At the risk of interrupting the glorious tension of competing partisan ideologies, I must pause to take to task ESPN baseball analyst Tim Kurkjian, who last night on “Baseball Tonight” joined the growing chorus of east coast writers (see also Jayson Stark) who gives the edge for NL MVP to the New York Met’s David Wright — with the Rockies Matt Holliday “in the top 4 or 5” (Kurkjian and others place the Phillies’ Jimmy Rollins and the Brewers’ made-for-TV power hitter, Prince Fielder, ahead of Holliday but behind Wright).
Kurkjian’s argument seems to be that the Rockies won’t make the playoffs and the Mets will, and on that count he’s probably correct — though of the two teams, the Rockies are the ones playing well at crunch time, while the Mets are struggling to hold off the Phillies after building up a big first half lead in the division. And record-wise, the Mets have won only 4 more games than the Rockies heading into today.
But what Kurkjian neglects to factor in is that the Rockies, given the uneven schedule, play more of their games in the NL’s toughest division — the West — which features not only the NL’s best starting pitching (with San Diego, LA, and the Giants) but also its best relief pitching. Which means that Matt Holliday has to face the Jake Peavys and Brad Pennys of the world more often than his Eastern division counterparts on the Phillies and Mets, who face the Marlins and Nationals and Pirates (and, in Wright’s case, the Phillies bullpen) most often. More than that, the Rockies slim playoff hopes do not mean they aren’t playing meaningful games: currently third in the wild card race and in a good position to sweep a four game set from the Dodgers, the Rockies, should they win this afternoon, will have effectively knocked LA out of the playoff race. And of course, there is no guarantee either the Phillies or the Brewers will make the post season, either (in the Brewers case, even if they do, they are likely to do so with a worse won-loss record than Colorado) — making Kurkjian’s ranking of Rollins and Fielder over Holliday that much more incomprehensible.
In the past 12 games during the playoff push, Holliday has hit 11 homeruns. He leads the league in average (.341), doubles (48), hits (205), runs batted in (131) and total bases. He is second in OPS (behind Chipper Jones) and slugging (behind Fielder). He is third in runs (behind Rollins and the Marlins’ Hanley Ramirez, tied with the Mets’ Jose Reyes). His 36 home runs place him 4th in that category behind Fielder (47), the Reds’ Adam Dunn, and Ryan Howard (40). He’s also stolen 11 bases.
Additionally, Holliday is hitting over .300 on the road — and Coors Field, long considered a home run hitter’s park, ranks 8th in home runs surrendered, behind (among others) Citizen’s Bank Park in Philadelphia.
A look at the stats (AB, R, H, 2B, 3B, HR, RBI, SB, CS, BB, K, AVG, OBP, SLG), in Kurkjian’s order (leaders among the MVP candidates bolded):
David Wright:
556 103 175 38 1 30 102 31 5 89 112 .315 .409 .549
Prince Fielder:
543 102 158 33 2 47 112 0 2 76 111 .291 .388 .619
Jimmy Rollins:
672 129 197 36 18 28 88 37 6 48 81 .293 .344 .525
Matt Holliday:
600 112 205 48 5 36 131 11 4 57 115 .341 .405 .615
From where I’m sitting, the clear MVP is Matt Holliday, who has helped the Rockies make the transition to a winning team and a legitimate playoff threat — one still in contention despite losing 3/5 of their starting rotation, and then losing 2 of their replacement starters and their leadoff hitter. It would be a shame, then, if east coast writers who carry the majority of the votes give Holliday the shaft so that they can reward one of their own — particularly if they haven’t done their homework.
Remember: Holliday was voted into the All-Star game by his peers, receiving more votes than any other player.
It’s time these supposedly knowledgeable baseball people, who spend most of their time pushing the same 5 or 6 players every year, realize that the humidor has turned Coors Field into an average home run hitters park, and that the numbers being put up by Holliday are not only legitimate, but are clearly worthy of garnering him the NL MVP award.
And thus ends the rant.
Discuss. Or not.
I tellsya, if the Rockies would figure out how to beat the bad teams too, they would be a force to be reckoned with. I watched them dismantle both the Bosox and the Chokees (yes, I’m from Boston) this year, and then get swept by teams like San Francisco. This makes zero sense.
