September 2009
Posted by jemanji on 09/30/09
20 Comments
Q. What was the line?
A. Morrow 8.0 1 0 0 0 2 9.
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Q. What was the hit?
A. Rajai Davis, who is the A's fastest player by far, hit a firm bounder up the middle that Josh Wilson scampered over and snagged on one hop. Off balance and rushed, Wilson threw very weakly to 1B, and Davis beat it out by half a step.
That's how close Morrow was to leading off SportsCenter on Wednesday.
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Q. How many saves by the fielders?
A. Essentially none. After seven hitters, Morrow had 4 strikeouts, two infield pops, and a fly ball to Saunders straightaway.
That's pretty much the game, although... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/30/09
12 Comments
=== Rick Adair ===
We have a piece here on Brandon Morrow's 1-hit, 9-strikeout immolation of the (admittedly flammable) A's. There, we present our reasons for asking whether this was his turn-the-corner game.
Hey now. ... wasn't Ian Snell's last start also looking like a turn-the-corner start for him? Snell not only had 7 strikeouts, but did so with a major mechanical adjustment (the plant foot and knee) and with pitches that visibly bore the marks of the improvements.
..........
Jus' the fax: Snell and Morrow did both finish the year with remarkable K/BB performances by their own... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/30/09
Q. By the way, what does that mean, "get on top of the ball"? You mean, throw with an overhand arm slot?
A. No, not at all.
They're talking about a subtle difference in getting the fingers over the ball a little more at release getting a more vertical spin, as opposed to dropping the wrist down and kind of undercutting the ball.
It can also refer to dropping an elbow, forearm, or arm slot into a lazy position, or getting tired, which sometimes does produce the same slide-the-fingers-under-the-ball* effect.
Anyway, when Morrow is being un-lazy, snapping the fingers down crisply at... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/30/09
I/O: Geoff Baker has a post handing out year-end awards and 50-100 word eulogies to -- wait for it -- twenty (20) different customers on his website.
He favors each one of them with a hand-picked graphic and cheerfully confesses how each of them makes him, um, feel.
....
CRUNCH: If you didn't realize that Geoff Baker was a superior human being before :- ) then you will now.
Not superior to human beings in the abstract. Superior to the author of SSI, specifically. :- ) I'm not about to consent to allowing blog posters to make me feel anything, much less to inform them of what that... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/30/09
5 Comments
Fascinating that the reaction, this morning, is that 6/$110M would be taking Felix to the cleaners. :- ) Good stuff.
Y'all are assuming that 4th-year-player precedents will not apply to Felix. Um, yes they will.
So we've got good news for youse. The market structures for Felix are lower than all y'all realize.
.............
If you didn't get a chance to check out Olney's vid:
1. He offers not one word of his OWN opinions.
2. The industry consensus is that from Felix' point of view, the M's would need to offer 3, perhaps 4, years beyond arbitration (5 or possibly 6 years total).
3. If... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/30/09
1 Comments
Hi there,
Can anyone tell me where and when the sport teams here in WA have National Anthem Auditions?
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/30/09
1 Comments
Spectator here with an item from USA Today that didn't appear to capture much notice, despite the mention of M's interest and quote from Z. Interested in what our esteemed panel of experts has to say. Rest of the post is from the article.
Japan prep star may bypass domestic draft to come to MLB
By Paul White, USA TODAY
A major step could be imminent in the sometimes tenuous relationship between Major League Baseball and Japan's professional leagues.
Left-handed pitcher Yusei Kikuchi, the likely first pick in Japan's amateur draft next month, is getting plenty of attention from major league... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/29/09
12 Comments
I/O: Brandon Webb linked to the Mariners. Webb has stated that he will not entertain offers from the D-Backs, who will not pick up his option. Yowza.
The commenter Sanders thinks the Dodgers make sense and the M's don't, apparently based on the subtext that the Dodgers are cool and the M's ain't.
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CRUNCH: As you know, I err on the optimistic side when it comes to Cy Young-caliber pitchers returning from real bad arm injuries.
Chris Carpenter is the latest example -- out 2 full years and then SPLASH, a (gasp) 181 ERA+ right off the bat. These guys know how to pitch.
Interesting that... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/29/09
8 Comments
I/O: Fangraphs.com has an article pointing out that the 2009 Mariners had a sensational UZR as a team.
If UZR be on the right track here, the M's had a once-in-a-decade defense.
In the comments, the readers are left tackle the unaddressed question of, okay, but does pretty defense produce wins?
....
CRUNCH: Assuming for the moment that UZR is not misleading here, and that the M's did have an unusually excellent defensive team:
1. Good on yer, boys.
2. The M's are now down a staggering -62 in run differential, despite having the #1 ERA in the American League.
.....
The locals have been... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/29/09
5 Comments
I/O: MLB.com with a few quotes as to Branyan's and Jack Wilson's return.
Doug Miller opines that Branyan "figures to garner quite a bit of interest, particularly from statistics-oriented organizations." HEH!
.....
CRUNCH: By "statistics-oriented organizations," I guess we're thinking of BUZZIE Bavasi's 1940's Dodgers teams. Being as heavy focus on STATISTICS in player evaluation goes back that far, at minimum.
Present company excepted, there's an unfortunate little subtext in this ever-present "statistics-oriented organization" sharp stick that is always poking Dr. D in the eye... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/28/09
6 Comments
We asked if anybody could think of any sports movement in which a front, leading knee gets locked for any purpose. Kelly obliged...
....
Kelly: Many batters lock the front knee on the swing. Is it the same in golf? The key to defense in basketball is to be sufficiently fit to be able to bend at the knees for the full game...
Well, we asked for an example, and Kelly came up with one, so he wins. LOL.
..........
1. Am not sure that golfers and batters would characterize the "firm front side" as having the knee locked -- with the bones in full hyperextension. But still, yeah... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/28/09
5 Comments
I/O: Jayson Stark points out that the M's are in a draft-pick race: Either Seattle 80-76 or Tampa Bay 79-76, whichever finishes worst, will be the #16 team in baseball. And will get to sign a Type A free agent without losing a 1st-round pick as compensation.
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CRUNCH: Tampa gets the Yankees and Orioles. This seems like a race (theoretically) well worth throwing :- ) but we all know that the M's badly want 82 wins.
Huh. Finish behind Tampa, and keep the 1st-rounder? Is it that simple? You know how these rules bore me to tears.
Until I need to know something...
