One Man’s Opinion

[oldjudge]

I think it is disgraceful that the Twins are only playing Arraez against pitchers that he hits well. He is in the running for the AL batting title and the Twins should let him go out there and win it, not rest him to try to protect him from losing it. That, and the number of walks that Aaron Judge has received in the last week shows that baseball has become a gutless game and explains why other sports have passed it in popularity.

[HOF Auto Rookies]

As a Twins fan, I am disappointed Arraez may win the cheap way by not playing. I don't know how he personally feels about it, but it wouldn't sit right with me. Earn it. Long go the ways of Ted Williams...

[Snapolit1]

Barry Bonds was intentionally walked 120 times in 2004. But please keep telling me about how unfair it is for Judge. Last time I checked he was intentionally walked 12 times.

Oh yeah, and Bonds was intentionally walked with the bases loaded.

Poor Yankees never get a break.

[BobbyStrawberry]

Re: Arraez, I seem to recall some similar shenanigans by the Mets the year Jose Reyes won the batting title.

[nolemmings]

Luis has been ouchy with a hamstring for a little while now. This from the Pioneer Press today:

[oldjudge]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Barry Bonds was intentionally walked 120 times in 2004. But please keep telling me about how unfair it is for Judge. Last time I checked he was intentionally walked 12 times.

Oh yeah, and Bonds was intentionally walked with the bases loaded.

Poor Yankees never get a break.

He hasn’t gotten a lot of what is scored as an intentional walk. He has been walked a lot by pitchers who won’t throw strikes. The end result is the same but the scoring is different. Let’s also not compare a juicer to a clean player. I wouldn’t care if Judge played for the Red Sox or the Astros, I would feel the same way. Baseball has become a gutless sport.

[oldjudge]

Amazing how that hammy feels better against certain pitchers.

[JollyElm]

This is what it looks like today (FWIW, he has fewer games played/at-bats than the 2nd-4th place hitters)...

Screen Shot 2022-10-02 at 3.27.43 PM.png

The OP is dead on. Get off the bench and earn that title!!!

[CobbSpikedMe]

Originally Posted by oldjudge

He hasn’t gotten a lot of what is scored as an intentional walk. He has been walked a lot by pitchers who won’t throw strikes. The end result is the same but the scoring is different. Let’s also not compare a juicer to a clean player. I wouldn’t care if Judge played for the Red Sox or the Astros, I would feel the same way. Baseball has become a gutless sport.

Agreed Jay. Judge isn't getting intentionally walked a lot but he is getting unintentionally walked all the time. It's the same thing. He's getting crap to swing at because of gutless managers and pitchers that don't want to be in the record books as the guy that gave up number 62.

[Johnny630]

Ted Williams would Insist to be in every game until the end of the season. Respect the game Luis Arraez.

[nolemmings]

He's got a seven game hitting streak with multi-hits in 4 of the last 5 and is batting .355 over that stretch. So yeah, I'm sure he was scared of a rookie pitcher who got sent down after today's game.

[G1911]

Name Year, IBB/BB
Ruth 1921, ?/145
Ruth 1927, ?/137
Mantle 1961, 9/126
Maris 1961, 0/94
McGwire 1998, 28/162
Sosa 1998, 14/73
Bonds 2001, 35/177
Judge 2022, 12/110

I do not see how Judge is evidence that the game has become 'gutless' because he gets walked a lot. This has been true for people in his position for the last century. I am not a fan of much of the modern game and watch less than 10 games a season now, but data > narratives.

[oldjudge]

I mean the lefty (Arraez is lefty so a bad matchup) who held the Twinkies to two hits in 4 2/3 innings.

[nolemmings]

Again, a rookie pitcher. I'm sure they were worried that Arraez couldn't hit him.

Maybe Judge should just take care of business. Getting one hit the final weekend of the season and striking out 6 of your 7 official ABs does not exactly scream batting champ.

[sbfinley]

I’m just shocked that Rocco Baldelli still has a job if he’s got a 25 year old 1B filling out the line up card for him.

[todeen]

Twins certainly under performed this year. I wonder if he is on the hot seat?

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[scotgreb]

With all due respect to Jay, batting title shenanigans have been a part of baseball since the stat was invented. Maybe the most manipulated was by two of the all-time greats, Nap Lajoie and Ty Cobb in 1910. It's a pretty interesting story if you care to have a look.

