So my least-favorite manager in the league was fired last night. Clint Hurdle might have been the worst manager in the last decade. I saw an article on Yahoo! where the writer quoted someone who said that he was always in a hurry to get his second best team on the field. How else can you explain why Barmes gets played over Stewart and Fowler would sit behind Spilborghs every other night? You couldn't move Spilborghs to left and sit Seth Smith? Why was Manny Corpas closing at all this year? I don't care what he did two years ago!
This team has the potential to compete in the NL West (take my word, the Dodgers aren't that good, especially without Manny).
Speaking of the Dodgers, I saw Jeff Weaver pitch a little today. He had some really nice movement on his fastball, but then he would leave it over the plate. And then he'd leave 5 feet off the plate. Oh Jeff, I wonder what it's like to be Jered and knowing you're ten times better than your brother.
Then I caught a little of the Giants/Cardinals game later. Barry Zito threw possibly the best curve I've seen live to strike on Albert Pujols. And we all know Pujols doesn't strike out that much. If he can keep his fastball up aroudn 88 consistently, we could be seeing a 4ish ERA out of Zito this year.
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Thoughts on Surprise Players in 2009
We're a little over a quarter into the season now, so the short flukes from April are gone and those who've maintained success have separated themselves from the pack.
Raul Ibanez is hitting the best he has in his entire career. I'd love to say it's a pure result of hitting in the Phillies home stadium, but I can't. He has more homers on the road. His OPS is 1.156, with a .350 avg and a .412 OBP. Insane. I'm calling for a 2nd half decline for him, he's not this good, no way.
Aaron Hill has seemingly has teased the MLB for a few seasons with his skill, and he finally seems to sustaining it. Kind of like Nate McLouth. Maybe he can sustain it for more than one season, unlike Mclouth, who's faltered a little this year.
Felipe Lopez is off to a good start, hitting .323. It never lasts though.
Johnny Damon's on pace for about 40 HR's. Absurdly insane, I don't believe that for a second.
And then everybody's favorite comeback story, Zack Greinke, is on pace for perhaps the greatest season ever for a pitcher. Is he this good? Of course not. But is he perennial Cy Young winner good? Absolutely. He's going to be the best for years to come.
Raul Ibanez is hitting the best he has in his entire career. I'd love to say it's a pure result of hitting in the Phillies home stadium, but I can't. He has more homers on the road. His OPS is 1.156, with a .350 avg and a .412 OBP. Insane. I'm calling for a 2nd half decline for him, he's not this good, no way.
Aaron Hill has seemingly has teased the MLB for a few seasons with his skill, and he finally seems to sustaining it. Kind of like Nate McLouth. Maybe he can sustain it for more than one season, unlike Mclouth, who's faltered a little this year.
Felipe Lopez is off to a good start, hitting .323. It never lasts though.
Johnny Damon's on pace for about 40 HR's. Absurdly insane, I don't believe that for a second.
And then everybody's favorite comeback story, Zack Greinke, is on pace for perhaps the greatest season ever for a pitcher. Is he this good? Of course not. But is he perennial Cy Young winner good? Absolutely. He's going to be the best for years to come.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Thoughts on Interleague Play
So interleague play starts tomorrow. Big who cares. I mean, Yankees/Mets, White Sox/Cubs, Dodgers/Angels, and Giants/A's are nice series, but otherwise, it's all pretty dumb. Big build up for not a lot of show.
Really, interleague play should be shortened. Make all the geographical rivals play the home and home set of serieses. Create made-up rivalries for the last 5 or 6 matchups. Two weekends of play. Then end it. 6 games is all we need.
Also, interleague has a fundamental problem--the AL has a huge advantage when games are played by AL rules. National League teams don't carry a DH. So they just stick the best hitter on their bench in that slot. That creates a huge discrepancy as far as an even level of play. When playing by NL rules, it's a pretty even matchup. The AL teams just shift their lineups around to try and keep their best players on the field (David Ortiz plays first, shifting Youkillis, etc.).
If I had the time and the patience I'd go on a rant about why the DH is stupid, I'd do it. So I'll limit to 3 points: how absurd would it be in other 2-way sports (Basketball/Hockey/Lacrosse, etc.) if you could insert a better offensive player while you went on offensive possession. If the Suns could have sub Amare Stoudemire in for every offensive possession and got to take him out for defense, maybe they make the playoffs. He's also probably regarded as a much better player than he is right now. Also, it takes all the strategy out of the game. Willie Randolph is a perfect example of an AL guy who couldn't coach in the NL because he didn't understand the double switch, how to take advantage of a pitcher hitting in the 9 slot. Thirdly, I'm a baseball purist, I believe in pitchers duels, that steroids are bad for baseball, and that DH's are a violation of the beauty of the game.
