In this case, it kind of is.  A closer can not pitch for a few days just because.  And, he is suppposed to be back in time for a team walkthrough on Thursday.

And I would hope that it would end just slightly different.  I can see Scioscia being made the scape goat and being gone from Anaheim.  However, at the same time, I now for the first time would like to see Mattingly out of L.A.  And, if this were to come to be, I would like Scioscia to get a shot at managing the Dodgers.

And the Dodgers 6th inning is off to a pretty good start.

Carl Crawford singled to right.
Adrián González singled to right, Carl Crawford to third.


Possibly the end of Miller time for St. Louis?

According to the Associated Press the value of the free agent qualifying offer has risen from $14.1 million last offseason to $15.3 million this offseason, which means teams hoping to receive draft pick compensation for losing a free agent will need to risk the player accepting a one-year deal for that amount.

Last offseason zero of the 22 players who received $14.1 million qualifying offers accepted them, although several players who turned them down (Kendrys Morales, Stephen Drew) ended up regretting the decision later.

The price of the qualifying offer is the average salary of the 125 highest-paid players in baseball and since being introduced in 2012 has risen from $13.3 million to $14.1 million to $15.3 million.

Among the free agents who seem like good bets to receive qualifying offers this winter: Max Scherzer, James Shields, Hanley Ramirez, Victor Martinez, Pablo Sandoval, J.J. Hardy, Russell Martin, Melky Cabrera, Nelson Cruz, David Robertson.

Impending free agents who were traded during the season (Jon Lester, for example) are not eligible to receive qualifying offers.

And L.A has to settle for 2 runs. At least they chased Miller from the game....

damn...........

I've always been a Ken Rosenthal fan. And, if I wasn't, after I read this piece yesterday, I would have been.

I mean, this is what many of you want, right? People tell me all the time, “The networks need to show teams other than the Yankees and Red Sox.” Well, thanks to the outcomes of the two American League Division Series, fans no longer will be bound and gagged and forced to watch the despicable Northeast monsters against their collective will.



So, will you be glued to your televisions? I mean, it’s put up or shut up time, right? The Orioles and Royals in the ALCS is a dream matchup for those who want fresh faces, fresh stories, fresh cities – and in the Royals’ case, a fresh (if retro) brand of baseball. But I’m betting TBS and baseball executives are nervous, fearing ratings will be low.



I’ve actually waited years to write this column, holding off because I did not want to come off as a shill for FOX. Now that the Orioles and Royals will be on TBS, I’m more comfortable making my case. Because honestly, I do not think you’re going to watch, at least not in the numbers that this matchup deserves.



And that will only perpetuate the problem – assuming, of course, that the emphasis on high-profile teams actually is a problem, which I’m not sure it is.



Don’t get me wrong -- I empathize with the complaints by fans about the matchups the networks select during the regular season. The networks do shove certain large-market teams down their throats. But here is the truth that many fans refuse to acknowledge: Those teams draw the highest audiences. That’s why the networks feature them most.



It’s business, folks. FOX, Turner and ESPN are paying a combined $12.4 billion over eight years for the rights to national baseball broadcasts from 2014 to ’21 (the deals also include digital rights and radio rights for ESPN). The new contracts break down to $700 million a year for ESPN, $525 million a year for FOX and $325 million a year for Turner.



A lot of money, no?



The best way to recoup that money – if it is even possible – is to appeal to the widest audience. Some would argue that baseball could better promote the sport by accepting lower rights fees and requiring the networks to show a wider variety of teams. But baseball evidently is quite comfortable with the way it does business, and with its revenues in the $9 billion range, who’s to argue?



The truth is, ratings for national broadcasts are an uphill battle, anyway. Baseball audiences are local audiences, and local ratings, for the most part, are soaring. NFL audiences, in some ways, are no different. But gambling (and violence) help drive broader interest in the league, and the Super Bowl is a one-day event as opposed to a best-of-seven series, perfect for a society with an increasingly short attention span.



Which brings me back to Orioles-Royals, a matchup that is intriguing on so many levels:



*The Royals have not been to the World Series since 1985, the Orioles since 1983.



*The Royals opened the season with the game’s 19th-highest payroll, the Orioles the 15th-highest.



*The Royals play in the third-smallest TV market in baseball according to Nielsen, the Orioles the fourth smallest (only Milwaukee and Cincinnati are smaller).



By any definition, these teams are underdogs – and heaven knows, they’re fun to watch. The Royals’ outfielders are baseball’s answer to the Flying Wallendas. The Orioles’ manager, Buck Showalter, is a savant who manipulates his rotation to maximum advantage, defies conventional bullpen usage and seems to relish using plucky replacements for injured or suspended stars.



The teams possess certain similarities – in particular, the respective strengths of their defenses and bullpens. But they also are defined by their differences. Royals manager Ned Yost draws as much ridicule from fans and media as Showalter draws respect. The Orioles hit the most home runs in the majors during the regular season, the Royals the fewest (though Eric Hosmer and Mike Moustakas have two each in the postseason).



Trust me, this series will be good television, Camden Yards a sea of orange, Kauffman Stadium a sea of blue, two long-suffering fan bases erupting with joy, celebrating their teams’ respective ascents into the baseball elite.



Will you watch? Or are your complaints hollow?



Put up or shut up.



If you’re a baseball fan, turn on your TV.

I thought Bo Porter did a bang up job in Houston. I guess the rumor is that he was the old guy and couldn't relate to the youngins so he lost the clubhouse. Might be able to do some good in Anaheim though...maybe.

Everyone needs to drink 5 beers at once every now and again, even Madison Bumgarner.

Hunter Pence, saving the day.....

Last night was not all bad. Just mostly bad.....

It ususally takes someone with way too much time on their hands to come up with something this cool.

not sure why this became such a big story.

royals win, she gets a dog

I would tend to agree.  However, when they mismanage, it is ususally very noticable.