Team Stats: Home Runs Surrendered

With 4 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 home runs 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, the Expos jump to the top (or bottom, depending on your point of view) of the heap, with an even 2 home runs given up per game.  The Braves, Giants, Phillies, Diamondbacks, Miami Marlins, Nationals, and Devil Rays are the only teams below 1 home run per game.  The remaining teams fall in between.

Home Runs Surrendered
Team Name Home Runs Surrendered
Chicago White Sox 565
Chicago Cubs 399
Minnesota Twins 73
Kansas City Royals 51
Pittsburgh Pirates 49
Milwaukee Brewers 48
Cincinnati Reds 47
Houston Astros 47
Cleveland Indians 46
Detroit Tigers Continue reading →

Team Stats: Batting Average

With 4 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 start today on the offensive side of the ball with team batting average.

The California Angels, who I only saw live and in person once, are the only team to post an average over .300.  The Washington Nationals, who, sadly, have had 8 games to make a mark, are the only team to post an average under .200.  In between, there is a slight correlation between the teams’ batting average and their record in these games, though with some surprising anomalies.

Batting Average
Team Name Batting Average
California Angels 0.306
Anaheim Angels 0.292
Arizona Diamondbacks 0.278
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 0.273
Cleveland Indians 0.271
Chicago Cubs 0.266
Colorado Rockies 0.265
Milwaukee Brewers 0.263
Kansas City Royals 0.261
Florida Marlins 0.260
Houston Astros 0.260
Chicago White Sox 0.259
Detroit Tigers Continue reading →

The Straw That No Longer Stirs The Drink

adameatonThe White Sox followed up on Tuesday’s big deal that sent Chris Sale to the Red Sox with another big move on Wednesday, sending outfielder Adam Eaton to the Nationals for pitchers Lucas Giolito, Dane Dunning and Reynaldo Lopez.

Eaton joined the White Sox on December 10, 2013 after being acquired from the Diamondbacks in a 3 team trade that sent Hector Santiago to the Angels.  He quickly moved in to the leadoff spot, giving the White Sox their first true leadoff hitter since Juan Pierre in 2011.  He moved to right field in 2015, where he was a gold glove finalist.  Like Sale, he was a vocal critic of the White Sox front office following the Drake LaRoche incident during spring training 2015.  I’m sure it is only a coincidence that those two were the first shipped out of town during this rebuilding effort.

Giolito is the top ranked pitching prospect in baseball, further bolstering the White Sox system.  Lopez, the third ranked prospect in the Nationals system, showed promise during an 11-game stint in the Nationals rotation last year.  Dunning was the first round draft pick of the Nationals last year and had been ranked highly on the White Sox draft board.

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

Continue reading →

RIP US Cellular Field

uscellular-fieldYesterday, US Cellular Field officially was rechristened as Guaranteed Rate Field, ending a 14 year run for the wireless telecom company as the naming rights holder for the home of the Chicago White Sox.  In that time, I saw 414 games at the park, including a Marlins home game in 2004 due to Hurricane Ivan and post-season play in 2000, 2005 and 2008.

All-Time Team Records
TeamName Won Loss Winning Pctg
Arizona Diamondbacks 1 0 1.000
Colorado Rockies 2 0 1.000
St. Louis Cardinals 1 0 1.000
Florida Marlins 3 1 0.750
New York Yankees 10 7 0.588
Boston Red Sox 13 10 0.565
Los Angeles Angels 16 13 0.552
Baltimore Orioles 11 9 0.550
Chicago White Sox 223 190 0.540
Kansas City Royals 23 20 0.535
Toronto Blue Jays 9 8 0.529
Cleveland Indians 20 18 0.526
Tampa Bay Devil Rays 1 1 0.500
Tampa Bay Rays 8 8 0.500
Washington Nationals 1 1 0.500
Anaheim Angels 1 1 0.500
Cincinnati Reds 1 1 0.500
San Diego Padres 1 1 0.500
Houston Astros 4 5 0.444
Oakland Athletics 6 8 0.429
Chicago Cubs 11 15 0.423
Detroit Tigers 13 19 0.406
Minnesota Twins 19 28 0.404
Texas Rangers 7 13 0.350
Atlanta Braves 2 5 0.286
Seattle Mariners 5 18 0.217
Pittsburgh Pirates 1 4 0.200
Los Angeles Dodgers 1 5 0.167
Milwaukee Brewers 0 2 0.000
Montreal Expos 0 1 0.000
Miami Marlins 0 2 0.000

Heading Back To The LCS

FlyTheWAfter an exciting 9th inning comeback in Game 4 of the NLDS to defeat the Giants, the Chicago Cubs are headed to the NLCS for the second consecutive year.  They await the winner of the Dodgers/Nationals series and will host Game 1 of the NLCS on Saturday.  The Cubs, who last appeared in the World Series in 1945, have never won an NLCS, losing in 1984, 1989, 2003, and 2015.

