of hot dogs? Need a new business model.

3:25	Nate: Will Smith shares names with other players, musicians AND actors

3:25	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: The Orioles beating up on the Red Sox = [chef’s kiss]

3:25	Alex Eisert: Ron Marinaccio is legit. He’s got velo, a sick changeup, and refined his sweeper midseason last year

3:25	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: (the Dave Stewart in the Eurhythmics)

3:26	Davy Andrews: Fingers crossed that Henderson walks twice in this inning.

3:26	B’ryce Szymbobski: Wow… that was a ROCKET from Diaz

3:27	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: There’s Eva(n) Longoria

3:27	Raoul Raoul: The 2021 Braves had an interesting pitching staff / band: Will Smith, Ian Anderson, Chris Martin.

3:27	Dan Szymborski: It’s not baseball, but it blew my mind when I found out Al Roker and Lenny Kravitz were cousins

3:28	5 Run Homer: The NBA’s Kevin Love is Mike Love’s nephew

3:28	Raoul Raoul: The most Star Wars baseball name belongs to Dante Bichette’s son, Bo.

3:28	Davy Andrews: Just a note to everybody that Esteban Rivera’s article about catcher blocking dropped half an hour ago. I know I’m excited to read it.

3:29	YorDaddy: Why did Schwarber try to bunt with two strikes?

3:29	Dan Szymborski:

3:29	Kwah: Giancarlo Stingleton… I’ll take it.

3:29	Alex Remington: Brian McCann was the name of the guy who played Pimpbot 5000 on Conan O’Brien.

3:29	Flip: Maybe Beaty will turn into a stud but there’s literally nothing that the Giants needed less than a fringe 1B/LF that couldn’t make the Royals roster

3:29	Dan Szymborski: I mean, he’s replacing Piscotty

3:30	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Coco Crisp is actually related to Count Chocula

3:30	Nat: Ron Marinaccio feels like he could be a Yankees player in any decade

3:30	Dan Szymborski: Good news! The chili dog wasn’t Cincy chili

3:31	5 Run Homer: Ron Marinaccio sounds like he looks like Nestor Cortes

3:31	Alex Eisert: They look and pitch very different!

3:31	Davy Andrews: I would like to believe that Miles Mastrobuoni and Mickey Morandini are related. Just let me have this one.

3:32	Dan Szymborski: Adam Piatt and Admiral Piett are related

3:32	Ken: I had a friend convinced that Josh Johnson and Jack Johnson were the same guy in the NFC Championship game this past January. He was very concerned that the quality of the music would drop after the concussion until he looked it up on his phone.

3:33	Flip: Piscotty was never making the roster. He replaced Sean Hjelle I think? And then they swapped Bryce Johnson for Brett Wisely. But its the principle of it. Zaidi is a sicko

3:34	Alex Remington: I am completely serious about this: why don’t the Oakland A’s sign Rickey Henderson as a Terrance Gore (or Herb Washington)-style pinch runner? I can pretty much guarantee two things: 1) Rickey would steal 30 bases this year, and 2) he would absolutely do it.

3:34	Alex Remington: Piscotty is almost an All-Star on the delicious names team, along with Mike Trout, Tim Salmon, T-Bone Burnett, and Chief Justice Warren Burger.

3:34	Orioles2024: My wife’s crab cakes were so Maryland delicious. And the Busch Light is cold. Now the middle inning sweats are here.

3:34	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: The action in these games really does go faster. The increased pace of games makes it harder to follow several games at once.

3:35	Nate: I once nominated Ryan Braun the reliever in a fantasy auction, and he went for $35 before people realized it was the wrong Ryan Braun

3:35	Dan Szymborski: So you’re chaotic evil then?

3:35	Dan: Just noticed MLB At Bat classified a pitch as a sweeper and was both shocked and excited. I understand how sad that statement is

3:35	Alex Eisert: I was in a fantasy bkb league in which someone drafted Marcus Cousins instead of DeMarcus Cousins

3:38	Davy Andrews: Interesting. I enjoy raw sometimes, but I do think pistachios in particular are really elevated when roasted.

3:35	Davy Andrews: Just got a handful of almonds to power me through the end of the chat.

3:36	Alex Eisert: Just had my handful of pistachios!

3:37	Davy Andrews: I wanted pistachios, but I only have raw ones and I wasn’t feeling it.

3:37	Alex Eisert: I’m actually not a big roasted guy!

3:36	Anonymous: There are two Max Muncy’s!

3:36	Nate: Jake Cousins is DeMarcus Cousins’ cousin

3:37	Davy Andrews: There’s also a Zach Britton on the way.

3:37	Orioles2024: I’m a fan of the pitch clock, not gonna lie.

3:37	Alex Remington: I just bid on the wrong Zach Veen, so… I empathize with the owners who bid on the wrong Ryan Braun.

3:38	Kwah: Goldwalzo Somcabrero? (4 Ks)

3:38	Prototypical TBS Kid: I keep hoping the MLB.tv interface will allow you to stack two games on top of each other (instead of needing 3-4 streaming to do so). That would optimize the synergy of work + baseball

3:38	Davy Andrews: That would be amazing.

3:38	Dan Szymborski: It was really obnoxious when there were simultaneous Jeffs d’Amico

3:38	Alex Remington: Madison Bumgarner’s high school girlfriend was Madison Bumgarner!

3:38	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: There were two Boog Powells!

3:39	Alex Eisert: Multiple guys with the same name always messes up my inner_joins

3:39	Davy Andrews: Yeah, the Luis Garcias have really given me problems during heavy data work.

3:39	Alex Eisert: And the Luis (and Diego) Castillos

3:39	Alex Eisert: Gotta join by = c(“Tm”, “Name”) instead

3:40	Whodad: Not to mention the Rougned Odor (s)

3:40	Shakespeare meets Baseball: Dodgers have a Hamlet Marte in the minors

3:40	Davy Andrews: As a major Shakespeare nerd I am irrationally excited for this.

3:40	Nate: Didn’t the Guardians have two LHP named Logan Allen at one point?

3:40	Dan Szymborski: Yeah, they’ve had both Logans Allen

3:40	Nate: Wilmer Flores is gonna be a problem soon, as well

3:40	Davy Andrews: The first Wilmer Flores could never be a problem.

3:40	Dan Szymborski: Everyone should just change their name to their MLBAM ID

3:41	Orioles2024: BLASPHEMY! There’s only ONE Boog Powell. lol

3:41	Alex Eisert: Yeah, 543037 was so good today

3:41	Sandwich: Wait y’all are joining on names as opposed to ids!?!?!

3:41	Alex Eisert: Sometimes the IDs aren’t available for one of the datasets

3:42	Davy Andrews: Right. It gets tricky when the data is coming from different places.

3:42	Alex Eisert: Razzball is helpful for that, but it doesn’t have every player usually.

3:41	Dan Szymborski: It’s especially weird that the second player named Boog was a completely different type of player

3:41	Anonymous: Double Wanders Franco was a thing for a hot second when they were both (admittedly different) levels of prospect

3:41	5 Run Homer: Wander Franco’s dad and brothers are also named Wander

3:41	Kwanbelievable: As somebody who works in databases all day, I couldn’t agree more that everything and everybody need to be referred to by randomly generated IDs. the world would be so much simpler

3:42	Dan Szymborski: While ZiPS keeps MLBAM IDs

3:42	Dan Szymborski: when I tell ZiPS to project someone, it’s their name, not their MLBAM ID

3:42	Dan Szymborski: because I don’t have all those memorized

3:42	Dan Szymborski: So everybody has to get have a unique name!

3:42	Dan Szymborski: Will D. Smith

3:43	Dan Szymborski: Big Chris Carter

3:43	Dan Szymborski: Other Frank Thomas

3:43	Dan Szymborski: Not That Bob Gibson

3:43	Guest: What about the two Brady Feigl prospects who looked remarkably similar

3:43

YorDaddy: Settle a debate for me: is a team a defending champion until they are eliminated from the next championship? or when a new champion is crowned? For example, say the Astros for whatever reason implode, gets mathematically eliminated from the playoffs in September. Who is the defending champion from September til the last game of the world series? You can’t “defend” a championship if you’re eliminated?

3:44	Davy Andrews: I love how pedantic this is. They’re the reigning champion until someone else wins it, I guess, but the defending champion as long as there’s air in their lungs?

3:43	Alex Eisert: That was a great look at Marinaccio’s sweeper. You could really see the SSW

3:44	Dan Szymborski: A team is never a defending champion because the championships are not directly contested.

3:44	Dan Szymborski: The instant a team wins the championship, they’re last year’s champion and there is no reigning champion

3:44	Dan Szymborski: The actual achievement is culminated in one infinitely small triumphant moment

3:45	Hadley Wickham: I’m disappointed in you Alex.

3:45	Davy Andrews: I don’t know what this is referring to but I strongly agree.

3:46	Alex Eisert: It’s referring to my R skills

3:45	Joe: I have to go to the second initial of my middle name for my google scholar ID. VEXING

3:45	5 Run Homer: Luis Garcia (Funky), Luis Garcia (braces), Luis Garcia (vanilla)

3:45	Smiling Politely: Thinking of the later games, do the Dodgers work out a long term deal with Urias? Does James Outman become the dark horse rookie no one expected?

3:46	Nat: I guess a problem with opening day is that now when your team loses it counts 🙁

3:46	Davy Andrews: Found Mike Rizzo’s burner.

3:46	Dan Szymborski: There was a baseball think factory chat a LONG time ago where we gave all the Molina boys pop tart nicknames

3:46	Joe: Wait while you’re here Hadley, how is tibbvle

3:46	YorDaddy: Good point Dan, while you’re probably technically right, “defending champion” is very much a real concept in team sports vernacular.

3:47	Dan Szymborski: Remember, technically correct is the best kind of correct!

3:47	jj: Burnes and the Cubs, just as expected 3BB 2K 4H 4ER

3:47	J: Yankees game over in 2:34. Gotta love it.

3:48	Dan Szymborski:

3:48	Dan: If you send your young pitcher to the minors and tell them to only let him pitch on Sundays for a month does that limit his innings effectively or does it prevent them from developing the endurance needed to pitch in a MLB rotation

3:48	Bryan: If mateo plays 120 games o/u 60 steals

3:49	Davy Andrews: That’s a lot to ask in 120 games. Under.

3:49	Alex Eisert: Agreed. Only 35 in 150 games last year

3:48	Dan Szymborski: I don’t know if that’s been tested, but I think it wouldn’t be a good idea

3:48	Greg: Was that about how the Molinas would pop up to throw out baserunners or about them all being frosted on one side?

3:49	Dan Szymborski: Jose and Bengie had to have had the two largest sets of buttocks in baseball at the time

3:49	Nat: It took six innings for boos at Fenway

3:49	Dan Szymborski: young Yadi was just roped in as guilt by association

3:49	5 Run Homer: Cody Bellinger’s swing still fools me into thinking every flyball is going 450 feet

3:49	Orioles2024: Reese McGuire not even coming out of his crouch when Mateo and Mullins take off. lol

3:49	Nat: sorry, 5

3:50	Joe: They were booing in the fourth in Boston!

3:50	Alex Eisert: Who said they thought the Sox had a better chance than the Cubs at October?

3:51	Davy Andrews: Dan

3:51	Orioles2024: I’m gloating inside…but its early.

3:51	Alex Eisert: ^^

3:51	Charm City: I’m excited to see good Orioles baseball. I’m old enough to remember Earl Weaver

3:52	Davy Andrews: I’m old enough to remember Mike Devereaux

3:52	Dan Szymborski: ZiPS disagrees – has Cubs playoffs at 23%, Red Sox 19%

3:53	Alex Eisert: That tracks for me.

