"Confidence and stuff are one of the same thing"All you kiddies out there who hope to pitch in the major leagues, just know that all you need is confidence. Forget height, weight, elbow, shoulder, strength, or practice. All it takes is confidence to have major league stuff. I bet Dustin Pedroia could throw 100MPH if given the chance
Tim McCarver is back
Watching the Yanks Sox game on Fox being forced to endure Joe Buck and Tim McCarver for the first time in a long time. Tim has something you should know about Clay Buchholz
Josh Hamilton has been a bad boy
Someone has been holding on to photos of Josh Hamilton partying hard at an ASU bar while preparing for baseball season. Clearly, he came off the wagon yet again by drinking excessively the entire night, supposedly asking where he could buy cocaine, and going to a local strip club from the bar. Here are some of the pics released this morning of Hamilton partying it up with some of the bartenders. It seems like his wedding ring slipped off with all that whip cream
Ranking the Woman of ESPN
Men like ESPN. Men like women. Why not make a top ten list of the hottest female personalities on the only cable sports network that matters. The general criteria I used to define hotness involved: appearance, personality, seniority, newsworthiness, and notoriety.
10) Sage Steele
Bloggin' aint easy
Now Sage has always come off as a well mannered, respectable woman who is nothing but professional every morning on ESPN’s “First Take”. She doesn’t really exude sexuality like some of the other woman on this list, but look at her name. You cannot tell me that Sage Steele is not a made up porn name from her younger, wilder days. Doing porn automatically puts you on the hott list. Unfortunately, it also puts you on the filthy filthy whore list. Of course, ESPN has confiscated all the old video footage from the internet so we can never know the whole truth.
9) Dana Jacobson
You cant tell me what to do! You're not my daddy
First off, she’s quite a bit pudgy, but you can still imagine cuddling up with her in bed…after a few drinks of course. But lucky us, Dana doesn’t require much convincing when it comes to downing an Absolut, Stoli, or Grey Goose you happen to throw her way. He infamous “performance” of getting hammered at the ESPN roast, coming up to the stage with a bottle of hard liquor in her hands, and proclaiming “Fuck Touchdown Jesus” was not her shining moment. What is it with fat chicks and alcohol. Hint hint, booze is not a dietary supplement. Luckily it only drew her a suspension and not a dismissal from ESPN. Hey, everyone knows First Take is the ESPN purgatory for all the networks degenerates, whether it be drunks or molesters or simply being Skip Bayless
Honk Honk!
8 ) Linda Cohn
Bill Parcells is my sugar daddy
Linda surely has the seniority on ESPN of any woman on this list. Although not the modern version of hott, Linda still turns the older generation on. She has a confidence and self absurdness to herself, opposite to Dana Jacobson, that only adds to her humor and natural hosting ability. She is also famous for playing hockey goalie in her youth, so she’s used to having things go through her 5-hole. Jewish girl #1, ohhhh yeah
7) Colleen Dominguez
Couldn't make it on telemundo, had to settle for ESPN
Anyone who has watched telemundo for a little too long knows that latina girls are muy caliente, hence it would be a shame to leave the only ESPN representative off the list. If this girl had any personality, notoriety, or longevity she could possibly compete for the top spot based on looks alone. But since I know next to nothing about her, she will have to be happy with 7th place.
6) Bonnie Bernstein
You know you want my 2.5 biblically named children
Jewish girl #2, ohhhh yeah! She has been around ESPN for over a decade covering basketball, football, and baseball most recently. Her long, crooked nose is her trademark feature, to go along with a smoking hot body. There have been rumors that she “spent” a lot of time with athletes over the years. She did gain for continually leaving her legs open while sitting down wearing a skirt.
5) Hannah Storm
Ride 'em cowboy
Hannah has had quite the career. Working for CNN, NBC during the Olympics, and most recently with ESPN. Her confidence is unchallenged and her reputation picture perfect. Always being a sports sex symbol, a la Farrah Fawcett, she has not trouble getting her way and pushing the men at ESPN around. She is the perfect face for the morning Sportcenter edition.
4) Rachel Nichols
Love me or hate me, you still cant %#&! me
By far the most polarizing woman working for ESPN. She may as well be the Michael Vick of female sportscasters. Some people swear by her and would hands down put her number 1 on this list, while others like me, think there is something wrong with her face that simply cannot be overlooked. It simply lacks symmetry. The nose is crooked, the smile is very one sided, and her cheek bones are too high for my liking. Everyone loves a red head, but her’s looks blood red as opposed to the natural variety. The body is nothing to get excited about, but she does have a very distinct reporting style and voice. So love her or hate her you still cant touch her
3) Suzy Kolber
Good enough for Joe Namath, good enough for me
Despite being around ESPN for ages, Suzy became a household name after her infamous interview with a drunk Joe Namath who very openly said “I want to kiss you”. Suzy played it off very nicely, only making herself look more cute in the process. And that is how I would describe her, cute as a button. The voice, the face, the whole package.
2) Michelle Beadle
I literally live next door to EVERYONE
The newest acquisition to the ESPN staff, Michelle Beadle was hired away from the Yankees to co-host with Colin Cowherd on sportsnation. She is the perfect girl next door. The tomboy. The little step-sister you never had, Brady Bunch style. I feel I could go to the beach with her right now and play tackle football without her worrying about breaking a nail or wetting her hair. She’s really one of the guys, yet maintains her womanly charm and sexiness.
1) Erin Andrews – All she requires is a photo montage
New Podcasts!
There have been four new podcasts since the last GOI blog update
1) My cousin Eric joins me to discuss the Red Sox and a little Celtics
2) My buddy Keith talks to me about the upcoming Bears season
3) TBO and myself discuss our trip to Bears training camp and our new internet sensation video involving back up QB Caleb Hanie
4) TBO and myself preview the 2009/10 NFL season and predict where teams end up division by division
Find all these great podcasts here or search Game Of Inches into the iTunes store
You can still vote on your favorite characters here
1) My cousin Eric joins me to discuss the Red Sox and a little Celtics
2) My buddy Keith talks to me about the upcoming Bears season
3) TBO and myself discuss our trip to Bears training camp and our new internet sensation video involving back up QB Caleb Hanie
4) TBO and myself preview the 2009/10 NFL season and predict where teams end up division by division
Find all these great podcasts here or search Game Of Inches into the iTunes store
You can still vote on your favorite characters here
Jason Giambi: The Career That Was
Seriously? That's Jason Giambi! He looks like Craig Counsell in the Team USA picture. He barely looks strong enough to hold that smile up, let alone hit 400 homers in the majors. His HR rate in the minors was 1 every 30 at-bats, but 1 every 17 in the majors. After winning the MVP award with a ridiculous 476 on-base percentage, it should have come as no surprise that he would unofficially test positive for steroids. With his release from the Athletics today, it may be the end to hsi controversial career.
At least he left us with so many memories, very few of which involve the game of baseball.
Is that Giambi or Craig Biggio?
Just one in a long line of *MVP* winners
WWF wrestlers told me they were injecting lidocaine and vitamin B12
I apologize for being wrong at whatever it is I did, which is nothing
There's a reason they call me "The Giambino"
Admit it, you're jealous of the stach
That's actually the look from the front. Shrinkage!
At least his head was always huge
And so it continues, the list of players who tested positive for performance enhancement drugs continues to be leaked one by one. This is like taking the band-aid off bit by bit instead of ripping the entire bandage off. Somehow just because the records for the tests were sealed, the players thought these stories would never come out. Through all the controversy of protecting those names even though federal prosecutors threatened players to testify under a grand jury, the names still got leaked one by one.
Ortiz is just the latest player to suffer from a damaging PR story made worse by the continuing denial of his own use. Earlier in February this year, Ortiz commented on testing for performance enhancing drugs stating:
“I would suggest everybody get tested, not random, everybody. You go team by team. You test everybody three, four times a year and that’s about it...suspend them for the whole year"
Now those words will bite him in the back with a vengeance. It seems like every time athletes deny doing something in the media and try so hard to absolve themselves from suspicion, they are most likely the ones that are doing it. So what do you say Big Papi, should we suspend you for the entire season or are you going to come out and say you didn’t know why Manny was injecting you in the butt inside the Boston dugout.
Of course, I have to say, many people were shocked by this revelation but it didn’t surprise me that much. Look how big he got in the first picture from when he was a rookie! Also, you can also spot cheaters because they are always spotted with other cheaters.
Now the Red Sox have something else to be proud of. Maybe there will be fake needle give a ways at Fenway Park to the first 10,000 fans to a game, so everyone can get in on the action.
Is Johnny Damon next to test positive? Those beards don’t grow without excessive testostrone!
sportshumor23
The 2 RB vs the 2 WR Approach
The vast majority of fantasy experts, including me, will tell you to draft a RB first and probably 2 RBs in the first two or three rounds. They tell you to do this because it is safer to have RBs and having good elite RBs will help your team. However, there is a new approach arising among the minority, saying that if you don't draft a RB first, and you draft wide receivers instead, you will be fine. So which approach is better? Well, I intend to figure that out.
