Thursday's Plastic Cup

by Jeff Sackmann on Jun 19, 2008 9:01 AM CDT in News Comment 37 comments

Last night's game was fun. I liked this, and I also liked this.

Yesterday was better for the NL--the senior circuit won 6 of 14 interleague matchups. For the second day in a row, though, the Brewers were the only Central team to win. That moves us 3 back of the Cards and 6.5 back of the Cubs.

Speaking of the Cubs, you may have heard that Carlos Zambrano left with some kind of injury last night. Jim Edmonds left too. No word yet on what's going on with Z, but we do know he's getting an MRI.

David Riske will rejoin the team for the finale today. He was in Milwaukee yesterday, but having pitched an inning in Nashville on Tuesday, the club decided not to activate him until today.

I haven't seen any hints about who will go to make room, but I looked up the Brewers relief stats for the last 14 days. DiFelice has thrown the most innings out of the pen, with a 2.70 ERA and a 8/0 K/BB ratio. Dillard has thrown the fewest (2 innings). Julian Tavarez has a 13.50 ERA in 4 frames in that stretch. Not that we need an extra arm, but as I said yesterday, I wouldn't be surprised if Iribarren goes back down and we end up with 13 pitchers.

Russell Branyan is very good against righties. Bill Hall is very good against lefties. Neither of them is very good against same-side pitchers. Please remember this if you are at a game and are tempted to boo when Hall pinch-hits for Branyan with a lefty on the mound and no one warming in the bullpen.

Battlekow fanshotted it, but I figured it deserved a spot in the Cup as well: This summer, you'll be drinking Robinade Old School Lemonade. So this is why Robin Yount didn't want to be on the coaching staff anymore.

Richie Sexson has been a disaster for the Mariners, but I didn't think it would come to this: The Mariners may just release him. That would be the most serious condemnation of Bavasi's tenure--I don't have time to track down a link, but I believe that either Will Carroll or Ken Rosenthal reported last July that someone claimed Sexson off of waivers, meaning that the Mariners could have just dumped his contract for nothing. Speaking of Bavasi, it's worth a few minutes to listen to Dan Szymborski's audio tribute.

Finally, here's the last installment of Geoff Young's interview with Sandy Alderson.

Day game today, so see you back here around 1 CT.

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Willy Wonka

Russell Branyan is very good against lefties. Bill Hall is very good against righties.

Strike that. Reverse it.

by Marty McSuperFly on Jun 19, 2008 9:14 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

oops.

ha. thanks.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on Jun 19, 2008 11:31 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

zambrano

wasn’t hard to see this one coming. the guy has been a freak of nature, something had to give.

year, innings, k/9, bb/9
2003 214, 7.07, 3.95
2004 210, 8.07, 3.48
2005 223, 8.14, 3.47
2006 214, 8.83, 4.84
2007 216, 7.36, 4.20
2008 106, 5.76, 3.05

lost his control in ‘06, his arm angle has dropped, his velocity is down, i wouldn’t be surprised if his shoulder is destroyed. who knows though, he’s a tank, maybe he’ll just pitch (and probably well) until his arm falls off.

i’d wager he’s pitched more innings since 2003 than anyone else in baseball. that’s a big workload, especially at ages 22-27. hope he makes it back, he is a lot of fun to watch.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 9:18 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

IIRC

He’s lead the league, or been the top for at least the past two years in Pitcher Abuse Points.

Coffee is for closers

by drezdn on Jun 19, 2008 9:40 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

i just went to check on that.

zambrano, ml pap ranking

2003 11th
2004 3rd
2005 2nd
2006 2nd
2007 2nd
2008 2nd

other notable top ten and repeat appearnaces: wood, prior, ortiz, schmidt, livan hernandez, zito, arroyo

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 9:42 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

IP, 2003-2007

Livan Hernandez – 1155.0
Mark Buehrle – 1117.1
Barry Zito – 1090.2
Brandon Webb – 1089.0
Carlos Zambrano – 1077.1
Johan Santana – 1070.2
Greg Maddux – 1064.0
Javier Vazquez – 1063.2
Tim Hudson – 1063.1
John Lackey – 1053.0

Just because I think it’s cool to see big numbers like this, Zambrano’s third in number of pitches thrown in that period:

Livan Hernandez – 18323
Barry Zito – 18280
Carlos Zambrano – 17734
Javier Vazquez – 17026
John Lackey – 16843

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

by TheJay on Jun 19, 2008 10:06 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

thanks.