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I/O: In this... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/28/09
=== Seahawk Monday ===
On Brock and Salk:
(1) The former NFL player was saying that the Olindo Mare firestorm was going to be no big deal at all in the locker room. That it was being blown way out of proportion. Calm down.
(2) The sportswriter* was spraying lighter fluid over as much of the fire as possible, including after Mora's conciliatory press conference, in which Salk suggested hopefully, "Is it too late for this to fix things?" and promised tongue-in-cheek to devote three hours to the issue Tuesday.
............
Mora blew it Sunday, but he could not have been cooler about it... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/28/09
5 Comments
Sandy: THIS is the first game where Snell showed what he showed back then. I believe my description was he once had the ability to make every righty hitter look like Beltre on his worst slider missing day.
Here is SSI's original article on Snell's platoon game. Like Jered Weaver, he poses the possibility of an All-Star level pitcher who blows up RH's but who is ordinary against LH's.
Some pitchers have a shape to their breaking balls that is impossible for same-side batters. Other pitchers -- like George Sherrill and Weaver -- have the ball coming out of their hand looking like... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/28/09
In the 1970's, my friends and I spent a lot of happy hours sitting around a table, playing Strat-O-Matic football. Sometimes only myself and one other player would set up an entire league (with maybe 12 teams) and play through a season.
Archie Manning was a super fun QB to play with, but he played on teams that won 1 and 2 games a season, the Saints, so his S-O-M card didn't get used much.
For the young dudes out there who hadn't yet heard, Peyton and Eli are sons to one of the really fine (South'n) quarterbacks ever to play in the NFL.
.................
Archie Manning was good friends... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/28/09
20 Comments
I suppose it's an easy thing to notice, but it seems from just a casual glance at the season stats that Felix Hernandez is as important to the 2009 Mariners as any starting pitcther has since Steve Carlton with the 1972 Phillies. In Mariners history, I guess Randy Johnson in 1995 is the closest equivalent. Felix, with 17 wins, has more than double Jarrod Washburn's 8 in second place; Miguel Batista, with 7, ranks second among active Mariners. Hernandez is also the only guy on the team with over 100 innings--224 1/3rd--compared to Washburn's 133, and Jakubauskas's 93 innings. And, Felix is the... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/27/09
1 Comments
=== Olindo Mare ===
Never been a fave. Am sure his family loves him, and Felix will send flowers. But...
The kickoffs are magnificent to watch, and last year he did have the 24-27 season. Objectively speaking, he's an NFL placekicker, high-risk high-reward.
I cringe constantly.
Sunday, with a devastating non-faircatch that took us from the 20* to the 5, and sometimes terrible KO coverage, Chuck Knox puts this game in the L column for the special teams. He wanted 2-0 per season from his special teams. Am guessing he's got the count at 0-1.
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=== FG Kicker Controversy ===
SSI isn't... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/27/09
6 Comments
=== Ian Snell ===
Video on Snell's seven-strikeout beauty available here. After the first pitch on the vid, watch each pitch very carefully and you will see that on every one of them, Snell's front knee is now unlocked on followthrough. ... it straightens at times, but does not lock and hyperextend. Except on the first pitch, it locks a bit, just late. It gets better and better as the reel goes on.
The angled landing foot, that's less extreme than it was -- about 50% as cross-toed as it was earlier. But the important thing is the unlocked knee, which allows the entire deceleration... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/27/09
5 Comments
=== Ryan Rowland-Smith ===
Up 3-0 going into the 7th inning. And was allowed to lose the game.
Somebody go count the times that RRS has had a pitch count >100 and then gone out and started the next inning.
Somebody go count the times that his ERA has been inflated -- and, just incidentally here, the game lost -- because he went out there for the Roger Clemens inning.
It seems like it's been fully five games that RRS was smokin' through 6+, and then was left out there to mess up his game late. Check me on that.
Is Wok buying into the Aussie vibe? This is a young lefty with a history of... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/27/09
=== Playoff Chances ===
No worries yet, mate. Down -1 with 13 games to go. The leader, San Francisco, has a 1970's passing game and one game vs the Seahawks, that being up here in our house.
Granted, the Colts next week is a L until proven otherwise, and 1-3 will look kind of ugly, but on the other hand this team add Hasselbeck and Walter Jones is better than the other three teams in the division...
...............
The Seahawks went at it hammer-and-tongs with a fad pick for the Super Bowl, and:
Outgained them 346 - 318, including small margins in rushing and in passing, both
Had 19... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/27/09
=== Seneca Wallace ===
If Mare hits his 30-odd yarder to make the game 16-7 in the first half, the Seahawks win the game against a rough opponent, and we're counting up his spectacular 3rd-down conversions (on two hands). So let's not get crazy on the man.
But the Bears were getting scary pressure, and early in the third quarter (!), Wallace was well into happy-feet mode. D-O-V slo-mo'ed one pass in which Wallace lurched forward, then slide-stepped left, and flipped a feeble little pass up the middle off his back foot ... despite nobody being within 5 yards of him.
As the TV pointed out... Read More
Posted by SABR Matt on 09/25/09
2 Comments
Just to recap the roster turnover magic that Zduriencik has accomplished this season and heading into next season, I would like to call your attention to how amazingly young the team he'll likely field in 2010 has gotten. Here is a list of the players we have right now who will/could (*) see significant playing time in descending order of age:
37) Mike Sweeney (DH)
36) Ichiro! (RF)
34) Kenji Johjima (BC)*
34) Russell Branyan (1B)
32) Jack WIlson (SS)*
31) Erik Bedard (SP)*
31) Chris Jakubauskas (RP)*
31) Carlos Silva (BLOB)
30) Bill Hall (UT)
30) Jack Hannahan (IF)*
29) Sean White (RP)
28)... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/25/09
7 Comments
Q. Another day, another Cy candidate with a dominating performance. Did Doogie pitch Doc tough?
A. Final line was 6.2 ip, 7 h, 4 er, 0 bb, 5 k.
But Fister retired the first 13 Jays, and was locked in a 2-hit shutout, scoreless duel with Halladay into the 6th inning.
Then the Jays' star Hill hit a changeup into the bullpen for a 2-0 Jays lead going into the 7th.
Fister got two out, then gave up two singles in the 7th... in comes Jakabauskas, needing one out... immediately allows both runners to score, then immediately gets out of the inning.
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Q. What's up with the 5 strikeouts and 0... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/25/09
5 Comments
=== GL Muskie ===
... is as confused by Bill Hall as I am.
I just don't know what to make of this guy.
