Monday, August 30, 2010
A Decade of Brilliance
With Ripken Jr closing in on its 10 year anniversary, it is only fitting to acknowledge those players that have made the first decade memorable. While there have been many ups and downs throughout the years, Ripken Jr has always produced competitive seasons and teams, year in and year out.
Today we will be releasing the first Ripken Jr Decade team. This team consists of the very best players in the league throughout this first decade and honors them for their contribution to this great world. During the Winter Meetings we will honor the Franchise of the Decade.
Without further delay, let us unveil the team!
The obvious choice for the Ace of the team was 9 time All-Star and 4 time Cy Young winner - Oscar Baumann. Baumann is the career wins leader with 179 and has a sparkling career ERA of 2.42. Baumann is also the career strikeout leader with 2174 k's in his career. While there may be other pitchers who have the talent that Baumann has there is no doubt that he has outperformed every other pitcher throughout his career. Baumann has won one World Championship and has started 14 postseason games. He is 6-4 with a 3.83 ERA and 93 strikeouts in 89.1 innings.
The second starter on the Decades team is 8 time All-Star and 2 time Cy Young winner, lefty Pat Politte. Polite is currently third on the career wins list with 159 and is the top lefty in the game. Politte is one of the few pitchers who have a chance to break some of Baumann's records once he decides to hang it up. Politte is one of the best postseason pitchers in the game. He has started 24 games and is 15-5 with 135 strikeouts and a 3.38 ERA in 160 postseason innings, recording a single complete game.
In the third slot is 5 time All-Star and Cy Young winner,Chad Lamb. Lamb is one of the youngest studs in the game and already is fifth on the all-time wins list with 144. He has a career ERA of 3.08 and has won three World Series Rings. Lamb rivals Politte in the postseason. He has 16 postseason wins to go along with 12 losses and a 3.82 ERA. Lamb has started 31 postseason games and has pitched 195.2 innings.
Fourth in the rotation is Torey Fernandez. Torey is an 8 time All-Star and a Cy Young winner. Fernandez is the youngest starting pitcher on the team and the future looks bright for him. At 28 Torey is fourth on the wins list with 154 and has a career ERA of 3.85, which should only continue to drop as he continues to develop. Fernandez has pitched in 25 postseason games and for two World Champions. He is 10-7 with a 4.29 ERA in 151 innings.
Rounding out the Starting Rotation is six time All-Star and yet another Cy Young winner, Jesus Fernandez;. Fernandez has been a workhorse his entire career and this rotation would not be complete without him in it. Even at age 35 he still continues to baffle hitters and put up amazing numbers. Jesus is second on the All-Time wins list with 168. At his age it doesn't appear he will be able to catch Baumann but 200 wins is easily within his reach. His career ERA is 3.35 and he has the most mileage on him in the league with 2,254 innings. Fernandez has pitched in 19 postseason games and started 18. He has also won a World Championship. Fernandez is 6-7 with 2 complete games. He has a glistening 3.13 ERA in 135 innings of work.
Of course you can't win games without anyone to relieve these guys, so let's take a look at the decade's relievers. The long relief pitchers are all current starters who may have failed to make the rotation but deserved to be on the team.
The top Long Reliever is two time Cy Young winner and 5 time All-Star - Julio Santiago. It was a very tough decision to not put him in the rotation, but there was never a doubt that he belonged on the team. Santiago is fourth on the All-Time ERA list, with a career ERA of 2.68 to go along with his 134 wins and sits third with a career WHIP of 1.08. Santiago also has a career 183 Quality Starts, which is good for fourth place all time. Santiago has started 9 postseason games and is 3-4 with a 4.14 ERA in 54.1 innings of work.
Second out of the bullpen is lefty hurler Rod Young. Young has a career 107 wins and an ERA of 2.60 which is second All-Time, despite having a .59 Groundball to Flyball Ratio, which is good for third worst All-Time. Young is a 4 time All-Star and has a Cy Young to his name. Rod Young has not pitched in the postseason.
Rounding out the Long Relief is Sandy Murphy. Murphy has a career 130 wins and 3.06 ERA. He is a 3 time All-Star but has yet to win a Cy Young. Murphy has started 265 career games and is 131-72 with a career 3.05 ERA and 1366 strikeouts. Murphy has pitched in 16 postseason games, starting 15. He is 4-5 and has completed 2 games with a 3.12 ERA.
No team is complete without the back of the bullpen, responsible for closing out every win. These next set of guys have shown throughout their career, and especially this last decade, to be the best at maintaining a lead late in the game.
