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Pittsburgh Pirates Schedule in 2013: The Team Has The Right Ticketing Scheme
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Wednesday, January.16, 2013
PNC is rated highly amongst Ball Park Chasers. As a destination point for a lot of them, it is nice that the Pirates post their start times earlier than most clubs – and put their tickets up for sale quicker than most teams as well.
By Richie Devotie (MLB Schedule Correspondent): Follow @MrBaseballMan and Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner) Follow @chuckbooth3024
From Chuck Booth: The Pirates get it. They are always quick to put up their times schedule for the upcoming season. Even better than this, is that they follow that up by having their tickets for sale almost as quick. As people who love to chase Ball Parks and plan road-trips, it would be nice if all other franchises followed suit. As of right now, only four teams have tickets for sale for the upcoming season (for single games): the Red Sox, Rockies, Athletics and Pirates have begun selling their tickets for the 2013 season. For the Red Sox, this is a big surprise because the team sells out every home game anyway and have had a great run of being successful over the last 40 years.
With so many choices ton spend your entertainment dollar these days – why wouldn’t the MLB put their single game tickets on sale much earlier? They could definitely take advantage of the Christmas season. So most of the clubs wait till about end of January to post their single tickets, meanwhile credit card bills are piling up on them. Fans are also preparing for a shortened February Month and cutting living expenses. Most people also need to request vacation time off as early as possible in order to plan road-trips from Easter through Labor Day. So why not change the waymost MLB clubs operate when it comes to dates of ticket sales and game times? Having said all of this, Richie Devotie has taken a look at the Pirates upcoming schedule for the 2013 Year.
2012 Pirates Highlights:
Sabathia Looks For More AL Supremacy + Eventual Election Into The BBHOF!
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Follow @mlbreportsTuesday, January.15/2013
Sabathia is 85-31 (.762) since a 2008 mid-season trade from the Indians to the Brewers. The Yankees current ace has won 74 games in his 1st 4 years with the Bronx Bombers. He has made the playoffs in the last 6 years with CLE/MIL and NYY – with 4 ALCS trips and a World Series win in 2009. He is 7-3 with a 3.50 ERA in the Post Season for the Yankees.
By Chuck Booth (Yankees Correspondent/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
CC Sabathia is a BEAST. You just have to look at the 6 FT 7 – 300 LBS+ man to see that. If it is possible by playing in New York City – and under the brightest lights, that this man is underrated, despite being a Bronx Bomber. Heading into 2013, ‘Carsten Charles’ (not Captain Crunch as some opposing fans have called him for his love of the Cereal) is 191-102 in his astute Pitching Career, with an ERA of 3.50. What is more impressive than this are his numbers as a member of the New York Yankees – and playing in both Yankee Stadium and the vaunted AL East and amongst many of the top offensive clubs in the Major Leagues. #52 is 74-29 (.718) for the Yankees with a 3.22 ERA. He has made 3 ALL-Star Appearances and has had 3 top 4 AL CY Young Award finishes in the last 4 campaigns. The verdict: the man has been truly dominant in Pinstripes!
In the 1st year of his big contract in 2009, Sabathia led the AL in wins with 19 – en route to a World Series Championship effort. Sabathia had a brilliant Post Season, going 4-1 with a 1.98 ERA in 36.1 IP. The big man also Struckout 32 Batters and only yielded 9 Walks. His only loss came in Game #1 of the World Series, when Chase Utley had a career game. Sabathia bounced back in Game #4 of the Fall Classic (with a QS – ND) and the Yankees ended up winning the contest to take a commanding 3 games to 1 ead, instead of having the Phillies tie the Series at 2 should he of had a bad start.
Sabathia is a winner and maybe the last guy to win 300 Games in the Majors. At Age 32, the guy has a contract to pitch for the Yankees until 2018. In his first 4 seasons he has averaged 18.5 Wins per year. Even if the man only averages 15 wins a year for that time frame, he would be at around 265 wins at Age 37. He could possibly end his career with New York – who would bet against him pitching until he is 40 to chalk up another 35 wins between 38 and that age?
CC Sabathia 2011 Highlights – Mature Lyrics so Parental Guidance is advised.
Is This The End Of The Line For Jason Bay?
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Follow @mlbreportsTuesday, January.15/2013
Jason Bay had a 3 Slash Line with PIT of – .281/.375/.890, including winning a ROY Award in 2005, followed up by back to back ALL-Star Years in 2006 and 2007, where he hit 30+ HRs, 100+ RBI, 100+ Runs Scored and Walked 197 for those 2 years. He may be on his last chance in the MLB with the Mariners in 2013. Bay finished his Pittsburgh days with 139 HRs, 452 RBI and 432 Runs for his 2590 AB. Those are good numbers.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Jason Bay begins 2013 with the Seattle Mariners on perhaps his last chance at the Major Leagues for his career. It was only on 2009 where he finished an ALL-Star Season with the Boston Red Sox – taking home a Silver Slugger Award and finishing in 7th for AL MVP Voting. That year, he hit for a 3 Slash Line of – .267/.384/.923, with 36 HRs (3rd in AL) and 119 RBI (2nd in AL). The man also walked 94 times and scored 103 Runs. It was a Career Year, yet he also had 3 other 30+ HRs, 100+ RBI and 100+ Run Years in 2005, 2006 and 2008. Bay picked a perfect year to be a Free Agent after his last year with the Red Sox.. While he cashed in on a 4 YR/64 Million Dollar Contract from the New York Mets, the Boston Red Sox knew of some hampering injuries that were sure to plague the Canadian ALL-Star from Trail. B.C. for the length of the deal… Boy did they turn out to be right on this prognostication!
