Pitcher Usage and Result Patterns? What are these, you ask? This is the end result of a conversation the two of us started up in the spring on how to evaluate starting pitchers in terms of how they’re used by their managers, and what that means in terms of results. We wanted to generate a…
THE GOOD "It’s like a steamroller building up steam." —Chuck Knoblauch, Yankees infielder, on the Yankees romp through the regular season and the Division Series "When this run is over, they’re going to appreciate it so much more than they do now. It’s going to be like: ‘Remember the 90’s? Man, that was great.‘" —John…
Overall Standings | Leaders (484 K) | Teams (631 K) The 1997 Overlord of Sensing Stiffness Anything Goes Category Winner: Lazaros T. Volikas In what might be the closest HM race ever, Lazaros Volikas’ Ground Zero squad beat out two other teams (Kevin Lambie’s and Mike Cuccaro’s) by less than 1 point. Lazaros did pick…
OFFENSE Braves (Team EqA: 275, 3rd in the NL) Walt Weiss SS .280/.386/.343 .272 EqA Keith Lockhart 2B .257/.311/.388 .243 EqA Chipper Jones 3B .313/.404/.547 .323 EqA Big Cat Galarraga 1B .305/.397/.595 .326 EqA Ryan Klesko LF .274/.359/.473 .287 EqA Javy Lopez C .284/.328/.540 .289 EqA Andruw Jones CF .271/.321/.515 .285 EqA Michael Tucker RF…
OFFENSE Yankees Chuck Knoblauch, 2B .265/.361/.405 .272 EQA Derek Jeter, SS .324/.384/.481 .301 EQA Paul O’Neill, RF .317/.372/.510 .304 EQA Bernie Williams, CF .339/.422/.575 .332 EQA Tino Martinez, 1B .281/.355/.505 .292 EQA Chili Davis, DH .291/.373/.447 .281 EQA Jorge Posada, C .268/.350/.475 .280 EQA Shane Spencer, LF .373/.411/.910 .388 EQA Scott Brosius, 3B .300/.371/.472 .287…
CINCINNATI REDS Released LHP Steve Cooke. [9/30] Claimed LHP Eddie Priest off waivers from the Indians. [10/1] Four months after Jim Bowden sends Priest off to Cleveland for Rick Krivda, he grabs him back. Priest still isn’t a great prospect, and Krivda had a painful year in Cincinnati, but this was a nice little move…
Last fall, word came that Doug Blosser, a well-regarded Royals farmhand and the brother of former major leaguer Greg Blosser, had been killed in a car accident in his native Florida. He was only 21, and inconsiderate though it was, my original reaction was to reflect on what he meant as a ballplayer by looking…
Steven Carter is taking a break from quotes. Andres Phippard will be filling in until he returns. ADVANCING "They said we couldn’t beat Johnson twice in a five-game series. Well, we beat him twice in a four-game series." —Sterling Hitchcock, Padres pitcher, after beating Astros pitcher Randy Johnson to advance to the NLCS "I believe…
Now that we’ve dispensed with Jon Miller‘s antics (since when did we give up the cherished taboo on saying "no hits" in the middle of no-hitters in progress?), on to Georgia… OFFENSE For the first time in their post-’45 history, the Cubs didn’t lead the league in scoring to get themselves into the playoffs. Their…
OFFENSE The Astros boast a multi-faceted attack that is the National League’s best. In previous years, the team depended almost exclusively on leadoff hitter extraordinaire Craig Biggio and slugging first baseman Jeff Bagwell, and not much else. This year, the “Killer B’s” have been joined by a solid supporting cast, and the results have been…
OFFENSE Yankees Chuck Knoblauch 2B Derek Jeter SS Paul O’Neill RF Bernie Williams CF Tino Martinez 1B Chili Davis or Tim Raines DH Darryl Strawberry LF Jorge Posada C Scott Brosius 3B Rangers Tom Goodwin CF Mark McLemore 2B Will Clark 1B Juan Gonzalez RF Rusty Greer LF Pudge Rodriguez C Lee Stevens or Mike…
Big Hurt Hurt… But Not As Bad As You Think One of the great pleasures of baseball in the 1990s has been watching Frank Thomas hit. A lethal package of bat speed, raw power, and plate discipline, "The Big Hurt" has put up a string of seasons that have let us talk about him in…
We’ve been hearing all year about the dominance of the Yankees, and about how they should just go ahead and get fitted for their World Series rings, given that no other team in baseball could possibly compete against them. Well, I don’t expect most of the mainstream media to really think through this issue too…
OFFENSE The Red Sox offense somehow outscored the Indians this year, but they did it with mirrors that are unlikely to work as well in the playoffs. The only position at which the Red Sox are clearly better offensively is shortstop, with MVP candidate Nomar Garciaparra. Comparing lineups, you see so many strengths for the…
Sometimes the most innocent conversations can lead to discovery. I was sitting next to the TV Tuesday night, on one of my regular long-distance chats with co-author Joe Sheehan discussing everything from the Giants’ wild-card hopes to whether the major leagues should establish a salary cap on new draft picks. The talk led to a…
ANAHEIM ANGELS Recalled C Ben Molina from Vancouver. [9/17] Purchased C Chad Kreuter from the White Sox. [9/18] Placed C Charlie O’Brien on the 60-day DL (broken thumb). [9/18] With Phil Nevin’s sprained ankle and O’Brien’s season over, the Angels scrambled to fill in behind the plate, and the Sox were nice enough to oblige….