Is 2010 the year of the instant replay?
In baseball, it certainly is. Though limited instant replay was instituted in 2008, and fair/foul calls are now reviewable, the debate over whether to expand instant replay still rages.
From Jim Joyce, to Joe West, to Phil Cuzzi, umpires are becoming household names for all the wrong reasons.
The case for instant replay in baseball? Let’s take a look.
Defense wins championships. Well maybe not in baseball. Still, as the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays, the 2009 Seattle Mariners, and the 2010 San Diego Padres have shown us, a good defense goes a long way in today’s game.
Defense is the unappreciated side of the game. You don’t see players winning MVP awards for their defensive play. Fielding wizards like Carl Crawford often fly under the radar, their offensive game attracting much more attention than their rare defensive skills.
Still, once a year all eyes are on the fielders. Every November managers and coaches in each league honor one player at each position as the top defender in his league.
Which American League players deserve to take home the hardware? Well…
Less than a month ago, Francisco Rodriguez injured his right thumb in an altercation with his girlfriend’s father at Citi Filed in New York. The injury will keep him out for the remainder of the season, costing both he and the Mets over the next couple of months.
Unfortunately, this is not the first such incident for Rodriguez. It’s certainly not the first such incident among baseball players. For whatever reason—likely the pressure they are under as professional athletes—we’ve seen player after player snap. And, given their high profile, every incident is a big incident.
In honor of KRod, we count down the ten worst mental breakdowns in baseball history.
If the season were to end today, the New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays, Minnesota Twins, Texas Rangers, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, San Diego Padres, and Philadelphia Phillies would make the playoffs.
Of course, we still have a month left. Most of the above teams will make the playoffs, as end-of-August division leaders almost always do. But there are still plenty of questions revolving around these playoff contenders and a few teams that remain in striking distance heading into September.
What will the future hold for 10 of baseball’s playoff contenders? Let’s find out.
Last Saturday, Stephen Strasburg, in his first game back after a short DL stint, left his start against the Philadelphia Phillies with an injury to his pitching arm. This morning, the news came down from GM Mike Rizzo that Strasburg will need to undergo Tommy John surgery to repair a significant tear in his UCL, and will most likely miss the entire 2011 season.
Strasburg, who was undoubtedly baseball’s best pitcher during the first month of his career, finishes a shortened rookie season 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA and 92 strikeouts to just 17 walks in 68 innings pitched.
This situation is eerily reminiscent of Francisco Liriano’s 2006 season. The Twins ace exploded onto the scene in ’06, and looked like a Cy Young contender at midseason. After a month-long stint on the DL, Liriano made two starts, one in late August and the next in early September, before landing back on the DL and eventually undergoing Tommy John surgery.
This is without a doubt bad news. But it is important to remember that Liriano has been one of baseball’s best pitchers this year. The same can be said for fellow TJS recipient Josh Johnson.
While the road to recovery is long and Strasburg may not be himself right away, the surgery now has a very high success rate. This isn’t going to end Strasburg’s career, and he should be back to 100 percent within two years. While his questionable mechanics and electric stuff could lead to further injury in the future, we’ve seen plenty of pitchers return from TJS and stay healthy long-term.
As difficult a situation as TJS is, there is a silver lining here. This injury gives the Nationals another year to become a competitive organization. The service time clock has stopped ticking for now, and the Nationals will control their phenom for an additional year before he reaches free agency.
This not only gives the Nationals a bigger window of competition with Strasburg, but also increases his future trade value should the team not become competitive in the next three to four years.
Stephen Strasburg might be the most talented pitcher in the game, and as a baseball fan, I want to see the guy pitch. Thankfully, this is unlikely to be the end of his career or the end of his dominance, and Nationals fans can take solace in the fact that there team now has another year to become a competitor in the National League East and win with Stephen Strasburg as their ace.
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With a little over a month to go in the 2010 Major League season, the Cy Young race in the American League is still wide open. We have a least as many candidates as we did in May, probably more, and while there is still time for someone to step things up and lay claim to the most prestigious pitching award in baseball, that player has yet to come forward.
A year ago today, we would not be having this conversation. Zack Greinke, who ran away with the award in April and May, was still as sharp as ever late in the season and while there was some concern that his lack of wins would cost him votes, it seemed ridiculous to suggest anyone else would win. Greinke was having a legendary season. His ERA of 2.16 was 105% better than the league average, giving him an ERA+ of 205, one of the highest figures in the games history. He was striking out well over a batter per inning, rarely walking anyone, and surrendering a league-leading 0.4 home runs per nine innings.
The 2010 race is as murky as the 2009 race was clear. We don’t have a Greinke. But someone will win the award, that much we know. Who will it be? Let’s look at a few of the leading contenders.
For most of the season, either the New York Yankees or the Tampa Bay Rays have had the best record in baseball. It’s August 23rd, and not much has changed since May.
