Slowly but surely, the Baseball Writers Association of America is becoming more inclusive. The organization just held a meeting here at Bellagio and, for the second straight year, humbly voted to add a few Internet writers to their newspaper-dominated ranks. Joining the inaugural crop from last year will be Will Carroll and Christina Kahrl of Baseball Prospectus and Rob Neyer and Keith Law of ESPN.com.
Here is my take, if you took steroids or were linked to steroids in any way shape or form, no way you get in.
You need at least 7 years of domination, where you were by far and away (sic) one of the 20 best players in the game.
Automatics are 3000 hits, 500 home runs, 800 stolen bases, 300 wins, 300 saves, or 3000 strikeouts.
Ryan Howard was the most valuable player in the National League in 2008. That he was not voted MVP by the Baseball Writers' Association of America says more about the association than about Howard, Albert Pujols or America.
If the MVP is the player with the best all-round statistical season, a computer could figure that out. And a computer might well have spit out Pujols' name this season. He was terrific.
But Howard got hot in September, hitting 11 home runs and driving in 32 runs to carry the Phillies into the playoffs. That's the very definition of valuable.
The group-think association argument for Pujols, if I'm smart enough to get it right, is that he single-handedly kept the Cardinals in the wild-card race. That is brilliant, except it ignores the presence of Ryan Ludwick, Rick Ankiel and Troy Glaus (so much for "single-handedly")
The association seamheads love to throw around stats - OPS, VORP, ASPCA - to make a case for Pujols.
Yes, he (Pujols) struck out less and hit for a higher average. But Howard won actual baseball games in an honest-Abe pennant race. He had 11 more home runs than Pujols, scored five more runs than Pujols, and drove in 30 more runs than Pujols.
Notice there are no decimal points involved there, only whole numbers that made a difference in real baseball games.
Ryan Howard - who has added a World Series ring to his 2005 rookie of the year and 2006 MVP trophies - will survive this voting nicely. The process that produced it should not.
It's not as if the Marlins existed in another universe; their 84-77 record was a half-game better than the Dodgers', and they did it in the best division in the National League -- the division with the world champions.
Albert Pujols deserved the Most Valuable Player Award. This is not to question anyone's vote for Ryan Howard, Chase Utley, Manny Ramirez or Lance Berkman.
But Hanley Ramirez 11th? Only Pujols and Berkman had more runs created. His OPS of .940 was the best of any NL middle infielder, better than Utley's .915.
Ramirez's job wasn't to drive in runs -- it was to create them. He reached base 40 percent of the time, hit 33 homers, stole 35 bases and led the league with 125 runs.
And he did it with average defensive skills at a critical defensive position.
The Kobe 9 cruises of the professional baseball Kansai independent league designated Yoshida collar (16) = Kanagawa prefectural Kawasaki north high 2 years = at the draft meeting on the 16th, birth of the boy player and the domestic first woman professional baseball player whom you play together became secure. The professional baseball is promotion of industry, there is also a viewpoint of topic precedence, but Yoshida what compared to gained the ticket to dream with capability. The authorized personnel expects also the far-reaching effect to the other woman player.
This month 2~4 day, in the tryout of the league which is Kobe city, Yoshida opposes with total 8 hitters. It dazzled with the knuckle ball of 80 kilometer level from the right unskillfulness, sealed in non hit. The Kobe Nakata director “throwing the knuckle from under is difficult with the original Osaka and Kobe pitcher. While shaking truly, and, it becomes the funny war potential where it falls”, that you appraise. It is not something which the baseball sees “for the woman, perhaps it becomes something we would like to do. In Yoshida we want becoming goal of such a player.”
Temporarily as much as 20 teams or more there was a domestic woman professional baseball which starts in 1950, but financial difficulty and promotion of industry trouble etc to amateur were converted to the reason, in only 2 years. While employment equal opportunity of the man and woman shouts, baseball agreement was amended in 91, participation of the woman player to the professional baseball became OK, also the player who takes the joining an organization test of professional club appeared.
Concerning the woman player, there is an insecurity of the physical strength aspect and a voice which points out danger. Simply, latent interest is high for the woman e.g., the player of industry group top class of softball participates in the latest tryout. With Yoshida's participation circumstance, the independent league which pursues originality in the management aspect, is a possibility of becoming fixed as the place where thinking the woman player is actualized.
* You aim toward April of 09 commencement as the domestic 3rd independent league which it comes after the Kansai independent league Shikoku Kyushu island league and the BC league. There are 4 teams of Osaka, Kobe, Guizhou (Wakayama) and Akashi, (Hyogo) there is the conception which is made 8 teams in the future, including Shiga and Kyoto etc. 1 clubs make a contract with 20 professional players, do the annual 72 tournament. As for commissioner Isige Hiroshi model person.
