Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 24, 2013

Despite a light baseball day yesterday, there is a lot to cover in this episode of The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast.

World Series Rings, ugly Patriotic uniforms and the very origin of Massachusetts and New York baseball tensions are the topics.

Andrew McCutchen, Scott Barnes, Jason Grilli and Miguel Cabrera all owned baseball on May 23, 2013.

To see the up to date tally of "Who Owns Baseball?," click HERE. Subscribe on iTunes HERE.

Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 24, 2013

 

Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 5, 2013

The Sully Baseball Daily Podcast was recorded in part today at the Home Depot. I needed to do some repairs at home, and I entered that intimidating palace of unchecked masculinity. Later I had a ladder tied to the roof of my car.

Meanwhile I discussed which teams need some repairs as well.


Miguel Cabrera, Jeremy Guthrie, Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Fernandez owned baseball on May 3, 2013.

To see the up to date tally of "Who Owns Baseball?," click HERE.

Subscribe on iTunes HERE.
Sully Baseball Daily Podcast - May 5, 2013

Miguel Cabrera = John Wayne in 1969

A star is honored with the most prestigious annual award he can get. By all old standards of the award he is a clear shoo in.

By every way the honor has been evaluated for generations, this star has hit all of the right spots and would receive the award without controversy.

 But these are different times.

There are not only new young faces to contend with but new ways of evaluating excellence. The old standards seem to have been thrown into the dumpster and discarded as old fashion, uncool and no longer with merit. 

Talent and performance are judged differently and challenges all of the old thinking. In the face of a changing world, the old standard won but the writing is on the wall.

People will be looking at talent through different glasses and judge excellence by an entirely new criteria.

 Am I talking about the 2012 American League Most Valuable Player vote?
Or am I talking about the 1969 Oscar for Best Actor?

This year it was Miguel Cabrera who did all the things that in past years would have made the MVP discussion a debate of who would finish second and third.

 He won the Triple Crown.
His team made the playoffs.
Cabrera's Tigers overtook the White Sox while Cabrera was on fire.

 Boom. Open and shut case.

 But Mike Trout, who began the season in the minor leagues, had a more complete season.

 His average and OPS were comparable to Cabrera.
His on base percentage was superior. He hit for terrific power and stole bases.

 Plus his defense was exceptional. (The fact that he didn't win a Gold Glove was insane.)

 Plus he towered over Cabrera in WAR.

 I don't get WAR. No two people seem to calculate WAR the same way. I hate WAR as a stat because it is subjective. But I digress. Trout's case is compelling without that vague stat.

 So you have the new mindset clashing with the old.

 The 1969 Oscar ceremony was very similar.

 Old time Hollywood was being overtaken by new talent and a new attitude. The Oscars still honored big spectacles and traditional stars.

During the counter culture peak of 1968, the Best Picture Oscar went to the very safe musical spectacle Oliver! 

In 1969, everything was pointing to John Wayne winning his Oscar.

He had never won before and he might not ever get a better shot than True Grit.

 It was everything an Oscar performance could ask for. He was a big star in a physically challenging role, all the while showing a sensitive side to go with his rough exterior.

 It was the big crowd pleasing blockbuster that Hollywood could crank out with one eye closed, or behind a patch in the case of True Grit.

 But new talent and a new kind of filmmaking was emerging and getting harder to ignore. Just a few years prior, The Graduate and Bonnie and Clyde won a few major awards, challenging the old style of films. (The baseball equivalent of Felix Hernandez winning over a 20 game winner despite barely having a winning record.)

 Challenging John Wayne was another cowboy named Jon. Only this one was a male whore played by Jon Voight.

 Joe Buck in Midnight Cowboy was going to take on Rooster Cogburn. 

(Never confuse male whore Joe Buck with Fox Sports' Joe Buck. Or at least try not to.)

 To make the race even more interesting, Joe Buck's pimp, Ratso Rizzo, was nominated as well. Anyone watching the movies saw that what Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman brought to their roles was more exciting and more complete than John Wayne's.

 Look at Hoffman! He was the kid in The Graduate and he transformed himself into a totally different role. What range!

