Does a new set of stats reflect much of a change in who could stand to upgrade in left field?
The corner outfield spots are known for production, but one field has been far more dominant in recent years.
While third base is often considered an offense-heavy position now, last year proved to be a major down season.
While it may be easy to root for certain ballplayers, we have to be open to honest assessments of their abilities.
Why have two of the top 30 position players since 1950 been ignored by BBWAA voters and bloggers alike?
“John Henry and the Red Sox were great to me. They were willing to pay me more money than I could believe. But it’s more than money, I’ve never been about money. I made one decision based on money in my life–when I signed with the Mets rather than go to Stanford–and I promised I’d never do it again.” –Billy Beane, Athletics general manager, on turning down an offer to join the Red Sox
When I’ve written about Peter Rose in the past, I get tons of email from readers, and many of them point to Bill James as a prominent, intelligent Rose defender who presents “a compelling argument.” In the past, I’ve referred readers to the Dowd Report, which is available online at www.dowdreport.com. This has proved to be an inadequate response.
I’ve written a piece for this site on Pete Rose, Bill James, and the Dowd Report. It took me far too long to write it: I was reluctant to pursue the project, because the volume and tone of the hate mail anyone who writes about Rose gets is numbing. I dedicated myself to getting it done after Major League Baseball trotted Rose out as part of the MasterCard Major League Baseball Memorable Moments event. Rose got cheered, I made a snippy comment in an ESPN chat, and everyone moved on. But the scene continues to bother me. Baseball’s treatment of Pete Rose under the leadership of Bud Selig has been shameful.
Among the many responses I got to the Bert Blyleven Hall of Fame article on ESPN.com, one of the most interesting was from Dan Kelley of the Boston Metro and yankees-suck.com (a completely objective, non-partisan web site, I’m sure). While my article argued that Blyleven is by far the best pitcher not in the Hall, Dan raised the complementary issue of the best hitter not in the Hall.
My first exposure to Bill James was in 1988, via his last Baseball Abstract. My friend Eddie Kneafsey lent it to me that summer. It remains my favorite Abstract, my favorite James book, really. It wasn’t just the ideas, but the writing style, the humor, and the love for baseball evident throughout the work. I read it and re-read it, finally giving it back to Eddie only because he was headed to Providence College that fall.