Home Run Derby

He was just made for the game.

Prior to 1985, the All-Star Break was purely about the All-Star Game, and many of the festivities you see today weren't there. But when the Metrodome in Minneapolis, Minnesota held the 1985 All-Star Game, it became the first stadium and All-Star Game to also have a Home Run Derby. However, this wasn't the first time a Home Run Derby had occurred.

In 1960, Wrigley Field (in Los Angeles, not Chicago) held a series of contests throughout the season pitting the best sluggers in the game against each other. Its format was a bit different from today's, and it more resembled an actual game. The two sluggers battled it out for 9 innings with each of them getting 3 outs an inning. The winner would be on the next show and would gain the benefit of batting last. It's also worth noting that if a batter took a pitch that was a strike, he received an out. The show didn't last long, and Chris Berman believes it was because the announcer was too dry (let's not all start yelling just yet).

But in 1985, the new Home Run Derby was partly influenced by its predecessor. The format changed as did the number of batters. With eight batters, 9 innings per batter is a bit excessive, so each batter was given 5 outs, and the two best scores moved onto a final round. Dave Parker won the first ever Home Run Derby. Over the next two Derbies, the number of contestants went down to 6 and 4 but would go back up to 8 until 1996. Later in 1988, the Home Run Derby was cancelled due to rain, putting a slight smudge on Riverfront Stadium's All-Star festivities, and it would be the only one that has been cancelled due to rain.

Starting in 1991, the number of outs (5 to 10) and rounds (2 to 3) increased to take advantage of the event. The top 4 moved on, and their home run counts were reset. In 1996, a new dimension was added when the home run distances were tracked for the first time, and the tie-breaker became the longest home run hit in Round 1. During the same game, 10 players were now chosen to hit in the Home Run Derby.

The year 2000 was another landmark year for the Home Run Derby. The number of contestants was brought down to 8 as more and more sluggers were refusing to be involved. That Home Run Derby also saw the change in the second round format. Before, it was a competition between all 4 batters in which the top 2 moved on to the final round, but in 2000, a match play came into effect. The player in first place after Round 1 played the one in fourth with the other two matched up, and the winners from those matches moved on to the final.

In 2005, a new wrinkle was added. Starting when the batter reached 9 outs, a gold ball was thrown to the hitter. If the hitter hit it out, Century 21 and Major League Baseball would donate $21,000 per home run to the Easter Seals and the Boys and Girls Club of America, respectively. A year later and in honor of the first World Baseball Classic, Derby contestants were not chosen based on the league in which they played, and instead, 8 different countries were represented.

Onto some trivia. Of course, Josh Hamilton set the single round record with 28 in last year's first round. However, Bobby Abreu's 2005 performance of 41 home runs bests Hamilton's ultimate 35. As for the all-time leader, none other than Ken Griffey Jr., with 70, leads all contestants. Seattle and the Chicago Cubs are tied with 3 players each who have won Derbies. Seattle also leads with 12 contestants (Griffey 7 times), and Griffey leads with 8 all-time appearances.

What do I think of the Home Run Derby? Love the idea, hate the execution. You can pretty much look at Bill's post earlier today for my feelings on the subject. In short, no Chris Berman (insert Matt Vasgersian and Scott Van Pelt because I love Van Pelt), no third round (just too long), the top 2 move on from the first round, and all home run totals count (no resets). But I like seeing the sluggers get out there and crank some home runs. As of right now, it's the only time when you get to see these guys really having fun, and that's what I like to see. Plus, fans get lots of souvenirs.

This Day in Baseball History: July 13th, 1993

Have some fun tomorrow night, boys, regardless of what Bud says.

On July 13, 1993:

Randy Johnson lets one go.


John Kruk has frequently said that he was not an athlete, but he was a pretty good hitter. Busting out with a fantastic 1987 season, he slipped a little in 1988, but he was apparently afraid that his college roommate, who had robbed a bank, thought Kruk had turned him in. Consequently, Kruk was too stressed to play well because he feared his roommate would come for revenge. After that, Kruk was pretty consistent -- average around .290, OBP around .380, and SLG around .450. From 1991-1993, he hit his stride as a Philadelphia Phillie (he was originally a San Diego Padre), making the All-Star Game in each of those seasons.

