example1

f***ing ripping. In the past two weeks I was able to put Pedroia, Crisp and Drew on my fantasy team without giving up anything. They have been very productive additions. Nice manny.

Yeah, but he's A-Rod. A-ROD.?.?, you know, the Yankee. Sensational year for both players. There' is still another 90 games to play.

I love how that's the justification for NOT giving Papi the MVP: he doesn't play the field. He certainly COULD play the field and we all know that.

JD DREW!! ANYONE ELSE NOTICE THAT NATURAL, FLUID SWING?? Thank god that's over.

YOU ARE GOING TO LOVE THIS IN CAPS: ANYONE WATCHING THE COLLEGE WORLD SERIES THIS YEAR? THEY ARE USING 'WIN PROBABILITY' AS ONE OF THE THINGS THEY SHOW ON THE SCREEN (I.E., AT 0-0 IN THE 2ND INNING WITH A MAN ON FIRST, UC IRVINE HAS A 52% CHANCE TO WIN VS. OREGON STATE'S 48%). I SUPPORT THE PRESENTATION OF BASEBALL AS A GAME OF PROBABILITIES, WHICH MOST OF THE CASUAL FANS OFTEN MISS OUT ON. HERE HERE TO ESPN. NO NO ON THE CAPS!!

That sounds about right. So what do we attribute the high BABIP to? Park effects? Pitching behind in the count? DiceK's stuff not being good? A tendency for hitters to look for singles/doubles, especially to the right side, rather than HR? He pitches from the stretch quite a bit, which opens that side on the right where it seems he gives up a fair number of weakly hit singles. I'm interested to hear what people think, because it does seem like DiceK has been a bit unlucky in terms of getting out of jams. He has obviously walked too many guys, but it seems like he has had a number of hits in those situations that could easily have been outs. Of course he's going to give up some runs, but in his losses/poor-performances he has gotten shelled in those situations. I'm not too knowledgable on the ins-and-outs of BABIP, or its implications. So if anyone more versed wants to take a shot feel free. I just know that it is a good indicator (or supposed to be) of luck and chance relative to other players.

A very nice chart and analysis. Is it just me, or is the BABIP unusually high? What is the average BABIP?

I wouldn't trade Ellsbury for Buehrle. Do you really think he's a replaceable commodity? I would say that other than Damon this team hasn't had a bona fide leadoff hitter/centerfielder in a long time. They tried to get Crisp to do that job and it didn't work. I think Ellsbury can do as well as Crisp as a rookie, and will only improve from there.

I don't think it is unreasonable to think the White Sox would deal Buehrle for Wily Mo Pena. With Jermaine Dye moving next year, Pena's salary and age, I could see this as a decent move for both teams. I don't actually like Buehrle that much for the Sox, but having him as a 4 or 5 (or 3 or 4 depending on if Schilling makes it or not) wouldn't hurt. Before I get attacked for saying this, please know that I value WMP pretty highly (given what we've seen from him--or haven't seen from him, that is). I think he still has 25+ HR potential for someone.

That's the rumor. Put him in the pen. Have a 6 man rotation. Who cares. Let's face the problem when we get there. Personally, I would like to see him hang it up after a Sox 07 World Series title myself, but that's just me. He and Mirabelli can move along and let the Sox finally put together their young team. I like Wake a lot, but this team cannot afford to have a mediocre spot anywhere in the rotation. Just because most teams would be happy to have someone who produces as much and as consistently as Wake does not mean the Sox couldn't do better. I want Buchholz in the 07 rotation because we are currently losing games and he is missing bat after bat in AA and is old enough to pitch in the majors. His reputation for 'icewater running through his veins' means he will likely handle it well.

I would be absolutely shocked if the Sox made a move for Andruw Jones this offseason. He swings at everything and is pretty impatient and disinterested. Also, I'm done with Mike Timlin. And this game. Go Oregon State Beavers!

Why not go to a 6 man rotation when Lester is deemed good enough to pitch? They have a little lead right now and their pitching options don't necessarily get worse by adding a 6th man. I really think they have the luxary of having the staff to do it. What are the plusses and minuses? An obvious minus would be that your best pitchers don't pitch as often, but an obvious plus could be that your top 5 would be stronger down the stretch... it is kind of thinking outside the box but it seems like a reasonable idea.

So, is this to say that these guys NEVER found success in those cities? I mean, Contreras didn't pitch to what he is capable of... but he also had a few good games if I remember. If pressure in front of a certain stadium or within the bounds of a particularly "difficult" city is the deciding factor for certain players, then wouldn't it follow that those players NEVER found success in those cities? Anything else would be in direct contradiction. ' I don't think it was the long-term pressure on Renteria that made him suck. He sucked because he was heavy and slow and injured. He showed signs, in Fenway, of being the offensively strong SS that he had been his entire career and to which he has become again of late. He just didn't do it very often. Is there any proof that he tended to get it done when the media was particularly fervant that day (i.e., on days when the Media had their Weaties, Renteria sucks)? I don't think so. He just trended toward the lower end of his projections over a 162 game season and that was enough for the Sox to dump him. Jeff Weaver? He is currently sucking in the not-so-media-crazy Seattle. Perhaps he just sucks. :dunno: Overall I'm just a much bigger fan of seeing things as trends and statistically normal rather than blaming things on 'fan pressure' or such things. Like ORS said, at times in particular games it can be difficult to be a player, but I think it is just as common for a player to be tempted to "over think" situations where the entire crowd is standing, as it is for a player to be not paying attention when playing a Tuesday afternoon game in KC in front of 3,300 fans. It goes both ways. Plus, I think that in order for a hitter to hit a pitch in .4 seconds they have to clear pretty much everything else out of their heads. It is a reaction. Pitching, on the other hand, is a full body motion more like a gymnastics routine. There is room there for mental mistakes, not so much for a hitter who has trained himself to hit outside pitches the other way, take anything that starts above the eyes, not swing at pitches with the dot in the middle, and rip on fastballs inside. If there is a city problem I would say that it is with pitching, as pitchers regularly get booed while standing on the mound. Hitters tend to get booed while they are walking back to the safety of a dugout. If fielders make a lot of errors at home (like Renteria) then they have to face the full force of the crowd, but other than that I think hitters are much more spared from--and therefore less conscious of--the boo birds. Just my opinion...

