Comments (3)

By Jimmy, 10/28/2009 1:06 pm

Boston Globe scribe Tony Massarotti, undoubtedly trying to make the Guinness Book of World Records for most death threats on a sports blog post, has informed us Red Sox fans that we should be rooting for the Yankees in the World Series.

No thanks, Champ.

Normally, I enjoy Tony Mazz’s writings (and I especially enjoy hearing him on the new sports talk station here), but this can’t really be more than a desperate attention grab from a failing newspaper, right?  His argument is that a New York victory would restore some of the passion and fire that we’ve lost in the past few years.  What he calls passion and fire, I call misery and bitterness.

Words cannot describe the pain and torture that the Red Sox put me through in the years between 1986-2003.  Any fan who claims to relish those days is either a) lying or b) a crazy goddamn masochist.  If you need an inferiority complex to root for a baseball team, maybe sports fandom isn’t for you.  Go join Opus Dei or lock yourself in an iron maiden.  Either one would provide a similar experience to that of the “cursed” Red Sox fan.

The fact that he’s telling us to root against a former Red Sox pitcher who happens to be the greatest and most electrifying player we’ve ever seen in our lifetimes is simply incomprehensible to me.

Tony is an intelligent guy.  I am 100% confident that he does not believe what he writes in this article.

Comments (2)

By Jimmy, 10/27/2009 7:05 am

As you can probably imagine, the two finalists here are Derek Jeter and Miguel Tejada.  Comparing them will be relatively easy, since they have both been playing SS for the entire decade.

I threw Hanley in there not because I plan on considering him (4 years isn’t long enough), but just to demonstrate how superior he is to the other two guys.

Jeter’s average WARP for the decade was 4.41, and Tejada’s was 5.24.  This might raise your eyebrows, but remember that WARP3 includes defense, and the defensive metrics used by Baseball Prospectus do not show Captain Intangibles in a favorable light at all.  From eyeballing the above numbers in isolation, I think we know who would win.  Let’s go ahead and look at a Fangraphs comparison (I like their defensive metrics a bit more than BP’s):

Fangraphs tells a slightly different story, favoring Jeter a bit (Jeter runs away with the offense, but is only slightly behind Tejada on defense).  At this point, it’s a total coin flip.

The one tie-breaker we have is post-season performance.  Miguel Tejada has hit.212/.242/.329 in the post-season since 2000, whereas Jeter has been much better than that in a considerably greater amount of plate appearances.  I’m enjoying this as much as an encounter with the Jigsaw Killer, but…

SS of the Decade: Derek Jeter

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/26/2009 9:39 am

With the Patriots having a bye week, it feels somewhat liberating to have absolutely no sports to watch for the next 10 days or so.  Absolutely nothing worthwhile to follow in the sporting world.  Well, maybe there’s some interesting soccer matches going on.  Let me check on that.

“SS of the Decade” coming this afternoon.

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/23/2009 9:04 am

I’m going to take the weekend to complete the SS of the Decade post.  Without giving anything away, let’s just say that it’s not the no-brainer people might assume it to be (myself included, before really looking at the numbers).  I mean, there seems like one obvious answer, but the quantitative evidence doesn’t significantly favor one guy over the other. I have not decided this one yet.

Some Red Sox related notes:

• Tim Wakefield is recovering from surgery, and feels that he should be for spring training.  Of course, the Red Sox haven’t excercised that $4 million perpetual option yet, but I have to think that they will.  When healthy, I think Wakefield is a good bet to outperform the other 5th starter options (Tazawa, Bowden, or the Paul Byrd scrap-heap type of acquisitions).
• Cuban SS prospect Jose Iglesias is making noise in the Arizona Fall League with his glove and his bat.  The 19-year-old is hitting .333/.474/.600 is 5 games, and has drawn rave reviews with his defense.  He’s been compared to guys like Omar Vizquel and Orlando Cabrera, and is starting to get a “Shortstop of the Future” type of aura to him.
  
• Expect some changes in coaching/management this offseason.  Bench coach Brad Mills is likely taking over the manager’s job in Houston, and Jed Hoyer appears to be close to becoming the GM of the San Diego Padres.

