The Morning Edition (July 26, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Buehrle gets a 2 H, 2 BB, CGSO against the Astros
- Marlins win as Eovaldi and Nicasio combine for 13 shutout innings, but neither factor in the decision as both teams score late
- Kuroda goes 7 scoreless to lead the Yanks past Holland and the Rangers
- The Nationals cough one up to the Pirates, but Harper rallies back to walk off
What I’m Watching Today:
- Jordan Zimmerman welcomes the Mets in Game 1, Harvey goes in Game 2 (130p/7p Eastern)
- Newly minted ground ball machince John Lackey takes on the O’s (7p Eastern)
- Wainwright faces Minor in ATL (7p Eastern)
- Homer Bailey meets Clayton Kershaw (10p Eastern)
- Felix gets the Twins (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- What’s a good sign a player’s breakout is real?
Edwin Encarnacion has really improved his stock in the last couple of seasons with the power, but the K% is coming down really nicely. There aren’t many big power bats who don’t strikeout more often than this:
The Morning Edition (July 24, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Myers and Longoria homer, but the Rays finally lose to the Sox
- Dodgers out slug the Jays, 10-9
- Cole leads the Pirates over the Nats
- Miller gives the Cards 6 scoreless in win over the Phils
- Yanks get two in the 9th to top the Rangers
- A fine start from Fernandez leads the Fish past the Rockies
- Parker and Cosart pitch well in Houston
What I’m Watching Today:
- Liriano and Strasburg face off in DC (7p Eastern)
- Price goes against the Red Sox (7p Eastern)
- Garza makes his Rangers debut in NY (7p Eastern)
- Jacob Turner heads to Coors (830p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Which young NL pitcher, not named Harvey, do you like?
These numbers are fun. After last night, take a look:
| Name | IP | K% | BB% | ERA- | FIP- | xFIP- | WAR |
| Shelby Miller | 110.2 | 26.50% | 6.70% | 76 | 81 | 88 | 2.3 |
| Jose Fernandez | 111.2 | 24.70% | 9.30% | 72 | 84 | 92 | 2.0 |
I was on the Miller bandwagon early, but Fernandez has really impressed me lately. Tough call.
The Morning Edition (July 23, 2013)
From Last Night:
- MLB suspends Ryan Braun for the remainder of the season
- Rangers acquire Garza from the Cubs
- Matt Moore gets the CGSO as the Rays beat the Sox, move to 18-2 in their last 20
- Feldman’s solid start lifts the O’s over the Royals
- Gee flirts with a no-no, but the Braves take the game in the 9th
- Grilli hurt in win over the Nats
What I’m Watching Today:
- Jarrod Parker and Jarred Cosart pitch in Houston (8p Eastern)
- Miller pitches against the Phils (8p Eastern)
- Jose Fernandez heads to Coors (830p Eastern)
- Corbin gets the Cubs (930p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Thoughts on the Braun suspension?
Obviously the Braun news populated the headlines on Monday, and I have a lot of disjointed reactions I’d like to share. Recognize that these don’t all go together or in order:
- I want MLB or MLBPA to lay out the evidence they have against him. I understand Braun accepted the punishment, which is a partial admission of wrongdoing, but the info that has been made public is not grounds for punishment. I want to know what it is they have on him before I make my final judgments about a person’s character. I see no reason to rush to judgment.
- Braun broke the rules, it appears, and lied about it boldly. That was wrong, but let’s not act like this is such a terrible thing. He should be punished, but this is a sport that has no punishment for dangerous felonies like DUIs. Braun behaved badly, but this isn’t the worst thing an MLB player has done in the last two seasons. Perspective would be nice.
- Also, most people break rules to get advantages in life. Braun is to blame and deserves punishment, but you’re not perfect either.
- Braun being linked to BioGen doesn’t mean the failed test in 2011 was legitimate. The two may not be related. Again, I want to see some evidence. If they are related, my reaction will be different. Evidence is important, speculation is not.
- People are going to town on Braun for tearing down the “sample transporter” person from 2011 and think he should apologize. That person didn’t do his job correctly, even if Braun was dirty. Braun’s guilt doesn’t make up for that guy’s failure. Braun might not have been nice to him, but Braun’s career was at stake. You might have done the same.
- Finally, imagine how you would feel if it was you or a close family member. I’m not asking you to feel sorry for him, but I am asking you to temper your reaction accordingly. He’s a public figure and there are no consequences for anything you say behind a keyboard, so you probably feel okay spewing vitriol. But seriously, this is a person who made a bad choice. He didn’t kill anyone, he didn’t endanger others. The reaction to Braun is not properly weighted to the severity of the offense.
- If he’s guilty, he should be punished. But that’s it. The focus should be on the field, not on the people who made choices to take themselves off of it. Instead of vilifying Braun, why don’t you celebrate the ones left in the game.
