tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post9058474599285680522..comments2023-10-31T06:31:41.395-04:00Comments on Bottom of the Barrel: Rick Reilly Continues to Flaunt the Fact He Doesn't Care if He Writes Crap, He Gets Paid RegardlessBengoodfellahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comBlogger14125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-56572764686669217912012-08-09T12:51:50.840-04:002012-08-09T12:51:50.840-04:00Anon, don't tell Fredi Gonzalez we've move...Anon, don't tell Fredi Gonzalez we've moved past that point. Last year he wasn't fully aware of this happening. <br /><br />Do you think stealing would increase if the pitcher only got 2 throw-overs per inning? I would think so, and that's what I was referring to. I think it would , which is probably why my idea was dumb. Otherwise, you are right. That whole giving up two outs to get a guy home thing isn't as well received now. Like Gene Mauch said, if the other team wants to give up an out, we'll take it.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-9087647021876830072012-08-09T10:19:50.479-04:002012-08-09T10:19:50.479-04:00I would venture that the stolen base as a 'los...I would venture that the stolen base as a 'lost art' has more to do with modern statistical analysis. Managers have begun to move beyond the traditional "get a man on, steal a base. Lay down a bunt move him to third. Sacrifice fly him in" mentality. In the long run, I think they have determined that giving away outs isn't good baseball and trying to rack up hits instead leads to bigger (although more infrequent) scoring innings. Stealing is far more situational now I would think.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-74138505558282512672012-08-09T08:44:41.688-04:002012-08-09T08:44:41.688-04:00Rich, you can't screw with the hitter's ti...Rich, you can't screw with the hitter's timing like that. I agree umps can't stop granting timeouts. <br /><br />I don't know how Reilly likes golf. It has maybe 5 seconds of action per swing and then consists of a lot of walking and staring into the distance with a few practice swings. <br /><br />Justin, I don't know if people will like your idea, just like they didn't like my two pick off idea. I'm afraid it would be seen as giving the runner too much of an advantage. I always use Andy Pettitte as my example. He seems to take 45 seconds to decide whether he is throwing home or to first base. The man moves at a snail's pace and throws to first (while balking, as he is allowed to do) base and then starts the whole slow process over. It's torturous to watch. <br /><br />Though the people who complain the stolen base is a lost art could see more stolen bases if the pitcher was penalized for throwing over more than two times.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-89635754512908390342012-08-08T22:49:40.549-04:002012-08-08T22:49:40.549-04:00Baseball doesn't need a hard pickoff attempt l...Baseball doesn't need a hard pickoff attempt limit--that would be stupid--but it does need a soft one. The proper rule is, you get two free pickoff attempts per inning; the third *unsuccessful* pickoff attempt in an inning and every one after that is credited as a ball for the hitter.<br /><br />It just means the pitcher gets the same penalty for uselessly throwing to first as he does for uselessly throwing a pitch.Justin Zethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11960963276563539839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-26224430825501384352012-08-08T16:28:53.746-04:002012-08-08T16:28:53.746-04:00Back in Rick's day, there were no pitchers, ju...Back in Rick's day, there were no pitchers, just a rapid fire pitching machine out there grooving strikes.<br /><br />Yes, there's downtime between pitches, there is also downtime in EVERY SPORT. <br /><br />Football - 35 play clock<br />Basketball - a plethora of time outs and sometimes it takes a minute or two per foul shot.<br />Hockey - lots of possible stoppages (icing, offsides, penalties, goaltenders).<br /><br />It's almost like he's never watched baseball before. It's always been like this.<br /><br />And his obsession with the batter being granted timeout... when you have a couple seconds to recognize the speed, type and location of the pitch, decide if it's a strike and then start your swing, timing is critical. If you're up there and you're expecting the pitch to come and it doesn't, it's going to screw with you.<br /><br />If umps stopped granting timeouts, every pitcher would just stand there for the maximum allowed time and just screw with the hitters timing.