Ode to Carsten Charles
by Jeff Sackmann on Sep 29, 2008 1:40 PM CDT
in Milwaukee Brewers News
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PrintI'll keep this short, especially since there's so much to read in the Mug today.
But I have to pile on. It's almost impossible to overstate how much CC has done the second half of this year. There may have been deadline acquisitions who have been more dominating (Randy Johnson's insane 1998 with the Astros comes to mind), but it's hard to imagine any player meaning more to, and doing more for, a team in the playoff hunt.
Quick rundown:
- 17 starts in 73 Brewers games
- Seven complete games (average of 7.7 IP per start, went 7 or more all but four times)
- Three shutouts, and that doesn't count yesterday: nine innings, zero ER
- Last three starts on short rest--probably with more to come
- 1.65 ERA, less than one HR allowed per *20* IP, and a K/BB ratio of better than 5:1
And somehow, that doesn't even seem like it does him justice. He did much of this while the rest of the team was slumping; he picked up the slack for an inconsistent bullpen; he kept the team in the hunt even when almost everybody else in the starting rotation couldn't.
Just...wow.
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Don't forget the other ace
Ben Sheets carried the rotation until CC came along. He went 10-2 in 17 starts before CC was acquired. He didn’t eat as many innings, but still averaged 6 2/3 per start when guys like Manny Parra and Carlos Villanueva were trademarking the Overworked Bullpen™ by struggling to consistently go five.
Sheets’ numbers, while great, don’t match up with Sabathia’s:
17 starts, 10 W, 2 L, 117.0 IP, 104 H, 26 BB, 97 K, 12 HR, 2.77 ERA
Sure, he wasn’t perfect: his 6 run 7th inning meltdown on May 15 against the Dodgers was part of the darkest week of the year, culminating in the Brewers sitting at 20-24 in last place on May 18. The bad inning raised his ERA to 3.25, but Sheets was the only starter on the team with an ERA below 4.78 and the only one with an FIP under 5. Two-fifths of the rotation had ERA’s (and FIP’s) over 6 at that point.
Even if he wasn’t perfect and his numbers don’t match up with CC’s, is getting Sabathia and making a run for the playoffs an option without Sheets’ keeping the team around in the first half?
Obscure baseball records and more at my blog, Recondite Baseball.
but your analysis...
fantastic!
Also, cheese.
by Jeff Sackmann on Sep 29, 2008 2:36 PM CDT up reply actions
You make it up for it with other things!
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
plural?
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 5:19 PM CDT up reply actions
Yes
VERY plural ;)
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
Eww.
"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!"
Jealousy rears it's ugly head...
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
you sure?
one is quite enough for me;)
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 7:16 PM CDT up reply actions
Not 'things' literally!
Actions can be things too!
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
Tell that to a sugar glider
jeff: but i shudder to think of the bullpen analogy to sending the runner
You called?
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
Does Sheets get to sit in the dugout even if he's not on the playoff roster?
I would hope this is the case. Would be pretty weird to have to leave him at home.
Tararreling our way to the finish line.
oh yeah.
I don’t know the exact rules on who is allowed to hang around, but I don’t think they are that stringent. I would imagine Riske, Branyan, etc. will be there as well.
Also, cheese.
by Jeff Sackmann on Sep 29, 2008 2:37 PM CDT up reply actions
he was 5.66?
i somehow doubt it
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 3:19 PM CDT up reply actions
no, he ended at 1.65 with the Brewers
Also, cheese.
by Jeff Sackmann on Sep 29, 2008 3:21 PM CDT up reply actions
oh, i get it
vs his current career ERA
okay, that makes sense.
way it was stated made me think he dropped his career ERA that much.
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 3:51 PM CDT up reply actions
One night a man had a dream...
He was walking along the beach with C.C. Sabathia, and across the sky flashed scenes from the 2008 baseball season. In each scene, he noticed two sets of footprints in the sand; one made by him, and the other made by C.C. Sabathia.
When the last scene of the 2008 baseball season flashed before him, he looked back at the footprints in the sand. He noticed that many times along the path of the 2008 baseball season, there was only one set of footprints. He also noticed that it happened at the worst times in the 2008 baseball season.
This bothered him very much, so he asked C.C. Sabathia about it. “Carsten, you said that once I decided to follow you, you’d walk with me all the way. But I’ve noticed that during times of trouble, there is only one set of footprints. I don’t understand why you left me when I needed you most.”
C.C. Sabthia answered, “My precious child, I love you and I would never leave you. During your times of trial, when you saw only one set of footprints, that’s when I was carrying you.”
by Danny Noonan on Sep 29, 2008 3:28 PM CDT reply actions 3 recs
CC
After we walked out of the stadium Sunday there was one of those preachers with the megaphone in the parking lot. A group of us started chanting “CC’s God” and completely drowned him out. It was awesome.
YoGanna win with Gallardo on the mound.
Much agreed
It’s not often that one player has the power to help take a team this far.
Not saying it did it all himself by any means, but his attitude definitely brought a more positive influence to the team and motivated the rest of the boys.
"Brett Favre looks like a man in a parking lot playing with boys." - John Madden
"Pujols just unloaded." - Bob Uecker
MVP
He definately deserves some sort of recognition. Personally, I think he’s more deserving of the MVP. He is the reason we are in the post-season. Without him, we would have been out of the race 2 weeks ago. When you look at what he has done for us the last 3 months, particularly the past 2 weeks, no one has been a bigger difference maker to thier team’s success. He literally threw us on his back and carried us to the post season.
