Ben Sheets has a big day against the Braves. Tony LaRussa has some pretty strong opinions on when to pull the plug on starters. Terry Francona is a big believer in using data. Jose Vidro decides to stick around Montreal for the next four seasons. Sandy Alderson doesn’t think MLB needs to change the IBB rule; he thinks the Giants just need better hitters. And Julian Tavarez thinks teams are prejudiced against his disgusting hat. All this and many more quips in your Monday edition of The Week In Quotes.
Bob DuPuy says there’s nothing wrong with putting ads on the bases. Fay Vincent disagrees. Barry Bonds couldn’t care less what’s on the bases, as long as he gets to round them. Mike Mussina wonders what the future holds. Manny Ramirez is prepared to help help keep Pedro around. Larry Bowa is confused as to why his team isn’t hitting well with RISP. Lloyd McClendon thinks MLB needs to market itself better. And Darin Erstad doesn’t count last year in his mind. All this and many more quips from around the league in your Monday edition of The Week In Quotes.
Dusty Baker keeps talking about pitch counts. So does Eric Wedge. The Cardinals aren’t afraid of new information. Ken Griffey Jr. thinks he’s been misrepresented by the media. And Ozzie Guillen doesn’t understand why everyone’s so concerned with Mark Prior. All this and many more quips in your Monday edition of The Week In Quotes.
Tyler Houston has more to say about Larry Bowa. Chuck LaMar believes Lou Piniella is one of the best strategists in the game. It’s about the money and not about the money at the same time for Frank Thomas. And Jimy Williams would like to see Adam Everett bunt more often. All this and many more quips in this edition of The Week In Quotes.
Bud Selig is singing the same old tune. Mike Mussina is just happy to get a win. Chuck LaMar is happy to be employed. And everyone in Queens is expecting great things from Kazuo Matsui. All this and many more quips in your Monday edition of The Week In Quotes.
George Steinbrenner describes his decision to let Joe Torre go. Chuck LaMar defends his methods. And Dusty Baker sees the light. All this and many more quips in your Thursday edition of The Week In Quotes.
Jaret Wright doesn’t get it. Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker talk chemistry. Doubles or home runs? Tough question, according to the Brewers. All this and more in this week’s edition of The Week In Quotes.
Jim Palmer plays the fool. Bob Feller preferred Wheaties to steroids. Rey Ordonez gives way to Khalil Greene. Dallas Green thinks the time is right for younger talent to take over GM jobs. These and other quips in The Week In Quotes.
Dusty Baker doesn’t think much of walking; he also doesn’t think much of pitch counts. Reggie Jackson thinks modern-day sluggers are on ‘the juice,’ while Julio Franco admits to being on a juice of a different kind. Jim Hendry is old school, and proud of it. Torii Hunter is about the only non-Yankee in MLB who doesn’t hate George Steinbrenner. All this and many more quips from around the league in this edition of The Week In Quotes.
Gene Orza thinks smoking is worse than juicing. Not everyone agrees. Peter Magowan thinks the Yankees are out of control. Jason Isringhausen wishes Scott Kazmir the best of luck in New York. Ozzie Guillen wants to win by doing the little things. And Jose Lima just is glad to be in a major league uniform. All this and many more quips in the latest edition of The Week In Quotes.
Paul DePodesta takes the helm in L.A. Dusty Baker is not a government agent. Turk Wendell apparently has spy cameras in every clubhouse in baseball. Bob Melvin saw Eddie Guardado taking magic closer pixie dust. These and other notable quotables in The Week in Quotes.
As we’ve stated on a number of different occasions throughout the Baseball Prospectus Basics series, one of the goals of performance analysis is to separate perception from reality. Sometimes that means interpreting numbers, and sometimes that means interpreting events with our eyes. Either way, it’s about collecting information, and getting a little bit closer to the truth.
Evaluating the importance of strikeouts, especially for hitters, is something that has traditionally fallen into the second category. And it’s easy to understand why: baseball is a game that centers around the ongoing conflict between pitcher and batter, and there are few outcomes that capture the drama of that conflict better than a mighty whiff, followed by a long walk back to the bench. On the surface at least, a strikeout appears to be the ultimate failure for a hitter–infinitely worse than a Texas-leaguer or a fly-out to center.
Manny’s price tag was too rich for the taking. The Marlins mull the year after. The Sox say goodbye to Grady. Start printing those 2004 DRays playoff tickets: Julio Lugo is back. Frank Thomas returns to Chicago for more kvetching. These and other quips in The Week In Quotes.
As many of our readers were submitting their ballots for the annual Internet Baseball Awards, 11 Baseball Prospectus authors went into the polling booths themselves, voicing their opinions on who should win the major baseball awards this year. Here are the results…
The Marlins apparently didn’t need experience to keep their emotions under control. SeaBass had a feeling. Josh Beckett doesn’t care about billy goats–deer on the other hand… Big Stein draws up his plans to clean house. John Smoltz is not a fan of three-run homers. These and other quips in the World Series (and beyond) edition of The Week In Quotes.
Dusty Baker doesn’t believe in curses. Aaron Boone had help from some ghosts. Grady Little tries to defend leaving Pedro Martinez in the game. And Don Zimmer has some strong words for The Boss. All this and much more in your Monday edition of The Week In Quotes.