3:52	Greg: I think I am going to start using the term “Pop Tart Ass”

3:52	Kwah: Jose SiHRi

3:53	Prototypical TBS Kid: Imagine if the orioles had signed a top of the rotation pitcher… oh wait “technically” they signed opening day starter kyle gibson

3:53	jj: Come on Siri you can’t steal bases like that

3:53	Davy Andrews: That one got me.

3:53	Eric: Mason Wynn, young padawan of Master Mace Windu

3:53	Davy Andrews: More excellent work.

3:53	Socrates: Is MLB’s platonic ideal Catcher rostered for his arm and bat (and not framing)? Is this not at odds with our current reality?

3:53	Alex Eisert: Yes — I think MLB is upset that guys like Gary Sanchez have fallen by the wayside and it’s okay to start Roberto Perez on Opening Day. The arm is becoming more important again w bigger bases but that ideal catcher won’t truly regain value until the ABS robots come.

3:54	Dan Szymborski: The O’s could have signed Judge and deGrom and still have a payroll significantly lower than average

3:54	YorDaddy: This is probably the weakest Astros line-up on opening day in years huh?

3:54	Boids: as a cardinals fan i’ve had the mystery of variance taken away from my baseball experience

3:54	B’ryce Szymbobski: That moment when you realize local blackout restrictions will block you from ever watching Jacob DeGrom pitch 🙁

3:54	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: So you’re telling me there’s a chance?

3:54	B’ryce Szymbobski: Ryan Braiser was aiming for the old bounce-a-strike

3:55	Dan Szymborski: If you told me a Yankees game was going to be done in 2:45, I’d have assumed it was called in the 6th by rain

3:55	Davy Andrews: You know it’s opening day because I somehow still have hope that the Nats could come back in the ninth.

4:00	Davy Andrews: Serves me right.

3:55	Bo Knows: Could Patrick Mahomes one day try to play baseball in addition to football? He was pretty good, he’d follow his father’s footsteps, and it’s been too long since the days of Bo Jackson and Deion Sanders.

3:56	Davy Andrews: I mean, he hasn’t played in a long time. But I’d obviously love to see it.

3:56	Dan Szymborski: I doubt he’d have the proper motivation to try

3:56	Dan Szymborski: QBs have long careers compared to other positions

3:56	Prototypical TBS Kid: I feel compelled to watch degrom, but always am worried that I’m going to watch someone’s arm literally fall off. Can we start a petition to have him throw 2% less hard. I believe he can still be plenty good with a 99-100mph fastball and 92 mph slider

3:56	YorDaddy: Kyler Murray more likely to go MLB than Mahomes.

3:57	Joe: Went to the nats home opener last year. Three rain delays. the POS broke because the Wi-Fi was down. They basically emptied the tank handing out free beer. Hope this year is better.

3:57	Rex Manning Day: If the Orioles had signed Judge and deGrom, where would you peg their playoff odds?

3:57	Alex Eisert: Right now they’re at 10%. I’d bump it up to at least 60%.

3:58	Boids: tom brady was drafted by the expos right? nats could use him

3:58	Alex Eisert: And Russell Wilson by the Rangers!

3:58	Blake: Really enjoy Nats park

3:58	RTJ: What’s bad about free beer??

3:58	mike: Better than free beer?

3:58	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Adley = MVP

3:58	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Is there a 10 run rule? Asking for a Sox fan.

3:59	Prototypical TBS Kid: ESPN still listed tim tebow in the draft queue for fantasy baseball.

3:59	Dave: Free beer? How can any OD ever be better than that?

3:59	Dan Szymborski: Braves busting it open

3:59	Ben Clemens: Hey guys, did someone call for a bullpen arm?

4:00	Davy Andrews: I’d say we’re piggybacking starters here.

4:00	Davy Andrews: Also, hi!

4:00	Kwah: St. Louis Cardinals doing a parade of 5,000 pound vehicles that get 9 miles per gallon to introduce their lineup as they host a Canadian team seems on brand as a grotesque version of my home nation.

4:00	Dan Szymborski: Binyamin!

4:00	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: A’s Opening Day in 2021 was the opposite, they tried to make you order from your seat but the system didn’t work, I couldn’t get a beer at all

4:01	Kyle Kishimoto: Hello! I’ll be messaging pretty slowly for the next hour (on mobile at my other job) but I’m here!

4:01	Davy Andrews: Hi, Kyle!

4:01	Guest: Nootbaar introduced to St. Louis crowd as “international sensation, Lars Nootbaar”

4:01	Ben Clemens: Right on cue we saw a Miguel Cabrera double play after the broadcast drew some arrows about how to hit it the other way

4:01	Ben Clemens: delightful

4:01	Kyle Kishimoto: International sensation is an understatement!

4:01	Alex Eisert: Drawing arrows is my favorite kind of analysis

4:01	Alex Eisert: Also, hi!

4:02	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: New Scrabble pitching for the Brewers

4:02	Kyle Kishimoto: Peter is in the game??

4:02	J: 3 PAs 3 groundouts for Eric Hosmer. How many in a row before Mervis is up?

4:02	Davy Andrews: Let him cook.

4:02	Guest: CJ Abrams has 3 errors. Today is opening day.

4:03	Davy Andrews: But Victor Robles is doing the damn thing.

4:03	Jacob: Spencer Torkelson with 2 100 mph groundouts in his first two ABS of the season, brutal LA but at least he’s hitting it hard?

4:03	Davy Andrews: Have I got a treat for you: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/analyzing-spring-trainings-exit-velocity-l…

4:03	Ben Clemens: Yeah if he’s making hard contact, things will work out

4:03	Ben Clemens: meanwhile Riley Greene is hitting 50mph singles

4:03	Triple Word Score: Strzelecki in for the Brewers

4:03	Kyle Kishimoto: Username checks out

4:04	Davy Andrews: Mid-season form.

4:04	B’ryce Szymbobski: DAMN! I wanted that Acuna bomb for my team

4:04	Leo Morgenstern: Howdy all, happy Opening Day! Excited to chat for the first time

4:04	Davy Andrews: Hey, Leo!

4:04	Prototypical TBS Kid: Abrams has been…poor. Victor Robles just made an amazing grab though

4:04	Ben Clemens: Hey Leo!

4:04	Kyle Kishimoto: Hey Leo!

4:05	Blake Seams: These poor fangraphs writers slaving away at work while we play hooky for opening day. How I pity them…

4:05	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Greinke’s average FB velocity today:

4:05	Davy Andrews: Is the joke that it’s invisible?

4:05	Dan Szymborski: OK gang, with the full four o’clock crew here, I’m going to head out!

4:05	Davy Andrews: Bye, Dan! Hope the hot dogs were good!

4:05	Dan Szymborski: Thanks for chatting with me!

4:05	On pace guy: CJ Abrams is on pace for 486 errors this season.

4:05	J: Zs are worth 1 point in Polish scrabble unfortunately

4:06	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Say Strzelecki three times backwards, and he gets you out of the inning.

4:06	Derek: thanks, first shift!

4:06	Ben Clemens: I was just trying to figure out how to say Strzelecki backwards

4:06	Davy Andrews: Ick-uh-lizards.

4:06	Ben Clemens: if you figure it out, let me know

4:06	Ben Clemens: the ‘ZRTS’ at the end is a tough one

4:06	Alex Eisert: I’m heading out too, thanks everyone!

4:06	Davy Andrews: Bye, Alex!

4:07	Kwah: Still not as many consecutive consonants as Goldschmidt.

4:07	B’ryce Szymbobski: Ickle-Zirts isn’t THAT harde…

4:07	Leo Morgenstern: Ikcelez RTS (Resistance Training Specialist)

4:07	White Sox Fan: Do we come here to discuss lineups? Twitter takes are ridiculous. Benitendi down to 6th and Colas not starting against the only LHP from the Astros.

4:07	Kyle Kishimoto: I’ve noticed a lot of people online really believe that if a position player isn’t starting 162 games a year then their team is crazy or not using him optimally. I don’t get it.

4:08	Ben Clemens: Opening day does feel a bit different. I think if this were a random Thursday no one would care. Like, give Colas an opening day start to celebrate making the team imo

4:09	Leo Morgenstern: And I think a lot of fans view Opening Day as a window into how the manager is going to approach the season.

4:07	bosoxforlife: This might be the first year since 1966 that I haven’t been excited about Opening Day. This year reminds of my college days, 1960-64, when a few of us would go to Fenway and sit alone in the box seats. I am 81 and and I am definitely not into a rebuild.

4:08	5 Run Homer: Ickelzerts

4:08	B’ryce Szymbobski: Ah yes, Victor Robles, a paragon of plate discipline apparently

4:08	Davy Andrews: This is his year. Do not quote me on this.

4:08	Kyle Kishimoto: That might be easier to pronounce than strezlecki

4:09	5 Run Homer: This rendition of the Canadian anthem is… not good

4:09	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: I was asking for a prediction on Greinke

4:09	Davy Andrews: In terms of velo, low to mid teens?

4:09	Kyle Kishimoto: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 1 K

4:09	Kyle Kishimoto: Avg fastball 88 avg changeup 89

4:09	Ben Clemens: the two guys standing around Wainwright with guitars that they aren’t playing amuse me

4:09	ryan: ADAM WAINWRIGHT IS SINGING THE NATIONAL ANTHEM

4:10	Jesse: Adam Wainwright is singing the national anthem

4:10	B’ryce Szymbobski: LOL at that avg changeup

4:10	Davy Andrews: I’m sorry, Wainwright is doing what?

4:10	Guest: Adam “Steven Brault” Wainwright singing the national anthem in St. Louis

4:10	5 Run Homer: Waino singing the anthem is extremely cool though

4:10	bosoxforlife: Time for some deGrom!!

4:10	Ben Clemens: so delightful to watch

4:11	Leo Morgenstern: I’ve always thought Wainwright would make a great broadcaster when he retires. But maybe he has bigger plans in front of a mic…

4:11	Leo Morgenstern: The Voice winner season 25?

4:11	bosoxforlife: with a bit of a southern twang!!

4:11	Chili Beans: Torkelson hit a ton of hard ground balls last year. He’ll only be fine if he gets more in the air. Maybe the shift rule will help a little for him, but his lack of speed means he really needs to elevate or he turns into Yandy Diaz.

4:11	Kyle Kishimoto: Díaz makes more contact and at least doesn’t pop out a ton, Tork has a more barrel dependent profile

4:12	Ben Clemens: deGrom is just popping 100 and throwing disappearing sliders like nothing has changed

4:12	Davy Andrews: Man.

4:12	Ben Clemens: the Phillies announcers laughing about deGrom’s pitch selection will never get old to me

4:12	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: HI BEN. BE CAREFUL NOT TO CHOKE ON YOUR ASPIRATIONS

4:13	Davy Andrews: Every time I think about this line, I think, “I wonder if the screenwriter just watched The Verdict.”

4:13	Prototypical TBS Kid: It would be amazing if Texas’s rotation actually stayed healthy all year.

4:13	Leo Morgenstern: Speaking as a Phillies fan, it’s incredibly unfair the Phillies have to face deGrom and the Braves got to face Corbin

4:13	Leo Morgenstern: I’ll be lodging a complaint

4:13	bosoxforlife: After watching the Red Sox stink I needed Waino and deGrom to lift my spirits and remember that I am a baseball fan first who happens to root for the Red Sox.

