MLB Discussion

[dynamitekid]

I dont think posada should be in. He is below 1000 rbis when he was on a great offensive team for his entire career, he's only had 1 above average season and his defensive statistics aren't that great. The only thing he has in his favor is that he has 5 rings. He's like his teammate Andy Pettite, good but not a HOF.

[mediocore]

I dont think posada should be in. He is below 1000 rbis when he was on a great offensive team for his entire career, he's only had 1 above average season and his defensive statistics aren't that great. The only thing he has in his favor is that he has 5 rings. He's like his teammate Andy Pettite, good but not a HOF.

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  [*:s096t8ee]1,000 RBI is an arbitrary number that means very little. (And if 1,000 RBI really is that important, he'll pass that threshold this year.)
  [*:s096t8ee] Like you said, he's played on very good offensive teams. Batting mostly 6th or 7th in a stacked lineup isn't going to afford you the same types of chances as batting 3rd, 4th or 5th does -- especially not with guys like A-Rod, Matsui, Williams, Sheffield, Giambi, etc. batting in front of you.
  [*:s096t8ee] He's not other-wordly from a defensive standpoint, but he's been slightly above average in some of the metrics I've seen (although, to be fair, analyzing a catcher's defensive value is kind of behind the curve compared to other positions). I guess the point is, he won't kill your team on defense. And he certainly hasn't been as big a liability as Jeter over the years.
  [*:s096t8ee]In terms of HOF catchers, he's right in the middle of the pack in OPS+, Win Shares, Runs Created, etc. (ahead of guys like Fisk and Carter... and I-Rod [although I-Rod's defense is probably what gets him in]).
  

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Anyway, will he get in? Who knows. He never set the world on fire, but he's been consistently good and has been a very important cog in 5 WS titles at a premium defensive position. I think the NY thing probably pushes him in.

[flood]

most catchers are going to hit into double plays... you're talking about usually one of the bigger dudes on the team, and usually slower due to the amount of strain put on the joints..... i think you're thinking of molina actually... that dude was the human double play... altho he was probably one of the better defensive catchers in baseball.

[forgeagain]

Your evidence of Posada hitting into DPs is anecdotal and based on one season. Often, DPs are the result of bad luck anyway.

RBI totals are meaningless. He can't control who is on-base ahead of him.

Posada is a hall-of-fame player. Not on the cusp of anything. He is in, period.

Discussing Mauer's hall-of-fame chances is about ten years premature. It's like if we talked about Mark Prior's hall-of-fame chances in 2004. Stupid and pointless. Anything can happen between now and then. Now guys like Pujols and A-Rod, who ALREADY have hall-of-fame numbers with several years left in their careers are another story.

[sgoodcore]

For me, Posada is not a HOFer. He wasn't great at anything specific even when you take position in to account. He's not a superb fielder and he's not a superb hitter. He was a very good player but for me that's it. If he's going to be marginal defensively he's gotta be great offensively and he's not. He's very good but not great. No single dominant seasons, he was never one of the best 25 guys in the MLB at any point in his career, and his offensive numbers are very good but nothing great. As for his longevity, while its impressive for a catcher, given the current science of medicines its not nearly as impressive as Fisk or the like who player 15-25 years ago.

His intangibles will get him in though. His five rings and the fact everyone knows him for being a Yankee and playing in the playoffs so often.

[flood]

i think being a yankee is actually a negative... most other sports writers (who do the vote) don't like the yanks.

[sgoodcore]

i think being a yankee is actually a negative... most other sports writers (who do the vote) don't like the yanks.

Maybe yes, maybe no. I think there's a mystique around it and it also gets you noticed in the biggest market in the US. If you're a good Yankee you get a lot more praise than if you're a good Royal.

[rockstar71888]

Maybe yes, maybe no. I think there's a mystique around it and it also gets you noticed in the biggest market in the US. If you're a good Yankee you get a lot more praise than if you're a good Royal.

Greinke is bummed.

[rockstar71888]

i would think his career numbers with runners on and risp would be more important than the actual number of RBI's, because that's actually in his control.

Runners on: .278/ .386/ .489

RISP: .286/ .403/ .501

[flood]

lets not forget he also had to catch for tempermental nutjobs like clemens and johnson

[sgoodcore]

lets not forget he also had to catch for tempermental nutjobs like clemens and johnson

Without those guys he wouldn't have 5 rings though.

[rockstar71888]

i meant to add in my post that i couldn't think of anyone ELSE who hasn't been mentioned.

Posada, I-Rod, and Piazza are pretty much definitely in.

Mauer is a good possibility, V-Mart is a long shot but a possibility

I'd like to recant my statement and throw Brian McCann in the mix with V-Mart. Dude has been kind of under the radar, but puts up solid numbers and is a 4-time All Star and 3-Time Silver Slugger in only 4 full seasons in the MLB. Still too early to make any predictions, but he definitely has a shot.

[311thrice]

Got my tickets to go to Rangers opening day. I've always wanted to go, now I finally get to. I have a great feeling about this year. I feel pretty confident that we'll take the division.

[dynamitekid]

The rangers look good this year. If they can survive the summer heat, they should be solid.

