Howdy, folks. I just wanted to give an update on content this week here at Baseball Arcade.
A Blog of Baseball Musings and Analysis
Monday, December 9, 2013
Friday, December 6, 2013
Team Postmortem: Arizona Diamondbacks
Record: 81-81, -10 Run Differential
Summary: The Arizona Diamondbacks were the big losers of the Dodgers' miraculous comeback season. On June 22nd, the Diamondbacks were 41-33 with a 6 game lead over in the division and a 9.5 game lead over the Dodgers. The Dbacks ended the year at precisely .500, 9 games back of those same Dodgers. Arizona took a small step backwards this season over last year, where the finished with an identical record but a better run differential at +46. They are still a young team with some very good players, such as Paul Goldschmit, so the season wasn't entirely a lost cause.
Summary: The Arizona Diamondbacks were the big losers of the Dodgers' miraculous comeback season. On June 22nd, the Diamondbacks were 41-33 with a 6 game lead over in the division and a 9.5 game lead over the Dodgers. The Dbacks ended the year at precisely .500, 9 games back of those same Dodgers. Arizona took a small step backwards this season over last year, where the finished with an identical record but a better run differential at +46. They are still a young team with some very good players, such as Paul Goldschmit, so the season wasn't entirely a lost cause.
Wednesday, December 4, 2013
Team Postmortem: Los Angeles Angels
Record: 78-84, -4 Run Differential
Summary: The Angels' 2013 season was a disaster. An expensive disaster. Sure, Mike Trout is the absolute best player in the game, but the rest of them team tended to be either mediocre, over-paid, or both. The contracts to Josh Hamilton and Albert Pujols are looking to be an even bigger mistakes than the most pessimistic could have predicted. The starting rotation--outside of, perhaps, Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson--was underwhelming. Trout, as talented as he is, cannot win baseball games all by himself. But the devil (in this case, the Angels' GM, Jerry DiPoto) is in the details, so let's take a look.
Summary: The Angels' 2013 season was a disaster. An expensive disaster. Sure, Mike Trout is the absolute best player in the game, but the rest of them team tended to be either mediocre, over-paid, or both. The contracts to Josh Hamilton and Albert Pujols are looking to be an even bigger mistakes than the most pessimistic could have predicted. The starting rotation--outside of, perhaps, Jered Weaver and C.J. Wilson--was underwhelming. Trout, as talented as he is, cannot win baseball games all by himself. But the devil (in this case, the Angels' GM, Jerry DiPoto) is in the details, so let's take a look.
Monday, December 2, 2013
Team Postmortem: San Francisco Giants
Record: 76-86, -62 Run Differential
Summary: From 2010 to 2012, the San Francisco Giants won 268 games. They won both their division and the World Series in 2010 and 2012. They were a dynasty in the making. Going into 2013, 35 of 43 experts on ESPN predicted that the Giants would make the postseason. With that in mind, there is no way to look at their losing record and third place finish in the division to be anything to be anything but a bitter disappointment. So what happened to cause the team to go from winning 94 games one year ago to a mere 76 in 2013?
Summary: From 2010 to 2012, the San Francisco Giants won 268 games. They won both their division and the World Series in 2010 and 2012. They were a dynasty in the making. Going into 2013, 35 of 43 experts on ESPN predicted that the Giants would make the postseason. With that in mind, there is no way to look at their losing record and third place finish in the division to be anything to be anything but a bitter disappointment. So what happened to cause the team to go from winning 94 games one year ago to a mere 76 in 2013?
Friday, November 29, 2013
Team Postmortem: San Diego Padres
Record: 76-86, -82 Run Differential
Summary: In terms of the on-field product, it seems like the Padres were standing still this season. They finished with the exact same record as in 2012. However, the year should still be considered a step forward for the San Diego club, as they finally addressed their ownership issues in the preceding offseason and acquired a new CEO and GM, a pair that should hopefully be in place for a while going forward, giving the organization much needed stability. As such, while 2013 may be ultimately a lost year, the team will now have a full offseason to start building towards a new plan for the future.
Summary: In terms of the on-field product, it seems like the Padres were standing still this season. They finished with the exact same record as in 2012. However, the year should still be considered a step forward for the San Diego club, as they finally addressed their ownership issues in the preceding offseason and acquired a new CEO and GM, a pair that should hopefully be in place for a while going forward, giving the organization much needed stability. As such, while 2013 may be ultimately a lost year, the team will now have a full offseason to start building towards a new plan for the future.
