When we looked back at the first-half performances, we led with the American League, so we’ll start this segment with the National. I’ll start with the easiest call: the Cardinals are going to win the NL Central. Even if Mark McGwire‘s knee injury restricts his playing time, there is no team in the division capable…
ATLANTA BRAVES Acquired RHP Andy Ashby from the Phillies for LHPs Bruce Chen and Jimmy Osting. [7/12] Laugh if you’re a disinterested bystander or a Mets fan, and cry if you care about the Braves. I don’t know who deserves more venom: John Schuerholz for doing something this stupid, or the talking heads who are…
"Stop the presses," has such a quaint sound these days, what with newspapers and magazines mostly produced digitally and Web publishing allowing changes up to the second of–and even after–publication of an article. But yesterday’s big trades made today’s column–a look at the NL in the second half–obsolete before it ever made it off my…
BRUISINGS "I wasn’t nervous at all. I just couldn’t locate my fastball or make adjustments on it." — Ed Yarnall, Reds pitcher, on retiring just two of the ten batters he faced July 6 "It was a rough start coming back. I couldn’t keep the ball down and threw a few pitches I shouldn’t have….
At the midway point of the season, BP’s staff sees four awards as runaways and two as crapshoots. Here’s a look at our panel’s voting for the big six honors. AL MVP (5-3-1, first place in parentheses) Alex Rodriguez 46 (8) Pedro Martinez 15 (2) Jason Giambi 9 Ivan Rodriguez 9 Carlos Delgado 5 Edgar…
Well, I suppose the bright side is that I know people are reading: "It was my understanding that Girardi is an All-Star replacing Piazza b/c 1) Hundley turned them down due to family concerns & 2) Javy Lopez had already skipped the country on his vacation plans. Girardi was just the best of a bad…
After winning the NL Central three straight years, the Houston Astros limped into the All-Star break with a 30-57 record, the worst in baseball by five games. Only three teams in history have gone from first to last in one season: Year Team Year 1 Year 2 1914 Philadelphia (AL) 99-53 43-109 1986 California 92-70…
ANAHEIM ANGELS Placed RHP Tim Belcher on the 15-day DL, retroactive to 7/3 (sore elbow); recalled RHPs Ramon Ortiz and Lou Pote from Edmonton; activated SS Kevin Stocker from the DL; optioned 2B/SS Justin Baughman and RHP Brian Cooper to Edmonton. [7/6] Optioned RHP Ramon Ortiz to Edmonton; recalled RHP Seth Etherton from Edmonton. [7/7]…
Just an idle thought before we get back to our look at some notable first-half performances…is it possible that interleague play has made it easier for players to skip or be held out of the All-Star Game? The midsummer classic isn’t the only chance to see some of those special matchups anymore, and perhaps the…
It has now been more than two years since we created Pitcher Abuse Points to standardize the measurement of pitcher workloads. By and large, we have been more successful at that goal than we had any reason to expect. Some people in baseball now agree with the notion that limiting pitch counts in an attempt…
Mondays are pretty lousy, but a Monday with no baseball games? Yick…stop the day, I want to get off. Then again, this Wednesday will be worse; no games, and no sports page/Internet site full of Sunday boxscores to pore over, reliving the previous day’s ballgames. Sure, there will be lots of All-Star coverage, but how…
I currently have three catchers on my team and need to drop one. They are Javy Lopez, Ben Molina and Darrin Fletcher. Who do you recommend dropping? –PG Always drop the guy with no hitting talent–in this case, Molina. –Keith Law What are your thoughts on Julio Lugo, the Astros’ new shortstop? Does his potential…
This is the first in a series of rankings of major-league defenders, highlighting the top ten and bottom five at each position. The ratings are a combination of Zone Rating, Range Factor and my best (and admittedly grossly flawed) assessment of the job they’re doing. The Top 1. Bret Boone, Padres. Boone has a very…
Orthodoxy I enjoyed your idea about a weekly schedule for pitchers, although I’m not convinced. I just don’t see it becoming a norm because it would be hard to groom youngsters in this fashion and I think limiting pitch counts would just be an effective way of keeping your starters healthy, though the all-closer staff…
Questions to Ponder As we make our way to the All-Star break, there’s a heck of a dogfight at the top of the AL East. The perennial division champion Yankees lead the Red Sox by a single game…and both teams are looking up at the Blue Jays. Overall, just 1 1/2 games separate these teams,…
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…