It was a typical Sunday during the baseball season. It was too rainy and gloomy to play golf (course opened yesterday!) and Blogger has this feature where you can follow other blogs, even if they come from sources other than Blogger. Which is pretty magnanimous of them. One of the blogs followed here is Rob Neyer's Sweet Spot. Mr. Neyer's posts are thought provoking if one can overlook the over-reliance at times to a numbers-only way of looking at things. His response to the PED controversy somewhat mirrors the one here. That's why it was odd when it was discovered that a new post was available at his site and once navigation there was complete, a post was read stating that PED users should never make it into the Hall of Fame because of the integrity clause. That was odd, until it was discovered that this fairly misguided post wasn't from Mr. Neyer at all, but from one Preston Gomez. While PG's analysis is rejected as flawed by this writer, a comment from another reader caught the eye. This reader basically stated (in a nutshell) that this PED problem has occurred because Latin players were allowed into the major leagues.
The Fan was quite disturbed by the double dose of sanctimonious thinking. First, Gomez presented the case that saints like Koufax, Mays and others shouldn't have their Hall sullied by the likes of A-Rod and Manny Ramirez. That argument cannot hold up as the Hall is full of flawed characters whose "sins" are widely known and too long to list. The integrity clause has been a joke since the Hall's inception.
But then this commenter put an even more disturbing point of view out there. The problem with his comment was that this was obviously a well-educated person who wrote well and presented his statements effectively. But the racism and stereotypes he presented were distasteful and scary, quite frankly. We may have Obama in the White House. We may have Hispanic and African American managers, but we still have a long way to go to get most of America to believe that "All men are created equal." But it goes beyond that. Forgive a little Bible point of view, but the Word says that, "all men are sinners and fall short of the Glory of God." None of us are perfect, we are all flawed and our only course is forgiveness (when possible).
But the disturbing part of the whole thing is that, though this person was intolerant and ignoble, there is a shard of truth in that a large part of those caught up in this PED problem are Hispanic and specifically from the Dominican Republic. The Fan has quipped rather unpoetical at times about this here in the FanDome, but it's a deep well of a problem that has yet to have a full light shone upon it. We have only seen glimpses of the problem with the firing last year of a Cleveland Indian executive and then this spring with the problems exposed in the Nationals front office.
The undercurrent here is that there has been a major pipeline of ball players that have come from the Dominican Republic. That country, though it has made amazing strides in the last two decades towards a more modern economy and political structure, still has an imbalance of wealth. Those on the less fortunate end often dream of baseball as the Holy Grail of opportunity. And a long line of major leaguers have shown the way.
The unseemly end of that is the exploitation of these players by American executives that has not fully come to light. Be sure that an investigation is ongoing and a few bombshells will be exploded along the way eventually. There is a story here that has yet to be told. Part of that exploitation has been the introduction to these players to substances that will make them stronger, train harder and be better prepared or equipped to compete for major league jobs. Without a full understanding of the current culture of testing, these players are being tripped up on a monthly basis.
Make no mistake, PED use has been a problem on all ends of the race and ethnic spectrum. For every Sammy Sosa, there is a Mark McGwire. But too many of these suspensions turn out to be for players from the Dominican Republic and there is a reason that is happening. The financial windfall of escaping poverty to reach the promised land of MLB is too exciting not to use anything anyone gives you to reach that place.
The heading of this post is a bit misleading. Manny and A-Rod are not in this category. They weren't uneducated kids from a poor country trying to find a way out. Manny is only in the heading because the news about him this week started this thought process.
In this writer's opinion, the first positive test should lead to education and strict and weekly testing. The second positive should lead to the 50 game suspension. There has to be a built in safety net to catch those who have been exploited, misled or mishandled by doctors, trainers and even stores like the GNC.
We all want the game to get clean so that we can move on to other topics, like the game itself. Even those of us who are not upset about what players ingest want to get the game clean just so we can stop having to talk about it. And it seems to be the most fair to aid those who have come to their source of chemical help by Svengalis out there exploiting a pipeline that is all too often ripe for the picking.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Aubrey Huff - No Class
Watching the Yankees lose again to the Orioles. In the bottom of the first, Aubrey Huff hit a three run homer and pulled a totally classless act by mimicking Joba Chamberlain with a fist pump around first and then after crossing the plate.
First of all, the game was early and Chamberlain hadn't done a thing to provoke such a classless act. Second of all, the Yankees can't take that sitting down.
The Fan doesn't like to go for blood, but if Huff doesn't get plunked later in the game, then it will be a disappointment.
First of all, the game was early and Chamberlain hadn't done a thing to provoke such a classless act. Second of all, the Yankees can't take that sitting down.
The Fan doesn't like to go for blood, but if Huff doesn't get plunked later in the game, then it will be a disappointment.
The Year's Five Biggest Hitting Surprises
Nearly 20% of the season has now been played and while it's still early, there have been a significant amount of games already played. With that sample size, here are the five biggest batting surprises thus far: Aaron Hill, Carl Crawford, Orlando Hudson, Ryan Zimmerman and Adam Jones.
Aaron Hill
Aaron Hill was a good second baseman in 2006 and 2007. He batted .291 both seasons and showed decent pop in 2007 with 47 doubles and 17 homers. Then last year, he got into only 55 games and really seemed to struggle when he did play. His average dropped to .263. Watching his career to date, you had to figure (if he was healthy) that he would hit .280 or better and have an OPS in the .790 range. That seemed consistent with his career path to date.
But Hill leads the league in hits with 52. He is slugging at a .554 clip and he already had 8 homers, six doubles and he's driven in 28. That projects to a season with 250 hits, 40 homers, 30 doubles and 140 RBI. While it's hard to imagine Hill reaching those kinds of numbers, he can be only so-so the rest of the year and still finish with really impressive totals.
Carl Crawford
Carl Crawford has been a really good player for most of his career. He has hit over .300 three times in his career and could be counted on for ten to eighteen homers a season and around 50 stolen bases. Those are pretty impressive numbers. His one flaw was a low On Base Percentage in relation to his Batting Average. With a .295 lifetime Batting Average, you would expect his On Base Percentage to be greater than .332. Because of that, he has only barely scraped above an .800 OPS twice in his career.
Fast forward now to this year. Crawford was coming off his worst year in 2008 where all of his numbers were down. He felt his legs were the problem and worked on grass in the off season instead of on harder surfaces and was determined to keep his legs under him for the full season. And it seems to be paying off as he is having his best season. He is batting .331 with a .397 OBP, by far the best numbers of his career. He has already stolen 21 bases, or four less than all of last year. The only striking number for him has been the lack of power as he only has one homer.
But at his current pace, Crawford projects out to 100 stolen bases, 215 hits, 40 doubles and that would be a really good season!
Orlando Hudson
This season shouldn't really surprise us about Orlando Hudson. He has raised his Batting Average for six straight seasons and hit .302 last season, his first ever over .300. He's always had an above league average On Base Percentage and could be counted on to be around the .350 mark.
This season, Hudson is batting .336 and he is walking more and he already has 11 doubles. But best yet, his OBP is a robust .426 and his OPS is .852. Both numbers are big surprises.
Projecting his season, he would finish (at his current pace) with 55 doubles, 215 hits, 100 walks. That's an awesome season. He could be the free agent signing of the year for the Dodgers. The only surprise so far has been a slow down in his range factor at second. But we'll see where he ends up for season.
Ryan Zimmerman
Ryan Zimmerman came in the major leagues with a lot of hype. He was the next big thing. He was going to be the next superstar. Somewhere along the way in his first full three season, he was only a little above average. Nothing spectacular. Nothing earth shattering. He hit over 20 homers twice. He drove in over 100 once. But a career .OPS of a little over .800 seemed a bit of a let down.
Perhaps 2009 is his coming out party. It could be when he became the superstar predicted four years ago when he first came to the bigs. He's batting .336 and his OPS is currently at .943. If he continues at this pace for the season, he'll end up with 208 hits, 30 homers and 55 doubles. It would be nice to see him develop a little more patience at the plate, but overlooking that one thing, Mr. Zimmerman has possibly arrived.
Adam Jones
Last year was Adam Jones' first full season in the big leagues. The Orioles' outfielder didn't do anything but suggest that he was a marginal talent. He batted .270, had a .311 OBP and a .400 Slugging Percentage. A .711 OPS wasn't all that exciting.
Zoom ahead to 2009. Jones is batting .353 after 20% of the season, has a .415 OBP and an unreal OPS of 1.044! His season projects out to 205 hits, 105 RBI, 50 walks, 30 homers and 62 doubles. He's already scored 32 runs and is on pace to score 160! Obviously, those numbers seem hard for him to reach, but like Aaron Hill above, even if he finishes so so the rest of the season, he will shatter last year's stats without any problem at all.
Aaron Hill
Aaron Hill was a good second baseman in 2006 and 2007. He batted .291 both seasons and showed decent pop in 2007 with 47 doubles and 17 homers. Then last year, he got into only 55 games and really seemed to struggle when he did play. His average dropped to .263. Watching his career to date, you had to figure (if he was healthy) that he would hit .280 or better and have an OPS in the .790 range. That seemed consistent with his career path to date.
But Hill leads the league in hits with 52. He is slugging at a .554 clip and he already had 8 homers, six doubles and he's driven in 28. That projects to a season with 250 hits, 40 homers, 30 doubles and 140 RBI. While it's hard to imagine Hill reaching those kinds of numbers, he can be only so-so the rest of the year and still finish with really impressive totals.
Carl Crawford
Carl Crawford has been a really good player for most of his career. He has hit over .300 three times in his career and could be counted on for ten to eighteen homers a season and around 50 stolen bases. Those are pretty impressive numbers. His one flaw was a low On Base Percentage in relation to his Batting Average. With a .295 lifetime Batting Average, you would expect his On Base Percentage to be greater than .332. Because of that, he has only barely scraped above an .800 OPS twice in his career.
Fast forward now to this year. Crawford was coming off his worst year in 2008 where all of his numbers were down. He felt his legs were the problem and worked on grass in the off season instead of on harder surfaces and was determined to keep his legs under him for the full season. And it seems to be paying off as he is having his best season. He is batting .331 with a .397 OBP, by far the best numbers of his career. He has already stolen 21 bases, or four less than all of last year. The only striking number for him has been the lack of power as he only has one homer.
But at his current pace, Crawford projects out to 100 stolen bases, 215 hits, 40 doubles and that would be a really good season!
Orlando Hudson
This season shouldn't really surprise us about Orlando Hudson. He has raised his Batting Average for six straight seasons and hit .302 last season, his first ever over .300. He's always had an above league average On Base Percentage and could be counted on to be around the .350 mark.
This season, Hudson is batting .336 and he is walking more and he already has 11 doubles. But best yet, his OBP is a robust .426 and his OPS is .852. Both numbers are big surprises.
Projecting his season, he would finish (at his current pace) with 55 doubles, 215 hits, 100 walks. That's an awesome season. He could be the free agent signing of the year for the Dodgers. The only surprise so far has been a slow down in his range factor at second. But we'll see where he ends up for season.
Ryan Zimmerman
Ryan Zimmerman came in the major leagues with a lot of hype. He was the next big thing. He was going to be the next superstar. Somewhere along the way in his first full three season, he was only a little above average. Nothing spectacular. Nothing earth shattering. He hit over 20 homers twice. He drove in over 100 once. But a career .OPS of a little over .800 seemed a bit of a let down.
Perhaps 2009 is his coming out party. It could be when he became the superstar predicted four years ago when he first came to the bigs. He's batting .336 and his OPS is currently at .943. If he continues at this pace for the season, he'll end up with 208 hits, 30 homers and 55 doubles. It would be nice to see him develop a little more patience at the plate, but overlooking that one thing, Mr. Zimmerman has possibly arrived.
Adam Jones
Last year was Adam Jones' first full season in the big leagues. The Orioles' outfielder didn't do anything but suggest that he was a marginal talent. He batted .270, had a .311 OBP and a .400 Slugging Percentage. A .711 OPS wasn't all that exciting.
Zoom ahead to 2009. Jones is batting .353 after 20% of the season, has a .415 OBP and an unreal OPS of 1.044! His season projects out to 205 hits, 105 RBI, 50 walks, 30 homers and 62 doubles. He's already scored 32 runs and is on pace to score 160! Obviously, those numbers seem hard for him to reach, but like Aaron Hill above, even if he finishes so so the rest of the season, he will shatter last year's stats without any problem at all.
Game Picks - Sunday: May 10, 2009
It was a joyless day on Saturday and the picks took a semi-beating. Greinke pitched his heart out but lost to Joe Saunders, who pitched his heart out. The Yankees looked abominable. The Pirates' best pitcher got cuffed. King Felix was mashed. Millwood was great, but the Rangers uncharacteristicly didn't score. Oh well. In the words of Clarisse, "There's always tomorrow..."
Today's picks are fraught with tough and touchie match ups. The Fan will tenderly walk through the mine field:
This could be a disaster.
Yesterday: 7-8
Last Week: 56-47
Today's picks are fraught with tough and touchie match ups. The Fan will tenderly walk through the mine field:
- Phillies over the Braves: Myers over Kawakami. This pick has danger written all over it.
- Tigers over the Indians: Are the Indians even more frustrating than the Yankees? All that talent? Porcello goes for the Tigers. Young, inconsistent. He pitches against Reyes, who doesn't look to stay in the rotation much longer for Cleveland.
- Mets over the Pirates: Livan over Snell. Can it be? Can Livan win two in a row? Hard to pick against the Mets right now as they are really on a roll. Even Sheffield had two hits yesterday.
- Reds over the Cardinals: Can the Reds really sweep? Can Volquez throw a third great game in a row? So far, all of these picks could go wrong. Ugh!
- Yankees over the Orioles: Because the Fan is stubborn and a Chamberlain fan. [sigh]
- Padres over Houston: Oswalt hasn't looked like Oswalt. Geer was great last time out. Berkman won't be in the lineup. Crapshoot city again...
- Cubs over the Brewers: Counting on Sean Marshall to save the Cubbies from a sweep? Oh boy.
- Rangers over the White Sox: Padilla verses Colon? Anything can happen. Man, this is hard today.
- Twins over the Mariners: Yes, Bedard is pitching. But Mauer is batting .500 since his return with three homers and a gazillion runs scored by the Twins. But then again, Bedard has the stuff to shut them down. Egads!
- Marlins over the Rockies: Cook is one of the better pitchers for Colorado, but Volstad shouldn't have two bad starts in a row, should he? Man oh man!
- Royals over the Angels: Loux is pitching for the Angels? Thinking that will put the Angels in the toilet. Davies always hangs tough. But the Fan has been burned all year by no-name pitchers. Sheesh.
- Oakland over the Blue Jays: Braden versus Cecil in another battle of AAA pitchers. Does this ever end?
- Giants over the Dodgers: Lincecum. An ace at last! And against the suckier Weaver, who happened to pitch lights out last time! Oy! But the Manny funk continues.
- Nationals over the Diamondbacks: Because the Nationals seem like the better team right now. Is that possible?
- Bay Rays over the Red Sox: Beckett has been in the bucket and Garza has been awesome. But still. Is the Fan nuts? Apparently. Longoria has been other-worldly.
This could be a disaster.
Yesterday: 7-8
Last Week: 56-47
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Game Picks - Saturday: May 9, 2009
Now that was fun. Nearly everything predicted in this space yesterday came to pass. Baker was showing signs of getting it together--he pitches a shutout. A-Rod will give a boost to the Yankees--He hits a three run homer. Cueto pitched well his last time out--seven innings of one-run ball. Verlander would be just a bit tougher than Lee--he was, with a lot of help from Granderson's amazing catch. "Wandy is the man"--he pitched a shutout. "Contreras is pitching for the White Sox, enough said"--he stunk again. "Nolasco is due for a good game"--he was and had one. "Washington has been raking and the Diamondbacks are the anti-rakers"--the Nationals won. Awesome!
