TooLiveBrew

I agree that some are being far too critical of Block. I actually like him.

Do we have a dreaded 'vote of confidence' here? Doesn't completely absolve RR from blame

Tyler Thornburg, 1st through 5th innings: 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 7 K, HBP, WP, 5:3 GO:FO 6th inning: 3 H (2 2B), 4 R, 4 ER, BB ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- The inning of despair: Tacoma Bottom of the 6th -Alex Liddi doubles (6) on a line drive to left fielder Khris Davis. -Stefen Romero singles on a line drive to left fielder Khris Davis. Alex Liddi to 3rd. -Nate Tenbrink walks. Stefen Romero to 2nd. -Carlos Triunfel grounds into a force out, third baseman Stephen Parker to catcher Dayton Buller. Alex Liddi out at home. Stefen Romero to 3rd. Nate Tenbrink to 2nd. Carlos Triunfel to 1st. -Jesus Sucre doubles (1) on a line drive to left fielder Khris Davis. Stefen Romero scores. Nate Tenbrink scores. Carlos Triunfel to 3rd. -Pitching Change: Tim Dillard replaces Tyler Thornburg. -Abraham Almonte singles on a ground ball to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Carlos Triunfel scores. Jesus Sucre to 3rd. -With Nick Franklin batting, Abraham Almonte steals (2) 2nd base. -Nick Franklin out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Khris Davis. Jesus Sucre scores. -Franklin Gutierrez grounds out, third baseman Stephen Parker to first baseman Blake Lalli. ----------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------- He's only worked into the 6th inning in one of his nine starts so far this season. I'm really not sure how he can be taken seriously as a SP candidate at this point.

Imo there's a big difference

He's never been very natural at 2B*, but his arm hasn't been an issue for a long time now. * What was the rationale for trying to convert him from CF to 2B out of the draft? It's not like he wouldn't have provided a lot of offensive value as a CF.

Honestly, we will never agree on this, and there's a lot more to the issues than you delve into with your post. And I don't want to see yet another topical thread hijacked by the same back & forth with the same folks. I'm not frustrated "right now" -- I've been frustrated with the organization's approach for a while now, & honestly it has little to do with the W-L record this season. I don't believe Ron Roenicke is the problem. And that's coming from someone who really isn't a big Roenicke fan. If he winds up being fired, the team's results won't wind up changing much, and that's because the organization as a whole is sorely lacking in the pitching department (I don't think Kranitz is at fault much either).

Good starts from both Austin Blaski and Brent Suter tonight. That makes four strong starts out of five so far this season since he was promoted from Wisconsin for the 6'5" lefty Suter, a 2012 31st rounder (Blaski was picked in the 21st).

Merged the "Dear Doug ... Please Fire Rick Kranitz" topic with this previous, longer Kranitz thread.

Honestly, I've simply lost interest in watching games, period. I mean, I still tune in for a dose of Segura, Braun, & Gómez... but I'm someone who, up until sometime last season, watched every single game I could from start to finish. I'm just sick of the way this franchise is run, and the product on the field reflects the poor strategy. If this team has lost me in May... I think the attendance numbers might wind up being pretty ugly for them this season. And honestly, that appears to be the only way that the current leadership of the club would possibly consider changing the approach. So I guess that's something good that might come from a terrible 2013 (not holding my breath for it, though). I realize this is a thread about Roenicke, but honestly I don't have much of a problem with him -- at least, compared to whatever other nearly-identical dude Melvin would hire. The problem with this team isn't the manager, it's the approach from the front office & ownership.

I realize I'm not rams, but in the few T-Rats games I've been to so far this season, Coulter still looks like he has a long way to go as a catcher. He just hasn't looked very natural there in the games I've seen. If I were to bet on it, I'd bet he winds up at a corner spot eventually, but he's still very young & from all accounts a very hard worker. So I could also see him improving enough to stick at catcher -- he's big, strong, and a good athlete.

I think saying Roache could be a .400+ OBP guy is way too premature. His hit tool is still a question, and you have to draw a ton of BBs to have that high of an OBP with a mid-.200s AVG.

