Safer Game, Better Game?

The throw came in from San Francisco right fielder Nate Schierholtz, with the intention of throwing out runner Scott Cousins at home plate during the 12^th inning of a 6-6 ballgame.  The throw arrived, just a little late and slightly to the first base side of the plate.   Catcher Buster Posey never fully secured the ball before attempting a tag, not that having possession would have prevented everything that was to follow.  Cousins was safe at home, allowing the Marlins to take a 7-6 lead.  On the play however, Cousins barreled into Posey with full force, making contact with most (if not all) of his upper body.  The voice of longtime Giants broadcaster Jon Miller still echoes, “And Posey gets clobbered”.

Posey lay on the ground grasping at dirt, seemingly searching for some relief to the very obvious and very intense pain he was experiencing.  That intense pain, it was later revealed, was the result of a fractured left ankle.  A series of MRIs also revealed additional ligament damage, casting further doubt on when Posey may be able to return to action.  Initial estimates have Posey missing the remainder of the 2011 season, with the primary focus centering on a full recovery for Spring Training, 2012.  Granted, when an injury of this severity occurs, baseball activities are a distant second to making certain that the player involved is able to simply walk again. 

Whenever a player is severely injured, particularly a star player like Posey, fans and analysts want answers to questions like “why”.  It seems an innocuous enough query, but that word “why” can be a loaded one.  Desperate for answers, it is the natural inclination of some to start to assign blame. 

In this way, the runner (Cousins) is an easy target for blame, much in the way Pete Rose is blamed for Ray Fosse’s demise.  Although, if Cousins were a player of Rose’s caliber, it’s doubtful that so many fingers would be pointed in his general direction.  In fact, as was the case with Rose, Cousins would be applauded for his hard-nosed style of play, and his overwhelming desire to win at all costs.  Writers would be coining nicknames for him (Scotty “Hustle”, anyone?), and the play would be held up as a testament to the competitive spirit of some mythical, bygone era.   The same sportswriters who want fans to believe that everything was better when players cared more (as expressed by their willingness to run out ground balls, lay down bunts, and, well, take out catchers) are the very scribes that are looking to place blame on the game for allowing certain players to care too much.

Now, many in the industry are calling for stricter enforcement of the rules governing collisions at and around the plate, be they  regarding the legality of obstructing the plate (something the rules already disallow) or the guidelines regarding collisions (at the plate or otherwise).  Should Major League Baseball now seek to more stringently enforce those existing rules that are supposed to protect the employees on the field of play, or are additional steps (i.e. new rules) necessary to ensure that players are safe on the job?  The NCAA and the National Federation of State High School Associations (NFHS) already have a system of rules in place to prevent home plate collisions, and they’ve helped to reduce the number of serious injuries.  Is it then time for MLB to follow suit and find solutions for this newfound collision dilemma?

It must be understood that the injury dilemma is nothing new to baseball.  In 1972, when the Designated Hitter rule was implemented, there was a concerted effort to attempt to infuse the game with more offensive production, well, in the American league anyway.  Another part of that argument was that pitchers were placed in harm’s way by having to run the bases.  To this end, pitchers were (and still are) allowed to wear a warm-up jacket while on the base paths.  The practice has largely fallen out of favor in today’s game, but the image of a robust Fernando Valenzuela expanding his already prominent profile by donning a satin jacket is an image you won’t soon forget.  A rule was changed, for better or for worse, and pitchers are now safer for it, or, are they?

Yankees manager Joe Girardi was openly critical of the necessity of pitchers having to run the bases after Chien-Ming Wang injured his foot on the base paths during a 2008 game against the Houston Astros (in Houston, obviously).  Here again, someone or something had to be blamed for Wang’s misfortune, even if Girardi was unwilling or unable to offer a reasonable solution.  Designated runners?  A universal DH rule that governed both leagues?  Each is a possibility, but altering the existing rules couldn’t turn back time and prevent Wang’s foot injury (even if he did only throw 88 MPH), nor would it assure that designated hitters and/or runners wouldn’t be injured themselves.  Yet because Wang was forced to miss significant time due to the injury, someone (not the injured player, mind you) had to assume the guilt.

