Pablo Sandoval DFA

Red(s)HawksFan

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He was one of the highest paid players on the team, under contract for a few years still. Guarantee that the person who made the final call on including Sandoval wasn't in the baseball ops department and was in no position to make the assumption that Panda wasn't going to be around in 2018.

He isn't the first nor will he be the last player to be included in a team product like this after he was cut or traded away or even died (as the article points out, Jose Fernandez was featured in the 2017 Marlin calendar). Wouldn't shock me if the 2013 Red Sox calendar featured one or more of the following: Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett.

Much ado about nothing.
 

shaggydog2000

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He was one of the highest paid players on the team, under contract for a few years still. Guarantee that the person who made the final call on including Sandoval wasn't in the baseball ops department and was in no position to make the assumption that Panda wasn't going to be around in 2018.

He isn't the first nor will he be the last player to be included in a team product like this after he was cut or traded away or even died (as the article points out, Jose Fernandez was featured in the 2017 Marlin calendar). Wouldn't shock me if the 2013 Red Sox calendar featured one or more of the following: Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett.

Much ado about nothing.
Yeah, it's not like they put a crocodile instead of an alligator on the cover of their media guide:

http://www.gainesville.com/news/20030730/gators-media-guide-has-crocodile-on-cover

That is some serious, career ending stuff.
 

drbretto

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It's really not that hard to tell the difference between an alligator and a crocodile. One you'll see later. The other you'll see after a while.
 

drbretto

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Actually telling the difference really is easy, too. Crocs have thinner snouts and larger protruding teeth.



I get your average American not knowing the difference, but I'd think any 'Gators fan would know.
 

Curt S Loew

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Wouldn't shock me if the 2013 Red Sox calendar featured one or more of the following: Carl Crawford, Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Beckett.

Much ado about nothing.
Yeah, definitely not shocking. Calendars often have a player who has since departed. 2005 was one of my favorites:

 

wade boggs chicken dinner

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Mar 26, 2005
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Looks like we were misusing Panda all along. Brought in to mop up the 9th inning of a beatdown vs. LA, he shut down the Dodgers with "filth." One of the funniest things I've seen in a while.

https://www.mlb.com/video/must-c-pandas-perfect-9th/c-1986299383?tid=6479266
It would be freaking hilarious if he reinvented himself. I think one of his advantages is that given the way he throws and the fact there's so much of him, the batters can't see the ball coming out of his hand.
 

Cesar Crespo

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Who was the lefty the Redsox had awhile back who wanted to be a MR and even pitched a few innings? Name is escaping me.
 

InstaFace

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87mph 4-seamer, 70mph curve with some bite, what looks like good location.

I bet they could run him out there a dozen times this year and not have it bite them in the ass too hard.
 

rhswanzey

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Paging David Laurila: you've got to figure that there's SOME kind of player code that when something this random and funny occurs in an already decided game, you've gotta kind of flip your bat and play into it. Definitely max effort up nine in the ninth in April. What's the harm?
 

Kenny F'ing Powers

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Every at bat can contribute to future stats and paydays. Theres no reason to play along with some guy you dont know.
 

Heating up in the bullpen

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Every at bat can contribute to future stats and paydays. Theres no reason to play along with some guy you dont know.
On the one hand.
On the other hand, we've all seen enough baseball to know that 9th innings of games that aren't close have a tendency to end very quickly. I.e., that the batters don't necessarily put up max effort.
Looked like he hit his spots - groundout the other way on a pitch at the knees on the black. The curveball was good - and probably unexpected. The last pitch looked middle-middle. (But not every batter can hit middle-middle, as I've noticed with the Sox zone charts.)
 

Average Reds

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On the one hand.
On the other hand, we've all seen enough baseball to know that 9th innings of games that aren't close have a tendency to end very quickly. I.e., that the batters don't necessarily put up max effort.
Looked like he hit his spots - groundout the other way on a pitch at the knees on the black. The curveball was good - and probably unexpected. The last pitch looked middle-middle. (But not every batter can hit middle-middle, as I've noticed with the Sox zone charts.)
To describe that as "not putting out max effort" probably misses what's going on there. Because I can guarantee you that the hitters would have loved nothing more than to take Panda deep. Indeed, that anxiousness combined with the novelty factor probably contributed to a lack of focus/success. And if the Giants do it again, I'm willing to bet that it won't go as well for Panda.
 

moondog80

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Sep 20, 2005
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It’s not like guys hit nothing but home runs in batting practice, and the BP coaches are trying as hard as they can to throw meatballs. We shouldn’t be shocked when a guy with an arm is good enough to play 3B in he majors can get a few outs when asked to pitch one inning.
 

GoDa

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Sep 25, 2017
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It always warms my heart when a position player take the mound and actually tries to pitch, instead of acting like a clown. I remember when Nick Green got his shot, I was kind of excited... he had a strong arm and looked like a guy that could bring a low 90's fastball. He managed 2 scoreless innings, but I recall thinking he seemed kind of pouty on the mound.

Is there any real additional value to a utility guy that could pitch 10-12 innings per year with say a 7.00 ERA? Probably not much.
 

Cesar Crespo

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It always warms my heart when a position player take the mound and actually tries to pitch, instead of acting like a clown. I remember when Nick Green got his shot, I was kind of excited... he had a strong arm and looked like a guy that could bring a low 90's fastball. He managed 2 scoreless innings, but I recall thinking he seemed kind of pouty on the mound.

Is there any real additional value to a utility guy that could pitch 10-12 innings per year with say a 7.00 ERA? Probably not much.
I doubt it. I'm guessing Brock Holt could pitch 10-12 innings a year with a 7 era. Or almost any utility player tbh.

We do see positional players coming in the 9th to strike out the side quite often though so I'm guessing there is some truth to the "max effort" thing, although I'm not sure I'd call it that. They probably see it as more of a HR derby so they change their approach at the plate.