B-REF PI??

i couldn’t make it work. i knew you’d take the bait too. having you around this blog is teh awesome. thanks again!

so, if you’re going to put a list together of most likely to become less effective pitchers, i’d say the second list of 5 is a pretty good starting point.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 10:30 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah, BR play index

I especially like that over a five-season period, there’s three guys seperated by 2/3 of an inning pitched.

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

by TheJay on Jun 19, 2008 10:34 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

can you explain

to me how you did that? which link did you use from the play index homepage?

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 12:04 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sure

From the play index homepage, go into the Pitching Season Finder. Then up at the top where it gives you the option of Single Seasons or Matching Seasons/Careers, make sure you select Matching Seasons/Careers. Then change the years to whatever period you want to look at, in this case 2003 to 2007. Finally, change the Sorted By to innings pitched, click Get Results and it’ll generate your list.

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

by TheJay on Jun 19, 2008 12:18 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

thanks.

Then up at the top where it gives you the option of Single Seasons or Matching Seasons/Careers, make sure you select Matching Seasons/Careers.

Missed this one.

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 12:50 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Sorry Jeff Billy Hall must pay for his sins

He will be booed the rest of the season for the simple never wrong reason of

“Just Because” You know what Milwaukee fans are like we will lie down in traffic for you but tell us you wanted to be traded and you are “dead to us”

If Hall and his idiot agent had handled this correctly he would not be getting booed every time he comes to the plate.

Hall needs to come out and hold a presser and say I fucked up I got emotional and said stuff in the heat of the moment yada yada yada then apologize to the good people of Wisconsin and then go play ball when he gets a chance no pouting in the dug out just play his way back into the fans good graces.

Its all about the Bullpen this season that is the key.

by WSB Chris on Jun 19, 2008 9:52 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

That's the option?

He should continue to hope for a trade, then, or simply collect his massive paycheck from the bench. He doesn’t owe anything to you. Much like Fielder’s comment about being renewed this Spring, he has moved on, and all the media and fans won’t let it go.

Incidentally, this is why the it pains me to root for the Brewers. The only group of people more annoying than Wisconsin (primarily packer) fans is Boston fans. Quite honestly, booing a guy before he gets a chance to take an AB is stupid. If you want to express your displeasure, at least wait until after he’s done before trying to get in his head. You’re only hurting the team, otherwise.

by Marty McSuperFly on Jun 19, 2008 10:00 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

Don't forget about Philly fans

Oh…and how could you leave off Cub/ Bear fans.

by brewfan2 on Jun 19, 2008 10:03 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I mean what I said

Boston, then Packer fans, then everyone else. Boston and Packer fans manage to work in a kind of self-righteous sense of entitlement that they’ve elevated to an art form.

by Marty McSuperFly on Jun 19, 2008 10:05 AM CDT up reply actions 1 recs

You must be a Bear fan

It must also pain you to associate yourself with fans like this…

by brewfan2 on Jun 19, 2008 10:22 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yes, it does

But they’re mostly just obnoxious.

by Marty McSuperFly on Jun 19, 2008 10:36 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Agreed

by brewfan2 on Jun 19, 2008 10:42 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Yeah I am hurting the team not Hall right

Hall should have asked for the trade in house not in the paper then he would not be getting booed.

I was one of the biggest Hall apologists for the last 2 years but the open request for a trade was the last straw.

Lucky for me snobs like you do not get to control everyone else I pay my money I get to boo who ever I please for what ever reason I please( I know that is so casual fan of me) I forget that people like you think rooting for a team is like being a country club member oh if you could only keep the great unwashed from ruining your experience. I bet you have one of those little “Quiet” signs in your TV room so you can hush people while the baseball game is on.

Actually Marty as a paying customer he does owe me something to not hurt the team by his actions by openly demanding a trade he killed what little trade value he had which hurt the team. If he is such a candy ass that he cannot mentally handle being booed he is in the wrong business.

