McDonald’s has become a dynasty because of consistency. When you walk into one of the fast-food giant’s restaurants in Seattle, it is going to be pretty much the same fare you are going to get at a drive-through in Tampa.

That same type of consistency is what the Chicago White Sox thought they were getting when the traded for Jake Peavy in 2009 and picked up free agent slugger Adam Dunn before the 2011 season. The two have given the Sox anything but that consistency – Peavy for three injury-plagued seasons, Dunn for one disastrous year.

But so far this year, the two have been the dominant performers the Sox thought they were getting all along. Peavy has been superb as a starter in the Sox rotation, posting a 5-1 record thus far, including a brilliant showing Sunday against the Chicago Cubs in Wrigley Field with the wind blowing out. Dunn has once again become the long-ball threat he had been with the Washington Nationals, clubbing 14 home runs through Sunday and helping the Sox to a sweep of the crosstown rival Cubs in the weekend City Series.

The Sox went for broke last year in signing Dunn and re-signing first baseman Paul Konerko and ringing up a hefty payroll. They wound up broken with a disappointing sub .500 record. The off-season departure of pitching ace Mark Buehrle and their high-profile manager Ozzie Guillen and the trade of outfielder Carlos Quentin gave the message that the youth movement was on for Chicago’s South Side team. But keeping stars like Konerko and catcher A.J. Pierzynski let it be know the Sox weren’t totally in rebuilding mode just yet.

With the American League Central being a very lackluster division this year and the feeling that the Sox have yet to put anything together yet is quickly raising expectations for the squad. Having just climbed back to .500, hopes are starting to emerge – thanks to the solid performances of Dunn and Peavy – and the bastion of consistency Konerko.

If the Sox can figure out how to play on the South Side of Chicago anywhere near how they did on the North Side of the city this past weekend, it could be an interesting summer. With just seven wins in 19 games at home, you have to think the Sox will flip those numbers around at home soon, as long as Peavy and Dunn and other veterans keep leading the way.

If the duo of Dunn and Peavy continue with such consistency and excellence, every Sox fan may soon be stealing the McDonald’s slogan “I’m loving it.”

Your baseball hitting style is what you do at the plate before you swing the bat and baseball hitting mechanics are what you do when you are actually swinging the bat. If a coach wants to help you improve your baseball hitting mechanics, that’s one thing. But your very personal hitting style is an entirely different matter. It’s something that is your personal choice to do before the baseball hitting actually takes place. The smarter coaches will recognize this and leave your style totally up to you!

The point here is that basically you can do whatever you want as far as style is concerned and your style should not be altered by anyone. Sometimes fewer baseball hitting tips are better than more. Your baseball hitting style is something that you have decided gets you the best prepared to hit the baseball.

Baseball hitting styles vary tremendously from hitter to hitter and that’s the way it should be. If you’re comfortable waving the bat around, go for it. If you’re comfortable rocking back and forth, that too is absolutely fine. Styles vary, but you’ll find that after the style comes the mechanics of the swing and all the good baseball hitters are similar and have sound mechanics.

I know a baseball hitter who has the “style” of waving the barrel of the bat around in a very pronounced manner just before swinging the bat. It is definitely something you would not go out of your way to teach a player to do at the plate. But you know what? That’s his personal choice and the best way for him to prepare to hit. After all the waving of the bat, when the real moment of truth arrives and the actual baseball hitting takes place, he has outstanding mechanics. He has a very quick bat and a “short to the ball” yet violent swing and that’s why he is an extremely successful hitter! Wouldn’t it be foolish to ask him to change his style? Quite often coaches confuse mechanics with a player’s personal hitting style. Personally, I could care less if a hitter stands on his head while getting ready to hit. Who cares? The only thing that matters is that he has to be ready when the real moment of truth arrives.

Sometimes baseball players can be over managed. Occasionally, a baseball coach should forget about all the baseball tips on hitting and take a step back and let the players play. Yes, a baseball coach should by all means help you with baseball hitting mechanics or he shouldn’t be coaching. But as far as your personal style, as a baseball hitter, just do whatever you feel prepares you the best to hit the baseball and nobody involved in baseball coaching should ever try to take your personal baseball hitting style away from you!

What many coaches fail to realize is that you are in the hot seat at the plate and you have to feel comfortable when you are hitting. Not me, not your coach and not anyone else. This is a perfect example of “less being more.” A coach should deal with each hitter as an individual and taking a hitter out of his comfort zone at the plate is not productive for anyone. If your coach gives you a hard time, please have him contact me at his earliest convenience because we definitely need to have a chat!

