Here are offensive player rankings at each position for each league. It includes only players who (through June 12) would qualify for a batting title.
The numbers after their name are their total rank for Hittability and Strikeability at their position. For example, among the 11 qualifying catchers, Kurt Suzuki ranked seventh in slugging percentage and first in W/K ratio (7+1=8).
Catchers
AL-1. Kurt Suzuki, Twins 8, 2. Salvador Perez, Royals 9, 3. Yan Gomes, Indians 13, 4. A.J. Pierzynski, Red Sox 19, 5. Brian McCann, Yankees 19, 6. Jason Castro, Astros 20.
NL-1. Jonathan Lucroy, Brewers 4, 2. Miguel Montero, D-backs 6, 3. Buster Posey, Giants 11, 4. Carlos Ruiz, Phillies 11, 5. Yadier Molina, Cardinals 12.
First Basemen
AL-1. Edwin Encarnacion, Blue Jays 6, 2. Miguel Cabrera, Tigers 17, 3. Albert Pujols, Angels 18, 4. Adam Dunn, White Sox 18, 5. Brandon Moss, Athletics 21, 6. James Loney, Rays 25, 7. Mike Napoli, Red Sox 26, 8. Jose Abreu, White Sox 27, 9. Alberto Callaspo, Athletics 27, 10. Chris Davis, Orioles 31, 11, Joe Mauer, Twins 35, 12. Chris Carter, Astros 37, 13. Nick Swisher, Indians 37, 14. Justin Smoak, Mariners 44, 15. Eric Hosmer, Royals 45.
NL-1. Adam LaRoche, Nationals 8, 2. Anthony Rizzo, Cubs 10, 3. Freddie Freeman, Braves 15, 4. Paul Goldschmidt, D-backs 23, 5. Adrian Gonzalez, Dodgers 25, 6. Justin Morneau, Rockies 28, 7. Lucas Duda, Mets 28, 8. Garrett Jones, Marlins 32, 9. Mark Reynolds, Brewers 37, 10. Yonder Alonso, Padres 38, 11. Ryan Howard, Phillies 44.
Second Basemen
AL-1. Brian Dozier, Twins 7, 2. Jose Altuve, Astros 11, 3. Robinson Cano, Mariners 12, 4. Dustin Pedroia, Red Sox 14, 5. Ben Zobrist, Rays 18, 6. Ian Kinsler, Tigers 20, 7. Howie Kendrick, Angels 23, 8. Brian Roberts, Yankees 28, 9. Jonathan Schoop, Orioles 39.
NL-1. Anthony Rendon, Nationals 11, 2. Chase Utley, Phillies 12, 3. Daniel Murphy, Mets 12, 4. Neil Walker, Pirates 17, 5. Dee Gordon, Dodgers 24, 6. Scooter Gennett, Brewers 25, 7. Aaron Hill, D-backs 28, 8. D.J. LeMahieu, Rockies 30, 9. Brandon Phillips, Reds 31, 10. Brandon Hicks, Giants 31, 11. Danny Espinosa, Nationals 36, 12. Emilio Bonifacio, Cubs 36, 13. Jedd Gyorko, Padres 41.
Third Basemen
AL-1. Josh Donaldson, Athletics 7, 2. Yangervis Solarte, Yankees 7, 3. Adrian Beltre, Rangers 9, 4. Kurt Seager, Mariners 12, 5. Carlos Santana, Indians 19, 6. Trevor Plouffe, Twins 20, 7. Brett Lawrie, Blue Jays 22, 8. Evan Longoria, Rays 23, 9. Nick Castellanos, Tigers 26, 10. Matt Dominguez, Astros 26.
NL-1. Todd Frazier, Reds 10, 2. Pedro Alvarez, Pirates 15, 3. Matt Carpenter, Cardinals 16, 4. Casey McGehee, Marlins 18, 5. Pablo Sandoval, Giants 19, 6. Martin Prado, D-backs 28, 7. David Wright, Mets 30, 8. Chris Johnson, Braves 35.
Shortstops
AL-1. Alexei Ramirez, White Sox 9, 2. Jose Reyes, Blue Jays 15, 3. Erick Aybar, Angels 16, 4. Jed Lowrie, Athletics 17, 5. Yunel Escobar, Rays 22, 6. Xander Bogaerts, Red Sox 24, 7. Asdrubal Cabrera, Indians 25, 8. Elvis Andrus, Rangers 26, 9. Alcides Escobar, Royals 29, 10. Derek Jeter, Yankees 33, 11. J.J. Hardy, Orioles 37, 12. Brad Miller, Mariners 44.
NL-1. Troy Tulowitzki, Rockies 3, 2. Brandon Crawford, Giants 15, 3. Jimmy Rollins, Phillies 17, 4. Jhonny Peralta, Cardinals 19, 5. Ian Desmond, Nationals 22, 6. Starlin Castro, Cubs 22, 7. Hanley Ramirez, Dodgers 22, 8. Andrelton Simmons, Braves 24, 9. Chris Owings, D-backs 28, 10. Jean Segura, Brewers 42, 11. Adeiny Hechavarria, Marlins 44, 12. Everth Cabrera, Padres 47, 13. Zack Cozart, Reds 48.
