Blog Archives
Triple Play Podcast Ep # 13 – Around The Horn w/OAK/KC/COL/TOR + Bean Wars + The Genius Beane
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The Triple Play Show will have 5 shows per month. Each show will be about 1 hour.
By The Big Ticket Show ( AKA Triple Play Podcast on http://www.mlbreports.com) Follow @bigticketshow
Guests in this Podcast – Chuck Booth (MLB Reports Owner and Lead Analyst)
On this week’s show Chuck Booth joins us to break down all the biggest stories in MLB. We also go Around the Horn with Chuck to discuss the A’s, Rockies and Royals current situations and declare the worthy few that belong on their respective Mt Rushmore’s. Bethubb.com best bets end the show as always. Happy Father’s Day!!!!!!!
Intro – 10 Minutes, Toronto Blue Jays talk from 10 Minute to the 18 Minute Mark. OAK chat – 18 minute – 33 Minute Mark, COL Talk 33 Minutes – 44 Minute Mark. Kansas City Royals Chart 44 Minutes Mark – 59 Minute Mark. Late Jays Talk Bethubb Best Bets 1 hour 1 MIN mark to 1 hour 9 Minute Mark.
Quick Facts: Catsfish Hunter was 7 – 2 in the Post Season for the 1972, 1973 and 1974 World Series Winning A’s – and only 2 -4 with the 3 Post Seasons with the Yankees. Still 5 World Series Winners was great. Chuck also meant Ewing Kauffman (Chuck thought his nickname was Charlie in the podcast – maybe because his name his Charlie) when talking about the Royals MT. Rushmore for the franchise.
Yogi Berra did indeed play in 14 World Series and won 10 of them in his Yankees days.
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MLB Power Rankings: Week 11
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David Ortiz is providing the kind of difference at the DH position that is an automatic advantage for the Boston Red Sox. The 37 Year Old has hit for a 3 Slash Line of .314/.395/1.018 – accounting for 13 HRs and 48 RBI in his 46 Games. The DH position was created for one-dimensional players like ”’Big Papi”, however teams are not imploring awesome players for the slot. Most teams use the Designated Hitter for position players that are nursing injuries. The Red Sox have seen their best run in franchise history with the big man. Later in this article, I will post a link on how valuable DH’s have been in the last 20 years in Major League Baseball AL Pennant Winners. More often than not, you need a great DH. Ortiz is signed through 2014 at $13 MIL for the next 2 campaigns. One of the better deals signed in the offseason
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Another Week has come and gone in the MLB.
(MLB Reports) AL Hitter Of The Week – David Ortiz has come up clutch in leading the Bo Sox to a season – high 15 games over .500 with many game changing hits like last week.
Having the best offensive DH is a decisive difference compared to the rest of league. If everyone remembers, the 2012 Red Sox actually skirted near .500 until ‘Big Papi’ went down with his injury.
DH article from 1992 – 2011 here
Runners up were: Howie Kendrick, Josh Donaldson, Adam Lind, all had strong weeks – especially for Batting Averages, but Ortiz had late inning heroics that changed the outcome for his team out of his 3 HRs and 9 RBI.
(MLB Reports) AL Pitcher Of The Week – Jarrod Parker
The Oakland A’s Chucker went 2 – 0, with a 1.35 ERA. He has thrown 6 Straight Quality Starts – and has won 5 of his last 6 decisions after starting the year 0 – 5.
Runners Up were Jeremy Hellickson and Clay Buchholz,
Reviewing The Top 5 – 2013 MLB Draft Picks
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The 2013 Draft has come and gone – and will take years to decide how good each teams selection was in the 1st Round. We decided to take a look at the top 5 Picks again.
By Chris Lacey (Featured Baseball Columnist) Follow @aecanada12
How quickly can a teams fortune change with top 5 MLB Draft Picks?? Think of the 119 Loss 2003 Detroit Tigers drafting Justin Verlander – and going to a World Series just 3 years later.
Tampa Bay Devil Rays picked 1st for many years, finally having their players come together in 2008, once Evan Longoria, James Shields, B.J. Upton and David Price asserted themselves in 2008.
