Monthly Archives: March 2015
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 31, 2015
Apple Records
20 years ago today, the Strike/Lockout of 1994 and 1995 ended. I look back at how I jumped right back into baseball once the gates opened back up.
It is a hitting rock bottom episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 30, 2015
Nathan Denette/THE CANADIAN PRESS
Who will win the American League East?
Which ever team makes the best in season trade. This is a division that is a work in progress at best.
It is a Let’s Make a Deal episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 29, 2015
Photo by Dilip Vishwanat/Getty Images
It is Sunday and time for The Sunday Request.
The Royals will take advantage of a mediocre American League. But will they be the so so team of most of last year or the dynamic team of October.
That and I comfort a crying little league player on The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 28, 2015
UPI/Kevin Dietsch
There are many possible World Series match ups. But historical, none will be as unique as a Mariners/Nationals fall classic.
The star power would be off the charts. And we would see a match up unlike anyone since 1980 for one reason, unlike any since 1906 for another and one we have NEVER seen for a third reason.
It is a “Let’s think of October in March” episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 27, 2015
(Photo by Jim Rogash/Getty Images)
I love David Ortiz to death. But has there ever been a player caught in a PED web who has been given a bigger pass than Big Papi? OK, other than Andy Pettitte.
Which makes his rambling and meandering editorial for The Players’ Tribune more aggravating. Just play, be the charming Big Papi and ride off into the sunset! Don’t invite the criticism that you are barely getting to increase.
And maybe more stars who get caught should do what Manny Ramirez did. Accept it and move on.
Meanwhile, I hear from a Twitter follower:
@sullybaseball wtf… how about YOU shut up?
— A Hat Made of Straw (@OneStrawHat) March 27, 2015
I will… right after this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
To read David Ortiz’s bizarre editorial, click HERE.
To read my 2009 post about David Ortiz, click HERE.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 26, 2015
AP Photo/Patrick Semansky
How can the Tigers STILL have a questionable bullpen after years of knowing their relievers have kept them from winning a World Series?
It is a sputtering Motor City episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 25, 2015
SIPKIN, COREY/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
Why is it a big deal that Bartolo Colon is starting opening day for the Mets? Lots of pitchers you wouldn’t expect take the bump for the opener.
Plus why the Red Sox might be feeling good about not giving Lester and Ellsbury long term deals.
That and more in this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 24, 2015
AP
Hector Olivera signed with the Dodgers. What does that mean for Don Mattingly’s future with the team?
It is a “Better Win Now” episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
183 in 2015: Ball Park Preview Gm 1 – Sun Apr.05, 2015 (Wrigley Field, MLB Season Opener)
2015 MLB Trip Sponsors: Man Fish Brewery, Megabus.com, MLB Reports, National Car Rental and the MLB Ball Park Pass-Port
Chuck Booth (Owner/Lead Analyst): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Chuck Booth’s 2015 MLB Park Historical Road Trip
The GOAL: 183 Straight Days (every single day at least 1 gm) Of ALL 30 MLB Parks Trip In 2015 (218 Games) view full year schedule.
The CAUSE: To Raise Money for Concussion Awareness (via Sports Legacy Institute. donate money here) Through Inspiring Others.
DAY DATE: Sunday, Apr.05, 2015
Game # 1 Day # 1
Today’s game (s) Start Time (s) in EST and Venue (s): Wrigley Field (MLB Season Opener) 8:05 Cardinals @ Cubs
Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 23, 2015
Source: Denis Poroy/Getty Images North America
Phil Hecken, a contributor to Sporting News and the weekend editor for Uni-Watch, returns the podcast.
In THIS episode we talk about the Brewers, the Diamondbacks and our thoughts on camouflage uniforms.
It is a “Wear what is respectful” episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Follow Phil Hecken on Twitter by clicking HERE.
Part 1 of the Phil Hecken interview can be found HERE.
