A story that would make Eckstein proud
Apparently, former Devil Ray speedster Jason Tyner was traded from the brewers to the tigers...for nothing. Not even a bucket of balls, a log of salmon, some batting gloves. Nope, just take him. No trade backs sukkaass!!
Johan Santana Has A Very Good Memory
I recently saw a video which shows the great memory Johan Santana has. He has an individual handshake for every player on the Mets. I wonder how he came up with everyone and how he remembers each on. The other players only have to remember one, but he has to remember 24! I suggest to check out the video at: http://deadspin.com/5200783/johan-santana-has-a-very-good-memory
Why designate Vizcaino?
The Cubs designated reliever Luis Vizcaino today and I don’t get it. Maybe someone can explain it to me. He was a solid bullpen guy with 11 years of experience. In his career he was 34-27 with a 4.31 ERA. That isn’t great, but he is solid and consistent. We haven’t got much of that from the rest of the bullpen, so you think it would be good to have someone dependable. Were going to have to pay his salary anyways and I don’t think the Cubs have anyone better than him. He was not the weakest player in that bullpen, so why just cut him?
He had a decent spring and was off to a good start. He only pitched 3.2 innings so far this year because Lou didn’t trust him, but I don’t know why. I am not saying that he is great or one of your key guys, but for what he is and what you need he was a fine fit. Were not asking him to be a set up guy like he was earlier in his career. We have Marmol and Heilaman to set up Gregg already. All we need is him to help in the 7th innings or with big leads and he was fine. This season Vizcaino was one of the few guys in the bullpen who wasn’t wild and didn’t walk many batters. He had no walks this season and had three strike outs. In his 3.2 innings he only allowed 2 hits. He had no walks! He is a good strikeout pitcher. In his career he averages 1.11 strikeout per inning and was on the same pace this season.
I am not saying I was a big Luis Vizcaino fan or would want to re-sign him when he was a free agent, but he is too good to cut when he is under contract. I wish the Cubs would have called up Jeff Samardzija to take Neal Cotts spot instead of Vizcaino. Cotts has been bad and I would rather have better pitchers and no left handed relievers than a bad one.
He had a decent spring and was off to a good start. He only pitched 3.2 innings so far this year because Lou didn’t trust him, but I don’t know why. I am not saying that he is great or one of your key guys, but for what he is and what you need he was a fine fit. Were not asking him to be a set up guy like he was earlier in his career. We have Marmol and Heilaman to set up Gregg already. All we need is him to help in the 7th innings or with big leads and he was fine. This season Vizcaino was one of the few guys in the bullpen who wasn’t wild and didn’t walk many batters. He had no walks this season and had three strike outs. In his 3.2 innings he only allowed 2 hits. He had no walks! He is a good strikeout pitcher. In his career he averages 1.11 strikeout per inning and was on the same pace this season.
I am not saying I was a big Luis Vizcaino fan or would want to re-sign him when he was a free agent, but he is too good to cut when he is under contract. I wish the Cubs would have called up Jeff Samardzija to take Neal Cotts spot instead of Vizcaino. Cotts has been bad and I would rather have better pitchers and no left handed relievers than a bad one.
Sun Trick the Double Pour
Here is Sun Trick pouring two at a time. This isn't the best he has done it though. I can't find any online of him doing two at a time and does it really quickly. I previously posted him doing the single pour fast and here it is the double pour, but not what I was hoping to show. I guess you have to go to Wrigley Field and see it for yourself.
The Best Beer Vendor
The best beer vendor, and he can only be found at Wrigley Field. The best part is when he does two at once, but of course I can't find that. This video was found by "The Bright One".
New Yankee's Stadium Is Officially New Coors Field
Five more home runs on the night. That makes the HR/game average at Yankees stadium greater than four.
Derek Jeter's fantasy value is gonna skyrocket.
Derek Jeter's fantasy value is gonna skyrocket.
Pitchers I Wouldn't Buy
I've already (and extensively) detailed which pitchers I've got a mancrush on this season. Now I'm going to going into the guys I don't want.
C.C. Sabathia -- 513 IP over two seasons. Second-highest PAP last season (by a large margin). Back-to-back-to-back three 100+ pitch count games at the end of the season on three days rest. Pitches 1/2 of his games at New Yankee Stadium (which averages 4.3 home runs per game). Pick a reason, any reason.
Cole Hamels - I had him last year, but I wouldn't repeat my ownership based on several factors. He had a career year. He was already an injury risk before he increased his innings load by a sizeable amount last season. He had elbow issues through spring training.
Felix Hernandez -- He always gets off to a great start that masks just how bad his second half numbers always are. Felix has quality stuff and an ecletic pitch mix, but the lack of control and flyball nature are a recipe for concern. If he ever cuts down the free passes, however, he'll be unquestionably elite.
Gavin Floyd -- A flyball pitcher who plays at the Cell with one of the league's worst outfield defenses? No thank you.
Scott Kazmir -- He's got great stuff, but control continues to elude him. This, combined with health issues, makes him especially overvalued. He's a strikeout brand name, but better options are cheaper and available.
Roy Oswalt -- After being notoriously stingy with long balls, Roy Oswalt increased (almost doubled) his HR/9 rate last season and the trend has continued this year. Oswalt began the season with a miserable +4.5 ERA and a ridiculously good second half masked just how poor he was for 3 months. Oswalt is a big brand name riding on a few good starts, so you might want to trade him while his value remains relatively high. Otherwise, you may eventually regret wasting a top 10 pick on him. Perhaps you can get an underperforming Ricky Nolasco. It should be noted that Oswalt also pitched (poorly) in the WBC.
Brad Lidge -- He's got mental issues that often cloud his physical abilities. He's nowhere near perfect and it would be unwise to pay top dollar for someone who isn't top tier. You would have been better off drafting Soria, Broxton or Wood. He's already starting to show cracks in his game.
K-Rod -- The logic is similiar to that behind Lidge. K-Rod's peripherals have been on a three year slide and there's no reason to expect a significant reversal of that trend this late in his career. What you see is what you get. The upside is limited and you are paying high because of a 62 save season. He's not a bad player to own, he's just entirely overrated.
Jon Lester -- He's a great public relations story (battles cancern to come back and throw a no-no/have a great season), but his peripherals say he's not likely to take a big step forward this year and maintain his success from last season. Unless Lester can maintain his shaved walk rate and decrease home run propensity, his ERA is going to rise past the 4.00 threshhold. Does anyone (Sexy Rexy?) have Lester's breakout/collapse rates handy?
Dice-K -- I've already talked a lot about his disturbing walk rates and they've already come back to burn him.
Sell High Guys:
Armando Galarraga -- Those home runs and mediocre control rates are going to hurt your fantasy team big time.
Joe Saunders -- He strikes NOBODY out and gives up his share of walks and home runs. Get whatever you can for him and be happy with the profit.
C.C. Sabathia -- 513 IP over two seasons. Second-highest PAP last season (by a large margin). Back-to-back-to-back three 100+ pitch count games at the end of the season on three days rest. Pitches 1/2 of his games at New Yankee Stadium (which averages 4.3 home runs per game). Pick a reason, any reason.
Cole Hamels - I had him last year, but I wouldn't repeat my ownership based on several factors. He had a career year. He was already an injury risk before he increased his innings load by a sizeable amount last season. He had elbow issues through spring training.
Felix Hernandez -- He always gets off to a great start that masks just how bad his second half numbers always are. Felix has quality stuff and an ecletic pitch mix, but the lack of control and flyball nature are a recipe for concern. If he ever cuts down the free passes, however, he'll be unquestionably elite.
Gavin Floyd -- A flyball pitcher who plays at the Cell with one of the league's worst outfield defenses? No thank you.
Scott Kazmir -- He's got great stuff, but control continues to elude him. This, combined with health issues, makes him especially overvalued. He's a strikeout brand name, but better options are cheaper and available.
Roy Oswalt -- After being notoriously stingy with long balls, Roy Oswalt increased (almost doubled) his HR/9 rate last season and the trend has continued this year. Oswalt began the season with a miserable +4.5 ERA and a ridiculously good second half masked just how poor he was for 3 months. Oswalt is a big brand name riding on a few good starts, so you might want to trade him while his value remains relatively high. Otherwise, you may eventually regret wasting a top 10 pick on him. Perhaps you can get an underperforming Ricky Nolasco. It should be noted that Oswalt also pitched (poorly) in the WBC.
