Down Under!

Hello everyone, I hope you all had a great weekend. Other than Michigan football not showing up, I think I had a pretty good one. And now, it is time to write. 

Sometimes at work, I'll throw on an Australian accent just for fun, modeled after the soft spoken gem of golf announcing, Ian Baker-Finch.

G'day, loves.

It especially throws people off when I take money for parking; they'll drive up with their money in hand and they're greeted by a handsome young blonde man only to find out that he's Australian, too. Essentially the jackpot. I'll get really detailed sometimes, saying that I was born in Perth and a long time Perth Heat fan (even though I can't name a single player for the Heat). I always get a twinge of guilt knowing that I'm conning these fans into paying for parking (just kidding, they're paying either way), but it's a fun way to pass the time and I do think I have a pretty good accent. 

Okay, let me reel it in here and get back to baseball. I've always thought that the Aussie-American connection via baseball is unique considering Australia's dedication to rugby, football, Australian football, and cricket before America's pastime. I love that there is an Australian Baseball League! The Whitecaps manager this past year, Andrew Graham, is an Aussie and did quite a good job leading this young team. I think Graham would have aspirations to manage in the Big Leagues, and after all, managers have to start in the minor leagues just like the players do. This connection caused me to search Aussies on Baseball Reference. I was going to do a piece on the best Australian baseball player but other than Grant Balfour, reliever for the Rays, there really aren't too many to note (only 28 all time). But something caught me eye and reminded me of my work here in Grand Rapids. There has been only one Australian manager ever, and it was before baseball really began in my eyes (I consider the 1903 World Series the beginning of our modern baseball). 

He was a frightened looking bloke by the name of Joe Quinn, who was born in Sydney and made a career mostly as a player but also player/managed for two seasons. 

Quinn managed a half-season for the Browns and a near full season for the Spiders.

Quinn actually had quite a lengthy career as a player from 1884-1901, spanning from a ripe young age of 19 to age 36. He made his living primarily as a second sacker, though he also dabbled in the outfield positions and the hot corner later in his career, which is interesting because as a player ages, you would normally shift him to physically less demanding positions, such as the right side of the infield. That said, baseball was a much different game back then and I don't know much about Quinn's skill set. He was an inconsistent hitter, hitting above .300 in 1888 (.301), 1890 (.301), and 1895 (.314), but then averaging only .241 between 1891 and 1894. Interesting considering he was above .300, below .230 for three seasons, then right back up there. He was a decent base stealer, had a Jeter-esque slugging percentage, and averaged 73 RBIs per 162 games, which is actually quite astonishing considering 2nd basemen typically aren't RBI threats and the ball traveled about 100 feet off the bat at any given time back then. Through 1,769 career games, Quinn tallied exactly 1,800 hits (more than 1 a game!), 893 runs scored, and 796 RBIs. I think that is really impressive given his position, the quality of his teams, and that he was one of the first Aussies ever to play professional baseball in America.

His playing career was exemplary for an international ambassador of the greatest game ever played. His managing career - not so much.

After Quinn established himself as an everyday player on many different rosters (he played for at least 8 different teams, depending on if you count semi-pro leagues), he was called upon to manage twice in his career. Once was in 1895, when he had his offensive banner year, hitting .314 (172-547), but only going 11-28 as a manager in 40 games. 4 years later, Quinn had arguably the worst season a manager has ever had for the Cleveland Spiders, when they suffered a 12-104 record under Quinn's leadership.

The season began poorly for the Spiders, slipping to 8-30 under third basemen Lave Cross's management. Cross was removed from the team both as a player and a manager and Quinn took the reins (I assume begrudgingly given his past managerial record). Quinn led the Spiders in literally every single offensive category that year except for on-base percentage, when he missed that crown by only 3 points to outfielder Dick Harley. After an already dismal 38 games, things went from bad to about-as-bad-as-possible under Quinn, when the team won 10.3% of its games for the remainder of the season. 

Some of the lowlights for Quinn's Spiders of 1899: 

• They finished the season off at a 1-29 clip, including 0-7 in October.
• They allowed twice as many runs as they scored (1,252:529)
• Their longest win streak was 2 games (before Quinn managed them).
• The were swept in the season series against Brooklyn and Cincinnati, going 0-28.
• They were 5-69 in blowout games (run differentials of 5+).
• They finished 84 games back of the first place Superbas (Brooklyn). They finished 35 games back of the next worst team, the Washington Senators.
• 3 of the starting 9 fielders and 3 of the 6 starting pitchers never played a full season again. One of the pitchers to survive was German born Crazy Schmit, who went 2-17 in 1899.