Let's see if we can keep this ball rolling with Saturday's picks:
Yesterday: 12-3
Week: 49-39
Let's see if we can keep this ball rolling with Saturday's picks:
- Pirates over the Mets: One of the few picks from yesterday that was wrong. But Maholm is pitching for the Pirates. Like him over Maine.
- Braves over the Phillies: Vasquez has really responded to his situation in Atlanta. Like him here against Blanton.
- Dodgers over the Giants: Stults was terrible his last time out. He should rebound against the Giants.
- Bay Rays over the Red Sox: This one feels stupid on the up and up, but Kazmir should tie up Ortiz and Drew.
- Oakland over Toronto: In a battle of young pitchers, like Gallagher over Tallet.
- Padres over Houston: Never pick Moehler at this point.
- Brewers over the Cubs: Gallardo has been great. Dempster has not been great.
- Yankees over the Orioles: Will take Hughes over Eaton on any given day.
- Indians over the Tigers: Carmona showed some good signs last time out. Like him over Jackson.
- Rangers over the White Sox: Is the Fan really picking Millwood to win. Crazy! And against John Danks? Nuts?
- Reds over the Cardinals: Harang is due for a good start. Lohse was beat up last time out and doesn't look healthy to this viewer.
- Mariners over the Twins: King Felix over Liriano. Two years ago, this would have been really exciting. Now, Liriano looks ordinary.
- Marlins over the Rockies: Josh Johnson has become one of the best pitchers in the league.
- Nationals over the Diamondbacks: Again!? Like this Lannon kid.
- Royals over the Angels: Will not pick against Greinke until he falters. He is the feel good story of the year.
Yesterday: 12-3
Week: 49-39
The White Sox Look Creaky
It could be just a rough patch in a long season, or it could just well be the end of a pretty decent run for the Chicago White Sox. They simply look old and creaky at this point. They were completely dominated by a young Matt Harrison and lamely went down to the Rangers, 6-0. The team has now lost six of its last ten.
Looking quickly at the roster, seven of their twelve pitchers were born in the 70s:
Both of their catchers are older:
Konerko is thirty-two. Two thirds of their outfield is older. Dye is 35 and Podsednik is 33. And then there is Jim Thome, who is now 39. The Fan should have included him on the "should retire" list as he is currently batting .205 with an OPS of .729. Last year, Thome struck out 29% of his official At Bats. His number this year is 38%. That's not a good trend.
It seems this team is going to need an infusion of some sort as they just seem out of gas as currently constructed.
Looking quickly at the roster, seven of their twelve pitchers were born in the 70s:
- Mark Buehrle - 30
- D. J. Carrasco - 32
- Bartolo Colon - 36
- Jose Contreras - 38 (supposedly)
- Octavio Dotel - 36
- Scott Linebrink - 32
- Matt Thornton - 32
Both of their catchers are older:
- Corky Miller - 33
- A. J. Pierzynski - 32
Konerko is thirty-two. Two thirds of their outfield is older. Dye is 35 and Podsednik is 33. And then there is Jim Thome, who is now 39. The Fan should have included him on the "should retire" list as he is currently batting .205 with an OPS of .729. Last year, Thome struck out 29% of his official At Bats. His number this year is 38%. That's not a good trend.
It seems this team is going to need an infusion of some sort as they just seem out of gas as currently constructed.
Alex Rodriguez Makes an Immediate Impact
Literally. On his first pitch of the 2009 season, Alex Rodriguez hit a three run blast which was the difference on a night that C. C. Sabathia pitched like a $100+ million dollar pitcher. True, it was only the Orioles, and true, it's only one game. But Joe Girardi had to be breathing a little easier than in recent times.
Love him or hate him, Alex Rodriguez makes a difference for the Yankees. He has been sorely missed while he was away. The Yankees used three players at third while A-Rod was out: Cody Ransom, Angel Berroa and Ramiro Pena. Between the three, they are a combined 23 for 105 with 12 runs scored and 10 RBI. They hit eight doubles and no other extra base hits. They walked only 7 times. Between the three, they had an OPS around .550. So, yeah, there was a big hole in the lineup.
And with Posada's hot bat sitting on the disabled list, Teixeira mired in a season long slump and Swisher falling back to his true self (and Nady out for who knows how long), there just wasn't enough lumber to compensate for a struggling pitching staff. A-Rod will give Teixeira some protection now and give them the boost needed and take some of the pressure off of rest of the lineup.
As for Sabathia, he was brilliant. His fastball and change up were consistently in the strike zone and it looked like he was really comfortable with Cervelli behind the plate. He pitched with better rhythm than of late and was dominant. Even the four hits he gave up in his complete game shutout were doinkers.
The rotation is showing a little sign of life for the Yankees. If Sabathia becomes the anchor as expected, Pettitte continues to keep the team in the game (if not spectacularly), Chamberlain continues to grow and Hughes pitches well most of the time, this rotation will be okay. Burnett has had a few rough outings lately though.
The bullpen still looks to be a problem. Girardi keeps running Veras out there and he keeps getting knocked around. Rivera has not been dominant thus far and only Phil Coke seems to be doing his job on a regular basis. It's no wonder that Sabathia stayed out there all nine innings.
It won't be lost on major league fans that Manny Ramirez checks out for fifty days at the same time that Alex Rodriguez checks in. But if you ask Yankee fans and Joe Girardi, it's sure to be a welcome relief to have him back.
Love him or hate him, Alex Rodriguez makes a difference for the Yankees. He has been sorely missed while he was away. The Yankees used three players at third while A-Rod was out: Cody Ransom, Angel Berroa and Ramiro Pena. Between the three, they are a combined 23 for 105 with 12 runs scored and 10 RBI. They hit eight doubles and no other extra base hits. They walked only 7 times. Between the three, they had an OPS around .550. So, yeah, there was a big hole in the lineup.
And with Posada's hot bat sitting on the disabled list, Teixeira mired in a season long slump and Swisher falling back to his true self (and Nady out for who knows how long), there just wasn't enough lumber to compensate for a struggling pitching staff. A-Rod will give Teixeira some protection now and give them the boost needed and take some of the pressure off of rest of the lineup.
As for Sabathia, he was brilliant. His fastball and change up were consistently in the strike zone and it looked like he was really comfortable with Cervelli behind the plate. He pitched with better rhythm than of late and was dominant. Even the four hits he gave up in his complete game shutout were doinkers.
The rotation is showing a little sign of life for the Yankees. If Sabathia becomes the anchor as expected, Pettitte continues to keep the team in the game (if not spectacularly), Chamberlain continues to grow and Hughes pitches well most of the time, this rotation will be okay. Burnett has had a few rough outings lately though.
The bullpen still looks to be a problem. Girardi keeps running Veras out there and he keeps getting knocked around. Rivera has not been dominant thus far and only Phil Coke seems to be doing his job on a regular basis. It's no wonder that Sabathia stayed out there all nine innings.
It won't be lost on major league fans that Manny Ramirez checks out for fifty days at the same time that Alex Rodriguez checks in. But if you ask Yankee fans and Joe Girardi, it's sure to be a welcome relief to have him back.
Friday, May 08, 2009
Bob Melvin Fired as Diamondbacks' Manager
It's amazing how a manager goes from a hero to a goat in just two years. In 2007, Melvin was a hero as the Diamondbacks made a surprising run to glory. This year, after a poor start, the same manager could no longer get the job done. Okay, if you say so.
The Team's owner started the proceedings by speaking on local radio and stating that the team had made some mistakes in personnel and in how they pick the bullpen and the players. Then why weren't the people in the front office fired instead of the manager?
While the Diamondbacks have been mired in a team slump for most of the year, Melvin can hardly be blamed for that. He just didn't have the horses he needed to win the race. Not having Webb all season didn't help either. Not signing Randy Johnson didn't help either.
Speaking of not signing Randy Johnson, do you know what this whole deal smells like? It smells like a cost cutting measure. Melvin was expensive. The Fan thinks the bottom line is the bottom line here. And Bob Melvin was the sacrificial lamb...errr...goat.
The Team's owner started the proceedings by speaking on local radio and stating that the team had made some mistakes in personnel and in how they pick the bullpen and the players. Then why weren't the people in the front office fired instead of the manager?
While the Diamondbacks have been mired in a team slump for most of the year, Melvin can hardly be blamed for that. He just didn't have the horses he needed to win the race. Not having Webb all season didn't help either. Not signing Randy Johnson didn't help either.
Speaking of not signing Randy Johnson, do you know what this whole deal smells like? It smells like a cost cutting measure. Melvin was expensive. The Fan thinks the bottom line is the bottom line here. And Bob Melvin was the sacrificial lamb...errr...goat.
Game Picks - Friday: May 8, 2009
It's not fair! It's not fair! Somebody should let people picking games know that a major player is going to be suspended and a manager is going to be fired before picks are made! Waaah! Oh well, it wasn't a total loss as Micah Owings picked up a win and hit a triple. Life could be worse. Let's see what screwy happenings go on today.
Friday's Picks:
Yesterday: 7-8
This week: 37-36
Friday's Picks:
- Phillies over the Braves: Cole Hamels over Reyes for the Braves. It seems that the NL East will feature a bunch of leap-frogging with different teams beating up on different teams.
- Yankees over the Orioles: Because, spammit! The stupid team has to win some time! Plus A-Rod is back. No matter what he does, he'll provide more protection for Teixeira. Watch for Tex to get hot.
- Tigers over the Indians: This is a tough matchup with Verlander against Lee. Advantage with Verlander and power versus Lee with guile.
- Reds over the Cardinals: Cueto versus Pineiro. Depends on which Cueto shows up. But he was dominant last time. Can he do it twice in a row?
- Pirates over the Mets: Yeah, yeah. This one looks stupid. But the Mets are coming off an emotional series with the Phillies and they have Niese pitching for them. Feel a loss in the bones.
- Bay Rays over the Red Sox: Like Shields over Penny in this one.
- Astros over the Padres: Wandy is the man.
- Brewers over the Cubs: This one looks stupid as well, but the Cubs are starting an unknown Randy Wells, just called up from AAA.
- Twins over the Mariners: Baker has been showing signs of recapturing his mojo from last year. It's time for him to win.
- Rangers over the White Sox: Contreras is pitching for the White Sox. Enough said. When is Josh Hamilton coming back?
- Marlins over the Rockies: Nolasco has to come out of his funk some time. He's too good a pitcher.
- Nationals over the Diamondbacks: The Nationals have been raking of late and put a comeback hurt on the Dodgers last night. Down six, they won by scoring nine runs. Diamondbacks have been the anti-rakers.
- Royals over the Angels: Gil (ga) Meche is due for a win and the Angels are starting Martin. This one looks good.
- Oakland over Toronto: Have to root for a pitcher named Outman (who pitched well last time out).
- Giants over the Dodgers: The Dodgers' fifty game funk begins. Zito has been pitching well for the Giants.
Yesterday: 7-8
This week: 37-36
Has Anyone Noticed...
Has anyone noticed that:
- Gregg Zaun went three for three tonight and still isn't batting over .200?
- Arthur Rhodes hasn't given up a run yet this season? Yup, that same Arthur Rhodes.
- Jason Bay hit a double and a homer in the same inning and drove in four runs in the 12 run Red Sox inning?
- Emilio Bonifacio of the Marlins is batting a buck, eighty-five in May and is down to .250 for the season and is still leading off every game for Florida?
- Ryan Franklin has nine saves already? Oh yeah, he hasn't given up a run yet this season either.
- Brian Bannister is 3-0 with a 1.48 ERA after being recalled from the minors?
- Ken Griffey, Jr. has more walks this season than hits?
- The Mariners have lost seven of their last ten games?
- Ichiro Suzuki has as many strikeouts as runs scored this season?
- Benji Molina of the Giants has already driven in 27 runs?
- Jason Marquis went 0-2 Thursday night and is still batting over .300?
- Brian Giles has been leading off for the Padres and is batting .164?
- Robinson Cano of the Yankees has only one hit in his last 25 At Bats?
- Nick Punto of the Twins is batting .190 but still gets on ESPN's Web Gems every night?
- Jason Bay has as many RBI as David Ortiz and J. D. Drew combined?
- Carlos Beltran is batting .382?
- Miguel Tejada finally hit his first homer of the season Thursday? Wonder where all that power went.
- Mark Buehrle is 5-0?
- Mariano Rivera has already given up as many homers (4) this year as he did in all of 2007 and 2008?
- Bobby Abreu is batting .340 and is 11 for 11 in stolen base attempts?
Oh, and if anyone wondered whether the Dodgers would feel sorry for themselves losing Manny Ramirez for 50 games, they scored six runs in the first inning Thursday night.
- Gregg Zaun went three for three tonight and still isn't batting over .200?
- Arthur Rhodes hasn't given up a run yet this season? Yup, that same Arthur Rhodes.
- Jason Bay hit a double and a homer in the same inning and drove in four runs in the 12 run Red Sox inning?
- Emilio Bonifacio of the Marlins is batting a buck, eighty-five in May and is down to .250 for the season and is still leading off every game for Florida?
- Ryan Franklin has nine saves already? Oh yeah, he hasn't given up a run yet this season either.
- Brian Bannister is 3-0 with a 1.48 ERA after being recalled from the minors?
- Ken Griffey, Jr. has more walks this season than hits?
- The Mariners have lost seven of their last ten games?
- Ichiro Suzuki has as many strikeouts as runs scored this season?
- Benji Molina of the Giants has already driven in 27 runs?
- Jason Marquis went 0-2 Thursday night and is still batting over .300?
- Brian Giles has been leading off for the Padres and is batting .164?
- Robinson Cano of the Yankees has only one hit in his last 25 At Bats?
- Nick Punto of the Twins is batting .190 but still gets on ESPN's Web Gems every night?
- Jason Bay has as many RBI as David Ortiz and J. D. Drew combined?
- Carlos Beltran is batting .382?
- Miguel Tejada finally hit his first homer of the season Thursday? Wonder where all that power went.
- Mark Buehrle is 5-0?
- Mariano Rivera has already given up as many homers (4) this year as he did in all of 2007 and 2008?
- Bobby Abreu is batting .340 and is 11 for 11 in stolen base attempts?
Oh, and if anyone wondered whether the Dodgers would feel sorry for themselves losing Manny Ramirez for 50 games, they scored six runs in the first inning Thursday night.
Thursday, May 07, 2009
A Banny of Manny - The Fans Stuck in the Fanny
Of course everyone now has heard the news about Manny Ramirez. In case you have been in a cave or something, Manny Ramirez has been banned for fifty games for failing a drug test. He claims that his doctor prescribed something that contained a banned substance. Whether you want to believe that or not, it's up to you. Here in the FanDome, a person's word is believed until proof is offered otherwise.
One emotion that overrides all others is disappointment. There is not disappointment that another great player has been busted for a banned substance. The Fan has said it before and will say it again: Who the heck cares what players are ingesting into their systems. The Fan doesn't give a flying crap. What is disappointing is that we the fans will be deprived of watching Manny Ramirez for the next two months. That's what is so hard to take.
Of course the bulk of the big time writers are stepping all over themselves to get on their sanctimonious soapbox. Check out this Jeff Passan piece of crap. Yeah, Jeff, that's what we want, to never see the best players in baseball again for what most fans consider a gray area. Well, at least in Manny's case, most people already disrespect him already, so this will just add to the ammunition.
One of the things that has made Manny so different from all other players is that there is no BS about him. He doesn't go by any other drummer but the one he hears in his own head. So there is no reason really to disbelieve him. That's also why J. C. Romero is believable. And the question to be asked is if any rules that are so set in stone infallible? It is the same kind of thinking that forces judges to throw away a good professor for ten years for a certain number of pot plants in his basement while a rapist gets five years.
What if Romero and Ramirez are telling the truth? What if GNC sold Romero something that caused him to fail the test? What if Manny's doctor blew it by not being thorough enough to investigate the list of banned substances? Do they deserve the full fifty days? Do they deserve the time when A-Rod admits to using but gets nothing because it was before 2004...supposedly?
