Baseball Cards, Brian Bannister, Girardi’s Test, Drama
- I was sent an interesting ad yesterday. With the punitive fees at eBay growing, selling old stuff, namely baseball cards, can be extremely difficult. Enter this guy who is buying your old cards. Thought it might be something useful for the collectors in the audience.
- Brian Bannister is a fan of modern statistical defensive metrics. You will probably hear a cheer from those in the audience, but wait, there is a catch if you read closely. Bannister is discussing the need to improve current defensive metrics. This is already in the works with technology similar to the graphs you see on FOX. I have no problem with technology giving us a better idea of how to evaluate defense. Clearly errors and fielding percentage don’t give you even a smidge of the total picture. The main point in Bannister’s quote is how “we are at the defining moment” of this type of analysis. It’s a better perspective than many fans that seem to believe the numbers thrown at them are gospel. I question if they really understand what they are supporting and how you can relate it to what you see on the field. The current defensive metrics are way too flawed to be mainstream and, if we don’t see improvements, we very well might have to just go back to good old defensive scouting reports. In any event, nothing will completely replace a scouting report in my humble opinion.
- Bob Klapisch wrote about how a looser Joe Girardi has been a huge part of the Yankees success. I agree 100%, especially early in the year when the team was struggling. With that said, there real litmus test will come playoff time. How will Joe handle being down 2-0 in the ALDS like the 01′ Yankees? What about a situation, like his 98′ team, where they are down 2-1 going into Game 4 of the ALCS on the road? Remember, the old guard can’t do it all by themselves. You will need Teixeira, Sabathia, Cano, Hughes, Chamberlain, and others to step up in that type of pressure cooker. With the lack of playoff success, or in the case of others, a small sample, Girardi setting the tone will be very important.
- I am all for debate and discussion, but seriously, what is all the fuss about Manuel’s comments regarding Ryan Church? Church wanted to play that is all he said. It reminds me of how his fertilizer quote was taken out of context last year. I guess this is what happens when you have a disappointing team play out the season. I think the fans have fatigued from Mets drama and doubt it will garner much interest. The focus should be on stories that discuss how to improve the team for next season. I would start grilling Jeff Wilpon about next year’s payroll. That will be a huge part of whether this team can make the necessary improvements to compete.
- Anthony McCarron has a great story about Nolan Ryan, Jerry Koosman, Tom Seaver, and the 1969 Mets. I will be in attendance this Saturday for the event celebrating 1969. I enjoyed the 86′ event, because I remember watching those guys play, but 1969 is just a history book to me. It will be fun to read the stories and see the remaining living members of that roster get one more day in the sun. I didn’t realize that Nolan Ryan’s only World Series appearance was with the Mets in 1969. Even though the Mets traded him away, the one piece of team hardware in his HOF career came in New York.
- Interesting fact I learned from Tyler Kepner. Apparently David Robertson has the highest strikeout rate in the American League. He very quietly is having a nice season. Robertson might be one of the most overlooked relievers in baseball.
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KC Conception on a Sexy Photoshoot endorsing BAYO. Check this picture of KC Conception. Read Full Story »
