Tag Archives: NL

“30 Teams, 30 Posts” (2015): A gratuitous post on Hank the Dog

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today, a cute dog.

I could write about the Brewers, but why do that when I now have a perfect excuse to have pictures of Hank, the cute little stray pup who was adopted as a unofficial mascot by the Brewers last season and found it’s way into America’s heart?

I mean, look at this fella:

D’aww.

(Go below the jump for more, since this is image heavy.)

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“30 Teams, 30 Posts” (2015): So, are the Cardinals the “Best Fans in Baseball”?

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here.Today, we look at the evidence for and against the claim that St. Louis is home of the “Best Fans in Baseball”.

It is often said that St. Louis is the home of the “Best Fans in Baseball”. But how true is that claim? Let’s look at the evidence for and against such a claim:

FOR:

  • A Wall Street Journal article on what cities get the best TV ratings for each sport (and not just for their home teams, but for nationally televised games in general) had St. Louis as the top location for baseball.
  • The Cardinals were the top-rated (as far as percentage) team in baseball locally/regionally last season.
  • Former Commissioner Bud Selig said so, and no matter what you say about Selig, it can’t be argued that he probably had been to every stadium in the league, probably several times.
  • The Cardinals were second in attendance last season, behind only the Dodgers, who have a larger stadium and a much larger fanbase numerically. They have averaged over 40,000 fans every year except once since 2005 and been in the top four in NL attendance every year except once since 1996.
  • Anecdotal evidence online says that the team leads the league in number of fans who keep score, to the point where the old Busch Stadium apparently showed score-keeping marks for batters so that people who had missed something could fill it in (I’m not 100% sure about this, but I remember reading it somewhere).
  • The Cardinals haven’t been last in the league in attendance since 1916.
  • And, yes, they do show an appreciation for good baseball, even, at times, when it’s an opponent doing it.
  • They count Ellie Kemper and Jon Hamm as members, and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt is awesome. Not really relevant to this discussion, just sort of throwing it out there.

Against:

  • St. Louis, despite it’s passion for the Cardinals, obviously wasn’t baseball-crazy enough to keep the Browns from moving back in the 1950s. Although, to be fair, the Browns almost perpetually were crummy.
  • The racist, homophobic and generally disgusting people showcased on the “BestFansStLouis”, which I refuse to link to for consideration of human dignity. However, it should be noted that every sports team has plenty of fans who are horrible bigoted a-holes, it’s just that they don’t have Twitter accounts devoted to them.
  • It was Tywin Lannister of Game of Thrones fame that said: “Any man who must say ‘I am King’ is no true king.” With that in mind, one must wonder if any Cardinals fan who calls the Cardinal faithful the “Best Fans in Baseball'” is truly worthy of being called the Best Fans In Baseball.
  • Have overlooked the flaws of many of the team’s great players and managers, such as steroid use, drinking, etc. etc. Although, again, this is true for every single team’s fanbase.
  • It is nearly impossible to truly figure out who the best fans in anything are, since there are so many things to consider and ultimately it is a vague intangible title that can change based on definition, a team’s fortunes, and other factors.

So, the verdict is… Cardinals fans are likely, but not definitely, the Best Fans in Baseball. But as the last “against” proves… it really doesn’t matter.

“30 Teams, 30 Posts” (2015): Are the Washington Nationals going to win it all? Well… Maybe?

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today: The Washington Nationals, my early favorite for World Series champion.

I think the Washington Nationals will win the World Series this season. And yet, I’m not 100% sure why I think this.

Maybe it’s the pitching. They have added Max Scherzer to an already excellent staff that includes Stephen Strasburg, Jordan Zimmermann and Doug Fister.

Maybe it’s because this might be the year that Bryce Harper returns to form after an off-year last season.

Maybe it’s because of Anthony Rendon.

Or maybe, just maybe, it’s because this will be the year where things click, where the odd breaks that have gone against them will go for them, where the bullpen won’t screw it up, and they finally go to the World Series for the first time in franchise history.