Hah! To be completely honest, since I've never merged a topic before, I chickened out & just posted the link. I just figured you'd enjoy that thread... lots of good recommendations/movies in there.

A topic from last month in the Off Topic forum: viewtopic.php?f=67&t=29762

I'll agree with Seth that, in the limited sample I've seen of Roache, he was a bit... I don't know... awkward? not-comfortable-looking? in LF. He clearly looks like a good athlete, so maybe it's just rust after missing so much time. I can say that his power tool is about as legit as it gets, though. He's hit some pretty incredible HRs so far this season, and the longballs he hits seem to have 'that sound' off the bat.

My money is on him just starting to call him "Yanky"

Without Loshe, this team might have won like one or two fewer games so far, and have a first-round pick in the 2013 draft. That would be awful.

Weeks hasn't lost any noticeable amount of speed over the past two or three seasons; his loss of impact speed happened years ago. Bianchi should definitely be starting over him more, but neither Betancourt nor González is a better choice than Rickie at this point. However, Roenicke has completely mismanaged Weeks through the start of this season -- Rickie should've seen the pine a lot more thus far. He's clearly not playing his way through the slump, and Ron has been far too patient. There's literally no point in sending him to the minors. He's completely experienced with/adjusted to the MLB game, and he'll either recover the ability to hit at the MLB level or he won't. I honestly wouldn't feel any better or worse about him if he went to AAA and OPS'd 1.000 or .500. He doesn't need to be playing every day against AAA competition like a young player like Krush Davis... but he needs to not have a near-infinte leash. Until Rickie demonstrates that he has the swing-accuracy to hit at the MLB level, imo Bianchi should continue to start ahead of him.

Sounds Lose Series Opener In Tacoma, 5-2 Hunter Morris Slugs Team-Leading 7th Homer For Nashville Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/kXxYLVx.jpg Hunter Morris, archive photo (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) TACOMA, Wash. - The Nashville Sounds were bested by the Tacoma Rainiers by a 5-2 count on Monday evening at Cheney Stadium in the opener of a four-game series. Rainiers starter Blake Beavan (2-2) was solid in earning a victory, holding the Sounds to one run on four hits over 7 2/3 innings. The lone blemish on the right-hander's quality start was a Hunter Morris home run. Third baseman Alex Liddi paced the Tacoma offense with a 3-for-4 night that included his team-leading eighth home run of the season and three runs scored. Tacoma plated the night's first run in unearned fashion following back-to-back fielding errors by the left side of the Nashville infield in the bottom of the third inning. Scott Savastano led off with a single against Sounds starter R.J. Seidel and Carlos Triunfel followed with a potential double-play grounder to shortstop, which was missed by Blake Davis for the frame's first error. Savastino over ran second base on the play and was erased in a rundown as Triunfel took second on the play. Nate Tenbrink stepped into the box and hit a cue shot towards third base, where Stephen Parker mishandled the ball to allow Trinufel to race home to give the Rainiers a 1-0 lead. Carlos Peguero upped the Tacoma lead to 3-0 in the fourth when he belted his sixth home run of the year, a first-pitch two-run bomb to right off Seidel. Liddi, who preceded Peguero with a single, also scored on the blast. The Rainiers tacked on another run in the sixth to increase their advantage to 4-0. Liddi singled with one out, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on Stefen Romero's RBI single to left, which chased Seidel from the contest. Seidel (0-1) took a loss in his first career Triple-A decision after allowing four runs (three ER) on five hits in 5 2/3 innings of work. Morris (2-for-3) broke up Beavan's shutout bid in the eighth with a one-out solo homer to deep right, the slugger's team-leading seventh big fly of the year and his third since being activated from the disabled list on Saturday. Liddi answered Morris' blast with one of his own in the home half of the frame, taking Jesus Sanchez deep to left for a two-out solo homer that brought the score to its final 5-1 standing. The Sounds didn't go down without a fight in the ninth, plating a run and bringing the potential tying run to the plate against the Tacoma bullpen. Blake Davis led off with an opposite-field double against Rainiers reliever Brian Moran and scored Nashville's second run of the night when Josh Prince doubled off the right field wall. Prince went 2-for-4 to extend his longest hit streak of the year to five games. After Caleb Gindl grounded out for the second out of the frame, Khris Davis drew a four-pitch walk to put runners on the corners for Blake Lalli, who struck out to end the contest as Moran nailed down his first save of the season. A pair of significant streaks were snapped for Sounds players in the loss. Catcher Anderson De La Rosa went 0-for-3 to bring an end to his season-best 11-game hitting streak. Third baseman Stephen Parker went 0-for-4 and was held off the basepaths for the first time in 20 games to snap the PCL's longest on-base streak. The teams continue the series with another 8:00 p.m. CT matchup on Tuesday night. Right-hander Johnny Hellweg (2-4, 3.72), who earned a quality start victory in his last outing, will man the bump for the Sounds and face Tacoma left-hander James Gilheeney (2-1, 3.70). Nashville Box Nashville PbP Nashville Gameday