Tampa Bay Rays Payroll In 2015 + Contracts Going Forward
Joe Maddon had a career Record of 781 – 729 (.522), but was 629 – 506 (.567) over the last 7 years from 2008 – 2014. He runs his offenses like the Angels used to, with a NL style built on speed and contact. He may be the best AL Skipper when it comes to utilizing players versatility and matchups. Maddon is also great at working in Rookie players. But he took his talents to Chicago, when he opted out for many more Million in the Windy City, and will be replaced by rookie skipper Kevin Cash
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
David Price is gone, Ben Zobrist is gone. If you added up their 2 salaries of $20 MIL and $7.5 MIL respectively, it would have pole vaulted the Rays over $100 MIL in the upcoming season Instead they were traded for younger players, and their total team cash is listed at somewhere near $80 MIL for their budget.
Leading the charge on the cash earnings is Evan Longoria. While he has had a backloaded deal for years, his pact becomes a little more expensive this year. In 2015, the longtime 3B will make $13 MIL.
Longoria, who people are lumping into conversations with Kris Bryant right now, because of the Cubs pending decision to hold out their prize prospect. inked a deal just days into his service clock, and has a 15 Year/$144.5 MIL deal he is still working through.
For a Year to Year Breakdown For all of the Rays players salaries please visit here Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 22, 2015
AP Photo/Rick Scuteri
We may never have a perfect system for dealing with rookies and service time.
We may never have a perfect media rights package.
But we can not wring and hands about perfection when some systems can be kept the same and others slightly tweaked and make lots of people millionaires and provide a great product.
It is a “Let’s do what WORKS” episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 21, 2015
AP Photo
Yasiel Puig and Clayton Kershaw can rewrite the Dodger record books if they stay healthy. And the Dodger records for hitting are not as impressive as you would think a successful franchise would have.
It is a create your own history episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Kris Bryant Can Only Look To Himself Why He May Not Be On The Opening Day Roster
Kris Bryant is about as sure of a prospect there has been in the last 5 years. Will the Cubs let him start the year in 2015, or will they send him down until the middle of April to save service time?. The young slugger had 43 HRs in the Minor League’s last year – and has also smacked 6 big fly’s in Spring Training so far. But there are things to suggest that starting him off in the Minors is not such a bad idea. The 23 Year Old is not the slickest fielder, has already experienced shoulder fatigue, and the team will play its 1st 9 games in cold weather too. (Hosting 6 games at home, and playing the other 3 in Coors Field.) But really. he might have sealed his fate for the opener by having Scott Boras as his agent.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
So the talks continue to mount on the Kris Bryant Opening Day watch. With each passing day he hits a HR, or shows himself ready for the big leagues, the question will become even more serious. But if he is ultimately not pulled up to Wrigley Field on Sunday Apr.5th vs Division Rival Cards, he has no one to blame by himself.
By having Scott Boras as his Agent, it has pretty much implanted in the Cubs brass, that the prize prospect will never sign an extension, and when his service time has him approaching Free Agency, he will indeed hit the open market and look for the top bidder.
I don’t even blame Boras for this. He is a phenomenal representative of his players, and always seems to get the max dollar for the highest percentage of the time compared to other agents.
Perhaps it will serve as a deterrent to future awesome young studs, that Boras has been sticking it to team owners for years. Maybe they should opt for a different agent, as this man has shown his playing cards on too many occasions. The executives all know Boras will lead his client to the open market.
Even having said this, if the man was not under the direction of the Boras Corporation, the Cubs should not start the clock on him anyway. The talk of the Cubs contending in 2015 is much over-hyped in my view. Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 20, 2015
USA Today Sports
The Dodgers and Giants rivalry right now would be more intense if the San Francisco ace didn’t change with every World Series title.
Also the new ending of the season is the coolest idea I’ve heard in a while.
It is a renewed rivalry episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Baltimore Orioles Payroll In 2015 + Contracts Going Forward
One could say that even in the most abysmal of circumstances last year, Davis still almost hit hat total last season, clubbing 26 Bolts in 127 Games Played. Look for him to crush between 35 – 42 HRs this season. The big 1B is among several key figures that are in contract years after the season concludes, including more than half of the Bullpen’s becoming Free Agents following this campaign as well.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
The Orioles have had a quiet off season, but where that not amount too much in terms of adding talent to their 2014 Roster, a lot of it has to do with some of their players maturing in salary via Arbitration.
I am sure there is a degree of urgency for the O’s brass, since they have a plethora of pending Free Agents after this year.
