Monthly Archives: January 2017
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 8, 2017
Timothy Hiatt/Getty Images North America
It is Sunday and time for THE SUNDAY REQUEST.
The @PGATOUR gets it. Why not @MLB ? @sullybaseball https://t.co/AeyKJgDxgH
— theSTLpoke (@theSTLpoke) January 5, 2017
That’s right folks, we live in a world where Golf knows how to play to a young audience better than BASEBALL!
Tee off on line for this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS FANS SHOULD GET READY FOR JANUARY SIGNINGS
FANS OF THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS SHOULD BRACE THEMSELVES FOR THE JANUARY SIGNINGS THAT WILL LIKELY HAPPEN AS MILB DEALS WILL BE HANDED OUT
Oh, man! The fans are restless. There is much disappointment to be found in the land of the Toronto Blue Jays. Things have not gone as hoped this offseason, and the club is left with some major holes to fill. The options available has changed dramatically from when this offseason began and it has taken its toll on those who were pining for big moves. It has caused many to wonder if there is any hope of contending in the AL East in 2017, the dreams of postseason glory fading rather quickly.
The signings of Kendrys Morales and Steve Pearce (Hey! Don’t forget about Gavin Floyd!) have not done enough to alleviate the rage over losing out on Edwin Encarnacion and the potential of losing out on Jose Bautista. Those are holes too big to fill the way the club has tried to. That is not even mentioning the chasm that exists in the Toronto’s bullpen. Simply, many feel that, through their offseason efforts, the club has actually made the team less competitive. Rightly, or wrongly, there is a lot of disappointment.
That is why January is not going to make things any better. Not. One. Bit…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
The Other Side of Baseball’s Success Story
Bud Selig’s successor, Rob Manfred, will almost certainly continue to report on the financial health of baseball. While these reports may be factual, they do not quite represent the entire truth.
Part Two of our extended excerpt of “The Selig Years” from Will Big League Baseball Survive?: Globalization, the End of Television, Youth Sports, and the Future of Major League Baseball, by Lincoln A. Mitchell. (READ THE FULL STORY ON PLATE COVERAGE)
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 7, 2016
The football playoffs are starting and there are some playoff teams who do not have a single player I can name.
But I always watch the NFL in January and I do so through a baseball prism.
Thinking of the Boys of Summer in the Dead of Winter on The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
For those of you who do not know what the Suffering Index is, here is my explanation.
Milwaukee Brewers Research Interview – Bob Humphreys
Pitcher Bob Humphreys‘ input was extremely important as I started doing research for my Milwaukee Brewers historical book, so I decided to create a full-length profile for him.
Humphreys was born in Covington, Virginia on August 18, 1935. He loved baseball and basketball, playing both sports in high school and Hampden-Sydney College. He lettered in both sports in college, but decided to pursue baseball as a career.
DEVON TRAVIS: THE KEY TO THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS’ SUCCESS IN 2017
IF THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS ARE GOING TO SUCCEED IN 2017, A HEALTHY RETURN FROM DEVON TRAVIS WILL BE THE REASON
The staff here at Jays From the Couch will be able to have their own selection for the player they think will be the key to the Blue Jays’ 2017 success. Likely, they will not share my enthusiasm for the importance of Travis. I’ll also acknowledge that as readers (and fans) you will likely have your own ideas as to who will be of importance moving forward. Feel free to share those thoughts in the comment section and look out for future posts to see if our staff chose the same player(s).
OK, so Devon Travis. Here’s the thing: it’s rather difficult to pinpoint exactly what the Blue Jays will see from him in 2017. In his 2 years of big league ball, he’s really only played one season. After missing 100 games in 2015, he would turn around and miss 61 contests in the last campaign. Missing this kind of time tends to paint a picture of being prone to injuries. But, we can’t say that about Travis. The injuries he suffered were caused by unusual anatomical issues that he really couldn’t do anything about. I mean, he couldn’t avoid having bones grow weirdly in his shoulder, especially when he only noticed it after taking a groundball off the shoulder. No, the type of injuries he has dealt with make him a special case; one exempt from the injury prone label…for now. It is for that reason that any further conversation comes with the qualifier of him being healthy. This goes without saying…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
MLB’s Best Hitters in Each Inning During the 2016 Season
According to Earl Wilson, the game of baseball is simply a nervous breakdown divided into nine innings. Regardless of the team you root for, just about every fan can relate to that in some way.
While it takes a full nine innings – or, nine nervous breakdowns – for a game to be complete without suboptimal weather sabotaging it, there are countless moments within each inning that can alter the eventual outcome, whether it’s in the top of the first or bottom of the ninth.
With that in mind, I was interested in finding out which hitters mashed the most in each inning throughout the course of 2016. Thanks to FanGraphs’ Splits Leaderboard, it was pretty easy to do.
Using the very arbitrary benchmark of 80-plus plate appearances for the first through sixth innings, 50-plus plate appearances for the seventh through ninth innings and 20-plus plate appearances for extras, below are the top three hitters from every inning in 2016, based off wRC+.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 6, 2017
There is lots of bad to talk about in this failed family picture whose director would go on to make Friday the 13th… no really.
