Quick Hits and Links

By The Common Man

The Common Man is tired after he stayed up late last night, putting together a Trade Tree that you should really check out.  It starts with the first amateur draft in 1965, runs through two division titles 20 years later, and three Hall of Famers.  TCM is also working on a big project with Bill today that should start rolling out later this week (we hope), so here are a bunch of links that are heartily endorsed by The Common Man:

Good news for Twins fans, as ESPN prospect and draft guru Keith Law really likes the team's first three picks (sorry, Insider only) after the first day.  The Twins got the best-looking college middle infielder, Levi Michael, with their first pick.  A big bat in Travis Harrison, a 3B who may need to move to 1B.  And Hudson Boyd, a big high-school kid who already looks like a right-handed Bobo Newsom, who throws hard.

Dayn Perry reminds us that there are other ways to take out the catcher than Scott Cousins body-block.  For instance, Ty Cobb preferred the flying kung-fu jumpkick to the groin.  Which might be effective.  We should see more of this.

Tuesday Trade Tree: Draft Day Edition

By The Common Man

Last night was the 1st round of the Amateur Draft, which is where teams chart their courses and pin their destinies on talented young men from states like Oklahoma, Arkansas, Florida, Texas, and California. Indeed, teams can truly alter the course of their destinies in the first round of the Amateur Draft, for good or for ill, as a wasted pick can really set a franchise back (especially given that teams often have to wait until picks in the 60-90 range to get their second player). This is the story of one team that did hit in the very first Major League Draft, held in 1965, and that benefited from one of its first pick for more than thirty years. Ironically, this team is perhaps the most star-crossed franchise of all time, the Chicago Cubs.

ESPN Power Rankings Comments Explained

By The Common Man

Rankings are powerful things, which is why ESPN does not entrust us with a vote in theirs, since The Common Man would probably end up putting the Twins 42nd and the Giants in “whiniest” place. But they do let us provide the comments. And every week, TCM expands on his thoughts in the power rankings for those teams that aren’t represented in the SweetSpot Network. So without further ado, here’s bonus coverage of the White Sox, Angels, Marlins, and Pirates:

Steve Berthiaume Loses a Game for the Wins Crowd

By The Common Man

The Common Man actually likes Steve Berthiaume, who he has mocked mercilessly for his decision to pick the Astros to win the NL Central. Which, by the way, is still hilarious.

That said, Bert has a good sense of humor about himself, is from Wisconsin, and has gone out of his way to embrace SweetSpot Network bloggers like The Common Man. Which is why TCM is so sad that he has to say this: Steve, you are so terribly, horribly wrong about this that it is…God, just painful.

Berthiaume lays out the argument today that we should respect Kevin Correia’s win total for the Pittsburgh Pirates, saying “let's not do a sabermetric sidestep around one simple fact: There is still only ONE stat that counts in the division standings and that's wins. And no major league pitcher has more wins than Pittsburgh's Kevin Correia.” Which, while true, ignores the fact that pitcher wins and team wins are not the same thing. In fact they are completely different definitions. All Correia has to do to get a “win” is escape the 5th inning with a lead that his bullpen doesn’t relinquish. Teams have to be ahead at the end of 9 innings. So while Correia’s team has won in 8 of his 12 starts, Roy Halladay has started 9 games that his team has won, even though he’s only credited with 7 “wins.” Ditto with Cole Hamels. Isn’t that more impressive?

But that’s not even the real point.

Brian Sabean: Unprofessional Hypocrisy

By The Common Man

Last week, baseball fans were understandably devastated that Baby Buster Posey, the cute little backstop that everyone loves, got hurt in this collision at home plate with Marlins outfielder Scott Cousins:



Posey ended up with a broken leg and torn ligaments and is out for the season. From what The Common Man has seen, Cousins definitely initiated the contact, and did not make any effort to avoid Posey, who was not blocking his path to the plate. That said, Cousins’ play was not illegal, was not dirty, and is in keeping with what he had been taught as a runner. As Keith Law pointed out the other day, the play was not dirty, but nor was it necessary. But it is the end result of generations of baseball players and fans who have tolerated violent collisions at the plate. Cousins may not have done what was right, but he did what he understandably thought he was expected to do.


Yesterday, however, Giants GM Brian Sabean disagreed, telling a local radio station,

“If I never hear from Cousins again or he never plays another game in the big leagues, I think we’ll all be happy. He chose to be a hero in my mind, and if that’s his flash of fame, that’s as good as it’s going to get, pal. We’ll have a long memory. Believe me, we’ve talked to (Mike) Matheny about how this game works. You can’t be that out-and-out overly aggressive. I’ll put it as politically as I can state it: There’s no love lost and there shouldn’t be.” (h/t to Hardball Talk)

But Sabean is not only wrong here, he's also a complete hypocrite, who doesn't mind home plate collisions when his guys don't get hurt.