4:13	Ben Clemens: This is maybe my favorite part of today. There’s just so much cool baseball happening at once.

4:14	Vin: Move aside Shohei Ohtani, Adam Wainwright is the new two-way star

4:14	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Swanson 3-4.

4:14	Prototypical TBS Kid: I dare say Corbin looked…like a big league starter? His fastball was up around 92.

4:15	Davy Andrews: I asked this during the first shift: What are you guys excited about seeing this season?

4:16	Kyle Kishimoto: Tony Kemp stealing 50 bases

4:15	Ben Clemens: I was watching the Yankees/Giants game and didn’t hop around much but that’s pretty solid

4:16	Ben Clemens: I’m excited for the steals, a full season of Seiya Suzuki who I’m a big fan of, and deGrom starts when I can catch them

4:16	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Named my team Yoshida’s Island and photoshopped his face on Yoshi’s body, and put a bat in his hands

4:16	Ben Clemens: Gotta love going the extra mile for a fantasy team name.

4:17	Orioles2024: I like the idea of the pitch clock. 7:05 first pitch, post game interviews, in bed by 10ish? I can get ahold of that alot.

4:17	B’ryce Szymbobski: I am of the opinion that We will see a good number of 40 steal seasons

4:17	50 bases: Tony Kemp won’t get on base 50 times

4:17	Davy Andrews: Fighting words!

4:17	Kyle Kishimoto: True, he’s actually gonna get on base 500 times

4:18	Blake Seams: Better chance at 30/30 this year? Kyle Tucker or Julio Rodriguez?

4:18	Kyle Kishimoto: I’ll say Julio but both have a good shot at it

4:18	Prototypical TBS Kid: As a braves fan I’m excited for hopefully fully healthy Acuna/Albies. As a baseball fan, I’m excited for what appear to be a bunch of solid races. I’m hopeful the Angels will actually be good and fearful of lucy pulling the football.

4:19	Leo Morgenstern: I agree, I think there are going to be more interesting races this year. Some great rivalries in the NL East and West, and I think AL Wild Card is going to be really fun

4:18	J: I am excited to be able to go to a weekday baseball game and be home by 10:30

4:18	Appa Yip Yip: Every opening day I have flashbacks to 2018 when it was below freezing in Texas and Josh Donaldson couldn’t throw across the infield and it felt like the Jays season died right alongside his arm on the very first day. Do not like stop it brain.

4:18	Ben Clemens: Don’t worry, it’s 70 in St Louis

4:18	Vin: St Louis’ organist is in top form on opening day

4:19	5 Run Homer: As a Jays fan, I’m excited for this incredible defensive outfield for the 25 games we’ll get out of them

4:19	Prototypical TBS Kid: Oh, and I’m loving San Diego throwing the bird to every other “small market” team

4:20	Kyle Kishimoto: Peter Seidler found out that spending money on giant money printers is actually a smart idea

4:20	Davy Andrews: Good article about that today. I think it was Bill Shaikin in the LA Times.

4:20	Davy Andrews: https://www.latimes.com/sports/story/2023-03-29/san-diego-padres-inves…

4:20	5 Run Homer: As a baseball fan, that Padres core four is going to be so, so fun

4:21	Leo Morgenstern: Yeah, I’ve been trying to think of a more unique answer, but I’ve got to say I’m most excited to watch the Padres. Imagine if they had all three NL MVP finalists in one roster…

4:21	Orioles2024: I’m excited for a full year of Gunnar, GRod’s debut, and to see how our infield shakes out with solid gloves already there and studs at Norfolk.

4:21	Birds: I’m watching baseball zen of a pitcher rosin-ing his hands and it sounds like dinosaurs roaming the earth

4:22	Kyle Kishimoto: The theater at the museum I work at is currently playing a dinosaur movie, maybe the sounds I’m hearing are actually the guests watching opening day!

4:22	vbjd1111: What’s going on with the live scoreboard? Appears to be frozen from several hours ago.

4:22	Davy Andrews: People are working on it!

4:22

Morbo: Excited for my 6 player keeper league this year: named the team “A Farewell to Arms” and have been drafting injured pitchers for the last couple years. We now have Tyler Glasnow, Nester Cortes, Dustin May, and Christian Javier for $1 each for at least 3 year. Plus Tristan McKenzie for $3 for min 3 years as well.

4:22	Ben Clemens: I need a new team name, I’ve been “Madrigal Realism” for a while but I finally actually became realistic and cut him.

4:23	Kyle Kishimoto: My main fantasy league is a 10 teamer this year so I went full send with all the injury guys, I have degrom rodón Kershaw and Buxton lol

4:22	Leo Morgenstern: As for what I’m least excited about? Blackout restrictions that made me miss Wainwright’s national anthem

4:22	Davy Andrews: Would have loved to see Cole/Webb!

4:23	Leo Morgenstern: I can attest it was a fun game! Or maybe I just loved watching my first MLB game in five months

4:22	Orioles2024: Oh, and Adley ascending to the throne of best catcher in the game.

4:23	Vin: I’m excited for the Rockies to win 100 games and sign Charlie Blackmon and several relievers to five year extensions

4:23	Ben Clemens: at least one of those two things might happen

4:23	ryan: I am starting to be suspicious about Madrigal’s odds of reaching 3000 hits

4:24	Blake Seams: Adley Rutschman best catcher in the game? This is Martin Maldonado erasure and I won’t stand for it

4:24	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Pirates lineup is actually kinda fun! Oneil/Reynolds/Mccutchen/Santana, Ke’bryan and Sluwinski, Choi will be there at some point

4:24	Davy Andrews: I was very heartened to see Cutch on the spring training EV leaderboard.

4:24	Prototypical TBS Kid: I would love if Estuary Ruiz turned out to be gold, and every writer who analyzed that trade had to question things.

4:24	Kyle Kishimoto: He hit a 109 mph homer on Monday, I was not aware he had average or better raw before seeing that

4:25	Davy Andrews: I was psyched about that too. I would absolutely love it if he can really hit.

4:24	Ben Clemens: As the founder of the Ke’Bryan Hayes is great fan club, I’m definitely in on team Pirates

4:26	Davy Andrews: Do we get a patch or anything if we join? I want in.

4:25	RH: I really want the Reds rotation to make them surprisingly competitive

4:25	bosoxforlife: Adley is not only going to be the best catcher in the game, he is about to be seen as the MVP in the game, two-way players exempted.

4:25	Morbo: Extremely excited to that the Cardinals are playing the Blue Jays for opening day. The development of this Blue Jays team of the past few years has been one of my favorite things to watch in baseball. I don’t get to see them often so it’s nice to get the opportunity to see the here

4:25	Leo Morgenstern: I’m very interested to see more Jack Suwinski in center field for Pittsburgh

4:26	Ben Clemens: You really do not want to have a ‘let them put it in play’ approach against the Jays, jeez

4:26	5 Run Homer: extremely Bo Bichette hit

4:26	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Just looked up and saw that Cincinnati still has a ball club. Neat.

4:26	Prototypical TBS Kid: I’m excited for every O’Neill Cruz highlight, Jordan Hicks/Hunter Greene fastballs, and pitching ninja overlay gifs

4:27	Appa Yip Yip: Interleague play is great, I like getting to see every team. When I go to games I like to poke around and see what NL teams are coming. Opening day interleague is super cool.

4:27	Leo Morgenstern: I really like that every team is going to play every team this year. Although I think I’m in the minority there

4:27	Ben Clemens: 100%. Also Blue Jays Cards is just a spectacular game.

4:27	Davy Andrews: Leo, did you hear what they just said in the Phillies game?

4:27	Leo Morgenstern: I didn’t, what did I miss?

4:28	Davy Andrews: They’re talking about Castellanos bouncing back and winning the MVP.

4:28	Leo Morgenstern: We can all dream on Opening Day! He’s off to a good start

4:29	Davy Andrews: I mean, maybe it should just be the last guy to get an XBH off DeGrom is the current MVP.

4:27	ryan: okay so I know convos about the Diaz Kellenic trade is old hat and reliever WAR is a dumb way to evaluate things, but Cano and Diaz combined for about 6 war and paid 50MM for it. In terms of $/WAR, I really don’t think it’s impossible for Seattle to win it

4:28	Kyle Kishimoto: $/WAR doesn’t mean all that mich when your owner isn’t allergic to spending money, Kelenic could still be good but Díaz just had one of the best seasons for a reliever ever

4:28	Derek: Adley thrown out at second twice today

4:28	Davy Andrews: Yeah, but you should see the other guy.

4:30	Ben Clemens: They just mentioned on the Rangers broadcast that the team has now thrown more 100 mph pitches in 2023 than 2022

4:30	Davy Andrews: A true team accomplishment.

4:30	Kwanbelievable: Davy, you made me spit out my drink. That comment was out of pocket and I’m here for it

4:30	Royals fan: M.J. Melendez has made his first error in right field, which means the season is officially under way.

4:31	Davy Andrews: CJ Abrams has beaten you to the punch and then some.

4:31	Leo Morgenstern: If the last guy to get an XBH off DeGrom is the MVP, it would’ve been Swanson last season. Not a terrible choice.

4:31	Leo Morgenstern: Jace Peterson the year before though

4:31	Oddball Herrera: Woah woah woah. A Castellanos xBH just happened. Don’t threaten me with a good time

4:31	J: I don’t think people give the Marlins enough credit for the Ozuna traded. Ozuna seems washed and they netted Chisholm (via Gallen) and Alcantara. For all their other mistakes they nailed that one.

4:32	Leo Morgenstern: Fair enough, but hard to give them too much credit when the philosophy behind it (selling all their great players) was so poor

4:32	Ben Clemens: Bohm bomb!

4:32	Davy Andrews: Alec Bohm, NL MVP.

4:32	Leo Morgenstern: More or less likely than Castellanos?

4:32	RTJ: one of my personal favorite things about Baseball is how the local broadcasting teams are just deeply ingrained into the team they broadcast. Especially the ones who are deeply root-for-the-home-team. Who are you favorite homer broadcasters? White sox team has to be up there right?

4:33	Davy Andrews: I wrote about this at BP a while back, but I can’t find it to link it. The Mets team is truly excellent.

4:33	Ben Clemens: White Sox, Mets, and Giants are my favorite homer-ish teams

4:33	Prototypical TBS Kid: The real question. Will the rangers score more runs per game for Degrom than the mets did

4:33	Blake Seams: Have we called a winner the Chisholm/Gallen trade yet? Seems like usually this far on we have more resolution…

4:34	Kyle Kishimoto: Give it more time, but I’m sure both teams would say the guy they have fits a better positional need on their current roster

4:34	Leo Morgenstern: It’s nice when trades don’t have to have a winner!

4:33	Dan: How cool must it be to not only hit a HR, but to hit a HR off Jacob deGrom

4:34	Guest: So Royals basicly played 2 OF with RF playing deep second against Gallo (who hit a grounder right to the RF.) But the shift is “banned”

4:34	Ben Clemens: On the other hand, how cool is it that teams are playing FEWER outfielders against Gallo now?

4:34	Oddball Herrera: Ok – I apologize ahead of time if you have heard this a thousand times, but do you ever get people asking if you are related to the totally real life author of The Princess Bride, S Morgenstern?

4:34	Davy Andrews: Publishing this so that you have to answer, as I adore The Princes Bride.

4:35	Leo Morgenstern: I used to tell people it was my grandfather (who is also named S. Morgenstern) but too many people took me at face value

4:37	Davy Andrews: Will ask you for travel advice should I ever visit Florin and/or Guilder.

