Monday, March 26, 2007
The Sac Fly Watch: A New Season of Nonsense
The dumbest statistical rule in baseball remains the sacrifice fly rule: if a runner tags up and scores on a hitter's fly-ball with less than two outs, the hitter gains an RBI but not an "official" plate appearance; if a runner scores when a hitter grounds out, said hitter is credited with an RBI but also an out against their batting average...which is dumb.
Dumb, but no matter; much as last year's Pitcher RBI "Race" stole much of the thunder of the 2006 season, this year 4outs will follow the leaders of the Sac Fly Race as they attempt to reach the pinnacle, set in the inaugural year of this coma-inducing stat: Gil Hodges' 19 sac flies in 1954.
Oh, Andre Dawson came close in 1983, when he managed 18 RBI on mere flyballs, but nobody, in over 50 years of record-keeping, has been man enough to pad their RBI-totals with 20 sac flies: Roy White & Bobby Bonilla, in 1971 & 1996 respectively, each drove in 17 runners from third on otherwise-useless outs, and Juan Gonzalez & Mark Loretta racked up 16 sac flies each in 2001 & 2004...can it be done this year?
A very cursory look at the leaders would suggest that 13, in any given year, will lead the Majors; Hodges, incidentally, hit 42 HR in 1954, suggesting that of his 130 RBI that year, almost half were on flyballs of one kind or another...and that's without knowing how many of his 23 doubles or 5 triples were "moonshots" that just bounced inside the fence. Remember, I said incidentally...
Who's ready for a second-straight season of meaningless trivia?
You can bet your ASS that I am. ¶ 2:53 PM 0 Comments
Dumb, but no matter; much as last year's Pitcher RBI "Race" stole much of the thunder of the 2006 season, this year 4outs will follow the leaders of the Sac Fly Race as they attempt to reach the pinnacle, set in the inaugural year of this coma-inducing stat: Gil Hodges' 19 sac flies in 1954.
Oh, Andre Dawson came close in 1983, when he managed 18 RBI on mere flyballs, but nobody, in over 50 years of record-keeping, has been man enough to pad their RBI-totals with 20 sac flies: Roy White & Bobby Bonilla, in 1971 & 1996 respectively, each drove in 17 runners from third on otherwise-useless outs, and Juan Gonzalez & Mark Loretta racked up 16 sac flies each in 2001 & 2004...can it be done this year?
A very cursory look at the leaders would suggest that 13, in any given year, will lead the Majors; Hodges, incidentally, hit 42 HR in 1954, suggesting that of his 130 RBI that year, almost half were on flyballs of one kind or another...and that's without knowing how many of his 23 doubles or 5 triples were "moonshots" that just bounced inside the fence. Remember, I said incidentally...
Who's ready for a second-straight season of meaningless trivia?
You can bet your ASS that I am. ¶ 2:53 PM 0 Comments
The Tremendous Triplex
Since Baseball began, the Triple Crown ideal has created a lot of hoopla, especially the batter's version of said Crown; since 1967, when Carl Yastrzemski belted his way into Kinghood, there's been an awed hush surrounding the possibility of another, the belief being that any player that can lead his league in batting average, homeruns & runs batted in should be feted as the ultimate specimen of baseball-playing prowess...though since it's happened seven times since then on the pitcher's side, said pitcher's version doesn't hold quite the same allure: one could gather that leading one's league in wins, earned run average & strikeouts is historically easier than what the batter has to face, using his fine eye to combine a high average with bashing ability.
