The Boston Red Sox third baseman, Rafael Devers, is close to accomplishing the almost unheard of feat of hitting sixty doubles in a single season. Despite this unprecedented milestone, the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim center fielder, Mike Trout, remains the favorite for the Most Valuable Player award in the American League.
As is, the 22-year old Domican Republic native has 48 doubles with 28 games remaining in the season. That means that he has hit 48 doubles over the span of 134 games. That is not entirely true, however, because he has only played 129 of those 134 games. That means that he doubles once every 2.688 games. Charlie Gehringer, Paul Waner, Hank Greenberg, Joe Medwick, George H. Burns, and Earl Webb are the only players in baseball history to record 60 or more doubles in a season. Gehringer hit 60 doubles for his 1936 Detroit Tigers, Waner hit 62 for the 1932 Pittsburgh Pirates, Greenberg hit 63 for the 1934 Tigers, Medwick hit 64 for the 1936 St. Louis Cardinals, Burns hit 64 for his Cleveland Indians in 1926, and Webb hit 67 for the Red Sox in 1931. Four of those six players are in the National Baseball Hall of Fame (Gehringer, Waner, Greenberg, and Medwick). No one has hit 60 doubles or more in 83 years. Devers, if he continues at his pace of hitting one double every 2.688 games, and he plays every one of those 28 games, should mathematically hit roughly 10.5 more doubles, ending the year with 58.5 doubles. Now, he cannot hit half of a double, so lets round that down to 58 to really put his back against the wall. That, clearly, does not get him to the fevered milestone, but that calculation also does not take into account that he has a hot bat, lately. In the first half of the season, he hit 25 doubles. In the second half, he has recorded 23 doubles (“First Half” meaning “Before the All-Star Game” and “Second Half” meaning “After the All-Star Game”). The first half lasted 91 games, while the second half has thus far lasted 43 games. This means that Devers doubled once every 3.64 games in the first half, but he has doubled once every 1.87 games in the second half. If he continues at his second half rate, he should mathematically double roughly 15 more times. This would lead him to finish the season with roughly 63 doubles. The last player to hit even 50 doubles in a season was José Ramirez with his current team, the Indians, in 2017. He finished third in M.V.P. voting with a league-leading 56 doubles. This leads us to the question: “Why did Ramirez not win first in the M.V.P. voting?” That year, José Altuve of the Houston Astros and then-rookie Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees finished ahead of him in the M.V.P. voting in first and second, respectively. Judge hit 52 home runs, batted .284, produced 154 hits, and drove in 114 runs, and Altuve hit 24 home runs, batted .346, produced 204 hits, and drove in 81 runs. Ramirez only hit 29 home runs, batted .318, produced 186 hits, and drove in 83 runs, making him a roughly inconsequential player in the midst of Altuve and Judge. This season, Trout has hit 43 home runs, batted .293, produced 131 hits, and driven in 100 runs. Devers has astonishingly hit 28 home runs, batted .326, produced a league-leading 174 hits, and driven in 104 runs. Devers has the clear advantage over Trout; despite hitting fewer home runs, he still has driven in more runs. Trout, being a home run hitter, is expected to have a sub-.300 batting average and is hitting accordingly, though .293 is still very good. Devers is exceeding the norm for non-home run hitters. He is not known for his home runs, he is known for his ability to get on base, but despite this, the Boston third baseman will almost assuredly finish with at least 30 home runs this season. Trout is behind Devers in everything vitally important to M.V.P. consideration except for three things:
Homers always make a difference, but considering that Devers will likely end up with decent home run numbers of his own, this is somewhat trivial. W.A.R. is an important statistic because it is designed to determine how valuable a player is to his team or how much the team needs a player to win. While this sounds like the only stat that should even matter, W.A.R. can vary due to how good or bad a player’s team is. Devers’ team’s lineup is padded with the bats of the reigning M.V.P. (Mookie Betts), the only player to win two Silver Slugger Awards in one year (J.D. Martinez), an all-star shortstop (Xander Bogaerts), and a Rookie of the Year contender (Michael Chavis). Trout’s team’s lineup has the reigning Rookie of the Year (Shohei Ohtani), a severely aged formerly great first baseman (Albert Pujols), and a perpetually injured former M.V.P. candidate (Andrelton Simmons). Trout clearly has less to work with and is therefore more valuable to the Angels than Devers is to the Red Sox. This does not mean that Trout is better overall, though. Another disqualifying factor of W.A.R. is that not even statisticians fully understand it and there is no simple way to calculate it. Third of the aforementioned advantages for Trout is that he was an all-star and Devers was not. This is not a death-sentence for Devers’ M.V.P. hopes, though, as there have been 11 M.V.P. Award winners who were not all-stars, including Hall of Fame members Greenberg, Robin Yount, Willie Stargell, and Chipper Jones. All this means is that Devers either had a poor first half or that he went so underappreciated that he was