Blog Archives
Rick Ankiel Has Another Shot To Stay In The MLB: The New York Mets Claimed Him
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Follow @mlbreportsTuesday May.14/2013
Rick Ankiel had a dubious beginning as a Met last night, misreading a baseball and having it bounce in and out of his borrowed glove (Jon Nieses’s) hit by Ty Wigginton that led to 3 runs. Ankiel went 0 – 3 with a walk in St. Louis. Despite the poor game, I like the move and it should enable Ankiel to be a starting Outfielder for a stretch. If he can hit, he may be a good late season defensive acquisition/Pinch Hitter for a contending ball club. Rick Ankiel hit for a 3 Slash Line of .194/.231/.715 with the Astros this year prior to being Designated For Assignment on May 5th. The former Astro did have 5 HRs and 11 RBI in just 62 AB.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
There are certain players in the MLB that you cheer for more than others. For me, Rick Ankiel exemplifies this.
I always check for his stats in the boxscores early into my perusal of any baseball website.
His story is one of inspiration and dedication to the game of baseball.
I was disappointed when he was released by the Houston Astros – but completely understood why the change had to occur,
The Mets have the weakest Outfield in the Major Leagues and are actually one of the teams I suggested for Ankiel as a landing spot in my post 2012 year write-ups.
It is obvious that the Wilpon’s continue to look for cheap alternative options to patrol their grass.
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
Cleveland Payroll In 2013: Indians Organizational Rosters + Depth Charts – (MLB + MiLB)
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The Indians were one of the top franchises for organizational Drafts, signing players, making trades and having their core players locked up to long term contract during the 1990′s. In the early part of the millennium, they traded several of these players for a new core of players. This time, their return wasn’t as significant. The club prides itself on not making big mistakes on the Free Agent market and developing its own talent. For the first time in 2 decades, the management is really under scrutiny for team operations.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024 and welcome Jeff Kleiner (Salary, Roster and Depth Chart Expert for the MLB) – visit his website here Follow @prosportsroster
You guys are all in for a treat. Jeff Kleiner recently contacted me about a partnership merge for the website. He has developed a site (prosportsrosters.com) that covers all organizational affiliates in the Minors for all of the Major League Baseball Clubs. We are going to combine efforts to bring you the best look at salaries, current 25 Man Player Rosters and Depth Charts for all 30 teams.
Jeff is going to provide the documents in form of spreadsheets and I am going to accompany the posts with deep analysis of what the numbers tell us from my perspective. If you can’t wait for all of my assessments for each club, go and visit Jeff’s website over at http://www.prosportsrosters.com.
In Speaking with Jeff, he is one of the more passionate fans I have come across towards the game of baseball. He spends enough time in updating his MLB Facts for it to be a Full-Time Job. So after the usual Video Clip and READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY button, you will find some serious &*!@?!#!
Jeff updates this page below on a daily basis. After you click on it….Bookmark it. There is a 3 year salary forecast and stats not listed here on this page. Jeff updates these pages daily and these changes include any Roster moves!
For a Full 3 year Salary Outlook plus last years Stats for every player in the Royals Organization click here
The 1st half of the Central Division winning Indians 2007
The Baseball Struggles of Tall/Heavy Players After 30: Is Prince Next?
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Prince Fielder will turn 29 in May. Throughout my studies of some extremely tall – or heavy playera, the time of deterioration in ones ability seems to seep in about the 34 Year Old Age range. In my opinion, the club should move to trade Victor Martinez and shift Fielder over to the DH position ASAP, so they can preserve his body for the next 8 years of his contract. He will be 37 when his big deal ends. Fielder has a Career 3 Slash Line of .287/.393/.931. The second generation Fielder, has clubbed 262 HRs and added 774 RBI in 1168 Games Played. Will he suffer the same fate as the others in this article (including his dad) – or will he buck the trend?
