tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28556851446398247212024-02-06T20:35:21.105-07:00Red Sox Nation - AlbertaRamblings from a Red Sox fan, 2500 miles from FenwayRuben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.comBlogger118125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-64972572435656488642014-04-28T22:38:00.001-06:002014-04-28T22:39:38.075-06:00THIS BLOG HAS MOVEDI have moved the posts on this site to <a href="http://rubensbaseball.blogspot.com/">RubensBaseball.blogspot.com</a>. Please update your bookmarks and follow me over there.<br />
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If you're looking for Red Sox tickets, <a href="http://www.authoritytickets.com/sports/red-sox-tickets.php">click here</a>. You can find any event tickets you want at the <a href="http://www.authoritytickets.com/">Authority</a>.Baseball Rubenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07686283543491037841noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-74783333007666088802014-04-12T09:48:00.000-06:002014-04-28T22:37:36.429-06:00Opening Day... and more<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM96IMbdyUiLKellSNi63lMHSucQXWusb6Hf67TMNxEzOvbdnQtyxdxg2aLiTU_Q1wGzzVpfhZZ2Sol9lFbN6KPbMF7Q5lYaQEg5zaaiCtmt1-f9ss7XRLzaW3aK2q5PO1Q_1lmVlzItji/s1600/DSC00344.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhM96IMbdyUiLKellSNi63lMHSucQXWusb6Hf67TMNxEzOvbdnQtyxdxg2aLiTU_Q1wGzzVpfhZZ2Sol9lFbN6KPbMF7Q5lYaQEg5zaaiCtmt1-f9ss7XRLzaW3aK2q5PO1Q_1lmVlzItji/s1600/DSC00344.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
Very quick update. Was at Fenway for Opening Day. It was predictably awesome. Other than the rings, banner etc, a few unexpected surprises: Was interviewed for WBZ radio in Boston, and got my picture taken with Boston iconic Police Officer Steven Horgan:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqTGhDqrahY9kxQM1biL-YXSbc4uwppJnybpQ3OSVwMj6zC4gt-4vaQoVLDGm2r1WjRvD6tDxznImygHiuny8pPoQkxvv4gbr31a7X8TMeba32iejaumOO2KfLYEeGTSTlyvXJt4w_uok/s1600/horgan.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWqTGhDqrahY9kxQM1biL-YXSbc4uwppJnybpQ3OSVwMj6zC4gt-4vaQoVLDGm2r1WjRvD6tDxznImygHiuny8pPoQkxvv4gbr31a7X8TMeba32iejaumOO2KfLYEeGTSTlyvXJt4w_uok/s1600/horgan.jpg" height="173" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
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Took hundreds of pictures, you can see some of the best ones on Flickr <a href="https://www.flickr.com/photos/121796909@N03/collections/72157643725851795/" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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Today is the first Red Sox Nation watch party of the year. Come join us at Schank's South on MacLeod Trail. All baseball fans welcome, we should be easy to spot. Starts at 11 AM, details <a href="https://twitter.com/rsngov/status/454255535739531265/photo/1" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
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If you're looking for Red Sox tickets, <a href="http://www.authoritytickets.com/sports/red-sox-tickets.php">click here</a>. You can find any event tickets you want at the <a href="http://www.authoritytickets.com/">Authority</a>.Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-73891015192017684612014-03-27T23:45:00.000-06:002014-04-12T09:48:30.022-06:002014 MLB Predictions<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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I'll never learn. Every year I subject myself to the punishment of putting predictions in writing that inevitably look awful in retrospect. Although not as bad as certain professional sports writers who against all odds manage to predict their own division exactly backwards. I can't give this picture enough love:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0689872356/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0689872356&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8TcBclZS9h-GUZCeL5cc6tF9IWIn-exTTqK3Z4z65Y34ZhwZRQaK5MP_vCwCivrA5T_reIq4BREwakfuGFWVbCMTzt5NP2ndwP4_LOztIo5tW2bjlHfEagMgeEXECfQ4_aXLTHBB_S88A/s1600/chb+pred.jpg" height="233" width="320" /></a> </span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screenshot courtesy of SOSHer BannedByNYYFans</td></tr>
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At least you gotta give CHB credit for making predictions knowing how much ridicule he is exposing himself to.<br />
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Anyhow, I'm going to try something a bit different this year. Instead of specific records or division standings, I will aim to make one radical projection for each team and division. I don't expect to get too many of them right, but at least this maybe entertaining.<br />
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Let's start with our favourite division:<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">AL East:</span><br />
"Best division in baseball" won't have any wildcard teams, although every team that doesn't have a maple leaf on their logo will have a reasonable shot at winning the division.<br />
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Boston - I don't want to be called superstitious, but<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/02/playing-pepper-answers.html" target="_blank"> I predicted</a> 86 wins last year and the season ended with duckboats. So, I'll keep this simple and predict 86 again. (And hope I'm wrong again!). I have more Red Sox predictions <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2014/02/playing-pepper-2014-red-sox.html" target="_blank">here</a>.<br />
Tampa Bay - Their pitching staff will disappoint, keeping them from going over the 90 win mark - could even drop all the way to 4th place.<br />
Toronto - After a <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1770411879/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1770411879&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">disappointing 2013</a> with such high expectations, they will disappoint even more in 2014. Canadian GM Alex Anthopolous is smart enough to see that and Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion will have a new place to call home by the time the dog days of summer roll around. I bet they wish they still had Henderson Alvarez.<br />
New York - Injuries and age will finally catch up with them and they'll struggle to reach .500 (I feel like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1596090421/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1596090421&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">I've made this prediction</a> for about the past 10 seasons. EVENTUALLY it will have to be right, no?). Some controversy over whether to keep starting Jeter when he's hurting the team by being on the field, will be alleviated by it not mattering once they drop out of the race.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">AL Central:</span><br />
There will be a pennant race into late September. Tigers will not be assured of a playoff spot.<br />
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Chicago - White Sox will not be the worst team in Chicago this season. Not a bold prediction? The Cubs won more games than them last year.<br />
Cleveland - Jason Kipnis will firmly entrench himself in the "Who's the best 2nd baseman in the league" argument, but that won't be enough for the Indians to go from making the playoffs to not winning more than 81 games. It's called "<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1597971294/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1597971294&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">regression to mean</a>". Sorry, Tito.<br />
Detroit - Will struggle to win 90. Biggest disappointment outside of Georgia.<br />
Kansas City - <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003JLL2WW/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B003JLL2WW&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">PLAYOFFS</a>! Maybe even a division title.<br />
Minnesota - The Yankees will be wishing they still had Phil Hughes, and the the Twins will battle Cleveland for 3rd place and maybe even break the .500 mark.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">AL West</span><br />
Injuries to key Rangers and A's players will keep this division from being as strong as it was the last few seasons. But the rest of the division will still be looking up at these two.<br />
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Houston - Won't be the worst team in the league the 2nd half. 70 wins within reach.<br />
Los Angeles - 4th place.<br />
Oakland - Hard to believe this they are back-to-back reigning division champions. Won't 3-peat, but may get the 2nd wildcard spot.<br />
Seattle - Improve to close to .500 but not in any playoff contention. For a change, they have the bats but not the arms. Until a July trade to acquire David Price from Tampa.<br />
Texas - Prince Fielder is going to love the Texas Heat. In spite of all the injuries they've suffered before the season even started, they will win the division for only the 3rd time this century. (Note: the other two times they made it to the Fall Classic).<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">NL East</span><br />
Washington will run away with this division with very little competition.<br />
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Atlanta - Sorry peach state, no playoffs for you.<br />
Miami - Will battle Atlanta for a meaningless 2nd place in this division. Jose Fernandez will end up ahead of Clayton Kershaw in Cy Young balloting.<br />
New York - This team could win 90 games! <a href="http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/baseball/mets/harper-alderson-90-met-wins-article-1.1703435" target="_blank">Said Sandy Alderson</a>, not me. They do have a really good future. But the future won't arrive in 2014 as they will finish in last place.<br />
Philadelphia - They will make a smart trade at some point in the season. When Ruben Amaro Jr. is your GM this is as bold a prediction as it gets.<br />
Washington - Only 100 win team in majors. 21 year old (yeah, really) Bryce Harper is named MVP, Strasburg could take the Cy.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">NL Central</span><br />
Cincinnati and Milwaukee will remind St. Louis that there are still some competitive teams in this division. But Pittsburgh won't be one of them.<br />
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Chicago - Jeff Samardzija will be very good. "This is the year!" would be a really bold thing for me to say. I won't. Last place. Again. Not really going out on a limb here.<br />
Cincinnati - With Dusty Baker gone, they will win more playoff games this year than they have in total since winning the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000NA2TUG/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000NA2TUG&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">World Series in 1990</a> (Five in 23 years, if you're wondering). Billy Hamilton may have a sub .300 OBP but his speed will allow him to be a key offensive contributor in spite of that.<br />
Milwaukee - Along with Miami, among most improved teams in baseball. Will contend for a wildcard spot.<br />
Pittsburgh - Will miss playoffs. See Indians, Cleveland.<br />
St. Louis - By the end of the season, neither Adam Wainwright nor Michael Wacha will be this team's ace.<br />
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<span style="font-size: large;">NL West</span><br />
Three team race with the Dodgers needing to hold off Arizona and San Francisco to repeat. Colorado will open some eyes early before eventually fading.<br />
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Arizona - Will be in pennant race through late September. A good offense was improved with the addition of Mark Trumbo, and bullpen was bolstered by removing Heath Bell.<br />
Colorado - Canadian Justin Morneau will like the thin Denver air. 30 home runs within reach. This team will be competitive, but not enough to contend in this division.<br />
Los Angeles - Remember all the drama with the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1572437154/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1572437154&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" target="_blank">Yankees in the late 70s</a> played out in the press? There will be lots of entertainment for non-Dodger fans this year. Someone will be run out of town.<br />
San Diego - Last place, Bud Black will be unemployed.<br />
San Francisco - A good old Giants/Dodgers rivalry will be rekindled. Giants will contend for a playoff spot, may even overtake LA if they stumble.<br />
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<br />Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-72781478000723200632014-03-15T11:57:00.003-06:002014-03-28T18:17:10.571-06:00Canadian Red Sox News<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://shrsl.com/?~32uk" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjjiXtKz81N7rWbt_6Z1bjnQnrDUYsIS8dGGa78O6NZTGyIe4VC73oqez_Ar1BRpQbMJtfayG_ra3lSFF6-RhuUkZ3CsaPZjZFZvCstWZrEjfkfKTueVnVuAwzvsGYeGhL0rFOCS6Kthz-t/s1600/dempster.jpg" height="200" width="200" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(USA Today Sports)</td></tr>
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The only Canadian that was on our roster, <b>Ryan Dempster</b>, recently announced he was <a href="http://www.theprovince.com/sports/Gibsons+pitcher+Ryan+Dempster+shocks+with+announcement/9516303/story.html" target="_blank">taking the season off</a>. Of course, he did that in the two days between when I wrote a piece previewing the Sox and when it was published so there was the awkward mention <a href="https://maps.google.ca/maps?q=Schanks+Sports+Grill,+Southwest+Calgary,+Macleod+Trail,+Calgary,+AB&hl=en&ll=50.970535,-114.071817&spn=0.00804,0.021136&sll=54.112352,-126.555646&sspn=15.363929,43.286133&oq=schanks+souoth&t=m&z=16&iwloc=A" target="_blank">on my post</a> about hoping they don't trade him away....<br />
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Anyways, <b> who will be the next Canadian to play home games at Fenway Park?</b> We have a lack of first base prospects, so maybe the Reds will look for some salary relief in a few years and we'll get<b> Joey Votto</b>? Probably just wishful thinking. We have lots of catching depth in the minors, but if there's a major injury to AJP or Ross, we may need a shorterm gap. Would a return by <b><a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/02/canadian-red-sox.html" target="_blank">George Kottaras</a> </b>be possible? What about backup infielders? We need someone who can play 2B if Pedroia is out for a while. <b>Pete Orr</b> could be available. (Side note: A friend once asked me if I knew why Orr wore uniform #4. I had no idea. I was given a hint that it involved a Boston athlete. Since he played some third base, I figured maybe he was a Butch Hobson fan growing up? Apparently he shares a last name with some other dude who became famous in Boston wearing #4. Who knew?). None of the above sound too likely.<br />
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Down on the farm we have Vancouver's <b>Keaton Briscoe</b>, who played mainly third base at Greenville last season. I believe he is the only Canadian (player) in the organization at the moment. He was signed by Canadian Red Sox scout Chris Pritchett after the<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/06/sox-draft-canadian.html" target="_blank"> 2012 June draft</a>.<br />
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So, who do YOU think will be the next Canadian on the Red Sox roster? Leave your guesses in the comments below.<br />
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More local news, Calgary's own lieutenant-governor of Red Sox Nation, Marc David, is hosting another <a href="https://fbcdn-sphotos-h-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash3/t1.0-9/1959290_10152308959246318_659734422_n.jpg" target="_blank">RSN Watch Party</a>. It's on Saturday April 12th when we take on the Yankees. With the Melrose Red Mile shutting down, it's been moved to a new venue, Schank's South on MacLeod. All the details on the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/p/rsn-alberta-watch-party-schedule.html" target="_blank">watch parties page</a>.<br />
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And finally, <a href="http://about.me/rubenlip" target="_blank">yours truly</a>, will be back at Fenway Park for Opening Day. If you're there look for me, if you're watching from the comfort of your living room, let me know if you see me on your screen. I'll be the guy wearing a Red Sox jersey and a hat with a big red B on it. Should be easy to spot (!).<br />
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<br />Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-15502978170775479002014-02-20T17:26:00.001-07:002014-03-15T11:57:36.834-06:00Playing Pepper 2014 Red Sox<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0028F0RIK/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0028F0RIK&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR-VrUpaU1V_Gx29lLADHuSHLsw1vQRGRJj3eLCBsSwy19Hh4W7oOhdx3SsxBCeJN4Fgbf6HY_86LQxzn85HKpX3wMFYUrMg2CDcvQB5S35faxVJYK2AJsPfhTz_CChZ38E91fOqL3OJeT/s1600/sox+pepper+shaker.jpg" height="227" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Yes, these are salt and pepper shakers</td></tr>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As mentioned <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2014/01/playing-pepper-preview-2014-edition.html"><span style="color: blue;">previously</span></a>, the Cardinals
blog <b>C70 at the bat</b> at <a href="http://www.cardsconclave.com/c70"><span style="color: blue;">Cards Conclave</span></a> hosts an annual
series where bloggers from each team answer some specific questions in
previewing their team's seasons.</span><br />
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As in previous years, other Baseball Bloggers Alliance members also participated Including fellow Canadian Red Sox fan and blogger Allan at <a href="http://joyofsox.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">The Joy of Sox</a>, Christine from <a href="http://www.bostonredthoughts.com/" target="_blank">Boston Red Thoughts</a>, John at <a href="http://quinnmedia.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">The Mighty Quinn Media Machine</a>, Michael at <a href="http://www.thepeskypole.net/" target="_blank">The Pesky Pole</a>, Bryan at <a href="http://replacementlevel.wordpress.com/" target="_blank">Replacement Level Baseball Blog</a>, Dave at <a href="http://www.soxvsstripes.com/" target="_blank">Sox vs. Stripes</a> and Dan at <a href="http://www.talkinsoxwithdan.com/" target="_blank">Talkin’ Sox With Dan</a>. To see how these Red Sox bloggers<span style="font-family: inherit;"> answered these
questions, take a look at the </span><a href="http://www.cardsconclave.com/2014/02/20/playing-pepper-2014-boston-red-sox/" target="_blank">Red Sox "Playing Pepper" </a>page at <a href="http://www.cardsconclave.com/c70" target="_blank">C70 at the bat</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Below are the questions with the answers that I provided. As always, I
welcome your comments and thoughts:</span></div>
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<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">1) How would you grade the offseason?</span></b></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As returning <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0771057377/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0771057377&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">World Series Champions</a>, Boston could afford to deal from a
position of strength, and I'm glad the Sox took an "if it ain't broke
don't fix it" approach. Which actually sounds strange, since we will have
new players up the middle at catcher, shortstop and centerfield on opening day.