Brad Lidge -- He's got mental issues that often cloud his physical abilities. He's nowhere near perfect and it would be unwise to pay top dollar for someone who isn't top tier. You would have been better off drafting Soria, Broxton or Wood. He's already starting to show cracks in his game.
K-Rod -- The logic is similiar to that behind Lidge. K-Rod's peripherals have been on a three year slide and there's no reason to expect a significant reversal of that trend this late in his career. What you see is what you get. The upside is limited and you are paying high because of a 62 save season. He's not a bad player to own, he's just entirely overrated.
Jon Lester -- He's a great public relations story (battles cancern to come back and throw a no-no/have a great season), but his peripherals say he's not likely to take a big step forward this year and maintain his success from last season. Unless Lester can maintain his shaved walk rate and decrease home run propensity, his ERA is going to rise past the 4.00 threshhold. Does anyone (Sexy Rexy?) have Lester's breakout/collapse rates handy?
Dice-K -- I've already talked a lot about his disturbing walk rates and they've already come back to burn him.
Sell High Guys:
Armando Galarraga -- Those home runs and mediocre control rates are going to hurt your fantasy team big time.
Joe Saunders -- He strikes NOBODY out and gives up his share of walks and home runs. Get whatever you can for him and be happy with the profit.
Sounds a little gay
This is from the scoring summary of the A's Yankees game.
"N Swisher singled to deep center, J Posada scored, N Swisher out stretching at second."
Was he actually stretching at second, lost track of reality and got tagged out, or was he trying to stretch a single into a double? I didnt realize stretching was an official MLB term
"N Swisher singled to deep center, J Posada scored, N Swisher out stretching at second."
Was he actually stretching at second, lost track of reality and got tagged out, or was he trying to stretch a single into a double? I didnt realize stretching was an official MLB term
Snakes On A Plane (TV Version)
Thank Bill Simmons for this video:
This one is semi-sports related:
Downright hilarious:
This one is semi-sports related:
Downright hilarious:
The REAL Baseball Nation
Wanna know what parts of America root for which baseball teams. Well look below.
This is based off of real data of real data seen here:
This is based off of real data of real data seen here:
Box Score Tonight: April 21
Filling in for The Bright One again. I feel like Rick Sutcliffe on Sunday Night Baseball!
- Rain continues to plague America. The Red Sox-Twins game gets postponed until tomorrow, when a double header will be played.
- After blowing back-to-back-to-back blown saves, Hanrahan gets back-to-back handshakes as the ice cold Washington Natinals (no, that's not a typo) beat the Braves by a score of 4-3.
- Joe Beimel, the reigning king of not giving up home runs, goes on the DL with a left hip flexor strain. I'm no doctor, but hip injuries are never good.
- I still say Hanrahan loses his job before June, but with Beimel out, it's going to be Garrett Mock's job to fuck up in the future. Yahoo! called Mock the Hanrahancuffs. I laughed.
- Elijah Dukes continues to be a rule breaker and baseball badass. He was fined $500 because he arrived to practice five minutes late. How dare he attend little league charity functions! It's cool though, because the kids are going to pay the fine for him.
- This is the funniest headline ever. Too bad it's a year old.
- Chipper Jones, who flirted with a .400 BA through the first half of last season, is batting .353. Adam Dunn hit his 4th dinger of the season, seems determined to hit 40 again.
- On the heels of 5 straight losses, the Orioles shut down the poppin' White Sox 10-3. Markakis went 4-for-4 (2B), while Huff went yard twice. Felix Pie continues to struggle, going 0-3 this game. Like I said yesterday, no trade backs.
- After a failed bid at a struggling Sizemore in my fantasy league, he's gone yard three times in the past five games. Indians beat the Royals 8-7, as Laffey tosses seven quality innings (7 H, 3 BB, 3K, 1 ER) and Sidney Ponson does his best impression of Chien-Ming Wang (3.1 IP, 8 H, 4 B, 2 K, 6 ER).
- How about V-Mart? After a disappointing and injured 2008 campaign, he's hitting .397 with 5 home runs on the season.
- Only one home run (Johnny Damon) in tonight's game in the Bronx. Yankees win 5-3.
- Matt Holliday is without a homer and Xavier Nady doesn't need season-ending surgery.
- Dana Eveland has the best HR/9 rate in the league, dating back to last season (10 HR over 182.2 IP) . That doesn't prevent him from giving up his share of runs, however (4 IP, 9 H, 4 BB, 3 K, 4 ER).
- Against all odds, the Pirates continue to pitch well. Jeff Karstens (6 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 ER) outdueled Anibal Sanchez (7 IP, 7 H, 2 BB, 6 K, 3 ER) for the win. Final score 4-3 Buccos.
- Uggla continue to piss me off, going 0 for his last 20, with 6 Ks. His OPS has halved over that period of time. Hope you didn't buy high (or at all) on Bonafacio because he was not for real.
- Gotta love those Phillies. Not because they are pitching or hitting particularly well, but because they are helping crush the Brewers' self-esteem. Manny Parra, who I finally dropped (and started for some unknown reason), continues to be ineffectively wild (4 IP, 7 H, 3 BB, 4 K, 5 ER) and the Phillies made him pay. Ryan Braun went yard twice in his 5-for-5 hitting binge, but the Phillies win 11-4.
- Roy Halladay, who has been wheelin' and dealin' in his last three starts, got lit up by the Rangers. Ian Kinsler (who refuses to cool off) and Nelson Cruz (who I of course benched) went yard in the Rangers' 5-4 victory. Aaron Hill, who was on pace for 25 dingers before his concussion in 2007, now has 5 HR on the season. Is he for real? Probably not, as his career ISO is 1/2 of what it current stands at. His .388 BABIP (.365 BA) scream "sell!"
- Jose Valverde picks up his first save of the season in Houston's 8-5 win over the Dodgers, but it was not without its drama. Manny, who went 2-4 with a HR on the night, almost knocked one out of the park with two men on. Instead, he flied out about 7 feet short of the right field wall.
- Clayton Kershaw, who has been dominant in his last two starts, only lasted 4.1 innings (6 ER). He struck out 3, but also walked two and gave up a two-run shot to Carlos Lee.
- Mets lose to the Cardinals 6-4, courtesy of Daniel Murphy's poor defense in left. Why pay Fernado Tatis $1.7 million if you aren't going to use him?
- Oliver Perez (4.2 IP, 6 H, 5BB, 4 K, 4 ER) channels his inner wild thing. For an offseason that was peppered with value offerings, you gotta feel bad for the Mets, who were left out of the bargain hunting thanks some Scott Boras magic. How Boras convinced the Mets to pay Perez $36 million over 3 years is beyond my comprehension.
- The once feared J.J. Putz has a meager 3 Ks through 8 IP. Sample size or age (31)?
- Rockies beat the Diamondbacks 9-6. Mark Reynolds hit his 4th homer of the season (second in as many games), but has 16 Ks through 45 ABs. Reynold's is striking out 5% less than he did last season, but still whiffing in 1/3 of his ABs.
- Manny Corpas has replaced Huston Street as the team's closer for now. Neither of them is pitching particularly well at the moment, so the name of the game is "who sucks less?" When Taylor Buchholz comes off the DL, he will eventually steal the job from whichever of them is closing.
- Curtis Granderson left the yard in back-to-back at bats, but the Tigers still lose to the Angels 4-3. Manager Mike Scioscia was tossed from the game for arguing balls and strikes.
- 2009 Armando Galarraga pitched like 2008 Armando Galarraga, minus the luck. Do you expect him to outperform his FIP by over a full run again this season? Sell high and sell fast.
- Tiger's GM Dave Dombrowski says they have "no interest in trading Miguel Cabrera". He goes on to say "Not only is it one of the last things we would ever consider, we have an owner [Mike Ilitch] who would never let that happen." Sorry, Boston.
- The Tampa Bay Rays continue to struggle. The Mariners beat them 4-2.
- Jarrod Washburn is having his best season in over a decade. The flyball pitcher tossed 7 innings of 5 hit, 3 BB, 9 K, 2 ER baseball. Some combination of Seattle's ballpark, which tends to deflate home runs, and a much improved (league-leading) defensive outfield are keeping the flyball-oriented Washburn dominant. He's worth a spot on your bench, but remember that he has a 5.35 career K/9.
- Brandon Morrow's average fastball speed sits around 97 MPH and periodically touches 100. True story.