Left Fielders
AL-1. Michael Brantley, Indians 8, 2. Nelson Cruz, Orioles 9, 3. Alex Gordon, Royals 14, 4. Melky Cabrera, Blue Jays 17, 5. Shin-soo Choo, Rangers 18, 6. Yoenis Cespedes, Athletics 20, 7. Matt Joyce, Rays 23, 8. Brett Gardner, Yankees 30, 9. Dustin Ackley, Mariners 30, 10. Rajai Davis, Blue Jays 31, 11. Alejandro De Aza, White Sox 34, 12. Alfonso Soriano, Yankees 37.
NL-1. Seth Smith, Padres 7, 2. Justin Upton, Braves 13, 3. Christian Yelich, Marlins 19, 4. Matt Holliday, Cardinals 20, 5. Michael Morse, Giants 21, 6. Carlos Gonzalez, Rockies 25, 7. Khris Davis, Brewers 27, 8. Junior Lake, Cubs 32, 9. Domonic Brown, Phillies 33, 10. Starling Marte, Pirates 37.
Center Fielders
AL-1. Coco Crisp, Athletics 7, 2. Mike Trout, Angels 9, 3. Dexter Fowler, Astros 14, 4. Jacoby Ellsbury, Yankees 16, 5. Austin Jackson, Tigers 19, 6. Desmond Jennings, Rays 23, 7. Adam Jones, Orioles 24, 8. Michael Bourn, Indians 27, 9. Adam Eaton, White Sox 28, 10. Leonys Martin, Rangers 32, 11. Jackie Bradley Jr., Red Sox 34.
NL-1. Andrew McCutchen, Pirates 5, 2. Angel Pagan, Giants 13, 3. Denard Span, Nationals 14, 4. Carlos Gomez, Brewers 15, 5. Matt Kemp, Dodgers 18, 6. Marcell Ozuna, Marlins 23, 7. B.J. Upton, Braves 31, 8. Billy Hamilton, Reds 33, 9. Ben Revere, Phillies 35.
Right Fielders
AL-1. Jose Bautista, Blue Jays 4, 2. David Murphy, Indians 15, 3. Nick Markakis, Orioles 16, 4. George Springer, Astros 23, 5. Alex Rios, Rangers 23, 6. Norichika Aoki, Royals 26, 7. Dayan Viciedo, White Sox 30, 8. Torii Hunter, Tigers 31, 9. Wil Myers, Rays 31.
NL-1. Yasiel Puig, Dodgers 7, 2. Giancarlo Stanton, Marlins 10, 3. Hunter Pence, Giants 15, 4. Ryan Braun, Brewers 18, 5. Charlie Blackmon, Rockies 18, 6. Jayson Werth, Nationals 20, 7. Jason Heyward, Braves 24, 8. Curtis Granderson, Mets 26, 9. Marlon Byrd, Phillies 28, 10. Gerardo Parra, D-backs 28, 11. Allen Craig, Cardinals 33, 12. Nate Schierholtz, Cubs 39.
Designated Hitters
AL-1. Victor Martinez, Tigers 2, 2. David Ortiz, Red Sox 4, 3. Billy Butler, Royals 6.
Notes: Yangervis Solarte seems intent on proving me wrong.
In case of ties, I gave the advantage to the player with the higher slugging percentage.
Showing posts with label Jose Bautista. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jose Bautista. Show all posts
Saturday, June 14, 2014
Saturday, April 26, 2014
It's time to start looking at fast starts
The first month of the season has gotten away from me.
It has been a busy time -- with hockey and basketball coverage, the Final Four, my wedding and by my count so far five Rangers games and eight RoughRiders.
I've had an unusual Friday and Saturday off from any pro sports coverage -- though I did watch parts of the Stars and Rangers games, and the end of Blues-Blackhawks last night after a lengthy nap.
I'll be back at it Sunday with Stars playoff game six, Monday with Mavericks playoff game four, Tuesday with possibly high school softball playoffs and Wednesday with Rangers-Athletics.
Sunday also will be the end of Week 4 of the 26-week major league season.
My rule of thumb for fantasy baseball is not to make major moves until the season is five weeks old, so now is the time for me to be thinking about some possible moves.
My teams, by the way, are scuffling in the middle of the pack in all three leagues. I expect to have more specifics for you Monday after I've compiled the Week 4 stats.
After five weeks, I believe there is enough information to make informed decisions about which veterans might be losing it, which rookies are more than a flash in the pan and which players may have physical ailments that are holding them back and could cost them playing time.
If you go to mlb.com these days, you can find information encouraging you to vote for the All-Star starters. To me, it's too early to do something like that.
Remember the outrage last year when Dodgers OF Yasiel Puig wasn't on the All-Star team? Aside from the fact that about 50 players per league get on the team either from the original selections or as fill-ins for guys who beg out of the game, Puig really didn't belong in the game because his incredibly hot start was just that: a hot start. Small sample size, you know.
His 2014 start, dotted with the kind of inconsistent play and punctuality that seems to bother managers, Puig is batting .263. He has hit three home runs and stolen one base, but that's hardly All-Star caliber.
