Travel Day
A costly call and red-hot playoff races were the big stories this week
A Disgrace
The old saying is that a picture is worth a thousand words. This picture is worth far more. As baseball’s television ratings continue their annual decline, falling so far behind football that if it were a fight the ref would step in and stop it, you need only look at this picture from Saturday’s Yankees-Orioles game to find one of the reasons for that decline.
Last evening I was flipping back and forth between the U.S. Open women’s final and the Niners-Packers NFL game. Separated by only a few minutes were questionable calls in both the NFL game and the women’s final. Serving in the third set down 6 games to 5 games to Serena Williams, Victoria Azarenka returned a ball that was called out by the linesman. The ball looked in to me, as it did to many in the crowd in Flushing as well as the announcers working the match on television. Azarenka challenged the call and those at home and at the match watched with intensity as the incredible technology that professional tennis uses for replays played on the screen. The ball was indeed out. Shortly thereafter Serena Williams rightfully won yet another U.S. Open. A few minutes earlier in the Niners-Packers game, a questionable spotting of the ball after a third down play was challenged by Niners head coach Jim Harbaugh. The replay confirmed that the referees had indeed spotted the ball correctly and the Niners were forced to punt. Justice was served and everyone playing and watching knew that the correct calls had been made in these events. That wasn’t the case Saturday night when what should have been a game tying play was called a game ending out, with Mark Teixeira clearly touching first base when the ball was four feet away from the first baseman’s glove. This wasn’t just a close call where a mistake was made, this was pure incompetence or chicanery.
MLB’s refusal to move into the 21st century and utilize the amazing technology that exists is not only frustrating, but damning to the sport and its credibility. Nobody wants to hear “those are the breaks”(there don’t have to be breaks created by crooked and incompetent officials), “the calls even out”(they don’t), or “they had their chances”(yes, both teams or players always have chances but if one has the advantage of crooked or incompetent calls then they obviously have an unfair edge). When I hear someone start to trot out tired old clichés in response to bad calls, my eyes glaze over and I wonder if they were raised very close to power lines or ate a lot of lead paint chips as a child.
Imagine if Azarenka’s critical shot was actually in, and that the linesman who had called the ball out in that match deciding game had altered the outcome. Imagine if Mario Manningham’s incredible catch in the Super Bowl had actually been ruled out-of-bounds and the Giants had lost. Would the fans of tennis and football have accepted those outcomes as valid and meaningful? The answer, of course, is no. Seemingly everyday MLB asks its fans to accept the outcomes of games with horrendously blown calls as valid. Even worse is the fact that several umpires are as well-known as the players whose games they call due to their constant poor level of performance. The umpire who blew the call this weekend, Jerry Meals, was the subject of death threats last year when he blew a call as obvious as the one he blew this weekend in a 19 inning game between the Pirates and Braves. Take a look at this disgrace from last season:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qtNmee3AKKI
Clearly Jerry Meals has issues with his eyesight or with his integrity and this particular blown call could very well cost the Yankees not only the AL East, but also the postseason.
Athletes should decide the outcome of professional sporting events, not officials or umpires. It is long past time that Bud Selig and MLB understood that.
Red Hot Playoff Races
If the playoffs began today here is what they would look like:
AL
The Oakland A’s would host the Baltimore Orioles in a one game playoff to determine who would host the Texas Rangers in the first two games of a best-of-three series.
The Chicago White Sox would host the first two games of a best-of-five series with the New York Yankees.
NL
The Atlanta Braves would host the St.Louis Cardinals in a one game playoff to determine who would host the Washington Nationals in a best-of-five series.
The San Francisco Giants would host the Cincinnati Reds in the first two games of a best-of-five series.
AL EAST
The AL East is an absolute war zone. The Yankees have a one game lead over the Orioles and a two game lead over the Rays. The Yankees start a three game series in Boston with the Red Sox on Tuesday while the Rays and Orioles battle each other in a three game series that also starts on Tuesday. The Red Sox have lost nine of their last ten games and this is an ideal time for the Yankees to put some breathing room between themselves and at least one of their two closest pursuers. The Yankees finish the week with a three game series in Yankee Stadium with the Rays while the Orioles head to Oakland for a three game series with the A’s.