Then came the 1993 All-Star Game. Kruk didn't play in the 1991 Game, but he was 2-for-2 in the 1992 Game. The 1993 Game, however, wasn't so good, but it has become much more famous. In his first at-bat, Mark Langston struck him out, and in his third at-bat, Jimmy Key finished off the hat trick. But that second at-bat. What a memory. On the first pitch, Ivan Rodriguez, the AL catcher, quipped, "Let's have some fun with this." Kruk wasn't sure what that meant, but when Randy Johnson let go of the pitch, it sailed up and over his head. Kruk bailed and feigned heart problems, but for the rest of his at-bat, Kruk stood at the back edge (farthest from the plate) and flailed until he struck out.

Kruk would later say that he would never get back in the box against, and indeed, he never did but not by choice. By 1993, Johnson was a scary sight for lefties, but he wasn't too bad anymore. At age 29, he had finally started putting things together. Before 1993, his BB/9 ratios often topped 6, and with a 100 mph fastball, that was a bit scary to step in the box against. In 1993, Johnson began throwing more strikes, lowering his BB/9 to 3.5 overnight. Five years later, he would not walk more than 3 per nine again.

All of this led up to the 1997 game where Larry Walker got in the box from the right side, and Johnson, having a bit of fun, launched one over his head as well. This is the kind of thing I love about the All-Star Game, which has essentially been taken out by the "This Time It Counts". The Game is for the players to relax and have some fun with their friends, and this just lets us see a different side of them. Who knew Randy Johnson had a sense of humor?


Trivia Time
Kruk's career-high in stolen bases was ____?

July 2nd's Answer --> Ed Delahanty is the only player to win a batting title in both leagues.

Futures Game

Man-child and number one prospect in the game, Jason Heyward.

The All-Star Break used to be all about the stars of the major leagues, but now, the minor leaguers are also involved. Brainchild of current Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball Jimmie Solomon, the Futures Game began in 1999 to showcase the young stars of the game. Solomon began as the Director of Minor League Operations in 1991, and he would begin this game in order to generate more interest in the best prospects of the game.

Players are chosen by Baseball America. The magazine selects 25 players for a World and USA team (Puerto Rican players are part of the World Team, even though they are technically US citizens, because Puerto Rico has its own baseball federation). Each major league team has to have one representative, but no team can have more than 2 prospects.

Originally, the Futures Game was only 7 innings long, but in 2008, it was changed to a full 9 inning game. Of course, this season's game was shortened to 7 innings, but that was because of rain (and was a fun game to watch if you didn't). It's played on the Sunday before the All-Star Game in the same city and stadium that the actual All-Star Game is played.

The World now leads the series, 6-5, after today's game. They won the original game before the USA won the next two. The World won the next one before the USA again ran off two more. After the two teams traded off victories again, the World has taken the past three games, the first two in dominant fashion before rallying this season.

Because the game does feature the best prospects in the game, it's safe to assume that many of the players have turned out to be major league players that have significant impacts for their team. Among MVP's, Alfonso Soriano (1999), Jose Reyes (2002), and Grady Sizemore (2003) are some of the key players from the game that have become All-Stars in the majors. We'll have to wait on Rene Tosoni.

But you want some fun trivia, don't you? Most prospects only play in the game once, but it's not illegal to play in it more than once. In fact, some players have played in the game more than once. Carlos Carrasco, Shin-Soo Choo, Edwin Encarnación, Justin Huber, Seung Song, and Merkin Valdez have played in the game 3 times, the most among players. Most players play in consecutive seasons or just skip one year, but Francisco Liriano (2002 and 2005) and Robinson Diaz (2004 and 2007) skipped two seasons in between appearances, the longest in between appearances among players.

It's not a big tradition, yet, but I like watching the young players get out there on a big stage.

Sunday Frivolities

Anybody?