First the three setup men, all either currently are or have been closers for their respective teams throughout their careers. Lefty Harold Blake leads the way. He has recorded 293 saves in his career, which is good for first place all time. Blake and his 3.17 ERA passed Thurman Wright earlier this season on the All-Time Saves list. Blake has pitched in 20 postseason games and is 14 for 15 in save opportunities with a 4.00 ERA in 18 innings of work. Wright, who has 288 career Saves is another member of the decades team. He has a career 3.75 ERA and has struck out 402 career batters. Wright has pitched in 21 postseason games and is 11 for 13 in save opportunities with a 5.50 ERA. Last is Danny Brinkley, who is one of the younger members on the team and is largely helped out by 3 of his last 4 years. Brinkley recorded an incredible 1.28 ERA just 3 seasons ago in route to a career 3.72 ERA and 221 Saves. Brinkley has pitched in 15 postseason games and is 9 for 9 in save opportunities with a 3.00 ERA in 12 innings of work.
Closing out games is none other than Pablo Bonilla. Bonilla has baffled batters for years while amassing 67 wins, 227 saves, 942 strikeouts and a nasty 1.05 WHIP. As a closer he has pitched in over 100 games twice in his career and has pitched in 923 innings. There is no relief pitcher who can match his dominance. Unfortunately Bonilla's regular season dominance has yet to carry over into the postseason. He has pitched in 26 games and is 3-2 with 4 saves and a 4.89 ERA in 38.2 innings of work.
Now that we have taken a look at the Decades Pitching Staff it is time to turn our attention to the guys that score the runs, allowing these pitchers to record all their wins and saves! The team has a starter at each position and a bench consisting of five players.
Leading off for the Decades team is All-Star 2b Ed Donovan. Donovan is one of only two players in the World that have achieved a Runs Created Per Game of more than 1. Donovan mixes speed with power and has a career .323 batting average to go with 230 Home Runs, 887 RBI and 421 Stolen Bases. Donovan is the career leader with 345 doubles and is second with 62 Triples. Donovan is a 6 time All-Star and an MVP. He has won 3 Silver Slugger Awards and a single Gold Glove. In 53 playoff appearances Donovan has a .381 Batting Average with a 1.062 On Base plus Slugging Percentage and 50 Runs.
Batting second in the lineup is 3b Ryan Carr. Carr is an electric, multitalented player and that can be seen in the numbers he has put up throughout the decade. Carr is a 5 time All-Star and 3 time Silver Slugger. Surprisingly Carr does not rank in the top 5 in league history in any major category but his talent and production still speaks for itself. Carr has the ability to hit for average, career .323, and power, career 242 Home Runs. He has a career On Base Percentage of .422, which currently is just shy of 5th all time. Carr has two World Series Rings and has played in 86 postseason games. He has 11 Home Runs and 50 RBI to go with a .317 Batting Average and .409 On Base Percentage and is 1 Hit shy of 100.
Batting third in the lineup is rf Damaso Peron. Peron is another unique talent, with elite speed and power. Peron has 314 career Home Runs and 823 RBI but does not rank in the Top 5 in either category All-Time. He also has 224 career Stolen Bases, which is quite a few for someone with as many Home Runs as he has. One of the biggest drawbacks of Peron's game is his near 1 strikeout per game. Peron is a 6 time All-Star and 4 time Silver Slugger and has won has been a league MVP. Peron is also a member of the 40/40 club.
Batting cleanup for the Decades team is none other than 3 time MVP and 7 Time All-Star lf, Andy Clayton. Clayton is the only other player in Ripken Jr to have a career Runs Created per Game of more than 1. Clayton is the career leader in On Base Percentage with a .437 and just pasted Ted Wilson for 1st in RBI with 1112. He is also 2nd in Home Runs with 392. His career 1.098 On Base plus Slugging Percent's also sits at the top of the career list. Clayton helped lead Syracuse to the World Title last season and added to his impressive post season numbers. Clayton is also a 4 time Silver Slugger Award winner. Clayton has played in 82 postseason games and boasts 26 Home Runs and 76 RBI.
Protecting Clayton on the decades team and batting fifth is 7 time All-Star and 5 time Silver Slugger as well as his current teammate , c Endy Suzuki. Suzuki is right on Clayton's tale in many categories, he currently ranks 3rd All-Time with a 1.029 On Base plus Slugging Percent and is 4th in Home Runs with 381. Suzuki is has a very good eye at the plate, walking 483 times in his career while striking out only 381 times. Suzuki may not be the best defensive catcher, but his career ERA is 4.10, which is not too bad, although it has helped that he has been catching Hall of Fame arms his entire career. Suzuki has been great in the postseason, with a career .303 batting average and 18 Home Runs in 79 games.
Batting sixth for the Decades is 2 time MVP and current teammate of two other starters, 1b Mikey Robbins. Robbins has exceled in every aspect of the game throughout his career and is the current career hits leader with 1,684 and holds the career batting average record at .342. Robbins is also in the Top 5 in career walks with 798. He has been selected to 3 All-Star games and is a 2 time Silver Slugger. Robbins finally won his first Ring last season, leading the Syracuse Tyrants to the Title and bolstering his Post Season numbers which include 94 Hits, 23 Home Runs and a .402 On Base Percentage in 320 At Bats.
