June 2005
If elected, he will not go
Sheffield doesn’t play well with most others
"I would never sit out," Sheffield said. "I would go play for them. It doesn’t mean I’m going to be happy playing there. And if I’m unhappy, you don’t want me on your team. It’s just that simple. I’ll make that known to anyone."
On Tuesday, Sheffield said that he would not join another team if he were traded and would forfeit his salary. After the trade discussions between the Mets and the Yankees were reported in The New York Post on Wednesday, Sheffield quickly changed his mind about possibly leaving. But he was adamant about being a divisive influence if the Yankees ever moved him.
"If I’m not happy, you don’t want me on your team, period," Sheffield said. "That’s just the way it goes. That’s life. I have to deal with what they dish out, they got to deal with what I dish out, period. That’s just the way it’s going to be."
Sheffield, who agreed to defer $13 million when he signed a three-year, $39 million deal with the Yankees before the 2004 season, said his words were intended to prevent potential suitors, including the Mets, from pursuing him. Sheffield said that the deferments were his concession to the Yankees, so, if displaced from the Bronx, he would seek a lucrative contract extension.
"I’ll ask for everything," he said. "Everything. You’re going to inconvenience me, I’m going to inconvenience every situation there is."
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Poor baby … having to concede to deferring part of his salary …
If he were so adamant about staying in the Bronx, why didn’t he demand a "no-trade" clause?
Biggio’s HBPs render his body SOL
"Biggio broke the modern record for getting hit by pitches on Wednesday when Colorado’s Byung-Hyun Kim plunked him on the left elbow in Houston’s 7-1 victory over the Rockies. It was the 268th time Biggio has been hit, moving him one past Don Baylor’s post-1900 record."
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The game was stopped for 15 minutes … to celebrate the record, and to check Biggio’s life insurance policy.
Kenny Rogers … man on a (self-destructive) mission
First a water cooler, now a camera
"Kenny Rogers‘ angry close-up with a couple of television cameramen put one of them in the hospital and could result in a suspension for the Texas Rangers‘ ace.
Rogers shoved two cameramen before the Rangers’ game against Los Angeles on Wednesday in a videotaped tirade that included throwing a camera to the ground and threatening to break more.
"Kenny is having anger issues right now," Rangers general manager John Hart said. "I don’t know what’s going on inside. We’re responding to something that’s very unusual."
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Hopefully MLB will give Rogers a nice, long "time out" in the corner ….
We’ve secretly replaced the Royals latest loss with Folgers crystals!
The Royals Matt Stairs and Alberto Castillo, in a novel attempt to "re-write" history, decide to videotape their own version of the day’s game.
They’ll try “double dutch” next
Their season already an abject horror, Rockies Garrett Atkins and Preston Wilson managed to find joy in "PattyCake".
Hampton comes alive (do you deal like we do)?
Perhaps it should have been marketed as a house in the Hamptons, rather than Hampton’s house?
"Mike Hampton’s former home — complete with a free-standing gym, caretaker’s home and five-stable equestrian center — sold at auction for more than $1 million less than what the former Colorado Rockies pitcher paid. The winning bid Monday for the four-bedroom, six-bath, two-story, 10,743-square-foot estate was $3.08 million. Hampton paid $4.25 million for the home in February 2001 and it recently was listed at $4.95 million."
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But as we all know, stats generated in Colorado are vastly inflated compared to the rest of the league …
Ho-hum, Boss George is upset again …
So Steinbrenner is calling yet ANOTHER meeting of his executives today …
Betcha they go out and overpay for yet another quasi/former all-star to plug the leaky ship.
When they HAVE brought in young talent, they didn’t let them settle down for a year … they just traded them away (Vazquez, Weaver, Lilly) for the older ex-all stars.
They signed Wright, knowing his medical history and one good year under Mazzone.
They signed Pavano, perhaps turning a blind eye to the fact that he relied a great deal on the sterling Marlins defense, and that the Yankees defense was putrid.
They traded for Johnson, knowing his age, his balky knee, and his demeanor.
They signed Womack, who at 35 was coming off a couple of career years, and couldn’t be expected to keep that up (and even IF Cairo had his career year in 2004 … he was 6 years younger, and wouldn’t backslide as much at age 30).
In 2004, they signed a downsliding Kenny Lofton, who on the margins was barely better than Bernie in CF at this point in his career, and then, with no backup plan in place, let Lofton go for 2005.