 And like Mike Trout, Voight' s performance seemed to come out of nowhere for a new comer and he commanded the screen with emotional depth and humor.

 It was a new kind of movie and new kind of performances. And with a new criteria for judging excellence, they towered over even John Wayne.

 So what happened?

 The Oscars had the same result as the MVP. The old school won. And frankly, I am glad that John Wayne won an Oscar. He may not have deserved it for that movie, but a movie star of his quality should have a golden guy.

 In a similar manner, Miguel Cabrera won the MVP. There was no way that Sabermetrics were going to trump a Triple Crown. Not yet, at least.

Just like there was no way that Voight and Hoffman were going to deny the Duke his Oscar. But what happened after that?

 The new Hollywood's stars began to take over and the old stars and their acclaim took a back seat to a new way of thinking. Midnight Cowboy wound up winning the Best Picture Oscar. Actors like Gene Hackman and Jack Nicholson and Ellen Burstyn started winning the acting awards. The old kind of Oscar films faded away for a time and a new measure of excellence evolved.

 So maybe this was the last gasp of the old guard the same way that John Wayne's Oscar signaled the end of a different era.

 Looking back, Wayne's performance does not carry the same resonance of Voight and Hoffman. It isn't even the best Oscar nominated performance of someone playing Rooster Cogburn. (I found Jeff Bridges' performance in the Coen Brothers remake to be more compelling).

 Maybe Cabrera's award will have the same feel with retrospect.

 And Mike Trout supporters take heart: Both Jon Voight and Dustin Hoffman went on to win Oscars before the 1970s were over.

Melky's suspension is denying us dual M. Cabrera Batting Titles

Melky Cabrera is off the Giants. He will not be on the playoff roster. He will probably not be back with San Francisco next year. And his wonderful break through season will forever be tainted by his P.E.D. suspension and that whole weird website thing.

That's not what I am lamenting.

I like strange things in baseball. And the minute Melky Cabrera did what Bud Selig did not have the guts to do and remove himself from the batting race, the game was made better by that moment of accountability.

But history was denied a strange coincidence.

Here are the current batting standings, which include Cabrera:

It's a double take.

But the American League and the National League have M. Cabrera as the batting leader. Miguel in the American League and Melky in the National League.

Seriously, I demand to know the odds of that.

That does not happen where the batting leader of both leagues have the same last name and the same first initial. And for two guys who are not brothers!

There was no William Boggs winning batting titles in the 1980s for the National League.

Nobody named Tiberius Williams won no titles in the National League.

I do not recall anyone named Randolph Carew or Thaddeus Gwynn or Horatio Wagner or Simon Musial winning a batting crown.

This would have been a first.

And would it be worth having a caught PED user win the batting title to have this kind of coincidence in the history books?

I'm not so certain that I know the answer to that.

Sure punishing those who do wrong and teaching our kids a lesson is great.
But so are oddities like this.




 

Scott Feldman needs a stat to give him credit for yesterday's game

There were so many heroes in yesterday's wonderful 11 inning showdown between the Tigers and Rangers. Obviously Nelson Cruz going with for 4, driving in 5 of the Rangers 7 runs with a 7th inning game tying homer and an 11th inning walk off grand slam would make him a pretty safe pick for "Player of the Game."

Ryan Raburn hit a go ahead 3 run homer for Detroit.

Max Scherzer pitched a solid 6 innings for the Tigers, especially after his shaky first.

Miguel Cabrera started a dramatic bases loaded double play to save the game.

Neftali Feliz worked out of an extra inning jam.

Reliever Mike Adams got the win. He pitched a scoreless 11th striking out 2. But if you watched the game, you saw the pitching star was Rangers reliever Scott Feldman.

He came in the third after Derek Holland's wildness result in Raburn's homer and a blown lead.

What did Feldman do?

He gave the Rangers 4 1/3 shutout innings from the pen.

The starter couldn't last 3 but the rest of the Rangers wonderful pen wasn't needed until the 8th.

And neither Ogando, Feliz, Gonzalez nor Adams were really stretched last night and could probably pitch in Game 3 today.

So Feldman doesn't get the start.

He doesn't get the win.

He doesn't get a hold.

He doesn't get a save.