Bret Boone looks like a good comp. Smaller-stature guys with about 60 points of patience. Drafted rounds 5-6. ... Interestingly, both had breakout, really good years at age 25-26. Then fell off the map. Boone, after his 123 OPS+ age-25 season, went on to post OPS+ of 98, 64, 64 the following seasons. Then went up to league average for about three years, then exploded for an MPV caliber season at age *32*.
Hall is now 29YO, and posting an OPS+ of around 64. So how can a player go from... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/25/09
1 Comments
.=== Exhibit A Dept. ===
Seattle fans have had a close-up look at a variation on this, that being Adrian Beltre. And what did that teach us?
In 2004, Adrian was simply "on" outside pitches in a way he's never been since. A pitcher would throw him a high-away pitch and Adrian would smoke it over the RCF fence. A pitcher would throw him a low-away pitch and Adrian would patiently wait on it and smoke it into the right-center gap.
..................
Adrian's hero-to-right-center syndrome echoes Bret Boone in the 2001-03 era in which Boone was, IMHO, incredibly bulked up. His strength... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/24/09
13 Comments
=== Josh Wilson ===
I/O: Hitting .143/.196/.200 the last month, with 16 strikeouts in 56 AB's. Has 2 runs scored in 60 PA's (a pace for 20 runs scored in a season).
CRUNCH: Wilson came in, had a hot week or two, causing folks to wonder whether he'd learned how to hit. :- )
As Mark Twain would say, we'll bring the curtain down at this point in the discussion, out of sheer human kindness.
Well, okay. As Bill James would say, we don't start wondering whether a 28-year-old has suddenly learned to play baseball because of a hot week or month.
On some of these amigos, Wilson, Hannahan,... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/24/09
1 Comments
=== Mike Sweeney ===
I/O: Ripping along at .373/.422/.542 (!) as we race along the last 30 days into the finish line. Hitting for AVG and PWR, with his usual strong EYE, late in the season.
CRUNCH: Though Mike's looking great, we wouldn't get carried away, exactly. He's going to be 37 next season. Even if he'd been great at during the age 33-35 seasons that he had to take off, next season would be about time for him to hit the wall, anyway.
His EYE isn't quite as sterling as we'd like it. If he had 8 walks and 6 strikeouts the last month, it'd be nice, but he has 5 walks against 9... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/23/09
16 Comments
=== Lopez' 25th ===
Casey Stengel once complained about a catcher who called way too many breaking pitches. "He can't hit a curve ball, so he thinks no one else can, either," groused Case.
Jose got coached, for about 23 years, by guys who couldn't get the bat head out in front of a 97 fastball without cheating. Casey woulda loved Jose Lopez, no joke.
.....................
Before the year, we predicted .285-25-100, though we expected a 110-115 OPS+.
Jose's homer Wednesday went 395 feet, according to Hit Tracker. Much to our amazement, he pulled it to left field.
Jose is established now,... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/23/09
=== BJ Upton, End of 4th Inning ===
1-1 count on two exploding fastballs.
Then: 83 curve, wicked Dwight Gooden snap on it, letters to below the knees -- garbage swinging strike for 1-2.
..............
Guess what happens after a batter takes a terrible swing at an offspeed pitch for strike two?
95 fastball, Upton three feet behind it, the swing no ML batter wants to be seen taking.
...............
Morrow's FB is an easy swinging strike three BECAUSE the hitter had more than one pitch in his mind at the moment.
Morrow floats off the mound as if on a cloud. The 5th would be a great inning... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/23/09
6 Comments
=== YippEEEE! Dept. ===
Bill James once described History's Perfect Offense as four great hitters, two left and two right, a leadoff man, two homer guys and a doubles guy.
Tampa had leveled a pretty reasonable facsimile thereof at Brandon Morrow:
LH Carl Crawford -- .307 with 59 stolen bases, 111 OPS+
RH Jason Bartlett -- 320/390/500 -- 25 SB's, 34 doubles & triples, 14 homers
LH Ben Zobrist -- 290/400/525 -- 24 homers, 138 OPS+
RH Evan Longoria -- 280/360/530 -- 31 homers, 108 RBI already, 44 doubles
Okay, those guys aren't great, but they're definitely a leadoff guy, two homers guys... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/22/09
1 Comments
That's the slightly jemanji-inspired tag I thought of when I noticed Seattle's now 79-72: the Rays are 77-74, and with this loss now definitely won't make the playoffs. It's hard to believe the Rays' 2008 run hasn't done more for their late-season attendance, but I guess a terrible local economy and a dome can do that. And I guess the Rays have done the sort of late-season fade the Mariners did in '02, '03, and '07. Is it just me who's been inspired by the Yankees series and the general run of thrilling games Seattle's put together in '09 to pay pretty close attention to these playing out the... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/20/09
2 Comments
=== Contrarian Blog Dept. ===
Since the first Bill James book we ever read -- about 1983 or so -- we've always preferred sports op-ed that offered opinions we hadn't seen eighty times before already.
...in case you weren't in the audience that day when the local magician rolled up his sleeves and showed the secret to the trick: D-O-V, given four choices of what to tackle that day, will choose whichever (hopefully accurate) option that is precisely the opposite of what anybody else thinks. :- )
...............
In this case, that consists of a reminder that the Seahawks are approximately... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/20/09
=== Griffey Safe at Home ===
.272 / .385 / .523 - Griffey's performance at Safeco, 2009
.283 / .363 / .537 - Evan Longoria's performance, 2009
.181 / .275 / .312 - Griffey's performance on the road, 2009
........................
Griffey has hit very well at Safeco but enemy pitchers have blown him up in their home parks. Why's that?
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=== Hittin' em Here ? ===
It isn't really the home runs. Hit tracker shows that Griff has hit 10 homers at home and 6 on the road, but scroll to the bottom of the chart and notice that he only has 4 cheap ("just enough") homers in all parks. He has 1 cheap... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/20/09
8 Comments
=== Dr's Diagnosis ===
We say that Junior's 2009 and 2007 stats differ in no important respect. No important respect, that is, except one:
11% - HR/FB, Griffey, 2009
14% - HR/FB, Griffey, 2009
18-19% - HR/FB, Griffey, in his prime
So Griffey is essentially -- today -- the same hitter he's been since he was 33, except that now a good number of his HR's die on the warning track.
How many of his homers? About 10 per season. 11% vs 19%, considering that he hits a few more FB's now, leave you at about 10 homers a year deficit.