In 2008, out of the top 25 fantasy performers, 10 were RBs, 12 were QBs, and 3 were WRs. So your first reaction should be, why not draft a good QB considering they seem to be huge fantasy producers? However, as Yahoo! as kindly showed us, getting an elite QB is probably more of a detriment than an advantage. So that leaves only WR and RB (you can obviously wait to get a TE, K, and DEF). The best ranked WR was Larry Fitzgerald and he was the 15th best fantasy producer. Andre Johnson was the #2 wide out and the 23rd best fantasy producer and Calvin Johnson was 25th overall.
And although I believe and maintain that if you have a good corps of RB and a decent set of WRs, you can win your fantasy league. And if you look at fantasy production, it definitely shows that RBs produce more than receivers do. But the problem is where to find the elite RBs. Here's a list of the top ten fantasy RBs and which round they got drafted last year*
1) DeAngelo Williams (7)
2) Michael Turner (3)
3) Adrian Peterson (1)
4) Thomas Jones (4)
5) Matt Forte (5)
6) LaDainian Tomlinson (1)
7) Steve Slaton (undrafted)
8) Brian Westbrook (1)
9) Clinton Portis (1)
10) Maurice Jones-Drew (2)
AD and LT went 1 and 2 in essentially all drafts so getting or not getting one of those two guys had nothing to do with your draft strategy. But if you didn't have a high draft pick, you could have drafted two wide receivers, let's say Andre Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald (both went in the second round) and still gotten guys like Forte, Jones, Turner or picked up Slaton in waivers. That way you would have two elite WR AND RBs, even though you drafted WRs first.
But the equation gets even more complicated when you look at the production of how the RBs in the first two round produced. Barring injury (which you can't really take into account when drafting), the top RBs still produced. Here's a list of the top ten RBs drafted* and their overall fantasy production among wide outs and running backs. (I'm excluding LT and AP because this is a post about draft strategy and the first two guys off the board has nothing to do with strategy)
3) Steven Jackson (17)
4) Brian Westbrook (9)
5) Joseph Addai (67)
6) Marion Barber (23)
7) Frank Gore (18)
8) Marshawn Lynch (19)
9) Clinton Portis (10)
10) Larry Johnson (53)
11) MJD (11)
12) Laurence Maroney (only played in 3 weeks)
Addai, Johnson, and Maroney all got injured so it makes sense that their numbers are so low. But now let's take a look at how well the top ten drafted receivers* and their overall fantasy value compared to all WRs and RBs:
1) Randy Moss (30)
2) T.O. (29)
3) Reggie Wayne (35)
4) Andre Johnson (12)
5) Braylon Edwards (72)
6) Steve Smith (20)
7) Larry Fitzgerald (7)
8) T.J. Houshmandzadeh (66)
9) Marques Colston (73)
10) Torry Holt (83)
Out of this group only Colston was injured. The low numbers of Holt, Edwards, and Housh were due to their suckiness and nothing more.
The average production position of a top ten RB (excluding LT and AD and including more injured players) was ranked 25.2. The average production position of the top ten receivers was ranked 42.7. That's not even close. Granted RB seem more injury prone than WR, but still put up much more numbers.
Now I understand this study is just based on one year, and just based on one draft, but I would put money that results like this show up year after year. I would put money on this just because of the nature of the position. First RB are far more likely to score TDs. If you have an average RB and an average receivers, I'm sure they would put up similar numbers. But you're looking for the elite wide out and the elite back to build you team upon. You want to build your team around your WR and RB corps so you want the best of the best. And the elite RB will get a lot more TD opportunities and TDs than the elite receiver. The back is also more likely to touch the ball. The back is guaranteed to touch the ball. Even a really good back up like what MJD has been is guaranteed to get touches. A receiver is never guaranteed to even get thrown to nevertheless catch passes. Now a receiver can do a shit ton of damage with only three receptions, but it's still an unknown every game. RBs are more of a sure thing.
So final conclusion: which approach is better, drafting RBs first and then WR or vice versa? Well, it depends on how good of a drafter/ trader you are. I don't think either approach is out of the question. I don't think it's so rogue as many experts might think it is, but it's harder and riskier. There were many RBs like Reggie Bush, LenDale White, Fred Taylor, Rudi Johnson, and Julius Jones that went in the 4th, 5th, or 6th rounds that didn't nearly produce like Matt Forte or DeAngelo Williams did. There were also many WR like T.O. and T.J. Who's-Your-Mama that went early, and seemed like sure things, that also did not produce like others like Fitz, and A Johnson did.
That is why I, like many many others, tell you to draft RBs early. Your first rounder may not have produced like you had hoped he would, but he still was a damn choice you made. It's just safer to draft RBs over WRs.
So just remember, do your homework! That's all it is. There is plenty of value in the later rounds that can help your team, it's just knowing where to look for them plus a lot of luck. It is obviously possible to dominate drafting WRs first then go look for your backs, but it's much harder to do. And I think that's why many people stray away from it and suggest the RB norm.
So good luck and happy drafting!
*based on my 2008 Yahoo! draft last year
In 2008, out of the top 25 fantasy performers, 10 were RBs, 12 were QBs, and 3 were WRs. So your first reaction should be, why not draft a good QB considering they seem to be huge fantasy producers? However, as Yahoo! as kindly showed us, getting an elite QB is probably more of a detriment than an advantage. So that leaves only WR and RB (you can obviously wait to get a TE, K, and DEF). The best ranked WR was Larry Fitzgerald and he was the 15th best fantasy producer. Andre Johnson was the #2 wide out and the 23rd best fantasy producer and Calvin Johnson was 25th overall.
And although I believe and maintain that if you have a good corps of RB and a decent set of WRs, you can win your fantasy league. And if you look at fantasy production, it definitely shows that RBs produce more than receivers do. But the problem is where to find the elite RBs. Here's a list of the top ten fantasy RBs and which round they got drafted last year*
1) DeAngelo Williams (7)
2) Michael Turner (3)
3) Adrian Peterson (1)
4) Thomas Jones (4)
5) Matt Forte (5)
6) LaDainian Tomlinson (1)
7) Steve Slaton (undrafted)
8) Brian Westbrook (1)
9) Clinton Portis (1)
10) Maurice Jones-Drew (2)
AD and LT went 1 and 2 in essentially all drafts so getting or not getting one of those two guys had nothing to do with your draft strategy. But if you didn't have a high draft pick, you could have drafted two wide receivers, let's say Andre Johnson and Larry Fitzgerald (both went in the second round) and still gotten guys like Forte, Jones, Turner or picked up Slaton in waivers. That way you would have two elite WR AND RBs, even though you drafted WRs first.
But the equation gets even more complicated when you look at the production of how the RBs in the first two round produced. Barring injury (which you can't really take into account when drafting), the top RBs still produced. Here's a list of the top ten RBs drafted* and their overall fantasy production among wide outs and running backs. (I'm excluding LT and AP because this is a post about draft strategy and the first two guys off the board has nothing to do with strategy)
3) Steven Jackson (17)
4) Brian Westbrook (9)
5) Joseph Addai (67)
6) Marion Barber (23)
7) Frank Gore (18)
8) Marshawn Lynch (19)
9) Clinton Portis (10)
10) Larry Johnson (53)
11) MJD (11)
12) Laurence Maroney (only played in 3 weeks)
Addai, Johnson, and Maroney all got injured so it makes sense that their numbers are so low. But now let's take a look at how well the top ten drafted receivers* and their overall fantasy value compared to all WRs and RBs:
1) Randy Moss (30)
2) T.O. (29)
3) Reggie Wayne (35)
4) Andre Johnson (12)
5) Braylon Edwards (72)
6) Steve Smith (20)
7) Larry Fitzgerald (7)
8) T.J. Houshmandzadeh (66)
9) Marques Colston (73)
10) Torry Holt (83)
Out of this group only Colston was injured. The low numbers of Holt, Edwards, and Housh were due to their suckiness and nothing more.
The average production position of a top ten RB (excluding LT and AD and including more injured players) was ranked 25.2. The average production position of the top ten receivers was ranked 42.7. That's not even close. Granted RB seem more injury prone than WR, but still put up much more numbers.
Now I understand this study is just based on one year, and just based on one draft, but I would put money that results like this show up year after year. I would put money on this just because of the nature of the position. First RB are far more likely to score TDs. If you have an average RB and an average receivers, I'm sure they would put up similar numbers. But you're looking for the elite wide out and the elite back to build you team upon. You want to build your team around your WR and RB corps so you want the best of the best. And the elite RB will get a lot more TD opportunities and TDs than the elite receiver. The back is also more likely to touch the ball. The back is guaranteed to touch the ball. Even a really good back up like what MJD has been is guaranteed to get touches. A receiver is never guaranteed to even get thrown to nevertheless catch passes. Now a receiver can do a shit ton of damage with only three receptions, but it's still an unknown every game. RBs are more of a sure thing.