Ripping off the great ones on episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
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TORONTO BLUE JAYS HOT STOVE: GAVIN FLOYD RETURNS ON MINOR-LEAGUE PACT
THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS ARE BRINGING BACK GAVIN FLOYD ON A MINOR LEAGUE DEAL, HOPING HE CAN CONTRIBUTE IN 2017
While much of the Blue Jays fan base reacts to the Cleveland Indians press conference introducing ex-Blue Jay Edwin Encarnacion, the Blue Jays front office snuck an old friend back into the organization today on a minor-league deal. Gavin Floyd will be returning to the Blue Jays with an invite to Spring Training and as it stands right now – a likely spot on the roster come April.
Floyd pitched well in 2016 and posted decent numbers aside from a few blow-ups. In April he posted a 1.74 ERA over 10.1 innings, recovering from a rough start and eventually posting eight strikeouts to three walks and four hits for the rest of the month. In May he battled with the long ball, giving up four dingers in just 12.2 IP, but still maintaining a K/9 over 9.00…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 5, 2017
Pitching and rolling strikes on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
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The Selig Years
“The Selig Years” from Will Big League Baseball Survive?: Globalization, the End of Television, Youth Sports, and the Future of Major League Baseball by Lincoln A. Mitchell. Used by permission of Temple University Press. © 2017 by Lincoln A. Mitchell. All Rights Reserved.
In January 2015, Bud Selig stepped down as commissioner of baseball. He had served in that position since September 1992, although for the first six of those years, he had been acting commissioner. Selig’s tenure of slightly more than twenty-two years was the second longest in baseball history. Only Major League Baseball’s (MLB’s) first commissioner, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis, served longer.
When Selig took over as commissioner, there were twenty-six Major League teams. To make the play-offs, teams had to win one of the four divisions, as there were no wild cards. There was no interleague play during the regular season, and steroid use was extremely rare and almost never discussed. (READ THE FULL STORY ON PLATE COVERAGE)
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 4, 2017
Stephen Dunn – Getty Images Sports
Curt Schilling and I may not see eye to eye on many things. But I do think his Hall of Fame candidacy should be debated and his politics should stay out of it.
Opinions versus stats are debated on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
TORONTO BLUE JAYS & JOSE BAUTISTA: ASSUMPTIONS ARE NOT SAFE
WHEN IT COMES TO A REUNION BETWEEN JOSE BAUTISTA AND THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS, IT IS NOT SAFE TO ASSUME IT IS INEVITABLE.
At this point, the Toronto Blue Jays have few options to fill their outfield vacancies. To be more accurate, they have few options to fill the outfield holes beyond the current “in house” options. That means that, as things currently stand, the club will have to figure out how to fill out the lineup card using a mixture of Ezequiel Carrera, Melvin Upton Jr. and/or Dalton Pompey. Obviously, this is less than ideal.
As it turns out, Jose Bautista appears to have even fewer options. He remains on the market and appears to have seen his list of suitors shrinking more and more. Whether it is due to his asking price, his age, his ‘down year’, or his perceived “attitude problem”, or a combination of the above, he is still waiting for a deal. We’ve heard that he could be willing to take a one year deal at this point…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
TORONTO BLUE JAYS MANAGER, JOHN GIBBONS: HOW HOT IS HIS SEAT?
JANUARY 1 HAS PASSED AND THAT USED TO MEAN ANOTHER YEAR FOR TORONTO BLUE JAYS MANAGER, JOHN GIBBONS. NOW, EVERYTHING IS DIFFERENT.
Over the last few seasons, we’d be watching semi-closely as the calendar flipped to a new year. Doing so would trigger a clause in the contract of Toronto Blue Jays manager, John Gibbons. In a stroke of genius, Gibby, would be rewarded for not being fired. If he were still employed by the club on Jan 1, an extra year would be added to his contract, giving him 2 more years of pay.
Under new management, that clause has been removed from his deal. The removal of that clause would see him get a small raise to make up for the lack of security. And, before anyone could blame Mark Shapiro for this, Gibby told everyone that it was something he approached former GM, Alex Anthopoulos about. It is easy to see why the new deal would benefit both parties. For Gibby, it allows him to pursue other options should he feel the need; he is not locked in to staying with Toronto year after year. For the club, it also allows them to shift gears should they feel the need…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
Korean Infielder Jae-Gyun Hwang Linked to Giants
The latest news involving your San Francisco Giants is that they’re linked to Korean infielder Jae-Gyun Hwang. It’s being reported that the Giants are showing continued interest. I’m not sure what the need is for him with Eduardo Nunez at 3rd, Brandon Crawford at short and Joe Panik at 2nd.
The Greatest Detroit Tiger By Position: Third Base
Moving on in our exploration of the greatest Detroit Tiger at each position, we cover third base today. To date, I’ve covered off on the Tigers best catcher, first baseman, and second baseman, with first base being the toughest choice so far.
