The Sports Oscars
Published on : March 30, 2017
Award season has come and gone. And in honor of the recent 89th Academy Awards, ScoreBoredSports would like to present the 1st annual Sports Oscars. Just what America needs, another award show! Press your tux and fill your flask because it's time to walk the red carpet and hand out some gold statues to the year's best sports performances. And to all the winners, don't forget to thank your agent and your mom. Now, let's get this show on the road. The first category is:
Draymond Green of the Golden State Warriors. After Kevin Durant came to town, Dray's role on the team shifted. He no longer was needed to score the ball but instead had to become the defensive leader and do all the small things that help win games. No better example than back in February, when Green had the most unconventional of Triple Doubles. With only 4 points, he also tallied 12 rebounds, 10 assists and 10 steals (along with 5 blocks).
Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals. This was a tough one but Bryce's under-eye black takes the cake. It's kind of looks like Harper is the 5th member of Kiss mixed with a little Hawk and Animal from the Legion of Doom (WWF/WWE). I think more pros should follow the face paint lead. It's a great way to show off some personality and it just washes off when you're done.
The New England Patriots. These guys always seem to make the perfect roster moves They add players you think are only okay and then they preform insanely well and they cut talent you think is irreplaceable only to see them underperform with their new team. Perfect example: Lions cut ties with LB Kyle Van Noy after him not working out in Detroit. They trade him to New England. Cut to Van Noy flying around being one of the difference makers for the Pats, in the Super Bowl.
Jaromir Jagr of the Florida Panthers. The dude is 45-years-old and writing his own story where only he knows the ending. The man has 763 career goals, that's good for third all-time behind Howe and Gretzky. Jagr has more points over the age of 40 than even Howe. So he is the best older hockey player we have ever seen. He loves to play and has no plans of stopping. I hope this story has a few more chapters.
The University of Michigan Men's Basketball team. On their way to D.C. for the Big Ten tournament, their plane was forced to abort takeoff and then roughly skid off the runway. The Wolverines barely made it to the game but their luggage with their uniforms were still stuck on the plane. U of M channeled their inner Tim Gunn and had to 'make it work' because they rocked their practice jerseys, looked dope and won the game.
Documentary Feature
This is the only award that both SBS and the real Oscars agree on. We both have O.J.: Made in America as the winner for best doc. It's superbly well-made and very captivating. You should check it out. And it's not just for sports or murder fans. It fun for the whole family.
Lionel Messi of Barcelona. Messi is a wizard with the ball in space but he is just as lethal when it comes to free kicks. This zinger comes from a stretch of 3 games where Messi had a free kick goal in each. That's just insane. Click HERE to watch the clip and be amazed.
Serena Williams. Her huge win at the Australian Open gives her 39 total titles (singles, doubles, mixed doubles) in tennis. If this category is about incredible individual effort, than I can think of no one more accomplished than Serena. She is a joy to watch and has elevated the entire sport of tennis. Not just the women's game. Serena Williams is a champion.
Joe Maddon, skipper of the Chicago Cubs has to win this one. His arrival seemed liked the real turning point for this franchise. From his first weeks in Wrigley, it seemed liked things were different. Maddon directed the Cubs to their first World Series win in a jabillion years and for that he wins the award.
Maybe my Michigan bias is showing but the image is truly stunning and it was a huge moment/game for two teams hunting the NFL playoffs. I really wanted to be cool and just say "presented without comment" but that's totally a comment. And I'm way better than that.
That's going to do it for the first ever sports Oscars. List your favorite player or performance in the comments below. Not bad for our first award show. At least we never called the wrong winner.
Glitz.
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Angelino in the Outfield (Episode VIII: Bottom of the 1st)
Two years ago, I took my wife to watch a baseball game at Angel Stadium in Anaheim. And I pointed to center field and said, "That's Mike Trout. He's the best player in baseball." That same game, Trout went 0-for-3 with a walk and my wife said, "I didn't think he was all that good." Now I know that what we're dealing with now isn't that much bigger of a sample size than my wife saw in 2014. But through the first two weeks of this season, Trout had really struggled, hitting only .220 and looking especially un-Trout-like on off-speed pitches.
On the other hand, Bryce Harper has been on an absolute tear in Washington. Sure, the Nationals have only played garbage teams. But still, they're off to their best start in club history, thanks in large part to Harper, who might actually be better than he was in last year's MVP season. And that's truly scary. He's improved his contact rate. He's cut down on chasing pitches out of the zone. And that's led him to currently have more walks than he has strikeouts. Not to mention hitting his second grand slam of the season in as many tries on Tuesday night, which was also his fifth home run in six games. Plus, having Dusty Baker in the dugout doesn't really hinder everyone from making the comparison between Harper and Barry Bonds, who Baker managed in San Francisco from 1993-2002.
So… are we ready to officially declare Bryce Harper the best player in baseball? That was the big question this week. Which is not meant to disparage Trout, by any means. There's no question he'll improve. Everybody knows that. And it looks like he's heating up as we speak. But even so, Harper's WAR was slightly higher than Trout's last season. And, like I said, he seems to be getting somehow better. So even if Trout rebounds to a .300/.400/.550 hitter with a 9 WAR, would it even be enough? With the NL East the way it is, I'm not so sure it will be. But as of right now, I'd say Mike Trout is still the best player in baseball. I'm not quite calling it a 'clown question, bro' (had to) but check back in with me after Harper is still doing this against teams that aren't the fuck awful Braves, Phillies or Marlins.
And please don't get me wrong. I've said it before and I'll say it again; Harper is legit, the Nationals are legit. They were my pick to win their division, even when everybody else was picking the Mets. Especially if they stay healthy for once. Plus, what were they supposed to do – not beat the shit-ass teams they've beaten? Is Daniel Murphy not supposed to try to be the Lou Gehrig to Harper's Babe Ruth, just because I hate him so much and because he probably thinks the Iron Horse is a down low bar in D.C. where he could run in to a lot of 'like-minded' conservatives who are totes just there because they "play such good house music" or whatever?