Here's another guy whose career seems to be going in the opposite direction: Rangers LHP Martin Perez.
I've been seeing him pitch for the last five seasons, mostly in the minors. During that time, Perez has shown flashes of competence, if not brilliance, but mostly inconsistency. That's inconsistent not just from game to game but often from inning to inning.
My opinion of Perez changed with his shutout of the White Sox April 18. It was an easy 12-0 victory, but it was also the first American League shutout or even complete game this season and the kind of game when his concentration might have lapsed in the past. He was economical with his pitches, and he threw ground ball after ground ball.
The AL's next shutout came five days later, when Perez pitched another three-hitter in Oakland. That stretched his winning streak to his last four starts and his scoreless streak to 26 innings. It was a fairly tense 3-0 win; the type of game when in the past one bad inning could have blown up a well pitched game.
Perez has matured, at a time when Texas needed him to shore up an injury-depleted rotation.
Now RHP Colby Lewis is back, if not in mid-season form. LHP Matt Harrison is scheduled for his first start this weekend. I saw him being brilliant in eight scoreless innings in his final rehab start for Double-A Frisco. Granted, it was against Texas League batters, but Harrison's approach was impeccable. In another couple of months, LHP Derek Holland will have recovered from his knee surgery. And until now, this paragraph hasn't included the Rangers' ace, RHP Yu Darvish.
Now, here's a preview of the kinds of things I'll be looking for in evaluating players at the five-week mark.
I look for batters with the best walk:strikeout ratios. The five major league batters with the most walks so far all have walked more often than they have struck out -- Blue Jays OF Jose Bautista 27:18 (or 1.50), Pirates OF Andrew McCutchen 21:16, Indians 3B/C Carlos Santana 20:19, Athletics SS Jed Lowrie 19:10 (1.90) and Reds 1B Joey Votto 19:18.
Three of those are no surprise. Lowrie started fast last season, but faded; he also could be a relatively low-investment shortstop, say if Rockies SS Troy Tulowitzki is injured again. Expect Santana's ratio to decrease. He's batting .133, so his team will expect him to be more aggressive to raise that average. He can't help you much now, but keep in mind that if he begins hitting he also will exercise pretty good strike-zone judgment.
Next in line in walks are Tulowitzki himself at 17:11, and Twins SS Brian Dozier with 17 walks but 24 strikeouts. Dozier impressed me last season as a much better player than I expected until I saw him. He has improbable statistics this year: six stolen bases and seven homers, but a mere nine RBI and a .222 average. He's a player likely to do worse if his team plays well. If Minnesota becomes a contender, pitchers would work him more closely, respecting his power, instead of giving him fastballs to hit in blowouts.
I've also looked at my pitching leading indicators. It's clear that pitchers' K:W ratios are out of whack because of small sample sizes. The leaders are Phillies LHP Cliff Lee 19.00, Yankees RHP Masahiro Tanaka 17.50, Giants RHP Tim Hudson 12.50, Mariners RHP Feliz Hernandez 10.75 and Rays LHP David Price 10.00. If any of them finish the season with ratios even half as high, they would be having an exceptional year. But the early returns indicate that the Yanks and Giants made good off-season signings.
The leaders in opponents' batting average are mixed between top pitchers and likely pretenders: Reds RHP Johnny Cueto .140, Braves RHP Aaron Harang .143, Phillies LHP Cole Hamels .151, somebody's RHP Garrett Richards .155 and Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright .165.
At the opposite end are mostly some surprising pitchers: Twins RHP Ricky Nolasco .347, Reds RHP Homer Bailey .345, Orioles LHP Wei-chin Chen .330, Twins RHP Kevin Correia .327 and Giants LHP Madison Bumgarner .314. In the next few weeks, expect to see at least two among Nolasco, Bailey, Chen and Bumgarner to go on the disabled list.
The low-end K:W pitchers are Astros RHP Scott Feldman 1.00, White Sox LHP John Danks 1.08, Phillies RHP A.J. Burnett and Twins RHP Kyle Gibson 1.18 and Orioles RHP Ubaldo Jimenez 1.24. Most of them have seen better days than they'll have this season. Gibson is off to a good start he might not be able to maintain with such a low ratio.
It has been a busy time -- with hockey and basketball coverage, the Final Four, my wedding and by my count so far five Rangers games and eight RoughRiders.
I've had an unusual Friday and Saturday off from any pro sports coverage -- though I did watch parts of the Stars and Rangers games, and the end of Blues-Blackhawks last night after a lengthy nap.
I'll be back at it Sunday with Stars playoff game six, Monday with Mavericks playoff game four, Tuesday with possibly high school softball playoffs and Wednesday with Rangers-Athletics.
Sunday also will be the end of Week 4 of the 26-week major league season.
My rule of thumb for fantasy baseball is not to make major moves until the season is five weeks old, so now is the time for me to be thinking about some possible moves.
My teams, by the way, are scuffling in the middle of the pack in all three leagues. I expect to have more specifics for you Monday after I've compiled the Week 4 stats.