So final conclusion: which approach is better, drafting RBs first and then WR or vice versa? Well, it depends on how good of a drafter/ trader you are. I don't think either approach is out of the question. I don't think it's so rogue as many experts might think it is, but it's harder and riskier. There were many RBs like Reggie Bush, LenDale White, Fred Taylor, Rudi Johnson, and Julius Jones that went in the 4th, 5th, or 6th rounds that didn't nearly produce like Matt Forte or DeAngelo Williams did. There were also many WR like T.O. and T.J. Who's-Your-Mama that went early, and seemed like sure things, that also did not produce like others like Fitz, and A Johnson did.
That is why I, like many many others, tell you to draft RBs early. Your first rounder may not have produced like you had hoped he would, but he still was a damn choice you made. It's just safer to draft RBs over WRs.
So just remember, do your homework! That's all it is. There is plenty of value in the later rounds that can help your team, it's just knowing where to look for them plus a lot of luck. It is obviously possible to dominate drafting WRs first then go look for your backs, but it's much harder to do. And I think that's why many people stray away from it and suggest the RB norm.
So good luck and happy drafting!
*based on my 2008 Yahoo! draft last year
Randy Wells for NL ROY?
Unlike my Chris Getz post, Wells actually does does have a legitimate chance to win ROY. In fact, with Wells and Bacon, Chicago might produce two ROY this year. (Stupid Evan Longoria for ruining that last year!). My AL bias says I should just delete this post and go watch Sportscenter, but my objective side I should do this post. Plus OTL and NASCAR NOw is on ESPN and ESPN2 so why not.
Randy Wells (SP- ChC). Wells has done surprisingly well considering the Cubs only brought him up due to injuries. I'm sure all Cubs fans and my fantasy team in one league are still thrilled nonetheless. Wells is t-1st in W, 1st in ERA (min 60 IP and only by .001%) and t-6 (out of 8) for BB. His only flaw is that he's only 4th in SO. Wells has a 3.74 FIP, a 1.40 WHIP and a 2.83 K/BB.
J.A. Happ (SP- Phi). Happ is also t-1st with Wells, is 2nd in ERA (by only .001%) and SO. Happ is also 3rd in BB. He has a 4.00 FIP, 1.12 WHIP, and a 2.32 K/BB.
Tommy Hanson (SP- Atl). Hanson was a huge name coming into this season and probably the favorite to win ROY. He had great SO numbers in an extremely offensive friendly minor league. This SO success hasn't *quite* carried over into this bigs but he sure has had success. He's 3rd in ERA, 2nd in W, but only 6th in SO. Even Randy Wells (a K/9 rate DME doesn't believe in) has more SO than Hanson. Hanson has a 4.49 FIP, 1.33 FIP, and a 1.59 K/BB.
Cobly Rasmus (CF- StL). Rasmus was my favorite to win this thing, but then I looked up his numbers. Sure he's 1st in HR and R and 2nd in RBIs but he's only 5th in BB, 7th (out of 8) in BA, last in OBP, and 3rd in SLG. He's 1-2 in SB, but because he doesn't really steal, I won't discredit him for that. However he is a pretty darn good defender posting a 13.3 UZR and a 22.5 UZR/150 with a 2.3 WAR.
Dexter Fowler (CF- Col). Fowler is actually having a better season than I thought. He's 1st in SB, BB, OBP, H and 2B. Fowler is 5th in SLG, RBI, and BA and 2nd in R. However he has a negative UZR and UZR/150 and is only worth .03 WAR.
Andrew McCutchen (CF- Pit). Hmmm, a damn good year for rookie CF, no? McCutchen in 1st in BA, SLG and OPS and 2nd in OBP and HR. He has a slightly negative UZR and UZR/150 and has posted a 1.9 WAR.
Some other notable rookies in the NL this year: Jordan Zimmerman (SP- Was), Shairon Martis (SP- Was), Kenshin Kawakami (SP- Atl), Gerardo Parra (OF- Ari), and Travis Ishikawa (1B-SFG)
You know what, I actually take back the things I said about Rasmus because he plays phenominal defense that makes up for his lack of offense. But I would still give the ROY to either Happ or Wells. They have posted extremely similar numbers but Wells has the better FIP and K/BB so I'll say he deserves it more. But to be honest I don't think there's a clear stand out in the NL either.
So can Chicago have two Rookies of the Year? Well I think it's deservedly so. So we'll just have to wait and see how the eastern seaboard bias ruins this again.
Randy Wells (SP- ChC). Wells has done surprisingly well considering the Cubs only brought him up due to injuries. I'm sure all Cubs fans and my fantasy team in one league are still thrilled nonetheless. Wells is t-1st in W, 1st in ERA (min 60 IP and only by .001%) and t-6 (out of 8) for BB. His only flaw is that he's only 4th in SO. Wells has a 3.74 FIP, a 1.40 WHIP and a 2.83 K/BB.
J.A. Happ (SP- Phi). Happ is also t-1st with Wells, is 2nd in ERA (by only .001%) and SO. Happ is also 3rd in BB. He has a 4.00 FIP, 1.12 WHIP, and a 2.32 K/BB.
Tommy Hanson (SP- Atl). Hanson was a huge name coming into this season and probably the favorite to win ROY. He had great SO numbers in an extremely offensive friendly minor league. This SO success hasn't *quite* carried over into this bigs but he sure has had success. He's 3rd in ERA, 2nd in W, but only 6th in SO. Even Randy Wells (a K/9 rate DME doesn't believe in) has more SO than Hanson. Hanson has a 4.49 FIP, 1.33 FIP, and a 1.59 K/BB.
Cobly Rasmus (CF- StL). Rasmus was my favorite to win this thing, but then I looked up his numbers. Sure he's 1st in HR and R and 2nd in RBIs but he's only 5th in BB, 7th (out of 8) in BA, last in OBP, and 3rd in SLG. He's 1-2 in SB, but because he doesn't really steal, I won't discredit him for that. However he is a pretty darn good defender posting a 13.3 UZR and a 22.5 UZR/150 with a 2.3 WAR.
Dexter Fowler (CF- Col). Fowler is actually having a better season than I thought. He's 1st in SB, BB, OBP, H and 2B. Fowler is 5th in SLG, RBI, and BA and 2nd in R. However he has a negative UZR and UZR/150 and is only worth .03 WAR.
Andrew McCutchen (CF- Pit). Hmmm, a damn good year for rookie CF, no? McCutchen in 1st in BA, SLG and OPS and 2nd in OBP and HR. He has a slightly negative UZR and UZR/150 and has posted a 1.9 WAR.
Some other notable rookies in the NL this year: Jordan Zimmerman (SP- Was), Shairon Martis (SP- Was), Kenshin Kawakami (SP- Atl), Gerardo Parra (OF- Ari), and Travis Ishikawa (1B-SFG)
You know what, I actually take back the things I said about Rasmus because he plays phenominal defense that makes up for his lack of offense. But I would still give the ROY to either Happ or Wells. They have posted extremely similar numbers but Wells has the better FIP and K/BB so I'll say he deserves it more. But to be honest I don't think there's a clear stand out in the NL either.
So can Chicago have two Rookies of the Year? Well I think it's deservedly so. So we'll just have to wait and see how the eastern seaboard bias ruins this again.
Difference between K/9 and K/BB
After writing the Zimmermann vs Hanson post regarding their peripheral statistics and future prospects, I had a conversation with DME regarding the differences between K rate and K/BB ratios. Although both stats involve the strikeout, they identify different aspects of a pitchers abilities. Instead of making generalized opinions based on years of observations, much like most humanities tend to do, I decided to take a more scientific approach and find correlations between pitching statistics.
These correlations are taken from 2009 pitchers with a minimum of 70IP on the season. The first striking revelation is the extremely low correlation between K rate and walk rate. It seems these two qualities in a pitcher are independent of each other. A guy like Steve Phillips may believe a strike out pitcher might be more wild causing an elevated walk rate. While a guy like Rick Sutcliffe may believe a superior strike out pitcher also has superior ability to the control the strike zone leading to a lower walk rate. Well, this year's data strongly suggests there is no overlap of K and BB within a population.
A high K rate is also associated with a lower batting average against when compared to high K/BB ratios. Clearly, lots of strikeouts makes it difficult for hitters to have the opportunity for base hits, however it is K/BB ratio that has a significantly stronger correlation to base runners allowed(WHIP).
I believe the thing to take away from this post is that a high K rate is obviously beneficial for a pitcher, but if their overall K/BB ratio lags behind due to a high walk rate it, it will most likely lead to an underachieving pitcher. We have seen many such examples such as Carlos and Victor Zambrano, Kerry Wood, Chad Guadan, Carlos Marmol, Jose Contreras, and Jonathan Sanchez just to name a few.
These correlations are taken from 2009 pitchers with a minimum of 70IP on the season. The first striking revelation is the extremely low correlation between K rate and walk rate. It seems these two qualities in a pitcher are independent of each other. A guy like Steve Phillips may believe a strike out pitcher might be more wild causing an elevated walk rate. While a guy like Rick Sutcliffe may believe a superior strike out pitcher also has superior ability to the control the strike zone leading to a lower walk rate. Well, this year's data strongly suggests there is no overlap of K and BB within a population.