Also on today's date in 1890, Mr. Lewis made his debut and only appearance in a professional baseball game as a member of the Buffalo Bisons. The Bisons were part of the Players League at the time, but they would soon become part of the Western League. The Western League would soon change names and become the American League. Believing they would be part of the new challenge to National League supremacy, Ban Johnson, the leader of the AL, dropped them at the last minute in favor the Boston Americans. Though Johnson repeatedly assured the Bisons that their place was safe, it was later revealed that Johnson had a stake in the Boston team. Without a league, the Bisons settled in the Eastern League, which eventually became the International League.

Anyway, back to Mr. Lewis. I keep calling him that because no one knows his real name. While in a series against the Brooklyn Wonders, the Bisons found and signed Lewis for the July 12th game. At this point in baseball history, players could be signed out of nowhere like this and brought to the team. Why would a team do this? Among the reasons, they might need a pitcher for whatever reason, there might be a shortage of players created by a strike or jumping from one league to another, or the team might just be trying out a player from the area that they have interest in. I think that this is probably what the Bisons were doing because if they just needed roster fodder, he probably would have lasted more than 3 innings regardless of results, but we just don't know what happened. And because records weren't kept in the same way as they are today, a player like Lewis could slip through the cracks.

In fact, there are at least 30 players who have played Major League Baseball without a first name being recorded. Not surprisingly, Smith is the only last name that appears twice without a first name, but it only appears twice. Just for giggles and trivia's sake, there are only 2 Mark Smiths in MLB history, but there are 4 Red Smiths. Weird.

Anyway, back to Mr. Lewis, again. His debut didn't exactly go well. Getting the start, he lasted only 3 innings, giving up 13 hits, 20 runs, 7 walks, and 3 home runs while only striking out 1. His ERA is the highest for someone with at least 2 innings of work at exactly 60.00. His WHIP is a cool 6.667. His ERA+ is Jeff Francoeur's old number, 7. Lewis, however, did pick up a hit in 5 tries at the plate. After those 3 horrendous innings, Lewis was moved to the outfield (that's how he picked up those 5 at-bats). Over the next 6 innings, he didn't make one play. However, in the first 3 innings, he made 5 plays as the pitcher. I can only imagine that the Wonders took pity on the young man by repeatedly bunting the ball back to him just to move the game along.

The Wonders would go on to win the game, but their pitching wasn't a whole lot better as the score was 28-16.

This Day in Baseball History: July 12th, 1949

The first real warning track.

On July 12, 1949:

Major League Baseball adds the warning track.


Prior to the 1940's, baseball stadiums didn't know what warning tracks were. Yankee Stadium had a running track, that may or may not have been used by fans to exit the stadium, that also acted as a warning track, but it didn't run up against the wall like the ones of today. A few other stadiums had similar tracks used for running or bicycling, but they weren't really "warning" tracks. That wasn't their purpose, though they may have played it incidentally.

Actually, that's really how it all started. Yankee Stadium had the first "warning" track. Originally, it was supposed to be a quarter-mile track, but it was located, in the outfield, at the start of the incline of the outfield. Therefore, it alerted outfielders to the fact that they were nearing a change in playing surface and that they were getting fairly close to the wall, something the outfielders appreciated. George Selkirk advocated the addition of a six-foot warning track for all stadiums in 1935, but it would be 14 more years until his advice was heeded, on July 12, 1949.

I can't really find what changed in the teams' philosophy. I've always thought warning tracks were kind of pointless in their current construction. If they're only 6 to 10 feet wide, then it's 2 strides and you hit the wall. It's not a lot of warning. If you want a real warning track, it should probably be closer to 25 or 30 feet where a player can actually notice the change and then react to it. But as they are now, an outfielder can't slow himself down all that much, and we'll continue to have more Aaron Rowands and Rick Ankiels. Not that those guys would have slowed down anyway (they probably knew the wall was coming), but I have a feeling that they may not have gone full bore if they knew it was closer.

Off Week

If you don't, you should check out Toothpaste for Dinner and Married to the Sea.