Batting seventh in the lineup is cf Vic Sosa. Sosa is a 5 time All-Star and 2 time Silver Slugger. He does not rank in the Top 5 in any statistic but has clearly separated himself from the pack in centerfield. Sosa has a career .305 batting average and has added 217 Home Runs and 814 RBI. At 26 I'd expect to see Sosa on the next installment of the decade team as well.
Batting eighth for the decades is 3 time All-Star and two time Gold Glove winner, ss Diego Johnson. Deciding the Short Stop position was the hardest one to decide but Johnson ended up getting the nod for his superb defensive play. His career Fielding Percentage of .981 sets him apart from the rest. But don't think Johnson doesn't have a bat – while his career batting average of .258 is not stellar, he does have 151 Home Runs and 612 RBI.
With the lineup set, we still have 5 places left for the bench. These last five positions were the hardest to fill as there are quite a few qualified candidates. These next five players are listed in no particular order.
First on the bench is our backup c, 4 time All-Star and 4 time Silver Slugger, Jolbert Mieses. This was another hard position to fill, especially with Mieses switching between Designated Hitter and Catcher throughout his career, but his offensive statistics make him stand out among the rest of the catchers in the league. Mieses is 5th All-Time with a career .421 On Base Percentage and is 3rd All-Time with 836 Walks. Mieses may not be the best catcher behind the plate but his bat sets him apart from other catchers. While Mieses has yet to win a World Series Ring, he has help lead his team to the AL Pennant. He has 16 postseason Home Runs and 40 RBI in 46 Games.
Second on our bench is 3 time MVP, 1b Clarence Guiel. it was tough not getting Guiel into the starting lineup, but playing 1b has its downfalls. Guiel currently sits 5th on the All-Time Home Run list with 362. A major accomplishment of Guiel's career is the fact that he is a two time member of the 40/40 club and he has 244 career stolen bases. Guiel is hurt slightly by his .288 career batting average.
Third on the bench is 8 time All-Star, 2 time Gold Glove and 5 time Silver Slugger, as well as former league MVP, Philip Cashman. Cashman ranks 5th on the All-Time RBI list with 1061 and while he does not rank in the Top 5 in any other statistic he has magnificent career numbers. He has a career .316 batting average to go along with 331 Home Runs, 184 Stolen Base and 993 Runs. Cashman has played a variety of positions throughout his career, including SS, CF and 3B. While Cashman has only played in 31 postseason games, he does have a .320 Batting Average with 26 Runs and 12 Home Runs.
Fourth on the bench is 5 time All-Star, 2 time Gold Glove winner and 2 time Silver Slugger cof/3b Hick Hartley. Hartley does not rank in the Top 5 in any major statistic but he has some amazing offensive numbers to go along with his Golden Glove. Hartley has a career .292 Batting Average and .359 On Base Percentage to go along with 282 Home Runs and 853 RBI. Hartley has also flirted with the 40/40 club in his past, but has not reached that milestone yet. His closest year was Season 6 where he hit 44 Home Runs and stole 32 bases. Hartley has been a major contributor to two world Championship teams, playing in 61 Games and recording 15 Home Runs and 49 RBI to go along with 18 Stolen Bases and 43 Runs.
And now it is time to announce the final member of the Decades Team. This was a very hard decision to make but a few stats stood out among others for this player and one in particular that made his inclusion on the team a must.
The last player is 2 time All-Star and the only member of the 300 Home Run and 300 Stolen Base club, 1b/lf Walter Miller. Miller has a unique skill set, which can be seen with his inclusion in his very own club. Miller passed Ted Wilson this year for 3rd All-Time on the Runs list with 1,029 and is the career leader in Triples with 71. Miller has a career .343 On Base Percentage to go along with 1,434 Hits, 314 Home Runs, 917 RBI and 354 Stolen Bases. Miller is also one of three members of the 40/40 club, all of which made the decades team. Miller has played in 41 postseason games and has had good success. He has a .308 Batting Average, 8 Home Runs and 29 RBI to go with 9 Stolen Bases and 30 Runs.
And that concludes the first addition of the Ripken Jr – Decade Team. While there can be arguments made for players that did not make the team I believe we have selected players that accomplishments make them worthy of the recognition. Many of these players look to continue their dominance in hopes of being elected to the Hall of Fame once they decide to hang up the shoes and retire from the game. Tune back in a decade from now when we will honor the next decades worth of stars!
Please check out here for the spreadsheet where I calculated and recorded career stats for players as well as other information to this process.
