Tag / James Shields

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Active Pitching Leaders – Through 2018

baseballs3Last week, we looked at the active leaders in games I’ve attended through 2018 on the offensive side of the ball.  With spring training winding down and opening day less than a week away, let’s take a look at the defensive side of the ball and the active pitching leaders.

Wins

Name Total
Chris Sale 21
Jon Lester 10
Jose Quintana 7
Nate Jones 7
C.C. Sabathia 6

Losses

Name Total
Jose Quintana 15
Chris Sale 12
James Shields 10
Carlos Rodon 9
Jeff Samardzija 6

ERA (> 35 IP)

Name Total
David Robertson 2.17
Nate Jones 2.25
Zach Duke 2.38
Johnny Cueto 2.43
Jon Lester 2.60

ERA (> 70 IP)

Name Total
Jon Lester 2.60
Chris Sale Continue reading →
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Retooling For 2019

The White Sox made a trio of acquisitions over the past week, bolstering their roster for 2019.  Things started on Tuesday, when a trade with the Pirates netted the Sox right hander Ivan Nova in exchange for minor leaguer Yordi Rosario and international bonus money.  Yesterday, it was reported that the White Sox came to an agreement with free agent catcher James McCann.  Finally, the White Sox announced earlier this morning that they had acquired first baseman Yonder Alonso from the Indians for minor league outfielder Alex Call.

Nova, signed through 2019, basically steps in to the James Shields role as innings eater and mentor, though he should offer better results on the mound.  Over the past 3 years, Nova surpasses Shields in games, innings pitched, HR allowed, ERA, and FIP.  While he has given up more hits, that should be more than offset by a drastic reduction in walks.  Rosario is a lottery ticket at this point and, due to the Luis Robert signing, the White Sox couldn’t use the bonus money anyway, so the cost to get Nova was minimal.

With Omar Narvaez and Kevan Smith off to other organizations and Seby Zavala and Zack Collins still a year or so away, the White Sox needed a catcher to team with Welington Castillo for 2019.  McCann will fill that role, though he rates as sub-par both offensively and defensively.  His main pluses are the occasional home run and a strong arm to control the running game.

The trade for Alonso, at first glance, is a bit of a head scratcher.  Assuming there is nothing in the works on the Jose Abreu front, the two will split time between first base and designated hitter.  Another reported use is recruiting, as Alonso’s brother-in-law just happens to be Manny Machado, one of the two biggest fish in the free agency pond.  Who knows if it will help, but the White Sox reportedly have a meeting set with Machado for next week.  If that doesn’t pay off, then the move basically helps a division rival clear salary space in exchange for someone who isn’t likely to be a long term part of the rebuilding process.

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2018 Final Pitching Leaders

baseballs3Yesterday, we looked at the leaders in the 29 games I attended this year on the offensive side of the ball.  With the Division Series in full swing today, it’s time to wrap up our look back at the 2018 season with the pitching leaders, starting with everyone’s favorite pitching statistic:

Wins

Name Total
Lucas Giolito 2
Jon Lester 2
25 tied with  1

Losses

Name Total
James Shields 4
Kyle Hendricks 3
Carlos Rodon 2
20 tied with  1

ERA (> 6 IP)

Name Total
Danny Duffy 0.00
Kyle Freeland 0.00
Michael Fulmer 0.82
Jon Lester 0.96
Jon Gray 1.29

Strikeouts

Name Total
James Shields 24
Lucas Giolito 22
Reynaldo Lopez 20
Continue reading →
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2018 All Star Break Pitching Leaders

Now that the All Star Game is behind us and we await tomorrow’s start of the second half of the season, let’s take a look at the first half leaders on the defensive side of the ball for the 20 games I attended:

Wins

Name Total
Lucas Giolito 2
Jon Lester 2
16 tied with 1

Losses

Name Total
James Shields 3
Kyle Hendricks 2
15 tied with 1

ERA (> 6 IP)

Name Total
Danny Duffy 0.00
Jon Lester 0.00
Jon Gray 1.29
Jace Fry 2.79
Nick Kingham 2.84

Strikeouts

Name Total
Lucas Giolito 19
Continue reading →
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2017 Final Pitching Leaders

baseballs3Sunday, we looked at the leaders in the 49 games I attended this year on the offensive side of the ball.  With the World Series kicking off tonight in Los Angeles, it’s time to wrap up our look back at the 2017 season with the pitching leaders, starting with everyone’s favorite pitching statistic:

