MLB 2014 season thread

Todd Bertuzzi's sucker punch on Steve Moore didn't include a stick.

There is an inherent risk that all players agree to when they step on the ice or field. Getting a chunk of your ear bitten off by a teammate in the dugout would not fall under that.

 

Or, as they say, it's all fun and games till somebody eats an ear out.

 

It's a guy in a white t-shirt in CF.

 

Guy in question got relased.

http://espn.go.com/los-angeles/mlb/story/_/id/10970137/miguel-olivo-released-los-angeles-dodgers-biting-alex-guerrero-ear-dugout-altercation

 

I pretty much have looked at all of the issues with Coors. About 5-6 years back I came to the conclusion that Colorado could never win consistently because pitching half your games in CO adds up in pitches. However it appears that with the lower overall league numbers today, the toll is not as great, and Colorado hitters, fielders and pitchers may have finally found a formula to take advantage.

1) CO pitchers have a 105 ERA+ but are last in the league in Ks. They now intentionally pitch to contact and even train that at the minor league level. With the reduction in league offense, AND the fact that the Rockies are the best defensive team in baseball, it is working. The defense independent ERA+ is about 90. They have Arenado and Tulo on the left side on pace to save around 60-70 runs between them EVEN THOUGH they sometimes take plays from one another. They are plus at second, solid at first and have 1, 2, 3, 4! centerfielders. WOW.

2) We know that fastballs move much less in CO than other parks, about 40% as much. Curves move about 70% as much because their actual motion is the result of "falling". They tried to go to a breaking ball approach at home back with Ubaldo, but you have to throw curves for strikes, and guys were wasting too many pitches on the corners and getting high pitch counts. The have greatly reduced their pitch counts by go FOR the low end of the strike zone. Again, lowest Ks in the majors, but 105 ERA+. I don't think this was possible without the defense, and the lower run environment in the game today.

3) My early look showed that patient hitters from CO tended to have similar home and road relative OPS+'s. They were a little bigger splits than I had thought because I did not know how to eliminate pitchers from the data though. Tulo has about the best relative splits and his home OPS+ is 128 and road 120 for his career. That is compared to everyone at home and everyone on the road. But tulo walks just about as much on the road, or even more. That seems to be a Key. Plus if you hit the ball in the air, which they work on, you get a bigger OPS+ boost from CO.

But less patient hitters like Cargo have RADICAL splits like 140 and 90 for some seasons. That is primarily because fastballs don't move as much in CO and then they go on the road and swing and miss a LOT.

At this point, I have not decided whether Coors field just raises the relative productivity of flyball hitters, or whether there is also a road hangover. But I believe that the first is true.

As for numbers, I remember looking one year when the Rockies had decent pitching around a 100 ERA+. Opposing hitters who averaged .270 overall, hit close to .330 in Coors field! Typically a player got a 20% boost in batting average, a 40% boost in home runs and a 50% boost in RBI when they played in CO versus their overall rates.

My theory now is that the humidor worked to reduce offense, as did throwing more curves at home, but that the Rockies were finding a way to get their pitchers a greater share of humidor balls, and getting the opposition more non humidor balls. I am not sure how they did this, but the league basically decided to "watch more closely" at the procedure. This was maybe late in '09. And what happened? The entire humidor effect just went away! Offense started rising again in CO relative to the league. I think that they just figured that if they couldn't take advantage of other teams, they mine as well treat the fans to offense although this was not a great approach because YOUR pitchers are the ones getting the heavier workload half the time.

 

An infielder once tried to test me. I ate his ear with some fava beans and a cup of Gatorade.

 

Prince Fielder having season-ending neck surgery (pending second opinion).

Only six more years after this one!

 

Overweight first baseman are always good long term investments.

 

Profar out another 2-3 months too, instead of back by June. That Kinsler deal was just fucking fantastic all the way around.

Kinsler hitting .317 for first-place Tigers BTW.

 

You can always count on a Jew.

 

Are game balls at Coors still kept in a humidor? I remember it was quite the issue in 2010, pushed mostly by Marty Lurie on KNBR.

 

There are some world-class diving catches being made in right field tonight.

First Puig in Queens and now a kid named Josh Harrison for the Buccos in Pittsburgh.