Milestones

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The following bits of info were posted on the BaseballGuys Twitter account. See what you’re missing if you aren’t following along…

@MLB_PR: All-time doubles leader Tris Speaker had 445 through his age-32 season. Albert Pujols has 505.

@ESPNStatsInfo: Albert Pujols has 50 doubles this yr. He is the first player in MLB history to have 3 seasons of 30+ HR and 50+ doubles.

@MLB_PR: Robinson Cano and Rogers Hornsby are the only 2B ever to have consecutive seasons with 80+ extra base hits.

@GregJohnsMLB: Felix was Cy Young contender heading into Sept., but in last 6 starts went 0-4 with 6.62 ERA and 53 hits in 35.1 IP.

@richardjustice: A’s rookies have 53 victories. According to Elias, this is the most victories for rookies on one team in MLB history.

@richardjustice: Tommy Milone and Jarrod Parker, A’s are 1st team to have 2 rookies win 13 games since the ’52 Dodgers (Black, Loes).

Some of my own thoughts…

Albert Pujols is simply amazing. It hasn’t been the season he has hoped for, and it will go down as his worst season ever, but he’s still hitting .289 with 30 homers, 105 RBIs and 85 runs scored. This means he is polishing off his 12th straight season of 30 homers and 99 RBIs. That ties him with Jimmie Foxx for the second longest such streak in baseball history behind the 13-year run of Alex Rodriguez. Oh, and the other two times that Pujols had 50 doubles, he hit 51 each year, he blasted 43 and 46 homers (2003-04).

Robinson Cano is on his way to Cooperstown. Hitting .308 with 31 homers, 88 RBIs and 102 runs scored, he’s a four category fantasy superstar. Moreover, each of the past four years he hit at least 25 homers with 85 RBIs and 100 runs scored. That four year run is the longest by any second sacker in baseball history (Ryne Sandberg did it three years in a row from 1990-92). Cano is also a double machine. With a career-high tying 48 doubles this year, Cano has reached 40 doubles six times in his last seven seasons missing only in 2008 when he hit 35 (his career-low for a season is 34 doubles). Only one other second sacker hit 40 doubles in 4-straight years – Jeff Kent in 1999-2002.

September cost Felix Hernandez. His terrible final month pushed his ERA to 3.09 on the year, For some reason as well, the guy just can’t get the Angels out. Take a look at his career numbers against the club from Southern California: 6-12, 4.07 ERA in 30 starts. “I don’t know what kind of approach they take,” he said. “Don’t ask me. Ask them. They hit me pretty good.”

As noted, Tommy Milone and Jarrod Parker both have had a lot of success this season. In fact, their numbers are virtually identical if you look at their fantasy production.

Milone: 13-10, 3.74 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 137 Ks in 190 IP
Parker: 13-8, 3.47 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 140 Ks in 181.1 IP

Milone was tremendous when pitching at home as he went 7-5 with a 2.74 ERA and 1.05 WHIP over 15 starts. Parker tied for the team in in wins and led the club in ERA and Ks and WHIP (Bartolo Colon was better at 1.21 but he only threw 152.1 innings on the year falling short of the 162 needed to qualify for the ERA title).

A few more notes for fun.

Manny Banuelos, one of the elite prospects on the hill, will likely miss all of the 2013 season as the Yankees announced he will need to undergo Tommy John surgery. Just goes to show you why it is so dangerous count on young arms when building a dynasty club. You have to build around those young arms of course, but give me an Arroyo or Harang type any day over a prospect that could be something at some point.

Lance Berkman is unlikely to play again because of his knee issue. His career could be over.

Since Gio Gonzalez will skip his last start, Tom Gorzelanny will take his spot Tuesday against the Phillies, Gonzalez will become the first pitcher in baseball history to win 21 games in a season while throwing less than 200-innings (199.1 is his total this season).

C.J. Wilson admitted that he will have offseason elbow surgery to remove bone spurs that have been bothering him for a couple of months. Now we finally find an explanation that fits to explain the pathetic work that Wilson has offered his owners the past couple of months. After a 2.43 ERA and 1.16 WHIP over his first 18 starts he barely made it to the finish line with a 5.54 ERA and 1.57 WHIP over his last 16 outings. Use that slow finish to your benefit next year on draft day.

By Ray Flowers

HOF: The Case for Bagwell

With the Hall of Fame vote coming up (the results will be released on January 6th), I thought it might be nice to link to the pieces I wrote last year regarding a handful of players that were up for consideration but who failed to be enshrined. Here are those links.

Edgar Martinez – Is There Room for a DH?
HOF – Tim Raines .
Is McGriff Hall Worthy ?
HOF: Mammoth McGwire Misunderstood ?
HOF: Who am I ?

In addition, here is my recap on how the voting actually turned out last year in HOF: What Should Have Been.

As for the vote this year, there seems to be growing support for the candidacy of Jeff Bagwell. Should be be enshrined in the Hall of Fame?

PRO

(1) Bagwell spent his entire 15 year career with the Astros. I know this really doesn’t matter, but in the world of money grubbing by players you have to tip your hat to Bagwell for this accomplishment of staying with one club.

(2) He was the 1991 NL Rookie of the Year, and in 1994 he was named NL MVP. He also finished in the top-10 in MVP voting five times on his way to 2.89 Career MVP Shares, the 35th highest mark in league history.

(3) He was named to four All-Star teams.

(4) He had 1,529 RBI – 45th all-time – and he also scored 1,517 runs, good for 62nd all-time. No player eligible for the Hall of Fame with 1,500 runs and 1,500 RBI isn’t in the Hall.

(5) He finished his career with a .408 OBP, the 40th best mark ever.