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Rounding the Bases: 11/21 - 11/27
Today, I launch a new feature at Baseball Arcade. Every Thursday, I will be posting a roundup of the previous week's major news stories and transactions in baseball. I will also be posting links to a couple excellent articles from across the baseball 'blog-o-sphere.'
News
11/21 - Kansas City Royals sign RHP Jason Vargas to a 4/$32 contract
11/22 - Milwaukee Brewers trade RHP Burke Badenhop to Boston Red Sox for mL LHP Luis Ortega
11/22 - St Louis Cardinals trade 3B David Freese and RHP Fernando Salas to Los Angeles Angels for CF Peter Bourjos and mL OF Randal Grichuk
11/22 - New York Mets sign OF Chris Young to a 1/$7.25 contract
11/23 - New York Yankees sign C Brian McCann to a 5/$85 deal with 6th year vesting option
11/24 - St Louis Cardinals sign IF Jhonny Peralta to a 4/$53 contract
11/24 - Tampa Bay Rays re-sign C Jose Molina to a 2/$4.5 contract
11/24 - Los Angeles Dodgers sign Dan Haren to a 1/$10 contract with 2nd year vesting option
11/25 - Kansas City Royals trade C George Kottaras to Chicago Cubs for cash considerations
11/26 - Minnesota Twins sign RHP Ricky Nolasco to a 4/$49 contract with 5th year option
Blog Links
Chris Carruthers (Breaking Blue) wrote an excellent article, "The R.A. Dickey Effect", where he examines the effect batters having to face Dickey and his knuckleball has on the relievers who come in after him.
Bill Baer (Crashburn Alley) reminds everyone that, despite the Tigers escaping from the Fielder contract, Ryan Howard is never going anywhere. Ever.
Bruce Markusen (Hardball Times) takes an in-depth look at the recently recovered footage from Jim Maloney's 1965 no-hitter, with a focus on how the coverage of the sport has changed.
Rany Jayazerli (Rany on the Royals) examines the Jason Vargas deal. Unsurprisingly, he thinks it's a bad move for KC.
Dave Cameron (Fangraphs) looks at how the market is changing and the cost of a Win is on the rise.
For the really bold, Bryan Grosnick (Beyond the Box Score) proposes a new bullpen role: "opener"
News
11/21 - Kansas City Royals sign RHP Jason Vargas to a 4/$32 contract
11/22 - Milwaukee Brewers trade RHP Burke Badenhop to Boston Red Sox for mL LHP Luis Ortega
11/22 - St Louis Cardinals trade 3B David Freese and RHP Fernando Salas to Los Angeles Angels for CF Peter Bourjos and mL OF Randal Grichuk
11/22 - New York Mets sign OF Chris Young to a 1/$7.25 contract
11/23 - New York Yankees sign C Brian McCann to a 5/$85 deal with 6th year vesting option
11/24 - St Louis Cardinals sign IF Jhonny Peralta to a 4/$53 contract
11/24 - Tampa Bay Rays re-sign C Jose Molina to a 2/$4.5 contract
11/24 - Los Angeles Dodgers sign Dan Haren to a 1/$10 contract with 2nd year vesting option
11/25 - Kansas City Royals trade C George Kottaras to Chicago Cubs for cash considerations
11/26 - Minnesota Twins sign RHP Ricky Nolasco to a 4/$49 contract with 5th year option
Blog Links
Chris Carruthers (Breaking Blue) wrote an excellent article, "The R.A. Dickey Effect", where he examines the effect batters having to face Dickey and his knuckleball has on the relievers who come in after him.
Bill Baer (Crashburn Alley) reminds everyone that, despite the Tigers escaping from the Fielder contract, Ryan Howard is never going anywhere. Ever.
Bruce Markusen (Hardball Times) takes an in-depth look at the recently recovered footage from Jim Maloney's 1965 no-hitter, with a focus on how the coverage of the sport has changed.
Rany Jayazerli (Rany on the Royals) examines the Jason Vargas deal. Unsurprisingly, he thinks it's a bad move for KC.
Dave Cameron (Fangraphs) looks at how the market is changing and the cost of a Win is on the rise.
For the really bold, Bryan Grosnick (Beyond the Box Score) proposes a new bullpen role: "opener"
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
Deadspin Buys Vote, Baseball Arcade Unravels Mystery
It was revealed today that Deadspin had purchased the Hall of Fame vote of a member of the Baseball Writers Association of America. The sports and humor website intends to crowd-source the ballot, which the writer will then submit as his own. After the votes are tallied, the writer in question will reveal his/her identity and his/her justification for selling the vote. But waiting is no longer necessary! I'm proud to say that Baseball Arcade has deduced the seller's identity.
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