Knuckle Curve » adam_eaton http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve Major League Baseball News from Spring Training to the World Series Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:55:57 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 NL Wild Card Showdowns http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/nl-wild-card-showdowns/ http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/nl-wild-card-showdowns/#comments Tue, 11 Sep 2007 16:19:23 +0000 Geoff Young http://www.knucklecurve.com/nl-wild-card-showdowns/ Post from: Knuckle Curve

]]> There aren’t any real compelling story lines in the American League on Tuesday. I guess you could watch the Angels beat up on Baltimore, or hope for a good outing from Philip Hughes against the Blue Jays. Maybe Alex Rodriguez will hit another homer or three.

Moving to the league that isn’t afraid to let its pitchers hit…

National League

  • Rockies at Phillies, 4:05 p.m. PT — Both teams are fighting for a wild card berth, although Colorado remains a long shot. Franklin Morales and his 6.23 ERA go up against Adam Eaton, MLB’s worst pitcher this year, so if too many runs aren’t enough for you, this is the game to watch.
  • Padres at Dodgers, 7:10 p.m. PT — If the Dodgers have any shot at reaching the post-season, they need to sweep this series. Jake Peavy makes his first start since getting shelled at Arizona last week on short rest. Several Dodgers hitters — notably Rafael Furcal (32 PA, .281/.281/.688), Luis Gonzalez (58 PA, .353/.431/.686), and Shea Hillenbrand (24 PA, .368/.500/.737) — have enjoyed success against Peavy over the years. Los Angeles counters with Esteban Loaiza, who makes his second start since coming over from the A’s.

One game? If you like offense, watch the Morales/Eaton Fireworks Display™; otherwise, go with the Padres and Dodgers. Happy watching…

Post from: Knuckle Curve

]]> http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/nl-wild-card-showdowns/feed/ 0 Worst of the Worst http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/worst-of-the-worst/ http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/worst-of-the-worst/#comments Mon, 10 Sep 2007 17:49:48 +0000 Geoff Young http://www.knucklecurve.com/worst-of-the-worst/ Post from: Knuckle Curve

]]> With the season winding down, I got to wondering who’s stinking up the joint? Here are the players with the lowest OPS+ by position (minimum 430 PA, roughly what it would take to qualify for the batting title if the season ended now) and the pitchers with the highest ERA+ (minimum 140 IP for starters, 40 G for relievers):

Worst Position Players of 2007
Pos Name Team(s) BA OBP SLG OPS+
Statistics are courtesy of Baseball-Reference and are through games of September 9, 2007.
C Jason Kendall Oak/ChN .245 .300 .313 63
1B Lyle Overbay Tor .239 .317 .397 85
2B Josh Barfield Cle .245 .273 .326 59
3B Nick Punto Min .199 .286 .255 46
SS Tony Pena KC .256 .276 .334 56
Omar Vizquel SF .239 .299 .295 56
LF Jason Bay Pit .253 .331 .424 95
CF Juan Pierre LA .290 .323 .347 73
RF Delmon Young TB .293 .322 .416 92

Quick comments:

  • Kendall and Pierre have humongous contracts. Kendall’s is up at the end of the ‘07 season, but the Dodgers get to pay Pierre a total of $36.5 over the next four years. Good times.
  • Punto’s futility at the plate borders on the historic. Since 1961, only seven players have had a worse OPS+ while qualifying for a league’s batting title; the most recent was Neifi Perez, playing for the Kansas City Royals in 2002.
  • There aren’t really any bad-hitting corner outfielders. It’s surprising to see Bay at the bottom of the left fielders. We’ll cut Young some slack due to the fact that he’s starting in the big leagues at age 21. That makes up for a lot.
Worst Pitchers of 2007
Pos Name Team(s) W-L ERA ERA+
Statistics are courtesy of Baseball-Reference and are through games of September 9, 2007.
RHSP Adam Eaton Phi 9-8 6.28 72
LHSP Scott Olsen Fla 9-12 5.76 73
RHRP Jose Mesa Det/Phi 1-3 7.36 61
LHRP Jay Marshall Oak 1-2 6.75 65

Kip Wells (6-16, 5.65, 76) could overtake Eaton, while Olsen’s lead over Dontrelle Willis (8-15, 5.27, 80) appears to be safe. Eaton is on pace to become the first pitcher to finish with a winning percentage while being at the absolute bottom of the ERA+ pile since Colby Lewis (10-9, 7.30, 68) did it in 2003 while “pitching” for the Texas Rangers.

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]]> http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/worst-of-the-worst/feed/ 2 Dissecting the Cy Young Candidates http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/dissecting-the-cy-young-candidates/ http://www.everyjoe.com/knucklecurve/dissecting-the-cy-young-candidates/#comments Mon, 27 Aug 2007 20:03:21 +0000 Geoff Young http://www.knucklecurve.com/dissecting-the-cy-young-candidates/ Post from: Knuckle Curve

]]> Dissecting is such a gruesome word for it, don’t you think? Maybe dismantling would have been better. Hmm, maybe not.

Anyway, the important thing is that Rich at Baseball Analysts has taken a nice look at this year’s contenders. The American League race is extremely tight (and who knew how good Hideki Okajima has been!), while a couple of right-handers out west are leading the pack in the National League.

What, no love for Adam Eaton or Jose Contreras?

Post from: Knuckle Curve

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