Astros Miscellany

[Nate Colbert]

Joel Sherman of the NY Post says George Springer is one of the 50 most interesting people in MLB.

[Nate Colbert]

Now he can really do some peacocking.

[juliogotay]

Now he can really do some peacocking.

Having personally lost 20 lbs. this past year, I can really feel the difference in my hips.

[MusicMan]

Having personally lost 20 lbs. this past year, I can really feel the difference in my hips.

I hereby nominate "Shakira" for Mr. Peacock's new moniker.

[Limey]

Anyone else read the subject line as "Astros Miceli"...and nearly shit themselves?

[MusicMan]

Anyone else read the subject line as "Astros Miceli"...and nearly shit themselves?

Kaz Matsui did, poor guy.

[Nate Colbert]

Jonathan Villar learns how to be inconsistent at two other positions.

Astros will monitor closely Evan Gattis' twice-operated-on-previously right knee.

[Nate Colbert]

Adam Lind's a fan of Colby Rasmus.

[juliogotay]

Adam Lind's a fan of Colby Rasmus.

I wonder who the leader of the Astros clubhouse is? I could see Feldman among pitchers.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

I wonder who the leader of the Astros clubhouse is? I could see Feldman among pitchers.

Last year, it was Fowler among the position players.  Probably Altuve and Castro at this point.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Hopefully this Rasmus guy has grown out of the being a dickhead stage of his life. http://

[astrosfan76]

Last year, it was Fowler among the position players.  Probably Altuve and Castro at this point.

Altuve is mentoring Correa this spring, so the club apparently looks at him to be a leader. I imagine they expect the same out of Lowrie, as well.

[Duman]

Based on my experience with him; Altuve isn't a charismatic, outgoing guy.  He is more reserved. He could be a one on one mentor and a lead by example guy but I don't see him   being a out front leader. 

[Lefty]

Last year, it was Fowler among the position players.  Probably Altuve and Castro at this point.

Qualls?

[Waldo]

Based on my experience with him; Altuve isn't a charismatic, outgoing guy.  He is more reserved. He could be a one on one mentor and a lead by example guy but I don't see him   being a out front leader. 

The same could be said for Jeff Bagwell.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Based on my experience with him; Altuve isn't a charismatic, outgoing guy.  He is more reserved. He could be a one on one mentor and a lead by example guy but I don't see him   being a out front leader. 

I think he is growing out of his shyness and is gaining confidence as he matures both as a person and a ballplayer.

[Nate Colbert]

J. R. Richard has a book coming out in June (via WTHB).

[geezerdonk]

Thatcher looks like a good pick up. I would think that he has a good chance to make the club. 3.40 career era is pretty good even if he spent most of his time in San Diego.

[Nate Colbert]

Colby Rasmus looks back at his time with Cardinals and hitting problems in Toronto.

St. Louis Dispatch article.

[Nate Colbert]

Jayson Stark was in the AstrosSphere and churned out a couple of articles on wunderkind Correa and (ahem) the Special K Club.

[Nate Colbert]

David Schoenfield of ESPN opines on five sleeper Cy Young candidates and includes an Astro.

[Nate Colbert]

Mark Appel has a blog First Round Reflections and if the first post is any indication it won't exactly be compelling reading.

[Nate Colbert]

Charlton Jimerson has a book out, his autobiography called Against All Odds: A Success Story.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Charlton Jimerson has a book out, his autobiography called Against All Odds: A Success Story.

I always thought he would have caught on somewhere. His career line: 9 AB, 4 hits, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 4 SB, 0 BB, .444 BA, .444 OBP, 1.111 SLG, 1.556 OPS. I guess he just didn't walk enough.

[VirtualBob]

I always thought he would have caught on somewhere. His career line: 9 AB, 4 hits, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 4 SB, 0 BB, .444 BA, .444 OBP, 1.111 SLG, 1.556 OPS. I guess he just didn't walk enough.

His .667 BABIP was not sustainable and his 33% K-rate probably was.

[NeilT]

His .667 BABIP was not sustainable and his 33% K-rate probably was.