My only stipulation for being eligible for consideration is playing the position of discussion for a majority of games as a Tigers for at least five years. That leaves us with seven players that qualify and they are Aurelio Rodriguez, Don Wert, Brandon Inge, Tom Brookens, Pinky Higgins, George Kell, and Marv Owen. Not making the cut any further is Don Wert, Aurelio Rodriguez, and Marv Owen. This definitely is the weakest position so far, but let’s take a look…
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 3, 2017
While at the Pacific Pinball Museum, I thought about some of the most dramatic foul balls of all time.
Some of them could have changed the course of baseball history.
Bounce here and bounce there on this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
It Shouldn’t Be Surprising That J.D. Martinez Is Still on the Detroit Tigers
Talking a big game and actually backing it up with action are two very different things. Detroit Tigers general manager Al Avila has certainly learned that lesson throughout this offseason.
Almost immediately following the conclusion of Detroit’s regular season schedule, Avila was clear that “changes are coming” in the way the organization conducts its business. Also, since they have been working “way above” their financial means for a while, the goal was to start getting younger.
Obviously, that meant being open to potential trades for just about anybody to clear some payroll. The selling started by shipping Cameron Maybin to the Los Angeles Angels, and then… things halted.
Detroit’s biggest stars – Miguel Cabrera and Justin Verlander – saw their names briefly pop up in the rumor mill, but they died down quickly. One available player who seemed all but traded was J.D. Martinez, and it wasn’t hard to see why.
But here were are, with the holidays over and 2017 officially upon us, and he’s still a member of the Tigers. It doesn’t look like he’s leaving anytime soon, either.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 2, 2017
Scott Olson/Getty Images North America
Will 2017 be remembered as a year for a team’s accomplishments? Or will it be part of a chain of success?
And will the 2017 be a rematch of Cleveland and the Cubs?
Discussing lots of legacies in this Episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
Hot Stove Week in Review Dec 26- Jan 1
I hope everyone had a happy and safe New Year’s. We just had a very slow week to the Hot Stove season. Things will really need to pick up in the next two weeks as we are only 43 days until Pitchers and Catchers start to report. Lots of free agent sluggers are still left without teams and I’m willing to bet a few teams are still looking into the trade market.
Read the Hot Stove Week in Review Dec 26 – Jan 1 via 9 Inning Know It All
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast – January 1, 2017
Happy New Year and it is time for The Sunday Request.
@sullybaseball What fan base is suffering the most going into 2017?
— Tom Taylor (@TomTaylor1138) December 2, 2016
For a question like this, I could not just make idle speculation. I needed to create a new statistic.
So, as demonstrated in this new Video Podcast, I created THE SUFFERING INDEX, designed to quantify numerically and mathematically which fan base is suffering the most.
But even these calculations found a few gray areas.
Wake up to a new year of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.
2017 Baseball’s Breakout Players at Each Position
C- J.T. Realmuto (Miami Marlins): Realmuto had a great year in 2016, but I expect him to maintain, if not improve in 2017. At only 25 years old, Realmuto has plenty of room for growth, but he is moving in the right direction. He has a rare combination of on base potential, speed, and power at the catching position. While I am a little worried about his .357 BABIP in 2016, his 8.8% HR/FB ratio tells me he could really tap into his power potential moving forward. There are plenty of decent offensive players in the Marlins lineup in 2017, so Realmuto should have plenty of opportunities to drive in runs or score himself. While he isn’t the most exciting breakout player, the catching position is a tough position to get excited about except for the top 3-5 players.
Projection: .290 BA, .340 OBP, 15 home runs, 65 runs, 65 RBIs, 13 stolen bases
Other Potential Breakout: Tom Murphy
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TORONTO BLUE JAYS RUMOR: CLUB INTERESTED IN BRETT GARDNER
ONE RUMOR HAS THE TORONTO BLUE JAYS INTERESTED IN MOVING ON FROM JOSE BAUTISTA & TRADING FOR BRETT GARDNER, WHICH JAYS FROM THE COUCH DEBUNKS.
Well, here we go! A new year and some not so new tricks. Apparently, when it comes to the baseball offseason, there is no point in setting resolutions. The same old stuff keeps happening, year after year. This time around, the Toronto Blue Jays may find themselves in the middle of a rumor…again. Though, this one seems a little weak.
According to Ashley Varela of NBC Sports, Toronto is not interested in Jose Bautista anymore because they’ve moved on to coveting Yankees outfielder, Brett Gardner…
READ FULL POST at Jays From the Couch
Baseball Hall of Fame Ballot
Later this month the newest class of the Baseball Hall of Fame will be announced via the voting of the Baseball Writers’ Association of American (BBWAA). The ballot is packed with big names, and although I personally don’t have an official vote, I still wanted to get in on the fun. So, keeping in mind that each voter can choose up to 10 inductees, here is who I would cast my lot for if I had the opportunity.
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