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Ichiro Suzuki Maybe Older, But He Is a Perfect 4th OF/PH
Hunter Stokes (Chief Writer): Follow @stokes_hunter21
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Okay so Ichiro Suzuki doesn’t possess as much speed as he once did, or even hit .320 like he routinely did for the Mariners. Plus yes, there is virtually no power…however he hit .284 last season, and for a 4th OF or Pinch Hitter in the Senior Circuit, that would be much likened.
I was sitting there last month debating on whether the Mariners should give him a call for a return to Seattle, considering they tried signing Franklin Gutierrez (hurt all of 2014, which was the biggest waste of a $MIL ever by M’s mgmt – considering the guy already burned the squad for 120 games missed in 2013) and employed friggin Endy Chavez for much of the 2014 year.
I am giving Jack Z. and the Mariners some chops for picking up Justin Ruggiano and Seth Smith instead in the last 30 days, but the point was, Ichiro may not have wanted to return to the PAC NW anyway even though he could have helped that club as they were constructed then.
Have you seen some of the 4th OF and PH that still have jobs in the Majors? Heck yeah… give me a guy who can put the bat on the ball still.
Suzuki is a great contact hitter even at his age, and he will likely see some AB roaming the outfield for the Marlins this year. I love Giancarlo Stanton, but it is not like he ever plays 162 games straight on the diamond. Read the rest of this entry
Rangers’ How Good Can This Team Be
If you want to listen to the audio podcast we did for our Monthly 30 Team Rankings, we have the links below to download or just listen
Triple Play Podcast Ep #15 Monthly Rankings For All 30 Teams
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Follow @mlbreportsMonday, July.08, 2013
Yu Darvish is one of the best right-handed pitchers in baseball and is the ace of the Texas Rangers rotation. He is a strikeout machine, and he leads the American League in strikeouts with 157. He has a 3.02 ERA with 119.1 innings pitched with a WHIP of 1.04, and SO/9 of 11.8. Darvish has a SO/BB ratio of 3.83, and is second in the AL with a Hits per 9 IP of 6.33. He is sixth in the AL with a WAR of 3.2. The opposition is only hitting .194 against him this season, with right-handers just barely making contact with their .146 batting average. When there are runners in scoring position with two outs, he pretty much untouchable with teams hitting .146
The Texas Rangers are having a good season considering that they did not sign the two biggest free-agents this past off season in outfielder Josh Hamilton and starting pitcher Zack Greinke.
The Rangers sit just ½ a game behind Oakland Athletics in the American League West division with the All-Star break less than two weeks away. They are 9th in runs scored with 379 runs, and 6th with a batting average of .260. They have a runs differential of +26 this season.
Texas Rangers ALCS Highlights- So Parental Guidance Is Advised
Mike Trout Had A Wicked 2012 Season: What Does He Do For An Encore In 2013?
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Trout had 49 SB (Led AL), 129 Runs (Led AL), 30 HRs and 83 RBI in just 139 Games Played in 2012. Might he improve on these numbers with a full year, plus the addition of Josh Hamilton to the cleanup spot in 2013? He made his 1st ALL-Star Appearance, won the Rookie of The Year Award – and a Silver Slugger Award in his 1st full Major League Campaign. He finished 2nd in AL MVP Voting to Miguel Cabrera – with many people feeling that if he played the 1st month, he surely would have won the award. He was also passed over for a Gold Glove in CF, when the voters went with Adam Jones of the Orioles instead. Some fans think he was snubbed on that one.
Josh Jones (Angels Correspondent): Follow @joshjones4
At Twenty-One Years of Age, Angels phenom Mike Trout took the baseball world by storm in 2012. The “Millville Meteor”, as he’s called in his hometown, hit a ridiculous .326 (2nd in AL) – with a .399 OBP (3rd in AL) and .564 SLG (3rd in AL). His OPS was .963 (2nd in AL), plus he led the AL in OPS+ (171). Mike threw in 30 Home-runs, 83 RBI 49 SB – and a whopping 129 Runs Scored. Numbers that outstanding are very rarely accomplished at such a young age, so let’s take a look at how Trout’s 2013 season will fare.
Trout should be the 1st MLB player to score 150 Runs since Jeff Bagwell accomplished the feat in 2000 with 152 times touching the dish to help his club. He even has the capability to score 160 Runs, which would be the 1st time anyone has done it since 1936, when Lou Gehrig scored a whopping 136 Runs for the Yankees. If you pro-rate his 129 Runs Scored in 139 Games, it would equal 150 Runs Scored for a full 162 Games. This was without Albert Pujols being himself for the 1st 3 weeks Trout was there, plus Hamilton was on the Texas Rangers for 2012.
Trout has quite a few things working in his favor, including his tremendous baseball toolbox. Even when Trout goes through slumps at the plate, his defense is phenomenal. Likewise, even in games where Mike might overrun a ball in the Outfield he has the ability to hit a big Home-Run or steal a key base at a moment’s notice.
