The Morning Edition (July 25, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Strasburg goes 8, allows 1 R on 2 H/0 BB/12 K, but loses despite a 4-2 final score…yeah…think about that…#KillTheWin
- Price goes the distance on 97 pitches to lead the Rays over the Sox
- Santana pitches well, but the Royals need a walk off to beat the O’s
- Garza is superb in his Rangers debut, beats the Yanks 3-1
- Braves beat the Mets but lose Hudson to a broken ankle
- Dodgers get 5 in the 10th to beat the Jays
- Kamzir helps the Indians pummel the M’s
- The Angels blank the Twins, 1-0
What I’m Watching Today:
- Wood and Wheeler in NY (1230p Eastern)
- Burnett faces Gio (1230p Eastern)
- Kuroda takes on Holland (2p Eastern)
- Latos goes against Greinke (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Are the Royals even a self-aware entity at this point?
Apparently, the Royals who are 47-51, 8 GB, and have no reason to expect they will play better, are considering buying at the deadline despite it being a seller’s market. Additionally, they are considering upgrading in right field. I wonder if the Rays would part with Wil Myers? I legitimately feel pain for Royals fans. This is embarrassing.
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 Rick Porcello and John Lackey Connection
If you’re interested pitching, I wrote a post over in the Community Research section of Fangraphs regarding John Lackey’s season and his increase in K% and GB% and decrease in BB% based largely on a modification of a subset of his fastballs. Lackey joins Porcello as the only pitcher in MLB this season with more than 7 K/9, fewer than 2 BB/9, and a GB% above 50%. Felix and Fister are close, but these guys are trying to join a group that includes just Halladay, Carpenter, and Hamels since GB% became available in 2002.
Read all about Lackey at Fangraphs.
If you’re curious about Porcello, who starts tonight, he’s currently at 7.25 K/9, 1.42 BB/9, and 57.3 GB%. All of those numbers are career best and are helping Porcello post a career best 3.51 FIP and 3.05 xFIP. Earlier in the year, I broke down how Porcello is making the leap from solid #5, to legitimate big league star.
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 21, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Mariners become the first team to ever score 4+ runs while getting just one hit as they beat the Astros in a game in which Bedard left the game without allowing a hit after 6.1 IP
- Indians waste a solid start by Kluber, fall to the Twins
- Kuroda shuts down the Sox, Yanks edge past Lackey
- Rays stay hot against the Jays
- Greinke and Gio pitch great, but the Nats take it in 10
What I’m Watching Today:
- Lee, Harvey…Oswald? at Citi Field (1p Eastern)
- Kershaw takes on Zimmermann in DC (130p Eastern)
- Felix goes to Houston, strikeout warning in effect (2p Eastern)
- Wainwright goes against the Padres (2p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Who’s regretting the offseason now?
Something I noticed last night was that 11:25pm, the Blue Jays, Royals, and Angels (the 3 AL teams that made big moves this offseason) all have the same number of wins as the Mariners. All at 45. The lesson here is that big moves don’t make a good team. I’m not knocking what the Blue Jays did, but the Angels and Royals made poor moves. To recap, the Angels gave $125 million to Josh Hamilton (which is risky in itself) instead of doing anything to improve their pitching staff and the Royals traded away a great young hitter for a starting pitcher who can’t help the team win because they don’t score any runs. Even if Shields and Myers were a good swap in terms of dollars and value, it certainly didn’t make sense to trade from a weakness to get more pitching when that new pitching was only enough to make you a .500 team. Setting that aside, my point is that the national media latched onto the big moves and called these teams the big winners in the offseason. That was silly. You have to look at the whole picture and the whole picture almost always favors the club that adds complimentary pieces instead of big names. The media chases stories, MLB teams should chase wins. Remember that next time you’re reading offseason winners and losers. Texas “had a terrible offseason” if you listened to the writers. Funny how that works out.
The Morning Edition (July 20, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Brandon Barnes hits for the cycle in a loss to the Mariners
- The Cards shell Marquis, but the Padres make it interesting
- Holland goes 8, but gives up 3 runs in a loss to the O’s
- The Phils pummel the Mets setting Kendrick up for a terrible start that still ends in a win
- The Rays win an 8 HR slugfest with the Jays
- Soriano coughs up a strong start for Strasburg
What I’m Watching Today:
- Hamles versus Wheeler at Citi (1p Eastern)
- Kuroda and Lackey (4p Eastern)
- Burnett takes on Latos (4p Eastern)
- Greinke goes against Gio (7p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Where does the cycle rank among cool baseball achievements?
Obviously the cycle is awesome for it’s value (at least four times on base) and it’s cool factor (getting each type of hit) but where does it rank among other cool things. No-hitters, perfect games, 4 HR games, CGSO? Let’s take a look at the numbers since 1916:
- Perfect Games: 21
- No-hitters: 204
- Cycles: 240
- Cycles w/a walk: 39
- 4 HR: 14
- 15 or more K: 232
If you asked me I’d most prefer to attend a perfect game, no question, but all of them would be a lot of fun. I’ve been to about 3-4 near no-hitters and a 14 K game.