A horrid Washington Nationals team losing 95 -100 Games every year drafted Stephen Strasburg and Bryce Harper in successive drafts – before cranking out a franchise record 98 Wins just a couple of years later.
The Astros, Cubs, Rockies, Twins and Indians sure hope the 2013 Top 5 Picks will warrant heavy discussion as a great class of picks as the years go by.
Mark Appel is interviewed 3 Months Ago:
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Matt Moore Is Emerging As A True Ace
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Matt Moore has jumped out of the gate 8 – 0 in April + May combined. He is tied for 1st in the AL with Masterson and Buchholz. The 23 Year Old man from New Mexico, is also 3rd in the AL for ERA (2.18) behind Buchholz (1.62) and Iwakuma of Seattle (2.13). These totals were accrued before the start of play Tuesday June.4/2013. Moore has helped keep the Tampa Bay Rays in contention for the AL East – and one shutters to think, where the club would be without his brilliant performance to start the year.
By Chris Lacey (Featured Baseball Columnist) Follow @aecanada12
The best teams in baseball that have success on a consistent basis seem to have one thing in common, and that is they have a strong pitching staff. The Tampa Bay Rays are one of these teams that always receive great contributions from their pitchers.
This is one of the reasons that in past couple of seasons, they either have a great chance of winning their division or earning a wild card berth.
They have a pitcher that is having a spectacular season for them. The one pitcher that comes to mind when you think of the Rays is David Price. That would make sense, but Price has battled injuries this season. The pitcher that has stepped up in his absence is talented left-hander Matt Moore.
Matt Moore’s quick Start – Mature Lyrics so parental guidance is advised
MLB Team Power Rankings
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Miguel Cabrera is absolutely unconscious this season so far; He has a 3 Slash Line of .369 (Leads AL)/.445 (Leads AL/1.121 (2nd in AL), with 17 HRs (2nd AL) and a mind – blowing 65 RBI through 54 Games Played. He is on pace for 51 HRs, 195 RBI and about 250 Hits. He keeps getting better every single year if possible. Despite his prominence – and a lineup full of ALL – Star hitters and Pitchers, the Tigers are limping along at just a few games over .500. It certainly isn’t this 30 Year Old’s fault.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Featuring the Podcasters the Big ticket Show in the Audio Portion Follow @bigticketshow
I will be doing a stat fueled rankings list on this Thursday. These rankings will have some stats and random thoughts of what I will be talking about in today’s podcast with the Big Ticket Show (AKA, Triple Play Podcast.)
Games Prior to Sunday June.02/2013
Cardinals 2013 30/30 Preview
Click the READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON to continue… or scroll past the Triple Play Podcast. Read the rest of this entry
2 And A Hook Podcast Episode #6: Fantasy, Phillies And Rangers Expert Interviews + Notes
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MLB reports and The Benchwarmers Show present 2 and A Hook Podcast.
’2 And A Hook’ is an expression from Baseball: ‘Throw the guy 2 Fast balls and then a Hook’ (AKA Curve Ball, Wiggly one, Chair etc..)
By James Acevedo – Host (Podcast Veteran) Follow @yankeeman1973
People in this Podcast:
On today’s show, brought to you by MLB Reports (www.mlbreports.com) & The Bench Warmers Show (thebenchwarmers.podomatic.com), I started by paying respects to a follower of mine on twitter (the great late Kiley) Follow @jeterfan_02 who passed away last week…not only she was a great Yankee fan who loved Derek Jeter – but also was the most sweetest giving person ever, R.I.P….
I start to talk about the Subway Series then I interviewed my first guest Derek Jackson (10 Minute Mark – 20 Minute Segment. Follow @djaxmlbreports who is a fantasy expert for MLB Reports! We talked about which callups to watch midway through the season,a look at the rookie crop of players & second year players…check out his latest fantasy article here Read the rest of this entry
2 And A Hook Podcast Ep #5: What about WAR? + The Good, The Bad + Downright Underachieving Teams in 2013
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MLB reports and The Benchwarmers Show present 2 and A Hook Podcast.
