This Past Weekend's Performances June 27, 2010

For the second weekend in a row, pitching proved powerful against the bats. Here's a rundown of some of those performances

Edwin Jackson
Jackson threw a complete game no-hitter against the Tampa Bay Rays. He needed 149 pitches to become the 2nd player in Arizona Diamonbacks history to throw a no-hitter (Randy Johnson threw a perfect game against the Atlanta Braves on May 17, 2004.) Jackson walked 8 and struck out 6 in the victory. He is the 4th pitcher to throw a no-no against his former team since 1950 and the first since 1990.

Jeff Niemann
Niemann was on the losing end of Edwin Jackson's no-hitter. Niemann pitched 7.1 innings giving up 6 hits , 1 Run (1 Earned), 2 walks and 8K's for only his 2nd loss of the season. The Rays are the first team to be no-hit three times in 12 months. Also, the Rays are the first team since the '01 Padres to be no-hit twice in one season, and they are the first American League team since the 1977 California Angels.

C.C. Sabathia
8.0IP, 4H, 1R, 1ER, 3BB, 7K's against the Dodgers

Vincent Padilla
7.0IP, 6H, 2R, 2ER, 1BB, 7K's against the Yankees

Carl Pavano
CG 3H, 0R, 1BB, 4K's. 2nd straight complete game victory (Phillies and Mets)

Trevor Cahill
7.2IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 3BB, 10K's, against the Pirates to improve to 7-2 with a 2.88ERA

Josh Johnson
8.0IP, 5H, 2R, 2ER, 1BB, 9K's, 1.83ERA in loss to the Padres

Aaron Cook
CG 8.0IP, 4H, 4R, 3ER, 1BB, 3K's in loss to the Angels

Joe Saunders
7.0IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 2BB, 8K's against the Rockies

Chris Narveson
8.0IP, 4H, 0R, 0ER, 1BB, 7K's against Seattle

Jon Lester
9.0IP, 5H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 9K's, 2.86ERA against the Giants

Clayton Kershaw
7.0IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 0BB, 5K's in a No-Decision against the Yankees.

Let's see if the trend continues next weekend.
FH

How To Call A Teammate Out

This weekend there were two different examples on how to call a teammate out.

First was the Chicago Cubs Carlos Zambrano profanity laced tirade towards Derreck Lee and the rest of the Cubs. That led to wet and alienated teammates (courtesy of Gatorade) and an indefinite suspension of Zambrano. Plus the released statement by a "source" close to Zambrano that his tirade was meant to motivate and wasn't personal has not gone over well with his teammates. Not so good.

Second was Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria calling out B.J. Upton face to face in the dugout for Upton's lack of hustle in Center chasing a ball down that led to a triple. Upton has been in trouble before for not hustling down the line and on the field. The resulting confrontation was short with teammates holding Upton back as Longoria said his peace and walked off. As the leader of the team, Longoria did what he was supposed to do, in an even manner instead of ranting and raving.

I'm ok with teammates taking each other to task. It is a team effort after all and if your teammate can do it then who can. But Longoria showed how it is done by stepping to Upton directly instead of blowing his top as a petulant child.

FH

¿Que La Paso a Carlos Zambrano?

It feels like deja-vu that I am writing this kind of post about a Cubs player. Back in March I wrote about what has happened to Alfonso Soriano (Click here to see that posting). This season has been a very hectic and disappointing season for Carlos Zambrano which came to a head with his dugout temper tantrum against Derreck Lee and the Chicago Cubs bench. In case you haven't seen the video, click here to see it on MLB.com. Zambrano felt as if Derreck Lee had not properly played a ball that went down the first base line. What Zambrano fails to realize is that after the next player got on base, he was the one who served up the long ball to Carlos Quentin. After his outburst left teammates red in the face and wet from the Gatorade container he tipped over, Zambrano was sent home by manager Lou Piniella and was later suspended indefinitely. The following comments were made Chicago Cubs Genereal Manager Ted Hendry after the game:

"His conduct was not acceptable, his actions toward his teammates and staff were not acceptable. He will not be at the ballpark [Saturday]. We'll play with 24 [players]. From my point of view, we'll play with 24 before we tolerate that kind of behavior."