Yeah, that seems low for a K-rate.

[VirtualBob]

Yeah, that seems low for a K-rate.

Middle name:  Max-swell ... he could raise 3-foot waves on Lake Travis from the Dell Diamond.

[Nate Colbert]

Correa/Addison Russell/Francisco Lindor/Corey Seager = Jeter/Arod/Garciaparra/Tejada?

Joel Sherman knows!

[Nate Colbert]

Moustache aficionados mourn.

[Nate Colbert]

Forbes updates Astros' valuation to $800MM (up from $530MM last year), ranking 26th among MLB clubs. The median valuation of those clubs is $988MM.

[Nate Colbert]

Joel Sherman of NYPost says Astros one of 12 teams facing the most pressure this season (with the de rigueur FO is assholey regurgitation).

[Nate Colbert]

Not sure whether I've posted the link before but the 2015 Astros Media Guide is available online.

[Fredia]

havent got into it yet but the cover is amazing

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Not sure whether I've posted the link before but the 2015 Astros Media Guide is available online.

Jose Altuve's autograph looks nothing like Jose Altuve.

[NeilT]

Jose Altuve's autograph looks nothing like Jose Altuve.

Going to Friday night's exhibition game was great.  It let me get my "I can't believe he's so short" out of the way.

[Nate Colbert]

Astros Hall of Fame addition being considered for MMP:

The proposed Hall of Fame would be created by enclosing currently open space outside the stadium underneath the roof track from the end of Home Run Alley toward Congress Avenue.

[Nate Colbert]

Astros roster ranks 13th youngest at 29+ average age (Rangers youngest, Giants oldest).

[Nate Colbert]

Still the fucking Co-ardinals.

[Nate Colbert]

Bruce Levine ‏@MLBBruceLevine  42 minutes ago
Mark Appel was first on the board for the Cubs before he was taken by Houston in the 2013 draft . [Their] list was Appel-Bryant-Gray.

Crasnick, though, with a story that contradicts this so who the fuck knows.

[Nate Colbert]

Charlton Jimerson has a book out, his autobiography called Against All Odds: A Success Story.

And here's a Seattle Times article posted today about Jimerson, his book and his life post-baseball.

[Nate Colbert]

David Schoenfield of ESPN.com with some love for the Astros in general and noting:

The Astros have drawn 81 walks to 49 for their opponents; they've outhomered them 29-15; they have 28 steals to eight against. They're tied with the Orioles for the major league lead in home runs and rank eighth in the AL in runs scored, even though they're hitting .240, 18th in the majors.

And Keuchel in particular:

But there are some real improvements in the works from last year, most notably that Keuchel's ground ball rate continues to increase, from 55.8 percent in 2013 to 63.5 percent in 2014 (the highest in the majors) to 69 percent so far this season. That's helped limit the home runs -- zero in his five starts -- and a reason he's had more double plays turned behind him than any pitcher since the start of 2014.

There were even one or two Glavine mentions in there.

[Jacksonian]

There were even one or two Glavine mentions in there.

This is the comparison I had in mind, sans the 8-foot wide strike zone.

[Bench]

Grantland has a piece on the Astros' nascent rise:

Houston’s Supervillain: Should the Astros Activate the Death Star Ahead of Schedule?

Basically it's about when Correa, Appel, McCullers and Moran should be brought up.  Spoiler alert: not this year.

[MusicMan]

Over the past week, the Astros' probability of making the playoffs (per BP) has increased from 19% to 42%.

[doyce7]

Grantland has a piece on the Astros' nascent rise:

Houston’s Supervillain: Should the Astros Activate the Death Star Ahead of Schedule?

Basically it's about when Correa, Appel, McCullers and Moran should be brought up.  Spoiler alert: not this year.

A little disappointed, grantland is better than that article

[Fredia]

never fix what is not broken

[Tom Servo]

Over the past week, the Astros' probability of making the playoffs (per BP) has increased from 19% to 42%.

Not bad when you consider that very recently the thought was laughable.  I came into the season thinking I would be happy with a .500 record.  I would enjoy being pleasantly surprised by more.

