Edgy MD

Pretty cool that Bochy wins it by going against the culture and pulling his closer for a specialist, and Mike Metheny loses it by sticking with the culture and keeping his closer on ice in a tie game on the road.

That's because you have a heart of stone and the libido of a cold dead fish on ice. But sure they need to add something. A pair of indifferently talented, but hard-as-nails, releasable journeymen. They'll totally either bring in a big league vet to compete with Recker, or move Recker altogether over the winter. Veteran catchers add color to training camp. The first guy to be interviewed is often the veteran catcher. There'll be nothing happening on day one except a couple of 30-pitch bullpen sessions, and having nothing to write about but an audience hanging on his every word, the beat guy will stick a mic in the face of Tuffy Gosewisch or Guillermo Quiroz or Andrew Susac or Eli Fuckin' Whiteside and ask what he saw from Steven Matz out there today, and he'll say, "Real easy motion, fun to catch. The ball just explodes out his hand and takes you by surprise. Real easy motion. I've seen a lot of pitchers, but if he stays healthy, he's gonna be real special." And even the most cynical among us will feel a warm glow. Even though we've read the same a thousand times. And then there's a better-than-even chance that's the last quote you'll read from him all year. And a better-than-even chance that's the last we see all year of the pitcher he's speaking about. God bless the journeyman catcher/spring training quote guy!

Strange that such a big game should come down to a pitcher you really shouldn't want to use unless you have to against a batter you really shouldn't want to use unless you have to.

Ed Charles likes the Royals. Willie Mays is dogging for the Giants. The 2014 Mets are of two minds on the issue. [fimg=625]http://thenypost.files.wordpress.com/2014/06/royalgiants.jpg[/fimg]

The Mets have a lot of interesting pieces at catcher. The have the young, talented incumbent who has got to keep improving and stay healthy in order to hold his job. They have the backup with brute strength and willing heart. They have a guy on the fringe who bats lefty, which is always nice to see in a catcher. And they have the prospect on the verge, who will become an option should the incumbent falter. What they might need to add in the offseason: the grouchy-but-wise veteran who will grumblingly sign a minor league deal with the hope of proving all those haters wrong, attempting to at least win the backup job. This guy, if he gets sent to Vegas, will have to seethe and think about it for a few days, but he'll probably take the assignment. He's this year's Teagarden. His name might actually be John Buck. Also missing is the minor league veteran Latino journeyman, who will play until he's 40 but only get 20 at-bats in his decades of service. That guy will be signed also. His name might even be Molina. The Incumbents DudeAgeLevelGPAABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSOSBCSAVGOBPSLGOPSd'Arnaud25.68MLB10842138548932231341326410.242.302.416.718AAA1559551324806163500.436.475.9091.384AA3982100121000.125.222.500.722Recker31.13MLB58189174183590727106411.201.246.374.620Centeno24.91MLB1033301600023500.200.273.200.473AAA53202179195250117152620.291.343.335.679AA218377822500861101.286.337.351.688Teagarden*30.82MLB930281400152700.143.200.250.450AAA552111783254701439305900.303.403.579.981A+2661200000200.333.333.333.667Rk412100220001600.200.333.400.733 The Comers DudeAgeLevelGPAABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSOSBCSAVGOBPSLGOPSPlawecki23.64AAA43170152254360521142100.283.345.421.766AA582492243373180643162700.326.378.487.864Gronauer27.88AA1139343610144700.176.282.294.576AAA1933243430174901.167.300.417.717Carillo25.51AAA820163520031100.313.400.438.838AA58215191285470219113200.283.350.351.701Maron23.74AA1220100000100.500.500.5001.000A+984163485098152350616811.282.387.362.749 The Foreigners DudeAgeLevelGPAABRH2B3BHRRBIBBSOSBCSAVGOBPSLGOPSJohn Buck34.28MLB329789920201682600.225.289.281.570AAA33135119133580215132200.294.370.412.782Ryan Doumit 33.54MLB10016615711314051774910.197.235.318.553Nick Hundley * 31.10MLB83233218185370622106310.243.273.358.631Gerald Laird34.92MLB53167152123180010143300.204.275.257.532Russell Martin31.67MLB111460379451102001167597844.290.402.430.832Jeff Mathis *31.55MLB64195175123570212156400.200.263.274.537Wil Nieves37.06MLB36128122931801713410.254.270.344.614AA312120100010200.083.083.083.167A+2440100000000.250.250.250.500Rk622193520011100.263.364.368.732Ronny Paulino33.49SUSP-PEDA.J. Pierzynski37.79MLB1023623382585121537145401.251.288.337.625David Ross37.58MLB50171152162870715165801.184.260.368.629Geovany Soto33.49MLB2487808206011161900.250.302.363.665 You know who else the team could use? Mr. I-Play-Other-Positions-and-So-Add-an-Element-of-Versatility. But the team may want to turn the incumbent starter into that guy.