Fast-forward yet again, to April 12, 2011, and a very well-documented play involving the Rangers Josh Hamilton.  Hamilton, a player with an already spotty injury history, was injured during a play at the plate versus the Detroit Tigers.  With the score at 1-0, Hamilton tagged up on a foul pop out to third baseman Brandon Inge.  On the play, C Victor Martinez also converged on the ball, leaving home plate unattended.  Aware of the situation at hand, third base coach Dave Anderson sent Hamilton (who had tagged up on the play) in an attempt to score.  Martinez outraced Hamilton to the plate, forcing the former American League MVP to slide head-first slide into home.  He was out.  Of course, he was also injured.

Medical exams revealed that Hamilton suffered a broken humerus bone, eventually forcing the former American League MVP to miss 36 games.  Immediately following the game, Hamilton was openly critical of the decision by to send him in that situation, stating explicitly that it was “a stupid play”.  The implication here is that Hamilton’s injury couldn’t have possibly occurred had he been held at third—a fairly obvious observation.   Yet the injury also sparked a dialogue about the necessity of the head first slide.  Is it safe?  Is it even effective? 

Anyone asking those questions need only look up the career numbers of Rickey Henderson to find a clear answer.  Looking further, Hamilton’s had his fair share of close plays at the plate, but none of them to that point led to a serious injury.  Additionally, throughout his career, he’s made countless head-first slides, including one on the play that found Hamilton standing on third base to begin with (an RBI triple).    Another fact that cannot be ignored is that Hamilton was the Rangers designated hitter on the day he was injured, presumably in an effort to reduce the strain on his body.  It didn’t work.  Then again, there’s really no planning for the type of injury Hamilton sustained.

The Posey injury has thrust the topic of player safety into the spotlight once again.  What responsibility do teams (and MLB) have in protecting their players?  And, what responsibility do the players have in protecting themselves?  Posey has yet to address the issue publicly, as he’s undoubtedly been preoccupied with the immediacy of the injury itself.  Posey’s agent, Jeff Berry, has stated that he’d like Major League Baseball to consider the notion of changing the rules that govern plays at home plate, specifically for safety reasons.  Commissioner Bud Selig has yet to issue an official statement, but baseball will likely come out in support of its existing rules, for liability purposes if nothing else.  At the same time, straw polls of the players themselves indicate that they simply do not favor any rules that would curtail aggressive play.

Aggressive play is one of the ways by which players foster their very identities.  To this end, plays at the plate happen, and will continue to happen.  So too will head first slides.  These are parts of the game that simply will not change.  But, should they? 

More often than not, pitchers that get injured do so while throwing.  In order to eliminate future pitching-related injuries, Major League Baseball should consider allowing batters to hit from a tee, thereby reducing the risk to pitchers’ elbows and shoulders.  While the notion of advertising on bases fell by the wayside, perhaps MLB should consider replacing bases with down pillows (the softer the better).  Players will no longer be required to run the bases, but will instead ride Segways from station to station.  This station-to-station style of play will prevent players from taking extra bases and eliminate the need for sliding altogether.  Fielders will no longer be required to catch balls for fear of injuring their hands—hands that are needed for signing contracts and/or checks.  Additionally, hitters will not be permitted to use a bat, as the use of a potential weapon sends a message of violence to children.  With these measures in place, baseball will finally be closer to becoming the fan-friendly, safety-minded sport it should be.  Or, everyone can just go play soccer.

M's With an Ace Up Their Sleeve?

A few seasons ago, although it seems like much longer, Erik Bedard was a dominant pitcher, albeit only for two seasons, and not even two “full” ones.  Blessed with a blazing fastball and one of the best curveballs in the game, Bedard baffled and befuddled hitters to the tune of a 28-16 record, a 3.37 ERA and 1.22 WHIP.  Considering how bad the Orioles were (and arguably still ARE), that W/L record is especially impressive, given the talent surrounding the former Baltimore ace.  In 2007, his last year in Baltimore, Bedard compiled 221 strikeouts in just 182 innings pitched, for a league-best 10.9 K/9, setting the league ablaze with his almost unhittable stuff.  He’d seemingly arrived, establishing himself as one of the American League’s top pitchers at age 28.