4:34	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Hunter Greene 101

4:35	B’ryce Szymbobski: Do I need to pick up Alec Bohm right now?

4:35	Davy Andrews: You should ask him for permission first.

4:35	Ben Clemens: I would like to think that I’ve learned enough about him that I am in Hunter Greene 202 by now

4:35	Eric: So the questions regarding the Cardinals rotation seem answered.

4:35	Ben Clemens: Were the questions ‘is this a below average rotation?’

4:35	YorDaddy: How are you guys going to handle the difference between real strikes/balls vs time clock violation strikes/balls in all your downstream stats?

4:36	Davy Andrews: I think some of it depends in how they get categorized in the databases. Hopefully somebody has a better answer.

4:36	5 Run Homer: Turns out pitching to contact doesn’t work if that contact is line drives

4:36	Ben Clemens: Yeah the Jays are a REALLY bad team to pitch to contact against

4:36	Ben Clemens: those guys bop

4:37	bosoxforlife: I was thinking about how the numbers guys would handle the pitcher throwing 2 balls but walking the batter.

4:37	Kyle Kishimoto: Sergio Romo moment

4:37	Orioles2024: This Busch Light is going down way too smooth, and we still got more games tonight! Gonna be a rough telework day tomorrow.

4:37	Ben Clemens: My camera isn’t working. No idea why.

4:37	Oddball Herrera: I think people taking you at face value about him being your grandfather is actually totally on brand though

4:38	Leo Morgenstern: I’ve also been asked if I’m related to the Phillies scout Justin Morgenstern. I’m still not, but its a much more reasonable question!

4:37	Blake: well Adley looks awesome

4:37	Appa Yip Yip: Mikolas is getting BABIP’d here

4:38	Eric: On the bright side Ben, we will get to see VerHagen today. WOOO

4:38	B’ryce Szymbobski: I’m just here for the Noot bars

4:38	Ben Clemens: Baseball Zen continues to bring me great joy

4:38	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Does Greene stay in the rotation or go Chapman?

4:39	Kyle Kishimoto: He’s got starter stuff.

4:38	Ben Clemens: The one I just got was Trea Turner’s home run field level

4:39	Davy Andrews: I’ve got to head out now. Have a good chat, everybody!

4:39	Ben Clemens: Cya later Davy

4:39	Leo Morgenstern: Thanks for chatting!

4:39	Kyle Kishimoto: Bye Davy!

4:39	5 Run Homer: Hm, somehow I don’t think Chris Stratton out of the bullpen is the answer to giving up too much contact

4:39	Ben Clemens: I do think Stratton is underrated. The Jays are good though.

4:40	Derek: This game would suggest the Red Sox might be in for a long season (one game, I know, but yikes)

4:40	Ben Clemens: Someone should pick the Orioles to win the ALE

4:41	Leo Morgenstern: You really are going to have to explain that more one of these days! I want to know!

4:40	Royals fan: Noot bars have a delicious caramel center.

4:41	Shirtless George Brett: How is Kluber the opening day starter for anyone?

4:41	Kyle Kishimoto: To be fair he had a 3 win 2022

4:41	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: They don’t call him Scoopin Hosmer for nothing

4:41	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: Scoops

4:41	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: And

4:41	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: BARRELS

4:41	Ben Clemens: Kluber is not the worst opening day starter

4:41	Blake Seams: I’m so excited to see the Stros kick things off tonight. Sometimes I don’t know how anyone ever hits Bryan Abreu. That slider is absolutely gross. Plus I get to watch Dubon hit. So that’s… cool…

4:42	Kyle Kishimoto: If he walks less than 12% of batters he’ll be one of the best relievers in baseball

4:42	Ben Clemens: Bo Bichete? Bo Bichette?!?! Where?

4:42	Ben Clemens: (did that throw go)

4:42

ryan: My favorite thing about Manoah is how quickly he went from being drafted to being an all star caliber starter. I think we’re all aware that he’s likely not going to repeat what he did last season, but the fact that we’re having that conversation about a guy who pitched like 40 MiLB innings and has a season and a half in the show is pretty cool

4:42	Chip Locke: Manoah just given the “effectively wild” descriptor by Cards booth. Someone tell Lindbergh

4:42	Leo Morgenstern: Interesting, I wouldn’t call Manoah wild

4:42	Vin: Bo Bichette with his first “Oh, Bichette” of the season

4:43	B’ryce Szymbobski: Laes Nootbar looks way taller than I imagined

4:43	Ben Clemens: He’s sneakily big, it was always confusing that he didnt’ hit for power

4:43	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Back-to-back triples vs. deGrom

4:44	Leo Morgenstern: The Trea Turner experience is off to a good start

4:44	Dan: Are more runs scored on opening day than a random day in April? Better pitching but more games than average I assume.

4:44	Ben Clemens: My guess is more but fewer runs per game

4:44	Shirtless George Brett: Greinke is calling his own game with pitch com. It feels like this should be more of a thing for no other reason than speeding up the game.

4:44	Kyle Kishimoto: You could also simply.be like mark Buehrle and never shake off the catcher

4:45	Ben Clemens: Greinke has already shaken himself off once

4:45	Ben Clemens: (in spring training)

4:44	ryan: Manoah leads the league in HBP, so it’s easy to call him that even though it’s b/c he’ll challenge up and in and not just being super wild

4:45	5 Run Homer: deGrom is having a very strange debut

4:46	Birds: Which is more likely – steal rate increases through the season as teams realize how much easier it is, or steal rate decreases through the season as teams adapt to counter it?

4:46	Ben Clemens: Oh, fun question

4:47	Ben Clemens: I think decreases is more likely but I do not have strong conviction

4:47	ryan: Baumann is going to be right with his prediciton about deGrom vs. Lynn, not because deGrom is hurt, but because He’s Cooked

4:47	Ben Clemens: This is the least likely prediction we could have made.

4:47	Leo Morgenstern: Fun to see a run-scoring double play sac fly in Mets/Marlins

4:47	Birds: Devers called out on an automatic third strike!

4:48	Leo Morgenstern: Pitch clock violation on deGrom?

4:48	Leo Morgenstern: what just happened?

4:49	Derek: there’s a pitchcom thing happening with DeGrom right now

4:49	Morbo: Devers probably should have been paying attention

4:49	Ben Clemens: Jordan Walker is going to get an insane ovation given how big of one Contreras got

4:50	Birds: I just realized I bet automatic strikes become way more common in late innings of uncompetitive games

4:50	Ben Clemens: Good call, that makes a lot of sense

4:50	Patrick: Malfunctioning pitchcom it looks like for DeGrom/Heim

4:51	Leo Morgenstern: This pitcher catcher combination feels so strange

4:51	5 Run Homer: The movement Manoah gets in his two seamer never gets old

4:51	RTJ: I love that every discussion of these auto strikes immediately goes to “what if this happens in the bottom of the 9th of the world series” and not “this guy is an idiot”

4:51	Leo Morgenstern: And some of the very best ballgames have been decided by idiocy! It’s time honored tradition

4:51	Ben Clemens: Chip Caray just described the new defensive strategy as a ‘2023 shift’, I like tht

4:52	Kyle Kishimoto: Is he referring to the 5 man infield or just defensive positioning that is almost a shift but not really

4:52	Ben Clemens: shift but not really

4:51	Ben Clemens: that*

4:52	Anon21: The thing that was freakish about deGrom is that when he was at the height of his powers, he never had games like this. Most great pitchers will have a bad start here and there, but he cut those games out.

4:52	B’ryce Szymbobski: Re. idiocy, anyone remember, and actually understand, that Cardinals/Rangers playoff game that ended in a tripping runner and third baseman?

4:53	Ben Clemens: It was Cards Red Sox in the WS, and I remember it b/c I was at a wedding with no tv and had to get updates via gameday. That was a VERY confusing Gameday entry

4:54	Ben Clemens: Understand? I do not

4:54	5 Run Homer: That Cards/Sox WS game was one of the first ballgames I ever sat down and watched. Pretty good advertisement for the game

4:55	B’ryce Szymbobski: This is the one I was thinking of…

4:56	Vin: Manoah reminds me a bit of Roy Halladay in that he seemingly gets out of jams by getting MAD

4:56	Ben Clemens: Yeah it seems to work for him

4:56	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Oneil Cruz 111.1 EV home run off of a Hunter Greene 101.3 fastball

4:57	Ben Clemens: Statcast darling showdown

4:57	Joe: I know I’m getting old when the the modal example of “pitcher getting good by getting mad” isn’t Randy johnson

4:58	Kyle Kishimoto: There’s scherzer too

4:58	Anon21: Just to expand on the peak deGrom thing, his worst start of 2018 was 6 IP, 4 ER, 1 HR, 6/1 K/BB.

4:59	Ben Clemens: Jordan Walker just nutmegged himself, oof

5:00	Vin: I’m not sure there’s a worse hitter for Mikolas to face than Bo Bichette.

5:00	Ben Clemens: It’s truly a nightmare matchup. The things that Bichette does that are bad make him better against Mikolas.

5:00	Ben Clemens: Boy, gotta be frustrating to get a big contract extension and then get worked in your next start

5:01	Mcgraw45: I’m stuck in class not watching but the way you guys talk about deGrom sounds like his career is over on his first day as a Ranger… does it really look that bad?

5:01	Ben Clemens: No it does not, haha. We just like being hyperbolic

5:02	J: I feel like it’s gotta actually ease the pain of a bad start knowing you already cashed in

5:02	Appa Yip Yip: High socks or no?

5:02	Leo Morgenstern: High for outfielders, low for infielders

5:02	Mcgraw45: @J but then the guilt sets in

5:03	Derek: According to baseball savant, Hunter Greene threw a 105.2 mph pitch today!??

5:03	Ben Clemens: I know velocity is very in these days but jeeeeez

5:04	Derek: That Greene pitch is now off the little leaderboard thing so I guess it was just an error lol

5:04	Ben Clemens: ok phew. 105 is too fast

5:04	bosoxforlife: Chris Martin, who never walks anybody, walks his first hitter, another sign of what 2023 gas in store for us Red Sox fans.

5:04	Leo Morgenstern: Very funny that Nola pitched a super quick inning when Rob Manfred was in the Phillies booth

5:06	Kyle Kishimoto: He knew

5:04	Leo Morgenstern: cut him off practically mid sentence

5:06	Derek: Rutshman with his (somewhat dubious) 5th hit today!

5:06	Leo Morgenstern: My MVP prediction is off to a good start

5:07	Morbo: I don’t think there is a fan in baseball that wants to hear a thing Rob Manfred has to say. Good job Nola. That alone should win him the Cy Young

5:07	Kyle Kishimoto: I believe both Leo and I put Nola down in our predictions

5:08	Leo Morgenstern: Yes indeed. And that one is also looking pretty good right now

5:07	Dan: Why would automatic strikes increase in non competitive games?

5:07	Ben Clemens: Because hitters are a bit lackadaisical and out of it

5:07	Ben Clemens: and the umpires don’t mind keeping things moving

5:08	5 Run Homer: Jordan Walker is a big man

5:08	Ben Clemens: that was hit hard, what a beast

5:10	YorDaddy: So how close is Shohei to the mythical “Lebron James” level player in baseball made famous by that Jeff Sullivan article? I know not very close given the DH WAR penalty. How close would it be if he was a full time plus defense OF as well?

5:10	Kyle Kishimoto: Not close. Look at the raptor WAR leaderboard and then consider that the baseball season is twice as long as in basketball

5:10	Ben Clemens: Walker standing next to Bichette is eye opening

5:10	Shirtless George Brett: I once stood next to Chris Davis a few years ago at a game in Toronto. He is like a fridge with a human head on top.

