How Was The Game? (April 21, 2013)
One they should have had.
Angels 4, Tigers 3
After two blowouts to open the series, the Tigers sent Doug Fister to the mound to salvage a win in LA and he was equal to the task on Sunday. Fister went 7 innings and held the Angels to 3 runs (2 earned), but those should all be unearned due to the official scorer calling something that was clearly an error on Cabrera a double. Fister didn’t get a ton of help from his defense, but he provided some of his own and limited the damaged that occurred due to errors and should-be errors. Wilson, on the other side, danced around trouble all day until Prince Fielder broke out in the 5th with a two run homerun to tie the game. Alburquerque entered in the 8th innings to relieve Fister and struck out the side which set up a failed scoring chance in the 9th in which the Tigers left the bases loaded four batters after a blown call at second cost them an out. Al-Al shut the Angels down in the 9th and sent this series finale into extra innings. Despite scoring opportunities, neither side could deliver a run until Mark Trumbo ended the game with a homerun to left field off Phil Coke in the 13 inning, Coke’s third inning of work. No one can blame the pitching for this one, as the defense and bats let the Tigers down in their attempt to win one in LA. The Tigers head home with a 9-9 record after going 4-5 on the roadtrip that ended with a sweep at the hands of the Angels. They’ll be in action again on Tuesday against the Royals behind Max Scherzer at Comerica Park.
The Moment: Trumbo walks off to sweep the Tigers in the 13th.
How Was The Game? (April 20, 2013)
Kind of a laugher.
Angels 10, Tigers 0
The Tigers lost their third straight game today and we can point to two distinct causes. First, the offense has really just not gotten anything going over the last few days. Second, Rick Porcello had one of the most hard luck innings you’ll ever see. He faced 11 hitters, gave up 9 hits, 1 walk, and 9 runs, retiring just two batters courtesy of the double play. At first, you wouldn’t really see how that qualifies as hard luck, but the Angels only hit two balls hard. The rest were weakly hit balls that just barely made it through the infield or died on the infield grass. Leyland mercifully pulled him after he surrendered the second hard hit ball, a grand slam to Trout, but it was too late for any justice for Porcello. It certainly wasn’t a great start, but it wasn’t nearly as bad as the box score indicates. Luckily for the Tigers, Drew Smyly was excellent in relief. He went 5.2 innings, allowed 4 hits and struck out 7 to really save the bullpen. The Angels and the Tigers both failed to do much else offensively and the game whimpered to its conclusion. You can imagine there will be Smyly versus Porcello speculation in the coming days, but it’s far too early to bail on your early season decisions. I’m a Porcello believer, but even if a change needs to be made eventually, you can’t make that call based on the information you have so far. The Tigers fall to 9-8 after today’s loss and lose their first series since the opening one in Minnesota. They’ll try to salvage one behind Doug Fister tomorrow.
The Moment: Mike Trout ends Porcello’s day with a grand slam to center.
The Morning Edition (April 14, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Matt Harvey takes a no-hitter into the 7th in a 4-2 win over the Twins
- Wainwright throws a CGSO with 12K in an 8-0 thumping of the Crew
- Strasburg gives the Nats 6 strong innings, but Hudson is better as the Braves win 3-1
What I’m Watching Today:
- Roy Halladay tries to right the ship again, this time against the Fish in Miami (1p Eastern)
- Maholm and Gonzalez face off in DC (1p Eastern)
- Phil Humber and the Astros look to take advantage of the slumping Halos (330p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- If Halladay can’t get going against the Marlins, is it time to talk DL?
The two big stories for me on a full Saturday of baseball were Harvey and Wainwright. Harvey continues to dominate and came within a few outs of throwing the second no-hitter in Mets history. His fastball got faster as the game went on and all four pitches looked great in his standout performance. I’ve been drooling over him all season, and he just keeps delivering. I’m officially putting Harvey on the list of pitchers who are appointment television right now. The list includes Verlander, Kershaw, King Felix, Strasburg, and now Harvey. It’s a fluid list, but right now, I don’t think you can afford to miss a Matt Harvey start. Speaking of appointment TV, have you seen what Wainwright is doing this season? After his CGSO today, he has thrown 22IP with 24 strikeouts and 0 walks. To find another pitcher with no walks, you have to drop down to Cliff Lee who has thrown 7 2/3 fewer innings and after that you have to go down to Kyle Lohse who only has 13 innings this season. I think it’s safe to say Adam Wainwright has fully recovered from his Tommy John Surgery and is back to being an ace.