I'll get over Murphy and last year's NLCS at some point. I promise. But all that being said, the best team in baseball is still the Chicago Cubs. I think that's safe to say at this point. I just watched their 16-0 drubbing of the Cincinnati Reds where Jake Arrieta just so happened to throw his second career no-hitter (the second-most lopsided no-no since Pud Galvin of the Buffalo Bisons defeated the Detroit Wolverines 18-0 in 1884). And it's probably the greatest Cubs game I've ever seen in my life. Arrieta is 15-0 in his last 16 starts. He's had 24 consecutive quality starts. And he also hasn't given up a run at Wrigley Field since last July 25th. It's bananas. Actually, all of their starters worked at least six innings in their first 14 games, which is also bananas. And even Jon Lester's crazy, blooper-reel throws to first are getting outs. Just in case you needed more bananas.
What Lester should do is take a few throwing lessons from Jason Heyward, who those hillbilly Cardinal fans can boo all they want. Did you see that throw he made to nail Matt Holliday at the plate on Tuesday? He may have been 0-for-9 in those first two games of the series and batting .170 at the time, but that D don't slump, son. And if Daniel Murphy is reading this, I'm talking about his defense. Double burn.
Anyway, with that pitching and that defense, the Cubs also lead the Majors in walks. Which is why their run differential still has them looking like the '39 Yankees, even though Dexter Fowler is the only guy on the team with a batting average north of .260. But once those bats heat up, oh man, it's crotch chop city in the Bridenstine household.
Man. It's so weird to be this excited about the Cubs in April. But, again, let me have this.
This Week's NL MVP: Dexter Fowler, Chicago Cubs
He leads the league in wOBA, WAR and OBP. Harper and Murphy lead in about everything else. Fowler really has been the only consistent weapon for that offense throughout April (not counting that 16-0 clinic). And he's also done it against teams that have actually won more games than they've lost. Seriously, there are rumors that even the Braves' ground crew is phoning it in. I'm just saying.
This Week's NL Cy Young: Noah Syndergaard, New York Mets
There was a brief moment right after I submitted last week's post where I could have given it to Vincent Velasquez of the Phillies. But other than that, Thor has had this on lockdown. I'm sure Arrieta and/or Clayton Kershaw (with his new 46 mph eephus) will eventually put an end to this. But any time you're getting compared to J.R. Richard and (especially) Nolan Ryan on a consistent basis, you're doing something right. And it looks like the rest of his team might be ready to start turning things around too. The defending National League champions are not a .500 team, no matter how much I want them to be.
This Week's NL Rookie of the Year: Aledmys Diaz, St. Louis Cardinals
You can probably tell that I do not like the Birds on Bats, but you have to just shake your head and shrug at their next man up mentality. First Jhonny Peralta goes down. Then Ruben Tejada goes down. Then like, 17 other shortstops go down in a game of shortstop dominos and next thing you know, there's a 20th string shortstop in St. Louis hitting .385. And it's not like it's just him, either. They also have Greg Garcia and Jeremy Hazelbaker doing the same shit. And then Seung-hwan Oh in their bullpen. Oh, by the way, has two amazing nicknames that you need to know. They called him 'Stone Buddha' for showing no emotion when he pitched in Korea and Japan. And also, 'The Final Boss', which as far as relief pitcher nicknames go, has got to be in the top 5. Trevor Story is still having his moment in Colorado. But in terms of overall WAR, this week it's Diaz.
This Week's AL MVP: Manny Machado, Baltimore Orioles
With all the Harper vs. Trout talk this week, I guess everyone forgot that Manny Machado is the best player on the (current) best team in the AL and he leads in every offensive category that Josh Donaldson doesn't. I feel like more people talk about Adam Jones, Chris Davis and Mark Trumbo than they do Machado. And the only time this guy should come in 4th in a baseball conversation is if the first three people mentioned are Harper, Trout and Donaldson.
This Week's AL Cy Young: Jose Quintana, Chicago White Sox
That Sox staff has been insane so far. Chris Sale is 4-0. Mat Latos has been outstanding, which is odd to say. And the guy with the second-lowest FIP in baseball (and tied for the AL lead in WAR) is actually the 1-1 Quintana. Actually, his FIP is almost a full run better than the 3-0 0.00 ERA'd Jordan Zimmermann of the Tigers, who apparently gets a little bit of help from Jose Iglesias at short. The White Sox have been doing well early. And they're probably a little annoyed by all the attention on the North Side. But just imagine what this team would look like if they weren't also 24th in baseball in runs scored.
This Week's AL Rookie of the Year: Tyler White, Houston Astros
He's still my pick, even though everybody would rather talk about Nomar Mazara in Texas and what they'll eventually do once Shin Soo-Choo returns. We should be talking about the regression of that Astros staff and how it's squandering some great individual performances by White, Jose Altuve and Colby Rasmus though. Because right now, the Astros are in a category with the Yankees and Twins as AL doormats. And in a league with this much parity, that is not an ideal place to be.
Okay. See you next week. Where hopefully, I can be even more annoying about the Cubs.
Aledmys Diaz, American League, Angelino in the Outfield, Baltimore Orioles, Baseball, Bryce Harper, Chicago Cubs, Chicago White Sox, Daniel Murphy, Dexter Fowler, Houston Astros, Jake Arrieta, Jason Heyward, Jon Lester, Jose Quintana, Manny Machado, Mike Bridenstine, MLB, National League, New York Mets, Noah Syn, St Louis Cardinals, Tyler White
Angelino in the Outfield (Episode VI: Opening Week)
I love opening week. Everything is possible. Every team has a chance. And we're already speaking hyperbolically about everybody we've seen, even though there are like, 159 games left. "The Red Sox need pitching! They have nothing after David Price!" That was the consensus around baseball this past week. And at that point Boston was 1-1. "The Cardinals have no hitting! Their pitching will have to carry them all season!" That was another one. At that point St. Louis was 0-1. And so forth and so on. I mean, both are probably true. But it's April. You didn't even know who Trevor Story was a week ago. You might forget all about him by June. And by the time I write this next week, the Padres might have more RBI than Kenta Maeda. We don't really know. All that being said, I think it's about time I put out my official predictions for the season to come for the very last time and also look at the Opening Week that was.