Saturday, August 28, 2010
NL First Half Features
The National League has heard for years how they don't have the overall talent that the American Leagues has. Somebody needs to remind the Charlotte Big Red and Fresno Griz, apparently the missed that memo. The All-Star weekend has pasted and the NL All-Stars took down the AL All-Stars in a game that, wasn't really a game.
But let's move on to what really matters, who has positioned themselves for Playoff time!
The top two teams in the NL this year are Charlotte (60-33) and Fresno (60-33) who right now are leading their respective divisions and are tied for Home Field Advantage in the post season. Both teams are up 6 games in their division. Charlotte leads the Austin Stunners (54-39), who are currently sitting in a Wild Card spot, while Fresno leads Honolulu Humuhumukununukuapua (54-39), who is sitting in the other Wild Card Spot.
Surging to take control in the East is the Dover Devils (51-42), two years removed from their Championship. Thanks to a six game win streak, accompanied by a 5 game skid by the Atlanta Crackers (50-43) Dover sits one game ahead in the East.
Lastly the North, where not a single team is above .500. The young and super talented Pittsburgh Pranksters (45-48) lead the division by three games over the Sioux Falls Badlands (42-51) who had a mid-season ownership change.
The NL is a bit more predictable then the AL this year as there is not a team like Kansas City that is underachieving and could potentially turn it on and mix things up. I fully expect to see Charlotte, Austin, Fresno and Honolulu in the Postseason. The Las Vegas Slots (50-43) are 4 games out of the Wild Card currently and have a lot of young talent but I still think they are a year away. In the East it could go either way but i'll stick with Dover. They have been here before and I expect that to be a huge advantage for them. In the North you might as well role a die. The only team I don't expect to win is the Pawtucket Trash Monsters (34-59) who are 11 games back. Pittsburgh has had talent for years and hasn't been able to make it to the playoffs yet. I'd like to say this is their year but history is not on their side. I'll stick with them here, only because of the talent they do have but would not be surprised to see either Sioux Falls or the Minnesota Conspiracy (40-53) make a push for the division either.
But let's move on to what really matters, who has positioned themselves for Playoff time!
The top two teams in the NL this year are Charlotte (60-33) and Fresno (60-33) who right now are leading their respective divisions and are tied for Home Field Advantage in the post season. Both teams are up 6 games in their division. Charlotte leads the Austin Stunners (54-39), who are currently sitting in a Wild Card spot, while Fresno leads Honolulu Humuhumukununukuapua (54-39), who is sitting in the other Wild Card Spot.
Surging to take control in the East is the Dover Devils (51-42), two years removed from their Championship. Thanks to a six game win streak, accompanied by a 5 game skid by the Atlanta Crackers (50-43) Dover sits one game ahead in the East.
Lastly the North, where not a single team is above .500. The young and super talented Pittsburgh Pranksters (45-48) lead the division by three games over the Sioux Falls Badlands (42-51) who had a mid-season ownership change.
The NL is a bit more predictable then the AL this year as there is not a team like Kansas City that is underachieving and could potentially turn it on and mix things up. I fully expect to see Charlotte, Austin, Fresno and Honolulu in the Postseason. The Las Vegas Slots (50-43) are 4 games out of the Wild Card currently and have a lot of young talent but I still think they are a year away. In the East it could go either way but i'll stick with Dover. They have been here before and I expect that to be a huge advantage for them. In the North you might as well role a die. The only team I don't expect to win is the Pawtucket Trash Monsters (34-59) who are 11 games back. Pittsburgh has had talent for years and hasn't been able to make it to the playoffs yet. I'd like to say this is their year but history is not on their side. I'll stick with them here, only because of the talent they do have but would not be surprised to see either Sioux Falls or the Minnesota Conspiracy (40-53) make a push for the division either.
AL First Half Features
All-Star Weekend has come and gone, the second half is upon us! After a Winter of helter skelter moves and numerous teams cashing in on a fantastic free agent market the season itself has been just as exciting! We started the discussing the power and talent of the American League; the National League must not have liked all that talk as they have shown through the first half they have some serious title contenders as well.
In no particular order the four teams that were talked about the most were the Wichita Black Lightning, Trenton Generals, Kansas City Black and Blue Brachiosaurus and, as always, the Salem Witch Doctors. These four teams were talked up as the Class of the League and top title contenders.
Two of those teams, Salem (62-31) and Trenton (60-33), have played fantastic ball all season, positioning themselves in the early 1 and 2 spots respectively. Wichita (54-39) has been good but not great and has played rather inconstantly, outside of future Hall of Fame starter Oscar Baumann none of the starters have found their groove yet. Chili Stocker started the year strong but has been very inconsistent in his last 10 starts. All three of these teams seem to be in good position to make the Playoffs this year barring some unforeseen disaster.