What happened in New York City could not be classified by anything but horrendous. It was a move to an un-hitter friendly park at Citi Field. Bay then spent parts of 3 years injured or absolutely putting up abysmal numbers for the NL East Franchise. Of course 2012 would be the ultimate worst as the Right Fielder hit a paltry .165 with 8 HRs and 20 RBI in 194 AB. He had become a shadow of his former ALL-Star self and the Mets had enough of the anemic offense. They ate all of the remaining 21 Million Dollars left on his contract for 2013 and granted Bay his walking papers.
Jason Bay Highlights 2011 – Mature Lyrics Content – Parental Guidance is advised
MLB Reports Junior Reporter Haley Smilow Interviews ‘Blue Jays Closer’ Casey Janssen
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Follow @mlbreportsSunday January 13th, 2013
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Haley Smilow was a busy reporter last year. So much so, that we couldn’t keep up with her. In her latest interview from last summer, Haley talked to Casey Janssen of the Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Center…. about his favorite Ball Parks to Play in, who he doesn’t like to face, what he does for pre and post game rituals and what he does on the road. Haley pulls no punches in asking the Relief Pitcher about his life in this candid interview. Amongst other topics discussed were: What Janssen does for charity work, what his favorite animal is…. Also whether or not he has forgotten his passport ever when going through International Customs and his favorite sports team. Read the rest of this entry
Bartolo Colon: Ready For One More “BIG” Season in Oakland
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Follow @mlbreportsSunday January 13th, 2013
Bartolo Colon saw his 2012 season end early due to a PED suspension. He is scheduled to return in April. Does he have one more big year left in the tank?
Jonathan Hacohen (Lead Baseball Columnist, Oakland A’s Correspondent and Website Founder): Follow @Jhacohen
Bartolo Colon (or Fatolo as he is known in inner-baseball circles), is set to make his major league return in April, 2013. Back in August, 2012 Colon received a 50-game suspension for the use of a Performance Enhancing Drug (PED). This suspension came a week after Melky Cabrera received his 50-game ban. With only 5 games left in his suspension, Colon will be back in early-April (health permitting). But as much as fans discuss his performance on the field, Colon’s weight always seems to be the center of attention. Generously listed at 5’11” and 265 lbs. on the Baseball Reference site, Colon won’t be winning modelling contests anytime soon. Billy Beane said it best in Moneyball, when he made it clear to his scouts that the team wasn’t trying to sell jeans. They were trying to win ballgames. Regardless of his weight and appearance, as long as Bartolo Colon can get the job done, I say hand him the ball every 5th game. Babe Ruth wasn’t a small guy, but he sure got the job done. Colon may not have the talent possessed by Ruth, but he can still be effective on most given nights. When baseball has 1-2 pitchers falling to Tommy John surgery on a weekly basis, there is something to be said for a pitcher that can go out there and give his team a good chance of winning. That is the Bartolo Colon that the A’s are hoping for in 2013. With a $3 Million salary this year and approximately $2 Million in incentives to be earned, Colon has all the incentives in place to give the A’s the workhorse they need this upcoming season.
Roger Clemens: A Cardboard God Comes Into Focus
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Saturday, January.12, 2013
The Topps 1987 Card.
By Saul Wisnia, Red Sox Correspondent (Read his blog ‘Fenway Reflections’ here): Follow @SaulWizz
I took the photo in Cooperstown, after driving from Boston to baseball’s Mayberry with three buddies for my first look at the game’s red-bricked shrine. When we entered the Hall of Fame Plaque Gallery, just off the museum’s lobby, I instinctively knew which of the immortals I wanted to visit first. Walking through the years to the 1966 induction class, I found him on the wall right alongside Casey Stengel:
The picture stands today as the symbol of an era — and innocence — lost. In it, Roger Clemens and Ted Williams share confident, youthful smiles. Williams is, quite literally, a bronzed God, staring out at the photographer in his tanned, All-American glory. Clemens, wearing a fresh, clean Red Sox uniform, also has the look of a man who knows exactly what he wants out of life.
Williams yearned to be the world’s greatest hitter; Clemens the top pitcher. At the time of the picture, in 1988, both had reached their goal.
Ted Williams Tribute Piece from 2002:
St. Louis Cardinals Roster For 2013: State Of The Union
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Wednesday, January.09/2013
The Cardinals have been the most consistent Franchise in the National League, having appeared in 7 of the last 11 NLCS since 2000 (3-4). They have also won 2 World Series in that time (2006 and 2011.) They held a 3-1 NLCS lead over the San Francisco Giants before losing to the 2012 World Champions. They are ready for another great 2013 campaign. The NL Central goes from 6 teams to 5 – with the departed Houston Astros.