Stroman
I'm going with the Toronto Blue Jays. But mainly because I'm buying in on Marcus Stroman. I like the swag. I like that he beat Chris Archer head-to-head on opening day. And he looks like he's going to help an otherwise so-so rotation (except for Aaron Sanchez, apparently) from ruining that great offensive output. Jose Bautista and Edwin Encarnacion are playing for contracts. Josh Donaldson and Troy Tulowitzki are also going to hit. And Kevin Pillar is trying to out-Kiermaier Kevin Kiermaier in center field. I think they'll repeat as the division champions.
The Orioles and Yankees may lead after a few games (and I have no idea what's going on with Starlin Castro, other than he likes to make huge debuts and then slowly let you down over time), but I'm still not sold on the Orioles' pitching (even though, WOW! so far) or the Yankees' collective age. Didi Gregorius and Castro may only be 26. But they also both hit .265 last year, so let's not act like this is Derek Jeter and Tony Lazzeri quite yet. And I love the Rays' pitching. I just don't think Steven Souza Jr. is going to head up that offense. And I've never been sold on the Red Sox. We honestly didn't need Clay Bucholz to suck to know that rotation has no depth past Price. At least Papi seems to be hitting. And maybe Mookie Betts will eventually warrant all the overblown hype. We'll see.
Volquez
I'm picking the Royals to win the division, even though I really don't want to. And I've got the Indians in the Wild Card. Edinson Volquez looked great in his debut. And we know that the Royals just do whatever it is that they do to win. I do feel like they've been extremely lucky with their lack of injuries the past two seasons and that the whole thing could be derailed. Because honestly, I think this division should be wide open.
I'm taking Cleveland because of their pitching. But the White Sox have that in spades too. And if they keep hitting with Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton and Todd Frazier in that lineup, I'll completely forget about Drake LaRoche's shitty homeschooling. I already gave my picks on a podcast before the season started, or I might go back and retroactively pick them. And as I type this, the Tigers are also 3-1, beating Jose Fernandez in their second game. And the 0-5 Twins need to show me something. Other than that they can lose to the Orioles.
I'm taking the Rangers to win the division and the Astros to win the Wild Card. Even though right now, it looks like Robinson Cano is going to hit 200 home runs and the Mariners will walk away with this thing. Hey, everybody seemed to pick the Mariners for the World Series last year until Cano had his worst season since 2008. He hit three bombs (one to each field) in the spring training game I saw on Easter, so who knows?
I just feel like the Rangers have too many weapons. And people are already arguing whether or not Carlos Correa is the best player in baseball. Because a rookie season and three games in 2016 trump everything Mike Trout and Bryce Harper have ever done. It's April, like I said. This is what we do. So let's already give awards while we're at it…
Opening Week A.L. MVP: Starlin Castro, New York Yankees
In Castro's debut with the Cubs in 2010, he became the first Major League player born in the 90's. Then he homered in his first at bat. Then he set a record with 6 RBI in his debut game. Long story short, he made a lot of errors and wasn't very good after 2011. Cut to 2016, and Castro is making the most of his Yankees debut, where he leads the league in RBI, SLG , OPS and WAR. And I don't know if he still has the same walk-up song as he did with the Cubs, but that was THE jam.
Opening Week AL Cy Young: , Toronto Blue Jays
Advanced stats tell me it's Jake Odorizzi of the Rays or Chris Tillman of the Orioles for striking out almost everybody he saw in those two innings, but I like the story of a guy who fought for the 5th spot in the Blue Jays' rotation in spring training and emerged big in his first start of the season with the club. I don't even know if he'll end up in that rotation or in the bullpen, but whatever, man. Dude was good in the first go-round.
Opening Week A.L. Rookie of the Year: Tyler White, Houston Astros
I don't know anything about this guy other than that he's 25, he was a 33rd round draft pick and that he currently leads the American League in batting average and OBP. You know, after those three games.
Let's do the National League.
I'm picking the Nationals with the Mets in the Wild Card. And that's about exactly how things look as I type this. I've already written way too much about both teams. But what I didn't know was that new acquisition and known homophobe, Daniel Murphy, would look every bit as good as Bryce Harper through the first three games for the Nationals. Also, I hate him.
I'm picking the Cubs to win it all. You already knew that. I'm not changing my mind. And after a lot of internal debate, I decided not to take the Cardinals or the Pirates in the Wild Card. And I think I might be regretting that after Pittsburgh's three game sweep of St. Louis to start the season. If Juan Nicasio can be that #3 starter after Cole and Liriano, they're going to be hard to put away. Not to mention Tyler Glasnow showing up in July. Plus, didn't they start off slow last year? Ugh. The good news for me is that the Cubs are fucking ridiculous.
I was there opening day in Anaheim. There is no Jake Arrieta regression to speak of. Then Lester looked great the next game. And he seems to be getting more comfortable in the National League, pickoff moves or not. Then there's the fact that the Cubs have scored 29 runs in three games, which is somehow second to the Dodgers, who've played four. The only damper was the Schwarber injury which is a sobering reminder that, while embracing the bullseye, anything can happen. As I knock on wood nervously. But the sky really is the limit for that team. And the Reds are also 4-1, but somebody does have to play the Phillies after all.
Seager
I like the Dodgers to win the division and the Giants in the Wild Card. And I said that before the Dodgers destroyed San Diego in the first three games. I expect a lot from Corey Seager and just assume they'll buy away whatever their weaknesses are by the trade deadline. Conveniently for my choice, Clayton Kershaw (obvs), Scott Kazmir and Kenta Maeda looked great in their first starts. And Yasiel Puig could have finally decided he wants to be awesome. Inconveniently for my choice, the Giants might be even better.
They're really deep and that park is only going to help Johnny Cueto. Who I never liked was the Arizona Diamondbacks, and they're trying desperately to prove me right. It's a shame AJ Pollock is out. And while Jean Segura and David Peralta seem like they're trying to pick up the slack, it looks like that pitching staff is a dud. You know, four games in.
Opening Week N.L. MVP: Dexter Fowler, Chicago Cubs.
You may think I'm still high from Fowler's surprise return to the Cubs in spring training. But he's also been killing it in the first three games (and almost killing Kyle Schwarber in the process) going 7 for 12 with a double, a triple and a home run. And with that tiny sample size, he's tied for the Major League lead in WAR and 4th in the Majors in wOBA. And Schwarber really had no chance at that ball.