not worthy of a spot on the American League roster. Whichever reason it is that his 16 home runs, .324 batting average, 112 hits, and 62 R.B.I.s in 346 at-bats did not earn him that honor is irrelevant now because his second half has been what makes him an M.V.P. contender. Since the All-Star Game in Cleveland, Ohio at Progressive Field back on Tuesday, July 9, 2019, Devers has hit 12 home runs, batted .332, produced 62 hits, and driven in 42 runs in 187 at-bats. Pre-All Star Game, he hit a home run once every 21.625 at-bats and drove in a run once every 5.581 at-bats. Second half, that changed to a home run once every 15.583 at-bats and a run batted in once every 14.452 at-bats, two vast improvements. Trout’s first half stats read as 28 home runs, a .301 batting average, 91 hits, and 67 R.B.I.s in 302 at-bats. A home run every 10.786 at-bats and an R.B.I. once every 4.507 at-bats. His second half stats read as 15 home runs, a .276 batting average, 40 hits, and 33 R.B.I.s in 145 at-bats. One home run once every 9.667 at-bats and an R.B.I. once every 4.394 at-bats. Trout has had a more consistent season as far as home runs and R.B.I.s and he hits them more often than Devers. However, while these are important, Devers is not a home run hitter primarily (home run hitters generally drive in more runs). He is specialized in getting on base and has fantastic hit numbers and batting average numbers that have surpassed Trout all year. The fact that he has even relatively close home run and R.B.I. totals and averages to Trout alongside his incredible ability to reach base set him up as a better player than Trout this season. Jesse A. Cook “Devers Approaches 60 Doubles, Trout Remains M.V.P. Favorite” 29 August 2019
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After Major League Baseball faced scrutiny after announcing their new rules, but they recently announced that they have a few additions that they are hoping will eliminate fans’ anxiety.
1. RELIEF PITCHERS MUST FACE TWO BATTERS: This rule comes along with the rule about starters, which we’ll call the “Brandon Woodruff Rule,” which states that starting pitchers must face three batters before being pulled. This rule is really a win because it gives previously one-batter pitchers a second chance to prove their arms and take down batters they would never have been expected to face. This also creates more skilled, seasoned pitchers with that Mariano Rivera flare, where they can demolish right-handed hitters equally as they can left-handed hitters. 2. BASERUNNERS MUST TELL FIELDER THEY’RE STEALING: This rule adds more strategy to the game and encourages a new focus on the speed of a baserunner. Baserunners must indicate to the fielder pre-pitch if they’re stealing. They can do this as close to the pitch as they would like, as long as they convey the message before the pitcher releases the ball. The fielder has this time to call out to the rest of the field that the runner is stealing, so they can jump into order and prepare to catch the speed-demon. This ingenious addition to the rulebook prevents big and slow players from risking injury and it prevents pitchers from ruining the game on wild pitches. 3. PLAYERS MUST PLAY THROUGH STREAKING FANS: With baseball trying to speed up the game, this rule is a definite time-saver. Fans often try to get themselves on camera and mess up the field of play, but now they won’t be able to get that attention, as players will just continue with business as usual. So there will be no more Jeffrey Maiers, no more Steve Bartman’s, and no more of those Astros’ fans interfering with Mookie Betts robbing a home run. The game will just have to continue and the fans will just have to sit back and accept that they can’t mess up the game. 4. DEFENSE ADDS FOURTH OUTFIELDER, OFFENSE CAN ADD SECOND BATTER: This evens the playing field. With baseball’s new rule allowing the defense to add a fourth outfielder in certain situations, the offense will be allowed to bring up a pinch hitter to stand in the batter’s box opposite the scheduled batter. When the Baltimore Orioles put their tenth player in the field to combat Aaron Judge, the Yankees will be allowed to put Brett Gardner directly opposite him and make the field an equal place. 5. ANNOUNCERS CAN DECIDE ONE CALL PER GAME, POST-SIXTH INNING: This rule has taken far too long to come into effect, now announcers can decide one call per game after the sixth inning. This rule ensures that both sides get a fair input on the game. The radio broadcasters for each team will have an opportunity to call down to their team’s dugout to tell the manager to inform the umpire when a call must be reversed. They have to do this quickly, though, as the defense can get the ball back to the picture and start the next play, rendering the announcer’s opinion on the last call a moot point, causing them to waste that call. These rules are truly wins for baseball and will be implemented this season. Of course, now it’s time to reverse this article as it is clearly fabricated, ridiculous, and a product of this insidious day known as April Fools’ Day. Jesse A. Cook “Baseball Implements Surprise Rules” April 1, 2019 Bryce Harper, Manny Machado, Dallas Keuchel, Craig Kimbrel—the list goes on for offseason names, but which of these players will receive the contract they actually want? Pitchers and catchers first report on February 12, but none of these players have chosen a team and that is hurting both them and the fans.
