October 2011
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Matt Moore Is A Baseball Monster, Rays Take Game...
(Photo by Keith Allison)
After pitching only nine-and-a-third Major League innings during the regular season (amassing 15 strikeouts in that time), Joe Maddon selected him to start game one of the ALDS, proving that those glasses he wears don’t just make him look smart. Despite the prevailing baseball wisdom that places the emphasis on things like veteranness, wilyness, and craftiness,...
September 2011
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Horoscoping Tonight's Playoff Games
Normally I wouldn’t put any stock in what the stars have to say, but after the bizarre and exhilirating end to the baseball season, I’ve had to re-think a few of my stances. So, using the heavens as my guide, here is a preview of tonight’s ALDS matchups:
5:07 ET Tampa Bay Rays (M. Moore 1-0, 2.89) at Texas Rangers (C. Wilson 16-7, 2.94)
Matt Moore is a baby, making only the...
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Farewell Tito
As most of you might have heard by now, Red Sox skipper Terry Francona has managed his last game for Boston. Francona leaves behind a 755-552 record, five playoff appearances, and two World Series rings from his eight seasons at the steps of the dugout. There are conflicting reports out there as to whether the decision came as a result of a nudge by owner John Henry or if Tito actually came to the...
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Get Out And Vote: The 2011 OTFB Fashion Awards Are...
After sorting through thousands* of nominations, it is time to announce that voting is open for the 2011 Fashion Awards. You, the people of this great planet, will get to decide who is viewed as the best dressed player.
When voting, please disregard on-field abilities and judge the player simply on the unique and individual style they can bring to the field. This includes socks, facial hair,...
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“I could see it. Then it went out because, oh, the satellite or something. I...”
– - Jim Leyland describing how he watched the wildcard games last night, before being corrected that he was in fact watching it on an iPad. (via bangbangplay)
Something tells me Leyland and Ron Gardenhire are best friends.
(via battingcleanup)
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Who Should You Root For In the Playoffs? →
The attachment one has to a team is largely a matter of the heart. It comes down to intangibles, emotions, and feelings; those terrible things that are as unquantifiable as the beauty of a summer’s day. Or that lightness you feel after using the bathroom in the morning. So when your favorite team inevitably fails to make the playoffs, oftentimes a sense of purposeless drifting fills the...
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I Wouldn't Play The Red Sox Lottery Right Now If I...
The chance of the Red Sox losing and the Rays winning last night was 1 in 278 million. If you’re a Massachusetts-er and want to try your luck, go right ahead, but I would probably hang onto my $5.
(Image via Sun Sentinel)
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Eugenio Velez Is In Rare Company, Sets Record for...
(Photo by Artolog)
Bill Bergen’s record of 46 consecutive at-bats without a hit went unchallenged for over one hundred years. But in 2011, it came under assault three separate times. First, it was Craig Counsell who singled in his 46th at bat off of Enerio Del Rosario, successfully falling short of the record by one at-bat. But when Joe Dittmar looked back into the records and found that,...
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Wake's Coming Back!
As long as the Red Sox will have him. Considering that the Red Sox playoff hopes fell before they could even regret not getting Bruce Chen into a uniform, I can’t imagine they won’t have a use for Wakefield. In an interview with Jon Paul Morosi, Wakefield said:
“I’ve definitely made up my mind that I definitely want to come back next year. I have another goal in front...
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“The following is not mathematically rigorous, since the events of yesterday...”
– NATE SILVER, The New York Times, “Bill Buckner Strikes Again” (via inothernews)
Wow.
(via brooklynmutt)
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Cardinals and Rays Are Selfish and Cruel
With their selfish desire to prove that they are the fourth best team in their respective leagues, the Rays and Cardinals selfishly won their games yesterday, denying baseball fans of two separate tie-breakers today.
Yes, some of you may argue that the Red Sox and Braves should have wrapped up the season long ago; holding 9 and 8.5 game leads, respectively as of September 1st. But that means...