Opening Week N.L. Cy Young: Noah Syndergaard, New York Mets.
Of all the great one game pitching performances in the past week, Syndergaard's was probably the best. The Royals can play "American Woman" when he takes the mound all they want. Thor doesn't care. And either does that nasty slider.
Opening Week N.L. Rookie of the Year: Trevor Story, Colorado Rockies.
Eventually we'll all get over his last name. But in the past week, Story became the first player in Major League history to hit home runs in his first three games. Including two off of Zack Greinke in the opener. His first four big league hits were also home runs. And he hasn't even played in Denver yet. He may not be the best hitter on his team thus far (that would be DJ LeMahieu), but if you want to forget all about Troy Tulowitzki and Jose Reyes, he's your man.
Okay, we did it. One week in the books. And there's a long way to go. Check back next week, where everything will be thrown out the window and we'll start all over. You gotta love April.
Aaron Sanchez, AL Central, AL East, AL West, American League, Angelino in the Outfield, Baseball, Bryce Harper, Carlos Correa, Corey Seager, Dexter Fowler, Edinson Volquez, Jake Arrieta, Marcus Stroman, Mike Bridenstine, MLB, National League, NL Central, NL East, NL West, Noah Syndergaard, Opening Day, Opening Week, Starlin Castro, Trevor Story, Tyler White
Angelino in the Outfield (Episode IV: Whose Number Should Every NL Team Retire Next?)
During the upcoming 2016 season, Ken Griffey Jr., Pete Rose, Mike Piazza and Wade Boggs will have their numbers retired by the Mariners, Reds, Mets and Red Sox, respectively. And that got me thinking about which players should be next in line for those honors. So sit back, relax and enjoy while I go through all 30 teams and tell you who's the most deserving. First, let's do the National League.
Time to retire #25
Retired Numbers: Warren Spahn, Eddie Mathews, Hank Aaron, Phil Niekro, Dale Murphy, Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, Bobby Cox, John Smoltz, Chipper Jones.
The easy answer would be Andruw Jones. But once upon a time the Atlanta Braves used to be known as the Boston Beaneaters and their star pitcher was Kid Nichols, who was the youngest pitcher ever to win 300 games. Granted, I'm sure there's not a lot of love out there for a guy who retired 110 years ago. But Warren Spahn never pitched in Atlanta either. And Eddie Mathews only played one season there. I could go on, but I feel you judging me. Fine. Have it your way. It's Andruw Jones.
Guess it's gota be him
Retired Numbers: Hank Aaron, Rollie Fingers, Robin Yount, Paul Molitor, Bud Selig.
You leave me no choice, Brewers. It's Ryan Braun. I don't want it to be, but I can't say it's Ben Sheets or Cecil Cooper or Teddy Higuera. So either I close my eyes and pretend I don't know about the PED issues or how the guy seems like a grade A asshole… or I can just wait until somebody like Orlando Arcia gets called up and becomes the shit. So I guess we wait.
He is a machine.
Retired Numbers: Stan Musial, Dizzy Dean, Bob Gibson, Lou Brock, August Busch Jr., Ken Boyer, Red Schoendienst, Enos Slaughter, Ozzie Smith, Bruce Sutter, Whitey Herzog, Tony La Russa, Rogers Hornsby.
It's Albert Pujols. Did you think it wouldn't be Albert Pujols? It seems like the Cardinals retire everybody's number, so I'm kinda surprised they've never done Ted Simmons or Jim Edmonds or Ray Lankford or Ducky fucking Medwick. And maybe they're coming. But Pujols was a monster in St. Louis and they gotta hang up #5. Until then, the other obvious answer is Cool Papa Bell of the St. Louis Stars. Everyone who has a statue outside Busch Stadium also has their number retired inside the stadium except George Sisler (who played for the St. Louis Browns, who are now the Baltimore Orioles) and Cool Papa. Let him in, guys.
Make it Dawson
Retired Numbers: Ernie Banks, Billy Williams, Ron Santo, Ryne Sandberg, Greg Maddux, Fergie Jenkins.
Cap Anson was a racist piece of garbage and basically the entire reason for baseball's color line that lasted until Jackie Robinson. So it can't be him. Ever. And I'm not sure Cubs fans would take kindly to "Sammy Sosa Appreciation Day" yet either. And the Cubs have no real sense of history from 1909 until 1969. So you'd get a lot of confused shrugs for Stan Hack or Gabby Hartnett. And anything involving 'Tinker to Evers to Chance' or Three Finger Brown reminds everyone of the Year That Shall Not Be Named. So your best bet here is honestly Andre Dawson or Mark Grace. The Nationals un-retired Dawson's Expos number when the franchise moved to Washington. And I'm sure the Cubs would love to retire anything '08 related, if you know what I mean. For Grace, just Google 'Mark Grace slumpbuster' to know why he's a legendary figure on the broey North Side of Chicago. By the way, what if the only way the Curse of the Billy Goat can be broken is if Mark Grace finds Steve Bartman and/or some relative of Billy Sianis and has to sex with the fattest woman they know? Just putting that out there as the potential plot of Field of Dreams 2.
Why do you hate Curt Schilling?
Retired Numbers: Luis Gonzalez, Randy Johnson.
So everybody must really hate Curt Schilling, huh? They could try to say that Gonzalez is their best position player in their short history and the Big Unit is their best pitcher. But c'mon. 2001. So unless you can sell me on Brandon Webb or waiting for Paul Goldschmidt, I just assume everyone there hates Schilling. Dude was co-MVP of the 2001 World Series. Why do you hate Curt Schilling???
How is #34 not retired yet?
Retired Numbers: Sandy Koufax, Roy Campanella, Jackie Robinson, Walter Alston, Jim Gilliam, Duke Snider, Pee Wee Reese, Don Drysdale, Tommy Lasorda, Don Sutton.
The Dodgers have never officially retired Fernando Valenzuela's number, although his #34 has been out of circulation since his retirement. I think it's about time. I mean, have you ever been to Dodger Stadium? I'd say about 1/3 of the people there are rocking El Toro's jersey. And way more people would care about that than if it were say, Zack Wheat or Dazzy Vance, even though they were better players. Oh, and also there's the whole history of Chavez Ravine and the Dodgers fucking owing him. And I don't even need to talk about Clayton Kershaw or the rest of the 1988 team. You give that to Fernando.