By Landen Crouch ( Cardinals Correspondent) Follow @LandenCrouch
The current St. Louis Cardinals roster, set to take them into the 2013 season, has seen little changes from what was a very successful 2012 season. This really is not much of a surprise, though, as the front office has told fans they were not planning to change too much this offseason. After a gut-wrenching offseason a year ago, in which Albert Pujols headed west to the Angels, a quiet offseason really does not seem like such an awful thing. In the upcoming season, the St. Louis Cardinals will be hoping for more of the same from a team that was one win away from a second straight World Series Berth. The Cardinals will look to continue recent success, while filtering in some young prospects in the process.
Game #5 of the NLDS (Comeback win versus the Washington Nationals)
Rest In Peace, Ryan Freel
Sunday, January 6th, 2013
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Sam Evans (Baseball Writer): Follow @RJA206
Ryan Freel, a utility player for eight years from 2001 to 2009, died of a self-inflicted shotgun wound a few weeks ago. Freel will be remembered for his fearless play and highlight-reel catches. Ryan Freel was a player that defined grit, he played baseball the way it was meant to play. Everyone’s thoughts and prayers should be with the Freel family during this time of sadness.
Ryan Freel Highlight Reel Video – Parental Guidance is advised:
The Los Angeles Angels Roster in 2013: State Of The Union
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Follow @mlbreportsSaturday, January.05, 2013
With Trout, Trumbo and Pujols in the lineup for the next decade, plus Hamilton for the next 5 years. I could see the Angels appearing on another top 10 decades win list. Question is will they make a World Series? They have not been to the dance since 2002 when they won it.
Josh Jones (Angels Correspondent): Follow @joshjones4
Look-back at last year: 2012 was a year, much like this upcoming season, with expectations as high as the sky moon. The Halos stole future Hall-of-Famer Albert Pujols and Texas ace C.J. Wilson from their respective 2011 World Series teams and looked to have a strong rotation headed by the trio of Jered Weaver, Dan Haren and Wilson. The team fought its way to a 89-73 record, missing the playoffs by a mere four games despite having more wins than the eventual AL Champion Detroit Tigers (Yes, I’m still bitter).
This year, Arte Moreno and the Angels front office decided once again to go big-fish hunting, giving outfielder Josh Hamilton a 5-Year Deal worth $125 Million. Hamilton gave the Angels quite a logjam in the outfield and Designated-Hitter, leading to the trade that sent designated-hitter Kendrys Morales to the Seattle Mariners in return for Jered Weaver’s college teammate and fellow innings-eater Jason Vargas. You can read a post a fellow writer here at the MLB Reports wrote about that very trade here . Angels General Manager Jerry DiPoto also poured some money into the bullpen and back-end of the rotation, signing hurlers Ryan Madson, Sean Burnett and Joe Blanton. .
Albert Pujols Highlights from 2012- Parental Guidance is Advised for watching the video:
The Best DH of All-Time
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Saturday, January 5th, 2013
Martinez had a 3 Slash line of .312/.418/.933. He smacked 309 HRs. 514 Doubles and had 1261 RBI. Will he be the 1st ever Primary DH to be inducted into the Hall? Or will 2247 Career Hits and suspicions of PED Use prevent him from being elected?
Ryan Dana (MLB Reports Intern): Follow @ryandana1
In my previous article examining the decline of the DH position in the AL, I briefly touched on a few great DH’s. Now I will exert my focus on examining who the best DH of all time was. While the DH position may be in a decline, it has experienced good times. To be truly great at one of the hardest things to do in sports, (hit a baseball) is quite an accomplishment whether you play in the field or not. The Top 4 DH’s off all time have to be Harold Baines, Edgar Martinez, Frank Thomas, and David Ortiz. (The ordering just goes from 1st to enter the MLB to last, not who was the best. I will order them in that way later in the article.)
Harold Baines was somewhat of a pioneer of the DH position, as he was one of the early greats. His 22 Year Career started in 1980 with the Chicago White Sox, and ended for the same team in 2001, although he had stints with the Rangers, Athletics, Orioles, and Indians in between. Baines was a regular Outfielder for the White Sox until the ’86 season – where knee problems all but ended his fielding career. With Baines well-rounded, Left-hHanded stroke at the plate, he etched out a place in baseball history that will leave him remembered by many.
Frank Thomas Highlights:
Adam Lind: Ready For His Last Season in the Big Leagues
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Follow @mlbreportsFriday January 4th, 2013
Adam Lind better hope he continue his decent second half in 2012 for the Jays, where he hit.304 with 4 HRs and 25 RBI in 161 AB after his recall from Las Vegas. As an AL East Contender, the Jays can’t afford any struggles like his 2012 first half. It could be curtains for a Career if he is sent to the Minors.
Jonathan Hacohen (Baseball Writer and Website Founder): Follow @Jhacohen
Living in Toronto, I have watched MANY Adam Lind At-Bats in my time. Watching Adam Lind recently, I start to ponder back to the days of Russ Adams and Josh Towers. Watching each of these players (hit and pitch respectively), I continually asked myself one question: how do these guys still have jobs? Perhaps the manager really likes them. Perhaps the organization sees immense potential. I am not really sure, but eventually the Adams and Towers bubbles came to burst. In 2013, I sense the same thing will happen to Adam Lind.
The Yankees Will Surpass A 200 Million Dollar Payroll in 2013 And Are Pinching Pennies At Catcher!
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Thursday, December.27, 2012
This guy might be a great defensive catcher when all is said and done, but how can you trust this team with a rookie catcher with their limited window to win?