Just a reminder for everyone... Saturday, May 25th 1:45p Central Time Wembley Stadium Dortmund v. Bayern http://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Photo/competitions/Comp_Matches/01/86/23/48/1862348_w2.jpg http://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Photo/competitions/Comp_Matches/01/94/01/31/1940131_w2.jpg UEFA CL Final page Prematch Fact Sheet/Matchup Breakdown feature In case you couldn't tell, I'm pumped for this one!

After being long-term unemployed (for far longer than I like to admit), getting a job last month & getting promoted today... that's definitely not bugging me.

You can look for yourself Brewers NL

Sounds Stung By Pesky Bees Luke Carlin Spoils Nashville's Chance For First Series Win Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/lfvQz9w.jpg Josh Prince, archive photo (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) AUDIO: Scooter Gennett's Sac-Fly AUDIO: Blake Lalli's Solo Homer AUDIO: Prince's Bases-Clearing Double AUDIO: Sean Halton's Sacrifice Fly AUDIO: Blake Davis' Sacrifice Squeeze SALT LAKE CITY - Despite holding three different two-run leads Sunday afternoon at Spring Mobile Ballpark, the Nashville Sounds were on the losing end of an 8-7 extra-innings dogfight series finale against the Salt Lake Bees, splitting the series at two games apiece. The Sounds had the Bees down to their last strike with a 7-6 lead in the bottom of the 10th inning, but Salt Lake catcher Luke Carlin spoiled Nashville's chance for its first series win of the season by crushing a two-run homer off closer Rob Wooten (0-1) for the walk-off win. The Bees last-ditch rally marks Wooten's first loss and first blown save opportunity of the season, after previously going five-for-five. He finished with five earned runs on five hits over 1 2/3 innings of work. Jeremy Berg (1-0) picked up the win for Salt Lake. Nashville nearly lost the game prior to extras, but outfielder Josh Prince found a timely double to right-center that scored three runs with two outs in the ninth inning. Prince's hit made it 5-3 Sounds before the Bees rallied against Wooten in the home half of the inning to tie it up. In the 10th, the Sounds cashed in two lead-off walks for two runs and a 7-5 lead. With no outs and the bases-loaded, Sean Halton hit a fly ball to the outfield for a sacrifice fly, which was followed by Blake Davis' sacrifice bunt. The Sounds first two-run lead disappeared in the sixth inning with reliever Mike Olmsted on the hill. Roberto Lopez started off the frame with a single to left field, moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and scored on Jimmy Swift's double to the wall in centerfield. Travis Webb stepped in after the Swift double to try and hold the 2-2 tie, but was hit for an RBI-single by leadoff man Trent Oeltjen. Webb proceeded to load the bases with two walks, but escaped any damage from the free offerings by getting Rodriguez to fly out. The Sounds['] initial lead was started in the third by Blake Davis, who hit a triple to the right-field wall before coming home on Scooter Gennett's sacrifice fly. In the fourth, catcher Blake Lalli belted a home run just over the right-field wall to make it 2-0. The homer was Lalli's second of the season for the Sounds and is the team's sixth in their last seven games. Sounds pitchers entered the game on a 10-inning scoreless streak against Salt Lake and starting pitcher Frankie De La Cruz extended it to 14 before the Bees found their first run in the fifth. Bees Infielder Efren Navarro connected for a two-out single and came around to score on Luis Rodriguez's shallow bloop double, landing just fair in left field. De La Cruz racked up five strikeouts to three walks against the