- Matt Cain (6 IP, 9 H, 0 BB, 5 K, 2 ER) outdueled Jake Peavy (7 IP, 3 BB, 3 K, 6 ER) in San Fran last night. Padres lose 3-8 as Peavy, who been uncharacteristically wild over his past two games (7 BB, 11 IP), struggles in his second consecutive outing. His second start aside, Peavy hasn't looked very dominant this season. Is this a case of sample size or a repeat of 2006? The World Baseball Classic has not been kind to Jake Peavy.
- Brian Giles has an ISO of .038 this season. Even Willy Bloomquist has a .053 ISO. Ouch.
- Last, but not least, The Cubs beat the Reds 7-2 last night. Rich Harden, who finally gets a win, continues to dominate batters (6 IP, 3 H, 2 BB, 8 K) in the NL. At this pace, if Harden stays healthy, he will have a 312 K season (180 IP of 15.6 K/9 baseball). I think I'm in love.
- The Cubs need to find a place in the line up for Micah Hoffpauir. He hit his first home run of the season last night.
In Defense of Ozzie Guillen
I was writing a response to the Pro Cub/ Anti White Sox sentiment that commented on my post "Lou and Derrek Lee Are The Worst Manager And Player Ever" but it ended up being so long that I decided to make it into a post instead.
1) Again, I'm not making the comparisons about Guillen and Pinella as players!!! How a person played has nothing to do with how they are as mangers. Yes, Ozzie Guillen is one of the worst offensive players in the history of baseball, BUT THIS HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH HOW GUILLEN ACTS AS A MANAGER. And as a matter of fact, great players tend to make horrible managers. Mainly, because these players were so good that they expect greatness from their team. This ends up being an unrealistic expectation which ends up making the team worse off. John Kruk was a pretty good player and he's a terrible ESPN commentator. Joe Morgan was one of the best 2B and players of all time, and yet I can't ever watch a full game whenever he announces.
I am obviously defending Ozzie Guillen as a manager and not as a player- because there's obviously no defense for that. In case you for some reason (mainly MVP Eckstein) thought how Ozzie was as a player was implicit in my argument, I am overtly telling you right now it is not. And in fact, by you continually mentioning how Ozzie was as a player into his managerial skills, you are degrading your own argument because you are using fallacies for the sole purpose of winning an argument.
2) I do think Pinella is a better manager than Ozzie, but let's be honest, what really makes Ozzie so bad as you claim he is?
As mentioned in "Baseball Between the Numbers", the role of a manger is extremely small. All they have to do is set the lineup and switch out pitchers. What really makes Ozzie so bad at either of these? The line up this year is actually almost perfect considering the players the team has right now. Besides the lead off spot (which the organization does not have anywhere), the line up is essentially set by decreasing OBP (happy Bright One, jesus). And even so, Baseball Between The Numbers proves that who is placed where in the lineup makes a negligible difference.
-And as for the bullpen and pitching changes, what makes Ozzie so bad at this? In 2007 when the only consistent and good arm in the bullpen was Bobby Jenks, Ozzie made this comment (and I'm paraphrasing from memory but the gist is the same), "I don't know what to do? If I could I'd have Bobby throw for three innings every game I would, but I can't." Ozzie recognizes the fact that starters can realistically only throw X number of pitches per game and throughout his entire tenure he has utilized his bullpen the best that he can.
3) I would like address this notion that Ozzieball = Small Ball. It does not. In 2005, when the talent mainly consisted of speed and very few power guys, the team HAD to manufacture runs. Ozzie utilized the talent he had on his team in order to win. But throughout Ozzie's career as a manger, this is not the case. Ozzie lets his guys walk and hit home runs- all great factors that lead to a successful offense. From 2006- today, Ozzie does not sacrifice more than any other manager and allows his players to do what they do best.
4) Ozzie is a leader. Ozzie commands respect but not to the point where his players hate him. The New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin commanded respect but he was a dictator in the locker room saying that his players were "five minutes late if they were on time" But in 2008 he eased up and became more of a "players coach" yet still maintained his power. The Giants won the Superbowl- and people praised Coughlin on his new managerial style. Now Ozzie does that everyday, so if Coughlin gets praised for it, so should Ozzie. And as a sidenote, the fact that Ozzie is a latin born person helps him communicate better with his team (considering the ChiSox and most organizations have a lot of Spanish-speaking players) and helps him maximize his players talent and be a better leader.
5) Ozzie does have two rings and a winning record. And as my brother so astutely said and put into words much better than I probably could have, "from 2004 to 2008, the White Sox have gone 12-4 in the playoffs, mostly from their 2005 World Series run. From 2004 to 2008, the Cubs have gone 0-6 in the playoffs, getting swept in the NLCS over the past two years. Now I know the playoffs are an extremely small sample size. However, the point of any major professional sports franchise is to make money and win championships. There's a reason every sports player, when interviewed during the preseason, says their goal is to make the playoffs and/or win the championship. Just saying.... From 2004 to 2008, the White Sox won 433 games and lost 378 games, leading to a .534 winning percentage....Perhaps it's not the biggest sample size, but Ozzie had only been a major league manager since 2004."
I would just like to take the time to comment here on MVP Eckstein's comment of "Pinella is a HOF manager with about 100, give or take a few, better seasons than Guillen under his managerial belt" Ozzie has had 5 full season under his belt. Lou has had about 20. Obviously Pinella is going to look better because he has 15 more seasons than Ozzie! I don't want to make any broad generalizations right now but at least let Ozzie play out his managerial career before we start really comparing the two.
5) Ozzie is purely entertaining. If the manager really doesn't affect the field of play so much, why not have a guy who is fun to listen to? And everything Ozzie says is true. Jay Mariotti is a faggot, A Rod should always play for USA in the WBC because he was born and raised and plays in the USA, and the ChiSox rarely get any love by Chicago media outlets when they are doing well and does seem to get SHIT ON at every little bump in the road (hmmm, sounds familiar Ozzie). While Ozzie may offend people, it's always a riot to listen to his sound bites.
Of course Ozzie is not without some faults. The first one that comes to mind is telling Kenny to go after Darin Erstad. I can't think of any really other big ones now but there are most certainly many small in games ones that when I watch the games on TV, I'm forced to scratch my head. Ozzie is far from perfect but but certainly does not deserve the kind of criticism this site seems to give him.
I wrote that Lou Pinella is the worst manager ever as my title, but it was obviously not mean to be taken literally. My point is that Cubs fans seem to think of Lou as god but he most certainly has some faults. And I criticized Ozzie for going after Erstad so Pinella deserves some flack for going after Joey Gathright this off season just so the Cubs can have some "left handed bats in the line up." (In all fairness this site DID criticize the Cubs for that). I know for a fact Pinella makes a fair share of questionable in game decisions as well because my current roommate is also a huge Cubs fan and yells at the top of his lungs ever time the Cubs make a minor bad decision. My roommate yells a lot.
I'm also not trying to make comparisons between Lou and Ozzie. All I'm saying is that you, with a huge Cubs bias, treat Lou and the Cubs with the utmost respect and treat Ozzie and the Sox like dog turd. I can't believe I have to say it again even though I said it in my Lou/D-Lee post and as a comment in the Alexei, Guillen, LOL post: I'M FINE WITH SOX CRITICISM BUT AT LEAST WRITE ABOUT THE FAULTS OF THE CUBS AS WELL.
I personally don't hate the Cubs like many Sox fans do, but I asked a co-worker of mine (who lives on the South side of Chicago and is a Sox fan) Why do you hate the Cubs really? His response was that the Cubs garner the vast majority of sports coverage in Chicago and the Sox get left in the dust. This is a sentiment Ozzie said last year that garnered ESPN coverage and one that I have noticed as well being a Sox fan. And this blog is coming dangerously close to that. I'd like to think of us as a mainly Chicago sports blog but when ESPNChicago.com seems more ChiSox friendly than GOI, I grow concerned and feel I need to post pro White Sox posts to maintain balance and fairness
I know all my rambling and specific points are going to get lost by MVP Eckstein, but what I hope people to get out of this article is not how great of a manger Ozzie Guillen is, but I'm writing these type of posts because of the seemingly Pro Cubs/ Anti ChiSox culture that this blog seems to have and I'd like it to stop- and that clearly the Sox do not deserve the many criticisms they get
1) Again, I'm not making the comparisons about Guillen and Pinella as players!!! How a person played has nothing to do with how they are as mangers. Yes, Ozzie Guillen is one of the worst offensive players in the history of baseball, BUT THIS HAS ABSOLUTELY NOTHING TO DO WITH HOW GUILLEN ACTS AS A MANAGER. And as a matter of fact, great players tend to make horrible managers. Mainly, because these players were so good that they expect greatness from their team. This ends up being an unrealistic expectation which ends up making the team worse off. John Kruk was a pretty good player and he's a terrible ESPN commentator. Joe Morgan was one of the best 2B and players of all time, and yet I can't ever watch a full game whenever he announces.