First of all, the memory of J.D. Martinez’s failed expedition to attain a seven-year $200 million contract should be fresh in these players’ minds (Martinez ended up acquiring a five-year $110 million contract with the Boston Red Sox, far less money than what he originally wanted). A picture of two bats with Philadelphia Phillies’ logos and Harper’s name and number 34 circulated on Twitter on Monday, January 28. Many fans and analysts are speculating that the image means that Harper will sign with the Phillies. The Score’s beat reporter Bruce Levine said in October that, “Harper is reportedly looking for a 10-year, $350 million deal as the starting point in negotiations.” The Washington Post’s Thomas Boswell said on Friday, January 25 that Harper will not end up making nearly as much money as he wanted. He said, “Harper’s best concrete offer now is not for an average annual value of $37.5 million or $35.7 million… No team claims that it has any contract offer on the table to Harper at all. There’s been plenty of big talk and goo-goo eyes but no “sign here.”” The waiting game might not be the only part of this process hurting players. Baseball simply is not bringing in enough money for teams to be giving out $200, $300 million contracts anymore. Frankly, after the New York Yankees’ experiments with Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Giancarlo Stanton (giving players upwards of $100 million for over seven years) and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim’s franchise-crushing contract with Albert Pujols, the odds of team following in their footsteps are unlikely. Kimbrel is looking for a six-year contract for at least $100 million, but he is not receiving the interest he hoped he would. The best interest the World Series Champion closer has gotten is a potential three-year deal from the Minnesota Twins. The Houston Astros want Keuchel to return to their squad, but the Cincinnati Reds are making a serious bid for him. Scott Boyken, Fansided’s Reds’ beat reporter said that, “Following his trade to the Cincinnati Reds earlier this week right-hander Sonny Gray agreed to a three-year $30 million extension. The numbers suggest he’s similar to remaining free agent ace Dallas Keuchel.” The Reds spent $30 million on Sonny Gray and Boyken says that they are likely to spend that for Keuchel ($10 million per year). Machado is getting interest from many teams including the Yankees, Phillies, Chicago White Sox, and San Diego Padres. Machado entered the offseason looking for essentially the same deal Stanton made in the 2017-18 offseason, a 13-year commitment for $325 million. Wallace Matthews of New York Daily News said that Machado is looking at a deal similar to Harper. He said that Machado is looking at contracts on a, “range from $175 million for seven years to $250 million for eight years.” Spring training is 11 days away, but the fans still have no idea which players they will be rooting for. Jesse A. Cook “MLB Offseason’s Toll On Players And Fans” February 1, 2019 J.D. Martinez singled to right field to put the Boston Red Sox up two games on the Los Angeles Dodgers, both in the game and in the Series. The Sox took Game 2 with a 4-2 win at home, and now fans are hoping that no more baseball will have to be played at Fenway Park this year.
Starting Friday night, MLB will see at most three games at Dodger Stadium before potentially heading back to Boston for possible Games 6 and 7. Of course, if the Red Sox keep playing like they did in the last two, they will not need a Game 5. What has been working for Boston? Well, last night, it wasn’t necessarily their offense. It wasn’t really their defense either (although Andrew Benintendi made an incredible grab), it was that the Dodgers’ offense was working poorly. David Price only allowed three hits and he struck out five in six innings. Doesn’t that mean that he was pitching well? Yes, of course, but he was also dead tired by the end and he had walked three batters by that point. By the time he left after six innings, Price had thrown 88 pitches, so the Dodgers were swinging and missing on a tired arm. In Game 3, Boston will throw Rick Porcello at the lame Dodger offense. This is where LA might have an advantage because Porcello allowed four runs in four innings on 68 pitches in his ALCS start in Game 4 against the Houston Astros. Porcello did not perform as well as Sox fans hoped he would (although another Benintendi fielding gem won the game), so the Dodgers might be able to scratch out a win. With this in mind, we must remember that the Boston bullpen has been absolutely dynamite this postseason: Since Game 2 of the ALCS (six games ago), the bullpen has only allowed a total five runs and the team is undefeated. The bullpen has a 1.95 Earned Run Average since the start of the win streak and that’s really something to be admired. If the Sox want to sweep, their pitching has to keep up, but more importantly, their top four hitters in the lineup have to hit better. Through Games 1 and 2, the top four hitters (including both Mitch Moreland and Steve Pearce because they substituted for one another) acquired 11 hits and five RBIs. That has to be up if Boston wants to sweep. Jesse A. Cook “Boston 2 Away From 4th WS Win This Century” October 26, 2018 After an 8-4 win in Game 1 of the World Series, the Boston Red Sox look to knock out the Los Angeles Dodgers in four games. Clutch performances from Eduardo Nunez, who had a pinch hit home run, Andrew Benintendi, who went four for five, and Nathan Eovaldi and Craig Kimbrel, who pitched scoreless eighth and ninth innings.