Chuck Booth (Yankees Correspondent/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
As of this very moment, you are not the happiest of campers if you are a Yankees fan. Francisco Cervelli, Chris Stewart and Austin Romine look to start the year out catching for the Bronx Bombers! Really??? You are telling me that you will spend 215-225 Million Dollars on (Luxury Taxable) Payroll and you couldn’t find a mere 7.5 Million for a 1 Year Deal to sign A.J. Pierzynski? The club will receive some insurance money for A-Rod’s injury this year, however the Luxury Tax is not affected by that. So maybe knowing that they will pay 40% more for a guys salary (more than he really makes as a salary) is another thing stalling the franchise from plunking some serious cash down on a real quality veteran catcher. In my opinion, this is a brutal mistake that will leave the fans frustrated beyond belief if it blows up in the Yankees face. The good news is that if the team is playing well in every other department other than the Catchers position, they can always address the situation at any point next year by a trade. With no significant catchers left on the FA Market, New York will probably go this route. If you can manage to keep atop of the standings, then you may land a veteran catcher that will only have a pro-rated salary for the rest of the year.
If I were Ichiro Suzuki, Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera or Andy Pettitte, I would not be happy with the club not landing a proven offensive or defensive catcher. (Boy does that Jesus Montero Trade not look so favorable right now.) These 4 veterans are in the last year or two of their contracts and possibly their careers will end once their contracts. While these guys would never panic, you only need to look what the Blue Jays are doing north of the border for real ‘transaction aggression.’ I just think that you have re-signed and brought in Free Agents that all point to a “Win Now” mentality, yet you are going towards one-dimensional catchers that all have limited experience. It doesn’t feel right and the Yankees ‘Faithful’ will have a field day on Management and ownership should this position end up being a crutch on the teams success chances for 2013.
Fred McGriff, Does the Hall Await?
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Follow @mlbreportsTuesday, December 25, 2012
Patrick Languzzi (Cooperstown Correspondent): Follow @patricklanguzzi and Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The 2013 Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) Hall of Fame ballot was announced on November 28th. Frederick ‘Crime Dog’ McGriff’, will again accompany the ballot for what will now be his Fourth Year.
Results are expected to be announced on January 9, 2013 and a player must receive 75-Percent of the votes to be elected.
This year however, will invite a new crop of players to the ballot, most of which have been linked to PED’s and certain to take away votes from the Crime Dog.
McGriff’s career ranged from 1986 – 2004. He made his Major League debut the same year as Mark McGwire, and over his 19-Year Career, McGriff amassed 493 Home Runs (tied with Lou Gehrig), 2,490 hits and 1,550 RBI’s with a .284 Life-time Batting Average. He also collected 2494 Hits and featured a 3 slash line of .284/.377/.866. McGriff also walked 1305 times and clubbed 958 Total Extra Base Hits.
He was a Five-Time All-Star, Three-Time Silver Slugger Award winner, a World Series Champion and the 1994 Major League Baseball All-Star Game MVP.
McGriff was the first player [1992] since the dead-ball era, to lead both the American and National League in Home Runs. Read the rest of this entry
State Of the Union: The Future Of The 2013 Orioles Roster
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Friday December 21, 2012
Kyle Holland (MLB Reports Intern): Follow @TheKHolland13.
2012 was a breakout year for the Baltimore Orioles and the start of something new. They finished the season with a 93-69 record, a record good enough to land themselves a spot in the WildCard playoff game. This marked the first time since 1997 they were playing October baseball. They took down the Rangers in that very game to advance to the ALDS against AL East foe, the New York Yankees. They gave the Yankees a run for their money sending the series to 5 games, only to lose a heart-breaker 3-1 finale of the matchup. All of this happening with the Orioles having the 18th largest payroll in the MLB.
There are indeed a few reasons that the Orioles are going to have major success in the future. Pitching, the lineup, and upcoming prospects. Read the rest of this entry
The Tampa Bay Rays: The Franchise 1998-2012: Part 1 Of A 5 Part Article Series
Thursday, December.20, 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.
The many Rays Logo’s over the years. Is the best of this franchise yet to come?
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
The Tampa Bay Rays Franchise can be summarized into two different categories: “The Devil Rays Days” and the “Rays Days.” The Devil Rays endured 10 straight losing seasons to start the club’s history. From 1998-2007, was a complete gong show (645-972) and last place finishes in a tough AL East every year, except for 2004, when they finished 4th, although they did stockpile several top Draft Picks based on their horrid regular seasons. In 2008, all of that changed when the ‘Devil’ was literally and figuratively knocked away from the Tampa Bay team. Their young stars finally saw their potential realized and they appeared in the 2008 World Series versus the Philadelphia Phillies. The Franchise would lose in 5 hard-fought, weather fulfilled games, however the team was now one of the model clubs in baseball. From 2008-2012, the club has gone 458-352.
The Rays have made the playoffs in 2010 and 2011 since, plus featured two other over .500 records in 2009 and 2012. The club has now had 5 winning seasons in a row. There is still a long way to go as they feature the worst winning percentage in MLB History, with a 1103-1327 Franchise Record (.454). The next worst team is the Padres at .463. The Arizona DiamondBacks were the NL Expansion cousins of the Rays and they feature a Win Percentage of (.498), which is second overall for the Expansion teams. The Arizona DiamondBacks also have made the playoffs 5 times and won the World Series in 2001. Still if you asked anyone right now, the Rays would gladly be the team everyone picked.
