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Thread: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

  1. #1
    Member Ron Madden's Avatar
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    No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    For the past decade the biggest beefs have unfolded not where the national networks are likeliest to point their cameras on a Sunday night, but rather in a tightly packed quintet of Midwestern cities, where rivals warily eye one another across the lake or down the river.

    In the National League Central, baseball intensity overflows at the confluence of tight pennant races, irrepressible personalities and unchecked testosterone. Yet as surely as the Ohio flows from Pittsburgh to Cincinnati, and Lake Michigan’s thaw heralds a jubilant summer in Milwaukee and Chicago, the bad blood among these rivals cannot be stopped.

    This baseball season is barely a month old, and already there have been four bench-clearing incidents among NL Central clubs, three resulting in suspensions. Since 2018, there have been 17 bench-clearing episodes in games involving the teams.

    The Cubs and Cardinals are the only NL Central clubs to win World Series titles since the division’s inception in 1994. Their potent brands, large fanbases and ever-present narratives – lovable Cubbies, classy Cardinals – can irk the rest of the division.

    “Sitting in the clubhouse in Pittsburgh and when MLB Network or any other talk show comes on, you notice these bigger markets talked about, nonstop,” says Hughes. “It was the same in Cincinnati. We knew we were just as good. It was always like, ‘Yeah, we’re just as good as these guys. Why aren’t they covering us?’
    Read More Here https://amp.usatoday.com/amp/4974822...mpression=true


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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    Hughes as in Jared Hughes thought the Reds teams he was on was just as good as the Cardinals and Cubs? Based on what. Now I know why they were losing so much. They were delusional.

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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    I won’t get into it but let’s say I’m not a fan of uncouth ball players. That’s as much as I’ll say.

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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central


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    Moderator The Operator's Avatar
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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    That article was a great read.


    I love that you can basically trace everything back to the 2010 Reds/Cardinals brawl.
    Quote Originally Posted by BCubb2003 View Post
    Don't worry. I'd say the game threads are about league average.
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    HammerTime (05-11-2021),Ron Madden (05-11-2021)

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    Member Ron Madden's Avatar
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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    [QUOTE=Tony Cloninger;4247492]Hughes as in Jared Hughes thought the Reds teams he was on was just as good as the Cardinals and Cubs? Based on what. Now I know why they were losing so much. They were delusional.
    [QUOTE]

    Reading the article, I think Hughes was mainly talking about when he pitched for the Pirates. I think they won the wildcard in 2013, 2014. and 2015.

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    REDREAD (05-11-2021)

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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    Quote Originally Posted by Larry Schuler View Post
    I won’t get into it but let’s say I’m not a fan of uncouth ball players. That’s as much as I’ll say.
    You prefer couth? Didn't Nate McCouth play for the Pirates?
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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    [QUOTE=Ron Madden;4247713][QUOTE=Tony Cloninger;4247492]Hughes as in Jared Hughes thought the Reds teams he was on was just as good as the Cardinals and Cubs? Based on what. Now I know why they were losing so much. They were delusional.

    Reading the article, I think Hughes was mainly talking about when he pitched for the Pirates. I think they won the wildcard in 2013, 2014. and 2015.
    That makes more sense.

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    Be the ball Roy Tucker's Avatar
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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    Quote Originally Posted by Ron Madden View Post
    A good article. I didn’t connect all those events before but it paints quite the picture. I’m not a violent guy, but I kinda like the bad blood.

    I also don’t think it’s all over and done.
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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    Here s another snippet from the article.
    Clint Hurdle took over as Pirates manager in 2011, hoping to revive a franchise that hadn’t had a winning season since 1992. Within three seasons, a few trendlines emerged: The Pirates began to win. They pitched inside with greater frequency. Hit more batters than any team.

    And brawled more often with opponents.

    Of 14 NL Central bench-clearing incidents between 2014 and 2019 – Hurdle’s last season – the Pirates were involved in eight of them, including four with the Reds, who also had eight.

    In five of Hurdle’s nine seasons in Pittsburgh, the Pirates either led the NL or ranked second in hitting opposing batters. In 2014 and ’15, it was particularly painful: The Pirates drilled 88 and 75 batters over those two seasons, in both instances racking up 33 more hit-by-pitches than the league average.

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    Re: No Division Brawls Like The NL Central

    Quote Originally Posted by Roy Tucker View Post
    A good article. I didn’t connect all those events before but it paints quite the picture. I’m not a violent guy, but I kinda like the bad blood.

    I also don’t think it’s all over and done.
    Same here about violence, but let's be honest most baseball brawls aren't really violent 99% of the time. It just adds to the excitement when it rarely occurs.


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