The Morning Edition (April 13, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Quentin suspended 8 games for Thursday’s incident, Greinke will miss 8 weeks
- Reyes injures his ankle in an 8-4 win over the Royals, will miss 1-3 months
- Masterson throws a CGSO in a 1-0 win of the White Sox
- Kershaw gives up first 3 runs of the season, loses
- Ramiro Pena’s HR lifts the Braves over the Nats in 10
What I’m Watching Today:
- Strasburg takes on Hudson in DC (1p Eastern)
- Bumgarner and Samardzija face off at Wrigley (1p Eastern)
- Matt Harvey faces the Twins (4p Eastern)
- Dickey and Shields battle in a clash of new team aces (7p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- How long will the Angels be able to avoid panicking after another slow start?
So much happened on Friday and there are many interesting matchups coming up today that I really had to truncate those bullet points for the first time. I didn’t even mention the Phillies winning in extras or the Astros beating up on the Angels. The Quentin suspension is too light for my taste but fits with precedent. MLB needs to readjust the punishment for this type of thing, as I wrote yesterday. Clear your schedules today because Strasburg, Harvey, Verlander, Price, Lester, Dickey, and many other top pitchers are on the hill. It’s a good time to be alive, people.
Booing Josh Hamilton: Hard Feelings in Arlington
You know the story. Josh Hamilton is drafted #1 by the Rays. Josh Hamilton goes to a dark place of personal demons dealing with drugs and alcohol addiction. Josh Hamilton returns to baseball and has a successful year with the Reds, gets traded to Texas and becomes a bona fide star. He wins an MVP, makes two World Series, and despite struggles, produces at a very high level.
And then there were relapses, a terrible accident involving a fan, and awful plate discipline. There was a really bad final few weeks that coincided with the Rangers missing the real playoffs on the final day.
There were boos. And contract talks. And a former hero moving to LA to go where he felt like he was wanted. I’ve written a lot about Josh Hamilton as a player. His amazing skills and terrible plate discipline. His flawed past.
And then there was this, that Hamilton said after leaving town:
“Texas, especially Dallas, has always been a football town. The good with the bad is they’re supportive, but they also got a little spoiled at the same time, pretty quickly. You can understand a really true, true baseball town. There’s true baseball fans in Texas but it’s not a true baseball town.”
All of this stacked on top of itself makes it pretty unsurprising that the Rangers faithful greeted him with Bronx cheers on Friday. They booed. They read the paper. There were hard feelings all around.
I have complicated feelings about Hamilton. I’ll lay them out.
- Hamilton is very talented and can do really exciting things on the field
- Hamilton has terrible plate discipline, a skill I value greatly
- Hamilton wasted a great deal of his God-given talent when he buried himself in drugs and alcohol
- Hamilton’s story is one of redemption, which is very emotionally powerful
- Hamilton seemed to phone in his final month in Texas
On balance, Josh Hamilton has enough personal demons to deal with without me getting on his case. But he’s frustrating to watch. He could have been an all-time great and he wasted so much potential. He doesn’t seem to like baseball very much, but he’s a great comeback story.
But the fans in Texas have some reason to be angry. I think he did quit on them last year. He looked awful in the biggest games of the year. A little more from Hamilton during the final weeks might have helped the Rangers secure a playoff berth. But then again, they don’t know what was going on with him. The right thing to do from the fan perspective would have been unconditional support. He was theirs, they should defend him.
And then he left. They parted ways. It was a breakup that both sides needed. Fine, good, it was time. But then the quote posted above. Hamilton insulted the Rangers’ fans. He challenged their love of the game. He made it about them and not about him. He all of people should know about his flaws. But there he was, blaming them. Pouring salt in the wound.
Classy it was not. If Hamilton hadn’t said it, I think I’d take his side on the booing issue. But after the way he left, to make a public statement like that, Hamilton was asking for it.
He deserved it. But the fans didn’t come away smelling like roses. It was just kind of ugly. It was a divorce. They couldn’t live together anymore and it was time to go their separate ways. But then there was a snarky comment to a mutual friend that resulted in an arms race of animosity.
It’s sad really. There’s so much about their relationship that was good. And it ended so poorly.