The whole thing smells. The Fan doesn't want Manny to be any more branded than he already is. The guy has been a blast to watch and to follow. The Fan has rooted against him for most of his career, but has smiled all along the way. Now, either because of a doctor error, or because of rigid and unworkable rules, it won't be until July that we can again find out what Manny will do next.
The Fan hopes Congress, all the sanctimonious writers and the commissioner are happy.
One emotion that overrides all others is disappointment. There is not disappointment that another great player has been busted for a banned substance. The Fan has said it before and will say it again: Who the heck cares what players are ingesting into their systems. The Fan doesn't give a flying crap. What is disappointing is that we the fans will be deprived of watching Manny Ramirez for the next two months. That's what is so hard to take.
Of course the bulk of the big time writers are stepping all over themselves to get on their sanctimonious soapbox. Check out this Jeff Passan piece of crap. Yeah, Jeff, that's what we want, to never see the best players in baseball again for what most fans consider a gray area. Well, at least in Manny's case, most people already disrespect him already, so this will just add to the ammunition.
One of the things that has made Manny so different from all other players is that there is no BS about him. He doesn't go by any other drummer but the one he hears in his own head. So there is no reason really to disbelieve him. That's also why J. C. Romero is believable. And the question to be asked is if any rules that are so set in stone infallible? It is the same kind of thinking that forces judges to throw away a good professor for ten years for a certain number of pot plants in his basement while a rapist gets five years.
What if Romero and Ramirez are telling the truth? What if GNC sold Romero something that caused him to fail the test? What if Manny's doctor blew it by not being thorough enough to investigate the list of banned substances? Do they deserve the full fifty days? Do they deserve the time when A-Rod admits to using but gets nothing because it was before 2004...supposedly?
The whole thing smells. The Fan doesn't want Manny to be any more branded than he already is. The guy has been a blast to watch and to follow. The Fan has rooted against him for most of his career, but has smiled all along the way. Now, either because of a doctor error, or because of rigid and unworkable rules, it won't be until July that we can again find out what Manny will do next.
The Fan hopes Congress, all the sanctimonious writers and the commissioner are happy.
Game Picks - Thursday: May 7, 2009
After a week of feeling dumb, last night's success did a lot to bring back the good feelings. Imagine picking Pavano to beat the Red Sox and getting it right! Imagine picking Sidney Ponson to win and him winning! How lucky can a picker get? The only blemishes on the scorecard are the amazingly bad Yankees, Albert Pujols and Duncan doing in Maholm and not going with the gut on Randy Johnson sticking with his every other start Jekyll and Hyde routine.
Tonight's picks:
Yesterday: 10-4 Week: 30-28
Tonight's picks:
- Atlanta over Florida: Like Jurrjens over Sanchez. Garrett Anderson had three RBI last night, his first three of the season. The Fan is like the anti-jinx. Whenever a player is bad-mouthed in the FanDome, they have a great game.
- Cardinals over the Pirates: Wellemeyer should get back on track here. Hope Rick Ankiel is going to be okay.
- Mariners over the Royals: As much as the Fan is rooting for Bannister, Washburn is the smarter pick.
- Rockies over the Giants: Not picking against Marquis until further notice. He has a tough matchup against Cain though. Hmm...
- Diamondbacks over the Padres: Dan Haran has been hot of late. Got to go with the hot hand.
- Texas over Oakland: McCarthy over Cahill. Cahill is young and inexperienced but growing. McCarthy is one of the Rangers' better pitchers. Texas out hits the A's.
- Twins over the Orioles: This one is iffy. Bergesen has been very good for the Orioles and Perkins has been erratic for the Twins. Oh well, sticking with the gut on this one.
- Yankees over the Bay Rays: Well, they still have to win some time! Pettitte is due for a win.
- Mets over the Phillies: The Mets got an emotional lift by Santana last night. Pelfrey will build on it and the Mets will jump all over Moyer.
- Reds over the Brewers: Favorite player Micah Owings against Looper who hasn't been good this year.
- Red Sox over Indians: Wakefield is pitching. Enough said.
- Cubs over the Astros: Will take Lilly over Ortiz any day of the week.
- Tigers over the White Sox: Galaragga has been great so far for the Tigers and Buehrle has been up and down. The White Sox don't seem that good overall.
- Angels over the Blue Jays: Weaver is the only healthy Angels' starter so you have to think their one regular pitcher would win over Blue Jay and Ray. Though Blue Jay Ray is kind of catchy.
- Dodgers over the Nationals: Zimmerman has been great for the Nationals, but the Fan can't pick against the Dodgers until they finally lose at home.
Yesterday: 10-4 Week: 30-28
Santana Won't Be Denied
If there is a tougher cookie in all of baseball than Johan Santana, it's hard to imagine. From the set in his eyes to his demeanor and to his results, his body language and his work suggest that the pitcher refuses to be beaten. The Mets may be a mess, but Santana is a rock.
The Fan apologizes for all this hyperbole, but in Santana's case, it really isn't. He has now made six starts for the Mets (including Wednesday night) and has given up four earned runs. Amazingly, he's only won four of those starts. In his second start of the year, he was nearly unhittable giving up only two hits in seven innings against the Marlins and he struck out 13. But errors by Murphy and Castillo cost him two unearned runs and he lost to Josh Johnson, the Marlins' ace.
In his fifth start of the season, he again faced Josh Johnson and gave up a season high two earned runs. But he left the game with a one run lead after seven strong innings. Putz blew the game in the eighth, costing Santana the victory. But Wednesday night against the Phillies, he was amazing.
He was matched up with Chan Ho Park in a matchup that seemed to all be in Santana's favor. But Park pitched like a man fighting for his rotation spot and one hit the Mets through six innings, matching Santana, who had only given up two hits. But the Phillies lifted Park after the sixth and things got ugly in the field for the Phillies. The only run of the game scored on an air mail throw by Felix Pie. Scott Ayre was the hard luck loser.
So now, after six starts, Santana has pitched 39.2 innings. He's only given up 24 hits and twelve walks. His WHIP is well under 1, which is not unusual for Santana as he has done that three times already in his career. He's already struck out 54 batters. Heck, that's only a 12.5 strike out per nine innings and a 4.5 to 1 strike out to walk ratio. Pretty good huh?
The Fan is willing to admit that he was wrong about Santana going to the Yankees last year. The Fan felt at the time that the price was too high, giving up top talent AND having to sign a long term deal with the pitcher. Maybe the price was too high and Sabathia was the better way to go since they still spent the money and kept the prospects. But even so, looking at the current Yankee situation, Santana would be that nice horse you need every fifth day. Sabathia was a warrior for the Brewers down the stretch last year, but he's had a rough start. Santana has never had a rough start. He's just simply one of the best in the game and has been for years.
Santana is now an amazing 113-52 in his career, a .684 winning percentage. He hasn't missed a start in six years. He's won the ERA title three times. He's led the league in strike outs three times. He's got a lifetime WHIP of 1.099. He's struck out 9.3 batters per nine innings for his career.
He has just been amazing and he's not a big guy. He's only six foot and 189 pounds. Yet, he has the will of a ten footer and he is ferocious. For those of us able to watch his starts via the magic of today's media, enjoy. They don't come any better than Johan Santana.
The Fan apologizes for all this hyperbole, but in Santana's case, it really isn't. He has now made six starts for the Mets (including Wednesday night) and has given up four earned runs. Amazingly, he's only won four of those starts. In his second start of the year, he was nearly unhittable giving up only two hits in seven innings against the Marlins and he struck out 13. But errors by Murphy and Castillo cost him two unearned runs and he lost to Josh Johnson, the Marlins' ace.
In his fifth start of the season, he again faced Josh Johnson and gave up a season high two earned runs. But he left the game with a one run lead after seven strong innings. Putz blew the game in the eighth, costing Santana the victory. But Wednesday night against the Phillies, he was amazing.
He was matched up with Chan Ho Park in a matchup that seemed to all be in Santana's favor. But Park pitched like a man fighting for his rotation spot and one hit the Mets through six innings, matching Santana, who had only given up two hits. But the Phillies lifted Park after the sixth and things got ugly in the field for the Phillies. The only run of the game scored on an air mail throw by Felix Pie. Scott Ayre was the hard luck loser.
So now, after six starts, Santana has pitched 39.2 innings. He's only given up 24 hits and twelve walks. His WHIP is well under 1, which is not unusual for Santana as he has done that three times already in his career. He's already struck out 54 batters. Heck, that's only a 12.5 strike out per nine innings and a 4.5 to 1 strike out to walk ratio. Pretty good huh?
The Fan is willing to admit that he was wrong about Santana going to the Yankees last year. The Fan felt at the time that the price was too high, giving up top talent AND having to sign a long term deal with the pitcher. Maybe the price was too high and Sabathia was the better way to go since they still spent the money and kept the prospects. But even so, looking at the current Yankee situation, Santana would be that nice horse you need every fifth day. Sabathia was a warrior for the Brewers down the stretch last year, but he's had a rough start. Santana has never had a rough start. He's just simply one of the best in the game and has been for years.
Santana is now an amazing 113-52 in his career, a .684 winning percentage. He hasn't missed a start in six years. He's won the ERA title three times. He's led the league in strike outs three times. He's got a lifetime WHIP of 1.099. He's struck out 9.3 batters per nine innings for his career.
He has just been amazing and he's not a big guy. He's only six foot and 189 pounds. Yet, he has the will of a ten footer and he is ferocious. For those of us able to watch his starts via the magic of today's media, enjoy. They don't come any better than Johan Santana.
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
Game Picks - Wednesday: May 6, 2009
Another crappy day of picking games! Ugh! Livan pitched a great game. What!? The Rockies couldn't figure out Josh Geer. Who!? The A's couldn't figure out Shane Loux. Who!? The guy with the lifetime 5.72 ERA? Wainwright sucked even more than Brett Myers? Porcello pitched like a pro and Blackburn pitched like a rookie. Come on! The Red Sox beat the Yankees....AGAIN! And the Fan's favorite, Washington and Houston played ten innings, tied 10-10 and had the game suspended by rain. So that pick won't even be known until July. Amazing.
All you can do is keep on trying. So full of pluck against bad luck, here are today's picks:
Yesterday: 5-9. Week: 20-24
All you can do is keep on trying. So full of pluck against bad luck, here are today's picks:
- Twins over the Orioles: Hendrickson has been terrible for the Orioles. The way things are going, he'll throw a no-hitter tonight.
- Yankees over the Bay Rays: Burnett will right the ship. Right? Right? Oh man...
- Mets over the Phillies: Santana has to be better than Chan Ho Park, right?
- Brewers over the Reds: Milwaukee is on a roll. Arroyo has numb fingers. This sounds right.
- Braves over the Marlins: Derek Lowe should beat Graham Taylor. But if the Braves keep batting Garrett Anderson cleanup... [sigh]
- Indians over the Red Sox: This is the upset pick of the day. Not only are the Indians going to beat the Red Sox, but Pavano is going to get the win. The Fan must be off his John Rocker.
- Cubs over the Astros: The heart wants to go with Mike Hampton for the Astros, but the head says Harden will out pitch him.
- Royals over the Mariners: It's becoming sad how the success of the Mariners is becoming tied to whether Griffey DHes or Sweeney. Wait, did the Fan just pick Sidney Ponson to win? Sheesh.
- Pirates over the Cardinals: Have immense confidence in Zack Duke this year. Boggs has been great, but the Fan isn't feeling it.
- Giants over the Rockies: Randy Johnson hasn't thrown back-to-back strong games yet this year. He's great, he stinks, he's great, he stinks. Uh oh, he was great last time. But the Rockies can't hit. We'll see.
- Diamondbacks over the Padres: Great pitching matchup of Garland against Peavy. Garland should win.
- Blue Jays over the Angels: Never bet against Halladay.
- Rangers over the A's: Feldman should be better than Giese. If both stink, Rangers hit more than the A's.
- Dodgers over the Nationals: The Dodgers are 12-0 at home this year. Make that 13-0. Please.
Yesterday: 5-9. Week: 20-24
A Post on Coaches
Was reading the latest post from the great Joe Posnanski about cycles and the Great Pos mentioned Rich Gedman, the former Boston Red Sox catcher. The great thing about reading great writers is that they promote thought and the first thought concerning Gedman was that he was once a great catcher who seemed to go down the tubes due to bad coaching. Coaching in the major leagues is hardly ever mentioned. We all hear about the manager but seldom about coaches. Some seem to be brilliant and other just seem to cause more harm than good. Let's see where this post goes from here.
Let's go back to Rich Gedman. Gedman was a Worcester, Massachusetts native that became a free agent amateur, something you don't see very often. He made his debut with the Red Sox at the age of 21 in 1980. He came in second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1981 as he batted .288. He regressed a bit in 1982 but came back strong in 1983, batting .294. He was a platoon catcher those first three years but in 1984, he became the full time catcher and though his average went down a bit, he hit 24 homers and posted a respectable .818 OPS. He was even better the following year (1985) when he made the All Star team and posted his career best .846 OPS to go along with a .295 Batting average. Then the Red Sox hired Walter Hriniak as its batting coach.
Hriniak was a disciple of the great Charlie Lau, who is often credited with making George Brett the kind of hitter he became with the Kansas City Royals. Lau's theories had to do with staying back in the stance with all the weight on the back foot and exploding into the pitch. It is certainly hard to know if Lau made Brett or if Brett made Brett, but Lau was the hitting guru of the period and as baseball is trendy by rule (look how many pitchers now throw the splitter), teams were scouring the land for Lau disciples. Walter Hriniak was one of those and the Red Sox turned to him.
Ted Williams hated what Hriniak taught. Williams felt that Hriniak's teaching robbed players of their power especially by taking the upper hand off the bat at the end of the swing and trying to hit everything up the middle. In fairness, Wade Boggs and Dwight Evans, two pretty darned good hitters gave Hriniak credit for their success and participated in Hriniak's book on the the subject. Gedman did too, which is amazing as Hriniak probably ruined his career.
The Fan watched all the Red Sox games back then. It was the early days of cable and we in New Hampshire got to see all of the Red Sox games on Channel 38 (pre-NESN days). Gedman always seemed to be an aggressive hitter with a fluid and easy swing. But in 1986, things changed. And the Fan noticed. Gedman's swings began to look like practice swings where he was thinking more about the mechanics of the thing instead of letting it happen. His average fell to .258 and his OPS dropped .107 points.
It got worse from there as Gedman never hit again above .212! And he was done as an effective major league player. The Fan has always thought to this day that Hriniak ruined Rich Gedman.
Jeff Pearlman wrote a book about the 1986 Mets called, "The Bad Guys Won." The book also has a ridiculously long subtitle that won't be repeated here. The book was hugely entertaining. For us to stay on point for this post, one of the assertions Pearlman made in the book was that Mel Stottlemyer, one of the most revered men in baseball, tinkered with Doc Gooden and lessened his effectiveness. According to Pearlman, despite the amazing season Gooden had in 1985, Stottlemyer, his pitching coach didn't like his release point and his arm angle and worked on them.
Pearlman's report is backed up by circumstantial evidence. Gooden gained more than a run a game on his ERA and was not as dominant a strikeout pitcher and never was again. But can Gooden's loss of "stuff" be blamed on Stottlemyer or on drugs or simply on the fact that Gooden was required to throw so many pitches so early in his career? Who knows.
A recent blog post (might have been Buster Olney) was discussing the problems Oliver Perez was having with the Mets. One of the suggestions the post mentioned as a possibility was the Mets bringing back deposed pitching coach, Rick Peterson, because he was regarded as the reason why Perez had so much success in 2007. The suggestion was that Perez flourished under Peterson and maybe Peterson could get Perez back to that place.
Many of the Dodgers young hitters credit Don Mattingly for their development. Most point to the development of Kemp and Ethier and point to Donny Baseball.