People in this Podcast:
Chuck Booth – (`15 Minutes In – 15 Minute Segment) Guest (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
By James Acevedo – Host (Podcast Veteran) Follow @yankeeman1973
’2 And A Hook’ is an expression from Baseball: ‘Throw the guy 2 Fast balls and then a Hook’ (AKA Curve Ball, Wiggly one, Chair etc..)
On today’s show, brought to you by MLB Reports (www.mlbreports.com) & yours truly ‘The Bench Warmers Show’, Chuck Booth Follow @chuckbooth3024 does his regular segment this time about what’s been going on the MLB Reports website & talking about what to do with the DH position with Adam Dunn, Steve Pearce & Nolan Reimold In the AL.
Plus the Baltimore franchise signing and pitching Freddy Garcia & why the Orioles should have added veteran pitching depth before the season started
Why Raul Ibanez being an underrated player & the horrible starts of their seasons by David Price & Rickie Weeks!
Also I talk to Diamondbacks correspondent for MLB Reports & for Rant Sports (www.rantsports.com) Chris Lacey 45 Minutes In (10 Minute Segment) Follow @aecanada12 - as we talk about whats going on with the team.
We also see the return of Yankees correspondent & trade correspondent for MLB Reports Nicholas Rossoletti (1 Hour In – 45 minute Segment) Follow @nross56 as we talk about the importance of the WAR stat, sabermetrics, lack of trading & why buying free agents isn’t working for the Angels, Dodgers & Blue Jays!
I also do my stats & notes segment as usual for you baseball nuts out there so go check out the show & SPREAD THE WORD!!! Thanks for all of your continuous support!!!
CLICK THE READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON or scroll down to listen to the episode Read the rest of this entry
MLB Monthly Power Rankings May 2013 (Podcast Version)
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The Triple Play Show will have 5 shows per month. Each show will be about 1 hour.
By The Big Ticket Show ( AKA Triple Play Podcast on http://www.mlbreports.com) Follow @bigticketshow
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
One month down in the MLB season and that means it’s time for some Power Rankings! Chuck Booth the czar of MLBreports.com joins us in studio to rank every team from worst to first. Where does your team rank? Read the rest of this entry
2 And A Hook Podcast Episode #4: The Blue Jays Are Finished in 2013 + The Angels Are Close
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MLB reports and The Benchwarmers Show present 2 and A Hook Podcast.
People in this Podcast:
Chuck Booth – Guest (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
By James Acevedo – Host (Podcast Veteran) Follow @yankeeman1973
’2 And A Hook’ is an expression from Baseball: ‘Throw the guy 2 Fast balls and then a Hook’ (AKA Curve Ball, Wiggly one, Chair etc..)
On today’s show, brought to you by MLB Reports (www.mlbreports.com ) & yours truly (The Bench Warmers Show), I had Chuck Booth talk for over an hour about a bunch of topics.
We started off with the horrible season the Toronto Blue Jays have had thus far. We also talked about the Angels, what Robin Ventura is thinking – hitting Adam Dunn #4 still and how the Braves must regret paying B.J. Upton $15 MIL a year – while they are ecstatic about paying Justin Upton only about half of that. Read the rest of this entry
MLB Weekly Power Rankings – Week 3
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The Giants have gutted out a 12 – 7 record despite Matt Cain being 0 – 2 with a 7.15 ERA, and Ryan Vogelsong featuring an early season ERA of 5.89. Buster Posey is also off to a slow start. This team has so much depth and talent, I see nothing that will stop this club from taking their 3rd NL West Division crown now that the LAD have had severe injury problems to their Starting Rotation. The Giants take their rightful spot as #1 in the MLB Reports Weekly Rankings thids week.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Major League Baseball Season is roughly 10% over and we are seeing some trends and patterns. The next time you wonder why games are so long in the game right now, look no further than there are about 150 hitters that are currently on pace to Strikeout 100 plus times this season.
Other Notes:
The Cincinnati Reds won every game this past 7 days, after losing every day the week prior. This is simply why they shot up the rankings. I think the NL Central is the weakest Division this year. It was my prediction that the oldest professional baseball club would run away with this Division by at least 10 games.