It is how I like to say about Zambrano's countryman Ozzie Guillen, when you are winning and producing, the tamtrums and comments are allowed. In Zambrano's case, from 2003-2008, he was 91-51 with a 3.39 ERA in 193 games started with 8 complete games and 3 shutouts. In 1266 innings pitched Zambrano gave up 1053 hits, walked 549 and recorded 1075K's for a WHIP of 1.265. But the last two seasons have been different.

Due to injuries and ineffectiveness, Zambrano has a 12-13 record with a 4.24 ERA in 37 games started (13 relief appearances this season) with 1 complete game and 1 shutout. In 225 innings pitched Zambrano gave up 224 hits, walked 103 and recorded 205K's for a WHIP of 1.453. His lack of performance got him a demotion to the bullpen for the majority of the first half of this season and now his outburst got him a full demotion from the team and maybe out of Chicago.

Cubs manager Lou Piniella made the following comments regarding Zambrano:

"That's something that can't be tolerated. He came in after he got the third out and he started yelling and screaming. It was embarrassing. ... There's no excuse for this, none at all, no excuse whatsoever.

"I'm embarrassed, he should be embarrassed. He's going to have to apologize to his teammates, that's for darn sure. We've got our share of problems, we don't need those. I sent him home, yes."

How many apologies can Zambrano make to his teammates before they get fully tired of his act. Only time will tell. We'll see how this plays out. All I can say is that Zambrano is a very good pitcher with strong desire and emotion that has let said emotions get the better of him and has derailed his career. Again, only time will tell on how this will end up for Zambrano.

FH

For Further Reading:
- Click here for Paul Sullivan's article on Chicagobreakngsports.com regarding the Zambrano dugout outburst.
- Click here for video footage of Cubs GM Ted Hendry talking about Zambrano's suspension.
- Click here to access Carlos Zambrano's statistics on Baseballreference.com.

Edwin Rodriguez The 1st Puerto Rican Manager in MLB

With the firing of Marlins manager Fredi Gonzalez this morning, his replacement makes history. Edwin Rodriguez becomes the 1st Puerto Rican manager in the Majors after taking over the reins of the Florida Marlins with the dismissal of Fredi Gonzalez after a disappointing (to team owner Jeffrey Loria) 34-36 record. It was believed (again by Jeffrey Loria) that the Marlins were a playoff caliber team. The situation was compounded by a benching of superstar Hanley Ramirez and the ensuing public dispute between Gonzalez and Ramirez. (Photo Credit: Andres Leighton/AP Photo)

Rodriguez, in his eighth season in the Marlins organization, managed their AAA affiliate the New Orleans Zephers for the past season and a half. Rodriguez had spent two years as manager of Single-A Greensboro (2007-08), two as manager of the Gulf Coast League Marlins (2005-06), and two as hitting coach for Double-A Carolina (2003-04). Rodriguez also was part of the Tampa Bay organization, managing Rookie-level Princeton for three seasons (2000-02) and Class A Hudson Valley for one (1999). He played parts of three seasons with the Yankees and Padres from 1982-85. Rodriguez joins Juan Samuel as the 2nd Latino to be hired as a major league manager (Samuel is the interim manager for the Baltimore Orioles).

In terms of the departing Gonzalez, he has the most wins of any manager in Marlins history with an overall record of 276-279. After an overachieving 2008 season where the Marlins finished in 2nd place in the NL East with an 84-77 record, he was named The Sporting News' Manager of the Year.

As much as I hate to see a Latino lose his job, I'm glad to see that another one was chosen to right the ship. Felicidades Edwin, good luck.