Franchise Series Links:
The Hitters: The Tampa Bay Rays: The Hitters 1998-2012: Part 2 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: 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
Josh Thole, Travis d’Arnaud and the Mets Catcher Situation
Sunday, December 16th, 2012
Sam Evans (Baseball Writer): Follow @RJA206
After Josh Thole’s promising year in 2010, it seemed almost as if Thole was a long-term solution for the New York Mets at catcher. However, over the last three years, Thole has become less and less productive at the plate. In just one day, New York made a statement proving that they no longer believe Josh Thole can be the kind of player he was when he first arrived in the majors. The Mets made a gigantic trade with Toronto yesterday, which will send out Thole and bring in Travis d’Arnaud, one of the finest catching prospects in the game. Thole’s future in New York is over, while d’Arnaud’s is just beginning.
After being selected in the 13th round of the 2005 Amateur Draft, Thole spent five seasons in the minors. While moving up through the minor league ranks, Thole never dominated any level but he hit for average and played solid defense pretty much everywhere he went. Years later, Thole’s value is practically centered around his ability to hit for average and play average defense behind the plate. Read the rest of this entry
The Miami Marlins: State Of The Union for 2013 Part 2: The Pitchers
Friday, December.14, 2012
Nolasco might be the the next guy to be traded for more prospects.
Nicholas Rossoletti (Guest Baseball Writer and Marlins Correspondent): Follow @NRoss56
Last week, we took a closer look at how it would be possible to revive the Marlins from not only several years of under-performing expectations, but also, how to reinvigorate fans after the latest fire sale which can only be called a public relations disaster of massive proportions for the organization. In that article, which you can find here , the discussion was focused on the three offensive pieces that would be necessary for the Marlins to begin competing in the near future and bringing fans out to the new ballpark. While everyone knows that “chicks dig the long ball”, long-term success is ultimately sustained and championships won by consistent, steady pitching.
The Marlins former championship contenders have always been built on strong starting pitching, whether the 1997 team built on veterans Kevin Brown, Al Leiter, Alex Fernandez and later on, a young Livan Hernandez or the 2003 team with youthful group of Josh Beckett, A.J. Burnett, Brad Penny and Dontrelle Willis. Since the break-up of the 2003 team, the Marlins have sought a consistent group of pitchers to help bring them back to greatness. But adjustments, injuries and the failure to develop some talented pieces has led to a long list of failed Marlins starters and lost seasons. Now the Fish find themselves in the familiar position of having to develop young pitching. Read the rest of this entry
Why the Red Sox Need Jacoby Ellsbury and David Ortiz To Stay Healthy In 2013
Tuesday December 4, 2012
Kyle Holland (MLB Reports Intern):
Every Boston fan, heck every baseball fan knows what a disaster the 2012 season was for the Red Sox. Coming off the off-season they had some high hopes. They signed a new manager in Bobby Valentine and Adrian Gonzalez was coming off one of the best years of his career. Plus, they were looking forward to the 100th year of Fenway Park celebration. Clearly whatever hopes they had were down the drain by the All-Star break. What was the biggest reason for this disaster of a season besides Bobby V? Injuries?
For one, Crawford was out until mid July and then again from mid August until he got traded. But the Red Sox most importantly need healthy years from centerfielder Jacoby Ellsbury and DH David Ortiz. Read the rest of this entry
The Oakland A’s 2013 Roster Tree Part 2: The Pitchers And Analyzing Mulder, Hudson and Zito Post Oakland
Sunday, Dec.02/2012
A.J Griffin was 7-1 with a 3.06 ERA in 15 Games Started for the A’s in his 2012 Rookie Season. The A’s will look to the 24 Year old for some Quality Starts in 2013.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
Yesterday we talked about the hitters of the Oakland Athletics current roster and today we will talk about their pitching. This has been an organization that has thrived on brilliant drafting of young arms. In the early 2000’s, the team featured three ace pitchers in Barry Zito, Tim Hudson and Mark Mulder. Billy Beane had to let each of them leave Oakland because they couldn’t pay them the kind of dollars needed to secure them long term. With the exception of this year, Barry Zito has not lived up to his 7 Years and 126 Million Dollar contract he signed with the San Francisco Giants since leaving the Athletics. Despite a 15-8 year for the SF club this past year, he holds a 58-69 (.447) record for San Francisco lifetime with a 4.47 ERA. He was 102-63 (.618) and a 3.55 ERA with the A’s before leaving at the age of 29. The guy made 18.25 Million in his Oakland days and has already pocketed 99 Million with SF.
Mark Mulder never was the same pitcher in the NL and was out of baseball four years after being traded to St. Louis. His A’s career had netted him an 81-42 (.659) record with a 3.92 ERA. He was only 22-18 (.550) and a 5.04 ERA with the Cardinals before retiring. As you will read in this article below, the franchise made a worthy trade in returns for this man. Mulder made 25.3 Million in his contract with the Cardinals after making only 8.4 Million with the A’s.
