Author Archives: Doug

Circle of Greats 1980 Part 1 Runoff: Minnie Minoso vs. Scott Rolen

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This post is for voting and discussion in a runoff election to decide the winner of the 141st round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG).  Here are the career AL and NL stats for our two candidates.

Player WAR OPS+ G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS Pos Tm
Minnie Minoso 50.4 130 1835 7713 6579 1136 1963 336 83 186 1023 814 584 216 .298 .389 .459 .848 759H8/36 CHW-CLE-STL-WSA
Scott Rolen 70.1 122 2038 8518 7398 1211 2077 517 43 316 1287 899 1410 118 .281 .364 .490 .855 *5/H PHI-STL-TOR-CIN
Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Play Index Tool Used
Generated 2/28/2019.

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The Unhittable Mr. Francis

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August’s AL Pitcher of the Month was the Blue Jays’ Bowden Francis. If you’ve never heard of him, you’re not alone. Despite that lack of notoriety, Francis, whose career totals prior to August included just 81⅓ IP and four starts, has turned in two of the more remarkable months of pitching of the modern era. More after the jump.

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Remembering Willie Mays (1931-2024)

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Willie Mays‘ passing last month serves to remind baseball fans of his spectacular and singular career. Widely regarded as baseball’s most complete player, Mays excelled at all facets of the game, playing at a high level for almost the entirety of a career spanning 23 years. His passing also reduces to a very slender thread our connection with those still living who graced major league ballparks in the 1950s. More on Willie and 1950s baseball are after the jump.

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2024 Season to Date: Offensive Decline Returns

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One third of the way into the current season and it is the pitchers who have held the upper hand, with OPS declining by over 4% from the same period a year ago. Of course, one year ago everyone was trying to adjust to the new timing rules, and it was the batters who evidently had the easier time doing so, pushing up OPS for the first third of the 2023 season by over 4% from the same period the year before. More on offensive trends and adjustments to rule changes are after the jump.

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Starting Fast: Baseball’s Best Hitters Out of the Gate

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Pitchers tend to hold the upper hand to start the season, with batters warming up with the weather. But, some batters buck that trend and are hot to start the season, including some who do so on a regular basis. So, who are April’s heroes? Spoiler alert: they’re also the heroes in the other months of the season. More after the jump.

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Blanco Blanks Blue Jays

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Ronel Blanco lived up to his name, turning in the young season’s first no-hit game as the Astros romped 10-0 over Toronto. Blanco walked the first batter of the game and the next-to-last (both former Astro George Springer) but retired everyone else, as no Blue Jay reached second base. It was the 13th no-hit game by an Astro pitcher (11th at home), and the second time Houston has no-hit Toronto. More after the jump.

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