Jeff, esplain why? And I agree that Halliday should get the nod. I’m not sure Wright would be given consideration if he was playing anywhere other than NY.
Funny you should write on this. I was just looking at the numbers a few days ago and saying “Man what a year Holliday is having and nobody’s talking about him for MVP.”
If Chase Utley doesn’t break his hand and miss a month he’d be in the mix. Looking at the numbers, here’s my ranking:
Holliday (clearly the best year of anyone)
Rollins (remember, he’s putting up those numbers as a leadoff hitter and has played a superior shortstop)
Wright (He is a stud)
Chipper Jones (He carried the braves when Andruw Jones was pushing the mendoza line)
Utley(would have had 60 doubles and led the league in total bases without his injury)
Fielder
At first, I was going to scoff at your assertion. However, you made a very compelling supporting argument, and I am now of a mind to agree with you, save for one point: Regardless of how they play at crunch time, division winners (and even wildcards) are going to be a powerful argument in favor of the players who help get them there. Any veteran baseball writer would, I think, have to swallow a bit hard in order to cast a vote for a player whose team will sit October out.
I totally don’t have a dog in this hunt, but for MVP in all sports I always pull for the guy whose team’s season would have been hurt the most if he hadn’t been there, so the way I see it the team has to make the playoffs for a guy to be the MVP. My logic being: if they don’t make the playoffs the team’s season wasn’t substantially more successful with Holliday than it would have been without him so he can’t be the most valuable.
That’s my take, but I know most people disagree with me on MVP criteria. I hate that pitchers never get considered in baseball and the NFL has always driven me crazy with only nominating QBs and RBs. I mean take the 2000-2001 season. What sane person thinks Marshall Faulk was more valuable to his team than Ray Lewis that year?
A large part of sportswriterdom doesn’t think there is any sport played west of the Alleghanies…
But then again, it has been proved that the baseball world revolves around an axis running down through Yankee Stadium, right?
In any case, god bless the Rox for finishing off the gdmf Dodgers.
Funny, but Rollins numbers track closely (though on the plus side) with those of Rockies shortstop Troy Tulowitzki. And it’s already been decided that he won’t be the Rookie of the Year, because Ryan Braun has 31 dingers (and a .897 fielding percentage. But nevermind that).
Meanwhile, the Rockies are in the process of blowing a 7-0 lead in the 7th. It’s now 7-4, after Hurdle once again brings in Matt Herges, who has retired no one in his last 3 outings.
Sean —
Personally, I think it’s silly to insist a candidate’s team make the playoffs — though I do think he needs either to set some sort of major record, or else the team remains competitive. Going into the last 10 games of the season, the Rockies are still in the race.
David Wright is a great player. But he’s helped by playing in New York for a team with a payroll that dwarfs that of the Rockies. They were expected to win the NL west. The Rockies were picked last, with the over under on wins at 74. They’ve already won 80 this year.
Without Holiday, they are looking at 70 wins maybe.
Yeah, but he leads in K’s. That should count for something. I say he’s a shoo-in.
if alphie were still with us, he’d find some way to blame this on Bush.
Jeff,
I do think Kurkjian has said he’d Tulo over Braun for ROY.
Other than that, I had that skinny dipwad (Kurkjian) with the fire of a thousand hells. He, Theismann, and Vitale need to get together and re-enact the “Day the Music Died”.
The fact that 60% of the Rox starting lineup is on the DL, Josh Fogg & Elmer Dessens are being counted on for stretch run pitching, and LaTroy Hawkins is still being given the ball with fair frequency increases Holliday’s degree of difficulty factor exponentially. The fact that the Rox are still in it at this point (regardless of how unlikely) should make Holliday the run-away winner.
Please fire Grady Little.
Thanks,
The Dodger Fans
Just heard the guy on Sportcenter doing the Rockies highlights. He actually took time out to editorialize against Holliday as MVP — because he hits more home runs at home than on the road, and hits for a higher average at home than on the road.
As, of course, do most players.
And that’s to be expected, too. Holliday sleeps in Colorado. He trains there. He plays more games there than anywhere else, and knows the hitters backdrop. That translates into more relaxed at bats.
But as I pointed out above, he’s hit over .300 on the road — much of that in parks like Petco, Chavez Ravine, or the House that Bonds’ HGH Built.