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Analyst/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I am still astounded when I see that Prince Fielder has not been turned into a Full – Time DH – and can still man the position of First Base. The Tigers were lucky enough to sign him last year.
So when should the club decide to take the glove out of Fielder’s hand?
Victor Martinez is there at the Designated Hitter position now, however they should convert Prince Fielder to DH the second V-Mart vacates the club after the 2014 season.
When I thought about this a little more I realized that tall/heavy hitters really have a tough time keeping their productivity up once they are near the second half of their career. It is really not that hard to figure out.
A player that is taller also carries a larger Strike Zone, where the overweight players will only lose any speed they had as their career starts winding down.
For this particular article, I choose 4 players to study this exact scenario. Those players are: Richie Sexson, Tony Clark, Mo Vaughn and Cecil Fielder.
Prince Fielder wins the 2012 HR Derby:
Cleveland Indians Payroll In 2013: And Contracts Going Forward
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Follow @mlbreportsSunday Feb 24, 2013
The Cleveland Indians have been around since 1901. During the years the Indians have won 8,792 games & have lost 8,573 games. The Indians have won the World Series 2 times & have 31 players in the Hall Of Fame.
By Larry Myers (Indians Correspondent): Follow @TribeFanz1969
The Indians finished the 2012 season as a huge disappointment. The Indians had a strong first half before falling apart in the second half. The Indians the 2013 season with many new faces after a busy winter.
GM Chris Antonetti and President Mark Shapiro decided to make some major moves to improve the team for the 2013 season. The first move the Indians made was replacing Manny Acta with Terry Francona as manager. The Indians then traded Shin-Soo Choo & Tony Sipp in a 3 team trade to pick up Drew Stubbs, Matt Albers. Bryan Shaw & Trevor Bauer. The Indians signed a few Free Agents with the four biggest names being Nick Swisher, Mark Reynolds, Brett Myers, & Michael Bourn. The Indians showed that with the moves they made they are ready to contend now & in the future.
Cleveland Indians 2012 Season Highlights:
The Most Underrated Statistic: Extra Base Hits (XBH)
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Alex Rodriguez is the Active Leader for XBH with 1190, however who knows when he will have a chance to resume his career again with injuries + allegations of PED use perhaps sparking an investigation/suspension for the MLB and is still owed 114 Million Dollars over the next 5 years.
By Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I have nothing against sabermetrics in baseball. Yes I know they are not going away and I will probably learn them one day as someone who can comprehend Math pretty good. However, I understand the frustration of the casual fan who will not set a foot near them – although they know what Home Runs and Runs Batted In are. I have thrown the topic out for discussion on Twitter – and am extremely curious to see what percentage of fans actually follow the new numbers formats. This site totally allows our writers to convey any form of statistical analysis they want. The only thing that I request, is that if they use sabermetrics, to also add some regular stats with them.
One of the stats that can gauge any era since the beginning of baseball is Extra Base Hits. Before the fences were brought in (or even put up), Doubles and Triples could be hit at any time. Singles are great in the game too. There have been several great baseball players that are singles hitters, that also compiled a bunch of Doubles and Triples. That is why this statistic is fairest to all of the hitters in the history of the game and the most comparable. Like the old saying, (hit’em where they ain’t), players that can hit the baseball into the open areas of the outfield are special. Babe Ruth re-coined the phrase later when he said “Well they ain’t over the fence, so that’s where I hit them!” The Bambino was right. In the course of this article, we will list the top active list for this category – and some underrated hitters that may stack up nicely against historical hitters.
(Pete Rose Highlights):
Robert Whitmer’s 5-Point Plan to Fix the Colorado Rockies
Wednesday November 7th, 2012
Robert Whitmer: Attitude is everything. When we talk about ways to fix a franchise by taking them from a non-playoff team to a playoff team, attitude is everything. I recently saw a movie that reminded me of something I had forgotten from long ago. The United States Marine Corps have a belief that when you are on the battlefield, your only concern is making sure that the man next to you gets home safe. By doing this, in theory, nobody would get left behind and nobody would be able to be ambushed. Taking this concept and applying it to the Colorado Rockies is the concept that they need to bring in to the organization. The following 5 steps will help install this concept- from the front office, all the way down to the third string bat boy.