FH

Curious Trivia Questions from Last Night

There weren't many game on last night and I saw two trivia questions that I found real curious and interesting. Here goes.

1. Which pitcher has the most wins for one franchise
The answer is Walter Perry "Big Train" Johnson. In 20 seasons with the Washington Senators (1907-1927), Johnson compiled a 417-279 record with a 2.17 ERA (WOW!!!!!!), 4913 Hits, 1363 BB, 3509 K's and a WHIP of 1.061. To make his numbers look even more astonishing, Johnson appeared in 802 games of which he started 666 and completed 531 of those games with 110 of those games being shutouts. Johnson had 10 consecutive seasons of 20 or more win seasons with his best being in 1913 when he was 36-7 with a 1.14 ERA with 232 Hits in 346 innings pitched. Johnson walked only 38 with 243 K's. Johnson started 48 games, completed 29 and threw 11 shutouts. Not surprisingly, Johnson won the first of his two MVP awards (1913 and 1924). Johnson is second in total wins just being Cy Young. Johnson was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in the inaugural class of 1936. His performance was truly amazing since in the 20 years he played in Washington, the Senators finished in 1st twice (1924/1925), in 2nd twice (1912/1913) and won only one World Series in two attempts (1924 against the New York Giants). Truly amazing.

2. Aside from the Arizona Diamonbacks, there are 4 other franchises that have not had a player win the regular season MVP award, who are they.
Myron and I sat there trying to guess who the teams were. I had guessed that at least two of the remaining four had to be part of the recent expansion teams. I chose the Florida Marlins and the Tampa Bay Rays. I also figured the Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals have never had an MVP and then I was stumped. I thought maybe San Diego or maybe the Milwaukee Brewers didn't have an MVP, but the answer truly surprised me: The New York Mets. The Mets have never had a regular season MVP.

Now I was a bit taken aback at that since I was sure that at the very least, the Mets would have had an MVP either in 1969 or 1986. But researching the MVP winners list, Willie McCovey won the award in 1969 and Mike Schmidt had won the award in 1986. Truly surprising indeed.

This Weekend's Pitching Performances

The impressive year of the pitcher 2010 keeps getting better with some real good performances this weekend.

Ubaldo Jimenez
Colorado pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez beat the Minnesota Twins to improve to 13-1 which is the best start by a pitcher since Roger Clemens started 14-0 in 1986. In doing so, Jimenez lowered his ERA to 1.15.

Jimenez became only the second pitcher in the last 80 years to win at least 13 of his first 14 starts. Besides Clemens, Lefty Gomez went 13-1 for the Yankees in 1932

Stephen Strasburg
Stephen Straburg pitched 7 innings giving up 4 hits, 1 ER striking out 10 with no walks in a no decision against the Chicago White Sox. Strasburg lowered his ERA to 1.86 for the season in a much more impressive performance against a much more potent lineup than the Pirates and the Indians.

Cliff Lee
Cliff Lee beat the Cincinnati Reds on a complete game 1-0 shutout. In doing so, Lee earned his fifth career shutout and his 16th career complete game. Lee struck out seven in a six-hitter hurling just 110 pitches while lowering his ERA to 2.55. Lee has pitched at least seven innings in 10 of his 11 starts this season.

Phil Hughes/Mike Pelfrey
When Hughes and Pelfrey faced each other Saturday, they each had nine wins and a winning percentage of .900 or better. The only time in baseball history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau, that two starters entered with better credentials was in 1900. Philadelphia's Bill Bernhard played host to Brooklyn's Joe McGinnity at the Baker Bowl. Both starters were 12-1.

Both pitchers played well with Hughes beating Pelfrey 5-3. Hughes held the Mets to three runs in seven innings Saturday to improve to 10-1 this season.

This victory leaves Hughes tied with David Price of the Tampa Bay Rays for most wins in the AL (David Price after Sunday's loss to the Florida Marlins is 10-3).