AL CENTRAL
The AL Central could hinge on a four game series between the White Sox and Tigers that begins tonight in Chicago. The White Sox have refused to yield the lead in the Central to the Tigers, who were very heavily favored to win the AL Central at season’s beginning. The Tigers trail the White Sox by two games and it is very unlikely that either team will grab a wildcard spot as both teams have gone cold lately with the White Sox having lost seven of their last ten games and the Tigers having lost six of their last ten games. This series will have the feel of a playoff series between the two teams as it the last time they will meet in the regular season unless a one game playoff is necessary to break a tie.
AL WEST
The Rangers suffered another injury to a pitcher this weekend, with the latest one happening to Roy Oswalt. Despite this, the Rangers lead the West by 3 1/2 games over the A’s. The Angels have finally put it into high gear, having won nine of their last ten games, but still trail the A’s by two and a half games and the Rangers by six games. The A’s and Angels start a crucial four game showdown tonight in Los Angeles. It is the last time they will meet in the regular season unless there is a tiebreaker necessary. Texas starts a six game home stand on Tuesday composed of three games apiece with the Indians and Mariners. Texas has a great opportunity to put some more space between themselves and their pursuers this week.
NL EAST
The Nationals appear to be home free with a five and a half game lead with only twenty-two games left on their schedule. Strasburg being shut down shouldn’t affect what looks to be an inevitable division win. The only drama left in this division appears to be whether or not the Nats can nab the 1 seed in the NL over the Reds. The Braves don’t appear likely to catch the Nats, but look home free to grab one of the wildcard spots with a five and a half game lead over the Cardinals and a seven game lead over the Dodgers. In the absolutely unbelievable news category, the Phillies are not dead yet in the wildcard race. Recent hot play has left the Phillies trailing only the Cards, Dodgers, and Pirates for the last wildcard position. Although currently trailing the Cardinals by six and a half games, all three of the teams they trail are struggling mightily and facing tough schedules this week. Another hot week by the Phillies could make them the story of baseball and land them in striking position. Three games in Miami and then four games in Houston this week make it very possible for the Phils to continue their hot run.
NL CENTRAL
The Reds are going, going, gone in the Central and the return of Joey Votto has them giddy. Votto has gone 4-10 with five walks since returning to duty for the Reds last week. Sometimes things just fall into place and things are as good as they look and feel. That has been the story with the Reds this year, who are having an outstanding season and look to possess a great future as well. The Cardinals and Pirates continue to struggle in the race for the last wildcard spot, which the Cardinals currently lead by one and a half games over the Dodgers and two and a half games over the Pirates. Pittsburgh heads to Cincinnati to play the Reds in a three game set and then finishes the week with a four game series against the Cubs. St. Louis starts a seven game West Coast swing this week that begins with three against the Padres and ends with four games against the Dodgers.
NL WEST
No matter how many trades and acquisitions the Dodgers have made, they don’t appear capable of catching the Giants. The Giants continue to cruise along on a four and a half game lead and are firmly in control of the West. The Giants play four with the Rockies this week and then three more at home with the Padres. The Giants can deliver the knockout blow this week. The Dodgers have a brutal road trip this week against the two best teams in the National league. Three games in Washington are followed by three games in Cincinnati.
Posted on September 10, 2012, in Travel Day. Bookmark the permalink. 35 Comments.
Brian D.
fishjam25
jimmytoucan
Matthew B
Delia E.
Dan H.
Matthew S.
Michael P.
Mike D.
Today is also a PERFECT day, or near perfect, to compare Jeter to Rose.
Why you ask?
Jeter has 11791 plate appearances and today is 38 years 76 days old.
