Parks dishes pessimism on Gary Sanchez, Mason Williams, and more.
Which baseball player measures up to the Linsanity sweeping the nation?
As pitchers and catchers report to sunny climes this week–soon to be joined by hitters, beer vendors, and spring breakers–much will be made of the battle for the five slots in the New York Yankees’ starting rotation.
“I think this is the biggest single move to win–to win–that this organization has made. No one (involved with the Rays) has lost the passion to win. We lost the momentum, and Lou starts that momentum, and we need that momentum.” –Chuck LaMar, Devil Rays general manager, on the hiring of manager Lou Piniella
From your Transaction Analysis page:
Anaheim Angels – purchased the contract of RHP Francisco Rodriguez from Salt Lake. [9/15]
I thought a player had to be on the active roster (or disabled list) as of August 31 to be eligible for post-season play. Does this mean that the Angels have to forfeit his 5 wins?
–PG
The Angels pulled the oldest roster trick in the book to make this work: They placed someone from their 60-day DL (Steve Green) on their postseason roster, effectively leaving a roster spot open for somebody else, or in this case, Francisco Rodriguez.
The Angels beat the Yankees, the Twins beat the A’s. Are teams that depend on
the single and the stolen base better in the post-season than teams that play
for the three run-home run?
To better serve our readers and enhance shareholder value, we’ve compiled a list of who you should be cheering for, and why.
The Week in Quotes, September 30-October 6.
The scene outside Edison Field Saturday following the Angels’ first playoff series win in its 42 years of existence was unlike any I’d ever seen.
Watching the playoffs the last two nights, the Prospectus staff sounds off. We pick it up at the end of Angels-Yankees, Game 1.
This is a match-up of opposites in many ways, not the least being the teams’ post-season histories. The Yankees have won the World Series 26 times, including four of the past six years. To achieve a similar level of dominance, the Angels would have had to win 10 championships in their 41 years of existence. Instead, they enter the playoffs with the most meager post-season tradition of any Divisional Series participant, with three first-round exits in as many tries.
People complain that it’s unfair to some teams chasing the wild card. Perhaps, but with “natural rivalries” and bizarre interleague schedules, fairness has already been tossed out the window.
There is no competitive balance problem in baseball, even in the latest period of Yankee pennants. Supposedly, the Yankees play an entirely different game than other teams. If this is true, we should see this in almost any metric we choose, but it’s not there.
New York Yankees