And the biggest "oops" of all, the monster contract given to Giambi. True he was coming off an MVP year, but you don’t give a 30y.o. first baseman with "old" skills (power, lack of foot speed, mediocre defense) a 7-YEAR deal! Even if he DOES give you 3 good years (to age 33), the skill set ages a LOT faster than other players, and by age 34/35, he becomes a liability on both sides of the game. (and notice that NONE of this has ANYTHING to do with steroid use).
The Yankees have reaped what they have sown. They have thrown good money after bad ever since losing the 2001 Series. I’m only shocked that Torre hasn’t walked away on his own terms to this point.
Diane
- ESPN Baseball Tonight wannabe analyst
More Astros weirdness – part 1
Here are some wild stats regarding the 2005 Astros:
First, an update on the road woes in terms of winning percentage …
As of Sunday morning, the Rockies, Reds and Astros are still over .500 at home and at .250 or under on the road:
w l pct. home h% road r% diff.
Houston 32 40 .444 23-13 .639 9-27 .250 .389
Cincinnati 30 44 .405 23-19 .548 7-25 .219 .329
Colorado 24 48 .333 19-17 .528 5-31 .139 .389
(which has NEVER been done in the post-expansion era, and only 2 times since 1900, as follows:)
(site/team/year/games/wins/losses/pct./pct. differential)
home PHA 1945 77 39 35 .527 road PHA 1945 76 13 63 .171 .356
home BLA 1902 64 32 30 .516 road BLA 1902 77 18 57 .240 .276
And the Astros and Rockies .389 home/road win % differential would break the all-time record of .356 by 1945 PHA
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Now for the anemic offense … The Astros’ offensive decline has somehow been limited to only the road, with historic ramifications:
(site/games/runs/runs per gm/BA/OBP/SLG through games of 6/25)
Home/36/168/4.66/.280/.343/.446
Road/36/107/2.97/.206/.276/.323
This first sent me to baseball-reference.com, to generate the list of teams that averaged less than 3.00 runs per road game for a season. Here they are from 1962 post-expansion on:
Team Year Rd Gm Rd runs Rd avg
CLE 1972 79 209 2.65
CHC 1981 48 131 2.73
NYM 1963 81 225 2.78
HOU 1963 81 228 2.81
SDP 1969 81 229 2.83
HOU 1968 81 231 2.85
NYM 1967 84 240 2.86
NYM 1965 82 237 2.89
ATL 1978 81 236 2.91
TEX 1972 77 226 2.94
CHW 1968 81 238 2.94
CHW 1972 76 225 2.96
TOR 1981 53 157 2.96
HOU 2005 36 107 2.97
Next, I sought to determine the greatest differences in home/road run production in history, and see where the Astros rank:
Team Year Rd avg Hm avg Diff
COL 1996 3.74 8.12 -4.38
COL 2000 4.14 7.81 -3.68
COL 1999 4.12 7.06 -2.94
BOS 1950 5.22 8.12 -2.90
COL 1998 3.70 6.49 -2.79
COL 1993 3.32 6.04 -2.72
COL 2002 3.46 6.15 -2.69
COL 1995 4.17 6.74 -2.57
COL 2001 4.56 6.84 -2.28
BOS 1955 3.75 6.03 -2.28
COL 2003 4.15 6.38 -2.23
PHI 1932 4.38 6.58 -2.21
PHA 1932 5.31 7.43 -2.12
NYY 1906 3.10 5.20 -2.10
PHI 1922 3.75 5.83 -2.08
PHI 1925 4.26 6.34 -2.07
COL 1997 4.67 6.73 -2.06
MON 2003 3.40 5.38 -1.99
PHI 1930 5.08 7.05 -1.98
COL 2004 4.16 6.12 -1.96
SLB 1927 3.69 5.64 -1.95
BLA 1902 4.21 6.11 -1.90
ATL 1977 3.23 5.14 -1.90
CIN 1966 3.40 5.28 -1.88
PHA 1902 4.66 6.53 -1.88
BOS 1946 4.14 6.01 -1.87
BOS 1952 3.40 5.27 -1.87
CHC 1970 4.09 5.89 -1.80
