Killeverything's (New)NeverEndingBaseballThread

[Machado]

Phil Hughes's bullpen session was shutdown after about a dozen pitches this afternoon.

An appt with Dr. Andrews could be as soon as tomorrow.

[tin00can]

The Angels called up Alexi Amirista from AAA, where he was tearing it up (babblefish translation from a Venezuelan paper, which is so much better than English):

"The Creole left average in Salt Lake of,455 product of 25 inatrapables in 55 turns. Also he impelled 16 races, he shot to 6 doublets and pair of batazos of 4 corners, with a embasado average of (OBP) of .483."

Chicks dig batazos of 4 corners.

[Funnelhead]

Actually Dice has always been one of the best in Baseball. Injuries have derailed his last two seasons.

The problem with him IMO, is the FO's handling of him. He has a different program he trains on, pitches on, everything. Granted in Japan they would pitch every six days and the ball was a little smaller than it's MLB counterpart. He still dominated, I mean straight fucking dominated in the WBC....twice.

I think that Theo is kind of letting "Japan's Jordan" do it more his own way, and that's why were seeing different results. It's an extrememly small sample size, but if the adjustment is real then the only staff that's going to rival Boston is Philly's.

Its funny though dude. As you obviously know, living up here, they wanted to string the guy up and now its sunshine and magical rainbows. And his stuff has looked lights out, but I'm still not reeled in yet. He's looked great plenty before, but the swaying reactions are funny.
I was with my girlfriends family over Easter and we play a fantasy league, someone mentioned my dropping of Dice-K from my roster and then they enjoyed verbally preying on my carcass.

I would also say something about Sam Fuld here but WHSubs would get mad at me.

[TawnyVonJagger]

Omar Fucking Infante! Walkoff! This team is so fucking entertaining to watch. GO FISH! 14-7 now!

[tin00can]

Jered Weaver is doing his best to earn "Ace" status. God, I hoe he doesn't end up on the Yankees in a few years.

[killeverything]

Jered Weaver is doing his best to earn "Ace" status. God, I hoe he doesn't end up on the Yankees in a few years.

Nah, Anaheim has the money to keep their players, and this year's Angels team is the weakest they've looked in a lonnnnngggggg time. There is no way in hell they let him go via Free Agency.

That would suck, but I gotta admit. I fucking loved when the MFY picked up his older brother. God, that was fun. Boston ate that motherfucker alive.....repeatedly.

[Machado]

Jered Weaver is doing his best to earn "Ace" status. God, I hoe he doesn't end up on the Yankees in a few years.

Nah, Anaheim has the money to keep their players, and this year's Angels team is the weakest they've looked in a lonnnnngggggg time. There is no way in hell they let him go via Free Agency.

That would suck, but I gotta admit. I fucking loved when the MFY picked up his older brother. God, that was fun. Boston ate that motherfucker alive.....repeatedly.

Kill-Why must you bring up Jeff Weaver? That's the guy who gave up the game winning home run in the WS vs the marlins. I can't remember the exact game and hitter, but I remember having a terrible feeling once he entered the game.

[TawnyVonJagger]

Jered Weaver is doing his best to earn "Ace" status. God, I hoe he doesn't end up on the Yankees in a few years.

Nah, Anaheim has the money to keep their players, and this year's Angels team is the weakest they've looked in a lonnnnngggggg time. There is no way in hell they let him go via Free Agency.

That would suck, but I gotta admit. I fucking loved when the MFY picked up his older brother. God, that was fun. Boston ate that motherfucker alive.....repeatedly.

Kill-Why must you bring up Jeff Weaver? That's the guy who gave up the game winning home run in the WS vs the marlins. I can't remember the exact game and hitter, but I remember having a terrible feeling once he entered the game.

Alex Gonzalez, game 4. 12th inning walkoff on a 3-2 pitch. In fact, I have a Marlins bottle opener with a recording of said HR.

Glad I could help!

[tin00can]

Bourjos - henceforth to be referred to as Bourjesus by this poster - just hit two triples in one game. How often does that happen?