1. Signing free agents.
The Rockies don’t necessarily have a hole at first base but they have a guy in Todd Helton that isn’t getting any younger. He is 39 and pushing 40. He can’t really be a viable first base option for much longer. It’s time for them to look younger. Casey Kotchman would be a good person that could spell Helton at times in the late innings or an off day every so often. The other upgrade is in the outfield. One high quality outfielder to pair with Fowler and Gonzalez would be very advantageous for them. BJ Upton would be a great fit with the Rockies and that thin air. If a sign and trade is what needs to be done, then Colvin and LeMahieu for Upton would be good with the Rockies picking up Kelly Johnson or Freddy Sanchez in free agency. Read the rest of this entry
Jason Giambi: From Slugger to Managerial Candidate in Colorado
Wednesday October 17th, 2012
Codey Harrison(Lead MiLB Prospect Analyst): Jason Giambi, who was once a superstar with the Athletics and Yankees, is more recently known for his role with the Colorado Rockies as the team’s go-to pinch hitter. Giambi, currently rehabbing from offseason surgery, has been given a chance to interview for the vacant Rockies Managerial position. Most people in baseball believe Giambi doesn’t have a legitimate shot at being named the Rockies next manager, given that Giambi is still an active player and has no coaching experience. However it is worth noting that during his tenure in the Rockies organization, Giambi has helped the young Rockies hitters grow and mature on and off the field, as well as discussing strategies with former Rockies manager Jim Tracy. A mentor and leader, Giambi now has the chance to graduate to MLB manager.
The Rockies this year become known for unconventional decisions running the franchise, whether it was the failed experiment of the 4-man starting rotation, or believing in Jim Tracy for so long as they did- given that so many people in baseball thought of Tracy as arguably the worst manager in all of baseball. This is a team that is seen to be run almost completely by the front office. With so much politics and turmoil surrounding the team, it may be very difficult for the Rockies to get an experienced winning manager to take the job. Thus the team may need to look in order directions, including giving Giambi a shot at the vacant role. Read the rest of this entry
The Best Teams from 1980-2012: Will Texas claim the title this year from 2010-2012?
Wednesday July.11, 2012
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer and @chuckbooth3024 on twitter)- There is only so much one can read in an article, otherwise I would make these lists up from the turn of the 20th century. If you gave me enough time as a reader, I promise to backdate this topic with another article featuring the best teams dating back further in years. Eventually, all of the years may be dissected and we can have a healthy debate on some of my selections. I really started watching baseball in the early 1980′s. As I became older and discovered ways to research the history of the game, my knowledge and curious mind grew for more information. I have studied and read baseball stat books and breezed through the odd Bill James novel. If I ever take a break from writing or baseball park chasing, I may find some time down the road to watch the 9 part PBS documentary that Ken Burns did on baseball’s history.