Jake Peavy
CG 2H. 2BB 7K's 1-0 against the Nationals

Colby Lewis
CG, 2H, 0 BB, 9K's 5-1 against the Astros

Jered Weaver
7.0IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 11K's against the Cubs

Hisanori Takahashi
6.0IP, 4H, 0R, 0ER, 2BB, 3K's Yanks (12 shutout innings against the Yankees in two starts)

Felix Hernandez
CG, 5H, 1R, 1ER, 1BB, 9K's against the Reds.

Josh Johnson
8.0IP, 6H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 9K's against David Price and the Rays. This was Johnson's 8th straight start where he allowed 1 run or less. During that time, Johnson has allowed 5 runs, 4 earned in 57 innings for an ERA of 0.63. Overall, his ERA for the season is 1.80.

C.C. Sabathia
8.0IP, 4 H, 0R, 2 BB, 6K's against Johan Santana and the Mets

Carl Pavano
CG, 4H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 2K's against Roy Halladay and the Phillies

Talk about an impressive weekend for the pitchers. Wow.
FH

You Know Its Bad For the Pittsburgh Pirates When...

Even the mascots start criticizing the Pirates. Now I normally wouldn’t comment on this but I think that it is indicative of how things are going with the Pirates organization and how their fans feel about the team. Christina Boyle of the New York Daily News reports in her article named Pittsburgh Pirate pierogi mascot fired for bashing team on Facebook page that Pittsburgh Pirates pierogi mascot Andrew Kurtz was dismissed for making disparaging comments against the team. Here are the comments that were attributed to Kurtz:

"Coonelly extended the contracts of Russell and Huntington through the 2011 season. That means a 19-straight losing streak. Way to go Pirates."

Frank Coonelly is the team President for the Pirates while Neal Huntington is the team’s General Manager and John Miller is Manager. This is a hierarchy that recently designated second baseman Akinori Iwamura for assignment after signing him to a $4.8 Million dollar deal in the offseason without subjecting him to a physical even though he came off of a major knee injury while with the Tampa Bay Rays. Not to mention, that the Pirates have an unenviable streak of 18 straight losing seasons.

I see how Kurtz and many Pirates fans feel. It seems as if the team wanted to get themselves a brand new stadium (which they did) and they just pocket the revenues instead of putting it back where it belongs: The Team. Look at last season, the Pirates started the fire sale around the same time of the year that we are in now even though the team was within striking distance of the N.L. Wild Card. The trades of Nate McLouth, Nyjer Morgan, Adam LaRoche (and later Jack Wilson, Ian Snell and Freddy Sanchez) to the chagrin of both players and fans. I think the comments made by fan Brian Korval on June 4, 2009 hits the nail on the head:

"It's disappointing," Pirates fan Brian Koval told WTAE Channel 4's Aaron Saykin outside the ballpark Thursday. "It's just another case of the Pirates dealing someone really, really good for what looks like an unknown quantity. It's just another case of them putting the dollar in front of the fan, in front of a winning team."

Maybe MLB should step in with the union in the same way they did with the Florida Marlins and “nudge” the Pirates to spend some more money (The Marlins signed starter Josh Johnson to a 4-year $39 Million dollar deal this past offseason). Their intervention would be pivotal since it is believed that the Pirates are not utilizing the Luxury Tax money to its proper usage. For more information on the Pirates and the Luxury Tax, click on this article named Pittsburgh Pirates: Luxury Tax lies and broken promises.

So what do you guys and gals think. Let me know.
FH

For Further Reading:
- Click Here for Christina Boyle's article in the NYDailyNews.com
- Click Here for the article from the Pittsburgh Channel describing the trades made by the Pirates in 2009
- Click here for the article from the Pittsburgh Channel highlighting fan views on the trades made by the Pirates in 2009
- Click Here to access the Forbes Magazine article on the value of the Pirates