A much publicized off season trade sent Bedard packing to the Pacific Northwest in February of 2008, ostensibly for then-Mariners prospect Adam Jones.  Other pieces, Chris Tillman among them, were also attached, but at that time it was Jones that was the jewel in this king’s ransom of a trade—for the Orioles, anyway.  As it turns out, Bedard’s effectiveness was limited to the Eastern Time zone.  Well, that’s not entirely true.  The lefty actually pitched fairly well when he was physically able to pitch.  During his first go round in Seattle (2008-09), Bedard pitched to an 11-7 record, 3.24 ERA and 1.25 WHIP.  He also carried an 8.9 K/9—well enough for some to realize that he still had All-Star stuff, even if it was being thrown with an ailing arm (perhaps even dying).  That same arm was so gravely ill throughout most of the 2009 season, that Bedard was unable to pitch at all in 2010.  As luck would have it, it was a labrum, one of those finicky little things that average Joes seldom (if ever) have to concern themselves with, but for Major League pitchers, well…Bedard was doing a lot more rehabbing than pitching, much to the fiscal disappointment of the Seattle Mariners.

RE-signed and re-armed (pun intended) for the 2011 season, Bedard was hoping to return to form, although even he had to be fully aware that it was going to be an uphill battle.  Although, a quick look at his numbers to date would suggest that things are going splendidly.  His 2-4 record is no indication at all how good Bedard has been.  He’s pitched to a 3.94 ERA and 1.27 WHIP, limiting hitters to just 41 hits in 45.2 innings pitched.  Further, he’s regained some of his dominant mound presence, holding an 8.08 K/9.  Sure, he’s managed to pitch more than five innings in just three of eight starts to begin the year, but the mere fact that he’s made eight starts is encouraging to say the least.  Those eight starts are already more than half way to his 2009 total—the last year he toed the rubber in the bigs.

Can he sustain it?  Well, by now it should be fairly clear that he’s capable of sustaining this level of success.  In reality, it’s Bedard’s ability to sustain his current level of health that bears watching. Manager Eric Wedge seems content to maximize the number of effective innings that Bedard throws rather than worrying about him simply eating innings—quality over quantity, it seems.  That seems to be the safe(r) play too.  In 152 career games pitched, Bedard has completed only one…one.  To ask him to throw too many innings is like playing Russian roulette with his delicate arm.  Eventually, things are probably going to break down, that is unless Wedge and company pay special attention to Bedard’s very special needs.

Smoak Signals, and Other Clichés

Don’t look now, but there just may be a Seattle Mariner that’s not afraid of making solid contact with baseballs.  And, no, we’re not about to launch into a barrage of insults hurled in the general direction of soon-to-be ex-closer Brandon League (although that wouldn’t be without merit).  No.  Rather, we’re speaking (or writing) of one Justin Smoak, the young first baseman the M’s acquired in the Cliff Lee trade just a season ago.  Considering that the going rate for this once top prospect was Lee (a bona fide ace), it’s not like Smoak was some kind of secret.  Prospect aficionados have been enamored with Smoak since he was drafted by the Texas Rangers in 2008.  Since then, he’s been fast-tracked to the big leagues as a potential impact bat, and while it’s taken him until 2011 to finally find his stride, it seems that Smoak may finally be living up to his potential.

His arriva, such as it is, couldn’t have come a moment sooner—not for the Mariners anyway.  This is a team giving significant at bats to the likes of Miguel Olivo (.526 OPS), Brendan Ryan (.526 OPS), Chone Figgins (.576 OPS), and until his recent release for simply being himself, Milton M-Fin’ Bradley and his .218 batting average.  Murderer’s Row this ain’t. Sure, Safeco Field isn’t exactly a launching pad either, ranking 29^th overall in scoring and home runs in 2010 (the last full year of date).  Still, one has to realize that much of the diminished scoring has to do with the home team’s sickening inability to score runs in any way, shape, or form.  2011 has been a bit better in Seattle, and that may actually have something to do with the emergence of Justin Smoak.

Actually, that’s a bit optimistic, but his development has been pretty impressive.  Already, Smoak has shown signs of being every bit the hitter the Mariners were hoping he’d become when they traded for his services a season ago.  At the time of the trade in 2010, Smoak was hitting just .209 with a .670 OPS for the Rangers—no easy task for someone playing half his games in that hitter-friendly Ballpark at Arlington.  The move to the Pacific Northwest didn’t treat Smoak much better, and why would it?  As previously discussed, Safeco Field is hard on hitters, especially rookies trying to learn on the job.  Ultimately, Smoak’s 2010 final stats left a lot to be desired: .218 AVG, .307 OBP, and .371 SLG. 