The Yankees stand a game up in the AL East, with a 77-47 record. The Rays are right behind them at 76-48. The teams have the best and second best records in baseball, as well as the best and second best run differentials in the majors.
But this isn’t just a three team race. While the Rays and Yankees remain favorites, the Red Sox are still within striking distance, just 6.5 games out. If they can climb back into things, the AL East will be a three team race for just two playoff spots.
What players will have the biggest impact in determining the fate of these three teams? Let’s take a look.
Had I asked you in April who you saw leading the NL West in mid-August, you’d likely have answered with either the Rockies or the Dodgers. I know I would have.
The Dodgers won the division with the best record in the National League last season, and the Rockies made the playoffs as the NL’s wild-card.
Both teams entered the season with young, talented rosters, coming off a highly successful season, and having suffered only minimal off-season losses.
So it made sense to think one of these teams would win the division.
Well, it’s mid-August, and the NL-West has evolved into a two-team race between the Giants and the Padres.
The Giants aren’t exactly a surprise, as they were competitive last year. But the Padres were one of the worst teams in the league in 2009. The two teams met over the weekend, with the Padres winning two out of three to open up a 3.5-game lead.
These teams seem poised to battle it out for the division over the next month and a half. But which players will most impact the result?
The Blue Jays signed 25-year-old former top-10 pick Ricky Romero to a five year, $30.1 million contract that will keep him signed with the team through 2015 on Saturday.
Romero, the team’s first round pick in 2005, has a 3.53 ERA and 3.40 FIP on the season. Not much of a strikeout pitcher in the minor leagues, he’s really refined his stuff in the majors, and thus far has a 7.76 strikeout rate on the season.
He’s also a groundball pitcher (54 percent GB-rate both this year and last) and while his control is still a bit shaky, it’s improved over the past year and is currently no worse than average.
Overall, he’s got a great skill set and at just 25 he still has room to grow by improving his command, and becoming the ace the Blue Jays hoped he could be when they selected him sixth overall.
Let’s break the deal down.
Right off the bat, the Jays will be giving Romero a $1.25 million signing bonus. In 2011, Romero will make $750K, a few thousand more than he would have had he not signed the deal, but nothing major. This is his final pre-arbitration year, and the Jays aren’t paying much for it.
Had Romero not signed this deal, he would have gone through arbitration in 2012, 2013, and 2014. Now, the Blue Jays have him under control and will pay him an average of $6.7 million over the three year stretch. Even if Romero simply continues to pitch at the level he has, he’ll be well worth the money.
The best part about this deal from the Jays perspective is that they now control one or two of Romero’s free agent years. In 2015, Romero will be right in the middle of his prime at 30 years old. The Jays have him locked up at $7.5 million for the 2015 season, and can exercise a $13.1 million option for 2016. Should Romero get hurt, or should his performance suffer, they can buy out the 2016 season for just $600K.
Romero gets a great deal of financial security out of this deal, and while it would be nice to hit the free agent market at 29 years old, he’s now guaranteed $30-plus million over the next five seasons. This is certainly a good deal from his perspective.
I also like this deal for the Blue Jays. Romero is a very talented pitcher, and he’s only getting better. If he develops into the front-line starter he seems capable of becoming, having his arbitration years control could be huge in the Blue Jays rebuilding efforts, and keeping him under contract for two prime-age free-agent years is also a major plus.
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It’s August 10th 2009 and rumors are beginning to circulate that an AL team has placed a waiver claim on Blue Jays outfielder Alex Rios. In this day and age, putting a player on waivers is not unusual. There is simply no downside for the team, as the player can be pulled back if a trade cannot be agreed upon, or dumped on a claiming team. But Rios is a special case.
Rios is just 28 years old and coming off three straight All-Star caliber seasons. He’s a five tool player with unique power/speed abilitiy. But he’s also struggling mightily, and has a large, controversial contract hanging over his head.Without a doubt, the Blue Jays were not expecting their All-Star center fielder to be claimed.
But the “unclaimable” Rios is in fact claimed by Kenny Williams of the Chicago White Sox. Now the Jays are faced with a difficult decision. Do they give away a player of Rios’ talent, or do they hang onto what is beginning to look like a bad contract?
The Blue Jays decide that Alex Rios isn’t worth the money, and literally give him – and his massive contract – to the White Sox. Rios hits just .199 down the stretch. Fast-forward a year to August 10th 2010. Rios is hitting .298 with 17 homers and 24 steals, playing a good defensive center field. The 29 year old is proving well worth the contract and was acquire for… nothing.
The Rios examples illustrates that despite a massive contract and poor performance, a player with some talent and a solid reputation could help a contending team. While most sruggling, expensive ex-stars will not be claimed, the possibly gives teams an incentive to pass these players through waivers, just in case someone is interested. What players will most likely be placed on waivers, but almost certainly not be claimed? Let’s take a look.