Tim Hudson on the other hand, has been one of the better pitchers in the NL for the last decade, still towing the hill for the Braves at the age of 38. He was 92-39 (.702) with a 3.30 ERA for the A’s. He has since gone 105-65 with a 3.52 ERA for the Braves in in 8 years. He definitely has been worth the $ invested (84.5 Million plus another 9.0 Million in 2013.) He only made 4.5 Million in his 6 years with Oakland. The sandwich pick they landed for Hudson’s Free Agent signing was Travis Buck. Unfortunately Buck only played 170 games for the franchise, hitting .250 with 18 HRs and 71 RBI in 571 AB.
Total Record for 3 other teams is 185-152 (.549) and they have made 208.8 Million away from Oakland, whereas they were 275-144 (.656) and made a total 33.15 Million Dollars with the Athletics. I would say, Beane made the right decision in not signing them.
The Future of the Oakland A’s: The Mustache Gang Meets the Bash Brothers: Revealing Billy Beane’s Master Plan click here.
For The Oakland A’s 2013 Roster Tree Part 1: The Hitters Click Here
The Oakland A’s 2013 Roster Tree Part 1: The Hitters
Saturday, Dec.01/2012
How important was Cespedes to The A’s Lineup in 2012? They went 82-47 with him in the lineup and 12-21 without him. He was the biggest reason the team soared into the playoff race and won the AL East. Beane secured him in Free Agency before the start of last year. He is signed for 3 more years at 9 Million Dollars Per Year.
Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
A few months ago, our Lead Columnist/Website Founder (Jonathan Hacohen) wrote a brilliant piece about the assembly of the Oakland Athletics roster. He called it “MoneyBall 2.” Right after the piece, the A’s surged to the greatest record in the second half of the season and won the AL West. The team is now constructed of power hitters and power pitchers. The man behind it all is Billy Beane. I will not get into too much of this philosophy as you can read that piece here. What I intend to do is to show the roster of how it was comprised by Beane in the form of a roster tree. It is just like a family tree, however this shows trades dating back 2,3,4,5,6 fold etc.. in order to show you the mastery of the GM’s ability to field a roster on a limited budget.
The Future of the Oakland A’s: The Mustache Gang Meets the Bash Brothers: Revealing Billy Beane’s Master Plan click here.
The Oakland A’s 2013 Roster Tree Part 2: The Pitchers click here.
MLB Should Distribute More Games Against All Teams For Every Club
Thursday, Nov.29/2012
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Chuck Booth (Lead Baseball Writer/Website Owner): Follow @chuckbooth3024
I wrote an article about 6 months ago that investigated a solution to a Payroll/Geographical Alignment that the MLB should consider in going forward for the next CBA discussions in 2016 here. Let’s be real and this will never happen. The idea of running any drastic re-alignment is probably too much for the folks at MLB to fathom. However, there is a growing trend that is starting to rear its ugly head in MLB Baseball. It is the bigger market teams really starting to throw down some serious dollars, while the lesser revenue teams can’t keep up with same kind of salary influx. Of course I have fought this fight on Twitter, Facebook and any other social media platform I have found. Sooner or later these big salaried teams will reel off a bunch of World Series Titles amongst themselves and it will leave the MLB having as much competitive balance as the NBA. Read the rest of this entry
The Toronto Blue Jays Franchise 1994-2012: Part 2 of a 7 Part Series
Wednesday, Nov.28th, 2012
Note from Chuck Booth: I am attempting to bring the history for each of the 30 MLB Franchises into a 5-7 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.
Today’s Part 2 Feature of the Blue Jays Franchise will be written by our Baseball Writer Alex Mednick. To do this franchise series service, Alex has studied this club a lot more than I have in the last 20 years and will do this article better justice for you the reader!
Alex Mednick (Baseball Writer and Analyst):
Note from Alex Mednick: Chuck Booth offered to me the opportunity to step in to his Franchise Series and cover the Blue Jays history from 1994-Present. I gladly accepted the honor.
In Part 1 of this series, Chuck covered the Blue Jays history from their humble beginnings at Exhibition Stadium in 1977, through the glory years in the late 80s and early 90s. The story dropped off right after the Blue Jays won back-to-back World Championships in 1992 and 1993. We closed the books with the walk-off winning home run by Joe Carter to win the World Series, and the parties and celebrations that were to follow across Ontario, Canada. I will pick it back up at the beginning of the 1994 season, when the Blue Jays had high hopes to win a third consecutive world championship.
(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/
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
2013 Team Payroll: https://mlbreports.com/2012/09/10/tor/
Special Bonus Fan Blog Of 2013 Team Payroll: https://mlbreports.com/2012/09/12/torfanalex/
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’ Roster Is A Perfect Example Of How Different Baseball Is in the Dominican Republic
Saturday November 24th, 2012
The Blue Jays have always had a great amount of success from drafting and trading for Dominican Republic born Players. From Damaso Garica, George Bell and Manny Lee, to Juan Guzman during the World Series teams. Now they have Jose Reyes, Edwin Encarnacion, Emilio Bonifacio , Melky Cabrera on the current roster-and some guy called Joey Bats all born from the DR.
Jake Dal Porto (Baseball Writer):
While it is nothing more than an observation, the Toronto Blue Jays are stacked with players from the Dominican Republic. Generally, baseball’s best players come from this small Caribbean, and with ten players from the Dominican Republic on their current roster, the trends favor the Blue Jays.
