Thursday's Frosty Mug

by KLSnow on May 22, 2008 9:03 AM CDT Comment 7 comments

So, the Brewers are 1-0 now in the Gagne shutdown era, just saying...

Win Expectancy Graph
BR Box Score
BDD Recaps

Defensive Indifference thinks the decision to leave Ben Sheets in to throw 120+ pitches and finish the game last night was the wrong call. I'm not sure where I stand on it. I guess we'll see the results in 5 days.

Brewers Bar has raised a straw man and beaten the crap out of it, saying that "many people" feel race was a factor in the Brewers decision to sign Ryan Braun to a long term contract before Prince Fielder. Does anyone out there know anyone who thinks that? I don't. I'm listing Scott Boras as the primary factor.

I've heard a lot of theories this spring on why Eric Gagne isn't pitching well. I've heard his glasses fog up, he misses HGH and/or steroids, his breaking stuff isn't as good, etc. But this theory is new. Perhaps Eric Gagne...is Fidel Castro?

On injuries:

Moises Alou left yesterday's game with a cramp in his calf.
Angels IF Erick Aybar is on the DL after dislocating his right pinky finger.
Mets OF Ryan Church and Braves IF Yunel Escobar missed yesterday's action following a collision Tuesday.
Tigers P Clay Rapada has been placed on the DL with biceps tendinitis.

If Doug Melvin is looking for relief pitching, a couple of options might be available: The Mariners DFA'd Cha Seung Baek and the Rangers DFA'd Franklyn German yesterday. Here are the BR pages for Baek and German. We could do much worse. For example, we could sign Ray King, who appeared on Baseball Tonight last night to discuss what it's like to pitch overweight.

Every now and then we have a conversation around here about what the JS and other outlets would look like if the people who covered the Brewers weren't afraid to be all-out negative. If you really want to see how the other half lives on this one, go back and click on the first link about Cha Seung Baek, and read some of Geoff Baker's other work, as well. Someone needs to talk him off the ledge.

Jose de Jesus Ortiz says the Astros are ready to compete. Admittedly, he works for the Houston Chronicle, so he's probably a little biased, but they're certainly better than most expected.

Soapbox time: If you've read the Mug more than 3 consecutive days, ever, you know I'm not a fan of Dayn Perry. Here's the first two paragraphs from his most recent column. I've added the bolding:

At this writing, the Chicago Cubs are a half-game behind the Arizona Diamondbacks for the best record in all of baseball. They hold a two-game lead in the NL Central, and they're on pace for 101 wins this season, which would be the franchise's highest win total since 1910.

This early success is significant because, of course, the 2008 season marks the 100th anniversary of the last Cubs championship. So needless to say expectations are running high on the North Side of Chicago. All of this brings to mind a single question: are the Cubs for real?

So the Cubs hot start is only significant because it's been 100 years? No Dayn, you're wrong. The Cubs are significant because they're significantly overachieving, on pace to win 101 games, lead a division with two surprisingly successful teams and they just might have first and second place in the final balloting for NL Rookie of the Year. It's almost Memorial Day, Dayn, can we shut up about curses for five minutes and just cover the game on the field?

Oh, and here's a 1997 Marlins World Series Ring on Ebay.

Drink up.

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I would like to declare a moratorium

on the phrase “are they for real?” in sportswriting. I’ve been guilty of it myself.

But for the most part, there are two possible answers:
1. They were “for real” before, and you just didn’t notice (probably because you are a mainstream sportswriter and don’t follow more than a handful of players on other teams).
2. No. If you have to ask, no. (See Kapler, Gabe. Among many, many, many others.)

This is what I don’t like about the new FanGraphs bloggers. Their analysis is fine, but having to churn out a statistical analysis every day means they are mostly flitting from player to player, saying “is his start for real?” Every year, at the 10, 20, 30, 50, whatever game mark, there will be some guys who dramatically overperform. It’s fun to watch, but no, the vast majority of them are not for real.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on May 22, 2008 9:21 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Brewers Bar Strawman

1. I have waded into the morass that is the JS Online Brewers Blog and there are actually people arguing that there is a racial component to the Braun signing/Fielder non-signing, as hard as that is to believe.

2. The far more entertaining part of the Brewers Bar post was the comments, particularly the commentor that is trying to argue that Fielder is an above-average defensive first-baseman and that his mistakes are due to the fact that some plays are too easy for him.

Both points one and two above make me wonder if people were always this stupid, or if the existence of comments on blogs has an adverse effect of the inteligence of commentors (present company excluded, of course).

by tosabrewfan on May 22, 2008 9:36 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Commenting

I think commenting allows two things:

1) Knee jerk reactions. Every now and then I do it too. You see something on the web, are angered/frustrated/motivated by it, and there’s an avenue there to immediately post your thoughts. So 30 seconds after something bad happens, you can issue an overreaction.
2) Consequence free confrontationalism. When you say something and someone else argues with you, you can spiral in a way you wouldn’t do in person, because jerkface632 most likely is never going to come to your house.

When you combine the two, it’s easy to get things that are mean spirited and/or ill informed from people motivated to post and given an instant avenue. Hell, I deleted one of my own replies to a comment on the Mug recently. I saw something, was frustrated by it, responded harshly, then came back in an hour and felt bad about what I’d said, so I deleted and rephrased. But most venues don’t leave commenters that option.

Derek Jeter is day to day after being hit by a pitch and being gorilla press slammed by a Bizarro Ray.

by KLSnow on May 22, 2008 9:48 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Baek & German

Baek doesn’t interest me, but I’d love to call up Luis Pena and sign German to a minor league deal and install him as Nashville’s closer. He’s got a big fastball.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on May 22, 2008 10:31 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

More fun

The Brewers are 2-0 in the Yost ~~fired~~ still as manager era.

Obscure baseball records and more at my blog, Recondite Baseball.

by TheJay on May 22, 2008 11:19 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

But could we do even better

by installing Gabe Gross as interim manager?

by Zeyes on May 22, 2008 2:13 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Theyre forgetting something

Last year we were cruising through first place too for most of the season. How did that turn out again?

"You have no honor!" - McClung to Fukudome

by zsxander567 on May 22, 2008 12:24 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

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NL Central Standings

	W	L	PCT	GB	STRK
St. Louis Viva El Birdos	91	71	.561	0	Lost 6
Chicago Bleed Cubbie Blue	83	78	.515	7.5	Lost 1
Milwaukee Brew Crew Ball	80	82	.493	11	Won 3
Cincinnati Red Reporter	78	84	.481	13	Won 2
Houston The Crawfish Boxes	74	88	.456	17	Lost 3
Pittsburgh Bucs Dugout	62	99	.385	28.5	Lost 2