It isn't really that Griffey can't turn around a fastball; we... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/19/09
=== Cliches Aside, This Is a Big 'Un ===
What would happen if the two most powerful navies in the world decided to just bring everybody to the fight and winner takes all?
That's pretty much what happened on June 19-20, 1944, when 9 Japanese aircraft carriers (!) sailed into the Phillippine Sea to take on 15 (!!) U.S. aircraft carriers.
The 15 U.S. aircraft carriers were backed by 7 battleships, 80 other warships, 25 submarines (!) and 900 planes. The Japanese carriers were backed by 5 battleships, 40 other warships and 750 planes.
Sheer tonnage aside, the U.S. navy smoked 'em, because... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/19/09
1 Comments
... down by 4 at 14 seconds. time out. Sue Bird hits a cool, calm three. crowd goes NUTS. now about 10 seconds. Tanisha Wright gets it to Camille little for that unbelievable under the basket final shot. aboubt 3 seconds left and la can't do it. storm shot 43% to sparks 55% first half. lisa lesley in her last season AMAZING.
Great Video! http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/womenshoopsblog/
Next Storm / Sparks Womens National Basketball playoff game is tomorrow - Sunday, September 20th - at 2pm.
GO STORM!
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/19/09
1 Comments
As tonight's action gets underway, I thought I'd pass on some of what I saw last night. I'm not sure if anyone else here was at the game, but it sounds like probably not:
I was sitting down the right field line in the seventh when Ichiro got picked off the second time. It seemed to me that he was safe, but even before, you could tell he was eager to go, and could see his legs freeze as Burnett made his move. I didn't see a replay, so don't know if he was out, but Tinsley reacted to the call immediately.
To me, the Yankee fans didn't become very evident until the 9th. Maybe that just because I... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/19/09
7 Comments
=== Second Time Around ===
On August 16th, Doogie had his second ML start, beating the Yankees 10-3. Seven innings, eight hits, 0 walks, four strikeouts.
After the game, Jeter gave him credit: fastball moves a lot, changed speeds, moved the ball around the strike zone, just didn't give us anything to hit.
It will be interesting, if Fister pitches his game, to see whether the Yankees continue to take cut-down swings -- hands flinching on changeups, late foul tips on mediocre fastballs, etc. Watch the Yankee aggressiveness.
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=== Terrifying Lineup ===
The Yankees are rolling with a 120... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/19/09
=== Bases Gained & Lost: M's at .500 ===
As Cyril Morong :- ) notes in his very fine comment to this article, the Mariners might be -54 in run differential and (therefore, in this case) +9 to Pythag ... but their bases gained-and-lost would have them at .500.
This morning:
257 / 313 / 400 - Mariners' hitters
247 / 317 / 395 - Enemy hitters
Per Baseball Prospectus' Equivalent Runs expectation, the M's have scored -23 fewer runs than their bases gained would predict, and as a completely separate issue, they have yielded +28 more runs on the scoreboard than their bases lost would have... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/18/09
12 Comments
Friday was the M's 13th walk-off hit. This year.
Lots of fun, but of course all the close victories would usually imply that the M's, in another iteration of the season, wouldn't reproduce the same record.
They were +8 to Pythag before Friday. I guess they'll be +8.5 now.
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=== OK, got the diagnosis. What's the prescription? ===
We read somewhere -- we have no idea where, and are not trying to be snarky :- ) -- that with the M's being -50 runs on differential, but +5 runs in the standings .... that "the difference between Zduriencik and Bavasi is, Zduriencik understands what that... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/18/09
8 Comments
Thanks to OBF for the fun post and thread. The recent contributions by writers otherthan myself and SABRMatt are adding color to the site. :- ) :daps:
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=== Ichiro ===
Has, like Pete Rose did back in my youth, the ability to choose whether to hit for power in any given AB.
.................
Ichiro's EYE has gone down a lot this year: in 2008 it was 51/65, but in 2009 it is 29/64. Meanwhile, his SLG has gone from .384 last year, to .472 this year.
His 31 doubles are already a career high (except for 2001's 34 doubles, those being in 25 more games). He's hitting for viciously more... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/18/09
2 Comments
=== Case In Pernt, Dept. ===
We keep saying that the Angels are beating Pythag by luck. Is this luck going to end anytime soon, pray tell? :- )
2009 -- 87 wins, 82 per Pythag (+5)
2008 -- 100 wins, 88 Pythag (+12!! )
2007 -- 94 wins, but only 90 Pythag (+4)
2006 -- 89 wins, only 84 Pythag (+4)
2005 -- 95 wins, only 93 Pythag (+2)
For the period 1998-2004 -- when the Mariners were good, and challenging them -- the Angels were even to Pythag. But the last five years, as Scioscia's boys have comfortably owned the division, they've gone out and routinely cashed in far more victories than... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/18/09
4 Comments
WOW WOW WOW
Everytime I think I have seen it all from Ichiro, everytime I think he can no longer do something to amaze me, HE DOES IT AGAIN!
Video Evidence of Ichiro's Awesomeness!
Hall of famer hitter vs. Hall of fame Closer... HITTER WINS!
Icing on the Cake is that Ichiro may have just won Felix the Cy Young :) :) :)
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
In one of the NFL threads, we were talking about NFL home fields and OBF mentioned that the home field is considered to be worth about +3. I thought it was worth more than that, but since home teams win 57%, then +3 is about right. Kudos.
.............
NFL play is much harder to analyze mathematically than MLB play, because the players' performances can't be isolated as easily. But that doesn't mean that football saberdweebs are any less erudite. They may be better.
One of the great NFL sabe sites is advancednflstats.com. On it, we caught a great article about home field advantages.
1... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
8 Comments
In this article, we mosh-bumped off an NFL sabe's analysis of home field advantage. Doggies will probably win if they fight on their own lawn and probably lose if they fight on the other doggie's lawn.
See advancednflstats.com's "Hawk/Dove" genetics argument if you want to see the case-for. As for Dr. D, there's no doubt in his mind that a St. Louis Ram in Qwest feels very much like a doggie on the wrong lawn. He might go ahead and fight, but he does have to battle his own programming that he shouldn't be there...
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=== In Baseball ===
Baseball aggressiveness doesn't express itself... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
14 Comments
=== Shields ===
He looked mighty adequate out there tonight. Sweet.
..........
:- ) Like ice cream.
As we all know, a legit ML second base is an awfully high bar to set for Tui, and whether he could reproduce Jose Lopez' range factors .... I'd want to see him for thirty games at least.