My apologies for the nonexistence of typing publication going on lately. Last weekend was a complete wash with July 4th weekend, but I put forth the best laid plans of mice and men yesterday. While heading to the gym to work on my fitness, my chick mobile decided to have some intestinal issues that need a colonoscopy. Today, my bodily data container has been compressed and decompressed due to the pollen conditions surrounding the area and my bodily appearances in the environment lately. Therefore, I have zero motivation/desire/energy to really put anything significant together. Later this week, I'm off to my home of 8 months of the year for a few days, so I won't be able to post anything until the full moon wanes a bit. Things should be pretty back to normal starting again on the day we praise the sun. Until then, live long and prosper.

We Still Haven't Learned

This is where 99% of baseball fans are.

I hope everyone had a nice July 4th weekend. I spent most of it serving beer, but it was fun and made a bit of money, which is always nice. The only bad thing is that it left zero time for posting, but I figure everyone was too busy to read anything anyway.

However, the All-Star selections irked me a bit. I made my AL and NL selections early last week. Now, I didn't expect that the rosters would mirror mine. I didn't expect my starters to be the real starters, and I knew some of my reserves or extra pitchers were bound to be left off the list. I didn't expect the rosters to leave off star power in favor of who was actually the better player right now.

But I guess I expected the baseball world to learn. All of this talk about UZR, OPS, and FIP seemed to indicate the baseball world was becoming more knowledgable. But what I realized was that the baseball world in general has not learned a thing, even in the dugouts. What makes me say this?

1) Glaringly bad starter? Josh Hamilton. He of the big Home Run Derby has used his big performance on one night in a meaningless competition to propel himself in a totally undeserving All-Star start. His .746 OPS and 5.7 UZR (up considerably from a horrible -13.2 last season) earn him 0.9 WAR points, nowhere near enough for an All-Star berth. I'm not opposed to having "Hall of Fame" choices that get in though they really don't deserve it, but I refuse to give players with a good year and half a bid without some sort of substance.

2) Wins do not indicate pitcher performance, but no one told Charlie Manuel. Example? Jason Marquis. He of the 4.19 FIP, 3.85 ERA, and 10 wins made it over Javier Vazquez, who has superior numbers everywhere but wins. Literally. Another? Ted Lilly and his 4.00 FIP, 3.36 ERA, and 8 wins is taking away Jair Jurrjens', who has a better ERA and FIP (though Lilly's K/BB is much better), spot. Okay, I might be a bit miffed about the Braves only getting one All-Star nod, but Ubaldo Jimenez, Joel Piniero, and Yovani Gallardo would have been much better selections as well. And Gallardo has a better record than Lilly!

3) Saves, saves, saves. I will always say that a closer deserves more respect than the average reliever, and their job is harder than most sabermetricians would argue. However, the save is one of the most overrated statistics in baseball. My hated selection in this category? Brian Fuentes of the 3.11 FIP and 28.1 IP (not bad but not as good as ...) is no better than JP Howell (2.47 FIP and 38.1 IP), David Aardsma (2.60 FIP and 38.1 IP), Mike Wuertz (2.64 and 37.1), or DJ Carrasco (2.75 and 48.2 IP). But Fuentes and his 23 saves already are nice and shiny too I guess.

4) Power is not everything. Ryan Howard. Need I say more? Okay, a) he kills roster flexibility as there are 4 first basemen, b) his .328 OBP is awful, and c) his WAR is worse than Andy LaRoche's. Need I say more? I guess he does have 20 HR and is playing at least solid defense.

5) Defense does matter. Let's go pick on some people. Jason Bay (-7.4 defensively and 1.4 WAR) is actually a worse selection than JD Drew (5.0 on defense and 2.1 WAR). And then we have Michael Young. With all the outfielders, Marco Scutaro (6.5 defensively at a hard position and 3.0 WAR), Brandon Inge (8.3 and 3.2), or Scott Rolen (2.5 and 2.7) would have been much better decisions that would have given increased flexibility. In the NL, see Brad Hawpe (-10.1 and 1.5) and Miguel Tejada (-5.1 and 1.7), and then, insert Matt Kemp (10.1 and 3.5), Mike Cameron (5.1 and 2.6), and Ryan Theriot (3.2 and 1.8). Honestly, I'll let Tejada slide because the NL SS were just awful this year, and he was the token Astro.

