Craig Calcaterra thinks Mariano Rivera has developed a new spit-fingered fastball.
over 2 years ago
FredOx
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Also! According to the YouTube, the Yankees are playing the Angles.
Seriously, it looks like he’s spitting on the ball. How big a deal is this?
Il faut d'abord durer.
I’d say in the big picture not a very big deal. There wasn’t much of a fuss when Kenny Rogers obviously had crud on the underside of his cap. Rivera’s reputation is solid enough that I doubt this would leave much of a mark. But it is further evidence that, in the immortal words of Herm Edwards, “you play to win the game”. And that entails doing a lot of things that may be morally questionably, but that we as fans cheer on because it helps our team win the game.
I wish we could frame PEDs in this context.
"You are an LGT success story" -- Jay
by Turkmenbashi on Oct 20, 2009 1:58 PM EDT up reply actions
that’s my point – just like batters smudge the back line of the batter’s box, they also smudge the lines between what is a fair competitive advantage and what is not. To pretend there is some obvious standard, even the rules – some of which are obviously flaunted and others of which are not – is silly.
Agreed fully
"You are an LGT success story" -- Jay
by Turkmenbashi on Oct 20, 2009 3:03 PM EDT up reply actions
I thought the crud was on Rogers’s hand?
by JulioBernazard on Oct 20, 2009 2:15 PM EDT up reply actions
It was. K-Rod was the one with crud on his cap, which was explained as old rosin. He touched that spot on his cap before every pitch as a kind of nervous tick. Rogers’ hand was much more blatant of a wrongdoing, I believe. “Some dirt” got on your hands? Really? In the first inning? Of every one of your postseason starts?



Steel Nick
If they get past the Angles in the ALCS, I’d expect them to face the Jutes in the World Series.
by Ryan on Oct 20, 2009 11:58 AM EDT up reply actions 2 recs
I think there is only one reasonable response: MLB should vacate all Yankee wins while Mariano Rivera has been on the roster.
by gte619n on Oct 20, 2009 11:39 AM EDT reply actions 3 recs
Green’d.
C.C., you can commence your October meltdown any damn minute now … >:|
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Guess we’ll have to keep waiting. This is really frustrating. Unless there’s a game 7, maybe Cliff Lee is our only hope…
In the new Geico commercial, Marte sings "Let me be myself" on Wedge's front lawn (with the cavemen).
by V-Mart Shopper on Oct 21, 2009 12:43 AM EDT up reply actions
Cliff beating CC in the WS three times would work.
Resident Take the Football References One Step Too Far Guy
I get no added satisfaction in watching Cliff Lee do well. If Cliff Lee hadn’t been a total headcase and sucked mightily in 2007 we would very possibly have a World Series ring.
Since Cliff is going to have to single-handedly keep the Yankees from winning it all, he has my unwavering support.
by supermarioelia on Oct 21, 2009 9:32 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
If he was spitting on the ball, would he really be so obvious as to hock a big old loogy on it? That’s the part of this I don’t get — it seems so blatant.
*sigh*
I don’t think he’s really spitting on the ball, I think the angle just makes it look that way. The guy knows he’s standing in the middle of a big field in plain daylight on national TV. He might spit, but he wouldn’t spit on the ball. It doesn’t add up.
by Jay on Oct 20, 2009 12:22 PM EDT reply actions 1 recs
I had this on DVR (the regularly scheduled House was pushed back due to the extra innings) and the HD picture clearly shows the spit traveling in front of the ball, not on to it.
Wait 'til next millennium!
The was only after Chase illegally searched Rivera’s apartment. Again.
I don’t know why I keep watching such a formulaic show. I enjoy House’s give-and-take with the world as much as the next guy, and they’ve certainly tried to mix up the storylines this season, but methinks this show has grown stale.
Wait 'til next millennium!
When/how did they get the original team back together? I hadn’t watched since very early Season 5, and that took me by surprise.
Breaking news: Kutner’s dead.
The once and future
by Manhattan Tribe Fan on Oct 21, 2009 9:35 PM EDT up reply actions
Is this illegal if he’s not on the mound? It’s ok to go to your mouth off the mound, right?
Resident Take the Football References One Step Too Far Guy
google machine results at mlb:
The pitcher shall not —
[snip]
(6) deliver a ball altered in a manner prescribed by Rule 8.02(a)(2) through (5) or what is called the "shine" ball, "spit" ball, "mud" ball or "emery" ball. The pitcher is allowed to rub the ball between his bare hands.
What I find most striking is that lightning fast action of the cameraman, who was so eager to cut away the camera when he noticed something that might be construed as improper behavior. That or the guys in the booth who switched to a different angle for the live feed. But whoever was in charge made that switch at an opportune time.
In the new Geico commercial, Marte sings "Let me be myself" on Wedge's front lawn (with the cavemen).
