Spring Training 2023

[Dan_Stonerook]

https://triblive.com/sports/veteran-chr ... r-pirates/

I'm sorry, but I'd rather have Bae or Marcano in the super utility role than Owings.
But it seems Shelton likes him.

[GreenWeenie]

I'd like to know what's super about any of them. If they were so super, they'd have a position; especially on the Pirates or similar teams.

[GreenWeenie]

I guess they had to come up with some modern, fancy, complimentary term for "bench guy." If they play a bunch of places, they won't sit on the bench as long as they should.

[statscbl]

https://triblive.com/sports/veteran-chr ... r-pirates/

I'm sorry, but I'd rather have Bae or Marcano in the super utility role than Owings.
But it seems Shelton likes him.

Can we refer to Owings as JVM2 ?

[statscbl]

I guess they had to come up with some modern, fancy, complimentary term for "bench guy." If they play a bunch of places, they won't sit on the bench as long as they should.

I thought Josh Harrison was more valuable to the Pirates when he played several positions as opposed to being the everyday second baseman. He could hit and fill in anywhere or give a guy a day off.

[GreenWeenie]

Quite possibly. He absolutely added value.

Every team has guys who are versatile to plug holes, especially in these "playing time" days. It's a grind.

I dont see anything wrong with calling guys "bench" guys. Heck, even bench guys are MLB. We can only dream of being that good.

If every single bench guy is supposedly "super utility," then it really isn't all that "super" to me.

[Shedman]

Hey Weenie, how about a season prediction for W-L

[GreenWeenie]

Following my standard practice of waiting until the day before Opening Day, when all games and all stats count, but excuses don't.

[Dan_Stonerook]

Garcia is out for a while.

[statscbl]

Many positives, but the biggest disappointment might be the hitters jogging because they think they are going to be out. High fly ball by Suwinski to left where it wasn't caught. Good job by Bae going from second to home. Good job by Castro going from first to third. With the throw going to third, there is no excuse for Suwinski to lollygag and only wind up at first. If this type of bad play is something that one player is doing, that is on the player. This is something I have witnessed by several players. That is on Shelty. I love Shelty, but it is his job to create an atmosphere where this doesn't happen.

[GreenWeenie]

I see no reason to "love" Shelton unless one loves any Pirates manager. What's he done to love? Nice guy. So what?

The guy's got to win, at least eventually. I realize that his boss does nothing to make his life easier.

Guys chow sunflower seeds with balls in play rather than being prepared in case the're needed on his watch. Gotta love that.

Guys don't have enough sense to put their cell phone in their locker before they go out there. Great.

The Cubs out that ended in two runs? Dig it.

Being so lax will cost him his job at some point.

Regardless, this is why I've grown to support the WBC. Games mean so much more than ST games by far.

[val]

Regardless, this is why I've grown to support the WBC. Games mean so much more than ST games by far.

I'm completely with you. I'm firmly in the spring training camps don't matter, since it's just intra-squad scrimmage. As a soccer fan, I'll tell you that the greatest sporting event, by far, is the World Cup. Now FIFA is more corrupt than Cosa Nostra and more incompetent than the Keystone Cops, and they are actively trying to wreck the format, but the WBC could be, ought to be, huge.

[Dan_Stonerook]

Regardless, this is why I've grown to support the WBC. Games mean so much more than ST games by far.

I'm completely with you. I'm firmly in the spring training camps don't matter, since it's just intra-squad scrimmage. As a soccer fan, I'll tell you that the greatest sporting event, by far, is the World Cup. Now FIFA is more corrupt than Cosa Nostra and more incompetent than the Keystone Cops, and they are actively trying to wreck the format, but the WBC could be, ought to be, huge.

I'm not a fan of the WBC. At least not this time of the year.
Ask Astro or Met fans how much they enjoy it.

[val]

Sure. Happens to soccer fans all the time. But injuries happen. All the time. Can be in spring training. Can be in blowouts.

As for the timing? Fully agree, Dan. With the exception of this year, the WC is played in the summer, which is global soccer's off-season. No way the WBC should be playing now.

[GreenWeenie]

Regardless, this is why I've grown to support the WBC. Games mean so much more than ST games by far.

I'm completely with you. I'm firmly in the spring training camps don't matter, since it's just intra-squad scrimmage. As a soccer fan, I'll tell you that the greatest sporting event, by far, is the World Cup. Now FIFA is more corrupt than Cosa Nostra and more incompetent than the Keystone Cops, and they are actively trying to wreck the format, but the WBC could be, ought to be, huge.

I'd like to clarify myself. I think that ST certainly does matter- under certain conditions.

For experienced guys on experienced rosters, ST means very little. Those guys are just "getting reps in" or getting used to their new clubs and teammates if they're new to the team.

For inexperienced guys and inexperienced rosters, I think that ST means a heckuva lot. For a team that can't win worth poop (not naming names, but losing 100 games two years in a row wasn't any accident) i am surprised when people come up with the "ST doesn't mean a thing." Then, they wonder why we lose. Guys are trying to show that they belong in the major leagues, whether it's the defending WS champions or the worst of the worst.

I will agree that managers aren't trying as hard as they can to win ST games. They don't play their best guys. They play suspects in a lot of cases. It's borderline minor league baseball. Some of those guys never spend a day in the majors, ever.

So, given my choice between the WBC and ST games, I'll choose the WBC. It might not be "the Pirates" or "the Astros," but it will be better baseball.