A high K rate is also associated with a lower batting average against when compared to high K/BB ratios. Clearly, lots of strikeouts makes it difficult for hitters to have the opportunity for base hits, however it is K/BB ratio that has a significantly stronger correlation to base runners allowed(WHIP).
I believe the thing to take away from this post is that a high K rate is obviously beneficial for a pitcher, but if their overall K/BB ratio lags behind due to a high walk rate it, it will most likely lead to an underachieving pitcher. We have seen many such examples such as Carlos and Victor Zambrano, Kerry Wood, Chad Guadan, Carlos Marmol, Jose Contreras, and Jonathan Sanchez just to name a few.
Dear New GOI Readers,
For all of you who are now reading this blog due the video you saw of Bears back up QB Caleb Hanie on other sites, I would like to thank you. We are a Chicago based blog talking about all things Chicago sports related like the Bears, Cubs, White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks. We are also big fantasy baseball and football players. We can answer anything Chicago-based (and nationally based) sports question.
We are also viewer friendly. If you have any questions for us or anything you'd like to see us post, please email us at gameofinchesblog@gmail.com. If you type in "Game Of Inches" into Twitter, iTunes, or facebook, you can also follow us there and there are links on the right of this blog to see every podcast we've done and all of our Tweets.
We, like Bill Simmons, are very pop culture heavy as well. Currently, there is a bracket going on of the best TV characters currently on TV. Just type in "Characters Welcome" in the Game Of Inches search tool bar so you can the bracket and vote.
And for the record, the best question asked "have you ever partied with Kyle Orton?" was asked by me. And if you don't get that joke, just type "Kyle Orton" into Google Images to see how Orton parties.
So welcome all new viewers so the wonderfully funny, sarcastic, and informative gameofinches.blogspot.com.
Sincerely,
Sexy Rexy
We are also viewer friendly. If you have any questions for us or anything you'd like to see us post, please email us at gameofinchesblog@gmail.com. If you type in "Game Of Inches" into Twitter, iTunes, or facebook, you can also follow us there and there are links on the right of this blog to see every podcast we've done and all of our Tweets.
We, like Bill Simmons, are very pop culture heavy as well. Currently, there is a bracket going on of the best TV characters currently on TV. Just type in "Characters Welcome" in the Game Of Inches search tool bar so you can the bracket and vote.
And for the record, the best question asked "have you ever partied with Kyle Orton?" was asked by me. And if you don't get that joke, just type "Kyle Orton" into Google Images to see how Orton parties.
So welcome all new viewers so the wonderfully funny, sarcastic, and informative gameofinches.blogspot.com.
Sincerely,
Sexy Rexy
Big Fat Bartolo Colon's Mysterious Disappearing Act
Stop me if you've heard this one before, but White Sox starting pitcher Bartolo Colon, the world's fattest man, is missing...again. How the hell do you lose track of a 300+ pound man with a horrible wannabe porn mustache? It's called Google Earth. Look for a giant blob that can't pitch. It's probably Bartolo Colon (or Jeff D’Amico).
Why did BJ Ryan get released?
I heard that Ryan asked for his release because his velocity was down and the sharpness of his slider was completely gone. Looking up his minor league stats, Ryan pitched 5.2 hitless innings in the minors. He did walk 5 and struck out 4, but he had hitless stuff. I think he asked for his release based on the Cubs acquiring two loogies, John Grabow and Tom Gorzelanny, as opposed to thinking he's done. At least he's thrown a baseball in the past 3 year, unlike one Mark Prior
Not that i'm bragging, but i'm kinda a big deal
So the now infamous Caleb Hanie video is starting to make the rounds are the sports blogosphere and gaining popularity with time. After being featured on GOI and sportshumor, it was picked up by my favorite sports blog withleather. Later it was added by ballhype, and finally was picked up by a small, closed circuit, news affiliate in chicago called NBCnews. Yeah, i've never heard of it either. Big thanks for all the love and lets hope we keep producing top notch material.
*UPDATE*
More hits coming in. Mouthpiecesports called us "the TOTALLY HILARIUOS hecklers at gameofinches"
3700 youtube views and counting
Tommy Hanson vs Jordan Zimmermann
In my opinion, the two best pitching prospect to arrive in the big leagues this year are Tommy Hanson of the Braves and Jordan Zimmermann of the Nationals. No disrespect to guys like Ricky Romero and Randy Wells, but if your fastball isn't in the mid 90's it's hard to dominant over a full career. Luckily, Hanson and Zimm average 93mph on the fastball promising a very bright future for both.
Both guy's have had a small sample size in the majors, under 100 IP, but certain conclusions can be made from their minor and major league performances. In the minors, Hanson was the superior prospect making opponents at all levels look childish. In twice as many minor league innings, Hanson had the superior K rate at nearly 11, ERA, FIP, WHIP, with an equivalent walk rate. Hanson had the expected progression through the minors pitching around a 100 innings at each level, while Zimm was rushed through the minors pitching a total of 180 innnings since being drafted.
The major league performance has been the reverse of their minor league numbers. Despite a low 3.22 era for Hanson in the majors, his 4.5 FIP shows his true performance so far. The K rate has plummeted to 6 while the walk rate has spiked to 4. Zimm on the other hand has the higher era at 4.63, but his superior 3.56 FIP is reflected by his 9K and 2.86BB rate. Striking out more than a batter per inning in the majors is no easy task as there are only 13 such starters. Although both player gives up home runs below league average, Zimmermann has the much better gb/fb ratio making him a true strike-out/ground ball pitcher which makes sabermetricians horny.
When it comes to stuff, I would give a slight advantage to Jordan Zimmermann as well. Both players throw the fastball at 93, but Zimm throws it about 10% more often which is good because a pitcher needs to be able to control and rely on his fastball. Zimm also gets more swings and misses based on the lower contact percentage particularly in the strike zone.
Shockingly, these two pitchers appear to be near clones of each other with the same collection of pitches and stuff. Despite Zimmermann's early success, I would still prefer to have the upside of Tommy Hanson. His superior K rate and K/BB ratio in the minors projects great to the big leagues. I also love his short-arm delivery that is very difficult for hitters to pick up and makes the ball appear faster than it really is.
Both guy's have had a small sample size in the majors, under 100 IP, but certain conclusions can be made from their minor and major league performances. In the minors, Hanson was the superior prospect making opponents at all levels look childish. In twice as many minor league innings, Hanson had the superior K rate at nearly 11, ERA, FIP, WHIP, with an equivalent walk rate. Hanson had the expected progression through the minors pitching around a 100 innings at each level, while Zimm was rushed through the minors pitching a total of 180 innnings since being drafted.
The major league performance has been the reverse of their minor league numbers. Despite a low 3.22 era for Hanson in the majors, his 4.5 FIP shows his true performance so far. The K rate has plummeted to 6 while the walk rate has spiked to 4. Zimm on the other hand has the higher era at 4.63, but his superior 3.56 FIP is reflected by his 9K and 2.86BB rate. Striking out more than a batter per inning in the majors is no easy task as there are only 13 such starters. Although both player gives up home runs below league average, Zimmermann has the much better gb/fb ratio making him a true strike-out/ground ball pitcher which makes sabermetricians horny.
When it comes to stuff, I would give a slight advantage to Jordan Zimmermann as well. Both players throw the fastball at 93, but Zimm throws it about 10% more often which is good because a pitcher needs to be able to control and rely on his fastball. Zimm also gets more swings and misses based on the lower contact percentage particularly in the strike zone.
Shockingly, these two pitchers appear to be near clones of each other with the same collection of pitches and stuff. Despite Zimmermann's early success, I would still prefer to have the upside of Tommy Hanson. His superior K rate and K/BB ratio in the minors projects great to the big leagues. I also love his short-arm delivery that is very difficult for hitters to pick up and makes the ball appear faster than it really is.
There's a reason Vince Young scored a 6 on the Wonderlic
Vince Young had a relatively normal childhood. Relative to an under aged indonesian prostitute that is. Stories have been coming out about the harsh conditions Vince was forced to endure under his crack/cocaine addicted loser of a mother. He describes how every night at the Young household was a "party". A crack smokey orgy of a party and everyone in Texas was invited. Young would look through the peep whole, a la Erin Andrews, into the living room at night only to witness the sight of his mother strung out like a college freshman on spring break, minus the fun. If I had to live under those conditions, I too would run really fast and would never have learned to read.
- Gust lik moma taut mee
- Run florist, run into oblivion
Xtreme Baseball: For Losers
Apparently there is an new upstart baseball league that has raped the rules of major league baseball and has possible created the worst sport ever. The XFL looks like an amazing idea compared to this crap. They are actually playing 2 games at once and running in opposite directions. How XTREME of them!
Caleb Hanie thinks Jay Cutler sucks, captured live!
At the Bears training camp, I wanted to know how Caleb Hanie thought he compared to Jay Cutler. See for yourself what he had to say!
Carlos Marmol, expanded
Wow. It's been quite a while since I posted a player analysis piece. Just been waaaay too busy getting ready for law school I guess, and now that I'm employed it's hard to find time to piss away reading player charts daily. Aaaanywho, in case you missed it, I was on 670 The Score earlier today talking about Marmol's struggles. My assertion was, is, that Marmol's struggles are not related to mechanics but adjustments by major league hitting (specifically in reference to a drastic reduction in swing rates against his slider). Can I prove it? Read on to find out!
