GDT 7/9/17 Padres (Cahill) @ Phillies (Eickhoff)

[zambonir]

game threads are less interesting than commentary, that is, the play by play is available off the net, but not observations on how pitchers are throwing and players are playing.

Agreed we don't desperately need 100-post threads about every out, hit, walk and run, but it's a better organizing principle for commentary than the single season thread (or the frequent off-topic turns in nearly every other thread). Maybe we should try one thread per series?

[julio]

Actually game threads are less interesting than commentary, that is, the play by play is available off the net, but not observations on how pitchers are throwing and players are playing.

It's useful to have a game thread to contain the commentary, though... although that's only the case if people actually contribute commentary in the game thread; e.g., in something like real time. This is less the case if you're talking about after-the-fact critiques of the game action - but frankly, I find that less interesting as well, because (without firing up the Roku and watching the archived game), non-real time commentary doesn't lend itself to comparing the commentary to what I might be seeing - to see if I can see what somebody else sees, or if I disagree, etc.

[bkeich]

Altherr may never be a superstar, but it's becoming clear this season is no fluke, he knows how to work a count

When you combine it with his somewhat brief period in 2015 it is even clearer. 2016 was a throw away year for him, he hurt his wrist and when he came back it was pretty clear that his bat speed and control were not the same. It is good he tried, it shows something, but really you have to just throw those stats away to evaluate him.

By that logic he has been solid for his entire time in the majors so far. He is an athletic OF who makes plays and a dangerous hitter with good plate discipline and some power. He is at least a good starting OF. Sadly, he doesnt have many solid players to play with at the moment.

Galvis just looks like a good hitter these day, a really nice swing, and he's not chasing as many bad pitches

I still think you are overly optimistic about Galvis. He has some power now, but his approach is still questionable, he still avoids walks like they are going to hurt him somehow and his approach at the plate is still not very good in my opinion. He swings at alot of bad pitches, but he isnt as bad as some of his teammates. His power is surprising, his 1st HR yesterday went into RCF in the middle deck, if someone had seen that 2 years ago he would have been tested for steroids on the spot. He has learned (or been taught) to have some upper cut in his swing (not Stairs, as it started last year) and he does pick out pitches and try and drive them, which he did not do when he was younger. He is noticeable bigger than he was a couple years ago, he has clearly added lean muscle to his frame, not a ton, but it appears to be "good" lean muscle and has improved his bat speed. It is improvement, but he is still a below average hitter because his OBP is so bad, but the power makes him at least an acceptable #8 guy. His defense has always been good and I think is actually underrated from watching him, if he was a better hitter he would be a Gold Glove SS (yes, I said that and meant it).

[bkeich]

It's useful to have a game thread to contain the commentary, though... although that's only the case if people actually contribute commentary in the game thread; e.g., in something like real time. This is less the case if you're talking about after-the-fact critiques of the game action - but frankly, I find that less interesting as well, because (without firing up the Roku and watching the archived game), non-real time commentary doesn't lend itself to comparing the commentary to what I might be seeing - to see if I can see what somebody else sees, or if I disagree, etc.

It also depends how you watch games. When I lived a few time zones away and the games were while I was still at work I found the PbP to be important. I would rather read that and get the information than try to watch the archived game because I could go through an uneventful inning in 5 seconds. Don't underestimate the value of the PbP, I think many people enjoy it more than some imagine simply because of how they chose to follow the team (or what is easiest/best).

I actually used to judge the quality of the game by the new of pages in the thread, if it was 4-6 pages I knew to just go look at the boxscore, but if it was 15 pages I knew some interesting stuff happened, so as always FAc and BKox's efforts (Julio and others) were useful in a weird, round about way.

[EastFallowfield]

When's the last time the Phils hit 6 homers in a game outside of Colorado?