Friday, July 31, 2015

Ron Guidry struck out 18 in 2 hours.

No jerking around by batters or pitchers.

Saturday, June 17, 1978, 8:00PM, Yankee Stadium II
Attendance: 33,162, Time of Game: 2:07

Yankees 4, Angels 0


PitchingIPHRERBBSOHRERABFGScIRISWPAaLIRE24
Ron Guidry, W (11-0)940021801.4533950.2990.724.1
This morning I noticed that the YES (Yankees Entertainment & Sports) Network was replaying this "classic" game.  I watched a few Angel batters strike out.  The announcers mentioned the new banner displayed by some fans: "Louisiana Lightning".  They then mentioned that his teammates called Guidry: Gator.

Photo of Ron GuidryThe 27 year old lefty was having his career year.  He would win the Cy Young award.  This was the fourth consecutive start in which Guidry struck out at least 10.  This was the game that inspired fans to stand up when a pitcher had two strikes on a batter in anticipation of the next pitch resulting in a strike out.

What immediately gets your attention is that the batters stay in the box and that Guidry wastes no time.  He had a runner on first base when I tuned in and even with checking the runner Guidry very quickly got the sign from catcher Thurman Munson and simply threw strikes.  One after another, pounding the zone with little care about working corners.  Guidry let his stuff do the talking.

The slow motion junk we have today is a pale imitation.  Even if a pitcher lasted in a game long enough to strike out 18 it would take forever.  And how entertaining would that really be?  Not very.

The old June 15 trading deadline was two days before but during the short time that I watched the replay there no mention of trades.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

Why even have a trading deadline?

My position is that trades during the regular season should be banned.  But if they are allowed, why not allow them during the entire regular season?  Why not also in the post season tournament?  Otherwise, whatever reasons for restricting when trades may be made should apply all the time.

Trade Deadlines and Other Rules no publication date

by Cliff Blau

Trades are not forbidden after trading deadlines. Rather, all players involved must first clear waivers in order to be traded...


Following the 1922 season, the deadline was changed to June 15, where it remained for decades...

In 1986, the distinction between intraleague and interleague trades was eliminated, and the waivers were required for trades only from August 1 to the end of the season.

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No trades during the season. Thursday, July 9, 2015

I don't know how I could state this any more simply or directly.  There should be no trades during the season.  Put another way: 
trading should end the day before opening day.  Trading may begin again during the next off season.  The more anal among you may try to parse some ambiguity in this but there is none.  No trades during the season.
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Revolving door rosters on steroids. Tuesday, July 28, 2015

I just read that Troy Tulowitzki has been traded from Colorado to Toronto. That might be good for Toronto but I'm not sure it's good for Tulo, Colorado or baseball.

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Anatomy of a trade: Roger Maris: KC Athletics to NY Yankees. Tuesday, July 7, 2015

Woodie Held and Vic Power were traded by the Athletics to the Cleveland Indians for Roger Maris.  Cleveland GM Frank Lane also traded Rocky Colavito:
Cleveland could have kept Maris and Colavito but violated the adage: the best deals are the ones you don't make.
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Rocky Colavito, Baseball Digest, front cover, September 1959 via Wikimedia Commons
The Colavito - Kuenn trade occurred two days before the season opener, which happened to be between the two teams.

Tuesday, April 19, 1960, Cleveland Stadium
Attendance: 52,756, Time of Game: 4:54
Tigers 4, Indians 2 in 15 innings


I wonder how many of those 52,756 fans in Cleveland bought tickets before the trade because they wanted to see their favorite Indian player, Rocky Colavito, who had tied Harmon Killebrew of the Washington Senators for most home runs in the American League in 1959: 42 each. Instead they had Kuenn who had the highest AL batting average in 1959.

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Revolving door rosters on steroids.

M & M Boys, revolving door rosters, copy cat management and rooting for the laundry. Sunday, December 1, 2013

As a fan I'd like at least some core players to play most if not all of their careers with the team I root for.  Having supplemental players is part of the deal but I'd like at least some of them to remain for at least 4-5 years.  Despite their flaws I had gotten comfortable with Swisher and Granderson.  I understand that the team needs fresh blood but I'm very concerned that all teams are entering a period when fan interest in individuals will receive very little consideration.

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I just read that Troy Tulowitzki has been traded from Colorado to Toronto. That might be good for Toronto but I'm not sure it's good for Tulo, Colorado or baseball.

No trades during the season. Thursday, July 9, 2015

I don't know how I could state this any more simply or directly.  There should be no trades during the season.  Put another way: 
trading should end the day before opening day.  Trading may begin again during the next off season.  The more anal among you may try to parse some ambiguity in this but there is none.  No trades during the season.
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Monday, July 27, 2015

8 greatest living players.

Barry Bonds, Willie Mays, Hank Aaron, Mike Schmidt, Alex Rodriguez, Albert Pujols, Johnny Bench, Frank Robinson.

No pitchers, of course.  July 27, 2015

Pete Rose today: Draftkings addict? What player and/or manager is?

Apparently there's a gambling disconnect between real and fantasy games such that it's OK to construct and essentially bet on fantasy teams that represent real results of real players in real games.  That's the legal loophole in most states through which sports leagues that oppose real gambling on their real games have driven through with a vengeance.  But has their greed blinded them to all too obvious questions?

Are players, managers and coaches allowed to participate, i.e., gamble on fantasy games played by fantasy teams whose results are derived from the performances of those same players, managers and coaches?

Major League Baseball "an investor in the “daily fantasy sports” website DraftKings". Sunday, July 26, 2015

reader comment:

Did Pete Rose simply choose the wrong time and medium to fuel his habits outside of baseball?