Behind the plate we've replaced Salty with AJ Pierzynski. I'm not a big fan of
his, but we still have David Ross as a capable backup and Ryan Lavarnway may be
a decent option as a fill in if something happens. If he's not, we have Dan
Butler and Christian Vazquez waiting in the wings. I'll call it a wash. The big
offseason loss was <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00HHES6WG/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00HHES6WG&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Jacoby Ellsbury</a>. Although we will miss his speed at the top
of the lineup, I'm very excited about seeing what Jackie Bradley Jr. (JBJ) can
do as the everyday centerfielder. I suspect this will be a net loss in the
short term, but have little doubt that Boston will get more performance with
the $153 million they saved by not resigning Ells than they would with him. At
shortstop, Xander Bogaerts (X) is slated to start in place of Stephen Drew. As
much as I love superior defense from the middle of the infield, Bogaert's bat
will more than offset that. Mike Napoli's hip is still a ticking time-bomb and
we did nothing to address first base (other than resign him), but Mike Carp
showed he is more than capable to step in if necessary. Our starting rotation
returns intact, and we've added some bullpen arms in Edward Mujica and Burke
Badenhop. Never a bad idea to stockpile arms. With the caveat that there is
still time to make some more changes, as long as they don't make any stupid
moves (e.g., signing Drew long term, displacing either X or Middlebrooks;
giving Dempster away from free because of the starter's logjam), I'm giving
them an A- for this offseason.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>2) Will the loss of Jacoby Ellsbury be significant?</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">No. Yes, you won't replace his 6 wins (bWAR) overnight, but barring
injury, our outfield defense is set and has lots of depth. JBJ will be starting
in CF; Victorino can play there if necessary, and Grady Sizemore is a long shot,
but may become a viable option if he returns to form. This team should have
learned last year that it's better to have several good players, than a couple
of superstars surrounded by average players. The Red Sox have lots of good
players and enough depth in the outfield to absorb the loss of Ells to the
always and <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1596090421/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1596090421&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">still hated Yankees</a>.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>3) Which roster battle will be the most intriguing during spring
training?</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Barring injury, I don't think there are any real battles. I hope the Red
Sox don't use exhibition game stats to determine starters. I'm fairly confident
Dustin Pedroia could go hitless in March and still be the opening day second
baseman. That said, if Middlebrooks takes a step backwards, and Garin
Cecchini shows he's ready for The Show, there could be some controversy at the
hot corner. But ultimately I suspect this will be more media and/or fan fueled
than an actual front office plan, and Middlebrooks will be the opening day
starter regardless.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>4) What rookie, if any, will make the most impact on the team?</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Despite JBJ being our opening day centerfielder last year and playing
everyday for the first couple of weeks until David Ortiz came off the DL, and
then getting called up a couple more times, before coming up for good in
September, I was surprised to see he is still rookie eligible. So are Brandon
Workman, Allan Webster and Drake Britton who could all be a big part of this
year's arms in Boston. But who am I kidding. Xander Bogaerts has a shot
at being the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00005RT3M/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00005RT3M&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Rookie of the Year</a>, after already having been a big part of last
year's postseason in Boston and his bat should have an immediate impact on the
2014 team.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b><br />
5) What will be the final record of the team and where will they finish in the
division? </b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Last year I predicted 86-76 and a 3rd place finish, and we ended up
World Champions. I'm not going to admit to being <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345485440/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345485440&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">superstitious</a>, but I don't
want to upset the balance in the Universe, so I'll stick with the same
prediction, and hope for the same incorrect result.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>6) Which player from your team do you most enjoy watching?</b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin-bottom: 0.0001pt;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There are so many likeable characters to choose from. It's easy to pick
perennial favourites (Canadian spelling, eh?) such as Pedroia or Ortiz. And
recent newcomers such as Gomes and Victorino seemed to become immediate fan darlings.
Lester going from cancer survivor to team ace makes him a sentimental choice for
many as well. And Koji’s crazy high five dugout celebrations are loved by all
fans. And Daniel Nava? He goes from being cut by his college team to hitting a
grand slam on the first pitch he sees in the majors. But ever since I saw him play in Scottsdale
in the Arizona Fall League, as a teammate to the much more heralded Bryce
Harper and Mike Trout, I’ve been a big fan of Will Middlebrooks. After some
struggles last year, I look forward to watching him bounce back and show some
gold glove caliber defense and become a legitimate power threat with 30+ home
runs.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-37480945407531417942014-01-30T13:37:00.002-07:002014-02-20T17:29:16.283-07:00Playing Pepper Preview 2014 edition<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://mwltraveler.com/" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVFuIrTwKpUhR7u_NrBrpR5Sf66dg0iqa7N8eTIxrH4OZSvz3IrJE6aMnDu4_U37iqTNxOqnvcrNFJfTPMgJNS-ig5o95IsFqYUWPCCFrxPm_vmejLW9nYatpry-5jKYzQfUbNU8gQGHp9/s1600/pepper.jpg" height="192" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">(Craig Wieczorkiewicz / Midwest League Traveller)</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Every year, Daniel Shoptaw, who runs a Cardinals blog at <a href="http://www.cardsconclave.com/c70">C70 at the Bat</a>, and is the President of the <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a>, does a project he calls Playing Pepper, where he gets other teams' bloggers to preview their team. Last year<a href="http://www.cardinal70.com/bostonredsox/playing-pepper-2013-boston-red.php"> I participated</a> and <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/02/playing-pepper-answers.html">among my prophecies</a> I correctly forecasted John Lackey's surprising good season, and said I was excited to see Xander Bogaerts debut, but I suspected it wouldn't be until September. I was off <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/gl.cgi?id=bogaexa01&t=b&year=2013">by about 10 days</a>. (Of course, I also foresaw a 3rd place finish, but even I'm not perfect).<br />
<br />
This year I will be answering the following questions.<br />
<br />
1) How would you grade the offseason?<br />
2) Will the loss of Jacoby Ellsbury be significant?<br />
3) Which roster battle will be the most intriguing during spring training?<br />
4) What rookie, if any, will make the most impact on the team in 2014?<br />
5) What will be the final record of the team and where will they finish in the division?<br />
6) Which player from your team do you most enjoy watching?<br />
<br />
Look for an updated post on or around Feb 20th with my musings on the above.<br />
UPDATE: Post is <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2014/02/playing-pepper-2014-red-sox.html">here</a><br />
<br />
Meanwhile keep checking at C70 at the Bat as <a href="http://www.cardsconclave.com/search/playing+pepper">other team's previews</a> start being posted.<br />
<br />
<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-4688593329333147442014-01-08T21:39:00.001-07:002014-04-28T20:33:05.807-06:002014 Hall of Fame results<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1606997254/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1606997254&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiempcZx8EZza0b1HJapq5KUSLQwdvnH66n55PtGkKKICr4DECUD4G3ycwm2kZbllPsECncF8WiiRMrSwcmZk_AN56qvQXIvvtC8g0HXwvnSBbbP-AYdWf94SuH_5hYXnM9PNEeV2hyphenhyphen2o8E/s1600/charliebrown.jpg" /></a></div>
It's been said by <a href="http://tangotiger.com/index.php/site/most-perfect-hof-ballots">thousands of baseball fans</a>, <a href="http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/newsstand/discussion/the_2013_hof_ballot_collecting_gizmo">thousands of times</a>, <a href="http://www.forbes.com/sites/chrissmith/2014/01/08/baseballs-hall-of-fame-voting-is-broken/">thousands of different ways</a>. <br />
<br />
<b>The Hall of Fame, and the voting process is broken!</b><br />
<br />
Someone should listen to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0684800888/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0684800888&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Bill James</a> already. Anyways, in spite of many deserving players being left out for <a href="http://mlb.si.com/2014/01/07/greg-maddux-ken-gurnick-dodgers-mlb-hall-of-fame-vote/">various</a> <a href="http://deadspin.com/murray-chass-is-everything-thats-wrong-with-the-hall-o-1493277221">ludicrous</a> <a href="http://jasoncollette.com/2013/12/29/something-doesnt-make-sense/">reasons</a>, the BBWAA did manage to elect three players who definitely belong in Cooperstown. Congratulations to Misters Maddux, Glavine and Thomas. Although none of them played for the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-i-red-sox-players.html">Red Sox,</a> or were <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-ii-canadians.html">Canadian</a>, I did have all of them on my <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-iii-ballot-time.html">final ballot</a>. Major complaint this year by fans everywhere is about who got left out, not which unworthy player got in. At least <a href="http://www.hallofverygood.com/2013-articles/january/11cooperstown-2013-jack-morris.html">Morris</a> is off the ballot.<br />
<br />
<br />
Shop online for <a href="http://www.bestshowticketslasvegas.com/buy-boston-red-sox-tickets.asp" title="Red Sox Tickets">tickets to the Red Sox</a> such as those hard-to-come-by <a href="http://www.bestshowticketslasvegas.com/boston-red-sox-vs-new-york-yankees-tickets.asp" title="Red Sox Yankees Tickets">Red Sox Yankees game tickets</a>.<br />
<br />
<br />Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-42453455027163967942013-12-17T06:15:00.000-07:002013-12-17T06:15:01.239-07:002014 Hall of Fame - Part III - Ballot Time<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1450803407/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1450803407&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEitdNnPzbzDIynwe7WewVhwTXV8a7tpqhyphenhyphenhSJz0xap40iWF7BgXb6mxSefPmzd3-8pooDHM1F17GPUuTEEwp3k9LWhsTk-PDP_QJ01VPtmbVqe0F0McEKRwSvMKn921PCRdXWoDNBWmfVoc/s320/hof.jpg" width="292" /></a></div>
In my previous posts, I reviewed the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-i-red-sox-players.html">former Red Sox on the ballot</a> and my thoughts on them, as well as my thoughts on <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-ii-canadians.html">players of interest to Canadians</a>.<br />
<br />
To recap, I had said the following eight players would get a checkmark on my ballot:<br />
<ul>
<li>Jeff Bagwell</li>
<li>Edgar Martinez</li>
<li>Fred McGriff</li>
<li>Tim Raines</li>
<li>Curt Schilling</li>
<li>Lee Smith</li>
<li>Frank Thomas</li>
<li>Larry Walker</li>
</ul>
<br />
This leaves two open spots. Players who I hadn't reviewed in these previous posts include Craig Biggio, Barry Bonds, Tom Glavine, Luis Gonzalez, Greg Maddux, Mike Mussina, Mike Piazza, Alan Trammell and others who in a less crowded ballot might get some serious consideration.<br />
<br />
I'm going to have to get some <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00006IF8J/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00006IF8J&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">liquid paper</a> and erase some of the checkmarks off of my in progress ballot. My ballot will need room for Barry Bonds, Tom Glavine, Greg Maddux and Craig Biggio. Lee Smith and Fred McGriff will need to come out. I feel awful that I don't have room for Alan Trammell. <br />
<br />
<b>My final ballot:</b><br />
<br />
<ol>
<li>Jeff Bagwell</li>
<li>Craig Biggio</li>
<li>Barry Bonds</li>
<li>Tom Glavine</li>
<li>Greg Maddux</li>
<li>Edgar Martinez</li>
<li>Tim Raines</li>
<li>Curt Schilling</li>
<li>Frank Thomas</li>
<li>Larry Walker</li>
</ol>
For some more reading, you can take a look at <a href="https://www.e-junkie.com/ecom/gb.php?ii=1092070&c=ib&aff=218445&cl=93906%22%20target=%22ejejcsingle%22">The Hall of Nearly Great</a> to read some great stories about several players that are not in Cooperstown. This book has a compilation of some excellent writers talking about players who have not been elected, including some Red Sox favorites such as Luis Tiant, Dwight Evans and Ellis Burks.Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-57926864035466060992013-12-13T11:35:00.000-07:002013-12-13T11:35:41.071-07:002014 Hall of Fame - Part II - Canadians<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/1552774864/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=15121&creative=390961&creativeASIN=1552774864&linkCode=as2&tag=bbiab1967-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgr2EL35Cntk11cD4UGPyoVH-fzdREB7AZFPBSwBk0Bh2vGX4F8SKtFFBz_jGuzNulxhVoBwyWPNuPwxkBscR1VVAGfSILOS5V8Jd5brmxObtsl1d1RMczGfGX3-MrAq0y2JWEkIBnXsT5P/s320/fergiejenkins.jpg" height="320" width="226" /></span></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/12/2014-hall-of-fame-part-i-red-sox-players.html">my last post</a>, I previewed all the former Red Sox on this year’s ballot. Today I take a look at the Canadians and other players of
interest to Canada:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<ul>
<li><br /></li>
</ul>
</blockquote>
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">CANADIAN PLAYERS<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Eric Gagne – </b>As already discussed in the Red Sox post,
no. Just no. <b><span style="color: red;">NO<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Larry Walker</b> <b>–</b>
Starting his career in Montreal, he is a favorite of many Canadians. He ended his career with a .313 batting
average, an even .400 OBP and 383 home runs, for an OPS+ of 141. A lot of
people discredit him for his offensive output in Colorado, but keep in mind
that the “+” in OPS+ is adjusted for ballpark effects. And besides, in his MVP 1997 season where he
hit .366 with 49 home runs, he only hit 20 out of Coors Field. Some park effect(!). </span></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">And he was also an excellent outfielder,
winning several gold gloves. He has a
career WAR above 70. There are exactly
10 players with a higher WAR who are not in the Hall and nine of those are
either not eligible or still on the ballot (Bonds, Bagwell, Frank Thomas, ARod,
Pujols Chipper Jones, Thome, Griffey and
Rose). Bill Dahlen is the only player
who ever achieved Walker’s career WAR and isn’t in. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b><span style="color: red;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Played in CANADA<o:p></o:p></span></span></b></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Moises Alou </b>– Before being
remembered for the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0040ZN9MW/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0040ZN9MW&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Steve Bartman incident,</a> he was a promising
young Expos player. He was a runner up
to winning Rookie of the Year when he first broke in, and was 3<sup>rd</sup> in
MVP voting the year the Expos had the best record in the league but missed the
playoffs (1994, strike). He was a 6 time
all star, and ended his career with a .300 batting average and 332 home runs. He was a pretty good player for a long time,
but falls short of Hall worthiness, although he may stick around the ballot for
a few years. <b><span style="color: red;">NO<o:p></o:p></span></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<b style="font-family: inherit;">Jeff Kent – </b><span style="font-family: inherit;">He started his Rookie
season playing home games at the Skydome, hitting 8 home runs for the
Blue Jays. But before the campaign was
over, he was sent to the Mets for David Cone. Cone won 4 games for Toronto
before leaving as a free agent.
Meanwhile, Kent hit 369 more home runs in his career, which was more
than any second baseman since, well, ever.
However, having more home runs than any other second baseman isn’t
exactly an </span>indisputable<span style="font-family: inherit;"> reason for inducting someone into the Hall. It’s like putting in a catcher because he has
more stolen bases than any other catcher. That’s not what they’re supposed to
be good at. Kent never struck me as one of the better players of his era. His
power was overshadowed by a ton of players, and he only really stood out
because he played second base. If he was an outfielder or a DH we wouldn’t be
talking about him, and he didn’t play second base well enough to help his case.
</span><b style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Edgar Martinez – </b>Growing up in Puerto
Rico, Martinez was actually born in New York City. And he spent his entire 18
year career in Seattle, which although only about 100 miles from the 49<sup>th</sup>
parallel, is not quite in Canada. So why
did I include him on the list? Well, he spent part of 4 seasons as the third
baseman for Seattle’s AAA affiliate, the Calgary Cannons. And it’s my blog, I include who I want(!). Like Curt Schilling, while watching him play,
I thought he was a pretty good player, but Hall of Famer didn’t automatically
come to mind, like it did with several of his <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001VEI1GY/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001VEI1GY&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">teammates</a>. But then I looked
at the numbers. He ended his career with
a 312/418/515 slash line, good for an OPS+ of 147 and accumulated 68.3 WAR. <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004O0E1CU/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004O0E1CU&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">What is WAR good for</a>? Apparently it helps me decide who should be
in the Hall of Fame. I don’t really need
to go any further. You read what I said above about Larry Walker and his 70
WAR. The biggest knock against Edgar is
that he was a DH. You know what? A DH’s job is to HIT! There are a ton of good hitters in the Hall
who were absolute butchers in the field.
