JimH5

That "freezing out" of media members shouldn't be tolerated. It isn't in the New York media, and it isn't in the NBA. This should have been a Journal/Sentinel or Press-Gazette story.

Fair enough. My complaints are mostly about local tv and radio and I haven't paid as much attention to print. It just seems like this is a bombshell piece. The Packers are treated with such deference here, I must not have caught the times their dirty laundry was aired.

Nuanced, perhaps. But then they ended up getting scooped on a huge story like this. And readers turn to the national outlets for insight and information that they can't get from local media.

I used to be in this camp, and it's not just the Packers. Same goes for Brewers/Bucks coverage. But I have come to know a couple sports reporters in recent years, and they have a good point. They do hear things, know things, etc. that are newsworthy but negative to player or coach. If they report that, word gets around and they get frozen out. If you can't do your job, you don't have a job. So it is a fine line. They shouldn't call themselves news organizations, then. Every tv sports department paints that team in such favorable light, it's ridiculous. I get it if you're WTMJ radio or the local Fox station that broadcasts their games. Those stations are "broadcast partners", who will never say a bad word about their business partners. But there are lots of media outlets and this is the smallest of small town teams. Nobody dared to speak of a feud that lots of people knew about? And it was only after McCarthy is gone and Rodgers is at the end of his career that one reporter felt comfortable telling this story? A sports team shouldn't be able to control the message this way for so long.

It's shameful that with the overwhelming amount of coverage that the Packers are given by local print and broadcast media--almost all of it fawning and celebratory--that it took all this time for this story to break. It's either that they were too busy worshiping the beloved Packers, or they were creating content strictly as puff pieces, afraid of turning off fans.

You're right, Patrick, on the section number. My mistake.

By the math, a 60 percent chance at $300 million is worth $180 million. I can see why someone would sign the deal. But it's still worth much less than he could earn taking the other route. The Braves are delighted to do this. Yes, but in reality it's a 60 percent chance at 300 mil in 5 years, or a 40 percent chance of a total way, way lower than 100 million...plus taking that gamble means he would make substantially less than what he will earn now for the next 3-4 seasons Agreed. I'm not saying he was stupid for signing it. But by nature, team friendly contracts aren't player friendly contracts, and this is a team friendly contract. We just saw what the payout could be for those who go the Machado route. It is possible that $100 million is an incredible sum of money, and even at that, he could wind up grossly underpaid. Both of those statements can be true. It's true of Yelich's current deal, which he signed gladly, but which also gave concessions on the back end.

OSS, I'm sure that my insistence on being in Family minimized my choices for seat assignments. It's good to hear that you're happy with your seats, and the experience of being a SSH. I think for me, I had the Sunday pack, and we had too many competing events, where I would have to exchange the seats. I no-showed on some, too, and during the last couple of years especially, I paid for seats that I never used. And with Seat Geek or Stub Hub, there really aren't any games any more that are truly unavailable. I like the freedom of going or not going on the spur of the moment.

By the math, a 60 percent chance at $300 million is worth $180 million. I can see why someone would sign the deal. But it's still worth much less than he could earn taking the other route. The Braves are delighted to do this.

I think the best thing would be to call their season ticket office directly and hear it from them. Let them know your intentions and see what they say regarding their calendar, and see if you can get on their email list. I dropped my 20 gamer this offseason, though I think we had until December or maybe even January to renew. Meaning, the seats that had been mine weren't going to be available to guys like you until I declined my renewal. I would take a look at the existing packages and see which of those would look most appealing to you (Saturday, Sunday, Business, Pick-your-own). That matters regarding seat location. A couple of things that surprised me were the number of tiers of ticket types, and the lack of significance it meant whether I was a first year package holder or a 10th year package holder in terms of "moving up" into better seats. I sat in the Family Section (219) for a long time, Row 5, on the aisle. I assumed that over the years, I'd be able to move closer into the first row of the section. But there were lots of games where those seats would be empty. The first rows of the section were in a different price tier than my seats, so really, I was in the best seat that I was ever going to get at the price I was willing to pay. Another thing that confused/angered me was seeing people in the rows ahead of me who were not SSH, on a couple of occasions, I saw their stubs and saw they paid $25 to sit in front of my $50 seats. It wasn't often, and it's true that they didn't get the SSH perks, but it still stuck with me and made me wonder if being a SSH was really for me.

Where Machado, Harper, and Trout were in their careers when they signed these FA contracts/extensions and where Acuna is are not comparable. At all. And Acuna's deal actually pays him much more than any of what those players earned over their initial few big league seasons when they were making ~$550K, too. Understood. And he wouldn't have signed the deal if he didn't think it was good. And if there's a strike coming after the 2021 season, it will have been better to have earned $30 million+ from 2019-2021 than the MLB minimum. But, he appears to be a generational talent. And teams are currently paying those guys $30+ million per year. So the 28-30 yo Acuna is likely to be a tremendous bargain.