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 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 8, 2013)
From Last Night:
- Corbin goes 8, strikes out 10 as the Snakes beat the Rockies
- Price goes the distance to beat the White Sox
- The Dodgers get 3 in the 9th to back Kershaw’s 8 strong innings
- The Cubs walk off in 11
- Fernandez looks ordinary in loss to the Cards
- The Nats back Strasburg in a slugfest with the Padres
- Rivera gives up a game winner to Jones and the O’s
What I’m Watching Today:
- Derek Holland comes to Camden (7p Eastern)
- Garza keeps on the trade audition tour against the weak hitting White Sox (8p Eastern)
- Bailey takes the mound for the first time since the no hitter (8p Eastern)
- Lester goes to Seattle to face Felix (10p Eastern)
- Matt Harvey takes his show to SF (10p Eastern)
The Big Question:
- Is this really happening again?
It is. Mike Trout is back on the chase after a homerun on Sunday night and now ranks 3rd among all MLB qualifiers with 161 wRC+, trailing only Cabrera and Davis. Mix in his great baserunning and better defense along with playing a more important defensive position and he’s only looking up at Miguel Cabrera on the WAR leaderboard. It’s Cabrera at 5.8 and Trout at 5.1. It’s happening again and I love it. Trout is essentially on pace to match his 2012 campaign, which would put him on some sort of ridiculous career trajectory. Think about this, Miguel Cabrera became the best hitter in the sport in his late 20s. Trout is 21. He’s probably at his peak defensively and on the bases, but he’s going to get better at the plate. What could this guy do? In the last 365 days, Trout (10.5) and Cabrera (9.2) are 1 and 2 in WAR and Trout already has more than 15 WAR in his career. Since 1901, only 2 players have accumulated more WAR through age 21: Mel Ott and Ty Cobb. That’s a list for ya.
Picking the American League All-Stars
With the All-Star rosters looming ahead this weekend, New English D weighs into the fray with these picks. We’ll cover the NL tomorrow. A few notes up front. First, I’ve conformed the roster size to the official requirements and have selected starters I feel are most deserving based on their 2013 seasons and have given no deference to the voting up through this point. My view is that the All-Star Game should showcase the game’s standout performers from the first half of 2013, not the best players over the last year or the best players by talent even if they haven’t performed. I think the game should highlight the players who play well, not the players MLB thinks are “marketable.” Every team is represented and I’ve given a list of players who are the first replacements for injuries and such. Clay Buchholz would have been selected, as noted, but is currently injured. As you know, this site appreciates advanced statistics, so should you choose to comment on these selections, please do so without using “RBI” or “Wins.”
Enjoy and feel free to criticize the 7 Tigers I put on the list. I can’t make a case that they aren’t deserving, even if you think I’m a homer.
| PLAYER | TEAM | POSITION |
| Joe Mauer | Twins | C |
| Chris Davis | Orioles | 1B |
| Jason Kipnis | Indians | 2B |
| Jhonny Peralta | Tigers | SS |
| Miguel Cabrera | Tigers | 3B |
| Mike Trout | Angels | OF |
| Jose Bautista | Jays | OF |
| Jacoby Ellsbury | Red Sox | OF |
| David Ortiz | Red Sox | DH |
| Max Scherzer | Tigers | SP |
| Carlos Santana | Indians | C |
| Edwin Encarnacion | Jays | 1B |
| Dustin Pedroia | Red Sox | 2B |
| Robinson Cano | Yankees | 2B |
| Jed Lowrie | Athletics | SS |
| Evan Longoria | Rays | 3B |
| Manny Machado | Orioles | 3B |
| Josh Donaldson | Athletics | 3B |
| Nate McClouth | Orioles | OF |
| Alex Gordon | Royals | OF |
| Brett Gardner | Yankees | OF |
| Adam Lind | Jays | DH |
| Derek Holland | Rangers | SP |
| Felix Hernandez | Mariners | SP |
| Chris Sale | White Sox | SP |
| Justin Verlander | Tigers | SP |
| Yu Darvish | Rangers | SP |
| Anibal Sanchez | Tigers | SP |
| Doug Fister | Tigers | SP |
| Bud Norris | Astros | SP |
| Brett Cecil | Jays | RP |
| Mariano Rivera | Yankees | RP |
| Drew Smyly | Tigers | RP |
| Jesse Crain | White Sox | RP |
| Clay Buchholz* | Red Sox | SP |
| FIRST REPLACEMENTS | ||
| Kyle Seager | Mariners | 3B |
| Omar Infante | Tigers | 2B |
| Howie Kendrick | Angels | 2B |
| Adrian Beltre | Rangers | 3B |
| Hisashi Iwakuma | Mariners | SP |
| Joaquin Benoit | Tigers | RP |
| Joe Nathan | Rangers | RP |
| * injured |
New English D 