The Fan thinks that coaches are a lot like managers. They get more credit than they probably deserve and more blame than they deserve. There are good ones and there are bad ones. Most are probably paid pretty well and have a pretty good life. But they are one of the overlooked aspects of the game. They work with infielders, outfielders, hitters, pitchers. They throw batting practice or spend countless hours hitting fungos to guys on the field. But they are hardly talked about.
Here are a couple of suggestions to fix that. How about a player-based vote on the game's best coaches? The players (and managers) could vote and select the Coach of the Year. How about if those same players and managers voted for coaches for the All Star game instead of having a bunch of managers filling out the All Star coaching staff?
It just seems right that more "ink" be given this bunch of the major leagues' silent staff. Some of us Fans would like to know more about who is good and who is not.
Let's go back to Rich Gedman. Gedman was a Worcester, Massachusetts native that became a free agent amateur, something you don't see very often. He made his debut with the Red Sox at the age of 21 in 1980. He came in second in Rookie of the Year voting in 1981 as he batted .288. He regressed a bit in 1982 but came back strong in 1983, batting .294. He was a platoon catcher those first three years but in 1984, he became the full time catcher and though his average went down a bit, he hit 24 homers and posted a respectable .818 OPS. He was even better the following year (1985) when he made the All Star team and posted his career best .846 OPS to go along with a .295 Batting average. Then the Red Sox hired Walter Hriniak as its batting coach.
Hriniak was a disciple of the great Charlie Lau, who is often credited with making George Brett the kind of hitter he became with the Kansas City Royals. Lau's theories had to do with staying back in the stance with all the weight on the back foot and exploding into the pitch. It is certainly hard to know if Lau made Brett or if Brett made Brett, but Lau was the hitting guru of the period and as baseball is trendy by rule (look how many pitchers now throw the splitter), teams were scouring the land for Lau disciples. Walter Hriniak was one of those and the Red Sox turned to him.
Ted Williams hated what Hriniak taught. Williams felt that Hriniak's teaching robbed players of their power especially by taking the upper hand off the bat at the end of the swing and trying to hit everything up the middle. In fairness, Wade Boggs and Dwight Evans, two pretty darned good hitters gave Hriniak credit for their success and participated in Hriniak's book on the the subject. Gedman did too, which is amazing as Hriniak probably ruined his career.
The Fan watched all the Red Sox games back then. It was the early days of cable and we in New Hampshire got to see all of the Red Sox games on Channel 38 (pre-NESN days). Gedman always seemed to be an aggressive hitter with a fluid and easy swing. But in 1986, things changed. And the Fan noticed. Gedman's swings began to look like practice swings where he was thinking more about the mechanics of the thing instead of letting it happen. His average fell to .258 and his OPS dropped .107 points.
It got worse from there as Gedman never hit again above .212! And he was done as an effective major league player. The Fan has always thought to this day that Hriniak ruined Rich Gedman.
Jeff Pearlman wrote a book about the 1986 Mets called, "The Bad Guys Won." The book also has a ridiculously long subtitle that won't be repeated here. The book was hugely entertaining. For us to stay on point for this post, one of the assertions Pearlman made in the book was that Mel Stottlemyer, one of the most revered men in baseball, tinkered with Doc Gooden and lessened his effectiveness. According to Pearlman, despite the amazing season Gooden had in 1985, Stottlemyer, his pitching coach didn't like his release point and his arm angle and worked on them.
Pearlman's report is backed up by circumstantial evidence. Gooden gained more than a run a game on his ERA and was not as dominant a strikeout pitcher and never was again. But can Gooden's loss of "stuff" be blamed on Stottlemyer or on drugs or simply on the fact that Gooden was required to throw so many pitches so early in his career? Who knows.
A recent blog post (might have been Buster Olney) was discussing the problems Oliver Perez was having with the Mets. One of the suggestions the post mentioned as a possibility was the Mets bringing back deposed pitching coach, Rick Peterson, because he was regarded as the reason why Perez had so much success in 2007. The suggestion was that Perez flourished under Peterson and maybe Peterson could get Perez back to that place.
Many of the Dodgers young hitters credit Don Mattingly for their development. Most point to the development of Kemp and Ethier and point to Donny Baseball.
The Fan thinks that coaches are a lot like managers. They get more credit than they probably deserve and more blame than they deserve. There are good ones and there are bad ones. Most are probably paid pretty well and have a pretty good life. But they are one of the overlooked aspects of the game. They work with infielders, outfielders, hitters, pitchers. They throw batting practice or spend countless hours hitting fungos to guys on the field. But they are hardly talked about.
Here are a couple of suggestions to fix that. How about a player-based vote on the game's best coaches? The players (and managers) could vote and select the Coach of the Year. How about if those same players and managers voted for coaches for the All Star game instead of having a bunch of managers filling out the All Star coaching staff?
It just seems right that more "ink" be given this bunch of the major leagues' silent staff. Some of us Fans would like to know more about who is good and who is not.
Tuesday, May 05, 2009
An Apology to Jon Gibbons
In a recent post extolling the virtues of Cito Gaston, the Fan busted on Jon Gibbons as "the fake war hero." The memory was faulty and that designation belonged to Tim Johnson, who was caught lying about his Vietnam experience and was fired as the Blue Jays' manager. The Fan humbly and sincerely apologizes to Jon Gibbons.
Game Picks - Tuesday: May 5, 2009
Several lessens were learned from yesterday's games. First, Greinke is an animal and until further notice, never pick against him. Duh! Secondly, don't pick against the Dodgers at home. Duh. And last but not least, closers are hell on prognosticators. Grrrrrr...
Here are today's picks:
Yesterday: 6-9. Week: 15-15
Here are today's picks:
- Houston over Washington: Oswalt should prevail in this game. The Nationals have a good line up, but Houston is facing the weaker part of the Nationals' rotation.
- Cleveland over Toronto: The Indians are heating up and Toronto is starting to see that Hill and Scutaro can't keep up this pace forever.
- Giants over the Cubs: It's hard to pick against Sean Marshall, who has been very good, but Lincecum has been too dominant lately.
- Bay Rays over Orioles: Betting that Garza will continue his hot pitching.
- Mariners over the Rangers: Bedard seems a natural over Padilla.
- Brewers over the Pirates: It's hard to pick Suppon to win a game but the Brewers have been hot and Snell has been the least successful Pirate pitcher.
- Twins over the Tigers: Porcello will have his good moments, but the Twins should get to him tonight.
- Yankees over the Red Sox: The Yankees are due to win one of these games. Beckett has been struggling and Chamberlain is coming off a good game.
- Braves over the Mets: Livan Hernandez is pitching for the Mets. Enough said.
- Marlins over the Reds: In the best pitching matchup of the day, Volstad goes for the Marlins and Volquez for the Reds. The Fan will be watching this one.
- Royals over the White Sox: Holy cow, the White Sox are an OLD team. Davies should win.
- Cardinals over the Phillies: Like Wainwright over Myers.
- Rockies over the Padres: Only because the Fan knows who Cook is for the Rockies but has no idea who Geer is for the Padres.
- Oakland over the Angels: The Fan likes this Braden kid. He's become a box score favorite.
- Dodgers over the Diamondbacks: Please refer to the opening paragraph of this post.
Yesterday: 6-9. Week: 15-15
Cito Gaston is the Man
Cito Gaston is once again proving he is one of the game's premier managers no matter what happens the rest of the season. And the question begs to be asked: What the heck were all those teams thinking when they passed him up for eleven years? The Blue Jays are in first place in a division where their names weren't mentioned in any forecasts before the season. We heard it over and over, there are three top teams in the American League East. Well, there are four. And only one of them has Cito Gaston.
There was a time when the Fan did not appreciate Gaston. Living in New Hampshire at the time, the only games we got on television were CBC (Canadian Broadcast Channel) games, mostly Toronto, but sometimes the Expos. There was a gigantic obstacle in ever warming up to that team in the 90s: Tommy Hutton. Hutton, now one of the Marlins' color analysts, was the smarmiest, homiest announcers in the history of the game. He gushed so much about the Blue Jays during telecasts that it was impossible not to root against them.
But you know what? Those teams were fantastic. You can give Gaston credit, but the front office built the team and they had it all--good pitching, great relievers, speed, power, high on-base percentage. It was an awesome team. Henke and then Duane Ward were dominant closers. The starters were warriors (Hentgen, Stottlemyer, Steib, Morris, Key and throw in a little David Cone, Al Leiter, David Wells). Plus they had Joe Carter, Jon Olerud and Robbie Alomar, all in their primes. Dave Winfield was the DH for the first championship and Paul Molitor the second. Two Hall of Famers.
The year after the second championship, the strike shut baseball down and the Blue Jays never recaptured the magic. Three years later, Gaston was fired. What!? The man won two championships! Surely someone else would have hired him after that, right? Please don't call me Shirley. But no one did. Why?
There were dozens of vacancies in the eleven years since Gaston last managed the Blue Jays. What happened to prevent him from getting jobs? Was he a victim of what Joe Torre went through where he was never given credit for winning with great teams? Was it because of his skin color? What was the deal? He wasn't a better manager than Lee Elia, who had two disastrous chances? He wasn't better than Bruce Kimm or Clint Hurdle or any brother named Lachemann?
It was a grave injustice, whatever the reason was. Somebody should have given him the reins and nobody did. Finally, when the fake war hero, Jon Gibbons lost the team, the Blue Jays undid a lot of wrongs and hired Gaston back. And look what he's done. He took over the Blue Jays last year and finished the season, 51-37 and now he has the Blue Jays flying with an 18-9 record. And that record is with three fifths of his starting rotation on the shelf with injuries.
It still seems hard to imagine that the Blue Jays can keep up this pace. Marco Scutaro isn't going to finish with a .400 OBP like he has now. Aaron Hill isn't going to finish with a 150 OPS+ like he has now. Sooner or later, the starting pitching will show cracks of inexperience. But it doesn't matter. Cito Gaston has shown that he can manage with the best of them.
There was a time when the Fan did not appreciate Gaston. Living in New Hampshire at the time, the only games we got on television were CBC (Canadian Broadcast Channel) games, mostly Toronto, but sometimes the Expos. There was a gigantic obstacle in ever warming up to that team in the 90s: Tommy Hutton. Hutton, now one of the Marlins' color analysts, was the smarmiest, homiest announcers in the history of the game. He gushed so much about the Blue Jays during telecasts that it was impossible not to root against them.
But you know what? Those teams were fantastic. You can give Gaston credit, but the front office built the team and they had it all--good pitching, great relievers, speed, power, high on-base percentage. It was an awesome team. Henke and then Duane Ward were dominant closers. The starters were warriors (Hentgen, Stottlemyer, Steib, Morris, Key and throw in a little David Cone, Al Leiter, David Wells). Plus they had Joe Carter, Jon Olerud and Robbie Alomar, all in their primes. Dave Winfield was the DH for the first championship and Paul Molitor the second. Two Hall of Famers.
The year after the second championship, the strike shut baseball down and the Blue Jays never recaptured the magic. Three years later, Gaston was fired. What!? The man won two championships! Surely someone else would have hired him after that, right? Please don't call me Shirley. But no one did. Why?
There were dozens of vacancies in the eleven years since Gaston last managed the Blue Jays. What happened to prevent him from getting jobs? Was he a victim of what Joe Torre went through where he was never given credit for winning with great teams? Was it because of his skin color? What was the deal? He wasn't a better manager than Lee Elia, who had two disastrous chances? He wasn't better than Bruce Kimm or Clint Hurdle or any brother named Lachemann?
It was a grave injustice, whatever the reason was. Somebody should have given him the reins and nobody did. Finally, when the fake war hero, Jon Gibbons lost the team, the Blue Jays undid a lot of wrongs and hired Gaston back. And look what he's done. He took over the Blue Jays last year and finished the season, 51-37 and now he has the Blue Jays flying with an 18-9 record. And that record is with three fifths of his starting rotation on the shelf with injuries.
It still seems hard to imagine that the Blue Jays can keep up this pace. Marco Scutaro isn't going to finish with a .400 OBP like he has now. Aaron Hill isn't going to finish with a 150 OPS+ like he has now. Sooner or later, the starting pitching will show cracks of inexperience. But it doesn't matter. Cito Gaston has shown that he can manage with the best of them.
Monday, May 04, 2009
Players Who Should Retire - Special Edition
After today's posts, it was hoped that the whole "Guys who should retire" topic would be over. But one guy who was left off the list on purpose forced one more post on the subject. That guy? Jason Varitek.
The Fan prattled on quite extensively during the off season on how Varitek wasn't wanted nor worth the kind of money he received last year. But then the Red Sox went ahead and signed him at a fairly low-ball price when Varitek really didn't have any other options.
The Fan stayed fairly quiet on the topic because he started off fairly decently and because the Red Sox Nation is a pretty aggressive bunch and the Fan didn't want to be hung in effigy. But after today, the Fan can't keep quiet on the subject any more, and not just because of Carl Crawford.
First, let the Fan state for the record that a stolen base can be blamed just as much on the pitcher as on the catcher. If the pitcher is too slow to home, then that gives the catcher virtually no chance to catch the runner. Watching the game today, it was obvious that some of Crawford's steals were on the pitcher. But Crawford stole six bases, and on some of those, Varitek had a chance to get him and didn't.
But even that is not the full story. The Bay Rays stole eight bases in the game including Crawford's six. One of the thefts was by the Bay Rays' catcher, his first stolen base of the season. Varitek didn't throw any of them out. That's 0-8. Plus he made a throwing error.
But even that is not the full story. Varitek went 0-3 with two strikeouts. And so in his last two games played, Varitek is 1-7 with four strikeouts. The prediction here is that Varitek, though batting at .239 for the season currently, will end up around the .220 mark or lower.
But even that is not the full story. The Red Sox starting pitching was supposed to be their big strength and so far, the starters are all struggling, except for Tim Wakefield, who, of course, Varitek doesn't catch. He is supposed to be so good with pitchers calling a game. If he gets that kind of credit when they do well, doesn't he deserve the same kind of credit when they don't?
As for Carl Crawford, he tied a modern day record for stolen bases in a game with his six. He joined Otis Nixon (6/16/1991) and Eric Young (6/30/1996) at the top of the modern day list. If you include the dead ball era, Eddie Collins did it twice in 1912 (ten days apart!). But if you go back even farther, George Gore and Billy Hamilton stole seven in a game in the 1800s. Gore's was the earliest, occurring on June 25, 1881. Egads! Now a Gore will claim he invented the stolen base!
The Fan prattled on quite extensively during the off season on how Varitek wasn't wanted nor worth the kind of money he received last year. But then the Red Sox went ahead and signed him at a fairly low-ball price when Varitek really didn't have any other options.
The Fan stayed fairly quiet on the topic because he started off fairly decently and because the Red Sox Nation is a pretty aggressive bunch and the Fan didn't want to be hung in effigy. But after today, the Fan can't keep quiet on the subject any more, and not just because of Carl Crawford.
First, let the Fan state for the record that a stolen base can be blamed just as much on the pitcher as on the catcher. If the pitcher is too slow to home, then that gives the catcher virtually no chance to catch the runner. Watching the game today, it was obvious that some of Crawford's steals were on the pitcher. But Crawford stole six bases, and on some of those, Varitek had a chance to get him and didn't.
But even that is not the full story. The Bay Rays stole eight bases in the game including Crawford's six. One of the thefts was by the Bay Rays' catcher, his first stolen base of the season. Varitek didn't throw any of them out. That's 0-8. Plus he made a throwing error.
But even that is not the full story. Varitek went 0-3 with two strikeouts. And so in his last two games played, Varitek is 1-7 with four strikeouts. The prediction here is that Varitek, though batting at .239 for the season currently, will end up around the .220 mark or lower.
But even that is not the full story. The Red Sox starting pitching was supposed to be their big strength and so far, the starters are all struggling, except for Tim Wakefield, who, of course, Varitek doesn't catch. He is supposed to be so good with pitchers calling a game. If he gets that kind of credit when they do well, doesn't he deserve the same kind of credit when they don't?