Related articles

• Baseball Tips On Hitting: Focusing On Just This One Thing May Lead To Your Success! (baseballreflections.com)
• Baseball Tips On Hitting: How You Stride When Hitting Is Critical! (baseballreflections.com)
• Baseball Tips On Hitting: How Practice Is Mandatory For Your Success! (baseballreflections.com)

At a recent family meal, I became embroiled in a baseball debate with my uncle. A staunch Yankee fan like myself, he stated that Mariano Rivera was the Yankees’ best pitcher prior to his freak ACL injury, emphasizing Mo’s unparalleled success in the postseason. While I have nothing but respect for the all-time saves leader, I played devil’s advocate, arguing that a good starter like CC Sabathia is worth more to the Bombers.

How can a reliever who throws for a single inning be more valuable than a starter who hurls six, seven, or eight innings? I pointed out. It’s pretty obvious that the guy who pitches more innings will have a bigger say in a game’s decision.

Unfortunately, my logic was lost on him, as he had quickly nodded off on the couch from either close-mindedness or a full stomach. Regardless, it seems that the baseball community continues to overvalue relievers, especially closers. Even with sabermetrics now urging us to think more objectively about America’s pastime, we still fail to recognize the faulty baseball tradition of the closer.

Since the save statistic became official in 1969, teams’ best relievers have been ordered to take the ball with a slim lead in the ninth inning. But does a save situation have the greatest probability of affecting the final score? In an article in “Baseball Between the Numbers” (an excellent book that reevaluates common knowledge in baseball), Keith Woolner suggests that save opportunities have less leverage on a game’s score than other situations for relievers. He concludes that by not using closers (presumably the bullpen’s top reliever) in these higher-leverage situations, teams miss out on nearly 2 wins per season, which clearly has huge ramifications for close wild-card races.

If Woolner’s piece isn’t enough to convince you that closers and saves are flawed constructs, then take a look at the position’s turnover in 2012. As of two weeks ago, 15 teams were no longer using their primary closer in save situations due to injuries, ineffectiveness, and roster moves (ESPN). Even now, several teams continue to flip-flop on who should enter the game in save situations. The White Sox recently had Chris Sale bouncing between the rotation and the bullpen, and the Reds’ flamethrower Aroldis Chapman may have grabbed the reins from incumbent Sean Marshall after the latter nearly blew Saturday’s lead against the Yankees.

This year’s “bullpen unrest” only adds to the existing instability of the closer role. With a smaller sample size of innings pitched, relieving is a boom-or-bust endeavor, especially during “high-pressure” ninth innings. One or two mistakes can easily destroy a pitcher’s statistics and bring about his demotion. A fastball hits the dirt with the bases loaded or a curveball hangs to the cleanup hitter, and the manager immediately starts second-guessing his closer’s ability to shut the door. A few mess-ups will have a reliever sentenced to the purgatory of middle relief.

With pitchers either sustaining injuries or performing inconsistently left and right, it may be time to rethink the bullpen, starting with the closer role. The first step would be to get rid of the stigma associated with saves. A three-run lead in the ninth inning is only considered a “high-pressure” situation because we allow ourselves to believe it. In baseball and life, we frequently get swept up in mass psychology, using it as a faulty tool for valuation and analysis. Who says Facebook’s new stock should initially sell for $38 and not $37 or even $27?

Instead of arbitrarily placing importance on minutia, we should see things like the stock market and save opportunities for what they really are. Forget saves and closing, and all of the related stress would evaporate. Honestly, major-league hurlers are incredibly talented, and their ability should trump any mental angst caused by the game’s taboos concerning innings and score.

As a Yankee fan that has watched the same man finish games for 15 years straight, I cannot offer the perfect cure for the league-wide bullpen woes. However, closer volatility this season demonstrates how sorely managers need to reevaluate how and when they employ their relievers. Yes, we’re talking about reinventing the wheel here, but without bold men like Billy Beane and Joe Madden, we would be stuck in the dark ages of RBI totals and ERA. If baseball is Darwinian, then the first team to evolve its bullpen will beat MLB’s natural selection.

Check out Peter Schiller’s article about the Modern Day Use of The Bullpen in Baseball!

Related articles

• Are Closers Overrated? (baseballreflections.com)

For those fans of daily Fantasy Baseball, you can now play here on one of our pages on Baseball Reflections thanks to our new partnership with FanSaloon.com!

Feel free to challenge me or any of our other writers. It’s free to join a 10 team game and the winner has a chance to join a monthly game with a chance of winning $250.

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The Factor12 Rating (F12) is an analytic measurement utilizing league average performance to compare the value of all MLB pitchers on 60ft6in.com.