CC Sabathia
Who should sign him: Phillies - Imagine if the World Champions added Sabathia to their rotation? He and Hammels (sic) would be a lethal 1-2 atop the rotation. Signing Sabathia would instantly make Philly the team to beat in 2009.
Who will sign him: Dodgers - They won’t resign Manny, but that money could be used to sign Sabathia.
Manny Ramirez
Who should sign him: Mets - They need a run-producing right handed bat that won’t fold down the stretch.
Who will sign him: Dodgers - He became a fan favorite and put on a hitting clinic that impressed the Dodgers. Other teams may be wary of the baggage.
Who will sign him: Dodgers - They won’t resign Manny, but that money could be used to sign Sabathia.
Who will sign him: Dodgers
The 2008 ALCS nearly saw another Boston miracle comeback. But then Tampa Bay managed to turn back Boston’s momentum with a game seven victory, getting the former doormats into the World Series for the first time. Did Major League baseball decide the game needed this new Tampa Bay fan enthusiasm more than it needed the safe and always paying Red Sox nation? Although Fox couldn’t have been enthused with the promise of poor ratings, might there be something more devious behind Tampa’s ascension? Is it just coincidence that Tampa’s new, good fortunes come at a time when the team is trying to get a deal for a new stadium?
3. The champion of Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Sun Belt Conference, or the Western Athletic Conference will earn an automatic berth in a BCS bowl game if either:
A. Such team is ranked in the top 12 of the final BCS Standings, or,
B. Such team is ranked in the top 16 of the final BCS Standings and its ranking in the final BCS Standings is higher than that of a champion of a conference that has an annual automatic berth in one of the BCS bowls.
No more than one such team from Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference, the Sun Belt Conference, and the Western Athletic Conference shall earn an automatic berth in any year. If two or more teams from those conferences satisfy the provisions for an automatic berth, then the team with the highest finish in the final BCS Standings will receive the automatic berth, and the remaining team or teams will be in the pool of teams eligible for selection by the bowls as at-large teams.
If tennis players can be heroes, Jankovic rides into Doha like a character in the John Wayne western, True Grit.
Martin wearing out welcome in L.A.?
The Dodgers were disappointed by the regression of catcher Russell Martin, who in the words of one Dodgers-connected person was "just another catcher'' this year.
Only a year ago Martin was an excellent two-way player who won a Gold Glove and a Silver Slugger and appeared on the verge of superstardom.
The New York Post reported that the Dodgers might even consider trading him.
The Hank Aaron Award officially recognizes the most outstanding offensive performer in the American and National Leagues.
Fans cast 230,000 votes at MLB.com, the official Web site of Major League Baseball, in this, the sixth consecutive year that fans have had a voice in selecting the award winners in this fashion.
Fan's votes accounted for 30% of the points, with broadcaster's and analyst's votes accounting for the other 70%.
The Rays are who we thought they were,
not the guys who were trying to knock over the monster in Fenway.
That's not where these guys live, they were built to do it with pitching, speed and defense,
and it was all on Game 2 of the World Series.
They don't wait for someone to pop a three runner, they play small ball, not long ball.
"The American League has won eighteen of twenty-two of the last (World) series. Eighteen and twenty-two, I think it makes a difference."
I pick the Rays to sweep because the American League is that much superior to the National League, which once again got smoked in interleague play and the All-Star Game. It's like the majors versus AAA.
I pick the Rays to sweep because the American League is that much superior to the National League
which once again got smoked in interleague play
and the All-Star Game
It's like the majors versus AAA
In Matt Cassell's career he has backed up Carson Palmer, Matt Leinart and Tom Brady. Of those four, he's the only one playing this week, so I'm picking the Patriots.
1B- Ross Gload, Kansas City Royals
OF- Melky Cabrera, New York Yankees
SP- Livan Hernandez, Minnesota Twins, Colorado RockiesI don't really get how you make a movie based on a non-fiction book that's about statistics, but I guess it can't hurt to get Brad Pitt on board. Variety says that the actor, who's apparently having a busy day today, will possibly star in an adaptation of Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game, about a baseball team manager who uses a complicated computer system to pick his players.
Maybe this is the kind of thing that sounds thrilling to the people who read box scores and know the RBI of every player on the Red Sox, but the rest of us may be left a little cold. I guess that's where Brad Pitt comes in-- just focus on his nice blue eyes, and let the numbers and figures wash over you. Anyone who's read the book want to enlighten me on why this movie is a good idea?
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