Uhhh, no. 2007: Crisp: 3.5m vs. Damon: 13m. Theo said from day one essentially "We know we cannot replace the player that Johnny Damon was, but we feel that in Crisp we have a player who is entering his prime years at a reasonable price, who brings multiple talents both in the field and on the basepaths to our club." Personally, I think the Sox feel there will be better CF options available and that Crisp is the affordable carry-over. If a better CF comes along then Crisp will be the bench guy at 5m a season, who can play all 3 positions well, switch hit and pinch-run. He's the type of guy this team should have on the bench if they want to win it all. If WMP could play 1B his value would go way up, as they could acquire a great CF (say Hunter, Ichiro or Jones) or use Ellsbury (who I am very high on) and have both Crisp and WMP on the bench. One with speed, one with power, both with tremendous position flexibility, cheap and potentially still worthy of trades by other teams. So, to answer your question, no, Crisp was not intended to be better than Damon. They wanted to go in a different direction, and despite Crisp's struggles I don't think the FO is losing too much sleep over the Damon move. Crisp may not be their guy, but I think with his injuries and crappitude in CF, neither was Damon. The Red Sox are certainly not upset about having bid so highly on Daisuke Matsuzaka. Let's not over play his slowish start... this guy could very well put them over the top and they outbid the Yankees and Mets (the other teams he may have put over the top) for him. Also, Josh Beckett and Mike Lowell have been huge parts of why this team is 20 games over .500.

Sorry guys, but despite being a diehard baseball fan I just could care less about watching a pitcher hit. I don't care if it is more "pure" or "symetrical" with all fielders hitting. I haven't been impressed by many pitchers hitting, even if they are life-long NL guys. I just don't care. I want to see players do what they are best at whenever possible and I actually see symetry in the DH being the replacement for the pitcher. Half the time the pitcher bunts, which could be called strategy... but boring strategy. I don't feel compelled to watch Ortiz or Hafner or Giambi field, but they are all capable of doing so just fine. Teams are better and the game is better if the 9 spots are filled with hitters. Nobody feels compelled to say that all hitters should pitch, do they? Then why feel compelled to have pitchers hit? Overall, like ORS, I don't really care. I love the game either way, but I get angry with Doug Mirabelli coming to the plate and there are very few pitchers who would hit much better.

Bubba Bell and Aaron Bates appear to be having really good seasons. What do we make of these guys? I figuted that the Sox drafted Bates and Anderson last year to ensure that they got some MLB quality talent at the 1B position. It looks like both have been very impressive in that capacity, but Bates' numbers are amazing. I figure you take park effects into account and age and they are comparable players. Still Bates and Bell have been impressive: Bates: 66 games--.318 .459 .600 1.059/ 17 HR, 56 RBI Bell: 62 games--.354 .445 .615 1.060/ 16 HR, 63 RBI do either of these guys have a future? Bell is 24, Bates 23. I don't see anyone significant in front of Bates, all the way through the majors. If Youk ends up moving to 3rd might we see Bates get a shot at 1B in 2 seasons if he keeps it up, with Anderson following closely as security? We talk alot about the top end prospects, but not the mid-level ones who may still have considerable upside. Brandon Moss would be another one worty of discussion. He has never had an MLB at bat. Worth a shot?

Did jsinger teach him how to hit? There have been plenty of us who have been unwaivering behind Pedroia--even when he was hitting hard line drives into outs last year. But we wouldn't want to bring Ellsbury up--who is a month younger than Pedroia--with fear that he's too young and too vulnerable. ********. He was every bit the college player that Pedroia is and has done very well in the minors.

Despite the good victory tonight I just don't like this lineup. I think Pedroia is just a good hitter and so is Drew. I don't think it had much to do with where they are in the lineup. Pedroia should be a #2 hitter for the rest of his career. He has great bat control and hits the ball hard, draws walks, etc., I like having him up in big situations because he puts the ball in play but works counts. Drew should be a #5 hitter, and that's where he'll be as soon as Francona realizes he's hitting well. The best thing he does is spread the power if he leads off, but it isn't the best use of his skills. Now that I think about it though, Youkilis's performance this year has given the Sox 2 legitimate options at the #5 spot and I don't like Youkilis leading off that much. It's hard to say, but overall I don't think this is the lineup the Sox will have for the rest of the year.

I don't want Pedroia to strain his neck.

Man, Papi is batting from the right side and seems to be swinging at a whole lot of bad pitches.

He did hit the ball hard.

Sign that people are too quick to write proven MLB players off.