Hello! Welcome to Vibe Check, a weekly roundup article where we just sit back, take a deep breath, maybe brew a cup of tea (mint if you have it) and just kind of take the temperature on what’s going on around Major League Baseball. So stretch out, light some incense, and let’s check the vibes.
So MLB: The Show 21 came out this week. I’m gonna level with you and be honest. I’m writing this article on a deal I made with myself that every time I complete a section, I play another game of The Show. It’s slow work, but it’s what I have to do. Maybe it’s just me and my insatiable addiction to this new (and not great, to be honest) game, but it feels like a lot of the league is focused on it this week. Everywhere I looked, I was seeing video game moments play out. So let’s get to it because my dual-threat player Bobby “Bones” Kobayashi still hasn’t made it out of AAA yet and I’ve got a lot of grinding to do.
GOOFY VIBES
NOT QUITE MY METER
As a lot of people may know, this is the first year that MLB The Show is on Xbox. This has been huge, as an Xbox owner letting me finally play a great game, and reminding me how much work I have to put into learning how to play a new sports game. Because wow am I bad at this game. So I’m more than understanding of Domingo Germán’s error.
— MLB Errors (@mlberrors) April 22, 2021
Poor guy just fumbled the meter check on the throw. After getting absolutely worked in my first week of playing this game, I had to watch this clip a bunch of times before I even saw anything wrong with it. Compare that to the cult-like insistence of every team I control into turning every single hit to a triple, no matter what, and this isn’t even a blip on the radar. Because seriously, even after a week I haven’t learned to control myself. My catcher is absolutely stealing home on the next play.
KUMAR ROCKER. THAT’S IT. THAT’S THE TITLE.
If you haven’t heard of Kumar Rocker, he is a 6’5 250lbs starting pitcher for Vanderbilt, future Vibe Check mainstay, and probable star of my favorite baseball brawl gif in 2028. He also, hopefully, is going to inspire a new kind of showboat.
Kumar Rocker, Filthy Slider…and K Strut.
Ok, maybe he just fell. pic.twitter.com/Vp1CgwzfgE
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2021
I truly believe that if he had done this while pitching against the Phillies, accident or not, Rocker would be picking bits of Bryce Harper’s headband out of his glove for the next month.
WEIRD VIBES
NO SCRUBS
I have a well-documented appreciation for “The Weird Stuff” in baseball, and recently we were gifted with one of the all-time great occurrences of Weird Stuff.
April 23, 1999: Fernando Tatis Sr. hits 2 grand slams in 1 inning at Dodger Stadium
April 23, 2021: Fernando Tatis Jr. hits 2 HR at Dodger Stadium
They are the 1st father-son duo to each record a multi-HR game at the same venue on the same calendar date
!!!
(h/t @EliasSports)
— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) April 24, 2021
I wonder if Tatís Sr. had to apologize for hitting his grand slams, or if all the current old heads of baseball were too busy in 1999 rocking out to the #1 song on the radio at the time, No Scrubs by TLC. I don’t really have a bit for this, I was just curious to find out what song was on the radio back then, and I couldn’t be happier with the answer. That song is a masterpiece, for real. The Tatís family truly has no time for scrubs.
IT’S A FEATURE, NOT A BUG
.@MLBPicks what are the odds of this happening pic.twitter.com/YwN4RGujA3
— Cut4 (@Cut4) April 24, 2021
I mean what.
The Vibe Power Rankings
1. Zack Greinke, Merchant of Vibes.
Greinke has been living in a video game as long as he’s been in baseball. He’s like if Neo saw the Matrix and it deeply underwhelmed him.
Easy as 1-4-3. 😱 pic.twitter.com/IV7UfLWwsI
— MLB (@MLB) April 24, 2021
2. The Alex Verdugo Fan Club.
Alex Verdugo is a textbook definition of a Vibe Lord, and Sox fans are starting to catch on.
The vibes are immaculate. pic.twitter.com/sXsFE1DMNt
— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 19, 2021
3. Fernando Tatís Jr., Enemy of Boring Baseball.
Every night, a Dodgers pitcher wakes up in panic if tomorrow is the day that Fernando Tatís Jr. destroys them on national television.
FERNANDO TATIS JR. HAS DONE IT AGAIN pic.twitter.com/8y9KMtRqMx
— MLB (@MLB) April 25, 2021
4. Marcus Stroman, And His Hive
I like Marcus Stroman an ungodly amount. I don’t know why. I’ve just always believed in him. I’m not saying I’m his biggest fan, but I am saying that if you were going to engage in a hostile takeover of Marcus Stroman, you’d have to buy 51% of my shares in him to even have a shot.
Lindor giving Stroman the Strikeout sign. 😀 pic.twitter.com/lnEyHXhLQ2
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 24, 2021
So it’s with an incredible sense of purpose that I am proud to announce the beginning of Hot Stroman Summer, also known as STRMNSZN. All five of us in Stroman Hive are thrilled to be here on the ground floor.
5. Bill “Spaceman” Lee, Will Never Leave This List.
Lee invented his own version of an Eephus pitch, which was named the Leephus. The trick is to throw it while you’re stoned in the 1970s.
Championship Vibes
How are the Mariners?
They have the third-best record in baseball behind the Dodgers and the Oakland A’s, so they have the second-best record in baseball. They have embraced the Vibes fully, and are full speed ahead to the World Series.
The vibes are flowing. #SeaUsRise pic.twitter.com/T01Vy5qYSO
— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) April 24, 2021