I am obviously defending Ozzie Guillen as a manager and not as a player- because there's obviously no defense for that. In case you for some reason (mainly MVP Eckstein) thought how Ozzie was as a player was implicit in my argument, I am overtly telling you right now it is not. And in fact, by you continually mentioning how Ozzie was as a player into his managerial skills, you are degrading your own argument because you are using fallacies for the sole purpose of winning an argument.
2) I do think Pinella is a better manager than Ozzie, but let's be honest, what really makes Ozzie so bad as you claim he is?
As mentioned in "Baseball Between the Numbers", the role of a manger is extremely small. All they have to do is set the lineup and switch out pitchers. What really makes Ozzie so bad at either of these? The line up this year is actually almost perfect considering the players the team has right now. Besides the lead off spot (which the organization does not have anywhere), the line up is essentially set by decreasing OBP (happy Bright One, jesus). And even so, Baseball Between The Numbers proves that who is placed where in the lineup makes a negligible difference.
-And as for the bullpen and pitching changes, what makes Ozzie so bad at this? In 2007 when the only consistent and good arm in the bullpen was Bobby Jenks, Ozzie made this comment (and I'm paraphrasing from memory but the gist is the same), "I don't know what to do? If I could I'd have Bobby throw for three innings every game I would, but I can't." Ozzie recognizes the fact that starters can realistically only throw X number of pitches per game and throughout his entire tenure he has utilized his bullpen the best that he can.
3) I would like address this notion that Ozzieball = Small Ball. It does not. In 2005, when the talent mainly consisted of speed and very few power guys, the team HAD to manufacture runs. Ozzie utilized the talent he had on his team in order to win. But throughout Ozzie's career as a manger, this is not the case. Ozzie lets his guys walk and hit home runs- all great factors that lead to a successful offense. From 2006- today, Ozzie does not sacrifice more than any other manager and allows his players to do what they do best.
4) Ozzie is a leader. Ozzie commands respect but not to the point where his players hate him. The New York Giants coach Tom Coughlin commanded respect but he was a dictator in the locker room saying that his players were "five minutes late if they were on time" But in 2008 he eased up and became more of a "players coach" yet still maintained his power. The Giants won the Superbowl- and people praised Coughlin on his new managerial style. Now Ozzie does that everyday, so if Coughlin gets praised for it, so should Ozzie. And as a sidenote, the fact that Ozzie is a latin born person helps him communicate better with his team (considering the ChiSox and most organizations have a lot of Spanish-speaking players) and helps him maximize his players talent and be a better leader.
5) Ozzie does have two rings and a winning record. And as my brother so astutely said and put into words much better than I probably could have, "from 2004 to 2008, the White Sox have gone 12-4 in the playoffs, mostly from their 2005 World Series run. From 2004 to 2008, the Cubs have gone 0-6 in the playoffs, getting swept in the NLCS over the past two years. Now I know the playoffs are an extremely small sample size. However, the point of any major professional sports franchise is to make money and win championships. There's a reason every sports player, when interviewed during the preseason, says their goal is to make the playoffs and/or win the championship. Just saying.... From 2004 to 2008, the White Sox won 433 games and lost 378 games, leading to a .534 winning percentage....Perhaps it's not the biggest sample size, but Ozzie had only been a major league manager since 2004."
I would just like to take the time to comment here on MVP Eckstein's comment of "Pinella is a HOF manager with about 100, give or take a few, better seasons than Guillen under his managerial belt" Ozzie has had 5 full season under his belt. Lou has had about 20. Obviously Pinella is going to look better because he has 15 more seasons than Ozzie! I don't want to make any broad generalizations right now but at least let Ozzie play out his managerial career before we start really comparing the two.
5) Ozzie is purely entertaining. If the manager really doesn't affect the field of play so much, why not have a guy who is fun to listen to? And everything Ozzie says is true. Jay Mariotti is a faggot, A Rod should always play for USA in the WBC because he was born and raised and plays in the USA, and the ChiSox rarely get any love by Chicago media outlets when they are doing well and does seem to get SHIT ON at every little bump in the road (hmmm, sounds familiar Ozzie). While Ozzie may offend people, it's always a riot to listen to his sound bites.
Of course Ozzie is not without some faults. The first one that comes to mind is telling Kenny to go after Darin Erstad. I can't think of any really other big ones now but there are most certainly many small in games ones that when I watch the games on TV, I'm forced to scratch my head. Ozzie is far from perfect but but certainly does not deserve the kind of criticism this site seems to give him.
I wrote that Lou Pinella is the worst manager ever as my title, but it was obviously not mean to be taken literally. My point is that Cubs fans seem to think of Lou as god but he most certainly has some faults. And I criticized Ozzie for going after Erstad so Pinella deserves some flack for going after Joey Gathright this off season just so the Cubs can have some "left handed bats in the line up." (In all fairness this site DID criticize the Cubs for that). I know for a fact Pinella makes a fair share of questionable in game decisions as well because my current roommate is also a huge Cubs fan and yells at the top of his lungs ever time the Cubs make a minor bad decision. My roommate yells a lot.
I'm also not trying to make comparisons between Lou and Ozzie. All I'm saying is that you, with a huge Cubs bias, treat Lou and the Cubs with the utmost respect and treat Ozzie and the Sox like dog turd. I can't believe I have to say it again even though I said it in my Lou/D-Lee post and as a comment in the Alexei, Guillen, LOL post: I'M FINE WITH SOX CRITICISM BUT AT LEAST WRITE ABOUT THE FAULTS OF THE CUBS AS WELL.
I personally don't hate the Cubs like many Sox fans do, but I asked a co-worker of mine (who lives on the South side of Chicago and is a Sox fan) Why do you hate the Cubs really? His response was that the Cubs garner the vast majority of sports coverage in Chicago and the Sox get left in the dust. This is a sentiment Ozzie said last year that garnered ESPN coverage and one that I have noticed as well being a Sox fan. And this blog is coming dangerously close to that. I'd like to think of us as a mainly Chicago sports blog but when ESPNChicago.com seems more ChiSox friendly than GOI, I grow concerned and feel I need to post pro White Sox posts to maintain balance and fairness
I know all my rambling and specific points are going to get lost by MVP Eckstein, but what I hope people to get out of this article is not how great of a manger Ozzie Guillen is, but I'm writing these type of posts because of the seemingly Pro Cubs/ Anti ChiSox culture that this blog seems to have and I'd like it to stop- and that clearly the Sox do not deserve the many criticisms they get
Moneyball: The Movie
When I first heard that Hollywood was making a Moneyball movie, I thought it was a joke. But then Brad Pitt was signed to play Billy Beane and Steven Soderbergh was signed on to direct, which left me scratching my forehead.
Well the bizarre and befuddling nature of this film continues, as it was announced today that Paul DePodesta would be played by none other than Demetri Martin. Are we sure this isn't some elaborate practical joke than John Kruk and Steve Phillips are playing on us people who live in their mom's basements? Demetri Martin? Really?
Also, how is this the first Moneyball tagged post???
Also also, Scott Hatteberg and David Justice will play themselves in the film. This movie is going to monumentally suck. I can't wait to see it!
Well the bizarre and befuddling nature of this film continues, as it was announced today that Paul DePodesta would be played by none other than Demetri Martin. Are we sure this isn't some elaborate practical joke than John Kruk and Steve Phillips are playing on us people who live in their mom's basements? Demetri Martin? Really?
Also, how is this the first Moneyball tagged post???
Also also, Scott Hatteberg and David Justice will play themselves in the film. This movie is going to monumentally suck. I can't wait to see it!
Box Score Tonight: April 20
I'm filling in for The Bright One tonight.
- Rain is again the theme of the day, as Yankees/A's and Phillies/Padres games are both postponed til July.
- The Red Sox took their turn at raping the Orioles pitching staff with a 12-1 win. Big Papi goes 2/4 (2B, 3B) with a pair of RBIs and a run scored. Is this a sign of post-Manny separation anxiety? Ortiz did blast 6 bombs with a .900+ OPS clip last September. On a disturbing note, Jason Varitek now has 3 more home runs than Ortiz.