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/21/2009 8:58 am

Alex Rodriguez, a bona-fide superstar, has never really been given his due.  Until very recently (as in roughly two weeks ago) he was never fully appreciated by his own fans.  All that really tells us is something we already knew: the fans of this particular baseball team tend to not be very bright.  Nothing he has ever done warrants the scorn he has received in comparison to the accolades thrown at the guy playing 30 feet to his left.

His appetite for transvestite strippers notwithstanding, when you think about the discussion of the best third basemen of this decade, his name is probably the one that jumps out in your mind.  But, is it really a cut-and-dry discussion?

Obviously, we’re only considering the  years in which A-Rod was actually playing 3B.  When you stack him up against Wright and Rolen, it’s actually much closer than you would think.  Both Wright and Rolen have had seasons that were better than A-Rod’s best at his current position, and Rolen in particular has the benefit of a few more years at the position.

While this analysis might make the discussion a bit more interesting, A-Rod still walks away with the tiara here.  He has one quality that the other three guys on this list never had: durability.  Not once has A-Rod actually had a season significantly shortened by injury, or even an off-year.  He did have that hip problem early last season, but there was no rust to shake off when he returned, no adjustment period where he went 2 for 20 while getting his bearings. He dove right back into the batter’s box and started bashing pitches at a ridiculous pace like he always does.  He’s a machine.

Years from now, when Rodriguez finally hangs up his cleats and disposes of his syringes, there is a very real chance that he will have broken the all-time HR record.

3B: Alex Rodriguez

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/19/2009 1:53 pm

Here’s a little comparison of the two obvious finalists at 2B.

Kent has the benefit of a few more years at the position.  However, check out those fielding numbers from the last few years of his career.  He was brutal, and had no business playing 2B.  Unless you’re Rogers Hornsby, a UZR approaching the -20 territory is unacceptable.

Not to mention, Kent was a notorious jackass.  Like Balloon Boy’s dad, he became something of a pariah after a while.

Utley, on the other hand, has been tremendous in both aspects of his game.  He’s an excellent fielder, and is close to Kent’s equal at the plate (maybe slightly behind Kent, once you adjust for their hitting environments).  A terrific all-around player, one worthy of the All-Decade tag.

2B: Chase Utley

Comments Off

By Jimmy,

No surprises here.

1B: Albert Pujols

Pujols has been a full-time 1B since 2004, and has produced at an unprecedented rate.  Before the age of 30, he has already established himself as one of the greatest first basemen in history.

We’ll move right on to 2B.

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/16/2009 12:32 pm

Certain players will have a conceived advantage in these exercises if their careers happened to begin around 1998-2001.  Consider Player A and Player B.  Player A has been around for the entire “Zeroes” or “Aughts” decade.  Throughout the past 10 years, he has been consistently good, but never really great.  Player B is disadvantaged in that his career began around the middle of the decade, but ever since his first full season he is undoubtedly the best catcher is the game, with more years to come.

The biggest example of Player A at the catcher position is Yankees backstop Jorge Posada.  Jorge, hero of the rodent folk, scurried onto the scene at the tail-end of the last decade and became a remarkably consistent “good” catcher.  So, he should win this easily, right?

But, wait a second.  Before we place the crown atop those two giant portabella mushrooms attached to Posada’s skull, let’s think about this.  What about the truly great player whose career happened to begin towards the middle of the decade?  We should definitely levy a discount of some sort on guys who have not been around as long as others, but what do we do when the difference in production is as astounding as it is in this case:

Note: WARP3 is “Wins Above Replacement Player” adjusted for era and league, courtesy of Baseball Prospectus.  It’s a nifty catch-all stat for comparing players.  Read about it here.

In his relatively brief service time, Mauer has already had three seasons where he has been better than Jorge’s best year in 200o.  Mauer’s 2009 season ranks among the best performances from a catcher in baseball history.  In an average full season, Mauer has given us 7.32 WARP3 and Posada has yielded 5.97. Mauer has thrown out 38% of attempted base stealers, whil Posada has thrown out 29%.  We’re looking at two different players; one of them has been very good, and the other has been elite.

It’s a judgment call.  Peak versus longevity.  Me?  I like the sound of “elite”.  I’m going with Player B.