<br /><br />Then you have the commercials. I hate commercials, I really do, but if you're seriously going to bitch about commercial breaks running 4 minutes between half-innings, you shouldn't be a professional writer.<br /><br />Go find something to do, grab a drink, make a sandwich, change channels, take a piss, get the stick out of your ass... you know whatever you need to do.<br /><br /><b>Three hours and 14 minutes</b><br /><br />You have got to be shitting me. He's complaining about a baseball game running three hours? How about those football games that run well over that? How about the basketball games where the last 3 minutes take a half an hour?<br /><br />And like others have said, Rick likes golf! You know, the sport where every player has a pre-shot routine that typically takes far too long and the pace is so slow, they can cut to another hole to show someone else lining up their shot before going back to the other guy(s).<br /><br />Similarly, if you're going to complain that baseball doesn't follow their own procedures, look at golf, they have specific time limits on how long you have to line up your shot... they don't enforce it.<br /><br />Kevin Na had several shots that took over 30 seconds...richnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-56321496414663802102012-08-08T14:16:14.185-04:002012-08-08T14:16:14.185-04:00Anon, I didn't think about that to be honest. ...Anon, I didn't think about that to be honest. It is frustrating to see a bunch of throws to first base. I haven't thought about what would happen after the two throw-overs have been completed. It would turn the game of baseball into something it doesn't need to be. Probably a Simmons-like idea from me. Good in theory, impossible in practicality. <br /><br />Haha...if it were Sox-Yankees he would have pictures from the game and been forced to talk about what a great rivalry it is.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-33974591993350188432012-08-08T10:49:07.362-04:002012-08-08T10:49:07.362-04:00RE: the 2 pickoff attempt limit idea
Would be hor...RE: the 2 pickoff attempt limit idea<br /><br />Would be horrible in implementation. I agree that sometimes it can be frustrating watching a pitcher constantly throw to first, particularly when he's not even coming close to catching the runner. That being said, a corresponding restriction on steal attempts would also have to be imposed as well as on lengths of leads. If a pitcher only has two pickoff attempts what is to prevent runners forcing both then being able to take ridiculous leads or steal bases at will? Just not a very good idea at all IMO.<br /><br />Also, to echo others, why the hell is Reilly writing an anti-baseball column (a recyled one at that) for a company that covers tons of baseball. In fairness he probably would have been censored had his subject been a yanks-sawks game.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-55515287078806478472012-08-08T09:01:24.087-04:002012-08-08T09:01:24.087-04:00J-dub, I saw some research that searched the words...J-dub, I saw some research that searched the words Rick Reilly and other columnists used in their columns to determine the reading level (or maybe it was the level on which they write) for their readers and I am pretty sure he was on the 8th grade level. I searched for it and couldn't find it, but it was a pretty low level. Either way, you are right. He hates baseball because it is slow, but yet he loves golf.<br /><br />Steve, you are right. The pace of a baseball game is slower, but they on average are shorter than NFL games. So Rick is just showing his own bias and short-sighted argument against baseball by accusing the sport of taking too long and comparing it to the NFL. NFL games average about three hours. Baseball games average less than three hours. He hates the sport and there are a lot of lulls, then don't watch it. Of course I don't think Rick really likes or understands sports at all. <br /><br />Cs, another part of the batter stepping out of the batter's box is to possibly disrupt the pitcher's flow on the mound or think about what pitch the pitcher may throw next. I would agree some of the pitcher/batter messing around between pitchers could be sped up, but often the batter may want to throw a hot pitcher off his rhythm or think about what pitch may come next. <br /><br />Waffleboy, I didn't know what to expect when Reilly came to ESPN. I had read and generally didn't enjoy his brief columns for SI, but for the amount of money he got paid I was hoping he would step his game up some at ESPN and it has gone the opposite way. <br /><br />I don't doubt Simmons hates how much Reilly gets paid. I know it stuck in his gut that Reilly made so much money for doing so little. It would bother