Baseball Thread 5 - #5 George Brett Has a Story to Tell

The Braves may not be the Braves of the 90's but still - that record against the Nationals?

The Braves actually have a pretty dangerous starting rotation in the weak NL East. Hanson, Vazquez, Lowe, and Jurrjens make up one of the best core rotations in baseball. It's just funny how some teams struggle against certain teams for no discernible reason.

 

All-Star thoughts? Kinsler got whored by the fans in the AL vote and then subsequently left off.

 

Wow. Justin Morneau is absolutely white-hot as of late.

Just this week he's hitting .478 with four home runs and eight RBI. Oh, he has a .538 OBP and 1.087 SLG%, too.

 

I like Wakefield, a former Pirate, making his first All-Star Game at 42 years old. I'm just not sure he deserved a spot. He's 10-3, but his 4.30 ERA is nothing spectacular and ranks 23rd among all starting pitchers in the AL.

And it's too bad either Kinsler or Lind (or both) will miss the All-Star Game, because both deserve to go based on what they've done this season.

 

Ian Kinsler definitely got jobbed by the selections. He should be the starting 2nd baseman. I'm a Red Sox fan but Dustin Pedroia doesn't deserve it this year. Kinsler was more deserving than his teammate Michael Young but Young got the nod probably because the team needed another 3rd baseman (which in turn jobbed Chone Figgins).

Does Josh Hamilton deserve the starting position given all the time he missed? Did Curtis Granderson get the nod over teammate Miguel Cabrera because he was more likable? Or because the team had too many 1st basemen? There is also no way Granderson should have made the team over Adam Lind. Hamilton should use his health as an excuse to let either Kinsler or Lind take his spot.

Excellent arguments could also be made for Kevin Millwood of the Rangers (where would they be without him this season) and Russell Branyan of the Mariners.

 

Seriously, the Brewers need to address their starting pitching...

 

I'm happy that Wakefield made it for the All-Star Game, but you're right. While he's had a relatively good year, the only reason he has 10 wins is because of the amount of run support he's been getting this season. Among all starting pitchers in the majors with at least 100 innings pitched this season, Wakefield has the best run support (8.85 RPG).

 

It's a miracle they are still over .500 with the staff as it is.

For all of the bitching and moaning I did about Ned Yost, I have to give Ken Macha a lot of credit for holding this team together to keep them viable. No staff that includes Jeff Suppan, Mike Burns, Seth McClung (who isn't terrible, but looked it on Thursday) and Braden Looper should be tied (for the moment) for first place.

 

Brandon Inge got jobbed at third. No way Michael Young deserved it over him.

Give Lind Granderson's spot and Inge Young's spot.

 

This might be worth a separate thread (and it might already have one or have been discussed on this thread), but I found this an interesting read on winning streaks, hitting streak and randomness:

http://online.wSportsJournalists.com/article/SB10001424052970204556804574261942466979118.html

 

As far as the NL squad is concerned:

You could argue that Benjie Molina is having a better season than his brother Yadier but that's a coin flip at best and what the heck - they are keeping it in the family. Orlando Hudson started off hot but has really cooled off. He's probably getting the Tim Wakefield good guy slot.

Was Francisco Cordero more deserving than teammate Johnny Cueto or did Cuerto get stuck because of the arbitrary ratio of starters to closers? Ryan Franklin's not one of the 10 best pitchers in the NL. Johan Santana made the team based upon past performance but adding him or Ryan Franklin probably cost Yovani Gallardo a spot on the team.

An argument could be made that Mark Reynolds and Pablo Sandoval are more deserving than Ryan Zimmerman but Zimmerman is the Nationals sole representative and all three players are very close in value. There some slim pickens for outfield in the NL - isn't there? You could argue Matt Kemp over Hunter Pence but that just points out how thin the position is. That will have to boost Matt Holliday's trade value.

I'm still amused at the fact that the Cubs with their $135 million payroll have to use the "every team gets a representative" rule to get Ted Lilly on the roster.

 

I like that the Twins have bucked the red cap trend today (haven't seen the rest of the series) and are wearing caps for the various armed forces. Nice touch.