Would Edgar have been more valuable to the Ms if he had played an
atrocious third base instead? Because I
guarantee if he had, he’d have more than 35% of the votes that he received last
year. Does that make sense? Neither does
leaving him off the ballot. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Fred McGriff - </b>493 home runs. And he wasn’t a Dave
Kingman-esque type of hitter, finishing his career at 283/377/509, rather than
the .236 and barely getting on base at a .300 clip that Kingman had. He got a
bit of MVP consideration throughout his career, and some all-star games, but
it’s hard to get the mainstream media to notice you when you spend most of your
time in places such as Toronto, Tampa and San Diego. If he had played home
games at Yankee stadium he’d certainly have more than 20% support for the Hall.
<b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Jack Morris – </b>Just no, no, no. On
the list as he was a member of the Blue Jays, and he won rings with them
despite a 6+ERA in 1993. I’ve ranted against him before. Feel free to read it <a href="http://www.hallofverygood.com/2013-articles/january/11cooperstown-2013-jack-morris.html">here</a>, I don’t feel like
repeating myself. But I will one more time: <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Tim Raines – </b>I don’t even know
where to start. Many others have said much more than I could. Start by checking
<a href="http://raines30.com/">raines30.com</a>. Everything I wanted to say has already been covered there. This <a href="http://baseballpastandpresent.com/2013/01/02/50-baseball-players-hall-fame-version-3-0/">highly acclaimed list</a> has Raines as the best
player not in the Hall of Fame. (side note: you can vote at this year’s version <a href="http://baseballpastandpresent.com/2013/12/07/vote-50-baseball-players-hall-fame-version-4-0/">here</a>) If you thought playing in Toronto, Tampa or
San Diego was bad for media exposure, someone in Montreal might as well have
been in Siberia as far as the media was concerned. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNoSpacing">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Frank Thomas – </b>The Big Hurt came to
Toronto as a 39 year old past-his-prime DH and all he did was slug 26 home runs
and get on base at a .377 rate. He
finished his career well above a 300/400/500 slash line. He had very good power
even for a 1B/DH, getting over 40 home runs 5 times in his career, but more
impressive was his ability to get on base, walking over 100 times in 10
seasons. His career .419 on base
percentage is much higher than those of several Hall of Famers who were known
for their ability to get on base such as Wade Boggs or Rickey Henderson. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">These are the players with a Canadian connection in this year’s
ballot. I have selected five of these to
put a checkmark next to, as well as three former Red Sox. In my next post I will publicize my full ballot. It will be tough to limit it to just 10
players<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
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Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-68046391320024277232013-12-10T10:00:00.000-07:002013-12-10T10:00:05.626-07:002014 Hall of Fame - Part I - Red Sox players<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2voiz_0HDOl7lcSglncg4giUmb8vfi06BEXJx_c7I2Amdz4Of3E4WkjD0wiyQma9iedHifa1Qg3E56D2hxuL7b-N28FNe1fS8jnxvxlFziI1BPGMOVTO8QACLlpwHrcJyZFGwqz_pQyZM/s1600/ricehof.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="182" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2voiz_0HDOl7lcSglncg4giUmb8vfi06BEXJx_c7I2Amdz4Of3E4WkjD0wiyQma9iedHifa1Qg3E56D2hxuL7b-N28FNe1fS8jnxvxlFziI1BPGMOVTO8QACLlpwHrcJyZFGwqz_pQyZM/s400/ricehof.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
There is a large list of solid Hall of Fame candidates on this
year's ballot. Several sportswriters are struggling with the maximum of
10 votes per ballot. Even if you want to exclude the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0307271803/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0307271803&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">known cheaters</a> from consideration there are several names who will be left
off ballots who are much more worthy than some recent questionable inductees.
Among these are several former Red Sox players as well as Canadians or
players with a strong Canadian connection.<o:p></o:p></div>
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This post will include my thoughts on the Red Sox on this year's ballot
(alphabetically). My next post will look at the Canadians and the players who played in Canada, and finally I will have a wrap up post with my full ballot. </div>
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<b><span style="color: red;">RED SOX players<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
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<br /></div>
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<b>Sean Casey</b> -
If there was a Hall of Fame for nice guys the Mayor would be an easy 1st year
inductee. He was voted the<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/baseball/mlb/05/16/0521poll/index.html">friendliest player in baseball</a> and I never heard anyone say a bad
word about him. And although his time with the Red Sox was brief, with
him just being a backup 1st baseman for a season, he was a 3 time all-star with
some power who finished his career with a .300 batting average. He's also made
the Irish Hall of Fame and the Reds' one which includes all time greats such as
Johnny Bench, Tom Seaver and Frank Robinson. His friendliness may garner
him a few thank you votes from the BBWAA, but he will drop off the ballot this
year. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Roger Clemens -</b> if you just look at the stats, this is a no-brainer. But the
Hall of Fame criteria also includes integrity, sportsmanship and character. And
I'm not quite totally sure how to handle the whole PED thing yet. But not
even considering that issue, in my opinion, Roger Clemens <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061724823/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061724823&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">never exhibited</a> much integrity, sportsmanship or character on or off the field. He's not
getting my vote. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Eric Gagne -<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>He had three great seasons as a closer,
but outside of that he had a grand total of 35 career saves, with an ERA well
above 4. He almost<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/02/baseball-is-awesome-maligned-canadian.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>single handedly prevented</a><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>the Red Sox from getting to the 2007 World
Series, although he still got a ring. Three seasons isn't enough for Hall
of Fame consideration. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Todd Jones<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- Another player remembered mostly for his
time outside of Boston. In spite of 300+ career saves, he only finished a grand
total of seven games for the Red Sox, none in a save situation. He had a
long career, playing 16 years, which helped him accumulate all those saves, but
he was never really one of the elite relievers in the league. He'll be
another one and done. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Hideo Nomo -<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>It's easy to take a cursory look at his
stats, and just gloss over him. But if the Hall of Fame is for those that
changed the game in some way, Nomo deserves some consideration here. He burst
on the scene with the Dodgers in 1995, and his impact with Nomo-mania, was
reminiscent of <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1595800670/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1595800670&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Fernando-mania</a> a decade and a half earlier. He was an easy
choice for Rookie of the Year, led the league in strikeouts and was among the
leaders in many other pitching categories. To prove his first season wasn't a
fluke, the following season he was 4th in Cy Young balloting, and threw a
no-hitter. Against the Rockies. At Coors Field! It wasn't until 2001 that
he played for the Red Sox, and in his first appearance he threw another
no-hitter, becoming the first Boston pitcher to do so in my lifetime. And
he again led the league in strikeouts. But aside from his specific
on-field accomplishments, what he really did was open the door for Japanese
players to be considered MLB ready. Ichiro, Dice-K, Matsui, Darvish and
all the other Japanese stars all owe Nomo some credit for being given an
opportunity to show their ability in the MLB. Nevertheless Hideo Nomo is
not a Hall of Famer. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Curt Schilling<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- A postseason hero! All Red Sox fans
remember the bloody sock, but that's just the tip of his playoff accomplishments.
In 1993, he was the MVP of the NLCS leading the Phillies into the World
Series, and down 3 games to 1 he threw a shutout in Game 5 to give Philadelphia
some hope. In 2001, he teamed up with Randy Johnson to lead the Diamondbacks to
their only Championship. He started 6 games that postseason and was 4-0 with a
1.12 ERA. And of course, he was a big part of the 2004 and 2007 Red Sox
Championships, ending up with an ERA of 2.23 and an 11-2 record in his playoff
career. But being good or great in a handful of games does not (should
not!) define a Hall of Famer’s credentials.
I always thought Schill was a pretty good starter, but when I watched
him pitch, “all time great” didn’t usually cross my mind, as it instinctively
did when I watched Pedro for example. So
I started looking at the numbers, and the more I looked the more I was
convinced he is Hall worthy. He 'only'
won 216 games, and there are very few Hall of Famers with less than that, and
his 3.46 career ERA is good, but doesn't jump off the page. However, he
played in a very high scoring environment, and his ERA+ of 127 is the same as
Tom Seaver's. He also had a historically good strikeout to walk ratio
ending up with the 2nd highest ratio in history - better than Pedro Martinez or
Mariano Rivera. Although I wish sometimes he'd keep his controversial
thoughts to himself, I can't deny that he does belongs in the Hall. He's
got my vote. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Lee Smith -<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>18 seasons, 478 saves, career ERA of 3.03.
One of the most dominating relievers of all time, including 2 1/2 seasons
in Boston. He should have been in by now. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>J.T. Snow -<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>A gold glover! But I don't think
that can compensate for being a league average hitter as a first baseman.
If he was a shortstop or catcher this paragraph might be longer. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Mike Timlin<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- Let me start by saying that I love Mike
Timlin. He was one of the few Blue Jays I rooted for when <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/11/baseball-is-awesome-jeff-stone-game.html">I
lived in Toronto</a>, and I was ecstatic when Boston picked him up. He has a great sense of humor and doesn’t
mind <a href="https://twitter.com/TheMikeTimlin/status/395744107542237184">laughing at himself</a>. He was on the mound with the tying run at 3<sup>rd</sup>
base, and made a good play on a bunt in extra innings to earn the save in the clinching
game of the first World Series championship ever won by a team outside of the
US for the Jays in 1992. These are all
good anecdotes, but what about the numbers?
Timlin is one of only 15 players to pitch in over 1000 games, finishing
up with 1058 good for 8<sup>th</sup> all time. But longevity alone isn’t enough
as only one of the seven ahead of him (Eckersley) is in the Hall (with Rivera
likely joining him soon). Eckersley of
course had an amazing peak as a closer with 390 saves, to go along with 149
wins as a starter. I hear Rivera was a fairly decent closer as well. Timlin? Well, he was mainly a setup man throughout
his career (although he did close games for parts of 5 seasons and amassed a
grand total of 141 saves in his 18 seasons). His ERA? Always good, usually
above league average, finishing up at 3.63, good enough for an ERA+ of 125. So, longevity isn’t enough, and he has good
but not eye popping numbers otherwise.
If I wasn’t such a fan of his, I would have just put a NO next to his
time, and continued on. <b><span style="color: red;">NO</span></b><o:p></o:p></div>
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Honorable Mention<o:p></o:p></div>
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<b>Jeff Bagwell</b> - I suppose we could include him on this
list as well as he was almost a Red Sox. (Although I still think trading
him for 2 months of Larry Andersen was a smart move - I mean with Boggs and
Scott Cooper on the depth chart ahead of him, where would he play in Boston??) <sup>*
</sup>Anyhow, I could list a bunch of numbers, such as 449 HR, .408 OBP 149
OPS+ and his multiple awards including MVP,
Gold Glover, Silver Slugger and many more. But without digging too deep, I just like to
think about 1<sup>st</sup> basemen or right handed hitters who were better than
him. It’s a short list – Gehrig, Jimmie
Foxx, Pujols, maybe Frank Thomas at 1B.
Mays, Aaron, Schmidt, Manny, A-Rod as better right handed hitters. Are there more? Not many. By any measure, Bagwell compares
well to all-time greats, and very favourably to average Hall of Famers. <b><span style="color: #00b050;">YES</span></b><sup><o:p></o:p></sup></div>
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That’s all the Red Sox players on the ballot. My next post will discuss players of interest
to Canadians.<span style="font-size: medium;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="font-size: x-small;">* Before you criticize my line of thinking, please check your
sarcasm detector. Feel free to contact Lou Gorman, may he rest in peace,
on this issue instead.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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Ruben (Red Sox Nation - Alberta)http://www.blogger.com/profile/09043460797783966428noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-55220843309778472302013-11-10T13:30:00.000-07:002013-11-10T13:30:00.357-07:00Baseball Bloggers Alliance Award Winners<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKRSWmi1W7lLT0IT05_Owur7XnjCJO4K0frqaVVHnPUykXZSVkDz6qZZsSwqPaqp4GKCrRqgY-yOK_-2tfTuN1RorH_-FxoRqUzj40FHVXksRyyErv8KFEBjcqBOpb9vav5BXbMJOMXDe0/s1600/BaseballBloggersAlliance.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKRSWmi1W7lLT0IT05_Owur7XnjCJO4K0frqaVVHnPUykXZSVkDz6qZZsSwqPaqp4GKCrRqgY-yOK_-2tfTuN1RorH_-FxoRqUzj40FHVXksRyyErv8KFEBjcqBOpb9vav5BXbMJOMXDe0/s1600/BaseballBloggersAlliance.jpg" /></a></div>
The <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance </a>has chosen annual award winners in both leagues. Unsurprisingly this group of well-informed baseball devotee's picks mirrored mine very closely.<br />
<br />
Here are their winners in the order they were posted with links to their announcements:<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2013/11/04/2013-connie-mack-award-leads-bba-announcements/">Connie Mack Award (Manager of the Year)</a></b><br />
AL: John Farrell<br />
NL: Clint Hurdle<br />
<br />
I <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/2013-al-connie-mack-award.html">had the same picks</a>, although I had Francona in 3rd place while in the BBA they were a very close 1-2. Much as I love Tito I feel like he had more to work with than Kansas City's Ned Yost.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2013/11/05/bba-names-2013-top-rookies-as-recipients-of-willie-mays-award/">Willie Mays Award (Top Rookie)</a></b><br />
AL: Wil Myers<br />
NL: Jose Fernandez<br />
<br />
Again, <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/2013-american-league-willie-mays-award.html">we matched</a>, although I'm a little surprised at how much of a landslide the BBA gave to Wil Myers, and <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/national-league-award-voting.html">very pleasantly surprised</a> that Fernandez easily bested Puig.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2013/11/06/bba-announces-2013-goose-gossage-award/">Goose Gossage Award (Top Reliever)</a></b><br />
AL: Koji Uehara<br />
NL: Craig Kimbrel<br />
<br />
Again, two perfect picks. Kimbrel received 90% of the votes and I really didn't hesitate at all in putting his name on my ballot, so I can see why. Koji edged Greg Holland 52% to 36% and I also had them 1-2. In 3rd place I infamously picked the Twins' Joe Nathan, and as I've been told numerous times now, he spent the season in Arlington. But I'm not going back to edit<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/2013-goose-gossage-award-al-reliever-of.html"> that post </a>now. I deserve all the mocking cast my way.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2013/11/07/walter-johnson-award-given-for-2013-season/">Walter Johnson Award (Top Pitcher)</a></b><br />
AL: Max Scherzer<br />
NL: Clayton Kershaw<br />
<br />
No surprises there. I am curious as to who received the vote(s) that didn't go to Kershaw, as he only ended up with 98% of the votes. Then again, I was the village idiot who<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/2013-al-walter-johnson-award.html"> didn't cast his vote for Scherzer </a>so there's always some in the crowd, I guess.<br />
<br />
<b><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2013/11/08/bba-announces-final-2013-award-stan-musial-award-given-to-best-players/">Stan Musial Award (Top Player)</a></b><br />
AL: Mike Trout<br />
NL: Andrew McCutchen<br />
<br />
Again, both RSN Alberta and the BBA picked Trout over Cabrera. In my mind, however, this year Miggy has a better case. As I <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/2013-stan-musial-award-al-player-of-year.html">outlined in my voting post</a>, he had a better season than in 2012, and Trout's year wasn't quite as good as his rookie campaign. But Trout was still better and rightfully received this award. McCutchen was also a <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/national-league-award-voting.html">deserving recipient</a> in the NL.<br />
<br />
All in all, a great job by the guys and gals of the BBA. Unlike the BBWAA, I don't think we've ever made grossly negligent picks. I'm waiting to hear what the more established group picks for its awards. I won't be as upset this year if they pick Miggy over Trout, last year was inexcusable, this year I can see it. But I will be fuming when they pick Puig over the much more deserving Fernandez for NL Rookie. Let's wait and see, maybe they'll prove me wrong and make the right picks this year. <br />
<br />
Enjoy the offseason! It will be a good one for all us Red Sox fans!! I'm going to be watching the below over and over again :)<br />
<br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=rsna0ba-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=B00EYMNSX6" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
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Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-60876326426971193642013-10-22T23:40:00.000-06:002013-10-22T23:40:27.029-06:002013 Stan Musial Award - AL Player of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345517067/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345517067&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgxzGJC76PlL6sxJEOJA8ggV7kX84qrmCetMYXwlByNyQr05K2Y0JWL3_wLKjoUYjyJlryVmGTMMhBMDNf56LjC0PJ5Xk6iVdpaet-By91_JSEVJmvBSfOtTTHig8KrDLvmABhNWoa4mQ-Q/s1600/stanmvp.jpg" /></a></div>
My final award in the <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance </a>year end voting, is the Stan Musial Award for the player of the year. Last year in a <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-stan-musial-award.html">slightly controversial vote</a> I ignored Miguel Cabrera's triple crown, and cast my ballot for Mike Trout instead. Well, this year, with a lot less media hype Cabrera had an even better season! His batting average went up from .330 to .348. He hit the same number of home runs and only 2 less RBI in 67 fewer at-bats. His walk ratio increased from below 10 to 14%. He led the league in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging, to obviously lead in OPS / OPS+ as well. He led in OPS last season as well with .999, but this year he was at 1.078, the highest mark in the American League since 2006. Maybe I can make it up to Tigers fans by voting for him this year, when he'll need more of a push as he didn't get the glitzy (but meaningless) triple crown. <br />
<a name='more'></a>But I won't. Mike Trout, who depending on which metrics you value, may have had an inferior season to his rookie year, still easily outperformed Mr. Cabrera. His sexy home run and steal counting stats were down, but his walk rate improved almost 50%, leading to a higher OPS. His bWAR of 9.2 easily bested Miggy's 7.2. (He had an even bigger margin in fWAR 10.4 to 7.6, if you prefer the Fangraphs version to Baseball-Reference). Without even considering defense, Trout edged Miggy in both versions of offensive only WAR. When you consider their gloves, defensive range and speed, it's a no-brainer. Mike Trout was the American League's top player this year.<br />
<br />
Last year I didn't even give Cabrera a 2nd place vote. What about this season? Chris Davis and Josh Donaldson have pretty good cases.<br />
<br />
But not good enough. Miggy at least gets a 2nd place from me.<br />
<br />
My full ballot:<br />
#1: Mike Trout<br />
#2: Miguel Cabrera<br />
#3: Josh Donaldson<br />
#4: Evan Longoria<br />
#5: Chris Davis<br />
#6: Robinson Cano<br />
#7: Manny Machado<br />
#8: Dustin Pedroia<br />
#9: Adrian Beltre<br />
#10: Joe MauerRuben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-43768361283126450052013-10-21T17:21:00.000-06:002013-10-21T17:22:38.737-06:002013 Goose Gossage Award - AL Reliever of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0345430689/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0345430689&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="200" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjSRIDScFenINXvRmWXOtt_ezZsyDEt-yfscib0xSkk-me5AZHKJU4qAPWuKfEyIngqfsgjo-ZUNvhMwe_01bjVAAUp_ZiNkM05BZOMVrNR5tJS6G5uXy465D8DlQjiqNQyxLqkxEhyphenhyphencPg/s200/goose.jpg" width="200" /></a></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In my series of <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a> award winners, today I
am revealing my vote for the Goose Gossage Award for reliever of the year. On a side note, there is an Alberta connection here as <a href="http://baseballinalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/01/come-see-goose-gossage-or-brent-sutter.html">Mr.