In total, the Spiders went 20-134. Their starters' ERA was 6.57, including a 1-18 record from Frank Bates and 1-11 from Harry Colliflower (I can't even take him seriously). Outfielder Sport McAllister was called on to pitch in 3 games, where he allowed 17 earned runs (22 total) in 16 innings pitched. Shortstop Harry Lochhead also pitched in a game, giving up 2 runs in 3.2 innings (neither were earned). The weird thing is, the Spiders weren't even the worst defensive team in the league; the first place Superbas allowed 658 runs but only 69% of those were earned runs. It was a sad year for Spiders. I think that's what you get when your team name is the Spiders (raving arachnophobe here).

Joe Quinn's career managerial record was 23-132, a .148 winning percentage. When he was just a player, he was fine. When he was a player/manager, he stepped up his game (.300 average, 348 hits, 43 doubles in the two years he managed), but he just wasn't blessed with leadership skills. Let's hope that if Whitecaps skipper Andrew Graham becomes the second Australian-born manager ever, he'll have a little more success than that.

Thanks for reading. Hope Monday doesn't get to you too badly.

The Career of Jim Thome

Earlier this week, slugger Jim Thome called it quits officially after a 21 year career and waiting patiently on the free agent list for a few years for possibly another place to play. Thome, now at the age of 43, jumped around a lot in his career with a lot of different teams. He will officially retire as a Cleveland Indian as a sense of tribute; he played for the Tribe from his rookie year in 1991 to 2002 and then again briefly in 2011 at the age of 40. He also spent time in Minnesota, Philadelphia, Chicago (White Sox), and Baltimore. 

Thome hit the cover off the ball. That's what he'll be remembered for, plain and simple. His 612 career home runs rank 7th all time and he is one of 8 people to ever hit 600 professional home runs. Think about that: there have been almost 20,000 baseball players (18,334 according to BBR this morning) to ever suit up and play, from Julio Franco who played from 1982 to 2007 to Moonlight Graham who played one game in 1905 and didn't even register an at-bat (yes, the same Moonlight Graham as in Field of Dreams), and only 8 of them have ever hit 600 home runs. That's a small number.

But is it enough for the Hall of Fame?

The case for Jim Thome: 

• 612 home runs, 7th all-time, currently 4th out of Hall of Famers (5th once Griffey is inducted)
• .402 on-base percentage, would be 26th out of Hall of Famers, tied with Joe Kelley, and 26 points higher than the HOF average of .376
• .554 slugging percentage, would be 14th out of Hall of Famers, just behind Hank Aaron's .555, almost 100 points higher than the HOF average of .462
• .956 OPS, would be 12th out of Hall of Famers, just behind Johnny Mize's .959, 118 points higher than the Hall of Fame average
• 1,699 RBIs is 24th all time
• 1,747 walks is 7th all time
• His 162 game average of .276, 39 home runs, and 108 RBIs is on par with Frank Thomas (except for the average) and a bevy of other Hall of Famers
• 5 All-Star selections
• One of the nicest people to ever play the game

The case against Jim Thome:

• He struck out almost exactly once a game: 2,543 games played, 2,548 strikeouts (led the league 3 times)
• 2,328 hits would be between Barry Larkin and Eddie Mathews for 82nd in the Hall of Fame (and Thome didn't have as good of defense as they did)
• .276 average would be on par with Cal Ripken, Roy Campanella, and Harry Wright for 130th in the HOF, 27 points behind the HOF average
• Only 5 All-Star selections (yes it's on both lists, I can't decide where to put it)
• No MVPs, 1 Silver Slugger, no World Series rings 
• The upcoming crowded ballots.

Let Thome in! I think he's got the numbers. Sure he struck out a lot, but he was a home run hitter, that's what they do! He jumped all around the league and still slugged the cover off the ball. He hit 42 home runs at the age of 35 for the White Sox. I almost break my ankles getting out of bed every morning at 22, I can't imagine slapping 42 home runs 13 years from now.

Back to the crowded ballot: 

Thome will be eligible for the 2018 ballot, along with other stars like Chipper Jones, Johan Santana, Scott Rolen, and Andruw Jones - and if for some reason these guys don't get in their first time: Randy Johnson, Ken Griffey, Ivan Rodriguez, Vlad Guerrero, Pedro Martinez, then he'll have to fight them off too. Between the witch hunt for steroid users/sluggers in the era, a crowded ballot, and a shorter eligibility list (only 10 years on the ballot), it may be tough.

But 612 home runs! Plus the biggest home run at Progressive Field you'll ever see!

