Daily Roundup 4/2/08

by R.J. Anderson on Apr 2, 2008 7:00 AM EDT

Daily Links:

The Rays extended Dan Wheeler yesterday. In November I speculated I would do the same, only I estimated it would take 4/19, they got Wheeler for 4/14, good deal for the Rays.

Apparently the news that Alex Rodriguez makes more than the Florida Marlins entire roster is "breaking" to some. Frankly it's unacceptable and now that Jeff Loria is getting his new stadium it better end the player carousal down there. As I've said before, do the loyal Marlin fans a favor and re-sign Hanley Ramirez for as much as it takes, and then try and find an outfield spot for him.

Putting a face on tendencies? That's what a professor has done for managerial decisions. If nothing else the pictures are amusing, particularly Bruce Bochy's, I wouldn't blame him if his head explodes.

Is Jason Bay done? Gifs and analysis suggest there's something wrong with him.

BTB alum and friend Richard Wade has a new site, go check out International Blog on Balls.

Pic of the Day: Okay, so it's from opening day, but still the angle is awesome.

100 Words on: Mets v. Marlins

After a Luis Gonzalez homerun the Marlins announcers were quick to point out that only two left fielders in the history of the game have more career jacks than Gonzo: Barry Bonds and Ted Williams. The ironic part? Gonzalez was playing right field. Pedro Martinez didn't have a great night on the mound, but somehow toughed out a 12 pitch at-bat as the hitter facing Rick VandenHurk with the senior VandenHurk sitting in the stands keeping track of every pitch.

Best Pitching Matchup: Tim Lincecum v. Chad Billingsley

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Interesting article

on the Chernoff diagrams. Good find!

It's a Horns' world. Even Aggies play hoops with a burnt orange ball.

by Speedway on Apr 2, 2008 9:49 AM EDT reply actions

Really?

Vazquez vs Carmona is your Best Pitching Matchup today? I'd give the nod to Timmah! vs Billingsley personally.

Highly amusing comments on Gonzo in RF though. ;)

"It is like Menudo, where guys reach a certain age and are kicked out of the band. And they go on to be Ricky Martins somewhere else." -Billy Beane

by Stephen Webb on Apr 2, 2008 10:17 AM EDT reply actions

You know, it would help if I didn't look at last night's matchups when doing so

by R.J. Anderson on Apr 2, 2008 12:34 PM EDT up reply actions

Que?

Vazquez/Carmona is today. I just liked TImmah/Billingsley a lot better.

Of course - it's not the Cook/Wellemeyer match up that we're all salivating over.

"It is like Menudo, where guys reach a certain age and are kicked out of the band. And they go on to be Ricky Martins somewhere else." -Billy Beane

by Stephen Webb on Apr 2, 2008 12:42 PM EDT up reply actions

Oops

Man, I'm losing it.

by R.J. Anderson on Apr 2, 2008 1:03 PM EDT up reply actions

I'm sorry...

The Timmah! graphic was and is only reserved for Tim Worrell. And now that he's retired it needs to be retired as well. Lincecum's graphic is as follows.

The Basil Fawlty Moderating Strategy:
"We could run a nice blog here if we didn't have all these members getting in the way."

by WalrusMan on Apr 2, 2008 9:35 PM EDT up reply actions

Jason Bay...

I have my doubts about how much of his problems were injury related. For those with a BP subscription and for those without:

Take a look at the spread of flyballs, doubles, and home runs in 2005—Bay is all over the outfield, but his pull power is the highlight of his hitting prowess. In 2006 we still see homers to left, but they travel a bit less while his doubles there decrease. For the 2007 season, his production to left has all but disappeared. However, note that this is just the data from his home park; his directional charts, which encompass all of his batted balls, tell the same story...The largest portion of Bay’s balls in play are grounders to the left side of the diamond, and although he is collecting a solid number of infield hits, Bay is around so that he can slam balls over the outfielders’ heads. The issue of course is that Bay’s pull power isn’t as present as it has been in the past, with Bay often grounding out to the left instead. The fact that he’s going the other way as often as he is without pulling the ball successfully makes me wonder if he can’t get the bat around fast enough on inside pitches, and has to make outside pitches that go the other way a more significant part of his game...Unless it’s down the middle, Bay can’t do much with it when it’s inside. He’s still hitting the ball in the center and outside parts of the plate though, which you can see reflected in the directional chart and hit charts above...Bay's pull power is what made him such a great run producer; without that, he’s just like those players he has been compared to throughout his career.

"I don't set the rosters, I just make fun of the guy who does" - Rob Neyer

by Marc Normandin on Apr 2, 2008 2:15 PM EDT reply actions