Here are my Major League Baseball 2010 Awards for Manager of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Relief Pitcher of the Year, Cy Young Award, and MVP for the AL and NL. The voting structure is used in conjunction with that of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.
Connie Mack Award (Manager of the Year)
AL
1. Terry Francona
2. Joe Maddon
3. Ron Washington
NL
1. Bud Black
2. Bobby Cox
3. Dusty Baker
Willie Mays Award (Rookie of the Year)
AL
1. Neftali Feliz
2. Austin Jackson
3. Brennan Boesch
NL
1. Buster Posey
2. Jason Heyward
3. Mike Stanton
Goose Gossage Award (Reliever of the Year)
AL
1. Rafeal Soriano
2. Joakim Soria
3. Neftali Feliz
NL
1. Brian Wilson
2. Heath Bell
3. Billy Wagner
Walter Johnson Award (Cy Young)
AL
1. Felix Hernandez
2. CC Sabathia
3. David Price
4. Jered Weaver
5. Justin Verlander
NL
1. Roy Halladay
2. Adam Wainwright
3. Ubaldo Jiminez
4. Tim Hudson
5. Mat Latos
Stan Musial Award (MVP)
AL
1. Josh Hamilton
2. Miguel Cabrera
3. Robinson Cano
4. Paul Konerko
5. Jose Bautista
6. Adrian Beltre
7. CC Sabathia
8. David Price
9. Rafeal Soriano
10. David Ortiz
NL
1. Joey Votto
2. Albert Pujols
3. Roy Halladay
4. Carlos Gonzalez
5. Jayson Werth
6. Adrian Gonzalez
7. Mat Latos
8. Troy Tulowitski
9. Brian Wilson
10. Tim Hudson
Tuesday, October 5, 2010
MLB 2010 Cy Young Awards
AL Cy Young Award
Winner: Felix Hernandez
Reason: 1st in IP, 2nd in K, 2nd in WHIP, 1st in ERA
Felix had 35 more K’s than Sabathia, and 44 more than Price. His WHIP was .13 lower than both Sabathia and Price, and his ERA was 2.27 compared to 2.72 for Price and 3.18 for Sabathia. So I think that all of these outweigh him having 8 less wins than Sabathia and 6 less wins than Price.
NL Cy Young Award
Winner: Roy Halladay
Reason: 1st in Wins, 1st in IP. 2nd in K, 3rd in ERA, 2nd in WHIP
Slightly beats out Adam Wainwright. Halladay had 1 more win, 6 more K’s, 20 more innings, and a WHIP that was .01 better. Halladay’s ERA was .02 points worse than Wainwrights. Plus Halladay’s team is in the playoffs.
Winner: Felix Hernandez
Reason: 1st in IP, 2nd in K, 2nd in WHIP, 1st in ERA
Felix had 35 more K’s than Sabathia, and 44 more than Price. His WHIP was .13 lower than both Sabathia and Price, and his ERA was 2.27 compared to 2.72 for Price and 3.18 for Sabathia. So I think that all of these outweigh him having 8 less wins than Sabathia and 6 less wins than Price.
NL Cy Young Award
Winner: Roy Halladay
Reason: 1st in Wins, 1st in IP. 2nd in K, 3rd in ERA, 2nd in WHIP
Slightly beats out Adam Wainwright. Halladay had 1 more win, 6 more K’s, 20 more innings, and a WHIP that was .01 better. Halladay’s ERA was .02 points worse than Wainwrights. Plus Halladay’s team is in the playoffs.
Monday, October 4, 2010
2010 MVP Awards
AL MVP
Winner: Josh Hamilton
Runner Up: Miguel Cabrera
Reason: 1st in Batting Average by .031 points, 1st in SLG, 2nd in OBP, 1st in OPS. Played 17 less games than Cabrera and only had 16 less runs, 5 less doubles, 6 less home runs, and 26 less RBI, and had 6 more hits. Plus his team made the playoffs.
NL MVP
Winner: Joey Votto
Runner Up: Albert Pujols
Reason: 2nd in Batting Average, 1st on OBP, 1st in SLG, 1st in OPS. Votto only had 9 less runs, 6 less hits, 5 less HR, 5 less RBI than Pujols in 9 less games. Plus his team made the playoffs.
Winner: Josh Hamilton
Runner Up: Miguel Cabrera
Reason: 1st in Batting Average by .031 points, 1st in SLG, 2nd in OBP, 1st in OPS. Played 17 less games than Cabrera and only had 16 less runs, 5 less doubles, 6 less home runs, and 26 less RBI, and had 6 more hits. Plus his team made the playoffs.
NL MVP
Winner: Joey Votto
Runner Up: Albert Pujols
Reason: 2nd in Batting Average, 1st on OBP, 1st in SLG, 1st in OPS. Votto only had 9 less runs, 6 less hits, 5 less HR, 5 less RBI than Pujols in 9 less games. Plus his team made the playoffs.
Wednesday, August 4, 2010
16 Team MLB Playoff Format
What if MLB expanded its playoffs to 16 teams like the NBA and the NHL?
Here are some pros and cons.
Pros:
- More money for everyone. More for MLB, more for owners, more for players, even more for hot dog vendors.
- Regular season would be more interesting. More teams would be in contention. This would also bring in more money as attendance and TV ratings would increase.
- More teams would have chance at winning World Series.
- Teams would play each other based on winning percentage ranking and the playoff spots wouldn’t have to be re-aligned so that a wild card team did not play a team in its own division.
Cons:
- Playoffs would go to Thanksgiving. Air temperature is cold in late October and in November. Baseball is not fun to play or watch in 40 degree weather.
- Bad teams would make the playoffs. Look at the NBA Eastern Conference lately. Sub .500 teams make the playoffs. It just looks bad for the sport.
Below is what last years first round playoff matchup would have looked like under a 16 team format. The three division winners and best wild card team are seeded 1 through 4.
2009 AL
1 NYY vs 8 TB
2 LAA vs 7 Sea
3 Bos vs 6 Det
4 Min vs 5 Tex (Tex had a better Win %, but Min won their division)
Min beat Det in a one game playoff for the real AL Central last year so they get the higher seed. But in this format one game playoffs like that would not be needed.
2009 NL
1 LAD vs 8 ChiC
2 Phil vs 7 Atl
3 Col vs 6 Fla
4 Stl vs 5 SF
Comments on 2009 format:
The Cubs made the playoffs! Can’t you see them going all the way as an 8 seed! I can. They probably wouldn’t but it would be interesting and attractive for viewers.
Seattle and Texas would have both made the playoffs. These two teams have made the playoffs a total of 7 times combined since their existence (Texas 3 since 1961 Seattle 4 since 1977)
Here is what this years format would look like based on standings the morning of August 4th.
2010 AL
1 TB vs 8 Oak/LAA/Det (All 3 tied for the 8 seed)
2 NYY vs 7 Tor
3 Tex vs 6 Min
4 Chi vs 5 Bos (Bos has better win % but Chi would win AL Central)
NL
1 SD vs 8 LAD
2 SF vs 7 Col
3 Atl vs 6 Phil
4 Cin vs 5 StL
The Mets are currently one game behind LA for the 8th seed and Florida is 1.5 games out.
This format will probably never happen but it would be cool if it did. If the NBA and NHL can have playoffs take two onths why can’t MLB? Maybe the first round would be a best of three game series, the second round a best of five, and the LCS and World Series a best of 7. Then maybe this would finish up by mid November, which isnt too far off from when the World Series ends right now anyway.
Here are some pros and cons.
Pros:
- More money for everyone. More for MLB, more for owners, more for players, even more for hot dog vendors.
- Regular season would be more interesting. More teams would be in contention. This would also bring in more money as attendance and TV ratings would increase.
- More teams would have chance at winning World Series.
- Teams would play each other based on winning percentage ranking and the playoff spots wouldn’t have to be re-aligned so that a wild card team did not play a team in its own division.
Cons:
- Playoffs would go to Thanksgiving. Air temperature is cold in late October and in November. Baseball is not fun to play or watch in 40 degree weather.
- Bad teams would make the playoffs. Look at the NBA Eastern Conference lately. Sub .500 teams make the playoffs. It just looks bad for the sport.
Below is what last years first round playoff matchup would have looked like under a 16 team format. The three division winners and best wild card team are seeded 1 through 4.
2009 AL
1 NYY vs 8 TB
2 LAA vs 7 Sea
3 Bos vs 6 Det
4 Min vs 5 Tex (Tex had a better Win %, but Min won their division)
Min beat Det in a one game playoff for the real AL Central last year so they get the higher seed. But in this format one game playoffs like that would not be needed.