He gets gotch.

Sure he gets to have a low ERA and nice stats. But there SHOULD be a stat, shouldn't there?

A "Hey Nice Game!" Stat.

A "He saved the bullpen" Stat.

A "Let's not let this go unnoticed" Stat.

Not sure how it will work.

Then again, I created the whole "Teeth Grinder vs. Dodged Bullet" ratio in the regular season.

Maybe I'll figure out the "Nice Job" stat as well.

The least I can do is make sure there is at least one blog post out there written about him.

And if you Google "Did Scott Feldman Have A Good Game In Game 2 Of The 2011 ALCS?" you should find this article.

10 Reasons why the Detroit Tigers winning the 2011 World Series would be good for baseball

The Tigers dramatic win on Saturday and blow out win last night put them front and center on my baseball mind today. This team could very well be warming up to a long October run and be a real potential World Series winner. Now is as good a time as any to do the Detroit entry for the Why Each Team's Potential World Championship Would Be Good For The Game series.

Recently the AL Central winner has been an after thought at best in the post season. The last three Central teams have won a combined one post season GAME in 2008, 2009 and 2010.

But a combination of big bats, a great manager and a world beating ace could put an AL Central entry in the ALCS for the first time since the 2007 Indians, in the World Series for the first time since the 2006 Tigers or join the 2005 White Sox as the second ever champ from the Division.

Why would a fan outside of Michigan want to see a title in Motown? I have a few reasons.

10 Reasons why the
Detroit Tigers
winning the 2011 World Series
would be good for baseball

1. A Tiger title would put Jim Leyland among the elite managers in history

I already think Jim Leyland belongs in the Hall of Fame, and not just because he looks like a baseball manager sent from Central Casting. He has pennants in both leagues, a World Series title and turned around three franchises. But a World Series title in both leagues would put him with Sparky Anderson and Tony LaRussa as the only ones to pull off that feat.

Plus a title in Detroit would be probably be less bittersweet than his ring: The soon to be dismantled 1997 Florida Marlins.


2. Another title helps put Dave Dombrowski back among the elites.

Dombrowski doesn't look that old until you have him stand next to all the young GMs around baseball today. I suppose he would have to be considered part of the "Old School." While Brad Pitt isn't about to play him in a movie any time soon, he was the 31 year old GM who helped assemble a very talented Expos team. Then slapped together a World Champion in Florida and made sure that when it was dismantled, solid players came back in return. Many of the 2003 World Champion Marlins were acquired by Dombrowski. Then he turned around a disastrous Tigers team. As more and more GMs get Hall of Fame consideration, a Detroit title could put Dombrowski in Cooperstown.

3. A ring for baseball lifer Gene Lamont.

Lamont has put in 47 years of his life to professional baseball. He's been a player, minor league coach and manager and been a loyal lieutenant to Jim Leyland for many seasons.

He also won manager of the year in 1993 leading the White Sox to the ALCS and later managed the Pirates. Oddly he hasn't been hired as a manager since.

He was managing in the Royals organization in 1985, so I think he may have a ring from that year. Let's drop the "I think" and get him a big league ring. He's put in the time.


4. A title would put a positive spotlight on Miguel Cabrera.

Cabrera has had far too many negative headlines over the last few seasons, mainly about his fight with alcohol. Hopefully he is battling those demons. What he brings to the field is nothing short of extraordinary. Year in and year out he puts up MVP caliber numbers. The players that Baseball Reference compares him to at this age are people like Frank Robinson, Ken Griffey Jr, Orlando Cepeda, Mickey Mantle and Hank Aaron. In other words he is a Hall of Famer if he can keep his life together.

Another shot of October glory could help cement a potential wonderful legacy. He won a title in 2003 with Florida. (Doesn't it seem like EVERYONE in Detroit also won in Florida? For the record, Tigers pitcher Brad Penny also has a Florida ring!)


5. An overdue ring for Carlos Guillen

Guillen hasn't been much of a factor this season other than getting into a spat with Angels pitcher Jered Weaver. But he's had a nice 13+ season career with memorable highlights (a Division Series ending walk off bunt for the Mariners in 200... a 1.625 OPS in Detroit's 2006 Division Series victory over the Yankees.) And he has shown toughness (coming back from Tuberculosis to play in the 2001 ALCS) and will someday be a big league coach or manager.