I know Ryan Howard’s had a very good year, but I would challange any Phillies fan to go back through thier schedule and tell many games they won because of Ryan Howard. When I do that with CC, eleven come to mind. I know sometimes in baseball pitchers can go out there and get – I don’t want to call them “cheap” wins, but – wins they may not have necessarily been the difference in. You can sometimes go out there with 5 innings of average work and pick up a win because you happened to be pitching on a day your team’s bats were hot. That was never the case with CC. In each one of his wins, he was absolutely dominant.
When people look back at the 2008 season up to this point in 5, 10, 20 years, the two headlines that stand out will be :
1.) the Tampa Bay Devil Rays
2.) CC Sabathia
Ryan Howard’s 48 HRs/146 RBIs are very impressive, but it’s not what people will remember about the 2008 regular season in 10 years. Cy Young or MVP, he deffinately deserves some sort of recognition. my vote’s MVP.
"You guys know me. I take a long time to analyze things."
- Ned Yost
by SunglassesAtNight on Sep 29, 2008 4:25 PM CDT up reply actions
I don’t think you can give CC the Cy to someone who only pitched half the year. I know he’s been nothing short of God like since he’s been with us, and probably the best pitcher in the NL during that span. But, the fact that he only pitched half a year in the NL hurts his chances.
I think it should go to Tim Lincecum. He’s 18 – 5 on a horrible team, his BB/WP rate leaves a bit to be desired, but his other numbers are just ridiculous. He’s got crazy sick K/9 number, H/9 while only in his second year, #1 ERA+ AND while eating up the 3rd most IP in the NL (Once again on a crap team). It would be crazy to see what he’ll do once he’s got a team behind him to help the Wins ratio.
That kids crazy good. If Sabathia pitched most or all of 2008 NL and posted the numbers he has since he got to Milwaukee, it would be easy, but I really don’t think he’ll get it based upon the whole being in the AL thing.
Another CC article
take out CC’s first four starts for Cleveland, that leaves him with 230 IP, and the results over that span are truly eye-popping.
Also, cheese.
hoping for rain
i’m hoping for rain on Wed. and we get a Sabathia/Halems Game 1 matchup on Thurs.. barring that, my guess is Gallardo.
"You guys know me. I take a long time to analyze things."
- Ned Yost
by SunglassesAtNight on Sep 29, 2008 4:58 PM CDT up reply actions
meant Sabathia/Hamels
"You guys know me. I take a long time to analyze things."
- Ned Yost
by SunglassesAtNight on Sep 29, 2008 4:58 PM CDT up reply actions
This may be thinking outside of the box but how about starting Parra and let him pitch through Howard. Then bring in Gallardo for the next 4+ innings. Gallardo would only have to face Utley and Howard once, hopefully around the 4th inning. Get him through the 5th and let Stetter and Shouse handle those two the rest of the way.
by juggernaut400 on Sep 29, 2008 5:25 PM CDT up reply actions
I like the way you are thinking
I like Parra, but I was thinking in reverse, Parra relieving Gallardo when Howard came up for his third at bat, and leave him in until he see him again.
The designated hitter rule is like letting someone else take Wilt Chamberlain's free throws.
Parra got owned last time against the Phillies
How about something truly different- bring in the righty reliever on the bottom of the food chain to get the first two, bring in Shouse or Stetter to get Howard and Utley, and then bring on Yovani?
And neck size to baby eating ratio.
then you're short a LOOGY near the end of the game
I can see needing one in the 7th and one in the 9th.
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 5:56 PM CDT up reply actions
A little too outside the box, probably
Could work in September, though.
And neck size to baby eating ratio.
i suppose if needed Parra could be the backup LOOGY
Shouse in the 1st
Stetter near the end of the game
Parra if needed at the very end.
He doesn’t quite have LOOGY-stuff, but I’m sure righties hit him better than lefties.
That way you’re guaranteeing yourself the use of the best LOOGY (Shouse) while putting Stetter in a high leverage situation if it exists.
Situational Signature (8th/9th inning only): pleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendallpleasenotkendall
--NoahJ
by PagsBrewCrew on Sep 29, 2008 6:04 PM CDT up reply actions
Congrats to The Brewers.
On a great season. Hope to see you at Wrigley Field!
Btw, who’s your game one starter…Gallardo? McClung sure looked awsome the other day, but perhaps he’s too valuable in the pen right now.
"Whoever wants to know the heart and mind of America had better learn baseball." - Jacque Barzun
Raining on my own parade a little
I just did the first run of my 2009 projections.
I have LaPorta at 267/323/443 … just a hair under league average for left field. It would be better if adjusted for the NL.
In other news, FREE MICAH HOFFPAUIR. I realize how insane this is, but my projections put him in the top 10 of MLB slugging percentage next year, right between Matt Holliday and Chase Utley.
And just noticing…two nearly identical players, as projected for 09: Bill Hall and Joe Crede.
Also, cheese.
http://media.myfoxmilwaukee.com/live/index.html
The designated hitter rule is like letting someone else take Wilt Chamberlain's free throws.
http://media.myfoxmilwaukee.com/live/index.html
The designated hitter rule is like letting someone else take Wilt Chamberlain's free throws.
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