2009 NL
1 LAD vs 8 ChiC
2 Phil vs 7 Atl
3 Col vs 6 Fla
4 Stl vs 5 SF
Comments on 2009 format:
The Cubs made the playoffs! Can’t you see them going all the way as an 8 seed! I can. They probably wouldn’t but it would be interesting and attractive for viewers.
Seattle and Texas would have both made the playoffs. These two teams have made the playoffs a total of 7 times combined since their existence (Texas 3 since 1961 Seattle 4 since 1977)
Here is what this years format would look like based on standings the morning of August 4th.
2010 AL
1 TB vs 8 Oak/LAA/Det (All 3 tied for the 8 seed)
2 NYY vs 7 Tor
3 Tex vs 6 Min
4 Chi vs 5 Bos (Bos has better win % but Chi would win AL Central)
NL
1 SD vs 8 LAD
2 SF vs 7 Col
3 Atl vs 6 Phil
4 Cin vs 5 StL
The Mets are currently one game behind LA for the 8th seed and Florida is 1.5 games out.
This format will probably never happen but it would be cool if it did. If the NBA and NHL can have playoffs take two onths why can’t MLB? Maybe the first round would be a best of three game series, the second round a best of five, and the LCS and World Series a best of 7. Then maybe this would finish up by mid November, which isnt too far off from when the World Series ends right now anyway.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Pitch In for Baseball
Pitch in for Baseball joins the State Farm "Go To Bat" campaign
Pitch In For Baseball is delighted to have been selected to
participate in State Farm's 'Go To Bat' campaign. Now we need your
help!
'Go To Bat' was launched nationally during the State Farm Home Run
Derby. 'Go To Bat' gives entrants a chance to win tickets to the
upcoming World Series and selected charity partners the chance to
receive significant financial support.
Here's how to play and how to help Pitch In For Baseball:
* Go to www.statefarm.com/gotobat to register for your chance to
win World Series tickets.
* As you register, you will get a chance to designate a charity
that could win up to $25,000/week.
* To designate Pitch In For Baseball as your charity, select
PUBLIC GOOD as the charity category and then choose Pitch In For
Baseball from the drop down list.
* Revisit www.statefarm.com/gotobat each day and play the 'Go To
Bat' online game to increase your chances for tickets and Pitch In For
Baseball's chance at financial support
Pitch In For Baseball is delighted to have been selected to
participate in State Farm's 'Go To Bat' campaign. Now we need your
help!
'Go To Bat' was launched nationally during the State Farm Home Run
Derby. 'Go To Bat' gives entrants a chance to win tickets to the
upcoming World Series and selected charity partners the chance to
receive significant financial support.
Here's how to play and how to help Pitch In For Baseball:
* Go to www.statefarm.com/gotobat to register for your chance to
win World Series tickets.
* As you register, you will get a chance to designate a charity
that could win up to $25,000/week.
* To designate Pitch In For Baseball as your charity, select
PUBLIC GOOD as the charity category and then choose Pitch In For
Baseball from the drop down list.
* Revisit www.statefarm.com/gotobat each day and play the 'Go To
Bat' online game to increase your chances for tickets and Pitch In For
Baseball's chance at financial support
Thursday, July 15, 2010
MLB All Star Game Live Thoughts
Here are my thoughts from the MLB All Star Game. I took some notes during the pre game and the game. I had to copy Bill Simmons a little by using what time each blog was written to add to the effect. The reason I didn’t post it live is because not everything I write is funny, interesting, or worth reading. So this way my thoughts have been edited.
Pregame Notes:
There are a lot of players being introduced. With all the injured players and replacements almost half the league is on the all star team.
I understand MLB and Fox’s social responsibility and wanting to be a part of the community but can we get rid of these community All Stars specials? These are awful. Maybe this is why ratings are so low. I think people just switched over to Losing It with Jillian.
(It turned out that this was the least watched MLB All Star Game ever).
Celebrity Part:
Remember when Julia Roberts was hot.
Remember when Han Solo didn’t have a mullet.
Selma Hayek = added bonus = ratings increase.
Charlize Theron was probably told this was a cricket all star game.
Matthew McConoughy has the best damn life ever. He’s just so happy all the time and he can have whatever woman he wants. I guess I would be too if I had his life. He’s so enthused about everything. He should give people eulogies for hire.
This is taking too long. Its 8:28 already. Let’s play some baseball.
They are still on this community thing. I don’t care about these people. I’m switching to The Office reruns.
Hold on there showing Selma again. She’s saying thank you. De Nada Selma. De effin nada. PS: I Love Her.
I paused it earlier so thank god I get to fast forward the DVR through the Glee song.
Finally let’s play some ball.
8:34 RIP George Steinbrenner. Maybe not the most loved man in Red Sox Country but $10 mil in 1973 for the Yankees, good buy.
8:35 Why didn’t Fox have a hot girl from Glee sing the national anthem?
8:36 Honestly I can’t stand military plane flyovers. Where is Bin Laden? Those 4 guys could have caught him right? The more the merrier. That’s one more bunker we could have looked in before they escaped. Plus who pays the pilot’s salary to fly over a stadium like that. I bet they get time and half for that too. The other thing is when your at the stadium it’s not even that cool. It’s over and then you realize you came here for a ball game and not an air show. I just don’t see what value it adds to anything.
8:37 Scotts commercial for great MLB parks. My favorite is Pac Bell or whatever it is called in SF.
8:38 Promo for new Fox show called Lone Star that looks like crap. How many times are we going to have to see that tonight?
8:42 How big is Joe Buck’s head? I’m not saying he’s cocky I just never noticed after all these years how gigantic his noggin is.
8:43 Enter Tim McCarver, here we go one liners.
Okay so I know I predicted AL 12-2 in my previous post but I’m changing my mind. I’m going NL because they have a better bench. They have McCann, Votto, Gonzalez, Phillips, Rolen, and Holliday. AL only has Arod and Hunter.
(I really did write that I didn’t just add it after the game)
8:45 I thought firestone tires killed people or something. Wasn’t that a story like 5 years ago? I still wouldn’t buy them, you just can’t recover from that, ever.
Lowell from wings on Direct TV commercials called it a t VEE! Emphasis on V.
8:46 Anyone else sick of Gordon Ramsey other than me? Do people really watch that show? Its people cooking! I’m an excellent griller but I don’t have a fan club.
8:47 Lineup again? Didn’t they already announce it? Look out for that NL third inning with Hart and Molina. If I’m an AL pitcher I’m begging to throw then.
The AL starting lineup is stacked.
8:50 Hanley Ramirez up.
Tim McC: “If NL wins this game Hanley will be a star.” Um Tim Hanley already is a star. He’s an All Star. It’s the name of the game you are watching right now. He’s batting leadoff and playing shortstop, and he was the runner up last night in the HR derby last night.
Martin Prado on deck, get remote ready.
8:59 A Colorado Rockie is starting the All Star game, man is the steroids era over or what?
9:00 Josh Hamilton should get introduced to Cocaine by Eric Clapton.
9:04 A lot of sharp commercials with Captain Sulu (George Takei from Star Trek)
9:05 Why do pitchers pitch 2 innings? Managers always talk about wanting to get all the players in the game. And teams are so concerned that pitchers will get injured at the All Star game. So why do they throw 2 innings? I never got that.
9:09 Boring so far. This game could use some steroids.
9:13 Vlad is a definite HOFer. No doubt.
9:15 Scott Boras is right behind home plate in a box under the stands. He’s not sitting down but he’s standing and leaning sideways. He probably charges people for seats in his box so he volunteers to stand so he can make more money.
9:20 Of course Girardi has Pettite pitch to the NL in the third inning against Hart and Molina. Would be nice if Hart went deep here. (He struck out)
9:23 Figures that Yadier gets the NL’s first hit with a .230 average.
9:24 Wow this is boring. I’m gonna see what Jim and Pam are up to.
9:34 Top of the 4th. Why isn’t this in 3D like HR derby? Ichiro taken out, there go Japanese ratings
9:37 Wow Cliff Lee pitched quick, told you he should have pitch a CG.
9:41 Hong Shoo Quo is warming up. Look out AL.
9:46 When did Verlander make the team? And who did he replace? These are the things we need to hear Joe Buck.
9:51 Andre Ethier at the plate. I picked him in like the 11th round in my fantasy league…just saying.