[Nate Colbert]

Not that this is news (from this week's Inside Baseball column from Heyman):

Jake Marisnick is an early Gold Glove candidate in center field.

[austro]

Not that this is news (from this week's Inside Baseball column from Heyman):

That's what happens when you get the bat working.

[Nate Colbert]

Record since April 26 of last year: 80-82.

[chuck]

Record since April 26 of last year: 80-82.

I was wondering whether Luhnow was right about that, thanks.

[Nate Colbert]

Jayson Stark ‏@jaysonst  2 minutes ago
Best-kept secret in #Astros streak: Reliever Will Harris - 13 IP, 2 H, 0 runs, 17 K. Another savvy waiver claim by a team that does it well.

[JimR]

I asked Mark yesterday who the hell Will Harris is.

[Nate Colbert]

If these kinds of things float your boat, you'll be happy to know the Astros are ranked #3 in the newly-released SI.com power rankings after the Cardinals and Dodgers (and up from #11 last week).

[Nate Colbert]

Rob Neyer wants the Astros to bring up Preston Tucker and Carlos Correa.

[Mr. Happy]

Rob Neyer wants the Astros to bring up Preston Tucker and Carlos Correa.

Memo to Rob Neyer:

Fuck off. You're only covering the Astros because you have to right now. A year ago, you and your band of idiots were crying that the Astros were a disgrace to baseball. Jeff Luhnow and his gang of brainiacs are doing one helluva job with the team and the farm system. Correa hasn't played 30 games in AA yet, you dumbass. I'm willing to let Correa wear out his welcome in the Texas League before moving him to the Show.

[NeilT]

Rob Neyer wants the Astros to bring up Preston Tucker and Carlos Correa.

"I won'€™t presume to offer any advice . . . " R. Neyer

[JJxvi]

I like how he skates along after saying Carter/Gattis/Springer have been bad, but goes into detailed analysis why players who have been good will obviously regress.

[das]

Rob Neyer wants the Astros to bring up Preston Tucker and Carlos Correa.

What a nitwit.  The Astros were not "supposed" to finish last this year.  Saying so does not make your bloviating any more credible.  And, good gracious, respect the streak.  You don't make changes now.  Heck, you don't even change your underwear.

[geezerdonk]

I think Harris has something like 26 consecutive scoreless appearances going back to last year. I wonder what the record is. I also wonder why Arizona let him go.

[BudGirl]

I also wonder why Arizona let him go.

At this point, I don't care.

[Duman]

. I also wonder why Arizona let him go.

Their front office has not been known for it's outstanding decision making in the last few years. I think that is a question their fans have asked more than once.

[doyce7]

Mlb trade rumors making a case for the Astros going after hamels. Please no

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/houston-astros

[JimR]

I have lots of faith in this front office and its decisions.

[MusicMan]

Mlb trade rumors making a case for the Astros going after hamels. Please no

http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/houston-astros

How can you so quickly say no, without knowing the price?



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[jbm]

I didn't read the article, but the guys on MLB radio yesterday were throwing out Appel as a starter in a Hamels deal.

At any rate, I'd also give the FO some slack, as the most of the recent deals have arguably made sense.

[Mr. Happy]

I have lots of faith in this front office and its decisions.

As do I. I like A.J. Hinch too.

[doyce7]

How can you so quickly say no, without knowing the price?



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Let me rephrase, the Phils want a kings ransom for hamels and I'm out on that. I don't believe this FO would ever give a kings ransom either. If crane would be willing to take the full portion of the contract and thus give up less prospects wise it COULD be a steal. I'm not sure what exactly I'd be willing to give up but I'm not opposed to building a trade package around appel if the Phils value appel highly. I wouldn't want to lose 2 top 6 prospects but if it could be done with appel and 2 12-20 prospects I think I'd like it.

[subnuclear]

I didn't read the article, but the guys on MLB radio yesterday were throwing out Appel as a starter in a Hamels deal.

At any rate, I'd also give the FO some slack, as the most of the recent deals have arguably made sense.

Still puzzling over Tropeano for Conger.