Baseball lends itself more to the history than any other sport because of how it has been chronicled throughout their past. Writers, announcers, former players, parents etc.. have always carried on with the stories of America’s favorite pastime. I will never be sold that NFL is the greatest pastime in sports right now. NFL is the greatest gambling sport presently. It is my firm belief that the only reason why the NFL draws in more cash from its sport is because of the gambling factor. If you took that aspect out of it, I believe baseball is the #1 sport. Can you imagine how much attention we would pay to baseball if there were only a 16 game schedule? Enough with that rant, let’s get down to the list. Who were the best teams at any specific time period for the last 32 years? We will start with the Philadelphia Phillies from 1980-1983. Read the rest of this entry
Top Ten Stat of the Week: HRs per AB Career (Active)
Monday June.11, 2012
Russell Branyan has raw power and was never given a chance to play full time despite ranking 6th amongst active players in HRs per AB. Photo courtesy of seattlesportscentral.com
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer and @chuckbooth3024 on twitter)- Chicks dig the long ball right? Well so do dudes. There is a certain folklore of a player that can absolutely cream a baseball regardless of their batting average or ability to make contact all of the time. One of my favorite players to watch swing a bat is Russell Branyan. I follow the Seattle Mariners since they are my closest team for geography. I was able to see what Russell “The Muscle” was able to do once he was given a chance to play every day for the Mariners. He rewarded the club by pasting 31 HRs and knocking in 76 RBI in just 116 games during the 2009 year. The next season, he started with the Cleveland Indians before rejoining the Mariners again at the end of June. Branyan would electrify the crowds at Safeco by hitting another 15 HRs in just 205 AB. Branyan hits as many HRs per AB for a rate in his career as Mickey Mantle did. Branyan draws comparisons to another one of my favorite players in Jack Cust with his nickname ’3TO’, which is short for 3 True Outs. This is a strikeout, walk or HR. Cust never made this upcoming list but he did hit 63 HRs in his first 1000 AB while striking out 430 times! Branyan’s average 162 game season average (with full at bats) would have included striking out 171 times. In this video you can see his power, (also click the link provided from at the top of the page on this link to see another shot of this mammoth blast that Branyan had at Yankee Stadium. You can do this by copying the blue version of the link and pasting it into your browser.)
An Interview with o.co Coliseum Expert Ken Lee
Monday April.23, 2012
CB: “Welcome to MLB Reports Experts Interview Ken. Please tell us about yourself and then give a bit of background information on your life as a baseball fan?“
KL: “My name is Ken Lee, I am a General Manager for Jackson Hewitt Tax Service and I live in Marysville, WA with my wife Yvonne and our 2 pup pups, Boomer & Tilly. I am a co-writer of the book titled “The Fastest 30 Ballgames – A Ballpark Chasers World Record Story” that came out last year. I grew up playing baseball and loving every aspect of the game. I attended my first MLB game in April of 1977 @ the Kingdome in Seattle (Yankees vs Mariners). Since then I have attended about 1,000 games or so. I have seen games at 29 outta 30 current ballparks (the lone exception being the new Marlins Park – which I will pick up on May 14th & 15th) and I have seen 42 different MLB ballparks overall.”
CB: “As one of the ballpark experts who take it to the extreme, how do you rank O.co Coliseum versus the rest of the ballparks?”
KL: “Overall, I would rank it #30 outta 30. In general, as a ballpark, it’s terrible. It’s too cavernous and way too much exposed concrete to be a ‘real’ ballpark. Mt. Davis is an eye sore and try to watch a game from all the way out there, you will feel like you are in San Francisco! O.co is the only ballpark I have been to where I didn’t enjoy a game from the ‘cheap seats’.”
CB: “Despite the A’s being featured in the movie ‘Moneyball’ as one of the best franchises during the early 2000’s, the team did not draw well. Why do you think that is Ken?”
KL: “I think there are several factors personally. Be it that the ballpark by itself is not a real drawing point, the prices are generally high for what you get (especially for parking) or the lack of big name talent on the field. As illustrated in the movie, they were poached of Jason Giambi, Jason Isringhausen and Johnny Damon just as they were really starting to become big names. When you don’t have big names that draw attention, the only other thing you can can do to get butts in the seats is to find a way to win and that’s what they did in 2002 rolling off 20 straight. Since 2002 their W’s have dropped off, they only won 74 games last year and if you aren’t winning, you cant fill the house especially if you don’t have anyone on the team that people really want to come see.”
CB: “The A’s seem to have a lot of promotional days in the summer, over the last couple years have you been in attendance for any of these? Please explain your latest experiences?”