9:57 Tim McC: “Keep in mind the NL has 14 pitchers and the AL has 13, so that could come into play.” Really that is what he just said. God he’s terrible. Thank you Tim. Apparently the NL has one more pitcher than the AL. And that’s going to matter. One of those pitchers is going to pinch hit and win the game. No Tim, that’s not going to matter, you know what will matter, that the NL has only used 2 pitchers so far and the AL has used 4. Say something like that. Someone should write what he says for him. Like a ghost analyzer. I should do it.
9:58 George Takei and Lowell from wings again.
10:00 Takei twice in one break, and now he’s in the stands!!!
10:02 Hong Chu Quo probably wont keep the Asian audience watching.
10:06 ish I paused it to make a sandwich as my wife went to bed so the times my be off a little for a bit
10:08 ish Error on Kuo. That’s why he’s not an All Star. He’s not ready. AL just won. NL can’t score 2 runs no way.
10:09 ish Imagine if Ichiro wasn’t an all star and then cliff lee got traded as the only Seattle rep. What would MLB do?
10:16 John Buck is in the game. Must be brother of Joe, only explanation.
I wonder if these starting pitchers like Jon Lester enjoy coming in in the 6th inning and pitching 1 inning. I bet they don’t. I think it different after the 6th inning. It should just be relievers from now on. This is why starters should only go one inning and why I should be in charge of this event.
10:25 Cannot effen wait to see Inception. That movie looks awesome.
10:36 I wonder how ratings are? My guess is not good.
10:37 Why is NL bringing in Matt Capps a righty to face Big Papi. What use are Arthur Rhodes and Even Meek who are both lefties? This is why they made the team isn’t it? Possible HR here by Papi.
10:47 Ty Wiggington is in Ty Wiggington is in! Most viewers think this is the guy from Extreme Makeover Home Edition. AL stopper Matt Thornton to pitch. And the NL solution is Chris Young? Definite K here.
10:56 Brian McCann!!!!! Game over. AL has no bench.
11:01 Joe Buck just announced that the AL has Wiggington and Buck coming up next inning. See my other blog. I predicted this. AL is in serious trouble.
11:10 This game is interesting now with the NL having the lead. Ty Wig didn’t get to bat. Swisher pinch hit and K’ed.
11:12 Matt Holliday just made another bad play in a big game and a St. Louis pitcher is pitching. AL still has a shot with him in LF.
11:17 Look at who NL has coming up: Gonzo, Votto, Rolen.
11:24 Bottom of 8th, AL has Andrus and Bautista coming up this inning, look out.
11:41 Arod pinch hit? Can he hit for Buck and then a catcher re-enter or does there have to an injury?
11:49 NL wins on Big Papi’s slow legs and no Arod. Would have been good drama if he came up. AL and Fox should have agreed that ARod was coming up in bottom 9 no matter what. Joe and Tim McC would have announced it all night long. People would have stayed and watched. Plus why wasn’t Kate Hudson in the stands. That would increase ratings. I think she’s ugly but people would watch the game just to see the camera shots of her.
Good ending to game. But pretty boring overall.
Pregame Notes:
There are a lot of players being introduced. With all the injured players and replacements almost half the league is on the all star team.
I understand MLB and Fox’s social responsibility and wanting to be a part of the community but can we get rid of these community All Stars specials? These are awful. Maybe this is why ratings are so low. I think people just switched over to Losing It with Jillian.
(It turned out that this was the least watched MLB All Star Game ever).
Celebrity Part:
Remember when Julia Roberts was hot.
Remember when Han Solo didn’t have a mullet.
Selma Hayek = added bonus = ratings increase.
Charlize Theron was probably told this was a cricket all star game.
Matthew McConoughy has the best damn life ever. He’s just so happy all the time and he can have whatever woman he wants. I guess I would be too if I had his life. He’s so enthused about everything. He should give people eulogies for hire.
This is taking too long. Its 8:28 already. Let’s play some baseball.
They are still on this community thing. I don’t care about these people. I’m switching to The Office reruns.
Hold on there showing Selma again. She’s saying thank you. De Nada Selma. De effin nada. PS: I Love Her.
I paused it earlier so thank god I get to fast forward the DVR through the Glee song.
Finally let’s play some ball.
8:34 RIP George Steinbrenner. Maybe not the most loved man in Red Sox Country but $10 mil in 1973 for the Yankees, good buy.
8:35 Why didn’t Fox have a hot girl from Glee sing the national anthem?
8:36 Honestly I can’t stand military plane flyovers. Where is Bin Laden? Those 4 guys could have caught him right? The more the merrier. That’s one more bunker we could have looked in before they escaped. Plus who pays the pilot’s salary to fly over a stadium like that. I bet they get time and half for that too. The other thing is when your at the stadium it’s not even that cool. It’s over and then you realize you came here for a ball game and not an air show. I just don’t see what value it adds to anything.
8:37 Scotts commercial for great MLB parks. My favorite is Pac Bell or whatever it is called in SF.
8:38 Promo for new Fox show called Lone Star that looks like crap. How many times are we going to have to see that tonight?
8:42 How big is Joe Buck’s head? I’m not saying he’s cocky I just never noticed after all these years how gigantic his noggin is.
8:43 Enter Tim McCarver, here we go one liners.
Okay so I know I predicted AL 12-2 in my previous post but I’m changing my mind. I’m going NL because they have a better bench. They have McCann, Votto, Gonzalez, Phillips, Rolen, and Holliday. AL only has Arod and Hunter.
(I really did write that I didn’t just add it after the game)
8:45 I thought firestone tires killed people or something. Wasn’t that a story like 5 years ago? I still wouldn’t buy them, you just can’t recover from that, ever.
Lowell from wings on Direct TV commercials called it a t VEE! Emphasis on V.
8:46 Anyone else sick of Gordon Ramsey other than me? Do people really watch that show? Its people cooking! I’m an excellent griller but I don’t have a fan club.
8:47 Lineup again? Didn’t they already announce it? Look out for that NL third inning with Hart and Molina. If I’m an AL pitcher I’m begging to throw then.
The AL starting lineup is stacked.
8:50 Hanley Ramirez up.
Tim McC: “If NL wins this game Hanley will be a star.” Um Tim Hanley already is a star. He’s an All Star. It’s the name of the game you are watching right now. He’s batting leadoff and playing shortstop, and he was the runner up last night in the HR derby last night.
Martin Prado on deck, get remote ready.
8:59 A Colorado Rockie is starting the All Star game, man is the steroids era over or what?
9:00 Josh Hamilton should get introduced to Cocaine by Eric Clapton.
9:04 A lot of sharp commercials with Captain Sulu (George Takei from Star Trek)
9:05 Why do pitchers pitch 2 innings? Managers always talk about wanting to get all the players in the game. And teams are so concerned that pitchers will get injured at the All Star game. So why do they throw 2 innings? I never got that.
9:09 Boring so far. This game could use some steroids.
9:13 Vlad is a definite HOFer. No doubt.
9:15 Scott Boras is right behind home plate in a box under the stands. He’s not sitting down but he’s standing and leaning sideways. He probably charges people for seats in his box so he volunteers to stand so he can make more money.
9:20 Of course Girardi has Pettite pitch to the NL in the third inning against Hart and Molina. Would be nice if Hart went deep here. (He struck out)
9:23 Figures that Yadier gets the NL’s first hit with a .230 average.
9:24 Wow this is boring. I’m gonna see what Jim and Pam are up to.
9:34 Top of the 4th. Why isn’t this in 3D like HR derby? Ichiro taken out, there go Japanese ratings
9:37 Wow Cliff Lee pitched quick, told you he should have pitch a CG.
9:41 Hong Shoo Quo is warming up. Look out AL.
9:46 When did Verlander make the team? And who did he replace? These are the things we need to hear Joe Buck.
9:51 Andre Ethier at the plate. I picked him in like the 11th round in my fantasy league…just saying.
9:57 Tim McC: “Keep in mind the NL has 14 pitchers and the AL has 13, so that could come into play.” Really that is what he just said. God he’s terrible. Thank you Tim. Apparently the NL has one more pitcher than the AL. And that’s going to matter. One of those pitchers is going to pinch hit and win the game. No Tim, that’s not going to matter, you know what will matter, that the NL has only used 2 pitchers so far and the AL has used 4. Say something like that. Someone should write what he says for him. Like a ghost analyzer. I should do it.
9:58 George Takei and Lowell from wings again.
10:00 Takei twice in one break, and now he’s in the stands!!!
10:02 Hong Chu Quo probably wont keep the Asian audience watching.
