There’s an old well-known adage around the game of baseball that goes a little something like this: you can never, under any circumstance, have too much pitching. You’re only one pitch away from an injury and the most historically successful teams have been able to overcome that little issue by having superior depth, particularly in the rotation.

But, as the Atlanta Braves are about to find out, the limits of the modern-day 5-man rotation can create an interesting dilemma. Through 60+ games the Braves rotation has been among the best in baseball, posting a 3.25 ERA as a group, which ranks 3rd in baseball behind St. Louis and Cincinnati. Mike Minor and Kris Medlen have matured into front of the rotation forces while fellow youngster Julio Teheran has started to blossom into his own. The staff’s pair of veterans, Tim Hudson and Paul Maholm have been more than serviceable, going 11-9 with a sub-4.00 ERA combined, giving the Braves both quality and depth.

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This is the second installment of a series looking at the best OPS months by position. Today’s post looks at each of the infield positions, with selected observations on the players involved.

As with Part 1 on outfielders, the method is to look at monthly OPS for players with 80+ PA in a month (50+ PA for April) and who played a majority of games in that month at one position.

More on the best months by infielders, after the jump.

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An extra full slate, and let’s get right to it!

@Tigers 4, Indians 1: Howdy, Jose Alvarez! The first Tigers debut since 2002 with 6+ IP and 1 run or less, and a surprise power source, helped Detroit complete a sweep of the slumping Indians.

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A very long day’s journey, indeed.

@Blue Jays 4, Rangers 3 (18): Just eighteen innings? Bunch o’ pikers!

Rajai Davis ended the longest game in Rogers Centre history with a 2-out single, after Emilio Bonifacio had gone 1st-to-3rd on a pickoff error by Ross Wolf, in his 7th inning of work. Davis entered for defense in the 8th, when the Jays had a lead, and wound up with 2 hits in 5 ABs, and his 4th game-ending RBI. Brad Lincoln, a former starter, went 4 scoreless innings (14th-17th) in his best relief effort. Aaron Loup, who’s been lights-out for almost a month, earned the win by working around a leadoff double in the 18th.

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This post is for voting and discussion in the twenty-first round of balloting for the Circle of Greats.  This round adds those players born in 1951.  Rules and lists are after the jump. Continue reading →

Paul Molitor (Molly) very nearly won the 14th round of the Circle of Greats voting but a late trend in the balloting left him second by a single vote.   He’s had solid support each round since then but not quite enough to win induction.   Until now, that is, as he becomes our 20th inductee into the High Heat Stats Circle of Greats.   His manner of election seems to echo his profile in the sport: never the dominant superstar, but consistently successful for a long, long time and multi-talented at a very high level, with a history of rising to the special occasion of the post-season.  More on Paul and the voting after the jump. Continue reading →

So, I’m forcing myself to use MLB’s play-by-play, even though I’ve never liked their look, plus their pitch-by-pitch requires individual clicks. But that’s where the videos are, so maybe I can get used to it.*

Pirates 2, @Cubs 0: Chicago left 2 aboard in the 2nd, 4th and 5th (5 of the 6 men via walk). So in the 6th, Russell Martin’s 2-out double on a Travis Wood hanger brought the game’s first run, and Darwin Barney’s tardy arrival at 2nd in the 9th spoiled a sure DP and let another run in. Despite the walks, Francisco Liriano went 7 scoreless for the 2nd time this year; he had no such games for 2 full years after his no-hitter on 2011-05-03, a span of 56 starts. Melancon/Grilli allowed 3 hits between them, but fanned 5, recording their 19th hold and 23rd save, respectively.

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Some players start hot, others warm up with the weather, while still others charge to the finish. And, a very select few play at another level, besting their contemporaries most all the time.

This series looks at the players at each position having the best calendar months in a season.

Take a look and see how your favorites fared.

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Game Notes is out sick from his day job, so we’re going for full coverage. Don’t miss the “sub-busted no-no’s” at the bottom.

@Red Sox 6, Rangers 3: It can’t be easy for a manager when the assuredly right move means you choose to face the man with the most game-winning hits this century. The pass to Pedroia was logical, but David Ortiz sent the next pitch to the bullpen, his 11th game-ending HR and 19th walk-off RBI. Both are tops in the bigs since 2000, but the first for Papi since 2009 and ’10, respectively.

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When Alex Cobb was a prospect coming up through the ranks in the Tampa Bay minor league system he was never considered all that highly. Noted prospect hound John Sickels ranked Cobb 17th in the Tampa Bay system, behind luminaries like Aneury Rodriguez, Kyle Lobstein, Wilking Rodriguez, and Alexander Colome. Sure, there was some potential back-of-the-rotation starter sheen there, but nobody was touting the righty as a future staff ace. Even when Cobb arrived in the big leagues he was still somewhat of an afterthought struggling to stay in the rotation before grabbing the 5th spot in the rotation this past spring.

Well, here we are in June and it’s Cobb who’s having the last laugh. After toying with a potent Tigers lineup on Wednesday, Cobb’s ERA now sits at 2.39, good for 3rd best in the American League. Cobb’s striking out a career best 8.24 hitters per 9, and his walk rate is down to a career low as well. More importantly, Tampa Bay is now 8-3 in games started by the 25-year-old righty, which has allowed the Rays to remain competitive despite the struggles of 2012 Cy Young winner David Price and the departure of longtime staff leader James Shields. So how has Cobb been able to go from seldom-discussed 5th starter to one of the most dominant pitchers in the American League?

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