Scott

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[Directly]

Didn't Ted Williams play the last game or two even though his 400 Batting Average could have been jeopardy ??

[MikeGarcia]

Originally Posted by Johnny630

Ted Williams would Insist to be in every game until the end of the season. Respect the game Luis Arraez.

..


..

[jakebeckleyoldeagleeye]

Originally Posted by CobbSpikedMe

Agreed Jay. Judge isn't getting intentionally walked a lot but he is getting unintentionally walked all the time. It's the same thing. He's getting crap to swing at because of gutless managers and pitchers that don't want to be in the record books as the guy that gave up number 62.

Gee he's only struck out 173 times. Guess they were all bad pitches.

[scotgreb]

With two games left in the 1910 season, Ty Cobb was leading Nap Lajoie in the batting race .385 to .376. At stake was a new Chalmers Model 30 awarded to the winner. Lajoie and the Indians were at Sportsman’s Park for a double-header against the Browns to close out the season. Meanwhile, Cobb skipped the Tigers’ final two contests to protect his average, claiming an eye ailment.

Before the doubleheader began, Browns’ manager Jack O’Connor ordered rookie third baseman Red Corriden to play in shallow left field, telling Corriden that “one of Lajoie’s line drives might kill you.” Seeing a chance to fatten his average, Lajoie bunted six times down the third base line for six hits. He also added a triple and an infield single, giving him eight hits in nine trips. His lone blemish was reaching base on an error by shortstop Bobby Wallace on his last at-bat.

Doing whatever they could to help Lajoie defeat Cobb, O’Connor and Coach Harry Howell then tried to bribe the official scorer, E.V. Parrish, with a suit of clothes if he changed his call to a hit. Upholding baseball honor, Parrish declined. In spite of all this, Cobb was still the apparent winner by less than one percentage point, .385069 to .384095.

But wait! The next day, unofficial final batting averages in different papers, including The Sporting News, declared Lajoie the winner by anywhere from one to three points. Cobb’s fans howled, led by Tiger president Frank Navin. But many in baseball who detested Cobb were delighted with Lajoie’s apparent victory. Eight of Cobb’s Detroit teammates even sent a telegram to Lajoie, congratulating him on the batting title.

The resulting outcry triggered an investigation by American League president Ban Johnson, who declared Cobb the winner. In a great public relations move, Chalmers made both Cobb and Lajoie fans happy by awarding each player a car. At Johnson’s insistence, the Browns fired O’Connor and Howell and both were informally banned from baseball for life.

The story doesn’t end there. More than 70 years later, in 1981, The Sporting News historian Paul MacFarlane discovered Cobb was mistakenly credited with two extra hits during the season. Take those away and the tile goes to Lajoie with a .384 average to Cobb’s .383. However, then-Commissioner Bowie Kuhn refused to take Cobb’s 1910 batting title away, thereby preserving his string of nine consecutive American League batting titles.

So who won the 1910 batting title? Baseball Reference says Lajoie, Wikipedia says Cobb. So you tell me!

You gotta love baseball

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[z28jd]

Judge is only playing because he's going for the home run record. The Yankees place in the playoffs has been set, so typically the stars get rested during this time. Otherwise he would probably be in the lead right now because he hasn't hit anything but air in the last two games. He only looks like the hero in the batting race because he wants a home run record he already owns with the tie.

[CobbSpikedMe]

Originally Posted by jakebeckleyoldeagleeye

Gee he's only struck out 173 times. Guess they were all bad pitches.

He constantly gets low balls called strikes on him and he is right to not swing at them because they are balls. That is contributing to his strikeouts. I watch every Yankee game and every Judge at bat and this has been a problem for years. He gets strikes to swing at and strikes out too, but they aren't pitching to him in general. You must not be watching the games.



.

[puckpaul]

Originally Posted by Snapolit1

Barry Bonds was intentionally walked 120 times in 2004. But please keep telling me about how unfair it is for Judge. Last time I checked he was intentionally walked 12 times.

Oh yeah, and Bonds was intentionally walked with the bases loaded.

Poor Yankees never get a break.

+1!!

[Fred]

Speaking of Ted Williams. He didn't sit the last day of the season in 1941. He was at .3995 (round up to .400). He could have sat the last day but said he didn't want to back into .400. Last day there was a double header and he went 6 for 8 and didn't back into the .400 average.