6) Oh nepotism, how I love thee. Ryan Howard but not Werth? Jonathan Papelbon (4.17 FIP) and Tim Wakefield (4.34 FIP)? I should have included Wakefield earlier in my wins rant because about 20 other pitchers are better selections, including fellow Red Sox Jon Lester and defending Cy Young winner Cliff Lee. Heck, even Carl Pavano would have been better. And don't get me started on Mark Buerhle. And no, I don't think Tim Wakefield fits under "Hall of Fame" choice unless we were in Boston, and then, I might have thought about it.

7) It's still all about the offense. None of the 10 Final Vote players are pitchers. Brandon Inge is the easy choice in the AL, and Matt Kemp is the same for the NL. But no pitchers? Cliff Lee (3.2 vs. Inge's 3.1 WAR) is at least comparable in the AL, and Javier Vazquez is the best choice for the NL (3.7 vs. Kemp's 3.5). All of this completely misses out on the fact that either Lee or Vazquez would be better choices than almost any of the actual All-Star picks. Starting pitchers pitch only in 1/5 of the games, but they have at least 5 times the impact on the game when they pitch. Do the math.

I won't quibble about starters. McCann is better than Molina, but it is St. Louis. Other examples exist, but I don't care who starts. I care who makes the team. And honestly, I don't care all that much who makes the team. I've said before that I don't really care who gets chosen, and that's not really the point of this post.

The point is that even though sabermetrics is starting to get around, it has a long way to go. Casual fans, and even strong fans, still don't know about any of this stuff. In our own communities, we know about this stuff, but the baseball world is still largely ignorant. It's not really a criticism. The media still doesn't broadcast this stuff, and players and coaches (who did some weird voting by the way -- apparently Orlando Hudson received a lot of votes over Chase Utley) have no more idea than anyone else. I find it funny when Boog Sciambi tries to explain things to Joe Simpson. Simpson scrambles for some piece of argument he can make while Sciambi tries not to call him a complete idiot. Simpson probably sees himself as Sciambi's mentor, but Sciambi is doing the actual teaching. Sometimes, people just haven't heard of any of these statistics, and criticizing them is like condemning a non-believer to eternal damnation because they haven't heard of that religion before (or were born hundreds of years before it).

Anyway, the point of this post is -- what can we do? Obviously, no one is really listening or has heard of these statistics. Yes, a lot of the choices were actually pretty good, but most of the position players are good offensively (which gets them in) and not all good pitchers get screwed on their record. Most of the worthy will get in. Maybe that's okay, and as I said, I don't really care. But I know a lot of people do. What can the internet/blogging/sabermetric community do to educate? Is it necessary to educate? Or is this just the beginning of a large, slow process that really can't be accelerated, and we'll just have to wait? Because this vote is just further evidence that sabermetrics and advanced analysis haven't reached far outside of a minute sample of baseball fans.


Oh, not exactly relevant and just for giggles -- Ryan Franklin and Miguel Tejada were named in the Mitchell Report. Where's your outrage now?

This Day in Baseball History: July 2nd, 1903

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On July 2, 1903:

Ed Delahanty dies in a mysterious accident.


Big Ed Delahanty was one of the premier hitters in the National League at the turn of the 20th century (more in the 1890's). He was one of the few to hit 100 home runs. He was second to hit 4 home runs in a single game (all inside-the-park home runs -- he was the first to do that). Delahanty is the only player in major league history to hit 4 home runs in one game and then hit 4 doubles in another. Any way you slice it, Delahanty was one of the best of his era.

Big Ed, however, had his problems. His wife had become ill, and because he spent money on horse racing and alcohol, the family had no money. Needing money desperately, he switched leagues (he had already done so in 1901 from the Philadelphia Phillies to the Washington Senators of the upstart American League) to the New York Giants, but because the leagues decided to honor each other's contracts when they combined in 1903, the Giants had to revoke their contract and their $4,000 advance to Delahanty, forcing him back to the Senators who paid him $1,500-3,500 less depending on what story you've heard. Now even farther behind in debt, Delahanty went further into depression. The team sent him to a health spa to relax and recover, but when he came back, he feuded with his manager. While on a trip to Detroit, he abandoned the team. After that, the situation becomes murky.