- Felix Pie continues to struggle. He's now hitting .147 (5-for-34) on the season. Mother fucker is out of options and the Cubs called no trade backs. Still, he's better than Aaron Miles :(
- Lance Berkman and Carloss Lee hit useless back-to-back solo shots, as the Astros drop yet another game. Interestingly enough, Astros starters combined for 22.1 scoreless innings since mid-game Thursday and have gone 2-3 over that period of time. God their bullpen sucks.
- Still blotto for Votto. 2-for-5 (2B), 1 R, 2 RBI.
- Jason Marquis finally pitched like Jason Marquis, giving up 2 HR and 6 ER in 5 IP. Just wait till he's pitching at Coors in July!
- Both Upton and Iannetta manage to go one game without at least one strike out. Baby steps.
- Conor Jackson has not hit a home run in over 200 ABs dating back to last season. John Kruk still has faith in his 150 RBI upside, however, so no need to panic.
- Over/under on Todd Helton: 250 AB, 10 HR?
- Florida finally loses their second game of the season, shutout by the Buccos of all people.
- Andrew Miller was placed on the DL immediately after the game with a strained oblique. His fastball topped out at 87 MPH (91.5 MPH last year)
- Nate McLouth now has 4 HR on the season. Perhaps I was wrong about his "impending regression." Then again, his home run rate did fall by 50% post ASB. Still, a 25 or 30 home run, 20 SB season seems more plausible these days.
- My sick Hanley/Uggla combo continue to stuggle. Uggla is 1 for his last 14 and Hanley isn't stealing bases efficiently (33% success rate). I expect the .240 average from Uggla, but Hanley? :(
- Hanrahan finally converted a save, after blowing three consecutive opportunities. Manny Acta's basically fired the rest of the bullpen before today's game and Hanrahan's leash is ridiculously short at this point. $50 says Beimel is closing before June.
- Ryan Zimmerman signed a 5 year, $45 million contract, while Jordan Zimmerman made his MLB debut (W, 6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K). In other news, the Nationals still suck.
- Nick Johnson (.381 AVG, .458 OBP) continues to rake in the number two hole. And yet, he only has 8 runs on the season. God damnit, the Nationals suck.
Hanley Ramirez Is Pissing Me The Fuck Off
Hanley Ramirez is a first overall pick no matter what. It's a no brainer. He's a perennial 25/30 shortstop with 30+ HR, 50 SB upside. He's also a walking force who is entrenched in the #3 hole of a very offensive lineup, which should retain his R rate and only increase his RBI chances.
BUT SERIOUSLY. WHAT THE FUCK.
Hanley is hitting .241 right now, largely fueled by a BABIP that is 70 points below his lifetime average. Furthermore, Hanley's K rate is actually better than the previous two seasons and his LD% is a full 5% higher than last year. Fucking bad luck is fucking pissing me off right now. HanRam's two CS to his one sucessful SB is incredibly frustrating, as were his struggles against the National's pitching staff last week. I know that Hanley is a lock for a .300/30/30/100 R season just as Carlos Lee is a lock for a .300/30/100 season (fucking Carlos Lee is also struggling with the rest of the Astros right now), but it's still frustrating to see good ratios go unrewarded and ridiculous levels of inconsistency plague my fantasy team. Some combination of Mike Napoi, Joey Votto, Dan Uggla, Hanley Ramirez, Ryan Zimmerman, Denard Span, Manny Ramirez, Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz are hitting .269 with 18 HR (T-6th in league). May Matt Kemp be my savior (funny story - I traded for Matt Kemp at 3 am and thus wasn't able to use him in my line up the day he hit 2 HR (1 GS)...fuck!).
Sample size, sample size, sample size. FUCK!
BUT SERIOUSLY. WHAT THE FUCK.
Hanley is hitting .241 right now, largely fueled by a BABIP that is 70 points below his lifetime average. Furthermore, Hanley's K rate is actually better than the previous two seasons and his LD% is a full 5% higher than last year. Fucking bad luck is fucking pissing me off right now. HanRam's two CS to his one sucessful SB is incredibly frustrating, as were his struggles against the National's pitching staff last week. I know that Hanley is a lock for a .300/30/30/100 R season just as Carlos Lee is a lock for a .300/30/100 season (fucking Carlos Lee is also struggling with the rest of the Astros right now), but it's still frustrating to see good ratios go unrewarded and ridiculous levels of inconsistency plague my fantasy team. Some combination of Mike Napoi, Joey Votto, Dan Uggla, Hanley Ramirez, Ryan Zimmerman, Denard Span, Manny Ramirez, Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz are hitting .269 with 18 HR (T-6th in league). May Matt Kemp be my savior (funny story - I traded for Matt Kemp at 3 am and thus wasn't able to use him in my line up the day he hit 2 HR (1 GS)...fuck!).
Sample size, sample size, sample size. FUCK!
Lou and D-Lee Are The Worst Manager And Player Ever!!!
In lou of MVP Eckstein's repeated White Sox and Alexei Rameriz bashing, I thought I'd return the favor. If Cubs fan are going to repeatedly knock the ChiSox and a player people talk about, I'm going to do the same.
First, Ozzie gets a bad rap as a manager. I agree he's done some questionable things and is not the greatest manager but he's certainly not as bad as people perceive him to be. But let's talk about the glaring mistake Lou has made. One of the only jobs a manger has to do is create the lineup- and Lou hasn't done the best job of that. First of all, Ryan Theroit, a guy who can hit .310 and OBS .390+ is hitting seventh. Theriot is a quintessential lead off man because of his high OBS and little power. Instead, Lou decides to bat Soriano first. A man who had a OBS just below Paul Konerko and Jermaine Dye last year. Soriano should be batting third, fourth or fifth. But because of the notion that "Soriano can't hit unless he bats first", Soriano lead offs. And as we all know, the notion is bullshit and based on a sample size when Soriano was moved down the order once.
And the man who Lou bats third, is an over hyped player who also should be batting lower- Derrek Lee. Last year, D-Lee was 15th in 1B VORP- on par with Pittsburgh's Adam LaRoche. D-Lee was also 2nd in all of MLB grounding into 27 double plays. And D-lee is no stranger to that, grounding into 15 last year 11 two years before- in 175 ABs. We all read Moneyball- we all know the importance of outs. Clearly, we all know just how bad double plays are. His HR/FB ratio has also steadily decreased since 2005 (23.7%) to now (5.3% this year and 11.7 in 2008) and Lee's GB% has also increased. This obviously affects his HR totals seeing as he only hit 20 last year and 22 the year before.
If MVP Eckstein wants to take multiple jabs at the White Sox manager and a player I can return the favor and take stabs at Lou Pinella and D-Lee. The things you and I mentioned (D-Lee hitting into double plays and his reduced HR rate; Alexei failing to walk)are commonly known, but that doesn't mean you have to write multiple posts about it. We all know the Yankees got a new stadium but that doesn't mean I have to hear about every five minutes on ESPN.
I'm not saying you can never criticize the White Sox but the "Alexei Rameriz, Ozzie Guillen, LOL" post was just one of many that you guys, mainly MVP Eckstein, has done and is just unnecessary.
First, Ozzie gets a bad rap as a manager. I agree he's done some questionable things and is not the greatest manager but he's certainly not as bad as people perceive him to be. But let's talk about the glaring mistake Lou has made. One of the only jobs a manger has to do is create the lineup- and Lou hasn't done the best job of that. First of all, Ryan Theroit, a guy who can hit .310 and OBS .390+ is hitting seventh. Theriot is a quintessential lead off man because of his high OBS and little power. Instead, Lou decides to bat Soriano first. A man who had a OBS just below Paul Konerko and Jermaine Dye last year. Soriano should be batting third, fourth or fifth. But because of the notion that "Soriano can't hit unless he bats first", Soriano lead offs. And as we all know, the notion is bullshit and based on a sample size when Soriano was moved down the order once.
And the man who Lou bats third, is an over hyped player who also should be batting lower- Derrek Lee. Last year, D-Lee was 15th in 1B VORP- on par with Pittsburgh's Adam LaRoche. D-Lee was also 2nd in all of MLB grounding into 27 double plays. And D-lee is no stranger to that, grounding into 15 last year 11 two years before- in 175 ABs. We all read Moneyball- we all know the importance of outs. Clearly, we all know just how bad double plays are. His HR/FB ratio has also steadily decreased since 2005 (23.7%) to now (5.3% this year and 11.7 in 2008) and Lee's GB% has also increased. This obviously affects his HR totals seeing as he only hit 20 last year and 22 the year before.