But the question is, why are players from that region so highly regarded?
Well, there are many reasons. From a more broad stand point, baseball in the Dominican Republic is a national passion, and the cream of the crop are playing baseball year-round.
Since baseball is essentially all kids have in terms of the selection of sports, the odds of elite players being produced out of that area are dramatically higher. Plus, there are just fewer distractions in general-no phones, TVs, and computers. A list of distractions could drag on for days, but the main point here is that players from the DR play baseball all day everyday. Read the rest of this entry
The Blue Jays New Reality: Building Towers on Shaky Ground
Saturday, November 23rd, 2012
The Blue Jays have made a lot of moves in a short period of time and added a jolt to a fan base which had become numb of 19 years of not competing. People are saying they will win, including Las Vegas odds makers. They certainly look way better on paper than they did two weeks ago and people have a reason to be excited with the direction the franchise is going. They have taken 2 quick steps forward, but what happens when Murphy’s Law strikes and they take 1, or 2 steps back? How good are they then?
Alex Mednick (Baseball Writer and Analyst):
There has been a lot of talk thus far about how the Blue Jays are slotted to be ultra-competitive. And I don’t want to be a “negative-Nancy”, because this hype comes with good reason. I, as a Blue Jays fan, am beyond thrilled with the organization allowing Alex Anthopoulos to pull the trigger and make this kind of off-season happen…there is no doubt that this is what Blue Jays fans have been waiting for over the last 18 years. The Rogers family has shown that they aren’t simply using the Rogers Centre as the world’s largest billboard. They demonstrated that they are committed to take the financial risks necessary to make this team competitive. They said they would spend big $$$ when the “time came”, and they kept their word. The time has definitely come when you have two guys hitting 40 home runs a season in the middle of your lineup. I applaud the Rogers’ and the front office for saying something and sticking to it.
That being said, when I hear things like “we’re not done yet”, and, “the Blue Jays would like to add another front-line starter”, it soothes me and calms my nerves. The truth is, and I don’t want to seem greedy, but I am not content with where the team is now. If the past three seasons have shown us anything it is that over the course of 162-game season, injuries happen. Bottom-line: the roster you start with on opening day, will not be your roster throughout the season. Nobody has a rubber arm and muscles made of Teflon. Murphy’s law is constantly looming over any clubhouse and just waiting to strike. Look at 2012, we lost our 2, 3, and 4 slotted pitchers in 3 consecutive days! Read the rest of this entry
Miami Marlins: Defending Jeffrey Loria
Thursday November 22nd, 2012
Bernie Olshansky: What the Marlins had to do this offseason is horrible. Last year, the Marlins raised the hopes of the fans with a rejuvenated logo and uniforms, a new stadium, and most of all a new-look team. Last winter, Marlins management made a commitment to the fans to provide a contending team for the years to come. They went out and signed Jose Reyes for seven years. He and Hanley Ramirez were supposed to serve alongside Giancarlo Stanton as the core of the team for almost the next decade. To build on the Reyes signing, the Marlins also inked pitchers Mark Buehrle and Heath Bell. Ozzie Guillen also jumped aboard and was set up to be a lovable manager. With this spending spree, the Marlins brought a lot of excitement to South Florida and were supposed to be a major contender in the NL East.
Unfortunately this was not the case. The Marlins quickly faltered and Ozzie Guillen was immediately under the spotlight for his comments about Fidel Castro. Fans were already calling for Guillen to be fired. The team’s performance was not helping. I personally attended the second home game at Marlins Park against the Astros. Although it was against the Astros, any team that spends as much money as the Marlins did in the offseason should have a packed house at their second game of the season (in their new stadium!). The stadium was full, but not sold out. I was hoping that this was not a sign of things to come, but it was. The Marlins continued their spiral downward and talks of trades began. Heath Bell was the opposite of what the Marlins signed him to be and lost his job as closer. Both Reyes and Ramirez slumped. The Marlins needed to make some moves.
Melk! It’s Good For Your Outfield: Where Does Toronto’s New Outfield Stand?
Thursday, November 22nd, 2013
Photo Courtesy of bleacherreport.com
Alex Mednick (Baseball Writer and Analyst)
Since the Blue Jays and Marlins blockbuster trade, there has been a lot of discussion about Jose Reyes, Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle. Jose Reyes is going to have an amazing presence at the top of the lineup, getting on base, steal bases and playing beautiful shortstop on the left side of the infield with Brett Lawrie for the Blue Jays ground ball pitchers. Josh Johnson and Mark Buehrle immediately make the Blue Jays rotation a top rotation in all of baseball by being inserted in. Effectively, they got two top of the line starters to create an elite rotation that makes them serious contenders.
Is Anibal Sanchez Worth An Ace-Like Contract?
Monday November 19th, 2012
Anibal Sanchez bolsters a career record of 48-51 (.485), with a Career ERA of 3.75. With a limited number of Free Agent Starting Pitchers on the market, he is likely to command big dollars. Whether or not he is successful in his plight remains to be seen.
Jake Dal Porto: Let’s get something straight—that Anibal Sanchez is not quite an ace. He is a great middle of the rotation arm until he proves otherwise, but with that said, he is still worth ace-esque money. And ace-esque money is what suitors will seemingly be willing to pay him this offseason. Those handful of suitors are a smart bunch.