He has been underrated his whole career, despite a few All Star appearances and a top 10 MVP finish in 2006. Players like Guillen deserve a title.


6. The National Anthem as sung by Eminem

I don't care about or listen to rap. But even I would be curious to hear Marshall Bruce Mathers III do his rendition of The Star Spangled Banner.

Oh yeah, there are lots of Motown artists who will no doubt make their dutiful appearance. But nobody will get Slim Shady's press.



7. A Tiger championship would make Mike Illitch the greatest figure in Detroit since Henry Ford.

When Little Caesar's founder Mike Illitch took over the Detroit Red Wings in 1982, the team hadn't played in a Stanley Cup Final since 1966 and hadn't won since 1955. Under his ownership they won the Cup in 1997, 1998, 2002 and 2008 and made 2 other Finals appearances.

When he took over the Tigers from Domino's Pizza founder Tom Monaghan in 1992, the team was in flux. This year a fifth title in Detroit from a Mike Illitch team could be won.

If they win, maybe he should sell the Tigers and buy the Lions.


8. A World Series title could cement Justin Verlander's legacy at age 28.

He has already been a Rookie of the Year, an All Star and a Cy Young contender. He will no doubt win the Cy Young this season and having passed the 100 win mark at a young age, he is a legit candidate to someday pass 300.

All his legacy needs is a World Series title and good health and we might be seeing a Hall of Famer emerging. In the post Steroid era, a new generation of ace pitchers are dominating and doing so into October. Last year Tim Lincecum, Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee left their indelible marks. Now it is Verlander's turn.


9. A new Tigers championship would help celebrate their underrated legacy

When you think of the great winning baseball franchises, chances are most wouldn't list the Tigers. But go back and look at the great teams and titles they have won and you'd be surprised what a great history they had.

A quick glance at my Homegrown vs. Acquired entry for the Tigers shows Hall of Famers like Hank Greenberg, Ty Cobb, Charlie Gehringer, Heinie Manush, Harry Heilmann, Jim Bunning, Hal Newhouser, Mickey Cochrane, George Kell, Sam Crawford and Goose Goslin, whose walk off single clinched the Tigers first ever World Series title. They would the World Series in the 1930s, 1940s, 1960s and 1980s.

They would feature one of the game's greatest characters with Mark Fidrych. They would have a mind bogglingly deep team in 1984 who got off to a dizzyingly amazing start led by the future Hall of Fame manager, Sparky Anderson. Then they won it all, going 7-1 in the post season.

The Tigers won a heart stopping Division race in 1972 and again in 1987. And won the 2006 pennant on a walk off homer by Magglio Ordonez.

Tiger fans of all generations have had remarkable highlights. But it has been 27 years since they have won it all. It is time for a new generation of Tiger fans to have THEIR title.



10. No city could use a moment to celebrate more than Detroit

It's no secret that Detroit has had a rough few decades. The city has become worse than a punch line. It has become a symbol of pity for much of the country, which no doubt is the biggest insult of all.

It will take a lot to have Detroit reach its glory days as a city. But everyone I know from Detroit has a real pride in their city and hope and trust that better days are coming. A World Series title could bring the city closer together and show the country that there is still something positive in the Motor City. Sure there have been recent titles by the Pistons and the Red Wings. But the desire for a Tiger title is palpable, and hard to root against.


It's a real possibility this year in Detroit. Verlander is having one of those "I dare you to try and beat me" seasons and the lineup is strong enough to score runs in bunches. They could win it all and have everyone in Michigan say "Bless you boys."

And that's not a bad thing.


If you liked this then go ahead and read the entries for the other teams.

CHICAGO WHITE SOX

CLEVELAND INDIANS
LOS ANGELES ANGELS OF ANAHEIM
MILWAUKEE BREWERS
NEW YORK YANKEES
ST. LOUIS CARDINALS
SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS

Hey Tigers! Spend a million bucks on a baby sitter for Miguel Cabrera

As details of Miguel Cabrera's DUI become even sadder and more pathetic than we originally thought, it is becoming clear that the Tigers need to make one more pick up for the 2011 season and beyond.