The All-Star Game: Three Simple Fixes

By Bill


I actually like the All-Star Game, still, kind of. I take an interest in who gets named to the team and who doesn't. I watch the game, though I pay a lot less attention to it than I used to, and I generally take in at least some of the Home Run Derby and other festivities. It's three days in the middle of summer when everyone can just celebrate baseball, without worrying about where your team is in the standings or what new and exciting way the Twins will find to lose today. There's really no reason it shouldn't just be a blast.

But while I do like it, it's really just not what it should be. Here are some things that I think they could do that would bring it a little closer to being that thing that I wish it was:

1. Stop treating outfield positions as interchangeable. When the NL's initial voting returns were announced on Tuesday, the outfield leaders were Matt Holliday, Ryan Braun and Lance Berkman: three players who play exclusively the corner outfield positions, and two of which are generally considered to be kind of awful at it (Holliday doesn't have a great reputation either, but he generally grades out pretty well). In 2010, the senior circuit's outfield was Braun, Andre Ethier and Corey Hart, which left Ethier, who is legitimately one of the worst defensive players in baseball, to man center.

If you're going to select three "outfielders" without recognizing that center field is just a much different, much harder position than the other two, you might as well also do away with the second base and shortstop positions and pick two middle infielders. It makes no sense. Any left fielder can play right, any right fielder can play left, any center fielder can play right or left...but almost no right or left fielder can play center.

So make the fans vote for one center fielder and two corner outfielders. Or, make them vote for between one and three center fielders, and then enough corner outfielders to make the total number three. An All-Star team with a tree stump trying to cover the largest field area kind of goes against the whole idea of what the All-Star team is supposed to be (that is, a team that plays particularly good baseball). Ethier in center needs very badly to never happen again.

SweetSpot Roundup 6/1

Pro Ball NW (Mariners): Erik Bedard and His Changeup
Erik Bedard is making up for his lack of velocity by becoming crafty.

Baseball Time in Arlington (Rangers): We Need a Rooster
Prashanth Francis looks at how to cure the curse that's on Derrick Holland.

The Ray Area: A Day at the Trop
Mark wonders why in the world, on a day when everyone's off work, the Rays aren't playing during the day.


Fire Brand of the American League (Red Sox): Right Now, David Ortiz Is a Near Perfect Hitter
"Ortiz, at least for the time being, is a near perfect hitter. He’s showing good plate discipline, not striking out much, hitting for AVG and hitting for power. The question is: Can he keep this up?"

Royals Authority: Aaron Crow is the new closer, but the problem is having a closer at all
"The Royals persist in following the leader in a game that’s stacked against them. They say that if you’re at a poker table and you can’t identify the sucker, then it’s you. My guess is the Royals look around baseball and think “'huh, not a sucker to be seen.'”

Nick's Twins Blog: Morneau's Early Struggles
"The good news is that Morneau has been able to play. He's started all but seven of the Twins' games over the first two months, and is on pace to make over 600 plate appearances.  Sadly, the good news pretty much stops there."

It's About the Money, Stupid (Yankees): Should Elite Hitters Catch?
In the wake of the injuries to Mauer and Posey, Brien asks an interesting question that relates to uber-prospect Jesus Montero.

Austin's Astros 290 Blog: Lyles is here, now what?
"The long-awaited day has finally arrived. Jordan Lyles is making his major league debut today against division foe Chicago, which is just four games up on the worst team in the National League. So, now that he’s here, what can we expect?"


Disciples of Uecker (Brewers): Numbers Indicate Improved Brewers Defense
The Brewers' defense was supposed to be terrible, but it hasn't been, and Jack has some theories as to why.


Fungoes (Cardinals): The daring Pujols steals third with two outs -- again
The best player in the world has some interesting ideas about when and how often to try to move up a base, and Pip has a look at how well he's done at stealing third.

The View from the Bleachers (Cubs): Interview with top 3B prospect -- Josh Vitters
A real-live, audio interview with the Cubs prospect, and some news from around the system.

Bay City Ball (Giants): Brandon Belt: a quote and a graph
Chris has a little passive-aggressive commentary on the wisdom of using Belt off the bench on a terrible offensive team.

Mets Today: What Was Fred Wilpon's Endgame?
"What exactly was Fred Wilpon attempting to accomplish through these two stories? It’s crystal-clear that the two articles — published almost simultaneously — were the result of an orchestrated publicity project. Feature stories in The New Yorker and Sports Illustrated don’t “just happen” — especially not when the main subject is a multimillionaire owner of a New York-based Major League sports franchise that is already in the public spotlight, and is in dire need of a cash infusion."


Nationals Baseball: Tuesday's Quickie
"How long could the Nats last without Zimmerman? Can they make one last push to stay relevant until he gets back? About 20 games and no. Those are the answers we have now. "


Ducksnorts (Padres): Thoughts from Tucson, Part 2
Geoff Young with one of those posts he writes that I can't really summarize in any kind of meaningful way. Just read it and be glad you did.


Crashburn Alley (Phillies): Cole Hamels Is Phillies' Best Starter
"While Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee have received the lion’s share of media attention, Hamels has quietly become one of the best pitchers in baseball. In fact, an argument could be made that he has been the best in baseball thus far this season."


Redleg Nation: Down on the Farm
Recaps of the Reds' minor league action.