Before I go further, here are those Triple Crown winners since Baseball began (actual stats in the "complaints" section):
Triple Crown - Hitters
1947 Ted Williams
1956 Mickey Mantle
1966 Frank Robinson
1967 Carl Yastrzemski
Triple Crown - Pitchers
1963 Sandy Koufax
1965 Sandy Koufax
1966 Sandy Koufax
1972 Steve Carlton
1985 Dwight Gooden
1997 Roger Clemens
1998 Roger Clemens
1999 Pedro Martinez
2002 Randy Johnson
2006 Johan Santana
These seasons are, one and all, fine examples of baseball-playing superiority...but not necessarily of dominance - and since domination is the ultimate barometre of excellence, well, grab hold of the cape flapping behind my super-heroic Tremendous Triplex and come for a ride through a wonderland of league-leading preeminence of both batter and pitcher.
It should be obvious at this point, I hope, that a batter has no more control over RBI opportunities than a pitcher does in getting the "W" - at least the pitcher can influence which way the win-wind blows, but pitching around a certain hitter shouldn't adversely affect said hitter's season. To counteract this, I looked at who led their league in homeruns, on-base average & slugging percentage, as this better illustrates who is better in the two most valuable aspects of hitting: immediate runs & getting on base. Further still, to retain some sense of the truly spectacular, only hitters who have led the Major Leagues in these categories will be recognized:
Tremendous Triplex - Hitters
1965 Willie Mays
1967 Carl Yastrzemski
1981 Mike Schmidt
As for pitchers, ERA, though flawed, remains...though it is book-ended by WHIP, the best tool to judge how well a pitcher is doing what he's supposed to, which is keeping men off base, and Ks per 9 innings instead of straight strikeouts, as totals aren't nearly as precise as average in determining game-by-game performance. The abomination of "wins" as a stat is thrown directly into the bin of obsolete stats, settling in nicely next to Game-Winning RBI & Stolen Base-totals, leaving us, again, only with the pitchers who led the Majors in these categories:
Tremendous Triplex - Pitchers
1971 Tom Seaver
1986 Mike Scott
1999 Pedro Martinez
2001 Randy Johnson
Seven total (with actual stats also in the "complaints" section), and with the exception of Mike Scott, legends all...though it could be argued that Scott's 1986 season should stand alone as a made-by-Disney movie, as he threw a no-hitter in his penultimate start of the season to clinch a playoff berth for his Astros.
Regardless of Mike Scott's seemingly incongruous inclusion on this list, I believe that you'll all agree that this new "Triple Crown" better measures dominance than its antiquated predecessor; if not, well, too fucking bad. ¶ 11:31 AM 5 Comments
Before I go further, here are those Triple Crown winners since Baseball began (actual stats in the "complaints" section):
Triple Crown - Hitters
1947 Ted Williams
1956 Mickey Mantle
1966 Frank Robinson
1967 Carl Yastrzemski
Triple Crown - Pitchers
1963 Sandy Koufax
1965 Sandy Koufax
1966 Sandy Koufax
1972 Steve Carlton
1985 Dwight Gooden
1997 Roger Clemens
1998 Roger Clemens
1999 Pedro Martinez
2002 Randy Johnson
2006 Johan Santana
These seasons are, one and all, fine examples of baseball-playing superiority...but not necessarily of dominance - and since domination is the ultimate barometre of excellence, well, grab hold of the cape flapping behind my super-heroic Tremendous Triplex and come for a ride through a wonderland of league-leading preeminence of both batter and pitcher.
