sk7326

Follow the #umpshow hashtag on ye olde twitter and you'll see some doozys. Umps go after players all ... the ... time.

His back issues did move him off of CF - but yeah the bat continued to play ...

This bullpen is pretty good

This is all good - but again, that fangraphs piece noted that the data has plateaued. There is a distinct possibility that 14% or so is the human limit on this - just like how the human body places a cap that prevents us from finding a pitcher who throws 110 mph. When you are talking about a difference in error rate between 14% and

And to be fair - I don't think Dombrowski will bat an eye at trading a 19 year old if he can get the #2 starter - especially one with 3 years of so of reasonable performance.

We'll see ... Devers is 19 - he is not being blocked by anyone ... There will be a way to get another starter - just a matter of priority. Fortunately they are winning enough to figure this out.

I count three ... Kelly should not be starting and Rodriguez needs a few more starts to feel better.

Here is the thing - the strike zone is defined clearly. This is not a basketball foul - where some contact is allowable - it is a three dimensional box that the ball has to touch on its path. It's not umpire's choice. Now the umpires can't do this job well ... with all of the improvement, we are at a 14% error rate which would be scandalous for almost any other process. (and no call in sports gets made more frequently each game). Automating called balls and strikes does not eliminate the umpire, nor does it eliminate his job at judging swinging strikes. It helps him with the hardest part of his job. It is one thing for the sport to decide that the umps judgment cannot be argued with - but it is less okay to do that and then prevent the umpire from doing the job more accurately. I like the sport's randomness - the homerun in Camden that is a single at Fenway- the way an 83-79 team can win a World Series on 3 good weeks of baseball. Random application of rules and random stipulations based on specific umpires is professional wrestling. (which I love too, but I keep separate from my baseball)

The full no-trade means Pedroia is in charge and that if the Red Sox want to deal him, it will cost them. Guys have waived NTCs before. I would have a hard time doing it because he is still an elite (or damn near) infielder on an astonishingly cheap deal.

It is tempting to call Pedroia overrated. He is white, tiny, hustles - stuff reporters love. He's like our own cuddly David Eckstein. Except ... the year he won the MVP (2008), Pedroia was also 2nd in the AL in bWAR behind Nick Markakis (who was on a 68 win team, and we know how that plays with MVP voters). He was unambiguously one of the best players in the league. 2013, the overrated Pedroia finished 10th in bWAR among all AL players (including pitchers). 2014, fighting injuries he was still a 4-5 win player. Indeed you look at his seasons (and I'll use bWAR) 2008: 6.9 (2nd in the AL) 2009: 5.6 2010: 3.2 in 75 games 2011: 7.9 (5th in the AL) 2012: 5.1 (9th among AL position) 2013: 6.3 (10th in the AL) 2014: 4.9 2015: 2.0 in 93 games 2016: 2.2 in 51 games It is tempting to get annoyed at the announcers talking about his scrappy mctufferson-ness. It obscures the fact that he is actually really really good at his job.

The seasons he has been playing through nagging pains have been exceptionally productive ones.

Last year certainly. Played 135 games or more the 4 years prior to that each season. 2014 was a down offensive year, but still remained one of the most productive 2B in the league. I mean last year in 93 game he was still a Top 10 second baseman. The durability concerns me - but I am not sure it is a thing.

This argument can also be used against cell phones. Or cars. Or airplanes. Disagreement is not an issue here - because this is an objective call. The game survived because the umps did the best they could given the tools. The tools are much better. Denying umpires those tools - to preserve some arcane notion of baseball that predated integration - is batty.

I thought the heart of the game were the players who throw the ball, hit the ball, and catch the ball.

1984, with my dad. Got blown out by the A's IIRC. A's were still rocking versions of their yellow softball duds. I only truly caught the bug in 1986 though.

Given their job, this is probably the best you're going to get with humans. I mean they have to pay attention to the hitter too ... and technically, where ball is caught should not be where the "strike" is decided.

They can because the industry is swimming in cash. The Red Sox are still in a position to be able to make a Sandoval sized mistake and have it only marginally affect their ability to be buyers this year.

As always, the salary and tax is about ownership tolerance, not baseball law. Verlander is not my top choice (Miller is probably). At the same time, I do think of Verlander as the sort of sneaky name Dombrowski might look at if this team gives them a reasonable hope of winning it all.

Pedroia at his current price is a steal ... and given the other variables, more valuable to Boston than anybody else.

For me the miracle is that it is so far the best season HE has had ... 195 RC+ which dwarfs his own career best and leads the majors by quite a bit. More hard contact then ever. I just remember how much he was flailing against the Rays in 2008 and how in 2009 it looked like the ride was over to some degree. He has been remarkable.

I could see that - although on a Fielding Independent Level, there is not much difference.

His FIP has been better than average the entire time. This year the strikeout rate is back and the walk rate has not really changed. BABIP is .269, but he has historically been good in that area.

A lot of people don't fully appreciate how acutely the Royals built to their ballpark ... even with the "meh" starters, they found guys who could keep it in the yard, and if you can keep it inside the boundaries, they have a good chance to pick it. What I find interesting is that the Red Sox lineup is now uniquely built to the ballpark of 2016 - not the 1977 Fenway where you loaded up on the monster, but the one we've had for a couple of decades, which is a haven for doubles and gap hits.

Who is firing any umps? I am advocating for helping them do the job which is the hardest (indeed, near impossible) to do. Umps doing a bad job calling pitches, and then getting surly when players (often correctly, but rudely) point this out, and then getting aggressive going after them ... (see West, Joe) ... that is part of baseball? Not the guys on the diamond who expect the rules to be administered properly?

Because flags fly forever, and betting the under on Wright and Porcello is still be best way to look at things.