With Arraez, if he's legitimately hurt, then you really can't hold it against him. What would be really cool is Judge just started a mini hot streak and won the batting title outright. It'd be one thing if he was intentionally walked every at bat, but that's not what's happening. Perhaps Triple Crown is on his mind and he's pressing a little bit. He's got a few games to turn it around. Cross your fingers (even if you're a Yankee hater, you gotta like the kid). Maybe in that time he'll get that 62nd HR and a triple crown. If he doesn't it won't be that bad, tied with Maris for the Yankee season HR record is pretty cool. 61 clean round trippers. Not a bad year.

[nolemmings]

I hope Judge hits #62 tomorrow, and gets 2 or more hits in the remaining games, putting the pressure on Arraez. Despite some of my harshness in this thread, I do not root against the Yankees or any Yankee-- not even Boggs, Clemens and Damon, who I consider to be psuedo-Yankees.

[Kenny Cole]

Originally Posted by nolemmings

I hope Judge hits #62 tomorrow, and gets 2 or more hits in the remaining games, putting the pressure on Arraez. Despite some of my harshness in this thread, I do not root against the Yankees or any Yankee-- not even Boggs, Clemens and Damon, who I consider to be psuedo-Yankees.

Agree with Todd. I hope Judge succeeds too, but that's on him. He needs to perform. Period. I can't say that I'm entranced by how Arraez is doing it, but that's probably (hopefully) Baldelli's call, not his.

In any event, Todd's right. If Judge takes care of his own business, it doesn't matter what Arraez does. Great year for Judge, but maybe not a Triple Crown year. And that's OK. That's why they keep statistics and people get to argue about them after the fact. Not the first time, won't be the last that this type of thing has happened. Its all good. We will all make it through this.

[RCMcKenzie]

Yuli Gurriel must be relishing his last days of reigning 2021 batting king. I watch a lot of baseball, and I had to look up the Twins guy, and the Mets guy in the NL. Who are those guys?

[Directly]

Anyone want to estimate (if possible) what Judge might expect in dollars for his next contract and with whom ? If he is looking for a new Agent--I'm available --LOL

[skelly423]

Originally Posted by oldjudge

He hasn’t gotten a lot of what is scored as an intentional walk. He has been walked a lot by pitchers who won’t throw strikes. The end result is the same but the scoring is different. Let’s also not compare a juicer to a clean player. I wouldn’t care if Judge played for the Red Sox or the Astros, I would feel the same way. Baseball has become a gutless sport.

Bonds had plenty of unintentional intentional walks where the catcher didn't hold the arm out, but there were four pitches that never came within a foot of the plate. Juiced or not, what Bonds faced was orders of magnitude worse than the treatment Judge is getting from pitchers.

[ALBB]

Like someone else said..been going on in baseball for a very long time.

[glynparson]

Originally Posted by oldjudge

He hasn’t gotten a lot of what is scored as an intentional walk. He has been walked a lot by pitchers who won’t throw strikes. The end result is the same but the scoring is different. Let’s also not compare a juicer to a clean player. I wouldn’t care if Judge played for the Red Sox or the Astros, I would feel the same way. Baseball has become a gutless sport.

Yeah cause they never pitched around binds without intentionally walking him. What bs. I am loving the new rational Steve. Not sure where he was years ago but he is certainly accurate here for calling out this bs. Oh poor Aaron crap.

[nolemmings]

As for Home Run records--- Omedetou gozaimasu Munetaka Murakami (with apologies if I have the wrong expression or grammar)

https://www.cbssports.com/mlb/news/m...egular-season/

[Exhibitman]

What happened to Bonds is irrelevant; it is the same faulty logic as saying that because I was hazed when pledging a frat, my kid has to accept being hazed too. Each scenario should be judged on its merits. That said, the teams playing a hot player's team have the right to employ whatever strategies they like. If they are playing percentages, walking Judge as a matter of course makes no sense. Bill James ran a scenario with what would happen if teams just walked Babe Ruth every time at bat and the results were far worse for the opponent than pitching to him. The other players on MLB teams aren't exactly dweebs, and putting a man on base every time the #3 spot bats causes far more problems than it is worth. Also, if they feel Judge is pressing, the smart way to work him is off the plate. Worst case, he walks. Best case, he chases bad pitches and negates his own power by hitting bad balls or striking out within the extra-large strike zone he has created. Now, you could not do that with Yogi Berra. He feasted on pitches out of the zone.