Or maybe not. Maybe it’s something else. I don’t know, but for some reason- and I’m not sure what- I think this is the Nationals’ year.

Maybe.

“30 Teams, 30 Posts”: The Arizona Diamondbacks are now the forgotten team of the NL West

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today, the Arizona Diamondbacks.

For years, the Padres were the forgotten team of baseball, or, at the very least, the NL West. The Dodgers were the Dodgers and thus seemingly inherently interesting. The Giants have been winning world titles every even year. The Rockies have had Troy Tulowitzki, who is always in the news because he is always on the brink of being traded, and yet never is. The Diamondbacks were full of talk about “grit” and so on, and the Padres… were just kind of there.

But now, after a crazy off-season for the Padres that may well have turned them into a contender, the Diamondbacks are the forgotten team of the NL West. They don’t have Kirk Gibson there anymore trumpeting things about grit anymore, and it’s likely they will be an afterthought in the race for the postseason.

Although they do still have Paul Goldschmidt, and he’s really good, so that’s cool. But, alas, it’s unlikely he’ll be enough to make the Diamondbacks anything more than a minor character in this season of Major League Baseball.

“30 Teams, 30 Posts” (2015): Technically, the Pittsburgh Pirates are Privateers

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today, I get into semantics and say why the Pirates’ name is incorrect.

The Pirates, like seemingly every team this year, could be a serious contender and return to the postseason for the third time in as many years, which is something I never thought I’d type, even with the expanded wild card.

There’s a lot to like about the Pirates. They have Andrew McCutchen, who is of course one of the best players in the game, and they have a very nice pitching staff that could be even better this year as the young pitchers such as Gerrit Cole get even better.

However, I do have to bring one problem to everyone’s attention: The Pirates’ name is completely inaccurate.

And, no, I don’t just mean that in the sense that McCutchen and friends do not actually plunder their way across the seven seas. No, I mean that their name doesn’t quite fit.

First off, some history. The Pittsburgh Pirates can be traced back to the Pittsburgh Alleghenys (sic) of the 19th century. That was the name they played under starting in their first season of 1887 and what many previous teams in the Pittsburgh area had been named. However, in 1890, the Alleghenys signed Lou Bierbauer, who had been a member of the American Association’s Philadelphia Athletics (despite the name, there is no connection to either of the Athletics or Phillies of today). Their actions were called “piratical” by American Association officials, and the Alleghenys ran with it, changing their name to Pirates.

However, there is one problem: just because your actions are piratical does not make you a pirate. Well, under some definitions it does, but only the most general and encompassing of them.

You see, pirates are, by definition, not part of any country or location other then themselves, their ship, and their crew. Maybe also other pirate crews, if they are part of some sort of terrorist group (such as many of the Somali pirates of today, who are loosely connected with terrorist organizations in the area).

Now, let’s see, while the Pittsburgh Pirates are definitely in it for themselves and their crew (their teammates), they also are representing a location and a government, albeit indirectly: The City of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

And, guess what? When a Pirate is signed up to represent one government or location’s interests, the pirate ceases to be a pirate, and becomes a privateer. To put it into baseball terms, pirates are basically always free agents, while privateers are players who’ve signed up to play for a certain team.

So, ladies and gentleman, know that while the 2015 Pittsburgh Pirates may be destined for great things, they are not, technically, pirates. Rather, they are the Pittsburgh Privateers.

Which still kind of rolls off the tongue pretty well, all things considered.

“30 Teams, 30 Posts”: The Mr. Met Game

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today, we honor Mr. Met, mention the latest crazy thing to happen to the Mets, and I introduce you to a fun game.

The New York Mets have a special quality. Perhaps it is because of their little brother status, their second-banana nature, the fact they are always on camera but never standing first in line. They are the Luigi to the Yankees’ Mario, the Teller to the Yankees’ Penn, the Roebuck to the Yankees’ Sears.

Or maybe it’s because they have really weird stuff happen to them all the freaking time. Like on Monday, when a blow-out spring training defeat led to a long meeting between manager and owner.

