EVIL~! alkeiper

That's misleading, because he pitched in middle relief for half the season. A middle reliever is credited with a blown save if he gives up the tying run in the 7th inning, when he never had a chance to pick up the save. I don't believe in the closer mentality. A good pitcher is a good pitcher, regardless of the inning. Hawkins since June 1st has pitched 17 2/3 innings, given up 19 hits, 7 earned runs, 0 walks, 10 strikeouts, and has saved eight games in ten opportunities. 80% God-boy of closing, Danny Graves, has saved 81.5%. Now, Graves has saved 81.5%, and Hawkins 80%. If a team won 100 games, the difference between Graves and Hawkins would mean a single win, or at MOST, two wins. Because of two wins, Graves is an All-Star, and Hawkins is unfit to close games?

Too many relievers are in as it is. Danny Graves is an average reliever who made the squad solely because he got a ton of save opportunities. He's blown 3 out of his last save opportunites. Personally, I'd take Eric Gagne, and that's it. More starters should make the All-Star team.

Frank Thomas should've started at first. He's the forgotten man in the discussion.

Its hard to fairly judge fan voting when it started merely a month into the season. Most fans don't have a printout of current stats when filling out their ballot, and they choose established players. I have no problems with the fans choosing Jeter, as that's who they want to see. My only problem with fan voting is that Japan influences it more than it should. Does anyone else think too many relievers made the All-Star teams? I think one or two relievers, tops, should make the team.

The advantage with Teixeira is that you could play him at third.

I think I've racked up a dozen votes so far. Bobby Abreu on the 32nd man ballot. You have your mission folks.

Starting battery of Clemens/Piazza.

Jesus Fucking Christ. WHAT THE HELL DOES BOBBY ABREU HAVE TO DO TO MAKE AN ALL-STAR TEAM?! 4th in the league in OBP (.444). 10th in the league in slugging percentage (.576). 7th in the league in OPS (1.021). 4th in the league in stolen bases. 7th in the league in runs created. 4th in the league in Win Shares. And the fucks in charge of player selection can't see fit to place him among the 20 best players of the National League? All year we've had the point hammered into us that "this game counts." If the game is so goddamned important, why are inferior players selected?

Exactly. Championships are not the sole reason moments become memorable.

That's your fault. The Pine Tar incident is one of the most famous regular season games in baseball history.

The worst strike call this year?! Hardly. Find the photo of that call. K Zone is clearly not drawn to the edge of the plate. The ball is only 1-2 inches off the plate.

That or QuisTec. But you don't seem to like that idea.

Well, its now Sunday on the East Coast, and the forum remains.

Does he really have a better option. Bautista (in limited action) has a .333 OBP. Only Kelly Stinnett (out for the year), Ken Harvey (cleanup hitter), Alberto Castillo (in 18 at bats), Carlos Beltran (traded), Joe Randa (injured), and Tony Graffanino have higher OBPs this season.

Baseball Prospectus's Adjusted Runs Prevented rates Gordon as the best reliever in all of baseball this year. I don't know whether that changes my mind, but it certainly strengthens his case. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/statisti...84a1af9e6d024c8

I enjoy listening to MLB radio on the web. Its generally more intelligent than most shows, and they often have major leaguers, minor leaguers, and executives on the show.

Gordon over Vazquez, if you have to pick one. I don't think middle relievers belong unless they've been extremely dominant, over a long period of time. Gordon's a good pitcher, but I'd rather take Vazquez.

Not quite. What I mean is that you're no more likely to accurately predict the playoffs by spending hours analyzing players than you are by simply flipping a coin.

Along with Brenly's departure, bench coach Robin Yount resigned.

That's their responsibility then. No reason to set an artificial restriction.

Bored beat me to it. Seven games is hardly convincing. It takes a full season for the real differences in teams to appear. Look at the season standings. There's a column listing each team's record over the last ten games. Are these a solid indicator of the best teams in baseball? Hardly.

Do lots of people often buy books about people and subjects they care little about? Are any playoff predictions ever consistantly accurate? Who picked the Angels in '02, or the Marlins last year? The playoffs are more random than anything else.

Jose Canseco, Mark McGwire, Walt Weiss, Terry Steinbach were home grown. Dave Stewart was released mid-season by the Phillies, and the A's got him for the minimum. The A's gave up Jose Rijo to get Dave Parker. Carney Lansford cost them Tony Armas Sr. The A's gave up Kevin Tapani, Wally Whitehurst, Alfredo Griffin, and Jay Howell to get Bob Welch. Tony Phillips signed for $200,000. Rick Honeycutt cost them Tim Belcher. They got Dennis Eckersley for a collection of minor leaguers. Yep, sure looks like a store-bought team to me.

The Sox also acquired Pedro Astacio yesterday. He hasn't pitched yet this year, so I have no idea what he has left.

We all know extensions don't really matter. Just like when managers receive the dreaded "vote of confidence."