If MVP Eckstein wants to take multiple jabs at the White Sox manager and a player I can return the favor and take stabs at Lou Pinella and D-Lee. The things you and I mentioned (D-Lee hitting into double plays and his reduced HR rate; Alexei failing to walk)are commonly known, but that doesn't mean you have to write multiple posts about it. We all know the Yankees got a new stadium but that doesn't mean I have to hear about every five minutes on ESPN.
I'm not saying you can never criticize the White Sox but the "Alexei Rameriz, Ozzie Guillen, LOL" post was just one of many that you guys, mainly MVP Eckstein, has done and is just unnecessary.
Alexei Ramirez, Ozzie Guillen, LOL
During the offseason, Alexei Ramirez, when not compared to Alfonso Soriano, was repeatably praised, compared to and benchmarked against Ozzie Guillen (career .275 wOBA). In true Ozzie Guillen fashion, Ramirez has started the season hitting .125 (5/40), with a .311 OPS (.154 wOBA) and zero extra basehits. Should we be worried?
The first thing I'm sure everyone who reads this is going to say is "sample size, sample size, sample size!" followed by "Whatever, dude. Ramirez hit .244 with 2 HR and 7 RBI through May of last season and look how things turned out! Just wait for the weather to warm up." Let's look deeper into the numbers.
As I hinted at earlier, everyone from ESPN to fangraphs has compared Alexei Ramirez to Alfonso Soriano. They have done so for three reasons. A similar body build and swing, the power/speed combination and a Pedro Cerrano-like ability to hit breaking balls. While Ramirez may not strike out as much as Soriano (at least not last year), he has just as much of an inability to convert breaking pitches into getting on base. Ramirez's 42.7% O-Swing (third worst in MLB) and 59.9% swing rate (third worst in MLB) in 2008 resulted in a 3.6% walk rate and paltry .317 OBP (mostly bouyed by a .288 BA).
Simply put, Alexei Ramirez does not get on base and he swings a lot (very often at bad pitches), a formula for disaster perfected by Delmon Young and Jeff Francouer last year. Even at a 32% on base rate, Ramirez's contribution value was limited by his "clutchiness" -- an unsustainable and uncontrollable byproduct of luck and situation. Now that Ramirez's strikeout rate has practically doubled (20% in '09, 12.7% in '08) this season, his batting average has taken a huge hit, which kills his already low on base percentage. The lowered contact rates and on base percentage for Ramirez means less ability to move over runners and decreased chances to reach home and steal bases. In other words, Ramirez, who was already walking the fine line between luck and talent with a .317 OBP, has fallen below the mendoza line, no matter what upside his speed/power combination provide. Unless Ramirez learns better pitch recogniziton (something that is ridiculously impossible to teach at age 28), he is going to be a one-season wonder. Do not be surprised if Alexei Ramirez join the ranks of Corey Patterson and other "didn't they have a lot of talent?" nobodies that have played in Chicago over the years.
The first thing I'm sure everyone who reads this is going to say is "sample size, sample size, sample size!" followed by "Whatever, dude. Ramirez hit .244 with 2 HR and 7 RBI through May of last season and look how things turned out! Just wait for the weather to warm up." Let's look deeper into the numbers.
As I hinted at earlier, everyone from ESPN to fangraphs has compared Alexei Ramirez to Alfonso Soriano. They have done so for three reasons. A similar body build and swing, the power/speed combination and a Pedro Cerrano-like ability to hit breaking balls. While Ramirez may not strike out as much as Soriano (at least not last year), he has just as much of an inability to convert breaking pitches into getting on base. Ramirez's 42.7% O-Swing (third worst in MLB) and 59.9% swing rate (third worst in MLB) in 2008 resulted in a 3.6% walk rate and paltry .317 OBP (mostly bouyed by a .288 BA).
Simply put, Alexei Ramirez does not get on base and he swings a lot (very often at bad pitches), a formula for disaster perfected by Delmon Young and Jeff Francouer last year. Even at a 32% on base rate, Ramirez's contribution value was limited by his "clutchiness" -- an unsustainable and uncontrollable byproduct of luck and situation. Now that Ramirez's strikeout rate has practically doubled (20% in '09, 12.7% in '08) this season, his batting average has taken a huge hit, which kills his already low on base percentage. The lowered contact rates and on base percentage for Ramirez means less ability to move over runners and decreased chances to reach home and steal bases. In other words, Ramirez, who was already walking the fine line between luck and talent with a .317 OBP, has fallen below the mendoza line, no matter what upside his speed/power combination provide. Unless Ramirez learns better pitch recogniziton (something that is ridiculously impossible to teach at age 28), he is going to be a one-season wonder. Do not be surprised if Alexei Ramirez join the ranks of Corey Patterson and other "didn't they have a lot of talent?" nobodies that have played in Chicago over the years.
Box Score Tonight: April 19
I'm sad, the Cubs game got postponed :(
- Posada hit an apparent game winning home run for the Yanks that was clearly interfered with by a fan. The umps reviewed it and still got the call wrong. See no machine can stand in the way of human idiocy.
- Ricky Romero beats out Dallas Braden 1-0. He's the next Gustavo Chacin. I find it strange that the Jays closer and setup man are both lefties: Ryan and Down. Oh, Scott Downs once admitted to crying after being traded from the Cubs to the Expos.
- The Brew Crew has officially the most pedestrian bullpen beating out the yankees. Who the frick are DiFelice, Stretter, and Coffey?
- One person in the Red Sox lineup is hitting above .290 and that's youkilis at .468. Also, what happened to Papelbon that Saito got the save tonight.
- The Nationals have blows three saves in a row. Thats why you have 1 win all year fuckers. Marlins only have one loss on the other hand
- Raul Ibanez is turning out to be much better than Milton Bradley as he hits a walkoff bomb.
- Javy Vasquez cluttches up and gets a much needed win. HOF!
- If the White Sox hit 3 homers a game, they will have an awesome season, unfortunately no team have ever hit 500 home runs, or even 250 for that matter.
- Micah Owings hits a pinch hit 2 run double. I think he should replace Willy Taveras
- Another reason the Johan Santana trade sucked, Carlos Gomez isnt even fast anymore. Just 2-4 in steals
- Kyle Fansworth has 3 loses already as a reliever. Career 1.4 HR/9
- 2 Days after winning 2-0 and 1 day since losing 2-0 the Giants win 2-0 as The Big Unit took a no-no into the 7th. Giants and Dbacks both suck at 4-8
- Rick Porcello with a nice outing, outside a home run to Ronny Cedeno of all people. Miggy increases his average to .489
- Why to i keep starting Ubaldo Jimenez in fantasy? Dude has no control, none! I dont care how fast his fastball is when it's in the dirt or in the bleachers. Dodgers are a scary scary team. The Corpas/Street competition for least suckiness continues
LeBron James Is the MVP!
I personally don't know why there is any argument about this? I don't quite know a whole lot about basketball- and people who who maybe you can "fix" a few points I make here- but I do know LeBron James deserves to be the MVP.
The thing about about basketball, is that if you're on a bad team, any individual player can look great. Even bad teams can score 70, 80, 90 points a night. Who do you think scores all those points? Antwan Jamison of the Wizards (19-63) was 11th overall in PPG and Kevin Durant (23-59) of the Thunder was 6th. Because above average players on mediocre have no one else really to give the ball to. In order for their team to score points, these players have to be the one to do so. Therefore, you have to really take statistics into perspective.
For example, Dwayne Wade has more PPG and APG than LeBron James (but not by much). But Dwayne Wade's team is much worse. Wade's team had a lot of young guys who have not quite come into their own yet. Which forces Wade to take over his team and do so many things. But when you look at LeBron, it's actually MORE impressive that he can accumulate all these stats considering how good his team around him is. The Cleveland Cavaliers held the NBA's best record by winning 66 games and only losing 16- and only twice at home. The only reason this team was THIS good was because of LeBron James. And really, the definition of the MVP is how good you make your team. Kobe won the MVP last year because he brought the Lakers to be the best team in the NBA and so did Dirk Nowitzki a few years back when the Mavericks won 65+ games.
LeBron can score, rebound, assist, and play defense. He also helps his team play defense seeing as the Cave had the third best defensive team in the league (and a quick sidenote, the Cave were the 4th best offensive team- because of LeBron).
Now don't get me wrong, Kobe, Wade, and even Chris Paul had great years and deserve to :be talked about" for MVP, but this year is LeBron's year. And as someone said on ESPN as I was flipping channels- anyone who didn't vote for LeBron James as the MVP needs to have their vote taken back.