Let Thome in! 

How can you not let this pretty swing in?

Thanks for reading. 

The Unsung Hero

After the Indians beat the Tigers on a walk-off balk, I couldn't help but notice the one guy throughout the series that was the thorn in the Tigers' side: Michael Brantley. Brantley, who just turned 27 6 days ago, is known as Dr. Smooth to the Cleveland faithful, and though a lot of people don't know it yet, I think Brantley has the tools to win an MVP in his career. 

Brantley was born out in Washington state and was drafted originally by the Brewers in the 2005 draft right out of high school. As a young 18-year old in rookie ball

, Brantley hit .343 in 54 games (2 teams) with 28 walks and 16 steals. Each following year, Brantley found himself at a higher level of the game, and still hitting well. In 2006, he hit .300. In 2007, he hit .296. In 2008, he hit .319. It was getting better and better for Brantley, and then came a change of scenery.

Brantley's Brewers finished 83-79 in 2007, good enough for 2nd in the NL Central.  Deciding that the team needed more pitching to make that final push to the playoffs, they made a deal with Cleveland to bring ace CC Sabathia to Milwaukee in return for Matt LaPorta, Zach Jackson, Rob Bryson, and a player to be named later - which would eventually be Brantley. Indians GM Mark Shapiro was quoted in 2008 saying why he liked Brantley: "We like him because he gives us a combination of plate discipline, speed and athleticism."

Well, that's exactly what they got. 

Brantley has continued to hit at the Major League level, though not as torrid as he was in the minors - but keep in mind, he's only 27 and has been getting better ever since. Since 2010, his batting average has increased every single year, with the exception of '12-'13 when it dipped 4 points from .288 to .284 (still not bad). Currently, he is hitting .291 with 9 home runs and 33 RBI (as of May 20) and is slugging .515 - in a park that is routinely in the top 5 for pitcher friendliness (Progressive Field).

But let's look at the bigger picture. I said earlier that he has MVP capability - I don't mean by talent but by actual value. He's not as talented of a hitter as Pujols or Cabrera, there is no getting around that, but in terms of his actual value, he is right up there. Before play began today, the Indians were 21-25 and last in the AL Central. They are missing Jason Kipnis, Jason Giambi (trainer must not like dudes named Jason), their ace (Justin Masterson) is putting up aggressively average numbers and their new closer (John Axford) is replicating the exact behavior the Indians hated in their last closer (Chris Perez). Nick Swisher, a catalyst and leader, is hitting .211. Carlos Santana, another leader, is hitting .151. Shockingly low at this point in the season for hitters of this caliber. Michael Bourn, their best base stealer and leadoff hitter, has been suffering from a nagging hamstring injury and cannot steal bases nor play an effective centerfield. The wheels are falling off the bus in Cleveland.

Brantley is doing all he can to make that bus run again. 

This series against the Tigers, Brantley brought the thunder. There is no other way to put it. On Monday night, he walked off the Tigers in the bottom of the tenth. Last night, he went 1-4, and today was another dagger, going 4-7 with 2 runs and 3 RBIs on the way to beating the Tigers in 13 innings. According to my MLB At Bat app, Brantley is now hitting .302 on the season, the highest on the Indians. In wins, Brantley is hitting 98 points higher than in losses (.342 vs. 244).

If that isn't value, I don't know what is.

In other news, Don Kelly drew two walks and scored a run.

Thanks for reading. 

2014 Predictions: AL Central

The AL Central was a tough one to decide. A lot of teams are on the upswing right now and truthfully I think between the Tigers and Indians, it's anybody's race with the Royals playing an excellent spoiler. Give it a few years and I think we could see them at the top of the list here too. Here's what I have going into 2014:

1. Detroit 95-67
The Tigers went through a major facelift this offseason, removing some of their major power in Prince Fielder and acquiring more speed in Rajai Davis (45 steals in 108 games in 2013), a balanced attack in 3-time All-Star Ian Kinsler (.277, 15 steals, 13 home runs, 72 RBI's in 136 games). The bullpen, consistently the Tigers' worry for the past few years, was also revamped, signing closing stud Joe Nathan to two years as well as Joba Chamberlain to bolster the back end of the bullpen. Expect Bruce Rondon to pick up more innings as he hones his offspeed pitches in Florida. Jose Iglesias will be the every day human-highlight reel, locking down the middle infield with the sure-handed (sometimes) Kinsler. Under new management, April will be slow (when isn't it for the Tigers), especially with highly touted rookie Nick Castellanos starting at third, but Ausmus will right the ship and the league's best rotation will right the wrongs. 

