2012 MLB Regular Season Running Thread

All about the wins Rick, winners win.

 

And he plays for the Cubs, so that almost automatically puts him in the other category.

 

And he is 112-117 for his career with an ERA of 4.37, which is about right. Average pitchers have .500 winning percentages.

 

Henry Rodriguez is 8 of 10 on save chances in his career? Seems like an awfully high success rate for him. Drew Storen can't get back fast enough. When Henry sucks, he really, really, really sucks.

 

You just made the case of why Yankee fans shouldn't be nervous, which is what I was getting at.

I'm quite aware he hasn't given up a run yet this year and that he's walking fewer batters than ever. My point was that allowing baserunners and getting out of the inning is par for the course with Robertson and, thus, no reason to be uncomfortable.

If he blows his next three save chances, then it will be time for concern.

 

He is really struggling this year to find ways to win. He needs to pitch better and give his scrappy club a chance to win.

 

You are missing my point. That guy who put a ton of runners on base is not the reliever that Robertson is now. He didn't become a quality relief pitcher until after he stopped doing that so much. The Yankees don't want the guy with the high WHIP and an ERA well over 3. They want the stud set-up guy to become a stud closer. He certainly has the ability. The only concern is if pitching the ninth will mess with his head and lead to more shaky outings like last night.

 

Robertson will be fine. He'll be a good replacement for Mariano.

The bigger problem will be replacing Robertson as the eight inning guy.

 

You're missing my point. If you watched him at all last year, when he became a stud set-up guy, he was still pitching with runners on base. His WHIP was 1.13, his ERA was 1.08, meaning he only let about one out of every nine baserunners he allowed to score. He is comfortable pitching with runners on, so no, last not was not a reason for Yankee fans to be uncomfortable.

Stick to the Pirates, OOP.

 

Remain calm. All is well in Yankeeland.

The Savior, Andy Pettite, returns on Sunday.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/pettitte-start-sunday-yankees-vs-200432522--mlb.html;_ylt=AvBjgkLdtE3DPdwRG287EXk5nYcB

 

Talking about Harper during the last three pages or so, and now having a thread of Josh Hamilton it had me thinking. Josh Hamilton, is the original Bryce Harper.

With all the hype that Bryce Harper is getting lets not forget how hyped Josh Hamilton was coming out of high school. Hamilton had insane baseball tools coming out high school. He could hit a baseball a county mile and he also hit 95 mph as a pitcher. Several scouts likened Hamilton tools to Mickey Mantle. Hamilton was considered a mid-to-late first round pick strictly as a pitcher. Here is a comparison on Hamilton and Harper from 2011. A question was sent to Baseball America as who was the better prospect, Hamilton in 1999 or Harper in 2010. Here is the response.

Which No. 1 overall prospect was the better prospect in their draft year, Josh Hamilton in 1999 or Bryce Harper in 2010?

Let's start by heading to the Baseball America Draft archives and taking a look at our draft-year scouting reports on Hamilton and Harper, both of whom we rated as the top prospect in their draft class:

Hamilton:

Harper:

Comparing the two, I give a very slight edge to Hamilton. Harper is the best power prospect in draft history, but Hamilton had prodigious pop as well and graded out better in other categories. He was a better pure hitter, maybe a hair quicker and offered more defensive value as a center fielder (we sold him short in that regard) versus Harper as a right fielder. Their arms were comparable.

Neither player had a huge advantage over the other in any area, but Hamilton offered a little more all-around ability and played a position that's harder to fill.

 

I think you're right, but you have to remember that Harper skipped his senior season of high school and then totally dominated in junior college at 17 (though Hamilton didn't turn 18 until the tail end of his senior year of high school — May 21). Harper was also a catcher when he was first scouted, which made his hitting ability that much more valuable.

And in a perfect world, Hamilton's probably a right fielder. He doesn't play center much anymore to avoid injuries, and doesn't play right because Nelson Cruz has such a strong arm.