Rose had 11792 plate appearances, he was 38 years 75 days old
both players had off days on that day
Also, Rose’s game he had his 11792 plate appearance, was June 27th 1979, a day Jeter’s 5th birthday
This is just another very weird quirk in the karma of the universe that links Jeter to Rose
Jeter vs Rose at this very unique moment in time , when the stars of the universe line up near perfectly
Jeter—–Rose
Hits————- ——3279—————3258
ab————– ——10458————–10479
(rose has 18 catcher’s interfernce, jeter none, this puts walks, sacrifices, hbp, virtually equal added up)
doubles—————521—————-596
tripples—————–65—————-112
home runs————255—————153
extra base hits—– 841—————861
runs——————-1858————–1696
rbi———————1246————— 984
stolen bases——- 348—————- 143
average————–313.5399———310.9075
There we have it, Jeter ahead of Rose by 21 hits, at the same plate appearaces, and just 1 day older
(note Rose played a double header the next day on June 29, 1979 and had 2 hits combined).
How come everytime I go to the Jeter-Rose comparison, I find another quirk of Karma in the Universe?
Funny, I had a conversation about Jeter possibly catching Rose today with a friend. I don’t think he will. Not because he can’t, but because he won’t stick around hitting .250 just to catch Rose.
He’ll pass Mays this week, and probably fall short of Collins this season. Lets say he gets 28 more hits this season and ends the year at 3307. He will pass Collins and Molitor the first week or two of next year, and then sometime in August he’ll pass Yastremski, Wagner and Anson.
I’ll say he winds up with around 3477 at the end of next season. The following season he will pass Speaker, and perhaps pass Musial. I’ll put him at 3637 at the end of 2014. The following season I’ll say he passes Aaron at the end of the season and finishes that season with 3787.
At that point he’ll be 41 and as much as I’d like to think he’ll still be performing at the level he finds acceptable, I really don’t know if he will.
Now, if he decides he wants to catch Rose and the Yankees want to make him the DH or put him in the outfield, could he catch Rose in 3 more seasons? He’d need 150 hits a year for 3 years and I’m not sure thats doable at that age.
Now I have him at 170,160, and 150 hits in the next three seasons, which I am pretty sure he will play.
If he can beat that aggregate total of 480 hits over the next 3 years by 30 hits than he would only need 140 hits a year the next three seasons and maybe he could do that.
I just don’t see it happening. I don’t think Jeter will want to be a declining sideshow and take up a space on the roster just to try and catch Rose.
I predict three more seasons after this one, 3rd on the all time list behind Cobb and Rose, and that’s that.
I know it seems and sounds inpossible,…. but I truly believe Jeter will do it,….. of course, I have Jeter at 3308 at seasons end, 192 and 190 the next 2 seasons, putting him at 3690 after 2014. Then 4 more seasons at 170,150,127, and 120
But I think Jeter will continue to get his hits at a fast rate, and be close to breaking Rose before he severly declines, making it a fait de complait he will break Rose.
(a note befoire I go on—- Jeter having a lot more runs and RBI’S despit the more homer and more stolen bases, may be attibutable to the AL having the DH, and the yankees strong lineup over the years on the back end.)
Also, based on the same plate appearances, which happens to be within 1 day of the same age for the 2 players, Rose had played in 2578 game and Jeter 2564 games. So Rose just had to play in 14 more games than Jeter to get the same number of plate appearances, at the same exact age minus a day, despit the AL having the DH, which makes one scratch their heads as to the note above.
Rose had another 998 hits playing in 984 more games– over about 7 1/2 more seasons.
998 hits/984 games = 1.01423 hits per game
Jeters needs 978 more hits to break Rose by 1 hit
I truly believe Jeter can break Rose by doing it faster than Rose. speed, rate of hits, will be the key going out
Jeter’s career is averaging 1.27886 hits per game, and this season Jeter is averaging 1.38406 hits per game, and has played in every game but 2 this season
If Jeter plays the rest of his career at 1.15000 hits per game, he will need to play in 851 more games.
If Jeter plays in 20 of the final 22 games this season, he will need to average playing in 138.5 games a season over the next 6 seasons, at 1.15 hits per game
In 2013 and 2014, barring an injury, Jeter should be way above those average numbers,….. meaning he wont need to be as great in 2015,16,17,18
But I believe he will surpass those average numbers as long as he can, to get it done faster.