[311thrice]

I'm especially excited that we got Vlad. He'll bring some power to our rotation for sure. Definitely not too excited to have CJ Wilson as a starter though...I didn't even care for him as a closer.

[travis]

Angels are gonna win the West again, guaratee it.

I think Texas comes in 3rd in the West behind Seattle.

Texas will have a nice line up but their pitching will fail them again.

The West will be a very close 3 team race this year tho.

[rockstar71888]

I agree Trav. The Angels will win, but it should be a close race between Seattle and Texas, but in the end, I think Texas has the edge. Remember, they were in close contention for the wild card last season.

[sgoodcore]

If King Felix gets better, between he and Lee, the Mariners could have between 50-55 guaranteed wins. Now you get 40 from your bullpen and your other starters and suddenly you've got 90-95 wins. I think they're going to be tough. Not sure how to assess the Rangers given their history with pitching issues.

[travis]

Yea I think the M's will be right there with the Angels and I think Texas will be just a couple behind that. The M's might have the best 1/2 punch in the league right now. I just dont think their line up is that great.

Texas will have a pretty strong offense, especially adding Vlad at the DH in a park where he absolutely crushes the ball, but their pitching isnt all that great to begin with and it will just get worn down pitching outisde in the TX heat all season.

Texas was close last year but I think the Angels ended up winning the division by about 10 games and the Angels started out sooooo bad and still came back to take the division.

The Angels lost quite a bit but I think Matsui will be a solid DH to make up for Vlad and hopefully Wood can add some power at 3B. They lost Lackey (fuck that guy now) but they have a pretty solid/deep rotation with a pretty good pen. Angels are a different team but overall, I still think the best team in the West.

The West is going to be a fun division this year.

[rockstar71888]

Roto Authority's rankings for American League offenses:

1. Yankees - 5.826 runs per game

2. Red Sox - 5.371

3. Rays - 5.273

4. Twins - 5.250

5. Orioles - 5.242

6. Rangers - 5.181

7. Indians - 5.178

8. Angels - 5.071

9. White Sox - 4.826

10. Tigers - 4.719

11. Blue Jays - 4.656

12. Mariners - 4.559

13. Royals - 4.536

14. Athletics - 4.532

Looks about right for the most part. Really looking forward to the AL Beast

[travis]

Im biased but I think the Angels belong right there under the Bo Sox. The O's, Twins and Indians definitely do not have a better offense than the Angels.

Some of these projections Ive seen of teams for the '10 season are ridiculous.

I think it was baseball prospectus that said the Angels would finish in last place in the West and something like 10-20 games out of first. 110% that wont happen. No idea how they came up with that but its a shit load over over analyzing.

[rockstar71888]

I'd move the Angels ahead of the Rangers, and move the Tigers ahead of the Indians and White Sox. That's about it. Those predictions are based off stat projectors though, so they're not any type of human guess. Don't sleep on the Orioles though. They're going to be strong this year. I would have the exact same top 5

[travis]

O's division is too tough for them to put up great stats. I think as a team they are getting much better but I still dont think they are that good.

Angels had the #2 offense last year and didnt lose much in the offseason on that side of things.

Figgins replaced by Wood....less hits and runs but likely more power

Vlad replaced by Matsui...pretty even, maybe lose a little power.

[Duff]

the AL West will be a tight 3 team race between the Angels, Mariners and Rangers (no particular order)

the loss of Lackey definitely hurts the Angels and Pineiro will not be able to make up for it. things between Rodney and Fuentes in the pen could make or break things. the two could be a great late inning combo and bringing in Rodney could give them another option at closer if Fuentes falters. the Matsui pick up was great. he will give zero in the field regardless of what he says he can do, but he has a clutch bat. Matsui makes up for losing Vlad. losing Figgins, especially to a team in the division, will hurt them too. whenever he gets on base he always seems to score.

Vlad is going to a slightly better hitters park in Texas and the Rangers pitching staff will need all the run supoprt they can get. how well the Rangers do also depends on how healthy they are for any given period. on paper they have a great lineup, but Hamilton and Vlad are injury prone. Hamilton also needs to prove he's consistent and not just a flash in the pan like the first half he had in '08.

the Mariners are another team that looks good on paper but time will tell if Milton Bradley will spoil the bunch. Lee and Hernandez will be quite the one-two punch but after that things get dicey. pitching can only take you so far with horrible run production. the addition of Figgins should help manufacutre runs. throw him in the same lineup as Ichiro and it might be the best top of the lineup in baseball. but where's the power in their lineup?

[311thrice]

Yep...these past few years, it's been exciting to watch the AL West. It's always a bummer to see the Rangers fall apart after the All Star break, though they've been getting better. I don't think I've been this excited in a long time about Rangers having a decent chance to make it to the playoffs.

And you got it right when you said that Hamilton is injury prone...the whole team is injury prone. Hamilton, Salty, and Kinsler are all out right now. Hamilton and Kinsler should be back in time for the season opener though.

Pitching has always killed the Rangers. I can't remember the last time we had a good rotation. Feldman and McCarthy should be pretty good, but I'm not too thrilled with the rest of the rotation. CJ Wilson may surprise me...he was an ok closer, so only time will tell how he'll fare as a starter.