5:11	Kyle Kishimoto: Well that’s quite the image to imagine in my head

5:11	Leo Morgenstern: I’ve heard of fridges with human heads inside, but this is ridiculous!

5:11	Ben Clemens: You can take the shift out of baseball, but you can’t take the announcers calling for hitters to just use a little bat control and poke one the ohter way

5:12	YorDaddy: https://blogs.fangraphs.com/lets-imagine-a-baseball-playing-lebron-jam… For those curious. I just find that “Micah Owings crossed with god” comment funny because that’s kind of who Shohei is.

5:12	Vin: That does explain Chris Davis’ long cold spells…

5:13	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Wander is back!

5:13	Kyle Kishimoto: Presumably he was out wandering before

5:13	Leo Morgenstern: Fingers crossed for full healthy seasons from Franco and Lowe. It’ll make such a difference in the AL East race

5:14	Ben Clemens: Oh yeah, you mean to keep the Rays close behind the O’s?

5:14	Leo Morgenstern: Exactly!

5:14	Yo-Yo: Donovan’s 109.1 mph line out was over 2 mph harder than any ball he hit last season. Dude found some power

5:14	bosoxforlife: I know nobody is watching but O’Neil just put a 101 heater from Greene into orbit.

5:15	Ben Clemens: oh we were watching

5:15	jj: all 6 hits off deGrom were XBH…

5:15	Leo Morgenstern: Gonna have to eat my words about the Phillies facing deGrom and the Braves facing Corbin

5:15	Ben Clemens: Don’t look now, but the Red Sox are making this interesting

5:16	5 Run Homer: If the Pirates and Reds ever spend any money to supplement these young kids… look out

5:16	Ben Clemens: so…. don’t look out 🙁

5:17	Ben Clemens: classic randomness of baseball, Felix Bautista couldn’t buy an out, then he strikes out Devers on three pitches

5:17	Morbo: Leo protip: if you have to eat your words make sure to print them out first. Paper is much easier to eat than a cellphone

5:18	Leo Morgenstern: Protip: alphabet soup

5:17	Ben Clemens: I didn’t catch any Red Sox games in ST, wow does Justin Turner look weird in a Boston uniform

5:19	Ben Clemens: Sox broadcast can’t believe that Alex Verdugo made a baserunning error, but it’s a rare time where I think he didn’t really?

5:19	Ben Clemens: down 2, 9th inning, who cares if you’re on third or second?

5:19	bosoxforlife: I wonder how many times Bautista has pitched at 35 degrees?

5:19	Ben Clemens: probably zero-ish

5:20	Kwah: Masataka Yoshidramatic at bat

5:21	Ben Clemens: omg omg

5:21	Ben Clemens: what was Mateo doing there?

5:21

Six Ten: Royals broadcast just said one of the changes the Royals have made to help with framing is moving Perez closer to the plate, that he’s drifted farther back year over year. And now all I can think about is all the times he’s had his bell rung back there. I dunno, maybe he should just be a DH.

5:22	Ben Clemens: Yeah, it is not a fun thing to think about. Catching is not good for you.

5:22	Darth Vader-A Cubs Fan: ORIOLES, I AM ALTERING THE DEAL. PRAY I DON’T ALTER IT ANY FURTHER

5:22	Shirtless George Brett: I swear Sal takes more hits than any other catcher. It’s rough to watch sometimes.

5:23	Ben Clemens: He’s huge, which I think might have something to do with it, but it’s really uncanny, it feels constant

5:24	Kyle Kishimoto: ok i’m finally on desktop i can watch games now!

5:24	Kwah: Félix BautiSVta

5:27	Kwah: Tampa Bay Devictorious Rays — congrats to Jeff Sullivan.

5:27	Kyle Kishimoto: shane mcclanahan 16/87 whiffs, not bad

5:27	bosoxforlife: Cruz at bat must-see TV

5:27	Ben Clemens: little late on that, whoops

5:28	Prototypical TBS Kid: Obligatory addition that it was Cruz vs. Cruz

5:28	Ben Clemens: and an Oneil Cruz walk! I’m very delighted

5:29	Kwah: TyleHR gO’neill

5:30	Morbo: Can I get a poll? Will Contreras or Walker hit a home run for the Cardinals first?

5:30	Morbo: No it’s Tyler BrO’Neill get it right

5:30	5 Run Homer: Treasonous home run from Tyler O’Neill

5:30	Ben Clemens: No! Canada

5:30	bosoxforlife: Ben, very important, do you think O’Neil Cruz can become a star? Honestly.

5:31	Prototypical TBS Kid: Aces getting hit all over the league

5:31	Leo Morgenstern: At least we’re still getting the pitcher’s duel we were promised in Mets/Marlins

5:31	Ben Clemens: I do. I don’t think it’s anything close to a given, but his power gives him so much room for error and he’s impressed me a lot with how quickly he’s improved moving through the minors, which makes me think his pitch recognition can keep improving in the bigs

5:31	Bighen: degrom had a start against the twins in 2019 where he got absolutely rocked and the final stats weren’t even as bad as he looked. I remember of course because I was at the game and only time I’ve seen him live

5:31	Kyle Kishimoto: first time i saw him live (in new york) he got degrom’d – 7 ip 2 r 10 k, and diaz blew it. second time was his blowup start in oakland last september

5:32	Guest: The Robbie Grossman doubters (everyone reasonable) are pretty surprised right now…

5:32	Ben Clemens: just as we expected in a Nola/dG matchup, 5-5 in the 4th

5:32	Jasper: So far, players are 13 for 13 in stolen base attempts.

5:32	Morbo: Speaking of which, I couldn’t believe that they played the Canadian anthem on the Cardinals broadcast and did not show a close up of O’Neill. Director needs to be placed on administrative leave

5:33	Leo Morgenstern: I always enjoy when they close up on the blue jays players during O, Canada at the All-Star Game, despite the fact that they’re rarely Canadians themselves

5:33	Ben Clemens: omg poor Tyler Stephenson

5:33	Ben Clemens: that ball bounced off of him and into the shadow realm

5:33	Vin: They should have made O’Neill sing the Canadian anthem

5:33	Shirtless George Brett: A Bobby Witt jr walk as well. Also encouraging.

5:33	Ben Clemens: first time for everything

5:33	Vin: While we’re talking Cruz, I’m rooting for a resurgence from Grandpa Nelson Cruz this year

5:34	Leo Morgenstern: I have to keep reminding myself that’s not who we’re talking about when we talk about Cruz

5:35	Ben Clemens: great broadcast statistic there, Mikolas hasn’t recorded a groundball out today

5:35	Prototypical TBS Kid: At least Degrom the rangers have scored more runs in a Degrom start than the Mets did his last 20 starts

5:36	Ben Clemens: I like to think you mean in the last 20 starts combined

5:36	Six Ten: I hadn’t really considered until today that getting your bullpen warmed up in time is also going to be harder with the pitch clock.

5:36	Prototypical TBS Kid: I sure did

5:36	Ben Clemens: Pitchers and catchers need to learn to have their pitchcom malfunction more strategically

5:38	Shirtless George Brett: What is Buxtons value if he has to DH a ton?

5:38	Kyle Kishimoto: he has a 146 ops+ in the past 3 years, i’d say a lot of value

5:38	Appa Yip Yip: I’ve been watching baseball for an hour and a half and I’m already getting mad at the home plate ump

5:38	Ben Clemens: welcome back!

5:38	Ben Clemens: Vladdy got a little adventurous on the basepaths there

5:38	Leo Morgenstern: and anything that keeps Buxton in the lineup is a good thing! Especially with Michael A Taylor to play center

5:38	Ben Clemens: I would suggest not doing that if I were his manager

5:39	Vin: Mikolas is going to have nightmares tonight about ground balls to right field

5:40	Appa Yip Yip: Counterpoint: let Vladdy run

5:40	Kyle Kishimoto: ah so that’s why teams don’t like letting arraez play up the middle

5:41	B’ryce Szymbobski: LOL, Pinch hitting for Joey Gallo on opening day is… not a great sign

5:41	Kyle Kishimoto: its against a lefty with a considerable platoon split, what’s the purpose of having 4 guys on the bench if they’re never gona get in the game

5:42	Zach: Donny. Barrels.

5:43	B’ryce Szymbobski: I’m still mad that I got sniped on Daulton Varsho in my home league snake draft this year

5:43	Kyle Kishimoto: getting 150 starts a season out of the catcher position with only one dude is like a cheat code lol

5:44	Prototypical TBS Kid: Skip Carey still making Braves references. How many announcers are homers for other teams

5:44	Ben Clemens: I’ll allow it if he’s comparing middle relievers to Max Fried

5:44	Byron Denniston: Thoughts on Stroman’s starts?

5:44	Kyle Kishimoto: pretty good, got a ton of strikes with the breaking ball. command was just decent and he wasn’t getting chases but 15 whiffs is still solid

5:46	B’ryce Szymbobski: I REALLY wanna believe that Bohm is gonna raise that LA to like 15 degrees and just rake this year. Any idea if there’s a way to see la for spring training?

5:46	Ben Clemens: It doesn’t work very well b/c only some stadiums are outfitted for it, but you can check at baseball savant

5:46	Ben Clemens: I’ll find a quick link

5:47	Ben Clemens: https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/statcast_search?hfPTM=&hfPT=&hfAB=&hfGT…

5:47	Ben Clemens: 16.6 degrees, oh baby

5:48	Leo Morgenstern: Particularly impressive considering it was 1.6 degrees last spring

5:49	Leo Morgenstern: https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/statcast_search?hfPTM=&hfPT=&hfAB=&hfGT…

5:47	Vin: “It was the pitch-com I tell ya!” – pitchers every time they get called for pitch clock violations this year

5:48	Kyle Kishimoto: i would like to point out that brendan donovan had a barrel earlier, 109/15. my narrative is coming true

5:49	Yordan: Trying out the MLB Big Inning on MLB.TV. Has me wondering if there’s a future where they partner with a gambling company to link your bets to games and do personalized game switching similar to this.

5:49	Kyle Kishimoto: please don’t give them any ideas

5:49	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: Nola/deGrom did not turn into dual pitching performance we all thought it would

5:50	Ben Clemens: Wait the Phillies are LOSING?

5:51	Leo Morgenstern: Phillies twitter is ready to throw Nola to the wolves

5:50	Ben Clemens: DOnovaaaaaaaan

5:50	Ben Clemens: I have to say I did not see this coming (though Kyle did)

5:50	Kyle Kishimoto: MY NARRATIVE IS COMING TRUE

5:51	Yo-Yo: Over/Under 9 WAR for Donovan

5:52	Alex: Is there a name for 0/0 with 4 BBs? Feels like the opposite of a golden sombrero, so, a straw fez? I once saw Yordan Alvarez do it in Houston. McCutchen is 3/4s of the way there this afternoon.

5:52	Ben Clemens: I feel like it should invoke the fact that you can be leisurely, so perhaps velvet slippers?