Take a look at Marmol's three year Pitch FX data, courtesy of Fangraphs.com (click the image to enlarge):
There are several things to note about this chart of data:
1) Marmol's velocity on each pitch is right in line with his three year averages (or slightly higher) -- IN-Vel is irrelevant because it refers to intentional balls.
2) Marmol's horizontal slider movement is on a three year decline, but still within 0.3 inches of his 2008 horizontal movement levels.
3) Marmol's vertical movement on the slider has been consistent each of the past three seasons.
4) Marmol's fastball movement (vertical and horizontal) and velocity has been consistent during his career as a reliever.
5) Marmol's curveball has maintained its vertical movement each season, but lost some horizontal movement each of the past three seasons -- although his 2009 horizontal movement is within a 0.4 inches of his 2008 movement level.
6) Marmol's curveball has gotten faster each of the past three seasons.
The previous six points reiterate and reinforce my thesis: that Marmol's stuff has been as good as its ever been. Especially compared to last year, Marmol's break on each pitch has been the same and his velocities have also the same (or better) on each of his pitches. So why, if his stuff has been the same, has Marmol's runs prevention per 100 pitches value on the slider dropped from a peak of 21.4 in 2008 to a career low 3.8 in 2009?
In my opinion, the answer is not that he's been overworked each of the past two seasons (he leads all relievers in IP from 2007-2008). The true answer lies in the following two charts (again, click to enlarge):
Each of the last two seasons, hitters have increasingly come to recognize that Marmol's sick slider usually breaks outside of the zone when thrown low -- and thus can be taken for a ball rather than swinging strike. Since his 2007, Marmol has induced about 5% less swings (per season) on pitches thrown outside of the zone. Furthermore, as hitters have been swinging at less and less of his pitches in general, his walk rate has skyrocketed from 4.54 per nine innings in 2007 to a ridiculous 8.48 rate per nine in 2009, while the strikeout per nine rate has declined from 12.46 to 10.56 over that same time frame. What is surely doing most of this damage is an increase reliance by Marmol on his slider. Since 2007, Marmol's slider usage has increased from 31.5% to 38.2% to a current rate of 40.0%. Thus, while Marmol's slider has been equally effective in terms of pure stuff each of the past three years, hitters have caught on to the fact that the low slider will break for a ball and thus can be taken for ball four rather than a swinging strike three.
The only remedy, as Boers and Bernstein indicated in their reply to my call, is an adjustment in Marmol's pitch selection and location. Unless he starts mixing up his pitches more effectively -- working in more, better controlled fastballs, for instance -- and holding off the low slider, Marmol's effectiveness as a top stop reliever will continue to decline.
Take a look at Marmol's three year Pitch FX data, courtesy of Fangraphs.com (click the image to enlarge):
There are several things to note about this chart of data:
1) Marmol's velocity on each pitch is right in line with his three year averages (or slightly higher) -- IN-Vel is irrelevant because it refers to intentional balls.
2) Marmol's horizontal slider movement is on a three year decline, but still within 0.3 inches of his 2008 horizontal movement levels.
3) Marmol's vertical movement on the slider has been consistent each of the past three seasons.
4) Marmol's fastball movement (vertical and horizontal) and velocity has been consistent during his career as a reliever.
5) Marmol's curveball has maintained its vertical movement each season, but lost some horizontal movement each of the past three seasons -- although his 2009 horizontal movement is within a 0.4 inches of his 2008 movement level.
6) Marmol's curveball has gotten faster each of the past three seasons.
The previous six points reiterate and reinforce my thesis: that Marmol's stuff has been as good as its ever been. Especially compared to last year, Marmol's break on each pitch has been the same and his velocities have also the same (or better) on each of his pitches. So why, if his stuff has been the same, has Marmol's runs prevention per 100 pitches value on the slider dropped from a peak of 21.4 in 2008 to a career low 3.8 in 2009?
In my opinion, the answer is not that he's been overworked each of the past two seasons (he leads all relievers in IP from 2007-2008). The true answer lies in the following two charts (again, click to enlarge):
Each of the last two seasons, hitters have increasingly come to recognize that Marmol's sick slider usually breaks outside of the zone when thrown low -- and thus can be taken for a ball rather than swinging strike. Since his 2007, Marmol has induced about 5% less swings (per season) on pitches thrown outside of the zone. Furthermore, as hitters have been swinging at less and less of his pitches in general, his walk rate has skyrocketed from 4.54 per nine innings in 2007 to a ridiculous 8.48 rate per nine in 2009, while the strikeout per nine rate has declined from 12.46 to 10.56 over that same time frame. What is surely doing most of this damage is an increase reliance by Marmol on his slider. Since 2007, Marmol's slider usage has increased from 31.5% to 38.2% to a current rate of 40.0%. Thus, while Marmol's slider has been equally effective in terms of pure stuff each of the past three years, hitters have caught on to the fact that the low slider will break for a ball and thus can be taken for ball four rather than a swinging strike three.
The only remedy, as Boers and Bernstein indicated in their reply to my call, is an adjustment in Marmol's pitch selection and location. Unless he starts mixing up his pitches more effectively -- working in more, better controlled fastballs, for instance -- and holding off the low slider, Marmol's effectiveness as a top stop reliever will continue to decline.
Pod Vader Yells At Me
As you may or may not know, Pod Vader is the producer of many ESPN podcast such as: Fantasy Focus Baseball/Football, Football Today, Baseball Today, and the recently deceased Play Ball with Amanda and Melissa. DME was lucky enough to get an email read on the fantasy focus baseball podcast so every once in a while, I send in emails to hopefully get read as well. I recently asked the guys advice on who to pick up in place of my stud 2B Ian Kinsler while he's on the DL. I am also friends with Pod Vader on facebook so I also messaged him my email. I then realized the next morning that I stupidly forgot to sign my email so I re-sent my email and I re-messaged him on facebook. Here's the response I got back from Pod Vader on facebook
Message One:
Message Two:
Hey Pod Vader, why don't you stop being a shitty producer/ fantasy player and just read my damn funny email!
Message One:
It's in the pile for them...up to them to pick it out. Facebook emails are never read, but I recognize this from the fantasyfocus@espnradio.com inbox.
Message Two:
And sending multiple times and clogging up my Facebook email will only lend to it NOT getting read.
Hey Pod Vader, why don't you stop being a shitty producer/ fantasy player and just read my damn funny email!
DME calls into the score, captured live!
At the Chicago Bears training camp, Boers and Bernstein from The Score 670 were broadcasting on remote from Bourbonais, Illinois. Since DME decided not to come with us, due to his hatred of all sports non-baseball. I called him up and told him that we were watching live and that he should immediately call into the score. Within minutes, he is on the air talking about how much Carlos Marmol sucks and has been sucking more and more every year.
The video recording missed the beginning of the call where DME gives a much deserved shout-out to GOI, but the rest is part of GOI history.
The video recording missed the beginning of the call where DME gives a much deserved shout-out to GOI, but the rest is part of GOI history.
Albert Pujols Home Runs vs. Washington Nationals Wins Update 8/4
This morning they were tied. Then the Nats won a game. However, Pujols refused to lose the the fucken Nats at belted two homers today
Pujols HR (36) v Nats W (35)
The Nats have actually won 3 in a row and 6 out of their past 10
Pujols HR (36) v Nats W (35)
The Nats have actually won 3 in a row and 6 out of their past 10
Autographs I Got At Bears Training Camp Today
The Bright One, post your videos soon! The interview with Caleb Haney is pretty funny. I official proclaim Haney should get the job over Cutler!
What If Michael Vick Came Back?
I'm not really going to comment about Vick's off-field stuff because 1) You start a dog fighting ring and you get like two years in jail when you run over and kill a guy while drunk driving and you only get 30 days in jail... it's just fucking bullshit and 2) Roger Godell and the courts have already made up their minds about Vick so bitching and moaning won't really do a whole lot of good. But when I can do is comment on how Vick would play if he came back. What if a team signs Michael Vick to be their quarterback? No one can really use objective analysis to decide of he would make a good special teamer or RB or slot receiver or whatever. But I can tell what would probably happen if Vick comes back at QB.
In 2006, the last year Vick played, he ranked 43rd among all active QBs with at least DYAR and 39th in DVOA. Let's put that in perspective, there are only 32 teams in the NFL. Cleveland, Arizona, Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Seattle all had two QBs more efficient than Atlanta's one. Now granted this doesn't take into account rushing attempts because that year Vick ran for over 1,000 yards which still helps the team. But still, he was never that good of a NFL QB. In fact, he was downright awful. Let's take a look at his past three season and where he ranked.