Why should the Red Sox sweep? LA is playing against what the Houston Astros’ head coach A.J. Hinch called a, “Juggernaut offense.” Last night, the Sox matched the Dodgers for almost every run they scored. The box score shows that there was only one inning where the Dodgers scored a run and the Red Sox did not. In the second inning, Matt Kemp hit a solo home run off of Chris Sale and the Sox did not answer in the bottom of the inning. That was the only time the Dodgers outscored the Red Sox in any inning last night. The Sox also have a knack for taking pitches. Whether they are good or bad pitches, they stretch their opponent out. Granted, Sale threw 91 pitches by his departure in the fifth inning, but LA’s Clayton Kershaw had already thrown 79 by the same point in the game. When a pitcher throws upwards of 75 pitches, they usually do not have a lot of gas left. The reason Boston was successful with a tired Sale on the hill was because Boston simply has better fielding (also Sale struck out seven in just four innings of work). Good defense is also something that the Dodgers do not possess. In order to keep their best bats in the lineup, Dave Roberts, Dodgers’ head coach, has to put Chris Taylor and Cody Bellinger (two infielders) in the outfield or Max Muncy (a first baseman) at second base or Yasmani Grandal at first (he’s even a risk at his main position at catcher). The Sox have depth at every position. The only possible catch is that, to keep J.D. Martinez in the lineup in the National League ballparks, Boston head coach Alex Cora is considering placing Mookie Betts at his old position at second base. The Sox were lucky to have such depth in their lineup against the Astros, and while they still need Mookie Betts, Benintendi, Steve Pearce, and Martinez to hit well, they still have the same depth. Rafael Devers and Sandy Leon each had important singles and Eduardo Nunez hit a pinch hit three-run home run over the Green Monster on the second pitch of his at-bat against the tough Alex Wood. The Sox might not need their best hitters to be their best players, but Martinez also drove in two runs, Benintendi scored three times, and Betts scored twice. The bullpen came through strong last night, but Cora’s philosophy has been a classic playoff bullpen philosophy. To him, the bullpen is every pitcher who has not pitched already in that game. Eovaldi is the probable starter for Game Three and Cora decided to bring him in for an inning last night. In the ALDS, Rick Porcello and Sale came in in relief in Game’s 1 and 4, respectively, and David Price was warming up when Benintendi made a diving catch on Alex Bregman’s bases loaded line drive in Game 4 of the ALCS. Sure, Ryan Brasier has only allowed one run this postseason (he allowed a sacrifice fly to Manny Machado last night) and Kimbrel has finally stopped tipping his pitches, but Cora has been relying on his top four starters, Sale, Price, Eovaldi, and Porcello. Jesse A. Cook “Sox Win Game 1, Should Sweep” October 24, 2018 On a six-game win streak the Oakland Athletics pose the biggest threat to the Boston Red Sox in the American League. Oakland began as an afterthought in the AL West with Houston and Seattle barrelling over the rest of the division, but around the All-Star Break they jumped forward into the picture and they made two big moves at and after the deadline that put them ahead of the curve. A’s general manager, David Frost, said, “We’ve been looking for starters, so we were lucky that Mike (Fiers) was available to us.” A partner to Sean Manaea in the starting rotation easily sets Oakland above Seattle who has little depth at the starter role. Fiers is 1-1 since the All-Star Break with a 1.91 Earned Run Average including a win over Boston. The Mariner’s ace, James Paxton, who is 1-2 since the All-Star Break (including a loss to the Angels where he never finished the first inning) with a 3.80 ERA. The Mariners have also fallen greatly, not only from being second in the West, but from being a Wild Card team. Sean Manaea has faced the Red Sox twice this year and defeated them on both occasions, the first of which was a no-hitter. He also has the ninth best ERA in the AL for the season at 3.38. In addition to that his 1.01 Average of Walks and Hits per Innings Pitched is fifth in the AL and eighth in all of baseball. However, every pitcher with the exception of Brett Anderson and Manaea in the Oakland rotation and every pitcher in the Athletics’ bullpen but Ryan Buchter is a right-handed pitcher which puts Oakland at a disadvantage: Boston hits only one home run every 24 at-bats versus right-handers, but they hit one home run every thirty-five at-bats versus southpaws. Boston also strikes out once every five at-bats versus righties and once every four at-bats versus