Bees, letting in one run on six hits across five innings of work. He left in line for the win. Also seeing work on the hill for Nashville was Tim Dillard, who loaded the bases on three walks, one intentional, before Kyle Heckathorn entered the game to pick up the final out of the seventh inning. Heckathorn stayed in to pitch a scoreless eighth to extend his streak to 11 consecutive innings without allowing a run. The Sounds continue their road trip Monday, traveling to the Pacific Northwest to play a four-game series with the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA-Mariners). The Sounds will send RHP R.J. Seidel (0-0, 5.40) to the hill opposite Tacoma's RHP Blake Beaven (1-2, 4.86). Baseball returns to Greer Stadium on Friday, May 24, as the Sounds host the Albuquerque Isotopes (AAA-Dodgers) to a four-game set. The game will feature a postgame fireworks show. Nashville Box Nashville PbP Nashville Top of the 9th -Pitching Change: Chad Cordero replaces Mitch Stetter. -Blake Lalli walks. -Offensive Substitution: Pinch-runner Anderson De La Rosa replaces Blake Lalli. -Sean Halton hit by pitch. Anderson De La Rosa to 2nd. -Blake Davis strikes out swinging. -Hainley Statia singles on a line drive to right fielder Kole Calhoun. Anderson De La Rosa to 3rd. Sean Halton to 2nd. -Scooter Gennett strikes out swinging. -Josh Prince doubles (6) on a fly ball to center fielder Matt Long. Anderson De La Rosa scores. Sean Halton scores. Hainley Statia scores. -With Caleb Gindl batting, Josh Prince steals (3) 3rd base. -Caleb Gindl called out on strikes. Salt Lake Bottom of the 9th -Anderson De La Rosa remains in the game as the catcher. -Pitching Change: Rob Wooten replaces Kyle Heckathorn. -Roberto Lopez doubles (9) on a fly ball to right fielder Khris Davis. -Luke Carlin called out on strikes. -Offensive Substitution: Pinch-hitter Brad Hawpe replaces Jimmy Swift. -Brad Hawpe doubles (8) on a line drive to right fielder Khris Davis. Roberto Lopez scores. -Trent Oeltjen strikes out swinging. Wild pitch by pitcher Rob Wooten. Brad Hawpe to 3rd. Trent Oeltjen to 1st. -Andrew Romine grounds out, second baseman Scooter Gennett to first baseman Hunter Morris. Brad Hawpe scores. Trent Oeltjen to 2nd. -Kole Calhoun grounds out, first baseman Hunter Morris to pitcher Rob Wooten. Nashville Top of the 10th -Defensive switch from right field to center field for Kole Calhoun. -Defensive switch from center field to left field for Matt Long. -Defensive switch from left field to third base for Roberto Lopez. -Brad Hawpe remains in the game as the right fielder. -Pitching Change: Jeremy Berg replaces Chad Cordero. -Khris Davis walks. -Hunter Morris walks. Khris Davis to 2nd. -Anderson De La Rosa singles on a bunt ground ball to pitcher Jeremy Berg. Khris Davis to 3rd. Hunter Morris to 2nd. -Sean Halton out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Kole Calhoun. Khris Davis scores. Hunter Morris to 3rd. -Blake Davis out on a sacrifice bunt to first baseman Efren Navarro. Hunter Morris scores. Anderson De La Rosa to 2nd. -Hainley Statia grounds out, second baseman Luis Rodriguez to first baseman Efren Navarro. Salt Lake Bottom of the 10th -Efren Navarro singles on a line drive to center fielder Josh Prince. -Luis Rodriguez grounds into a force out, first baseman Hunter Morris to shortstop Blake Davis. Efren Navarro out at 2nd. Luis Rodriguez to 1st. -Matt Long doubles (2) on a ground ball to right fielder Khris Davis. Luis Rodriguez to 3rd. -Roberto Lopez grounds out, shortstop Blake Davis to first baseman Hunter Morris. Luis Rodriguez scores. Matt Long to 3rd. -Luke Carlin homers (1) on a fly ball to right field. Matt Long scores. Nashville Gameday

Pure gold. Thank you for posting that.