Kansas City has been non-existent and is absolutely the biggest surprise of the first half. The team looked like a lock for 100 wins in Spring Training but has struggled to stay above .500 and is 1-4 against division rival Wichita. Currently the team sits in third place in the AL East behind the Hartford Yellow Jackets. Kansas City can not afford this lackluster performance any longer being 9 games out of the Wild Card currently, or they will not be seeing any postseason ball.
AL North rivals, Syracuse Tyrants (55-38) and New York Moose Knuckles (54-39) have been strong this year and sit in the Wild Card spots early. Syracuse has stayed strong despite being gutted of Cy Young pitchers Pat Politte and Oscar Baumann who led the team to the World Series last season.
In the South the Tampa Bay Waves (49-44) lead the way behind their big free agent signee, slugger Achilles Cohen who was left off the All-Star team but leads the league with 43 Home Runs. Tampa Bay looks strong but is only 3 games ahead of Iowa City I Wanna Score More (46-47).
When the Playoffs start I expect to see Trenton and Salem as the 1 and 2 seeds, with Wichita as the 3. Although it would not surprise me to see Wichita make a strong push for a 1st round bye. I expect to see Tampa Bay hold on to the South. If Cohen's bat goes cold then watch out, Iowa City will be ready to take the division if he should falter. I expect New York and Syracuse to hold onto the Wild Cards, but would be shocked not to see Kansas City make a push at some point. Hartford is a very young and talented team but they have no pitching and that is going to hurt them, they might be a spoiler, knocking someone out of the Playoffs, but I don't see them making a push for a spot themselves.
In no particular order the four teams that were talked about the most were the Wichita Black Lightning, Trenton Generals, Kansas City Black and Blue Brachiosaurus and, as always, the Salem Witch Doctors. These four teams were talked up as the Class of the League and top title contenders.
Two of those teams, Salem (62-31) and Trenton (60-33), have played fantastic ball all season, positioning themselves in the early 1 and 2 spots respectively. Wichita (54-39) has been good but not great and has played rather inconstantly, outside of future Hall of Fame starter Oscar Baumann none of the starters have found their groove yet. Chili Stocker started the year strong but has been very inconsistent in his last 10 starts. All three of these teams seem to be in good position to make the Playoffs this year barring some unforeseen disaster.
Kansas City has been non-existent and is absolutely the biggest surprise of the first half. The team looked like a lock for 100 wins in Spring Training but has struggled to stay above .500 and is 1-4 against division rival Wichita. Currently the team sits in third place in the AL East behind the Hartford Yellow Jackets. Kansas City can not afford this lackluster performance any longer being 9 games out of the Wild Card currently, or they will not be seeing any postseason ball.
AL North rivals, Syracuse Tyrants (55-38) and New York Moose Knuckles (54-39) have been strong this year and sit in the Wild Card spots early. Syracuse has stayed strong despite being gutted of Cy Young pitchers Pat Politte and Oscar Baumann who led the team to the World Series last season.
In the South the Tampa Bay Waves (49-44) lead the way behind their big free agent signee, slugger Achilles Cohen who was left off the All-Star team but leads the league with 43 Home Runs. Tampa Bay looks strong but is only 3 games ahead of Iowa City I Wanna Score More (46-47).
When the Playoffs start I expect to see Trenton and Salem as the 1 and 2 seeds, with Wichita as the 3. Although it would not surprise me to see Wichita make a strong push for a 1st round bye. I expect to see Tampa Bay hold on to the South. If Cohen's bat goes cold then watch out, Iowa City will be ready to take the division if he should falter. I expect New York and Syracuse to hold onto the Wild Cards, but would be shocked not to see Kansas City make a push at some point. Hartford is a very young and talented team but they have no pitching and that is going to hurt them, they might be a spoiler, knocking someone out of the Playoffs, but I don't see them making a push for a spot themselves.
Friday, August 27, 2010
First Half Awards
Well we are at the half way point in the season and there have been many surprises and also expected results. As Ryan Carr went out and won the Home Run derby today in slugging fashion let's take a closer look at how the first half has played out!
First let's take a look at both league's early Cy Young Races. Both leagues have a few guys who stand out early. In the AL you have Oscar Baumann (14-4, 3.17) who leads the league in wins and is likely has the slight early edge as you can guarantee he will continue to get the wins with the Wichita lineup behind him. Pat Politte (10-1, 2.55) is right there behind him but I give the early edge to Baumann since he has meant a lot more to the Lightning than Politte has meant to the Brachiosaurus'. Also right behind those two is Salem pitcher Keith Bagwell (11-1, 2.64) and Syracuse pitcher Enrique Carrasquel (11-2, 2.67). I think all four of these guys will be in the mix for the award at the end of the year I give Baumann the slight edge because he has clearly meant much more to his team, without him the Lightning would be lucky to be above .500.