As for Carl Crawford, he tied a modern day record for stolen bases in a game with his six. He joined Otis Nixon (6/16/1991) and Eric Young (6/30/1996) at the top of the modern day list. If you include the dead ball era, Eddie Collins did it twice in 1912 (ten days apart!). But if you go back even farther, George Gore and Billy Hamilton stole seven in a game in the 1800s. Gore's was the earliest, occurring on June 25, 1881. Egads! Now a Gore will claim he invented the stolen base!
Game Picks - Monday: May 4, 2009
Had a decent Sunday picking games. It would have been even better if Oakland hadn't blown two leads and lost in extra innings and if Scott "Home Run" Baker had pitched only six innings instead of pitching part of the seventh (he had a shutout through six and then got bombed in the seventh). Here are Monday's picks:
Yesterday's record: 8-4. Week's Record: 8-4.
- Pittsburgh over Milwaukee: Maholm has been the Pirates best pitcher and the Pirates are playing at home.
- Nationals over Astros: Moehler is pitching for the Astros and has been dreadful so far. Lannon is probably the Nationals' best arm.
- Tigers over the Twins: Tigers are at home and like Edwin Jackson better in the matchup with Liriano.
- Yankees over Red Sox: Probably a wish and a prayer for Phil Hughes to have another great outing for the Yankees. Lester is due for a good game for the Red Sox, so this could be an iffy pick.
- Cleveland over Toronto: Tallet has been great for the Blue Jays but is due for a clunker. Carmona has to throw strikes some time, right?
- Bay Rays over Orioles: Will never pick for any team or game that Adam Eaton starts. Plus, the Bay Rays are starting to heat up.
- Braves over Mets: How much must Javier Vazquez love pitching for Bobby Cox after the years of ego bruising he got in Chicago from Ozzie Guillen? John Maine hasn't been sharp for the Mets.
- Marlins over the Reds: Harang is a warrior, but Josh Johnson is the better pitcher.
- Giants over the Cubs: Have picked against Dempster every time and have been right every time. Got to keep that streak going.
- White Sox over the Royals: Greinke isn't going to go the whole season without a loss. He's got to lose some time. Might as well be against the White Sox.
- Phillies over the Cardinals: The schedule says Lohse is supposed to pitch for the Cardinals, but the Fan heard he was hurt or something.
- Padres of the Rockies: The opposite of Dempster. Have picked for the Padres every time Correia has pitched and need to keep that streak going too.
- Angels over the A's: Oakland will be demoralized by losing a fifteen inning game they should have won plus they will be exhausted. Saunders is the Angels' best pitcher.
- Diamondbacks over the Dodgers: Like the matchup of Davis over Stultz. Plus, the Dodgers have to lose at home some time, right?
- Texas over Seattle: This is probably a dumb pick as King Felix Hernandez is a much better matchup over Kevin Millwood. But the Mariners are coming off a fifteen inning game where they used all their relievers.
Yesterday's record: 8-4. Week's Record: 8-4.
Sunday, May 03, 2009
The Vagaries of Picking Games
Major League Baseball is a sport of a great deal of random happenings. The best teams are going to lose sixty times. The worst teams will win at least fifty-five. The best hitters will make an out sixty percent of their plate appearances and even the best pitchers will lose thirty percent of the time and face an even larger percentage of either getting a loss or a no-decision. With all those odds occurring at random times at any given moment, picking winners and losers on a daily basis is no better than an educated crap shoot.
The Fan has been picking games at BallHype.com since the start of Spring Training. Believe it or not, the success rate was higher during Spring Training than since the season started. Figuring out who is going to win on any given day has been a hysterical case of throwing a dart at a swinging dartboard. Take yesterday for example.
The Fan went 9-7 yesterday, which lately, was a good day. Here were the picks and the rationality:
The Fan has been picking games at BallHype.com since the start of Spring Training. Believe it or not, the success rate was higher during Spring Training than since the season started. Figuring out who is going to win on any given day has been a hysterical case of throwing a dart at a swinging dartboard. Take yesterday for example.
The Fan went 9-7 yesterday, which lately, was a good day. Here were the picks and the rationality:
- Washington over the Cardinals: The Nationals' best pitcher, Martis, was pitching and though Joel Pineiro has been hot of late, he was due for a bad start. Score! Got this one on the nose.
- Cubs over Marlins: Simply felt that Lilly was due for a good game and the Cubs were due for a win. This was another good call. Score!
- Yankees over Angels: Felt that Sabathia was up for a big start as the weather heats up. He was great for five innings. Lost the game in the seventh. Wrong.
- This one seemed like a toss up. Come on! It was Bergesen against Ray. Which one would be worse? Picked the Blue Jays because the Orioles have been scuffling. Sure enough, Sherrill blew another save and the Fan scored.
- Phillies over the Mets. Perez was starting for the Mets. Enough said. Turned out it took extra innings, but the Fan scored.
- Braves over Astros: Gave Jerrjens a slight edge over Oswalt. Then the game was delayed an hour and a half due to rain and both starters were out after just a couple of innings making that logic a moot point. Dang rain. Wrong.
- Detroit over Cleveland: Liked Minor over Laffey and Detroit was at home. Turned out it was the bullpens that decided the game and a blown save by Betancourt made this pick a winner.
- Giants over Rockies: Marquis has been great, but figured he was due for an off game. Cain has been great for the Giants who were at home. Wrong! Marquis was brilliant, pitching a complete game. Cain was not.
- Diamondbacks over Brewers: Picked Haran to stay hot and figured Looper was...well...Looper. Score!
- Reds over Pirates: This pick was based on Micah Owings pitching for the Reds and the Fan being a big Fan. Owings gave up four runs in the first and never recovered. He didn't get any hits either. Wrong. Oh well.
- Red Sox over Tampa Bay: Because the Red Sox were due. And they were. Score!
- Twins over Kansas City: Figured Bannister was due for a let down. Figured Perkins had been pitching well. Wrong on both counts. Both teams blew saves and the Royals won in extra innings. Wrong!
- Texas over Chicago: Believe Contreras is done as an effective major league pitcher. McCarthy has been one of the Rangers' best pitchers. Was right about Contreras and McCarthy and though the Rangers' bullpen tried its best to lose the game, they held on to win. Score!
- Mariners over A's: Liked Washburn over Cahill. Both were brilliant, but both left with the game tied 1-1. Oakland's bullpen was better. Wrong!
- Dodgers over Padres: Liked Wolf over Young. Again, both were brilliant but both got a no decision. The Dodgers won in extra innings when Guillermo Mota won in relief--a day after the Fan stated in this space that he should retire. Poetic? Score!
Today's picks: Detroit, Yankees (rooting for Hughes), Orioles (because the Fan is nuts), Reds (like Cueto over Karstens), Mets (because it's their turn?), Cardinals (because the Fan has sane moments), Astros (like Wandy over Reyes), Bay Rays (don't like Brad Penny), Brewers, Twins (Baker is due for a good game), Cubs (have to take Zambrano over Nolasco), Giants (because Barry Zito is the underdog), Dodgers (Billingsley is the Man), Oakland (because Outman is a great name for a pitcher) and the White Sox (because Danks is better than anyone Texas has).
So we'll see what happens.
Who Should Retire - Finale
Have you ever started something you wish you hadn't? And then once you started, you had to finish it whether you wanted to or not? Well, this series of posts is one of those deals. It's a negative subject: What players who are currently playing shouldn't be and should get out of the game? Nice eh? Well, let's knock this thing off and be done with it then.
- Ron Belliard: This Washington National utility player has been playing forever. Despite some decent numbers last year and the year before (who knew?), he's now 34, is no longer even a decent fielder and is currently batting .167 in 24 At Bats without a single extra base hit.
- Michael Barrett: This catcher currently toiling for the Blue Jays, is, frankly, terrible. Why do catchers get to hang around longer than any other field position other than relief pitching? Barrett is only 32, but he's finished as a good catcher (if he ever was a good one). He has averaged an OPS+ of 58 (remember that 100 is league average) the last three years and currently sits at 39. Plus, he throws out base runners less often than Mike Piazza. So...you do the math.
- Eddie "Every Day" Guardado: Eddie is now 39 years old. Not old by LOOGY standards, but even an old LOOGY has to get a guy out once in a while. Every Day Eddie has pitched 5.1 innings in 10 appearances (typical LOOGY work load) but has given up 15 base runners. His ERA is over 10. Enjoy "Every Day" on the golf course, Eddie.
- Troy Percival: The guy has the heart of a lion, but at 39, how much pain and uncertainty is worth not only him but his team? Great guy, great career. Retire again, please.
- Jamie Burke: Face it, the Mariners have a few old guys. Griffey should be retired, but we all wanted him to play one more year. Understood. But Jamie Burke? He's 37. He's a utility player that cannot hit and he's a liability in the field.
- Rich Aurilia: He had a last gasp last year with a pretty decent season at the age of 36. But now a year older, he looks toasted and his 13 OPS+ looks like he's done.
- Eric Chavez: Only 31, has any player looked more like a poster boy of the "once-was-but-will-no-longer-be" club? The guy is cooked, done, baked, overpaid. It's a waste of a roster spot. Make it easier on everyone, Mr. Chavez. Walk away. And take 38 year-old Jason Giambi with you.
- And last but not least: Any player named Hairston.
- Ron Belliard: This Washington National utility player has been playing forever. Despite some decent numbers last year and the year before (who knew?), he's now 34, is no longer even a decent fielder and is currently batting .167 in 24 At Bats without a single extra base hit.
- Michael Barrett: This catcher currently toiling for the Blue Jays, is, frankly, terrible. Why do catchers get to hang around longer than any other field position other than relief pitching? Barrett is only 32, but he's finished as a good catcher (if he ever was a good one). He has averaged an OPS+ of 58 (remember that 100 is league average) the last three years and currently sits at 39. Plus, he throws out base runners less often than Mike Piazza. So...you do the math.
- Eddie "Every Day" Guardado: Eddie is now 39 years old. Not old by LOOGY standards, but even an old LOOGY has to get a guy out once in a while. Every Day Eddie has pitched 5.1 innings in 10 appearances (typical LOOGY work load) but has given up 15 base runners. His ERA is over 10. Enjoy "Every Day" on the golf course, Eddie.
- Troy Percival: The guy has the heart of a lion, but at 39, how much pain and uncertainty is worth not only him but his team? Great guy, great career. Retire again, please.
- Jamie Burke: Face it, the Mariners have a few old guys. Griffey should be retired, but we all wanted him to play one more year. Understood. But Jamie Burke? He's 37. He's a utility player that cannot hit and he's a liability in the field.
- Rich Aurilia: He had a last gasp last year with a pretty decent season at the age of 36. But now a year older, he looks toasted and his 13 OPS+ looks like he's done.
- Eric Chavez: Only 31, has any player looked more like a poster boy of the "once-was-but-will-no-longer-be" club? The guy is cooked, done, baked, overpaid. It's a waste of a roster spot. Make it easier on everyone, Mr. Chavez. Walk away. And take 38 year-old Jason Giambi with you.
- And last but not least: Any player named Hairston.
Saturday, May 02, 2009
Welcome Back, Joe Mauer
There were some questions about how Joe Mauer would fare after a long layoff with a back problem that seriously seemed to threaten his career. He missed the whole month of April and has been this big question mark for the Twins all season. Mauer came of the Disabled List yesterday and played in his first game last night.
Mauer got a standing ovation from the Twins' fans who also had to be thinking how their All-Star catcher would do. They soon got their answer as Mauer drove a fastball the opposite way and into the seats in left field. He eventually wound up 2-3 with a walk.
Obviously, one game isn't going to erase the question mark, but it sure did make the Twins feel better about themselves and their chances.
Welcome back, Joe Mauer. We missed you.
Mauer got a standing ovation from the Twins' fans who also had to be thinking how their All-Star catcher would do. They soon got their answer as Mauer drove a fastball the opposite way and into the seats in left field. He eventually wound up 2-3 with a walk.
Obviously, one game isn't going to erase the question mark, but it sure did make the Twins feel better about themselves and their chances.
Welcome back, Joe Mauer. We missed you.
Longoria and Pena - Best One-Two Punch in Baseball?
The Bay Rays found what they needed to turn their season around: Play the Red Sox! The team from Tampa just seems to triumph against the mighty Sox, especially at home. The game again featured a one-two punch from Evan Longoria and Carlos Pena, who might be, at this point, be the best three-four combination in baseball.
Evan Longoria hit a grand slam and now has seven homers and 28 RBI in just 24 games and is batting .368. His OPS is a ridiculous 1.148. We are watching a superstar develop with this guy who is clearly comfortable in his MLB skin in just his second year. Plus, he has cut back on his strikeouts and is hitting the ball much more consistently. He already has 11 doubles to go along with his homers.
Carlos Pena, meanwhile, has already hit 10 homers in his cleanup position and has knocked in 25 in just those 24 games. He doesn't get the bat on the ball as consistently as Longoria, but when he does hit it, the ball goes a long way. He only has a .256 Batting Average, but his OPS is sitting at .981.
The Bay Rays have a tough stretch of games against the Red Sox and Yankees, but they have started off the stretch, 2-0 and riding off their three-four monsters in the batting order, the AL East is getting interesting.
Evan Longoria hit a grand slam and now has seven homers and 28 RBI in just 24 games and is batting .368. His OPS is a ridiculous 1.148. We are watching a superstar develop with this guy who is clearly comfortable in his MLB skin in just his second year. Plus, he has cut back on his strikeouts and is hitting the ball much more consistently. He already has 11 doubles to go along with his homers.
Carlos Pena, meanwhile, has already hit 10 homers in his cleanup position and has knocked in 25 in just those 24 games. He doesn't get the bat on the ball as consistently as Longoria, but when he does hit it, the ball goes a long way. He only has a .256 Batting Average, but his OPS is sitting at .981.
The Bay Rays have a tough stretch of games against the Red Sox and Yankees, but they have started off the stretch, 2-0 and riding off their three-four monsters in the batting order, the AL East is getting interesting.
More Guys that Should Retire
Yesterday in the FanDome, we started talking about players who somehow still have a job in the major leagues despite not having any business still getting a paycheck. The old Fan got sleepy and didn't really complete the list. Here is the rest of it.
- Greg Zaun: How fortunate was Zaun that the Orioles wanted to scrimp a few bucks by starting Matt Wieters in the minors? The Orioles, of course, made the move to gain a year more of Wieter's services before he can go to arbitration and later, free agency. The Fan railed about it at the time and is still steamed. Zaun? The 38 year-old catcher has an OPS+ right now of 11. That's right, 11. Zaun should walk away as soon as June rolls around and Wieters comes to Baltimore. It's a good thing the Orioles were so conscious of their attendance in this recession and allowed their fans to see a creaky, ancient catcher put together six hits in fifty-four At Bats with only one RBI. Yup. Did the Fan mention that he has only thrown out four base runners out of twenty? Oh nevermind.
- Tony Graffanino: The last time the Indians' infielder played in the majors was 2007 and that year, Graffanino batted .238. It's now two years later and he is two years older and somebody thought this was a good idea? His current OPS+ isn't even a plus, but a -12. The Fan has never seen a minus before on OPS+. But that's what happens when someone goes 3 for 23.
- Alan Embree: Yeah, yeah, he's a LOOGY. But he isn't a particularly good one. And he's 39. Last year, his ERA (4.96) was a full run higher than the year before. So far this year, his ERA is 6.00. Last year, at least he struck out 57 batters in 60 innings. So far this year, he's struck out one in six innings. He isn't fooling anyone.
- Darin Erstad: Erstad isn't that old, but he is the older version of Byrnes. He crashed one too many walls when he was young. So far this year, he has nine strikeouts and only four hits in 23 At Bats. His OPS+ won't stay at 1 like is now (1??) but his average OPS+ the last three years is 64, so it's not like it's going to be pretty some day.