KL: “I have been to a few the last couple years, be that “Free Hot Dog Day”, $2.00 outfield seats sponsored by the BART or even a night where you can park at the ballpark for *FREE* (a $17 value!). I can’t say that I have scheduled any of my trips around any of these, but it sure is nice to be able to go to 3 games, get free hot dogs at one, park for free another and have all 3 of your tickets cost you a total of $20!”
CB: “What is your favorite method of transportation to and from O.co Coliseum?”
KL: “Anytime I have been to games in Oakland it has been as part of a bigger trip, so I have always driven in. Besides paying an outrageous fortune at the ballpark for parking ($17 in 2011), there are plenty of free parking spaces within a very short walk of O.co. The BART system is another great way to get to games as well from all over the Bay Area. It drops you off within a short walk over a sky bridge to the ballpark.”
CB: :What advice would you give someone experiencing O.co Coliseum for the very first time?”
KL: “Don’t be expecting much because if you are, you will be very disappointed. However, with that said, go in with an open mind and experience everything there. On my trips down I have got to know an usher that hooks me up with great seats every night (no matter if I bought a $2 ticket or not) and the people there, in general, are really cool. I would warn you that seat poaching is discouraged and most sections, if not all, have posted ushers that do check tickets. If you are going to try to poach a better seat, walk right by them like you own the place!”
CB: “How is the food at O.co Coliseum? What is your favorite ballpark food there?”
KL: “The food at O.co is O.K. at best. Nothing edible really stands out to me, but I do have to say that for free hot dogs on “Free Hot Dog Day”, they were actually not that bad. Then again, it would have to be a pretty bad hot dog to not have enjoyed it because when you are ballpark chasing, a free meal is always appreciated. The thing that stands out in my mind when walking around O.co is the stands dedicated to specific breweries, like New Belgium and Widmer Brothers. At these stands they feature the beers of these breweries only. I have never seen another ballpark that does that and I thought it was pretty cool.”
CB: “What is your favorite all time game you have been in attendance for at O.co Coliseum?”
KL: “I would have to say it would be my first game there, May 13, 2000. A’s vs Mariners. I was with a couple of friends of mine who took me to the game. Was my first time ever seeing the Mariner’s play away from Seattle. They won 6-4 that afternoon, Tomko got the W, Mesa the S and A-Rod had a 2 runner he hit off A’s starter Kevin Appier.”
*** A big thank you goes out to our Petco Park Expert Ken Lee for participating in the expert article Series. Follow Ken Lee on twitter- (@seeall30) and to read more about Ken’s baseball journey click here ***
***Thank you to our Lead Baseball Writer- Chuck Booth for preparing today’s feature on MLB reports. To learn more about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames” and Chuck Booth, you can follow Chuck on Twitter (@ChuckBooth3024) and you can also follow Chuck’s website for his Guinness Book of World Record Bid to see all 30 MLB Park in 23 days click here or on the 30 MLB Parks in 23 days GWR tracker at the Reports click here. To Purchase or read about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames Book, ” please click here ***
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The Baseball Struggles of Tall/Heavy Players After 30: Is Prince Next?
Monday January 16, 2012
Doug Booth- Baseball Writer: I am still astounded when I hear that Prince Fielder has not been signed yet. This man is a powerhouse that would help any ball club. So what is going on? When I thought about this a little more I realized that tall/heavy hitters really have a tough time keeping their productivity up once they are near the second half of their career. It is really not that hard to figure out. A player that is taller also carries a larger strike zone, where the overweight players will only lose any speed they had as their career starts winding down. For this particular article, I choose 4 players to study this exact scenario. Those players are: Richie Sexson, Tony Clark, Mo Vaughn and Cecil Fielder.
