Triple Steal

Brian Fuentes

2008-11-07T01:08:00.003-05:00

I'm supposed to be working on a paper right now. I have this group project where we have to evaluate a process from beginning to end and calculate throughput times and such, and suggest ways to improve the current process. I'm responsible for consolidating the first draft of the paper that's due on Wednesday, and I've been working on it, but while I do, I like to have some background noise. Tonight, that background noise is Game Four of the 2007 World Series.

(An aside... I love these A&E World Series DVD sets - they really should release more of them. There have been some pretty good series in the last 20 years that they haven't released: 1991, 1996, 1997, 2002, 2003... 1991 is especially perplexing since they released the Twins 1987 set, but 1991 is widely considered to be one of the best World Series ever. But I digress.)

So I'm almost done with this stupid paper, and I glance up at the TV for the start of the top of the 8th inning. The Rockies brought Brian Fuentes in to start the inning, and the Red Sox had the immortal Bobby Kielty hit for the pitcher to lead off the inning. First pitch, home run, making the score 4-1 in a game the Sox would eventually win 4-3. First pitch? Really, Brian? I know the odds were stacked against the Rockies coming back, being down 3-0 with Beckett scheduled to go in Game Five, but that was a complete "it's golf season" pitch.

Anyway, I guess I have three points: I love procrastination, I love nostalgia, and I hope - for Warren's sake - that the Mets don't sign Fuentes this off-season.

Dan O'Dowd: Still a bad GM

2008-10-16T17:16:00.002-04:00

So the reason the Rockies didn't draft Evan Longoria is because they didn't need a 3B. Sigh...

It really is sad that a semi-fluke World Series appearance last year is going to keep this guy employed for another few years.

Fan Interference

2008-08-12T21:09:00.002-04:00

In the bottom of the 5th tonight against the Rangers, David Ortiz hit a shot to dead center that might have left the yard for his third homer of the game. The problem is, some morons in the bleachers reached out and one of them grabbed the ball, and the umpires correctly called fan interference and ruled it a double.

The replays were inconclusive - the fans definitely made contact with the ball while it was above the plane of the top of the wall, but at the angle it was descending, you couldn't tell if it would have left the park or hit the very top of the wall. If the fans had let the ball go, the worst case scenario was a double. The best case was that it cleared the wall and was a home run. By touching it, the guaranteed that it was a double, eliminating the best-case scenario.

The one moron who ended up with the ball was ejected (or at least, he was being talked to by security on TV right after the play). That made me happy, but didn't really soften the blow of losing a run in a two-run game. What did soften the blow was Kevin Youkilis following up the "double" with a home run of his own, making the score 14-10(!) in the bottom of the 5th.

Slightly off-topic, this Texas team is crazy. Their pitching is so bad that Scott Feldman gave up 10 runs in the first inning tonight, and he still ended up pitching into the third. But even after the 10-spot, their offense is so good that I was worried after they got two right back in the top of the second, and sure enough, they closed the gap to 12-10 after four and a half. I have a mid-term tomorrow - I can't handle a 4-hour slugfest tonight.

Visualizing the Platoon

2008-08-07T16:44:00.003-04:00

There's a lot to digest, but this Dan Brooks article about the platoon split was really interesting. I've often heard the theory that it's easier to hit a ball moving towards you than one moving away from you, but I've never completely understood why it would make such a huge difference.

Instead, you sometimes hear players say that they see the ball much better when the pitcher throws with the opposite hand, but this is the first time I've seen someone actually show how pitches look different depending on which batters' box you're standing in.

These two graphs show Justin Masterson's fastball and slider from both batters' boxes (the first one is the view for righty batters, the second for lefties). You can see how a lefty could distinguish the slider from the fastball much more easily than the righty. Shifting a few feet to the side (even from 60 feet away) gives you a much different view, especially when the pitcher has a low arm angle like Masterson.

Um, That Sucks?