Delahanty headed to New York, but no one knew why and some were concerned that he might kill himself. He boarded a train that would take him across Niagara Falls. Due to excessive drinking, smoking, breaking glass, and supposedly brandishing a straight razor, the conductor threw Delahanty off the train before the train crossed the bridge. Delahanty began moving across the bridge and fell to his death into Niagara Falls. But what happened from the train to his death? No one is sure.

One scenario says he just jumped. Depression and alcohol clouded his judgment, and he committed suicide. Another says that he, in a drunken stupor, simply fell off the bridge. A third says that he was attacked by a guard who was on the lookout for smugglers, and not in a condition to realize what was happening, Delahanty fought back and either was pushed off or ran away and off the bridge (the guard's story). A final one believes that a robber took his money and clothes (he was found naked) and pushed him off the bridge. But no one will ever be sure what exactly happened to the Hall of Famer.

This is the official story.


Trivia Time
True or False. He is the only man to win a batting title in both leagues.

Tuesday's Answer --> 13

NL All-Stars According To Me

Pretty.

I realize this may not be what everyone comes here for, but I'm mainly doing this for me. Usually, I sit there looking up stuff while trying to vote, and all the windows just get in the way. This way, I already have everything lined up, and I can just go tomorrow night. Anyway, on the DL and some Braves bias.


Catcher
Brian McCann (2.5 WAR)
Chris Ianetta (1.3 WAR), Yadier Molina (1.3 WAR)

Even on the DL for a couple weeks, McCann is still twice as valuable as any other catcher. Molina gets in based on excellent defense and mediocre offense, and Ianetta gets in on the opposite. It's too bad Jesus Flores has been injured, or he would take one of the two's spot. Ryan Hanigan also deserves an honorable mention, and if you knew what team he plays for, you're either a Reds fan, looking for a dark-horse ROY, or too into baseball. All of those are perfectly fine but unusual.

First Baseman
Albert Pujols (4.2 WAR)
Adrian Gonzalez (3.5 WAR), Prince Fielder (3.1 WAR)

Pujols is a cinch, and Gonzalez is the best guy that we're all starting to hear about. Fielder and his 1.034 OPS deserves a nod. Joey Votto (1.054 OPS) is in the same situation as Flores, but if he wasn't this discussion would be more difficult. Otherwise, the usuals (Lance Berkman, Derrek Lee, and Ryan Howard) just aren't that good, making this a surprisingly easy section.

Second Baseman
Chase Utley (3.9 WAR)
Brandon Phillips (2.2 WAR), Freddy Sanchez (2.1 WAR)

Utley = Pujols. Then, it's a three-way battle between Phillips, Sanchez, and Clint Barmes (yes, Barmes). For the life of me, I can't figure out why Barmes has so little offensive value when he's smack in the middle of Sanchez and Phillips in OPS. Sanchez and Barmes are comparable, but Sanchez is probably better offensively than Barmes is defensively. Phillips, however, is the far superior defender of the three. As for Orlando Hudson, his glove leaks. Oh, and I needed a Pirate.

Third Baseman
Ryan Zimmerman (3.3 WAR)
David Wright (2.9 WAR), Pablo Sandoval (3.4 WAR)

Zimmerman's OPS is the worst of the three, but he's by far the best defender in the NL at third. Wright is leaking defensively, taking away from his awesome offensive value. And Sandoval just keeps rolling along after a rough start to the year. Casey Blake made a serious run by having a better glove, countering the loss of 100 OPS points, but Sandoval wins the tie-breaker by striking out 15 fewer times (and yes, that's pretty arbitrary -- it was a hard decision). As for my man Chipper, he's been sucking offensively lately and his glove is as bad as Zimmerman's is good.

Shortstop
Hanley Ramirez (3.7 WAR)
Troy Tulowitzki (1.7 WAR)

The shortstop situation in the NL is a total crapshoot after Ramirez, and I refuse to put 3 of them in. Tulowitzki wins out of the 7 or 8 that are close in value because he's positive both offensively and defensively. What happened to the "young studs" that NL shortstops were supposed to be?