Justin Verlander (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

(1) Justin Verlander regains the number one F12 Rating after pitching his latest masterpiece 7IP/ 2H/ 1ER/ 1BB/ 8K against the Oakland Athletics.  The 2011 American League Cy Young Award winner holds a 31.009 Factor12 Rating.

(2) Gio Gonzalez has dominated opposing hitters in his last seven outings.  The left-hander has pitched 45 IP/ 22H/ 8ER/ 16BB/ 54K.  Gonzalez currently trails the F12 top position by only .06 points.

(3) Brandon Beachy vaults into the number three spot after pitching his first career complete game shutout against the Miami Marlins on Wednesday night.  The Atlanta Braves right-hander has posted an MLB best 1.33 ERA.

(4) Zack Greinke has regained his 2009 AL Cy Young form after his first eight starts.  The right-hander makes his first appearance on the Top 5 F12 ranking.

(5) Ryan Dempster is a perfect example of why pitching win totals are overrated.  The veteran right-hander is winless this season despite compiling a 1.74 ERA and 0.97 WHIP after six starts.

                       ***The Factor12 Top 12 in 2012 through games on May 17th:

Related articles

• Factor12 (F12) Rating Leaders: Week 1 (baseballreflections.com)
• Factor 12 Leaders Week 2 (baseballreflections.com)
• Factor 12 Leaders: Week 3 (baseballreflections.com)
• Factor 12 Leaders: Week 4 (baseballreflections.com)
• Factor 12 Leaders: Week 5 (baseballreflections.com)

If a player is receiving every day playing time, he is more likely to help your fantasy team, after all, right? Maybe not. Think about it… is it better to have a player who plays every day but only hits a weak .250 with no power or speed? The good news is that there are many options among players who are part-timers who may just help your team. Best of all, your fellow owners probably have overlooked these guys because of their lack of at bats.

Part-timers to consider are:

The answer to this question seems obvious; no. However, even after Frank Francisco got credit for a “save” in the Mets 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers, it seems like it will be a matter of time before somebody else will be protecting 9th inning leads in Queens. Francisco gave up a run, two hits and walked a batter while finishing the game for the Mets. The obvious answer consists of candidates such as Bobby Parnell and Jon Rauch, but a distinct case could be made that the Mets may be interested in trading for another reliever.

Sandy Alderson did not hold back in putting a brunt of the blame for last season’s lousy second half on the bullpen. While Alderson had no choice but to move Francisco Rodriguez with the first chance he got, he left the team with sub par options to finish the last two innings of a game. Jason Isringhausen was ok, but struggled at times and was unavailable for the last three plus weeks of the season. Parnell was very hittable, though he may have something now with the use of the change up he has used effectively so far this season. You know there were no options when Manny Acosta got his  share of save opportunities.

The Mets have some depth in the bullpen this season that they did not have last year. Ramon Ramirez has pitched ok, despite struggling at times. Rauch has pitched very well, a stark contrast from his tough season in Toronto. Parnell and Tim Byrdak have done a very good job, to this point. In my opinion, the last two spots of the bullpen are interchangeable and guys like Acosta and DJ Carrasco will either pitch well or be replaced by somebody else in the organization.

That synopsis suggests that Francisco is the only Mets reliever pitching noticeably poor. Ramirez has not pitched like he did last year for the Giants, and Acosta is probably one more shaky appearance away from being DFA’d. Francisco was the choice Alderson went with to be the 9th inning guy. You had to go back no further than last year to realize how important of a role that is. It also had to be noted that you can’t just put anybody there, and after all the research was put together, the best option was Francisco. He could have made a better case for himself, pitching terribly in spring training. Maybe all those who said “Its spring training, don’t be crazy” or “he’ll do better when it counts” have realized that this will not work out for much longer. Yes, his velocity is up from spring training, but he is all over the strike zone and based on the results, his strikes are very hittable.

So, many have suggested the Mets go to Parnell or Rauch to replace Francisco temporarily. I don’t have a problem with that, being Francisco will keep costing the team games as long as he is in the closers role. And in order for Parnell or Rauch to step into that role, it will have to be Francisco who will pitch some important 7th and 8th innings. If he is struggling to get hitters out as a closer, he will do the same in the 7th and 8th innings. He cannot and will not be released, since he is owed another $6.5 million next year after he finishes collecting his $5.5 million from this season. I suggest that he takes on the Acosta role now, usually pitching with nothing on the line but occasionally getting into a big spot out of necessity. Acosta should be DFA’d and the Mets should consider adding another reliever.