[TawnyVonJagger]

Right now, tonight, the Florida Marlins are in First Place. 15-7. And I think Hanley is back.

Sweet Lemmy Christ on a ritz cracker, this team is so damn fun to watch! And they ARE having fun! This is good times.

[bang]

Adrian Gonalez fails with bases loaded,
Sox lose.

[tin00can]

Every day that Vernon Wells trade is looking worse. Last night he comes up in the bottom of the 9th with a chance to win the game (tied 1-1, Fuentes pitching, runners on 2nd and 1st with one out) and he strikes out. Then, in the top of the 10th he misplays a ball that leads to Oakland scoring the winning run.

And yet, Sciosica keeps plugging him into the 4-hole. Fuck.

[dtmfs]

Right now, tonight, the Florida Marlins are in First Place. 15-7. And I think Hanley is back.

Sweet Lemmy Christ on a ritz cracker, this team is so damn fun to watch! And they ARE having fun! This is good times.

They've got a nice little team, I like them better than the braves, But nothing short of Halladay and Oswalt blowing their arms out is gonna stop the phils, their offense is very streaky and they tend to play the good teams better than the bad once hence the series loss to the lowly Dbacks, once Howard heats up and he will, and chase comes back philly will be a team no one wants to face, their only weakspot in the rotation is blantons fat ass and he'd be some teams #2 or 3.

[dtmfs]

Every day that Vernon Wells trade is looking worse. Last night he comes up in the bottom of the 9th with a chance to win the game (tied 1-1, Fuentes pitching, runners on 2nd and 1st with one out) and he strikes out. Then, in the top of the 10th he misplays a ball that leads to Oakland scoring the winning run.

And yet, Sciosica keeps plugging him into the 4-hole. Fuck.

whats his contract again? I'd def want to swap ibanez old ass for wells if the phils could afford it, they're in desperate need of a RH power bat, IMO they should've given mayberry more starts last year especially against lefty's.

[tin00can]

Every day that Vernon Wells trade is looking worse. Last night he comes up in the bottom of the 9th with a chance to win the game (tied 1-1, Fuentes pitching, runners on 2nd and 1st with one out) and he strikes out. Then, in the top of the 10th he misplays a ball that leads to Oakland scoring the winning run.

And yet, Sciosica keeps plugging him into the 4-hole. Fuck.

whats his contract again? I'd def want to swap ibanez old ass for wells if the phils could afford it, they're in desperate need of a RH power bat, IMO they should've given mayberry more starts last year especially against lefty's.

$86 million over the next four years. He has one HR so far and is batting below the Mendoza line. I'd make that trade in a second.

[killeverything]

John Dewan's Stat Of The Week

Does it make sense to "waste" a pitch with an 0-2 count?

April 29, 2011

When a pitcher starts a batter off with two consecutive strikes, he's clearly ahead in the count and has a range of options available. He can take the efficient route, again throwing the pitch in the strike zone and forcing the hitter to take a defensive swing or head back to the bench. Alternatively, he can "waste a pitch", throwing it out of the strike zone and hoping that the hitter goes after it, either completing the strikeout or managing weak contact for an easy out.

Which is generally the better strategy?

We can consult the 24 States Matrix for the answer. The 24 States Matrix tells us how many runs, on average, we can expect a team to score from the current situation until the end of the inning. For example, with nobody on and zero outs, the average team last season scored .49 runs. If the first batter reaches base (now a runner on first with no outs), the "Run Expectancy" moves up to .86, based on the league's average number of runs scored in those situations. We can credit the first play (whether it was a single, a walk, an error, etc.) for an increase of .86 - .49 = .37 runs.

We calculated the Run Expectancy change for each 0-2 count in MLB in 2010. Utilizing the 24 States Matrix, we found that a batter falling behind 0-2 knocks off .10 runs from the team's run expectancy, almost as bad as sending your pitcher up to bat with a 0-0 count.

