God, I wish there were more things to write about during spring training.
Sunday, March 28, 2010
From The Pedantry Department
Dustin Pedroia needs to work on drawing more walks--his on-base percentage isn't even as high as his batting average!
Friday, March 19, 2010
Chem 101
It's a funny thing about chemistry. In the real world, it's a science. In the sports world, it's about as far from being a science as you can possibly get. Its workings are intangible, its effects are unquantifiable. And yet, sportswriters--particularly baseball writers--argue time and time again that it's an essential ingredient for a successful team.
Now, make no mistake--this is incorrect. Almost every action in baseball requires zero-to-minimal chemistry, because it requires zero-to-minimal interaction with your teammates. Hitting is individual. Fielding is individual (sure, you have to toss the ball to your teammate for a putout, but...come on). Pitching involves some sense of a bond between pitcher and catcher, but much of what determines success or failure comes down to whether or not the pitcher, all on his own, throws a good pitch. If the left fielder and first baseman hate each other, things will be fine. Even if the pitcher and catcher hate each other, things will probably be fine.
And yet, even when it does come to something as simple as two players throwing the ball to each other, writers insist that there's some element of chemistry that affects the outcome. Today's example comes from Peter Abraham of Boston.com, and you can just sense the fact that he was handed an assignment he didn't believe in and didn't want to write:
"Scutaro, Pedroia, and the rest of the Red Sox enjoyed their only day off of spring training yesterday. For the two infielders, that meant a break from taking countless ground balls and refining their on-field partnership.
Now, make no mistake--this is incorrect. Almost every action in baseball requires zero-to-minimal chemistry, because it requires zero-to-minimal interaction with your teammates. Hitting is individual. Fielding is individual (sure, you have to toss the ball to your teammate for a putout, but...come on). Pitching involves some sense of a bond between pitcher and catcher, but much of what determines success or failure comes down to whether or not the pitcher, all on his own, throws a good pitch. If the left fielder and first baseman hate each other, things will be fine. Even if the pitcher and catcher hate each other, things will probably be fine.
And yet, even when it does come to something as simple as two players throwing the ball to each other, writers insist that there's some element of chemistry that affects the outcome. Today's example comes from Peter Abraham of Boston.com, and you can just sense the fact that he was handed an assignment he didn't believe in and didn't want to write:
"Scutaro, Pedroia, and the rest of the Red Sox enjoyed their only day off of spring training yesterday. For the two infielders, that meant a break from taking countless ground balls and refining their on-field partnership.
Tentative at first, they now exchange the ball like two basketball players on a fast break. Pedroia spins, Scutaro dips, each knowing what the other will do before it happens."
It must be Pedroia's strong baseball instincts that allows him to know, BEFORE IT EVEN HAPPENS, that Marco Scutaro will catch the ball when he throws it.
To be fair, double plays do involve positioning, footwork, etc., and I have no doubt that Scutaro and Pedroia can anticipate their partner's moves before he makes them. But isn't that because every team in professional and amateur baseball runs that play basically the same way? This isn't football; there's no tea playbook that Marco Scutaro needs to learn when switching teams, at least not when it comes to turning the DP. As excited as Peter Abraham (or Peter Abraham's editors) seem to be about the budding chemistry between Scutaro and Pedroia, if Scutaro simply closes his eyes and pretends that Pedroia is Aaron Hill, he'll do fine.
It must be Pedroia's strong baseball instincts that allows him to know, BEFORE IT EVEN HAPPENS, that Marco Scutaro will catch the ball when he throws it.
To be fair, double plays do involve positioning, footwork, etc., and I have no doubt that Scutaro and Pedroia can anticipate their partner's moves before he makes them. But isn't that because every team in professional and amateur baseball runs that play basically the same way? This isn't football; there's no tea playbook that Marco Scutaro needs to learn when switching teams, at least not when it comes to turning the DP. As excited as Peter Abraham (or Peter Abraham's editors) seem to be about the budding chemistry between Scutaro and Pedroia, if Scutaro simply closes his eyes and pretends that Pedroia is Aaron Hill, he'll do fine.
"From afar, the choreography of a double play seems impossibly intricate as the ball arrives at the bag at the precise second needed to complete the turn. But both Pedroia and Scutaro say it’s not as complicated as fans would think or as time-consuming to master.
'You get that question a lot: What is the chemistry going to be like?’' said Pedroia. 'Everybody wants to know that. But when you get two good players, it comes fast.'"
I think it's fair to summarize this quote as, "We get this question a lot, but it's really no big deal." When the people you're quoting are basically telling you not to write your article, I think it's time to find a new topic.
EDIT: It's a good thing that Tinker, Evers and Chance, the most famous double-play combination of all time, had such great chemistry.
I think it's fair to summarize this quote as, "We get this question a lot, but it's really no big deal." When the people you're quoting are basically telling you not to write your article, I think it's time to find a new topic.
EDIT: It's a good thing that Tinker, Evers and Chance, the most famous double-play combination of all time, had such great chemistry.
Thursday, March 11, 2010
If A Stadium Collapses And There's No One Around To Be Angry...
I just wanted to chime in that this:
Seemed like a good occasion to reiterate this:
However, read it while you can--in the spirit of the Yankees, I will soon be destroying all of the older posts in this blog's illustrious history. They just don't make me as much money as I'd like.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Rearranging The Deck Chairs In The Divisions
http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/writers/tom_verducci/03/09/floating-realignment/index.html?eref=sihp
SCENE: Special committee's office, Major League Baseball Headquarters, Park Avenue, New York. Fourteen men in suits sit around a coffee table littered with coffee mugs. A Major League Baseball logo placard decorates the far wall. The chair of the meeting stands at the head of the table, below the logo.
MEETING CHAIR: Okay, guys, listen up. Bud wanted us to get together because we have a problem. Our sport has a huge economic and competitive imbalance. HUGE. The good teams are about five times richer than the bad teams. Can you believe that? Five times as much money. They're also, as you'd imagine, significantly better. I mean, sure, sometimes the poorer teams make the playoffs, but they usually don't, and they almost never win the World Series, and they NEVER establish any lasting success. So, I mean, we're supposed to restore the competitive balance, but really, we should probably find some way to give the teams an equal or close to equal amount of money, and start with that. Because really, the roots of this thing are economic, and if we fix that, the competitive balance should follow naturally. So--we need to overhaul this entire system and find a way to share this wealth, really get in-depth with our revenue system. Any ideas?
MEETING ATTENDEE #12: What if we just shuffled the divisions? It would cut down on divisional rivalries. People hate divisional rivalries, right? Isn't that a thing?
MEETING CHAIR: YES. I like it. Let's adjourn. Any thoughts on dinner?
MEETING ATTENDEE #4: Tapas?
MEETING CHAIR: Love tapas.
(Exeunt. On the wall, the white-silouhetted man on the MLB logo placard sheds a single white-silouhetted tear for the state of his league.)
Thursday, March 4, 2010
paul millsap serves notice
okay, so boozer somehow dodged the trade deadline and is still a member of the utah jazz. no matter - he can't stay in that starting lineup forever.
today, paul millsap served notice via espn.com's john hollinger, as a member of the writer's "nba in-season all-improved team." every day, more and more people are realizing that millsap gives you way more bang for your buck. so why keep paying for boozer?
not a good day for the blue devil alums. especially not after that excruciating loss to the terps.
today, paul millsap served notice via espn.com's john hollinger, as a member of the writer's "nba in-season all-improved team." every day, more and more people are realizing that millsap gives you way more bang for your buck. so why keep paying for boozer?
not a good day for the blue devil alums. especially not after that excruciating loss to the terps.
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