Wins

Name Total
Miguel Gonzalez 3
Lucas Giolito 3
Dan Jennings 2
David Robertson 2
Jon Lester 2
Buck Farmer  2
Carson Fulmer 2

Losses

Name Total
Jose Quintana 5
Derek Holland 3
Carlos Rodon 3
James Shields 2
Mike Pelfrey 2
Pedro Strop 2
Aaron Bummer 2

ERA (> 10 IP)

Name Total
Lucas Giolito 0.86
Luis Severino 1.29
David Robertson 1.59
Anthony Swarzak 1.59
Dan Jennings 2.13

Strikeouts

Name Total
Jose Quintana 38
Jon Lester 32
Carlos Rodon 32
Continue reading →
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Where Everybody Knows Your Name

This past weekend, I finally got to use my birthday gift from last year, a trip to Boston to see the White Sox take on the Red Sox with Danny and Michael.  The trip started early Saturday morning, with a trip to O’Hare to catch a 6 AM flight.  After arriving in Boston, we took a bus and a train to get to the Museum of Science, where we spent most of the morning.

With food on our mind, we wandered back over towards where we got off the train and found ourselves in the Beacon Hill neighborhood, where we ended up at The Paramount, rated as one of the 10 best breakfast spots in Boston.  A long wait through the oddly run restaurant, where you order and get your food prior to being seated, ended up in a decent meal.

After eating, we headed to our hotel, which was located in the medical district.  We checked in and relaxed for a bit, before deciding on going for ice cream prior to heading to Fenway Park.  Like nearly everywhere else we went, the ice cream shop was a little hole in the wall, but it certainly served its purpose.  From there, it was short walk up Brookline to the ballpark, which was… a little underwhelming.  From the outside, you could barely tell that it was a stadium.  Michael even asked where it was as we were standing outside it.

The game went about as you would expect.  With James Shields on the mound, the White Sox did not put up much of a fight.  We were sitting down the left field line, with a good view of the Green Monster.  The seats, which may or may not date back to the stadium’s opening in 1912, were not really designed for people well over 6 feet tall, so there was a lot of uncomfortable shifting as our knees were smooshed in to the seats in front of us.

After the game, we went back to the hotel and called it a night.   Continue reading →

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2016 Final Pitching Leaders

baseballs3Tuesday, we looked at the leaders in the 39 games I attended this year on the offensive side of the ball.  It’s now time to wrap up our look back at the 2016 season with the pitching leaders, starting with everyone’s favorite pitching statistic:

Wins

Name Total
Chris Sale 5
Jose Quintana 3
David Robertson 2
Carlos Rodon 2
Mat Latos 2
Hector Santiago  2
Jon Lester 2

Losses

Name Total
Chris Sale 3
Carlos Rodon 3
James Shields 3
Miguel Gonzalez 2
28 tied with 1

ERA (> 10 IP)

Name Total
Hector Santiago 0.00
Danny Duffy 0.00
Dan Jennings 0.60
Zach Duke 0.75
Nate Jones 1.98

Strikeouts

Name Total
Chris Sale 62
Continue reading →
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Franchise Four – AL East

Major League Baseball is asking its fans to vote for the four most impactful players who best represent the history of each franchise.  The winners will be announced in July at the All Star Game in Cincinnati.  Today, I will give my Franchise Four picks for the American League East.

F4OriolesAt first glance, my picks for the Orioles were easy.  Upon further review, though, I find myself with 5 players for only 4 slots.  Cal Ripken Jr., Frank Robinson, and Jim Palmer take my first 3 slots.  The last one comes down to Brooks Robinson and Eddie Murray.  While Murray was by far the better offensive weapon, Robinson was quite possibly the best defensive third baseman of all time.  I’m going to stick with my initial gut feeling and go with Robinson.

F4RedSoxPlenty of Hall of Famers to choose from for the Red Sox, as 6 of the 8 have been elected to Cooperstown.  The first two slots have to go to Cy Young and Ted Williams, both of whom would be in the conversation for a league wide contest.  The final two slots would have to go to Carl Yastrzemski and newly elected Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez.  Conspicuous by his absence is Roger Clemens.

F4Yankees

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