Tall Players
Richie Sexson-(Career .261 306 HR 943 RBI), is one of the tallest players ever at 6’6″. For the first 9 years of his career, this Oregon Native terrorized pitchers and routinely deposited baseball into the bleachers. During those years, the man clubbed 270 HRs and drove in 824 RBIs, power numbers that put him amongst the best in baseball. Despite being quite thin, Richie began having problems in the field and at the plate once he hit the age of 32. In 2007, Richie Sexson only hit .205 and was striking out on the outside pitch at the knees frequently. We are talking about a professional hitter who put together 6- 100 RBI seasons. Within a year, Sexson was out of the league without any takers. It wasn’t a real gradual drop either. At age 31 Richie Sexson hit 34 HRs and 107 RBIs for Seattle, a place where half of his games were played at pitcher friendly Safeco Field.
Tony Clark-(Career .262 252 HR 824 RBI), is 6’8″ and was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 1990 Amateur Draft. Clark started out his first seven seasons with the Detroit Tigers by hitting .277 with 156 HRs and 514 RBIs. While he was not as potent as Richie Sexson, Clark ended his career with Tigers with a slugging percentage of .502. At age 30, the Boston Red Sox now had Clark as their 1st baseman. However, this was short-lived as he struggled badly. In 2003 and 2004, Clark spent time as injury relief for both of the New York teams. The Mets used Clark when Mo Vaughn retired in 2003, while the Yankees had him play 1st base when Jason Giambi was out for the year with stomach pains in 2004. In both cases Clark responded with 16 HRs, in half of the at-bats of a regular year. Tony Clark played regularly during the next season for the Arizona Diamondbacks, hitting 30 HRs in only 130 games, while also slugging a career best .636. Tony struggled to stay healthy after that year, although he provided some nice pop as a pinch hitter. His career as a regular had been over since he had turned 33.
Heavy Players
Mo Vaughn-(Career.293 328 HR’S 1064 RBI), is listed as weighing only 225 pounds at baseball reference.com, but for those that watched him play, knew that was way under the weight Vaughn played at once he left Boston. Vaughn spent his first 8 years with Boston hitting .304 with 230 HRs and 752 RBIs. Vaughn was named the 1995 AL MVP when he hit 44 HRs and drove in 143 RBIs. The man was a beast in his Boston days. After posting 2 decent years with the then ‘California Angels’ hitting 30 HRs and driving in 100+RBIs, Vaughn signed with the New York Mets. Vaughn showed up to camp out of shape (at age 34) and slumped in his first year with the Mets. More health issues came up the next year and a knee injury brought the man to retirement. Those were knee problems that arose very likely from carrying all that extra weight on his frame.
Cecil Fielder-(Career .255 319 HR’S 1008 RBI), is a classic example of what I am talking about. With the Toronto Blue Jays, Cecil hit 31 HRs in only 504 ABs. But there was a problem. The Jays featured AL home run king Fred McGriff at that time with John Olerud in the system. So Cecil Fielder was off to play in Japan for a season. Earlier in Cecil’s career, he was much leaner until he joined the Detroit Tigers. In 1990, ‘Big Daddy’ signed with the Detroit Tigers and went on to hit 51 HRs and drove in 132 RBIs. It was the first time a player had hit 50 homers in a year since George Foster did it in 1977. Cecil Fielder led the league in RBI for his first three years with the Tigers, and he also finished with 44 HRs to lead the league in homers for his second year with Detroit. At the age of 32, he was traded to the New York Yankees at the deadline before helping them secure New York’s first championship since 1978. After the following season, the Yanks felt they were better suited to use Darryl Strawberry at DH and Tino Martinez at 1st base, so they let Cecil leave. At age 34 Cecil was big and slow and ended his career after a great 10 year run.
So maybe this is the reason that teams have not signed Prince to a huge 8+ years contract. Based on my research, the most I would give Prince is a 5-year deal. Pay him more annually if you wish, but do not make the mistake as other teams have made in the past. I do not want to add Prince to this list after his career is over.