What I am talking about here is hits per games played. I really put average as a secondary statistic and here is why……
Each game you play, you have a chance to get a hit, a new day , a different pitcher, and new life at the plate.
There are only so many games a player is going to play. A finite amount of games to play, even though no one knows how many games a player will play in his career.
If a player plays in 150 games and averages 1 for 5 in those games, that is a 200 batting average, but it is also 150 hits.
Aside from Jeter and Cano, no Yankee this year will even get 140 hits probably.
I dont care what their averages are.
I have put up data showing in the past, championships in seasons are correlated to hits per game.
This same statistic, hits per game played in, is what I am looking at to get Jeter to Rose, as well as to get the Yankees another World Series championship.
I guess I was expecting more of a WOW FACTOR, upon my first post in this thread.
It is fairly weird how close Jeter and Rose are in hits , games, and at bats,…… at the same monet they are at the same plate appearances and same exact age, minus 1 day.
Maybe everyones at work.
I was not going to bring this up,….. but going into yesterdays game, the yankees had 666 runs,…… lol, the evil number,…. and they got 13 hits yesterday, another evil number, lolololololol
I do not know why I recognize quirks like this that come up
but I do.
i mean had 13 runs,……. almost had 13 hits, …as well, got 14, skewing the evilness just a bit
Derek Jeter would appreciate this, but I wont say why.
I need to finisdh this off one more way.
After Rose’s 17th season, 1963-1979, Rose had 3372 hits,….
We are talking about Jeter having mabe 3308 hits after this season, his 17th ( cannot count 95)
64 hits shy
Rose played 7 more seasons with hits of 185, 140* (strike year), 172, 121, 107, 107, and 52
You dont think Jeter can do that????? to the tune of 65 more hits,…. and do it faster than Rose did?
You are betting against the wrong person,…
Those hit numbers going out for Rose are pedestrian at best, albiet the 1981 strike season,…
I can not only see it it my mind Jeter will get Rose,…… I can not only see the moment in my head when Jeter gets Rose,…. at Yankee Stadium,….the game being stopped for maybe 30 minutes
Jeter can only hope 4257 is a home run,.. so he doesnt get overwhelemed standing on first base like Rose did
Rose at 4192 hits, dug up the base and took it home with him I think
He probably still got the base in his house, lol.
But I can simply see Jeter doing it
Looking at those numbers, and Jeter’s abilty to get a hit, and avoid hitless games,….. tells me, THIS WILL HAPPEN, and ha;pen faster than we think.
Really dude? Your obsession with this is getting creepy.
it is? i disagree,…… Jeter is maybe the best hitter of all time, when you break ikt down, in getting base hits,…
also, “they” want me to watch games on tv,… buy sports memorabilia,…. go to games,…… and buy the products advertised on tv and at the games,…… and be a bug fan,…
yet when a person becomes such a big fan, that “they” try so hard to cultivate,… all of a sudden it is a creepy obsession?
you are saying it is ok to root for the yankees, root for jeter, privately, in your own home, maybe among friends, but once it ius expressed publiucaly it has a negative connotation to it?
have you ever watched a yankee home game in your life?
der-ek je-ter,, der-ek je-ter,… evern in baltimore last night, the birth place of the babe
listen,…
fandom sometimes runs deep
you got the dog pound in celeland, people wearing indian head dresses in washington,…. you got jets fans painted green
you got baseball fans clammering for autographs and foul balls
you think my academic statistical analysis is creepy?
that is your opinion
no major sports business , organization, or league, is going to side with you
the money rolls in because of the FANDOM,..
HECK, YOIU CAN BUY A CHECY CXRUZE CAR IN YANKEES COLORS AND PINSTRIPES, .. YOU DONT THINK THAT IS CREEPY?