2008-07-29T22:34:00.006-04:00

Admittedly, I haven't been to many games at Fenway this year. I went to a Yankee game in May, and the 1-0 Beckett-Chamberlain game on Friday, but that was it, until tonight. Of course, I was almost at the Royals game that sits immediately below this post yet was two and a half months ago, but that doesn't count. Almost doesn't mean anything in baseball.

After missing my chance to see Lester's no-hitter, I started to wonder if I would ever see one. I mean, what are the odds? Ross has seen a no-no and a perfect game, but that was during a ridiculous string of luck at Yankee Stadium. In my lifetime, three no-hitters have been thrown at Fenway Park, and they've all happened in the last six years. That's a streak, but it's also a sign that Fenway's luck is about to run out. After turning down tickets to Lester's gem, I figured my luck had run out, too.

Then tonight happened. I went to the game with my friend Cory, who got his tickets as a free gift for buying... something else of substance. We had great seats behind the third base dugout, and with the Sox struggling to hang with the Yankees and Rays (that still feels weird to say), the team's struggles against the Angels, the ongoing Manny Ramirez drama, and the Teixeira trade an hour earlier, we had plenty to talk about in the early going. Three innings flew by in 45 minutes, despite two unearned Angel runs due to two Sox errors (Cora's error was later changed to a hit, but it looked like an error to us), and Lackey, despite giving up a lot of fly balls, still hadn't allowed a hit. I noticed the zeros on the scoreboard after three, but Cory, having forgotten his glasses, didn't. It was way too early, so I didn't say anything, even though it was impossible not to think about.

After five, it was 4-0 Angels, and Cory finally realized what was happening. Lackey was still giving up lot of fly balls, but had allowed only a hit batsman to reach base. If a Sox pitcher was working this magic, we probably wouldn't have said anything, but since it was the enemy, we talked openly about it... "Five innings... that's not insignificant, but it's still early. We can't root for this, can we? No, there's still time to come back. The Sox have hit Lackey well in the past, it's not over yet."

Still, part of me actually hoped he would do it. I wasn't sure if it was okay to think that, but I did. I can't deny it. After seeing Danny Darwin and Paul Abbott come so close in the past, and blowing off Jon Lester just months earlier, I felt like I was running out of chances. The Yankees were losing, but the Rays were winning, so I was torn as I tried to look at it practically. As if sensing my moral dilemma, and knowing full well the regret I felt over not being there for Lester's no-hitter, Ross send me a text asking if I was at the park. My reply: "Actually..."

He followed by asking what I was rooting for. Obviously, I wanted the Sox to win, but this was baseball history at stake. I went back and forth with myself until the top of the seventh, when the Angels scored two more off of the Buchholz/Hansen pu pu platter. Staring at a 6-0 deficit, my mind was made up.

Even if the Sox managed a hit, even if they scored a run, at this point, it was unlikely that they would win. As Cory and I silently conceded that we were, in fact, the Angels' bitches this year, we also acknowledged that history was more important than this one July win. As some pink-hatters filed out of the park and others tried to start the wave in the bleachers, we both passively rooted for the no-no. After dodging the Alex Cora bullet in the bottom of the 8th (we were both convinced that some stiff like Cora, who had no business not being pinch-hit for in that situation, would break it up with a swinging bunt or a Texas Leaguer), we gave up on being passive. This was happening - we were sure of it.

Finally, in the bottom of the 9th, we stood. In the break before the final half-inning, everyone stood, but as Ellsbury dug in to start the frame, the five or so rows in front of us all sat down. Not wanting to block people's views, we sat as well, but we felt really bad about it.

After Ellsbury struck out, we noticed that people one section over were standing - all of them. I knew we had time to run over and find some empty seats in that section and stand for the remaining two outs because, damnit, that's what you do for a no-hitter. So we did, and no sooner did we get there than did Cory mention how he'd never seen a no-hitter before. Like clockwork, Dustin Pedroia grounded the next pitch into left field, and we started pointing fingers at each other. Cory blamed me for switching seats, I blamed him for talking about this being his first.