The franchise is slated to dole out about $120 MIL in team money this campaign. While that places them in the top half of the MLB, they only register 4th in the AL East.
With Chris Davis, Matt Wieters and Wie-Yin Chen all hitting the open market after this season, maybe the club should take a run at acquiring some guys for their World Series plight half way through this year.
If those aforementioned O’s aren’t enough, Chris Tillman, Darren O’Day, Bud Norris. Tommy Hunter, Alejandro De Aza, Ryan Webb and Steve Peace are also free to sign with all 30 clubs beyond 2015.
Past this campaign the team still has solid building blocks instilled with having Adam Jones, J.J. Hardy, Manny Machado, Kevin Gausman, Dylan Bundy, Zach Britton and Jonathan Schoop under Team Control for years to come, but still the time to strike is right now.
For a Year to Year Breakdown For all of the O’s players salaries please visit here.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 19, 2015
Getty Images
I want Cuban star prospect Hector Olivera to go to either the Giants or the Marlins? Why?
Because I want those two franchises to elbow their way into an All Time discussion for consistency as World Series champs… and I want that to make Yankee fans angry.
It is a very petty episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
MLB Player Futures Bets In 2015: Player Performance Props
What are your best Over/Under Bets for player performances in the upcoming campaign. We delve deep into the numbers and have given you our selections. Its time to throw down some cabbage!
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Fantasy Playes are dusting off their notes, and getting ready for the 2015 year. If we did not accompany a guys total with a picture and quick blurb, it means we think the total is fair. Injuries may play a factor, as a guys age and surrounding teammates, or the Division he plays in.
Some guys have contracts to play for, or have shown up out of shape.
Total by Cole Hamels (PHI)
Over 11½ Wins +100
Under 11½ Wins -130
Total by Adam Wainwright (STL)
Over 14½ Wins +100
Under 14½ Wins -130
Total by Andrew Cashner (SD)
Over 10½ Wins +105
Under 10½ Wins -135 Read the rest of this entry
Road Travel Tips: Greyhound Bus Tickets at 7 – 11, Cheap Airport Parking + Airfare Savers
If you have a 7 – Eleven nearby, you can receive the cheapest method to buy tickets via Greyhound on their website. It is their WEB ONLY FARE, and you must pay in cash. The receipt given at the till acts like your ticket onto the bus. It is another reason that 7E is still one of the biggest convenient stores to aid you in road trips. Thank – you to Greyhound for imploring their services.
Chuck Booth (Owner/Lead Anayst): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
A lot of how I have gone about finalizing my baseball tour this year has to do with cost. Yes I have pared my trip from 229 games to 216 games, but that has more to do with the Canadian Dollar, than increasing my budget in the year. I could still do the original amount of contests even with some growing expenditures.
Lets start off with buying Greyhound Tickets At 7-Eleven. I laughed at the notion during 2012, but I soon realized that this service is convenient. Book a travel itinerary (WEB ONLY FARE), and then simply go to a nearby 7 – Eleven and pay cash. The register receipts serves as your bus ticket. Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 18, 2015
ESPN.com
Phil Hecken, a contributor to Sporting News and the weekend editor for Uni-Watch, joined the podcast.
We talked about uniforms, good and bad, and our collective thoughts about Houston and Miami’s threads.
It is a fashion conscious episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Follow Phil Hecken on Twitter by clicking HERE.
2015 Odds To Win MLB Divisions: Best And Worst Value Bets
Buck Showalter’s club are the Rodney Dangerfield act “They Get NO RESPECT”. Having Baltimore not closer to Toronto for the AL East Division is not wise. Take advantage of this odd while it presents itself. Remember that Boston did only win 71 games last year while the 2014 AL East champs did take home 96 victories. Their odds should vaguely resemble each other heading into the 2015 campaign.
Photo Credit – Jonathan Dyer – USA Today Sports
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
The forthcoming season has seen the gambling establishments starting to post their opening lines for Division play. I like the way they constructed the AL West, NL West (except San Diego) and NL East. They are pegged perfectly, and would not advise in plunking any money down for those.
The real good bets are within both Central Divisions, and of course the Baltimore Orioles.
Part of being a good handicapper is watching and predicting the trends as they go up and down.