10:06 ish I paused it to make a sandwich as my wife went to bed so the times my be off a little for a bit
10:08 ish Error on Kuo. That’s why he’s not an All Star. He’s not ready. AL just won. NL can’t score 2 runs no way.
10:09 ish Imagine if Ichiro wasn’t an all star and then cliff lee got traded as the only Seattle rep. What would MLB do?
10:16 John Buck is in the game. Must be brother of Joe, only explanation.
I wonder if these starting pitchers like Jon Lester enjoy coming in in the 6th inning and pitching 1 inning. I bet they don’t. I think it different after the 6th inning. It should just be relievers from now on. This is why starters should only go one inning and why I should be in charge of this event.
10:25 Cannot effen wait to see Inception. That movie looks awesome.
10:36 I wonder how ratings are? My guess is not good.
10:37 Why is NL bringing in Matt Capps a righty to face Big Papi. What use are Arthur Rhodes and Even Meek who are both lefties? This is why they made the team isn’t it? Possible HR here by Papi.
10:47 Ty Wiggington is in Ty Wiggington is in! Most viewers think this is the guy from Extreme Makeover Home Edition. AL stopper Matt Thornton to pitch. And the NL solution is Chris Young? Definite K here.
10:56 Brian McCann!!!!! Game over. AL has no bench.
11:01 Joe Buck just announced that the AL has Wiggington and Buck coming up next inning. See my other blog. I predicted this. AL is in serious trouble.
11:10 This game is interesting now with the NL having the lead. Ty Wig didn’t get to bat. Swisher pinch hit and K’ed.
11:12 Matt Holliday just made another bad play in a big game and a St. Louis pitcher is pitching. AL still has a shot with him in LF.
11:17 Look at who NL has coming up: Gonzo, Votto, Rolen.
11:24 Bottom of 8th, AL has Andrus and Bautista coming up this inning, look out.
11:41 Arod pinch hit? Can he hit for Buck and then a catcher re-enter or does there have to an injury?
11:49 NL wins on Big Papi’s slow legs and no Arod. Would have been good drama if he came up. AL and Fox should have agreed that ARod was coming up in bottom 9 no matter what. Joe and Tim McC would have announced it all night long. People would have stayed and watched. Plus why wasn’t Kate Hudson in the stands. That would increase ratings. I think she’s ugly but people would watch the game just to see the camera shots of her.
Good ending to game. But pretty boring overall.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Why I Should Pick the NL All Star Team
This post continues my blog on ‘Why I Should Select the MLB All Star Teams.’ This post looks at the National League.
The main point I am trying to make is that too many times the All Star reserves are players that nobody has heard of and no one wants to watch. So after the fifth inning people turn the game off. If I picked the teams I would ensure that interesting players were selected as reserves. They would also have to have good stats to be worthy of the All Star selection. But right now the NL team has Omar Infante, Martin Prado, and Michael Bourn on it. I mean try to sell that! I feel bad for the companies paying for ad spots right before the inning when those three players are coming up.
So here are my picks for the 2010 NL All Star team. Selections for batters are based on stats of (AVG HR RBI OPS) and my own opinion on how interesting the player is for viewers. Pitchers are selected by ERA, Wins, and Saves, and again my secret potential viewership formula. Stats are through July 7th.
Catcher: Brian McCann, Ivan Rodriguez
Okay let’s get rid of Yadier Molina. He is hitting .229. McCann is a good choice for the starter (267 10 34 830). Molina’s OPS is 614. If we divide that in two that’s an OBP and a SLG of 307 each. I had batter stats than those in T-Ball. My backup catcher is Pudge Rodriguez. He;s currently hitting .299 and more importantly people will watch him play. Plus can’t you just see him swinging in the dirt and connecting on a curveball and getting that game winning base hit to the opposite field right over the second baseman’s glove. I can.
First Base: Albert Pujols, Joey Votto, Ryan Howard, Adrian Gonzalez, Adam Dunn
Pujols is definitely the starter. And before you say why are there 5 first baseman remember the NL doesn’t have a DH. So Howard can be the starting DH and Adam Dunn can play the outfield if we need him to. But how can Joey Votto not be on this team already. His stats are (313 21 59 1006). He has the third highest OPS in all of baseball, and his stats are better than Pujols. He’s not an icon like Pujols and Howard yet but he’s well known and should be on this team. Dunn deserves a spot too. His stats are (.280 20 54 939). I’ll keep him on the bench until I need a pinch hit HR. Gonzalez is a solid choice and makes my team just like the real team and can play 1B right after Pujols’s shift.
Second Base: Brandon Phillips, Dan Uggla
Chase Utley would be my starter if he were healthy but Martin Prado? Really? Where is Dan Uggla? His stats are (285 16 49 863) Plus don’t you want to see him strike out four times again and make a costly error like last year. I know Tim McCarver does. Seriously how many times would McCarver bring that up? I say 10. You could play a drinking game on it and get seriously wasted. Phillips is a good choice and would start on my team. He’s well known and has good stats (307 12 30 855) and he has 10 steals.
Third Base: David Wright, Scott Rolen, Ryan Zimmerman
Another poor choice by MLB. Omar Infante? They should have just suited up Omar Vizquel and talked about the lost art of defense and run prevention and all that crap. I think Vizquel is on AL team but they wouldn’t mind the one day rental. Seriously though how can Ryan Zimmerman not be on this team? His stats are (296 16 47 917) while Infante’s are (307 1 22 706). Another high OPS pick by the NL! Look out for that inning when Jose Reyes is sitting on third base with one out as the tying run and Yadier Molina and Omar Infante come up. And how is Omar Infante a third baseman when the Braves have Chipper Jones? Something doesn’t make sense. Prado is their second baseman, Troy Glaus plays first base and Yunel Escobar is their shortstop. What position is Infante the 10th fielder like in softball?
Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez, Rafeal Furcal
Ramirez is my starter but I’ll take Furcal over Reyes and here is why. Reyes’s OBP is .320. His OPS is .735. Furcal’s numbers are .377 and .874. An .874 OBP for a non power hitting shortstop. Hanley Ramirez’s OPS is .865. Troy Tulowiski’s is .877. Furcal has the second highest OPS of all shortstops in the NL with over 200 at bats. Wow I am good. I should work for ESPN research or something. Seriously why can’t Jose Reyes just take a walk. He is faster than Usain Bolt, but he wont take a walk and then steal 2 bases. The guy probably swings at Intentional Walks.
Outfield: Andre Ethier, Matt Holliday, Ryan Braun, Andrew McCutchen, Jason Werth, Corey Hart, Chris Young
This position is harder than you’d think. There are just so many crappy teams in the NL right now. The one player reps almost have to all be outfielders. So that explains Chris Young. There is no other explanation for him and I am not going to waste further time talking about him or the Diamondbacks. My starters would be Etheir, Bruan, and Holliday. Jason Heyward just isn’t there yet. His average is .251, that’s not All Star material yet. My other reserves are Werth, McCutchen, and Hart. McCutchen is the Pirates rep and is also future star that is already well known. His stats are (294 7 24 812) and he has 20 steals, so hes good to use as a pinch runner. Werth’s stats are (279 13 48 883) and he has really good hair and facial hair. There should be a camera on him all the time. I’ll keep Corey Hart but I’m not a big fan of him. He does have good stats though at (285 19 61 908) and he has made the team once before. I got rid of Michael Bourn and Marlon Byrd because they are not that popular and I am representing their teams with relief pitchers. Michael Bourn should change his name to Jason and he will make the team every year.
Starting Pitchers: Josh Johnson, Adam Wainwright, Ubaldo Jiminez, Roy Halladay, Tim Hudson, Chris Carpenter
Pretty close to the real squad. I’ve got Tim Lincecum as my 35th man below so don’t worry he is on the team. I’m biased towards players with his first name. Gallardo is on the real DL now so he is off my team. I’m sorry but if you are on the DL you should not get recognition for being an All Star. I think the real team is up to like 70 players right now.
Relief Pitchers: Heath Bell, Brian Wilson, Francisco Rodriguez, Billy Wagner, Jonathan Broxton, Carlos Marmol, Matt Lindstrom
Wow looks at MLB’s NL relievers. Arhtur Rhodes and Evan Meek. That’s just awful. So lets say Jonathon Broxton gets a head cold the day of the game, who’s your NL closer NL? Matt Capps or Brian Wilson. Game over AL wins right there. AL is going to win be a lot anyway but at least my team has better relievers. Heath Bell took over for Gallardo on the real team, and I’ll add K-Rod, Wagner, Marmol, and Lindstrom. Marmol and Lindstrom take the spots of Bourn and Byrd because I like having relievers as I explained in the AL post. These relievers all have good stats just take my word for it. Sub 3.00 ERA’s and a lot of saves so far. And they are pretty well known which is good enough for a relief pitcher. Plus they are all better than Arthur Rhodes and Evan Meek. Really MLB?