Oh and I really wear your dislike for people like me as a badge of honor Marty just tells me I am doing the right thing. snob

This kind of reminds me of my very first run in with you here Marty

TURNBLOW TURNBLOW TURNBLOW TURNBLOW TURNBLOW TURNBLOW :P

I am going to boo Hall extra loud on Friday just for you Marty

Its all about the Bullpen this season that is the key.

by WSB Chris on Jun 19, 2008 11:56 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Not much I can add to that

Enjoy booing your team on Friday.

by Marty McSuperFly on Jun 19, 2008 12:12 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

see you cannot see the forest for the trees

booing one player vs. booing the whole team big difference Marty.

did I every mention booing the whole team Marty reading is a skill you know.

Now leave me alone and go make sure your brie and wine are chilled to the right temp for today’s afternoon tilt. I would hate to see your baseball experience ruined by snacks that were room temp.

Its all about the Bullpen this season that is the key.

by WSB Chris on Jun 19, 2008 12:31 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

If reading is a skill, then writing is a skill as well.

Please learn how to use commas. It makes reading that much more enjoyable.

by brewfan2 on Jun 19, 2008 12:47 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

nice dig

nice dig at the brie and merlot crowd. kudos.

let me know when the camembert and beaujolais crowd sucks, then i’ll have to start worrying.

a new glarus spotted cow and a slice of vern’s edam is still cool, right?

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 2:19 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Camembert tastes like tires

Beaujolais is totally boring, is a fad, and only is good for a couple months. Also, Spotted Cow, despite being a perfectly good lawnmower beer, is tremendously overrated.

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jun 19, 2008 2:44 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

wish

there was a flag for, “completely missed the point”

Bring Back The Old Logo!

by jacob on Jun 19, 2008 4:15 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

"poking sticks into anthills" would be closer

He's extremely quick and good.

by battlekow on Jun 19, 2008 4:27 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Grouping

Packers fans with Boston fans is absurd. Get over yourself.

by molitorfan on Jun 19, 2008 6:49 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

I can't decide

should I be excited that Randy Choate is pitching at Brevard Co, or should I be afraid that its one more LOOGY for Ned to use incorrectly with a 15 man pitching staff?

by Getting Yosted on Jun 19, 2008 9:54 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Bye Bye

Julian Tavarez has been disginated for assignment.

by statsllc on Jun 19, 2008 10:29 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs

Wow..

No big pitcher staff?

Good, Tavarez wasn’t good. But I wanted to see him punch someone.

by SgtClueLs on Jun 19, 2008 10:33 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Cheapest move, right?

They only had a minimum contract anyway since Boston was paying most of his salary, so now they don’t owe Tavarez anything (whereas anyone else sent to the minors would still get paid).

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

by TheJay on Jun 19, 2008 10:36 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Awesome!

Now Gagne just needs to stay injured an we’re set.

Coffee is for closers

by drezdn on Jun 19, 2008 10:42 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Huzzah!

by Zeyes on Jun 19, 2008 11:06 AM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

Jeff better close his eyes

But language nerd that I am this is too good not to mention….veteran journalist Tom H apparently not quite able to navigate the tangled web of inferences, implications and insinuations:

Fielder tax mess blog post:

Boras let it be known in no uncertain terms that he thought I had no business poking into the situation. He said he didn’t comment on the personal finances of his clients, which I understood. But he also made inferences during our conversation that made it seem as if the matter was being addressed.

Fielder tax mess main article:

Boras did say that those looking into the matter should concentrate on the date the lien was filed. ... The implication was that the lien has been or is being addressed, though Boras declined to reveal any details.

Hurray for editors.

by Zeyes on Jun 19, 2008 11:51 AM CDT reply actions 2 recs

He just lacks credability

by Jordan M on Jun 19, 2008 12:17 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

YGHNC.

"I will agree that the attitude [at BCB] is ridiculous and they have done so much to instigate animosity and then block us from responding. Real mature!"

by roguejim on Jun 19, 2008 12:53 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs

New LaPorta MiLB.com journal post

by Zeyes on Jun 19, 2008 12:25 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs

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NL Central Standings

	W	L	PCT	GB	STRK
St. Louis Viva El Birdos	44	38	.536	0	Won 3
Milwaukee Brew Crew Ball	43	38	.530	0.5	Won 1
Chicago Bleed Cubbie Blue	39	39	.500	3	Lost 1
Cincinnati Red Reporter	39	39	.500	3	Lost 1
Houston The Crawfish Boxes	38	40	.487	4	Lost 1
Pittsburgh Bucs Dugout	37	43	.462	6	Won 1