Mike MacDougal was just released by the Dodgers, it couldn’t hurt to give him a shot. Perhaps it may be time to try of LHP Josh Edgin, who is closing games for AAA Buffalo. And yes, I am going there: here are some trade possibilities that they should at least kick the tires on.

Kevin Gregg really has no spot in the Orioles bullpen. He is 0-1 4.50 ERA, 8 Ks in 10 IP. The Orioles are trying very hard to trade him, as they have pitched extremely well. The price may not be too high. Something would have to be worked out with his 2012 salary and it has to be understood that his 2013 team option will be declined.

Jordan Walden has lost his closer’s job in Los Angeles to Scott Downs. Walden saved 32 games as a 23 year old rookie last season, but it has to be understood that he is young and has a lot of promise. The Mets would have to get creative if they wanted to make a trade here. Perhaps dip into the lower levels of the minor leagues for a couple of younger prospects, such as Robbie Shields and Juan Lagares, and package that with Matt Den Dekker or Jordany Valdespin to get this done. It may seem like a lot, but you would have to give up three players to get somebody with Walden’s upside. It still may not be enough to pry him away from LA.

Sean Marshall is a pitcher I would want in my bullpen. He will not be available, being the Reds just traded for him and extended him through 2015. Though he is currently not the Reds closer, this is a pitcher the Reds want to have around for a while.

Brett Myers could fill a temporary relief role and help as a starter. He has pitched well as the Astros closer this season, but I would not expect the Mets to pick up the balance of the $11 million he is owed this season. He also has a $10 million team option with a $3 million buyout for next season, something the Mets want no part of. If the Astros get desperate, this is something worth considering towards the trading deadline. Perhaps the Mets try MacDougal and Edgin, getting themselves until June or July. Then, the Astros may just want to unload Myers and the contract is closer to what the Mets would be willing to pay.

26 year old Javy Guerra has struggled for the Dodgers this season. He was sharp last year, saving 21 games mostly in the second half of the season for LA. He lost the job to Kenley Jensen and there is no hiding the fact that LA is looking for relief help.

The middle of the Mets bullpen has, for the most part, gotten the job done this season. Francisco, at least for the time being, needs to pitch some mop up relief and get his confidence back. The Mets will be compromising the middle relief which has worked by moving Parnell or Rauch into the closers role. They should consider adding another reliever to give them depth for the 7th and 8th innings.

Here are the top 5 players at each position separated by League according to the MoneyStats Player Rater.

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Not many players in the history of baseball had as unpredictable a career as John Smoltz. Usually a
starting pitcher stays such throughout his career, or if a player becomes a dominant closer one year, it is
impossible to change them from that role. Smoltz would be the ultimate exception to this rule. In short,
Smoltz was a pitcher, not to be defined by silly words like starter, reliever or closer. He pitched where
the team dictated they needed him most, and that is what makes his story special.

In his new book, written with Don Yaeger, Starting and Closing: Perseverance, Faith, and One More Year,
Smoltz tells the story of how he became the person that pitched so well for so many years. Very early on
in the book, Smoltz establishes a few facts. One of these facts is that he always believed that he could
win at whatever he did. The second fact is that he didn’t really care how he became the best
or how he won; just that it happened. Essentially, he didn’t care what records he held, or how the game
ended up on his side, as long as when it was over, he was victorious.

One of the main points of Smoltz’s book is to explain why he decided to come back for one final season
after having to miss an entire season due to undergoing Tommy John surgery. He points out that to this day,
the question he is asked most by people, whether it be in the line at a movie theater or on the set of
a television baseball show, is why after he had already had a career so many people would be pleased
with, he put himself through an extremely difficult rehabilitation program to come back for one more
season.

The short answer that Smoltz provides to this question is simple. He tells them, “Why not?” An answer
that is in some ways both easy and hard to argue with. On one hand, one could argue that Smoltz had
enough money in the bank to last him for a life time and had already had a lengthy and successful
career, so there was no reason for him to push himself to get back out there. On the other hand,
someone could look at this and wonder why anyone would want to stop doing what they love to do
when they still have something left in the tank.

Smoltz explains the different layers that made his decision to come back for that last season easy. He
blatantly states that there was no thought in his end that if he played another year and had another
significant boost to his numbers that he could perhaps bolster his argument to get into the Hall of Fame.

Many times, hearing that the love of the game is the reason for playing is hard to take from players who
are making millions of dollars to play catch on a diamond. While this isn’t to say that the feeling would
not apply at all to Smoltz, he certainly attempts to make a compelling case for his love of the game being
the main driver for him to continue on.