Next thing you know, Youkilis homers, and it's a 4-run game with one out and Ortiz and Ramirez coming up. This is the worst case scenario; the no-no is gone and the game is still out of reach, but they're making a comeback just to pull you back in. I'll give you 1,000 guesses as to the final score, but suffice it to say, I went home with a bad case of baseball fan blue balls.

Did I deserve this? Maybe. Whether it was for skipping the Lester game or rooting against the home team, talking openly about it or thinking about it too early... it's hard to think back and consider all of the things I could have done differently. Lackey was not on his game tonight - he allowed tons of fly balls and only struck out four - and the Sox seemed deflated, whether by the Teixeira acquisition or something else. Maybe it just wasn't, or shouldn't have been, meant to be.

Or maybe it's just me. Baseball makes you think about stuff like that, for no good reason. But that's one reason why we keep coming back. You just never know.

Lesson Learned

2008-05-19T21:43:00.004-04:00

Last week, a co-worker said he knew someone who had five tickets to tonight's Sox-Royals game. He asked me if I wanted them at face value, $45 each. I said I'd try to get some people together and let him know. I figured I'd try to get a few of my cousins together, so I e-mailed one to see if he'd be interested. He didn't respond right away, and I wasn't in the office on Thursday or Friday, and that co-worker wasn't in today. I pretty much forgot about it, since it was the Royals and Beckett, who was supposed to pitch tonight, got moved up a day to face the Brewers after Buchholz hit the DL.

Fast forward to 5:30 this afternoon. After being away late last week, and after Danielle worked nights most of the weekend, we had barely seen each other. She told me she'd make a nice dinner tonight, and it was relatively cold and windy downtown today, so when my boss called me and said someone from the regional office had extra tickets to the game tonight, I thought about it for about five seconds and said no thanks. For the second time in a week, I decided I didn't want to spend tonight at Fenway Park.

I will never make that mistake again.

Only the Yankees left out

2008-05-05T23:56:00.001-04:00

The only team in the Yankee organization not in first place, is the Yankees. Every one of their minor league teams is in first place, with a combined 83-43 record between the teams.

Old Man Wells

2008-04-21T00:48:00.002-04:00

No, I'm not talking about soon-to-be 45-year old David Wells. I'm actually referring to the 29-year old Blue Jay centerfielder Vernon Wells. Despite not yet reaching his 30s, Wells is the AL East's oldest centerfielder by 5 years.

Boston: Jacoby Elsbury, 24 Years Old
New York: Melky Cabrera, 23 Years Old
Tampa Bay: BJ Upton, 23 Years Old
Baltimore: Adam Jones, 22 Years Old

There are actually just 2 AL starting Centerfielders older than Wells, 32-year old Torii Hunter and 34-year old Ichiro Suzuki. The 14 AL starting centerfielders average being under 26 years old, and have a median age of 25. I'm assuming both are the youngest for any AL position.

The NL Centerfielder average age is just shy of 29, with a Median age of 28. Jim Edmonds at age 37, is the NL's oldest centerfielder by 5 years, thanks to Griffey's move to rightfield.

Minor League Catchers

2008-04-10T22:54:00.002-04:00

Posada has a 4-year contract, and the Yankees have two catching prospects. This can work well as the two prospects are just 18 and 19 years old, in Jesus Montero and Austin Romine, respectively.

My favorite is Montero who many think is by far the best hitter to come out of Venezuela since Miguel Cabrera. The Yankees decided, due to their age and inexperience, both were only ready for low-A ball, playing in the Sally League.

I actually like it a lot. Every day they both play. One catches and the other DHs. They have been alternating every day, so they are both in the starting lineup every day, and are getting very little abuse to their bodies, as they're not even catching two days in a row.

Montero's bing weakness so far is that he's only walked one time in 8 games, but has a .960 OPS nonetheless. If he keeps hitting like that, the two may get split up.