The thing about about basketball, is that if you're on a bad team, any individual player can look great. Even bad teams can score 70, 80, 90 points a night. Who do you think scores all those points? Antwan Jamison of the Wizards (19-63) was 11th overall in PPG and Kevin Durant (23-59) of the Thunder was 6th. Because above average players on mediocre have no one else really to give the ball to. In order for their team to score points, these players have to be the one to do so. Therefore, you have to really take statistics into perspective.
For example, Dwayne Wade has more PPG and APG than LeBron James (but not by much). But Dwayne Wade's team is much worse. Wade's team had a lot of young guys who have not quite come into their own yet. Which forces Wade to take over his team and do so many things. But when you look at LeBron, it's actually MORE impressive that he can accumulate all these stats considering how good his team around him is. The Cleveland Cavaliers held the NBA's best record by winning 66 games and only losing 16- and only twice at home. The only reason this team was THIS good was because of LeBron James. And really, the definition of the MVP is how good you make your team. Kobe won the MVP last year because he brought the Lakers to be the best team in the NBA and so did Dirk Nowitzki a few years back when the Mavericks won 65+ games.
LeBron can score, rebound, assist, and play defense. He also helps his team play defense seeing as the Cave had the third best defensive team in the league (and a quick sidenote, the Cave were the 4th best offensive team- because of LeBron).
Now don't get me wrong, Kobe, Wade, and even Chris Paul had great years and deserve to :be talked about" for MVP, but this year is LeBron's year. And as someone said on ESPN as I was flipping channels- anyone who didn't vote for LeBron James as the MVP needs to have their vote taken back.
Why Is Joakim Soria A Reliever?
I was looking up some data today on Fangraphs and took note of a very interesting fact. Joakim Soria has a(n effective) 4 pitch mix and has recently and increasingly used a fifth pitch which is not specifically identified. Isn't there an unwritten rule somewhere that requires hurlers with a healthy arsenal of pitches to be in the starting rotation?
Interesting fact: Soria's 91 MPH fastball is complemented by a devastatingly slow 70 MPH curveball that equally as fast as Tim Wakefield's fastball.
Interesting fact: Soria's 91 MPH fastball is complemented by a devastatingly slow 70 MPH curveball that equally as fast as Tim Wakefield's fastball.
Sports Aptronym's
In lieu of MVP's Eckstein's post about sports nicknames, I decided I'd like to post about a similar topic- aptronyms. An aptronym is a name aptly suited to fit the person. For example, Chris Moneymaker is a professional poker player (How fitting is it that a guy has a last name of Moneymaker and his job is solely to make money? You see?). So without further adue, here we go:
-Usain Bolt (sprinter)
-Brian Cashman (Yankees GM)
-Gilbert Arenas (basketball)
-Cecil and Prince Fielder (baseball)
-Eric Gagne (pitcher) (Gagne is french for "to win")
-Derek Jeter (SS) (Jeter is French for "to throw")
-Scott Speed (NASCAR)
-Willie Thrower (QB)
-Josh Outman (pitcher)
-Usain Bolt (sprinter)
-Brian Cashman (Yankees GM)
-Gilbert Arenas (basketball)
-Cecil and Prince Fielder (baseball)
-Eric Gagne (pitcher) (Gagne is french for "to win")
-Derek Jeter (SS) (Jeter is French for "to throw")
-Scott Speed (NASCAR)
-Willie Thrower (QB)
-Josh Outman (pitcher)
Box Score Tonight: April 18
The theme tonight is the shutout as there were 6 of them
- Trevor Cahill has 13 walks, 5 K's in 17.1IP. He's the reverse Cory Patterson, despite having the highest VORP on the A's. Lyle Overbay hits his first walkoff home run, or homerun in general as far as i'm concerned.
- Ian Snell should star in the new movie "2007 again" as he throws 7 shutout innings. Quitely Chipper Jones hasnt played in the last 4 games due to a finger injury. That didnt take long
- Joel Hanrahan has had 2 save opportunities all year. They both came in the past two days. He has blown both. Thanks a lot. Bonifacio is 1 for his last 16. Who called it. Ups to me. Elijah Dukes cant buy a break as some guy named Bernadina started ahead of him. Kearns hits a grand slam
- I dont care about Santana's 83% stranded rate last season, the guy is unstoppable and will continue his greatness this year. 0.46 ERA in 3 starts
- Chieng-Mang Wang has allowed 23 runs, 23 hits in 6IP. That is how you accumulate a -11 VORP and 10 FIP in just 3 games. 14 run 2nd for the Indians as every player got a hit, scored a run, and deflowered a virgin. If Dirty 30 pitches when the Yanks are down 10, who pitches when they are down 18? Don Zimmer
- Cubs/Cards just can't play a normal game. This one ends with an Aramis Ramirez walkoff 2 run bomb in the 11th. According to fangraphs, he has outperformed his contracts by 45 million dollars. Think the Pirates want to redo the Aram, Kenny Lofton, Randall Simon for Bobby Hill trade? Just use the Easy Button
- Anyone who didn't know, Micah Hoffpauir hit 4 homers in a single game in AAA last year and had 100RBI's in 71 games. Maybe find him some at-bats. Just saying.
- Manram and Either go deep twice, TWICE!
- Zona shuts out San Fran 2-0 the day after being shutout 0-2. Lincecum K's 13 in 7IP. 6th time this year a pitcher gets 13 K's, all of which came in loses. Secret to baseball, be Livan Hernandez
- The Dusty Baker's get shutout by Wandy Rodriguez. Arang Harang is not a machine
- Last year Brad Lidge gave up 15 runs, he's already allowed 7 this year. Also blows his first save since about the time Albert Pujols chastised him
- Carlos Quintin hits 6th home run. Does not break wrist punching bat
- Dustin Pedroia does not like his home town, mainly cause they wont let his child molesting brother, molest children. Bill James predicts Adam Eaton will have a sub 5 FIP. Why is he so freakin generous. Not as generous as Marcel giving Cory Lidle 4 wins this year despite being dead.
- Twins score 9 runs with just 2 XBHs. Yesterday, the Yanks scrored 6 runs while hitting 5 home runs. Huh?
- When Zack Greinke isnt suicidal, he's a hell of a pitcher. Complete game shutout biatch, over the powerful Rangers
- So far, the Tigers have gotten the better end of the Edwin Jackson/Matt Joyce trade. Still doesnt make up for getting Willis, then signing him to an extension. Someone put him on the subway diet.
Just How Bad Is Chien-Ming Wang?
How bad are the fucking Yankees? Not only did two pitchers each give up 8 ER in 3 IP, but the Yankees bullpen also gave up another 8 runs throughout the game. Jesus fucking Christ.
Wang's ERA sits at an unfathomably high 34.5. No, that's not a typo. Thirty-four and a half. In 6 IP, Wang has surrendered 23 runs (all earned). He's let in 7 or more runs in each of his starts and only lasted over 1.1 innings once this season. To put this in perspective, Wang surrendered a total of 82 ER in 200 IP in 2007.
So what's wrong with Wang? Screw the "he's coming off an injury" bit, Wang's ratios are down right scary. He's struck out exactly two batters and issued six walks in six innings (.34 K/BB). He's also surrendered two home runs after having given up only 9 in 2007 (200 IP). I know that 6 IP is a small sample size, but this is outing number three for Wang and it's time to start worrying. Either Wang's mechanics are fucked up or he is hiding an injury.
Thankfully, Phil Hughes is still around.
Wang's ERA sits at an unfathomably high 34.5. No, that's not a typo. Thirty-four and a half. In 6 IP, Wang has surrendered 23 runs (all earned). He's let in 7 or more runs in each of his starts and only lasted over 1.1 innings once this season. To put this in perspective, Wang surrendered a total of 82 ER in 200 IP in 2007.
So what's wrong with Wang? Screw the "he's coming off an injury" bit, Wang's ratios are down right scary. He's struck out exactly two batters and issued six walks in six innings (.34 K/BB). He's also surrendered two home runs after having given up only 9 in 2007 (200 IP). I know that 6 IP is a small sample size, but this is outing number three for Wang and it's time to start worrying. Either Wang's mechanics are fucked up or he is hiding an injury.
Thankfully, Phil Hughes is still around.
Sports Nicknames
Walk-'Em Soria
Grant Ball-Four
Blow Job Upton
A-Roid
Pudge Roidriguez
Gary Leftfield
Karlos Marmol
Bunt Lullabridge
Feel free to add some in the comments!