Will they ever forgive Barry?
Retired Numbers: Carl Hubbell, Mel Ott, Willie Mays, Willie McCovey, Juan Marichal, Bill Terry, Orlando Cepeda, Gaylord Perry, Monte Irvin, Christy Mathewson, John McGraw.
Call me crazy, but I have this weird suspicion that it's not going to be Barry Bonds any time soon. Even though he's the best player in Major League history to not have his number retired by anybody. And I also don't think there'd be much support for old timers like Roger Connor or George Davis. Or Travis Jackson and Ross Youngs, even though they're both in the Hall of Fame and played their entire career with the Giants. So either the collective members of the even-year'd Giants teams of this decade retire (and that means Buster Posey, Pablo Sandoval, Matt Cain, Tim Lincecum and Madison Bumgarner) or we forgive and embrace Barry. You know, whichever comes first.
Maybe Stanton, I guess?
Retired Numbers: Nobody.
Wow. I guess I agree with the Marlins, since the best player in their franchise history is probably Hanley Ramirez. And Andre Dawson and Mike Piazza are the only Hall of Famers to ever play there. You know, famous Marlin, Mike Piazza. So unless they go with Livan Hernandez from the 1997 team or Josh Beckett from the 2003 team, I guess they could honor Ichiro, should he get his 3000th hit with Miami. Or they could just wait for Giancarlo Stanton to keep being awesome when he's not hurt. But this is a weird situation for them. This team has two World Series trophies and absolutely zero history.
Do it for the Straw!
Retired Numbers: Casey Stengel, Gil Hodges, Tom Seaver, Mike Piazza.
Unofficially, the Mets have also retired the numbers of Gary Carter and Willie Mays. And I'm assuming they'll eventually make those official. And they'll probably eventually honor David Wright at some point as well. But you have no idea how bad I wish they'd do something for Dwight Gooden and Darryl Strawberry. I know, I know. But it's not even that big of a stretch. Who's better than those two guys in the history of the Mets that I haven't already named? Jose Reyes? Please. The '86 Mets have a special evil place in my heart and in their noses. I think they deserve to be honored.
But when will Bryce's hair get its number retired?
When the Expos moved to D.C. in 2005, they un-retired the numbers for Gary Carter, Andre Dawson, Tim Raines and Rusty Staub. So we know we can't hold out for them or for guys like Steve Rogers, Tim Wallach or Vladimir Guerrero to get honored. But starting in 2005 also means the best player in their franchise history is Ryan Zimmerman. I mean, it will be Bryce Harper. But the Nationals need to take their own lead from outside their stadium (where they have statues of former Senators greats, Walter Johnson and Frank Howard, as well as Homestead Grays great, Josh Gibson) and hook it up inside. Start there. We can talk about Sam Rice and Goose Goslin and Buck Leonard later.
It's got to be Peavy
Retired Numbers: Steve Garvey, Randy Jones, Dave Winfield, Tony Gwynn, Trevor Hoffman.
How happy am I that the Padres are using brown uniforms this year? Anyway, this is hard. Kevin Brown was silly in '98, the last year they went to the World Series. But that was his only year on the team. So it has to be Jake Peavy. I mean, I don't want it to be Jake Peavy. But I won't condone any celebration of Andy Benes.
It should be Chase Utley
Retired Numbers: Robin Roberts, Richie Ashburn, Steve Carlton, Mike Schmidt, Jim Bunning, Pete Alexander, Chuck Klein.
They can't slap an old timers thing next to Pete Alexander and Chuck Klein for Ed Delahanty or Sherry Magee? Fine. Then they're going to have to do something for Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins. If not also Ryan Howard and Chalie Manuel. See, children. There was a time not so long ago when the Philadelphia Phillies didn't absolutely suck.
Give Arky his due!
Retired Numbers: Honus Wagner, Billy Meyer, Pie Traynor, Roberto Clemente, Danny Murtaugh, Willie Stargell, Bill Mazeroski, Ralph Kiner, Paul Waner.
Is there any good reason why the Pirates never retired Arky Vaughan's number? Or Bob Friend's? Or Max Carey's? Or Babe Adams'? Or Fred Clarke's? You know, other than Carey and Adams hating Clarke, and Clarke being bona fide clubhouse poison during the 1926 season. I looked that up. Anyway, the Pirates need to do a better job with honoring their long history. Because the next best pick is Skinny Barry Bonds until Andrew McCutchen stacks more on to his career numbers. Is the world ready to honor Skinny Barry Bonds?
Bid McPhee!
Retired Numbers: Fred Hutchinson, Johnny Bench, Frank Robinson, Joe Morgan, Ted Kluszewski, Tony Perez, Sparky Anderson, Dave Concepcion, Barry Larkin, Pete Rose.
Bid McPhee! Come on! The guy is in the Hall of Fame after playing his entire career with the Cincinnati Reds. They even ripped off his handle bar mustache for their stupid logo. But somehow, they can't honor the guy by name inside the ballpark. YOUR LOGO IS A BASEBALL DISGUISED AS BID McPHEE, CINCINNATI! Anyway, after Pete Rose, the only position players for the '75-76 Big Red Machine to not have their numbers retired are the outfielders – George Foster, Cesar Geronimo and Ken Griffey Sr. And Foster is just as good a choice as anyone else. Except Big McPhee. They're seriously killing me the with no Bid McPhee.
What exactly are they waiting for?
Retired Numbers: Todd Helton.
I don't know what they're waiting for with Larry Walker. And it's not like Troy Tulowitzki is coming back any time soon. So unless they're also hung up on Walker's home/road splits, they should pull the trigger or just give it to Ubaldo Jimenez for actually having one decent season pitching in the thin air of Denver in 2010.
That's it for the NL, stay tuned for the American League!