Shin-Soo Choo and Joey Votto are on the Basepaths at all times – carrying an OBP of over .500 plus each. Votto is starting to drive the ball with authority too. Brandon Phillips, Todd Frazier and Zack Cozart are driving in Runs at an incredible rate.
Look for BP Follow @DatdudeBP to be a dark horse NL MVP candidate.
Brandon Phillips Talks about Winter Workouts:
Dan Haren Has Not Pitched Well For The Nationals!
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Dan Haren signed a 1 YR/ $13 Million Contract over the winter with the Washington Nationals. He was supposed to be a competent #5 Starter that would give the Nats an edge versus opponents #5 Starters. The 32 Year Old is 1 – 2 with a 8.10 ERA and 2.03 WHIP so far – spanning 3 Games Started and 13.1 Innings Pitched.
By David Huzzard (Nationals Correspondent via Citizens of Natstown.com – view website here): Follow @davidhuzzard
Dan Haren has not pitched well for the Nationals. There have been a multitude of issues, but the main and most important one is he has been getting hit hard. His line drive rate is up to 25.9% from his career average of 19.9% – and his ground ball rate is down to 25.9% from his career average of 43.0%.
Avoiding line drives and inducing ground balls is good for a pitcher. Most line drives are hits -while most ground balls are not.
Giving up more line drives and less ground balls is never good and it has led to Haren having a .420 BABIP so far on the season compared to his career average of .292, and this doesn’t include the five homeruns he has given up, but even if nothing else changes a 3.38 HR/9 is unsustainable.
MLB Talk on the Haren Signing at the Winter Meetings 2012:
The Rays Need To Call Up Wil Myers Pronto!
2 And A Hook Podcast Talks About Calling UP Wil Myers – 25 Minute Mark
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Myers ascended onto the PCL scene last year and ripped out 24 HRs in just 99 Games at Omaha. The Rays will be counting on him for their offensive future for many years to come. The club has featured a futile attack with the bats – hitting for a 3 Slash Line of .204//284/.588. They have scored only 39 Runs – while allowing 59 Runs through 13 Games.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
First off, I wanted to say that I completely respect the Tampa Bay Rays – and especially am an avid supporter of the head office – including GM Andrew Freidman. I will get to all of this in this article.
It is time to call up Wil Myers to the big club!
The club is mired in a slow start at 4 – 9 and are already 5 Games Behind the AL East Division Leaders ‘Boston Red Sox.
The team traded away Veteran Pitchers James Shields and Wade Davis to Kansas City in order to acquire the top hitting prospect.
Here is why the time makes sense.
Service time for Super 2 Arbitration Status and Free Agency Year aside, this clubs current offense is abysmal despite having great pitching ability.
Wil Myers Highlight Reel:
Rays Say No Time To Panic: It Has Just Been 10 Games
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Ben Zobrist has quietly tuned into one of the best all around players in the game. He has finished in the top for WAR in 3 of the 4 years – including 1st in 2011 and 2nd in 2009. At Age 31, Zobrist goes into a contract year. Ben Zobrist has been a big bright spot for the Rays this season. Zobrist who continues this season with his musical chairs role on the team has not let his bat cool down 10 games into the season. Rays fans need not worry this early. With only 10 games played in the young season now is not the time to start throwing in the towel and saying that GM Andrew Friedman and his staff have lost their touch.
By Jake Bullington (Rays Correspondent): Follow @jakeyjake01
Ben Zobrist aside, the Rays have started this season with a four and six record and are currently in last place in the American League East division, but this is not cause for concern.
Sure David Price does not have his first win of the season and has an ERA up to almost six ( 5.82 to be exact), but the Rays are not worried so why should we be.
The club started at 0 – 6, before making the playoffs in 2011, so there is no way Joe Maddon will hit the panic button in 2013.