SLB 1920 4.26 6.06 -1.80
CLE 1931 4.84 6.62 -1.78
PHI 1933 3.15 4.93 -1.78
BOS 1951 4.35 6.13 -1.78
BOS 1949 4.90 6.68 -1.78
PHI 1935 3.49 5.27 -1.77
LAA 1961 3.71 5.45 -1.74
BLA 1901 4.78 6.52 -1.73
CHC 1979 3.49 5.22 -1.73
WSH 1902 4.29 5.99 -1.70
HOU 2005 2.97 4.67 -1.70
Of course, the Rockies show up a LOT on this list …. but I also wanted to try and normalize the stats for the different offensive eras, so I then decided to
show that difference in % terms (home-road diff. divided by home avg.):
Team Year Rd avg Hm avg Diff % Diff
COL 1996 3.74 8.12 -4.38 54%
COL 2000 4.14 7.81 -3.68 47%
COL 1993 3.32 6.04 -2.72 45%
COL 2002 3.46 6.15 -2.69 44%
COL 1998 3.70 6.49 -2.79 43%
COL 1999 4.12 7.06 -2.94 42%
NYY 1906 3.10 5.20 -2.10 40%
WSH 1903 2.35 3.87 -1.53 39%
COL 1995 4.17 6.74 -2.57 38%
BOS 1955 3.75 6.03 -2.28 38%
ATL 1977 3.23 5.14 -1.90 37%
MON 2003 3.40 5.38 -1.99 37%
HOU 2005 2.97 4.67 -1.70 36%
Lots of Rockies teams still on that list, but the Astros disparity is now more noticeable … what REALLY gets the Astros noticed is the year-to-year differences …. The Astros have scored 1.14 fewer runs per game
overall, a 23% decrease from 2004. They’ve scored 7% fewer runs per game at home this year, but 40% less in their 2005 road games .. and when was the last time THAT happened …. (answer in a moment)
I found 106 instances in which a team scored at least 23% less runs from year to year overall … here are the ones that had a 30% or greater decrease in either their home or road production.
Team Year Runs/gm Change % chg. Rd runs Rd %chg Hm runs Hm %chg
WSH 1903 3.12 -2.00 -64% -1.94 -45% -2.11 -35%
STL 1902 3.69 -1.88 -51% -2.07 -36% -1.70 -31%
BRO 1904 3.23 -1.57 -49% -1.29 -28% -1.84 -37%
PIT 1931 4.10 -1.68 -41% -2.14 -36% -1.23 -22%
BAL 1972 3.37 -1.33 -39% -0.92 -20% -1.74 -36%
SDP 1971 3.02 -1.19 -39% -1.39 -31% -0.98 -25%
STL 1988 3.57 -1.36 -38% -1.81 -36% -0.90 -19%
BRO 1902 4.00 -1.43 -36% -1.00 -20% -1.87 -32%
NYY 1908 2.97 -1.01 -34% -0.66 -19% -1.37 -31%
PIT 1952 3.32 -1.12 -34% -0.65 -17% -1.58 -32%
PHA 1915 3.54 -1.20 -34% -1.55 -31% -0.82 -18%
NYG 1902 2.88 -0.97 -34% -1.38 -33% -0.58 -16%
PHI 1906 3.43 -1.14 -33% -0.57 -13% -1.71 -37%
DET 1904 3.12 -1.02 -33% -0.77 -19% -1.29 -30%
BAL 1988 3.42 -1.08 -32% -1.47 -31% -0.71 -16%
BSN 1931 3.42 -1.08 -32% -1.46 -31% -0.71 -17%
MIN 1978 4.11 -1.27 -31% -0.67 -14% -1.89 -32%
PHA 1942 3.56 -1.06 -30% -0.57 -13% -1.57 -32%
CIN 1982 3.36 -0.93 -28% -1.33 -30% -0.53 -13%
DET 1957 3.99 -1.10 -28% -2.17 -39% -0.04 -1%
HOU 1963 2.86 -0.79 -28% -1.24 -30% -0.35 -11%
STL 1913 3.42 -0.89 -26% -0.42 -10% -1.37 -30%
ATL 1968 3.15 -0.74 -24% -0.12 -3% -1.37 -32%
HOU 2005 3.82 -1.14 -23% -1.94 -40% -0.33 -7%
See that 1903 Washington team at the top? See their 45% decline in road production from year-to-year? That is the ONLY one that surpasses the Astros 40% drop …. in ML history.
Coming down the home/road stretch now … The Astros are 7% worse at home, and 40% worse on the road, a difference of 33%. How does that rank amongst all the “team season pairs”? (example … the ’72 Sox were 29% worse on the road than their ’71 counterparts, but 27% better at home, a roughly 57% swing):
Team Year Road Home Diff.