left-handers. The Sox also hit .273 with an .812 OPS versus righties, while batting a mere .257 with a .737 OPS versus lefties. That being said, even without Mike Fiers and Jeurys Familia, Oakland is 4-2 against Boston, three of those victories being over the first three pitchers in the Red Sox’ rotation (1. Chris Sale, 2. David Price, and 3. Rick Porcello). Unfortunately for Oakland, Boston recently traded prospect Jalen Beeks to the Tampa Bay Rays for now 5-4 Nathan Eovaldi, who threw six no-hit innings in a combined one-hit shutout over the A’s in their only meeting this season on May 30. If the season ended today, the A’s would have to win the Wild Card Game over the New York Yankees, who are 6-8 since the All-Star Break. The Yankees hit one home run every 23 at-bats, they strikeout once every four at-bats, hit .251, and have a .761 OPS versus righties, while hitting one home run every 18 at-bats, they strikeout once every four at-bats, hit .261, and have an .836 OPS versus lefties. That being said, who knows if Aaron Judge or Gary Sanchez, two of their best home run hitters, will be back by the Wild Card Game? Also, Luis Severino has by far the best ERA on the team, and that’s 3.08! That’s not too exciting for the Bronx when they have a losing record in the second half. With these facts in mind, it looks pretty clear that Oakland would move on to play Boston in the ALDS. How do we know Oakland won’t overcome their 4.5 game deficit to the Astros? The defending World Series Champions have a far, far tougher schedule with two against the Colorado Rockies, three in Seattle, three at Fenway Park in Boston, and three against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Those are four tough serieses against four tough competitors. Oakland, on the other hand, has only three even slightly difficult serieses: they have two games at home against the struggling Los Angeles Dodgers, they’re playing three games in Seattle, and their last difficult matchup is at home against the falling Yankees. Houston and Oakland do end up playing one another in two three-game sets to finish the month of August, but they each get three home games from the six game scrum. Since just before the break, Oakland is 3-1 versus Houston. Furthermore, the Astros hit one home run per every 27 batters, strikeout once every four batters, hit .250, and have a .745 OPS versus right-handers, while they hit a home run once every 26 batters, strikeout once every five batters, hit .271, and have an OPS of .791 versus lefties, showing another advantage for the predominantly right-handed Athletics pitching staff. Houston has also struggled since the break going only 8-8 compared to Oakland’s sweet 8-4 second half. The Astros are 2-2 versus Boston, showing that they are not quite as good as the green and gold when it comes to blasting bombs over the Green Monster. The threat from the Central, the Cleveland Indians (who are 2-4 versus Oakland), though they have not played the Red Sox this year, against the other top four teams in the American League (Astros, Yankees, A’s, and Mariners, respectively) are 10-19. The Mariners are 3-4 versus Boston and they’re falling apart. The Yankees are 5-9 versus Boston and the Sox completed a four game sweep of New York Sunday night. The Astros are only .500 versus Boston, Cleveland is projected to do incredibly poorly against them, Seattle is .375 against the Red Sox, New York has a .357 winning percentage (and has been especially terrible) against Boston of late, but the Athletics have .667 winning percentage against them all year (with a no-hitter). This is not to say that Oakland will definitely beat the Red Sox, this is just to say that they have the best chance. Of all 14 other teams in the American League, Oakland is the best suited to take on Mookie Betts, J.D. Martinez, and Chris Sale. Granted, throughout his career, Cleveland and Houston batters hit Sale better than Oakland, this season Cleveland has hit only one home run every 28 at-bats, strikes out once every five at-bats, with a mere .271 batting average, and a .779 OPS versus lefties. Sale, a lefty, is arguably the best pitcher in baseball, so against him, assuming he starts during the three game series in Boston, the Indians’ stats this year against lefties will most likely falter. Finally, Boston has a rather split rotation as they have three lefties (no matter if it’s the current situation with Sale on the 10-Day Disabled List and Brian Johnson in or the norm with Sale starting and Johnson in the bullpen) and two righties starting. When Sale is healthy that means that Johnson is working out of the pen, however that’s the only time they have a left-handed pitcher ready in relief. Oakland hits one home run every 25 at-bats, they strikeout once every four