Happy Fourth of July
Jason Bay became a US citizen just in time for Independence Day... now we just need to sign him to nice, fat 5-year contract all American style and we'll be good to go. Happy Fourth of July everyone. Rob...
7/3: Wake's All-Star Statement Game
Tim Wakefield has never been to an All-Game and this year may be his best and last chance. With a 10-3 record, the few blips that bounced his ERA above 4.00 can be ignored along the way, especially with a win in a head to head duel with 8-3 Felix Hernandez (2.54 ERA) tonight.
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A tribute to Lou "The Iron Horse" Gehrig
" I might've been given a bad break, but I have an awful lot to live for. Thank you." Those were the final words Lou Gehrig ever spoke to the hearts of America. His succinct and supple speech on Lou Gehrig Appreciation Day at Yankee Stadium on July 4, 1939 remains one of the most beautiful bits of poetry our ears have ever heard. Saturday, July 4, 2009 marks the 70th anniversary of Gehrig's farewell speech, and it will be celebrated around Major League Baseball. MLB is launching the "4ALS Awareness" campaign to raise money for ALS research in an attempt to help fight the illness that has become commonly known as Lou Gehrig's Disease. Throughout MLB, players will wear "4ALS" patches, first bases will be auctioned in memory of Gehrig (he played 1B), and every major league ballpark will read Gehrig's speech during the seventh inning stretch. Gehrig...
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Home Run Trot's June All-Star Team: Pitchers
Choosing the pitchers for June's team was just as tough as making some of the decisions for the position players. Some of the players below, like Zack Greinke and Jason Frasor, are making their third straight appearance on the team. Others, like Josh Johnson, are making the team for the first time. Take a look and leave your comments. I think it's a great pitching staff. *Stats as of 7 PM EST July 2STARTERS:SP: Zack Greinke, Kansas CityYes, Greinke had a tough June going 2-2 with a 4.05 ERA and .290 batting average against. Yet he still leads all starters...
Read more | Discuss | Tags: Andrew Bailey, Boston Red Sox, Florida Marlins, Francisco Rodriguez, Heath Bell, Home Run Trot All-Stars, Jason Frasor, Jonathan Broxton, Josh Johnson, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Dodgers, Matt Cain, MLB, New York Mets, Oakland Athletics, Ramon Ramirez, Ramon Troncoso, Roy Halladay, San Diego Padres, San Francisco Giants, Tim Lincecum, Toronto Blue Jays, Zack Greinke
Friday's Games of the Day
The Fourth of July Weekend kicks off with a full schedule of games. The Yankees look to start a new winning streak against the Blue Jays. The Brewers and Cubs continue their seesaw NL Central battle. The Brewers need wins to stay ahead in the division because the Cardinals and Reds are battling for positioning in the division. The Mets and Phillies begin a series that will determine which team is in first in the NL East on Monday. These games, and many more, can be found in Friday's Games of the Day. Toronto at New York Yankees: The Mariners...
Read more | Discuss | Tags: AJ Burnett, Boston Red Sox, Brian Tallet, Carlos Zambrano, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Curtis Granderson, Derek Lee, Detroit Tigers, Felix Hernandez, Franklin Gutierrez, Games of the Day, Gordon Beckham, Hideki Matsui, Homer Bailey, Houston Astros, J.J. Hardy, Jeff Suppan, Joel Pineiro, Jose Lopez, Kansas City Royals, Kevin Slowey, Luke French, Mike Cameron, Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins, MLB, New York Mets, New York Yankees, Paul Konerko, Philadelphia Phillies, Rodrigo Lopez, Ryan Sadowski, San Francisco Giants, Scott Kazmir, Seattle Mariners, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Tim Wakefield, Toronto Blue Jays, Zack Greinke
Is Lester A Different Pitcher?
Boston Red Sox left-hander Jon Lester capped off an excellent June performance on Monday night. Lester scattered just five hits over seven shutout innings to lead Boston to a series-opening win over the Baltimore Orioles at Camden Yards. He struck out eight without walking a batter, lowering his ERA to 4.35 and raising his ERA+ to 107. The rising ace had strong command over his pitches, mixing in his devastating sinker and cutter combo to induce nine ground ball outs.Red Sox nation was up in arms over Lester's perceived struggles earlier this spring, when his ERA and W-L record left a lot to be desired. Since his impressive outing against the Toronto Blue Jays on May 31, though, he has been outstanding for Boston, allowing three runs or fewer in each of his six outings since.The bounce back prompted Boston Globe beat reporter Adam Kilgore to write that Lester is...