It should be obvious at this point, I hope, that a batter has no more control over RBI opportunities than a pitcher does in getting the "W" - at least the pitcher can influence which way the win-wind blows, but pitching around a certain hitter shouldn't adversely affect said hitter's season. To counteract this, I looked at who led their league in homeruns, on-base average & slugging percentage, as this better illustrates who is better in the two most valuable aspects of hitting: immediate runs & getting on base. Further still, to retain some sense of the truly spectacular, only hitters who have led the Major Leagues in these categories will be recognized:
Tremendous Triplex - Hitters
1965 Willie Mays
1967 Carl Yastrzemski
1981 Mike Schmidt
As for pitchers, ERA, though flawed, remains...though it is book-ended by WHIP, the best tool to judge how well a pitcher is doing what he's supposed to, which is keeping men off base, and Ks per 9 innings instead of straight strikeouts, as totals aren't nearly as precise as average in determining game-by-game performance. The abomination of "wins" as a stat is thrown directly into the bin of obsolete stats, settling in nicely next to Game-Winning RBI & Stolen Base-totals, leaving us, again, only with the pitchers who led the Majors in these categories:
Tremendous Triplex - Pitchers
1971 Tom Seaver
1986 Mike Scott
1999 Pedro Martinez
2001 Randy Johnson
Seven total (with actual stats also in the "complaints" section), and with the exception of Mike Scott, legends all...though it could be argued that Scott's 1986 season should stand alone as a made-by-Disney movie, as he threw a no-hitter in his penultimate start of the season to clinch a playoff berth for his Astros.
Regardless of Mike Scott's seemingly incongruous inclusion on this list, I believe that you'll all agree that this new "Triple Crown" better measures dominance than its antiquated predecessor; if not, well, too fucking bad. ¶ 11:31 AM 5 Comments
Sunday, March 04, 2007
Tring Spraining: Whatta Scoop!
It’s here, and I’m trying to pay it no attention.
Good thing, too, as there’s nothing of interest going on.
Oh, don’t worry - that doesn’t mean that there aren’t stories from Spring Training; it means that baseball-writers are desperately trying to justify their salaries by making a big deal out of everything.
Manny Ramirez is shitting on the Red Sox by going to a Classic Car sale in Atlantic City instead of showing up to camp on time - or, he’s tending to his ailing mama, and is showing up earlier than expected. Either way, he’s being traded/not being traded/possibly being traded to Colorado for Todd Helton.
Alex Rodriguez has an opt-out clause in his contract, so he’s looking for a bigger payday after this year - or, he’s staying put to show how little he actually cares about Derek Motherfucking Jeter’s evident dislike for him. Either way, when A-Rod says, "no comment", sixty-five articles pop-up braying about his unhappiness in New York.
Barry Bonds signed a contract with the Giants full of unique language that protects the Giants if Bonds ends up in jail - or, the contract isn’t signed because of other unique language keeping Bonds entourage at bay - or, the contract IS signed, but Bonds has the flu. Either way, Bonds isn’t shying away from the possibility of hitting 1000 HR in his career, or the possibility of spending the first years of his retirement behind bars.
Whatta scoop!
Who cares?
Doesn’t matter! What matters is the scoop! The scoop, and who scooped it first!
Scoop! ¶ 1:17 PM 0 Comments
Good thing, too, as there’s nothing of interest going on.
Oh, don’t worry - that doesn’t mean that there aren’t stories from Spring Training; it means that baseball-writers are desperately trying to justify their salaries by making a big deal out of everything.
Manny Ramirez is shitting on the Red Sox by going to a Classic Car sale in Atlantic City instead of showing up to camp on time - or, he’s tending to his ailing mama, and is showing up earlier than expected. Either way, he’s being traded/not being traded/possibly being traded to Colorado for Todd Helton.
Alex Rodriguez has an opt-out clause in his contract, so he’s looking for a bigger payday after this year - or, he’s staying put to show how little he actually cares about Derek Motherfucking Jeter’s evident dislike for him. Either way, when A-Rod says, "no comment", sixty-five articles pop-up braying about his unhappiness in New York.
Barry Bonds signed a contract with the Giants full of unique language that protects the Giants if Bonds ends up in jail - or, the contract isn’t signed because of other unique language keeping Bonds entourage at bay - or, the contract IS signed, but Bonds has the flu. Either way, Bonds isn’t shying away from the possibility of hitting 1000 HR in his career, or the possibility of spending the first years of his retirement behind bars.
Whatta scoop!
Who cares?
Doesn’t matter! What matters is the scoop! The scoop, and who scooped it first!
Scoop! ¶ 1:17 PM 0 Comments