C: Joe Mauer

Comments (2)

By Jimmy, 10/15/2009 1:24 pm

The end of “The Zeroes” (I don’t really care for the word “aughts”) has quietly crept upon us.  While this decade seems to have flown by faster than shit through a goose, there was some memorable baseball played.

From my perspective, the story of the decade was the renaissance of the Boston Red Sox.  I tried to put my objective hat and think about this as someone from Kansas City or Houston or Pittsburgh would think about it, and I still have to say that our boys stole the fucking show.  Think about it this way, if it was the Cubbies who banged out two World Series championships, we’d still be voting for them, right?

I won’t spend too much time giving the local franchise a well-deserved reach-around for their new found glory, as it’s been done by many writers, most of whom are better at this than I am.  I mean, I’d be competing with Stephen King, for Chrissakes.

What I plan on doing is giving you my picks for the All-Decade Team.  It’s something I haven’t given a whole lot of thought to as of yet, so even I’m interested to see how the lineup will shake out.  The one downside to this exercise: I can think of at least two Yankees, and possibly two more, that will likely be on it.

My choices will be taking in consideration performance from 2000-2009 only.  Yeah, I know, the decade really begins in 2001, most of these “best of ” lists start at the “00″ year, and I’m a sucker for conformity.  The picks will be presented in this format:

C:
1B:
2B:
3B:
SS:
LF:
CF:
RF:
DH:
LHP:
RHP:
CL:

My first pick will come tomorrow.  As always, feel free to chime in and tell me why I’m full of shit.

Comments (2)

By Jimmy, 10/12/2009 11:32 am

I’ve been on vacation in the Bay Area over the past few days, hence my failure to dedicate prose to the mangled corpses of the Boston Red Sox.  I was only able to watch the ALDS “games” in bits and pieces, which is very, very fortunate for me. 

This 2009 team had a slightly different feel than the other Sox playoff teams we’ve seen in the past decade.  With the exception of Kevin Youkilis (my vote for team MVP) the entire team was  very streaky.  Nearly all of their key players went through periods of torrid play sandwiched in between periods of futility.  Papelbon’s implosion in Game 3 may have been disappointing, but can anyone really say that it was shocking?  He had been playing with fire all season, and it caught up with him in the end. 

The good news is, the team appears to be in great shape heading into 2010.  The majority of the team’s core players are entering their prime, and Victor Martinez is returning and will take over the starting catching job. 

So, the offseason analysis begins.  What to do about Jason Bay, the shortstop position, the Varitek conundrum, among other things.  We’re going to hit the ground running and will take a look at the most glaring issue on the docket (the Jason Bay situation) first.  Stay tuned.

Comments (2)

By Jimmy, 10/6/2009 1:28 pm

The Red Sox have dominated the Angels in the playoffs ever since 1986, when Dave Henderson hit one of the most memorable home runs in baseball history.  Regardless of that, I’m quite sick of seeing them.  The Angels, their fans, their Thundersticks and Rally Monkeys, they can all go to hell.  I’ve had it with their annoying pitching staff, and their overrated manager.

If you see any of the Angels square to bunt or attempt a steal, I suggest you mute your television, as you know the national announcers will absolutely eat up the whole “small ball” concept.  This is, of course, despite the fact that the Red Sox have been better base stealers than Anaheim this year (76% vs 70%).

Anyway, let’s compare the two offenses, and try to figure out who has the upper hand.

Catcher:

I know we love to complain about Jason Varitek’s offensive impotence, but imagine having Jeff Mathis as a backup catcher? I’m going to guess (read: hope) that Terry Francona surrenders to common sense and plays Martinez behind the plate for the first three games of the series at the very least. Assuming this happens; advantage Boston.

First Base:

This is where it gets a little tricky.  Everything here is dependent on Mike Lowell’s durability, or lack thereof.  If Lowell is able to move, he will likely be stationed a third base.  Whatever the Sox lose in defensive ability, they hope to recoup on the offensive end if Lowell is playing instead of the dreadful Casey Kotchman.

Morales has been good all year, but Youkilis has been a little better.   I’m guessing that Kotchman will play against John Lackey (Lowell is .143/.182/.143 against our favorite brain damaged right-hander), which brings this 1B matchup to a draw.