As it turns out, pitchers ahead 0-2 threw the next pitch outside the strike zone 72 percent of the time. The average change in Run Expectancy in those at bats remained exactly the same, -.10. On the other hand, if a pitcher challenged the hitter with an 0-2 pitch in the strike zone, the result was ever-so-slightly better for the hitter, at -.09.

Wasting a Pitch on 0-2
Location Frequency Average Run Value of the At Bat
Outside the Strike Zone 72% -.10
Inside the Strike Zone 28% -.09

Of course, pitchers handle an 0-2 count against Albert Pujols differently than against Ryan Theriot. But, the numbers indicate that pitchers should keep doing what they're doing: keep wasting pitches, but throw it in the strike zone every so often just to keep them honest.

[tin00can]

Have I mentioned that I hate the Red Sox and how they own the Angels, aside from that playoff series two years ago? Well, I do.

[johnk5150]

Liriano strikes out two, walk six and no hits the Sox. Dead last in run differential is apprently what 125 million will buy you if you're Jerry Reinsdorf. May not be the worst no hitter in recent memory, but definitely top ten.

[johnk5150]

double post

[Machado]

Liriano strikes out two, walk six and no hits the Sox. Dead last in run differential is apprently what 125 million will buy you if you're Jerry Reinsdorf. May not be the worst no hitter in recent memory, but definitely top ten.

How about that call by the 1st base umpire(Emmel) on the "tag" play by Morneau on Beckham?
Was not even close.

Replays showed the tag was nowhere near the shoulder, arm of Beckham.

"I haven't looked at replay, but he said he tagged me on the shoulder," Beckham said. "I didn't feel him tagging me on the shoulder."
"I don't know if (Emmel) is going to be too happy with me once he looks at it," Morneau told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "It's part of the game. You try to sell it. You try to get outs for your pitchers whenever you can."

[johnk5150]

Liriano strikes out two, walk six and no hits the Sox. Dead last in run differential is apprently what 125 million will buy you if you're Jerry Reinsdorf. May not be the worst no hitter in recent memory, but definitely top ten.

How about that call by the 1st base umpire(Emmel) on the "tag" play by Morneau on Beckham?
Was not even close.

Replays showed the tag was nowhere near the shoulder, arm of Beckham.

"I haven't looked at replay, but he said he tagged me on the shoulder," Beckham said. "I didn't feel him tagging me on the shoulder."
"I don't know if (Emmel) is going to be too happy with me once he looks at it," Morneau told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "It's part of the game. You try to sell it. You try to get outs for your pitchers whenever you can."

Dan McNeal is playing Rock Bottom to open each hour of their show on 670 the score this morning commemorating the White Sox.

Wow they're a huge ball of wrong. They don't do anything right.

[Machado]

Yankees reported today that Phil Hughes received a cortisone shot last week.
Phil has said he feels 110% better already.
Yankees were told by Dr. that Phil should be shutdown for 2 more weeks before a throwing program is started.
Then it will be another 6-8 weeks before Hughes rejoins the team

[Machado]

Kill-
Did you stay up to watch the entire sox vs angels game last night(this morning).
Saw the highlights on ESPN this morning.
I thought the ball youk hit was going over the monster.

Noticed crawford is still hitting below .200. That has to be a problem.

[killeverything]

Kill-
Did you stay up to watch the entire sox vs angels game last night(this morning).
Saw the highlights on ESPN this morning.
I thought the ball youk hit was going over the monster.

Noticed crawford is still hitting below .200. That has to be a problem.

I watched most of it. The rain delay fucked everything up. If Beckett would have had the whole game, this post wouldn't be made.

Crawford is starting to come around. I'm not worried about him at all. If Lowrie ( who's cooling off considerably ) would've had that fucking ball Dice gets out of the inning. I hate all losses, but they didn't deserve to win playing like that.

[Machado]

Eric Chavez will go on the disabled list tomorrow after fracturing a bone in his left foot. The Yankees aren’t sure when or how the injury happened. Chavez had tripled to right-center — Don Kelly missed a diving catch and the ball rolled to the fence — and Chavez seemed fine until he rounded second base.