CHW 1972 -29% 27% 57%
PIT 1909 0% 54% 54%
CLE 1970 -13% 40% 52%
STL 1924 -23% 27% 50%
BOS 1955 -16% 33% 49%
KCR 1982 4% 53% 49%
BSN 1935 -35% 10% 45%
BSN 1945 1% 46% 45%
DET 1962 -30% 15% 45%
NYY 1940 -35% 10% 44%
BAL 1973 18% 62% 44%
CHW 1969 15% 56% 42%
BOS 2003 -7% 34% 42%
BOS 1946 12% 53% 42%
BRO 1907 -26% 15% 41%
NYY 1995 -31% 10% 41%
MIL 1985 -10% 30% 41%
HOU 1972 10% 51% 40%
CHW 1914 -21% 19% 40%
MIL 1978 7% 46% 39%
DET 1927 -11% 28% 38%
DET 1957 -39% -1% 38%
CLE 1944 -11% 27% 38%
PHA 1921 1% 39% 38%
DET 1909 -17% 20% 37%
CLE 1992 0% 37% 37%
PHI 1973 5% 42% 37%
PIT 1985 -24% 13% 36%
WSH 1902 -14% 22% 36%
HOU 1966 -9% 27% 36%
BSN 1910 -6% 30% 36%
CIN 1962 -10% 26% 36%
PHI 1922 1% 36% 35%
CHC 1995 -7% 29% 35%
NYY 1944 -16% 19% 35%
NYY 1906 -12% 23% 35%
PHI 1907 -14% 20% 35%
PHA 1918 -26% 8% 34%
MON 1987 0% 34% 34%
CHW 2000 10% 44% 34%
SLB 1920 18% 52% 34%
CHW 1939 -13% 20% 34%
OAK 1974 -23% 10% 33%
HOU 2005 -40% -7% 33%
Finally, how rare is it for a team to score less than 40% of its total runs for the season while on the road?
Team Year Rd % Hm %
COL 1996 31.5% 68.5%
COL 2000 34.6% 65.4%
CHC 1981 35.4% 64.6%
COL 1993 35.5% 64.5%
COL 2002 36.0% 64.0%
COL 1998 36.3% 63.7%
COL 1999 36.9% 63.1%
WSH 1903 37.1% 62.9%
BOS 1955 37.7% 62.3%
PHA 1918 37.9% 62.1%
COL 1995 38.2% 61.8%
NYY 1906 38.3% 61.7%
PHA 1902 38.5% 61.5%
ATL 1977 38.6% 61.4%
MON 2003 38.7% 61.3%
HOU 2005 38.9% 61.1%
BOS 1
950 39.1% 60.9%
PHI 1922 39.2% 60.8%
BOS 1952 39.2% 60.8%
SLB 1927 39.2% 60.8%
PHI 1935 39.3% 60.7%
ATL 1978 39.3% 60.7%
COL 2003 39.4% 60.6%
PHA 1908 39.5% 60.5%
DET 1906 39.6% 60.4%
CIN 1966 39.7% 60.3%
CHW 1972 39.8% 60.2%
PHI 1919 39.8% 60.2%
PHI 1925 39.9% 60.1%
PHI 1981 39.9% 60.1%
LAA 1961 39.9% 60.1%
PHI 1932 39.9% 60.1%
Isn’t this why they have 1st/3rd base coaches?
"The St. Louis Cardinals ran into an unusual double play against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the fourth inning Sunday when Yadier Molina hit a liner off the right-center fence but passed a teammate who had stopped between first and second.
The play came with one out and runners on first and second. Abraham Nunez, who was on first, apparently thought Molina’s drive was caught by right fielder Matt Lawton and was retreating to first as Molina rounded the bag and passed him while gesturing to his teammate to turn around.
Molina was called out for passing Nunez on the basepaths, and the stunned Nunez was standing near second when he was tagged out by second baseman Jose Castillo for an inning-ending double play."
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I’m sure the Pirates worked on that play every day in Spring Training …
Its only an on-deck circle … how much harm could it cause?
Minky done in by the on-deck circle?
"Doug Mientkiewicz was placed on the 15-day disabled list Sunday by the New York Mets after injuring his right hamstring in the on-deck circle.
The first baseman had an MRI Sunday that revealed a slight tear. He said he had never pulled a muscle in his life.
Mientkiewicz was hurt warming up for his first at-bat during the Mets’ 10-3 victory over the Yankees on Saturday. He stayed in and batted twice before leaving in the fifth inning.
"It was fine til I went and stretched before my first at-bat," Mientkiewicz said. "I have my little routine I do on deck since I was probably 7 years old, and this time for some reason I felt a pop."
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"Just when you thought it was safe to approach the batter’s box … you can’t get to it!"
dianagram
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