I want to blame Josh Hamilton for who he is, but that’s probably not right. I want to blame the fans for bailing on him too early. I want to blame Hamilton for disparaging his old fan base. I wish the fans had taken the high road rather than show him up.
It wasn’t pretty, but not everything is. Josh Hamilton is baseball’s flawed giant and he always will be. He was wrong. The fans were wrong. Time is the only thing that will heal this wound. Hopefully, the day will come when they can reconcile. And the kids who grew up wearing Hamilton jerseys can stand and cheer for star they used to love.
The Morning Edition (April 7, 2013)
From Last Night:
- BJ Upton hits a game tying homerun in the 9th inning against the Cubs, Justin Upton follows him with a walk off
- The Nats top the Reds in 11 innings
- Albert Pujols’ big day powers the Angels past the Rangers
- Kershaw blanks the Pirates over 7 innings in LA
What I’m Watching Today:
- Lester and Dickey face off in Toronto (1p Eastern)
- Marlins prospect Jose Fernandez makes his MLB debut at Citi Field (1p Eastern)
- Strasburg looks to follow his excellent opening day against the Reds (1p Eastern)
- Darvish faces the Angels in his near perfecto encore (8p Eastern)
- Lots of other aces in action including: Sabathia, Verlander, Cueto, Samardizija, Shields, Hamels, Price, Sale, Wainwright, Cain, and Weaver
The Big Question:
- What first week standouts will carry their success into week two of the season?
The first week of the MLB season is always exciting but it is often hard to distinguish between players because of very small sample sizes. I’m looking forward to seeing which players level out and regress to the mean and which players are in for better and worse than expected seasons. We really want to make meaningful conclusions about these games, but it’s just too early. That said, aside from Chris Davis, here are a couple players I’m watching at the start of week two to see if they are candidates for early season standout status:
- Shin-Soo Choo
- Justin Upton
- Chase Utley
- Austin Jackson
None of those players are surprises, they just have my attention for now for various reasons. The first two are on new clubs, Utley looks healthy, and Jackson is a talented guy entering his prime on a great club.
Thanks for reading New English D this week and we look forward to talking baseball with you throughout the season.
The Morning Edition (April 6, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Josh Hamilton goes 0-4 with 2K as his Angels fall to the Rangers in his return to Arlignton
- Gordon and Hosmer lead the way as the Royals pummel the Phillies 13-4
- Zito outduels Westbrook in a 1-0 win over the Cards
- The Reds throw down the gauntlet in the NL with a 15-0 thumping of the Nats
What I’m Watching Today:
- Shelby Miller makes his second big league start as his Cards take on the Giants (4p Eastern)
- Julio Tehran tries to build on his hot spring against the Cubs (7p Eastern)
- Trevor Bauer makes his Tribe debut against Rays youngster Alex Cobb (7p Eastern)
- Clayton Kershaw goes for an encore in LA against AJ Burnett and the Bucs (9p Eastern)
The Big Question
- How long can Chris Davis keep this up?
In 18 PA this season Davis has 4 HR and a .600/.611/1.600 line. Obviously, that pace is a bit unsustainable, but at some point it just becomes ridiculous even in the short run. He’ll get to face Vance Worley tomorrow, against whom he has not recorded a hit in three trips to the plate. Davis, as it appears, will win the New English D “Race to 1.0 WAR” very shortly. He has 0.9 as of this writing. Today, MLB on Fox begins their final season in which they will terrorize our Saturdays by blacking games out. Starting in 2014, MLB.TV won’t go dark on Saturday afternoons. Luckily, the Tigers play the Yankees, so Fox will let me watch. Additionally of note, New English D will publish our usually Saturday edition of The Nine later today with a focus, likely, on ballpark food.
For your reading pleasure, below is a strike zone plot of Prince Fielder’s at bat against Boone Logan from Friday. Observe the location of the pitch that Fielder hit into the seats. A pitcher should reasonably be able to assume that if he misses the strike zone by that much that he should be safe from such outcomes.
So Shawn Kelley tried this when he faced Fielder in the 7th. I would not recommend this.