- Doug Brocail and Brian Moehler: Erstad isn't the only one on the Astros that should call it a career. Brocail has given up 12 base runners in 4.1 innings. Eight of those were walks. Brocail is 42 years old and NOT a LOOGY. Moehler has Wang-like numbers. The 37 year-old is 0-2 and has given up 15 hits and 12 earned runs in 4.1 innings. Wow! Hey Moe! Time to go!
You know, this is a thought process that is very draining. All these negative numbers sap a normally upbeat writer. Let's leave it here for now and try to finish it up tomorrow. Ugh. There has to be something FUN to write about.
- Greg Zaun: How fortunate was Zaun that the Orioles wanted to scrimp a few bucks by starting Matt Wieters in the minors? The Orioles, of course, made the move to gain a year more of Wieter's services before he can go to arbitration and later, free agency. The Fan railed about it at the time and is still steamed. Zaun? The 38 year-old catcher has an OPS+ right now of 11. That's right, 11. Zaun should walk away as soon as June rolls around and Wieters comes to Baltimore. It's a good thing the Orioles were so conscious of their attendance in this recession and allowed their fans to see a creaky, ancient catcher put together six hits in fifty-four At Bats with only one RBI. Yup. Did the Fan mention that he has only thrown out four base runners out of twenty? Oh nevermind.
- Tony Graffanino: The last time the Indians' infielder played in the majors was 2007 and that year, Graffanino batted .238. It's now two years later and he is two years older and somebody thought this was a good idea? His current OPS+ isn't even a plus, but a -12. The Fan has never seen a minus before on OPS+. But that's what happens when someone goes 3 for 23.
- Alan Embree: Yeah, yeah, he's a LOOGY. But he isn't a particularly good one. And he's 39. Last year, his ERA (4.96) was a full run higher than the year before. So far this year, his ERA is 6.00. Last year, at least he struck out 57 batters in 60 innings. So far this year, he's struck out one in six innings. He isn't fooling anyone.
- Darin Erstad: Erstad isn't that old, but he is the older version of Byrnes. He crashed one too many walls when he was young. So far this year, he has nine strikeouts and only four hits in 23 At Bats. His OPS+ won't stay at 1 like is now (1??) but his average OPS+ the last three years is 64, so it's not like it's going to be pretty some day.
- Doug Brocail and Brian Moehler: Erstad isn't the only one on the Astros that should call it a career. Brocail has given up 12 base runners in 4.1 innings. Eight of those were walks. Brocail is 42 years old and NOT a LOOGY. Moehler has Wang-like numbers. The 37 year-old is 0-2 and has given up 15 hits and 12 earned runs in 4.1 innings. Wow! Hey Moe! Time to go!
You know, this is a thought process that is very draining. All these negative numbers sap a normally upbeat writer. Let's leave it here for now and try to finish it up tomorrow. Ugh. There has to be something FUN to write about.
Friday, May 01, 2009
Some Players That Should Retire
The 2009 MLB off season was a strange one and a lot of players had a hard time finding jobs (at least for the kind of money they expected). But some others did find jobs that shouldn't have and are still working for clubs and shouldn't be. Here are just a few:
- Tom Gordon: Gordon is now 42 and is in his 21st season. A 42 year-old reliever that is not a LOOGY is not a good idea. He blew the game for Arizona last night. This follows the last two seasons when his ERA was 4.72 (2007) and 5.16 (2008). Enough is enough, Flash.
- Gary Sheffield: He got his 500th home run. Now it's time to go into that good night. A .725 OPS last year and is currently sitting at .691 this year should be enough to indicate that he is done as a player. It's time for him to swagger on out of there.
- Guillermo Mota: Now 35, or as close to 35 as anyone originally from the Dominican Republic can be, Mota had a decent season for Milwaukee last year, but has given up 15 base runners already in seven innings this year. Why is this Mota still running?
- Tony Clark: Everyone loves Tony Clark. He's a great clubhouse guy, but he's now 36 and batting .160. It's time to start your coaching career, Tony.
- Eric Byrnes: Now 33, he is giving every indication that he is Byrned out. He hit .209 last year and is sitting at .176 this year. Looks like he hit one wall too many.
- Garrett Anderson: Guess it seemed like a good idea to the Braves. But he is batting .200 with no homers and only three doubles. Here's an idea. How about you and Greg Norman both tell the Braves that it was fun, but thanks anyway.
- Jose Contreras: Now 37 years old (Best we can tell anyway), Contreras is now 0-3 with a WHIP of 1.72. Enough said. He's done.
More tomorrow.
- Tom Gordon: Gordon is now 42 and is in his 21st season. A 42 year-old reliever that is not a LOOGY is not a good idea. He blew the game for Arizona last night. This follows the last two seasons when his ERA was 4.72 (2007) and 5.16 (2008). Enough is enough, Flash.
- Gary Sheffield: He got his 500th home run. Now it's time to go into that good night. A .725 OPS last year and is currently sitting at .691 this year should be enough to indicate that he is done as a player. It's time for him to swagger on out of there.
- Guillermo Mota: Now 35, or as close to 35 as anyone originally from the Dominican Republic can be, Mota had a decent season for Milwaukee last year, but has given up 15 base runners already in seven innings this year. Why is this Mota still running?
- Tony Clark: Everyone loves Tony Clark. He's a great clubhouse guy, but he's now 36 and batting .160. It's time to start your coaching career, Tony.
- Eric Byrnes: Now 33, he is giving every indication that he is Byrned out. He hit .209 last year and is sitting at .176 this year. Looks like he hit one wall too many.
- Garrett Anderson: Guess it seemed like a good idea to the Braves. But he is batting .200 with no homers and only three doubles. Here's an idea. How about you and Greg Norman both tell the Braves that it was fun, but thanks anyway.
- Jose Contreras: Now 37 years old (Best we can tell anyway), Contreras is now 0-3 with a WHIP of 1.72. Enough said. He's done.
More tomorrow.
Nobody Will Catch the Dodgers
One thing seems evident at the end of April: The Los Angeles Dodgers are going to win the National League West. They have the second best record in the National League and play in a weak division where no other team seems capable of putting together an 85 win season. The Dodgers seem well-rounded and have a manager that will keep them relaxed and sure of what their roles will be. Need a few more reasons? Let's take a look.
Solid Lineup
The Dodgers' lineup is solid from first to eight. Furcal is off to a slow start, but he will get back to his career averages at least before the season is out. His double play partner, Orlando Hudson is a solid, league average hitter. Loney is solid. Casey Blake is an upgrade from Blake DeWitt. Manny is Manny and takes all the pressure off of all the other hitters and seems to be in an unbelievable zone since he got to LA. Matt Kemp has a .977 OPS and seems to be filling into the kind of hitter that was predicted for him. And Andre Ethier is also blossoming as a hitter and leads the team in RBI and batting behind Manny is going to keep him there. Russell Martin is off to a slow start, but as long as it's not health related, then he should get back to his career average of .280 by season's end.
Solid Bench
Juan Pierre should never again be a starter, but he is solid as a backup (even if he is going to pout a bit). Brad Ausmus seems to be enjoying his backup status in LA and is following a great spring with a great April in limited duty. Mark Loretta and Doug Mienkiewicz (who has the single hardest name to spell in the majors) are solid. DeWitt might be a liability as is Juan Castro, but that's hardly game changing.
Solid Starting Pitching
Chad Billingsley is an ace in all senses of the word. He is now 39-19 in his young career with a 3.25 ERA. Each year, his Walks per 9 innings decreases and he keeps the ball in the yard with a high strikeout rate. He's already 4-0 this year. Randy Wolf is solid, if unspectacular. He'll keep you in the game for six innings, doesn't walk many and is a fighter. Clayton Kershaw is scary talented. He's off to a rough start, but if he can find the plate a bit more consistently, he'll be as good as Billingsley. And he is only 20 years old. Eric Stults and John McDonald are question marks. They are both inexperienced and are walking too many batters. But heck, the Dodgers have the resources to go out and get somebody if they need to. Pedro Martinez comes to mind.
Great Closer
Joe Torre, more than any other manager, relies heavily on his closer and Jonathan Broxton has come in to his own in that capacity. He has been dominating this season with 16 strikeouts in 10 innings and has already won two games and saved six others. His current ERA is 0.90.
The Bullpen
The rest of the bullpen is kind of iffy. Ronald Belisario has been decent. Will Ohman is solid and Ramon Troncoso has had a good start. Kuo is reliable, but the rest have been pretty bad. Guillermo Mota is nearly eighty years old and should be cut.
Manager and Coaching Staff
Larry Bowa is one of the best coaches in baseball. Mattingly is respected and his players are responding to him as batting coach. Rick Honeycutt is smart and prepared and will get the most out of his pitching staff. Mariano Duncan has followed Torre from New York. And Joe Torre is Joe Torre. One of the best.
The Dodgers have a few weaknesses and will have a bad stretch or two. But overall, the team is as solid as any in the National League and certainly much more talented than any other rival in their division.
Solid Lineup
The Dodgers' lineup is solid from first to eight. Furcal is off to a slow start, but he will get back to his career averages at least before the season is out. His double play partner, Orlando Hudson is a solid, league average hitter. Loney is solid. Casey Blake is an upgrade from Blake DeWitt. Manny is Manny and takes all the pressure off of all the other hitters and seems to be in an unbelievable zone since he got to LA. Matt Kemp has a .977 OPS and seems to be filling into the kind of hitter that was predicted for him. And Andre Ethier is also blossoming as a hitter and leads the team in RBI and batting behind Manny is going to keep him there. Russell Martin is off to a slow start, but as long as it's not health related, then he should get back to his career average of .280 by season's end.
Solid Bench
Juan Pierre should never again be a starter, but he is solid as a backup (even if he is going to pout a bit). Brad Ausmus seems to be enjoying his backup status in LA and is following a great spring with a great April in limited duty. Mark Loretta and Doug Mienkiewicz (who has the single hardest name to spell in the majors) are solid. DeWitt might be a liability as is Juan Castro, but that's hardly game changing.
Solid Starting Pitching
Chad Billingsley is an ace in all senses of the word. He is now 39-19 in his young career with a 3.25 ERA. Each year, his Walks per 9 innings decreases and he keeps the ball in the yard with a high strikeout rate. He's already 4-0 this year. Randy Wolf is solid, if unspectacular. He'll keep you in the game for six innings, doesn't walk many and is a fighter. Clayton Kershaw is scary talented. He's off to a rough start, but if he can find the plate a bit more consistently, he'll be as good as Billingsley. And he is only 20 years old. Eric Stults and John McDonald are question marks. They are both inexperienced and are walking too many batters. But heck, the Dodgers have the resources to go out and get somebody if they need to. Pedro Martinez comes to mind.
Great Closer
Joe Torre, more than any other manager, relies heavily on his closer and Jonathan Broxton has come in to his own in that capacity. He has been dominating this season with 16 strikeouts in 10 innings and has already won two games and saved six others. His current ERA is 0.90.
The Bullpen
The rest of the bullpen is kind of iffy. Ronald Belisario has been decent. Will Ohman is solid and Ramon Troncoso has had a good start. Kuo is reliable, but the rest have been pretty bad. Guillermo Mota is nearly eighty years old and should be cut.
Manager and Coaching Staff
Larry Bowa is one of the best coaches in baseball. Mattingly is respected and his players are responding to him as batting coach. Rick Honeycutt is smart and prepared and will get the most out of his pitching staff. Mariano Duncan has followed Torre from New York. And Joe Torre is Joe Torre. One of the best.
The Dodgers have a few weaknesses and will have a bad stretch or two. But overall, the team is as solid as any in the National League and certainly much more talented than any other rival in their division.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Here Come the Twins!
When the Twins traded Johan Santana last year, they were given up for dead. And yet, despite an uncharacteristically porous defense and some clunkers on the pitching staff (Boof, Livan and Everyday Eddie), finished in second place with 88 wins. Their final record was pretty much the same as it was the year before. This year, they faced a start of the season with Joe Mauer on the disabled list and they had a terrible start. Again, they were given up for dead. But now the Twins have won seven of eleven and they are right in the thick of the scrum near the top of the AL Central. And Mauer is on his way back.
In the first eleven games of the season, the Twins' run differential was -30. Ouch. But in the last eleven, they've been much better at +8. So their overall differential of -22 is misleading. The biggest difference so far has been the defense. Last year, the Twins made 108 errors in 162 games. So far this year, they have only made 8 in 22 games. That's a vast improvement over a year ago. And astoundingly, the standard infield set of Crede (0), Punto (1) and Alexi Casilla (1) have only made two errors between them.
Jose Morales, who is filling in for Redmond, who was filling in for Mauer, has been a surprise thus far and has Mauer-like production. His current OPS+ is 132, which is excellent.
At least half of the team has struggled offensively. That same infield trio that is doing so well in the field is wasting away at the plate in an an astounding way. The OPS+ numbers of the trio? Casilla (29), Punto (63) and Crede (89). 29! You have to be nearly comatose to have that low a number. Crede's 89 is actually not bad for him, but he had a hot start and has faded of late. Brenden Harris has played in half of the Twins' games and has filled in for the light hitting crew at all three positions and is hitting .350. So that helps. It also helps that he hasn't made any errors either.
All of the offense has been supplied thus far by Morales, Harris, Morneau, Span and a surprising Jason Kubel, who has an OPS+ thus far of 148. That's fantastic. But those guys need to get some help from the rest of the outfielders and the infielders.
Ron Gardenshire got in hot water over the winter by stating that his outfield was set with Span, Cuddeyer and Carlos Gomez. The obvious omission was Delmon Young. Gardenshire later backtracked and stated that all four outfielders would get plenty of At Bats. Span has been great, but Gomez, Cuddeyer and Young are all struggling mightily. The trio has OPS+ numbers of 47, 65 and 71 respectively (before Wednesday night's game) and all have an OBP under .300. What looked like a strength has been a real weakness so far.
The return of Mauer will be a boost, but with the offense Morales has been providing, it won't be that much of a boost except that Mauer is a known entity. The team will go as far as their pitching can take them. Their team pitching stats are in the bottom third of the American League thus far and their 5.37 is not a pleasant sight. But they have only had three poorly pitched games out of the last eleven and all of their starters are intriguing.
Scott Baker had a really good year last year, but this year has been more like "Home Run" Baker as he has given up seven homers already in 21 innings. And his 9.82 ERA is rather ugly. But some of his stats seem to indicate he will be okay. His strikeout to walk ratio is 3 to 1. And his stikeouts per nine innings of 7.4 is exactly the same as last year. Those numbers seem to favor him bouncing back and being okay the rest of the season.
Glen Perkins has pitched really well and is a hard-luck 1-2 despite a 2.48 ERA. His WHIP is 1 even and he hasn't given up a homer in four starts. He also has better than a 3 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio. He looks great so far. Nick Blackburn pitched well Wednesday night and upped his record to 2-1. His appearance will push his ERA+ over 100.
Kevin Slowey has some funky numbers but has been great his last two starts. The number that jumps out immediately is that he has given up 36 hits in only 26+ innings of work. But he has 19 strikeouts in those 26+ innings and incredibly, has only walked two batters all season. If he keeps pitching like he has the last two outings, he'll be great.
The puzzling pitcher on the staff is Francisco Liriano. He's not the dominating pitcher he was two years ago and he is currently 0-4 with a 6.04 ERA. But his numbers aren't terrible except that his walks are high at 3.5 per nine innings. He's not as bad as his numbers indicate but he's not going to be great like he once may have been.
But overall, a rotation of Liriano, Slowey, Blackburn, Perkins and Baker can be very competitive. The bullpen, on the other hand has been pretty bad with the exception of Nathan at the end. He is his usual dominant self. But he isn't getting much help out there. In limited action, Jose Mijares has been dominating and might make a nice 1-2 punch with Nathan.
After mulling over the above information, the Twins are a pretty good bet to be in the mix of things in the AL Central. They pitch well and field well and have a few hitting stars. They need more offense from their infield and from three quarters of their outfield, but if that picks up, this could be a fun team to watch all summer.
