MLB 2020/2021 Off-Season Thread

[GhostMachine]

I don't know if Cleveland will go wth Spiders, as the team had the worst record ever in baseball, 20-134, their last season under that name. Granted, that was 1899, and the schedule was shorter back then.....

But, if you look it up, the Spiders were set up to fail. Their owner bought another team in St. Louis - a conflict of interest that wouldn't be allowed to happen any more - and sent all the team's star players, including Cy Young - to that other team because they thought St. Louis would draw more fans, and switched the team to a road game heavy schedule (only 42 home games!). I'd argue that the 40-120 1962 Mets were worse than the Spiders just because the Spiders were gutted by their crooked ownership. The Mets just flat out stunk.

They should only go with Cleveland Rocks if they get Drew Carey to throw the first pitch and Ian Hunter to show up during the Seventh Inning Stretch at their first Opening Day game. 

 

[Lowerdeck]

I don’t care for the Rocks name.

And I doubt the team in Colorado would want to see that either.

[gunnar hendershow]

I actually like the Cleveland Cuyahogas. It'll never stick but it reminds me of the old Pittsburgh Alleghanys name which I have a fondness for.

Odds are they'll have a fan vote and it'll be a weird mascot that'll age poorly in a decade like Raptors or Kraken.

[The Buscher]

Cleveland Baseball Team

[Meacon Keaton]

I’d actually like the Cleveland Ball Club. CBC.

[MalaCloudy Black]

Cleveland Coneheads.

[GhostMachine]

Cleveland Rocks would work because the (joke of a) Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is there, but I can see why some don't like it. 

I've seen some smartasses suggest Steamers, but if anything, that's what they should have renamed the Browns a long time ago......

 

[gunnar hendershow]

Finally

 

[Meacon Keaton]

Nobody wants it to be Cleveland Rocks, GhostMachine. It is not a good joke. 

[DYSI]

Cleveland Rocks is pretty stupid tbh. 

 

Now the Cleveland Oranges - with a brown hat, would make sense. 

Edited December 17, 2020 by DYSI

[Meacon Keaton]

2019 World Series hero, Howie Kendrick, has retired.

[gunnar hendershow]

11 minutes ago, Meacon Keaton said:

2019 World Series hero, Howie Kendrick, has retired.

Easy to retire when you never need to pay for anything in DC ever again.

[The Buscher]

He had a nice career.  Should’ve retired a year earlier instead of his last moment in baseball being an injury and pandemic shortened season.

[The Buscher]

Former outfielder Sam Fuld is the new GM of the Phillies, reporting to Dave Dombrowski.

[MalaCloudy Black]

Wound up missing this last week but Omar Vizquel has been accused of domestic abuse by his wife, who is filing for divorce. MLB says they're investigating. He's on this year's HOF ballot, IIRC.

[Mx. Canadian Destroyer]

On 22/12/2020 at 20:33, B-li Manning said:

Former outfielder Sam Fuld is the new GM of the Phillies, reporting to Dave Dombrowski.

As someone with type 1 diabetes, this is pretty cool. Sam Fuld has type one diabetes.

[The Buscher]

Nats acquire Josh Bell from the Pirates for RHPs Wil Crowe and Eddy Yean.  Crowe is the Nats' #3 prospect, but he's already 26.

Aside from a ridiculous .333/.398/.685 stretch of the first 2 months of 2019, Bell has been a roughly league average hitter with borderline unplayable 1B defense. Unless they think they can get him back to that 1/3 of a season from last year, this is a trade for a replacement-level player.

[Meacon Keaton]

I’m curious to see how he does with people around him who can hit. Nats taking a chance on him and surrounding him with talent could raise his average 30 points or so. He had little to no help the last year and a half in Pittsburgh.

[gunnar hendershow]

He had a Chris Davis in 2013 stretch but I don't have much belief he's going to ever replicate that. Smart of them to take a chance on him though, maybe I'm wrong in which case they added Bell to an already good lineup.

[Meacon Keaton]

I don't think he'll ever be a consistent 40 homer guy, but I can see him being a .270 hitter with 25+ homers a year if he can figure it out. But maybe I just have wishful thinking since he's most likely my first baseman for the foreseeable future in my Strat league.