Albert Pujols, Andrew Dawson, Andruw Jones, Angelino in the Outfield, Arky Vaughan, Barry Bonds, Baseball, Bid McPhee, Braves, Brewers, Bryce Harper, cardinals, Chase Utley, Cubs, Curt Schilling, Darryl Strawberry, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Fernando Valenzuela, Giancarlo Stanton, Giants, Jake Peavy, Larry Walker, Marlins, Mets, Mike Bridenstine, MLB, National League, Nationals, NL, Padres, Phillies, Pirates, Reds, Retired Numbers, Rockies, Ryan Braun
Angelino in the Outfield (Episode III: The Greatest Pitching Staff of All Time)
Ah, the Dog Days of March, am I right? The days when the initial excitement of Spring Training has probably started to wane and, admittedly, there's not a whole lot going on in the game of baseball. I was going to use this week's column to bash the kid in the 'Dad Saves Son From Flying Baseball Bat' photo for being on his fucking iPhone during a live baseball game. But then I realized the kid was nine-years-old, celebrating his birthday with his dad and adorably sending photos of the game to his mom back home. And I don't want to sound like Goose Gossage telling Bryce Harper to get off his lawn or watching a Jose Bautista bat flip and wanting his country back. So this week, I'm going to do a continuation of a theme I'd touched on the previous week, and that's hating on the New York Mets.
At some point last week, I heard Karl Ravech of ESPN say that he really thinks the young Mets staff is going to go down as the greatest pitching rotation of all time. My immediate reaction was to think, "Okay great. Now I know I never have to listen to anything Karl Ravech says ever again." But the more I thought about it, the more I decided I should probably know which staffs in baseball history are currently in that conversation to begin with. I can't just be some derpy politician claiming Hillary Clinton is the worst Secretary of State of all time if I can't name anybody else who did the job. I mean, I assumed the Maddux-Glavine-Smoltz Braves teams of the nineties had to be in there somewhere. But I didn't know if there was some rockstar Philadelphia A's team in the 1920's with Flippo Gumslaw and Pud Hayseed or some shit.
So I decided to look into it. And yes, it turns out the nineties Braves are the greatest pitching staff of all-time. I can go ahead confirm that for you right now. That's based on the combined WAR of each team's top four starters. And yes, I know everybody has a five man rotation now. And yes, I know the Mets might go with a six man this year. But I had to stay with four to keep things fairly even across eras. We good now? Okay. Let's get back to the Braves. I could have just said "Seven Cy Youngs, 873 wins and three first-ballot Cooperstown plaques" and dropped the mic. But again, what about the Flippos and Puds of the world?
What I found is that, for the top four starters on any given team, a combined WAR of 15 means a staff is pretty good. An 18 means they're really good. And anything above a 20 is basically all-time great. Last year's Mets staff (where the best four were Jacob deGrom, Matt Harvey, Noah Syndergaard and Bartolo Colon) got a 15.2 combined WAR. Their projections for 2016 (with Steven Matz replacing Colon as the #4) are also between a 15 and 16. Just so we're all clear, let's look at what those nineties Braves staffs did.
1993. Maddux. Avery. Smoltz. Glavine. 19.8
1994. Maddux. Glavine. Avery. Smoltz. 15.6*
1995. Maddux. Smoltz. Glavine. Avery. 19.3
1996. Smoltz. Maddux. Glavine. Avery. 23.9
1997. Maddux. Smoltz. Neagle. Glavine. 23.5
1998. Maddux. Smoltz. Glavine. Milwood. 20.8
1999. Maddux. Milwood. Smoltz. Glavine. 20.7
* Strike-shortened.
That's insane. But when I looked through all the stats, I also realized just how rare it was for a team to have that many quality starters to get to a 18-20 WAR. Especially after the Dead Ball Era. For a pre-Babe-Ruth Era team (when the players were white, but the balls were not) to be in the 'best of all time' running, they usually had to revolve around a Hall of Fame-level super-ace like Christy Mathewson or Walter Johnson. And while there have been plenty of amazing individual single-season pitching performances over the years, the idea of a dominant staff is a much more recent phenomenon. In other words, aces come and go. That part is fairly easy. The hard part is getting yourself a Steve Avery – the Braves' #4 pitcher, not the beloved Manitowoc County murderer from the Internet.
So who's the second-best rotation ever, you ask? Surely it must be the Sandy Koufax/Don Drysdale Los Angeles Dodgers of the 1960's or the Randy Johnson/Curt Schilling Diamondbacks of the early 2000's or that 2011 Phillies team with Roy Halladay, Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels and Roy Oswalt. Nope, Nope and Nope. While those teams are up there near the very top, I'd say the second-best staff of all-time and the placeholders before the Braves came around were the 1969-1970 Chicago Cubs. Seriously. Well, I guess it's hard to be a placeholder, when nobody back then had advanced stats and everybody would have just been looking at stuff like win totals and then slobbering over overrated teams like the 1971 Orioles, who had four 20-game winners, but a combined WAR of 14.8. But that Cubs staff anchored by Fergie Jenkins, Ken Holtzman and Bill Hands put up a crazily-impressive 23.4 in 1969 and a best-ever-in-history 24.7 in 1970.
Ken Holtzman
And while it may be easy on the surface of things to poo-poo a Cubs staff led by a 3rd-ballot Hall of Famer and some other dudes you've never heard of (especially when the 1969 Cubs are synonymous with curses, black cats and choking) just realize that Jenkins is one of the more underrated pitchers of all-time, Holtzman threw TWO no hitters in his career and also the cold hard fact that no other team in the history of baseball besides the '96-'97 Braves ever put up those kind of combined WAR numbers. Like, ever. Not the Christy Mathewson-led New York Giants. Not the Walter Johnson-led Washington Senators. Not the Flippo Gumshaw/Pud Hayseed Philadelphia Athletics of the pretend 1920's. Not even even those '72-'74 Oakland teams where Holtzman ended up winning three World Series rings. And they did it all in Wrigley Field, which isn't necessarily known as a pitching-friendly park. The numbers are there, whether you've Googled these guys or not (and fun fact: Googling 'Bill Hands' in 2016 gets you some equally interesting results on both Bills Cosby and Clinton).