Which is crazy, and yet not even in the top 20 craziest things to happen to the Mets.

But, one man stands tall, no matter how bad it is and how top-heavy it is:

Yes, Mr. Met. No matter how bad it is, he smiles.

And, he’s the subject of a fun game I have: The Mr. Met Game.

It works similar to how people can add “… in bed” to dialogue from movies, books, and speeches. Y’know, like “He’s been doing the heavy lifting… in bed.”

Basically, take a list, any list, and then add “and Mr. Met” at the end.

Let’s take the beginning of the Declaration of Independence, for example:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness, and Mr. Met.

Or, list the actors who have played James Bond: Sean Connery, George Lazenby, Roger Moore, Timothy Dalton, Pierce Brosnan, Daniel Craig, and Mr. Met.

…You don’t find this funny, do you?

Well, you see, it’s funnier when it’s just slipped in there when you least expect it, thus totally ruining the gag for this post. But, rest assured, when done right… it’s hilarious. Especially when spoken aloud.

 

30 Teams, 30 Posts (2015): A Haiku About The Braves

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. Previous installments can be found here. Today, I lazily reduce the entire Atlanta Braves into a Haiku.

 

Atlanta Braves Team

No more Heyward or Justin

Markakis there now

 

—

 

30 Teams, 30 Posts (2015): It’s not an even year, so why bother with writing something about the Giants?

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. This is the second post of the series- look here for the rest. Today, a tongue-in-cheek post about the San Francisco Giants.

The San Francisco Giants have won the World Series in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

They did not win the World Series in 2011 or 2013. In fact, they didn’t even make the playoffs.

So, despite the small sample size of that trend, it’s obvious that the Giants will not make the playoffs this year. Sure, they still have a good rotation, a very strong bullpen, Buster Posey, Hunter Pence, Bruce Bochy, and the like, but they also no longer have Pablo Sandoval. Michael Morse is gone too, which removes a power threat.

And, again, it really doesn’t matter, since it’s an odd year, not an even year. They could have Willie Mays and Barry Bonds available in the outfield, Juan Marichal in the rotation and Willie McCovey at first, and they still wouldn’t be making the playoffs this season. So, really, why even bother previewing them? Go eat some cookies or play video games or something. Maybe read a good book.

So, yeah, maybe the Giants will be worth writing about next year, when they are next scheduled to win the World Series. Until then, though, what they do will probably just be kind of meh.

30 Teams, 30 Posts (2015): The Philadelphia Phillies are a pit of doom and despair

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In 30 Teams, 30 Posts, I write a post about every MLB team in some way in the lead-up to the beginning of the 2015 season. This is the first post of the series.

Let’s start this off with the most depressing of all Major League Baseball teams: The Philadelphia Phillies. After all, there is nothing more depressing than seeing something that was once great, only to have fallen into horrible disrepair and general despair.

And, man, that totally fits the Phillies. It was less than seven years ago that the Phillies won the World Series, less than six years since they lost to the Yankees in the World Series, and less than four years since the grand rotation of Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Roy Oswalt and Joe Blanton were knocked out in the first round of the playoffs by the Cardinals, with Ryan Howard injuring himself on the final play of the series.

It’s been all downhill from there. And now, they are, without question, the most hopeless of all teams in Major League Baseball. Some teams like the Twins may well end up being worse than the Phillies in the standings, but they have better prospects for the future and better people at the helm. The Phillies, meanwhile, have… Ruben Amaro Jr.

Ruben Amaro has become something of a bogey-man in baseball internet circles. It is a scary place to be in, where Dusty Baker stalks young pitchers by night attempting to ruin their arms and Joe West purposely gets calls wrong just to piss us all off.