WRITE A LETTER TO THE BOARD AT GM AND TELL THEMN THAT
BUT DO NOT EVER COME AT ME AGAIN.
are you saying that because i am showing up professional writers like marchland ? and others?…
cause i actually take the time to look deep inside the numbers,.. ans come upo with stuff, that you dont get from idiots like marchland, that basicaly mail in columns that are drivel?
come on man
my analyses are unique, come out of famdom,….. and show up the idiot reporters that “they” use to cultivate the very fandom i express
jesus h christ
Jim24…
Don’t take this the wrong way, I love your stats but….
The only reason I have been on the side of other players is because of day in and day out is all we can read from some people is different ways to make Jeter look like the greatest hitter in baseball history.
Jeter has been one heck of a ballplayer and his hitting has to be the envy of all single hitters (He is not a HR hitter). Compare him to others of his skill set; Pet Rose (as you have), Rod Carew, Stan “The Man”, Tris Speaker and my favorite, Ty Cobb.
If his luck hold out, Jeter may go into the history books as one of the all time hits leader or, better yet…The All Time Hits Leader! Believe it or not if this happens before he becomes a Jones type player it would be great because he would be helping the team.
Jim, a bit harsh on an open sports blog isn’t it?
“BUT DO NOT EVER COME AT ME AGAIN.”
What ever, as they say now-days…keep up the good work
the person was defaming me,.. i had to resspond,…..
ARE YIOUI KIDDING ME? pete rose, he couldnt shine derek jeters shoes,.. ty cobb, ….. if ty cobb was in his prime today,.. this age and era,… you think he could hit this constant pitching, fastballs, changeups, curves, sliders, sinkers, cutters,. knucklers…..
premier piotchers, coming into games,… 2, 3, 4 a game, .. yo specially gert him out?
come on man
and cobb was a leftey
the only rigthtty ahead of jeter in hits iks aaron, and jeter will pass him
sinhles hitter?
i put up sdtats showing extra base hits per game played,.. that make even people like ted williams look useless
listen,….
it is all about hits
and jeter has hits, has extra base hits,.. all kinds of hits
I see your point Jim but, one thing you may have over looked.
Ty Cobb played in the dead ball era and stats any player would give a lot to come close to; Avg, SB, Hits OBP! I think he quit in 1929-30.
How many of the players today could hit the spit ball, the mud ball, the cut ball, the brush back pitches the head hunters plus the best pitchers in the world? I think they had 8 teams back then and one had to face guys like Cy Young, Walter Johnson, Wait Hoyt, Lefty Grove and Rube Waddell all HoF pitchers (I think) etc., every 3 days.
Those boys could really bring it. To-day in a 3 game set you may see the #1 or #2 pitcher but most of the time you miss one of them, back in those days , you would face the #1, #2 and the #3 guy in a 3 game set.
As Jeters name was brought up by some one else, I will respond. Hitting back in the ’20 was much different, as I said…with Jeters proclivity of diving into the ball…he wouldn’t make it though one season. I say this only because of the way he hits! One of those guys would put one in his ear…no hard hats back then. Talent wise he could be as good but, I don’t know if he would be as good, only because of the pitchers he would face and the change in the way he attacks the ball…he would have to change a lot.
Jeter could play in any era and be good, but some times the era one plays in is made just for you…welcome the late ’90s and 2000′s.
Again different day and different time in history…my opinion guys like Ty Cobb, The Babe and Lou could have played in any day and age in history and done as well or better than what they did back in the day.
funny how this so called cdead ball era kept producing 400 avg hit guys for 2 decades,
MAYBE THE PITYCHING SUCKED
EVER THINK OF THAT?
Maybe the hitters were not swinging for the HR ball all the time and were really good hitters back then?
I don’t know about you Jim but, I think pitchers like the ones I named, were damn good pitchers!
Ever think of that? lol
Have a good one to-day 9-11, a day to remember and like Pearl Harbor, never forgotten!
in the ’20s “Jeter wouldn’t make through one season” ?????
But Cobb and fat Babe, could have played any day???
Sounds like Jeter is being given thevshort stick again in a KenOR post.
Take it ti BFU………….Boston Fans Unite.
Please quit reading something that isn’t there jurk!