at-bats, they bat .251, and have a .758 OPS versus right-handers, and they hit one home run every 27 at-bats, they strikeout once every four at-bats, they hit .244, and they have a .737 OPS against left-handers. The A’s hit righties very well and that will most likely force Boston’s southpaw starters to go longer innings if they want to have lefties to spare if and when these two teams end up meeting in a five or seven-game series. It’s important to note that while every team will have 15 more players on their roster come September 1st for the 40-man roster, seven or eight of whom will most likely be pitchers, teams will still have to focus on saving arms from both the left and right sides. The postseason is when most teams decide that if their starter can go seven, eight, or even nine innings (10 if you’re now Hall of Famer Jack Morris), then they will probably have to be out there that long so if the starter the next day can’t make it through the fourth, they’re not using arms running on fumes to try to win that one. While Oakland’s hitting might not seem too outstanding, their pitching, especially against Boston is. Oakland has only allowed 3.67 runs per game against Boston, Houston has allowed 4.75 runs per game against Boston, Cleveland has allowed 5.03 runs per game against the four teams closest to Boston in record (Houston, New York, Oakland, and Seattle, respectively), Seattle has allowed the Red Sox to score 5.43 runs per game, and the Yankees have allowed an incredible 5.79 runs per game to Boston. Out of the five teams in the best position to have a shot at playing Boston in the postseason (Houston, New York, Oakland, Seattle, and Cleveland) the Athletics have by far the best pitching to fend off Boston’s hitting, and as any coach, player, broadcaster, fan, or… writer, will tell you: Great pitching beats great hitting. Jesse A. Cook “Oakland Is Boston’s Biggest Threat” August 7, 2018 Oakland has to decide soon whether they want a World Series ring this year or if they want to rebuild for 2019. Khris Davis, Jed Lowrie, and Blake Treinen are big names that would look great on any roster and will certainly be talked about come July 31. The question is this: is Oakland all in, or are they looking more towards the future?
The green and gold showcased two players in DC last week, Lowrie and Treinen, so they’re both on the map for teams definitely in the race for the ultimate trophy in late October. A veteran presence and an allstar middle infielder, such as Lowrie is a good target for better, younger teams. Every playoff team also needs a good closer and Treinen’s stats show that he is one of the best. Treinen has a 1.08 Earned Run Average, a 1.00 average of Walks and Hits per Innings Pitched, and he has 24 saves. He’s fourth in the American League in saves on a team that has only given him 28 save opportunities. The Pittsburgh Pirates, who are on an 11-game win streak could use a complement to seemingly equally fantastic closer Felipe Vazquez to help them come back in the contentious National League Central Division. The Astros, Braves, and Phillies all are in position to make serious postseason runs, but none of them are particularly fortified when it comes to late-game pitching. Boston, New York, Milwaukee, and Philadelphia would be prime locations for Lowrie because they all are rather weak at second base. With Dustin Pedroia hurt, the Red Sox would much rather have their old teammate on their roster to be a constant at second rather than alternating between Brock Holt, Eduardo Nunez, and Tzu Wei Lin. New York’s Gleyber Torres, while currently on the ten-day Disabled List, is the frontrunner for Rookie of the Year, but Didi Gregorius at shortstop is having a down year and hitting considerably worse than Lowrie (Gregorius is batting .265 with 17 home runs and 55 Runs Batted In, but Lowrie is batting .276 with 16 home runs and 62 RBIs). Hernan Perez in Milwaukee is having a terrible year (.245 batting average, six home runs, and 22 RBIs), so the Brew Crew would welcome Lowrie with open arms. Philadelphia has their own dilemma at second with Cesar Hernandez as he’s batting .270 with eight home runs and 33 RBIs. These trades, if made would point to Oakland looking at the future, because all these teams have prospects to give: Boston has Jay Groome and Tanner Houck (I would have included Jalen Beaks, but he was recently traded to Tampa for Nathan Eovaldi), New York has Justus Sheffield, Albert Abreu, and Chance Adams, Houston has Forrest Whitley and J.B. Bukauskas, Pittsburgh has Mitch Keller and Shane Baz, Atlanta has Mike Soroka, Kyle Wright, Luiz Gohara, Ian Anderson, and Kolby Allard, Milwaukee has Corbin Burnes and Luis Ortiz, and Philadelphia has Sixto Sanchez, Adonis Medina, Jojo Romero, and Franklyn