Dexter Fowler has played three qualifying seasons and each time has accomplished what has become a fairly unusual feat, that of stealing 10 or more bases and having 10 or more triples. What makes this feat even more noteworthy is that over the past two seasons, Fowler had more triples than stolen bases. It is far more common for players with some speed to have more stolen bases than triples.

In the past 4 seasons, having more triples than stolen bases while achieving double figures in both has happened four times. But that is more often than had occurred in the 30 previous seasons (1978-2007). Looking just at triples in isolation, since 2000 there have been 6 seasons with triples in more than 3% of ABs (min. 502 PAs). That is the same number as occurred in the 50 previous seasons (1950-1999). 

Are these signs of a return to the running game in baseball? After the jump, I’ll take a look at that question.

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Through 20 games, Jose Bautista is not reminding anyone of the player who terrorized AL pitchers the past two seasons. I was wondering whether any other players coming off a season like Bautista’s had had such a slow start the following year. And, if they did, was that slow start a harbinger of a really down year?

Let’s find out.

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I wouldn’t want to predict that this will be Jamie Moyer‘s final season. But, if it is, it will be interesting if, as the oldest player in baseball, he gets a chance to appear in a game with the youngest player. Incidentally, Moyer has previously done exactly that, most recently on July 15, 2010 for the Phillies against Starlin Castro and the Cubs.

Presently, the youngest player to appear in an NL game this year is Jose Altuve of the Astros, just 6 weeks younger than Castro. The Astros and Rockies started the season against each other, and both Moyer and Altuve appeared in that series but, alas, not in the same game. But, the season is young – that opportunity may yet arise. The only younger AL player to play so far this year is Drew Hutchison of the Blue Jays – but Toronto and Colorado are not scheduled to meet this year.

After the jump, I’ll look at a few games from the past where the torch was passed.

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With its win yesterday, Texas became just the 41st team since 1918 to start a season with 13 or more wins in its first 16 games. What might this hot start presage for the rest of the Rangers’ season?

I’ll take a look at that question after the jump.

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 Jerry Lynch passed away recently. Lynch was an outfielder for the Pirates and Reds in the 1950s and 60s. He also caught a few games (and did so without a passed ball or error).

But, Lynch is remembered mostly for his prowess as a pinch-hitter. After the jump, I’ll look a bit more into how Lynch ranks among the game’s premier pinch-hitters.

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Al Veigel www.baseball-reference.com

Al Veigel passed away a week or so ago. You probably haven’t heard of Al – his big league career lasted all of two games. But Veigel’s passing has significance not only for his family, but also for aficionados of baseball history.

Why is that? The answer is after the jump.

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Led by their marquee slugger Matt Kemp, the Dodgers have the best record in baseball 10 games into the season. Kemp’s 6 HR place him among the top 10 seasons all-time for HR in the first 10 team games of the season.

After the jump, I’ll look at what those fast power starts portended for the players’ seasons.

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Following up on the Imperfect Trifecta post, thought I’d give Rollins and Pierre a break and let some others share the limelight. The guy on the left was one of our faves back at the B-R Blog, a player with some quite unusual statistical characteristics, although not ones customarily associated with winning.

WARNING: This post is definitely written tongue in cheek. My apologies, in advance, if you are offended by the tone – not my intention, just having a bit of fun.

This post is about players who simply abhor walking. At any cost (and it’s often substantial). Instead, these purists insist on getting on base (or trying, at least) the difficult way, with their bats and their legs. Alas, it is an awfully hard chore for many of them.

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Many of us have probably been to our 20 year (or more) high school reunion. There are some people you may have stayed in touch with all those years, others may have crossed your path just a few times, but for many of your classmates it could be the first time you’ve met since high school.

It can be like that in baseball too. Except, there aren’t nearly as many on-field reunions because most players don’t stay in the game for 20 years. Even when they do, their playing time at either or both ends of their careers can make reunions with other specific players pretty unlikely. And, of course, there’s always the difficulty of being in different leagues. But, it does happen sometimes. After the break, you can take a look at pairs of players who have appeared together in games separated by 20 or more seasons. Which players do you think have had the most “reunions”?

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