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This night has “Buffalo Wild Wings” commercial written all over it.
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Off Season Regimens
With the last day of the regular season upon us, I’m doing my best to keep my spirits up and look forward to what promises to be an interesting off season. We cannot, however, fully replace the absence of baseball games with Hot Stove rumors and pictures of Scott Boras in a golf shirt and on a cell phone. In light of this, I’ve compiled a list of activities we can all use to help ease...
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Before I get too deep into tonight’s posts, I want to take a moment to thank everyone for not heckling me away from my first full season of baseball blogging here at Old Time Family Baseball, where I’ve focused a lot on the “Time” and “Base” aspects of things. I hope to expand my horizons over the playoffs and into the off season. I’ve learned more this...
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“I don’t like that man. He’s annoying and has 80s hair. And I...”
– - My girlfriend, talking about Hall of Famer and NESN analyst Dennis Eckersley. We can only draw two conclusions from her statement:
1. Someone is sleeping on the couch for the near future.
2. My girlfriend hasn’t seen this picture:
(Image via SI Vault)
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Jose Reyes Bunts for A Single, Sits Out Rest of...
Let’s put this into perspective:
You’re a New York Mets fan.
You’ve seen your team’s $142 million payroll result in 77 victories.
Your owners were duped by both Steve Phillips and Bernie Madoff.
And that one sliver of joy, Jose Reyes and his hunt for the batting title, will probably be gone next season.
So, if you’re the Mets, what do you do? Do you have Jose...
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Let's Play Extras
Not so fast, Associated Press. Considering how the Red Sox season has gone, there is a decent chance that tonight’s Red Sox - Orioles game goes 35 innings:
“The Reds’ Drew Stubbs ended Mark Reynolds’ run of three straight years leading majors in strikeouts. Stubbs struck out 205 time and Reynolds had 195 heading into the Orioles’ season finale Wednesday night.”
If this...
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“Better to say a player hit a home run, rather than he ‘walloped’ or ‘blasted’ or...”
– - The Associated Press has released its World Series style guide
(via practicalobscurity)
They can, and should, call singles ‘safeties’, a big hit a ‘cracker jack of a good time,’ and a strikeout a ‘trolley conductor’s ding dong.’
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Ryan Roberts Hits Walk-Off Grand Slam,...
Even with little to play for, the Diamondbacks refuse to bow down to the Dodgers. After Micah Owings came in and allowed five runs in the top of the tenth inning, a clear enough signal for everyone to turn off their television sets, the Diamondbacks stormed back in the bottom half with six runs to take the game, culminating in Ryan Roberts’ game-winning grand slam.
I would love to embed...
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“We’re going to say a prayer that Boston wins the wild card spot…I’m worried if...”
– Vice President Joe Biden in Boston commenting that his lead Secret Service man is a Red Sox fan. (via boston)
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Philosophize This!
Ryan Lavarnway was a philosophy major at Yale. Which means that despite hitting the first two home runs of his career, keeping the Red Sox tied atop the AL Wild Card, he probably had a sleepless night as he tossed and turned, questioning if the bombs were categorical imperatives or not.*
(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)
In Peter Abraham’s game recap, he gushes over Ryan Lavarnway’s...
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Bruce Chen, Thy Name is Fear
Nothing makes sense any longer.
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Today Is The Last Day of the Regular Season
(Image via We Heart It)
If your team is one of the 22 for which the day after tomorrow has no meaning (unless, of course, the AL and NL Wild Cards remain tied, in which case, 20), start saying your farewells. As you fight back tears, do a once over of the lineup because, for better or worse, those same nine will not be back next season.
Legends like Omar Vizquel, Alex Cora, and Tim...
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2011 Willie Mays Award
Yesterday I submitted my ballot for the Connie Mack Award and today I lay before you my votes for the best rookies. It was a tight field, but difficult decisions are a must.