His .284 batting average is a significant improvement over his rookie showing.  His OBP (.397) and SLG (.505) indicate similar growth in both pitch recognition and power potential.  In this way, 2011 looks like Smoak’s coming out party, and not in a YMCA-type way.  While his current 1.1 WAR doesn’t really portend of a game-changer at first, it too is an improvement over his rookie season.  A .333 BABIP is right on the cusp of sustainability, so it’s difficult to simply call Smoak “lucky”.  Rather, it seems possible, perhaps even probable, that this is part of the natural progression of a much ballyhooed ballplayer, finally coming into his own, quite possibly with much more to come.

Red Sox v. Twins: A Tale of Two Teams

There’s something about tonight’s baseball game on a certain four-letter network that just doesn’t resonate with fans.  No, it’s not the inane blatherings of Aaron “Bleeping” Boone (although they don’t help matters any).  No, it’s not the potential drunken ramblings of Rick Sutcliffe (those are at least entertaining).  And no, it’s not a potential wardrobe malfunction by on-field reporter Tim Kurkjian (although Erin Andrews would be better).   In all honesty, it’s the combined records of the two teams playing.  At a combined 28-38, the Minnesota Twins (12-20) and Boston Red Sox (16-18) are playing well below expectations, frustrating even the most casual onlookers with their less than stellar performances.

After a busy offseason that included signing outfielder Carl Crawford to a seven year, $142-million contract, and trading for first baseman Adrian Gonzalez (who later signed a $154-million contract extension of his own), the Red Sox seem poised to lay siege to the American League. After all, adding two perennial All-Stars to an already strong collection of offensive talent seemed a sure-fire way to put an already competitive team over the top (note the Sly Stallone reference).  Top to bottom, the team featured an offense that seemed capable of running roughshod over even the strongest teams the AL had to offer, and causing the lesser squads to quake with fear like the tiny fools they truly were (bonus points for getting that reference). 

So far, the Boston offense had been, oh, middle off the road.  They’re 14^th in runs scored with 144, 12^th in batting average (.254), and 14^th in slugging % (.393).  It would be something if a slap in the face to Red Sox fans to point out how far behind the Yankees they are in certain statistical categories.  Suffice it to say, the Yankees aren’t struggling to score runs the way the Red Sox seem to be.  Worse, perhaps, is the team’s inability to prevent runs.  The Red Sox team ERA (4.31) is the third-worst in the American League, and much of that is due to Jon Lackey’s sudden transformation into a human batting tee (see: 7.16 ERA, 1.74 WHIP).

The Twins fare no better.  In fact, to their season has had all the promise of a cancer diagnosis.  Neither of their former American League MVPs has contributed much to an anemic offense that ranks dead last in the Major Leagues with a .292 OBP and next to last with a .323 SLG (thanks, Padres).  Justin Morneau is hitting just .202 with a .561 OPS and Joe Mauer, the team’s equivalent of Jesus Christ at catcher, was hitting just .235 before a mysterious ailment caused his legs (and bat) to lose all their strength.  Sure, the fact that Mauer, outfielder Delmon Young, and DH Jim Thome are all on the disabled list could be seen as a reason for their struggles—an excuse if you will.  No excuses, people…NO EXCUSES!!!

Not that it matters.  The Twins team ERA (4.73) is next to last in the American League, meaning that they couldn’t stop the opposition from scoring, even if their offense were making a contribution.  The team’s .375 winning % is an indication of just how bad things are at the moment.  The offense is terrible.  The starting pitching, Francisco Liriano’s no-hitter aside, has been a huge disappointment.  Even the relief pitching, last season’s saving grace, has let them down.  Former All-Star closer Joe Nathan and his 8.18 ERA is a testament to the fact that not every pitcher comes back from Tommy John surgery without a hiccup.

Having a nationally televised game of these two faltering franchises seems less than appealing in so many ways.  Stars on both sides are either statistically absent or absent altogether.  Injuries and ineffectiveness have stripped this May game of its potential playoff feel.  Sadly however, Twins fans don’t seem to have as much optimism as their Boston counterparts.  Even with all the Minnesota-nice you can heap upon the analysis, the simple fact remains that the difference in overall talent between these two rosters makes it extremely difficult for even the most ardent Twins fan to see a silver lining.  The Red Sox, for all their failings, finally look like their dormant bats are coming to life.  The Twins, on the other hand, have to look to the trainer’s table to even find their best hitters.  By the time Mauer and company get back to playing baseball, it would be surprising if the Red Sox weren’t; already on the plus-side of .500, at least in part because they can take 3-of-4 from the Twins with a nationally televised victory on May 9, 2011.