My favorite most underrated Yankee prospect remains reliever David Robertson. With 7 shutout so far at AA, he now has a career 0.89 ERA in 91 minor league innings. He's from the same draft class as Chamberlain and Kennedy. The only problem that I can see at all with Robertson is his height. He's 5'11". With his stuff, I don't think that will be a problem at all at AA or AAA, but we'll see (my guess is this season) if it's a problem at the big league level with ML hitters getting a little longer look than they do against the taller pitchers.

AAAA

2008-04-10T22:39:00.001-04:00

I think Shelly Duncan is quickly fitting that category. He seems like he can't do any more in AAA. He played his first game back at Scranton, went 4-for-5 with 3 doubles and a home run.

Posada

2008-04-08T15:51:00.002-04:00

I'm not positive as I couldn't find a list of most games caught to check every catcher that needed checking, but from what I can tell, last season tied the record of most consecutive seasons catching at least 130 games, at 8. Tying the record that Jason Kendall set just one year prior.

In Kendall's first year of his streak, he had a .412 OBP and a .470 SLG. By the last year of it he had a .301 OBP and a .306 SLG.

Bob Boone actually took a 5-year streak through age 38. However, he wasn't much of a hitter through any of it. The mid-year of it, age 36, the age Posada turned last season, Boone had a .504 OPS, significantly lower than Posada's .543 SLG of last season.

Yogi Berra had a 7-year streak, but the last of those years was age 31.

Other Hall-of-Famers (and locks) streaks and the ages they did it:
Carlton Fisk - 3, 28-30
Johnny Bench 4, 20-23
Mike Piazza - 4, 27-30
Ivan Rodriguez - 4, 24-27
Gabby Hartnett - 1, 32
Gary Carter - 4, 28-31
Mickey Cochrane - 3, 25-27
Roy Campanella - 1, 31
Rick Ferrell - 1, 32
Ernie Lombardi - 0
Rick Ferrell - 0
Ray Schalk - 1, 29
Roger Bresnahan - 1, 29
Bill Dickey - 1, 30

Jason Varitek's longest streak was 3. And Yankee coach Tony Pena made it to five, but with a very low OPS.

Posada is in somewhat uncharted territory.

Doing Better

2008-04-03T23:02:00.003-04:00

On opening day, Chien-Ming Wang matched his career total for wins in April. If the game hadn't been rained out, and if the results would have been the same, he would have had as many career wins in March as in April, which is odd for a guy with back-to-back 19-win seasons.

Mariano Rivera is one month ahead of last year's pace with saves. Due to a combination of the Yankees' stuggles and a few horrible games of his own, Rivera didn't save his 2nd game until May 3rd last season. He actually only had 4 saves at the start of June last season, without a DL stint. The third contributing factor was the few games the Yankees did win that the first two months last year, they were winning by more than 3 runs.

Suck It, Jeff Brantley

2008-04-02T22:10:00.003-04:00

Tonight. Diamondbacks 5, Reds 3. Brandon Lyon, pitching in the bottom of the ninth, gives up back-to-back singles to start the inning, bringing up Edwin Encarnacion. After a few inevitable bunt attempts inevitably failed, Encarnacion worked the count to 2-2. Here's the conversation leading up to the next pitch, between the play-by-play man (who I believe is Thom Brenaman), and color man (who I'm 99% sure is Jeff Brantley):

TB: "See that's the problem when you ask a guy who has never bunted..."
JB: "Take him out of the game!"
TB: "Well..."
JB: "If he can't bunt, take him out of the game..."
TB: "If you believe in the bunt in this situation..."
(zoom in on Dusty Baker)
JB: "You're at home, you have to tie the game..."
TB: "But again, that's a by-the-book kind of thing. I don't know if there's anyone on that bench you're gonna bring in... for Encarnacion."
JB: "This guy is NOT a clutch hitter. He is not a clutch hitter."
TB: "Well his numbers... would be contrary to that."
JB: "He is not a clutch player."
TB: "2-2 pitch..."
(Encarnacion hits a 3-run walk-off home run)

Brantley did laugh afterwards and say he stood corrected, but still. That's what you get for clinging to antiquated beliefs in the existence of "clutch" instead of ripping Dusty for calling for the bunt in the first place. For the record, I actually jumped out of my seat when Encarnacion made contact - I've never been so happy to see an announcer proven wrong.