The Morning Edition (April 5, 2013)
From Last Night:
- The Rays fall to the Orioles after Evan Longoria was called out in the middle of a rally for passing Ben Zobrist on the bases. Replay didn’t show conclusive evidence, but he appear to remain behind the runner
- Choo powers the Reds past the Angels as Chapman gets Pujols and Hamilton to the end the game with the tying run on second
- The Nats complete a three-game sweep of the Marlins to start the year
- Cliff Lee dominates the Braves in a 2-0 win
What I’m Watching Today:
- Josh Hamilton returns to Arlington for the first time as an Angel (2p Eastern)
- Wade Davis makes his Royals debut against the Phillies (4p Eastern)
- The Cardinals visit San Francisco in an NLCS rematch (435p Eastern)
- Josh Johnson makes his first AL start at home against the Red Sox (7p Eastern)
- Matt Moore begins what I expect to be a great sophomore season against the Indians in St. Pete (7p Eastern)
- Zach Greinke wears the Dodger blue for the first time (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Will early season bullpen blowups continue?
One of the things I was thinking about yesterday was a topic I’m sure we’ll be talking about for years. Harper or Trout? I’ve been on the Trout side of that debate for a while and I’m not ready to change my mind, but Bryce Harper just keeps doing things that make me like him. He’s fun to watch run the bases and he’s mashing early. Those two will be a lot of fun to watch this season. We’re just three or four games into the season, but it’s already been a fun year. Lots of games are going down to the wire and we’ve seen a lot of great starting pitching and late inning heroics. The Mets and Nats are leading the way on the hill and we’ll turn the league over and get another shot to see the aces again Saturday and Sunday.
The Morning Edition (April 2, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Bryce Harper backed a great performance from Stephen Strasburg with 2 HR
- Clayton Kershaw twirled a CGSO and homered
- Justin Upton homered in his Braves debut
- The Brewers and Angels both won in extras
What I’m Watching Today:
- David Price begins his Cy Young defense against the O’s in Tampa (3p Eastern)
- The new look Blue Jays begin their season behind R.A. Dickey (7p Eastern)
- Darvish looks to help the Rangers against the undefeated Astros (8p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- What will Hyun-Jin Ryu’s debut look like in LA? (10p Eastern)
It was an exciting Opening Day and today’s abbreviated schedule looks to pact a slightly less forceful punch despite some exciting talent toeing the rubber. I’ll have my eye on the Blue Jays, especially to see if they can get off on the right foot. Check back each and every morning for musings from around the league. As the season gets a little further along, this will become a place for more analysis and debate.
2013 Preseason Awards: AL MVP
So this is where I wonder about how consistent I have to be. In my divisional season previews and The Nine best lists, I boxed myself in.
I listed MVP’s of each division which included Evan Longoria, Justin Verlander, and Mike Trout. Logic dictates that I have to pick one of those three players for the league-wide award. I, however, ranked Miguel Cabrera over Longoria in my third base rankings, meaning I can’t logically pick Longoria. So I have to choose between Verlander and Trout.
Those are my only two choices. But, darn it all, I want to pick Longoria. Perhaps my caution earlier in the winter will protect me from the potential Longoria injury. I’ll spare you my inner dialogue and get on with it.
And the award will go to…
Mike Trout (LF – Angels)
Am I bitter about last season? Nah. Awards don’t really matter, so all of the ink we spilled over Trout vs Cabrera last fall was a little much and the cool sobering winter has hopefully dampened the flames of the baseball Civil WAR (get it?!).
That said, Trout is just an amazing all-around player. He had an all-time great season at age 20 and was a full two wins better than anyone else in the sport in 2012. There’s no way he posts another 10 WAR season in 2013, but even if he regresses 25% he’ll still be among the best two or three players in the game.
He is among the best baserunners and defenders in the sport and tied with Cabrera as the best offensive player in the game in 2012 with a wRC+ of 166. Let’s not forget he did everything that he did last season while missing April trudging around AAA.
In a just world, Trout would have won the award last season, but Cabrera won the Triple Crown and the sway of the writers who can’t handle basic math and/or watching defense. But let’s not worry about what happened before and focus on this.
Players who perform like Trout did at age 20 almost always have great careers. Mike Trout is a legitimate five tool player. Mike Trout plays on a good team. Mike Trout is no longer a rookie, so the bias should be gone. The world always leans toward progress.
My awards picks are rarely bold and this one is no different. Trout was the best player last year and I think he will be again, but what are the odds he’s the best player again while someone else wins a Triple Crown? Probably lower. I mean, when has that ever happened?
Can Mike Trout follow up his 2012 runner up with an MVP award? Or will a big slugger take the crown? Sound off.
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