After five weeks, I believe there is enough information to make informed decisions about which veterans might be losing it, which rookies are more than a flash in the pan and which players may have physical ailments that are holding them back and could cost them playing time.
If you go to mlb.com these days, you can find information encouraging you to vote for the All-Star starters. To me, it's too early to do something like that.
Remember the outrage last year when Dodgers OF Yasiel Puig wasn't on the All-Star team? Aside from the fact that about 50 players per league get on the team either from the original selections or as fill-ins for guys who beg out of the game, Puig really didn't belong in the game because his incredibly hot start was just that: a hot start. Small sample size, you know.
His 2014 start, dotted with the kind of inconsistent play and punctuality that seems to bother managers, Puig is batting .263. He has hit three home runs and stolen one base, but that's hardly All-Star caliber.
Here's another guy whose career seems to be going in the opposite direction: Rangers LHP Martin Perez.
I've been seeing him pitch for the last five seasons, mostly in the minors. During that time, Perez has shown flashes of competence, if not brilliance, but mostly inconsistency. That's inconsistent not just from game to game but often from inning to inning.
My opinion of Perez changed with his shutout of the White Sox April 18. It was an easy 12-0 victory, but it was also the first American League shutout or even complete game this season and the kind of game when his concentration might have lapsed in the past. He was economical with his pitches, and he threw ground ball after ground ball.
The AL's next shutout came five days later, when Perez pitched another three-hitter in Oakland. That stretched his winning streak to his last four starts and his scoreless streak to 26 innings. It was a fairly tense 3-0 win; the type of game when in the past one bad inning could have blown up a well pitched game.
Perez has matured, at a time when Texas needed him to shore up an injury-depleted rotation.
Now RHP Colby Lewis is back, if not in mid-season form. LHP Matt Harrison is scheduled for his first start this weekend. I saw him being brilliant in eight scoreless innings in his final rehab start for Double-A Frisco. Granted, it was against Texas League batters, but Harrison's approach was impeccable. In another couple of months, LHP Derek Holland will have recovered from his knee surgery. And until now, this paragraph hasn't included the Rangers' ace, RHP Yu Darvish.
Now, here's a preview of the kinds of things I'll be looking for in evaluating players at the five-week mark.
I look for batters with the best walk:strikeout ratios. The five major league batters with the most walks so far all have walked more often than they have struck out -- Blue Jays OF Jose Bautista 27:18 (or 1.50), Pirates OF Andrew McCutchen 21:16, Indians 3B/C Carlos Santana 20:19, Athletics SS Jed Lowrie 19:10 (1.90) and Reds 1B Joey Votto 19:18.
Three of those are no surprise. Lowrie started fast last season, but faded; he also could be a relatively low-investment shortstop, say if Rockies SS Troy Tulowitzki is injured again. Expect Santana's ratio to decrease. He's batting .133, so his team will expect him to be more aggressive to raise that average. He can't help you much now, but keep in mind that if he begins hitting he also will exercise pretty good strike-zone judgment.
Next in line in walks are Tulowitzki himself at 17:11, and Twins SS Brian Dozier with 17 walks but 24 strikeouts. Dozier impressed me last season as a much better player than I expected until I saw him. He has improbable statistics this year: six stolen bases and seven homers, but a mere nine RBI and a .222 average. He's a player likely to do worse if his team plays well. If Minnesota becomes a contender, pitchers would work him more closely, respecting his power, instead of giving him fastballs to hit in blowouts.
I've also looked at my pitching leading indicators. It's clear that pitchers' K:W ratios are out of whack because of small sample sizes. The leaders are Phillies LHP Cliff Lee 19.00, Yankees RHP Masahiro Tanaka 17.50, Giants RHP Tim Hudson 12.50, Mariners RHP Feliz Hernandez 10.75 and Rays LHP David Price 10.00. If any of them finish the season with ratios even half as high, they would be having an exceptional year. But the early returns indicate that the Yanks and Giants made good off-season signings.
The leaders in opponents' batting average are mixed between top pitchers and likely pretenders: Reds RHP Johnny Cueto .140, Braves RHP Aaron Harang .143, Phillies LHP Cole Hamels .151, somebody's RHP Garrett Richards .155 and Cardinals RHP Adam Wainwright .165.
At the opposite end are mostly some surprising pitchers: Twins RHP Ricky Nolasco .347, Reds RHP Homer Bailey .345, Orioles LHP Wei-chin Chen .330, Twins RHP Kevin Correia .327 and Giants LHP Madison Bumgarner .314. In the next few weeks, expect to see at least two among Nolasco, Bailey, Chen and Bumgarner to go on the disabled list.
The low-end K:W pitchers are Astros RHP Scott Feldman 1.00, White Sox LHP John Danks 1.08, Phillies RHP A.J. Burnett and Twins RHP Kyle Gibson 1.18 and Orioles RHP Ubaldo Jimenez 1.24. Most of them have seen better days than they'll have this season. Gibson is off to a good start he might not be able to maintain with such a low ratio.
Thursday, February 27, 2014
Morse goes not-deep-enough twice
Day by day, we're getting closer to real major league baseball.