Gossage was in Calgary</a> earlier this year.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This award always seems to
stay in the East. In 2011, in a<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/10/2011-al-goose-gossage-award.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>vote that was controversial</a><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>with many of my readers, I selected the
Yankees David Robertson over our own Jonathan Papelbon. Last year,
despite Baltimore's Jim Johnson leading the world in saves, I<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span><a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-goose-gossage-award.html">voted</a><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>for the Tampa's Francisco Rodney.
This year is no different. In early August I might have needed to pore
over stats carefully to determine who was most deserving, but after the way
Koji Uehara finished the season, this one is a no-brainer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">First some raw numbers:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br />
<a name='more'></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">74.1 IP, 1.09 ERA, 9 ER, 7 UIBB, 101 Ks, WHIP 0.57, 12.2 K/9, 11.2
K/BB<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Pretty good, but here’s where it gets better. He was the 4th closer the Sox tried, after
season ending injuries to Hanrahan, Bailey and Miller. Here is what he did in the second half: In 29 games he pitched 32 innings, giving up 1
run(!) for an ERA of 0.28, and an OPS against of .231. He struck out 41 batters, while walking
one. You don’t need a calculator to
figure out his K:walk ratio. (hint: it's over 40!)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It's rare for relievers to have as much value as starters due to
how few innings they pitch in comparison. (and a reason I was a proponent for Bard
as a starter... even a #4 starter is likely to be more valuable than a closer,
I once argued - wrongly).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyhow, Koji ended up with a WAR(b-ref) of 3.6, besting
Lester who pitched 200+ innings and went 15-8 while accumulating 3.0 of
WAR. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">To put this into historical context, when <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0083ZN3JE/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0083ZN3JE&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Hall of Famer Dennis Eckersley </a>won the
Cy Young award in 1992, he contributed a 2.9WAR and had a 10.5 K:BB ratio. His
career bests: WHIP 0.61 (1989), K/9 10.7
(1993) WAR 3.3<sup>*</sup>(1990). Koji
beat the Eck’s career bests all this year. Mariano Rivera’s career best WHIP was 0.67 in
2008, and ERA was 1.38 in 2005. Both
also beaten by Koji this season.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="font-size: x-small;">* As a reliever. He bested 7 as a starter for Boston in the late
1970s.</span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Uehara wasn’t just the best relief pitcher this year – He had a
historic season that on closer inspection may be one of the greatest relief
pitching accomplishments of all time!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">His great season overshadowed some other excellent relief
performances. Kansas City’s Greg Holland,
recorded 47 saves while having an ERA of 1.21 and a K/9 close to 14. Jim Johnson again led the league in saves,
with his second straight 50 save season, but just like last year, I remain
unimpressed with his peripherals. Joe Nathan
saved all 43 games the Twins won (ok, maybe they won a few others), with a 1.39
ERA and a K/9 above 10. Grant Balfour
again headed the bullpen in Oakland who
surprised many by winning another division title.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>My ballot:</b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">#1: Koji Uehara</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">#2: Greg Holland</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;">#3: Joe Nathan</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">On a side note, I saw several bloggers selecting Mariano Rivera.
If this was a lifetime achievement award, then sure. He had a good but not great season. In fact
David Robertson was probably a more valuable member of the Yankee bullpen. Lower ERA, pitched more innings, same WAR,
more strikeouts, less home runs, same WHIP. An argument could be made that
Rivera was better than Robertson, but it would be close. And nobody has
mentioned Robertson for this award, so I’m not sure where the support for
Rivera is coming from. Before all the
hate mail from the Yankee fans comes in, let me just say that I have a lot of
respect for Mr. Rivera. One of the highlights
of my summer was being at Dodger Stadium in his last appearance there and
seeing <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NNM9OA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B009NNM9OA&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Mrs. Jackie Robinson</a> give him a video tribute. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0316400734/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0316400734&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="236" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNagGR48JNhxM1YZ5suaYKvEt82UJbKSMmhYYL2pv6WkwXXQGBXzVCMCm5j8lqETZDSC6L_1KbBPGHKdn6SXHnGbvnkxPMTEpXAGR8DyzBRtKaF_MUB7uH9vc-Ek2gdTZ668kf17JUVsBN/s400/mo+and+magic.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Rivera and Magic Johnson</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></o:p></div>
Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-82646286322489420032013-10-18T14:39:00.001-06:002013-10-21T17:22:52.781-06:002013 Walter Johnson Award - AL Pitcher of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtvopF-X2PZC8mX8ueKONp1Aip7FE-V4ay_A8XQkjwRgZ5bzOxXc3V4PFuUzwmYoA2z27pcBHvzYK27Ise1MS0VJBKhyphenhyphenj7EOcx0tb9oqAT731fpC2NwoZ_vVxxo3h_9tE78D_hBbIuCblW/s1600/tiger+pitcher.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtvopF-X2PZC8mX8ueKONp1Aip7FE-V4ay_A8XQkjwRgZ5bzOxXc3V4PFuUzwmYoA2z27pcBHvzYK27Ise1MS0VJBKhyphenhyphenj7EOcx0tb9oqAT731fpC2NwoZ_vVxxo3h_9tE78D_hBbIuCblW/s320/tiger+pitcher.gif" width="320" /></a></div>
My series of <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a> (BBA) award winners, continues with the American League Walter Johnson Award for Pitcher of the Year. The past two seasons I selected Detroit's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007WTSQIA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007WTSQIA&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Justin Verlander</a>, one year <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/10/2011-al-walter-johnson-award.html">quite easily</a>, the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-walter-johnson-award.html">other one in a closer race</a>. This year it looks like the award will go to a Tiger again, but one of his teammates instead. The big question is which one? <br />
<br />
Max Scherzer is everyone's obvious choice. He started off 13-0, deservedly started the all-star game and ended up 21-3 with a 2.90 ERA. Last time a pitcher was so dominating and didn't win the Cy Young, was probably 1985 when John Tudor also won 21 games, including 10 shutouts and a sub 2 ERA, and lost to some kid named '<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0544027027/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0544027027&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Doc</a>'. (In fact, Tudor didn't get a single first place vote!)<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
Meanwhile his teammate Anibal Sanchez, had a good but unremarkable 14-8 record. However, Sanchez led the league with a 2.57 ERA and was one of two pitchers in the majors to only give up single digit home runs (the other was Matt Harvey who was shut down in August), while Scherzer gave up 18 long flies. As well, Scherzer had some BABIP luck which was not bestowed on Sanchez. Other than home runs, all the rate stats slightly favor Scherzer as well - slightly higher strike out rate, slightly fewer walks. But it doesn't matter. I've been entrusted to cast a ballot. If we chose winners based on a numerical formula, there'd be no need for voting. I know when watching them pitch, I always felt like Scherzer was beatable and Sanchez was the scarier pitcher to face. Anibal Sanchez is receiving my vote this year.<br />
<br />
By the way, there were several other outstanding pitcher performances in the American League. (Not as good as the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/national-league-award-voting.html">NL</a>, but some pretty good seasons nevertheless). This includes Felix Hernandez, David Price, Yu Darvish, Chris Sale, Bartolo Colon, James Shields, Derek Holland , CJ Wilson and two more Tiger starters, Justin Verlander and Doug Fister. Conspicuous by their absence are a trio of Blue Jay hurlers who were key in making them instant World Series contenders after they were acquired last offseason - RA Dickey, Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle all had extremely sub-par seasons. If only <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/11/blue-jays-trade-analysis-part-deux.html">someone saw that coming</a>, a whole nation wouldn't have been disappointed.<br />
<br />
My full ballot:<br />
#1: Anibal Sanchez<br />
#2: Max Scherzer<br />
#3: Chris Sale<br />
#4: Felix Hernandez<br />
#5: Yu DarvishRuben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-6907206665093662262013-10-15T20:43:00.000-06:002013-10-21T17:23:09.751-06:002013 Willie Mays Award - AL Rookie of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NNM9TU/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B009NNM9TU&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="239" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmeLdh-cOd7OAoWeQGDoIQBs2efQqazKW8JWZeaFEvsWLtgsdis6si6i3EjfyrHwi3MSiD0XHaPfIVmvhyphenhyphen3IO07085Q20dlnym1HrQpUJ-oLWvBWGqh8E9tdKBsWzl-8-HpHMwQyJ7z7hk/s320/jackie-robinson-42.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
After naming Boston manager John Farrell the winner of the <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/">Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a> (BBA) Connie Mack Award, today I cast my ballot for the BBA's Willie Mays Award. This is really the<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B009NNM9TU/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B009NNM9TU&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20"> Jackie Robinson</a> Award for Rookie of the Year.<br />
<br />
Last year <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-willie-mays-award.html">Mike Trout lapped the competition</a> and was an <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/2012/11/01/bba-announces-willie-mays-award-for-top-rookies/">unanimous winner</a> receiving all the first place votes by BBA members. This year's rookie crop in the AL isn't quite as deep as <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-willie-mays-award.html">last year's</a>. Nobody is breaking any Jackie Robinson like barriers, there are no Fred Lynn MVP type seasons, or players that captivated a nation like <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/1250004926/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=1250004926&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">The Bird</a> or <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0049H9FQK/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0049H9FQK&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Fernandomania </a>in the past. But there were several good players worthy of mention:
<img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://ir-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/ir?t=rsna0ba-20&l=as2&o=1&a=B009NNM9TU" style="border: none !important; margin: 0px !important;" width="1" /><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: left;">
Jose Iglesias started off red hot, hitting over .400 in April. Everyone knew he had a Hall of Fame glove, so any hitting he did was a bonus. By the time he got shipped to Detroit he had cooled off a bit, but was still hitting .330, and he finished the season at .303. A lot of that was BABIP fueled and obviously trended in the wrong direction, so I don't think anyone expects him to maintain a .300 BA going forward. Still, his gold glove defense, combined with league average offense made him a very valuable player this year. </div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
Tampa had some rookies help them get to the playoffs. Chris Archer got called up at the beginning of June and was a solid addition to the rotation, ending up with 9 wins and throwing a couple of shutouts including a 2 hit 1-0 win at Yankee Stadium. But the most anticipated debut was another Ray, outfielder Wil Myers. After trading James Shields away for him, Tampa finally called him up on June 18th. He started off slowly, going 1-7 that day in a doubleheader at Fenway. But he quickly warmed up, and ended up hitting 13 home runs with an OPS of .831. Meanwhile, David Lough who played where Myers would have if he stayed in Kansas City had a pretty good season himself, tying Myers in fWAR with 2.4, although his was more skewed towards his defense.</div>
<br />
Unlike last season where Oakland rookies Cespedes, Carter and Donaldson all helped the lineup, this year they had several new additions on the mound. Dan Straily was the most notable, going 10-8 in the rotation, Sean Doolittle was a vital member of the bullpen, and Sonny Gray who only joined the rotation in mid-August but ended up with 5 big victories down the stretch was also a key contributor leading them to a division title.<br />
<br />
Other notable rookies include Seattle's Danny Farquhar who was only promoted to closer in August and ended up with 16 saves, Texas starter Martin Perez and outfielders JB Shuck of the Angels and Oswaldo Arcia of the Twins.<br />
<br />
Again, I am voting for who had the best rookie season, not who I think will end up with the best career. In my mind, Farquhar and Gray are the pitchers with the most promise, but they got called up too late to accumulate enough value. Based on their 2013 performance, here is my ballot:<br />
<br />
#1. Wil Myers, Tampa Bay<br />
#2. Jose Iglesias, Boston / Detroit<br />
#3. Dan Straily, Oakland<br />
<br />Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-49819490981552074782013-10-13T11:54:00.000-06:002013-10-21T17:23:30.102-06:002013 Connie Mack Award - AL Manager of the Year<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BH2TDOY" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="214" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgiT2fvUdv-kujlErD7CfKQc0yDOHJ3Qg08ONHmBdNH1N9FcRNEfCuxfA2Xo8BblCxSG95vI6gkCp9J4ZAz43opzEN1uREnQ6flrvHtpd6GjyWH_j4MvRjnQWuai8VXacp4oqSkXiaNxpGF/s320/farrell.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
As a member of the<a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/"> Baseball Bloggers Alliance</a>, I have the privilege of casting a ballot for all the end-of-season awards. I did the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/10/national-league-award-voting.html">National League ones earlier</a>, and now I'll be doing American League one at a time. I'll be going in order from the easiest to the toughest. The first one I am announcing this year is the Connie Mack award for Manager of the Year. (No, it's not named for the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listing/0525651977/?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&condition=collectible&creative=390957&linkCode=ur2&qid=&sr=&tag=rsna0ba-20">Republican Senator from Florida,</a> but <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0486471845/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0486471845&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">this guy</a>).<br />
<br />
I had a feeling I knew who the winner would be before the season started. In my preseason predictions I had some teams that I thought would win quite a few more games than last season, including Kansas City, Minnesota and Boston. But I only saw one of these teams making the playoffs. And yes, I may have a slight bias, but that hasn't stopped me from picking Joe Girardi for this <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/09/2011-al-connie-mack-award.html">same award in 2011</a> or even Yankee David Robertson over Papelbon for the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/10/2011-al-goose-gossage-award.html">reliever award in 2011</a>.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
So as you may have already guessed, Boston's John Farrell is the name I put on the ballot. I don't think he's a genius or flawless. I honestly don't believe a good manager can help a team win more games than it could <br />
without him. The Red Sox win total improved from 69 to 97 but that may just be because that was their true talent level. As we saw last year, a bad manager can certainly sink a team. A good manager can merely minimize the damage. <br />
<br />
Other candidates:<br />
- Tito Francona, who led the Indians into the playoffs getting them to win 24 more games than in 2012<br />
- Kansas City's Ned Yost who kept the Royals in the chase until the final weekend of the season, improving the team from 72 wins to 86<br />
- Yankee Joe Girardi who somehow kept his bunch of misfits within striking distance most of the season, while everyone laughed at the cards he had been dealt<br />
- <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/10/2012-al-connie-mack-award.html">Last year's winner</a>, Bob Melvin who again led Oakland to a division title<br />
<br />
And, despite my early season predictions, Ron Gardenhire's name never crossed my mind as I was compiling this list.<br />
<br />
After considering the talent these skippers had to work with, and what they accomplished, below is my full ballot:<br />
<br />
#1: John Farrell, Boston<br />
#2: Ned Yost, Kansas City<br />
#3: Terry Francona, Cleveland<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://twitter.com/rsn_alberta" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="110" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0YI3YZBsR8II4hep5l67Mr9ZfQ7I9BpnqJQKWjPGJ0YaWkvm98l6El3Bd1WiRHEKqQrkQCXWmNOZSuuwqiGoaIdAc3A9GL_oE42uvVBGSFVpR4rnXiuKnUio4H4J2W2QSxWUUASv8zpiY/s320/bobby-valentine-fired.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
And of course, an honorable mention to Bobby V, for being so craptastic that the Red Sox only had to suffer one season with him, allowing us to upgrade more quickly<br />
<br />Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-16313050640129152382013-10-10T16:44:00.002-06:002013-10-12T11:25:02.484-06:00National League Award Voting<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy3yu8sXAuv3KDYV82x75qFVAZEuMzXYwCg2ypJgJzJGJfwYhipHy5AX8xKY3UlYrgzFESd0khXefny1AVGauSofLo7hshfExvHGuKgMb0Ojjjx7YNUmU4VFWwEO55tSYD9Qh5x8aFGk47/s1600/nl+jpg.gif" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="133" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhy3yu8sXAuv3KDYV82x75qFVAZEuMzXYwCg2ypJgJzJGJfwYhipHy5AX8xKY3UlYrgzFESd0khXefny1AVGauSofLo7hshfExvHGuKgMb0Ojjjx7YNUmU4VFWwEO55tSYD9Qh5x8aFGk47/s200/nl+jpg.gif" width="200" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Now that the regular season is over it’s once again time for
my votes for the </span><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/category/awards/" style="font-family: inherit;">Baseball Bloggers Alliance (BBA) Awards</a><span style="font-family: inherit;">. In <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/10/2011-al-stan-musial-award.html">previousyears</a> I have selected winners in all the American League categories. This year I will also pick the National
League winners. Check back after the World Series to the </span><a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/" style="font-family: inherit;">BBA site</a><span style="font-family: inherit;"> to see who the award winners are</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">This post will present all of the National League picks with limited
commentary. Between now and the World
Series I will post the AL winners, one award at a time with a detailed post and
more explanation for each one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0803294336/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0803294336&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Walter Johnson</a> Award
(Pitcher of the Year)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Not a lot of suspense with this one. Lots of hurlers had seasons that would be
deserving of an award in other years including Cliff Lee, Adam Wainwright, Rookie Jose Fernandez (more on him in a minute) and even Matt Harvey until he was injured. But this year’s winner is unquestionably
<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0061779008/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0061779008&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Sandy Koufax</a>. I mean Clayton Kershaw. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"></span></b></div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Connie Mack Award
(Manager of the Year)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I saw Clint Hurdle in Spring Training when the <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/03/now-pinch-running-93.html?m=0">Pirates visited Fort Myers</a>. He signed an old
baseball card of his before the game, and seemed like a genuinely nice
guy. I’m happy to be able to vote for
him, in what should be a landslide victory.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Goose Gossage Award
(Reliever of the Year)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Several <a href="http://baseballinalberta.blogspot.com/">Alberta</a> connections here among the candidates: I watched <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001BM5WTA/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B001BM5WTA&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Jason Grilli </a>pitch for the Calgary
Cannons when he was a Marlins prospect.