The Morning Edition (July 22, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Harvey dominates the Phils over 7 innings, allows 3 H and 10 K as Lee struggles
- Masterson flirts with a no-hitter in a 7-1 win over the Twins
- Giants waste a great start from Bumgarner
- Colon drops a CGSO on the Angels
- Wainwright’s 8 strong innings lead the Cards over the Padres
- Felix turns in 6 solid inning as the Mariners thrash the Astros
- Peralta and Alvarez throw gems, but it takes a Gindl walk off in the 13th to finalize the Crew and Fish
- Kershaw throws well, Zimmermann gets rocked in Dodgers win at Nats
- Bailey K’s 12 but the Reds fall to the Bucs
- Rays win…again
What I’m Watching Today:
- Darvish comes to Yankee Stadium (7p Eastern)
- Scherzer and Sale (8p Eastern)
- Garza showcase continues against Skaggs in AZ (930p Eastern)
- Lincecum returns to the mound for the first time since his no-hitter (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Should the Rays scare you?
The answer is yes under certain conditions. First, if you cheer for the Rays, no the Rays should not scare you. Also, if you’re team is wildly out of the race, then you should just enjoy baseball and not sweat the standings. But everyone else should be worried because the Rays are dangerous. They probably won’t sustain a 17-2 pace for the rest of the season but they are putting the East on notice. On May 7th, the Rays were 14-18 and looked like they weren’t going to be able to provide their usually excellent starting pitching. Since then, they are 44-23, which is a 106 win pace. This is a good team that just had their rough stretch early, which is often a nice way to lull your opponents into a false sense of security. I picked the Rays to win the East and haven’t wavered. They are baseball’s 3rd best offense and 11th best pitching staff and have one of baseball’s best managers and easily the best GM. This is a team that should scare you. They have one of the game’s best in Longoria, an excellent super utility guy in Zobrist, the underrated Jennings, the young Myers, and the lightning in a bottle Loney. Not to mention the pitching is back. They Rays are hot and are only going to cool off a little.
The Morning Edition (July 19, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Sadness. There wasn’t baseball.
What I’m Watching Today:
- Strasburg faces the Dodgers (7p Eastern)
- Price looks to stay hot against the Jays (7p Eastern)
- Chen and Holland in Arlington (8p Eastern)
- Turner tries to keep it up in Milwaukee (8p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Which team who’s out can make a run?
My own personal rule, and the rule of this site, is not to make anything about the standings until after the All-Star Break. You can discuss how individual teams have played, but you shouldn’t care about how they stack up until now. Every team is trying to win until now. At this point, teams take stock and think about buying and selling and whatnot. Now it’s okay to decide if you need some help or if it’s time to pack it in. There are currently 16 teams within 6 games of first place in their divisions, all of whom are at least in it for two more weeks. Some of those teams should sell because they’re not that good, but most of them are reasonably in it for now. Among those teams, the Nationals and Dodgers should be most on the radar as far as comebacks are concerned because the Dodgers are in a terrible division and the Nats have under performed. I bought the Nats in March and I’ll go down with the ship. This is a good team.
The Morning Edition (July 15, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Archer dominates the Astros with a CGSO, 0 BB, 8 K performance
- Iwakuma leads the M’s past the Angels
- Workman flirts with a no-no for the Red Sox but Donaldson walks off for the A’s
- Stop me if you’re heard this, Davis homers, O’s win
- The Phillies beat the White Sox in extras…again
- 3 runs in the 10th get the Nats past the Fish
- The Twins shell Sabathia
What I’m Watching Today:
- HR Derby (8pm Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Will Chris Davis carry his homerun streak into the derby?
I’m not a huge fan of the HR Derby. It’s a fine event, but I think ESPN makes it pretty boring to watch with their interviews with players from the Yankees and Red Sox and commentary about the first half from analysts I don’t really want to listen to. A lot of people have offered ways to freshen the competition, but I think freshening the coverage could be just as good. Instead of Chris Berman screaming “back, back, back…” I’d like to see more coverage focusing on player reactions. We could mic up 15 or 20 players and just bounce around as they talk to each other about the season and the big swings. I think that would be cool. Or we could just get Vin Scully. Either way, I’m pulling for Prince, but will take Davis to win.
The Morning Edition (July 14, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Greinke twirls a CGSO to beat the Rockies despite Chatwood’s CG, 1 ER gem.
- Davis homers again, but Orioles fall to the Jays
- Lincecum no hits the Padres, featuring 13 Ks. (Late out west, hence the lack of intense attention)
- The White Sox tops the Phillies with 2 in the 11th
- Hughes K’s 10, but gives up 4 as the Yanks fall to the Twins
- Haren and Fernandez pitch well, Marlins win in 10
What I’m Watching Today:
- Shields takes on the Indians (1p Eastern)
- Hamels tries to stay on a role (1p Eastern)
- Wainwright and Wood take the final stage before the break (8p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Who will replace the Sunday starters and injured players on the All-Star rosters?