[killeverything]

Eric Chavez will go on the disabled list tomorrow after fracturing a bone in his left foot. The Yankees aren’t sure when or how the injury happened. Chavez had tripled to right-center — Don Kelly missed a diving catch and the ball rolled to the fence — and Chavez seemed fine until he rounded second base.

Chavez? DL?

Ask Billy Beane about that. The MFY didn't give him a massive contract only to have him spend the majority of it on the DL......like Carl Pavano. That's what Chavez was for Oakland.

[Machado]

Eric Chavez will go on the disabled list tomorrow after fracturing a bone in his left foot. The Yankees aren’t sure when or how the injury happened. Chavez had tripled to right-center — Don Kelly missed a diving catch and the ball rolled to the fence — and Chavez seemed fine until he rounded second base.

Chavez? DL?

Ask Billy Beane about that. The MFY didn't give him a massive contract only to have him spend the majority of it on the DL......like Carl Pavano. That's what Chavez was for Oakland.

I am very familiar with Chavez and his past injuries.
I guess it was bound to happen right?
Fucking broken bone while running the bases-I don't get it
Yankees called up Ramiro Pena to take his spot.
I wasn't sure if he would get the nod, or if the Yankees were going to call up Laird or Jorge Vasquez or Kevin Russo.
No matter what, the bench is now weaker without Chavez

[tin00can]

Kill-
Did you stay up to watch the entire sox vs angels game last night(this morning).
Saw the highlights on ESPN this morning.
I thought the ball youk hit was going over the monster.

Noticed crawford is still hitting below .200. That has to be a problem.

I watched most of it. The rain delay fucked everything up. If Beckett would have had the whole game, this post wouldn't be made.

Crawford is starting to come around. I'm not worried about him at all. If Lowrie ( who's cooling off considerably ) would've had that fucking ball Dice gets out of the inning. I hate all losses, but they didn't deserve to win playing like that.

Santana had a no-hitter going before the rain delay. It quite possibly still would have went to extra innings, just with a 0-0 score. For some reason, Santana finds his balls in Boston.

I harbor no hard feelings towards Lackey; he went where the most money was and I understand that. However...when he pitches against the Angels I'm always rooting for results like Thursday. That made my work day completely bitchin.

[killeverything]

Verlander pitched his second career no hitter today! WIth a 9-0 win over Toronto.

He only had 4K compared to 12 ( in '07 ), but with one BB it was almost a perfect game.

It wasn't as ugly as Liriano's 2K 6BB no-no though.

That's two for the year.

[killeverything]

John Dewan's Stat Of The Week

Padres Hitting .218!

May 6, 2011

But they are not the worst hitting team in the majors. That honor goes to the Minnesota Twins who have the worst OPS (.615) and the fewest runs per game (3.07). The Twins are hitting 12 points higher than the Padres at .230, but their OPS is based on an MLB-low .292 on-base percentage and an MLB-low .323 slugging percentage. The San Diego Padres are the worst in the National League with an OPS of .625 and 3.13 runs per game.

How bad is hitting .218 as of Cinco de Mayo? It's bad, but surprisingly, there was another team even worse in the last 10 years. The 2003 Tigers were hitting .198 on this date, even in the midst of the Steroid Era. The Twins OPS? Three teams worse in the last 10 years. The '03 Tigers again (.545), the '04 Expos (.596) and last year's Astros (.601). These three teams were also the only teams under three runs per game.

Is this a league-wide trend? Yes it is. More than a third of the teams in baseball are currently hitting .240 or less. Here are the number .240-or-worse teams by season, going back the last 10 years.


Number of teams .240 or less
through May 5
Year Teams
2002 8
2003 4
2004 1
2005 3
2006 5
2007 5
2008 3
2009 4
2010 7
2011 12

Seven teams last year and 12 teams this year at .240 or less shows how pitching is on the upswing.
Quick plug: Joe Sheehan turned me on to the Padres anemic batting average in a recent edition of the Joe Sheehan Newsletter. There's a subscription price of $29.95, but it's well worth the price http://www.joesheehan.com/