[Bobbycee]

Originally Posted by RCMcKenzie

Yuli Gurriel must be relishing his last days of reigning 2021 batting king. I watch a lot of baseball, and I had to look up the Twins guy, and the Mets guy in the NL. Who are those guys?

Ughhhh, I guess you're not watching enough Baseball???

[Shoeless Moe]

Bonds is the ALL TIME HOME RUN leader, career and season, PERIOD.

I don't see a lot of World's Strongest Men competitor's in the Big Leagues.

Magnus ver Magnussan couldn't touch Jamie Moyer.

Judge is having a great season, but he's a long way from Barry.

Funny how Yankee fans don't complain about him batting leadoff so he can get more at bats and break the home run record, but when he can't get the batting title on his own it's somebody else's fault.

Typical New Yorkers.

I got some cheese for you whine!

[RCMcKenzie]

Originally Posted by Bobbycee

Ughhhh, I guess you're not watching enough Baseball???

I've seen the Twins guy. He's a singles hitter that I thought was unremarkable. I don't see many NL games, so I don't know the Mets guy. It would be like Chas McCormick hitting .305 next year and you barely recognize his name, unless you follow the Astros.

My point is to contrast these no-name singles hitters with Judge. Judge has become a famous power hitter who also hits for average.

[G1911]

McNeil is a star, had a bad year last year, but he's had excellent years his other 4. He's not some nobody. I don't see much in his 138 OPS+ to object too.

Arraez hit .334 as a rookie. He's 25 with a .314/.373/.409 slashline. I don't think he's a rando.

These are both excellent players. Batting Titles are often won by excellent players who not in the top 5 of press coverage or rewriting the home run record book.

A superstar with all the attention does not deserve to be gifted batting titles so he can fulfill the narrative's desire.

[RCMcKenzie]

Is Yuli Gurriel a star? It would be better for baseball if Judge wins the triple crown. (opinion) He only needs some hits and he can do it without any help.

[Bobbycee]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Bonds is the ALL TIME HOME RUN leader, career and season, PERIOD.

I don't see a lot of World's Strongest Men competitor's in the Big Leagues.

Magnus ver Magnussan couldn't touch Jamie Moyer.

Judge is having a great season, but he's a long way from Barry.

Funny how Yankee fans don't complain about him batting leadoff so he can get more at bats and break the home run record, but when he can't get the batting title on his own it's somebody else's fault.

Typical New Yorkers.

I got some cheese for you whine!

"Most Blocked Poster". You enjoy being a feminine product made of vinegar, and it shows. Not too many people will agree with you that Bonds is the best HR hitter PERIOD. I'd rather have NYers have my back than wherever you reside.

[G1911]

Originally Posted by RCMcKenzie

Is Yuli Gurriel a star? It would be better for baseball if Judge wins the triple crown. (opinion) He only needs some hits and he can do it without any help.

Guriel has been very inconsistent and ranges from below average to excellent. He was a a star when he slashed .319/.383/.462 and won the batting title and a gold glove.

My personal opinion is that it is best for baseball that the person with the highest average wins the title, whether they are really good, a superstar, or a media sensation. One needs to earn a title with their bat.

[Bridwell]

That's why it's so difficult to win the Triple Crown. There's ALWAYS some singles hitter in the way! I hope Aaron Judge can it do. It will be an amazing accomplishment!

[G1911]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Bonds is the ALL TIME HOME RUN leader, career and season, PERIOD.

True.

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

I don't see a lot of World's Strongest Men competitor's in the Big Leagues.

Technically true, but seems odd to add in.

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Magnus ver Magnussan couldn't touch Jamie Moyer.

Just trolling.

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Judge is having a great season, but he's a long way from Barry.

True. Barry was aided by cheating chemically, but true.

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Funny how Yankee fans don't complain about him batting leadoff so he can get more at bats and break the home run record, but when he can't get the batting title on his own it's somebody else's fault.

I don't know why any reasonable person would be under the belief that some of the spots in the batting order are somehow illegitimate. Of course no one is objecting to him being in the batting order, at the top.

Whether he gets it or not should be based on the actual math, and not gifting to a now favored player.

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Typical New Yorkers.

I got some cheese for you whine!

And this is just more trolling.

[Shoeless Moe]

Anyone else find it odd that Judge was not a Home Run Hitter in college?

And only a so-so home run hitter in the minors, but nothing special, thus the reason he didn't come up to the Bigs until he was 25.