Enjoy the last day before the break. It’s going to be a slow few days!
The Morning Edition (July 13, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Price gives up 2 runs in a CG against the Astros and loses…to Jared Cosart in his MLB debut, who went 8 scoreless
- Kluber twirls a fine outing, Indians beat the Royals
- Marlins rough up Strasburg, chase him after two
- Chris Davis homers, Orioles win, lather, rinse, repeat.
- Pirates grab a walk off single in 11 against the Mets
- Arroyo shuts down the Braves, Dusty listens and drops Cozart to 7th
What I’m Watching Today:
- Burnett faces the Mets (7p Eastern)
- Lynn and Garza in Chicago (7p Eastern)
- Holland and Scherzer (7p Eastern)
- Jose Fernandez faces the Nats (7p Eastern)
- Felix against the Angels (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Who are your first half ROY?
Let’s break it down by position players and pitchers. For the NL position player, Puig is a pretty good choice with his 2.1 WAR and 198 wRC+, but he’s short on games. Pollack (2.1 WAR), Gattis (1.8 WAR), Gyrko (1.8 WAR) are also good choices. It’s tough to pick rookies because you have to balance overall value and rate stats. Probably Puig, but Pollack would be a good choice too. For the AL position player it’s slim pickens, to this point it’s probably Jose Iglesias (1.6 WAR), but Nick Franklin, Gomes, and Martin have a case and they all have Wil Myers charging. AL pitching is thin, but it’s probably Straily if you want a starter, but there are a lot of good relievers too. Many the AL rookie class is weak. The NL pitchers are much more fun. Miller, Fernandez, Ryu, and Teheran. I love Shelby Miller, but Fernandez right there.
The Morning Edition (July 12, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Salazar impresses and helps beat the Jays in his debut with the Indians
- Reds lose to the Braves with Votto waiting on deck…again
- Kendrick squeaks past Zimmermann and the Nationals
- Both starters stumble, Red Sox beat the Mariners in 10
- Jeter returns to the Yanks, national media doesn’t spend much time talking about it
- Moore K’s 10 in 7.1 innings as he’s named to the ASG
- Tulo’s back!
What I’m Watching Today:
- Cosart makes his MLB debut against Price (7p Eastern)
- Strasburg heads to Miami (7p Eastern)
- Corbin goes against the Crew (930p Eastern)
- Kershaw welcomes the Rockies to LA (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Does the media see the irony?
So recently there have been a number of things written about MLB’s problem getting good national TV ratings and some people have suggested more playoff teams and other stuff I don’t think will be a good idea, but today was the perfect example of how the media is responsible for the problem. Two shortstops came back from injuries today to help their clubs who are on the edge of the postseason race. 99% of the coverage was about Jeter and almost none was about Tulowitzki, who is one of the most dynamic players in the game. I don’t have anything against Jeter, and he’s had a wonderful career, but if you’re wondering why national ratings are down, it’s because the national media recycles the same tired stories about the same 3 or 4 teams. It’s time for Fox, ESPN, and MLB to plug players on smaller market clubs. Tulowitzki could easily be the face of MLB, but you don’t see many Rockies games on national TV.
The Morning Edition (July 11, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Wheeler great, Cain awful in a big Mets win
- Another great start for Turner in Miami
- The Angels unload on the Cubs, get a good start from Wilson
- Lee gives up four solo homeruns in a loss to the Nationals
- Toronto tops Cleveland after a wild 9th
- Nova and the Yanks handle the Royals easily
- Twins and Rays play deep into the night, Zobrist walks off
What I’m Watching Today:
- Sale and Sanchez in Detroit (1p Eastern)
- Zimmermann goes against the Phils (7p Eastern)
- Bumgarner (underrated) and Marquis (overrated) face off in Petco (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- How should we pick the ASG starter?
There’s been some debate, as there always is regarding ASG stuff, as to who should start for each side. Harvey is the frontrunner in the NL because he is having one of the best seasons and the game is at his home park. It’s not a lock that he should start on merit, but he’s in the conversation and the hometown thing probably pushes him over. I think it’s safe to say Harvey, Wainwright, and Kershaw are the contenders, but depending on what stats you like, you can make a case that any of them are the best starter so far. But should it be about the best starter so far this season? Should it be about the best starter for the last calendar year? The biggest star? The guy who we judge to be the best, because the game does count? It’s not a clear formula. For what it’s worth, Wainwright is schedule to pitch Sunday so he’s probably out. Kershaw and Harvey are both “stop what you’re doing and watch guys” who are having elite years and are top 10 guys since the last ASG. If you’re asking for six outs, they can both get them with the best of them. Is there really a way to separate who should get the start if we don’t have a fixed definition. If Kershaw was far and away having a better season, it might be different, but they’re pretty even, so it just makes sense to go with Harvey…I think. Kershaw’s about to get $200 million. Harvey could have that in his future, but he has more work to do. Let’s go with Harvey.
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