David Price Highlights 2012 – Mature Lyrics so Parental Guidance is Advised:
Tampa Bay Rays Player Roster In 2013 Part 2 – The Pitchers: State Of The Union
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The Rays led the Major Leagues last year in ERA (3.19) and were 3rd in team SO. They also converted 50 of 58 Saves. Even more impressive was that they were 45-31 with a 2.60 ERA after the ALL-Star Break. They traded veterans Wade Davis and James Shields away for top level prospects. Will they be able to duplicate their 2012 numbers with their young talented pitchers improving the club internally?
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Rays are a team built on their strong pitching and timely hits. The majority of their hurlers are homegrown. The unfortunate part about all of this is that the Rays have a Stadium problem. Tropicana Field just doesn’t bring in enough revenue in order to pay their pitchers once they become eligible to be Free Agents. Let’s face it, when you can’t bank on a pitcher being healthy for the duration of his contract, the management will be hard pressed to sign a pitcher to a long – term, 9 figure contract.
The Tampa fans had better enjoy seeing David Price for the next 3 years – because he is on a path to the kind of dollars that will see him leave town. The Rays have made their investment in their franchise player already in Evan Longoria. So here continues the continual revolving door. The good news is that the organization has stockpiled the kind of talented Minor League System that should be able to brunt the force of such a catastrophic loss forthcoming with the reigning AL CY Young winner.
Price might just be the premier Left Handed Pitcher in the MLB right now. After him in the Starting Rotation is Jeremy Hellickson, Matt Moore, Alex Cobb and Jeff Niemann. The team alsoadded Roberto Hernandez (Don’t call me Fausto,) for added insurance. There are 2 highly touted prospects with both Chris Archer and Mike Montgomery possibly seeing some time up with the big club. They also could see Jake Odorizzi challenge for a spot in the rotation.
David Price Highlights in 2012:
Tampa Bay Rays Player Roster In 2013 Part 1 – The Hitters: State Of The Union
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Ben Zobrist has quietly turned into one of the best all around players in the game. He has finished in the top 10 for WAR in 3 of the last 4 years – including 1st in 2011 and 2nd in 2009. At Age 31, Zobrist goes into a contract year in 2013. It may be his last season with TB.
By Jake Bullington (Rays Correspondent) Follow @JakeyJake01
Part 1: The hitters:
2012 saw the Tampa Bay Rays miss the playoffs for the first time since 2009. They would finish a very respectable 90-win season and finish third in the AL Wild card. The offseason saw much of what Rays fans are used to from this small market club. Impact players such as B.J. Upton (ATL), Jeff Keppinger (CHW), and Carlos Pena (HOU), would move on to greener pastures and sign elsewhere. That meant GM Andrew Friedman and his team would get to work. They would pick up options on SP James Shields, CL Fernando Rodney, and C Jose Molina. They would decline the option on DH Luke Scott and later sign him back.
The offseason would also see the reworking of a long-term deal to keep the Rays 3B Evan Longoria in a Rays uniform at least through the 2022 season. But with Free Agency looming for “Big Game” James the Rays would do what they do best and send Shields, Wade Davis, and a PTBNL (Elliot Johnson) to the Royals for a prospect package that included future rotation regulars Mike Montgomery and Jake Odorizzi and MLB.com 2nd best prospect OF Wil Myers. The Rays would shore up the middle of the infield by Signing and trading for the Blue Jays previous middle infield of Yunel Escobar (MIA) and Kelly Johnson (FA). To replace Carlos Pena, the Rays would sign Free Agent James Loney. The organization also brought back Joel Peralta on a deal that included a record three Club Options.
Desmond Jennings Highlights:
Tampa Bay Rays Payroll 2013 And Contracts Going Forward: Part 4 Of A 5 Part Rays Series
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Will Myers ascended onto the PCL scene last year and ripped out 24 HRs in just 99 Games at Omaha. The Rays will be counting on him for their offensive future. As a Controllable Player for years, he changes the Salary structure of the Team to Lower the committed dollars from what Shields and Davis would have made.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
New Changes to the old article in Purple:
I am of the belief that the Andrew Friedman and Stu Sternberg have been the ‘model franchise’ in the MLB over the last 5 years. Not only do they compete in the vaunted AL East versus the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox, but they have made the playoffs 3 times in that span, including a World Series Loss to the Philadelphia in the 2008 year. Had Evan Longoria not been hurt for the majority of the season, one could argue that the club was poised to make another playoff appearance. So how are they doing this? Their team payroll is roughly one-third of the Yankees and the 40 % of the Red Sox total Payroll. The Rays are smart enough to let their higher priced Free Agents walk, or even trading them before they are due significant pay raises.
