Big Time Timmy-Jam!

Timmy Lincecum (or as he is commonly referred to by so many people, "Timmy Linky!" Right?) dropped 76 points in week 15 thanks to a two-start week, in which one said start was a pretty excellent no-no. Nice job, Timmy! Possibly a record for a pitcher? We can't be sure.

Of course Levy's season is still hanging on by a thread and Lincecum had to throw like 197 pitches to get there so he'll probably never be the same again, but it was a fun night for baseball!

(Though it can't be confirmed, rumors are that, while tossing the no-no, Lincecum was replaying key moments in his personal life in his mind and thinking about a lot about Kelly Preston.)

UPDATE: Levy's season is deader than immediate-future Amanda Bynes!

Man-Crush: Z-Wheels!*

Zack Wheeler Mania!

OK, so his start wasn't that amazing (cool pitch-by-pitch breakdown), but there's a lot to build on right there, a "foundation," if you will. In a Mets season that could appropriately be the subject of a black and white movie directed by Darren Aronofsky (Ricky gets it), a bona fide highpoint becomes borderline euphoric.  Dude's 4-seamer hit 98, with a hook of 77MPH!! I'll take the shit out of that!

*I am hereby coining this nickname, despite its obvious horridness.

 

Now, When You Say "Brothers" ....?

I'd like to think the Braves set out to aquire both Upton brothers from the start, rather than them just making two deals to aquire talented players who happen to be brothers. It's be a lot cooler if they did. But, either way, way to go Braves! I'd support a rule that requires brothers to always be on the same baseball team in the rare instance that a pair are established major leaguers. Brothers playing baseball.... together... because America!

(There should also be the "Griffey Rule" that requires the same for father-son combos AND gives the dad a free walk he can cash in at any time during the game, and a free hot dog!)

Will the Uptons have career seasons thanks to brother-power? Will they bat 2-3 in the lineup? How will their multi-step handshake go (holy shit, the possibilities!!)? And, finally, when is the DMX comeback album dropping?

I'll Take It

So the Dickey trade means the Mets probably won't be contending for anything at all in 2013, but this still sounds like good news:

"If you polled the 30 current GMs and asked them if they would trade Carlos Beltran and R.A. Dickey for the three players the Mets received, it's safe to say all 30 would agree with the Mets' strategy," an NL executive said.

[Post Title Containing a Common Cliche where 'Wright' has Replaced the Word 'Right']

I'm very happy with this deal, as a Mets fan. $17mil per year is actually pretty good value for a guy like Wright. The deal goes until he's 37 so the Mets aren't locked in to pay for Wright to be an old-timer mascot, like the Angels' deal with Pujols or (holy christ!) that A-rod contract.

They could have traded Wright and got back probably multiple top flight prospects to help their rebuilding, but Wright is a fan favorite, he's a lock to go down as the greatest Mets hitter ever (he probably is right now), and the Mets have revenue streams to allow for a very quick rebuilding process. It makes sense to build around an established star. Also, at this point, they are probably one very good bat and a revamped bullpen away from contending for a Wild Card spot.

I'm gonna order a jersey now.

This Should Be Fun...

The steroid ballot has arrived. This is an especially fun topic to debate as to how steroid use should affect a player's eligibility, but it's also sure to trigger nonsensical arguments and inconsistencies amongst the actual people who get to decide, the BBWAA, arguably the least intellectually curious cohort whose membership doesn't require a belief in alien spirits lurking the earth.

We're already off, with this gem:

"My view is these guys played and posted Hall-of-Fame-type numbers against the competition of their time. That will be my sole yardstick. If Major League Baseball took no action against a player during his career for alleged or suspected steroid/PED use, I'm not going to do so in assessing their career for the Hall of Fame,"

That's Bob Dutton from KC. Don't think to hard, Bob when you can just outsource your judgment and standards to some other entity that had a financial stake in being asleep at the switch.

Of course McGwire has been on the ballot for a while now and hasn't sniffed induction, so maybe the standard has already been established - in fact, McGwire's totals have gone down somewhat over the years. But you can't expect the BBWAA to maintain consistency over the 15 years these guys are eligible.

Curt Schilling belongs in the Hall, his career numbers are sick.

