It’s Been A While

Prior to last night’s game, I hadn’t seen the Rockies live since August of 2012, nearly 5 years ago.  For someone with season tickets to two teams, one in each league, that is a long drought.  This got me thinking about the other 29 teams.

You would think that I would cycle through each team every few years or so.  And, for the most part, that does seem to be the case.  I’ve already seen 12 teams in 2017, and the season is just over 2 months old.  Going back to last year, that number jumps to 22 and, going back to 2015, 25.  That’s over 83% of the league in the past 2+ seasons.

What about those remaining 5 teams?  The Astros and Diamondbacks last appeared in 2014, with the Marlins and the Nationals in the two years prior.  That leaves the Phillies, who I have somehow not managed to see in person since 2009.  I’ve seen the Florida Marlins more recently.  Anyway, here’s a look at each team and the last time I saw them play.

Team Name Date
Colorado Rockies 6/8/2017
Chicago Cubs 6/8/2017
Chicago White Sox 5/30/2017
Boston Red Sox 5/30/2017
Detroit Tigers 5/28/2017
San Diego Padres 5/13/2017
New York Yankees 5/7/2017
Kansas City Royals 4/25/2017
Cleveland Indians 4/23/2017
Pittsburgh Pirates 4/15/2017
Los Angeles Dodgers 4/12/2017
Minnesota Twins 4/9/2017
San Francisco Giants 10/8/2016
Continue reading →

#28 – Tim Raines

Name: Tim Raines

Rank: 28

Position: LF

Years With White Sox: 1991-1995

Acquired in December of 1990 from the Expos, along with Jeff Carter and a player to be named later, for Ivan Calderon and Barry Jones, Tim Raines took over left field, and the lead off spot, as the White Sox moved in to the new Comiskey Park.  At the age of 31, Raines appeared in 155 games, his highest total since 1984, while hitting .268 with 51 stolen bases.

In 1992, Raines had another strong season, putting up a .294 average with 7 home runs, 54 RBIs, and 45 stolen bases.

Limited to 115 games in 1993 due to a torn thumb ligament, Raines had the best season of his post-Expos career, hitting .306 and posting a .401 OBP, adding 16 home runs and 21 stolen bases.  During the ALCS against the Blue Jays, Raines hit .444 with an OPS of 1.038 as the White Sox dropped the series in 6 games.

Raines saw his production drop off a bit in 1994, his average dropping to .266 but with 10 home runs when the season ended early due to the player’s strike.  When baseball returned in 1995, so did Raines.  He bounced back with a .285 average and a .796 OPS, his second highest total as a member of the White Sox.  Following the season, Raines was traded to the Yankees for an unheralded player to be named later.

Raines rejoined the White Sox organization in November of 2004 when he was named the first base coach, a position he would hold for the championship season in 2005.  For 2006, he was moved to bench coach and, after the season, his services were not retained.

Raines’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

Continue reading →

All Time Team Records

baseballs3Yet another exciting baseball season is upon us, and it is time once again to look at the all-time team records for games that I have attended dating back to 1984.  The Cubs begin the season as defending champions for the first time since 1909 while the White Sox finally start their long-overdue rebuilding effort, so both sides of town are pointing in different directions.  Either way, the 2017 season should be an exciting one.

All-Time Team Records
Team Name Won Loss Winning Pctg
California Angels 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 13 2 0.867
Florida Marlins 15 8 0.652
Philadelphia Phillies 10 6 0.625
Toronto Blue Jays 13 9 0.591
New York Yankees 12 9 0.571
Los Angeles Angels 16 13 0.552
Boston Red Sox 14 12 0.538
Colorado Rockies 7 6 0.538
Chicago Cubs 203 179 0.531
Chicago White Sox 267 237 0.530
Cleveland Indians 23 21 0.523
Kansas City Royals Continue reading →

Team Stats: Home Run

With 1 week until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We finish up today on the offensive side of the ball with home runs.

As you might expect by this point, the White Sox and Cubs, based on the raw numbers, are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, the California incarnation of the Angels and the Diamondbacks are the only teams at or above 2 home runs per game.  The Nationals and the Anaheim version of the Angels are the only teams with less than a home run every other game.

Home Runs
Team Name Home Runs
Chicago White Sox 605
Chicago Cubs 437
Cleveland Indians 53
Kansas City Royals 48
Detroit Tigers 45
Minnesota Twins 44
Houston Astros 40
Texas Rangers 40
Milwaukee Brewers 39
Seattle Mariners Continue reading →

Team Stats: Earned Run Average

With 2 weeks until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the defensive side of the ball with earned run average.

Both the White Sox and Cubs are in the top half for team ERA, at 4.10 and 3.97 respectively.  The Anaheim iteration of the Angels lead the way at just under 2.60.  Their earlier counterparts from California are on the opposite end of the spectrum, clocking in at an even 6.00.

Earned Run Average
Team Name ERA
Anaheim Angels 2.59620377314948
Arizona Diamondbacks 2.77443609022556
San Francisco Giants 2.91412259138847
Montreal Expos 3.4000755572346
Los Angeles Angels 3.58378597800244
Philadelphia Phillies 3.69343107010444
Washington Nationals 3.74644733442425
Boston Red Sox 3.87378352436825
Miami Marlins 3.9375
Oakland Athletics Continue reading →

Team Stats: Runs Batted In

With 3 weeks until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the offensive side of the ball with runs batted in.