Also, does every team have someone named Carlos on it?
Grant Ball-Four
Blow Job Upton
A-Roid
Pudge Roidriguez
Gary Leftfield
Karlos Marmol
Bunt Lullabridge
Feel free to add some in the comments!
Also, does every team have someone named Carlos on it?
Box Score Tonight: April 17
The theme today will be home runs. Why you may ask? According to fangraphs, runs are up .3 per game, AB/HR is down by 4 and the average home run has traveled 9 feet further than last year. I an here Eckstein yelling sample size, but April is usually the hardest month to hit due to the weather, so one can only expect the run production to increase as the players are adjusting to playing without steroids.
- The Yankees hit 5 solo home runs, with the cluttchiest being Jeter's 8th inning go ahead homer. As noted by ESPN, Joba's swing and miss percentage has fallen from 35% in 2007 down to the mid 20's in 2008 and is so far at a dismal 16% this season. Maybe it's time for him to go back to the bullpen?
- Wild game at Wrigley. Zambrano gives up 7 in 7, along with 3 home runs. Didnt he used to be a sinker ball pitcher? Ludwick hit 2 homers, while soriano hit's the game winner in the 8th.
- Cody Ross ties the game with a 9th inning bomb and the fish win in extras. There is rumor Zimmerman is about to sign an extension worth close to Markakis' 6yr 66million contract. Only difference is that Zim isnt close to the player Markaksi is.
- Phils blow a 7-1 lead to the Padres as WS MVP Cole Hamels continues to struggle
- Pitching duel goes to Paul Maholm and the Pirates over the Braves.
- Somehow Aaron Hill and Marco Scutaro have 4 homers each while alexis rios and matt holliday have none.
- O's blow a 7 run lead despite Markakis grand slam
- Ryan Braun hit his first dinger, while Sheffield hit his 500th career blast. If not for the steroids, he would be a HOFer
- Bartolo Colon was pitching a gem, until Ben Zobrist hits a pinch hit grand slam. Surprisingly, Troy Percival is throwing gas, so i dont expect him to lose the closer job anytime soon.
- Meche shuts out the Rangers offense over 6IP. Royals explode for 19 hits led by 5 from Teahen with a homer.
- Valverde blows a 1-0 lead in the 9th on a Ramon Hernendez 2 run homer in the 9th. Why wasn't he bunting? Cause i'm sure the bunt is the appropriate move there.
- Angles surrender 7 run in the 8th to the Twins leading to a 11-9 win. Jason Kubel hits for the cycle. What up with all the cycles? Hudson -> Kinsler -> Kubel -> ?
- Verlander had 7K through 4IP and then exploded for 5 runs in the 5th. I've given up on him.
- Manram still no homers. Also hats off to Glenson Rusch for making it back to the bigs after a life threatening blood clot in his lungs.
- 1-0 pitching duel as Johnathan Sanchez is outlasting Dan Haren. Both of whom are on Ecksteins fantasy team
Reporter Fail
I tend to swear after doing something stupid, but I have never said that before. Yeesh
The Temperment Of A Wide Out
Wide Receivers in the NFL tend to have a reputation of being loud mouth guys. See: Terrell Owens, Keyshawn Johnson. Many wide outs just seem to "want the ball" and the media makes a big deal whenever receivers are yelling at their QB whenever they're open. But this only seems to happen with wide receivers. TE don't really complain about not catching passes and RB rarely complain about getting carries. So why is it that wide receivers are the only ones complaining?
On average, an offensive gets the ball about 60-70 times a game. On a normal team, RBs will get about 25-30 carries and QB will throw the ball about 30-40 times. This assuming you're not on a team like the Chicago Bears or the the Pittsburgh Steelers where backs can get about 30-40 carries and QBs can get about 20-25 attempts. And out off all those attempts, good QBs only make about 60-65% of their passes. So out of 30+ attempts, only about 19 attempts are caught. And those caught passes are getting distributed to at least four guys. Which means wide receivers actually catch the ball very little. If you're a great WR who gets 100+ catches, you still only catch the ball about 8 times a game. The best receivers only contributes to about 12% of plays. That means, on 88% of plays, wide receivers do not directly contribute the play- and that most likely means the WR has to go down the fields and block for another receiver or for the RB.
All this is assuming above average offensives. The Bears QBs in recent years only made about 50% of their passes and only threw it about 20-30 times a game. That means only about 12 passes are actually caught per game. Distribute that number between abut 4 receivers and a wide out only catches about 4 passes per game. Last year Devin Hester only caught 51 passes- that's only 3.2 catches per game!
So when you think about it, most of the time WRs are throwing blocks or attempting to catch passes instead of actually catching a pass. If you're a stud wide receiver, you're doing very little of what you enjoy doing- and that's catching passes. And because you catch so little passes relative to a team's offense, you seem to have every right to get upset at you're QB if he misses you when you're wide open. Now, you don't need to criticize the QB every chance you get (T.O!) but I do think if you want to be a successful WR in the NFL, you do have to "want to catch the ball on every play" and you do need SOME fire that sports analysts seem to criticize wide outs for. Now you obviously can be a successful receiver without throwing a hissy fit every play (Jerry Rice, Marvin Harrison) but I do think that T.O. sometimes has at least a LITTLE point whenever he gets upset (But obviously tearing teams apart like Dallas and Philly are just unacceptable).
So the next time you see a wide receiver yelling at someone on the sidelines, I want you to step in his shoes for a second before you judge him.
SIDENOTE: Because of all the stats and whatnot I just mentioned about receivers catching the ball so few times per game, in fantasy football, whenever I have a WR/RB position, I always try to fill it with a RB. RB are almost guarantee to get carries and even if the back sucks , the back can still carry the ball a lot to produce good fantasy numbers (One of the best examples of this is during the Indy/Green Bay game last year. Ryan Grant had good fantasy numbers: 105 yards and a TD, but also had 31 carries and a shitty 3.4 YPC). Having the guarantee to hold the ball on many downs can go a long way in fantasy.
On average, an offensive gets the ball about 60-70 times a game. On a normal team, RBs will get about 25-30 carries and QB will throw the ball about 30-40 times. This assuming you're not on a team like the Chicago Bears or the the Pittsburgh Steelers where backs can get about 30-40 carries and QBs can get about 20-25 attempts. And out off all those attempts, good QBs only make about 60-65% of their passes. So out of 30+ attempts, only about 19 attempts are caught. And those caught passes are getting distributed to at least four guys. Which means wide receivers actually catch the ball very little. If you're a great WR who gets 100+ catches, you still only catch the ball about 8 times a game. The best receivers only contributes to about 12% of plays. That means, on 88% of plays, wide receivers do not directly contribute the play- and that most likely means the WR has to go down the fields and block for another receiver or for the RB.
All this is assuming above average offensives. The Bears QBs in recent years only made about 50% of their passes and only threw it about 20-30 times a game. That means only about 12 passes are actually caught per game. Distribute that number between abut 4 receivers and a wide out only catches about 4 passes per game. Last year Devin Hester only caught 51 passes- that's only 3.2 catches per game!
So when you think about it, most of the time WRs are throwing blocks or attempting to catch passes instead of actually catching a pass. If you're a stud wide receiver, you're doing very little of what you enjoy doing- and that's catching passes. And because you catch so little passes relative to a team's offense, you seem to have every right to get upset at you're QB if he misses you when you're wide open. Now, you don't need to criticize the QB every chance you get (T.O!) but I do think if you want to be a successful WR in the NFL, you do have to "want to catch the ball on every play" and you do need SOME fire that sports analysts seem to criticize wide outs for. Now you obviously can be a successful receiver without throwing a hissy fit every play (Jerry Rice, Marvin Harrison) but I do think that T.O. sometimes has at least a LITTLE point whenever he gets upset (But obviously tearing teams apart like Dallas and Philly are just unacceptable).
So the next time you see a wide receiver yelling at someone on the sidelines, I want you to step in his shoes for a second before you judge him.
SIDENOTE: Because of all the stats and whatnot I just mentioned about receivers catching the ball so few times per game, in fantasy football, whenever I have a WR/RB position, I always try to fill it with a RB. RB are almost guarantee to get carries and even if the back sucks , the back can still carry the ball a lot to produce good fantasy numbers (One of the best examples of this is during the Indy/Green Bay game last year. Ryan Grant had good fantasy numbers: 105 yards and a TD, but also had 31 carries and a shitty 3.4 YPC). Having the guarantee to hold the ball on many downs can go a long way in fantasy.