Jim Henderson is from Calgary – his mom lives literally across the
street from me (true story). I once
confused Kenley Jansen with Casey Janssen who pitches for the Blue Jays and
whose home games are therefore blacked out in Alberta due to MLB.TV’s archaic
rules. Aroldis Chapman threw a 102 MPH
fastball while I was watching from the stands.<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB17SpqZdfSJJb2GHQYRNnKV25v0m2QZQX655csHeEYXVO7Xwi9ZGjwtKwAgJ_6fHsSKtzZsydujdYJal6APYBU8AVMaCrFBDIzDwRZD80fl6gRMHFI7frIT-J3x_iNBe4a_kAsd2lEZnu/s1600/Chapman+102.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB17SpqZdfSJJb2GHQYRNnKV25v0m2QZQX655csHeEYXVO7Xwi9ZGjwtKwAgJ_6fHsSKtzZsydujdYJal6APYBU8AVMaCrFBDIzDwRZD80fl6gRMHFI7frIT-J3x_iNBe4a_kAsd2lEZnu/s320/Chapman+102.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Two pitches later he gave up a 2 run walkoff home run</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
Despite all of these concrete Alberta connections from these players,
the award winner is Craig Kimbrel.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Willie Mays Award
(Rookie of the Year)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Just like with the pitcher award, there was a good crop of
rookies this year that may have had strong consideration in other seasons,
including Matt Adams, Gerritt Cole and Hyun-Jin Ryu. But despite Yasiel Puig getting all the
headlines and media attention, Marlin pitcher Jose Fernandez gets my vote and it’s
not even a tough decision. I already have my rant ready for all the media sheep
who will blindly give this award to Puig.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></b></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<b><span style="font-family: inherit;">Stan Musial Award
(Top Player)<o:p></o:p></span></b></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Note that it doesn’t say MVP, so no extra points for leading
your team to the playoffs. Andrew McCutchen, Joey Votto, Clayton Kershaw, Matt Carpenter, Adam Wainwright, Shin-Soo Choo and Freddie Freeman who did help lead their teams may get a bit of an MVP push. But I'm looking strictly at who was best, and not most "valuable" so am ignoring team standings. That helps put guys like Paul Goldschmidt and Carlos Gomez in the conversation. But it doesn't matter. McCutchen started the year on the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00A750QIE/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B00A750QIE&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">cover of The Show</a>, was the league's best player, and should end the year with an MVP trophy.</span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQB-PPISZzMzEdi4Gg-HcLourLfGEaCGQq57aRseJfT1NVN8r_CMp89EbI9Y40aaaFUE6I3QHe5p20OlCNk8nyJWjTn6STFjV_XiCoozIRUDAo2YLg1HrOMGG15kAv-TsUjt3UrMLZDrng/s1600/SAM_2407.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQB-PPISZzMzEdi4Gg-HcLourLfGEaCGQq57aRseJfT1NVN8r_CMp89EbI9Y40aaaFUE6I3QHe5p20OlCNk8nyJWjTn6STFjV_XiCoozIRUDAo2YLg1HrOMGG15kAv-TsUjt3UrMLZDrng/s320/SAM_2407.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Warming up prior to a game in Fort Myers</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<o:p></o:p>Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-354093410349047742013-10-07T11:57:00.000-06:002013-10-07T11:57:56.808-06:00Results of Predictions from 2500 miles away<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/03/in-previous-years-i-have-forecasted-how.html">this post</a>, I made my annual season predictions. I don’t
have the luxury of being in or close to any MLB markets, but in this electronic
age with the ability to lookup any information and listen to any sports radio
station from anywhere in real time, I’m not sure that’s a detriment.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">In fact, seeing how the Boston Gl obe's own Dan
Shaugnessy predicted the AL East standings with all his inside information and
access to players and front office, I’m thinking that being away from the
action may actually be a benefit.</span><span style="font-family: inherit;"> </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">Here were
CHB’s thoughts:</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Against all odds he managed to predict his own division
exactly backwards! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p><span style="font-family: inherit;"> <table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8TcBclZS9h-GUZCeL5cc6tF9IWIn-exTTqK3Z4z65Y34ZhwZRQaK5MP_vCwCivrA5T_reIq4BREwakfuGFWVbCMTzt5NP2ndwP4_LOztIo5tW2bjlHfEagMgeEXECfQ4_aXLTHBB_S88A/s1600/chb+pred.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8TcBclZS9h-GUZCeL5cc6tF9IWIn-exTTqK3Z4z65Y34ZhwZRQaK5MP_vCwCivrA5T_reIq4BREwakfuGFWVbCMTzt5NP2ndwP4_LOztIo5tW2bjlHfEagMgeEXECfQ4_aXLTHBB_S88A/s400/chb+pred.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Screenshot courtesy of SoSHer BannedByNYYFans</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</span></o:p></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Maybe he should stick to <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/0142004766/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=0142004766&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">writing books</a>.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyhow, in my predictions I was aiming for a 75% confidence
interval. That means that when selecting
a range of wins for all 30 teams, I should have had 22.5/30 correct. I had 11 right – about half of what should be
expected. On the surface it doesn’t look
that good but going team-by-team, I think my forecasts were better than most of
the ones published by the so-called “experts”.
Everyone had the Blue Jays as World Series favorites, except for the dissenters
who saw the Angels winning the American League.
And in the National League, the only question was who the Nationals had
to beat in the NLCS to advance to the Fall Classic. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Here is how each team did relative to my forecasts. Numbers
in bracket are my original guess, comments in quotes are in reference to what I
said in <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/03/in-previous-years-i-have-forecasted-how.html">March.</a><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>AL East:</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Boston -97 (83 to 89)
After winning only 69 games in 2012 I committed in writing that I
thought they’d improve by up to 20 games. Well, they ended up being 28 games
better. “If everything goes right they
could win the division with over 90 wins”. If you saw that coming, put your hand up. If
your hand is up, you are a liar(*). So even though I missed on my win interval,
I am fairly pleased with my prediction.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Tampa – 92 (85 to 91) I missed by 1 using a fairly narrow
range. Meh.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Yankees – 85 (77 to 87) I had a wide range here because
although I expected them to have a down year I wasn’t quite sure as down. To be
honest I thought the final results would be worse than they were, but it was
within my predicted range.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Baltimore – 85 (72 to 84) As with Tampa I missed by 1, but I
had thought they had the potential to do quite a bit worse.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Toronto – 74 (82 to 95) When everyone else had them as World
Series favorites I thought they’d struggle to get past .500 (although I hedged
my bets by having a large upper range). I was fairly certain they would
underperform the lofty expectations given to them, but thought they would make
more moves during the season to try and fight for a playoff spot.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Overall, I am giving myself a B+ on this division’s
predictions. Only had one team within my expected range, but I feel like I
correctly saw the direction that every team’s year would take. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It could have been much worse. I could have curly hair and Carl Everett
could have given me a malicious nickname that has stuck for over a decade.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"> (*) Unless, Ras is
reading this. You I believe.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>AL Central:</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Detroit – 93 (90 to 99) Predicting them to win the division
with a win total in the 90s isn’t exactly Nostradamus like.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cleveland – 92 (69 to 83). Did not see this coming. I had a
huge range in wins for them, spanning from awful to respectable, and they won
nine more than the most I had envisioned. Well done, Tito, I may have misspoke
when I predicted you’d be “thinking fondly of the good old chicken wing and
beer days”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Kansas City – 86 (76 to 86) “Lots of games against weak
opponents will help them get to .500” I mused. I also erroneously said they
wouldn’t seriously contend for a wildcard spot.
Still, their win total fell in the range.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Minnesota – 66 (75 to 85) I thought they’d be better. They
weren’t.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Chicago – 63 (74 to 85) I correctly foresaw a down year for
them. Didn’t quite expect it to be that bad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I think the only area where I outpicked the experts was the
White Sox, who many saw as the 2<sup>nd</sup> best team in the division after
winning 85 games the previous season. D+<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u><br /></u></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>AL West:</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Oakland – 96 (88-95) – I said 2012 was not a fluke and
they’d repeat as division champs. Missed their win total by 1 game.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Texas – 91 (84-92) – “They should still win about 90”.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anaheim – 78 (84-90) – “Again, the Angels will miss the
playoffs”. I wasn’t buying into the improvements made and hinted that
Scioscia’s job might be in jeopardy. Still, they managed to do even worse than
I had prognosticated (I’m making liberal use of Mr. Roget today).<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Seattle -71 (79-85) –
“They could catch the Angels but I don’t think they will”. Still, I expected them to win a few more
games, given that they had 19 games within their own division where they were
the clear favorites.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Houston – 51 (50-64) – “If I miss, it will be because they
undershoot the low end’. Luckily the Astros won their 50<sup>th</sup> game just
prior to finishing the season on an uninspired, but not totally
uncharacteristic 0-15 run.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m giving myself a solid A for this division. I had the
correct order when everyone else had proclaimed the Angels champions with Texas
the only possible obstacle.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>NL East</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Atlanta – 96 (83-90) “Closer to .500 than 100 wins”. Um,
no. 15 and 4 respectively.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Washington – 86 (85-94) “They’ll be lucky to win 90”. They
were the media darlings, but I didn’t fully buy in. If I slapped myself for being off on the
Braves, I deserve a pat on the back for this one.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Mets -74 (67-75)I thought they’d have a hard time reaching
70, but they were within my forecasted range.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Philadelphia – 73 (86-96)I made fun of Ruben Amaro’s
offseason but still picked them to be at the top of this division. I should have read what I wrote more closely
before predicting their win total.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Miami – 62 (70-75) Thought they’d overcome trading away all
their above-replacement level players (other than a certain highly coveted Mr.
Stanton), and still win a respectable 70 games. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Good picks on the Mets and Washington, missed the rest of
the division badly. C+<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>NL Central</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">St. Louis- 97 (79-83) “No wildcard is coming from the
Central this year”. If by “No” I meant “All” then I would have hit the bullseye
with that statement. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Pittsburgh -94 (79-85) Correctly predicted they’d break the
.500 barrier, didn’t expect them to be quite so good.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cincinnati – 90 (95-101) “Rest of division is getting
weaker, should run away with it”. I said
of a division with 3 playoff teams on it. I should never underestimate Dusty
Baker’s incompetence. I could have taken this team to the 100 win level myself.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Milwaukee – 74 (83-88) I don’t even have a comment for them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cubs – 66 (58-70) “Astros aren’t around to keep them out of
last place”. Hey, I got this one right!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">If the NL East was a C+, no way I get more than a D here.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>NL West</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Dodgers – 92 (85-92) – “their offense is much better than
the Giants”. So is everyone else’s, I
suppose.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Arizona – 81 (84-90) – I said they’d improve but not enough
to win their division. They ended up with the exact same 81-81 record two years
in a row<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">San Francisco – 76 (90-99) – “They’ll hit some rough
patches”. Yeah, I didn’t think it would be for 6 months.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">San Diego – 76
(71-79) - “Will battle Colorado and Mets
for the worst pitching staff in the league”. Ended up with a 3.98 ERA. Only 2
NL teams (Colorado was one of them) ended up > 4.00. Not a bad forecast.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Colorado – 74 (66-74) “Can’t stop other teams from scoring
runs”. League worst 4.44 ERA.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I whiffed on the Giants, but was on or close with the rest
of the teams. B.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Overall I’m giving myself a B- grade. I picked a Rays vs Reds World Series and at
least both those teams made playoffs, as opposed to all those Blue Jays/Angels
vs Nationals picks that seemed to dominate the media in the spring. Tell me what you think of my picks in the
comments below, and leave your World Series predictions there. On the line are bragging rights. I’m updating my pick to Red Sox over Cardinals.</span><o:p></o:p></div>
Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-86493600781556183202013-10-01T13:42:00.001-06:002013-10-01T13:42:37.282-06:00The best got better<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://store.esellerate.net/a.asp?c=0_SKU89189256506_AFL9289800948&at=rsnblog" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="186" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-EWvYfY5jgQoVbtl1mWabsbusXzplA3yydkJ19thDArFtdFM51uaN9stckIM6gUUrDIoV_AYj5mlzsOx3AsdQR5cfGhjbp44MmEAIMLHhQiLy6YelCaeq-pyHI5dCQNnoT7dQVhtguY19/s320/ootp14.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Obviously I must be talking about our Red Sox. The best team in the league last year got
better and they’re among the favorites to go deep in the playoffs. What’s that you say? They weren’t the best
team last year – they only won 69 games?