Moving to the NL Trevor Douglass (10-4, 2.04) leads the way. The 23 year old rightie has been amazing this year and will be in the mix right down to the end. Right behind him is a group of three pitchers who have all had fantastic first halves, former Cy Young winner Torey Fernandez (12-5, 2.41) has been electric for Dover. Also Chad Lamb (11-3,2.45) and Doc Hunter (9-2, 2.52) have been fantastic for Austin and have kept the team near the top of the league all year. I'll stick with Douglass and his near sub-2.0 era as my first half Cy Young.
Moving onto the AL MVP race, the story of the year has been Achilles Cohen (43 HR, 97 RBI, .277) , who has been crushing the ball all year and has already matched his Home Run total from last year. But is his .277 going to hurt his MVP candidacy? He has brought Tampa Bay to the top of the South, so in my book he has a very legit claim to the title. This year has also been a career year for Ryan Carr (26 HR, 94 RBI, .360). He came to Wichita this spring in the hopes of getting back to the World Series and if he keeps up these numbers he might make that happen. If neither of those stat lines made you wish those guys were dressed in your colors take a look at a guy that combines both Cohen's Power and Carr's Average - Bill Weaver (32 HR, 80 RBI, .357). Bill has New York fighting for a division title this year and has done what neither of the previous two players have, hit for both power and average. He might not be at the top of the list but I think we also need to mention Trenton All-Star Ed Donovan (23 HR, 71 RBI, 29 SB, .328) he adds speed and stolen bases to his resume which neither of the other top players do. Right now I have to say that Cohen is the early favorite with Carr right on his tail.
In the NL we start out with Chris Lyons (23 HR, 89 RBI, .310). Lyons is a great player who is able to hit for power, average and steal the occasional base. Steven Munson (34 HR, 84 RBI, .341) is also having a spectacular year. Like Lyons, Munson also has the ability to steal bases and is leading Minnesota to their best year ever. Harry Rodriguez (19 HR, 69 RBI, .361) is having a solid year, but no on the level of either Munson or Lyons. I think the MVP will come down between the two of those and my early winner has to be Munson.
The AL has some good rookies this year and I will touch on a few. This award will come down to the very end of the year. Right now I would have to give the early lead to Ken Borchard (10 HR, 40 RBI, 19 SB, .332). He combines everything and what he lacks in power he gets back with his speed. He is helping Albuquerque become relevant this year and getting them close to .500 along with fellow rookie Valerio Rosario (16 HR, 54 RBI, 19 SB, .309). I think that Fred Hutch (1 HR, 27 RBI, 52 SB, .242) as well. If he can raise his batting average 20 to 30 points in the 2nd half he could seriously contend for the award if he goes over 100 SB. The World Record is 118, which he won't hit this year but as he gets more comfortable at the Major League level I'd expect him to contend for the record, as he should get on base enough with his bat.
For the NL Rookie of the Year award I don't really feel there is much of a competition currently. Right now I feel the Award is Desi Carreras (7-2, 3.82) award to lose. Al Alvarado (6-6, 3.67) is the closest competitor but I think his losses hurt him currently.
Let's take a quick look at the leaders for the Fireman Award. Right now I think the AL leader is Danny Brinkley (0-0, 21 SV, 1.71). He doesn't quite have the save numbers yet - which ultimately might kill him because his team had had so many blowouts but he has been near un-hitable this year with a .062 WHIP and .162 OAV. Also Harold Williams (0-2, 25 SV, 4.05), Jose Gabriel (1-5, 19 SV, 3.60) and Bing Frazier (0-0, 23 SV, 2.96) should be in contention. If Esmailyn Rojas (0-5, 29 SV, 4.25) can get his ERA down he could contend as well.
The NL award is a bit harder to predict seeing as how the ERA's are a bit higher. I'd have to say the award will come from between Jerry Murphy (0-1, 24 SV, 3.62), Brian Davis (0-2, 22 SV, 2.78), Hiram Kent (0-0, 21 SV, 2.70) and Omar Franco (0-4, 21 SV, 2.63). I'll take Davis as the current early leader.
First let's take a look at both league's early Cy Young Races. Both leagues have a few guys who stand out early. In the AL you have Oscar Baumann (14-4, 3.17) who leads the league in wins and is likely has the slight early edge as you can guarantee he will continue to get the wins with the Wichita lineup behind him. Pat Politte (10-1, 2.55) is right there behind him but I give the early edge to Baumann since he has meant a lot more to the Lightning than Politte has meant to the Brachiosaurus'. Also right behind those two is Salem pitcher Keith Bagwell (11-1, 2.64) and Syracuse pitcher Enrique Carrasquel (11-2, 2.67). I think all four of these guys will be in the mix for the award at the end of the year I give Baumann the slight edge because he has clearly meant much more to his team, without him the Lightning would be lucky to be above .500.