This stretch from Ariel is really encouraging. One thing I recall reading about him in nearly every scouting writeup I saw was that he struggles/struggled from time to time with keeping the ball down in the hitting zone. I have to assume he's been doing that very well lately. After getting off to a rough start to the season in his first three starts, Pena has gotten good results in the next six: 6 ER in 31.1 IP, good for a 1.72 ERA. His last three starts in particular have been encouraging -- a combined 22/5 K/BB ratio in 17.2 IP, & a 1.02 ERA.

Sounds Blow Out Bees, 11-0 Morris Homers Twice, Gindl Plates Four In Nashville's Best Offensive Output Of Season Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/kXxYLVx.jpg Hunter Morris, archive photo (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) SALT LAKE CITY - Hunter Morris belted a pair of home runs, Caleb Gindl went 4-for-5 with four RBIs, and Zach Kroenke turned in his best start of the year to lead the Nashville Sounds to an 11-0 victory over the Salt Lake Bees on Saturday evening at Spring Mobile Ballpark. Nashville (12-28) set a new season high with 17 hits and matched its season best for runs scored in recording its third shutout win of the season. Morris -- in his first game back with Nashville following a weeklong stint on the disabled list due to a concussion -- showed no rust from his hiatus, producing his second two-homer effort of the season (and fifth of his career) and driving in four runs in the contest with a 3-for-4 effort that included three extra-base hits. Gindl (4-for-5), who missed the cycle by a triple, contributed a two-run homer and two-run double as he drove in a season-high four runs. Kroenke (1-6) snapped a season-opening six-game skid with his first quality start of the year. The left-hander scattered six hits over 6 1/3 scoreless frames that included a string of 11 consecutive batters retired. Each of his four strikeouts ended innings. Donovan Hand followed Kroenke with 1 2/3 scoreless frames before Rob Wooten closed out Nashville's largest shutout win since a 19-0 whitewash of Colorado Springs on August 4, 2011. After the teams played scoreless ball over the first three innings, Gindl put the Sounds on the board in the top of the fourth by hammering a two-run homer to right off Bees starter Matt Shoemaker. Josh Prince, who opened the inning with a single, also scored on the roundtripper, Gindl's fourth of the year. Khris Davis followed the longball with a single and Morris drilled a double off the center field wall, but the Salt Lake defense executed a perfect relay to gun down Davis at the plate. On the play, shortstop Andrew Romine made a barehanded catch-and-throw on former Sound Trent Oeltjen's one-hop toss from center to retire Davis on a bang-bang play. Morris continued his solid evening in the sixth when he slugged his fifth home run of the year, a towering solo shot to right off Shoemaker that stretched the lead to 3-0. The Sounds put the game out of reach in the seventh with a five-run frame to extend the lead to 8-0. Gindl continued his big night when he smashed an opposite-field, two-run double to left-center to chase Shoemaker and extend the Nashville lead to 5-0. Hainley Statia and Scooter Gennett, who each singled earlier in the frame, both scored on the knock, which gave Gindl a season-high four RBIs on the evening. Following Khris Davis' second walk of the night, Morris went deep again, belting a three-run big fly down the line in right off Bees reliever David Carpenter. The two-out blast gave him his fourth career multi-homer effort as well as the outright team lead with six roundtrippers this season. Salt Lake's best scoring chance came in the seventh when the Bees put runners on second and third with one out against Kroenke, but Hand was summoned to the hill and escaped the jam unscathed by retiring the next two hitters to keep the shutout intact. Nashville closed out its scoring