SB Nation User Blog: rdave

Michael Saunders vs China

rdave — Wed, 13 Aug 2008 05:17:03 -0000

For the curious, Michael Saunders is hitting 3rd for team Canada and is 1-3 with a single and a run scored so far in the 6th Inning. Scott Thorman (Richmond Braves) hit a 3 Run HR for Team Canada who is leading 5-0.

Here is the game log link, Anyone know if there is a game tracker or live box score somewhere as well?

http://results.beijing2008.cn/WRM/ENG/INF/BB/C69/BBM400902.shtml

US vs Korea and Japan vs Cuba starts in about 5 hours

UPDATE: Saunders hit a solo home run in the 8th and finished 2 for 5 with a 1B, a HR, 2 Runs, 1 RBI, 1 K (with bases loaded in the 4th), and 2 fly outs.

OT: ex M Cirillo Pitching

rdave — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 04:27:08 -0000

He's pitching the 9th in a 9-0 loss for the Diamond backs againt the Brewers. so far, 1 K, a BB, a fly ball, a BB. He's throwing low 80's fastballs, a change, and knucklers.

Surely this is 300 characters by now. Surely this is 300 characters by now. Surely this is 300 characters by now.

THT Dartboard (Power Ranking)

rdave — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 14:40:00 -0000

The Hardball Times currently has the M's ranked at 12th on their dartboard. If I remember right, someone posted that ESPN had the M's had 7 last week before their current streak(?). The Hardball times ranking uses something similar to current record and Pythagorean record adjusted for schedule strength. Anyway, my guess is that it has a little more thinking behind it than the ESPN writer.

For comparison, on 22 June 2006 they were ranked at 19, currently they are at 12. The notable suprises to me on the 1 July 2007 list are the Pads at 5, the A's at 10 and the Yankees at 11.

It looks like the Friars get a huge boost from their ability limit Runs Scored. I'd guess the Yankees are on the opposite side of that equation. They also claim the Yankees are 7-23 in close games which many would expect to even out a bit as the season goes on (based on the contention that close games sans JJ Putz involve a lot of luck).

If Runs Allowed are involved in the equation the M's are still paying for some horrible starting pitching in the first 2 months of the season. Hopefully the current run of good starting pitching is longer than an inevitable regression.

If you don't want to go to the site, here is the blurb on the M's (nothing new):

#12 Seattle Mariners (Dartboard Factor = 86, 82): J.J. Putz is the best closer in baseball and George Sherrill might be the best left-handed RP in baseball. Just a deadly deadly combo at the end of games. Oh and they have 5 other relievers with ERAs at 4.00 or below. At the plate, Richie Sexson is beginning his annual summer turnaround and Ichiro Suzuki continues his monster season. He's the MVP of the league if the season ended right now. Oh and the Ms have three hitters with OPSs over .900 in AAA.

Fruto profiling well

rdave — Thu, 05 Oct 2006 12:10:51 -0000

At least according to David Gassko's "Size Does Matter" article at the Hard Ball Times. Its an interesting read about the historical (since WWII) size of pitchers and their performace. His conclusion is that overweight pitchers historically perform well and hold up better over time.

Obviously no one really profiles overweight pitchers to peform well, I suppose they are more likely to overweight as they age as well. Just curious, other than Fruto are there any pitchers in the organisation that might be considered overweight?

Also an interesting tidbit on the Geology of Mt McLoughlin Volcano in Oregon:

McLoughlin went through three or four stages of development and stopped growing some time before the current glaciation started 25,000 years ago. The first known stage of the volcano's growth was explosive and built a large cinder cone from a single vent that may have reached the unusual height of 3000 feet (~900 meters) and may fill one third of McLoughlin's present interior (a steep-sided pre-existing shield volcano may exist within the cinder cone, thus explaining its extreme height). Some lava is associated with this stage but is confined to the lower parts of the cinder cone (this is common for cinder cones). McLoughlin's second cone-building stage was characterized by large andesite lava flows that poured out of a summit crater and in time buried the cinder cone. The volcano's third stage of development consisted of floods of blocky andesite lava erupting from below the summit and more fluid lavas erupting from basal fissures mostly confined to the south slope. North and South Squaw Tips on McLoughlin's west flank now mark the site of the two major blocky flow vents (there were two smaller vents). The entire third stage is thought to have happened in the Holocene (after the last ice age) due to a general lack of weathering and fresh appearance of the solidified lava.