Cleveland Indians

In my life I have attended many more major league games than minor league ones, but 2010 will be a chance for me to experience the minors like never before.  I will be working in media relations for the Toledo Mud Hens of the International League.  The Mud Hens are the Triple-A affiliate of the Tigers and play at Fifth Third Field, just an hour from Detroit, which means that Tigers on rehab assignments will likely make cameo appearances throughout the season.

Continue reading "Next stop in my baseball career – ..."

lassic performance included eight innings of one-hit, shutout ball in a decisive Game 6 against the Cleveland Indians.  In addition to cleanup man Albert Belle, the Cleveland lineup featured the likes of Kenny Lofton, Jim Thome, Manny Ramirez, and then-future Hall of Famer Eddie Murray.  Meanwhile, Braves hitters were only able to put a single run on the board in the bottom of the sixth, leaving Glavine with no margin for error.  Among his lesser-known achievements, Glavine allowed just one grand slam in 682 games – all starts – over his 22-year major league career.  Finally, at the time of his retirement, he was second only to Omar Vizquel in sacrifice bunts among active players, with 216.  (The next-closest – pitcher or position player – is longtime teammate John Smoltz, with 136.)

Continue reading "Two more great careers reach the end of the line"

While researching ballplayers of the nineties, I discovered that in 1993, Jeff King of the Pirates drove in 98 runs while hitting only nine home runs and slugging just .406.  I then wondered if any player has ever driven in 100 runs with fewer than 10 homers or with a slugging percentage under .400.  Upon further investigation, I found that in 1996 – the year he turned 40 during the Dog Days of August – Paul Molitor hit just nine homers but accumulated 113 RBI’s while playing for the Twins.  Thanks to his American League-leading 225 hits and batting two hitters behind leadoff man Chuck Knoblauch in the midst of his best season (.448 OBP), Molitor led the Twins in both hitting (.341) and Runs Batted In.  I have yet to find a player with a season of 100+ RBI’s despite a slugging percentage under .400 (Molitor’s was a healthy .468), but I will continue searching.

Continue reading "Run production and slugging: not ..."

For the first time since 1990, both the American and National Leagues saw first-time Gold Glove winners on the pitcher’s mound.  It is no coincidence that 2009 is the first year that Greg Maddux, Mike Mussina, and Kenny Rogers aren’t eligible, each having retired following the 2008 season.  From 1990 through 2008 – his final year in the big leagues – Greg Maddux was named the National League’s Gold Glove pitcher every year but one – 2003, when teammate Mike Hampton won.  From 1996 through 2008, the American League saw two pitchers – Mike Mussina and Kenny Rogers – win all but one Gold Glove.  (Johan Santana received the award in 2007.)

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Braves manager Bobby Cox announced this week his plans to retire after the 2010 season and to immediately take on a consulting role with the team.  Cox has won 2,409 games as a manager and is fourth all-time in the category, behind only Connie Mack (3,731), John McGraw (2,763) and current Cardinals manager Tony La Russa (2,550).  Cox has five pennants and one World Series title to his name, and won the Manager of the Year award four times.  Under his leadership, the Braves have won 100 games six times.  The next manager of the Atlanta Braves will have big shoes to fill.

Continue reading "Bobby Cox has one more season in him"

How ‘bout that?

How about the Cleveland Indians?  On Tuesday against the Royals the Tribe infield turned six double-plays.  Still not impressed?  How about when I tell you they did it in SIX CONSECUTIVE INNINGS (3rd-8th)?

Continue reading "All-Star balloting reminds me of the Iowa Caucus"

With the MLB playoffs set to begin, there is a subtle difference in the air compared to start of any other postseason. In the NHL, fans can potentially look forward to a great Canadians/Bruins series that is not only exciting, but has a historical kick to it. Likewise basketball fans always have the chance to see if the Suns can finally get past the Spurs and football fans love seeing the rivalry of the Eagles Vs the City of Philadelphia when the Eagles so much as get tackled for a loss.

Continue reading "The Ups and Downs of the MLB Playoffs"

So, yesterday, I mention how the Orioles get a rare well-pitched game from Radhames Liz, and I wrote up my recap on the AL East. Then, Chris Waters goes out and throws a complete game shut-out last night. So, that forces me to mention it, and to do the AL Central wrapup today. By my logic, that means Brian Bass should be lights out tonight. (Or, maybe what I do has nothing to do with how the Orioles play. We'll see.) Anyways, on to the AL Central.