Red Highlighted Picks are my favorites
Blue Highlighted Selections are odds to stay away from
Parenthesis is slated from 1 – 5 designation for best/worst value by color
AL
AL East
Boston +190
Toronto +250
New York +425
Baltimore +375 (2)
Tampa Bay +700 (3)
Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 17, 2015
Pete Rose applied for reinstatement. It is a formality and who knows where it will lead?
But before you join a “Free Pete” movement, realize that because of Pete, the 1986, 1987 and 1988 NLCS could have a big Asterisk next to them.
It is a Luck of the Irish Episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
MLB Shutout Survivor 2015: Which Team Do You Have Last To Be Blanked This Year?
2014’s Shutout Survivor Winners were the Angels. The club nearly made it all the way to Memorial Day before they were shutout last year. The team had a great offense, and rode it to an MLB Best record last year. I would still put the Jays, Red Sox and O’s ahead of them in 2015 with those team’s respective lineups all being strong, and playing in a less pitcher friendly Division with the AL East.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Last Year the D’Backs, A’s, Braves and Cubs were the 1st teams to be blanked before March was even over. To their credit, Arizona was in their 3rd game while the others were in their season openers.
The winner of the competition last year were the Los Angeles Angels who almost made it all the way to Memorial Day weekend without being bageled.
It was between them and the Rockies (NL Winner) for the overall win, and the Halo’s won out.
Despite a depleted lineup early, the Rangers made it all the way to 3rd place in the category, and their pitching staff also took the most other clubs by hanging a zero on them.
In 2015, I still believe the favorites, if doing a betting line, would have to be the Colorado Rockies again. Not only do they play exceedingly well every first 6 weeks of the year, and they play at Coors Field, but they start the campaign at least with Carlos Gonzalez and Troy Tulowitzki. Read the rest of this entry
MLB Runs Survivor 2015: 11 Different Run Totals For Each Team
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer) Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
This should turn out to be quite fun. A lot of gambling establishments have this sort of deal, and it will be fun to see the results.
What Runs Survivor is, a MLB team scoring 0,1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9, 10 or (10+) in different games throughout the course of the season.
Once a club has one of these run totals once, you cross it off and keep going until they complete the 11 different variations. As the runs come in on a daily basis, we will keep erasing the numbers beside the team until the last team wins. The Yankees lost the for the year, finishing much after August had started. An obvious blight on their offense last year.
Last year the Giants were the 1st team to complete the 11 variation trek, so maybe their is a method to our madness after all. The 1st AL club to do the 11 run totals were the Tampa Bay Rays. Who do you have to complete all 11 1st in 2015?
The Toronto Blue Jays Payroll In 2015 + Contracts Going Forward
Alex Anthopoulos had done a nice job of assembling his club with players from other teams. To construct a team with this type of caliber, it can be traced all the way back to the Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion brilliant extensions, while the Jays GM were able to break free from albatross contracts from Vernon Wells and Alex Rios. He is close to the finish line, but with a flailing Canadian Dollar, and his many guys with 1 or 2 years left on the club signed, he must go one step further to gun for a championship.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
What a difference from just a few seasons ago. Toronto is on the cusp of contention, and is yielding the best club they have probably since their 1993 World Series run. The payroll has crept up incrementally – and they are in the top 10 of the game.
The only Canadian franchise is estimated to have a budget of $127.3 MIL this year. This would slate them 10th in the Majors. The clubs ahead of them include: Dodgers, Yankees, Red Sox, Phillies, Nats, Angels, Giants, Rangers and Tigers. This total still only puts them 3rd in their own Division.
Having signed Russell Martin to a 5 YR deal worth $82 MIL jumps the teams salary big time, but one could argue he will help the team lower its ERA.
For a Year to Year Breakdown For all of the Jays players salaries please visit here. Read the rest of this entry
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 16, 2015
Today your pal Sully acted in a movie called “The Wrong Stuff”. It is written and directed by Brett Rapkin, who previously made a documentary about the same subject, former Red Sox pitcher Bill Lee.
That film, entitled Spaceman – A Baseball Odyssey, also featured yours truly.
I play a mailman opposite Josh Duhamel, who plays Bill Lee. We had fun on the set today, improvised in an unusual manner and I also got to meet 2003 Cy Young winner Eric Gagne in the process.