in the eighth, plating three runs off Carpenter to make it an 11-0 game. Prince hit an RBI single and the Sounds loaded the bases before Carpenter uncorked consecutive wild pitches to allow a pair of runs to score. Nashville re-loaded the bases once again but Blake Lalli (0-for-5, the lone Sound to not reach base in the game) popped out to end the frame with no further damage done. A pair of streaks were extended for the Sounds in the victory. Catcher Anderson De La Rosa went 2-for-5 to run his season-best hitting streak to nine games and third baseman Stephen Parker singled in the ninth inning to extend his on-base streak to 19 consecutive games. Shoemaker (3-6) suffered his league co-leading sixth loss of the year for the Bees after giving up six runs on 10 hits over 6 2/3 frames. The Sounds will look to secure their first winning series of the year when the teams wrap up the four-game set with a 2:05 p.m. CT finale on Sunday afternoon. Right-hander Frankie De La Cruz (1-5, 7.94) will start for the Sounds and face Salt Lake right-hander Jarrett Grube (0-0, 0.00). - that sure puts the Sounds' season in perspective... ouch Nashville Box Gennett: 2-5, BB, SB Prince: 2-5, RBI, HBP Gindl: 4-5, 2B, HR, 4 RBI Davis: 1-3, 2 BB Morris: 3-4, 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, BB De La Rosa: 2-5, 2/2 CS Parker: 1-5, E (throw) Statia: 2-5, E (throw) [pre]Kroenke: 6.1 IP 6 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 4 K PO 90 TP (52 strikes) 7:4 GO:FO Hand: 1.2 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 0 BB 3 K Wooten: 1.0 IP 0 H 0 R 0 ER 1 BB 2 K[/pre] Nashville PbP Nashville's five-run 7th: Nashville Top of the 7th -Stephen Parker grounds out, second baseman Bill Hall to first baseman Efren Navarro. -Hainley Statia singles on a line drive to right fielder Matt Long. -Scooter Gennett singles on a line drive to pitcher Matt Shoemaker. Hainley Statia to 2nd. -Josh Prince flies out to right fielder Matt Long. Hainley Statia to 3rd. -Caleb Gindl doubles (10) on a line drive to left fielder Roberto Lopez. Hainley Statia scores. Scooter Gennett scores. -Pitching Change: David Carpenter replaces Matt Shoemaker. -Khris Davis walks. -Hunter Morris homers (6) on a fly ball to right field. Caleb Gindl scores. Khris Davis scores. -Blake Lalli grounds out, second baseman Bill Hall to first baseman Efren Navarro. As Jeff noted in the game story, Hand came up big in the bottom half to preserve the shutout: Salt Lake Bottom of the 7th -Brad Hawpe hits a ground-rule double (7) on a fly ball to left-center field. -Bill Hall singles on a ground ball to shortstop Hainley Statia. Bill Hall to 2nd. Brad Hawpe advances to 3rd, on a throwing error by shortstop Hainley Statia. -Matt Long pops out to shortstop Hainley Statia. -Pitching Change: Donovan Hand replaces Zach Kroenke. -John Hester strikes out swinging. -Jimmy Swift grounds out, second baseman Scooter Gennett to first baseman Blake Lalli. Another long inning in the very next frame put this one 100% out of reach for the Bees: Nashville Top of the 8th -Anderson De La Rosa singles on a line drive to left fielder Roberto Lopez. -Stephen Parker grounds into a double play, second baseman Bill Hall to first baseman Efren Navarro. Anderson De La Rosa out at 2nd. -Hainley Statia singles on a line drive to right fielder Matt Long. -Scooter Gennett walks. Hainley Statia to 2nd. -Josh Prince singles on a line drive to right fielder Matt Long. Hainley Statia scores. Scooter Gennett to 2nd. -Caleb Gindl singles on a ground ball to shortstop Andrew Romine. Scooter Gennett to 3rd. Josh Prince to 2nd. -With Khris Davis batting, wild pitch by David Carpenter, Scooter Gennett scores. Josh Prince to 3rd. Caleb Gindl to 2nd. -With Khris Davis batting, wild pitch by David Carpenter, Josh Prince scores. Caleb Gindl to 3rd. -Khris Davis walks. -Hunter Morris walks. Khris Davis to 2nd. -Blake Lalli pops out to shortstop Andrew Romine. Nashville Gameday