In the first eleven games of the season, the Twins' run differential was -30. Ouch. But in the last eleven, they've been much better at +8. So their overall differential of -22 is misleading. The biggest difference so far has been the defense. Last year, the Twins made 108 errors in 162 games. So far this year, they have only made 8 in 22 games. That's a vast improvement over a year ago. And astoundingly, the standard infield set of Crede (0), Punto (1) and Alexi Casilla (1) have only made two errors between them.
Jose Morales, who is filling in for Redmond, who was filling in for Mauer, has been a surprise thus far and has Mauer-like production. His current OPS+ is 132, which is excellent.
At least half of the team has struggled offensively. That same infield trio that is doing so well in the field is wasting away at the plate in an an astounding way. The OPS+ numbers of the trio? Casilla (29), Punto (63) and Crede (89). 29! You have to be nearly comatose to have that low a number. Crede's 89 is actually not bad for him, but he had a hot start and has faded of late. Brenden Harris has played in half of the Twins' games and has filled in for the light hitting crew at all three positions and is hitting .350. So that helps. It also helps that he hasn't made any errors either.
All of the offense has been supplied thus far by Morales, Harris, Morneau, Span and a surprising Jason Kubel, who has an OPS+ thus far of 148. That's fantastic. But those guys need to get some help from the rest of the outfielders and the infielders.
Ron Gardenshire got in hot water over the winter by stating that his outfield was set with Span, Cuddeyer and Carlos Gomez. The obvious omission was Delmon Young. Gardenshire later backtracked and stated that all four outfielders would get plenty of At Bats. Span has been great, but Gomez, Cuddeyer and Young are all struggling mightily. The trio has OPS+ numbers of 47, 65 and 71 respectively (before Wednesday night's game) and all have an OBP under .300. What looked like a strength has been a real weakness so far.
The return of Mauer will be a boost, but with the offense Morales has been providing, it won't be that much of a boost except that Mauer is a known entity. The team will go as far as their pitching can take them. Their team pitching stats are in the bottom third of the American League thus far and their 5.37 is not a pleasant sight. But they have only had three poorly pitched games out of the last eleven and all of their starters are intriguing.
Scott Baker had a really good year last year, but this year has been more like "Home Run" Baker as he has given up seven homers already in 21 innings. And his 9.82 ERA is rather ugly. But some of his stats seem to indicate he will be okay. His strikeout to walk ratio is 3 to 1. And his stikeouts per nine innings of 7.4 is exactly the same as last year. Those numbers seem to favor him bouncing back and being okay the rest of the season.
Glen Perkins has pitched really well and is a hard-luck 1-2 despite a 2.48 ERA. His WHIP is 1 even and he hasn't given up a homer in four starts. He also has better than a 3 to 1 strikeout to walk ratio. He looks great so far. Nick Blackburn pitched well Wednesday night and upped his record to 2-1. His appearance will push his ERA+ over 100.
Kevin Slowey has some funky numbers but has been great his last two starts. The number that jumps out immediately is that he has given up 36 hits in only 26+ innings of work. But he has 19 strikeouts in those 26+ innings and incredibly, has only walked two batters all season. If he keeps pitching like he has the last two outings, he'll be great.
The puzzling pitcher on the staff is Francisco Liriano. He's not the dominating pitcher he was two years ago and he is currently 0-4 with a 6.04 ERA. But his numbers aren't terrible except that his walks are high at 3.5 per nine innings. He's not as bad as his numbers indicate but he's not going to be great like he once may have been.
But overall, a rotation of Liriano, Slowey, Blackburn, Perkins and Baker can be very competitive. The bullpen, on the other hand has been pretty bad with the exception of Nathan at the end. He is his usual dominant self. But he isn't getting much help out there. In limited action, Jose Mijares has been dominating and might make a nice 1-2 punch with Nathan.
After mulling over the above information, the Twins are a pretty good bet to be in the mix of things in the AL Central. They pitch well and field well and have a few hitting stars. They need more offense from their infield and from three quarters of their outfield, but if that picks up, this could be a fun team to watch all summer.
Wednesday, April 29, 2009
Curious Case of Julio Lugo
It seems hard to account for the Boston Red Sox and their love affair with Julio Lugo. Coming off the disabled list last night, he was immediately plugged back into the lineup and though he contributed with the bat, made an error in his first game back. That now gives the shortstop 17 errors in his last 82 games.
Granted, Nick Green's lifetime stats don't give much indication that he's a better player. But he was having a pretty good season and the Sox had a ten game winning streak with him in there. Why mess with that? It's also granted that Nick Green isn't a permanent solution. But Lugo is a worse solution at this point in his career.
Now 33 years old, Lugo has not had an impressive last three years in the field. His fielding percentage compared to league average looks like this the last three years: 2006 - .954/.971, 2007 - .968/.970, 2008 - .945/.972. But we all now know that fielding percentage does not tell the full story. Though Lugo's career Range Factor is above league average, he has not come close to the league average for the past two years. Here is a breakdown: 2007 - 4.21/4.27, 2007 - 3.70/4.39. That's an alarming decline.
In one more fielding statistic, there is a stat called Total Fielding Runs Above Average. In this measure, zero (0) is neutral. Lugo's measure for the last three years: -7.9, -0.4 and -7.0. By the way, all three of the fielding measures the Fan has indicated Lugo rated below Derek Jeter (who has become the supposed standard for the worst fielding shortstop in the majors) last year.
The Red Sox value defense and it is to be sure that their top line statistical analysts must be aware of these numbers. At this point, Green is performing better. But if anyone was available who could play the position better, the Red Sox should make a move.
Granted, Nick Green's lifetime stats don't give much indication that he's a better player. But he was having a pretty good season and the Sox had a ten game winning streak with him in there. Why mess with that? It's also granted that Nick Green isn't a permanent solution. But Lugo is a worse solution at this point in his career.
Now 33 years old, Lugo has not had an impressive last three years in the field. His fielding percentage compared to league average looks like this the last three years: 2006 - .954/.971, 2007 - .968/.970, 2008 - .945/.972. But we all now know that fielding percentage does not tell the full story. Though Lugo's career Range Factor is above league average, he has not come close to the league average for the past two years. Here is a breakdown: 2007 - 4.21/4.27, 2007 - 3.70/4.39. That's an alarming decline.
In one more fielding statistic, there is a stat called Total Fielding Runs Above Average. In this measure, zero (0) is neutral. Lugo's measure for the last three years: -7.9, -0.4 and -7.0. By the way, all three of the fielding measures the Fan has indicated Lugo rated below Derek Jeter (who has become the supposed standard for the worst fielding shortstop in the majors) last year.
The Red Sox value defense and it is to be sure that their top line statistical analysts must be aware of these numbers. At this point, Green is performing better. But if anyone was available who could play the position better, the Red Sox should make a move.
Phil Hughes Brilliant in First Start for the Yankees
The Fan is sitting on the middle of a teeter-totter in how to approach this post concerning Phil Hughes' great first start of the 2009 season. The post hinges on a post written when Phil Hughes was sent down near the end of Spring Training. You may want to read that first. The teetering is this: Either the Fan was brilliant and correct in stating that Hughes should have started the season in the rotation or the Yankees were brilliant in sending him down for three confidence-boosting starts in AAA before his first start of the 2009 season. Hmm... It could go either way, couldn't it?
See, that's the weakness of the blogger. We who write on the sidelines don't know what's going on inside the head of a young player like Phil Hughes. We don't have access to the kid where he can be asked: "So Phil, did you need the three games in AAA to boost your confidence and was that the key to you first start this year in the bigs?"
Of course, Hughes seems like a nice kid and would probably answer: "Well, it's hard to say. The manager and General Manager here are great people with a lot of knowledge. I felt like I pitched great in the winter league and carried that over into Spring Training. But it has all worked out great and I look forward to contributing to the Yankees in any way I can." Which of course would tell you nothing anyway.
The game and covering the game has become (even in this space) about looking at numbers and projections and what the data is saying. One of the reasons that is comforting is that it's all there in front of you for analysis. When a blogger or any professional writer, for that matter, starts to speculate about what goes on in the head of a young player, things get a little dicey.
The dicey part is making a statement such as: "Well, too much pressure was put on Hughes last year when the Yankees didn't make the Santana trade. He started poorly and lost his confidence." Do we know that? Maybe he wasn't fully healthy. Maybe his mechanics were messed up. Maybe it doesn't have anything to do with confidence. All we know are the facts that show that he was great in 2007 until he hurt his leg and was pretty good after he came back from that injury. Then last year, he started really poorly, never won a game all year long and looked terrible.
The Fan is going to take the low road here and push the playground equipment towards the side of sticking with the original post. Hughes should have started the season in the rotation, perhaps even ahead of Chamberlain, based simply on his success in the winter league and in his stellar Spring Training. In the Fan's mind, he out pitched Chamberlain in Spring Training and should have won the fifth spot. Those three wins in AAA could have been in the bigs and the Yankees surely could have used them the way things started this season.
The job should always go to the person who is performing better. Right? Doesn't that make sense? Isn't that why Melky Cabrera started tonight instead of Gardner because right now, he is hitting better than Gardner?
We can speculate all we want about Phil Hughes' mental state coming into the season. He was writing a blog, but hasn't posted in over a year there, so no help there. But whatever is stated concerning that subject is slippery. Winter league results and Spring Training results showed a pretty darn good and confident pitcher.
So the original post stands. That is unless Hughes is quoted stating differently, and if that happens, then the Yankees were brilliant and the Fan is a dope. Or, it was just one start and Hughes could be terrible the rest of the year and we're all dopes. That's life.
See, that's the weakness of the blogger. We who write on the sidelines don't know what's going on inside the head of a young player like Phil Hughes. We don't have access to the kid where he can be asked: "So Phil, did you need the three games in AAA to boost your confidence and was that the key to you first start this year in the bigs?"
Of course, Hughes seems like a nice kid and would probably answer: "Well, it's hard to say. The manager and General Manager here are great people with a lot of knowledge. I felt like I pitched great in the winter league and carried that over into Spring Training. But it has all worked out great and I look forward to contributing to the Yankees in any way I can." Which of course would tell you nothing anyway.
The game and covering the game has become (even in this space) about looking at numbers and projections and what the data is saying. One of the reasons that is comforting is that it's all there in front of you for analysis. When a blogger or any professional writer, for that matter, starts to speculate about what goes on in the head of a young player, things get a little dicey.
The dicey part is making a statement such as: "Well, too much pressure was put on Hughes last year when the Yankees didn't make the Santana trade. He started poorly and lost his confidence." Do we know that? Maybe he wasn't fully healthy. Maybe his mechanics were messed up. Maybe it doesn't have anything to do with confidence. All we know are the facts that show that he was great in 2007 until he hurt his leg and was pretty good after he came back from that injury. Then last year, he started really poorly, never won a game all year long and looked terrible.
The Fan is going to take the low road here and push the playground equipment towards the side of sticking with the original post. Hughes should have started the season in the rotation, perhaps even ahead of Chamberlain, based simply on his success in the winter league and in his stellar Spring Training. In the Fan's mind, he out pitched Chamberlain in Spring Training and should have won the fifth spot. Those three wins in AAA could have been in the bigs and the Yankees surely could have used them the way things started this season.
The job should always go to the person who is performing better. Right? Doesn't that make sense? Isn't that why Melky Cabrera started tonight instead of Gardner because right now, he is hitting better than Gardner?
We can speculate all we want about Phil Hughes' mental state coming into the season. He was writing a blog, but hasn't posted in over a year there, so no help there. But whatever is stated concerning that subject is slippery. Winter league results and Spring Training results showed a pretty darn good and confident pitcher.
So the original post stands. That is unless Hughes is quoted stating differently, and if that happens, then the Yankees were brilliant and the Fan is a dope. Or, it was just one start and Hughes could be terrible the rest of the year and we're all dopes. That's life.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
How are the Phillies Like a Basketball Game?
The old saying goes that the only important part of a basketball game is the last three minutes. The start of the game is just filler until the game goes into overdrive in a final flurry. The Phillies are Major League Baseball's equivalent as it doesn't matter what happens in the early innings. Just tune in to the last three innings. And doesn't it seem that it's been this way for the Phillies for the last three years?
So far this season, seven of their ten wins have occurred from the seventh inning on. Six of those were come from behind wins. And they have done it all different ways with walks, singles, stolen bases and of course, home runs. Let's recap those seven games:
- April 8, 2009: Victims - Braves. The Phillies had lost their first two games of the season and were headed to a third and were down 10-3 going into the seventh inning. They scored eight runs in the seventh inning with four of those runs coming on walks. They score another in the eight and win 12-10.
- April 12, 2009: Victim - Rockies. The Fighting Phils were behind 5-3 going into the top of the eighth. They hit a two run homer off of Corpas in the eighth and a two run homer or of Street in the ninth and win 7-5.
- April 14, 2009: Victim - Nationals. The Phillies had given up two leads themselves in this game and were tied 4-4 going into the seventh inning. They scored four runs in the seventh and another run in the eighth and then hang on for dear life and win 9-8.
- April 19, 2009: Victim - Padres (who were very hot at the time). The Phillies were down 4-2 going into the eighth inning. They scored two runs in the eighth and a run in the ninth and won 5-4. The Padres regular closer, Heath Bell was gassed from the previous couple of nights and was given this day off as rest. Too bad for the Padres, but great for the Phillies.
- April 24, 2009: Victim - Marlins (who were very hot at the time). The Phillies were just shooting blanks for eight innings against Josh Johnson and were down 3-0 going into the ninth inning. Unfortunately for the Marlins, they have a weakness in closing games with Matt Lindstrom. Three walks, a grand slam and a solo homer later, they scored seven runs and shocked the Marlins, 7-3.
- April 25, 2009: Victim - Marlins (who are not hot any more). The Phillies were in their favorite position and were down a run, 4-3 going into the ninth inning. The Marlins decide against Lindstrom. Didn't matter. The Phillies scored a run in the ninth and then two more in the tenth and win 6-4. In the ninth, they scored their run on a walk, a single, a wild pitch and a ground out. In the tenth, they hit four singles.
- April 27, 2009: Victim - Nationals (again). The game was tied, 7-7, going into the top of the eighth and the Nationals scored four runs to go ahead 11-7. By this point, the Nationals had hit five homers including two from Zimmerman. Game over right? Not! In the bottom of the eighth, they start the inning with a strikeout. Pedro Feliz (he's still playing??) hits a single. Rollins doubles. Men on second and third. Victorino hits a sacrifice fly. Two outs. No problem. Utley singles. 11-9. The Nationals pull Mock and put Hanrahan in there. Wild pitch. Utley goes to second. Ryan Howard is walked. Jayson Werth walks. Bases loaded. Raul Ibanez, who everyone said was a stupid signing for the Phillies, hits a grand slam (his sixth homer of the young season). 13-11, Phillies win.
Amazing stuff, eh? But the Phillies did this last year and the year before. They are a bookie's nightmare. You think the Phillies will lose and they don't. There doesn't seem to be a way to close them out.
Granted, they have hardly faced the cream of the league's bullpens, but even so, they have hit 14 of their season's 24 homers in the last three innings. That works out to be 58% of their season's homers in 33% of the game. They have hit 11 of their season's 24 homers in the eighth and ninth innings. That's 45% of their season's homers in the last 22% of the games.
The Phillies have a .990 team OPS (before tonight's game) in the eighth inning this year. Think that's good? They have a 1.136 team OPS in the ninth inning this year. Holy Cow! So it doesn't matter that they have a .540 OPS in the fifth inning or a little over .600 in the sixth. All that matters is the end of the game. And that's when they just find a way to get the game won.
After watching the Red Sox beat the Yankees in the third game of that series, the one thought the Fan had while watching it unfurl is that the Red Sox simply wanted it more than the Yankees. The same can be said of the Phillies. They just want to win the game at the end more than the other team wants to close them out. Seven out of ten wins in the last three innings. Six of those come from behind games. That's a team that simply wants to win and it doesn't matter what the obstacle is or how deep the hole.