They are also using the philosophy of the ‘John Hart‘ Indians of the Pre-Milennium Cleveland Indians. Once it was established that Evan Longoria could play at the MLB Level, they signed him to an 8 year contract. They did the same thing with Starting Pitching Matt Moore last year with a 5 year deal for the rookie based on one playoffs of decent pitching. It is a risk sometimes to do this, yet the rewards can save you Millions in future payroll if they player outperforms his contract.
Rays Highlights 2012 Mature Lyrics so Parental Guidance Is advised:
Why The Orioles And Lohse Make Sense
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Lohse has had an up-and-down career since making his debut in 2001. He has bounced around cities and has experienced some good seasons, also with some less than impressive seasons. He was a big part in the middle of the Cardinals rotation during their 2011 World Series run – finishing 14-8 while posting a 3.39 ERA.
By Kyle Holland (MLB Reports Writer): Follow @TheKHolland13
2012 was a career year for the Cardinals’ RHP Kyle Lohse. At Age 34, Lohse has become one of the most inconsistent pitchers in the game of baseball. Since making his debut in 2001 at 21 years old with the Minnesota Twins, Lohse has had some stellar years, and some not-so-great years. This includes a 2008 season – where he went 15-6 with a 3.78 ERA. He followed that great season with ugly 2009 finishing 6-10 while posting a 4.74 ERA.
In 2012, Lohse turned back to his ace pitching ways. Coming off a solid 2011 season – with a 14-8 record, it didn’t look like Lohse could improve too much. He proved everyone wrong and pitched his way to a 16-3 record. His .842 W-L% lead the National League – while his 2.86 ERA wound up eighth in all of the Majors.
Why the Cardinals will not sign Kyle Lohse:
MLB Player Profile: Nationals Pitcher Jordan Zimmermann
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Wednesday January 23rd, 2013
Jordan Zimmermann is heading into Arbitration shortly with the Nats coming off of his best year in the Major Leagues with a 12-8 Record. For his career, he is 24-26 with a 3.47 ERA. Zimmermann had Tommy John surgery in 2009 – and has come back stronger.
Bernie Olshansky (Baseball Writer): Follow @BernieOlshansky
Having his breakout season in 2012, Jordan Zimmermann has been a guy the Washington Nationals have been able to rely on. 27 years old in 2013, Zimmermann helps anchor the young Nationals rotation including Gio Gonzalez and Stephen Strasburg. The Nationals had success in 2012, winning the NL East and making the playoffs for the first time as a franchise. The Nationals got unlucky though, and were eliminated by the St. Louis Cardinals in the Division Series. This year the Nationals will hope to build on their 2012 performance, and Jordan Zimmermann will most likely be a big help.
One of the main reasons the Nationals were eliminated so early last season is because of the shutting down of Stephen Strasburg. In the middle of the season, I wrote about the pros and cons of shutting Strasburg down, and in the end the situation ended badly. Last year, the Nationals had a very strong rotation consisting of Strasburg, Zimmermann, Gonzalez, and Edwin Jackson. By shutting Strasburg down, the Nationals lost a quarter of their rotation and had to scramble when the Division Series went more than three games. Ross Detwiler got the start and Zimmermann had to come into the game in a relief role. There was no reason for this to have to happen. Protecting Strasburg was important, but in my opinion the Nationals overprotected him, which cost them dearly in the playoffs.
Jordan Zimmermann Flashback Highlights:
The Rays Trade And Draft Record Is Impressive: However Most Of The Best Players Are Now Ex-Rays
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Tuesday, January.08/2013
The Rays Management has been a lot better under the tutelage of the these 3 gentleman. It is too bad that cant secure an MLB Park with the amount of revenue to pay their great players once they become great.