Five exhibition games Wednesday featured more-or-less major league teams against each other, and a team in Miami Marlins uniforms defeated the University of Miami.
-- There were highlights -- particularly in Scottsdale, Ariz.
There, Athletics RF Josh Reddick and Giants -- I don't know, OF? -- Michael Morse engaged in a form of deja vu. Reddick twice reached over the fence to catch balls that Morse drove to the opposite field. Instead of home runs, they became outs -- three, in fact, because Reddick doubled off a mentally dozing baserunner at second base after the second and less spectacular catch. Oakland took a 10-0 lead with a six-run fourth inning and went on to win 10-5. It appears that they have built some kind of pavilion beyond the right field fence in my favorite older park in Arizona.
-- There were hints of mid-season form.
Blue Jays OF Jose Bautista hit a home run in his first at-bat as Toronto defeated the Phillies 4-3 in a game stopped after seven innings because of rain in Clearwater, Fla.
Reds OF Billy Hamilton stole his first of no doubt many bases in an 8-3 victory over the Indians.
As leadoff batter, Yankees CF Jacoby Ellsbury walked and scored in each of the first two innings. However, the Pirates rallied to win 6-5. 1B Gaby Sanchez might have taken note when it was Sanchez -- C Tony Sanchez -- who hit a game-tying three-run homer and 1B Chris McGuiness, hoping to become the left-handed-batting part of a platoon, who followed with a single that delivered the deciding run.
-- There were examples of fast-and-loose rules in spring training.
It also rained near Disney World, where the Tigers took a 6-5 lead on Hernan Perez's two-run single in the top of the ninth inning. The Braves had a runner on base and two out when the game was called because of rain. Instead of reverting to the last completed inning, the game was ruled a 6-5 Detroit victory. For Atlanta, Matt Lipka -- McKinney (Texas) HS teammate of Dodgers prospect Zach Lee -- entered the game late. Lipka struck out in both at-bats, but threw out Perez at the plate in the ninth.
-- There was an example of a spring appearance that most likely meant virtually nothing.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Dodgers 4-1, scoring three runs in two innings against LHP Clayton Kershaw. See me in August to find out how Kershaw's doing then.
-- There were injury updates.
Angels fans might have breathed more easily when the team said OF Josh Hamilton, on crutches Tuesday, would miss just two weeks because of a strained calf muscle.
Mets LHP Jonathan Niese went back to New York to have an MRI exam on his shoulder.
Orioles 3B Manny Machado will have his injured left knee reevaluated March 18, two weeks before the season is scheduled to begin.
-- There was the retirement of a player we didn't even know still had been thinking about playing.
RHP Carl Pavano, who didn't pitch last season, announced that he has retired. Thanks. We'll all go and cross him off our fantasy draft lists.
-- There was a move that probably means nothing to either big-league team, or any fantasy team.
The White Sox claim RHP Maikel Cleto on waivers from the Royals.
-- There will be even more games Thursday.
Still, not every team will be in action. Nineteen major league extended rosters will be well used in 12 games. Those include a Red Sox doubleheader against first Northeastern University and then Boston College. The Diamondbacks will split into two squads, probably with at least 25 players each, going against the Cubs and Dodgers hordes. The Marlins also have a college opponent, meaning that they might have at least one two-game winning streak in 2014.
* * *
Hockey. The NHL came back! Part of my team did. I remained at 67 points, but moved two points closer to second place because the current second-place team dropped to 74. My players totaled minus-10. Now I love Jarome Iginla as a player, and he did have a power-play assist Wednesday, but he still managed to be minus-3 by himself.
* * *
Basketball. Team Fresh Prints moved into a 6-1-1 lead. Despite shooting better than 50 percent from the field, it still trails .5094-.5026 in field goal percentage. The tie is in blocks. My best hope there is Serge Ibaka, but he has just two games remaining this week. However, Carmelo Anthony, David West and potentially Raymond Felton are scheduled for three more.
Five exhibition games Wednesday featured more-or-less major league teams against each other, and a team in Miami Marlins uniforms defeated the University of Miami.
-- There were highlights -- particularly in Scottsdale, Ariz.
There, Athletics RF Josh Reddick and Giants -- I don't know, OF? -- Michael Morse engaged in a form of deja vu. Reddick twice reached over the fence to catch balls that Morse drove to the opposite field. Instead of home runs, they became outs -- three, in fact, because Reddick doubled off a mentally dozing baserunner at second base after the second and less spectacular catch. Oakland took a 10-0 lead with a six-run fourth inning and went on to win 10-5. It appears that they have built some kind of pavilion beyond the right field fence in my favorite older park in Arizona.
-- There were hints of mid-season form.
Blue Jays OF Jose Bautista hit a home run in his first at-bat as Toronto defeated the Phillies 4-3 in a game stopped after seven innings because of rain in Clearwater, Fla.
Reds OF Billy Hamilton stole his first of no doubt many bases in an 8-3 victory over the Indians.
