gil4

It's his first start of the season. With all of the hand-wringing over Santana's injury right now, I bet it was tough to even let him go out for the ninth.

So Wade Boggs would have hit for more power if he had burritos instead of chicken before every game?

"switching from his current agent to Dwight Yoakam, in response to Robinson Cano’s switch to CAA that is partnered with Jay-Z" That's pretty damned funny, unless you're his current agent.

Another awesome entry in the series. I think the lack of comments means you're so thorough that there's nothing else to add.

Hopefully it's as a pitcher so we don't have to see him try to hit

The biggest surprise on the list is Guardado. I especially didn't think he would be ahead of Aguilera.

I had to see how close Nathan was to the list. He was 36 IP short. 464 IP, 562 SO, 10.9 SO/9 If we add the IP without adding any SO, he still leads by a comfortable margin - 10.12 SO/9. (Hey, if it works for the batting title...)

"No information about what Alex Ochoa is doing this season was readily available." Nothing concrete here, but this article talks about his likely plans for this year, which include working for Scott Boras in S. Florida so he could be near his dad, who is sick. I really like this series. It would make a heck of a book. ttp://www.csnne.com/article/ochoa-leaning-toward-not-returning-boston

I was going to say Deduno for the same reason. He has the same 40-man problem that Walters has, though, plus he has a minor injury of his own.

Amazing guess. How did you do it? Twins Daily - Blue Jays claim Alex Burnett off waivers by Nick Nelson Published on 03-29-2013 04:51 PM

Unlike Badsmerf, I am an incurable optimist. (Last year at this time I was predicting a bounce-back season and a Cy Young for Liriano.) But I'm not convinced by your data, either. 1. I thingk your game score chart is a better indicator than the other part of the chart because it takes into account inniings pitched. Giving up 3 runs in 6 innings does not represent a good chance of winning; it represents a slightly below average chance (4.5 runs per gave vs. 4.3 scored.) I'm pretty sure the starters averaged fewer than 6 IP per start. 2. The guys you chose to represent 2012 only started 50 games last year. Based on game score, I'd guess the record in those starts was 15-39. Even if we replaced those 54 games with a couple of guys from a video game who pitched shutouts every time out, that iimproves us to 90 wins (+24). If they are average (which seems like a stretch), that's +12 wins, or 78. 3. We have three guys coming from the NL to AL, which tends to make numbers worse, although Marquis was dealing with bigger issues at the beginning of last year and I think the blank slate [edit - after he left and went to SD] helped as much as the return to the NL. 4. Harden and Pelfrey are coming off major injuries. I have no idea what to expect from Harden if he ever makes it into the rotation, which is a 50-50 proposition. Pelfrey is less than a year removed from TJ surgery. Maybe he has Adrian Peterson's larm and is completely healed and ready to perform at a level above anything he has done before, but I'm guessing he's an ordinary guy who won't get back to within 90% of his old adequate self before next year. 5. Diamond is hurt. He was a great candidate for regression anyway. Despite all of that, I'm going to agree with your overall record prediction just on blind faith and/or wishful thinking. My way is more scientific.

I came here because I used to read Seth and Aaron (and you, although I wasn't a regular after your hiatus ended. I still like the VOR and the chatty chatty princess names you used.) I havn't been as satisfied with the site lately, and I really couldn't put my finger on it. The recent poll about the front page (1 column, 2 columns, or the silly third option - can't remember what it was) didn't really seem to get to the issue for me. This column helped me pinpoint it - I was having a hard time finding the things I like to read. I changed my link to the blog page instead of the front page. Problem solved.

The man was born to be fired. One of the best Lite beer commecials was Billy and Steinbrenner arguing about tastes great/less filling, that ended in "Billy, you're fired." "Aw, not again." Not too long afterward they updated the commercial with "Billy, you're hired" after he became the manager again. (It didn't make as much sense, but the "aw, not again" still fit.) There was only so much of Billy Martin that a team, an owner, and a fan base could take.

I don't know. Can any of the mascots play SS and hit a little?

That's the first plausible explanation for the prevalence of bobbleheads I have seen.

Pitchers are more likely to take a big leap forward that isn't predicted by the numbers. A new grip on a pitch, learning to avoid throwing a certain pitch, controlling the stuff that's there, or finally feeling healthy after dealing with injuries can all show up as unexpected leaps forward.

Oliva was the first one that came to mind for me. Carew was my favorite growing up - I remember painting the number 29 on the back of my plastic Twins helmet, back when those were popular - but Carew left and Oliva stuck around. I'm not sure why I wasn't more of a Killebrew fan, but it might be because he was washed up and in a Royals uniform in my earlier memories. Oliva was mostly done, too, but he kind of became part of the Oliva-Carew batting title continuum that was part of the Twins' identity back then.

Nice. Where is the "like" button (preferably wothout the cute little hearts) when you need it.

It also seems like walk rate is an area where pitchers will take a big leap forward, although it usually happens well before age 29 if it's going to happen. Still, a guy who misses bats and stays healthy could very well be on the verge of being a good pitcher.

Excellent write-up. I remember having about a dozen copies of his card one year - the year my brother and I got a complete set by just buying individual packs. (As of 4 years ago, they were still in mom's attic - at least 25 years and counting.) Here is a picture of the card (no, mine don't have the autograph):

I agree. I rarely buy ballpark concessions unless we happen to be there for a $1 hot dog day or something like that. We normally go out to eat before, drink water during the game, and bring granola bars in for snacks. The kids know the deal.

My first guesses were Baker or Pavano (the elbow looks either old or injured) but the glove brand didn't match either one. I'm waiting for a double points special so I can get twice as much of the nothing I could normally get.

Nick Blackburn?

Is that Zumaya after his elbow blew up? "Merely a flesh wound".

On days he's not pitching maybe he can sing Sweet Caroline at the stadium