Last Spot: Tim Lincecum. Only because I pulled Chris Carpenter’s name off the stats sheet before Tim. They both have 3.16 ERA’s as of today but C is before L in the alphabet. Both deserve to be there and you just can’t have an All Star game without Tim Lincecum. Special rule even if his ERA was twelve something. He should just pitch the whole game against Cliff Lee. That would be something I would stay up for.
So not too bad on the NL. It’s tougher because there are more teams but there is no DH so that helps. Players that really don’t deserve it are Chris Young and Matt Lindstrom, and maybe Carlos Marmol. I was almost going to add Alfonso Soriano but he has been too big of a bust the past few years to get an All Star spot.
Result: AL is gonna kick the NL’s ass.
So in summary here is who we are adding and deleting
Pudge for Molina
Uggla for Prado
Zimmerman for Infante
Furcal for Reyes
McCutchen for Bourn
Werth for Byrd
Marmol for Heyward
K-Rod for Meek
Wagner for Rhodes
Lindstrom for Capps
And here are my one team reps
ChiC: Marmol
Pitt: McCutchen
Hou: Lindstrom
Col: Jiminez
SF: Wilson
Az: Young
My Prediction: AL slugfest 12-2.
The main point I am trying to make is that too many times the All Star reserves are players that nobody has heard of and no one wants to watch. So after the fifth inning people turn the game off. If I picked the teams I would ensure that interesting players were selected as reserves. They would also have to have good stats to be worthy of the All Star selection. But right now the NL team has Omar Infante, Martin Prado, and Michael Bourn on it. I mean try to sell that! I feel bad for the companies paying for ad spots right before the inning when those three players are coming up.
So here are my picks for the 2010 NL All Star team. Selections for batters are based on stats of (AVG HR RBI OPS) and my own opinion on how interesting the player is for viewers. Pitchers are selected by ERA, Wins, and Saves, and again my secret potential viewership formula. Stats are through July 7th.
Catcher: Brian McCann, Ivan Rodriguez
Okay let’s get rid of Yadier Molina. He is hitting .229. McCann is a good choice for the starter (267 10 34 830). Molina’s OPS is 614. If we divide that in two that’s an OBP and a SLG of 307 each. I had batter stats than those in T-Ball. My backup catcher is Pudge Rodriguez. He;s currently hitting .299 and more importantly people will watch him play. Plus can’t you just see him swinging in the dirt and connecting on a curveball and getting that game winning base hit to the opposite field right over the second baseman’s glove. I can.
First Base: Albert Pujols, Joey Votto, Ryan Howard, Adrian Gonzalez, Adam Dunn
Pujols is definitely the starter. And before you say why are there 5 first baseman remember the NL doesn’t have a DH. So Howard can be the starting DH and Adam Dunn can play the outfield if we need him to. But how can Joey Votto not be on this team already. His stats are (313 21 59 1006). He has the third highest OPS in all of baseball, and his stats are better than Pujols. He’s not an icon like Pujols and Howard yet but he’s well known and should be on this team. Dunn deserves a spot too. His stats are (.280 20 54 939). I’ll keep him on the bench until I need a pinch hit HR. Gonzalez is a solid choice and makes my team just like the real team and can play 1B right after Pujols’s shift.
Second Base: Brandon Phillips, Dan Uggla
Chase Utley would be my starter if he were healthy but Martin Prado? Really? Where is Dan Uggla? His stats are (285 16 49 863) Plus don’t you want to see him strike out four times again and make a costly error like last year. I know Tim McCarver does. Seriously how many times would McCarver bring that up? I say 10. You could play a drinking game on it and get seriously wasted. Phillips is a good choice and would start on my team. He’s well known and has good stats (307 12 30 855) and he has 10 steals.
Third Base: David Wright, Scott Rolen, Ryan Zimmerman
Another poor choice by MLB. Omar Infante? They should have just suited up Omar Vizquel and talked about the lost art of defense and run prevention and all that crap. I think Vizquel is on AL team but they wouldn’t mind the one day rental. Seriously though how can Ryan Zimmerman not be on this team? His stats are (296 16 47 917) while Infante’s are (307 1 22 706). Another high OPS pick by the NL! Look out for that inning when Jose Reyes is sitting on third base with one out as the tying run and Yadier Molina and Omar Infante come up. And how is Omar Infante a third baseman when the Braves have Chipper Jones? Something doesn’t make sense. Prado is their second baseman, Troy Glaus plays first base and Yunel Escobar is their shortstop. What position is Infante the 10th fielder like in softball?
Shortstop: Hanley Ramirez, Rafeal Furcal
Ramirez is my starter but I’ll take Furcal over Reyes and here is why. Reyes’s OBP is .320. His OPS is .735. Furcal’s numbers are .377 and .874. An .874 OBP for a non power hitting shortstop. Hanley Ramirez’s OPS is .865. Troy Tulowiski’s is .877. Furcal has the second highest OPS of all shortstops in the NL with over 200 at bats. Wow I am good. I should work for ESPN research or something. Seriously why can’t Jose Reyes just take a walk. He is faster than Usain Bolt, but he wont take a walk and then steal 2 bases. The guy probably swings at Intentional Walks.
Outfield: Andre Ethier, Matt Holliday, Ryan Braun, Andrew McCutchen, Jason Werth, Corey Hart, Chris Young
This position is harder than you’d think. There are just so many crappy teams in the NL right now. The one player reps almost have to all be outfielders. So that explains Chris Young. There is no other explanation for him and I am not going to waste further time talking about him or the Diamondbacks. My starters would be Etheir, Bruan, and Holliday. Jason Heyward just isn’t there yet. His average is .251, that’s not All Star material yet. My other reserves are Werth, McCutchen, and Hart. McCutchen is the Pirates rep and is also future star that is already well known. His stats are (294 7 24 812) and he has 20 steals, so hes good to use as a pinch runner. Werth’s stats are (279 13 48 883) and he has really good hair and facial hair. There should be a camera on him all the time. I’ll keep Corey Hart but I’m not a big fan of him. He does have good stats though at (285 19 61 908) and he has made the team once before. I got rid of Michael Bourn and Marlon Byrd because they are not that popular and I am representing their teams with relief pitchers. Michael Bourn should change his name to Jason and he will make the team every year.
Starting Pitchers: Josh Johnson, Adam Wainwright, Ubaldo Jiminez, Roy Halladay, Tim Hudson, Chris Carpenter
Pretty close to the real squad. I’ve got Tim Lincecum as my 35th man below so don’t worry he is on the team. I’m biased towards players with his first name. Gallardo is on the real DL now so he is off my team. I’m sorry but if you are on the DL you should not get recognition for being an All Star. I think the real team is up to like 70 players right now.
Relief Pitchers: Heath Bell, Brian Wilson, Francisco Rodriguez, Billy Wagner, Jonathan Broxton, Carlos Marmol, Matt Lindstrom
Wow looks at MLB’s NL relievers. Arhtur Rhodes and Evan Meek. That’s just awful. So lets say Jonathon Broxton gets a head cold the day of the game, who’s your NL closer NL? Matt Capps or Brian Wilson. Game over AL wins right there. AL is going to win be a lot anyway but at least my team has better relievers. Heath Bell took over for Gallardo on the real team, and I’ll add K-Rod, Wagner, Marmol, and Lindstrom. Marmol and Lindstrom take the spots of Bourn and Byrd because I like having relievers as I explained in the AL post. These relievers all have good stats just take my word for it. Sub 3.00 ERA’s and a lot of saves so far. And they are pretty well known which is good enough for a relief pitcher. Plus they are all better than Arthur Rhodes and Evan Meek. Really MLB?
Last Spot: Tim Lincecum. Only because I pulled Chris Carpenter’s name off the stats sheet before Tim. They both have 3.16 ERA’s as of today but C is before L in the alphabet. Both deserve to be there and you just can’t have an All Star game without Tim Lincecum. Special rule even if his ERA was twelve something. He should just pitch the whole game against Cliff Lee. That would be something I would stay up for.
So not too bad on the NL. It’s tougher because there are more teams but there is no DH so that helps. Players that really don’t deserve it are Chris Young and Matt Lindstrom, and maybe Carlos Marmol. I was almost going to add Alfonso Soriano but he has been too big of a bust the past few years to get an All Star spot.