2006
Passing DYAR: 43rd
Passing DVOA: 39th
QB Rating: 20th
QB Yards: 22rd
TD: 10th
INT: 15th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 4th
2005
Passing DYAR: 29th
Passing DVOA: 29th
QB Rating: 25th
QB Yards: 20th
TD: 15th
INT: 25th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 1st
2004
Passing DYAR: 40th
Passing DVOA: 37th
QB Rating: 21st
QB Yards: 26th
TD: 24th
INT: 17th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 1st
I don't think you need to understand what all these new fangled statistics actually mean to see all those low numbers. And just realize there are only 32 teams. So in the past three years, Michael has been AWFUL, I mean really fucking bad, like Rex Grossman was a better QB bad, at quarterback. As a QB on his own, no team should ever ever EVER sign him. But he's always been the best rushing QB. So as a QB, you can overlook his passing inefficiencies because of his high rushing efficiencies. But that still only makes him a middle-of-the-pack guy to help a team. But he clearly has this "athleticism" thing all the ESPN analysts are always talking about.
So if I were a GM would I sign Vick as a QB? Absolutely fucking not. But in my subjective opinion would I sign Vick, at least for another position? Well, that's for another post.
In 2006, the last year Vick played, he ranked 43rd among all active QBs with at least DYAR and 39th in DVOA. Let's put that in perspective, there are only 32 teams in the NFL. Cleveland, Arizona, Philadelphia, Jacksonville, Tampa Bay, Carolina, and Seattle all had two QBs more efficient than Atlanta's one. Now granted this doesn't take into account rushing attempts because that year Vick ran for over 1,000 yards which still helps the team. But still, he was never that good of a NFL QB. In fact, he was downright awful. Let's take a look at his past three season and where he ranked.
2006
Passing DYAR: 43rd
Passing DVOA: 39th
QB Rating: 20th
QB Yards: 22rd
TD: 10th
INT: 15th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 4th
2005
Passing DYAR: 29th
Passing DVOA: 29th
QB Rating: 25th
QB Yards: 20th
TD: 15th
INT: 25th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 1st
2004
Passing DYAR: 40th
Passing DVOA: 37th
QB Rating: 21st
QB Yards: 26th
TD: 24th
INT: 17th
Rushing DYAR: 1st
Rushing DVOA: 1st
I don't think you need to understand what all these new fangled statistics actually mean to see all those low numbers. And just realize there are only 32 teams. So in the past three years, Michael has been AWFUL, I mean really fucking bad, like Rex Grossman was a better QB bad, at quarterback. As a QB on his own, no team should ever ever EVER sign him. But he's always been the best rushing QB. So as a QB, you can overlook his passing inefficiencies because of his high rushing efficiencies. But that still only makes him a middle-of-the-pack guy to help a team. But he clearly has this "athleticism" thing all the ESPN analysts are always talking about.
So if I were a GM would I sign Vick as a QB? Absolutely fucking not. But in my subjective opinion would I sign Vick, at least for another position? Well, that's for another post.
Chris Getz for AL ROY?
OK, Getz isn't even the best rookie on his own team, the White Sox, but I guess you didn't know that the rookie has hit .353 in the past month (6th best out of all 2B) with a .400 OBP and is 17 for 18 in SB attempts on the year. Getz also leads all AL rookies in AB, H, R, 2B and is 3rd in 3B. Now none of those stats makes Getz a ROY contender; I'm just sayin'
But this year does not really have a clear cut ROY so I thought I'd discuss the leading contenders
Gordon Beckham (3B- CWS). Beckham leads all AL rookies (with a minimum of 200 PAs) in BA (.311), OBP (.374), SLG (.486), RBI (36) and t-2nd in HR (5). Think of this, he has more RBIs and 5 less HR than first place guy in only 183 ABs. The big flaws with Beckham is that he doesn't really draw walks and his a negative UZR (which is wierd because he's a SS, yet is now playing an easier defensive position)
Nolan Reimold (OF- Bal). Reimold leads all AL rookies in HR (10) and walks (28) and 2nd in BA (.281), OBP (.368) and SLG (.465). He has a 0.0 UZR and a positive UZR/150. His flaw is that he's still 2nd to Bacon (Beckham) in BA, OBP, and SLG.
Elvis Andrus (SS- Tex). Andrus is t-1st in SB (and has been caught three less times that the guy he's tied with- Brett Gardner). He's 2nd in ABs (282) and BB (25) and 3rd among all SS in UZR/150. His biggest flaw is that he's 5th among AL rookies in OPS behind Bacon, Reimold, Gardner, and Getz.
Andrew Bailey (RP- Oak). Bailey leads all AL rookies in SV (14) and has only blown saves twice and as a relief pitcher he is 5th in SO (among rookies)(69). He has a 2.21 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and a 2.73 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he's a relief pitcher.
Brad Bergesen (SP- Bal). Leads all AL rookies in ERA (3.43) and IP (123.1) and is 7-5. Bergesen also had a 1.25 WHIP and a 4.02 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he's 7th in SO behind guys like Clayton Richard and Bailey.
Ricky Romero (SP- Tor). T-1st in W (10), first in SO (87), 2nd in ERA (3.53). He also has a 1.38 WHIP and 4.27 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he has a higher FIP, ERA and WHIP than Bergesen and 2nd only to Trevor Cahill in BB.
Some other notable rookies (Brett Anderson: 2nd in SO but 5th in ERA [min 80 IP], Scott Richmond: 4th in ERA and 3rd in SO, Jeff Niemann: first in W but 4th in SO and 3rd in ERA, Brett Gardner: t-1st in SB but 3rd in OPS)
Prediction: DME will bitch and moan that Anderson is 1) not in real "contention" 2) he will say Anderson deserves it and 3) Bacon doesn't deserve to be ROY. That's my guess but who knows.
So who deserves to be the American League Rookie of the Year? Well first sunshine, let's wait until the season is over, but if the season ended right now, I'd give it to Gordon Beckham. But I'm also a huge and biased White Sox fan so what do I know?
But this year does not really have a clear cut ROY so I thought I'd discuss the leading contenders
Gordon Beckham (3B- CWS). Beckham leads all AL rookies (with a minimum of 200 PAs) in BA (.311), OBP (.374), SLG (.486), RBI (36) and t-2nd in HR (5). Think of this, he has more RBIs and 5 less HR than first place guy in only 183 ABs. The big flaws with Beckham is that he doesn't really draw walks and his a negative UZR (which is wierd because he's a SS, yet is now playing an easier defensive position)
Nolan Reimold (OF- Bal). Reimold leads all AL rookies in HR (10) and walks (28) and 2nd in BA (.281), OBP (.368) and SLG (.465). He has a 0.0 UZR and a positive UZR/150. His flaw is that he's still 2nd to Bacon (Beckham) in BA, OBP, and SLG.
Elvis Andrus (SS- Tex). Andrus is t-1st in SB (and has been caught three less times that the guy he's tied with- Brett Gardner). He's 2nd in ABs (282) and BB (25) and 3rd among all SS in UZR/150. His biggest flaw is that he's 5th among AL rookies in OPS behind Bacon, Reimold, Gardner, and Getz.
Andrew Bailey (RP- Oak). Bailey leads all AL rookies in SV (14) and has only blown saves twice and as a relief pitcher he is 5th in SO (among rookies)(69). He has a 2.21 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and a 2.73 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he's a relief pitcher.
Brad Bergesen (SP- Bal). Leads all AL rookies in ERA (3.43) and IP (123.1) and is 7-5. Bergesen also had a 1.25 WHIP and a 4.02 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he's 7th in SO behind guys like Clayton Richard and Bailey.
Ricky Romero (SP- Tor). T-1st in W (10), first in SO (87), 2nd in ERA (3.53). He also has a 1.38 WHIP and 4.27 FIP. His biggest flaw is that he has a higher FIP, ERA and WHIP than Bergesen and 2nd only to Trevor Cahill in BB.
Some other notable rookies (Brett Anderson: 2nd in SO but 5th in ERA [min 80 IP], Scott Richmond: 4th in ERA and 3rd in SO, Jeff Niemann: first in W but 4th in SO and 3rd in ERA, Brett Gardner: t-1st in SB but 3rd in OPS)
Prediction: DME will bitch and moan that Anderson is 1) not in real "contention" 2) he will say Anderson deserves it and 3) Bacon doesn't deserve to be ROY. That's my guess but who knows.
So who deserves to be the American League Rookie of the Year? Well first sunshine, let's wait until the season is over, but if the season ended right now, I'd give it to Gordon Beckham. But I'm also a huge and biased White Sox fan so what do I know?
Characters Welcome! Round Two
I know you've all been dying to know the winners of the character match ups and who to vote on for the next round! Well, don't worry little kiddies, the wait is OV-AAAAH! Below I listed the round two match ups that you can vote on by posting who you think should win in the comments or you can email me at gameofinchesblog@gmail.com your opinion. Below that is the winners from round one in case you wondering why round two looks like it does. And if you're upset at who advanced, maybe you should have actually voted.