Going from net worth of whatever Acuna has now up to $100 million, is huge for him, as it would be for any of us. But we just saw Machado and Harper and Trout sign deals that dwarf this by far. The only thing he got with this deal is the certainty of the money. But if he becomes a star, he'll be regretting this for years.

They're in a tough spot. Younger players far outnumber the 36 year olds, but younger players often look to the veterans for leadership. The union is supposed to represent all the players, but the salaries of those players are so disparate. This isn't like teachers or Teamsters or auto workers. Players are stratified, and the majority of the union members are never going to get paid in the upper strata. As much as the union has issues with team owners, there are union members who could/should have issues with other union members.

From Adam McCalvy's post on MLB.com: Of Burnes’ 12 strikeouts, six came on his sensational slider and six on a fastball that topped out at 96.3 mph, according to Statcast, and featured a remarkable spin rate averaging 2,913 rpm that gives the pitch its rising effect. That’s a record since Statcast came online in 2015 for an outing in which a pitcher threw at least 25 four-seam fastballs. Anything north of 2,600 rpm is considered elite. The previous Statcast record was shared by Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander, at 2,681 rpm. Not sure how calibrated the Statcast equipment is around all the parks, but Burnes set a record today for highest spin rate. He could be an elite starting pitcher, which would be pretty awesome.

Part of that equation is they have 6 extra base hits, and 5 of them are home runs. The only non-HR for extra bases was the Moustakas double. It’s important to remember they also have faced good pitching thus far. Last year Jack Flaherty held the Brewers to just 4 extra base hits in 91 plate appearances! Miles Mikolas held the Brewers to 10 extra base hits in 101 plate appearances. Through two games this year the Brewers have 5 extra base hits in 41 plate appearance versus those two pitchers. I think those are fair points, and accurate statements about those pitchers and the first two games. My complaint is that when runs are scored only by HR, fans lose a lot of the excitement of a ball hit in the gap and deciding to send the runner from first, with a close play at the plate, etc. 3TO baseball is probably more efficient in producing runs, but that doesn't make it more entertaining, at least to me.

The Brewers have scored just 1 run out of 10 from plays that weren't home runs. And it was a Grandal sac fly. Whether they win or lose, playing that way is terribly boring to me.

I think Attanasio's declaration that he'd find money mid-season, if necessary, is the most optimistic thing about the team. He won't go crazy, but he has publicly stated that he's willing to do more. That's fuel for optimism. Their lineup seems strong. They have pitching depth. It's a tough division, but the Brewers should be competitive the whole way. I'm seldom optimistic about the Brewers, but this year really does look like they could repeat as a pennant contender.

The most recent overall winner in the US cheese championship was a Baby Swiss made by Guggisberg cheese, in Millersburg, OH. That appears to be not too far out of the way off the route between Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. If I were taking that trip, I'm sure I would find time to stop for an hour or so. Babyswiss.com is their website. I've never been there, but I like places like that.

I would keep Soto. He has performed as a major leaguer, while Vlad is still unproven. And Vlad's body scares me. He's thick the way Kevin Mitchell and Pablo Sandoval were thick. I don't know if any great player was that thick, that young, and perform for 12 years. Being a Keeper league matters.

Old timers like me might remember Doctor X, the masked superheel from the AWA. He was known as The Destroyer in other territories. The man behind the mask, Dick Beyer passed away yesterday at age 88. As a kid, I found him captivating, and I even convinced my mom to let me put his figure four leg lock on her, which led to her submission. The goal of many of his opponents was to unmask Doctor X, and there were times that Verne Gagne and others came close, but they never could. RIP, Doctor X. You were awesome!

It's hard to believe that Bundy was in his late 20s at Wrestlemania 2. He shaved his head long before it was cool and was so big, he looked at least 10 years older. He was a tremendous heel and I really enjoyed the energy and menace he brought to the ring.

I think Kratz provided more than just what he did at bat. I think he was a calming/inspiring/other word to describe intangibles kind of guy. At least that's how he was presented to us by media accounts. If that's true, maybe it's a waste to have him in AAA. And with the 2nd catcher getting less than 150 plate appearances, the difference between Pina and Kratz isnt likely to matter much.

I think Pina has surplus value in that he has more to offer than playing once or twice a week. Trading him also leaves room on the team for Kratz. Either way, the Brewers have more major league catchers than they need.

There is a video of Giants CEO Larry Baer in what looks like a physical confrontation with his wife. https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.sfchronicle.com/giants/amp/Video-shows-Giants-CEO-Larry-Baer-dragging-wife-13656221.php It will be interesting to see what MLB does in this case. When it's a player, they are subject to discipline as negotiated in the CBA. I doubt those terms apply to front office people. And Baer is at the top of the Giants organization. MLB has to pursue this vigorously and administer significant punishment, if the case is as it appears at first glance.

Tony Kornheiser owns a restaurant, Chatter, from where he records his daily podcast. He's there every day at breakfast time, and that might be an interesting place to have a meal and be entertained.