If you would comment on that which was written instead of making it out to be something you can twist agin. You take 1/2 a line to make it look like I wrote something other that I did.
“Hitting back in the ’20 was much different, as I said…with Jeters proclivity of diving into the ball…he wouldn’t make it though one season. I say this only because of the way he hits! One of those guys would put one in his ear…no hard hats back then. Talent wise he could be as good but, I don’t know if he would be as good, only because of the pitchers he would face and the change in the way he attacks the ball…he would have to change a lot.”
Where in there have I said anything bad about your boy Jeter? In fact, I haven’t made a derogatory remark of him for a while. I was pointing out a big thing he would have to over come.
For your information, The Babe was a very fast runner most of his playing years.You and others see photos of him and others like The Crow, etc., in his later years and think he was a fat guy that could only hit and walk around the bases…wrong!
I asked you to leave me alone, pleas do so!
Ken……good analysis on Jeter’s batting style and how it would work in other decades of baseball. Your knowledge of hitting mechanics must have helped you with the bat doing the fundamentals that the Yankees sorely need right now. Like hitting behind the runner, bunting etc.
Sorry Ken, Jeter has much more power then the wimps you listed..
Hrs per 162 career
Jeter 16
Rose 7
Speaker 7
Carew 6
Cobb 6
Jeter is a great singles hitter AND has 2x,3x more power than the other singles hitters.
Jim… How do you like my last post?
my words and the numbersspeak for themselves, i wont comment on peoples posts unless it adresses me, and negativley
this is for yankees fans to express their fandom
dont try to draw me into bs
if dereck jeterrt played in ty cobbs times, he would have 10,000 hitds
wake the heck up
yeahg , ‘ dont come back at me like that,… make a valid arguement, that id fair,…. vut to cakll a fans credibilty in question as to sanity,.. well, that waqs out of bounds
Jim24..
What did you write, I can’t make it out? To whom did you wish to address it? Hopefully it wasn’t me! lol
watch this, … the moment at riverfront stadium was great,.. the monment at yankee stadium near the end of the 2018 season is going to be sheer pandimonium
‘
watch this too
if a perdon like somewhere asbove kis coming on here asnd calling me out for expressing my fandon in stats,.. i’ll cal,l that person out exactly like i did
i say what i think as to the GAME,. not as to other fans beliefs
you think you can tackle me on stats, go right ahead
try to friggin preoves tedc williasms 1 extra base hit once evry 8 games above jeter, over the cvopurse of hisd career made a fuckin difference
jeters got 5 rings on his fibngers
howe many does ted friggin williasms havr
do the mathj
dig into the numberds
i say this out of frustration
how can so many yankees fans be against a persopn who is a fan of jeter?
the boston sxtrangler,… now that is a person you can question the sanity of,….
just becausae i PROVED, BEYOND ANY DOUBT,…. JETER IS AHEAD OF ROSE IN HITS , BY BOTH AGE AND PLATE APPERANCES, AT THE SAME MOMENT IN TIME
AND BELIEVE JETER CAN BREAK PETE ROSE
DOESNT MAKE ME A CREEP OR WHAT I AM SAYING CREEPY
FROM TIME to time we get columnisys writring similiar things
we getr debates on espn aboput it
\Francesa on WFAN talks about it with callers
you going to call med out on it?
jesus h christ
Ghost Joe – you were right about Girardi ……. He has been acting like such a lunatic…….besides the questionable strategies between the lines…….how much more of this can mgt and the fans stand of this:
1. Rude condescending press conferences
2. Shouting match with Joel Sherman because Sherman asked a question Joe already answered
3. Going ballistic on a correct fair foul call by an ump and getting thrown out
4. Doing nothing on an incorrect call of Tex at first base
5. Chasing a fan who interrupted an after game interview
I said in this column that MLB’s calls were going to hurt.
Mike you could also have predicted that the sky was going to be blue tomorrow lol
Or that Teixeira will strand a small army this weekend!
“Leave my Teixy alone. He has a great smile, a nice attitude & overall he’s a great guy.” -Fangirl who hopped on the bandwagon during the 2009 season