Category / Baseball

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Against The Indians All Time Leaders – Through 2021

In the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs.  We continue today with the former Cleveland Indians.

The Indians, then known as the Bluebirds, were one of the charter members of the American League in 1901.  After a few name changes, they settled on the Indians name in 1915 before finally deciding to change again, becoming the Guardians starting this upcoming season.  I’ve seen them play 58 times, including games 4 and 5 of the 2016 World Series at Wrigley Field and 2 games against the White Sox in their home stadium in September of 2019.

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 12
Jim Thome 4
Adam Eaton 3
Alex Rios 3
Alexei Ramirez 3
Seby Zavala 3
Jose Abreu 3

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 38
A.J. Pierzynski 27
Alexei Ramirez 26

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 23
Alejandro de Aza 13
Gordon Beckham 13

RBI

Name Total
Paul Konerko 28
Alexei Ramirez 13
Alex Rios 10
Jim Thome 10

Doubles

Name Total
Paul Konerko 7
A.J. Pierzynski 6
Tim Anderson 4
Alejandro de Aza 4
Gordon Beckham 4

Triples Continue reading →

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By The Numbers – 17

In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees.  By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues.  Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.

Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #17.  79 different players have donned #17 while playing in Chicago, 42 for the White Sox and 37 for the Cubs.

Mark Grace moved to his iconic #17 during his rookie campaign in 1988.  He finished second in Rookie of the Year voting while hitting .296 with 7 home runs and 57 RBIs.  In 1989, he garnered some MVP consideration as the Cubs took home a surprising NL East title.  Grace hit .314 with 13 home runs and 79 RBIs during the regular season, before hitting .647 with a 1.799 OPS during the 5 game NLCS against the Giants.

In 1990, Grace began a decade of excellence, collecting the most hits, 1,754, and doubles, 364, of any player during the decade.  He won 4 Gold Glove awards, was named to 3 All Star teams, earned down-ballot MVP support in 3 different seasons.  Following the 2000 season, he left the Cubs, finishing that portion of his career with 2201 hits, 456 doubles, 148 home runs, 1004 RBIs, and a .308 average.

As the White Sox made their run towards the World Series title in 2005, general manager Kenny Williams attempted to acquire Ken Griffey Jr. from the Reds, but was rebuked when Reds ownership decided to veto the deal.  3 years later, with the White Sox again looking to make a run at a division title, he was finally able to acquire the aging superstar at the trade deadline in exchange for pitcher Nick Masset and second baseman Danny Richar.  At the time of the trade, the White Sox held a tenuous 1.5 game lead over the Twins.  Wearing #17, Griffey, who had spent most of the previous few seasons in right field to lessen the strain on his body, moved back to center field for the White Sox, displacing the disappointing Nick Swisher.  Griffey appeared in 41 games for the White Sox, hitting a decent .260 with only 3 home runs and 18 RBI.  His most important contribution came defensively, during the tie-breaking game 163 between the White Sox and the Twins, when he gunned down Michael Cuddyer, who was trying to score on a fly out to center, preserving the shutout and helping the White Sox win the division and advance the playoffs.  In the ALDS, Griffey appeared in 3 games against the Rays, garnering only 2 hits as the White Sox fell 3 games to 1.  Following the season, the White Sox declined Griffey’s $16 million option for 2009, making him a free agent.

Special bonus shout out to outfielder Carlos May, who played with the White Sox from 1968-1976.  May, who wore #17 for his entire White Sox career, is the only player in baseball history to wear his birthday, May 17th, on his jersey.

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Against The Brewers All Time Leaders – Through 2021

In the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs. We continue today with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Brewers began life in 1969, joining the American League as the Seattle Pilots.  After one year, they moved to Milwaukee and were re-christened the Brewers.  In 1998, the Brewers became the first team to switch leagues when they moved to the National League as the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays joined the American League.  I’ve seen them play 41 times, first in 1993 battling the White Sox at their old home of Milwaukee County Stadium and most recently in July of 2019, battling the Cubs at Miller Park.

Home Runs

Name Total
Derrek Lee 6
Sammy Sosa 5
Aramis Ramirez 5

Hits

Name Total
Derrek Lee 27
Aramis Ramirez 21
Corey Patterson 16

Runs

Name Total
Derrek Lee 18
Moises Alou 11
Ryan Theriot 11

RBI

Name Total
Derrek Lee 23
Aramis Ramirez 18
Moises Alou 12

Doubles

Name Total
Derrek Lee 5
Aramis Ramirez 5
Sammy Sosa 4

Triples Continue reading →

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All Time Batting Leaders – Through 2021

Earlier this week, we took our annual look at the all-time leaders in pitching stats for the 1007 games I’ve attended (and identified) between 1984 and 2021.  With spring training games finally starting after the resolution of the long lockout, it’s time to move over to the other side of the ball and take a look at the offensive stat leaders for those games, starting with our first category:

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 93
Jose Abreu 45
Sammy Sosa 42
Aramis Ramirez 41
Derrek Lee 40
Jermaine Dye 40

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 366
Alexei Ramirez 300
Derrek Lee 255
Jose Abreu 242
A.J. Pierzynski 239

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 200
Derrek Lee 140
Alexei Ramirez 134
Aramis Ramirez 120
Jose Abreu 116

RBI

Name Total
Paul Konerko 235
Aramis Ramirez 158
Jose Abreu 144
Alexei Ramirez 140
Derrek Lee 134

Doubles Continue reading →

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Against The Royals All Time Leaders – Through 2021

royalsIn the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams.  This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs.  We continue today with the Kansas City Royals.