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Jeter Twice As Good As JB? I Think Not...
All-Star voting ends tonight at 11:59pm ET. That means that Rays shortstop Jason Bartlett will be on the bench in St. Louis.I am one of many that realize that fan voting is destroying the All-Star Game. The main reason for me writing this article is because of what I mentioned above. Jason Bartlett, an All Star SS will not be the guy taking the field between 2nd and 3rd base. Who will? A guy named Derek Jeter. You may not have heard of him I know, so take a time out and do a quick google search...To further my frustration, lets examine the manner in which Mr. Jeter has beaten JB out. JETER HAS TWICE AS MANY VOTES! TWICE! Feel free to read that as many times needed for it to sink in. In fact he has more than twice the votes.Both guys have seen some time on the bench...
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Cuba's Aroldis Chapman Defects
Jorge Arangure Jr. of ESPN The Magazine reported today left-handed pitcher Aroldis Chapman has defected from the Cuban national team.According to the report, Chapman defected from the team while they were in the Netherlands competing in a tournament, walking right out of the front door of the team's hotel in Rotterdam."I walked out easily, right through the hotel door, and I hopped in a car and left," Chapman told cubaencuentro.com, a Spanish web site. "It was easy. Now the plan is to sign with a Major League team."Chapman is scheduled to fly to Miami on Thursday, according to a source.This is huge news on this winter's free agency front because, depending on who you ask, Chapman is the most-hyped player to defect from Cuba since Jose Contreras, but appears to have a ceiling far beyond that of the Chicago White Sox veteran right-hander.Chapman, 21, is a menacing southpaw who brings...
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Fantasy Baseball: Boston Red Sox 3B Mike Lowell To The DL
Boston Red Sox 3B Mike Lowell has been placed on the 15-day DL with a strained right hip. The move was made retroactive to June 28, and Lowell is not expected to miss extended time. Reports have suggested that Lowell may be held out until after the All-Star break, which would give him 19 days off. He had offseason surgery on the same hip so the team is proceeding with caution, but this also could be a sign of trouble to come for the 35-year old. So far in 2009, Lowell is hitting .282 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI in 266 at-bats. He has been fairly productive for his fantasy owners, and has stayed relatively healthy up to now. In his place, 1B Kevin Youkilis will move across the diamond to 3B while Jeff Bailey has been recalled from the minors and should see some time at 1B. OF Mark Kotsay has also seen action in 10 games at first base for...Read more
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MLB Top 10: Halos Grab AL West Lead
Sometimes when I think about this list during the weekend before Mondays roll around, things end up looking a bit differently than I pictured. This was one of those weeks. Over the weekend, multiple winning streaks were snapped, teams unexpectedly played poorly, and my top ten list underwent some major reconstruction. The result? A drastically different list compared to what we would've seen on Friday. 1. Los Angeles Angels (41-32)The Halos have won five straight, including a series win over the red-hot Rockies last week. They followed up the impressive series win by sweeping the woeful Diamondbacks over the weekend, and they now hold a 1.5 game lead in the AL West over Texas. They get the chance to widen the gap this week when they continue their road trip in Texas, in what some are calling the biggest series for the Angels this year.2. Tampa Bay Rays (42-35)Don't look...Read more
Read more | Discuss | Tags: Boston Red Sox, Chicago White Sox, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Minnesota Twins, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Tampa Bay Rays
MLB Great Debates: Which Playoff Contender Needs a Trade to Stay in the Race?