2. Cleveland 93-69
Opposite of the Tigers, the Tribe will have their classic hot start, but they won't be as inconsistent as last year (2 5-game losing streaks, ending the season with a 10-game winning streak). Ubaldo Jimenez has gone to Baltimore, so that will put more weight on youngster Danny Salazar to perform well in his number two position. I can see him having a great year, between 15-20 wins and a 3.30 or so ERA. Chris Perez is also gone, which is honestly a blessing. Last season, he pitched in 54 games but only completed 25 saves. In addition, the bullpen lost submariner Joe Smith and Vinnie Pestano, but did pick up veteran hurler John Axford, who has been shaky as a closer to say the least. Pitching aside, the Indians can just plain hit. Last year they finished 4th in the AL in runs scored and that should only go up this year. Bourn is a demon on the base paths, and Kipnis/Cabrera both had down years (hard to believe .284 is down for Kip). Rumor has it Santana may move to third to give slugging Brazilian backstop Yan Gomes a shot at the everyday catching position. With the addition of David Murphy, Michael Brantley's extension, and Raburn holding down the right field corner, the Indians outfield crew is legit. With the veteran (and incredibly bro-tastic) leadership of Nick Swisher, Jason Giambi, and Tito, expect to see the Tribe in October. I would not be surprised with them win the division, but their rotation is an area of concern.

3. Kansas City 86-76
Another great young team that I think has an outside shot at the wild card, if not the division. Once the Royals hired George Brett as their hitting coach, they went on a tear and did not look back. With James Shields, Jeremy Guthrie and newly acquired Justin Vargas heading the rotation, their team ERA will be very good and bullpen will not have to do a lot of work, even if they do have All-Star Greg Holland waiting. Bruce Chen also always is a respectable spot starter, going 9-4 last year, and Danny Duffy will get the ball more often as well. On the other side of the ball, the Royals have one of the youngest lineups in the league. Eric Hosmer, Billy Butler, Mike Moustakas (coolest name in the league if you ask me) and Salvador Perez all are still under the age of 28, and Alex Gordon is reaching his prime and just turned 30 earlier this month. Omar Infante is the elder statesmen (hard to believe) of Kauffman Stadium, entering his age 32 season and coming off of an incredible .318/.345/.450 campaign in division-rival Detroit. The Royals are still very young and need a few more pieces to the puzzle, like an everyday right fielder. If their tablesetters do their job, then Hosmer and Butler will have a blast. 

4. Chicago 71-91
There is not a whole lot to be excited about on the South Side this year other than Abreu and Chris Sale. Adam Eaton is a great pick up from Arizona, finally securing an everyday center fielder who can get on base consistently, but they had to give up Addison Reed, leaving the back end of the bullpen exposed. Avisail Garcia will be the everyday right fielder, supplying a healthy balance of power and speed to the lineup. He still has a lot of maturing to do, but when he's grown into his absurdly athletic frame, he'll be fun to watch. Last year, the only pitcher that had a winning record was Jake Peavy, who is now in Boston wearing a big old championship. Sale went 11-14 still with nasty stuff, and a lot of that is in part of the lack of offense. Hopefully Abreu can help with that but with the infield essentially as a revolving door and Alexei Ramirez as the defensively worst shortstop in the league, the Sox won't be much of a threat.

5. Minnesota 69-93
Even less of a threat will be the Twins up north. If the snow ever goes away, they'll finally get to playing up in the beautiful Target Field. With Justin Morneau gone to Pittsburgh, Mauer will have a lot of pressure on his head and shoulders (please tell me you got the joke), but adding veteran Kurt Suzuki will help foster the rotation. Byron Buxton, one of the most talked about prospects in modern years, will probably make his debut, and let's be honest, the Twins don't have a lot to lose in the outfield so he might as well start every day. The rotation picked up Ricky Nolasco and Phil Hughes, both solid guys that won't be in the Cy Young conversation but will get 10-12 wins each. Legend Paul Molitor joined the coaching staff as well, so they have a recipe for success, but there still a few AAAA (players too good for minors but not good enough for majors) plugging the remaining holes such as Oswaldo Arcia, Chris Parmelee, and Aaron Hicks. Also, I will go on record that Glen Perkins is one of the best closers in the league, but he so rarely gets save opportunities so he can never really shine. I had him on my fantasy team last year and he was an absolute stud - 2-0, 2.30 ERA, 36 saves, and only blew 4. Gardenhire knows what he's doing and the Twins won't be in the cellar much longer, but this won't be the Twins year.