As it is on the main board, so it shall be in the Boston Globe.It's Mike Trout Trade Time!
Of the ten, one team is in their division (Houston) and the other plays across the city (Dodgers). I doubt that the Angels would make a deal with either team.There are very few teams that could put together a package for Trout... but here are ten (1/3 of the league)... even though half don't make any sense but I talk to some of them so I'll pull something out of my rear end...
And almost none of them have any minor leaguers to offer.There are very few teams that could put together a package for Trout... but here are ten (1/3 of the league)... even though half don't make any sense but I talk to some of them so I'll pull something out of my rear end...
"Nick on the car phone: you're next!"There are very few teams that could put together a package for Trout... but here are ten (1/3 of the league)... even though half don't make any sense but I talk to some of them so I'll pull something out of my rear end...
.503 is also the 4th highest SLG% among qualified MLB SS.What is Nick's goddamn obsession with wanting X to hit for more power? He mentions it in every single thing he writes about the kid, and I simply don't understand it. His SLG has gone from 364 to 362 to 421 to 503 in each of the last 4 seasons; he IS hitting with more power.
But are they quality hits? My scouting friends say NAY!He leads the league in hits!
Stop using those advanced Sabermetrics!He leads the league in hits!
But they were first in hunger.I realize that Nick's memory sucks but does he realize that the defending champs starting staff was ranked 12th out of 15 AL teams in ERA and 14th out of 15th in BAA? Last. GD. Year.
I'm laughing.But they were first in hunger.
If you include the bullpen the pitching numbers look great.The Royals last year were 3rd in the league in runs allowed and 7th in runs scored. 2nd in BA.
Yup. As usual.Sure, but I guess that's my point. It doesn't matter how you prevent runs so long as you do it. The Royals showed one way it's possible to do so and win.
Of course Nick misses the forest for the trees.
Craig Kimbrel acknowledges there are differences between the American League and National League, but as long as he is getting three outs in the ninth, they aren’t insurmountable. “Sure, but I think they’re more profound for a starting pitcher having to face the extra hitter and all that. I’m never going to face the pitcher anyway, but there are some good hitters in this league.”
We hit three major themes. Quotes from players with no analysis, quotes from anonymous GMs or scouts with no analysis, and an overlying theme (the leagues are so different, never mind how much interleague play there is) that bears little relation to reality.Tim Lincecum, RHP, Angels — Maybe he wanted to stay on the West Coast, but according to a couple of GMs, Lincecum should have stuck to the NL. “I just don’t see his style of pitching at this juncture in his career working in the AL,” said one AL evaluator who watched Lincecum’s workout. “The designated hitter makes a big difference, and when you have a guy who relies on having to be pinpoint, that makes it a tough league to succeed.”
That Nick did not mention a few likely and known candidates -- Dave Martinez immediately comes to mind -- seemed odd. Then again, why should anyone be surprised?5. With Fredi Gonzalez fired by the Braves, it leaves no Latino manager in baseball. With so many Latin players in the game, this doesn’t seem right. The Selig Rule — which requires teams to consider minority candidates for openings — simply hasn’t helped the cause. Commissioner Ron Manfred has allowed teams that fire managers during the season to bypass the rule. He’s right in a sense that when teams fire a manager in-season, there’s no time to go through a formal process because you need to name someone quickly. The offseason is different.
Particularly days after a former Red Sox player who's often mentioned as a managerial candidate -- Alex Cora -- publicly makes the same argumentNick's note on the lack of Latino managers was emblematic of his laziness.
That Nick did not mention a few likely and known candidates -- Dave Martinez immediately comes to mind -- seemed odd. Then again, why should anyone be surprised?
Heard Cora on the radio during a 10 minute drive last night during the game. He did sound pretty sharp.Particularly days after a former Red Sox player who's often mentioned as a managerial candidate -- Alex Cora -- publicly makes the same argument
I heard him too and wanted to fire Farrell and hire him immediately.Heard Cora on the radio during a 10 minute drive last night during the game. He did sound pretty sharp.
tNick has zero critical thinking skills. Jim Kaat tells him he cured a UCL injury with rest and Nick doesn't question it? If Kaat had an elbow injury and it cleared up with rest, guess what? It wasn't a UCL.
Christ.