Outfield
Matt Kemp (3.7 WAR), Justin Upton (3.4 WAR), Raul Ibañez (3.1 WAR)
Ryan Braun (3.0 WAR), Carlos Beltran (2.6 WAR), Hunter Pence (2.5 WAR)

Kemp is having an amazing defensive season, and Upton is just awesome. Ibañez clips Braun because his OPS is better (1.027 to .990) and his defense is better. Beltran, even though he's been out, somehow loses value defensively (that can't be) but has great value on offense anyway. Pence has been a pleasant surprise that few have seemed to notice. The other big hitters are worse than federal levies on defense.

Starting Pitcher
Tim Lincecum (4.8 WAR)
Javier Vazquez (3.5 WAR), Dan Haren (3.3 WAR), Josh Johnson (3.1 WAR), Chad Billingsley (2.4 WAR), Johan Santana (2.0 WAR), Yovani Gallardo (1.6 WAR)

Lincecum is just ... well ... I can't believe I'm going to say this ... Lincecawesome. The next three were easy picks. After that, Billingsley gets the nod as the ace of the NL-best Dodgers, Santana as the only guy holding his own for the Mets, and Gallardo because I can't figure out how he doesn't have more value. Jair Jurrjens, Matt Cain, and Johnny Cueto made this more difficult than the AL was.

Relief Pitcher
Jonathan Broxton (1.9 WAR), Rafael Soriano (1.3 WAR), Heath Bell (1.2 WAR), Francisco Rodriguez (0.7 WAR), Ryan Franklin (0.5 WAR)

Broxton is an obvious choice from my perspective. Soriano has been dominant. Bell has been really good. K-Rod is a bit wild but still effective. And I think Franklin has had a good enough season to warrant a selection.


I think all 16 teams are accounted for, and I don't think there are any serious stretches. I went against the WAR values a bit more because I'm an NL guy and know more about it to make more judgment calls. Well, that's it. Now, let's see how close the selections are to my list.

This Day in Baseball History: June 30th, 1961

Beneficiary of all those home runs. Now, if they had only done that in 1958.

On June 30, 1961:

Whitey Ford wins for the 8th time in the month.


When New York Yankee fans think of 1961, they think of the home run battle between Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, and Whitey Ford's season is often overlooked. Named for his extremely blond hair, Ford debuted in 1950 as a 21-year old, but he left baseball for two years to serve in the Korean War. He came back in 1953 and won 18 games. Ford continued his winning ways through the next few seasons, winning 16, 18 again, and 19. His best season was 1958, but he only won 14 games. Casey Stengel wanted him to pitch big games, so he was infrequently used, often only making around 30 starts a season. Ralph Houk became manager in 1961 and let Ford loose on the American League, regardless of the opponent.

Ford responded with a league and career-best 25 wins and a 3.21 ERA, which wasn't all that good actually. The Chairman of the Board made 8 starts in the month and won every single one of them. His ERA for the month was 2.94, but he didn't always pitch that way. After 3 outstanding starts, he ran into some difficulty on the 14th when he gave up 5 in an 11-5 win (Maris hit his 22nd). Two good starts later, he made a worse start than the 14th on the 26th as he gave up 6 runs in an 8-6 win (Mantle hit his 23rd). Ford, however, came back with a vengeance in the final game of the month, going all 9, striking out 8, and allowing only 1 run (Mantle hit his 25th).

As stated above, Whitey went on to win 25 games during that season at the ripe age of 32. Including his 8 wins in June, he nailed down 9 more in a row for 17 straight. Rube Waddell holds the AL record for most wins in a month with 10, but John Clarkson won 15 in June of 1885. Carl Hubbell holds the record for most consecutive wins with 24, but in one season, Tim Keefe and Rube Marquard hold the record with 19. Anyway, Ford went on to win his only Cy Young Award of his career that season, even though it wasn't his best.


Trivia Time
Cy Young holds the record for most 20-win seasons with 15, but Warren Spahn is second and had one as well in 1961. How many 20-win seasons did he have overall?

Yesterday's Answer --> 1917. On May 2nd, Chicago's Jim Vaughn and Cincinnati's Fred Toney each did it.