Scoreboard Watching: World Series Game 6: Clinching Team vs. Underdog, 4.30p

Michael Wacha (1-0. 3.00). vs. John Lackey (0-1, 3.68).

I still want both teams to lose. But maybe this torture can end tonight.

Scoreboard Watching: World Series Game 4: Red-Themed Team vs. Red-Themed Team, 5p

Obstruction? Or a choke job?

Clay Buchholz (12-1, 1.74) vs. Lance Lynn (15-10, 3.97).

The Cardinals won last night's game with the most curious of walk-offs: an obstruction, caused by Will Middlebrooks on Allen Craig at third base. The call was controversial at first because it appeared that Middlebrooks, prone at third base, might have deliberately lifted his legs to impede Craig's progress; however, the obstruction rule has nothing to do with intent, so count the run anyway once Craig tripped over the Red Sox 3B.

And let's be serious: Jarrod Saltalamacchia never should have tried that throw to get Craig at third base in the first place. If he doesn't throw the ball wide of third, 0-for-4 Pete Kozma comes up for the final out. And if Woody had gone to the police, this would never have happened. (We could also point the finger at other questionable managerial missteps in the game.)

So today's game becomes either a continuation of what is being stretched as a "Gibson-like moment", or just another obstacle for the Red Sox Machine to overcome on their unstoppable path. Either way, Joe Buck and Tim McCarver will be there to call it. So my television will be on mute.

Scoreboard Watching: Arrogant vs. Conceited (World Series Game 1), 4.30p

I'll let you figure out which is which.

Adam Wainwright (19-9. 2.94) vs. Jon Lester (15-8, 3.75).

Scoreboard Watching: ALCS Game 5 (Oct. 17, 2013) 5p

Anibal Sanchez (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Jon Lester (0-1, 1.42 ERA)

With the Boys in Blue on a travel day to St. Louis, we do have one playoff game to track today. Red Sox look to rebound from their ass-whuppin' yesterday in what figures to be another great pitching matchup. Series is 2-2 now, so this is a crucial game before the series moves back to Boston.

Let's enjoy this game before the pressure mounts tomorrow in another do-or-die for the Dodgers.

Scoreboard Watching: ALDS Game 5 (Oct. 10, 2013)

Detroit's Justin Verlander goes up against Oakland's Sonny Gray in a Game 5 for the right to face the Red Sox. I have to think that the Tigers would be a better matchup against Boston, so I suppose I'm rooting for them.

Scoreboard Watching: Oct 8, 2013

ALDS Game 4 in Detroit is already underway: Oakland is up in the series 2-1 so this is an elimination game for Detroit. Oakland leads Game 4 3-0 in the fifth inning. HOLY SHIT, TIE GAME!

ALDS Game 4 in Tampa is set for tonight, 5.30p first pitch. Boston leads the series 2-1; Jake Peavy (4-1 with Boston and a 4.04 ERA this year) goes against Jeremy Hellickson (12-10, 5.17).

Let's Watch Some Scoreboards

We have day baseball to take our minds off our game before it starts.

10:07am (e.g., now) - Pirates at Cardinals

12:07pm - Rays at Red Sox

Image: Courtesy of here

Game 162 Thread: Sept. 29 vs. Rockies, 1p

Last year's Fan Appreciation Day

Hyun-Jin Ryu (14-7, 2.97) vs. Jeff Francis (2-5, 6.61).

With Clayton Kershaw getting his proper tuneup and Zack Greinke right behind Kershaw in sharpness, today we let Ryu take the mound and bring this season to a close.

Today is also the Dodgers' Fan Appreciation Day, which means all fans in attendance are eligible for outstanding prices like a Hello Kitty Themed Party at Your Home for 20. Hold on a second, is this Fan Punishment Day? (Actually, there are some cool prizes (including a Vin Scully outgoing voicemail message!); full prize list details here.) Following the game, there's a postseason rally hosted by Arsenio Hall.

The Rockies wanted to start Tyler Chatwood in their final 2013 game, since Francis hasn't started since June 18. However, Chatwood is dealing with right elbow soreness, so Francis gets the nod. Or, in other words, the guy that's restin' ain't Francis.

Thank you, Rancho Cucamonga! Good night!

UPDATE 10:28a: There's also a bevy of games going on this morning with playoff and/or playoff pairing implications: Rays @ Blue Jays, Phillies @ Braves; Indians @ Twins, Cubs @ Cardinals, and Angels @ Rangers: all of which have first pitches prior to 1p PT. Please feel free to make this a Scoreboard Watching thread as well!

Scoreboard Watching: Nationals @ Cardinals (Sept 25, 2013)

Postseason pairing implications may be had from this afternoon's matchup, pitting Washington's Jordan Zimmerman (19-8) vs. St. Louis' Shelby Miller (14-9). Right now it's tied 1-1 in the middle of the fourth.