(6) He finished his career with a .540 SLG, the 35th best mark ever.

(7) He finished his career with a .948 OPS, the 21st best mark ever. This is a simply stupendous accomplishment for a guy who spent so much of his career hitting in the Astrodome.

(8) Bagwell led the league in runs three times – with a high of 152. In fact, he scored 143 and 152 runs in 1999-2000, and amongst first basemen only he and Lou Gehrig ever had back-to-back seasons of 140+ runs in the history of baseball.

(9) Bagwell hit .297 with 449 homers, 1,529 RBI, 1,517 runs and an OPS of .948. In the history of baseball, only 10 men have reached each of those totals in their career, and oh what a list it is: Stan Musial, Barry Bonds, Mel Ott, Alex Rodriguez, Babe Ruth, Manny Ramirez, Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, Ted Williams and Mr. Bagwell.

CON

(1) He spent his entire career with the Astros. Did anyone notice how great he was since they never saw him play in person or on television?

(2) The strike in 1994 ruined what was shaping up to be a historic season. Bagwell hit .368 with 39 homers, 116 RBI and 104 runs scored… in 110 games. Along the way he led the league in RBI and runs, not to mention SLG (.750) and OPS (1.201). If he had kept that pace up over 160 games he would have produced a line of .368-57-169 with 151 runs scored. If he had produced a season for the ages like that, would more people have taken notice of him?

(3) Despite his tremendous work, other than 1994, was he ever even considered the best first baseman in baseball with players like Fred McGriff, Mo Vaughn, Mark McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, Carlos Delgado and Todd Helton around?

VERDICT

Bagwell should be a lock. In addition to being a tremendous person and teammate, he was also a dynamic player. His career totals stack up well against pretty much any man who ever played first base, and it’s not his fault there were so many tremendous hitting first basemen in the game when he played. Bagwell was also widely regarded as one of the best base runners in baseball in his career, even with less than scintillating speed, and that reputation should augment the glowing numbers. The Hall of Fame candidacy of many players has been exaggerated of late, but if Mr. Bagwell is enshrined the voting body will be making a decision that will undoubtedly stand the test of time.

By Ray Flowers

Around the Horn: August 4, 2010

(1) John Buck to DL. J.P. Arencibia activated.

(2) Geovany Soto on fire of late.

(3) Alex Rodriguez hits 600th homer.

(4) Mike Sweeney was traded to Phillies.

(5) Kevin Youkilis may be done for year.

(6) Chris Coghlan might be done for the year.

(7) Carlos Pena and his foot issues.

(8) Carlos Zambrano back in starting rotation for Cubs. Should you care? Give Weekly MLB Mailbag a read.

By Ray Flowers

Who Am I?

Who Am I?

From time to time I like to play this game of leading you down the Yellowbrick road to the Wizard of Oz (here is a link to my most recent venture in the world of Who am I?). With that brief intro, let’s get right to it.

* I made five All-Star teams (1993-97).

* I hit .301 in my career. Only 192 men who have ever played that game have posted a higher mark (minimum 3,000 plate appearances).

* I didn’t reach 2,500 career hits, but I did smack 2,468 of them, the 96th best mark ever.

* I didn’t reach 1,500 career runs but I did stroll across home plate 1,494 times, good enough for 68th all-time.

* I didn’t reach 500 doubles, but I did slug 495 two baggers, the 55th best mark ever.

* I knocked in 1,704 runs, the 22nd best mark of all-time.

* I had one of the best eyes at the dish – ever. In fact, I often was picked on by the media because I took too many pitches. As a result of my approach I walked 1,667 times, the 9th most ever, and that helped me to post an OBP of .419 (21st all-time).

* Because of all my extra base hits (26th all-time with 1,028) I was able to post the 25th best SLG ever at .555.

* Not surprisingly, since I’m 21st all-time in OBP and 25th in SLG, my overall OPS of .974 is top notch, 15th best ever actually.

* I was the AL MVP twice (1993-94).

* I have 4.79 Win Shares, the 13th highest mark in the history of the game thanks to those two wins, and six overall top-5 MVP finishes.

* I hit 521 homers in my career, the 18th best mark of all-time.

* I share the same name as a slugger who once hit 10 home runs in just 20 at-bats over six games in May, 1968.

Who am I? I’m Frank Thomas.

The reason I decided to write about Thomas should hopefully be obvious after reading all those numbers above (not to mention the fact that he officially retired from baseball on Thursday last week). The bottom line with Frank is that he was one of the most fearsome sluggers the game has ever seen – period. Let me place all of the above numbers into perspective.

How many players in history have hit .300 with 500 homers, 1,700 RBI, 1,400 runs and an OPS of .950? The answer is six, and obviously Frank is one of them. The others, well to say that they are some of the all-time greats is an understatement: Alex Rodriguez, Manny Ramirez, Jimmie Foxx, Babe Ruth and Ted Williams.

Not just a “numbers” guy, Frank was exceedingly well respected in his career as evidenced by his dual MVPs and the 13th most Win Shares of all-time, and that should clearly have led to some “love” for the guy from the fans and the media, but all many seem to remember is the lumbering injury prone hitter of the past few years.

As a counter argument to his potential election to the Hall of Fame you’ll get the argument that he wasn’t very athletic and that he was a poor defensive player. I can’t refute that in the least. However, the totality of his offensive work was so spectacular, remember the group of six referenced above, that if Frank is kept out of the HOF they should revoke the credentials of the voting body because if the voters don’t put a check in the box next to his name they clearly have no inkling of an understanding of what it means to be a dynamic offensive weapon, and therefore they have no business determining who is immortalized in the Hall of Fame.

By Ray Flowers