“Eager”? The camera was switched way too quickly for that to have been done intentionally.
by supermarioelia on Oct 20, 2009 7:59 PM EDT up reply actions
At that time, the next shot was already cued on the preview screen and the person in charge was already about to give the order for the switch.
What I mean is, someone in the truck doesn’t just see the spit and yell, “Change to a different shot! The dugout or something!”
Steel Nick
Agreed. Camera operators don’t “cut away,” and directors can’t cut that fast.
by JulioBernazard on Oct 21, 2009 2:22 PM EDT up reply actions
See spit, Director thinks he needs to cut, Director says “take Camera 5”, tech director takes camera 5, camera 5 is seen. All that has to happen, and like you all say above, no way it happens in time for it to be a “he’s spitting on the baseball, we need to cut” situation.
Chugga-chugga chugga-chugga, Choo Choo!
See, y’all are operating under the assumption that this is a live broadcast. The Avoid Embarrassing The Yankees seven-second delay takes care of niceties like this.
Very good.
In the new Geico commercial, Marte sings "Let me be myself" on Wedge's front lawn (with the cavemen).
by V-Mart Shopper on Oct 21, 2009 6:21 PM EDT up reply actions
Cut. Run it again, this time with the ball in Jeter’s mitt.
by odradek on Oct 21, 2009 8:26 PM EDT up reply actions 1 recs
I’d like to see you edit that fast. If you can, I have a job proposal for you.
Chugga-chugga chugga-chugga, Choo Choo!
inconclusive. looks at ball and spits. No opportunity to see spit hit ball.
The (1, 2, +?) pitcher-focused cameras might show something if someone decides to investigate, but from these images one cannot rule foul play.
Good Lord, the Angels suck. The Yankees luck into another easy postseason ride. I haven’t seen them earn anything since 2003.
Guh. Watching both of these teams playing at the same time on the same field, both of them doing what they do … this isn’t a postseason, this is punishment. I must have been a real stunod in a past life or something.
I hope the Phillies absolutely demolish these guys. It’s all I have left.
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OT: I’m trying to imagine what on Earth prompted an 80 minute standing ovation. That seems a little silly.
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Looked it up. It was for an opera singer in Vienna. Link.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
by ClemsonGirl on Oct 22, 2009 10:15 PM EDT up reply actions
Oh so that’s why he deserved an 80 minute standing ovation. It all makes sense now.
Who needs affection when you can have blind hatred?
by ClemsonGirl on Oct 23, 2009 11:37 AM EDT up reply actions
At least we didn’t send out Vicente Padilla when we were down to our last loss in 2007.
Resident Take the Football References One Step Too Far Guy
I still remember McCarver freaking out in the 2nd inning begging Wedge to pull Westy like a train wreck was about to happen. Westy ended up pitching 6 solid I think.
I believe that argument spawned a “positivity-only thread” that evening.
by supermarioelia on Oct 21, 2009 9:35 PM EDT up reply actions
I missed out on all of the playoff threads. I can’t sit still when I watch the Indians in the playoffs…too nervous.
Heh. I remember that there was a lot of screaming and freaking-the-hell-out going on in that Game 7 thread. I don’t think GFP typed in anything but all caps for most of the game. Pure raw nerves all the way around. Justifiably so, of course.
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They were the best of times, they were the worst of times.
I propose giving Victor a 2012 World Series ring.
by Gradyforpresident on Oct 22, 2009 10:02 PM EDT up reply actions
Yep.
I propose giving Victor a 2012 World Series ring.
by Gradyforpresident on Oct 22, 2009 10:03 PM EDT up reply actions
Good lord. The last three innings of that game were unreal. I bet Halos Heaven must be pure gibbering insanity right about now.
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My buddy at work is a Mets fan and now rooting for the Phiilies. When he switched the game on and learned he was pulling for NY, I couldn’t believe it. He gave me “it would make a better WS” bull. I am still fuming.
Chugga-chugga chugga-chugga, Choo Choo!
I would find it hard to believe that a White Sox fan would pull for the Cubs to make the series.
Wait 'til next millennium!
Maybe so, maybe not. Depends on the choices, doesn’t it?
I bet you’d find plenty of Chicago fans who have a clear preference but not antipathy for the other club.
SSS, but every Mets fan I know hates the Yankees. More than most of us do. No way they root for the Yankees over anyone, ever.
Yes, my take was “Most who are not a Yankees fan hate the Yankees , thus if you’ve chosen a NY team to root for and it isn’t the Yankees, you most likely still fall into this category/”
I could have dealt with the, “I like NY teams idea,” but not the “its better for baseball” idea.
Chugga-chugga chugga-chugga, Choo Choo!
I had a friend in college from Queens who claimed to be a Mets fan until the playoffs rolled around. He would start pulling for the Yankees, and after suppressing the desire to be violent with him, I forgave him for the simple reason both teams were from the same city.