Let's go, Nats!

photo swiped from here

Scoreboard Watching: Sept 23, 2013

Last off-day of the season for the Dodgers, so let's start watching the scoreboards around the relevant NL teams:

• Brewers @ Braves, 4p. Marco Estrada (6-4, 4.26) vs. Mike Minor (13-7, 3.19). Braves are two games up on the Dodgers, with the best record in the NL (92-63).

• Mets @ Reds, 4p. Former Dodgers Aaron Harang (5-12, 5.69) faces Johnny Cueto (5-2, 3.02). Reds are tied with the Pirates for the NL Wild Card, and both are two games behind St. Louis.

• Pirates @ Cubs, 5p. Charlie Morton (7-4, 3.35) vs. Jeff Samardzija (8-12, 4.42).

• Nationals @ Cardinals, 5p. Tanner Roark (7-0, 1.08) vs. Adam Wainwright (17-9, 2.98). For those of you not down with the transitive property, St. Louis is one game ahead of the Dodgers as the NL Central leader.

Dodgers tickets

Scoreboard Watching: Sept. 8, 2013

The Dodgers aren't doing a very good job at eroding their own magic number this weekend, so let's see if the Giants can help out any in their game hosting the Diamondbacks. This game should complete prior to the Dodgers / Reds evening game, so we'll see if the Dodgers' magic number decreases beyond 11.

Arizona throws Wade Miley (9-10, 3.78) vs. Madison Bumgarner (11-9, 2.91), in the rubber match of this series. First pitch 1p.

photo taken from Ian Miller's Baseball Prospectus article featuring the Oakland Athletics' scoreboard operator.

Scoreboard Watching: July 29, 2013

I believe the Turner Field scoreboards are somewhat improved from Fulton County Stadium days.

Sure, give a day off to the Dodgers, now that they're 9-1 over their last 10 games since the All-Star Break and finally have some momentum. Where was this break when we were floundering around in late May-early June, playing 20 games in a row?

But I digress.

Other NL West games of note today:

• Rockies @ Braves, 4p PT. Jorge De La Rosa (10-5, 2.97) vs. Brandon Beachy (0-0, -.--). Beachy comes back from Tommy John elbow reconstructive surgery today, making his first start since June 2012. Rockies have gone 5-5 in their last 10 games, despite playing all 10 at home against the woeful Cubs, the misled Marlins, and the Braun-less Brewers. Braves are in first place by 8.5 games in the East; Rox are 6.0 games behind the Dodgers and in third place.
• Reds @ Padres, 7p PT. Mike Leake (10-4, 2.73) vs. Sean O'Sullivan (0-2, 4.73). Cincinnati is reeling from losing three straight against the Dodgers this weekend, but are facing a pitcher who hasn't won a game yet in the National League (he's 10-16 lifetime, having pitched for the Angels and Royals). Padres are 9.0 GB the Dodgers, ahead of the last-place Giants by a game.

Arizona opens up a series @ Tampa Bay Tuesday; on Tuesday, the Giants also play @ Phillies.

Scoreboard Watching (July 10, 2013)

Scary times up in AT&T Park.

Mets @ Giants, 12:45p PT. Zack Wheeler (2-1, 4.29) faces Matt Cain (5-5, 4.85), with a chance for the Mets to sweep the Giants. In each game of this series, it's gotten easier for New York. Game 1 on Monday was a 16-inning, five-and-a-half-hour dirge of six scoreless frames before the Mets got Eric Young to single, steal second, get sacrificed to third, and come home on a two-out fielding error by Brandon Crawford. Mets win, 4-3. Game 2 on Tuesday was a back-and-forth seesaw battle tied at 5 until the 8th inning, when Giants reliever Jake Dunning came in trying to stave off a one-run deficit with the bases loaded, when Marlon Byrd uncorked the first pitch for a grand slam (putting the Mets up 10-5; they won 10-6).

Today's the third and final game of the series. Giants have dropped 15 of their last 18 games.

Scoreboard Watching: July 4, 2013

Hope everyone is enjoying a safe Fourth of July! Let's hope for some scoreboard-watching fireworks from the Mets, Reds, and Red Sox this morning:

Diamondbacks @ Mets: Ian Kennedy (3-4, 5.36) vs. Dillon Gee (6-7, 4.60), 10a.

Giants @ Reds: Matt Cain (5-4, 4.29) vs. Mike Leake (7-3, 2.52), 10a.

Padres @ Red Sox: Eric Stults (6-6, 3.51) vs. Allen Webster (0-2, 9.50), 10.30a.

Scoreboard Watching: July 1, 2013

Scoreboard watching at Citi Field.