Predictions and stuff

We're a little past the half-way mark, this is where people usually start to make predictions about end-of-the-season awards. So here goes:

The MVP race is almost 100% locked up in both leagues it seems. Pujols is probably getting 10 to 1 odds in favor of him winning the award in Vegas, and really only something as unlikely and cataclysmic as a 30 minute solar eclipse could derail his campaign.

As for the AL, it will take something completely possible, but still very unlikely to keep Morneau from grabbing his 2nd trophy. Morneau will actually get competition, and, it's safe to say, will not win the award unanimously (as Pujols is sure to do) thanks to a big year from Carl Crawford. It would also be unwise to bet against the stupidity masquerading as nostalgia and high-mindedness of the Baseball Writers to cast a bunch of votes for Derek Jeter, who is in fact having a very good season despite passing over the threshold into the age where Hadfield is likely to make him a 3rd round pick. Of course Jeter's old-balls-iness will only make him more popular with writers, who think things like surprising numbers and overcoming adversity (A-rod's steroids and then injury, shaky pitching, or "he's old!" or whatever other bullshit) actually has something to do with being valuable - plus don't forget Jeter's never lost an All-star game!

The Cy Young awards follow a somewhat similar pattern. Fucking screw everything in NL because Dan Haren has an ERA under 2.00 and a WHIP of .80. If you're WHIP is low enough that were it your BAC you would not immediately drop dead, you should win the Cy Young award AND collect an automatic 5 votes (in the form of redeemable chips) towards entering the Hall of Fame. Blah blah blah, Tim Lincecum, blah blah, NL west can't hit for balls, blah blah blah. .8 WHIP, people!

The AL gets a little more dicey as the race appears to be between Greinke and Halladay, w/ King Felix poised to make a stretch run. Halladay is probably the favorite here if he stays in the AL, since people are all up on this guys balls right now. Plus, Greinke has, despite the insanely low ERA, shown signs of being mortal. Halladay is more likely to end up with a higher Win total as well - and Cy Young voters love those W's - and Halladay will rightfully get credit for pitching in the murderer's row that is the AL East. If Halladay gets traded to the Senior Circuit, then the race becomes a little more open as between Hernandez and Greinke.

Aces Getting Rocked, Khalil Greene Hitting Cleanup, Cats and Dogs Living Together - A Wacky "Opening Day"

That sums it up.

Seriously Tony Larussa, you've got this guy, Ludwick, on your team, he cranked 37 bombs last year. Then you've got this guy, Greene who crankd 27 bombs, two years ago and is currently a pretty terrible offensive player, and you go with ....... option B to protect the best hitter of the modern era. Jeepers. Don't you have a stop light to drunkenly pass out at?

In other news, Baseball Tonight has now included a sequence of commentators walking around the studio, and a segment with two versions of Karl Ravech on my screen to demonstrate switch hitting. Yet, somehow, I think I love it.

T-minus 60 hours

.. bitches!

Hanley Ramirez is expected to fly off the board at around9:15pm, Thursday. The excitement has now turned into annoying anticipation as each day seems to last for-frickin'-ever! Let's go, clock!

In other news: Is Curt Shilling a Hall of Famer? Here's his stat line:


INN - 3261.0
GS - 436
216-146
K - 3116
BBI - 711
HA - 2998
ERA - 3.46
WHIP - 1.14

I vote "yes as balls" on Schill. Everyone is going to talk about his Wins, but the guy just didn't start that many games for a 22 year career (22 x 20 starts/year = 440 starts). He still won basically half of the games he started and 60% of his decisions. 3000 K's is a number that can not be questioned, and an outstanding WHIP and ERA in the "live as hell ball era" can't be effed with, either. Then you also have 3 rings, and 4 world series appearances and an utterly dominating playoff resume which includes arguably the single finest/biggest/grittiest/dramatickest performance in the history of the motherfucking sport (especially given the backdrop of the 0-3 comeback - writers love that shit). (Seriously, Fenn wouldn't be seen in public for six months if they stapled his tendon to his bone, and this guy pitches a gem in the ALCS against the vaunted Yankees.)

I have a feeling all arguments against Schill are going to come down to meaningless cliches like "only 216 Wins," "no Cy Youngs" and "just didn't quite do enough."

I don't even like the guy - he's kind of a douche - but he was "feared" and "dominating" and "big game" and all that BS and has the stats to boot. Put him in!