How’s that possible? On paper
they surely were preseason picks to get a shot at a ring. Oh yeah, Bobby V got involved..... </span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">No, I’m taking about the <a href="http://store.esellerate.net/a.asp?c=0_SKU89189256506_AFL9289800948&at=rsnblog">latest version of OOTP</a>. Unlike the Red Sox, last year’s version was
also very good. But somehow, almost
unbelievably, it’s even better this year. I love the depth of this game and all the
different ways you can play it as I’ve mentioned<a href="http://baseballinalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/07/what-to-do-when-it-rains-play.html"> in</a> <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/06/best-game-ever.html">previous</a> <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/04/how-to-improve-on-perfection.html">reviews</a>. This year’s version has a lot of subtle
improvements. There is a new player
origin system - not only a customizable draft but also international free agents, both amateurs and established players, and ability to scout internationally and in the indy leagues for that diamond in the rough. In fact the entire scouting engine has been improved. Also the trading AI is much better. In the past I used to be able to "cheat" by making trades that maybe only Ruben Amaro Jr. would realistically accept. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyhow, I just recently started a
game to try and see if I could do as well at managing the Sox as John Farrell
has.</span></div>
<a name='more'></a> I started off slowly, but then
pulled off a 12 game winning streak in May<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvH40gEqc_YsfbdMWkoyJgia0EHPJpjQhU-nWbpeWJ474x_8ci7v-DWL5-6T22pkUNNAZB88Zd1PhzPm38vST83rfIegP6Edob9iM47YM2oftoBUFR4SXFWiJejqPsLlFZYTk3q5As8XDk/s1600/12gamewinningstreak.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvH40gEqc_YsfbdMWkoyJgia0EHPJpjQhU-nWbpeWJ474x_8ci7v-DWL5-6T22pkUNNAZB88Zd1PhzPm38vST83rfIegP6Edob9iM47YM2oftoBUFR4SXFWiJejqPsLlFZYTk3q5As8XDk/s320/12gamewinningstreak.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">that gave me some hope. I was flirting with .500 most of the season,
and heading into September I was 5 games behind the Royals for the 2<sup>nd</sup>
wildcard. I had been in 3<sup>rd</sup> or 4<sup>th</sup> place in the
AL East all season and didn’t really notice how many games behind I was in the
division. As I was simulating the
season, only stopping to adjust my lineups and calling up AAA reinforcements as
needed, I just kept my eye on the wildcard race. And as September went on I got as close to 3
games but couldn’t catch up. On the last
weekend the Red Sox no longer showed on the wildcard leader board (my view just
showed the top 3 teams) and I was
resigned to get ready for the offseason (which in this game can be just as much
or more fun!) But then something
unexpected happened: I WON THE AL EAST!
Without even realizing it, I won the last 7 games of the season to finish with
87 wins. Ahead of New York (86), Tampa
(85) and Baltimore (83). The Royals and Cleveland
took the wildcards. Tigers and Oakland
were the other division champions. I was
somewhat impressed as to how close that was to what actually happened this
season in the American League. In the NL
it was a different story. The division
winners were Atlanta, Milwaukee and San Francisco. The Mets and Cincinnati won the
wildcards. So I started playing the
postseason. The LDS was tight, going to
a 5<sup>th</sup> game which I played pitch by pitch. Verlander against Doubront. Down by a run, I
tied it in the 8<sup>th</sup> but pretty much emptied my bench with pinch
running and hitting. Finally in the 14<sup>th</sup>
inning I got a run across against Phil Coke and had to decide whether to let
Koji pitch his 3<sup>rd</sup> inning of relief, or finally bring in my closer
(Hanrahan) (In May Andrew Bailey was sidelined for 10 months –
some more realism from this game). In
real life I might not trust anyone other than Koji, but he was tiring and I did
have my closer available so in came Hanrahan.
It was a nail biter. He allowed
runners to get to 2<sup>nd</sup> and 3<sup>rd</sup> with 1 out. I had a decision to make – infield in or
out? I had nobody left in the bullpen,
so I didn’t really want to give up the tying run, but with the infield in a routine
ground ball could get through and end the season for me. My heart was racing as I made the
decision. Everyone in! I let out a sigh of relief as Alex Avila
fouled out for the 2<sup>nd</sup> out. I
could now put my defense back to normal and just try and get an out. Jhonny Peralta stepped up and hit a deep fly
ball, but Victorino tracked it down as we advanced to the ALCS. That was pretty anticlimactic as I swept
Cleveland in 4 straight. Then on to the
Fall Classic where I easily disposed of the surprising Brewers in 5 games to
win the World Series: <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevpXZEvJUi7uFwnGkVuQt6-KBMPLHZTkdo5EgcyeoWTxlncRjaF9q6RzPo0OegkZEUNAUPAJns4Z9ftk8EjymkrDQvVvvNnGL8AROYl-CuFFbQM6f3Lo7op1J-7MeFpl4vGtpkwCMK1Kh/s1600/world+series.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgevpXZEvJUi7uFwnGkVuQt6-KBMPLHZTkdo5EgcyeoWTxlncRjaF9q6RzPo0OegkZEUNAUPAJns4Z9ftk8EjymkrDQvVvvNnGL8AROYl-CuFFbQM6f3Lo7op1J-7MeFpl4vGtpkwCMK1Kh/s640/world+series.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">One of the things I love about
this game is how it really shows that baseball is a game of inches. A well
placed hit and I’m eliminated in the ALDS, but a foul pop up and I go on to
become World Champions. Just like in real life - if Pedro Martinez doesn't pitch to Posada maybe we break the curse in 2003; if Dave Roberts doesn't get a good jump, we're still waiting for 2004 to happen.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Let’s now hope John Farrell has the same success
in the postseason as I did with this realistic simulation. </span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">If your favorite team doesn't win it all this season, you can <a href="http://store.esellerate.net/a.asp?c=0_SKU89189256506_AFL9289800948&at=rsnblog">buy this game </a>and have all off-season to simulate what might have been if you had been at the helm.</span></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p></o:p></div>
Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-24646510561615440372013-06-06T10:33:00.001-06:002013-06-06T10:33:31.443-06:002013 MLB draft<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio4I1Ja8saTsYmvKc26TuRScqheGYtfi9P7Ue3cpdoRMdUAl8khLcqR8jflGR0z9Ey7kslE2V2g7LszF3PmDbVt9fk0en0MI316UC5SiWZcEIZgl_ccWPPsdvGXxaLrZ3jSySVeJx5l_rY/s1600/AB+2013+draft.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="190" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEio4I1Ja8saTsYmvKc26TuRScqheGYtfi9P7Ue3cpdoRMdUAl8khLcqR8jflGR0z9Ey7kslE2V2g7LszF3PmDbVt9fk0en0MI316UC5SiWZcEIZgl_ccWPPsdvGXxaLrZ3jSySVeJx5l_rY/s400/AB+2013+draft.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
The MLB draft starts tonight. The Red Sox have the 7th overall pick, and then pick again at #45 (in round 2), and then the 7th pick of each round. Last year, they<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/06/sox-draft-canadian.html"> did draft a Canadian, Keaton Briscoe</a>, who is now playing for the Greenville Drive. This year, there are several promising Canadian players eligible for the draft, including several from Alberta. I have a rundown of the top Albertans <a href="http://baseballinalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/06/2013-mlb-draft-alberta-preview.html">here</a>. Hoping the Red Sox select one of them. I will update this if/when the Sox do pick a Canadian player. <br />
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<iframe frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?lt1=_blank&bc1=000000&IS2=1&bg1=FFFFFF&fc1=000000&lc1=0000FF&t=rsna0ba-20&o=1&p=8&l=as4&m=amazon&f=ifr&ref=ss_til&asins=1932391444" style="height: 240px; width: 120px;"></iframe>
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Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-30773089466961768372013-06-01T15:27:00.001-06:002013-06-01T18:21:21.971-06:00Canadian Red Sox News<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrGClDK2Xcr_TBi_I_jZaZ4NbKUKflWPf-4u1XY2H-k5KOeKd9h-2PCnnLQ5-zGEQuirB0GrD09PiHiSKWfbb8zJ4bSx_vLXReZIU4-fHBXVu5gYX3-UdzIwXo0KwP_7FC9T1rtwU4rvP/s1600/canadasox.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="137" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEicrGClDK2Xcr_TBi_I_jZaZ4NbKUKflWPf-4u1XY2H-k5KOeKd9h-2PCnnLQ5-zGEQuirB0GrD09PiHiSKWfbb8zJ4bSx_vLXReZIU4-fHBXVu5gYX3-UdzIwXo0KwP_7FC9T1rtwU4rvP/s400/canadasox.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Haven't posted much lately. The Red Sox are off to a great start and there's lots to talk about, but again I want to focus my writings on this blog to be about items that are of particular interest to us <span style="color: red;">Canadian</span> Red Sox fans. For more general Red Sox news, please follow one of the many other Red Sox blogs that I have listed<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/p/red-sox-blogs.html"> here</a>. For daily updates in particular, I like reading some other Red Sox <a href="http://baseballbloggersalliance.wordpress.com/membership/">BBA member</a> blogs, including Christine's posts at <a href="http://bostonredthoughts.com/">Boston Red Thoughts</a> Allan's updates at <a href="http://joyofsox.blogspot.ca/"> Joy of Sox</a>, and Cyn's musings at <a href="http://www.toeingtherubber.com/">Toeing the Rubber</a>. Of course, readers from South of the 49th and anywhere else in the world are welcome and even encouraged to read my ramblings and leave comments.<br />
<br />
Anyhow, a few Canadian related notes of interest for Red Sox fans:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a>Canadian Ryan Dempster has had some mixed success so far as a member of the Red Sox. He only has 2 wins, but twice he only gave 1 earned run and had no decision to show for it. Four times the Sox have scored 2 or less runs for him in a start, and ony twice have they scored more than 4 times. With some luck he could have 6 or 7 wins. But he's also had some awful outings. Overall he has an ERA+ of 99 which is pretty much league average and probably not quite what the Sox were expecting from their #3 starter. Of course with John Lackey's bounce back season, Dempster is the defacto #4 pitcher, and he is well above average for that role.<br />
<div>
More interestingly, as first pointed out by <a href="http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/articles/canuck-vs-canuck-dempster-wins-16th-match-up/">Bob Elliott of the Canadian Baseball Network,</a> Ryan Dempster has now faced Canadian starting pitchers 5 times. Including twice as a Red Sox in the span of a couple of weeks. On April 26th, Dempster picked up his first win as a Red Sox, by beating the Astros and Canadian Erik Bedard. A couple of weeks later, Dempster had another good start, only giving up 2 earned runs in 7+ innings, but lost to Guelph's Scott Diamond and the Twins. Also, his second win wearing the crimson hose came in his native county, as he beat the Blue Jays 3-1 on May 2nd. That was his 6th win in Canada, the other 5 all coming in Montreal.</div>
<div>
By the way, the other win Dempster has in his career against a Canadian starter came against the Expos and Albertan Mike Johnson, who is from Sherwood Park.</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://www.amazon.com/s/?_encoding=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&field-keywords=ryan%20dempster%20red%20sox&linkCode=ur2&tag=rsna0ba-20&url=search-alias%3Daps">Get Ryan Dempster cards, jerseys and more here!</a></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<br /></div>
<div>
In other news, the MLB draft is coming up next week. As you may recall,<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/06/sox-draft-canadian.html"> last year the Sox selected Keaton Briscoe</a> of Vancouver in the 24th round. He had 100 at bats in the Rookie class Gulf Coast League Red Sox last season, and has moved up to Greenville Drive of the A level South Atlantic League at the start of this season. There are several outstanding young Canadians <a href="http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/draft-list/2013/">eligible for the draft</a> again this year, including many from Alberta. Hopefully Sox Canadian scout Chris Pritchett recommends some local talent. </div>
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Also, a little late in reporting this, but<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/05/canadian-1st-round-draft-pick.html"> former 1st round pick and Calgarian Chris Reitsma</a> was recently <a href="http://www.calgarysun.com/2013/02/28/calgary-pitcher-reitsma-heads-alberta-hall-of-fame-class">inducted into the Alberta sports Hall of Fame</a>.<br />
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Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-36947806160705939902013-03-31T18:00:00.000-06:002013-03-31T18:00:00.651-06:00<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNHBROJ7nhUoDFl4DJy_i89nzgZLQ7V2xsy8vIWZuZ3DUddWSppIOFdhVTeoW1sUudYtufCeiBrAPoZZmr3MYPmJj5oWIIuDlA4goyGvbhAnK059Tm3Cywf-ru1iAHs_uYDrXgmYGRdTYy/s1600/crystal+ball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNHBROJ7nhUoDFl4DJy_i89nzgZLQ7V2xsy8vIWZuZ3DUddWSppIOFdhVTeoW1sUudYtufCeiBrAPoZZmr3MYPmJj5oWIIuDlA4goyGvbhAnK059Tm3Cywf-ru1iAHs_uYDrXgmYGRdTYy/s320/crystal+ball.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In previous years I have forecasted how the MLB season would play
out. Some predictions were good (Giants / Tigers World Series<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/04/opening-day-mlb-power-rankings-and.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>last year</a>) some not so much (A's / Rockies<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/03/opening-day-eve-final-preseason.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>in 2011</a>). I've been questioned, mocked and ridiculed but that's not
enough for me to stop.</span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyhow, this year, I'm going to take a slightly different approach.
Instead of predicting exactly where each team will finish, I am going to go
with a 75% confidence interval on number of wins per team. I will also make some observations and a few
unexpected specific predictions along the way. I welcome fans of any of these
teams to mock me. I had a<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/03/2013-predictions-preview.html"> preview on four teams last week</a>, that I have
repeated here along with the rest of the MLB teams, listed by division in the
order that the teams finished last year:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><u>AL East:</u><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>NY Yankees<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- Their infield DL payroll is higher than
several teams' entire payroll. But unlike previous years where the Evil Empire
(go ahead and sue me for<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424127887323549204578320531185286140.html?mod=e2tw"><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>copyright </a><u><span style="color: #0000ee;">infringement</span></u>) would just spend more money on buying some more all-stars, it
looks like their opening day lineup may actually include long time Yankee
legends such as Eduardo Nunez and Francisco Cervelli, as well as the newly
added Vernon Wells. This team is really hard to project. If this wasn't the
Yankees, they’d be reasonably expected to be a solid 70 win team. But I know
better. </span></div>
<a name='more'></a><span style="font-family: inherit;">I have no confidence they are going to stick to their self-imposed
spending limits for next year. I'll believe it when I see it. My (not-so) bold
prediction is that they are going to pay to acquire some much needed pieces and
explain that they had to due to all the unexpected injuries. When they do and if
all their stars come back healthy and produce, 95 wins is not out of the
question. Of course, if they stubbornly refuse to spend and Cano gets injured
70 wins may be a stretch. <o:p></o:p></span><br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Baltimore</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- They are improved from last year but
won't repeat their 29-9 in 1 run games or 16-2 in extras record. No true
pitching aces, but lots of pitching depth. I expect them to finish close to
.500 but with a much higher likelihood of missing short by a lot then
overshooting by a lot. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Tampa Bay<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- Best team in division, but won't run
away with it. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Toronto</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Everyone (north of the border anyways)
has already anointed them World Series Champions. Well, fellow
countrymen, prepare to be disappointed. Poor defense will lead to most of their
pitching rotation underperforming. Their bullpen is, um, below average.