Happy July! Now that we've completed our first winning month of the year, let's take this first day to rest up while keeping an eye on some of our NL West friends, all of which whom have games that start at 4p PT:

• Arizona @ New York Mets: Wade Miley (4-7, 4.55) vs. Shaun Marcum (1-9, 5.08). Shaun of the rolling over and playing dead? Well, the good news, I suppose, is that Marcum earned his first win of the year in his last outing, a 3-0 win over the White Sox in which Marcum went 8.0 IP. On the other hand, the D'backs don't see a real Met pitcher until game 3 of the series on Wednesday, when they draw Matt Harvey. Boo.
• San Diego @ Miami: Jason Marquis (9-3, 3.99) vs. Jose Fernandez (4-4, 2.98). Fernandez is tied for the team lead in wins, along with Dodger trade bait Ricky Nolasco (who is 4-8). Fernandez also leads the team in IP (84.2) and Ks (84), which by my math works out to about a K an inning. Graduate education, baby!
• San Francisco @ Cincinnati: Mike Kickham (0-2, 10.57) vs. Bronson Arroyo (6-6, 3.61). Kickham is pretty green, while Arroyo has long flowing hair. Put 'em together, and you've got the She-Hulk.

Of course there's a J Scott Campbell She-Hulk, right?

art: Fall of the Hulks: The Savage She-Hulk #3 (The Heroic Age variant cover)

Scoreboard Watching: June 29, 2013

Braves' scoreboard at Turner Field

Now that the NL West is a little bit of a race again, let's lay out what we've got this afternoon, preceding our game against the Phillies tonight:

• Diamondbacks at Braves, 1p: Ian Kennedy (3-4, 5.21) vs. Tim Hudson (4-7, 4.10).
• Giants at Rockies, 1p: Matt Cain (5-4, 4.54) vs. Jorge De La Rosa (8-4, 3.19).
• Padres at Marlins, 4p: Eric Stults (6-5, 3.20) vs. Jacob Turner (1-0. 1.97).

NL West Standings as of this morning:

• Arizona
• San Diego, 2.5 GB
• Colorado, 3.0 GB
• San Francisco, 4.0 GB
• Los Angeles, 6.0 GB

Scoreboard Watching: June 17, 2013

Jony Ive redesigns Scoreboard Watching in iOS7 style.

No Dodgers loss to watch today, so let's keep an eye on two teams within two games of .500 who are battling it out in the NL West for third and fourth place.

The Padres' Edinson Volquez (5-5, 5.87) squares off against Barry Zito (4-5, 4.79). The Giants just came off a 3-0 loss before a national television audience in which left fielder Andres Torres biffed a ground ball single to left that turned into a triple, eventually scoring the third run. Let's hope those wheels stay off the wagon tonight.

Scoreboard Watching: May 23, 2013

This is how the PNC Park scoreboard looked, with the Cubs in town, on a PRIOR occassion.

There are NO games relevant to the NL West "race" today.

However, there's an early game (9:30a PT) which can help determine whether the Dodgers can maintain their position as the 11th-best team in the National League. Former Dodger and current Cub Edwin Jackson (1-6, 5.76) goes up against Pittsburgh's Jeanmar Gomez (2-0, 2.78). The Cubs have lost their first two games of the series, at PNC Park, but are hoping to ascend past Milwaukee in the NL Central, where both the Cubs and Brewers both sit in last place.

All four other games today are American League games; the Angels duel Kansas City at 5p PT. The Angels serve up their edition of Josh Beckett: Joe Blanton (0-7, 6.62), against KC's Ervin Santana (3-3, 2.77). If the Angels win, they would edge ahead of the Dodgers based on winning percentage. That's all I'm saying.

Scoreboard Watching (May 16, 2013)

The Coors Field scoreboard is huge, but Juan Uribe still doesn't fit.

The Dodgers might even be able to make up some ground even on a day where Clayton Kershaw, Zack Greinke, or Hyun-Jin Ryu isn't starting. Maybe.

Giants at Rockies pits Matt Cain (2-2, 5.04) vs. Jhoulys Chacin (3-2, 2.70). First pitch, 5:40p.

Nationals at Padres has Stephen Strasburg (1-5, 3.10) vs. Edinson Volquez (3-3, 5.15). First pitch, 7:10p.

Diamondbacks are idle; they kick off a three-game series with the Marlins tomorrow, at about the same time we go against the Braves.

Scoreboard Watching: May 9, 2013

Only 6.5 games out of first at the beginning of the day, the Dodgers still have a chance to lose more ground to the division leaders, despite being idle.

Yankees at Colorado is underway. Rockies' starter Jeff Francis was knocked out after 4.0 IP, as was the Yankees' CC Sabathia. It's 3-1 Yankees, end of the fifth.

Phillies at Diamondbacks starts at 6.40p, Cole Hamels (1-4, 4.34) vs. Patrick Corbin (4-0, 1.80).

Braves at Giants tips off at 7p, with Julio Teheran (1-0, 5.08) vs. Ryan Vogelsong (1-2, 7.20). The Giants and Braves go at it for four games in SF; we get the Braves for four games at the Stadium in June (on top of of a three-game series in Atlanta in May, which the Giants have as well but in June).