[juliogotay]

I have lots of faith in this front office and its decisions.

Glad to hear you say that. Me too.

[Reuben]

Let me rephrase, the Phils want a kings ransom for hamels and I'm out on that. I don't believe this FO would ever give a kings ransom either. If crane would be willing to take the full portion of the contract and thus give up less prospects wise it COULD be a steal. I'm not sure what exactly I'd be willing to give up but I'm not opposed to building a trade package around appel if the Phils value appel highly. I wouldn't want to lose 2 top 6 prospects but if it could be done with appel and 2 12-20 prospects I think I'd like it.

I like Hamels, but I'd hate to see the Astros give up Appel for him (or Velasquez for that matter). In my fantasy world, the Phils really really like Domingo Santana ("the one that got away...") and, say, Michael Feliz.

[chuck]

I like Hamels, but I'd hate to see the Astros give up Appel for him (or Velasquez for that matter). In my fantasy world, the Phils really really like Domingo Santana ("the one that got away...") and, say, Michael Feliz.

Ed Wade's not the GM over there anymore, dude.

[doyce7]

I like Hamels, but I'd hate to see the Astros give up Appel for him (or Velasquez for that matter). In my fantasy world, the Phils really really like Domingo Santana ("the one that got away...") and, say, Michael Feliz.

Phils have turned down better offers than that already. Think if you add appel to Santana and feliz then they MIGHT bite. Appel will most likely be in any possible hamels deal. If the Astros are still right in the mix at the end of June things might get interesting. Back end of the rotation needs fixing before that though and I can't see hamels traded before July

[Reuben]

Ed Wade's not the GM over there anymore, dude.

A lot of Phillie Phans will tell you Amaro is even worse.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

A lot of Phillie Phans will tell you Amaro is even worse.

I think they refer to him as "Ruin T' Amaro".

[Nate Colbert]

NYDN article on Brent Strom.

[Nate Colbert]

Which of Cardinals or Astros has better chance to sustain hot start?

...and the Astros' primary catcher, Jason Castro, has graded out as a better pitch framer than Cardinals stalwart Yadier Molina this season, per Baseball Prospectus’s numbers.

[jbm]

How they fuck they determine that anyway?  The whole concept seems like an assumption looking for validation, rather than useful data screaming "conclude this."  Do they simply view pitch fx data, and if that concludes "ball" and it is called strike, the catcher is credited?  What if the data concludes "strike" and it is called ball, is the catcher penalized? 

[moriartp]

How they fuck they determine that anyway?  The whole concept seems like an assumption looking for validation, rather than useful data screaming "conclude this."  Do they simply view pitch fx data, and if that concludes "ball" and it is called strike, the catcher is credited?  What if the data concludes "strike" and it is called ball, is the catcher penalized?

They have plenty of articles detailing their process.

[Nate Colbert]

Neyer analyzes Drellich's "(s)hit piece", one year later.

[subnuclear]

Neyer analyzes Drellich's "(s)hit piece", one year later.

I thought Drellich's reporting was pretty much on as far as I can tell. Crane stood behind Luhnow and that has turned out to be a good decision, but that doesn't mean there weren't real conflicts with people, like Porter, who they brought in.

[Jacksonian]

I thought Drellich's reporting was pretty much on as far as I can tell. Crane stood behind Luhnow and that has turned out to be a good decision, but that doesn't mean there weren't real conflicts with people, like Porter, who they brought in.

I thought the big issue with the article was there were too many sour grapes being presented as representing the whole or large majority.

[Bench]

Grantland's Rany Jazerli with an in depth look at the state of the Astros.

The conclusion:

If they haven’t already, it’s time for the other teams in the AL West to take notice: There’s a new power in the division, and it’s not going to fade anytime soon. The Astros were long a laughingstock, but there’s nothing funny about them now. Not the claim that they can win the division in 2015. And certainly not the claim that they could win a few more division titles after that

[roadrunner]

It's nice to see Neyer write that piece.  The problem was never management, it was entitled shitty players.  I remember it leaking out that it was Cosart who fed Drellich these opinions...and for fuck's sake he was never one to complain.  Sending him to Miami looks like one of Luhnow's better moves.