The longtime Marlin and stellar in-season addition to the Tigers in 2012, has his demands out there, and they are lofty. According to Jon Morosi of Fox Sports, Sanchez is looking for roughly a six-year contract worth $90 million. That ratio would equate to exactly $15 million per year.
Is Sanchez worth an annual salary of $15 million, though? Well, that’s a tough decision. There is a side of Sanchez that’s clearly well deserving of a wealthy salary, but there’s also a side that is, well, not worthy, to say the least. Read the rest of this entry
Is Daisuke Matsuzaka Worth The Risk? 3 Teams That Should Roll The Dice On Him
Sunday November 18th, 2012
Dice-0K was the biggest posting ever for a pitcher ever at 51 Million Dollars. the Red Sox ended up paying over 100 Million for the man when they signed him for 6 years and 52 Million dollars. He rewarded th em in 2007 and 2008, by going 31-14 and being a big cog in the wheel for the World Series Run in 2007. Matsuzaka is only 19-23 since those first 2 years.
Jake Dal Porto: What has become of Daisuke Matsuzaka? The once highly-touted Japanese import has struggled in recent years, posting a 5.53 earned run average since 2009. Due to this, the interest for him is extremely low.
However, don’t expect Matsuzaka to go unsigned this winter. While he is certainly a gamble, he’s worth the risk for teams with restricted payrolls.
Here some of those teams that could roll the dice on the 32-year-old: Read the rest of this entry
ATR: Ask the Reports Answers Your Baseball Questions: Major Announcement on MLB reports and Melky Cabrera Special Feature
Saturday November 17th, 2012
Jonathan Hacohen:
The World, it is changing. It’s a fact of life, it’s something we can’t avoid. Change is inevitable.
Remember when the Chicago White Sox announced a new management structure? Long time General Manager Kenny Williams was promoted to Executive Vice President, with Rick Hahn being the new GM? We are experiencing a new management similarly here at MLB reports. I have been fortunate for the past couple of years to wear many hats at MLB reports. After founding the site and being the Lead Columnist, I was also the Editor responsible for content, updating the website and social media. I have spoken with many of you on Twitter. Yes, that was me.
So today I am thrilled to announce that MLB reports has now changed that structure. Chuck Booth, Lead Writer for MLB reports will now be taking over my role. Chuck, in addition to his weekly columns, will now be the Editor and looking after our social media. Chuck has been very active behind the scenes on MLB reports for some time and we have decided to evolve our roles. As partners in MLB reports, I have been very fortunate to be able to work side-by-side with a great baseball mind like Chuck Booth. This man is a Guinness World Record Holder, having viewed baseball games in all 30 stadiums in only 23 days. How does he do it? The man is a baseball legend.
Going forward, when you are reading our daily tweets, that will be Chuck. When you converse with MLB reports on Twitter, that will be Chuck. The great baseball articles that come every week from MLB reports? Chuck will be the Editor and responsible for all content on MLB reports. So where does that leave me you ask? I guess you could ask Kenny Williams that same question. While Kenny had the passion to have more time for scouting, I have the same passion for writing. There is much work that goes into being an Editor and social media. While I loved those roles, I ultimately want to spend more time writing. I will also be working behind the scenes, focusing on growing the MLB reports brand. It’s change…and change is good.
Not to worry, you will still be able to find me and converse baseball anytime. I am blowing the dust off my twitter handle @jhacohen – be sure to follow me, say hello and most importantly, let me know that I sent ya!
Now for the next announcement. You didn’t think that was it, did you? I certainly hope that you enjoy this edition of Ask the Reports, as it will be the last one that I will be producing. With hot stove season in full force, Chuck and I have decided to put ATR on hiatus for the offseason to concentrate on other baseball areas. The WBC qualifiers are currently going on, with the tournament itself starting in March. Free agency season has begun (which will the topic of today’s ATR). So please continue to send in your questions, we love to hear from you! While we will continue to write back on our site in the comments section, on our Facebook wall and Twitter, we will say goodbye to ATR for the winter months. This has been a weekly feature that was a baby for me. I loved conversing with each of you and featuring your questions. Thank you for taking the time each of you to sending in your questions, we really appreciate it. We look forward to continuing to talk baseball with all of you 24/7 through social media and our site. Send in those questions people, keep sending them in!
In today’s edition of ATR, I focus on the signing that shook the baseball world. Fresh off their major trade with the Marlins, the Blue Jays announced that they signed free agent outfielder, Melky Cabrera. We all know the story- All-Star Game MVP, batting leader with the San Francisco Giants. Gets busted for PEDs, tries to cover up with a fake website, requests to be removed from the batting leaderboard in the NL, does not play in the 2012 playoffs and wins a World Series ring. The sordid tale of Melky Cabrera. Now for a fresh start, Melky is banished to Canada. Ok, I kid. Heck, Chuck and I are both from Canada! But with less pressure than say New York or Boston, Melky gets a fresh start in 2013. My e-mail box has exploded with your Melky Cabrera questions over the last 24 hours. As a result, I have devoted this week’s ATR to your most popular Melky Cabrera questions. This is our Melky Cabrera Special Feature, ATR edition.
So enough talking- more asking! It’s time for Ask the Reports.
Now let’s get to your top Melky Cabrera questions of the week: Read the rest of this entry
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