*** Thank you to our Baseball Writer- Doug Booth for preparing today’s feature on MLB reports. To learn more about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames” and Doug Booth, you can follow Doug on Twitter (@ChuckBooth3024) and click here for Doug’s website, fastestthirtyballgames.com***
Please e-mail us at: MLBreports@gmail.com with any questions and feedback. You can follow us on Twitter and become a fan on Facebook . To subscribe to our website and have the daily Reports sent directly to your inbox , click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage.
A Great DH Can Mean Winning the AL Pennant
Wednesday December 28, 2011
Doug Booth- Guest Baseball Writer:
Watching the 2011 season, something really resonated with me while watching the American League: ‘Where have all the great designated hitters in MLB gone?’ It seemed only a few years ago that every team had a bopper capable of hitting .300 with 30 HR’S and 100 RBI’s. Upon further investigation, I found out some interesting facts. First, let us look at the top-3 DH’s this past 2011 season. Michael Young of the Rangers hit .338, 11 HR’S and 106 RBI, which was the best performance by any DH, in helping to win the Rangers a 2nd straight ALCS Pennant. A close second would go to Victor Martinez, who spent 112 games at DH and hit .330 with 12 HR’S and 103 RBI. The 3rd best DH was David Ortiz, who hit .309 with 29 HR’s and 96 RBI. The rest of the DH’s were average to below average.
The Yankees struggled with Posada and a rotation of Andruw Jones/Jesus Montero, although they hit about 30 HR’s combined. The Blue Jays never had a set DH, but received decent production from Encarnacion and Lind. The Baltimore Orioles had Vlad Guerrero, who had his worst year ever, as did the Angels’ Bobby Abreu and the Rays’ Johnny Damon. The Seattle Mariners had washed up Jack Cust and the likes of Willy Mo Pena by the end of the year. Oakland has steady Hideki Matsui, but not even a decent second half had him anywhere near his career average totals. Kansas City has been placing Billy Butler back onto the field, so his DH role was limited this season. Adam Dunn soon became a four letter word in Chicago’s South side. Aging and injury prone players Grady Sizemore and Travis Hafner saw the most amount of work for the Cleveland Indians at DH, so yet again these players were far from being in their most productive years.
So what is the underlying theme here? If you have a great DH, you may just make the playoffs and win it all. Young, Martinez, Ortiz had their teams in contention all year for the playoffs. The Tampa Bay Rays were the 4th team in the playoff chase and managed to overcome the position thanks to superior pitching. One could definitely say that Michael Young vs. Bobby Abreu is worth a definite amount of wins at that position, considering what they each produced in the AL West.
I am going to go through the last 20 years of ALCS Pennant Winners as part of my study. 80% of the time (the team with a great DH) was in the World Series:
1992 TORONTO-Dave Winfield .290 26 HR’S 108 RBI
1993 TORONTO-Paul Molitor .332 22 HR’S 111 RBI
1994 WORLD SERIES CANCELLED
1995 CLEVELAND-Eddie Murray .323 21 HR’S 82 RBI
1996 NEW YORK-Cecil Fielder 39 HR’S 117 RBI (Acquired at deadline by NYY)
1997 CLEVELAND-David Justice .329 33 HR’S 101 RBI
1998 NEW YORK-Darryl Strawberry 24 HR’S 57 RBI (295 AB IN 101 GAMES)
1999 NEW YORK-Chili Davis/Darryl Strawberry (not the greatest year-but in middle of NYY dynasty of 6 ALCS IN 7 YRS)
2000 NEW YORK-David Justice .286 41 HR’S 118 RBI
2001 NEW YORK-David Justice (not the greatest year but it was a solid NYY team. Edgar Martinez led SEA to a 116-46 record and were prohibitive favorites but lost to the Yankees-Martinez year was .306 23 HR’s AND 106 RBI
2002 ANAHEIM-Brad Fullmer (hit .289 with 60 XBH in 130 games and a slugging % of .531)
2003 NEW YORK-Jason Giambi 41 HR’S 107 RBI
2004 BOSTON-David Ortiz .301 41 HR’S 139 RBI
2005 CHICAGO-Carl Everett 23 HR’S 87 RBI in 135 games
2006 Detroit Tigers-Dmitri Young (They did not have a definite DH after Young’s injury so this year so was the worst out of the 20 years.)