Last Minute Predictions

2008-03-31T11:41:00.003-04:00

I'm not sure I've ever predicted the Mets to win the World Series before. Time to jinx them in a whole new way.

Playoffs:
Mets over Dodgers in 4
Diamondbacks over Cubs in 3
Yankees over Indians in 5
Angels over Red Sox in 5

Mets over Diamondbacks in 6
Angels over Yankees in 5

Mets over Angels in 6

Awards:
AL MVP – Miguel Cabrera
Darkhorse – Erik Bedard

AL Cy Young – John Lackey
Darkhorse – Jon Garland (I could see him being the guy that gets great run support and lucks into 22 wins)

AL Rookie – Evan Longoria
Darkhorse – Jacob McGee

NL MVP – David Wright
Darkhorse – Matt Kemp

NL Cy Young – Cole Hamels
Darkhorse – Aaron Harang

NL Rookie – Hiroki Kuroda
Darkhorse – Brandon Jones

More than you ever wanted to know about Jose Canseco

2008-03-28T16:44:00.001-04:00

This is great.

Quick Hits

2008-03-28T15:28:00.002-04:00

The first two items are courtesy of Joe Posnanski:

In 1985, this is what Dwight Gooden did in four of his starts: 7 innings, two runs; 8 innings, 2 runs; 7 innings, 3 runs; and 6 innings, 2 runs. Those are his four losses. ("He also had two nine inning, 0 run no-decisions.")
Vida Blue had his huge year at age 21. In that season, between April 13 and July 21, Blue started 22 games and threw 196 2/3 innings. Yikes.

Also, here's an excellent article about a former Mets prospect, written by some guy named Plimpton. It's nice to see this online.

Hideki Matsui, comedic genius

2008-03-28T14:36:00.003-04:00

If you haven't yet heard this story, you have to read it. Aparently Hideki Matsui had a serious girlfriend, but he only told his close family about her. This spring, Derek Jeter and Bobby Abreu made a bet about who would get married first, and Matsui talked his way into the bet. Well, lo and behold, Matsui leaves spring training for a day and comes back married, much to the surprise of the entire team. Here's Matsui showing a picture of his new bride to the media:

I love that the microphone is right in front of her face, but my favorite thing about the entire story is this quote about how he won the bet:

"Basically, the only people I told about this were the immediate family. I think that helped."

That kills me for some reaon.

2008 Predictions

2008-03-25T09:29:00.006-04:00

Standings:

AL East - I know it's a cop out, but I don't know if either the Red Sox or Yankees are really better than the other. Before the Schilling and Beckett injuries, I would have picked the Red Sox, just because the Yankees rotation scares me (in a good way). Pettitte's hurt already, Mussina's probably done, Wang's adequate (but what happened to him in the playooffs?). Throw in the "rookies" and there are just way too many question marks. And the bullpen without Joba is worrisome as well. The Red Sox are depending on a good amount of youth as well, especially with the injuries, which is why I can't confidently pick them either. I guess I'll give the Yankees the tie-breaker, just because they seem to hit Beckett and Matsuzaka well, so they should take the season series. That would leave the Red Sox as the Wild Card.

As for the rest, the Jays haven't done enough to put themselves into contention, unless waiting for Vernon Wells to play like the superstar that he isn't qualifies. Their season will depend on their young pitching, and losing Janssen for the season hurts. I love the Rays. I'm not crazy enough to think they can contend, like some people, but I think they can hover around .500. The Orioles finally realized that it was time to rebuild, so good luck with that.