me. <br /><br />I have already read a few places that Reilly isn't going to be re-signed by ESPN. He'll probably end up at the Golf Channel or something. <br /><br />Anon, I didn't catch this column the first week it came out and then I was going through my bookmarks and found it. Then I didn't write anything on it for another while. So I wrote it and always ended up finding another article I wanted to post. I try to post articles as soon as possible, but sometimes I get one up later than I want. <br /><br />Justin, I think ESPN knows that few people take Rick seriously. ESPN management knows people read Rick's columns and don't take it as really meaning baseball is boring, but more take it as Rick Reilly struggling to write material. <br /><br />I'm more sensitive to writers knocking baseball because it's been done so much. It's almost a cliche now.Bengoodfellahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09401971573776672570noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-80389021107107681232012-08-07T22:35:48.855-04:002012-08-07T22:35:48.855-04:00I have trouble understanding why ESPN publishes Re...I have trouble understanding why ESPN publishes Reilly's "I hate baseball, and here is why you should hate baseball too" columnettes every once a month. Is ESPN trying to make baseball less popular? Rick certainly is, and ESPN is publishing Rick's childish attacks against baseball. This makes no sense, as last I checked ESPN makes a lot of money off covering baseball.Justin Zethhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11960963276563539839noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-21515960590737792272012-08-07T21:21:51.372-04:002012-08-07T21:21:51.372-04:00I always love a good Rick Reilly bashing, but out ...I always love a good Rick Reilly bashing, but out of curiosity, why did you write this so late? Reilly's column was on ESPN.com a month ago. Keep up the good work...Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-76499170704132533052012-08-07T17:38:15.908-04:002012-08-07T17:38:15.908-04:00I loved Rick Reilly when he first came on board at...I loved Rick Reilly when he first came on board at ESPN. Mainly because he was getting paid more money than Bill Simmons and I felt that just drove Simmons nuts. (Bill has always struck me as the kind of guy who would get super pissed about someone making more money than him) Is there any way Reilly could get a contract extension, and a raise?waffleboyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01940752426128243444noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-7906364032005366812012-08-07T16:57:42.972-04:002012-08-07T16:57:42.972-04:00It's kind of fascinating how unaware Rick is. ...It's kind of fascinating how unaware Rick is. The "doing nothing" when a batter steps out of the box is pretty fundamental to mental preparation for the batter (let alone the batter checking with the 3rd base coach especially with runners on). We all grew up playing and we developed weird rituals that made us more comfortable with each new pitch, like re-velcroing batting gloves and all that. It's like basketball players on the free throw line, everyone has something that gets you into that mental zone, whether ultimately it's imagined or not.<br /><br />Besides, what is it an average of 72 swings of the golf club taken in a pga round, and that takes at least 4 hours.csnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-4460238016219709422012-08-07T16:54:36.361-04:002012-08-07T16:54:36.361-04:00I agree with J-dub. Both of these columns are simp...I agree with J-dub. Both of these columns are simply pointless. Yes, there is a delay between pitches - the same as there is a delay between plays in football. In general, baseball games are faster than football games so I really don't see the point of this complaint.<br /><br />Reilly is also a fan of watching golf on TV. Yet he complains about the pace of baseball....Steve Spraguehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02351733579955625677noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-102327997051254703.post-11123950137441537852012-08-07T15:36:55.917-04:002012-08-07T15:36:55.917-04:00Reading Rick's columns makes me feel like I...Reading Rick's columns makes me feel like I'm trying to (in my head) argue points with a 10 year old. All i have the urge to do is just shake my head and say "no, no, no", then do my best to explain why he's wrong using a 4th grade comprehension level. His points are childish and reek of naivety.<br /><br />Like you pointed out, it's clear Rick just doesn't enjoy baseball. If he would just leave it alone, that would be greatly appreciated.j-dubnoreply@blogger.com