5:52	Kyle Kishimoto: i said this back in january

5:52	Kwah: BHrendan Donovan

5:52	Kyle Kishimoto: btw donovan’s lineout earlier was hit a 109 mph, that’s 2 mph harder than any ball he hit last year

5:52	Leo Morgenstern: Interesting implication that the Cardinals will be below .500 if Donovan doesn’t have a 25 WAR season

5:53	Kyle Kishimoto: nah he could have a 21 war season and they’ll still be fine. that’s probably the absolute floor of his performance

5:53	Ben Clemens: So effectively wild voted on my predictions, and more than half of readers think oneil cruz will out-homer giancarlo stanton. wth

5:54	Kyle Kishimoto: i voted “lmao no” on that one

5:53	Ben Clemens: that was supposed to be a bold claim

5:53	Ben Clemens: also a truly shocking 22% think Seiya will lead the NLC in wRC+

5:54	Yeah Well Hiura Towel: I bet no one has more 0/0 with 4 BBs than Bonds

5:54	Daulton VarSHOW: Varsho and Donovan both with career high EVs? Maybe the guns at Busch are hot?

5:54	Ben Clemens: Always a concern early in the season

5:54	Pablo Lopez: With my new velo I am DADDY

5:54	Kyle Kishimoto: the new breaking ball is insane. had great feel for locating it gloveside and got 8/19 swinging strikes

5:54	Ben Clemens: 48% think Arozarena will have both 40 steals and negative baserunning value, ugh, I’d take the other side of that

5:55	Appa Yip Yip: Stanton may or may not be cooked. Unclear at this point.

5:55	Ben Clemens: Right but if he’s not, I like the Stanton side

5:56	Vin: Ben, it won’t be long before the New York radio shows are talking about how the Yankees need to hurry up and trade Stanton for O’Neil Cruz

5:56	Ben Clemens: They might need to throw in Clint Frazier to make it work.

5:56	Dave: 25 WAR season, that’s gotta be a .600 wOBA atleast

5:57	Dave: Correction, Bonds had .537 and .544 wOBAs and only was worth 12.5 and 12.7 WAR — admittedly a higher run environment, but we’re talking atleast .700 maybe higher

5:57	Kyle Kishimoto: hot off the presses zips projection for donovan: .638/.799/1.188

5:57	Leo Morgenstern: I thought I was ready for Opening Day, but players on new teams already have my brain fried. I was so confused why Pablo Lopez would be pitching on Opening Day for the Marlins…

5:58	Kyle Kishimoto: Matt Chapman is so darned good at defense

5:58	Leo Morgenstern: I don’t know what he did, but yes

5:58	Ben Clemens: It’s hard to say for certain, but I feel like Arenado stopped out of the box b/c he was so sure that was an out

5:59	Ben Clemens: he was out by a lot at first considering the length of the turn

5:59	Daulton VarSHOW: Shame that the Jays have to use 4 infielders again, I sort of liked seeing him cover all of the dirt between 2nd and 3rd single-handedly while we put 4 guys in the OF

5:59	Ben Clemens: In my OOTP sim league, someone converted him to a shortstop and he had an incredible career as a glove-first guy, like into his late 30’s. I could totally see it happening

5:59	5 Run Homer: That’s Chappy

6:00	Kyle Kishimoto: yeah in ootp guys like him arenado and hayes who the game gives 7+ range to can be elite SS, the game doesn’t care how unrealistic that is lmao

6:02	Daulton VarSHOW: Would Chapman be a better SS than Bo?

6:02	Kyle Kishimoto: idk, but i’ll drop a fun fact here: matt chapman gets down the line faster and has a higher sprint speed than bichette

6:04	Vin: I’m just surprised that Ramon Laureano is still on the A’s. I keep expecting to see him pop up on some other team

6:04	Ben Clemens: give it a few months

6:04	Daulton VarSHOW: so you’re saying Chapman is a dark horse for a 25/15 season

6:04	Kyle Kishimoto: he is 7/17 on career steal attempts

6:04	Chili Beans: Why do I listen to Eno Sarris about Mitch Keller every year? Why?

6:04	Ben Clemens: I do too lol

6:05	Ben Clemens: And it always seems like it should work right up until it doesn’t

6:05	Appa Yip Yip: What is this curveball Thompson is throwing isn’t that illegal in Missouri?

6:05	Ben Clemens: Currently pending executive veto

6:05	Killing me Smalls: San Diego has to sign pitching this offseason, right. Not a whole lot coming through the upper minors besides Groome.

6:05	Ben Clemens: yeah I think that this had a lot to do with the Darvish extension

6:05	Kyle Kishimoto: phillies bullpen moment, gregory soto allowing 4 runs without recording an out

6:07	Leo Morgenstern: Funniliy enough, it was a wild throw to the plate – but not a pitch – that really did him in

6:06	Ben Clemens: the cupboard is gonna be bare, what you do about it matters

6:06	Ben Clemens: so starting early is smart, imo

6:06	Ben Clemens: like an upscale version of what the Cards did with Mikolas

6:07	Morbo: Players like Arenado and Chapman are probably a bit under utilized at 3b vs SS

6:07	Kyle Kishimoto: if it aint broke don’t fix it, these guys are platinum glove winners at 3b

6:07	Kyle Kishimoto: defensive range skills don’t directly transfer from 3b to ss

6:08	Ben Clemens: yeah. some of Arenado’s value comes from range, but a lot of it comes from the fact that he’s a mobile cannon

6:08	Ben Clemens: like, he can just effortlessly plant and max effort a throw from anywhere

6:08	Ben Clemens: that really plays up at third

6:08	Chili Beans: I think it’s (Mitch Keller’s issues) because his stuff plus is good, but his command+ is 12 sometimes. That was an 0-2 pitch; you just can’t throw it there.

6:08	Kyle Kishimoto: look at these pitch maps, nola is perfectly dotting breaking balls and changeups at the bottom of the zone then soto and brogdon come in and start making abstract art with their pitches https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/gamefeed?date=3/30/2023&gamePk=718779&c…

6:09	bosoxforlife: Soto thinks of himself as a closer and closers do not pitch well in other situations.

6:09	Leo Morgenstern: I think he’s had enough time to process the fact that he wasn’t going to be the closer in Philly. I’m hopeful that pitching in lower leverage spots will actually be good for him

6:10	Ben Clemens: whoa ho ho Bo tried for another error and almost got it

6:10	Appa Yip Yip: We have Ontario vs B.C happening rn I don’t think y’all understand how important this is

6:10	Ben Clemens: Ontario wins

6:10	Vin: Bo just really wants to give more souvenirs to the fans

6:11	5 Run Homer: With an assist from Quebec

6:11	5 Run Homer: Bo is really lucky that Vladdy is so good at those swipe tags coming off the base

6:14	Ben Clemens: Interesting that the Jays brought in Eric Swanson to face a lefty, I thikn it’s a chase stuff vs. chase hitter thing

6:14	Kyle Kishimoto: also a wicked splitter vs a opposite handed hitter thing

6:14	Ben Clemens: seemed to work!

6:14	5 Run Homer: I switched to Mets-Marlins on my second screen after deGrom was pulled and just checked the score in Texas… what on earth happened

6:14	Ben Clemens: Someone turned on the multi-ball scoring bonus

6:14	Justin: Going to the A’s game tonight to watch Ohtani/Trout. But who on the A’s is worth paying attention to?

6:15	Ben Clemens: Esteury Ruiz!

6:15	Ben Clemens: He’s gonna be so fun

6:15	Kyle Kishimoto: we briefly mentioned esteury ruiz earlier, but there’s also shea and muller

6:15	Kyle Kishimoto: (and of course who can forget tony kemp)

6:15	Guest: Who had O. Cruz getting a HR and two BB before his first K? Good omens from that guy so far

6:15	Ben Clemens: don’t check me on this one, I think that’s more walks than he had last year

6:15	Justin: True, Tony Kemp is a short king. I forgot

6:15	Kyle Kishimoto: my hero

6:15	Vin: Jays also only have one lefty in Tim Mayza so they probably don’t want to burn him this early

6:15

Aaron: I’m really enjoying Opening Day! Since it’s Opening Day, the game is on any service that has live TV in Cincinnati. I’m enjoying it while I can because it one of the only games I’ll get to watch this year… Opening Day each year is some of the few Reds games I’ve seen the last few years… I wish I could watch my favorite team without paying for cable! I wanna see Hunter Greene laser beams. :/

6:16	Ben Clemens: is it true that opening day is a school holiday in Cincy? They mentioned that on the Giants broadcast today

6:16	Kyle Kishimoto: re: swanson – he had reverse splits last season, 39.4% k rate vs. L, 27.8 vs. R

6:16	Daulton VarSHOW: I didn’t realize Stubby Clapp’s full name was Stubby Clapp III but that’s the best baseball fact I’ll learn today

6:17	Aaron: To be fair, Cruz struck out and got strike three called a ball on one of his walks! Still an impressive start though!

6:18	Ben Clemens: The odds of this aren’t particularly high, but I think there’s some chance Oneil Cruz has never seen a pickoff throw before. He acted shocked and confused when it came over and almost got picked off with a short lead

6:18	Manly Palmer Hall: Who’s more likely to be traded at the deadline this year, Ohtani, Brian Reynolds, or Corbin Burnes?

6:18	Leo Morgenstern: I think it’s gotta be Reynolds

6:18	bosoxforlife: There have already been games completed in 2:14 and 2:21. Does anyone know how many games were played in less tha 2:30 last year?

6:18	Kyle Kishimoto: i can stathead that real quick

6:19	Appa Yip Yip: Jays and Cards doing their part to bump that game time back over 3 hours

6:19	Ben Clemens: If it’s 5-5 I’ll allow it

6:19	Kyle Kishimoto: 91 games completed in under 2:30, but that includes a few suspended games https://stathead.com/tiny/of8rR

6:19	B’ryce Szymbobski: LOL at Nola Vs deGrom being 11-6 in the 6th inning

6:20	Ben Clemens: Did the Eagles go for two and miss it?

6:20	Ben Clemens: That’s a wild score

6:20	Kyle Kishimoto: yeah, my article this morning hyping up that matchup is really looking sketch now

6:21	Leo Morgenstern: It’s still a great game, just for different reasons!

6:20	Prototypical TBS Kid: Anyone watching the Mets-Marlins have immediate thoughts re the Jazz-CF experiment?

6:21	Ben Clemens: Haven’t seen much action from him (I’ve been hopping around a bit) but he looked ok, too soon to tell

6:21	Guest: All right, time for a challenge. Name at least 7 players currently on the A’s roster.

6:21	Kyle Kishimoto: i can name all of them but i also live 5 miles from their stadium

6:21	Ben Clemens: Let’s go: Ruiz, Fujinami, Kemp, Laureano, Langeliers, Kaprelian

6:22	Ben Clemens: oops that’s only six, throw in nick allen and seth brown to atone

6:23	Leo Morgenstern: Tried to do seven more Ben didn’t get but I maxed out at six: Diaz, Muller, May, Aguilar, Familia, Peterson

6:21

Aaron: I guess it depends on your definition of school holiday. School still goes on as normal, but it is generally accepted that a lot of parents will pull their kids out of school that day to either go to the game or partake in some kind of festivities. A lot of teachers will also put the game on in the classroom for the kids that are still in school. So… it’s kinda a school holiday? It is definitely a citywide holiday/celebration though!

6:22	Ben Clemens: That is awesome. Makes me want to go to a Cincy bar for opening day sometime

6:23	Vin: Does “former Braves prospect” count?

6:23	Ben Clemens: Yes but only for one, otherwise that’s all seven right there

6:23	bosoxforlife: Chisholm couldn’t cut off Nimmo’s double but it was hard to see if he got a decent jump.

6:23	Ben Clemens: I missed that one, I’ll try to catch some replays though, I’m really curious to see how this turns out

6:23	B’ryce Szymbobski: I’m not gonna lie, I’m running on fumes right now. This much baseball has been a shock to the system

6:24	Ben Clemens: It’s dense, too. The pitch clock really does cut down on dead time

6:24	Steve O: What is this Phillies lineup? I know Harper and Hoskins are out, but depth is important. The lineup literally goes 3 deep.