AL Central - I worry about the Tigers' pitching just about as much as the Yankees, but more so their bullpen, which is hideous. Still, they're in a suddenly weak division, and their offense could be historic once Granderson comes back. I think they're the favorites. The Indians won't be as good as last year if only because I don't think Sabathia and Carmona can do it again after all the innings they pitched last year. The rest of their rotation is average, so they'll need Hafner to bounce back if the offense is going to carry them.

The White Sox made some nice pick-ups in Swisher and Quentin, but they overpaid (in years and millions) for bullpen arms, which is always a bad idea, and they didn't do anything to upgrade the crumbling rotation. After Vazquez and Buehrle, it's a replacement-level mess. The Royals seem to be heading in the right direction, finally, but I don't think they're as far along as Tampa Bay yet. The Twins... eh. Nice job getting the taxpayers to build you a stadium before getting rid of two of your best players. Even with the over-rated Delmon Young, their offense is weak.

AL West - Anaheim wins by default, honestly. This is the one team that should have done whatever it took to get Miguel Cabrera, and as usual, they were too chickenshit to make a deal. I will laugh hysterically when Nick Adenhart and Brandon Wood end up in the same dustbin as Ervin Santana and Dallas MacPherson. I still think Oakland can be decent, if only some of Harden, Crosby, and Chavez can contribute more than half a season, but mostly because I don't think much of the rest of the division.

I didn't like the Bedard trade for the Mariners only because they need more than one piece. Of course he's a big boost to their rotation, but he's been injury-prone in the past, and they still have more than a few weak spots in their lineup. They do have a nasty bullpen, though. Texas still can't pitch, as evidenced by their dumpster-diving acquisitions of Jason Jennings, Sir Sidney Ponson, and John Patterson. And yet they still traded one of their best pitching prospects for a center fielder who could relapse at any time. Sound business plan.

NL East - The Mets have to be the favorites after stealing Johan Santana - I don't care how many of their old, over-rated hitters get hurt. Philly's rotation isn't good, and Atlanta's is worse. If Pedro can re-capture some of that old magic, even for just stretches of a few weeks, it's going to be incredibly fun to follow the Mets this year. Philly reminds me of those late-90's Cleveland teams that could never get over the hump despite their sick hitting because their pitching was always substandard.

If I have to hear one more person say that Glavine rounds out a strong Atlanta rotation, I'm going to snap. Did anyone else see him pitch last year? Anyone? I'm falling in love with Manny Acta, but the talent just isn't there for the Nationals yet. You could give me 20 guesses, and I couldn't tell you the Marlins' starting rotation. Too many young, unproven, and/or injured guys in front of a bad defense spells trouble.

NL Central - I don't even think the Cubs are that good, and I wouldn't be surprised to see Milwaukee steal this division. Zambrano's not really a true ace, and the rotation behind him is uninspiring. Fukudome could be a huge help to the top of the order, but naturally, they're going to hit him fifth because they're in love with Ryan Theriot. I don't get Lou Piniella. Milwaukee needs Sheets and Gallardo to stay healthy, which can't happen because Gallardo's already on the DL and Ben Sheets is Ben Sheets.

The rest of this division is a mess. Dusty Baker brings his reign of terror to Cincinnati, where he's already buried Jay Bruce behind Corey Patterson and tried to alter Joey Votto's approach. The Cardinals have spent more money on similar risks in the pitching staff as Texas, and Pujols could be lost for the season at any moment. Pittsburgh brought in a whole new management team, and the new management team promptly did nothing to change last year's sixth place team. The Astros should be re-building, but instead traded all of their 40-man roster depth for injury-prone Jose Valverde and soon-to-be-indicted Miguel Tejada. Chicago and Milwaukee have no excuses for not finishing 1-2.