What IS intriguing is that the Mariners have him there, no?
The scramble-and-dive up the middle: you know and I know that Jose Lopez does not get to that ball. Jack Wilson probably would have. What I liked was the full-body extension, the rrrrrreeeeeeeeeach to snare it in the webbing, and then the... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
9 Comments
== JH ===
I've been a bigger Tui fan than most, but he's been almost 100% impossible to evaluate with anything resembling reliable metrics because of his awful development path and then his 2009 injury.
..................
Right.
Sabermetricians ... meaning, pretty much everybody on the 'net who didn't play professional baseball and who offer opinions on minor leaguers :- ) ... are used to using player's past performances to predict them going forward.
This can't always be done. The reductio ad absurdum is the high-school player taken high in the first round. His numbers mean nothing... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
2 Comments
Super post, and comments, from OBF and the crew. Good on yer, mates. 'ope it's okay if we add our $0.02 ...
Q. What has happened to the strikeouts?
A. If you mean, "what has happened to the ability to strike out batters?," the answer is blinkin' nothin', and that's fair dinkum.
There's such a thing as too many strikes.
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Q. How can you throw too many strikes?
A. Why do you think guys hit .400 on 3-1 and 2-0? It's nothing more than the hitter knowing that the ball will be over the plate. On 0-0 the pitch might be six inches outside. On 2-0 you load up and get ready to swing... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/17/09
Q. What has happened to the plus-plus curve?
A. Nothing. He still has it. And yes it IS a 70 curve. C'mon, don't make me come over there. You're gonna need a Donk if I do.
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Wednesday night, it was a bit softer early, but later in the game he snapped off several hellacious David Wells hooks. The White Sox took them all. Froze on them.
Still, RRS is young and right now he has fallen in love with his change. That will tend to diminish the feel for the curve a bit.
I was laughing at several RRS changeups: he has started to throw it -9 mph, low, outside, sinking --... Read More
Posted by OBF on 09/17/09
6 Comments
Another start, another 7+ innings of fantastic pitching. RRS is starting to get monotonous :) Coming into this season I was very excited to see the young Aussie, and just how much of the promise he showed in 2007/2008 would translate to 2009. Well the first results were less than optimal. He came into the year with a dead arm, and could only muster 86 mph or so with his fastball. The decreased arm speed also seemed to make his offspeed pitches much more mushy. The decisive Mr. Wak saw this for all of 3 innings and quickly gave him the hook all the way to Tacoma.
After a short DL stint... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/16/09
4 Comments
Where you shop matters. As Meatloaf warbled, "There ain't no Coup de Ville hiding at the bottom of a Cracker Jack Box". The same can be said of baseball talent. EVERY organization has strengths and weaknesses, and it is important to understand what they are when you go shopping for talent.
Seattle, for most of the past decade, has been a closer factory, churning out quality closers and setup men, (turned closer elsewhere), at an incredible rate. Franklin, Sherrill, Soriano, Putz, just to name a few. But, at the same time, the club hasn't developed a decent hitter from scratch since about... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/15/09
11 Comments
Q. So Ian Snell threw better on Tuesday night?
A. Much better. He had 4 strikeouts, 2 walks, and 0 homers. He had 2 earned runs in 6 innings, so an easy Quality Start. He had a good number of swinging strikes, like 8 or 10, and was ahead in the count more. One more strikeout and he'd have had a 5/5 Shandler PQS. It was easily his most effective outing with the Mariners that I remember.
This occurred against a lineup with four lefthand hitters.
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Q. Remind me again why he had 21 walks and 16 strikeouts coming into the game?
A. It had looked to me like he threw two speeds: 91-94... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/14/09
4 Comments
=== #1 On Your Scorecard ===
FLIP: Fangraphs.com piles on in the Greg Halman catcalls by noting that Halman's strikeout rate is the highest in the Southern League (AA) since (at least) 2006.
Baseball America had Halman as the M's #1 prospect before the year.
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CHOP: For those who just joined us, Baseball America stubbornly and delightfully provides our last major bastion of Good Ole Boyz-oriented scout rankings. If you want sabermetrics thrown out* and want to know what the pro evaluators think of a young player's gifts, and what they visualize for him going forward, BBA... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/14/09
15 Comments
=== #1 On Your Scoreboard ===
FLIP: Seattle is still distinctly underwhelmed by Matt Tuiasosopo.
Looking around at several prospect rankings, we see that Tui --still!-- is locally ranked as a pedestrian prospect even within the M's own system.
One notable site, for example capped his reasonable ML ceiling at 2.0 WAR (in English, that means perfectly average-mediocre regular) and ranked Greg Halman (among many others) a better prospect. Granted, that was done some months ago.
But we haven't seen any updated opinions there or anywhere around the 'net. The only conversation we have... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/14/09
5 Comments
If we (and Brock Huard) have got the count right, Matt Hasselbeck was touched twice (2 times) by the St. Louis Rams on Sunday.
Once he was bowled over to the ground after throwing a pass, and another time he was sort of chest-bumped-hugged after a throw. The other 30-odd plays on which he passed, he wasn't even touched.
The Rams lost 14 games last year, but they do not have poor defensive ends. They've got a star at one end, and a physically freakish young talent at the other end.
The Rams dogged and blitzed a lot. They were going against a second-string offensive line, so to... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/14/09
5 Comments
Mitch Levy can be shockingly good when he's in the mood to talk sports, and this morning's segment with Hugh Millen was scintillating. The two of them were give-and-go'ing the soccer ball all the way down the flank, Levy asking brilliant setup questions and Millen driving one Andrey Arshavin blast after another by the keeper.
Great radio.
..................
One thing I'd been wondering about: is John Carlson's success sustainable? I mean, precisely what is the difference between Carlson and (say) the #15 tight end in the NFL?
I'm not a fan of Levy's, but the man is so smart that he is... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/14/09
1. Just got the admin keys and there are a boatload more functions, settings and options than there were at D-O-V. Please bear with us :- )
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2. My first attempted action, from my shiny new Space-shuttle-type switchboard, was to delete the exclusively-profane content from the one guy who came in with the F-bombs etc ... and this had the effect of nuking virtually the entire comments thread. I don't think it was reversible, but am fairly confident (gulp) that it won't happen again.