American League
(Photo by Keith Allison)
Michael Pineda
Jeremy Hellickson
Eric Hosmer
When the BBWAA awards come out, I’m fairly confident that Hellickson and Pineda will find their positions flipped. After all,...
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Live Chat With Chad Harbach, Author of The Art of... →
Follow this link at 2 pm today to take part The New Yorker’s live chat with Chad Harbach. This warning should give you more than enough time to go out, purchase a copy of the book, and read it so that you won’t be exposed to any spoilers.
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The Rays Are Fate's Team
Despite the second lowest payroll in baseball, forced to play Booster Gold to the Yankees’ Superman and the Red Sox’s Batman in the Justice League East, the Rays have somehow found themselves tied for the AL Wild Card going into the final day of the season. While some have attributed it to luck (good for the Rays, bad for the Red Sox), or just the strange happenings that pop up...
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Addendum: There Is No Joking On The Baseball Field
There are three things you don’t talk about with a home plate umpire: religion, politics, and his pre-game stretching routine. Russell Martin learned that the hard way:
“Martin thought he was cracking a harmless joke at home-plate umpire Paul Schrieber in the fifth inning Monday night, but the ump didn’t find much humor in it, ejecting the catcher from the game.
“I...
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A's Acquire Kila Ka'aihue
And all it cost them was Ethan Hollingsworth, a 24 year-old pitcher with excellent command and a chance to one day battle for those back of the rotation crumbs.
While Ka’aihue has struggled mightily in his his 326 Major League plate appearances, he has been the Hawaiian Lord of Walks in the minors, hitting .266/.390/.458 in 4,536 PA. While it certainly won’t help that he’s...
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Melky Cabrera Picks Up His 200th Hit
As the Royals pushed the Twins to the brink last night, handing them loss number 99, Melky Cabrera shocked the world by picking up hits number 200 and 201 on the season. While Cabrera can bask in the glow for now, the excellent performance by the Royals outfielders should leave Kansas City fans concerned.
Consider:
En route to his 200 hits, Cabrera established career highs in batting average,...
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Doug Fister: No Longer Just Something Fun To Say
When Doug Fister was in Seattle, I assumed that his low ERAs came from his above average command, a little bit of luck, and the spacious outfield that Safeco Field provides. But ever since Fister has joined the Tigers, he has morphed into a Justin Verlander-lite, a Cy-worthy pitcher with an 89 mph fastball. Either Jim Leyland has the pitching equivalent of the Captain Planet power rings or Fister...
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The Red Sox Season Summed Up By Robert Andino's...
Part One: Uh-oh. Not good.
Part Two: Yeah! Hooray! Everything’s the best!
Part Three: Uh-oh.
Part Four: Oh, wait. Hold on. Things might be okay. Maybe.
Part Five: You’re fucking kidding me.
Highlight here.
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2011 Connie Mack Award
As I complete my first full year as a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance, I have the honor of casting a ballot for a number of post season awards. First up is the Connie Mack Award, given to the best American and National League Managers in 2011.
Naturally, the first vote is the most difficult to judge as how does one accurately measure manager’s impact on their team. Their intensity?...
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White Sox, Marlins Completing Deal Involving Ozzie →
allikazoo:
he gone!
So the Marlins, who hate outspoken ballplayers, are trading a human being for perhaps the least restrained person connected to Major League Baseball in recent memory? It’s a match made in heaven.
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Hawk Harrelson and Steve Stone, Unsurprisingly,...
Part of me wants to view this CSN Chicago article as satire because the whole “I hate Moneyball because Billy Beane is Mark Twain, I’ll tell ya, and why would I want computers to play baseball because I like men playing baseball, the way God intended” shtick became a hilarious cultural meme thanks to the good folks at Fire Joe Morgan. But when it’s Hawk Harrelson who...
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Ozzie Guillen on What's Important
“(Bleep) the years. I want more money.”
(via @MDGonzales)