Masterbather

Will the bullpen tank us again? Or will Kikuchi have a stinker? Stay tuned to find out.

JANO! Big insurance runs

Good start for Cabrera, but let's not jump the gun after 3 innings.

Phew

Varsho's baserunning gives us a run

That f***ing change up man.

It all sounds good to me, we f***ing need him. I wouldn't bother wasting another start in the minors.

Two of our three worst starters going, even the game with Gausman might be tough. Important to get off on the right foot tonight so we need good Kikuchi.

That anti-Canadian bitch just keeps sticking it to us.

Any idea of his velocity?

To live my life?

Depends on Ryu I guess.

I can't even be mad for him not hinting at the need for a frontline starter because he won't be able to get one anyway. At least he recognizes the need for starting depth, but given the track record recently I'd rather he not waste assets trying.

Well that was probably the last glimmer of hope this game

Pearson serving up meatballs.

If you expect nothing, you won't be disappointed.

I don't really care about fangraphs and their odds. And that's really the one hole you see? How about the fact that we have a number three who's currently our number two, then two of Bassit, Manoah and Kikuchi to round out the rotation. That's a f***ing terrifying proposition. Sure you could use an opener but now we're going to spread the bullpen thin. The options aren't good. Ryu is a wild card, we basically need him to return to his old self to save the season. That's where we are. We're completely vulnerable with our rotation. How are people not seeing this?

No it's not definitely a playoff team, the competition will be fierce and one or two very good teams are not going to make it this year. And while I fully understand that only one team wins the world series, the goal is to try to put together a roster capable of world series. One that gives you the best odds possible, then whatever happens happens. Our pitching staff as currently constructed does not give us great odds unless the competition continues to have injuries. And yes anything less than a world series ultimately is a failure because this is supposed to be our championship window so the point is to win championships. If that's not the point then why even bother trying? You don't have parades for winning the American League. You could never guarantee victory of course, all you can ask of the front office is to put the team in the best position to win. Given the time that they've had, the money that they've spent, the minor league capital they have used, I think they should have built something better. Something that gives us better odds.

He's a 3.

You only need to convince yourself man. If you can look at this rotation and think that it's good enough to win a world series I don't know what to tell you. It's soft. It's mediocre after Gausman. As currently constructed it would be one of the weakest rotations we've ever taken to the playoffs. Bullpen has good arms, nothing elite, I don't expect Chad Green to change the complexion of things drastically. I'm sure as a group, the regular season numbers will look fine, I'm sure that'll be enough to convince you. You probably believed in last year's bullpen as well. Maybe with a great rotation this bullpen could get it done but with a weak rotation forget about it. The only if that can make a difference is IF Ryu could return to his past glory, that may give us a legitimate shot in the arm. It definitely changes the calculus, but that's a lot to ask at this point in his career coming off surgery.

We have a number one pitcher, and then three fours and fives. What we have is a very good team, what we don't have is a world series contender. Same story as last year. The only starter I trust in a playoff game is Gausman. He's a stud. Then we got a bunch of hold your breath. Bullpen is good, bullpen was good by the end of last year too if you recall, fool's gold as they imploded because they're not great. There's regular season good and then there's playoff good. I never said this was a bad team, I said it was maybe a playoff team because I knew that the competition would be tougher this year, and definitely not a world series winning team. Some teams have had poor health, that's the only thing that gives us a chance. That doesn't make us a better team that just makes us lucky and them very unlucky.

So if I say we aren't good enough when we're losing, I'm just overreacting, if I say we're not good enough when we're winning, I'm apparently a dildo. When am I, and others "allowed" to point out the obvious flaws with this team? Our offense is predictably worse, our defense is predictably better. Our pitching isn't good enough. Exactly what I've been saying from the beginning. Nothing has changed. For the payroll we have, and the prospect capital we have used, we should be fielding a better team than we currently are. Hey remember you told me you felt Varsho was turning the corner after about a 10-15 days of him being moderately good in June and I felt it was probably a fluke? How's that going? Has he turned that corner yet?

Exactly right, we're taking advantage of other teams injuries but we're certainly not better than these other teams. The O's have been for real since the second half of last year, although they need more starting pitching, they would be crazy not to make a move or two at the deadline.

Not likely, nor advisable given our pathetic minor league depth. Seller's market. Besides, It's probably not enough to put us over the top as a true world series contender.

Not perfect, but ultimately successful sweep. On to the next one.