By Jake Bullington (Rays Correspondent) Follow @JakeyJake01
The Tampa Bay Rays have had a great history of producing great MLB talent ever since the current regime of Stu Sternberg, Matt Silverman, Andrew Friedman, and Joe Maddon took over. Their system, is to build talent up in hopes to sign to club friendly long-term deals and have them produce until the price tag becomes just too high and then get the next era in from trades .When it comes to pitching however its a whole new ball game. The Rays have an unmatched system for finding pieces from all over and putting them into a mix that at best could be described as ” an Island of misfit toys” but it works. If you take a look at the Rays bullpen the last couple years you see a couple of guys stand out that really had no place anywhere else.
In 2008, Grant Balfour became what no body thought he was, a great pitcher. In 2008 Balfour went 6-2 in 51 games with a 1.54 ERA and a staggering .89 WHIP. Balfour was signed that season for just above the league minimum at $500,000. Balfour would go onto to Oakland a few years later and signed for a little over 3 Million Dollars.
B.J. Upton Highlights – Parental Guidance is advised
The Tampa Bay Rays: The Pitchers 1998-2012: Part 3 Of A 5 Part Article Series
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Note from Chuck Booth: I am attempting to bring the history for each of the 30 MLB Franchises into a 5 part series that will focus on 1. The teams history. 2. The hitters 3. The pitchers. 4. The Teams Payroll going into 2013 and 5.The Ball Park that they play in. (The stadium articles will all be done next summer when I go to all of the parks in under a month again.) Be sure to check my author page with a list of all of my archived articles section here.
James Shields enjoys most of the Teams ALL-Time Pitching Records so far. David Price may not take very long to surpass all of his Franchise Records with Shields heading to KC now.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Rays had several lean years of pitching before a starter really made his mark. Out of the gate, Roberto Hernandez had helped the team with closing at least. In the early years, the best pitching was done by Rolando Arrojo, followed by Victor Zambrano, before he was traded for Scott Kazmir. The Mets/Rays trade was the foundation for the pitching staff finally evolving. Soon James Shields was up with the big club. In 2008, the teams 5 starters towed the hill for all season in what would be an eventual World Series Birth. Newly acquired Matt Garza, joined Shields, Kazmir, Edwin Jackson and Andy Sonnanstine for double-digit wins and winning records.
David Price was next to join the staff in 2009 and he has not looked back since. Jeff Niemann, Wade Davis, Jeremy Hellickson and Matt Moore joined the pitching staff in the next few years after that. The stable of bullpen relievers keeps coming and going. J.P. Howell has been the biggest mainstay there. Even with departing starters of Davis and (the Franchise Leader in several pitching categories) Shields, the team is not bare at the kitchen cupboard. The Rays finished 1st in Team Pitching ERA last year for all of the MLB. The next closest team in the AL was the Oakland – at almost a third of a run more.
The Rays have been blessed with some great years recently out of lower salaried closers. Whether it was Troy Percival, Kyle Farnsworth, Rafael Soriano or Fernando Rodney, Andrew Friedman has had a knack for gluing together a bullpen on a shoestring budget. With David Price winning the Cy Young Award in 2012, the best pitching may be yet to come for the AL East Team. Honorable Mentions went to these players, but they were not the same caliber as everyone else: Esteban Yan, Andy Sonnanstine, Kyle Farnsworth SP/RP Rick White RP Lance Cormier and RP Jim Mecir.
Scroll Down past the Franchise Links for the Pitchers or click on the Read The Rest Of This Entry Icon just past the Video Clip.
Franchise Series Links:
Franchise History: The Tampa Bay Rays: The Franchise 1998-2012: Part 1 Of A 5 Part Article Series
The Hitters The Tampa Bay Rays: The Hitters 1998-2012: Part 2 Of A 5 Part Article Series
2013 Team Payroll Part 4 of 5: Tampa Bay Rays Payroll 2013 And Contracts Going Forward: Updated for Myers Trade Dec.11/2012
Tropicana Field Expert Part 5 of 5: An Interview with Tropicana Field Expert Kurt Smith