batmagadanleadoff wrote: Edgy MD wrote: That's fine and nuanced, but it seems to differ from your prior position. Park factors for the NL are here and for the AL are here. Why of course! It's under attendance and miscellaneous! Naturally. What was my prior position? I think the original dimensions were a disaster, and dumb. Cavernous dimension that favor the pitcher in every part of the field are the worst kind of dimensions, as I see it. Especially for a team that plays in a big market and is supposed to have a financial advantage over its competition in acquiring talent. Cavernous dimensions neutralize pitching and power advantages. If you're a perennially bad team playing in a small market and with no real hope of acquiring expensive free agents, then, maybe cavernous dimension might work.

That's fine and nuanced, but it seems to differ from your prior position. Park factors for the NL are here and for the AL are here.

Looking at all of the park factors at Baseball-Reference.com --- both batting and pitching --- the data is something of a mixed bag. NationalPBFPPFAVGAmericanBPFPPFAVGCOL115116115.5DET105104104.5CHC103104103.5KCR105104104.5MIA103104103.5MIN102103102.5WSN104102103TOR102102102MIL102103102.5BOS102101101.5ARI102102102HOU101102101.5STL101100100.5TEX101101101PHI100101100.5CHW100101100.5ATL999999NYY100101100.5CIN989898BAL100100100PIT989797.5OAK999798LAD969595.5CLE979797SFG959595TBR979797NYM949594.5LAA969595.5SDP919191SEA959595 I mean, the data possibly leans toward teams in pitching-friendly parks being more successful, but it's certainly nothing definitive enough to bank on.

George Greer, Wally Backman's hitting coach in Vegas and candidate for the big chair, has reportedly been hired by the Cardinals.

I'm certain it's not a choice undertaken as an alternative to signing better players.

Ventura definitely signed an extension last winter. I haven't been able to find any reference to how long it goes, though. Speaking of extensions, the Royals must be cooking up a big steamy one for Yost.

I think just the opposite. I think small dimensions are an equalizer. Large dimensions favor the better equipped teams. Yes, this is just my opinion. But I think I could back it up with facts and science and reason and stuff.

You have more faith in real estate developers getting it right the first time than I do, but I hear ya.

There are certainly minimums on the books --- and perhaps an unwritten rule about sticking with dimensions for a time --- but I tend to believe that, since Charlie Finley was rebuffed from trying to sell off all his better players for cash, the league has had no qualms about being arbitrary in any of their judgments, and happily cite the "best interests of baseball" clause if they ever feel compelled to defend themselves.

Well, dimensional changes need to be approved by the league, so I imagine that it be changed as willy-nilly as all that.

Patzachry. Only don't go telling the Yankees that.

They'll be shopping for another hitter or two, certainly, but I think they'll be pretty happy if it serves Granderson and Wright, and maybe Duda and Nieuwenhuis a little also. Not a single opposite field homer from Wright in 2014. Lefthanded pitchers? Well, this might make them 10% more likely to trade Gee over Niese.

Maybe the Yankees will overpay for him.

No official errors in Wednesday's game (and only 2 over the first four games) but between the two misplays by Adams, the non-catch by Jay*, and a couple of spots where I think they've missed Yadier, there haven't seen many supposed 'Cardinal Way' moments to be envied. I've noticed some post-season writers swooning over Jon Jay: intangibility and plays-the-game-the-right-way, and not-the-most-athletically-gifted-but-gets-the-most-out-of-his-ability and gets-more-range-out-of-his-smarts-than-his-legs and makes-hard-plays-look-easy and all that jazz. It was like they were desperately searching for their new good-but-not-great biracial angel.

Funny, huh? The guy only pitched one season ago, and I had to jog my memory too. I looked at the stats from 2013 to see how much he appeared, and holy crap! We used Brandon Lyon too! That's why those My Best Day/My Worst Day threads are important!

This seems like a meaningful difference.

Frayed Knot wrote: Edgy MD wrote: They're playing "Kansas City"? Well, 'Meet Me in Saint Louie' would have been kind of odd. I mean, I know that every team likes their local city-referencing songs, but... well... it's paradoxical to sing about going to Kansas City, when you're already there. That, and the song is about how the city is good place to find women with... terribly low inhibitions. Not exactly an anthem of metropolitan triumphalism. On the other hand, the Phillies play "Streets of Philadelphia."

They're playing "Kansas City"?

Leadoff walkie-talkie!