Continue reading "It's AL Central Time"

A few relatively minor items to cover with the moves made by a few teams recently. What might they mean in the second half? I’ll try and puzzle this out.

Tony Clark, who experienced a career resurgence the day he put on an Arizona Diamondbacks uniform back in 2005, hs returned to the cozy confines of Chase Field. Petco, where hitting a homer is as hard as hitting the lottery, wasn’t as kind to the aging Clark as Chase has been, so he’ll certainly improve on his 2008 line of .239/.374/.307. His 32:19 K:BB ratio, as well as hs 165-point difference between BA and OBP, will tell you his batting eye is fine, and some power should follow.

Continue reading "Roster Tinkering: What's it Mean?"

One of the All-Star Break traditions: Reassessing our predictions from the first half of the season. Some of mine have changed, some have stayed the same—and some were just damn wrong. Living in the West, I will take the contrarian position and roll from west to east in my choices.

Continue reading "Second Half Predictions"

Still playing ketchup here, trying to make up for a four-day absence from the blog, so I want to start with the big trade of last week, the CC Sabathia swap. The usefulness of this deal to the Brewers is a little dubious, as CC is likely to be a half-season rental, but let’s break it down:

Continue reading "NL Central Trade Analysis, Part One"

Since the calendar has turned to July, the MLB Trade deadline is quickly approaching. What teams will be buyers? What teams will be sellers? What big stars are on the block? Who will stay? Who will go?  Those burning questions are running through minds of fans of all teams, including our beloved Chicago Cubs.

Continue reading "Cubs Crave Sabathia"

OK, that title was irresistible, but in fact I'm going to say that Chien-Ming Wang's foot injury should force the Yanks hand in a trade, especially when combined with other injuries this season. Funny how little things can combine to lead to something even larger, accumulating momentum gradually until it becomes irresistible, as it has with the murmurs about a trade for C.C. Sabathia, which is really more the point of this blog.

Continue reading "Off On the Wang Foot"

Though they don't seem as devastating as the Soriano/Pujols loss I wrote about yesterday, two key players have gone down on two other teams today. Cleveland put Victor Martinez on the DL, while Seattle placed its once-reliable closer JJ Putz back on the DL, both with elbow injuries. And unlike Soriano's freak fracture, there were hints at undiagnosed problems with both Martinez and Putz.

Continue reading "Two Big Injuries, Day Two"

Major League, one of the funniest baseball movies around, told the tale of the woeful Cleveland franchise, so mired in mediocrity that their owner sought to cash in on them finishing in the cellar. It seemed like a good bet. The hapless Cleveland franchise hadn't tasted the postseason since 1954, and hadn't won a world title since 1948, one of the longest pennantless streaks in baseball. But ever since that 1989 movie--wherein, of course, the built-to-fail Indians defied their owner's devious plans--their consistent failure hasn't been a good bet. 

Continue reading "Those Amazing Indians"

Much exuberant ink has been spilled over Asdrubal Cabrera's unassisted triple play in yesterday's Indians-Blue Jays game, only the fourteenth in MLB history. That rarity makes it memorable, but I'm not sure there's a ton of athleticism involved--the Unassisted Triple Play (or UTP for short) is more luck of circumstance than anything.

Continue reading "The Not-So-Unassisted Triple Play"

Two weeks into the 2008 season and the Boston Red Sox must be pleased with how the season has gone thus far. Granted they are only two games over .500 at 8 and 6 and have split their last 10 games, but things could be much, much worse. When the Yankees went to Japan to open the season, they proceeded to go 11-19 in the first month of the season before finally snapping out of it and going on to win the division. Boston is only half a game out of first place in the tightly packed American League East which is currently lead by the surprising Baltimore Orioles who do not figure to hang around much longer.

Continue reading "Red Sox Should Feel Good About The Season So Far"

that they aren’t wearing down, energy is not going to be enough for the White Sox in 2008.

Cleveland Indians

Can Fausto Carmona sustain his success from last season?

Cleveland came within one game of a trip to the World Series last season before Boston’s comeback from a 3-1 hole. The Indians made no major changes to last year’s squad and figure again to battle for the top spot in the Central. Pitching will play a key role, especially going head to head with Detroit who will boast the top lineup in the Majors.

Continue reading "MLB 2008 Season Preview: AL Central"

Given the strength of the Tigers and the Cleveland Indians, it is possible there will be only one playoff spot to fight for in the AL East. Though they won't be in the mix, Tampa Bay will s

Continue reading "American League East is a Beast of a Division"