My bad. As you know from the years at D-O-V, our policy is to debate dissension, not suppress... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/13/09
4 Comments
=== By The Numbers Dept. ===
15-5, 2.52 - Felix' Triple Crown numbers after shutting out Texas (2-3 starts left)
17-8, 2.92 - Pedro Martinez' triple crown numbers, lifetime, per 162 games
17-9, 3.12 - Roger Clemens' triple crown numbers, lifetime
17-9, 3.29 - Randy Johnson's triple crown numbers, lifetime
16-10, 3.27 - Greg Maddux' triple crown numbers, lifetime
17-9, 3.46 - Roy Halladay's triple crown numbers, lifetime
12-9, 3.32, 9 saves - John Smoltz' triple crown numbers, lifetime
15-10, 3.54 - Tom Glavine's' triple crown numbers, lifetime
14-10, 3.52 - Felix' numbers, lifetime
17-10,... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/13/09
2 Comments
=== Template Fugit Dept. ===
John Lackey has a very understandable (pitch) arsenal. (And the ol' headlock/meat tenderizer arsenal is pretty repeatable, too.)
Check his pitch type values and you'll see that he has a verrrrrry good 91-92 fastball, well located, whipsawed against a terrific overhand curveball. He throws the curve a good 25% of the time and its run value is sky-high.
Two-pitch pitchers are easy to understand. Lackey of course has a 3rd very plus pitch, the slider, but his basic game is fastball-hammer. He's Aaron Sele with better stuff and a third pitch.
Lackey is no... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/13/09
13 Comments
=== First Quarter ===
... it looked like Matt Hasselbeck had just spent two years in the pokey, throwing down-and-outs against Big Poppa Meathead and the skinhead crew. Maybe he'd broken code on correct speech and gotten sent to a gulag, I dunno. But it looked like he hadn't picked up a football in a decade.
At any rate, Hass's field vision was nothing but a rumor, and not twice but four separate times, he threw the ball toward receivers under the premise that Ram defenders wouldn't mind. They minded, and at the end of the first quarter, Hasselbeck had thrown two picks, thrown another... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/13/09
=== Defense In Sum ===
The Seahawks' offense came out of the locker room apparently hoping that the Rams would hide a Joker-pencil on them. Turn the ball over Turn the ball over Turn the ball over 1step, 2step, 3step, twirl!
I thought Hasselbeck had gone blind, the way he was trying to hold a first-quarter passing drill against the air. The Rams' safeties were only too happy to accept his invitations to take his passes the other way.
3-for-3 turnovers to start the game is a great way to get 42-3'ed against, say, the Panthers. But this time?
The Seahawks' defense dug in grimly throughout... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/13/09
15 Comments
Q. Hm, 4.2 innings, 5 runs. What happened out there?
A. The Rangers just flat-out beat him.
They had at least three sharp hits off of his vaunted change; they had several laser beams off FB's that got too much of the plate; a long HR onto the centerfield "sod farm" came off of a hanging 73 change-curve.
Another three or four outs were stroked deep to outfielders.
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Q. Did he not execute his pitches?
A. Actually, Doogie executed alll three of his pitches fairly well, considering that his fastball velo was back down to the 85-86 range on Sunday.
Without the velo to make the Rangers... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/12/09
=== 1 Aaron Curry, LB ===
There are draft picks that are thrilling on draft day -- say, Mark Sanchez -- and there are draft picks that get more exciting as the preseason goes on.
The Curry pick is the kind that looks better once the games begin. Personally didn't expect Curry to necessarily be as much of a big-play type as an assignments guy ... sort of an outside Lofa Tatupu. But early on, he looks like the whole package -- sacks, big hits, solid containment, and the charisma.
The Hawks were #30 in yards last year, but their LB's get ranked top-5 by everybody. That's a nucleus of... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/12/09
1 Comments
Q. How much did the rain affect things?
A. A lot. Have rarely seen fielders slip-n-slide like they were doing Saturday.
First play, Jack Wilson nearly skidded his throw off the wet grass into the dugout -- wowzer of a save by Hannahan. A bit later in the game, Adrian Beltre ran across from 3B and lobbed the ball over to 1B like a water balloon. Adrian also had a fairly simple bouncer go off his chest, and then he slipped trying to recover it and crawled a little ways after it, before giving up.
Kevin Millwood, who averages 90.3 mph on his fastball per fangraphs, averaged 87.9 mph... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/12/09
9 Comments
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The TNT has an interesting article up, calling Jim Riggleman out for his lack of appreciation of what it's like to be a day-in, day-out professional baseball player.
If nobody minds, we'll take the other side of this one, and argue that Jim Riggleman does, in fact, have a good grasp of what it's like to be a day-in, day-out professional baseball player.
.............
Riggleman made a comment recently, which we'll run through the D-O-V translator: "Sometimes baseball players like to use fatigue as an excuse for poor performance. I don't usually buy it. If you're not swinging well, then... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/11/09
6 Comments
=== Baseball Musings ===
If you hadn't noticed -- on most nights, you can get a Real Live Baseball Expert (David Pinto) doing a saber-literate, internet version of Baseball Tonight recaps. :- )
Joel Piniero pitched well for the Cards, but they lost in 15 innings, 1-0. The Cubbies won, leaving the Cards' magic number at 12. Thanks David.
Jo-El is 14-9, 3.28 with a 4:1 control ratio.
Ryan Franklin has a 1.67 ERA with 37 saves. Ryan always caught Seattle grief far out of proportion to his actual shortcomings, but still .... do you ever get the feeling that after Gillick left, the problem... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/11/09
1 Comments
=== NFL PYTHAG DEPT. ===
I/O: The 2008 Seahawks had 8 of their 'Opening Day' starters hit the injured reserve, including Hasselbeck for 9 games. They were #2 in the NFL for most starts lost to injury.
I/O: The Seahawks went 4-12, but were outgained by only 15 yards per game, and "Pythag'ed" more like a 7-9 record in terms of yards gained and lost.
I/O: The Seahawks had the 14th-toughest schedule in 2008, but face only the #24 schedule this year.
.......
CRUNCH: All of these numbers seem to indicate that the Seahawks got unlucky last year. But:
1) The injuries -- in part -- reflected... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/11/09
1 Comments
=== Ryan Rowland-Smith ===
Has been excellent all year, but his last three starts he has engaged autopilot on the TOR navi screen:
KCR - 8 innings, 1 walk, 7 strikeouts
Oak - 8 innings, 1 walk, 4 strikeouts
LAA - 7 innings, 1 walk, 5 strikeouts
In those starts, he has thrown 213 strikes and 112 balls. I feel like I'm watching Jeff Fassero buzz through the NL back in Montreal.
