Here's Monday's edition of Saber-Links:
Dave Fleming of Bill James Online reveals his thoughts on the "Strasburg Shut-down": Shutting Down Strasburg | Articles | Bill James Online
Instead, the Nationals did nothing. They stayed the course on a plan made in March, and they stuck to it like it was carved in granite. Stephen Strasburg would reach his inning pitched mark, and then Strasburg would be benched. He wouldn’t be allowed to pitching if the race got close, and he wouldn’t be allowed to pitch in the postseason.
Mike Newman of FanGraphs discusses some flaws in uber-prospect Bubba Starling's offensive game: Bubba Starling’s Lengthy Swing | FanGraphs Baseball
For me personally, loose hands and hand/wrist speed are the marks of a strong hitter. In the case of Starling, his current mechanical flaws make it impossible to be short and quick to the baseball. If his mechanics don’t allow him to bring the bat knob to the hip and stay inside the baseball, then it’s impossible for me to buy into him as a hitter at this point.
Frank Jackson of the Hardball Times recounts Babe Ruth's time as a pitcher ... with the Yankees: Babe Ruth, the New York pitcher--THT
While Ruth’s slugging feats with the Yankees have been well chronicled, it is worth noting that he didn’t entirely retire from the pitcher’s mound once he took his act to Gotham. The Yanks did not call on him often, yet in his post-Red Sox pitching career, he had five victories in five appearances!
Russell A. Carleton of Baseball Prospectus proposes an interesting idea about prospects, mental development and how we possibly may be able to quantify it: Baseball Prospectus | Baseball Therapy: Reading Lolita in Teheran, Part 1: Intro and Losing Focus
I've written about this before here in the pages of BP. I am left to wonder what percentage of players who "don't develop" despite having all the physical tools are victims of their pre-frontal cortex not developing in line with their muscles. The ability to focus is intimately tied to the ability to learn new skills.
The postseason races are heating up folks!