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DraftKings gets more money from Major League Baseball. Monday, July 27, 2015

Major League Baseball, Inc. and a Yankees business entity have invested in DraftKings.

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Saturday Alex Rodriguez hit three home runs.  Sunday Yankee manager Joe Girardi benched Rodriguez.  Supposedly it was part of Girardi's planned rest schedule.  Or was it to fit Girardi's daily picks with Drafkings?  Who would know, especially if Girardi had someone else actually handle the transactions for him?

Isn't this exactly the kind of insider stuff that was so insidious about Pete Rose gambling on baseball games while Rose was manager of the Cincinnati Reds in the 1980s?  If you'll pardon the double/double meaning: isn't it like Pete Rose on steroids?

In the last day while checking into what had been a completely unknown matter I stumbled onto many websites which offer advice on how to increase your chances of winning, including one that tries to help you parlay a three dollar investment into $100,000 in one day.  Throughout the day the MLB Network has its paid employees, including former players, provide explicit advice on which players to take for your daily fantasy team.

The big money in sports today is driven by advertising money from TV.  I have long held that the TV viewership was driven by gambling, especially for football and basketball, which unlike baseball, work on point spreads.  However, this new form of baseball betting, rather than relying on the odds of a team winning, allows betting on individual performances more specifically that football or basketball can.  It's because of the nature of baseball: it is composed of about 100 discreet events (hits, outs, etc.) in every game, which can be categorized and quantified and turned into plausible outcomes.

During football and basketball seasons there might be 30 games on TV at the same time.  I figured that those games were monitored by gamblers checking on their bets, not by actual team fans.  Now baseball can trump that with gamblers checking on individual players.  Those official reviews and official scorer decisions take on much more importance with money riding on the outcome.  A person into fantasy baseball with money to be made may be inclined to follow his/her players of the day.  That would require an MLB TV package at extra cost.

And what about team management and ownership?  Are they allowed to participate in fantasy baseball?  In this fantasy world it doesn't matter if your favorite player changes teams before the trading deadline as long as he continues to play.

DraftKings gets more money from Major League Baseball.

Major League Baseball, Inc. and a Yankees business entity have invested in DraftKings.

Fantasy Sports Website DraftKings Adds $300 Million in New Investment
By RICHARD SANDOMIR JULY 26, 2015 The New York Times


... the fantasy sports company has raised $426 million ...

... its chief daily fantasy sports rival, FanDuel, raised $275 million in additional funding ...

In addition to Fox Sports, the other new investors in DraftKings are the National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, Madison Square Garden and Legends Hospitality, a stadium concession business owned by the Yankees and the Dallas Cowboys. Existing investors who increased their funding include Major League Baseball...

ESPN had been expected to invest $250 million for a stake in DraftKings, but it backed out recently.

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Major League Baseball "an investor in the “daily fantasy sports” website DraftKings". Sunday, July 26, 2015

reader comment:

Did Pete Rose simply choose the wrong time and medium to fuel his habits outside of baseball?

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Sunday, July 26, 2015

Four homer games sorted by age.

Previous post:

Oldest hitters of the 531 three homer games. Sunday, July 26, 2015

Three hitters were 40 and one was 41.  The first 40 year old was Babe Ruth
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Four homers in a game is much more of a young man's game.

From 1914 to 2015, (requiring HR>=4), sorted by oldest
Rk Player Age Date Tm Opp Rslt PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB IBB SO HBP SH SF ROE GDP SB CS WPA RE24 aLI BOP Pos Summary DFS(DK) DFS(FD)
1 Chuck Klein 31.277 1936-07-10 PHI PIT W 9-6 5 5 4 4 0 0 4 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 3 RF
2 Carlos Delgado 31.092 2003-09-25 TOR TBD W 10-8 4 4 4 4 0 0 4 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.724 5.324 1.635 4 1B
3 Josh Hamilton 30.353 2012-05-08 TEX BAL W 10-3 5 5 4 5 1 0 4 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.372 7.506 .444 3 CF
4 Willie Mays 29.359 1961-04-30 SFG MLN W 14-4 5 5 4 4 0 0 4 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.367 6.667 .376 3 CF
5 Shawn Green 29.194 2002-05-23 LAD MIL W 16-3 6 6 6 6 1 0 4 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.303 7.052 .433 3 RF
6 Mike Cameron 29.114 2002-05-02 SEA CHW W 15-4 6 5 4 4 0 0 4 4 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.090 4.066 .132 3 CF
7 Lou Gehrig 28.350 1932-06-03 NYY PHA W 20-13 6 6 4 4 0 0 4 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.000 0.000 4 1B
8 Bob Horner 28.334 1986-07-06 ATL MON L 8-11 5 5 4 4 0 0 4 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.262 5.204 .718 4 1B
9 Mark Whiten 26.286 1993-09-07 (2) STL CIN W 15-2 5 5 4 4 0 0 4 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.347 9.506 .868 6 CF
10 Joe Adcock 26.274 1954-07-31 MLN BRO W 15-7 5 5 5 5 1 0 4 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.150 5.445 .308 5 1B
11 Mike Schmidt 26.203 1976-04-17 PHI CHC W 18-16 6 6 4 5 0 0 4 8 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.455 7.135 .862 6 3B
12 Gil Hodges 26.149 1950-08-31 BRO BSN W 19-3 6 6 5 5 0 0 4 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.251 6.536 .423 6 1B
13 Rocky Colavito 25.304 1959-06-10 CLE BAL W 11-8 5 4 5 4 0 0 4 6 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.304 5.738 .514 4 RF
14 Pat Seerey 25.123 1948-07-18 (1) CHW PHA W 12-11 7 6 4 4 0 0 4 7 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0.958 5.785 1.786 4 LF
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 7/26/2015.