They will act like they are in playoff contention, being buyers at the deadline
but will ultimately fall short at about 85 wins. Having said that, contrary to
Baltimore, their upside is much bigger then their downside. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Boston<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- A lot of depth in some places (bullpen,
catching, outfield), not enough in others. With injuries to Ortiz and Drew to
start the season, they will have among the league's best defenses with an
outfield of JBJ, Ellsbury and Victorino, and Iglesias at shortstop. This will
benefit their pitching staff. Injuries to Pedroia, Middlebrooks or one of their
key starting pitchers for an extended period of time may be insurmountable. But
if they stay healthy, there's enough depth to cover injuries elsewhere on the
field. If everything goes right this team could win the division with over 90
wins. Of course, this is also a team that won 69 wins last year and didn't
exactly make any blockbuster moves in the offseason. I expect them to be in
contention all season. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">TB: 85-91<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Boston: 83-89<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Toronto: 82-95<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">NY: 77-87<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Balt: 72-84<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">AL Central:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Detroit</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- They won't face much of a challenge for
the division. Going out on a limb and predicting that Justin Verlander will be
a very good pitcher. Torii Hunter, however, will not live up to expectations,
his best days being behind him. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Chicago White Sox<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- They will continue their every other
year pattern and regress down to 75 win territory. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Kansas City</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Best team in division who doesn't have a
reigning triple-crown winner playing for them. Lots of games against weak
opponents will help them get to .500, but they will never seriously contend for
a wildcard spot and will be too far from Detroit. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Cleveland</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Lots of changes starting with a new
manager. But early on they will fall out of contention, and players will start
focusing on their own stats, rather than trying to win. Tito will wonder what
he got himself into and will be thinking fondly of the good old chicken wing
and beer days of September 2011 (maybe not that last part). They will end up
well short of .500, and last place in this division.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Minnesota</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Most improved team in the division. Will
battle KC for 2nd place. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Detroit: 90-99<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Kansas City: 76-86<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Minnesota: 75-85<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Chicago White Sox: 74-85<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cleveland: 69-83<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">AL West:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Oakland</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Was last year in a fluke? If so what
will you call back to back division crowns? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Texas<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b><span class="apple-converted-space"> Gone are Josh Hamilton, Mike Napoli and Michael Young
and their 75 home runs. La plus ca change…. They should still win about 90. </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>LA Angels</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- Trout will not repeat his rookie
campaign. That's not such a tough prediction, because he had one of the best
seasons in recent history, matching Ted Williams' best season ever, with his
10.7 bWAR. And I'm also not predicting that he'll go the way of previous
ROYs such as Joe Charbonneau who was never heard from again, but I expect
merely a very good season from him. A 280/350/475 triple slash line which
the LA media will make a big deal about, but is actually very good putting him
in Top 20 range for OPS+. But not enough as again the Angels will miss
the playoffs, and Mike Scioscia's time in Disneyland might come to an end. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Seattle</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>– Will benefit by playing Houston 19 times
and no longer being the worst team in the division. Added some potential power with Michael
Morse, Jason Bay and Kendry Morales. Their pitching is led by King Felix and
um, some other guys, I guess. A couple
of breaks and they could catch the Angels but don’t think they will.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Houston</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- In a division with Oakland, Texas, LA
and an improved Seattle, they may go entire months without a victory. It will
be a minor miracle if they avoid 100 losses. If I miss on my interval I fear it
will be because they undershoot the low end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Oakland: 88-95<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Texas: 84-92<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">LA Angels: 84-90<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Seattle: 79 - 85<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Houston: 50-64<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Washington</b> - This team won 98 games last year. They
won't have to wait until May to get Harper, and Strasburg can pitch all season.
They'll be lucky to win 90 this time. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Atlanta – </b>Dale Murphy didn’t get elected to the Hall
of Fame in his last year of eligibility, Chipper Jones retired, Michael Bourn
left as a free agent and Brian McCann will start the year on the DL. Not the best offseason for Braves fans. They
did get BJ Upton, and Craig Kimbrel might be the best closer in the game but he
won’t have the opportunity to get a lot of saves. They’ll end up closer to .500 then they will
to 100 wins.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Philadelphia</b> - This was an old team last year, and
their age showed as they stumbled to their worst record in over 10 seasons.
Ruben (what a great name!) Amaro Jr got the memo that he was to sign
young players and went out and got a couple of them. Unfortunately it seems
that there was a misunderstanding. The
young guys he signed were Michael and Delmon YOUNG. Michael is 36 years old,
and Delmon plays stellar defense... for a DH. Which the Phillies can't use. But
this team played great in the 2nd half last year when they were healthy. This
year's outcome hinges on Roy Halladay. If he's the Roy of old, he can anchor
their rotation to a division title. If he's not then they have some big shoes
to fill. I'm picking the Phillies to return to the top of the AL East.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>NY Mets – </b>As bad as they’ve been, it’s been 10 years
since they had a sub 70 win season. They
could break that streak this year. Jon
Niese is their opening day starter - ‘nuff said.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Miami</b>- Last year's 69 win squad will be missing
Hanley Ramirez, Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson, Mark Buerhle, Anibal Sanchez and
more. When they added all those guys they took a step backwards, so by that
logic they should improve.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Philadelphia: 86-96<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Washington: 85 - 94<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Atlanta: 83-90<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Miami: 70-75<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">NY Mets: 67-75<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Cincinnati – </b>Joey Votto and .400 will be mentioned
together in the same sentence a few times this summer. They don’t have the
Astros to beat up on, but the rest of the division is getting weaker too,
should run away with it again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>St. Louis- </b>No wildcard is coming from either Central division this year. Could be sellers after the all-star break.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Milwaukee </b>– I think signing Kyle Lohse might have
been the whole acquisition they made all winter, but that might be enough to
pass St. Louis.<b><o:p></o:p></b></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Pittsburgh – </b>Almost hit .500 last year. Is this the
year? It would be a lot easier if the Astros hadn’t left the division, but they
will break their 142 year losing streak(*)<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Cubs </b>– Will Theo bring a Championship to the
north side of Chicago in his 2<sup>nd</sup> year, like he did in Boston? If you believe there is even a chance, you
should probably be reading <a href="http://www.bleachernation.com/">Bleacher Nation</a> instead. Astros aren’t around to keep them out of last place.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">(*) going by memory, I didn’t look it up<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cincinnati: 95-101<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">St. Louis: 79-83<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Milwaukee: 83-88<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Pittsburgh: 79-85<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Cubs: 58 - 70<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>San Francisco – </b>This team has won two Championships in
last three seasons. Tough to bet against them, with their starting pitching.
Their offense doesn’t scare anyone, but always seems to come through. They’ll hit some rough patches, but will be
on top again at the end of the season.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>LA Dodgers </b>– They’re spending money like a bunch of
drunken Steinbrenners. They have a ton of pitchers who all could be aces, and their
offense is much better than the Giants.
But they still won’t catch them.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Arizona </b>– After winning 65 and then 94 games, they
split the difference and won 81 last year.
Which way will they go? They lost
Justin Upton, but added Cody Ross, Martin Prado and Brandon McCarthy among
others. They will improve, but not enough to win the division. Will be in the
wildcard hunt until the end.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>San Diego – </b>A quiet offseason, except they’ve moved the fences in at this
pitcher friendly ballpark. I suspect Padre pitchers can’t be happy about that,
because they were well below average in spite of that. They’ll battle Colorado and the Mets for the
worst pitching staff in the league.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><b>Colorado – </b>This team can score some runs. But they
can’t stop other teams from doing so. Not a winning recipe, but a couple of
good arms could push them towards respectability.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">75% Confidence Interval Win Summary:<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">San Francisco 90-99<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">LA Dodgers 85-92<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Arizona 84-90<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">San Diego 71-79<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Colorado 66-74<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I hate to do this, but will have to again…. Late October Parade
route will go down Pete Rose Way after the Joey Votto led Reds defeat the Joe
Maddon’s Ray in this year’s Fall Classic. </span></div>
Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-71643924035380306752013-03-26T20:03:00.004-06:002013-03-26T23:51:01.118-06:002013 Predictions Preview<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
</div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Twif9tgwi9MMzDmzedF3gRtt5d58FbLYdtft9sSCNJF4WFtfwfLUrmE312Iwk7I6y8PSgLn6IbkuuDb-qVaR-i4o0HFhb5mvW1hgZ4irxFORunPTA1s1vGy7gDPqw5SDxhJIeThoXJ2V/s1600/crystal+ball.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="289" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Twif9tgwi9MMzDmzedF3gRtt5d58FbLYdtft9sSCNJF4WFtfwfLUrmE312Iwk7I6y8PSgLn6IbkuuDb-qVaR-i4o0HFhb5mvW1hgZ4irxFORunPTA1s1vGy7gDPqw5SDxhJIeThoXJ2V/s320/crystal+ball.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">In previous years I have forecasted how the MLB season would play
out. Some predictions were good (Giants / Tigers World Series<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2012/04/opening-day-mlb-power-rankings-and.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> </span></span>last year</a>) some not so much (A's / Rockies<a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2011/03/opening-day-eve-final-preseason.html"><span class="apple-converted-space"><span style="text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> </span></span>in 2011</a>). I've been questioned, mocked and
ridiculed but that's not enough for me to stop.</span><br />
<br />
<div style="margin: 0cm 0cm 0.0001pt;">
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span style="font-family: inherit;">Anyhow, this year, I'm going to take a slightly
different approach. Instead of predicting exactly where each team will finish,
I am going to go with a 75% confidence interval on number of wins per team. </span></span><span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">I will post my expected win interval for each team along with some other observations before Opening Day.</span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;">Here is a preview of what you will see, revealing my predictions on a few teams:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span>
<br />
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b>NY Yankees<span class="apple-converted-space"> </span></b>- Their infield DL payroll is higher than
several teams' entire payroll. But unlike previous years where the Evil Empire
(go ahead and sue me for<a href="http://online.wsj.com/article/SB20001424127887323549204578320531185286140.html?mod=e2tw"> copyright infringement</a>) would just spend more money on buying some more all-stars, it
looks like their opening day lineup may actually include long time Yankee
legends such as Eduardo Nunez, Francisco Cervelli and Juan Rivera, as well as
the newly added Vernon Wells. This team is really hard to project. If this
wasn't the Yankees, they’d be reasonably expected to be a solid 70 win team.
But I know better. I have no confidence they are going to stick to their self
imposed spending limits for next year. I'll believe it when I see it. My
(not-so) bold prediction is that they are going to pay to acquire some much
needed pieces and explain that they had to due to all the unexpected injuries.
When they do and if all their stars come back healthy and produce, 95 wins is
not out of the question. Of course, if they stubbornly refuse to spend and Cano
gets injured 70 wins may be a stretch. I have narrowed my guess to a 10 game win interval between 77 and 87 wins.<o:p></o:p></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b>Toronto</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> - </span>Everyone (north of the border anyways)
has already anointed them World Series Champions.<br />
<a name='more'></a> Well, fellow
countrymen, prepare to be disappointed. Poor defense will lead to most of their
pitching rotation underperforming. Their bullpen is, um, below average.
They will act like they are in playoff contention, being buyers at the
deadline but will ultimately fall short at about 85 wins. Having said that, their upside is much higher then their downside, so I have a range of 82-95 for the Jays.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b>LA Angels</b><span class="apple-converted-space"> </span>- <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007Q4I23U/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B007Q4I23U&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Trout</a> will not repeat his rookie
campaign. That's not such a tough prediction, because he had one of the best
seasons in recent history, matching Ted Williams' best season ever, with his
10.7 bWAR. And I'm also not predicting that he'll go the way of previous
ROYs such as <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004JZX29S/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B004JZX29S&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20">Joe Charbonneau</a> who was never heard from again, but I expect
merely a very good season from him. A 280/350/475 triple slash line which
the LA media will make a big deal about, but is actually very good putting him
in Top 20 range for OPS+. But not enough as again the Angels will miss
the playoffs, and Mike Scioscia's time in Disneyland might come to an end. I have them between 84 and 90 wins but am also expecting them to be closer to the low range.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<b>Philadelphia</b> - This was an old team last year, and
their age showed as they stumbled to their worst record in over 10 seasons.