The Royals began life in 1969, joining the American League following the abandonment of the Kansas City market by the A’s following the 1967 season.  I’ve seen them play 61 times, first in 1985 at old Comiskey Park where Willie Wilson took a throw to second base off the noggin, and most recently last May, where I saw them in a 4 game series at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Home Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 8
Jose Abreu 6
Carlos Quentin 6

Hits

Name Total
Paul Konerko 30
Jose Abreu 29
Alexei Ramirez 28

Runs

Name Total
Paul Konerko 18
Tim Anderson 13
Jose Abreu 12
Alexei Ramirez 12

RBI

Name Total
Paul Konerko 19
Carlos Quentin 17
Jose Abreu 15

Doubles

Name Total
Paul Konerko 5
Tim Anderson 5
Adam Eaton 4
Leury Garcia 4
Melky Cabrera 4

Triples Continue reading →

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All Time Pitching Leaders – Through 2021

With the lockout finally over, today is the mandatory reporting date for spring training as teams across Florida and Arizona finally hold their first spring workouts as they prepare for a postponed 2022 season.  I guess that means it is time for our annual look at the pitching leaders in the now 1007 games I’ve attended, and identified, between 1984 and 2021.  A big difference from last year, as I passed the 1000 game plateau in late August thanks to a crosstown matchup between the Cubs and the White Sox.  So, without further ado, let’s get things started with our first category, the always popular:

Wins

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 31
Gavin Floyd 24
Carlos Zambrano 21
Chris Sale 21
John Danks 19

Losses

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 17
Jose Quintana 17
John Danks 16
Carlos Zambrano 15
Gavin Floyd 15

ERA (>= 35 IP)

Name Total
David Robertson 2.17
DJ Carrasco 2.20
Nate Jones Continue reading →
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Against The Reds All Time Leaders – Through 2021

redsIn the past, we’ve looked at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams.  This offseason, we will take our first ever look at those leaders against all 30 clubs.   We continue today with the Cincinnati Reds.

The Reds began life in 1882 as a charter member of the American Association, joining the National League in 1890.  I’ve seen them play 40 times against 5 different teams at 4 separate stadiums.

Home Runs

Name Total
Derrek Lee 6
Sammy Sosa 3
Aramis Ramirez 3

Hits

Name Total
Aramis Ramirez 26
Derrek Lee 25
Ryan Theriot 17

Runs

Name Total
Derrek Lee 20
Aramis Ramirez 15
Sammy Sosa 10

RBI

Name Total
Derrek Lee 20
Aramis Ramirez 16
Todd Walker 11

Doubles

Name Total
Todd Walker 5
Derrek Lee 4
Aramis Ramirez 4
Sammy Sosa 4
Geovany Soto 4
Michael Barrett 4
Alfonso Soriano 4

Triples Continue reading →

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Baseball Unlocked

After 99 days, the MLB lockout has come to an end.  MLB and the MLBPA have come to an agreement on a new collective bargaining agreement, leading to a mad rush to get spring training up and running and a 162-game regular season in the books.  Free agency is set to start back up again tonight at 5 PM CT.  Players will be allowed to report to spring training as soon as tomorrow, with games starting next week.  Opening Day is likely to be April 7th, with double headers and a few days tacked to the end of the season to get to 162 games.

So where do we stand?  The CBT threshold has been raised to $230 million, a 9% increase, before penalties start being applied.  The minimum salary has been raised to $700,000, a 23% rise from the last deal.  The qualifying offer for free agents will go away if the two sides agree on an international draft by this summer.  A draft lottery will be implemented to help combat tanking.  Rookie of the Year winners will get credited with a full season of service time, regardless of how much time they spent in the major leagues, in a bid to do away with service time

On the field, the DH will be coming to the NL, ending the practice of pitchers hitting.  Double headers are returning back to 9 innings.  Extra innings will also revert to their normal rules, doing away with ghost runners.  The playoffs will be expanded to 12 teams.

The full extent of changes will trickle out over the days to come, but, for right now, the important thing is that baseball is back.  Time to play ball.

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2022 Tickets – Both Sides Edition

Once again, both the White Sox and the Cubs have eschewed physical tickets for their non-premium season ticket holders, meaning that, once again, this year’s ticket package is nothing more than digital bits on a website or the MLB Ballpark app.  While this does make the actual game day use of the tickets more convenient, it does lose some of the excitement of ticket arrival day and continues to be a disappointment for those of us who collect ticket stubs.  Hopefully the lockout will end in time to actually use some of these.

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Another Disastrous Outcome

A week after Commissioner Rob Manfred, with a telling smile on his face, announced he was cancelling the first two series of the regular season due to the ongoing lockout, the two sides are still without an agreement on a new CBA and MLB released a statement cancelling another two series.  In total, the first two weeks of the regular season have now been wiped out.

Locally, the White Sox will miss a road trip to Detroit to battle the Tigers and a home series against the Mariners at Guaranteed Rate Field.  If nothing else gets canceled, their new Opening Day would be on Friday, April 15 against the Rays.  The Cubs would lose a four-game series at Wrigley Field against the Brewers and a quick tilt against the Pirates in Pittsburgh.

So where do things go from here?  Who knows?  The owners declined to counter to the MLBPA’s last, seemingly reasonable offer about an international draft.  How soon negotiations will start again is unknown at this point.  The longer this goes on, the longer I feel it will go on.