MLB Outsider's Jaymes Langrehr and Kurt Evans debate the issue: Which contending team most needs to make a deal before the July 31 trade deadline in order to stay in the race? Jaymes Langrehr argues that the Brewers desperately need starting pitching:As we get closer to the trade deadline, a good number of teams are developing clear needs that need to be addressed if they're going to stay in playoff contention. Some teams will be able to cope with their weaknesses and still make the playoffs due to their other strengths. Other clubs will need to make a move if they have any chance at contending in the second half.The Milwaukee Brewers are a prime example. Heading into this season, they knew that their pitching wouldn't be as good as it was down the stretch last season. Given the strength of their offense, however, they figured to be in okay...Read more
MLB Top 10: Rox Still Hot
Sure, the Colorado Rockies may not be on an insanely long winning streak at the moment (they're back to a merely above-average 5-game streak), but they're still playing the best baseball outside of Los Angeles or Boston at this point. For that reason, they hang on to the #1 spot in this week's Top 10 list. But who takes the #2 spot? With quite a few teams piecing together winning streaks lately, there are plenty of contenders -- there are seven teams who have won at least three games in a row, so there's no shortage of teams playing well, unlike in previous weeks.1. Colorado Rockies (36-33)Sure, it may not be an 11-game win streak, but after dropping a game to the Rays to snap the streak, Colorado has won five straight. For those of you keeping track at home, that's 16 wins in their past 17 games, and it's...Read more
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Fantasy Baseball: The Return of John Smoltz
With the news on Sunday that the Boston Red Sox have placed pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka on the 15-day DL with shoulder weakness, that opens a rotation spot for the pending return of John Smoltz. Boston signed the 42-year old Smoltz during the offseason and he has been recovering from shoulder surgery, making six minor league rehab starts so far this season. Through his 20 big league seasons, all with the Atlanta Braves, Smoltz has a 210-147 record and a 3.26 ERA along with 154 career saves. He won the 1996 National League Cy Young Award as he had a 24-8 record with a 2.94 ERA in 35 starts that year. From 2002-2004 Smoltz made the transition to closer smoothly, as he led the National League in saves with 55 in 2002 and followed that up with 45 saves in 2003 and 44 saves in 2004. He returned to the Braves' starting rotation in 2005, and made 32 or more starts and...Read more
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MLB Stock Market - When I'm Wrong, I'm Really, Really Wrong Edition
What's that on Ryan Howard's shirt? ...never mind. Maybe I don't want to know.Usually I start these with some pithy remark about how fast the season is moving, or how things are unfolding as most people would expect, or I just make fun of the Yankees. But not this time, my friends. Oh no, this time we're going to get straight to the Stock Market portion of this article. Except...This will mark the first of surely many times in which I admit my mistakes. You know how some people will flat out deny being wrong, as if their words aren't recorded and saved forever on the internets? I am not one of those people. And I'll say right now that I was wrong. More on that in the Falling section.RisingThe Bile in Ryan Howard's StomachRyan Howard wants you to know he does not have the swine flu. He is not...Read more
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MLB Top 10: Will the Rockies Ever Lose?
For most teams, the MLB season includes multiple peaks and valleys. Ultimately, you're never as good as you are when you're playing at a peak, and you're never as bad as when you're playing in a valley. Right now, the Colorado Rockies are riding a peak that's a mile high (har har), winning eleven games in a row. Whenever the "L10" column in the standings reads "10-0", you know you're playing really good baseball. It's no surprise that the Rockies take the top spot in this week's top ten list, but who else has been putting together hot streaks while the Rockies steal the headlines?1. Colorado Rockies (31-32)At this point, there's really no one else you can put at the top of this list. I always thought that their run in September two years ago was a once-in-a-lifetime thing and would never be repeated, but it looks like the 2009...Read more
Read more | 1 Comment | Tags: Boston Red Sox, Cleveland Indians, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB, MLB Outsider, MLB Top 10, San Francisco Giants, Tampa Bay Rays
MLB Top 10: Yanks Enter Week Hotter Than Boston -- Will it Stay that Way?
It was an interesting week in baseball -- Randy Johnson won his 300th career game in front of about 12 people in Washington, the Dodgers stole a couple wins from Philadelphia in walkoff fashion, the Rangers proved their worth with a brutal East Coast road trip, and the Rockies started slugging the tar out of the ball...and they weren't even playing at home. So who heads up this week's Top 10 list as the team playing the best baseball?1. Philadelphia Phillies (33-22)The Phillies had a pair of tough walkoff losses in Los Angeles over the weekend, but prior to the late-game collapses the Phils were winners of seven straight. With the Mets running into serious injury problems, Philadelphia has a hold on the NL East -- they have a chance to expand that three game division lead starting Tuesday night when they travel to New York for a three game...Read more
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