As leadoff batter, Yankees CF Jacoby Ellsbury walked and scored in each of the first two innings. However, the Pirates rallied to win 6-5. 1B Gaby Sanchez might have taken note when it was Sanchez -- C Tony Sanchez -- who hit a game-tying three-run homer and 1B Chris McGuiness, hoping to become the left-handed-batting part of a platoon, who followed with a single that delivered the deciding run.
-- There were examples of fast-and-loose rules in spring training.
It also rained near Disney World, where the Tigers took a 6-5 lead on Hernan Perez's two-run single in the top of the ninth inning. The Braves had a runner on base and two out when the game was called because of rain. Instead of reverting to the last completed inning, the game was ruled a 6-5 Detroit victory. For Atlanta, Matt Lipka -- McKinney (Texas) HS teammate of Dodgers prospect Zach Lee -- entered the game late. Lipka struck out in both at-bats, but threw out Perez at the plate in the ninth.
-- There was an example of a spring appearance that most likely meant virtually nothing.
The Diamondbacks defeated the Dodgers 4-1, scoring three runs in two innings against LHP Clayton Kershaw. See me in August to find out how Kershaw's doing then.
-- There were injury updates.
Angels fans might have breathed more easily when the team said OF Josh Hamilton, on crutches Tuesday, would miss just two weeks because of a strained calf muscle.
Mets LHP Jonathan Niese went back to New York to have an MRI exam on his shoulder.
Orioles 3B Manny Machado will have his injured left knee reevaluated March 18, two weeks before the season is scheduled to begin.
-- There was the retirement of a player we didn't even know still had been thinking about playing.
RHP Carl Pavano, who didn't pitch last season, announced that he has retired. Thanks. We'll all go and cross him off our fantasy draft lists.
-- There was a move that probably means nothing to either big-league team, or any fantasy team.
The White Sox claim RHP Maikel Cleto on waivers from the Royals.
-- There will be even more games Thursday.
Still, not every team will be in action. Nineteen major league extended rosters will be well used in 12 games. Those include a Red Sox doubleheader against first Northeastern University and then Boston College. The Diamondbacks will split into two squads, probably with at least 25 players each, going against the Cubs and Dodgers hordes. The Marlins also have a college opponent, meaning that they might have at least one two-game winning streak in 2014.
* * *
Hockey. The NHL came back! Part of my team did. I remained at 67 points, but moved two points closer to second place because the current second-place team dropped to 74. My players totaled minus-10. Now I love Jarome Iginla as a player, and he did have a power-play assist Wednesday, but he still managed to be minus-3 by himself.
* * *
Basketball. Team Fresh Prints moved into a 6-1-1 lead. Despite shooting better than 50 percent from the field, it still trails .5094-.5026 in field goal percentage. The tie is in blocks. My best hope there is Serge Ibaka, but he has just two games remaining this week. However, Carmelo Anthony, David West and potentially Raymond Felton are scheduled for three more.
Monday, November 18, 2013
Dealing from strength
The baseball hot stove is heating up. In recent years, a lot of talk has been bubbling on the stove in Texas.
This winter's big issue is which middle infielder the Rangers will trade. Side issues are what can they get in return, how big the deal will be and how they might replace what they'll be giving up.
For my money, Texas would be giving up less by trading 2B Ian Kinsler than if they were to deal SS Elvis Andrus, swingman Jurickson Profar or Double-A 2B Rougned Odor. I'm leaving Double-A SS Luis Sardinas out of the mix because to me he seems the least advanced/talented of the group. But if a team would prefer him in a trade, I wouldn't hesitate to sell him high.
Kinsler is most expendable because he has virtually no upside, and all of the others have dynamic upsides.
I still think Andrus can hit for at least gap power, and his greatest value lies in his defense.
Profar didn't fare well in his spotty first pretty much whole season in the majors. He's not Mike Trout, but Profar will be an above-average fielder and a useful offensive player.
Odor is an overachieving scrapper. I'd say potentially a higher-end Jose Altuve.
Texas' No. 1 trade target seems to be Rays LHP David Price, the guy who kept the Rangers out of the playoffs in 2013.
The Rangers couldn't just trade Kinsler and call it a day. In order to trade him from an already shrunken offense, they'd have to make another deal to bring in a proven bat. It's quite likely that many of the scenarios Texas' front office has played out included Marlins OF Giancarlo aka Mike Stanton. Miami insists he is not on the market.
Thus, the Rangers might be more likely to look to free agency for a bat, and they won't find one with Stanton's raw power or upside. They'd probably have to settle for OF Carlos Beltran or 1B Justin Morneau.
Another possibility would be resigning RF Nelson Cruz, but he's also on the downside of his career. Or Texas could try to pry OF Jose Bautista away from the Blue Jays. It's an intricate puzzle. Every move seems to require a counter move.
We could see the Rangers make a honeycomb or matrix of deals. They believe -- as do a number of other organizations -- that they have nearly sure-fire prospects at just about every position.
From what I've seen of their farm system, it's not as dynamically productive as it has been during the past several years. But other organizations are enamored of the prospects from an organization that has brought along way more prospects than their own system has.
Another scenario is that Texas could be shut out in the trade and free agency markets, as it was for the most part a year ago. That didn't work too well last winter, so expect the Rangers to make even somewhat less advantageous deals than they'd like to have at least a chance of moving forward.