NL West - As usual, I have no idea what to make of this division. I think the Dodgers have the most talent, but they've proven that they don't know how to use it. Maybe Torre can change that, but he hasn't been very kind to rookies in the past. I picked Arizona knowing that they played over their heads last year, thinking that most of the young guys will only get better, Justin Upton will play a full season, and adding Haren to the rotation gives them a boost. The Padres are the team that I'm must unsure of. Great pitching in a great pitcher's park, but I'm not completely sold on their hitters (and why won't they give Chase Headley a shot?). Colorado is bound to regress - their pitching's just not that good. The Giants are a train wreck, pure and simple. I have no idea how Brian Sabean still has a job - he's been totally exposed by his Bonds-less teams.

Playoffs:
Brewers over Phillies in one-game NL Wild Card playoff
Tigers 3, Red Sox 2
Yankees 3, Angels 2
Mets 3, Brewers 1
Diamondbacks 3, Cubs 2
Tigers 4, Yankees 2
Mets 4, Diamondbacks 2
Tigers 4, Mets 3

World Series MVP - Magglio Ordonez

Awards:
AL MVP – Miguel Cabrera, Alex Rodriguez, Grady Sizemore
AL Cy Young – Justin Verlander, Scott Kazmir, Javier Vazquez
AL Rookie – Evan Longoria, Jacoby Ellsbury, Daric Barton
AL Manager – Jim Leyland, Joe Girardi, Terry Francona
AL Comeback – B.J. Ryan, Hank Blalock, Carl Pavano
AL Fireman – J.J. Putz, Jonathan Papelbon, Francisco Rodriguez

NL MVP – David Wright, Alfonso Soriano, Ryan Braun
NL Cy Young – Johan Santana, Jake Peavy, Roy Oswalt
NL Rookie – Geovany Soto, Kosuke Fukudome, Jay Bruce
NL Manager – Willie Randolph, Lou Piniella, Ned Yost
NL Comeback – Nick Johnson, Randy Johnson, Nomar Garciaparra
NL Fireman – Rafael Soriano, Chad Cordero, Carlos Marmol

And yes, Pavano and Nomar were jokes. I just couldn’t resist.

The Bell Center

2008-03-18T22:54:00.005-04:00

I know this isn't baseball, but... wow. I have to say, anyone who considers himself to be even a minor hockey fan absolutely must see a Canadiens game in Montreal. On Saturday night, I took a temporary break from my bachelor party to see the Habs trounce the Islanders, and it was a sight to see. Not one person left their seat during play - they all waited until intermission. The beer guy would even sit down during play and wait until a whistle to start selling again.

You were both there in Lynah in 2000 when The Red beat Harvard twice in the playoffs, and when the playoff pairings were announced on Tribute to Seniors night - the Bell Center, for a regular season game against an Eastern Conference doormat, was three times louder than any of those nights. Every time the Canadiens scored, I couldn't even hear myself think. The only thing I've ever seen come close to the energy of the fans at this game are playoff games at Fenway Park and Yankee Stadium. It was stunning.

There were negatives, though. For one, I give you... the wave:

(For some reason, my firefox browser doesn't show this video - if you can't see it, here it is on YouTube.)

There were others... never have I heard more hip-hop songs over a PA system, which, given the sport and the location, was just weird (but I guess that's French Canada for you). The "Olé, OléOléOlé... Olé.... Olé....." chant got really old, really fast. The incredible fan support for a player like Alex Kovalev, one of the biggest wastes of talent in the history of sports, was mind boggling - he got the biggest cheers during the pre-game introductions by a landslide. And, of course, hearing a bunch of drunk, grown men screaming "Wee! Wee!" when something exciting happened just sounded lame.

But still. For 60 full minutes, 44,000 eyes were glued to the ice. I don't see how you can ask for anything more. I've seen NHL games in six venues, and this was, by far, my favorite experience (finishing ahead of a Bruins overtime playoff win over Montreal at the Fleet Center, a Stanley Cup Finals game in New Jersey, and a Bruins-Rangers game at MSG). And I hate the Canadiens. Sorry for the tangent, but I feel like this had to be said.