MLB will never end the interleague play, at least not while Bud Selig is alive, but it should. It's a waste of time, creates unfair schedules, and further tips the level of fair play towards the AL. It sickens me. But I do love my Mets-Yankees.
Really, interleague play should be shortened. Make all the geographical rivals play the home and home set of serieses. Create made-up rivalries for the last 5 or 6 matchups. Two weekends of play. Then end it. 6 games is all we need.
Also, interleague has a fundamental problem--the AL has a huge advantage when games are played by AL rules. National League teams don't carry a DH. So they just stick the best hitter on their bench in that slot. That creates a huge discrepancy as far as an even level of play. When playing by NL rules, it's a pretty even matchup. The AL teams just shift their lineups around to try and keep their best players on the field (David Ortiz plays first, shifting Youkillis, etc.).
If I had the time and the patience I'd go on a rant about why the DH is stupid, I'd do it. So I'll limit to 3 points: how absurd would it be in other 2-way sports (Basketball/Hockey/Lacrosse, etc.) if you could insert a better offensive player while you went on offensive possession. If the Suns could have sub Amare Stoudemire in for every offensive possession and got to take him out for defense, maybe they make the playoffs. He's also probably regarded as a much better player than he is right now. Also, it takes all the strategy out of the game. Willie Randolph is a perfect example of an AL guy who couldn't coach in the NL because he didn't understand the double switch, how to take advantage of a pitcher hitting in the 9 slot. Thirdly, I'm a baseball purist, I believe in pitchers duels, that steroids are bad for baseball, and that DH's are a violation of the beauty of the game.
MLB will never end the interleague play, at least not while Bud Selig is alive, but it should. It's a waste of time, creates unfair schedules, and further tips the level of fair play towards the AL. It sickens me. But I do love my Mets-Yankees.
Thursday, May 14, 2009
Thoughts on David Ortiz
Let's get theoretical here. Hypothetically, let's say Big Papi is done. For the rest of this year, and probably next, plays as horribly as he is doing now, and then decides to retire, because, let's face it, Ortiz has too much pride to hang on by a thread. But he's batting .220 with a .650 OPS right now and zero home runs, and things aren't looking up.
Then the question comes: does David Ortiz belong in the Hall of Fame? He only has 289 home runs on his 13 year career, with a .285 career average, with around 1300-1400 career hits. Doesn't seem like a Hall-of-Famer by raw numbers, does he?
But sometimes you have to factor in other contributions to the game. In the postseason, he has 12 Home Runs and a .293 average in 63 games. He has 4 All-Star appearances, as well as 4 silver sluggers, and a 2nd place finish in 2005. Most impressively, he led the AL in extra base hits 3 times.
Certainly, his case must be put in context for his time. For a power hitter, his total numbers are dwarfed by every other hitter of this generation. But then again, he was arguably the most feared hitter (not the best, but it was hard to argue who pitchers wanted to face less in the ninth inning than Ortiz) in the game for an approximate stretch of 2002-2007. But on the other hand, he was a DH, meaning he only played half (two-thirds in the opinion of many new statisticians) of the game.
I can go back and forth on this for 1000 more words at least. In my opinion, as he stands at 34 years of age, that he belongs in those hallowed halls. His peak was just too narrow, like the pitcher Bret Saberhagen, or the hitter Howard Johnson. The best comparable I can place to him is Mo Vaughn, who's heavy build betrayed him, ruining his ability to hit at the end of his career. If Mo doesn't make, neither should Papi.
I wish there was a Hall of some-sorts for the players who were historically great, but didn't have the longevity needed for the Hall-of-Fame. A place where Saberhagen, HoJo, Roger Maris, Mo Vaughn, Keith Hernandez, Orel Hershiser, etc can be honored for their great careers.
Then the question comes: does David Ortiz belong in the Hall of Fame? He only has 289 home runs on his 13 year career, with a .285 career average, with around 1300-1400 career hits. Doesn't seem like a Hall-of-Famer by raw numbers, does he?
But sometimes you have to factor in other contributions to the game. In the postseason, he has 12 Home Runs and a .293 average in 63 games. He has 4 All-Star appearances, as well as 4 silver sluggers, and a 2nd place finish in 2005. Most impressively, he led the AL in extra base hits 3 times.
