LAA 6, BOS 3: Weaver earns win for fallen teammate
Sean McAdam and the Boston Red Sox had one thing in common last night. Both of their performances were terrible. With that said, thank goodness for Rex Hudler in the third and fourth innings.
Author: shawn medeiros
TB 4, BOS 3: Longoria, Garza power Rays past Sox
Only three games into the season, Evan Longoria has already punched his name into the American League MVP race. And Matt Garza made a loud statement that the Rays aren't a flash in the pan.
TB 7, BOS 2: Pena breaks funk, Lester lackluster
Most baseball analysts think Jon Lester will emerge as one of the best pitchers in the league this year. His start yesterday against the Tampa Bay Rays took a sharp left turn. And it wasn't in the right direction.
BOS 5, TB 3: Beckett’s back
Any questions about Josh Beckett returning to his 2007 form were answered against the Tampa Bay Rays. At least for one start.
Recommended Reading: Ask Amalie
Hello FireBrand community! Chances are you are looking for something to read today since I totally blew off my article. My bad. I promise to be back in the swing of things, but in the meantime, check out the latest mailbag from the Boston Globe's Amalie Benjamin. In a great break from the constant coverage of the local nine, Amalie decided to do an entire mailbag dedicated to the prospects of the big club.
Check the link after the jump!
Check out how Amalie compares Lars Anderson to Bill 'Spaceman' Lee, Daniel Bard's future with the team, and the AAAA status of Charlie Zink and the departed David Pauley.
2009 Hall of Fame: Rice, Rickey make the cut!
Update: Rickey Henderson and Jim Rice have both received the amount of votes needed to be inducted into the Hall of Fame. Congrats to both former BoSox!
The 2009 Hall of Fame announced the results of its voting today at 1:30pm. Use this post to speculate on the voting leading up to its announcement, and commenting on the results from that point out. The 23 players on this year's ballot are the lowest number ever, with only 13 players returning from last year's ballot, also a record low. As you are probably aware, it is the last year on the ballot for Jim Rice to be elected from the Baseball Writers Association of America. The induction ceremonies will be on July 26th, 2009 in Cooperstown, NY.
We all know about Jim Rice, but how many of the 23 candidates for the 2009 Hall of Fame class spent part of their careers with the Boston organization? The answer might surprise you. Check the names and career statistics after the jump!
Fire Brand explains Win Values
Baseball has forever been a game of statistics and over the past few decades, sabermetrics have taken this passion way beyond batting average and on-base percentage. Growing up, my family always said all you needed to do to be successful was to "build a better mouse-trap," meaning, if you can find a way to improve on existing information, to make something more efficient, you'll find success follows. Statistics in baseball are the new mouse-trap; for the most part, the numbers being used haven't changed for 100 years, they are just being manipulated in a way to provide a better benchmark to evaluate a player's value and/or worth. The end goal never changes: a better mouse-trap still kills the mouse in the end, and a better statistic still just evaluates a player, but the means or accuracy of doing so makes it special.
The problem with the evolution of statistics in baseball has been the public acceptance of them. I'd be just as willing to bet that Woodrow Wilson and his friends talked about Babe Ruth's batting average in 1915 as I would bet that Barack Obama won't discuss the VORP of David Ortiz in 2009. Some statistics resonate through the general public and become part of the casual fan's conversation, and some don't. The "stickiness" of a stat depends on how complicated it is to understand, calculate, or relate to something the average fan can appreciate.
The numbers being thrown around by stat heads these days are often hard to grasp. Even an easy concept, such as Batting Average on Ball In Play, can be misunderstood and misused, as I demonstrated during my fourth outfielder series. Okay, so we all agree that batting average is a horrible statistic to base the value of a player on, but what metric can we all agree on that makes sense? Fortunately for us, Dave Cameron over at FanGraphs, has put together an eight part series on Win Values.
Charlie Zink designated for assignment
Charlie Zink, the knuckleballer signed in 2002 after a recommendation from Luis Tiant, has been designated for assignment by the Boston Red Sox. Zink, who won 34 games over the past four seasons for Pawtucket and Portland, had his major league debut in 2008, giving up eight earned runs in just four and third innings.
It has long been speculated that Zink, 28, would be in the starting rotation for most teams and was only held back in Boston by Tim Wakefield. Not even Bernie Madoff could talk Boston's front office into start two knuckleballers in the rotation. Fire Brand wishes Zink the best, and hopes he gets an opportunity to prove himself with another team very soon. Preferably outside the AL East.
Sox sign Kotsay; Best depth ever?
According to the Boston Herald, the Boston Red Sox have signed Mark Kotsay to a one year, $1.5 million dollar deal plus incentives. Kotsay, who finished last season with the club but left as a free agent, was unable to find a starting job so decided to return to Boston. he will back-up Kevin Youkilis at first base, and also play the position when Youkilis relieves Mike Lowell. Kotsay is also insurance should recently signed fourth-outfielder Rocco Baldelli struggle with fatgiue or injuries this season.
Cafardo’s Latest: Baldelli, Smoltz close
Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe is reporting that Rocco Baldelli and the Boston Red Sox are close to agreeing on terms for the Rhode Island native to become the fourth outfielder for 2009. The St. Petersburg Times reported earlier this evening that Baldelli was likely to sign soon, and Peter Gammons later reported that Rocco and the Red Sox "close."
Cafardo is also reporting the team is likely to announce a deal with 42-year old veteran John Smoltz. Sources involved with negotiations indicate Smoltz with get a one year, $5.5 million deal with the potential to make $10 million in 2009. Smoltz is likely to return by early May and has a desire to be a starter.