All of this is probably why people like Karl Ravech think they have a point. A staff as deep as the current Mets are on paper is a rare sight in baseball history. And we don't celebrate many of the other great staffs in history besides Glavine, Smoltzie and the Professor. Individual pitchers, yes. But great staffs, not so much. So it seems easier to spout off about 'greatest ever' without some asshole like me with the free time to do some basic fact checking. And since we're dealing with the entire history of baseball here, the 1990 Mets had Dwight Gooden, Frank Viola, David Cone and Sid Fernandez. Their combined WAR was 20.8. There's also three Cy Young Award winners, 14 All-Star Games and 10 World Series rings among them. Call me when this Mets staff even approaches that level. In fact, call me when they approach the 1976 Mets (19.0 WAR) with Tom Seaver, Jerry Koosman, Jon Matlack and Mickey Lolich. And know that just because you don't know something, it doesn't give you the right to spout off about it with confidence.
You really think this Mets staff is going to go down as the greatest of all-time? Keep checking your iPhone for it to happen. Maybe your dad will save you seconds before a bat smashes you in your stupid face.
Atlanta Braves, Bartolo Colon, Baseball, Bryce Harper, Cy Young, Greg Maddux, Jacob deGrom, John Smoltz, Karl Ravech, Matt Harvey, Mike Bridenstine, MLB, New York Mets, Noah Syndergaard, Pitchers, Steve Avery, Steven Matz, Tom Glavine
6 Things I Learned From Watching the Baseball Hall of Fame Coverage
Announcement Day for the Baseball Hall of Fame is one of my favorite days of the year. The kid in me loved seeing an impossibly aged, 46-year-old Ken Griffey Jr. – a guy who I idolized and whose posters were all over my bedroom walls growing up – get the official phone call from the Baseball Writers Association of America. I also loved seeing the elation of a guy like Mike Piazza, who had to wait years because of the dark cloud of PED speculation swirling over his head, finally getting in as well. But mostly, like I said in my last blog, the baseball nerd in me loved seeing guys like Bob Costas, Peter Gammons and other baseball writers and experts weigh in on the candidates and spark debates that I could watch all day. And so I did. I watched the pre-pre shows. I watched the four hours of coverage. I watched the post-coverage and the post-post coverage. I watched it all. And here's what I learned.
1. Everyone But 3 Writers and Tom Seaver Wanted Griffey to Get 100% of the Ballots.
Ken Griffey Jr. was on 100% of the early ballots reported and everybody seemed really giddy about it because that's never happened before. Not with Willie Mays. Not with Hank Aaron. Not with anybody. The highest vote total ever was actually Tom Seaver's 98.84% in 1992. But when all of the ballots were finally in, Griffey ended up at 99.30%. Which means that three people didn't vote for him. There are already all kinds of theories as to why that would be, and witch hunts for who those three people are, but my best guess would be that two people accidentally voted for David Eckstein and one person accidentally voted for Garret Anderson. The math works and so does the logic. Otherwise, holy shit.
Also, one thing that I found really interesting after Griffey and Piazza were elected, there were get-well wishes from Johnny Bench and Tom Seaver. And if you're thinking, "How nice. Seaver congratulated the guy who surpassed his vote total and Bench congratulated the guy who surpassed him as the greatest hitting catcher of all-time," then you'd be wrong. Bench congratulated Griffey, who grew up around Bench's Big Red Machine because of his dad and Seaver congratulated Piazza because they were both on the Mets, decades apart. I mean, they could have said other stuff. But this is all they showed. And it's way more fun to be catty.
Another fun moment was when they dug up Griffey's first manager, Jim Lefebvre, to congratulate him. First of all, Lefebvre had no idea how the voting process worked and kept saying, "For this young man to get 100% of Hall of Famers to vote for him is truly a remarkable accomplishment." And that's just no. And second of all, Griffey seemed slightly confused and annoyed as to why he had to talk to Lefebvre to begin with. Plus the show's host, Greg Amsinger, basically had to get a shepherd's hook to shut Lefebvre up every time he was rambling. It really made no sense to have him there. Jim Lefebvre only managed the Mariners for three years. So Lou Piniella must have been too busy angrily tossing bases around on some Little League diamond or something to be bothered.
2. Griffey is Only the 4th Center Fielder to Be Elected Since Duke Snider.
And that's counting Robin Yount (who was a shortstop) and Andre Dawson (who, as a Cub's fan, I consider a right fielder). So really, Ken Griffey Jr. and Kirby Puckett are the only center fielders since Willie, Mickey and the Duke to get elected to the Hall of Fame. That sounded like it had to be wrong, but it isn't. And the weird thing is, since 1964 (the year Snider retired) nobody else has really been in the conversation. I mean, are you actually going to argue for Jimmy Wynn and Chet Lemon? Sure, this was used as more of a devil's advocate argument for Jim Edmonds than anything. But Kenny Lofton was one-and-done on the ballots. So was Bernie Williams. And, unfortunately for him, so was Edmonds. The position is currently highly underrepresented as it is. But after Griffey, we'll have to wait and see the fates of Andruw Jones, Carlos Beltran and Torii Hunter. And then probably just hope Mike Trout and Andrew McCutchen can keep it up.
3. This is the Class of #1 and #1,390.
Griffey was the first pick of the 1987 Draft. Mike Piazza was the 1,390th pick in the 1988 Draft. So that makes for a good story. Especially since Griffey was also the first number one overall to go to the Hall of Fame. Not Harold Baines in 1977, not Darryl Strawberry in 1980. Certainly not Shawon Dunston in 1982. But that feat will soon be equaled by Chipper Jones. Possibly A-Rod. Possibly Joe Mauer. And (dare I say) possibly David Price. Plus it gives hope to down-on-their-luck guys like Bryce Harper and Carlos Correa who nobody ever talks about like they're any good.
4. Trevor Hoffman Will Get In. Because Mariano Rivera.
I want you to listen to me. Trevor Hoffman getting more votes than Curt Schilling and Mike Mussina is INSANE. Schilling pitched 3,261 innings in his career. Mussina pitched 3,562. On the other hand, the two new relievers to the list (Hoffman and Billy Wagner) only pitched 1,089 and 903. That's not even close to the same thing. And don't tell me how they were used was not their fault. If either Hoffman or Wagner were good enough to start, they would have. Clayton Kershaw isn't a relief pitcher. You want him going seven instead of one. When John Smoltz started to suck, they sent him to the pen. When Kerry Wood started to suck, they also sent him to the pen. And then they were both somehow good again. Like, do you know what Curt Schilling would have done as a one inning relief man? He would have made everybody in question, Rivera included, look like fucking chump change. Rivera was a failed starter. Wagner was a failed starter. Hoffman was a failed shortstop who could throw hard for one inning. The logic of voting for Hoffman over any starter is so stupid to me. But since everyone blindly decided that Mariano Rivera (and his 1,283 innings) was this infallible super god, then we have to deem the #2 guy with almost the same respect. But the fact is, if Rivera was just slightly better, he could have been a mediocre #3 starter. Give me a break.
