The toothache I gently alluded to yesterday is still with me, so consider yourselves warned: I’m medicated. A number of people have legitimate beefs over their being handed a three-day vacation next week rather than an all-expenses-paid trip to Atlanta. Keith Foulke, Frank Thomas and Danny Graves come to mind immediately. But the player with…
On Tuesday, the 16 position-player starters for next Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Atlanta were announced. The results of the fan balloting were, as usual, difficult to argue with. Even Craig Biggio lost his spot down the stretch, as Jeff Kent beat him out for the NL’s second-base job. So, rather than wait for the leagues…
Is This Really Happening? Chicago White Sox 53-29 — Cleveland Indians 41-39 11 Are you kidding me? The Indians, the only champion the American League Central has ever known, are closer to the cellar in the division than to its peak. The Chicago White Sox, who haven’t been in a divisional race since the strike…
(Ed. note: Chris Kahrl is still getting set up in his new D.C. digs, so Keith and Joe share pinch-hitting duties.) ANAHEIM ANGELS Optioned RHP Seth Etherton to Edmonton of the Pacific Coast League (AAA); activated RHP Kent Bottenfield from the 15-day disabled list; placed SS Kevin Stocker on the 15-day disabled list tendinitis in…
For all the conventional media focus on the so-called "major markets," we’ve always tried to have a balance of coverage here at Baseball Prospectus. But sometimes the biggest baseball stories do occur in the largest cities, and for the past few days, no city has made more baseball news than the Big Apple. On Thursday,…
This is a column I have avoided writing, in part because I’d hoped I wouldn’t have to and in part because I know some people are tired of hearing about it. But I can no longer stand idly by and watch this player, one of the most overrated, undercriticized players in baseball today, continue to…
The baseball world is abuzz with trade rumors that have a pair of thirtysomething Hispanic right fielders with good power and suspect defensive ability changing addresses. Juan Gonzalez and Sammy Sosa could be going to Boston, Toronto, the Bronx, Queens or possibly even staying in their current cities, Detroit and Chicago. Not to be a…
Baseball is good any way you can get it. On TV at home, at a local minor-league park with your significant other, watching 18 six-year-olds hit off a tee in a game in which the second baseman is left-handed…it’s a great game in all its forms. But one of the best ways to enjoy the…
The truer category of "Belles", at least by name, are the players who are having good seasons without anyone knowing. This can be because their bad start has clouded perceptions, and is hurt by the fact that these player don’t pop up in statistical leader categories until much later in the season. I’ve chosen to…
Maybe They’ll Take Bernie? The Brewers are hovering around the .400 mark, spending a second season in a lame-duck ballpark and a ninth season far, far from contention of any kind. Even a bad team usually has one or two bright lights that make watching them worthwhile, and the Brewers are no exception. Closer Bob…
A longstanding blind spot in the mainstream media is that a player who starts very hot or very cold will have his season perceived that way no matter what kind of performance follows. The obvious reason is the reliance on counting stats; a ten-homer, 30-RBI April can embed you in the league leaderboards for most…
Here are the 2000 performances of three pitchers: G IP ERA BB/SO BA/ OBP/ SLG SNWAR Pitcher A 10 50.1 4.47 31/48 .254/.363/.477 0.21 Pitcher B 13 73.1 5.28 36/60 .299/.352/.503 0.03 Pitcher C 7 17.2 10.70 8/10 .360/.408/.507 -0.14 Pitcher A has been better than Pitcher B, while Pitcher C has pitched like an…
One of my stranger quirks is a fondness for seeing things pushed into disarray, for speculating about the answer to the question, "What happens if…?" Not in a dangerous way, mind you, but in real simple, basic, harmless ways. So the plan to have the Yankees and Mets make up Sunday’s rainout as part of…
The performance from last night that really caught my eye was Eric Milton‘s win over the Oakland A’s. Milton allowed two runs and struck out 11 over seven innings. Since a disastrous outing May 15 against the Mariners, Milton has an ERA of 1.13 in five starts and 32 innings, with 35 strikeouts and just…
Without getting into a diatribe about the post-1993 setup of major league baseball, it’s not unreasonable to say that the seasons since the 1994 strike have lacked a certain tension. In most years, there have been just a few even moderately close races, and the wild-card berth has sapped the drama from a couple of…
OK, so "Daily" Prospectus has been a bit of a misnomer lately, as a variety of technical and staffing glitches have cropped up. Fret not: today brings four new articles to your browser of choice, and we’ll be back next week with some great new features, a couple of divisional Notebooks and, if we can…