The need a big huge intimidating guy on the payroll to constantly shadow Miguel Cabrera. He has to make sure he gets from the ballpark back to his home or hotel and make sure he STAYS THERE.

Miguel is 6'4" and over 240 pounds. He is no little man. So they will need to get a BIG guy. I am talking about a super huge scary guy. Richard Kiel huge and scary.

But they have to do it.
Cabrera is signed through 2015. And if healthy and sober, he is arguably the best player in the American League... or at least in the conversation.

And with 4 or 5 MVP caliber seasons and a World Series ring already on his resume at age 27, he might be putting together the first half of a Hall of Fame career.

However if he spirals, then not only will he become a sad foot note or a cautionary tale of how addiction can destroy greatness.

And more practically for the Tigers, his contract could be an immovable albatross that hamstrings Detroit for the next 5 seasons, which they don't want.

Or the Tigers will find a way to void the contract... and Miguel doesn't want to lose $100 million. Would you?

So seriously, for a million bucks, I am sure the Tigers could find a quality big guy to scare the tar out of Miguel.

A million bucks doesn't pay for a decent left handed reliever anymore. But in THIS economy, it would be a good gig for someone to just make sure Cabrera isn't going somewhere he shouldn't.

Last year the Tigers spent more than a million bucks to have Adam Everett last year and he managed to bat .185 over 31 games.

Making sure their MVP candidate stays out of trouble would be a much better use for a million bucks, wouldn't you say so?

Who the hell is the American League MVP this year?

Tomorrow it will be late August, and the NL MVP is all but sewn up.

Albert Pujols leads the league in homers, is second in RBI, 4th in batting average, has the leagues highest on base percentage and in slugging percentage. And you don't need to be a sabermatrician to know that means he leads the league in OPS. And he has done all of this without protection the first half of the season and has the Cardinals with the biggest lead in the NL.

No matter what your criteria is, Albert is the man.

Now the AL is a little trickier.

There is no cut and dry candidate running away with it like Albert... so with a little more than a month to go, let's figure out who the candidates are based on the different criteria.

OLD FASHIONED NUMBERS CRITERIA
The "I like Average, Homers, RBI" candidate is

MIGUEL CABRERA

He's batting .334 with 24 homers and 72 RBI for the first place Tigers. And Cabrera is doing it all with Magglio Ordonez struggling.

I originally had Justin Morneau here, but he might be missing some time with that ear infection thingee and no doubt Cabrera will pass his power numbers.

STAT HEAD CRITERIA
The "OPS and VORP make it a scientific process" candidate is

JOE MAUER

He could set the highest batting average ever for a big league catcher. But forget batting average. He has the highest OPS in the league as well. And according to Baseball Prospectus, he is the only American Leaguer in the top 6 of VORP.

Now I still have no clue how VORP is or how it is calculated... but it sounds impressive.

Granted Mauer missed the first month of the season and the Twins are fading fast... but that evidently isn't calculated into VORP. Or maybe it is. I am confused.

CAREER ACHIEVEMENT CRITERIA
The "Hey, he's never won it before and this is as good a chance as any" candidate is

DEREK JETER

For all the talk of New York bias in the press, it is amazing to think that Jeter has never won it. He was robbed in 2006 by Twins first baseman Justin Morneau (who after Joe Mauer and Johan Santana was only the 3rd most valuable player on his own team.)

Jeter's average is up, he is a lock to hit 20 homers for the first time since 2004 and the Yankees are the best team in baseball.

That has to reflect well on the Captain!

TRUE MEANING OF VALUE CRITERIA
The "When he heated up the team heated up" candidate is
MARK TEIXEIRA

On May 12, Teixeira was hitting .191 with an OPS of .747.
The Yankees had a losing record and were 6 1/2 game behind Toronto.

Since then his batting average is up to .283. His OPS is .934. He is among the leaders in homers and RBI.
And oh yeah... the Yankees are 60-28 since then.

Granted that was also around the time A-Rod came back, but there is no way A-Rod is winning it this year.