Entourage Bracket
(1) Ari Gold (Entourage) v. (9) Dexter Morgan (Dexter)
(2) Jack Bauer (24) v. (10) Turtle (Entourage)
(14) E (Entourage) v. (6) Hank Hill (King of the Hill)
(4) Walter White (Breaking Bad) v. (5) Johnny Drama (Entourage)
Funny Bracket
(1) Jack Donaghy (30 Rock) v. (9) Hiro Nakamura (Heroes)
(2) Adrian Monk (Monk) v. (7) Tracy Jordan (30 Rock)
(3) Barney Stinson (HIMYM) v. (11) Randy Marsh (South Park)
(4) Dwight Schrute (The Office) v. (5) Kenneth Parcells (30 Rock)
Effeminate Bracket
(1) Homer Simpson (The Simpsons) v. (8) Jack McCoy (L&O)
(15) Jenna Maroney (30 Rock) v. (7) Jim Halpert (The Office)
(3) Liz Lemon (30 Rock) v. (11) Pam Beasley (The Office)
(4) Charlie Harper (2.5 Men) v. (12) Lt. Jim Dangle (Reno 911)
Bad Ass Bracket
(1) Dr. Gregory House (House) v. (9) Olivia Benson (L&O: SVU)
(2) Don Draper (Mad Men) v. (7) Michael Westin (Burn Notice)
(3) Eric Cartman (South Park) v. (6) Elliot Stabler (L&O: SVU)
(4) Sylar (Heroes) v. (5) Kenny Powers (Eastbound and Down)
Entourage Bracket
(1) Ari Gold def (16) Creed Bratton
As awesome and underrated of a character as Creed Bratton (played by Creed Bratton) is, he’s no match for Ari Gold. Creed keeps it close for a half but then Ari actually starts playing and wins by 20 in the end.
(2) Jack Bauer def (15) Roger Sterling
As much as I love Mad Men, Roger Sterling never stuck out to me as a character. And even though I never got into 24, I’m sure if people actually cared and saw this post, they would get outraged Bauer lost in the first round
(14) E def (3) Peter Griffin
This is the Entourage bracket after all. Even though my massive Entourage bias is getting in the way here and I hate Family Guy now, I’m still going with E. Even though E is the worst character of the five main ones
(4) Walter White def (13) Christine Campbell
Even though I’ve never seen an episode of Breaking Bad or The New Adventures of Old Christine, I can say with confidence the former Malcolm in the Middle dad Bryan Cranston does a fantastic job with this character and wins
(5) Johnny Chase def. (12) Vinny Chase
The most intriguing match up this round, the Chase brothers go against each other. Vinny is the guy I’d rather hang around but Johnny is by far the better character
(6) Hank Hill def. (11) Patrick Jane
I’m sure no one who reads this blog actually watches The Mentalist. Plus I love my propane and propane accessories, I’ll tell you what!
(10) Turtle def. (7) Horatio Caine
Again, everyone in Entourage must win in the first round! Plus, I hate David Caruso’s acting style SO MUCH!
(9) Dexter Morgan def (8) Lisa Simpson
I always pick the 9 over 8 upset in my real NCAA bracket so why not in this one as well. Plus the lovable serial killer probably always wins every character battle, right?
Funny Bracket
(1) Jack Donaghy def (16) Leonard Hofstader
Much love to the Big Bang theory but you can’t go against the Juggernaut that is 30 Rock
(2) Adrian Monk def. (15) Alan Shore
Despite the show having “Boston” in its name, I’ve never seen a Boston Legal. Coupled with the fact that James Spader always steals Emmys. If Monk wasn’t on Fridays, I’d watch even more of it
(3) Barney Stinson def (14) Dr. Cal Lightman
I’ve only seen a few episodes of Lie To Me, but Tim Roth is incredible in it. Too bad he’s going up against NPH.
(4) Dwight Schrute def. (13) Barack Obama
The only thing Barack Obama will ever lose
(5) Kenneth Parcells def. (12) Jermaine
Again, the 30 Rock juggernaut rolls on
(11) Randy Marsh def. (6) McDreamy
Anything Grey’s Anatomy must lose, sorry. Plus, Mr. Marsh is always funny. Go watch the World of Warcraft South Park episode, trust me
(7) Tracy Jordan def. (10) Sheldon Cooper
I’m the Juggernaut bitch! Although again, much love to The Big Bang Theory
(8) Hiro def. (9) HRG
How does Noah Bennet lose! He always wins! Maybe Hiro locked him in a coffin?
Effeminate Bracket
(1) Homer Simpson def. (16) Claire Bennett
Not only do I think Hayden Panitierre can’t act, but Claire pisses me off because she never listens to her dad, HRG. That and she’s going against one of the most beloved and recognized characters of all time
(15) Jenna Maroney def. (2) Michael Scott
Huge upset here! I guess more of you should have voted! Plus I guess all things 30 Rock wins
(3) Liz Lemon def. (14) Dr. Meredith Grey
All things 30 Rock = awesome. All things Grey’s Anatomy = only on this list as a courtesy
(4) Charlie Harper def. (13) 13
Isn’t it weird that 13 is a 13 seed? Huh? Anyway, the lovable, 22-year-old fucking, boozing, gambling , rich uncle on one of the best comedies out there right now beats the hottie
(12) Lt Jim Dangle def. (5) Deputy Johnson
I’ve only seen one episode of The Closer and I love Reno so maybe I’m a little biased, but Kyra Sedwick’s fault is, literally, being addicted to chocolate! Really!? Whatever
(11) Pam Beasley def. (6) Jack Shepard
Not because I love The Office and I don’t watch Lost, do I declare the lame (albeit cute) Pam Beasley the winner, but only because of that line near the beginning of “Knocked Up” where Seth Rogen tells Katherine Keigl to punch Matthew Fox in the face
(7) Jim Halpert def. (10) Allen Harper
All Jim does is look into the camera and does this :~/
(8) Jack McCoy def. (9) Lisa Simpson
My mom hates the actor who plays Jack McCoy because she hates Jack McCoy. That's woman logic for you.
Bad Ass Bracket
(65) Older Brother def. (64) Tarvold
Mainly because Viking Quest technically doesn’t qualify because it got canceled. I wish the show would release what Drama’s character name was though…
(1) Dr. House def. (16) Older Brother
Why even have a play-in game of their just gonna lose the in the next round anyway. Guaranteed.
(2) Don Draper def. (15) Dr. McNamara
Don Draper might be my personal favorite character and if people actually watched Mad Men, they would have liked Jon Hamm’s SNL performance that much better
(3) Eric Cartman def. (14) Betty Draper
Mom! Baf-room! Baf-room! *Cartmen then proceeds to shit on his mom*
(4) Sylar def. (13) Ben Linus
Come on, not only is Sylar the greatest villain on TV right now but I think he’s already cemented his place in TV villain history. The very very very very very end of the Heroes season finale made me very happy
(5) Kenny Powers def. (12) Shawn Spencer
Kenny Powers win. The, mother-fucking, end. Again, sorry for Power’s low seeding
(6) Elliot Stable def. (11) Grace H.
Law and Order SVU had definitely now taken its place as the best Law and Order on TV, mainly due to the dude who played Freakshow in Harold and Kumar and the chef in Wet Hot American Summer
(7) Michael Westin def. (10) Pete Campbell
This is one of the few match ups that I lost. You people need to go out and watch Mad Men!
(8) Olivia Benson v (8) Dr. Troy
Ok, maybe you need two. Plus Nip/Tuck in on the downfall and SVU is only getting better. Although this match up is very close.
Entourage Bracket
(1) Ari Gold (Entourage) v. (9) Dexter Morgan (Dexter)
(2) Jack Bauer (24) v. (10) Turtle (Entourage)
(14) E (Entourage) v. (6) Hank Hill (King of the Hill)
(4) Walter White (Breaking Bad) v. (5) Johnny Drama (Entourage)
Funny Bracket
(1) Jack Donaghy (30 Rock) v. (9) Hiro Nakamura (Heroes)
(2) Adrian Monk (Monk) v. (7) Tracy Jordan (30 Rock)
(3) Barney Stinson (HIMYM) v. (11) Randy Marsh (South Park)
(4) Dwight Schrute (The Office) v. (5) Kenneth Parcells (30 Rock)
Effeminate Bracket
(1) Homer Simpson (The Simpsons) v. (8) Jack McCoy (L&O)
(15) Jenna Maroney (30 Rock) v. (7) Jim Halpert (The Office)
(3) Liz Lemon (30 Rock) v. (11) Pam Beasley (The Office)
(4) Charlie Harper (2.5 Men) v. (12) Lt. Jim Dangle (Reno 911)
Bad Ass Bracket
(1) Dr. Gregory House (House) v. (9) Olivia Benson (L&O: SVU)
(2) Don Draper (Mad Men) v. (7) Michael Westin (Burn Notice)
(3) Eric Cartman (South Park) v. (6) Elliot Stabler (L&O: SVU)
(4) Sylar (Heroes) v. (5) Kenny Powers (Eastbound and Down)
Entourage Bracket
(1) Ari Gold def (16) Creed Bratton
As awesome and underrated of a character as Creed Bratton (played by Creed Bratton) is, he’s no match for Ari Gold. Creed keeps it close for a half but then Ari actually starts playing and wins by 20 in the end.
