You can’t spell ‘no big contracts’ without RSN: 2024 regular MLB season thread!

Steele(!!!! He’s back!!!!) vs Skenes has the potential to be the most interesting pitchers duel of the day.

I've been reading about Skenes--mlb.com has no fewer than five links up:

Skenes arrives ready to go: 'Just want to put us in a position to win'

Get to know MLB No. 1 pitching prospect Paul Skenes

Is Skenes the best pitching prospect ever? Let's take a look...

Paul Skenes has 5 (!) pitches -- and here's his take on all of them

Are MLB's top two pitching prospects in the same org?

Dylan Crews(Skenes’ teammate at LSU) is now the most high ranked prospect still to debut. The Nationals drafted him 2nd overall last year. He’s still in double A but his ETA says 2024. September I guess?

https://www.mlb.com/prospects/top100/

mlb has been going HARD on skenes it's kind of amazing. never seen this sort of thing before even from like Baseball America. i've having all these articles pushed up to the top of my app i'm like, did i press the wrong button?? wha happen

I saw people compare it to the hype around Stephen Strasburg’s debut?

I did search and Strasburg had a thread on here over a year before his debut!

Post by Andy K from Stephen Strasburg, pitcher and Scott Boras client on ILX - Stephen Strasburg, pitcher and Scott Boras client

My gf hardly ever talks about the NL, but was talking about Skenes weeks ago. Dude is def getting a lot of hype

My mlb.com login still works, so I think I'll make an effort to watch (free today).

lol same except with my husband

https://i.postimg.cc/MH59DQJx/IMG-0614.jpg

meanwhile today mets prospect christian scott is pitching his second game ever against... the braves. that'll be a litmus test

These commenters are a trip. “You saw it, just minutes before he left the dugout the sun came out”

Retire now!

Lol

Glad I switched to the Skenes game

A walk? WASHED

I wanted that third K...Game was three pitches in when I got home, so I'll never be able to say I saw his first pitch.

How is Bellinger back already after fracturing his ribs and swinging away? I guess he self medicates for the pain. 😮‍💨

xp first pitch was a ball, he stopped and stood on the mound for a second and looked slightly awed before he remembered the pitch clock existed

meanwhile today mets prospect christian scott is pitching his second game ever against... the braves. that'll be a litmus test

In other electrifying news, Vlad pushed his average over .260 and Bo hit his second HR today.

Look as someone who grew up watching football (soccer) can I just say that MLB ad where they try to liken the two sports using the Wrexham club is FUCKING INANE

It’s enough to make me think about watching on BT sport again, which has the worst ads of all time

xp is Bo injured or playing through something? He seriously looks nothing like himself this year.

Thanks for reminding me that this monster is going to be a free agent at 27 if he stays healthy and isn’t pulled pork by then

Quite possible. He really lost it on an umpire the other day, which was very out of character.

First it was the slurve, then the cutter, then the sweeper, now the splinker...I think they keep making up new names for the same pitch, but whatever it is, Skenes has an impressive one.

Wow that surprises me from what I know of him.

Oneil Cruz just sent a missile into the Allegheny at 114mph right after Connor Joe hit a three run bomb. Justin Steele…washed?

xp one of the Red Sox commenters is always talking about the “slutter” (slider/cutter) but I think that’s something different now. Isn’t a sweeper like a slider with more horizontal break?

Not seeing a future for the "slutter" as a popular term...I think so, but to me, it just looks like a big curve that goes sideways instead of down; I think both types have always been around, so I don't know if the pitch itself is new.

I’ve seen some players say the same as you and others think it’s a variation or a whole new pitch. I’ve also seen it called a frisbee slider, which makes me think of Giants legend and Immaculate Grid hero Sergio Romo.

They'll probably give him a chance at the win, but they're getting into a dicey pitch count here...I honestly don't know. I wish I were better at remembering stuff like that--how Blyleven's curve broke might be instructive--but I'm not.

I think Koufax threw a drastic 12-6 curveball.

Too bad--one just inside the line and an infield hit. Good debut, though.

Yeah I mean honestly great debut, no matter how good the pitcher is they need practice at getting out of jams and that’s hard enough for veterans who aren’t on a pitch count. He’ll have plenty of wins in his career

Actually didn't care about the win, I more wanted to see him finish with a third out (as opposed to mid-inning). But they had no choice.

Storm delay and a tie game in PNC Park. There’s audible thunder. Dramatic!

I think Koufax threw a drastic 12-6 curveball.

69 Seconds of Barry Zito Curveballs. 😍 pic.twitter.com/Uth8lJeHaz

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) December 28, 2021

With Bo - two years ago he got off to a terrible start. Like, just brutal for two months. then he turned into an unrelenting pitcher destroying machine for the rest of the season. His august- September, iirc, was one for the books.
I’m hoping he can turn it around again in similar fashion. last three games he’s 4/13 with a home run.

MLB app indicating ongoing no hitter mets/barves. hope the app jinxes it!

I hate how they flag up no hitters after like the fourth inning. At least leave it till the sixth you cowards!

With Bo - two years ago he got off to a terrible start. Like, just brutal for two months. then he turned into an unrelenting pitcher destroying machine for the rest of the season. His august- September, iirc, was one for the books.
I’m hoping he can turn it around again in similar fashion. last three games he’s 4/13 with a home run.

MLB app indicating ongoing no hitter mets/barves. hope the app jinxes it!

vintage degrom game for sure

today a pirates reliever threw 12 straight balls with the bases loaded

i suspect that hasn't happened (or been allowed to happen) too often

(his replacement then walked the next guy on five pitches)

xp one of my favourite baseball follows has this as their pinned, the pain and ecstasy of those years

when the Mets broadcast tells you that Jacob deGrom is not coming back out for the 4th inning and they’ll have more info later pic.twitter.com/tzfLhnLghw

— M Y A S S I N J A C K P O T (@vodkasnowflake) March 8, 2022

Jim Rice is the grumpiest (not pejorative) postgame broadcaster

watching the Dominican rapper El Alfa laughing before the game with David Ortíz and Brayan Bello

Look at all that jewellery. I’d get tired carrying that around.

Tom Caron: maybe one piece? Maybe you could borrow one to see? Do you speak Spanish?

JR: (sternly) No.

today a pirates reliever threw 12 straight balls with the bases loaded

i suspect that hasn't happened (or been allowed to happen) too often

(his replacement then walked the next guy on five pitches)

Watching Skenes reminds me of facing Strasburg after his call-up. I took a fastball in my first at-bat, looked up, and saw ‘100’ on the board. I thought, ‘Uh oh.’ The next pitch? The best curveball I’d ever seen—gulp. Same could be said about the changeup later. I was like, 😕.…

— Joey Votto (@JoeyVotto) May 11, 2024

His reply to the first comment is interesting too.

I was talking to my friend about Goldy & his history against Tim Lincecum (which she didn’t know about). Ended up linking her this legendary supercut:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1uozyrIMaQ

What I hadn’t realised was that very first hr of his career was off Lincecum - and it was his last fully good season too. Really impressive how well he saw him. I wonder if this will be his last season.

braves catcher chadwick tromp is wearing #45 💀