Mike Trout Highlight Package from 2012 – Mature Lyrics so Parental Guidance is advised:
Its A Big Year For Yankees SP Phil Hughes And RP Joba Chamberlain
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Heading into 2013, Hughes has a Career Record of 52-36 (.591) – with a 4.39 ERA. He is projected to be the #4 starter for the Yankees in 2013. He is 46-34, with a 4.68 ERA for his Career as a Starter opposed to a Reliever – where he was 5-1, with a 1.40 ERA during 2009.
By Chuck Booth (Yankees Correspondent/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Phil Hughes represents a nice #3 or #4 starter for the New York Yankees – and Joba Chamberlain will be counted on more than ever with Rafael Soriano not being back in the bullpen for 2013. This will be his 7th season in the ‘Bronx for both Pitchers. The 6 Foot 5 native (Hughes) of California, is coming off a decent season in 2012 – after he struggled with arm fatigue in 2011. Chamberlain has had a litany of injuries pile up on his 6 Foot 2, 250 LBS frame over the last several years. Yankees fans all know too well how this man and Joba Chamberlain have been bounced to and from the Starting Rotation to the Relief Corps. I think it is safe to say the Yankees finally have it right. Joba is a reliever and Hughes is a Starting Pitcher.
The Yankees have them both locked up on one year deals for 2013. Chamberlain will make 1.88 Million Dollars – while Hughes will make 7.15 Million Dollars. With an aging offense this year, the Yankees will be counting on several internal improvements amongst their pitching staffs. These two veterans will need to take it to the next level based on their projections of talent.
Joba Chamberlain – How To Be Awesome
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
The Tampa Bay Rays: The Hitters 1998-2012: Part 2 Of A 5 Part Article Series
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Friday, December.21, 2012
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.
Carl Crawford Leads as the ALL-Time Club Record Holder in most offensive categories. Will Evan Longoria run him down for all of the team records..or will the club trade him in a few years when his contract escalates in pay?
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Rays have only been around for 15 years, however they have seen their share of talent grace the club. In their inaugural year, the club signed Free Agents Fred McGriff and Wade Boggs. A few years later when Boggs retired, they added Vinny Castilla, Jose Canseco and Greg Vaughn all to the club. This movement did not work out. It was the drafted talent of the club that started to surface in the early 2000’s. Aubrey Huff and Carl Crawford emerged as AL offensive threats. Other picks like Rocco Baldelli, Jorge Cantu and Jonny Gomes started out on fire, yet quickly flamed out. The club saw other guys come and go before the 2007 started to show what the team was really capable of. Carlos Pena gave them a bonafide HR guy. Soon Evan Longoria was called up to the Major Leagues and the club featured one of the best attacks in all of Major League Baseball.
The offense has suffered a bit of a drop-off in the last few years, but newly acquired Wil Myers is one of the best offensive prospects in the game of baseball. Longoria is signed through 2023 and Ben Zobrist is a great all-around offensive talent signed for the next 3 seasons. While the team will still be predominantly based with great pitching, the club should see some well-rounded offensive players.
Tropicana Field is one of the harder places to put up great numbers, so we will see what the future holds. We must look at the past. In these Series I have been doing for the teams, a lot of criteria had to be met to be included in the Franchises best hitters or pitchers. Obviously with a 15 Year Old team, the stakes are not raised as high. I still looked for significant contributions to the team. Of course if anyone ever leads the American League in any category, that is usually grounds for inclusion.
Franchise Series Article Links:
The Tampa Bay Rays: The Franchise 1998-2012: Part 1 Of A 5 Part Article Series
The Pitchers: The Tampa Bay Rays: The Pitchers 1998-2012: Part 3 Of A 5 Part Article Series
2013 Team Payroll Part 4: Tampa Bay Rays Payroll 2013 And Contracts Going Forward: Updated for Myers Trade Dec.11/2012
Tropicana Field Expert: An Interview with Tropicana Field Expert Kurt Smith
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Pitchers Part 4 Of A 7 Part Series
Monday, November 26th, 2012
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.
Roy Halladay won 148 out of his 199 career wins under the years he played for the Blue Jays. After struggling with his mechanics early in his career, he was one of the best pitchers in the AL for the years of 2002-2009.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Toronto Blue Jays have had some incredible pitchers in their 35 years in the MLB. From Dave Stieb being one of the top 2 pitchers in the 1980’s, to the dominant closers like Tom Henke and Duane Ward be part of their playoff runs, to Pat Hentgen and Juan Guzman firing out of their career like a sprinter making a mad dash for the finish line, to David Wells, Jimmy Key and Roger Clemens tasting success, awards and leading the league in many categories. Finally, you had the premier pitcher in the American League with Roy Halladay in the 2002-2009 time frame. Yes there may be some competition from C.C. Sabathia for that last claim, however no one will argue that Halladay is not one of the best pitchers of this ERA. His being the Career Leader in winning percentage attests to that with 199 Wins versus 100 Losses (.666). So let us take a journey through the franchise and recognize all of the best hurlers that have towed the hill for the Toronto club. (Scroll Down Past the Links or Click the READ MORE OF THIS ENTRY ICON.)