With one dismissive quip, this Sportscenter face dismissed a guy who can hit a homerun out of any park in the majors on a consistent basis. Did he not see the 475′ shots at the home run hitting contest during the all-star game festivities?
But what really pisses me off about such editorializing is that you never hear the same kind of thing when Ryan Howard hits 58, or Dunn hits his 40 + — despite the fact that they play in far better home run hitting parks. How many home runs did Jimmy Rollins hit before the move to the new ballpark in Philly?
These sportscasters are so busy pimping the same players and teams over and over again — the ones that drive marketshare — that they haven’t bothered to do their homework.
And it’s embarrassing, if you ask me. ESPN is in coast mode. Maybe if their anchors spent more time learning about the game and spent less time polishing their stupid nicknames or their pop-cult-salted home run calls, we wouldn’t have to hear about the same handful of players and teams all the fucking time.
Really. It’s a shame.
Jeff,
If you want to enjoy some quality ESPN/sportswriter bashing from a baseball perspective, I highly recommend http://www.firejoemorgan.com . They are extremely well informed statistically and consistently hilarious.
Enjoy!
MVP awards only matter if you want to argue about something. And pitchers don’t get them because pitchers have their own awards, named after a pitcher who holds the record for most career losses (at least he did a few years ago when I actually watched baseball.) I’m sure it’s nice to have something for the boys at Coors field to hang their hats on during the Autumn months, but in the end it’s only the World Series that matters. And even then, only if you win it.
I agree with your analysis. I also think the MVP should go to the player who is actually most valuable, not the most valuable player on a contending team, or most valuable player on a team that contends but doesn’t dominate so thoroughly that they would’ve won anyway, the way some in the media would have it. The BBWA can go ahead and have their MVPOCT or MVPOCTTCBDDSTTWWA vote; my MVP is either Hanley Ramirez or Jake Peavy.
To be more clear, I don’t think they absolutely have to make the playoffs, but if they don’t then I think the candidate needs to have a clearly dominant season to beat out the other contenders. If a guy sets a record, wins the Triple Crown, bats .400, or even just clearly outperforms the rest of the league then I don’t care if he plays for the D-Rays, give him the MVP.
I’m just saying when it’s debatable who had the best season I think the MVP needs to make the playoffs. Say the Rockies make it. With Holliday they’ve got a shot at the World Series, without him they’re sitting at home like everyone else. If the Rockies don’t make the playoffs Holliday’s the difference between a pretty good season and an average season, but either way they’re not playing in October.
ESPN can’t back Holliday — wrong market, wrong time zone for the Eastcoast Sports Pimping Network. I’m stunned they consider Rollins, whose way out in Philadelphia!
That was very interesting. I think it’s going to take a few more years of humidor balls before people respect Rockie’s offensive stats and stop discounting them. I agree that the “contenders only” thing is probably a bit over done but completely disagree that the Rockies ever were one. Not for one second did they have a chance. Change your pipe blend Jeffy, ’cause this one is muddling your mind a titch too much. My vote goes to Rollins. (Or Peavy, yeah, that’s right). Rollins has been brilliant all year, a raer combination of power and speed from a top defensive SS who’s done without his partner for a major stretch.
Fire Joe Morgan? Strap him to Miller and put them both in a fucking cannon. Morgan makes one thing abundantly clear, you don’t “have” to understand the game to play it well and you don’t “have” to have a brain to talk about it. The most amazing thing about their broadcast is that Miller can make his words intelligible with all that Morgan cock in his mouth. Unless Joe’s hung like a hamster. Then I’m not so impressed.
Sweep!
Made the long haul into Denver for the doubleheader and again yesterday. Wish we could have been there today, but I was too whacked from back-to-back 200-mile roundtrips to deal with the friggin’ mess on I-25 North yet again. Glad to see they did it without us though. They’re not in the playoffs yet, but if you’re going to get hot once during the year this is a good time to do it.
Close those italics, dang it!
What do you mean the Rockies never had a chance, Commander0? They are, what, 1 game back of the Phillies in the wild card (thanks in part to a grand slam that was taken away from them in Philadelphia)? I’m not the one who needs to check his pipe.