The Reanimated Corpse of Raul Ibanez

While perusing the Philadelphia Inquirer on the morning of May 2, something interesting popped up—the obituary of Raul Ibanez.  The celebrated outfielder and former All-Star was apparently dead at age 39, although details of his passing were largely unknown.  It seemed like an appropriate time to look back on the storied career of this once celebrated ballplayer.  

Ibanez actually broke into the Major Leagues in 1996 during a brief August call-up, going hitless in the only four games in which he appeared.  The following season, he got another cup of coffee, playing in 11 games, eventually registering his first big league hit and home run.  His games played increased ever so slightly each of the next few seasons, from 37 to 87, to 92.  Ibanez, seemingly destined to be a career backup with the Mariners, left the team as a free agent, ultimately signing with the Royals on January 22, 2001.  The Royals seemed far more willing to allow Ibanez to succeed, or, at least play.  Ibanez appeared in 104 games for Kansas City in 2001, where the outfielder hit .280 with 13 HR and 54 RBIs.  Then, the following year, and at the ripe old age of 30, Ibanez was finally given the chance to prove himself as an everyday player, and prove himself he did.  Ibanez enjoyed a breakout season, one in which he hit .294 with 24 HR and 103 RBIs.

After another fine season in which he hit .294 with 18 HR and 90 RBIs, Ibanez returned to his old Seattle stomping grounds in 2004, hitting a career-high .304 in the process.  While in Seattle, Ibanez enjoyed perhaps his finest season, hitting .289 with 103 runs, 33 home runs, and 123 runs batted in, even finishing 21^st in the American League MVP voting.  From 2006 to 2008, Ibanez hit .291 averaging 26 HR and 113 RBIs.  He’d gone from being an obscure fourth outfielder in his frost go-round with the team, l to one of Seattle’s offensive and clubhouse leaders.  However, by the time he’d finally realized his dream, the baseball world was already casting doubts on whether a then-36 year old player could maintain such lofty numbers.

Those questions were only magnified when Ibanez signed a 3-year, $31.5 million deal with the Philadelphia Phillies.  Certainly a player of his advanced age couldn’t handle playing in the National League where the weary couldn’t be afforded rest time at designated hitter.  Clearly, the Phillies would come to regret guaranteeing three years to a player entering his age 37 season.  And it was a foregone conclusion that failure was the only option for both sides, as calamity would eventually ensue.  But it didn’t.  Much like he’d done after turning 30, Ibanez again silenced the critics in 2009.  After hitting .359 with seven home runs in a torrid April, Ibanez continued his destruction of National League pitching by hitting .312 in May with 10 home runs.   By the All-Star break, he’d already hit 22 home runs, garnering over four million votes for the midsummer classic in the process.  He went on to post career-highs home runs (34), slugging percentage (.552) and OPS (.899)—not bad for an aging, near-wash-out.

However, after a so-so 2010 campaign in which he hit just .275 with 16 home runs and 83 runs batted in, it seemed as though Ibanez was starting that inevitable decline.  The critics, it seems, may have been correct.  Further still, 2011 started difficultly for Ibanez, particularly a ten game stretch from April 18 through May 1, during which Ibanez went just 1-for-31, prompting those same critics, and even casual observers to wonder aloud whether Ibanez was finally finished as an everyday player.  As it turns out…no.

Very recently, something rather strange, perhaps even uncanny happened; Raul Ibanez started hitting.  Over his past three games, all versus the Washington Nationals, Ibanez has gone 8-for-12 with two home runs and five runs batted in.  In the process, he’s raised his batting average 60-points while raising his OPS 187-points.  No, his numbers still don’t look like the Raul Ibanez of old, but his recent resurgence suggests that perhaps he’s not just an old Raul Ibanez.  If nothing else, he’s taken a step in refuting the assertions that he was in fact deceased.  As it turns out, there may be some life left in Ibanez after all.  Perhaps the final chapter in this former All-Star’s life has yet to be written.  Stay tuned.