It was a fun day of movie making magic on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast
For more info on the movie The Wrong Stuff, click here.
To check out the original documentary Spaceman – A Baseball Odyssey, click here.
The Top 5 Holds Leaders In The MLB For 2015
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
Holds is a category that is starting to garner more respect each and every campaign in the MLB. Having said that, it doesn’t always mean the pitcher is throwing well if he owns a lot of them for the year. It is just one stat that should be accompanied by others.
When searching to figure out who will have the most of these in a season, it is important to see the amount of games the guy will enter.
For the last several years, Tyler Clippard has dominated in the National League With his trade to the American League, it opens up the leaderboard for this campaign.
It has been said, that the former Nationals Reliever will see some mop-up duty as a closer for the A’s to start the year. Had Sean Doolittle been healthy from the start of the year, I would have placed a massive wager that Clippard would lead the MLB in Holds one more time.
Instead, I will go with his teammate Eric O’Flaherty to make the top 5 on the list. I also don’t think it would be a foreign idea to see Ryan Cook push the top Bullpen Holds Leaders by years end. Read the rest of this entry
The Top 5 Closers In The MLB For 2015
Rodney had 48 Saves, 0.777 WHIP and a 0.60 ERA in 2012, to place 5th in AL Cy Young Voting and was an ALL-Star. 2013 wasn’t as kind (although he did win the WBC) with a 3.34 ERA and a WHIP of 1.335. The Mariners not armed with many better Options, brought in the then 37 Year Old, to a 2 YR/$14 MIL deal. Rodney did feature a career best 11.1/SO Per 9 IP rate in 2013, but he also walked 4.9 /Per IP as well. His work translated better in the AL West during 2014, where 2/3rds of his games are in Seattle, Los Angeles and Oakland. Rodney led the AL in both Saves (48) and Games Finished in 2014 (64) – while having a 2.85 ERA, but a high 1.342 WHIP. The latter is right near his career totals. His Walk Rate was 3.8, but that is less than his 4.4 clip for his lifetime. The man fashioned a 10.3/9 IP SO rate. I expect more of the same in 2015, with the M’s having one of the better clubs this campaign. There will be more arrows slings after games.
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
Follow The MLB Reports On Twitter Follow @mlbreports
With the fiasco that is the Detroit Tigers Bullpen. I look for these guys to roll through several different Closers in 2015. Joakim Soria would be the 1st one to attempt after Joe Nathan fails.
I also think the Yankees are going dually use Dellin Betances and Andrew Miller depending on the situational maneuvering matchups. New York will be hard pressed to make the playoffs, but I do think they will net one of the higher team Save totals.
The same could probably said for the Boston Red Sox. I think the near 40 year old Koji Uehara will have a tough time staying healthy for 100% of the opportunities, however he will be just outside the mark.
St. Louis may end up using someone different from Trevor Rosenthal, because we are due for them to change 9th inning guys. Adam Wainwright, Jason Isringhausen Jason Motte, Ryan Franklin and Edward Mujica have all seen the mantle over the last several years for the RedBirds.
Rosenthal has actually had one of the longer stints, however he really struggled at the end of the 2014 year (despite 45 Saves), and it carried over to the playoffs, where he featured 10 base runners, while only recording 11 outs. I am thinking he will not have as many chances in 2015 as well.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 15, 2015
COREY SIPKIN/NEW YORK DAILY NEWS
It is Sunday and time for The Sunday Request.
@SN_Baseball @sullybaseball The DH would be an excellent series of podcasts.
— ExiledMetFan (@ExiledMetFan) March 9, 2015
I see absolutely no need to have uniformity in the leagues. Having the DH in one league and not the other is something I love about baseball.
Let the pitchers hit in this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – March 14, 2015
AP Photo/Lenny Ignelzi – Barton Silverman/The New York Times
Have some people forgotten to have fun?
How can anyone REALLY be upset about Will Ferrell playing in spring training games?
And who was more fun than Dontrelle Willis when he burst onto the scene? He is retiring and getting his due respect.
Plus I dance while getting a rental car and I explain why algebra came easy to me but geometry was a chore on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
MLB Reports 
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