And if you want to talk about rare combinations of speed and power, try Hanley Ramirez, who’s had a better season than Rollins. And of course, Wright, who trails Rollins by only 7 steals or so. If the game is about runs, Rollins deserves votes, given that he leads the league in scoring them. But Holiday is third in that category, and leads the league in runs batted in. And that’s having lost the two speedsters in front of him, Willy Tavares and Kaz Matzui, for a good portion of the year.
One person not mentioned by any of the experts who deserves consideration (so long as we’re talking about speed and power) is Eric Byrnes of the Diamondbacks. On an overachieving team winning with smoke and mirrors, he deserves a bunch of votes.
Holliday’s OPS is top two in the league. His OBP is over .400. And the Rockies are as much in the race as are the Phillies. And the Phillies play 81 games in one of the majors bandboxes.
Hell, I’m not even sure Rollins is the Phillies MVP. Utley should certainly get some consideration for that honor — as well as Pat Burrell, who’s been a monster in the second half.
Had San Diego not gotten ridiculously hot and put together a 7 game winning streak — had they gone, say, 5-2 over that stretch — the Rockies would be 2 1/2 out of the wild card with 3 upcoming in SD.
Never had a shot? Jesus. The Diamondbacks are leading the division, and on paper they shouldn’t even have a winning record.
Holliday is leading in 2 of the 3 triple crown categories, and is in the top 5 in every major offensive category save triples and stolen bases.
He’s out hitting, out homering, and out producing Hanley Ramirez, who leads him by only a few runs scored out of the leadoff spot. So in what conceivable world can Ramirez be MVP over Holliday, who is hitting .380 with 11 home runs this September in the midst of a playoff race?
And besides, what about Miguel Cabrera?
Re: Holliday: he has 11 more RBI than the next closest guy (Ryan Howard) and roughly 20 more than the next legit MVP candidate (Fielder). He’s nearly 30 ahead of David Wright, and 40+ ahead of Rollins (by the way, Troy Tulowitzi is hitting higher than Rollins, has had a better season at short, has more RBI hitting mostly out of the 7 hole, and has been an acknowledged team leader. Go figure. But I digress). Holiday trails Rollins in runs scored by 17 (in 72 less at bats).
And this run production on a team where Garrett Atkins has 103 RBI, Brad Hawpe 101, Troy Tulowitzki 90, and Helton 85 or thereabouts. So there are plenty of others picking off potential RBI from Holliday.
Peavy is 18-6. Ron Guidry, by comparison, was 25-3 in 1978 with a 1.78 ERA and didn’t win the MVP.
Jeff Francis of the Rockies, by comparison, is 16-8, a two game difference. Aaron Harang is 16-4 — a better wining percentage than Peavy’s. And you people really think Peavy deserves MVP consideration over everyday players?
You need to get your brains checked.
Sorry BBR, ESPN has been very fond of Philadelphia: when they still did hockey, it looked like they showed the Flyers every time they weren’t showing the Rangers. They cover New York, Boston, and Philadelphia; then off to LA. Flyover country? Forget it.
I think Andre Dawson got MVP for the Cubs one year that they were dead last in their division; the mind boggles.
No, el Jeffy, they never had a chance. They don’t have a chance and they never did. Henley Ramirez is an out and out clank in the field so as far as I’m concerned he’s out. Also his team sucks.
I didn’t say Holliday wasn’t deserving. What I said was that the Rockies are going to endure a few years of having their O stats discounted. Given your citation of how great the rest of the hitters are this may well be justified. Great hitting that never wins, hmmmmmmm. Equals cheapened stats to me.
I know you are way too smart for that Guidry thing. Different eras. Didn’t a reliever for the Tigers win the MVP once upon a more recent time? Yes, one did. It’s not Peavy’s fault his hitters can’t hit.
Picking off potential RBIs? Utter bullshit. A solid lineup is an exponential function, runs aren’t a zero sum thing.
And let me say this again. The Rockies never had a shot. I am utterly dispassionate about the (Inter)national League and they will finish right where I expected them to. Exceptionally mediocre in an incredibly mediocre crowd. Some day they will grow a few pitchers, I think, but by then they will have probably lost their hitters.
Explain. Just insisting it’s so is not very convincing, I’m afraid.
Never winning? They are 9 games over .500 and have one of the best records in baseball since mid-May. This despite injuries that have left Josh Fogg as their number 2 starter. Call me crazy, but I’m thinking that having a pitching staff consisting of 2 rookies, Mark Redman, and Elmer Dessens has more to do with the problems, such as they are, that the Rockies have had with winning this year. And of course, the Phillies have the same kind of hitting stats — with worse pitching.