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Earlier in the year, Rowland-Smith was a flyball pitcher, including a 14 flyball / 3 groundball performance in Toronto.
But in the three starts above, he has tossed 31 groundballs against only 22... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/11/09
2 Comments
Q. What's the exec sum?
A. Mark McLemore comp.
Coming off his career year. Would help you win a championship if purchased as a bargain, underrated player. Would be an albatross if valued and purchased as a star.
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Q. Is he Zduriencik's kind of player?
A. My understanding is that the Angels have to stay on Figgins' back to get him to play hard every day. Or at least we heard that it was that way, before his walk season.
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Q. Is he a star? A .400 OBP player?
A. It says here that Chone had his career year, at 31, and will be year-to-year even in terms of staying in a lineup... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/10/09
Cindy and I were tooling around on Highway 16 about 7:00 pm on Thursday and she goes, "when's the last time we were to a Rainiers game?"
"Actually, they're in the playoffs this year. They had their 1995 season. They were like 7 games out with three weeks to go and won their division."
She got excited. "Really? Are they home tonight?"
Just then we came around the corner on 16. All the stadium lights were on. Guess they're home. "Do they start at 6 pm or 7pm? I forget?" The exit was looming. I clicked on 850-AM and our man Mike Curto was announcing the end of the first inning. ... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/10/09
17 Comments
SS Osvaldo Navarro chased down a Texas Leaguer parachute job by running a down-and-out to the L/CF fence and then over to the foul line. He dives at the end and catches the ball.
It exemplified everything that is wonderful about AAA baseball. And I guess it sort of explains why, even with the Ronny Cedeno situation earlier, the Mariners never gave a second thought to letting Navarro play SS in Safeco.
Well, maybe that's not fair. Earlier (like August 1) Navarro was hitting .150 or something. He went on an incredible 25-for-52 streak, or something, to get to his current .250... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/09/09
In Wednesday's game against the Angels, Snell started the game by ripping a 93-mph fastball into the knees for an 0-1 count. Wow, nice life on that one, kids. Second pitch, even faster. And even more explosion. Whoa doggie!
By the end of the evening, Ian Snell's 4-seam fastball had averaged 92.8 mph, topping at 96.5 mph.
Is that good? Here are some other pitchers whose incoming missiles clock at the very same 92.5 to 93.1 mph that Snell deployed on Wednesday:
Matt Cain - 92.5
Tim Lincecum - 92.5
Roy Halladay - 92.8
Chris Carpenter - 92.9
Brett Anderson - 92.9
Roy Oswalt - 93.1
In... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/09/09
6 Comments
So, you go to Fangraphs.com, which compiles the year-to-year changes for you. And all laid out for us, nice and neat, are the changes that Gil Meche made when he went from zero to hero.
The F/X data echoes what the eyes saw at the time. Meche began evolving in his last three months here, and the Royals completed the job for him. This is the kind of thing that has had them thinking, Hey, let's cherrypick the guys the Mariners aren't coaching...
What did Gil Meche do differently, to achieve those great 2007-08 seasons in KC, after 8 full years of futility in Seattle?
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Many... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/09/09
=== AL Cy Young ===
One of the really fun things about debating (1) Cy Young awards, (2) MVP awards, (3) Hall-of-Fame elections, (4) All-Star starters, (5) Historically-great presidents, (6) Greatest rock guitarists, and (7) least-unfavorite media personalities, is that nobody has any clue what the awards are supposed to mean.
In default, they mean "favorite" President, or pitcher, or shortstop, or guitarist, or whatever. I defy you to name anyone who, at any time, has ever nominated Eddie Shlomboski for greatest rock guitarist if that wahoo was not also his own favorite guitarist... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/09/09
5 Comments
If you’ve spent much time at all around the Mariners’ bullpen this year, you probably already know something about the weirdness of John Wetteland. Last month I watched him stand against the bullpen wall in the ninth inning, spinning a baseball over and over in his hand, zoning out. A guy next to me said something like, “Come on John, you know you can do better than Aardsma!” Wetteland just shook his head, not opening his eyes, still spinning the ball: he’d heard the question and responded, but he was still in his own realm.
A while back I compiled some news stories on Wetteland to create a... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/08/09
2 Comments
In this fangraphs.com article, Carson Cistulli addresses a couple of great questions. What is it about baseball that gives us so many pleasant hours of watching? And what is it about baseball analysis that holds our attention so well, and gives us so much enjoyment as well?
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Q. Is that a "self-indulgent" question?
A. Remarkably, there were readers (such as Nicker and Arsenal) who seemed quite angry that Cistulli should write about, or even think about, this subject.
Is it self-indulgent to ask why baseball makes us happy? I would be much more concerned about my own self-obliviousness... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/08/09
9 Comments
Q. Skipping to the bottom line: in D-O-V's world, what is it about baseball that makes us happy?
A. Hope. (And admiration.)
In bits and pieces, we live vicariously through the Mariners, and Franklin Gutierrez' / Doogie Fister's / Jack Zduriencik's exploits provide us with a Vision Of a Better Tomorrow.
Everything that a human being does, she does for the sake of hope. She goes to work because hoping for a paycheck. She works hard because dreaming about better work conditions. She clicks on a blog link because hoping for something wonderful on the other side of it. etc., etc... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/08/09
12 Comments
=== Another Fine Myth ===
Am becoming positively fixated on the lad's performances at this point. :- ) Locked into his game vs the A's, slo-mo'ing and freeze-framing and generally geeking out all afternoon.
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Mechanical flaw. Doogie has a tendency to lean back ever-so-slightly at the waist on his backstroke.
Forgetting injuries for a moment, and talking about performance only, this is simply the worst mechanical flaw a pitcher can have. As you know, it is the flaw that cost Randy Johnson five years of Unit-age at the start of his career.
The leanback actually is... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/08/09
2 Comments
So, just to give you an idea of just how easy it is to humiliate Dr. D in a fantasy football stadium, here's a look at a few of my QB sizzlers & fizzers...
QB: #1 or #2 on your lineup card?
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=== KURT WARNER ===
#2 on your lineup card.
Warner's numbers have been elite since he won his starting job back, and he throws to an incredible array of targets. So, no-brainer here. You want him over the more middle-of-the-pack Cutlers, (Eli) Mannings and Hasselbecks, right?