The book is a rather quick read and the story of Smoltz’s career unfolds itself in a very informal
memoir type of a fashion. This would be an interesting read for anyone who followed Smoltz through
his career or has a significant interest specifically in the mindset of pitchers. Smoltz is the only player in
modern history who was dominant both as a starter and as a closer, and this uniqueness is illustrated
throughout the book. Not only do readers learn the story about him on the mound, but they learn
about the passions he has off of it as well such as golf and faith.

The 304 page book retails for $26 and will be out in hardcover this month. The book is published by
William Morrow, An Imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers.

Overall Rating: 2.75/5

With two Silver Sluggers and an Most Valuable Player award, the Texas Rangers’ Josh Hamilton has always been one of baseball’s elite, but his on-field injuries and off-the-field substances have limited his potential throughout his career.

However, you’ve probably heard that 2012 is a completely different story. Through his first 30 games, the Rangers’ outfielder has amassed a whopping 18 home runs and 41 runs batted in, with an eye-popping .402/.457/.873 slash line.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock recently, you probably also heard about Hamilton’s power surge last Tuesday night, when he teed off on the Baltimore Orioles for four home runs, eight RBIs, and 18 total bases at Camden Yards. With only 16 four-HR games in Major League Baseball history, the feat ranks among perfect games (21) and unassisted triple plays (15) as one of the most rare achievements in baseball. With that being said, how much luck was involved in Hamilton’s epic night?

Let’s break down each of his long balls:

Home Run No. 1: Hamilton started his off the fireworks with a bomb off of Orioles’ starter Jake Arrieta in the top of the first. The 79-mph curveball stayed up over the leftmost third of the plate, a meatball for the left-handed Hamilton considering it was thrown by a right-hander. The baseball traveled a mere 404 feet, barely escaping the center-field wall and Andruw Jones’ outstretched glove. Move the walls back a yard, and Jones could have hauled it in. According to ESPN’s online Home Run Tracker, this tater had “just enough” to escape Camden Yards, but would not have left any other ballpark under standard weather conditions. However, MLB Advanced Media recorded a 6-mph breeze blowing to straightaway center field at first pitch, which gave the ball some extra lift over the fence. Conclusion: Lucky

Home Run  No. 2: Hamilton’s second dinger also came off of Arrieta in the third inning, but unlike the first, there was no question about this one. The right-hander’s 93-mph sinker wound up in nearly the same location as his first offering, but Hamilton redirected the faster pitch 387 feet into the left-center bleachers. Clearing the fence by a whopping 23 feet, ESPN’s database claims that it would have left 26 of the 30 stadiums in the Majors. In other words, only the offense-killing confines of Petco and Marlins Park might have kept this one in the yard. Conclusion: Legit

Home Run No. 3: After doubling off the wall in right-center field, Hamilton slammed another home run to left-center field. Again, the offering (a 78-mph slider from left-handed rookie Zach Phillips) was on the outer third of the plate, but hung up in the zone, easy pickings for a red-hot Hamilton. Number 3 ended up in nearly the same spot as Number 1, landing 406 feet from home plate. With the wind continuing to blow toward center field, Jones jumped but had no hope of snagging it. ESPN estimates that the breeze added six feet to this shot, turning an easy can-of-corn into Hamilton’s third dinger of the night. Conclusion: Lucky

Home Run No 4: Ex-Texas Ranger reliever Darren O’Day was Hamilton’s final victim. For a fourth time, the pitch (another slider clocking in at only 83 mph) landed in Hamilton’s wheelhouse, giving him another opportunity to show what he can do with off-speed pitches landing on the outer third of the plate. Number 4 traveled 425 feet to left-center, so far from numbers 1 and 3 that Jones could only give a half-hearted jog across Camden’s outfield. The wind actually knocked a foot off this long ball’s distance, but this one would’ve left 87 percent of Major League Baseball parks anyway (ESPN). Kudos to Orioles’ manager Buck Showalter for not ordering an intentional walk, but at this point, Hamilton was so locked in that he could have hit one out even if it was two feet off the plate. Conclusion: Legit

With four juicy outside pitches and a strong wind to work with, Hamilton clearly caught some breaks last Tuesday night. Achieving this feat during a night game probably made things a bit easier. Hamilton is historically a poorer hitter during day games, batting .260 versus .332 during night contests from 2009-2011. But does a .402 hitter really care what time he takes his hacks? It’s interesting to consider the factors behind his epic performance, but it can’t take away from Hamilton’s ability with the bat.

His otherworldly start makes for a more enthralling off-season, when he will be the top free agent on the market.