(2) Jack Bauer def (15) Roger Sterling
As much as I love Mad Men, Roger Sterling never stuck out to me as a character. And even though I never got into 24, I’m sure if people actually cared and saw this post, they would get outraged Bauer lost in the first round
(14) E def (3) Peter Griffin
This is the Entourage bracket after all. Even though my massive Entourage bias is getting in the way here and I hate Family Guy now, I’m still going with E. Even though E is the worst character of the five main ones
(4) Walter White def (13) Christine Campbell
Even though I’ve never seen an episode of Breaking Bad or The New Adventures of Old Christine, I can say with confidence the former Malcolm in the Middle dad Bryan Cranston does a fantastic job with this character and wins
(5) Johnny Chase def. (12) Vinny Chase
The most intriguing match up this round, the Chase brothers go against each other. Vinny is the guy I’d rather hang around but Johnny is by far the better character
(6) Hank Hill def. (11) Patrick Jane
I’m sure no one who reads this blog actually watches The Mentalist. Plus I love my propane and propane accessories, I’ll tell you what!
(10) Turtle def. (7) Horatio Caine
Again, everyone in Entourage must win in the first round! Plus, I hate David Caruso’s acting style SO MUCH!
(9) Dexter Morgan def (8) Lisa Simpson
I always pick the 9 over 8 upset in my real NCAA bracket so why not in this one as well. Plus the lovable serial killer probably always wins every character battle, right?
Funny Bracket
(1) Jack Donaghy def (16) Leonard Hofstader
Much love to the Big Bang theory but you can’t go against the Juggernaut that is 30 Rock
(2) Adrian Monk def. (15) Alan Shore
Despite the show having “Boston” in its name, I’ve never seen a Boston Legal. Coupled with the fact that James Spader always steals Emmys. If Monk wasn’t on Fridays, I’d watch even more of it
(3) Barney Stinson def (14) Dr. Cal Lightman
I’ve only seen a few episodes of Lie To Me, but Tim Roth is incredible in it. Too bad he’s going up against NPH.
(4) Dwight Schrute def. (13) Barack Obama
The only thing Barack Obama will ever lose
(5) Kenneth Parcells def. (12) Jermaine
Again, the 30 Rock juggernaut rolls on
(11) Randy Marsh def. (6) McDreamy
Anything Grey’s Anatomy must lose, sorry. Plus, Mr. Marsh is always funny. Go watch the World of Warcraft South Park episode, trust me
(7) Tracy Jordan def. (10) Sheldon Cooper
I’m the Juggernaut bitch! Although again, much love to The Big Bang Theory
(8) Hiro def. (9) HRG
How does Noah Bennet lose! He always wins! Maybe Hiro locked him in a coffin?
Effeminate Bracket
(1) Homer Simpson def. (16) Claire Bennett
Not only do I think Hayden Panitierre can’t act, but Claire pisses me off because she never listens to her dad, HRG. That and she’s going against one of the most beloved and recognized characters of all time
(15) Jenna Maroney def. (2) Michael Scott
Huge upset here! I guess more of you should have voted! Plus I guess all things 30 Rock wins
(3) Liz Lemon def. (14) Dr. Meredith Grey
All things 30 Rock = awesome. All things Grey’s Anatomy = only on this list as a courtesy
(4) Charlie Harper def. (13) 13
Isn’t it weird that 13 is a 13 seed? Huh? Anyway, the lovable, 22-year-old fucking, boozing, gambling , rich uncle on one of the best comedies out there right now beats the hottie
(12) Lt Jim Dangle def. (5) Deputy Johnson
I’ve only seen one episode of The Closer and I love Reno so maybe I’m a little biased, but Kyra Sedwick’s fault is, literally, being addicted to chocolate! Really!? Whatever
(11) Pam Beasley def. (6) Jack Shepard
Not because I love The Office and I don’t watch Lost, do I declare the lame (albeit cute) Pam Beasley the winner, but only because of that line near the beginning of “Knocked Up” where Seth Rogen tells Katherine Keigl to punch Matthew Fox in the face
(7) Jim Halpert def. (10) Allen Harper
All Jim does is look into the camera and does this :~/
(8) Jack McCoy def. (9) Lisa Simpson
My mom hates the actor who plays Jack McCoy because she hates Jack McCoy. That's woman logic for you.
Bad Ass Bracket
(65) Older Brother def. (64) Tarvold
Mainly because Viking Quest technically doesn’t qualify because it got canceled. I wish the show would release what Drama’s character name was though…
(1) Dr. House def. (16) Older Brother
Why even have a play-in game of their just gonna lose the in the next round anyway. Guaranteed.
(2) Don Draper def. (15) Dr. McNamara
Don Draper might be my personal favorite character and if people actually watched Mad Men, they would have liked Jon Hamm’s SNL performance that much better
(3) Eric Cartman def. (14) Betty Draper
Mom! Baf-room! Baf-room! *Cartmen then proceeds to shit on his mom*
(4) Sylar def. (13) Ben Linus
Come on, not only is Sylar the greatest villain on TV right now but I think he’s already cemented his place in TV villain history. The very very very very very end of the Heroes season finale made me very happy
(5) Kenny Powers def. (12) Shawn Spencer
Kenny Powers win. The, mother-fucking, end. Again, sorry for Power’s low seeding
(6) Elliot Stable def. (11) Grace H.
Law and Order SVU had definitely now taken its place as the best Law and Order on TV, mainly due to the dude who played Freakshow in Harold and Kumar and the chef in Wet Hot American Summer
(7) Michael Westin def. (10) Pete Campbell
This is one of the few match ups that I lost. You people need to go out and watch Mad Men!
(8) Olivia Benson v (8) Dr. Troy
Ok, maybe you need two. Plus Nip/Tuck in on the downfall and SVU is only getting better. Although this match up is very close.
The Deals That Was
This year had a lot of trades, especially a lot immediately before the trading deadline. Here's a wrap up of the most notable ones:
- Indians trade 2B/Util Mark DeRosa to Cardinals for RP Chris Perez and minor leaguer RP Jess Todd
- A's trade Matt Holliday to the Cardinals for 3B Brett Wallace, OF Shane Patterson, and RHP Clayton Mortensen
- Padres trade RHP Jake Peavy to the Chicago White Sox for RHP Aaron Poreda, LHP Clayton Richard and minor league RHP Adam Russell and Dexter Carter
- Indians trade LHP Cliff Lee to the Phillies for prospects
- Mariners trade RHP Jarrod Washburn to the Tigers for LHP Luke French and a minor league LHP Mauricio Robles
- Indians trade C Victor Martinez to the Red Sox for RHP Justin Masterson and two prospects
- Blue Jays trade (no, not Roy Halladay) 3B Scott Rolen to the Reds for 3B Edwin Encarnacion
-Washington Nationals trade 1B Nick Johnson to the Marlins for minor league LHP Aaron Thompson
-A's trade SS Orlando Cabrera to the Twins for minor league SS Tyler Ladendorf
-Pirates trade:
- OF Nate McLouth to the Braves
- 2B Freddy Sanchez to the Giants
- LHP Jon Grabow and LHP Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs
- SS Jack Wilson and RHP Ian Snell to the Mariners
- The son of the first born to the devil just to win a series
Things I got right about players being traded:
- I said Nick Johnson, Freddy Sanchez, and Cliff Lee would be traded
-I said Bobby Jenks, Jermaine Dye, Javy Vazquez, Erik Bedard, and Roy Halladay would not get traded
Things I got wrong about players being traded:
-I said V Mart and Jarrod Washburn would stay put
- Indians trade 2B/Util Mark DeRosa to Cardinals for RP Chris Perez and minor leaguer RP Jess Todd
- A's trade Matt Holliday to the Cardinals for 3B Brett Wallace, OF Shane Patterson, and RHP Clayton Mortensen
- Padres trade RHP Jake Peavy to the Chicago White Sox for RHP Aaron Poreda, LHP Clayton Richard and minor league RHP Adam Russell and Dexter Carter
- Indians trade LHP Cliff Lee to the Phillies for prospects
- Mariners trade RHP Jarrod Washburn to the Tigers for LHP Luke French and a minor league LHP Mauricio Robles
- Indians trade C Victor Martinez to the Red Sox for RHP Justin Masterson and two prospects
- Blue Jays trade (no, not Roy Halladay) 3B Scott Rolen to the Reds for 3B Edwin Encarnacion
-Washington Nationals trade 1B Nick Johnson to the Marlins for minor league LHP Aaron Thompson
-A's trade SS Orlando Cabrera to the Twins for minor league SS Tyler Ladendorf
-Pirates trade:
- OF Nate McLouth to the Braves
- 2B Freddy Sanchez to the Giants
- LHP Jon Grabow and LHP Tom Gorzelanny to the Cubs
- SS Jack Wilson and RHP Ian Snell to the Mariners
- The son of the first born to the devil just to win a series
Things I got right about players being traded:
- I said Nick Johnson, Freddy Sanchez, and Cliff Lee would be traded
-I said Bobby Jenks, Jermaine Dye, Javy Vazquez, Erik Bedard, and Roy Halladay would not get traded
Things I got wrong about players being traded:
-I said V Mart and Jarrod Washburn would stay put