And Bo Porter was just a failure of a manager...from his double switches that played Tony Sipp in RF to his misunderstanding of basic baseball rules.

The Astros are winning now because they stuck to the plan that Luhnow laid out from the start despite all of the media noise, and that's the overarching fact that matters the most.

Now if only we could get a similar article retroactively evaluating the Astros actions with Aiken, then I think I will be happy.

[jbm]

Fucking Wade and his managerial hires. 

[Nate Colbert]

fivethirtyeight.com article on the Astros "historic turnaround":

One of the most optimistic parallels for the Astros’ recent success comes from the last team to increase its winning percentage by .200 in two years: the 2008 Tampa Bay Rays. Like the Astros, those Rays were coming from the basement, riding a wave of young talent gathered by a recently installed, sabermetrically advanced front office. For the Rays, 2008’s turnaround was the beginning of an impressive run that saw them make the playoffs in four of six years (getting all the way to the World Series in 2008).

[Nate Colbert]

Neyer has a list of the oldest living players for each franchise.

I only had a vague recollection of Hal Brown and had to look up his B-Ref page. Currently 90 years old and played for the Colt 45s in '63-'64.

[juliogotay]

Neyer has a list of the oldest living players for each franchise.

I only had a vague recollection of Hal Brown and had to look up his B-Ref page. Currently 90 years old and played for the Colt 45s in '63-'64.

Skinny Brown. He was at the end of the line by time he got to Houston. Interesting that he had a 3-15 W-L in '64 despite an ERA under 4.

[HudsonHawk]

It's funny when you get to the newer franchises like the Rays. 

[Reuben]

Skinny Brown. He was at the end of the line by time he got to Houston. Interesting that he had a 3-15 W-L in '64 despite an ERA under 4.

Shades of Nolan's '87 season.

[juliogotay]

Shades of Nolan's '87 season.

A high 3 ERA wasn't that good back in those days.

[Reuben]

A high 3 ERA wasn't that good back in those days.

No, but his 2.76 was good enough to lead the league, yet bad enough to give him an 8-16 record.

[juliogotay]

No, but his 2.76 was good enough to lead the league, yet bad enough to give him an 8-16 record.

You're talking about Ryan and I'm talking about Brown with the high 3 ERA. Yes, I remember that Ryan season well. It was so frustrating. He pitched well enough to win the CY except for the fact that W-L means something. I remember he had developed that circle-change pitch around this time and it really made him even more effective.

[Mr. Happy]

You're talking about Ryan and I'm talking about Brown with the high 3 ERA. Yes, I remember that Ryan season well. It was so frustrating. He pitched well enough to win the CY except for the fact that W-L means something. I remember he had developed that circle-change pitch around this time and it really made him even more effective.

When the Express developed that change piece, and when he had command of all three pitches, the possibility of a no-no was always there.

[Nate Colbert]

Richard Justice ‏@richardjustice  4 hours ago
Pat Neshek hasn't issued a walk in 24 appearances. This is 2nd-longest streak ever. Mark Eichhorn set the record with 30 in 1991.

[Bench]

Finkle is Eichorn!

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Finkle is Eichorn!

Eichorn is a man!

[Bench]

Good Jonah Keri article and McCullers' changeup:

Over his 10-plus years in the big leagues, Melky Cabrera has stepped up to the plate more than 5,000 times. He’s faced Roy Halladay and Felix Hernandez, Clayton Kershaw and David Price — the best pitchers of his generation, throwing all kinds of blazing fastballs and vicious off-speed stuff.

On June 8 against the Astros, he faced something none of those aces had ever thrown. In the fourth inning, a 1-2 pitch came in thigh-high, only to drop down to his toes. It started at the outside corner and ended a foot off the plate. It looked like a sinker crossed with a screwball, sprinkled with the kind of black magic you’d only encounter in a nightmare.