* * *
Just started reading a very interesting book that I've had for probably a decade. It's a SABR reprint of a 1925 book called "Batting," by F.C. Lane. I believe this was one of the bonus publications that SABR provides to its members along with its usual publications. As the editor of the old Baseball magazine, Lane interviewed many players during the first quarter of the 20th century. They're quoted with their opinions about batting.
One passage seems really relevant, given today's emphasis on defensive shifts. " ... In short, batting resolves to the brief but pointed epigram of Willie Keeler's when he said, 'Hit 'em where they ain't.' "'Where they ain't,' is something of a study in geography limited by the playing field and its immediate environs. There are certain zones of safety where the ball may be driven and allow the batter time to negotiate first, but these zones of safety can never be chartered, for they vary with the batter, with the opposing pitcher, with the ball field, even with the stage of the game."
That wasn't to say that teams hadn't developed shifts against certain hitters 90 or 100 years ago. Lane pointed out that opponents would overload the right side of their defense when lefty slugger Cy Williams came to bat. But clearly, today's computer capabilities weren't envisioned in 1925.
Even so, the idea of maximizing and customized defensive capabilities has been around for a century and it has taken most of that time to put the idea into effect.
* * *
Even before Monday night's game, I have won in one fantasy football league and lost in the other. I'm on a bit of a roll in the former, now 6-5 and I believe tied for fourth. The other league is going south, down to 4-7. Just 14 points from Peyton Manning, which just about equaled the total from the three RBs in my lineup. Bad day for Jordan Reed too.
* * *
My fantasy hockey team is pretty much static, still fourth by a comfortable margin, half a point out of third and not likely to finish first unless the current leader collapses totally. With plenty of room to grow with my goalies, I have made a trade offer to the owner who leads in GAA and save percentage. We'll see what happens there. By the way, the goalie I already picked up on waivers was Jean-Sebastien Giguere.
This winter's big issue is which middle infielder the Rangers will trade. Side issues are what can they get in return, how big the deal will be and how they might replace what they'll be giving up.
For my money, Texas would be giving up less by trading 2B Ian Kinsler than if they were to deal SS Elvis Andrus, swingman Jurickson Profar or Double-A 2B Rougned Odor. I'm leaving Double-A SS Luis Sardinas out of the mix because to me he seems the least advanced/talented of the group. But if a team would prefer him in a trade, I wouldn't hesitate to sell him high.
Kinsler is most expendable because he has virtually no upside, and all of the others have dynamic upsides.
I still think Andrus can hit for at least gap power, and his greatest value lies in his defense.
Profar didn't fare well in his spotty first pretty much whole season in the majors. He's not Mike Trout, but Profar will be an above-average fielder and a useful offensive player.
Odor is an overachieving scrapper. I'd say potentially a higher-end Jose Altuve.
Texas' No. 1 trade target seems to be Rays LHP David Price, the guy who kept the Rangers out of the playoffs in 2013.
The Rangers couldn't just trade Kinsler and call it a day. In order to trade him from an already shrunken offense, they'd have to make another deal to bring in a proven bat. It's quite likely that many of the scenarios Texas' front office has played out included Marlins OF Giancarlo aka Mike Stanton. Miami insists he is not on the market.
Thus, the Rangers might be more likely to look to free agency for a bat, and they won't find one with Stanton's raw power or upside. They'd probably have to settle for OF Carlos Beltran or 1B Justin Morneau.
Another possibility would be resigning RF Nelson Cruz, but he's also on the downside of his career. Or Texas could try to pry OF Jose Bautista away from the Blue Jays. It's an intricate puzzle. Every move seems to require a counter move.
We could see the Rangers make a honeycomb or matrix of deals. They believe -- as do a number of other organizations -- that they have nearly sure-fire prospects at just about every position.
From what I've seen of their farm system, it's not as dynamically productive as it has been during the past several years. But other organizations are enamored of the prospects from an organization that has brought along way more prospects than their own system has.
Another scenario is that Texas could be shut out in the trade and free agency markets, as it was for the most part a year ago. That didn't work too well last winter, so expect the Rangers to make even somewhat less advantageous deals than they'd like to have at least a chance of moving forward.
* * *
Just started reading a very interesting book that I've had for probably a decade. It's a SABR reprint of a 1925 book called "Batting," by F.C. Lane. I believe this was one of the bonus publications that SABR provides to its members along with its usual publications. As the editor of the old Baseball magazine, Lane interviewed many players during the first quarter of the 20th century. They're quoted with their opinions about batting.
One passage seems really relevant, given today's emphasis on defensive shifts. " ... In short, batting resolves to the brief but pointed epigram of Willie Keeler's when he said, 'Hit 'em where they ain't.' "'Where they ain't,' is something of a study in geography limited by the playing field and its immediate environs. There are certain zones of safety where the ball may be driven and allow the batter time to negotiate first, but these zones of safety can never be chartered, for they vary with the batter, with the opposing pitcher, with the ball field, even with the stage of the game."