Second Base:

Both teams have young line-drive hitters at 2B.  The reigning MVP has been shining a little brighter than Kendrick, who has yet to live up to his minor league hype.  Advantage Boston.

Shortstop:

Keep in mind, we are only measuring offense here, and will touch on defense later.  Gonzalez isn’t normally a 5 RC/G type of guy, so that number is a little inflated by his hot streak during a small sample of at-bats.  Aybar (and his henchman, Maicer Izturis) have the edge at the plate.  Advantage Anaheim.

Third Base

As mentioned above, I’ll assume that Lowell plays two of the first three games (sitting against Lackey).  While his season has been decent overall, his recent numbers are alarming for a guy who has more prescription bottles in his glove compartment than Rush Limbaugh: .239/.309/.324 since September 1st.  His bat has begun to look as tired as his glove.  Not a good sign.

Contrast that to Chone Figgins, a notorious Red Sox killer: .307/.382/.412 against Boston on his career, including .364/.440/.455 against Josh Beckett.  This is without even considering the damage he can do on the basepaths with guys like Martinez and Varitek behind the plate.  Advantage Anaheim.

Outfield

The Red Sox boast one of the best outfields in the league, from an offensive standpoint.  A textbook combination of a speedy lead-off man in CF, sandwiched in between two stone-cold sluggers at the corners.  Regarding J.D. Drew’s health, nothing says “I’m healthy” like belting two home runs during the final regular season game.  Advantage Boston.

Designated Hitter

Both teams feature former legends on the backswing of their careers.  Ortiz gets the edge due to his incredible second-half surge.  Slight advantage Boston.

Seems like things are leaning in Boston’s favor thus far, but I think a few of these “advantages” are extremely marginal.  Coming up next, we’ll take a look at pitching and defense.

Comments Off

By Jimmy, 10/2/2009 1:38 pm

2009 American League Best Rookie:
Elvis Andrus, SS, Texas
Silver: Brett Anderson, P, Oakland
Bronze: Jeff Niemann, P, Tampa Bay

Andrus was one of the big surprises of 2009.  Most sensible people questioned the decision to jump him from Double-A to the majors at age 20, but the move seemed to work out, and nearly helped Texas grab a playoff spot.  He wins this award based mostly on the 8.5 UZR/150 he managed while starting at shortstop for the Rangers for the majority of the season.  He’s also an excellent base runner, and while he may never develop into the type of guy you want hitting at the top of a lineup, he’s proven that he can at least hang with the big boys at the plate.

Anderson and Niemann are among a very solid rookie class of pitchers in the American League,  a group that includes Rick “Ultimate Douchebag” Porcello, Trevor Cahill, Ricky Romero, and Boston’s own Daniel Bard.  I’m ranking Anderson above the rest due to his impressive peripherals (8 K/9, 2 BB/9, 50% GB rate).

2009 National League Best Rookie:
J.A. Happ, P, Philadelphia
Silver: Randy Wells, P, Chicago
Bronze: Chris Coghlan, LF, Florida

I’ll come out and say it here: I think Happ has enjoyed a bit of a fluke season.  He’s not a ground ball pitcher, and his 87 MPH fastball isn’t much more lively than Nick Green’s.  His minor league track record is decent, but nothing that would indicate he would have the fifth highest ERA+ in the league during his first full season.  Regardless of how he did it, the guy prevented the other team from scoring runs on a regular basis, and as a result, the Phillies have won their third straight NL East championship.

Randy Wells is the right-handed counterpart to Happ.  A 26-year-old rookie with a sub 90 MPH fastball who managed to surprise everyone in his first full MLB campaign.  The one main difference between the two (aside from the whole left-right thing) is that Wells is a ground ball pitcher, whereas Happ is not.  I’m going to predict that neither of the two pitchers above will win more than 100 games over the course of their respective careers.

Coghlan had a very good year at the plate, but that .318/.387/.454 line is a little less impressive when it comes from a left fielder as opposed to a second baseman.  Still he’s giving the Marlins fans (both of them) a reason to keep hope alive for next season.

NEXT: Previewing Sox vs. Halos