6:24	Kyle Kishimoto: they traded all their depth for a reliever who failed to record an out today

6:24	Ben Clemens: Vierling leading off on opening day was somehow both an indictment of the Tigers and Phillies

6:25	Aaron: At like 8 am I went to the BMV to get my drivers license renewed, went to Dunkin Donuts, and went to the grocery store to pick some things up, and like 75% of the people I saw at all these places had Reds gear on, for what that’s worth. :]

6:25	Steve O: Watching Volpe.. I don’t understand the concerns about him not being a SS? I don’t think he’s a gold glover, but he’s a big league SS for sure.

6:26	Ben Clemens: I think a lot of it is his arm, which can be hard to judge in a game or two. But I generally agree with you, ‘x guy can’t work at short’ is overused in talent evaluation in my eyes. Corey Seager is still playing it

6:26	Jasper: Richard Keith “Stubby” Clapp. I suppose that’s better than Dick.

6:26	Kyle Kishimoto: i wonder what age he was when he started going by stubby

6:26	Prototypical TBS Kid: Wasn’t it the Reds owner who said “where else are the fans going to go” [paraphrased]?

6:27	Ben Clemens: I believe it was the owner’s son

6:27	Kyle Kishimoto: rob “scrabble” zastryzny in the game for pittsburgh!

6:27	Jasper: Probably from birth: Clapp is “Stubby the Third”, a nickname passed on from his father (Keith Ezra “Stubby II” Clapp) and grandfather (David Ezra Oscar “Stubby” Clapp).

6:28	Prototypical TBS Kid: I don’t think it can be “scrabble” if there’s two z’s. No one uses the blank as a z

6:28	Steve O: Re: not being able to judge someone’s arm in a game or two: I watched IKF for one game and I knew he had a noodle arm..

6:29	Ben Clemens: Weirdly that wasn’t always the case. They made him a catcher at one point even. I’d be curious to know what is going on there

6:29	Kyle Kishimoto: it’s really hard to evaluate the finer points of defense by watching broadcasts esp since you don’t get the first few steps of their route to the ball

6:30	Six Ten: I refuse to believe there has ever been a person named Stubby Clapp who didn’t work in baseball. Must be quite the family legacy I will not be looking this up.

6:30	Ben Clemens: Agreed

6:30	5 Run Homer: Rob Zastryzny is another Canadian ballplayer, from Edmonton, the city I’m chatting from!

6:30	bosoxforlife: B’ryce. Try my set up. 3 TV’s, one is dedicated to the Red Sox game, now Mets, the second has Extra Innings with 6 games, only 5 now and I have MLB-TV on the desktop with a 23′ inch monitor which I use if needed, but the computer is tied up to the chat now.

6:30	Kyle Kishimoto: my setup rn is left monitor games middle monitor chat right monitor baseball savant

6:31	Prototypical TBS Kid: Peak Andrelton Simmons is the exception. It was very easy to tell he was an amazing defender.

6:31	Ben Clemens: I have high hopes for Masyn Winn as the next Simmons

6:32	Ben Clemens: From a big arm, smooth actions standpoint

6:32	Ben Clemens: the plays where Simmons would just turn and fire from a position where you can’t figure out how his feet were set are my favorite

6:32	Prototypical TBS Kid: Andrelton’s range despite not being “fast” was amazing

6:32	Kyle Kishimoto: yeah he must have like, the greatest reaction time of all time

6:33	Ben Clemens: He just saw what was happening, too. He had a lot of highlights that were like ‘oh there’s a play going on at second but he somehow cuts it off and throws someone out at another base’

6:33	Daulton VarSHOW: Where are Winn’s offensive ceiling comps?

6:34	Ben Clemens: Our prospect team could give you a better answer, but my ceiling is Francisco Lindor

6:35	Aaron: When I was in Dunkin Donuts, there was a mom with two little kids, and they were fully decked out. Face stickers, jerseys, accessories. The whole thing. I wouldn’t be surprised if they were going to the Reds game. They definitely should’ve been in school lol. They have a cool mom I guess. :]

6:35	Ben Clemens: The Reds don’t deserve Cincy fans

6:35	Kyle Kishimoto: 80 grade mom there

6:36	bosoxforlife: Kyle, Quote of the Day!!

6:36	Steve O: Any chance Jasson Dominguez is in the bronx this summer or fall? He’s just 20 but destroyed A+ after missing a whole year of development and the Yankees look like they’ll need a new LF at some point.

6:37	Ben Clemens: It’s gonna depend on how he hits in the minors, to state the obvious. Like, if he’s tearing Double-A apart and Oswaldo Cabrera looks bad, I think they’d consider it

6:37	Ben Clemens: I don’t really know how to turn that into a probability estimate though

6:37	Ben Clemens: Friends, is it bad to bring in your lefty specialist to let two lefties reach base, bringing up the RHH reigning MVP?

6:38	Kyle Kishimoto: the RHH reigning MVP who had a bonds-like slashline against LHP last season

6:40	5 Run Homer: Extremely weird bullpen management, they’re on their fourth pitcher of the day when two of those pitchers had one very low-stress inning

6:40	Kyle Kishimoto: both had 2 ups

6:40	Kyle Kishimoto: jhoan duran just hit 102 3 times in the same PA

6:40	Vin: It seems the favours of the BABIP gods have turned

6:40	Ben Clemens: the gods, they are fickle

6:41	Kwah: Poke Goldschmidt

6:42	Kyle Kishimoto: duran splinker: 99.3 mph, +5.7 ivb, 12 hb. how in the world does he do this

6:44	Leo Morgenstern: It seems the Angels have Rendon, Renfroe, and Rengifo hitting back to back to back. Very good

6:45	Vin: The key to the Angels season is having all three of Rendon, Renfroe, and Rengifo

6:45	Kyle Kishimoto: im pretty sure there was a reporter who tweeted something about “luis renfro” a few weeks ago

6:46	Kyle Kishimoto: alrighty i have to bow out now, enjoy the rest of the games!

6:48	Leo Morgenstern: Later days!

6:48	5 Run Homer: Seems like the angels are due for a renaissance

6:48	Leo Morgenstern: Very good

6:48	Ben Clemens: Sorry guys, had to take my dog out for a quick spin, but I’m back

6:49	Aaron: Reds announced attendance is new GABP regular season record. Make of that what you will.

6:49	Aaron: Although they sell out every Opening Day so I am confused how this particular Opening Day could be a record.

6:50	Ben Clemens: sell one extra ticket, ez

6:51	Six Ten: Threatening to throw behind Vinnie Pasquantino on an 0-2 count with 2 outs in the bottom of the 9th? Is Vazquez just trying to entertain himself?

6:51	Ben Clemens: Didn’t see it but it kind of sounds that way.

6:52	Daulton VarSHOW: Make that 7/18 lifetime on steals for Matt Chapman

6:52	Ben Clemens: first CS of the season I think

6:53	Vin: he’s like “damn I thought we could run now that Yadi’s retired”

6:53	Ben Clemens: Contreras has been up and down as a receiver, but he can throw

6:54	bosoxforlife: The Mets have this one locked up. Where is Edwin Diaz?????

6:54	Ben Clemens: Bad news, Rip Van Winkle

6:56	Leo Morgenstern: I was a little surprised to see they went with Robertson instead of Ottavino for the first save

6:57	Leo Morgenstern: Braves and Mets win Opening Day. Not looking great for the Phillies

6:58	bosoxforlife: I think of Ottavino as more of a set-up man than Robertson.

6:59	Leo Morgenstern: Yeah, I suppose Robertson was technically a closer last year

6:59	Ben Clemens: I kinda think that they also didn’t like Ottavino/Jazz as a matchup

6:59	Byron Denniston: I’m a little late but Gerrit Cole without HRs is the best pitcher in beisbol

6:59	Ben Clemens: Yeah if home runs were illegal he’d be unstoppable

6:59	Aaron: I for one do not look forward to the extreme Day 1 overreactions.

6:59	Leo Morgenstern: Mr. Nola, is that you?

7:00	Aaron: Ummmmm did anyone see that replay review in Cincy? If anyone wants to explain it to me that would be great.

7:00	Ben Clemens: Yeah I dunno. Looked to me like he was clearly safe

7:00	Chili Beans: Colin Holderman with a hold for the Pirates! He was just born to be a set-up guy.

7:01	Ben Clemens: Runners simply can’t get a good lead against him

7:01	Ben Clemens: The Jays seem to keep sending their relievers back out for a second up, then having that reliever falter

7:02	Ben Clemens: Someone should tell them that you’re allowed to make non-mid-inning pitching changes

7:02	Leo Morgenstern: Gotta get those commercial breaks in

7:03	Leo Morgenstern: Earn the Rogers family that $$

7:03	Ben Clemens: Eh I guess they haven’t been that shaky upon entering, I was conflating Mayza with them

7:03	Ben Clemens: But their last 4 relievers have entered mid inning

7:03	Leo Morgenstern: Interesting to see the Phillies use their game five starter in relief today. I guess the extra off day tomorrow makes it feasible

7:04	Ben Clemens: Wait also they ended up bringing in Adam Cimber against a lefty, I don’t think you guys can convince me this is a great plan

7:05	Ben Clemens: I will say, Jordan Walker vs. Cimber is probably advantage Cimber, he’s never seen goofiness like this before

7:06	5 Run Homer: I will change my service provider to Rogers right now if they will go find some new relievers

7:06	Daulton VarSHOW: Why didn’t the jays throw home there?

7:06	Vin: Bo should’ve thrown home there

7:07	Ben Clemens: Wow Vlad made up for it though

7:07	Romorr: If anyone can look smart for an AL MVP pick after 1 game, it’s definitely you, Leo.

7:08	Leo Morgenstern: I’m really glad, cause I was starting to feel silly for not just taking the easy route and picking Ohtani

7:07	Ben Clemens: That was a really difficult play that he made casually

7:09	5 Run Homer: Just like they drew it up

7:10	Ben Clemens: Ooh, here’s someone who might throw 105

7:10	Morbo: Yeah, Vladdy Jr seems much more athletic than most 1b. Did he play 3b in the minors?

7:10	Ben Clemens: He did, but it was kind of an open secret that he was never gonna stick there

7:11	Leo Morgenstern: Pretty sure he tried it in the majors too, right?

7:11	Leo Morgenstern: -20 OAA in 96 games at 3b in 2019

7:11	Leo Morgenstern: OOF

7:11	Ben Clemens: the BABIP in this Cardinals/Jays game has been crazy both ways

7:12	Ben Clemens: omg lol

7:12	Ben Clemens: another one!

7:12	Vin: Springer + Bichette are 8-10 today

7:12	Ben Clemens: lol this is a pretty disastrous Hicks outing

7:12	Ben Clemens: hurt his own catcher while putting runners on second and third

7:13	Matt: The depth of the Cardinals lineup is ridiculous. Guy hitting 9th was worth over 5 WAR last year, and their bench is full of players who would be starting on other teams.

7:13	Ben Clemens: to be fair a lot of that 5 WAR was defensive, but yeah, they go very far down with good hitters now

7:14	Leo Morgenstern: And the Rangers pull it off against the Phillies. Pretty short for an 11-7 game

7:15	Ben Clemens: “Hey Andrew, Hicks just literally threw a baseball at our last catcher so hard that it knocked him out of the game. You’re up, grab your mask!”

