Boston Adds a Bat
The Red Sox have aquired a new left handed bat and insurance if 3B Mike Lowell needs to miss any time in the second half. This will be an upgrade over Jeff Bailey, Adam Bates and even Mark Kotsay (who can still play in the OF). Here is what Boston’s sports talk radio station WEEI, […]
2009 Yankees: (Almost as) easy as pie
It’s not just a new stadium for the Yankees this year. It’s a new team atmosphere. In recent years, the Yanks have acted more like ultra-serious businessmen than giddy schoolboys. But the corporate era is over with the club this season, thanks to spirited new teammates like A.J. Burnett, CC Sabathia and Nick Swisher. This […]
Steriods, It’s Not All Equal!
On Monday night, July the 13th., we managed to see 7 of the best home run hitters in baseball and Brandon Inge get together in an attempt to put on a power display where batting practice pitchers grooved balls at 70—75 MPH and in turn the likes of Pujols, Fielder, Cruz, and Howard deposited them […]
Nick Kappel’s Fantasy Focus: Second Half Studs
The All-Star Break has come and gone, and the dog days of summer are upon us. In some leagues, only six weeks of regular season play remain, meaning now is the time to make your playoff push. Every piece of information is important, and if history is any indicator, these eight batters are likely to […]
Astros Attendance By the Numbers
Image via Wikipedia So we briefly touched on this a while back at Astros County, but I thought…off day and all, we can revisit it a little more closely (editor’s note: this was written during the All Star Break). This is the issue of attendance among MLB teams, specifically the Astros, from 2008 to 2009. […]
Red Sox Trade Bait & Prospects
Sometimes you can improve your team by way of addition by subtraction. This year’s Red Sox are in this situation in 2009. We have a great bullpen and an excess of starting pitching and more real glaring needs except for a little more power off the bench. To get to that you need to either […]
Can the Rockies stay hot after the break?
Coming off a June record of 21-7 and finishing with a 10 game home–stand before the break, but there are still many questions to be answered in Colorado regarding the second half of the season. The Colorado Rockies began the season as many fans would have anticipated, slowly. But after the firing of Clint Hurdle […]
Why the Braves will (not) make the playoffs
The Braves have made some good moves recently that we all know about. The starting pitching is above average, the relief pitching adequate, the offense is also adequate and the defense is excellent. It appears to a Braves fan that the Braves are in the best position to take first in the East. Under the […]
Nats Fans HAD High Hopes for 2009 Season
The Washington National fans entered this season with high hopes. Not with the typical hopes of baseball fans, that their team may be winning the pennant or even the World Series. No, Nationals fans were finally hopeful that their team had turned the corner and would be in the beginning of an upswing that would […]
Torii Hunter Beats the Odds
Image by Getty Images via Daylife The nice people at Guideposts.com have been kind enough to allow us to bring these stories of current Major League players in their entirety while I’m away on vacation. So without further ado…Torii Hunter Beats the Odds by Louis Berney. He rose above his father’s addiction to make it […]
Jamie Moyer proves that good guys can finish first
Image via Wikipedia The nice people at Guideposts.com have been kind enough to allow us to bring these stories of current Major League players in their entirety while I’m away on vacation. So without further ado…Jamie Moyer proves that good guys can finish first By Louis Berney. This Good Guy Finishes First Phillies pitcher Jamie […]
How Josh Hamilton Defeated His Demons
The nice people at Guideposts.com have been kind enough to allow us to bring these stories of current Major League players in their entirety while I’m away on vacation. So without further ado…The Natural by Josh Hamilton (himself): How faith and family helped big leaguer Josh Hamilton beat his demons The scene was so familiar […]
Melvin Mora, an All-Star Dad, too!