That wasn't to say that teams hadn't developed shifts against certain hitters 90 or 100 years ago. Lane pointed out that opponents would overload the right side of their defense when lefty slugger Cy Williams came to bat. But clearly, today's computer capabilities weren't envisioned in 1925.
Even so, the idea of maximizing and customized defensive capabilities has been around for a century and it has taken most of that time to put the idea into effect.
* * *
Even before Monday night's game, I have won in one fantasy football league and lost in the other. I'm on a bit of a roll in the former, now 6-5 and I believe tied for fourth. The other league is going south, down to 4-7. Just 14 points from Peyton Manning, which just about equaled the total from the three RBs in my lineup. Bad day for Jordan Reed too.
* * *
My fantasy hockey team is pretty much static, still fourth by a comfortable margin, half a point out of third and not likely to finish first unless the current leader collapses totally. With plenty of room to grow with my goalies, I have made a trade offer to the owner who leads in GAA and save percentage. We'll see what happens there. By the way, the goalie I already picked up on waivers was Jean-Sebastien Giguere.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Pavano outpitches Lester
The starting pitchers were RHP Carl Pavano and LHP Jon Lester, so the 5-0 final score was no surprise. It was surprising, however, that Pavano’s Twins were the winners over Lester’s Red Sox.
Updating Thursday’s Email, Rays 2B Sean Rodriguez hit his third home run in three games in a 12-7 victory over the Yankees. This one was against New York RHP Phil Hughes. Even so, we’re still not convinced that Rodriguez is the man for an everyday role in Tampa Bay’s lineup. Keep a watch on the competition between him and RF Matt Joyce, one of whom will be a starter with Ben Zobrist playing either second or right field.
The Astros’ offensive output fell from 21 hits Thursday to 14. And those weren’t nearly enough in a 17-7 loss to the Tigers, who pounded the ball for 16 hits.
The Blue Jays treated Phillies LHP Cole Hamels rudely, scoring three runs in three innings against him. Toronto won 14-9, with 3B/OF Jose Bautista hitting a home run. He could be a sleeper candidate. The statistics to look for with him are walks and on-base percentage. Bautista has some power but needs to improve his selectivity at the plate.
Sample Scouting Report:
Jose Bautista, OF, Blue Jays
Ht.: 6-0 Wt.: 195 B: R Age: 29* Alt. Pos.: 3B
{2010} Those who put stock in second-half statistics no doubt have Bautista on their list for 2010. Ten of his home runs last season came after August. Those who downgrade performances in September against a lot of minor league pitchers won’t care about him. There is good reason to keep him in mind as a fifth outfielder/corner infielder/DH. Bautista won’t help your average, but he has shown that the more he plays, the more patient he is, allowing him to draw walks. Those lead to more runs and greater value in 5X5 leagues. He also crushes left-handed pitching (.293 last season), giving him a greater opportunity to play at least a platoon role with a young Toronto outfielder such as Travis Snider. Bautista’s eligibility at third base also gives him greater relative value at that position. 2009: .235 BA, 13 HR, 40 RBI, 4 SB, 54 R. Born Oct. 19, 1980, Dominican Republic*.
Projection
AB: 376 HR: 13 RBI: 43 SB: 3 R: 54 Value: $4
Updating Thursday’s Email, Rays 2B Sean Rodriguez hit his third home run in three games in a 12-7 victory over the Yankees. This one was against New York RHP Phil Hughes. Even so, we’re still not convinced that Rodriguez is the man for an everyday role in Tampa Bay’s lineup. Keep a watch on the competition between him and RF Matt Joyce, one of whom will be a starter with Ben Zobrist playing either second or right field.
The Astros’ offensive output fell from 21 hits Thursday to 14. And those weren’t nearly enough in a 17-7 loss to the Tigers, who pounded the ball for 16 hits.
The Blue Jays treated Phillies LHP Cole Hamels rudely, scoring three runs in three innings against him. Toronto won 14-9, with 3B/OF Jose Bautista hitting a home run. He could be a sleeper candidate. The statistics to look for with him are walks and on-base percentage. Bautista has some power but needs to improve his selectivity at the plate.
Sample Scouting Report:
Jose Bautista, OF, Blue Jays
Ht.: 6-0 Wt.: 195 B: R Age: 29* Alt. Pos.: 3B
{2010} Those who put stock in second-half statistics no doubt have Bautista on their list for 2010. Ten of his home runs last season came after August. Those who downgrade performances in September against a lot of minor league pitchers won’t care about him. There is good reason to keep him in mind as a fifth outfielder/corner infielder/DH. Bautista won’t help your average, but he has shown that the more he plays, the more patient he is, allowing him to draw walks. Those lead to more runs and greater value in 5X5 leagues. He also crushes left-handed pitching (.293 last season), giving him a greater opportunity to play at least a platoon role with a young Toronto outfielder such as Travis Snider. Bautista’s eligibility at third base also gives him greater relative value at that position. 2009: .235 BA, 13 HR, 40 RBI, 4 SB, 54 R. Born Oct. 19, 1980, Dominican Republic*.
Projection
AB: 376 HR: 13 RBI: 43 SB: 3 R: 54 Value: $4
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