Franchise Series Links:
Franchise History Part 1 1977-1993: https://mlbreports.com/2012/11/09/jays1/
Franchise History Part 2 1994-2012: https://mlbreports.com/2012/11/28/jay/
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series: https://mlbreports.com/2012/11/16/torhitter/
Skydome Part 5 of 7 : An Interview with ‘Rogers Centre Expert’ and “MLB reports Founder” Jonathan Hacohen
2013 Team Payroll Part 6 of 7 : https://mlbreports.com/2012/09/10/tor/
Special Bonus Fan Blog Of 2013 Team Payroll Part 7 of 7: https://mlbreports.com/2012/09/12/torfanalex/
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series
Friday, Nov.16/2012
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.
Tony Fernandez leads the Blue Jays Franchise for Hits and Games Played ALL-Time. At the age of 37, he flirted with a .400 average for half of the season in 1999. In his first go around with Toronto, he was part of the BlockBuster Trade that saw he and Fred McGriff go to San Diego for Joe Carter and Robbie Alomar at the GM’s Meetings in Dec of 1990. -Photo Courtesy of Sports Illustrated.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I like that this franchise series is right dab smack in the middle of the biggest Franchise trade since Tony Fernandez and Fred McGriff went to San Diego for Roberto Alomar and Joe Carter in 1990. A Toronto Blue Jays fan can only hope for the same result that came down afterwards to repeat itself in the next few year. The early days of the Jays hitters (late 1970’s provided some long-term reliable guys,) however it wasn’t until Jesse Barfield won a HR Title and George Bell came home with the 1987 AL MVP, that the rest of the MLB started to take notice on the hitters of this Canadian Team. As soon as the club moved into SKYDOME, the hitters had a field day. Not to say that Exhibition Stadium didn’t aid some homeruns and nice averages in its day, it is just that SKYDOME is a hitter friendly park.
From George Bell and the outstanding other 80’s OF trio of Barfield and Lloyd “The Shaker” Moseby, to Tony Fernandez and Ernie Whitt, these guys all played a huge chunk of their careers with this Canadian Club. Fred McGriff routinely hit towering shots off of the Windows Restaurant and led the AL in HRs during the 1989 Pennant Winning Season. In 1991, when Joe Carter and Roberto Alomar arrived onto the scene, the offense just clicked on all cylinders. Devon White was gracefully stealing bases and striding into runs with those gigantic high knee kicks of his. John Olerud walked right out of College and added one of the best ‘natural’ swings that any of us have ever seen. Veterans Dave Winfield and Paul Molitor bashed their way into Jays hearts with their limited time with the organization en route to back to back World Series Titles in 1992 and 1993. After the Strike/Lockout, the team then saw Shawn Green and Carlos Delgado routinely destroy pitchers and be amongst the league lead in several power categories.
There is a ton more on this article just past these links or by clicking the READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY ICON.
Here are the links for the article series.
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise 1977-1993 Part 1 Of A 7 Part Series Click Here:
Franchise History Part 2 1994-2012: https://mlbreports.com/2012/11/28/jay/
The Hitters: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Hitters: Part 3 Of A 7 Part Article Series:
The Pitchers: The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise Pitchers Part 4 Of A 7 Part Series
Skydome: An Interview with ‘Rogers Centre Expert’ and “MLB reports Founder” Jonathan Hacohen Part 5 of 7
For Part 6 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll Click here:
For Part 7 of the 7 Part Series: Blue Jays 2013 Team Payroll: A Readers Thoughts, Click Here:
2012 AL and NL Rookie of the Year Predictions
Sunday November 11th, 2012
Sam Evans: Even though it may seem as if all of baseball is already focused on 2013, some of the major awards for the 2012 MLB Regular Season have yet to be announced. The AL and NL Rookie of the Year awards will be announced on Monday. Bryce Harper, Wade Miley and Todd Frazier are the finalists for the National League. Mike Trout, Yoenis Cespedes and Yu Darvish are the last three in the American League. I predict that Bryce Harper and Mike Trout will be the two players rewarded for their outstanding rookie seasons by taking home the hardware. Read the rest of this entry
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim: 2012 World Series contenders?
Thursday July 19th, 2012
John Burns: The 2012 season for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim looks like it might be getting saved by a 20 year-old named Mike Trout. The L.A. Angels had a record of 6-14 before they called Trout up from Triple-A, and has a 44-27 record since the call up of Trout. Mike Trout leads the A.L. and is 3rd in baseball with a .353 batting average and is tied with Dee Gordon for the MLB lead in stolen bases with 30. Trout is almost a lock for the A.L. Rookie of the Year. But if he keeps this up and leads L.A. to the playoffs, he could be the A.L. MVP. Read the rest of this entry
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