Quick Hits

2008-03-16T19:50:00.005-04:00

Ross, do you still think the man at the right isn't a Hall of Famer?
An interesting look at the catchers that blocked the highest percentage of pitches in the dirt last season.
In the battle on shades of red, let's hope Carnelian can whoop up on Cardinal.
Mandy, Connor and I went to an open house at Dell Diamond last week - the home of the Astros' AAA team. We watched an 1860s-style game: while I knew that a ball caught on a single bounce meant the batter was out, I didn't realize that the runners could advance after that bounce. But at the risk of sounding too "Field Of Dreamsy" (hell, there's no such thing), there's nothing better than taking your son onto a real field and having a catch. Well, as much of a catch as you can have with a three-year-old.

I thought they were above this sort of thing

2008-03-11T08:26:00.003-04:00

So the Yankees signed Billy Crystal to a one-day contract. This is usually the kind of cheap, headline-grabbing thing I'd expect from the Red Sox (at least before Dr. Charles bolted for LA - he must be kicking himself that he didn't sign Ben Affleck first).

Quite honestly, I don't even know how to feel about the Yankees here. Disappointed? Can you be disappointed in your rival? I can't laugh at them because I know full well that the Red Sox are capable of much worse - they'll probably send Crystal a Red Sox Nation membership card after this.

I like it better than 38Pitches

2008-03-05T06:53:00.002-05:00

Not as detailed but Phil Hughes gives stuff away:

http://philhughes.wordpress.com/

2008 Wins Over/Under

2008-03-03T14:00:00.005-05:00

They're out:

Arizona Diamondbacks 87.5
Atlanta Braves 84.5
Baltimore Orioles 64.5
Boston Red Sox 94
Chicago Cubs 87
Chicago White Sox 80.5
Cincinnati Reds 78
Cleveland Indians 90
Colorado Rockies 83
Detroit Tigers 93.5
Florida Marlins 69
Houston Astros 75.5
Kansas City Royals 73.5
Los Angeles Angles 92
Los Angeles Dodgers 86.5
Milwaukee Brewers 84.5
Minnesota Twins 75.5
New York Mets 93.5
New York Yankees 93.5
Oakland Athletics 73
Philadelphia Phillies 87.5
Pittsburgh Pirates 70.5
San Diego Padres 84.5
San Francisco Giants 73
Seattle Mariners 85.5
St. Louis Cardinals 76.5
Tampa Bay Rays 75
Texas Rangers 77
Toronto Blue Jays 85.5
Washington Nationals 72.5

Crazy as it sounds, I think I'd go over on the Rays and under on the Indians. My best bet would definitely be under on the Giants - that's a historically bad offensive team. Ross, they have the same number as the A's... double or nothing?

Identifying a Changeup

2008-03-03T12:29:00.002-05:00

The New York Times may not be known for its sports coverage, but this look at how batters try (and fail) to identify a changeup was pretty interesting.

Drafting Yankees

2008-03-02T22:49:00.002-05:00

I'm not sure what either of your situations right now are with Fantasy Baseball. However, as we approach that time of year, I'll be giving my suggestions as always. The two Yankees that stick out for me right now are Jason Giambi and Bobby Abreu.

Giambi would only be taken to trade off in May. Remember, when Giambi is healthy, he's still about as dangerous as any hitter in baseball. He's just rarely healthy. Also, it seems he's going to be playing a lot of first base this season, which he historically hits much better doing. This means two things, a huge start and a quick injury.

Last year he was hitting .330 on May 5th before getting hurt and slumping miserably. He looks really good right now. I see a big April from him, and then trade him.

Abreu is in the final year of his contract, which is always interesting. He looks like a completely different player than last spring. It's not surprising the Yankees were on him about that after coming into spring training out of shape last year, and having a horrible start. If you're not sure about Abreu's dedication right now, he has already stolen 2 bases this spring.

I'll keep you updated on my thoughts.