Ruben (what a great name!) Amaro Jr got the memo that he was to sign
young players and went out and got a couple of them. Unfortunately it seems
that there was a misunderstanding. The
young guys he signed were Michael and Delmon YOUNG. Michael is 36 years old,
and Delmon plays stellar defense... for a DH. Which the Phillies can't use. But
this team played great in the 2nd half last year when they were healthy. This
year's outcome hinges on Roy Halladay. If he's the Roy of old, he can anchor
their rotation to a division title. If he's not then they have some big shoes
to fill. I'm picking the Phillies to return to the top of the NL East, predicting 86-96 wins and expecting them to be closer to the top end of that.</div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
The above is just a start. I will post my writeup for all 30 MLB teams, and my predicted win ranges for each on Monday. Stay tuned... </div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
<br /></div>
<div style="margin-bottom: .0001pt; margin: 0cm;">
Also, don't forget to <a href="http://rsnalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/01/counting-down-days.html">pre-order OOTP14</a> so you can get it before it's released.</div>
<br />
<br />Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-54107265423628933162013-03-06T20:40:00.000-07:002013-03-06T20:40:03.252-07:00Now pinch-running, #93....<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYkq3YI-bmUeaBUKh3_aN1gPdUX-owZ061W4izy7hKRpYZBZn9pcSPA1j_VuqENRPHhphlO6RiVMico1pBrLDl0gHOrQcJzSWhWo0aEQcw3jt_vRkQL3MBY3N8bvlrBRmUFpK5WagUfUFK/s1600/SAM_2444.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYkq3YI-bmUeaBUKh3_aN1gPdUX-owZ061W4izy7hKRpYZBZn9pcSPA1j_VuqENRPHhphlO6RiVMico1pBrLDl0gHOrQcJzSWhWo0aEQcw3jt_vRkQL3MBY3N8bvlrBRmUFpK5WagUfUFK/s320/SAM_2444.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
... followed by awkward silence. Yes, the announcer at JetBlue Park also had no idea who the gentleman wearing a Red Sox #93 jersey was. This is one of many things you see in a spring training game that you don't see in meaningful games. To be fair to Kevin Millar's brother, Jensen, who served as the public address announcer this afternoon, I also had no idea who #93 is. And I may not have a cool brother who was a key part of the<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009IXRLW/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B0009IXRLW&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20"> first Red Sox Championship</a> since World War I, but I'm fairly confident in my ability to name most Red Sox by sight. And I don't just mean the starting 9 or just the ones on the 40 men roster, but most players in the high minors and key prospects at lower levels.<br />
<br />
Still... when a player enters the game and is going to officially appear in a boxscore, you would think <i>someone</i> in the pressbox would have a cheat sheet with a list of names and numbers. This was only one of many moments that gave fans a chuckle at today's game. Anyhow, I have<a href="https://twitter.com/ShanWilkerson/status/309480706923442176"> confirmed</a> that this was Portland centerfielder <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=wilker001sha">Shannon Wilkerson</a>.<br />
<br />
Other light moments from the game:<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br />
After a leadoff strikeout, Brock Holt took the catcher's throw, fired to Iglesias, who threw to Ciriaco who looked at third base for a while. As the ump was trying to get Holt's attention that someone was waiting to throw him the ball, Ciriaco gave up and threw the ball back to the mound.<br />
<br />
Lyle Overbay replaced Jonny Gomes in leftfield. I guess if you're fighting for the 25th spot, a 1st baseman / 5th outfielder has more value then just a 1st baseman. Well, I think he showed us there's a reason why he hasn't played in the outfield since<a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=overba001lyl"> AA El Paso which was before 9/11</a>. With a runner on 2nd, he came in to field a routine liner and either hold the runner at 3rd, or easily gun him out at home.... and the ball scooted under his glove while the runner trotted home unchallenged. The next inning he hit into a double play. I hope for his sake, he gets released soon, so that another team can consider him for a spot, because I sure don't think there's room for him in the Boston organization.<br />
<br />
Pedro Ciriaco moved from second base to centefield in the middle of the game, and also showed us why he should never see the outfield.<br />
<br />
<br />
Leading off the 8th, Jose Tabata hit a high chopper over the mound. Rubby De La Rosa jumped high and made a leaping grab on a ball that was well on its way to centerfield. Boston was down 8-2 at the time and the fans hadn't had a lot get excited about, so most of the stadium started cheering wildly when he came down with the ball..... And then he promptly threw the ball into right field, and Tabata ended up on 3rd base.<br />
<div>
<br /></div>
<br />
Other game observations:<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruxOC-yP6bHuw_tRhTPWBt7fqxNc1q7lahocDEKZJW9eDbEPcngRg66Jg7NPRpzTw1C_8FziCxNy48L_9ceRtZ3UO35IWyqsn5Bh5ihNT-Mg3tWNkn1dRJk6ihfNb0KOqTKf3dmoEvkyr/s1600/SAM_2420.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjruxOC-yP6bHuw_tRhTPWBt7fqxNc1q7lahocDEKZJW9eDbEPcngRg66Jg7NPRpzTw1C_8FziCxNy48L_9ceRtZ3UO35IWyqsn5Bh5ihNT-Mg3tWNkn1dRJk6ihfNb0KOqTKf3dmoEvkyr/s320/SAM_2420.JPG" width="240" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Lester warming up before game</td></tr>
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<b>Jon Lester</b> started the game by giving up a leadoff triple to Sterling Marte who scored shortly thereafter, the first run he's given up all spring. But he pitched well, despite not having his best stuff, ending up walking three batters, but he didn't give up another run during his four innings of work.<br />
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<b>Jackie Bradley Jr</b> looked great. Again. He showed patience at the plate getting two walks, and exhibited his usual stellar defence and speed. He also threw a rocket in from deep centerfield. Who was the last centerfielder we had who could do that? Certainly wasn't Ellsbury, Crisp or Damon who all have sub-par arms.<br />
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Speaking of defense, <b>Holt, Ciriaco</b> and <b>Iglesias</b> all flashed their leather today. Holt robbed McCutchen of a hit in the first inning, making a diving play at 3rd base. In the 2nd, Ciriaco threw out Garret Jones from short right field. Later in the game Iglesias went DEEP in the hole, ending up halfway in leftfield to start an almost double play.<br />
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<b>Jonny Gomes </b>CAN hit lefties. He lined out in the first inning, and when he came up again in the 3rd with 2 outs and runners on 1st and 2nd, I predicted he'd give us the lead with a line drive double. I was close. He did hit a line drive double, cashing in Ciriaco from 2nd, but Holt who was on 1st was held up at 3rd by Coach Brian Butterfield. He ended up stranded. I suspect in the regular season he would have been waived in, but it would have been a close play, and no point risking an injury in a meaningless spring training game.<br />
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<b>Saltalamacchia</b> almost homered, doubling off the top of the monster. I like him, but am still hoping someone calls Ben about him in the next month, so Lavarnway can start the season at Fenway.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5lY1dxvl65Xsc_iGyMJqNRGOnMBwI9niz1n-h_1T55vw_AGYwiNv-YiUbjobZIAaQqQav6IYNmjU1lcdB38SZcm7-Iz5OQM5T6hKEyC04NGIf-s6hWHgfEbJUSlwN-OSbQNxWViYZejGd/s1600/SAM_2443.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi5lY1dxvl65Xsc_iGyMJqNRGOnMBwI9niz1n-h_1T55vw_AGYwiNv-YiUbjobZIAaQqQav6IYNmjU1lcdB38SZcm7-Iz5OQM5T6hKEyC04NGIf-s6hWHgfEbJUSlwN-OSbQNxWViYZejGd/s320/SAM_2443.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Wright releasing a knuckler (probably wasn't a strike)</td></tr>
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I was really looking forward to watching S<b>teven Wright</b> pitch. After seeing him live, I think he'd be well advised to sticking to his<a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000F48D7I/ref=as_li_ss_tl?ie=UTF8&camp=1789&creative=390957&creativeASIN=B000F48D7I&linkCode=as2&tag=rsna0ba-20"> comedy routine</a> (sorry, I'm sure everybody else has already made that joke). He had trouble controlling his knuckleball, and when he wasn't walking batters, they were teeing off on the pitches he left up in the zone. He ended up giving up 5 runs in his 2 innings of work.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKEwuwJEEJqZngDPnpU0C-80M4QnfeZsz4BRDmeFZk_RgV8mjj-CgzO7pdWKMgWgnLja8Si3MX2MqiXy_gZhgwjaGPBVKb-21aHW_Su3NGpFLLkYWqljc8aDBFby2G9u7CQcTqjGCcow3/s1600/rubby+k.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYKEwuwJEEJqZngDPnpU0C-80M4QnfeZsz4BRDmeFZk_RgV8mjj-CgzO7pdWKMgWgnLja8Si3MX2MqiXy_gZhgwjaGPBVKb-21aHW_Su3NGpFLLkYWqljc8aDBFby2G9u7CQcTqjGCcow3/s320/rubby+k.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">One of RDLRs punchouts</td></tr>
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<b>Rubby De La Rosa</b> went right after hitters, striking out a pair in his 2 innings of work, but also leaving some balls over the plate. It was enjoyable seeing him flat out beat some batters, and I'm also looking forward to him getting called up.<br />
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And, in the it's a small world category, before the game I saw Andrew McCutchen being interviewed next to the Sox dugout. I took a closer look and 3000 miles from home I realized that the interviewer was a <a href="https://twitter.com/ThrowinSmoke/status/309375160371265537">Canadian reporter</a> who grew up 50 miles from me and also writes for the <a href="http://www.canadianbaseballnetwork.com/">Canadian Baseball Network</a>.<br />
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All in all, a good day. Even took some time to take touristy pictures:<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8SWMf4VOIlQ94iHcBPRoxPcV4PUdgi_w04VsTtbON82g7haRZQc-tFTwLGvSMCg_gnZLtC3NUN_bOdd3JZcd0XNoHF0PxdWNGXjGCOnDUPAQF9j7UU3xhOVet5sX1QYFHQNYazCD8UPD/s1600/Ruben+and+nelson+14.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="235" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv8SWMf4VOIlQ94iHcBPRoxPcV4PUdgi_w04VsTtbON82g7haRZQc-tFTwLGvSMCg_gnZLtC3NUN_bOdd3JZcd0XNoHF0PxdWNGXjGCOnDUPAQF9j7UU3xhOVet5sX1QYFHQNYazCD8UPD/s320/Ruben+and+nelson+14.jpg" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Couple of Red Sox fans from Alberta</td></tr>
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Tomorrow it's over to the Twins field to watch the Red Sox as the visiting team.<br />
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<br />Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2855685144639824721.post-57681782059432843202013-03-05T22:04:00.004-07:002013-03-05T22:06:04.446-07:00Notes from Red Sox Spring Training trip<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhteQ94vQH9cuEcMIf5Xpd7geGFu5_PQpk0iAcUezBfew_R1eKz2ZXK8k_QD7P990UXRkgywdMUQlTijuRw50m7tK6sabHIta9t_cnkeVjEVz7EB0ovOShVU4R6mOACG6QbOmKTtt1BQzAk/s1600/SAM_2377.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhteQ94vQH9cuEcMIf5Xpd7geGFu5_PQpk0iAcUezBfew_R1eKz2ZXK8k_QD7P990UXRkgywdMUQlTijuRw50m7tK6sabHIta9t_cnkeVjEVz7EB0ovOShVU4R6mOACG6QbOmKTtt1BQzAk/s320/SAM_2377.JPG" width="320" /></a>Here's a review of day 1:<br />
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4:15 AM - depart home to go to Calgary airport. For those of you that know me, you know how major of a commitment it is for me to get out of bed before 8 AM. Very few things get me up before dawn. Baseball is on that shortlist. (Very short. It has exactly one item on it).</div>
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7:00 AM - Flight departs towards DFW (Dallas) where I'll catch a connection to RSW (Fort Myers)</div>
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6:00 PM - We arrive at RSW, after a pair of uneventful flights.<br />
7:00 PM - after getting luggage and rental car check in at the hotel.<br />
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I check my phone, and see on my twitter feed that the Red Sox have an exhibition game against Puerto Rico's WBC team starting in 5 minutes. Fenway South is about a 5 minute drive away. Is the game sold out, will I be able to buy tix from a scalper? I'm tired and hungry, but only one way to find out.<br />
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We head towards the game, and quickly buy a pair and make our way to our seats. I'm going to be in Fort Myers less than 48 hours in total, but will get to watch the Red Sox play three times. As <a href="http://bit.ly/XDjqYo">Macklemore</a> would say "This is ***ing Awesome!"<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3w34qUQkoVYzae6xJN07o8ZP16TXAG6ErqykCc_KWIn9Vt5vMi7psyhYzZJGhQbZMtReVGYteE7nLb4Yc_WTAxyF9ibaH6u9dfOAzSIbqt7K80BezZ6NjRVPm0M8vPopqCUDLEk3_YYw8/s1600/SAM_2397.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi3w34qUQkoVYzae6xJN07o8ZP16TXAG6ErqykCc_KWIn9Vt5vMi7psyhYzZJGhQbZMtReVGYteE7nLb4Yc_WTAxyF9ibaH6u9dfOAzSIbqt7K80BezZ6NjRVPm0M8vPopqCUDLEk3_YYw8/s320/SAM_2397.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Puerto Rican fans getting into the game</td></tr>
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The game was not sold out, but it was a pretty lively crowd. The Puerto Ricans were cheering loudly and proudly displaying their nation's flag every opportunity they could.<br />
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John Lackey pitched and shockingly he wasn't absolutely awful. In fact, he looked quite good. I'm going by memory as I didn't keep score but he went 3 scoreless innings, had at least a pair of Ks, and never got in any trouble.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcW8B-N0iv3CUZev0RbJJXOcOshjuZoSszhwlLVvD2c2QeoWgF5wG3lF5ZgzCMy5G2hSmw9IWUc6cqqid1z__Nn7sT9QT963QStmfcSDmK-qE-oUX6Li0TBZ44xkxLYlJ_jUt7VoKYeDaO/s1600/SAM_2394.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcW8B-N0iv3CUZev0RbJJXOcOshjuZoSszhwlLVvD2c2QeoWgF5wG3lF5ZgzCMy5G2hSmw9IWUc6cqqid1z__Nn7sT9QT963QStmfcSDmK-qE-oUX6Li0TBZ44xkxLYlJ_jUt7VoKYeDaO/s320/SAM_2394.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Just like Boston. With palm trees instead of snow</td></tr>
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Early in the game, Will Middlebrooks gave the Red Sox fans a reason to cheer when he hit a no-doubter home run over everything in left field onto Landsdowne Street. (or whatever street is behind the monster at this Fenway Park replica). By the way, this stadium is very nice. I've been to many minor league and spring training parks and this is certainly among the nicest.<br />
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In the 4th, the Puerto Rican bats came alive and they scored 3 runs. The highlight was former Red Sox Mike Aviles getting thrown out at the plate trying to score from first on a wall ball that was bare handed by Mike Carp in left field, who hit his cutoff Drew perfectly, who relayed to Lavarnway who had the plate blocked and put down a perfect tag.<br />
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Speaking of Ryan Lavarnway, he had quite a game. He gunned out runners at both second and third base, and had 3 hits, including 2 doubles. However, he will never be mistaken for Ellsbury on the bases. Both doubles were close plays, but were hit deep enough that they should have been standup hits. Unfortunately, no matter how well he plays, I think he has to start the season in Pawtucket so we can stash him there as depth. Unless we can find a taker for Salty who will bring give us more then a fungible reliever in return.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaYDFA8j6xhc0k-pI8w2EwTrSDE6sVHoHb7YIbYGmfHdYz9uppBT2AMBZRrO9YAACZXrII3-vy9Z_ONfYGVBxhj2Kv0bgogvJ9-xm3UW91mbyz_cotJ3MPr_wtGr4qWtvLCSOT2MXS94ZW/s1600/SAM_2381.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaYDFA8j6xhc0k-pI8w2EwTrSDE6sVHoHb7YIbYGmfHdYz9uppBT2AMBZRrO9YAACZXrII3-vy9Z_ONfYGVBxhj2Kv0bgogvJ9-xm3UW91mbyz_cotJ3MPr_wtGr4qWtvLCSOT2MXS94ZW/s320/SAM_2381.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Jim Rice - 2009 HoF inductee</td></tr>
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Mike Napoli also brought some ooohs and aahs from the crowd when he hit an absolutely towering home run. It might not have gone as far as Middlebrooks' but it was much much higher.<br />
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In between innings on the scoreboard they showed some Jim Rice highlights. <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguoyFfpnK7fWwBkBvEOTNjErj6ouVgyy-0rsIXOZWSsm2tAe94I4hn3K7s1QMx4PIV70phuilljNkjcHXi9IQYsR5JcgTX0rTIHQRSv56AWaQm3kJ-4Yg6YfQzJF9ZvyF-aS8p0QKusz9a/s400/07.28.09+Pre-Game+Reception+-+Rice+Photos+031.jpg">That's never a bad thing.</a><br />
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After most of the starters had left the game, the Puerto Ricans had a chance to add some more runs, but Pedro Ciriaco turned a beautiful double play with runners on the corners. This game really had a bit of everything.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1-5tTKSpD4HFVz5HEGlH4C9XLlgkjhP46Gdl3JFmQe8Jw0LJS565skdf_-GyiYzebCOrEma06WTQCbWRsiZEjXUitA7Eu-Ie5t3QVUa56EEfk2m_r3aAkvJmHM0fSzfesFHddAP58tCzK/s1600/SAM_2403.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh1-5tTKSpD4HFVz5HEGlH4C9XLlgkjhP46Gdl3JFmQe8Jw0LJS565skdf_-GyiYzebCOrEma06WTQCbWRsiZEjXUitA7Eu-Ie5t3QVUa56EEfk2m_r3aAkvJmHM0fSzfesFHddAP58tCzK/s320/SAM_2403.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Congratulatory post-game handshakes</td></tr>
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Red Sox prospect Jose De La Torre pitched an inning for the visiting team, and looked good.<br />
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In the end Andrew Bailey came in to close out a 4-3 lead. Had 2 outs and 2 strikes on a batter... and lost him. Made the ending interesting as they ended up with runners on 1st and 2nd, but he ended up with the save.<br />
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The Puerto Rican team had many recognizable MLB stars including Yadier Molina and Carlos Beltran. At the end of the game they seemed happy to interact with the fans. All in all a very fun game to watch, particularly when it was unexpected. If I have time, I'll post a recap of tomorrow's game.<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVu6_VwgFJURPiM6yf6uz4rHXu-9HFk74s6UfumkpaqiJxPPM0bgSpyIj1XfnC00zrbWtElUN-SsA42j8SJhxsU0yVobl3GKBLBE0xiLComgjr-5dczrDbD0d9oo0eVq-Pnk1axjkyNNDo/s1600/SAM_2404.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjVu6_VwgFJURPiM6yf6uz4rHXu-9HFk74s6UfumkpaqiJxPPM0bgSpyIj1XfnC00zrbWtElUN-SsA42j8SJhxsU0yVobl3GKBLBE0xiLComgjr-5dczrDbD0d9oo0eVq-Pnk1axjkyNNDo/s320/SAM_2404.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Molina chatting with crowd</td></tr>
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36SHGdrK1Smq4bdMMSWKT43CIxRyyEYu36PisekYwlp3TtJ908VOWG1vS4_rugIMJBE5eLVlPsOfrL3laIkyFLZtaTzOaY0G7LB_kUra2Mf-AItuuQvzee1QmbUQT4fm4Pj4tGDjk_1AO/s1600/SAM_2405.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg36SHGdrK1Smq4bdMMSWKT43CIxRyyEYu36PisekYwlp3TtJ908VOWG1vS4_rugIMJBE5eLVlPsOfrL3laIkyFLZtaTzOaY0G7LB_kUra2Mf-AItuuQvzee1QmbUQT4fm4Pj4tGDjk_1AO/s320/SAM_2405.JPG" width="320" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Royals Irving Falu signing for fans after the game</td></tr>
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Ruben Lipszychttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18090589603428890393noreply@blogger.com0