Based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, the California iteration of the Angels and the Devil Rays lead the way as the only teams over 6.  The Nationals and the Miami incarnation of the Marlins are the only teams that failed to average 3 runs batted in per game.

Runs Batted In
Team Name RBIs
Chicago White Sox 2209
Chicago Cubs 1677
Cleveland Indians 227
Minnesota Twins 184
Detroit Tigers 182
Kansas City Royals 178
Houston Astros 175
Milwaukee Brewers 170
Cincinnati Reds 168
Pittsburgh Pirates Continue reading →

Team Stats: Strike Outs

With 1 month until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the defensive side of the ball with strike outs.

Based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, both teams, along with the Brewers, fare the best as well.  The Cubs lead the way with just over 8 strike outs per game.  The California version of the Angels, the Miami iteration of the Marlins, and the Devil Rays bring up the rear with an even 5 strike outs per game.

Strike Outs
Team Name Strike Outs
Chicago White Sox 3851
Chicago Cubs 3075
Kansas City Royals 339
Minnesota Twins 330
Cleveland Indians 292
Milwaukee Brewers 285
Houston Astros 281
Pittsburgh Pirates 257
Detroit Tigers 252
Cincinnati Reds Continue reading →

#38 – Juan Uribe

Name: Juan Uribe

Rank: 38

Position: 2B/SS

Years With White Sox: 2004-2008

Juan Uribe was acquired by the White Sox on December 2, 2003 from the Rockies for Aaron Miles.  He split time with Willie Harris at second base, hitting .283 while setting career highs in home runs, with 23, and RBIs, with 74.  He fell 1 RBI short of the White Sox single game team record on June 19, when he knocked in 7 runs against the Expos.

With the loss of Jose Valentin and the arrival of Tadahito Iguchi in 2005, Uribe moved to shortstop.  His defensive prowess, especially compared to Valentin, helped solidify a team that would go on to win its first division title since 2000.  Offensively, Uribe finished the year with a .252 average and 16 home runs.  In the ALDS, Uribe hit a robust .400 with 4 RBIs in the 3 game sweep of the Red Sox.  He hit .250 in both the ALCS against the Angels and the World Series against the Astros.  Defensively, he dove in to the stands to make the penultimate out in Game 4 of the World Series, before fielding the soft grounder hit by Orlando Palmeiro and throwing over to Paul Konerko to give the White Sox their first title in 88 years.

As the White Sox tried to defend their title, Uribe saw his average fall further in 2006.  He ended the year with a .235 average, though he did put up 21 home runs and 71 RBIs despite being limited to 132 games due to injuries.

2007 was a continuation of the poor offensive contributions from Uribe.  However, as the rest of the White Sox cratered, his holes became more noticeable.  He ended up with a .234 average, 20 home runs, and 68 RBIs.  The White Sox declined his option for 2008, but signed him to a new one year deal for the 2008 season.

After acquiring Orlando Cabrera, Uribe shifted back to second base to start 2008.  Unfortunately, an injury in May led to Alexei Ramirez cementing his place in the starting lineup.  Uribe saw action at third base after a back injury took down Joe Crede in late July.  Appearing in only 110 games, his lowest total since 2003, he finished the year with .247 average, 7 home runs, and 40 RBIs as the White Sox won their second AL Central title in his tenure.  Uribe fell in to a funk during the ALDS, hitting only .167 in the 4 game loss to the Rays.  After the season, Uribe became a free agent.

Uribe’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

Continue reading →

Team Stats: Doubles

With 2 months until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the offensive side of the ball with doubles.

Based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, the Diamondbacks, Blue Jays, and the Anaheim version of the Angels are the only teams with 2 doubles or more per game.  The Miami iteration of the Marlins are at the bottom, with 1 double every other game, followed by the California incarnation of the Angels, who went double-less.

Doubles
Team Name Doubles
Chicago White Sox 770
Chicago Cubs 671
Kansas City Royals 81
Houston Astros 78
Minnesota Twins 76
Detroit Tigers 75
Cleveland Indians 69
Milwaukee Brewers 67
Pittsburgh Pirates 64
Texas Rangers Continue reading →

Team Stats: Bases On Balls

With 2 months until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the defensive side of the ball with bases on balls surrendered.

Based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, 4 teams are averaging 4 or more walks per game, with the California incarnation of the Angels leading the pack with 5.  The Cubs find themselves, unfortunately, in the top 10 at 3.42 walks per game, while the White Sox are in the bottom half (or top half, depending on your point of view) with 3.19 walks per game.  The Anaheim version of the Angels and the Miami version of the Marlins bring up the rear as the only teams with less than 2 walks per game, at 1.5 a piece.

Walks
Team Name Walks
Chicago White Sox 1610
Chicago Cubs 1308
Cleveland Indians 156
Kansas City Royals 151
Cincinnati Reds 133
Pittsburgh Pirates 128
Milwaukee Brewers 125
Seattle Mariners 120
Detroit Tigers 116
Minnesota Twins Continue reading →