Moving to the NL Trevor Douglass (10-4, 2.04) leads the way. The 23 year old rightie has been amazing this year and will be in the mix right down to the end. Right behind him is a group of three pitchers who have all had fantastic first halves, former Cy Young winner Torey Fernandez (12-5, 2.41) has been electric for Dover. Also Chad Lamb (11-3,2.45) and Doc Hunter (9-2, 2.52) have been fantastic for Austin and have kept the team near the top of the league all year. I'll stick with Douglass and his near sub-2.0 era as my first half Cy Young.
Moving onto the AL MVP race, the story of the year has been Achilles Cohen (43 HR, 97 RBI, .277) , who has been crushing the ball all year and has already matched his Home Run total from last year. But is his .277 going to hurt his MVP candidacy? He has brought Tampa Bay to the top of the South, so in my book he has a very legit claim to the title. This year has also been a career year for Ryan Carr (26 HR, 94 RBI, .360). He came to Wichita this spring in the hopes of getting back to the World Series and if he keeps up these numbers he might make that happen. If neither of those stat lines made you wish those guys were dressed in your colors take a look at a guy that combines both Cohen's Power and Carr's Average - Bill Weaver (32 HR, 80 RBI, .357). Bill has New York fighting for a division title this year and has done what neither of the previous two players have, hit for both power and average. He might not be at the top of the list but I think we also need to mention Trenton All-Star Ed Donovan (23 HR, 71 RBI, 29 SB, .328) he adds speed and stolen bases to his resume which neither of the other top players do. Right now I have to say that Cohen is the early favorite with Carr right on his tail.
In the NL we start out with Chris Lyons (23 HR, 89 RBI, .310). Lyons is a great player who is able to hit for power, average and steal the occasional base. Steven Munson (34 HR, 84 RBI, .341) is also having a spectacular year. Like Lyons, Munson also has the ability to steal bases and is leading Minnesota to their best year ever. Harry Rodriguez (19 HR, 69 RBI, .361) is having a solid year, but no on the level of either Munson or Lyons. I think the MVP will come down between the two of those and my early winner has to be Munson.
The AL has some good rookies this year and I will touch on a few. This award will come down to the very end of the year. Right now I would have to give the early lead to Ken Borchard (10 HR, 40 RBI, 19 SB, .332). He combines everything and what he lacks in power he gets back with his speed. He is helping Albuquerque become relevant this year and getting them close to .500 along with fellow rookie Valerio Rosario (16 HR, 54 RBI, 19 SB, .309). I think that Fred Hutch (1 HR, 27 RBI, 52 SB, .242) as well. If he can raise his batting average 20 to 30 points in the 2nd half he could seriously contend for the award if he goes over 100 SB. The World Record is 118, which he won't hit this year but as he gets more comfortable at the Major League level I'd expect him to contend for the record, as he should get on base enough with his bat.
For the NL Rookie of the Year award I don't really feel there is much of a competition currently. Right now I feel the Award is Desi Carreras (7-2, 3.82) award to lose. Al Alvarado (6-6, 3.67) is the closest competitor but I think his losses hurt him currently.
Let's take a quick look at the leaders for the Fireman Award. Right now I think the AL leader is Danny Brinkley (0-0, 21 SV, 1.71). He doesn't quite have the save numbers yet - which ultimately might kill him because his team had had so many blowouts but he has been near un-hitable this year with a .062 WHIP and .162 OAV. Also Harold Williams (0-2, 25 SV, 4.05), Jose Gabriel (1-5, 19 SV, 3.60) and Bing Frazier (0-0, 23 SV, 2.96) should be in contention. If Esmailyn Rojas (0-5, 29 SV, 4.25) can get his ERA down he could contend as well.
The NL award is a bit harder to predict seeing as how the ERA's are a bit higher. I'd have to say the award will come from between Jerry Murphy (0-1, 24 SV, 3.62), Brian Davis (0-2, 22 SV, 2.78), Hiram Kent (0-0, 21 SV, 2.70) and Omar Franco (0-4, 21 SV, 2.63). I'll take Davis as the current early leader.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Power Rankings
Here we go with the first set of power rankings. I will post the top 10 and the associated stats and add a little write up later on the top 5.
1) Charlotte Big Red (20-6, 10-0 W14)
7) Austin Stunners (15-11, 6-4 W1)
8) Atlanta Crackers (16-10, 6-4 W3)
9) Vancouver Giants (15-11, 6-4 L2)
10) Kansas City Black and Blue Brachiosaurus (13-13, 5-5 L1)
I have to admit with the AL being the stronger league I did give a little more weight to teams in the American over the National League, you might disagree with that and you will see a team like Kansas City ranked a bit higher then you might assume. I fully expect to see them in the Top 5 by the end of the year but as of now they have not played to their potential.
