American league fans should take "even steven" and feel like they are getting away with something. The American League no longer has the monster juggernaut teams. The Yanks, once the dominant force of beisbol, are now washed up rotationless bums. Yankees players are older than most of the bloggers on this site. I intend no offense to bloggers, blogging has a much later prime and peak.
The National League has Strasberg, Lincecum, Halladay, and Lee, all pitching on the same planet as Felix. The American League only has felix on that planet; The Phillies have more aces than the entire American league.
We should weep about the Greinke trade, because Felix may become complacent only beating the likes of Sabathia and Price. What if Felix wants to switch leagues to compete for the big Cy Young award?
Q. So Lee, Greinke and the DH adjustment mean that the NL and AL are back even-steven, right?
A. It's okay with me if it's okay with Sandy. ... never been so glad that two guys didn't go to Texas or Anaheim, though...
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Q. What's the SSI shtick on Greinke's social anxiety?
A. That it appears to have cut his market value by about 70%? I dunno.
You and I aren't in a position to comment intelligently, but if we were restricted to intelligent commentary, well, I didn't choose my avatar by no accident, babe...
GM's did indeed have to take Greinke's syndrome into account, just as if he had some other sickness.
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My own guess, which is worth even less than usual, is that Zack Greinke would have had one verrrrrrrrrrrrrrry wexx-cellent chance of detonating in New York.
They say that SAD patients can walk the tightrope if given tight structure and predictable days -- which, says Dr. D, are constructs that go to the issue of security and safety.
Greinke certainly competed well in Kansas City, but let those jackwagon NYY reporters start to whip him across the face with shoestrings after every loss and see whether the wheels come off or not. The life outside work can ---- > start to invade work real quick, if it gets painful enough.
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I couldn't be more thrilled for Greinke that he's going to be in Milwaukee, and couldn't be more thrilled for myself that the Mariners won't be facing him any more.
Greinke had a 2.27 ERA against us career (!) with a 47:8 control in 67 innings. We'd beaten him once in nine starts. Now the Royals are a luxury stop on the road again. 100 L's, gettin' worse all the time, and now no Greinke to spot them a W before we start the series.
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Q. Where is SSI on the interesting MC debate over Greinke's ace-hood?
A. As you know, Dr. D hangs on everything Bill James says; to me, James has (uniquely!) acquired his baseball knowledge and judgment in precisely the same way that chess grandmasters acquire theirs.
The Royals are a specialty of James', of course. So it's interesting that James has never been very enthusiastic about Greinke's ace-hood, either.
Bill seemed to think that 2009 was a bit of an anomaly even when it happened, and came out in favor of Felix winning the 2009 Cy ---- > based on the inventive argument that Greinke isn't that good a pitcher.
If the question is whether Greinke's a great pitcher, I've got to side with the Greinke doubters to some extent.
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