High & Inside: 5/7/11

Baseball links from around the sabersphere...

• Jonny Venters Is Grounded | Fangraphs
  

  Including today’s game, hitters have put 37 balls in play against Venters this season and 34 (32 grounders plus two bunts) of them have been on the ground.

• Jay Bruce Will Be Just Fine | Redleg Nation
  

  In the 20 games since his lowest point of the season, including Thursday’s game, Bruce has hit .282 with a .941 OPS.

• The 2011 Braves are really freakin slow | Hardball Talk
  

  The Braves are currently on pace for 25 steals, which would be the lowest total since the Mets had 25 in 1994.

• Random Juan Pierre thoughts | Baseball Reference Blog
  Some interesting random Juan Pierre facts.
• Is Brandon Inge All Done? | Tiger Tales
  

  I think his hitting will bounce back to his career norms, as mediocre as those may be. However, with his decline in fielding, he is no longer a real asset to a team that is trying to contend for a division title.

More links after the jump...

• Joe Paterson's Scoreless Streak | AZ Snakepit
  

  Last night saw Joe Paterson go out there and put up a zero next to his name, which is what he has been doing... Well, for his entire career, actually: it was his 13th consecutive appearance without allowing a run.

• Trade Candidate: David Wright | MLB Trade Rumors
  

  Losing a homegrown star like Wright would be an unpopular move amongst Mets fans, but if Sandy Alderson is committed to a complete rebuild, moving Wright would be the last step, but also the most lucrative in terms of what the Mets could demand in return.

• Andre Ethier's Hit Streak | Baseball Analytics Blog
  

  While Ethier's in play average will likely regress at some point this season, the real question is whether it will regress enough over the next 26 or so games to break his hit streak.

• Sergio Romo is Historically Good | Splashing Pumpkins
  Sergio Romo is one of the most underrated relievers in baseball.
• Fun with B-R Play Index | Crashburn Alley
  A look at Cliff Lee's 16-K game.

Other: ESPN has a poll asking voters to rank the greatest baseball players of all time. Go vote.