Image by Keith Allison via Flickr The nice people at Guideposts.com have been kind enough to allow us to bring these stories of current Major League players in their entirety. So without further ado…An All-Star Dad By Louis Berney: Melvin Mora has won baseball honors, but what he prizes most are his children. One day, […]
The case of Pablo Sandoval and the NL All-Star team
Image by acordova via Flickr The starting National League third baseman in this month’s mid summer classic will be the Mets’ David Wright. His numbers, even beyond his inflated New York aided vote total warrant the selection, especially when compared to the other top two vote getters; Chipper Jones and Ryan Zimmerman. Not to mention […]
Manny Returns to the Dodger Lineup
Image by Getty Images via Daylife Manny Ramirez returns to the Dodgers’ lineup tomorrow not as a pariah, but as a prodigal son. All has been foriven after his 50-game exile for testing positive for performance-enhancing drugs when he takes the field for the Dodgers in San Diego. Mannywood, otherwise known as the left-field bleachers, […]
INTERVIEW: Craig Calcaterra of Shysterball
Image via Wikipedia Here’s an interview done by Russ Smith of SpliceToday entitled, “Interview: Craig Calcaterra of Shysterball“. Russ was kind enough to allow up to repost this on Baseball Reflections today. As the MLB season reaches its halfway mark, Splice has once again consulted Shysterball‘s Craig Calcaterra, our favorite baseball blogger. Calcaterra, a lawyer […]
The Rangers Struggled in June
“The Rangers have lost the lead in the AL West with the Angels taking the spot that they have been so familiar with over the last four years. Texas has lost steam, but ironically, the pitching has kept them afloat and the offense has let them down. The Rangers have finished the past two seasons […]
The Cardinals, On The Run and the Number 6
In Cardinal Nation, we know that six is a serious number. The local On The Run Mobile gas stations have had a promotion the past few years that, if the Cardinals scored six runs or more in a game, the next day fountain drinks, coffee, etc. was only a quarter at their stores. This year, […]
Big Papi Comes Up Big in June
Image via Wikipedia So now that David Ortiz has found his stroke again, all the murmurs will start. This will certainly mirror the talk that surrounded Jason Giambi a couple of years ago. You all remember, don’t you? Giambi admitted to doing performance-enhancing drugs before the 2004 season, and followed that up with an 80 […]
Nick Kappel’s Fantasy Focus: Three Prospects to Keep an Eye on
Last week’s Fantasy Focus centered around three prime sell-high targets. This week, we’ll turn our attention to the minor leagues to find out which prospects are most likely to make a fantasy impact this season. Jhoulys Chacin Chacin’s value has skyrocketed since the beginning of the 2008 season, when Baseball America ranked him as the […]
Baltimore Orioles Midseason Report: Seeing Past the Ugliness
From the very beginning, the goal of the 2009 season for the Baltimore Orioles has been to be respectable on the field while continuing behind the scenes to develop the pieces needed to eventually lead the Orioles back to contention in the American League East. With the season now three months old and nearing the […]
Effective Communication Is Important For Coaches
Effective communication is important for coaches to make baseball rewarding and fun for young players Chicago – It was the chance I had waited for since I was a 16th round draft pick drafted by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1976. As a second baseman, I had cups of coffee with the Dodgers in 1980 […]
June Reflections on the Blue Jays
When my partner in crime, Tom, penned his last epistle about our beloved azure corvidae, things were just going great in the Queen City. He mentioned how much he was enjoying the season thus far, and confided that he wasn’t sure how long the Jays could keep it up. The answer – not long. Almost […]
The Pendulum Continues To Swing in St. Louis
Joe Morgan would have put the Cardinals on his bad list in June, because they’ve been pretty inconsistent during the month. A pitching staff that is lit up against the Rockies early in the month settles down to some better pitched games, with hiccups along the way. An offense maligned as inept is able to […]
Interview With Former MLB Catcher Brent Mayne
Whenever you get the chance to talk to someone that has been there, it’s always special to see it through their eyes. On June the 19th, 2009, I was given the pleasure of an audience with Brent Mayne, a 15 year Major League Veteran. My connection with Brent was made through a gentleman named Bob […]
Nick Kappel’s Fantasy Focus: Three Players To Sell High On
In my last Fantasy Focus, I outlined three pitchers whose slow starts made them prime buy-low candidates. This week I’m going to nominate three players whose hot starts make them excellent sell-high targets. Keep in mind that obvious choices, such as Kevin Millwood, will be left off the list. I would like to think that […]
Royals Showcase Textbook Bad Baseball
When I last reported on the Royals, the team was sitting just one game out of first place in the American League Central with a respectable 20-18 record. Sure, Kansas City had dropped seven of their last nine games to get to that mark, but all was still well in the land of blue. My, […]
Friday Night Links
It is out of regret that we have to use this section to once again announce the departure of 2 more writers, but we do have 2 additional writing coming on board, but he will not (as of yet) be covering a specific team. The two gentlemen who will be leaving us are Tony DeMarco […]
Miller-McCune on Baseball
In a March 16th article in Miller-McCune online, Tom Jacobs wrote about the possible bias in baseball, pop-ups and economics. The article was titled, “Race Ball: Our National Pastime?“. I found the first section on race to be inconclusive as the dates they researched were from three different date ranges 1954-1968, early 70’s to early […]
Why The Trade Deadline May Be Disappointing For Tigers Fans
With just about six weeks remaining until the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline the Detroit Tigers find themselves in first place in the AL Central, albeit with some gaping holes in their roster. Through ineffectiveness or injury the Tigers are struggling to fill the bottom two spots in the starting rotation, are platooning various youngsters in the outfield […]