2007 BOSTON-David Ortiz-.305 35 HR’S 117 RBI
2008 TAMPA BAY-Cliff Floyd/Wille Aybar 22 HR’S 72 RBI combined (Again great pitching carried TB.)
2009 NEW YORK-Hideki Matsui .274 28 HR 90 RBI IN 456 AB
2010 TEXAS-Vlad Guerrero .300 29 HR’S 115 RBI
2011 TEXAS-Michael Young .338 11 HR’S 106 RBI
In 2006, half of the league possessed great DH’s: Ortiz .287 54 HR 137 RBI, Hafner .308 42 HR’S 117 RBI, Giambi 37 HR’S 113 RBI, Thome .288 42 HR’S 109 RBI, and Thomas hit 39 HR’S 114 RBI. This group is far more productive than the 2011 bunch. Given this Information, why wouldn’t more teams elect for permanent DH slots just to gain an edge over their competition? The Seattle Mariners had an incredible run from 1994-2004 with Edgar Martinez as a permanent DH. The Boston Red Sox have won 2 World Series titles and are perennial playoff contenders with David Ortiz as their DH. The Yankees have not been the same since Hideki Matsui has left the club as their DH. This leads me to the Toronto Blue Jays pitching an offer to Prince Fielder and making Adam Lind a permanent DH.
With a signing of Fielder, the Jays could move Adam Lind to just a DH. Could you dare envision a lineup of: Escobar SS, Rasmus CF, Bautista RF, Fielder 1B, Lawrie 3B, Lind DH, Arencibia C, Johnson 2B, and your pick of Thames or Snyder? This would free up your club to make a trade as well. If you are the Jays, and offered Yu Darvish the posting bid of over $50 million and another $60-75 million in salary, why wouldn’t you offer Fielder a 7 year deal in the $140-150 Million range? With Fielder signed, I think his presence would potentially alter the attendance by 8,000-10,000 fans per game to justify his salary (not to mention merchandise and television ratings). With a 3-4-5 lineup of Bautista, Fielder and Lawrie, I could see 120 HR’S and 350 RBI combined each year. The best aspect of these guys is that they are patient. If you add Adam Lind as the #6 hitter with 30 HR 100 RBI capability, then it will become lookout time for the rest of the league.
The Angels signing of Albert Pujols should not cause concern about his production. Even into his early 40’s, Pujols should be able to hit well given his dedication to personal fitness. The question is: why wait to move him to DH right now with the amount of 1st baseman they already possess with Trumbo and maybe a return from Morales? It is my belief that aging players should be shipped off to the National League when they can’t post impressive offensive numbers. A good example of this are recent NL pinch hitters Jason Giambi and Matt Stairs making a living off pinch such roles after failing as DH’s late into their careers. If the AL teams persist in signing aging players past their prime for the DH role, then I believe they will struggle. Vlad Guerrero and Johnny Damon would be perfect for an NL team at this stage of their respective careers considering this rationale.
So whatever players are ultimately signed by each team from this point forward or already have signed, whichever AL teams have the best Designated Hitters in the league for the 2012 season will likely have the best shot at winning the AL Pennant.
*** Thank you to our Guest Baseball Writer- Doug Booth for joining us today on MLB reports. To learn more about “The Fastest 30 Ballgames” and Doug Booth, you can follow Doug on Twitter (@ChuckBooth3024) and click here for Doug’s website, fastestthirtyballgames.com***
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