So far this season, seven of their ten wins have occurred from the seventh inning on. Six of those were come from behind wins. And they have done it all different ways with walks, singles, stolen bases and of course, home runs. Let's recap those seven games:
- April 8, 2009: Victims - Braves. The Phillies had lost their first two games of the season and were headed to a third and were down 10-3 going into the seventh inning. They scored eight runs in the seventh inning with four of those runs coming on walks. They score another in the eight and win 12-10.
- April 12, 2009: Victim - Rockies. The Fighting Phils were behind 5-3 going into the top of the eighth. They hit a two run homer off of Corpas in the eighth and a two run homer or of Street in the ninth and win 7-5.
- April 14, 2009: Victim - Nationals. The Phillies had given up two leads themselves in this game and were tied 4-4 going into the seventh inning. They scored four runs in the seventh and another run in the eighth and then hang on for dear life and win 9-8.
- April 19, 2009: Victim - Padres (who were very hot at the time). The Phillies were down 4-2 going into the eighth inning. They scored two runs in the eighth and a run in the ninth and won 5-4. The Padres regular closer, Heath Bell was gassed from the previous couple of nights and was given this day off as rest. Too bad for the Padres, but great for the Phillies.
- April 24, 2009: Victim - Marlins (who were very hot at the time). The Phillies were just shooting blanks for eight innings against Josh Johnson and were down 3-0 going into the ninth inning. Unfortunately for the Marlins, they have a weakness in closing games with Matt Lindstrom. Three walks, a grand slam and a solo homer later, they scored seven runs and shocked the Marlins, 7-3.
- April 25, 2009: Victim - Marlins (who are not hot any more). The Phillies were in their favorite position and were down a run, 4-3 going into the ninth inning. The Marlins decide against Lindstrom. Didn't matter. The Phillies scored a run in the ninth and then two more in the tenth and win 6-4. In the ninth, they scored their run on a walk, a single, a wild pitch and a ground out. In the tenth, they hit four singles.
- April 27, 2009: Victim - Nationals (again). The game was tied, 7-7, going into the top of the eighth and the Nationals scored four runs to go ahead 11-7. By this point, the Nationals had hit five homers including two from Zimmerman. Game over right? Not! In the bottom of the eighth, they start the inning with a strikeout. Pedro Feliz (he's still playing??) hits a single. Rollins doubles. Men on second and third. Victorino hits a sacrifice fly. Two outs. No problem. Utley singles. 11-9. The Nationals pull Mock and put Hanrahan in there. Wild pitch. Utley goes to second. Ryan Howard is walked. Jayson Werth walks. Bases loaded. Raul Ibanez, who everyone said was a stupid signing for the Phillies, hits a grand slam (his sixth homer of the young season). 13-11, Phillies win.
Amazing stuff, eh? But the Phillies did this last year and the year before. They are a bookie's nightmare. You think the Phillies will lose and they don't. There doesn't seem to be a way to close them out.
Granted, they have hardly faced the cream of the league's bullpens, but even so, they have hit 14 of their season's 24 homers in the last three innings. That works out to be 58% of their season's homers in 33% of the game. They have hit 11 of their season's 24 homers in the eighth and ninth innings. That's 45% of their season's homers in the last 22% of the games.
The Phillies have a .990 team OPS (before tonight's game) in the eighth inning this year. Think that's good? They have a 1.136 team OPS in the ninth inning this year. Holy Cow! So it doesn't matter that they have a .540 OPS in the fifth inning or a little over .600 in the sixth. All that matters is the end of the game. And that's when they just find a way to get the game won.
After watching the Red Sox beat the Yankees in the third game of that series, the one thought the Fan had while watching it unfurl is that the Red Sox simply wanted it more than the Yankees. The same can be said of the Phillies. They just want to win the game at the end more than the other team wants to close them out. Seven out of ten wins in the last three innings. Six of those come from behind games. That's a team that simply wants to win and it doesn't matter what the obstacle is or how deep the hole.
Monday, April 27, 2009
Micah Owings - A Fan Favorite
Joe Posnanski, who just may be in the top five of sportswriters today, admitted the other day that his favorite player is Mike Jacobs, the former Marlins first baseman, now with Kansas City. In another recent post, Posnanski reminisced about his dilemma of being a writer who was still a fan and the advice he was given was to not publicly root for a team but root for the players. That makes sense. In the FanDome, the player most rooted for is Micah Owings of the Cincinnati Reds.
Owings is a pitcher who can hit, or a hitter who can pitch. Both descriptions fit. In a world where one league has a DH and one league has the pitchers hit, it's fun when the pitchers can actually do some damage. Owings hits on a regular basis. He isn't just a decent hitter like Zambrano of the Cubs. He is a threat every time he gets up to bat. And, it still can't be proven that he can't pitch either.
Against the Braves yesterday, Owings pitched seven innings, only gave up one run and struck out six. He also went 2 for 4 at the plate with a double and a run scored. He's now batting .400 for the year. The Fan can't resist. It's just too much fun to keep track of what he does and the Fan is hoping he has a good pitching year just to see how he hits for the rest of the year.
The Fan has a lot of favorite players and it's time to admit it. Perhaps the FanDome will have to resurrect the Box Score Favorites feature of a couple of years ago. Still mulling that one over. But for now, in a confessional of sorts, here is a list of players the Fan looks for intently over every box score scan:
- Zack Greinke: You just have to root for a guy who had a messed up head, worked through it with the strong help of the Royals and is now thriving and one of the best pitchers in the game.
- Derek Jeter: Can't help it. He handles himself the way that the Fan would want a ballplayer to handle himself. Been a major Fan of his since 1996.
- Mariano Rivera: Another class act who has done the impossible, carve out a Hall of Fame career with basically one pitch. Oh, as for his blown save the other day? The Fan blames the catcher for calling an outside pitch on Jason Bay. One more pitch inside and the game would have been over. Just like last night when Posada called an outside pitch on David Ortiz who has shown no ability to handle inside pitches this year. One more inside pitch and Pettitte would have been out of that jam last night with the game tied 1-1.
- Josh Hamilton: Another underdog story of a major drug addict who found God, found sobriety and re-found his extensive baseball skill.
- Mike Hampton: Another hitting pitcher, or pitching hitter. His comeback looks good so far.
- Mike Lowell: The guy looks like he is fifty years old, but he is a winner. Just seems to deliver when he is healthy despite looking like a chugger in a over-the-hill softball game.
- Lance Berkman: He is like the Phil Mikelson of baseball. He has the big frame, the tendency to man boobs, and yet has this sweet left-handed swing that is so good you have to admire the skill and talent.
- Ken Griffey Jr.: A major Fan of this Hall of Famer who always had big talent, big beautiful swing and yet smiled through his entire career.
- Alfonso Soriano: This one is despite the Fan's best interest. One of the biggest risk/reward players in all of baseball, it's hard not to root for a guy who is either amazingly good or amazingly awful and can show both in every game he plays.
- Curtis Granderson: His blog, which is sad that it can no longer be found, showed a talented player who was so down to earth and so respectful of the game and the African-American players that came before him, made him a Fan favorite for life. Of course it doesn't hurt that the guy can fly.
- Manny Ramirez: God love him, he is unique and polarizing. You either hate him or you love him. The Fan just thinks he's amazingly fun to watch to see what he'll do next.
- Evan Longoria: A new favorite. He just seems to play the right way and say the right things and is very magnetic to the average Fan.
- Nick Johnson: The brittle first baseman for the Nationals is the little engine that could...when he is not on the disabled list. Just like the guy.
- The entire Pittsburgh Pirate pitching staff: Because the Fan wants to see a miracle. Doesn't everyone?
Owings is a pitcher who can hit, or a hitter who can pitch. Both descriptions fit. In a world where one league has a DH and one league has the pitchers hit, it's fun when the pitchers can actually do some damage. Owings hits on a regular basis. He isn't just a decent hitter like Zambrano of the Cubs. He is a threat every time he gets up to bat. And, it still can't be proven that he can't pitch either.
Against the Braves yesterday, Owings pitched seven innings, only gave up one run and struck out six. He also went 2 for 4 at the plate with a double and a run scored. He's now batting .400 for the year. The Fan can't resist. It's just too much fun to keep track of what he does and the Fan is hoping he has a good pitching year just to see how he hits for the rest of the year.
The Fan has a lot of favorite players and it's time to admit it. Perhaps the FanDome will have to resurrect the Box Score Favorites feature of a couple of years ago. Still mulling that one over. But for now, in a confessional of sorts, here is a list of players the Fan looks for intently over every box score scan:
- Zack Greinke: You just have to root for a guy who had a messed up head, worked through it with the strong help of the Royals and is now thriving and one of the best pitchers in the game.
- Derek Jeter: Can't help it. He handles himself the way that the Fan would want a ballplayer to handle himself. Been a major Fan of his since 1996.
- Mariano Rivera: Another class act who has done the impossible, carve out a Hall of Fame career with basically one pitch. Oh, as for his blown save the other day? The Fan blames the catcher for calling an outside pitch on Jason Bay. One more pitch inside and the game would have been over. Just like last night when Posada called an outside pitch on David Ortiz who has shown no ability to handle inside pitches this year. One more inside pitch and Pettitte would have been out of that jam last night with the game tied 1-1.
- Josh Hamilton: Another underdog story of a major drug addict who found God, found sobriety and re-found his extensive baseball skill.
- Mike Hampton: Another hitting pitcher, or pitching hitter. His comeback looks good so far.
- Mike Lowell: The guy looks like he is fifty years old, but he is a winner. Just seems to deliver when he is healthy despite looking like a chugger in a over-the-hill softball game.
- Lance Berkman: He is like the Phil Mikelson of baseball. He has the big frame, the tendency to man boobs, and yet has this sweet left-handed swing that is so good you have to admire the skill and talent.
- Ken Griffey Jr.: A major Fan of this Hall of Famer who always had big talent, big beautiful swing and yet smiled through his entire career.
- Alfonso Soriano: This one is despite the Fan's best interest. One of the biggest risk/reward players in all of baseball, it's hard not to root for a guy who is either amazingly good or amazingly awful and can show both in every game he plays.
- Curtis Granderson: His blog, which is sad that it can no longer be found, showed a talented player who was so down to earth and so respectful of the game and the African-American players that came before him, made him a Fan favorite for life. Of course it doesn't hurt that the guy can fly.
- Manny Ramirez: God love him, he is unique and polarizing. You either hate him or you love him. The Fan just thinks he's amazingly fun to watch to see what he'll do next.
- Evan Longoria: A new favorite. He just seems to play the right way and say the right things and is very magnetic to the average Fan.
- Nick Johnson: The brittle first baseman for the Nationals is the little engine that could...when he is not on the disabled list. Just like the guy.
- The entire Pittsburgh Pirate pitching staff: Because the Fan wants to see a miracle. Doesn't everyone?
Sunday, April 26, 2009
Seattle Mariners Sailing Strongly
Don't look now but the Seattle Mariners lead the American League West by three and a half games. With a division facing massive pitching woes in Anaheim, Oakland and Texas, they just could win this thing.
Their pitching has been sensational. They are fifth in the majors through the first six innings and first from the seventh inning on. Their bullpen has a 1.91 ERA and the team overall has given up the second fewest walks in the majors.
The team's offense hasn't been that great and they are in the middle of the pack in team batting average. The Mariners' On Base Percentage is a woeful .318, currently 24th in the majors. But pitching cancels out a lot of batting woes and the Mariners certainly are pitching.
The Mariners currently have the second best record in the American League (behind Toronto) and are 7-1 in their own division (12-6 overall). If they can maintain a .500 record outside of their own division and keep mashing up their rivals, they have a great chance to stay on top of the division throughout the year.
Their pitching has been sensational. They are fifth in the majors through the first six innings and first from the seventh inning on. Their bullpen has a 1.91 ERA and the team overall has given up the second fewest walks in the majors.
The team's offense hasn't been that great and they are in the middle of the pack in team batting average. The Mariners' On Base Percentage is a woeful .318, currently 24th in the majors. But pitching cancels out a lot of batting woes and the Mariners certainly are pitching.
The Mariners currently have the second best record in the American League (behind Toronto) and are 7-1 in their own division (12-6 overall). If they can maintain a .500 record outside of their own division and keep mashing up their rivals, they have a great chance to stay on top of the division throughout the year.
Big Three in AL East? Big ERA
The big three teams in the American League East were predicted as the monsters of baseball. Headlines and projections stated that the Red Sox, Yankees and Bay Rays were the best three teams in the sport. Those clarion calls were based on pitching. Each team was projected to be deep in pitching with enough pop at the plate to be awesome. We are almost twenty games into the season now and Boston is riding a big win streak. But the other two teams look far from great. And pitching woes have beset all three.
Let's start with the Yankees. Their pitching staff has been a total disaster. Not just a little derailment, the pitching has been a train wreck. They have already had games where they have given up 22 runs and 16 runs. They have an astounding ERA through the first seven innings of a game of 6.79, dead last in the majors. Innings after the sixth haven't been much better where they have an ERA of 5.78. You can't get much worse. Sabathia has had one good game so far in four tries. Burnett gave them three good starts and then got bombed in Boston. Wang has been so bad they don't know what to do with him. Pettitte has been steady but Chamberlain has been all over the place and doesn't seem to have his old swagger.
The Red Sox lost Matsuzaka to the WBC shoulderitis. Beckett hasn't been good. Lester has been up and down. Their best pitcher so far has been an ancient Tim Wakefield. Who saw that coming? The team's ERA through the first six innings is sitting at 4.94. That is currently 21st in the majors. 4.94 from a staff that was supposed to be scary good? hmm.. It is hard to argue with their current win streak. They could run away from the other two. But Toronto has had the best pitching in the division so far and are fifth in the majors in ERA through the first six innings of their games.
Meanwhile, the Bay Rays are fourteenth in the majors in ERA through the first six innings, but 21st in the league from innings seven on. They are hitting well, but their batting average drops off dramatically after the sixth inning. In other words, they are striking early but not doing anything late. If they aren't hitting in the late innings and can't pitch in the late innings, that adds up to a lot of losses and though they have pitched far better than the Yankees, their record isn't nearly as good.
It will be interesting to watch what happens. It's a crazy game and things definitely haven't gone as planned thus far.
Let's start with the Yankees. Their pitching staff has been a total disaster. Not just a little derailment, the pitching has been a train wreck. They have already had games where they have given up 22 runs and 16 runs. They have an astounding ERA through the first seven innings of a game of 6.79, dead last in the majors. Innings after the sixth haven't been much better where they have an ERA of 5.78. You can't get much worse. Sabathia has had one good game so far in four tries. Burnett gave them three good starts and then got bombed in Boston. Wang has been so bad they don't know what to do with him. Pettitte has been steady but Chamberlain has been all over the place and doesn't seem to have his old swagger.
The Red Sox lost Matsuzaka to the WBC shoulderitis. Beckett hasn't been good. Lester has been up and down. Their best pitcher so far has been an ancient Tim Wakefield. Who saw that coming? The team's ERA through the first six innings is sitting at 4.94. That is currently 21st in the majors. 4.94 from a staff that was supposed to be scary good? hmm.. It is hard to argue with their current win streak. They could run away from the other two. But Toronto has had the best pitching in the division so far and are fifth in the majors in ERA through the first six innings of their games.
Meanwhile, the Bay Rays are fourteenth in the majors in ERA through the first six innings, but 21st in the league from innings seven on. They are hitting well, but their batting average drops off dramatically after the sixth inning. In other words, they are striking early but not doing anything late. If they aren't hitting in the late innings and can't pitch in the late innings, that adds up to a lot of losses and though they have pitched far better than the Yankees, their record isn't nearly as good.
It will be interesting to watch what happens. It's a crazy game and things definitely haven't gone as planned thus far.
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