5. I Changed My Mind on Larry Walker and Fred McGriff.
McGriff
Larry Walker isn't getting in, period. I think they said the lowest vote total anybody has gotten and still eventually been elected was Duke Snider's 17%. Walker is currently sitting at 15.5% and wasn't even covered in any of the discussions leading up to the announcement. And that's because his home/road splits are bananas. No pun intended. So I guess I'll have to give up on Walker for now. Your move, Todd Helton. On the other hand, I've come to the realization that the 1994 strike completely fucked Fred McGriff. And somehow that argument had never occurred to me. Maybe because I don't like thinking about the strike. But McGriff is just seven home runs shy of an automatic Cooperstown bid. And through 113 games in 1994, he had 34. So yeah, he would have gotten seven more if they'd played the season out. So I'd switch my votes out for those two if we were ready to play the game all over.
6. There's a Real Movement to Soften on Barry Bonds and Roger Clemens.
They're different than the rest of the steroid guys, you see. And they might well be. So we'll have to see if people are willing to forgive and forget over the next six years. Or if they'll be banished to Mark McGwire/Rafael Palmeiro Island. And while we're at it, there seems to be another real movement to let the BWAA vote on Pete Rose. Just to be clear, Shoeless Joe Jackson was on the first ever Hall of Fame ballot in 1936. He got two votes and was never back on. But Rose has never gotten that opportunity. And aren't being banned from baseball and being in the Hall of Fame two different things?
Okay. That about wraps up my excitement from Hall of Fame Announcement Day. See you next year when Jeff Bagwell and Tim Raines finally get in. And I complain even more about Trevor Hoffman.
A-Rod, Barry Bonds, Baseball, Baseball Hall of Fame, Bryce Harper, Carlos Correa, Cooperstown, Curt Schilling, Darryl Strawberry, Duke Snider, Fred McGriff, Hall of Fame, Ken Griffey Jr, Larry Walker, Mariano Rivera, Mariners, Mark McGuire, Mets, Mike Bridenstine, Mike Mussina, Mike Piazza, MLB, Roger Clemens, Trevor Hoffman
Champ and Chump: Week 3
Written by : Ryan Jaquith
Just a couple days until the weekend so let's look back at this past week and find the studs and duds who made the headlines in the sports section. Tough week choosing the champs as there were a lot of quality contenders, but there's no participation trophies in my articles so we kept it to the usual amount. The duds made it a little easy on me. So here we go, the nominees are…
Champ: Aaron Rodgers
24-35 333 yards, 5 TD's, 0 Turnovers, 78.0 QBR, 138.5 Passer Rating
Rodgers doing work on MNF
At this point, you could put Aaron Rodgers in the "Champ" category on a weekly basis. The guy just flat out produces and is, in my opinion, the best quarterback in football. As ESPN's Stephen A. Smith would say, Rodgers is "A bad, bad man." Heading into the season everyone wondered how big a void the injury to wide receiver Jordy Nelson would cause, but through three weeks, Rodgers and the Packers offense haven't missed a beat. Monday night was no exception as the Packers offense made a very tough defense look average, especially in the passing game. While Rodger's success isn't surprising to anyone, the numbers he has put up at home are incredible and damn near unbeatable. In his last sixteen home starts, Rodgers has thrown 43 touchdowns without throwing an interception, not a single one! Dominance like that makes Lambeau Field one of the toughest places to play, and the Packers know it. Watch out if the Pack gets home field throughout the NFC Playoffs.
A.J. Green- 10 catches for 227 yards and 2 touchdowns in a road win over the Baltimore Ravens to help Cincinnati improve to 3-0.
Leonard Fournette- 26 carries for 244 yards, 2 touchdowns in a win vs Syracuse propelling Fournette to the top of the Heisman leaderboard.
Devonta Freeman- 30 carries for 147 yards, 3 touchdowns and 5 catches for 54 receiving yards in a come from behind road win at Dallas.
Chump: Saturday Night's PAC 12 Football Games
#9 UCLA-56 @ #16 Arizona-30, #18 Utah-62 @ #13 Oregon-20, #19 USC-42 @ Arizona St-14
Utah running wild on Oregon
If you're a big college football fan like myself, then you probably were looking forward to catching a lot of the PAC 12 lineup this past Saturday night. Living in the Midwest, I don't get a chance to see very much of the PAC 12 like I do with the power houses on the Eastern side of the United States, so these three matchups featuring 5 ranked teams definitely caught my attention. The PAC 12 seems to be wide open this year, with a lot of strong teams competing for the conference championship. Naturally, one would assume these games would be absolute dogfights, featuring back and forth scoring with the loser likely to be whoever had to settle for a field goal first, right? Instead, we saw three games where the home teams all got absolutely skunked by their opponent by an average of 35 points per game. While I offer a huge congrats to the winners who showed they are more than likely the top dogs in the conference, and perhaps have a shot at making the College Football Playoff, it definitely was a major dud overall as I'm sure most viewers decided to reach for the remote during the second half.
Jonathan Papelbon and Bryce Harper- Papelbon put Harper in a choke hold after the two exchanged words in the dugout. More fight than the team has shown on the field since the trade deadline.
Oregon Football- Lost 62-20 at home to Utah, their biggest home loss since 1977.
Brandon Marshall's attempted lateral- While it wasn"t as bad as the "butt fumble", Marshall made a poor choice to make a play when he lateraled the ball to a Philadelphia defender while the Jets were driving. The Jets went on to lose by 7.
Aaron Rodgers, AJ Green, Brandon Marshall, Bryce Harper, Champ and Chump, Devonta Freeman, Green Bay Packers, Jonathan Papelbon, Leonard Fournette, New York Jets, Oregon Ducks, Pac 12, Ryan Jaquith, Utah