It'd be pretty funny if Alex Cora actually turned out to be a genius.I heard him too and wanted to fire Farrell and hire him immediately.
Yaz put up a 106 OPS+ in 1983, at age 43. One of only four Sox regulars over 100.I had the opportunity to cover Carl Yastrzemski’s farewell, and the two don’t compare. Yaz was truly done at that point and didn’t have much to offer in his final season in 1983 (.266, 10 homers, 56 RBIs in 119 games).
Then again, Nick googling for a stat that he does not recognize as relevant is pretty unlikely in the first place.Hah, I saw that line too and wondered how the OPS+ would check out. Of course Nick had access to a computer to check for himself, but he didn't bother.
Yaz catches a lot of flak for being a guy who hung on forever just to compile stats, but he was literally never a bad player. His OBP in 1983 was .359, league average was .328.Yaz put up a 106 OPS+ in 1983, at age 43. One of only four Sox regulars over 100.
Of course that was down from a 111 OPS+ at age 42 the year before.
I happen to agree, but wasn't he championing this very initiative not long ago? (I can't find it).On intentional walks, pitchers will just signal to have the walk and will not need to throw the ball. Well, this now eliminates the possibility of a wild pitch, which we’ve seen, not frequently, but enough to keep it in place. And you’re saving how much time?
And he had 11 intentional walks (one more than Jim Rice), so he was obviously lousy. Yaz did have a crappy September/October (195/253/247), but that just makes the season up until then look better.Yaz catches a lot of flak for being a guy who hung on forever just to compile stats, but he was literally never a bad player. His OBP in 1983 was .359, league average was .328.
joe, back on October 8, 2014, you wrote:I happen to agree, but wasn't he championing this very initiative not long ago? (I can't find it).
https://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2014/10/05/sunball/9juQaprOADR37zqsvmABdI/story.htmlWe’ll be watching the Arizona Fall League intently in October and November because it will be the testing ground for new rules regarding the pace of games.
There are easy ones, such as the no-pitch intentional walk, in which the manager holds up four fingers and the umpire awards the batter first base. That will save a couple of minutes. Of course, this takes away the potential of an errant pitch, etc., but those are few and far between.
(snip)
These all seem like reasonable changes.
On intentional walks, pitchers will just signal to have the walk and will not need to throw the ball. Well, this now eliminates the possibility of a wild pitch, which we’ve seen, not frequently, but enough to keep it in place. And you’re saving how much time?
Oh okay, I guess that didn't count, then?You see he’s never really faced adversity. Oh, he’s had injuries to overcome, but once he overcame them he always had his job to go back to.
Ah yes, Nick's Personal Moxie Binky rears its head once again. We all just need to try harder and play everyday as if our job was on the line. Does Nick own a mirror? Also, a sidenote, interesting how Lackey has gone from Chicken and Beer Problem to Intensity Role Model for our youth in hindsight.As we’ve mentioned in prior columns, the toughness and attitude best friends Jon Lester and John Lackey had never rubbed off on Buchholz. Sometimes your personality isn’t suited for that.
That's as close as you can come without coming right out and saying 'I hate your lazy, entitled generation and everything it stands for' and a generalization that isn't true unless I missed the part where he didn't have to prove himself on the Major League level at a young age.And that could be because Buchholz had natural ability and probably never had to fight for anything.
Yup. He's never been the same since 2013. But I guess it's just his lack of character that's the difference. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯Didnt he pitch with a fractured vertebra for like a year one time? Didnt he pitch the entire 2013 world series run while clearly injured? Sometimes I think maybe I imagined these things because they were forgotten the instant they happened.
I'm tired of watching the guys shitty pitching too but it would be cool to read something other than this boring narrative.
Wasn't he pretty good since 2013....or does the first half of last year not count for some reason?Yup. He's never been the same since 2013. But I guess it's just his lack of character that's the difference. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Maybe it's because *some* in the media made his difficulties in playing baseball a proxy for his character.He had declined to speak to the media about his demotion, looking quite upset any time a request was made.
Can you "not speak" and "say" at the same time?As for not speaking to the media, Buchholz said, “I needed a breather from the other day. Just a little time to get myself together. Pitching is pitching, but you just don’t know when you’re pitching and that’s the biggest thing I’m going to have to adjust to.”