So great offensive numbers from a number of players, I should think, is to be expected from the two top offensive teams in the NL. Being the best offensively cheapens offensive stats? Interesting argument, but not one I’d bet the farm on. After all, they have to play other teams, rights? And they have outscored those other teams by close to 70 runs in head to head matchups — while ranking 8th in the NL in pitching and first in the majors in defense (and close to setting a record for team fielding percentage).
Huh? Different eras? What does that have to do with anything? Yes, a Tigers reliever won an MVP award in ’84. And I think Eck won one as well in the early 90s. What’s your point? That doesn’t make Peavy any more deserving, or Guidry any less so. In fact, the last NL pitcher to win an MVP Award was Bob Gibson in ’68, while in the AL, Denny McClain won in ’68, Vida Blue won in ’71, and Rollie Fingers won in ’81 — pretty much sandwiching Guidry. Given that Willie Hernandez won in ’84, and Eckersley in ’91, Guidry’s 1978 season was far more likely to win the award than Peavy’s, having fallen 3 years before Fingers’ and 6 years after Blue’s. And yet at 25-3 with an era of 1.78 and 248 K, he didn’t win it, despite garnering every first place vote.
The runner up in the Cy Young that year? Mike Caldwell with 22 wins and an ERA half a run higher.
Sorry, but a few games out of the wild card playing meaningful games in September is not “mediocre.” In fact, the team with the most wins in the NL — Arizona — has only 5 more than the Rockies.
I don’t know where you “expected them to” finish. Me, I predicted, here on this site, 85-88 wins and a surprise chance at the wild card. Vegas predicted 74 wins. The Rockies are sitting at 81 wins with 9 games left. Should they lose all nine — a possibility, given the difficulty of their remaining schedule and the way their pitching staff has been held together with spit and duct tape — then they will have had a mediocre season.
And I think it was an 83 win-NL team that last year won the World Series last year, so I wouldn’t be too quick to dismiss the NL. Still, I invite you to check out the Rox record in interleague play (including a 3-game sweep of the Yankees, and victories over Beckett and Schilling) over the last few seasons.
And just so you know? The Rox have 4 of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball in Jimenez, Morales, Reynolds, and Jason Hirsh. Hirsh and Reynolds were injured this year, forcing the call-ups of Jimenez and Morales, who are both pitching in the Rockies rotation. Ask around about Jimenez’ stuff. And hitting-wise, the Rockies are so deep organizationally that fans in Colorado are trying to run Helton and Atkins out of town.
As for the “exponential function” thing, whatever. There are only so many baserunners out there, and once they are driven in, they are driven in. So we’ll just have to agree to disagree on that bit, too.
Jeff, you have to know what Clint Hurdle was thinking when the Sky Sox’ season ended..
“I can haz 9 relief pitchers in one game?”
Kidding aside, despite how impressed I am with how the Pebbles have kept grinding this season despite the injuries, I don’t think they’ll make it unless San Diego does a massive choke job. The Padres are playing lights out right now.
As for Matt Holliday, the numbers don’t lie–when he hits, the Rockies usually win. (And Tulowitzki is going to get jobbed for ROY despite his off-charts fielding percentage and solid, clutch hitting) That in my book is good enough for MVP– Cal Ripken won the award on a horrendous last place Orioles team in 1991, for god’s sake, because he was clearly the only reason the O’s didn’t lose 140 games that year.
Guy in flyover state (but kinda near Boulder which I hear is OK) wants his hometown guy to be named MVP.
Ha.
Sure.
Video at 6PM Eastern.
Do the Rockies play Notre Dame? I rest my case…
Kurkjian just relented a bit on “Baseball Tonight,” saying Holliday could win the MVP even if the Rockies don’t make the playoffs. My guess? He reads protein wisdom.
— Well, that, and 11 homers in 12 games opens a few eyes, even coming out of the Mountain time zone, I guess.
And yeah, the Pads and Phils are both playing lights out. But the Rocks have won 5 in a row and 7 of 9 themselves. They have to pretty much run the table from here — and tomorrow they get Peavy. Hurling for the Rockies? A 21-year old rookie who spent most of the year at AA.