The Cubs last faced the Dodgers in the post-season in the 2008 NLDS, losing in a three game sweep.  They’ve never faced the Nationals in post-season play, though Nationals manager Dusty Baker led the Cubs to the 2003 NLCS.

2016 Predictions Revisited

baseballs2Six months ago, as the 2016 baseball season was scheduled to kick off, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what.  Now that the regular season has come to an end, it is time revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Blue Jays

After winning their first division title since 1993 last year, I thought the Blue Jays had what it took to repeat.  I certainly didn’t see the Red Sox bouncing back from 2 straight last place finishes to take the AL East crown.

Central: Indians

My first correct prediction, as the Indians won their first division title since 2007.

West: Rangers

Another correct prediction, with the Rangers winning their second straight division title.

Wild Cards: Red Sox, White Sox

Well, I kind of flip-flopped the first two slots in the AL East, as the Blue Jays managed to take the first Wild Card slot.  The other pick looked good for the first 6 weeks of the season, as the White Sox sat at 23-10 before completely falling apart.  Instead, the Orioles took the second Wild Card slot, making it a good year for the AL East.

AL Champion: Blue Jays

Cy Young: Chris Sale

MVP: Mike Trout

All three of these may still be possible, with the Blue Jays still alive and Sale and Trout putting up superb numbers.

National League

Continue reading →

Back To The Postseason

2016centralchampsFor the second consecutive year, the Cubs are heading to the postseason after clinching their first division title since 2008 with last night’s Cardinals loss to the Giants.  Their next target is to clinch home field advantage throughout the NL playoffs, where they hold a 6 game lead in the loss column over the Nationals with 15 games left to play.  The Cubs hope to avenge last year’s sweep in the NLCS at the hands of the Mets.

The downside to clinching his early is that the next important game the Cubs play will be 3 weeks from today when the NLDS kicks off.  Hopefully they will be able to kick off the rust as they attempt to end their 108 year championship drought.

All Time Team Records

baseballs3Another 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.  Despite disparate seasons on the two sides of town last season, both the White Sox and the Cubs saw their overall winning percentage drop.  The 2016 season looks to be hopeful for both teams, so this trend should reverse itself.

All-Time Team Records
TeamName Won Loss Winning Pctg
California Angels 1 0 1
Arizone Diamondbacks 13 2 0.866666666666667
Florida Marlins 15 8 0.652173913043478
Philadelphia Phillies 10 6 0.625
Toronto Blue Jays 12 8 0.6
New York Yankees 12 9 0.571428571428571
Colorado Rockies 7 6 0.538461538461538
Los Angeles Angels 15 13 0.535714285714286
San Francisco Giants 8 7 0.533333333333333
Chicago White Sox 250 222 0.529661016949153
Chicago Cubs 197 177 0.526737967914439
Detroit Tigers Continue reading →

2016 Predictions

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersThe 2016 baseball season is scheduled to kick off today, with 3 games scheduled for the first time.  For the sixth consecutive year, I’ve looked into the crystal ball to make my picks for the upcoming season.

American League

East: Blue Jays

Central: Indians

West: Rangers

Wild Cards: Red Sox, White Sox

AL Champion: Blue Jays

Cy Young: Chris Sale

MVP: Mike Trout

National League

Continue reading →

#108 – Dayan Viciedo

IMG_0892

Name: Dayan Viciedo

Rank: 108

Position: LF

Years With White Sox: 2010-2014

Dayan Viciedo signed a 4-year deal with the White Sox in November of 2008, mere months after defecting from Cuba.  He spent the 2009 season in Double A Birmingham and moved to Triple A Charlotte for 2010.  He spent some time with the big league club in 2010, making his major league debut on June 20 against the Nationals.

He returned to Triple A in 2011, until Carlos Quentin went down with an injury in late August. Viciedo returned to Chicago, this time to stay. He became the everyday left fielder in 2012, putting up decent, if underwhelming numbers. Viciedo became a bit of a conundrum in 2013, as his average improved slightly, but his power numbers decreased.

Viciedo was slated for a platoon role with Alejandro de Aza in 2014, until Avisail Garcia’s shoulder injury opened up a spot for him. By the time Garcia returned, de Aza was in Baltimore and Viciedo had left field all to himself. He was unable to capitalize on the opportunity, though, as his average and OBP fell to a career lows.

Viciedo appeared to be the odd man out that offseason, with Melky Cabrera signed to play left field and Adam LaRoche on board as DH.  With spring training 2015 about to begin and no takers on the trade market, the White Sox cut bait and released Viciedo on February 5th.  Viciedo re-signed with the White Sox organization on a minor league deal on August 1st and became a free agent following the season.

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

Continue reading →