That evil pitch lit up the radar gun at 94 mph, a shocking reading for an offering with that much violent movement. The baseball Internet quickly lost its mind, wondering what the heck the pitch could’ve possibly been. Soon enough, Astros rookie Lance McCullers Jr. took to Twitter to give us an answer: It was his new changeup.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Heartbreaking story about Neshek.  I'm glad he's one of the Good Guys.

[Bench]

 

Heartbreaking story about Neshek.  I'm glad he's one of the Good Guys.

Oof.  The kids are getting extra hugs tonight. 

[BUWebguy]

Heartbreaking story about Neshek.  I'm glad he's one of the Good Guys.

Wow -- thanks for sharing that.

[Reuben]

Wow -- thanks for sharing that.

+1. Now I'm going to be extra-super-paranoid about whether the hospital staff are somehow fucking up, when it's our turn in a few months.

[juliogotay]

+1. Now I'm going to be extra-super-paranoid about whether the hospital staff are somehow fucking up, when it's our turn in a few months.

Congratulations and best of luck. Everything will be fine. Your first? I just had a Father's Day surprise...learned I will be a grandpa for the first time.

[NeilT]

Lucky kid and lucky grandkid.  Congratulations!

[juliogotay]

Lucky kid and lucky grandkid.  Congratulations!

Thanks, Neil. I appreciate it.

[Mr. Happy]

Congratulations and best of luck. Everything will be fine. Your first? I just had a Father's Day surprise...learned I will be a grandpa for the first time.

Congrats!!!

[Reuben]

Congratulations and best of luck. Everything will be fine. Your first? I just had a Father's Day surprise...learned I will be a grandpa for the first time.

Thank you JG, and congrats right back atcha. Yep, our first.

[Reuben]

Lucky kid and lucky grandkid.  Congratulations!

Congrats!!!

And thank you kind sirs.

[austro]

Congratulations! It's a lot of fun.

[Fredia]

congrats..and good sleep

[Gizzmonic]

Congratulations and best of luck. Everything will be fine. Your first? I just had a Father's Day surprise...learned I will be a grandpa for the first time.

Wow, congratulations and can you babysit?

[Bench]

FanGraphs says "It's the ground balls!"

The Astros, as a team, have generated one of the highest rates of grounders in baseball. The Astros, as a team, have been baseball’s best at fielding those grounders and turning them into outs. That’s a very quiet way to vault yourself toward the top of a division. Don’t get me wrong, the Astros have been doing a number of things right. They just haven’t done other things this right.

[jbm]

Sort of interesting.  So is the takeaway that the Astros are just way better at shifting then the rest?  If so, great, but it probably isn't sustainable over time because if there is a secret, the other clubs will presumably figure it out.

I would like to see a deeper analysis of how hard grounders are hit vs. slugging % on grounders.  They pointed out how the results were so different between the White Sox and the Astros even when both team induced weaker grounders compared to the league.  Maybe the Astros are good shifters and the White Sox are shitty shifters, but I would be curious to see league wide if there is an advantage to inducing weak groundouts.  Would seem obvious that there is, but maybe not.

[Nate Colbert]

From a Rob Neyer article tracking who originally coined terms like LOOGY:

We began tracking all TOOTBLANs in 2013. In the TOOTBLAN Era, Jose Altuve leads baseball with 38, including an MLB-best 10 this year (through Friday's games). He's followed by Carlos Gomez (35), Yasiel Puig and Starling Marte (33), and Ian Kinsler (32).

[juliogotay]

From a Rob Neyer article tracking who originally coined terms like LOOGY:

What is TOOTBLAN?

[NeilT]

Thrown Out on the Basepaths like a Nincompoop.  I don't think it's a good thing.

[Reuben]

What is TOOTBLAN?

A needlessly cutesy/stupid term for getting thrown out running the bases. I assume it includes caught stealing, which would explain Altuve having a lot.

[Duman]

A needlessly cutesy/stupid term for getting thrown out running the bases. I assume it includes caught stealing, which would explain Altuve having a lot.

You also have to be on base alot to have tootblans.  Altuve had 17 in 2013, 11 last year and already has 10 this year but none since 6/10.  Most were pick offs this year. 