7:16	Farhandrew Zaidman: So who had the only rainout on opening day being in …. checks notes los angeles (thunder storm just started out here)

7:16	Ben Clemens: It hailed four different times here yesterday

7:16	Yo-Yo: Walker has made some really, really bad throws today. Not sure he’s ready for full-time OF duty

7:17	Ben Clemens: Yeah…. he’s trying to do too much it looks like

7:17	Ben Clemens: kind of amazing that Varsho is hitting fourth in this Jays lineup

7:17	Saladpans: “Hey, at least you didn’t take it in the groin.” – Cards athletic trainer, probably

7:18	5 Run Homer: Amazing in a “hm maybe he shouldn’t be so high in this lineup” way

7:18	Ben Clemens: oh yeah that’s how I meant it

7:18	Morbo: Can someone enable the award emojis Saladpans needs a trophy for that one 🏆

7:18	Ben Clemens: It’s an implied trophy from all of us

7:20	5 Run Homer: It’s so disappointing that Hicks isn’t very good. When he first came up I thought he was gonna be Chapman 2.0

7:21	Ben Clemens: He still could be. When he’s locating his slider batters just can’t do anything with it. He’s had just atrocious injury luck, and i find it weird that they keep trying to make him a starter

7:21	Ben Clemens: But yeah the development path definitely did not pan out the way it looked like it was headed for a while there

7:21	Farhandrew Zaidman: Is Hicks a victim of poor pitch shape like Greene, Brudsar, etc? High velo that plays way down?

7:22	Ben Clemens: A little bit yeah. It’s more of a flat four-seamer than a seam-shifted sinker. But he’s occasionally had good strikeout stuff, largely in the Greene style I throw super hard so my breaker is unhittable style

7:23	Farhandrew Zaidman: The more I learn about pitch shape the less I care about velo tbh

7:24

Ben Clemens: I think it’s not quite as easy as saying that, like batters don’t do much damage on the Hicks fastball. But for strikeouts, yeah, velo is just not enough. Overall I agree that shape matters way more than people talk about. That’s what is so amazing about Roki Sasaki, 100 with great shape

7:26

Steve O: I think Varsho regresses quite a bit this year. I don’t think he’s as elite in the OF as his numbers suggested last year and he ran a .302 OBP and 106 wRC+. I just have a hard time believing in guys who don’t get on base. He’s still a 3 WAR player I think, but I don’t think he’s a 5 WAR guy.

7:26	Ben Clemens: I agree with this take. I think he gets a little too much shine b/c of the fantasy implications

7:29	Nicholas: I was looking up Varsho earlier today, and he always hit over .300 in the minors, with a much better K rate. Likely that he can regain some of that, or is it just the jump in quality of pitching in the majors?

7:29	Ben Clemens: I was wondering about this too. I think he chases enough that major league pitchers were just not gonna let him have low strikeout rates

7:30	Ben Clemens: But that’s a weak answer, I’m not exactly sure of why

7:32	Ben Clemens: Incidentally, a programming note, I’m gonna stick around until the end of the Cardinals game, and then I think we’ll call it a day.

7:32	Ben Clemens: This chat has been great, but I’m at the chatter equivalent of 110 pitches

7:33	Farhandrew Zaidman: If Dan is in the chat – you can’t just go throwing AI generated images of Snoop Dogg and Manfred on my timeline, lol. Some warning at least!

7:34	Ben Clemens: He’s not here anymore, but you’ve made me very curious to see this.

7:34	Leo Morgenstern: Yeah I’m gonna have to check in on that

7:34	Farhandrew Zaidman: Gotta pump those numbers up, Ben! Chatters 100 years ago would go 12 hours 3 times a week until their arms fell off! Nerds are ruining the chat!1!1

7:34	Ben Clemens: Yeah, but FanGraphs metrics show that my answers get less effective after I answer the same chatter’s third question

7:35	Leo Morgenstern: This chat has been really fun! And this Jays Cardinals game seems like it’s been incredible, wish I wasn’t blacked out

7:35	Ben Clemens: Yeah, that’s brutal. It’s gotta be one of the best games this year 🙂

7:35	Ben Clemens: Leo, do you walk Arenado here?

7:35	Ben Clemens: 2/3, no one out, Knizner on deck

7:36	Ben Clemens: I wouldn’t walk him, but I think a lot of managers would

7:36	Leo Morgenstern: I’d always be hesistant to issue an IBB, but this seems like a pretty good time

7:36	Ben Clemens: I hate loading the bases with no one out

7:36	Leo Morgenstern: get a force play in order

7:36	Ben Clemens: but uh…. should have walked him

7:36	Leo Morgenstern: Yes indeed

7:37	Leo Morgenstern: in play, runs

7:37	Ben Clemens: I have an “In Play, Run(s)” t-shirt and I like to wear it around so I can see who follows baseball

7:38	Ben Clemens: The crazy thing is that Knizner was a bat-first prospect

7:38	5 Run Homer: This bullpen is gonna be a real problem, and not in the basketball Twitter way

7:38	Leo Morgenstern: My god, how bad was his glove? 🙂

7:38	bosoxforlife: Everything about baseball is situational. Even though this was only the 8th you can’t let Arenado hit there.

7:39	Ben Clemens: I mean, I would’ve let him try, but I do think it’s probably close either way. It just can’t be that different, you’re so unlikely to allow 0 runs when it’s bases loaded nobody out

7:40	late2theparty: have we talked about ben picking the o’s to be the AL 2 seed?

7:41	Ben Clemens: Briefly early. Hey, they have the most wins in baseball right now.

7:41	Appa Yip Yip: Intentional walks are cowardly. Win with dignity, lose with honour. The Klingon way.

7:41	Ben Clemens: I like to identify with the Federation, but uh yeah, when it comes to IBB’s specifically I’m with you

7:42	Steve O: Is it me or have bullpen arms gotten so good that fans of mid-range teams think they’ll have a good bullpen before the season starts? Then the games start.

7:42	Ben Clemens: The raw stuff that every bullpen has now is just outrageous. And then yeah, they throw one off your catcher’s knee pad and you’re like wait what the hell?

7:42	bosoxforlife: I think I am looking at bases loaded 1 out after Knizner bats. I would prefer that but it really is a close call and my 20/20 hindsight has always been perfect.

7:43	Leo Morgenstern: I’ve gotta run now, but thanks again for chatting everybody! And thanks to Ben for sticking to the bitter end of this one. I hope for his sake the Cardinals hold on

7:43	Ben Clemens: Yeah Knizner has just not looked like a comfortable major league hitter basically ever

7:43	Ben Clemens: See you later Leo, fun chat today

7:44	Ben Clemens: Guys, is it bad to walk Whit Merrifield on four pitches?

7:45	Pat: Is P(0 R \| 2+3, 0 out) < P(0 R \| loaded, 0 out)? Close and late, that might be the more important consideration than total run expectation (prolly want to do P(1 R) and P(2 R) too)

7:45	Ben Clemens: It’s a good question that I should probably look up. My guess is that bases loaded is more likely to score a run because of walks

7:46	Saladpans: I’d like to know if anyone in this chat would stand in/has stood in against 104. And what level of baseball they’ve played. I would never.

7:46	Ben Clemens: oh goodness gracious no

7:46	bosoxforlife: I know wins are meaningless but is there some way not to give a win to Hicks.

7:46	Ben Clemens: Just give the win to Arenado, who would complain?

7:47	Ben Clemens: Knizner being forced into the game, then bunt popping out and dropping a foul tip for a third strike, is the kind of bad start he really needed to avoid

7:47	5 Run Homer: I know a way we can avoid giving the win to Hicks

7:48	Triple play to end the game: I can feel it. Or maybe Springer gets his… fifth hit…?

7:49	Ben Clemens: I’m not sure Springer has ever been retired.

7:49	Ben Clemens: ah, that’s appropriate

7:50	Ben Clemens: GREAT baserunning by Kiermaier

7:50	Vin: Springer winning the batting title this year

7:50	Appa Yip Yip: Wtf is this game

7:50	Triple play to end the game: maybe Bichette gets his fifth then, as well?

7:50	Ben Clemens: I’m almost afraid to calculate the babip in this game

7:51	Ben Clemens: Is it .500?

7:51	Ben Clemens: Okay the Jays have 30 BIP today and 19 hits

7:52	Ben Clemens: lol

7:52	Ben Clemens: Cardinals a piddling 13-30

7:53	Farhandrew Zaidman: I did see Eno predict that this year may have the highest BABIP…ever. So there’s that.

7:53	SadTiger: Is Helsley only ok now?

7:53	Ben Clemens: Maybe! He’s a reliever. But definitely too soon to say after the two bloop hits the Jays strung together

7:53	Vin: MLB is testing out a new ball in this game that somehow finds every hole imaginable

7:53	Triple play to end the game: Didn’t the Cardinals offer Ryan Helsley to Toronto for Danny Jansen?

7:53	Ben Clemens: Never confirmed, but I would believe it.

7:55	bosoxforlife: Again, I would have walked Vlad and pitched to Varsho..

7:56	Ben Clemens: I think that has a lot more merit, just because there’s already one out

7:56	Ben Clemens: PRobably still close of course

7:56	SadTiger: And a walk, and a lot of contact…IDK he was just so dominant for parts of last year seems different in that IP

7:56	Morbo: Helsley is tipping. After he comes set he dropped his elbows a bit like he is settling in before he throws the fastball but not the change or the curve

7:56	5 Run Homer: I’d have done Helsley for Jansen over the trades for Swanson and Varsho

7:58	Morbo: As soon as I saw merrifield talking to Vladdy Jr after he scored I started looking

7:58	Ben Clemens: Man, they really buried Dylan Carlson huh?

7:58	bosoxforlife: Great players are better than their numbers. It has been said in every game, “you can’t let so-and-so beat you”.

7:58	Ben Clemens: It’s true… but I think that the numbers don’t always bear that out

7:59	Ben Clemens: The zone in this game is…. amorphous

7:59	Ben Clemens: Sometimes it’s very wide, sometimes tall, sometimes just tiny

7:59	Ben Clemens: I was thinking I’d enjoy switching from the wild WBC zones to MLB, but honestly it’s been a little spotty to start

8:00	Appa Yip Yip: I would like Romano to close this one out I can’t handle a five hour game

8:00	Ben Clemens: Honestly, I would too

8:00	Ben Clemens: Wasn’t planning on a four-hour chat this afternoon

8:00	5 Run Homer: This zone isn’t even worse than NYY-SF either

8:00	Ben Clemens: Nope, that’s the other game I’ve caught a lot of today

8:00	Ben Clemens: That one was quite inconsistent

8:01	Vin: It’s been a long game, but definitely not slow. Nonstop action!

8:01	Ben Clemens: Indeed

8:01	Ben Clemens: Alright, have a wonderful evening everyone, and welcome back to baseball!

8:01	5 Run Homer: go Jays, 162-0, thanks for the great chat!

8:01	Chili Beans: Exactly. 10-9 games aren’t supposed to take 2.5 hours.

8:01	bosoxforlife: 2 things I hope to see. Automated balls and strikes and the mound moved back.

8:01	bosoxforlife: Thank Ben, just great!

8:01	5 Run Homer: Never in doubt

8:02	Ben Clemens: Cya later everyone

BAL	CHW	LAA
BOS	CLE	OAK
NYY	DET	SEA
TBR	KCR	TEX
TOR	MIN	HOU

ATL	CHC*	ARI
MIA	CIN	COL
WSN	MIL	LAD
NYM*	PIT	SDP*
PHI	STL	SFG