Fortunately, he can throw 94-97, so we have a fighting chance, should he not come completely unglued control-wise.
The MVP discussion is interesting. Take it to somewhat of an extreme, if the winner must be of more value to his team than anyone else is to their team, then there will be 14 candidates in the AL – 1 from each team (the teams best player). Which one of those 14 is the winner? Is it the one who is clearly the best on his team by a large margin in the RBI, BA, HR, Runs categories? If so, then put a great player like A-Rod (for sake of argument) and put him on a shitty team like Kansas City (for sake of argument) and he’ll win MVP every year – he’d be so much better than every one on the team. Seems a little ridiculous. At some point you have to compare the candidates’ stats to each other, look at how his team finishes and why they finished where they did.
Oh, almost forgot…Go Astros!!! Next Year.
Jeff, a good argument that’s only slightly disfigured by your CRAVEN CHEATING! How is it in your stat blocks that Holliday’s .615 slugging average is bolded above Fielder’s .619? Your curveballs may not hang, but your chads sure do…
Ahh, you’re just writing about this to avoid covering the debacle in Iraq.
Sorry, someone had to say it and John Cole hasn’t been here all day.
I think Veeshir wins Most Valuable Commenter in this thread.
Jeff, re #27 on Guidry — he did not garner every first place vote, unless you meant for Cy Young. Rice won 20 of 28 MVP first place votes, due in large part to the love of the RBI, and his playing in Fenway.
Seems Fielder’s slugging percentage is marginally higher than Holliday’s. Holliday’s had the better year, though, in most respects.
Jeff:
Was Jimenez that kid who threw against the Phillies? If so he has filthy, nasty, wicked lights-out stuff. Larry Anderson does color for the Phils and I thought he was going to have an on air orgasm talking about that kid. Crap, he hit 100-101 on the gun 7 or 8 times with a nasty 88 MPH slider.
I like Tulowitz a lot and he is getting jobbed for ROY but he hasn’t outplayed Rollins at SS. The one thing Rollins has going for him is that he was the one consistancy in that lineup other than Aaron Rowhand (who is having a career year.) The Phils, in addition to surviving with the NL’s worse pitching staff, have had to make do with significant absences from Howard, Utley, Victorino and Ruiz, the utter bust at third base that was Wes Helms and Pat Burrell’s horrific first half. He’s played every game, has played a tremendous shortstop. Without him the Phillies today would be as irrelevent to the playoffs as Cindy Sheehan’s image consultant. Both Rollins and Tul. suffer from being in the league with a surplus of excellent shortstops.
Mets blew a three run lead in the ninth to lose to the Marlins(?!) and are only 1.5 games ahead of the Phils. Phils lead the majors with 48 (I think) come from behind wins which means their horrific bullpen has managed to close out games.
Regardless, the best everyday lineup in the NL is a pick ’em between the Phils and the Rocs. Nobody in the AL wants to pitch to either of those teams, at home or on the road.
The Rox have 4 of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball in Jimenez, Morales, Reynolds, and Jason Hirsh.
Wishful thinking on Hirsch. I’ve watched him come up with the ‘Stros, and his stuff is just too mediocre. Big strong kid with a “meh” fastball and “less-than-meh” breaking stuff.
Which is not to say the future isn’t bright in Denver.
Meanwhile, in Houston, our Old White Owner and Old White Baseball Guru just interviewed 8 candidates for GM, including young and fresh and smart minority candidates like rising star Ruben Amaro, Jr., and hired…the oldest, whitest, retread, non-winner we could find who was old friends with the Old White Baseball Guru. The guy who sent Schilling and Francona packing to win a WS with the Sox. By the time we fire this schlub in four years, Amaro will be running the Yankees.
But yeah, I saw Baseball Tonight and Kurkjian’s backtrack. I think we’ve got a Secret Goldsteiniac in Bristol!
Holliday has tuberculosis, how can ANYONE advocate a lunger for MVP?
Its crazy.