1) Charlotte Big Red (20-6, 10-0 W14)
Without a doubt the #1 team in RJ currently. The team is 6th in the League with a 3.80 ERA and closer Jerry Murphy leads the league with 10 saves. And don't forget the bats, Charlotte is 4th in the league with a .293 average and even after losing slugger Achilles Cohen this offseason the team is ranked 4th in the league with 46 Home Runs and 5th with a .490 slugging average.2) Trenton Generals (19-7, 8-2 W2)
Trenton comes close to being #1, if it were not for the 14 game win streak that Charlotte is on I would likely have moved Trenton into the top slot. Trenton, lead by Ed Donovan, leads the League in almost every offensive category, average (.314), on base percent (.377), slugging average (.531), hits (302) and doubles (62). Trenton's pitching is not so good and might be the teams Achilles heal throughout the season. The team is 23rd in the league in ERA with a 4.64.3) Wichita Black Lightning (17-9, 6-4 W3)
Wichita gets a slight boost over Salem and Iowa City due to their last 3 games performance, including a 31 run game yesterday. As expected the clubs offense has been phenomenal. The club combines power and speed like no other team in the league. The team 2nd in the league in stolen bases, with 69 and 12th with 37 Home Runs. The team also leads the league in walks with 103 and triples with 12. The team is 2nd, only to Trenton, in almost every other offensive stat. The team has been lead by 3b Ryan Carr, who has been sensational since being acquired via trade from the Sioux Falls Badlands. The team also has 3 players in the top 5 in the league in stolen bases. The clubs pitching has been mediocre. The rotation, other then Ace Oscar Baumann and #2 Chili Stocker, has been ok but relief pitching has been the teams Achilles heal. Closer Danny Brinkley has been solid but outside of him the bullpen needs help.4) Salem Witch Doctors (17-9, 6-4 W1)
Salem is the top team when it comes to averaging their overall bats with their arms, it hasn't shown quite as much as GM Taz would like but it bodes well for October. The team is ranked #2 in the league in average (.304), #4 in on base percent (.374) and #3 in walks (101). Couple that with their #5 ERA (3.66) and #6 WHIP (1.27) and you have a team that will be in the hunt for the World Series come October.5) Iowa City I Wanna Score More (19-7, 8-2 W1)
Iowa has one of the top record in the League and has shown that they might be able to hang in with the top tier of teams, time will show whether they can through the entire season. Either way I expect Iowa City to be in the Playoffs come season end. The team is lead by a pitching staff ranked #5 in WHIP (1.24) and #9 in ERA (4.00). Ace Omar Vargas is right near the top of the league in all pitching categories and is 4-1 with a 1.88 ERA. The teams bats have been near the top of the league as well, with the club currently in #6 in average (.285) and #9 in on base percent (.341). The team also leads the league in Home Runs with 51. Lead by Mark Carew who is 6th in the league with 10 HRs.6) Honolulu Humuhumukununukuapua (18-8, 7-3 W1)
7) Austin Stunners (15-11, 6-4 W1)
8) Atlanta Crackers (16-10, 6-4 W3)
9) Vancouver Giants (15-11, 6-4 L2)
10) Kansas City Black and Blue Brachiosaurus (13-13, 5-5 L1)
I have to admit with the AL being the stronger league I did give a little more weight to teams in the American over the National League, you might disagree with that and you will see a team like Kansas City ranked a bit higher then you might assume. I fully expect to see them in the Top 5 by the end of the year but as of now they have not played to their potential.
Carr Reaches 24 straight, breaks Franchise Record
3b Ryan Carr set a Franchise record earlier today in the Wichita Black Lightning's shelling of the Tacoma Amber Flashlongs.
Carr extended his hitting streak to 21 games with his 2nd inning Grand Slam.
Carr's streak currently sits at 24 games, which breaks Nick Hunter's franchise record of 20 games set in season 5 and is 18 games behind Ted Wilson's record of 40 games.
Right behind Carr is teammate Peter Elster who is currently sitting with a 23 game hit streak.
"I want to beat him bad," Elster said after today's game.
While Carr's answer to the question was a little more team oriented "We're here to win games for Wichita. Period. If that means I help out with a nice hitting streak so be it, but I really couldn't care less about the personal accolades, I want to be playing and winning in October."
Carr extended his hitting streak to 21 games with his 2nd inning Grand Slam.
Carr's streak currently sits at 24 games, which breaks Nick Hunter's franchise record of 20 games set in season 5 and is 18 games behind Ted Wilson's record of 40 games.
Right behind Carr is teammate Peter Elster who is currently sitting with a 23 game hit streak.
"I want to beat him bad," Elster said after today's game.
While Carr's answer to the question was a little more team oriented "We're here to win games for Wichita. Period. If that means I help out with a nice hitting streak so be it, but I really couldn't care less about the personal accolades, I want to be playing and winning in October."
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