Result: AL is gonna kick the NL’s ass.
So in summary here is who we are adding and deleting
Pudge for Molina
Uggla for Prado
Zimmerman for Infante
Furcal for Reyes
McCutchen for Bourn
Werth for Byrd
Marmol for Heyward
K-Rod for Meek
Wagner for Rhodes
Lindstrom for Capps
And here are my one team reps
ChiC: Marmol
Pitt: McCutchen
Hou: Lindstrom
Col: Jiminez
SF: Wilson
Az: Young
My Prediction: AL slugfest 12-2.
Monday, June 28, 2010
Why I Should Pick the MLB All Star Teams
So Martin Prado, Omar Infante, and Evan Meek are National League All Stars. Trevor Cahill, John Buck, Ty Wiggington, and Jose Bautista are American League All Stars.
Wait who???
Is this the AAA All Star Game or the MLB All Star Game?
Unfortunately these players made the MLB All Star Game and could be key components in the 9th inning of the 81st All Star Game being played in Anaheim, CA.
Is this who the fans really want to see? Are these the players the contending teams want deciding who gets home field advantage in the World Series? Yeah I don't think so.
Now these players probably won't even play, but they could, and that is a problem. That's why these players shouldn't be All Stars.
The bad players don't even end there. Look at the National League roster. Yadier Molina is the starting catcher and he hits .229. Look at their outfield reserves. Other than Matt Holliday they consist of Michael Bourn, Marlon Byrd, Corey Hart, and Chris Young. Don't be surprised if all of these players are never all stars ever again. Hart has been an all star once before but the other 3 are first timers for a reason. Arthur Rhodes is one of five NL relief pitchers. So this is saying that at worst Arthur Rhodes is the fifth best relief pitcher out of 16 NL teams. Better than Billy Wagner. Again, I don't think so.
The All Star Teams needs to be selected by me. Players like this should not be selected because the game will become boring and viewers will turn off the game and watch something else after the fourth inning. And the problem is not just that each team needs to be represented. A strong team can be assembled based on players that deserve to go due to their statistics and with each team being represented. To prove that to you I present my 2010 American League AL All Star Team. NL will be posted after.
I kept the rules of having 34 players and that each team must have one player representative just like MLB uses. I selected the batters based on the stats (AVG HR RBI OPS) and how likely they are to help keep viewers (My own secret formula). I selected the pitchers on Wins, ERA, Saves, and again viewership potential.
AL
Catcher: Joe Mauer, Jorge Posada
Mauer is the logical choice for starting catcher. His stats are good and people like him and know him. So he stays there. If Victor Martinez was healthy the backup selection would be easy. But John Buck? Really, who is John Buck? He needs to be good for one more full season before he gets any All Star consideration. He has the stats that deserve it but no one knows who he is, and once he enters the game some mid level baseball fans will turn on Family Guy reruns they've already seen. Trust me I'd rather watch Stewie and Brian do anything than watch John Buck play baseball. Buck's stats are good at (274 13 40 821), he is first in RBI for Catchers and 2nd in HR. Joe Mauer's stats are (303 3 34 808) so a case can be made that Buck should be the starter based on stats. But the fans want to see Mauer because hes Joe Mauer and he's handsome and has nice sideburns. So I will allow that. But no way should John Buck be the backup, we need a more reputable player, so how about Jorge Posada. He played on Sunday but has a sprained left finger and did not catch on Monday, but he's not on the DL yet so he's on my team for now as the backup, because people will stay tuned with him in the lineup. His stats aren't even that bad at (267 9 28 856). He has 6 more HR than Mauer in 95 less at bats.
First Base: Justin Morneau, Miguel Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, Paul Konerko
I really thought that Mark Teixeria was going to be voted in as the starter with a .243 batting average. But the fans and MLB got this one right. Morneau is the starter and Cabrera is the first backup. But Youkilis and Konerko should be on this team too. Youk's stats are (299 17 55 1002) and Konerko's are (299 20 58 948) They are 3rd and 6th in the AL in OPS, 2nd and 7th in HR's and 7th and 8th in RBI's. I know that having four first basemen is stretching it, but these guys deserve it and one of these guys can play as the second DH and the other three can play 3 innings each. Wow I should manage this team too!
Second Base: Robinson Cano
There was a time when the starters of the All Star game used to play the whole game. Due to Dustin Pedroia's injury and no one else being good enough to make the team Cano will have to do that. This will be an honor of the man he is named after (think of Jackie #42, he really is named after him) and all the old time players who played the full 9. Ian Kinsler and Ty Wiggington are not having good enough years to take spots away from Youkilis or Konerko. Kinslers stats are (299 3 26 814) and Wiggingtons are (251 14 44 790) Kinsler also only has 8 Stolen Bases and has only 214 at bats so far this season. So he has the name recognition, but his stats just aren't good enough to take away someones spot. And more on Ty Wiggington. Really MLB, this is your Baltimore representative? Times really are bad in Baltimore. Now the AL has an end of game lineup featuring John Buck and Ty Wiggington. I bet Joe Buck can't wait to tell people to stay tuned for that. They should have just let Cal Ripken Jr. play as the Orioles Rep.
Third Base: Evan Longoria, Adrian Beltre, Alex Rodriguez, Michael Young
Longira should be the starter. Beltre and Arod are good choices too. Look the AL has A-Rod coming off the bench, thank god the fans have someone to watch after the 6th inning. They AL has someone to hit the HR off Arthur Rhodes in the 8th inning. Beltre's stats are probably better to start than Longoria, but chicks like Longoria and MLB wants them to watch the game rather than Ghost Whisperer. Beltre can pinch hit once and A-Rod can play the rest of the game. Or Beltre can come in the 9th for his defense if the AL has a lead. NEW IDEA: Micheal Young can play 2B after Cano. I'll list him as a 3B but hes gonna play 2nd. His stats are good (306 11 51 835) and honestly can you remember an All Star game without Michael Young? And doesn't he come up big in each one? The guy is the least talked about legit baseball player over the last 10 years. He has five 200+ hit seasons. He has solid numbers and can play SS or 3B, but come next Tuesday, hes playing 2B. This backup lineup is really starting to come together.
Shortstop: Derek Jeter, Elvis Andrus
Great picks here, no comments. Andrus is legit enough to be the backup. People know him and this could be more of a coming out party for him too.
Outfield: Josh Hamilton, Ichiro Suzuki, Carl Crawford, Tori Hunter, Vernon Wells, Magglio Ordonez, Nick Markakis
Pretty good job on this position by the fans and MLB. But what is Jose Bautista's batting average. It's .236. I don't care how many home runs you hit if you bat .236 you do not deserve to be an All Star. Dave Kingman hit 442 career home runs and is not a Hall of Famer, you know why you've never heard of him, because his lifetime batting average was .236. Bautista has 21 home runs right now. Raise your hand if you think he gets 35 for the full season. You didn't raise your hand did you. I knew it. My replacement for him is Magglio Ordonez. Hes having a good year (315 10 51 876) and people know who he is. Plus he has Soul Glow Hair from my favorite movie Coming to America, so thats an added plus. I am adding Nick Markakis to be the Orioles Rep. He has good stats (304 4 27 828) is well known and is the only Oriole player worth sending to the game. Sounds like we just added two one-named World Cup players to the team. Magglio and Markakis. I bet the umps make bad calls when these two players score, just a hunch.
Designated Hitter: Vladimir Guerrero
Remember in the 1B section when I said one of those guys can DH. Well that's is because I am removing Ortiz. Plus I am one spot over now that I added Markakis. Sorry Big Papi but other players have better numbers than you. Wasn't Ortiz hitting like like negative something in early May? And wasn't he worse in April? That doesn't sound like an All Star. And neither does a player with a current average of .261. I don't care how good someone was in June, Papi is not on my All Star team. He's got the name but not the stats.
Starting Pitchers: Cliff Lee, David Price, Jon Lester, Andy Pettite, Jered Weaver, Fausto Carmona
Pretty close here. Pettite is replacing Buchholz on the real team because Clay is now on the real DL. On my team Weaver is replacing Trevor Cahill who you have not heard of. And we are removing Sabathia and Hughes because they have ERA's in the 3.00's. For their replacements see the Relief Pitchers. My starting pitcher would be Cliff Lee. In fact the AL should just let him pitch a complete game shutout to win the home field advantage and rub it into the NL that the Phillies traded him to the AL. Then watch Seattle trade him back to the NL.