The internet’s characterization of Amaro can perhaps best be described as seeing him as Nero, fiddling while Rome burns. And, to a certain extent, there is some truth to that. The results of the Phillies have to a certain extent gotten worse with every passing season since he took over after the 2008 season, and the playoff appearances early in Amaro’s tenure can more be drawn up to the after-effects of Pat Gillick‘s work. He was the one who gave Ryan Howard a 5-year extension that was recently named the 7th-worst in baseball, and they remain one of the few- perhaps the only– team to not hold statistical analysis in a high regard (perhaps that is why he is known to overvalue the players he does have). Last year, I attended a Moneyball screening with a post-show discussion on statistics by FanGraphs editor/writer Dave Cameron. He said that the Phillies have one statistical analyst, and that Major League Baseball more-or-less may have forced them to take it.

I think he was only half-joking.

And so, as a result of all of this, the Phillies enter this spring training as one of the few teams that can truly be said to not have any chance. Jimmy Rollins is now gone to Los Angeles, and Amaro is still probably trying (perhaps in vain, given how much he wants for them) to get rid of Hamels and Howard. Oh, and did I mention that Amaro has literally said that the team would be better off without Howard? Because he totally did.

No wonder some are saying this might be one of the most awkward spring trainings in the team’s history.

Now, to be fair, it isn’t all bad for Philadelphia. They do still have some prospects left, including young SS J.P. Crawford, who is MLB.com’s 21st best prospect, #37 prospect Aaron Nola, a RHP who made it as high as AA last season, and #55 prospect Maikel Franco, a power-hitting corner-infielder who made his debut in the bigs as a September call-up.

They won’t nearly be enough to turn around the Phillies anytime soon however (Keith Law recently named the Phillies the 25th best farm system in baseball), and so, the team that only a few years ago was a perpetual contender for the World Series crown is currently in a holding pattern of horribleness, filled with has-beens, never-will-bes, and players who may just be a year or two away from falling into one of those categories. It somewhat reminds me of the Orioles of the mid-to-late 1990s, who went from two straight ALCS in 1996 and 1997 to a team not unlike the Phillies of today.

The Orioles didn’t return to the playoffs until 2012. It’s not that out of the realm of possibility that the Phillies could be facing a similar wait.

2014 SEASON PREVIEW (PART 7): Best Case/Worst Case for… the NL EAST (with Getty Images)

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We reach our last installment of Best Case/Worst Case… with, of course, sometimes irrelevant images from Getty.

Here we go:

Atlanta Braves:

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Best-Case Scenario: World Series. I mean, look at that pitching staff! Look at the young hitters! They should at least make the playoffs, right.

Worst-Case Scenario: Well, unless their pitching gets hurt. If that happens, there could be big trouble.

Worst-Case Scenario That Could Actually Happen: Whoops. It’s already happened.

Washington Nationals

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Best-Case Scenario: The World Series comes to Washington for the first times since the 1930s, while Bryce Harper makes a great leap forward into near-Trout levels of awesomeness, bro.

Worst-Case Scenario: Stephen Strasburg’s arm spontaneously combusts during a game.

Worst-Case Scenario That Could Actually Happen: Harper stagnates, Strasburg and Friends get hurt, Matt Williams is not a good manager, etc.

New York Mets

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Best Case Scenario: Everybody stays healthy and they don’t embarrass themselves too much before Matt Harvey returns next season from Tommy John. Maybe some of the prospects, like Noah Syndergaard, make their first appearances.

Worst Case Scenario: This is the Mets, so you should imagine your worst case scenario for them then multiply it by 500.

Worst Case Scenario That Could Actually Happen: This is the Mets, so you should imagine your worst case scenario for them then multiply it by… 499.

Philadelphia Phillies

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Best Case Scenario: The Fountain Of Youth hits the Phillies and they do one last run.

Worst Case Scenario: They are a bunch of old guys who play like it, and Ruben Amaro still acts like it’s the last years of the previous decade.

Worst Case Scenario That Could Actually Happen: See above.

Miami Marlins
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Best Case Scenario: Giancarlo Stanton hits lots of dingers, Jose Fernandez is awesome.

Worst Case Scenario: The above doesn’t happen….

Worst Case Scenario That Might Actually Happen: See above.

 

Next Time: The Previews Continue…