I’m a Cubs fan and completely dislike everything about the Rockies except for Helton’s chin raccoon. That being said, there’s no reason Holliday should not be selected for MVP. If 4 or 5 more of his absolutely crushed doubles and triples went out there would not be a discussion. While David Wright is impressive, I have not seen a player this season that so consistently destroys the ball while hitting for average and being good in the field. The only reason he’s not getting more coverage is A)he doesn’t play for a NY team and B)he plays at Coors field
BJ — Yup, that’s Jimenez. He’s still raw, but when he’s getting his breaking stuff over, he’s ridiculous. His slider has hit 92, and he throws a cutter at 88-90 to supplement a nice low-eighties changeup and a big mid-seventies 12-6 hook.
Benjaminthomas —
Yeah, I was talking about Guidry being a unanimous Cy Young winner. Caldwell and I think Jim Palmer finished way behind. And Rice took MVP (with Guidry second that year).
BBR —
Yeah, Hirsh’s fastball seemed meh, but word is he was throwing it harder in the minors — up to 96. The fact that he’s been pitcher of the year at every minor league stop gives me great hope — though his biggest problem this year was wildness inside the strike zone, and falling in love with his changeup (which is really, really good when he’s on). But he needs to get stronger so he doesn’t pace himself and throw 88-90 when he’s capable of hitting 94-95. Like Jimenez and Morales, he’s still raw, and could’ve used another half season at AAA. But he has show flashes of brilliance.
I’m cautiously optimistic. But I’ll take a starting rotation of Francis, Cook, Jimenez, Morales, Hirsh/Reynolds (Reynolds underwent surgery in mid-season and probably won’t throw again until April. Still a year away — though if healthy, he could be a mid-season call-up. A number one pick — big kid, dominated AA).
And the stud we picked up this draft is already completely overmatching everyone in the minors. A reliever — could make the team and work his way into Hawkins’ spot.
My guess is we trade Atkins and Fuentes this offseason (both moves would be mistakes, I think, but such is the predicament we’re in being a mid-market team with a small market payroll). Atkins is a proven run producer, and Fuentes is a 3-time All-Star closer who has given up 2 runs since his injury and replacement as closer. But the Rockies love Ian Stewart — enough to send him to work out at second base in the off season.
If that works out, he could replace Matzui, and free up salary. I also expect Hawkins will be gone, too. And don’t be surprised if Helton agrees to defer salary to get Holliday signed.
Re: Slugging percentage. Oops. My bad.
Re: slugging % goof: hey, your argument was strong enough it was obvious that you weren’t trying to gild that pig. Er, put lipstick on that lily? Meanwhile, the boys are at .615 and .614, so maybe you were being precognitive.
Morales out pitches Peavy, but Corpas blows his first save since being made closer. Still, the Rockies get 8 innings of one run relief from their tired bullpen and pull it out in 14 innings, 2-1.
Now they have to rely on Mark Redman, who didn’t even have a job a month or two ago, to give them 6 innings.
Nailbiting time for the Rocky Mountain Mediocres.
Holliday is a damn fine player, and I haven’t payed much attention to the Rox this year, but I think those numbers are a bit deceiving. Yes, the humidor helps, but c’mon, a home away split of slugging of .720 to .490 and an OBP difference of roughly 90 pts is nothing to sneeze about. It’s not just the altitude at Coors. My understanding is that the OF is so vast because of the early propensity of balls flying out that it is tough to cover all that ground. Thus, routine flies in other parks become hits.
Oh, and that great Sept is excellent, but it’s a bit overblown by playing in some fairly hitter friendly parks, including CBP in Philly.
Again, not necessarily a knock on Holliday, but you can’t discount his home field hitting advantage by saying he’s hitting .300 at home. Home away OPS split is 1.159 to 0.854. That’s some help.
oops, make that “.300 on the road”. My bad.
I hear you. But check out the home/away splits on Rollins’ dingers.
The outfield at Coors is big, so averages are higher there. But don’t be too deceived: the real difference is that the Rox play extra games in a division that also features Petco Park, the giant park in San Fran, and Chavez Ravine — all pitcher’s parks. And it ain’t like Arizona’s park is a hitter’s paradise, either.
Not only that, but look at the staffs who pitch in those parks: Penny, Peavy, Billingsly, Chris Young, Matt Caine, Noah Lowry, Tim Lincecum, Barry Zito, Derek Lowe, Greg Maddux — the league’s top pitchers (with the exception of Cole Hamels, and on occasion, Zambrano) come from the West.
And there are at least 4 other parks, I believe, that yield better averages than Coors.