PLAYING ON A TEAM WITH LOW EXPECTATIONS CRITERIA
The "Who would have guessed this team would be contending" candidate is

MICHAEL YOUNG

He moved to third to make room for Elvis Andrus. And along the way is batting .320 with a .900 OPS. And the 5 time All Star has the Rangers as of this writing tied for a playoff spot in mid August. I bet you didn't see THAT coming!

THE "PITCHERS ARE PLAYERS TOO!" CRITERIA
The "I don't care if they aren't every day players" candidate is

MARIANO RIVERA

Yeah I'll say it... Rivera is having an MVP caliber season as a closer.

He should have won the Cy Young AND the MVP in 2005. But there are still nitwits out there who believe the following three things:

1. A Pitcher can not be more important than an every day player.

NONSENSE

2. The Closer position is easy and can be filled by anyone

NONSENSE

3. Mariano Rivera is overrated

ADMIT THIS PERSON TO BELLEVUE

The Yankees have put Rivera into 36 save opportunities and save for the Jason Bay homer, he has converted them all. His ERA is sub 2.00. His WHIP is sub 1.00 and his BAA is around .200.

And he has 57 strikeouts in 51 innings and have walked only 8 all year.

I think Papelbon walked 8 YESTERDAY!

So chances are the MVP will come from this crop of players.

And before anyone can accuse me of being such a Red Sox homer that I can never tip my cap to the Yankees, please note... I have 3, count em, THREE Yankees as MVP candidates and zero Red Sox.

I don't have a vote. But I should.

They're GRRRRRREAT!

Last Wednesday I wrote about the Tigers and basically said they were a weak looking team that could turn into one of those teams that sneak up on people in October.

But I am starting to get very very impressed by them.

I thought the Twins would have passed them by now... but they keep winning... and winning.

Did you know they are currently tied with the Yankees for the second best record in the American League?

That's right... in the proverbial "If the playoffs Started today" game, the Tigers would not only be in the dance, but opening a home.

And they are having an MVP type season out of Miguel Cabrera.
And Justin Verlander is a legit ace.
And this kid Rick Porcello is the real deal.
And the rookie Alfredo Figaro should have the classiest intro music of any pitcher in the league.

Maybe this is an East Coast bias of someone living on the West Coast, but I guess I am a Tiger come lately.

I have a solution for Marlins fans!

Hey Marlins fans.
Do you love winning the World Series but hate having to see your favorite players leave?

Well we here at Sully Baseball have the solution:

Root for the Marlins when they have a shot to win, and every other year ROOT FOR THE TIGERS

Detroit seems to be the popular destination of former Marlins

You loved the 1997 team?
Well then your manager, Jim Leyland, is waiting for your cheers in Detroit.

And how about that great finish with Edgar Renteria's single up the middle to clinch the whole thing?






You want to cheer on Edgar and let him know how happy that made you?

Get up to Detroit and give him a standing o.

Who is that on the SI cover holding up Renteria?
Why its former Marlins slugger Gary Sheffield...

Hmmmmm. I wonder where you can see him play these days? I'll give you a hint. It's in Michigan.

The architect of that team was Dave Dombrowski... who is currently calling the shots for Detroit.

You more of a fan of the 2003 team?

Fair enough.


Remember how Pudge Rodriguez got the game winning hit in game 3 against the Giants, held onto the ball to end the series, drove a dagger into the hearts of Cubs fans and celebrated in a silent Yankee Stadium to win his ring?

Guess where HE went?
I'll give you a hint. RoboCop lived there.

Remember how Miguel Cabrera exploded onto the scene in the 2003 playoffs and World Series?

Remember how he looked like the next great MVP candidate?

Well if he is going to win one, it will be in Detroit!



And what about Dontrelle Willis?
Remember how he dazzled everyone, electrified the crowd and did everything the Marlins wanted in the 2003 post season... start, relieve and even hit.

Guess where he is?
Guess!

Actually he is in Lakeland Florida trying to get his act together... but that's not the point.

The point is that by rooting for the Marlins only when they are good and rooting for the Tigers the rest of the time, you can have the World Series experience to go along side with being loyal to your favorite players.

Hey, it's cheaper than building a new park!