Relief Pitchers: Neftali Feliz, Joakim Soria, Mariano Rivera, Jose Valverde, Jon Rauch, Andrew Bailey, Rafeal Soriano
Matt Thornton gets the boot because we don't need a White Sox Rep now that we have Konerko. So we add on Jon Rauch. Then to take the two Yankees starters spot I'll add Andrew Bailey because we need an Oakland Rep and he's having a good year and I'll add on Rafeal Soriano. All of these relievers are good you'll just have to trust me. They have low ERA's and a lot of saves. Hughes ERA is now 3.83. Way too high for an All Star. Plus I like having a lot of relief pitchers over starting pitchers. They are used to pitching one or less innings late in games, when the All Star game can be won. Let the starters pitch one inning each, and then bring in the relief pitchers and mix and match them depending on who is up. I really should be managing this team.
So thats the AL team. The replacements from the MLB team were:
Posada for Buck
Youkils for Kinsler
Konerko for Wiggington
Magglio for Bautista
Markakis for Ortiz
Weaver for Cahill
Rauch for Thornton
Bailey for Hughes
Soriano for Sabathia
The one team Representatives are:
Baltimore: Markakis
Toronto: Wells
Cleveland: Carmona
Kansas City: Soria
Chicago: Konerko
Oakland: Bailey
My 35th player would be the one player regardless of position that is left off this team that deserves to be there. It would be CC Sabathia. His 3.33 ERA kept him off the squad earlier but he has 10 wins and is CC Sabathia. I'd rather have him pitch one inning than see Fausto Carmona. Speaking of Carmona he's really they only one that doesnt really deserve to be on this team. His record is 7-7 and his ERA is 3.69. So you can make a good team stats wise and player name wise even with one player rep from each team. Maybe Nick Markakis isnt having the greatest year but he's got a solid AVG and OPS so I'll that it slide. And if Shin Soo Choo wasn't on the DL he would be on this team from Cleveland instead of Carmona and then this team would be 100% legit.
National League coming soon.
Wait who???
Is this the AAA All Star Game or the MLB All Star Game?
Unfortunately these players made the MLB All Star Game and could be key components in the 9th inning of the 81st All Star Game being played in Anaheim, CA.
Is this who the fans really want to see? Are these the players the contending teams want deciding who gets home field advantage in the World Series? Yeah I don't think so.
Now these players probably won't even play, but they could, and that is a problem. That's why these players shouldn't be All Stars.
The bad players don't even end there. Look at the National League roster. Yadier Molina is the starting catcher and he hits .229. Look at their outfield reserves. Other than Matt Holliday they consist of Michael Bourn, Marlon Byrd, Corey Hart, and Chris Young. Don't be surprised if all of these players are never all stars ever again. Hart has been an all star once before but the other 3 are first timers for a reason. Arthur Rhodes is one of five NL relief pitchers. So this is saying that at worst Arthur Rhodes is the fifth best relief pitcher out of 16 NL teams. Better than Billy Wagner. Again, I don't think so.
The All Star Teams needs to be selected by me. Players like this should not be selected because the game will become boring and viewers will turn off the game and watch something else after the fourth inning. And the problem is not just that each team needs to be represented. A strong team can be assembled based on players that deserve to go due to their statistics and with each team being represented. To prove that to you I present my 2010 American League AL All Star Team. NL will be posted after.
I kept the rules of having 34 players and that each team must have one player representative just like MLB uses. I selected the batters based on the stats (AVG HR RBI OPS) and how likely they are to help keep viewers (My own secret formula). I selected the pitchers on Wins, ERA, Saves, and again viewership potential.
AL
Catcher: Joe Mauer, Jorge Posada
Mauer is the logical choice for starting catcher. His stats are good and people like him and know him. So he stays there. If Victor Martinez was healthy the backup selection would be easy. But John Buck? Really, who is John Buck? He needs to be good for one more full season before he gets any All Star consideration. He has the stats that deserve it but no one knows who he is, and once he enters the game some mid level baseball fans will turn on Family Guy reruns they've already seen. Trust me I'd rather watch Stewie and Brian do anything than watch John Buck play baseball. Buck's stats are good at (274 13 40 821), he is first in RBI for Catchers and 2nd in HR. Joe Mauer's stats are (303 3 34 808) so a case can be made that Buck should be the starter based on stats. But the fans want to see Mauer because hes Joe Mauer and he's handsome and has nice sideburns. So I will allow that. But no way should John Buck be the backup, we need a more reputable player, so how about Jorge Posada. He played on Sunday but has a sprained left finger and did not catch on Monday, but he's not on the DL yet so he's on my team for now as the backup, because people will stay tuned with him in the lineup. His stats aren't even that bad at (267 9 28 856). He has 6 more HR than Mauer in 95 less at bats.
First Base: Justin Morneau, Miguel Cabrera, Kevin Youkilis, Paul Konerko
I really thought that Mark Teixeria was going to be voted in as the starter with a .243 batting average. But the fans and MLB got this one right. Morneau is the starter and Cabrera is the first backup. But Youkilis and Konerko should be on this team too. Youk's stats are (299 17 55 1002) and Konerko's are (299 20 58 948) They are 3rd and 6th in the AL in OPS, 2nd and 7th in HR's and 7th and 8th in RBI's. I know that having four first basemen is stretching it, but these guys deserve it and one of these guys can play as the second DH and the other three can play 3 innings each. Wow I should manage this team too!
Second Base: Robinson Cano
There was a time when the starters of the All Star game used to play the whole game. Due to Dustin Pedroia's injury and no one else being good enough to make the team Cano will have to do that. This will be an honor of the man he is named after (think of Jackie #42, he really is named after him) and all the old time players who played the full 9. Ian Kinsler and Ty Wiggington are not having good enough years to take spots away from Youkilis or Konerko. Kinslers stats are (299 3 26 814) and Wiggingtons are (251 14 44 790) Kinsler also only has 8 Stolen Bases and has only 214 at bats so far this season. So he has the name recognition, but his stats just aren't good enough to take away someones spot. And more on Ty Wiggington. Really MLB, this is your Baltimore representative? Times really are bad in Baltimore. Now the AL has an end of game lineup featuring John Buck and Ty Wiggington. I bet Joe Buck can't wait to tell people to stay tuned for that. They should have just let Cal Ripken Jr. play as the Orioles Rep.
Third Base: Evan Longoria, Adrian Beltre, Alex Rodriguez, Michael Young
Longira should be the starter. Beltre and Arod are good choices too. Look the AL has A-Rod coming off the bench, thank god the fans have someone to watch after the 6th inning. They AL has someone to hit the HR off Arthur Rhodes in the 8th inning. Beltre's stats are probably better to start than Longoria, but chicks like Longoria and MLB wants them to watch the game rather than Ghost Whisperer. Beltre can pinch hit once and A-Rod can play the rest of the game. Or Beltre can come in the 9th for his defense if the AL has a lead. NEW IDEA: Micheal Young can play 2B after Cano. I'll list him as a 3B but hes gonna play 2nd. His stats are good (306 11 51 835) and honestly can you remember an All Star game without Michael Young? And doesn't he come up big in each one? The guy is the least talked about legit baseball player over the last 10 years. He has five 200+ hit seasons. He has solid numbers and can play SS or 3B, but come next Tuesday, hes playing 2B. This backup lineup is really starting to come together.
Shortstop: Derek Jeter, Elvis Andrus
Great picks here, no comments. Andrus is legit enough to be the backup. People know him and this could be more of a coming out party for him too.
Outfield: Josh Hamilton, Ichiro Suzuki, Carl Crawford, Tori Hunter, Vernon Wells, Magglio Ordonez, Nick Markakis
Pretty good job on this position by the fans and MLB. But what is Jose Bautista's batting average. It's .236. I don't care how many home runs you hit if you bat .236 you do not deserve to be an All Star. Dave Kingman hit 442 career home runs and is not a Hall of Famer, you know why you've never heard of him, because his lifetime batting average was .236. Bautista has 21 home runs right now. Raise your hand if you think he gets 35 for the full season. You didn't raise your hand did you. I knew it. My replacement for him is Magglio Ordonez. Hes having a good year (315 10 51 876) and people know who he is. Plus he has Soul Glow Hair from my favorite movie Coming to America, so thats an added plus. I am adding Nick Markakis to be the Orioles Rep. He has good stats (304 4 27 828) is well known and is the only Oriole player worth sending to the game. Sounds like we just added two one-named World Cup players to the team. Magglio and Markakis. I bet the umps make bad calls when these two players score, just a hunch.