Certainly, his case must be put in context for his time. For a power hitter, his total numbers are dwarfed by every other hitter of this generation. But then again, he was arguably the most feared hitter (not the best, but it was hard to argue who pitchers wanted to face less in the ninth inning than Ortiz) in the game for an approximate stretch of 2002-2007. But on the other hand, he was a DH, meaning he only played half (two-thirds in the opinion of many new statisticians) of the game.
I can go back and forth on this for 1000 more words at least. In my opinion, as he stands at 34 years of age, that he belongs in those hallowed halls. His peak was just too narrow, like the pitcher Bret Saberhagen, or the hitter Howard Johnson. The best comparable I can place to him is Mo Vaughn, who's heavy build betrayed him, ruining his ability to hit at the end of his career. If Mo doesn't make, neither should Papi.
I wish there was a Hall of some-sorts for the players who were historically great, but didn't have the longevity needed for the Hall-of-Fame. A place where Saberhagen, HoJo, Roger Maris, Mo Vaughn, Keith Hernandez, Orel Hershiser, etc can be honored for their great careers.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Thoughts on being a lazy blogger/recent happenings in baseball
So yeah, between finals, moving back to Irondequoit, and my column for the Michigan Daily, this blog has taken the backseat to the rest of my life. NO MORE! I'm recommitting myself to the random baseball thoughts blog.
Obviously, the biggest story in baseball the past few weeks is Manny Ramirez and his suspension. Yes Manny messed up. No he didn't test positive for steroids. Yes this drug has an association with steroids. But what exactly does this drug do? Restart testosterone. Which isn't exactly a PED (Performance Enhancing Drug). And it's not a mask for steroid use either, so that begs the question: why is it banned? I don't anticipate this affecting Manny's entry in the Hall of Fame, and it shouldn't. Serving his suspension is punishment enough, double jeopardy in this case is too much.
In other news:
BJ Upton was hitting something around .170 as of last night. Are you kidding me Upton? .170? In May? Really? You're killing your team (as well as my fantasy team). He's way too talented to be hitting this bad.
The Mets were on a 7 game win streak, but thanks to Jerry Manuel's awful bullpen handling, that's over. Another good start by Johan wasted. When will he learn that Pedro Feliciano can't get righties out?
Justin Verlander's been on fire. He looks like it's 2007 again. Took him long enough. Can't keep pitchers with filthy breaking balls and 100 mph heaters down too long.
This should be Randy Johnson's last season, he's been struggling all year.
It must be annoying playing the Blue Jays, every time you think they've lost all their pitching (except the always amazing/healthy Roy Halladay), they find more. They have to run out some time right? right?
Anyone see Texas in first place in the AL West part of the way into May? Anyone?
Boston's tied for first place in the AL East with the worst starting pitching ERA in the AL so far. And David Ortiz has 0 HR's. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?
But just like BAPIP, standings always seem to regress to the mean. Give it time I guess, because something's got to give with all these weird occurrences.
Obviously, the biggest story in baseball the past few weeks is Manny Ramirez and his suspension. Yes Manny messed up. No he didn't test positive for steroids. Yes this drug has an association with steroids. But what exactly does this drug do? Restart testosterone. Which isn't exactly a PED (Performance Enhancing Drug). And it's not a mask for steroid use either, so that begs the question: why is it banned? I don't anticipate this affecting Manny's entry in the Hall of Fame, and it shouldn't. Serving his suspension is punishment enough, double jeopardy in this case is too much.
In other news:
BJ Upton was hitting something around .170 as of last night. Are you kidding me Upton? .170? In May? Really? You're killing your team (as well as my fantasy team). He's way too talented to be hitting this bad.
The Mets were on a 7 game win streak, but thanks to Jerry Manuel's awful bullpen handling, that's over. Another good start by Johan wasted. When will he learn that Pedro Feliciano can't get righties out?
Justin Verlander's been on fire. He looks like it's 2007 again. Took him long enough. Can't keep pitchers with filthy breaking balls and 100 mph heaters down too long.
This should be Randy Johnson's last season, he's been struggling all year.
It must be annoying playing the Blue Jays, every time you think they've lost all their pitching (except the always amazing/healthy Roy Halladay), they find more. They have to run out some time right? right?
Anyone see Texas in first place in the AL West part of the way into May? Anyone?
Boston's tied for first place in the AL East with the worst starting pitching ERA in the AL so far. And David Ortiz has 0 HR's. HOW IS THIS POSSIBLE?
But just like BAPIP, standings always seem to regress to the mean. Give it time I guess, because something's got to give with all these weird occurrences.
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