Kilome. Of course, these are all top pitching prospects, so who’s to say any team would be willing to give up part of their future for one championship run? The answer is that I AM TO SAY THAT! Boston has a dilemma at second base, New York could use some higher quality talent, Philly, as well. In addition to that, every team wants depth in their bullpen because Houston doesn’t want Justin Verlander throwing nine innings in Game 1 of the ALDS when they might need him to be full speed for Game 3 or 4, Boston has the same situation with Chris Sale, New York with Luis Severino, Pittsburgh with Ivan Nova, and teams without the strongest starting pitching like Milwaukee, Atlanta, or Philadelphia also want a strong reliever to pick up the slack when their starters can’t make it through the sixth. Also, every team looking for a postseason run, namely New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, and Pittsburgh needs a great hitter. Khris Davis is having a standup year with 25 home runs, 72 RBIs, and an .854 OPS. He is a fine fielder, as well, so any team who acquires him would be more than equipped to face their foes during National League games or in the World Series against the NL pennant winner. With all this in mind, it’s important to return to the theme displayed in the title, “Is Oakland All In?” The Athletics recently acquired Jeurys Familia from the Mets; Familia is 6-4, he has a 2.62 ERA, and he has 17 saves in 44.2 innings over 42 appearances. At 59-43, the A’s are 1.5 games behind the Seattle Mariners and Houston Astros, who are tied for first in the American League West, and they are 1.5 games out of the second Wild Card spot and six games ahead of the Rays, who are the next competitor for a Wild Card spot. These signs, such as recent trades to fuel their bullpen and their competitiveness in the West, point to a postseason run this year. If Oakland falters and falls apart completely by next week, these trades are no-brainers, but if they hold strong, I expect that Oakland will be a serious contender and a serious problem for their AL West rivals. Being 8-2 in their last ten games and having won four straight, it certainly does not look like the Athletics will die off. Jesse A. Cook “Is Oakland All In?” July 24, 2018 Lance McCullers of the Houston Astros is starting against Yu Darvish of the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game Seven of the World Series. That’s an all-star matchup, but it’s the last game of the year, the managers won’t hold back with bringing in their bullpen. It’s more likely that, unless either pitcher is tossing a perfect game, that by the fifth inning, the matchup will be Dallas Keuchel versus Clayton Kershaw.
Kershaw said, “I can go 27 innings. Whatever they need.” Clearly, he’s willing to follow in the footsteps of former Dodger and MVP of the 1988 World Series, Orel Hershiser, and sacrifice his arm for a ring. Darvish got rocked by the Houston bats in Game Three and didn’t finish the second inning, while McCullers led his team into the sixth inning before leaving. Granted, McCullers gave up three runs, Darvish allowed four, but as I said in the title, “Starting pitching will make no difference in Game Seven.” Why won’t it make a difference? Well, A.J. Hinch and Dave Roberts are smart managers, they understand that they have no possibility of playing another game after tonight, so they understand that they can throw literally every reliever they have in the game and take out the starting pitcher as early as they need. If George Springer and Alex Bregman hit back-to-back home runs to lead off the ballgame, Roberts will probably call to the bullpen and have Kershaw or Alex Wood start warming up their arms. If Chris Taylor starts a three-run first inning with Yasiel Puig on deck behind Cody Bellinger, Hinch is going to get Keuchel and Justin Verlander up and stretching. These managers have every starter and reliever at their disposal tonight because as far as this season goes, there’s really no tomorrow. If history tells us anything, Darvish will not be productive and McCullers will be able to go at least six innings. Considering that LA has a much, much better bullpen, the ‘Stros have to make sure that McCullers can go as long as they need, and Keuchel is ready to take the hill. Game Seven is just like the All-Star Game in how managers manage it: just put everybody in when one guy starts to get tired. Jesse A. Cook “Starting Pitching Will Make No Difference In Game Seven” November 1, 2017 With Justin Verlander starting on the mound, tonight, the Houston Astros should win the World Series. It’s Game Six in Los Angeles and the Astros starter is undefeated in his new uniform. A former Detroit Tiger, Verlander has not lost a game since heading to Southeastern Texas.