Designated Hitter: Vladimir Guerrero
Remember in the 1B section when I said one of those guys can DH. Well that's is because I am removing Ortiz. Plus I am one spot over now that I added Markakis. Sorry Big Papi but other players have better numbers than you. Wasn't Ortiz hitting like like negative something in early May? And wasn't he worse in April? That doesn't sound like an All Star. And neither does a player with a current average of .261. I don't care how good someone was in June, Papi is not on my All Star team. He's got the name but not the stats.
Starting Pitchers: Cliff Lee, David Price, Jon Lester, Andy Pettite, Jered Weaver, Fausto Carmona
Pretty close here. Pettite is replacing Buchholz on the real team because Clay is now on the real DL. On my team Weaver is replacing Trevor Cahill who you have not heard of. And we are removing Sabathia and Hughes because they have ERA's in the 3.00's. For their replacements see the Relief Pitchers. My starting pitcher would be Cliff Lee. In fact the AL should just let him pitch a complete game shutout to win the home field advantage and rub it into the NL that the Phillies traded him to the AL. Then watch Seattle trade him back to the NL.
Relief Pitchers: Neftali Feliz, Joakim Soria, Mariano Rivera, Jose Valverde, Jon Rauch, Andrew Bailey, Rafeal Soriano
Matt Thornton gets the boot because we don't need a White Sox Rep now that we have Konerko. So we add on Jon Rauch. Then to take the two Yankees starters spot I'll add Andrew Bailey because we need an Oakland Rep and he's having a good year and I'll add on Rafeal Soriano. All of these relievers are good you'll just have to trust me. They have low ERA's and a lot of saves. Hughes ERA is now 3.83. Way too high for an All Star. Plus I like having a lot of relief pitchers over starting pitchers. They are used to pitching one or less innings late in games, when the All Star game can be won. Let the starters pitch one inning each, and then bring in the relief pitchers and mix and match them depending on who is up. I really should be managing this team.
So thats the AL team. The replacements from the MLB team were:
Posada for Buck
Youkils for Kinsler
Konerko for Wiggington
Magglio for Bautista
Markakis for Ortiz
Weaver for Cahill
Rauch for Thornton
Bailey for Hughes
Soriano for Sabathia
The one team Representatives are:
Baltimore: Markakis
Toronto: Wells
Cleveland: Carmona
Kansas City: Soria
Chicago: Konerko
Oakland: Bailey
My 35th player would be the one player regardless of position that is left off this team that deserves to be there. It would be CC Sabathia. His 3.33 ERA kept him off the squad earlier but he has 10 wins and is CC Sabathia. I'd rather have him pitch one inning than see Fausto Carmona. Speaking of Carmona he's really they only one that doesnt really deserve to be on this team. His record is 7-7 and his ERA is 3.69. So you can make a good team stats wise and player name wise even with one player rep from each team. Maybe Nick Markakis isnt having the greatest year but he's got a solid AVG and OPS so I'll that it slide. And if Shin Soo Choo wasn't on the DL he would be on this team from Cleveland instead of Carmona and then this team would be 100% legit.
National League coming soon.
Monday, June 21, 2010
NFL Re-Alignment
The NFL divisions need to be re-aligned so that teams that are closer together by location are in the same division.
Why is Dallas in the NFC East and St. Louis in the NFC West when Dallas is more geographically west than St. Louis?
The reason is because the NFL and TV stations want Dallas to play the other three NFC East teams twice a year because that brings in more revenue because of the stature of the teams.
But shouldn't the NFL want Dallas to play more games against weaker markets to help strengthen the ratings in those markets? There is plenty of revenue coming in from Philadelphia, New York, and Washington that any other team could play in the NFC East. Dallas could play in the NFC West with Arizona, Seattle, and San Francisco. This would improve ratings in NFC West games and maintain high ratings in NFC East games. This would also help the new team joining the NFC East, which would be Detroit as St. Louis would move to the NFC North.
The NFL loves to promote its rivalries and this would create new rivalries and maintain the Dallas rivalries against New York, Philly, and Washington when those teams met in non-divisional games and playoff games. Dallas and San Francisco would play twice a year and that would be a highly watched game as those two teams have storied histories.
The league would also benefit as Dallas would probably make the playoffs more times by coming out of the west division. So there would be more high stature teams in the playoffs as Dallas would come out of the west and the NFC East teams would come out of their division and take up one or even two wild card spots as they usually do.
This would be better for the sport because it would reduce travel distance for fans who want to attend road games. This is going to be better for the future a of the sport as it would make west coast games more appealing on the east coast and central part of the country.
I have not extensively looked into the financial implications of this and how much the NFL benefits by having Dallas in the East, but I just think that common sense wise Dallas should be in the west.
Therefore I propose the following re-alignment structure for the NFL divisions. I kept teams in the same conference as I did not want to go crazy. By the common sense geographical location method the Jets and Giants would be in the same division and that makes no sense, so I left the conferences the same.
New Alignment:
AFC East
Baltimore
Buffalo
New England
New York Jets
AFC North
Cincinnati
Cleveland
Indianapolis
Pittsburgh
AFC South
Houston
Jacksonville
Miami
Tennessee
AFC West
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
San Diego
NFC East
Detroit
New York Giants
Philadelphia
Washington
NFC North
Chicago
Green Bay
Minnesota
St. Louis
NFC South
Atlanta
Carolina
New Orleans
Tampa Bay
NFC West
Arizona
Dallas
San Francisco
Seattle
Key Moves:
Baltimore to AFC East
Indianapolis to AFC North
Miami to AFC South
Detroit to NFC East
St. Louis to NFC North
Dallas to NFC West
The only other proposal is to switch Seattle with San Diego as it is a pretty far flight from Seattle to Dallas. So if that happened the two West divisions would look like this:
AFC West
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
Seattle
NFC West
Arizona
Dallas
San Diego
San Francisco
Let me know what you think.
Why is Dallas in the NFC East and St. Louis in the NFC West when Dallas is more geographically west than St. Louis?
The reason is because the NFL and TV stations want Dallas to play the other three NFC East teams twice a year because that brings in more revenue because of the stature of the teams.
But shouldn't the NFL want Dallas to play more games against weaker markets to help strengthen the ratings in those markets? There is plenty of revenue coming in from Philadelphia, New York, and Washington that any other team could play in the NFC East. Dallas could play in the NFC West with Arizona, Seattle, and San Francisco. This would improve ratings in NFC West games and maintain high ratings in NFC East games. This would also help the new team joining the NFC East, which would be Detroit as St. Louis would move to the NFC North.
The NFL loves to promote its rivalries and this would create new rivalries and maintain the Dallas rivalries against New York, Philly, and Washington when those teams met in non-divisional games and playoff games. Dallas and San Francisco would play twice a year and that would be a highly watched game as those two teams have storied histories.
The league would also benefit as Dallas would probably make the playoffs more times by coming out of the west division. So there would be more high stature teams in the playoffs as Dallas would come out of the west and the NFC East teams would come out of their division and take up one or even two wild card spots as they usually do.
This would be better for the sport because it would reduce travel distance for fans who want to attend road games. This is going to be better for the future a of the sport as it would make west coast games more appealing on the east coast and central part of the country.
I have not extensively looked into the financial implications of this and how much the NFL benefits by having Dallas in the East, but I just think that common sense wise Dallas should be in the west.
Therefore I propose the following re-alignment structure for the NFL divisions. I kept teams in the same conference as I did not want to go crazy. By the common sense geographical location method the Jets and Giants would be in the same division and that makes no sense, so I left the conferences the same.
New Alignment:
AFC East
Baltimore
Buffalo
New England
New York Jets
AFC North
Cincinnati
Cleveland
Indianapolis
Pittsburgh
AFC South
Houston
Jacksonville
Miami
Tennessee
AFC West
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
San Diego
NFC East
Detroit
New York Giants
Philadelphia
Washington
NFC North
Chicago
Green Bay
Minnesota
St. Louis
NFC South
Atlanta
Carolina
New Orleans
Tampa Bay
NFC West
Arizona
Dallas
San Francisco
Seattle
Key Moves:
Baltimore to AFC East
Indianapolis to AFC North
Miami to AFC South
Detroit to NFC East
St. Louis to NFC North
Dallas to NFC West
The only other proposal is to switch Seattle with San Diego as it is a pretty far flight from Seattle to Dallas. So if that happened the two West divisions would look like this:
AFC West
Denver
Kansas City
Oakland
Seattle
NFC West
Arizona
Dallas
San Diego
San Francisco
Let me know what you think.
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