[juliogotay]

Altuve and Springer could benefit from some Bagwell/Biggio tutelage on the bases.

[Lefty]

A needlessly cutesy/stupid term for getting thrown out running the bases. I assume it includes caught stealing, which would explain Altuve having a lot.

Very annoying term, definitely.  Looked it up, does not include CS unless a pickoff is involved.

[Reuben]

Very annoying term, definitely.  Looked it up, does not include CS unless a pickoff is involved.

Well that's arbitrary.

[mrpink]

Well that's arbitrary.

I assume that's where the nincompoop term comes in.  Getting thrown out on a straight steal means you just got beat, you didn't necessarily do anything wrong.  At least that's how I take it.

[HudsonHawk]

I assume that's where the nincompoop term comes in.  Getting thrown out on a straight steal means you just got beat, you didn't necessarily do anything wrong.  At least that's how I take it.

Guys get thrown out on the bases all the time without doing anything wrong.  Sometimes you get thrown out because you're doing it the right way.  Just goes to show there are two kinds of people watching baseball:  those who know what they're watching and those who make up stupid ass "stats" because they don't. 

[moriartp]

Someone made up rules for what constitutes a TOOTBLAN? Didn't that start as a twitter joke?

[NeilT]

Someone made up rules for what constitutes a TOOTBLAN? Didn't that start as a twitter joke?

I thought it was kind of serious, but mostly a joke.  There's nobody tracking TOOTBLAN to measure the value of a player--unless it's Mike Fast.  But I can sure hear myself saying dammit Villar, there's another TOOTBLAN.

[mrpink]

It was clearly a joke with some silly rationale behind it.  The fucking word is TOOTBLAN.  That's as silly an acronym as Latuda is a name for a drug.  I still snicker to myself every time I see that commercial.  I refuse to grow up.

[Fredia]

you read and post here..the growing up thing mostly hasnt happened among the few and the loyal

[moriartp]

When a Dutch player gets picked off second during the WBC, that's a Honkbal TOOTBLAN.

[NeilT]

When a Dutch player gets picked off second during the WBC, that's a Honkbal TOOTBLAN.

Damn Villar, dat is een andere Honkbal TOOTBLAN!

[Dark Star]

Guys get thrown out on the bases all the time without doing anything wrong.  Sometimes you get thrown out because you're doing it the right way.  Just goes to show there are two kinds of people watching baseball:  those who know what they're watching and those who make up stupid ass "stats" because they don't.

Don't forget the guys thrown out because they were tricked by Jim Edmonds into trying for the extra base.

[Reuben]

Guys get thrown out on the bases all the time without doing anything wrong.  Sometimes you get thrown out because you're doing it the right way.  Just goes to show there are two kinds of people watching baseball:  those who know what they're watching and those who make up stupid ass "stats" because they don't.

Yep. If someone makes the 1st or 3rd out of the inning at 3rd base, they did something wrong. If they get thrown out trying to steal 3rd down by 4 Runs in the 8th or 9th inning, they did something wrong.

But if someone gets thrown out at home trying to score the tying run with 2 outs, and/or because the 3rd-base coach sent them, they didn't do anything wrong.  And so on: lots and lots of scenarios that would run counter to what is supposedly grounds for calling a Major League player a "nincompoop".

[HudsonHawk]

Yep. If someone makes the 1st or 3rd out of the inning at 3rd base, they did something wrong.

Not even necessarily then.  Sometimes you'll take an out at 3B to keep a throw from going to the plate to ensure a run.  Sometimes you're trying to sacrifice a runner to 3B, but the other team makes a great play.  That doesn't mean the runner is somehow a total fuck up.  Not to mention that if you never get caught stealing, you're not running enough. 

[Reuben]

Not even necessarily then.  Sometimes you'll take an out at 3B to keep a throw from going to the plate to ensure a run.  Sometimes you're trying to sacrifice a runner to 3B, but the other team makes a great play.  That doesn't mean the runner is somehow a total fuck up.  Not to mention that if you never get caught stealing, you're not running enough.

True. Baserunning is very situationally-dependant. And the details matter. Often who the on-deck hitter is matters.