After his walk-off single to win Game Five and take a three games to two lead in the series Sunday night, Houston third baseman Alex Bregman excitedly said, “We've got Justin Verlander going for us in two days.” He means that they will undoubtedly win the series tonight because they have the best pitcher of the postseason on the hill. Verlander is facing the Dodgers’ Rich Hill who threw nine innings of a perfect game before giving up a walk-off home run to the Pittsburgh Pirates Josh Harrison to start the tenth inning in the latter half of the season. Hill recorded a no decision in every one of his playoff starts, including the Astros 7-6 Game Two victory. Verlander leads the postseason in wins, as he is 4-0, he has the only shutout and only complete game, and he only gave up three runs in his Game Two win. While the ‘Stros will be cautious about using their bullpen tonight, if Verlander shows the slightest signs of slowing down, A.J. Hinch will without a doubt take him out, but that’s not likely to happen. Hill, in Game Two, while he only gave up one run, Dave Roberts took him out of the game after only four innings! The Trolley Dodgers have a great pen, but after six of their pitchers in Sunday’s loss, they’re stretched a little thin, even after a day of rest. Tonight’s matchup will showcase a seasoned veteran who has proven that he is more than well suited to pitch long innings against a manager who is scared to keep his starter in the game past the fifth inning (when most Dodgers fans leave the ballpark anyway) with a tired bullpen. Dave Roberts has to be confident that Hill can go to the sixth inning, at least! Now say, Houston does not take the series tonight, it’s fair to say that Game Six will be a struggle. Both teams will probably go digging into their pens, a part of the team that LA is much better in, but Houston will go there later, use less relievers, and leave Lance McCullers, another long-innings pitcher, to pitch against a faltering Yu Darvish and an exhausted Dodger bullpen. As for tonight’s starting pitcher’s comparison, Verlander has 29 strikeouts, Hill has only 19, Verlander has 2.05 Earned Run Average, Hill has it at 2.77, Verlander has four wins, Hill has zero, and Verlander’s average of Walks and Hits per Innings Pitched is 0.88, while Hill’s is 1.23. Granted, Verlander has pitched 30.2 innings to Hill’s 13, awarding him more time to strike out more batters, all that means is that Verlander has had longer to allow more runs and more hits, thusly proving that Hinch’s starter has consistently performed much better than Roberts’ this postseason. While the stats point to Houston’s favor, as well as their momentum, coming off of a huge, hard-fought victory, it’s Halloween and Game Six. All baseball fans know that crazy things happen in Game Six and all people know crazy things happen on Halloween. Happy Halloween and wonderful World Series watching! Jesse A. Cook “Why Houston Should Take The Series” October 31, 2017 The month of August is proving fatal to Houston Astros Pennant hopes. Michael Silverman, Boston Herald sportswriter, said, “The prize the team (Boston Red Sox) needs to strive for is best record in the American League. Suddenly, it’s within their reach.” The Red Sox are Houston’s main competitor and until now, they didn’t look like a threat.
Before August, Houston stood atop the American League at 69-36, but after a 10-16 August, they’re at only 79-52. Before August, they’re rivals in the east were at a dwindling 58-51, yet after a masterful month with a 17-8 record, Beantown is a mere four and a half games back at 75-57. Houston players are also faltering: before the All-Star Break, Houston had at least one player in the top five in the following categories: runs scored (R), runs batted in (RBI), hits (H), home runs (HR), on-base percentage (OBP), slugging percentage (SLG), slugging percentage + on-base percentage (OPS), walks (BB), stolen bases (SB) and batting average (AVG). Now, Post-Break, the statistics are showing a faltering Astros’ offense; they have four players in the top ten for caught stealing (CS), no players in the top 20 for RBIs, no players in the top 25 for HRs and no players in the top ten for Rs. Their bright lights since the Break have been, unsurprisingly, second baseman Jose Altuve, and, extremely surprisingly, third baseman Alex Bregman. Both men are leading the team in several categories Post-Break including R, H, HR, RBI, BB, SB and AVG. The other giant threatening Houston is in the Land. The Cleveland Indians are half a game ahead of the Red Sox and are on six game win streak. A team rising above their mere Wild Card status at the end of the previous season, this Indians’ team looks more like the team that took the highly favored Chicago Cubs to extra innings in Game Seven of the same year’s World Series. The Tribe has a mostly new cast this season, but nevertheless, they are succeeding. As the Houston baseball team is in trouble, unfortunately, so is the city, so our thoughts and prayers go out to the hurricane-stricken area. Hurricane Harvey’s statistics are about as atrocious as the team’s, so we, Texans and all Americans hope that both change for the better, soon. Jesse A. Cook “Stars Falling: Astros Are Declining” August 30, 2017 |
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