Then puts up 52 HRs out of the blue, very Brady Anderson-esque.......or perhaps Barry Bonds-esque for those youngsters on here unfamiliar with B.A.

[G1911]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Anyone else find it odd that Judge was not a Home Run Hitter in college?

And only a so-so home run hitter in the minors, but nothing special, thus the reason he didn't come up to the Bigs until he was 25.

Then puts up 52 HRs out of the blue, very Brady Anderson-esque.......or perhaps Barry Bonds-esque for those youngsters on here unfamiliar with B.A.

You can do better, this isn’t as good as your Trout is “garbage” take.

[CobbSpikedMe]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Anyone else find it odd that Judge was not a Home Run Hitter in college?

Nope.



.

[JollyElm]

I remember tuning in to the last game of the (1980?) season, and the Yankees sat Reggie, so he could finish the season with a .300 average. That sucked, as my young heart really wanted to see four more monstrous swings before the winter came to wipe away all the good time feelings.

[Hxcmilkshake]

Originally Posted by Bobbycee

"Most Blocked Poster". You enjoy being a feminine product made of vinegar, and it shows. Not too many people will agree with you that Bonds is the best HR hitter PERIOD. I'd rather have NYers have my back than wherever you reside.

This.

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[Hxcmilkshake]

Originally Posted by scotgreb

With two games left in the 1910 season, Ty Cobb was leading Nap Lajoie in the batting race .385 to .376. At stake was a new Chalmers Model 30 awarded to the winner. Lajoie and the Indians were at Sportsman’s Park for a double-header against the Browns to close out the season. Meanwhile, Cobb skipped the Tigers’ final two contests to protect his average, claiming an eye ailment.

Before the doubleheader began, Browns’ manager Jack O’Connor ordered rookie third baseman Red Corriden to play in shallow left field, telling Corriden that “one of Lajoie’s line drives might kill you.” Seeing a chance to fatten his average, Lajoie bunted six times down the third base line for six hits. He also added a triple and an infield single, giving him eight hits in nine trips. His lone blemish was reaching base on an error by shortstop Bobby Wallace on his last at-bat.

Doing whatever they could to help Lajoie defeat Cobb, O’Connor and Coach Harry Howell then tried to bribe the official scorer, E.V. Parrish, with a suit of clothes if he changed his call to a hit. Upholding baseball honor, Parrish declined. In spite of all this, Cobb was still the apparent winner by less than one percentage point, .385069 to .384095.

But wait! The next day, unofficial final batting averages in different papers, including The Sporting News, declared Lajoie the winner by anywhere from one to three points. Cobb’s fans howled, led by Tiger president Frank Navin. But many in baseball who detested Cobb were delighted with Lajoie’s apparent victory. Eight of Cobb’s Detroit teammates even sent a telegram to Lajoie, congratulating him on the batting title.

The resulting outcry triggered an investigation by American League president Ban Johnson, who declared Cobb the winner. In a great public relations move, Chalmers made both Cobb and Lajoie fans happy by awarding each player a car. At Johnson’s insistence, the Browns fired O’Connor and Howell and both were informally banned from baseball for life.

The story doesn’t end there. More than 70 years later, in 1981, The Sporting News historian Paul MacFarlane discovered Cobb was mistakenly credited with two extra hits during the season. Take those away and the tile goes to Lajoie with a .384 average to Cobb’s .383. However, then-Commissioner Bowie Kuhn refused to take Cobb’s 1910 batting title away, thereby preserving his string of nine consecutive American League batting titles.

So who won the 1910 batting title? Baseball Reference says Lajoie, Wikipedia says Cobb. So you tell me!

You gotta love baseball

Sent from my SM-G960U using Tapatalk

I love the attempted bribe with clothing!!!!

Sent from my SM-G996U using Tapatalk

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by Shoeless Moe

Anyone else find it odd that Judge was not a Home Run Hitter in college?

And only a so-so home run hitter in the minors, but nothing special, thus the reason he didn't come up to the Bigs until he was 25.

Then puts up 52 HRs out of the blue, very Brady Anderson-esque.......or perhaps Barry Bonds-esque for those youngsters on here unfamiliar with B.A.

His last year in college, he hit a homer more than once every 5 games - a nearly 35 homer pace.

In the minors, same thing his last two years - basically a 35 homer pace.

He was 24 when he was called up, not 25.

His 52 homers as a rookie were surprising, no doubt. But he basically just needed time for his skill to catch up to his size.