Wrong. Warner has completed 16 games only a couple of times in his career, and at age 38, has passed Dr. D's magic-... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/08/09
14 Comments
It was interesting to see that Sandy, SABRMatt, Grizzle and Cool Papa, among others, are football-downloaded. :- ) In that case, how many of you weaklings would be up for a football fantasy league?
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Played one NFL fantasy league. Long enough ago that Terrell Davis was as no-brainer at #1 as, say, that Viking running back is nowadays.
Signed up for a random public league, got slotted at the #1 overall (which is always a big thrill), and of course grabbed TD. At the end of the second, Steve Young was miraculously still available, so grabbed him... slap me silly. My first... Read More
Posted by Cool Papa Bell on 09/06/09
12 Comments
***We interupt your regularly scheduled blogging to bring you this special report***
With the 19-8 stomping of the Oregon Ducks on Thursday and 37-32 upset last year, the Boise State football team has now established itself as the undisputed King of the Northwest and one of the elite programs in all of football. While it may be a small school without a large budget and it's recruits are only rated 2- and 3-stars by the scouting agencies, don't be fooled into thinking that they are underdogs any longer. BSU can now go toe-to-toe with just about any team in the country.
Of course the first... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/05/09
16 Comments
=== Respect for the Complexity of the Problem ===
Capt. Jack, of course, rox. We do, however, insist stubbornly that the differences between one pirate-ship captain and another are subtle -- that the GM world is best viewed in shades of gray, not in two tones black-and-white.
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In another article today, we gave our (un-)revised Luke French outlook. Maybe the lad will prove us wrong. We put the odds at 20:1 against him, day of trade, and the odds have gone south since then. :- )
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Freddy Garcia's trade value, in 2004, was equal to or less than Jarrod... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/05/09
5 Comments
=== Ichiro ===
Is 1,999 for 5,995 and must go 1-for-5 on Sunday to hit what has to be one of baseball's most perfect milestones.
Puh-leeeze! :- ) Then I can download a screenshot of his player card that night and completely retire from chasing statistics.
In Strat-O terms, roll his player card and a perfect 1-2 on a six-sider is a hit, no computers necessary. (OK, actually a 1-3 on the white die and a 2-5 or 11 on the two red die.)
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=== Bill Hall ===
Has been drawing RAVES from the mainframe for his swing. Unloaded on a FB inside third, Thursday, and pelted it ... um ... 448 feet to... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/05/09
6 Comments
=== RIP Dept. ===
Have seen more than enough of Monsieur French, merci beaucoup. :- )
The stuff (or lack thereof) aside, Saturday's A's game was vintage. Staked to a comfortable 3-0 lead against a 91 OPS+ offense -- that is playing backups -- Msr. French promptly walked a leadoff hitter, and then fired an 86-mph "fastball" that was no-doubtly tatered for 2 runs.
By a shortstop who had 8 RBI on the season.
Went on to get smashed for 5 runs, 10 baserunners, and 0 strikeouts in 3+ innings. By a lineup that would, from hitter 1 through hitter 9, be completely at home in the Pacific Coast... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/01/09
16 Comments
Here's an article by Street. Felix would go every 5 days; the other guys would go on longer rest.
The M's have Felix, Snell, RRS, Fister and French; Brandon Morrow is coming up shortly.
So somebody might want to pencil that out, considering they're off every Monday in September :- )
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Bigtime kibitz points for Capt Jack's single-minded focus on identifying the best 2010 players. Not only will he need a decision on (say) Fister vs French for 2010; he needs to make a call on certain players so as to set up other decisions on winter acquisitions.
...................... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/01/09
1 Comments
Friday night I arrived early at Safeco (to make sure I'd get the Seattle Mariners Classic Commercials Volume 2 DVD) and wandered around the ballpark a while, looking at Betancourt, Meche, Olivo, and Bloomquist take batting and fielding practice. At around 6 I looked over at the way up above right field stands and saw some people fiddling with a banner that said Revive '95. In the third inning, I wandered over there hoping to talk with them about '95, but they'd fled the scene for better seats. Still, I looked at the banner up close: it said "1995: Aug 24-Oct. 2: 26 wins 11 losses 2009: Aug 24... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/01/09
8 Comments
Q. Executive Summary?
A. Radke-esque performance: fastball moved around the zone, devastating change, rock-solid mound presence. Seven innings, one run, a W.
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Q. How was the velocity on the FB?
A. Best it's been all year. We were worried a couple of games ago as he fell into the 86 range, but Tuesday he had the foot back and then added a foot. He was routinely 88-89, touching 90.
So that was awesome, to see the extra length on the FB. He was into Radke territory if not a bit more.
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Q. The command on the FB?
A. Very good. Johjima frequently caught the 89 fastball just by... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/01/09
16 Comments
=== Batterrrrr Rup, Chone Figgins ===
Sept. 1, 2009.
Fister came out and started the ballgame against a red-hot lineup that had crushed French and the M's, 10-0, the night before.
He threw the first two pitches to Chone Figgins Right! On! the Black!, one at the top of the zone, the other at the bottom -- and the ump smirkingly called them both balls. 2-0. As if to say, you're going to have to give these guys the ball where they want it, rook.
As a catcher once told the young Ron Luciano after two such pitches, "Look, you're going to have to give me either the high one or the low one, or... Read More
Posted by jemanji on 09/01/09
7 Comments
Well, a pseudo-roundtable, with Sandy's hard-earned insights and my off-the-cuff kibitzes :- )
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=== Rob Johnson ===
San-man:
The 10/10 eye from July vanished, (4/9 for August). ... his July .810 OPS was phantom... But, his August OPS (.696), could easily be his new BOTTOM end. .267/.313/.383/.696 -- 1-HR, 4-2B. ... BABIP = .300.
... if he had slumped BACK to a .600 OPS in August, then you might write off July as just a random hot streak. But a catcher who pitchers LOVE that can carry a .700 - .730 OPS is a major plus to any lineup ...
Based on his profile so far, there is every... Read More
Posted by anonymous (not verified) on 09/01/09
1 Comments
Friday night I arrived early at Safeco (to make sure I'd get the Seattle Mariners Classic Commercials Volume 2 DVD) and wandered around the ballpark a while, looking at Betancourt, Meche, Olivo, and Bloomquist take batting and fielding practice. At around 6 I looked over at the way up above right field stands and saw some people fiddling with a banner that said Revive '95. In the third inning, I wandered over there hoping to talk with them about '95, but they'd fled the scene for better seats. Still, I looked at the banner up close: it said "1995: Aug 24-Oct. 2: 26 wins 11 losses 2009 Aug 24-... Read More