Primate Studies: Greg Spira, RIP

Greg Spira, fellow Primate and long-time friend to many of us, passed away today. Will pass along details as I get them.

Hall of Merit: 2012 Results: Palmeiro… Reuschel… Cone… for the Hall of Merit!

Slugging first baseman Rafael Palmeiro, in his second year of eligibility, was the top vote-getter this election by grabbing 70% of all possible points.

NL hurler Rick Reuschel was number two this year with 49% after 17 years on a ballot, while Met and Yankee pitcher David Cone became the last inductee of 2012 with 44% in his sixth year of eligibility.

Rounding out the top-ten were: Phil Rizzuto, Luis Tiant, Cannonball Dick Redding, Hugh Duffy, Gavvy Cravath (back in the top-ten!), Vic Willis ...

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Sox Therapy: Reddick / Bailey Trade: Rapid Reaction

This looks like a trade where both players involved may be significantly worse than they’re perceived.  Josh Reddick was a useful regular last year, but his overall track record remains terrible, and ZiPS projects him as basically a replacement level RF with an 85 OPS+.  Andrew Bailey is a fabulous pitcher when healthy (career 2.07 ERA and 2.74 FIP), but he’s pitched a full season of major league ball only once in three tries.  Any projection that incorporates past playing time is going to ...

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Transaction Oracle: 2012 ZiPS Projections - Colorado Rockies

I complain every year about the bipolar nature of Colorado’s plans, a yearly awkward mix of rebuilding and pushing for the division, but that’s almost a broken record at this point.  Though

I guess trading Ubaldo Jimenez for good prospects but then signing an average-hitting, below-average defensive Cuddyer for his declining years for $10 million a year just adds to the

hilarity.

Colorado’s pitching staff is underrated, as usual.  The Coors park factors had been down for awhile, probably ...

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Hall of Merit: Most Meritorious Player : 1968 Discussion

The year of the pitcher and our final year voting for 10 per ballot. Dominant aces propelled the Tigers and Cardinals into the postseason. Voting will end on January 25th 2012.

               Win     BB-ref
               Shares  WAR
Bob Gibson     34.4	11.9
Denny McLain   32.7	5.9
Luis Tiant     27.7	7.2
Dave McNally   24.7	4.7
Fergie Jenkins 23.7	6.9
Tom Seaver     22.9     7.5
Stan Bahnsen   22.7	5.7
Mel Stottlemyre 21.3	4.6
Juan Marichal  24.0	6.1
Tommy John     14.3	4.8
Jerry Koosman ...

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Transaction Oracle: 2012 ZiPS Projections - Atlanta Braves

Despite the disappointing final month of the season (to put it lightly), the Braves are still a dangerous team. The pitching staff is young and quite deep and rather than try to emulate the Braves success developing pitchers, I think it's reached the point at which other organizations should simply abduct all the people that work on player development and simply force them to scout and train prospects, at knifepoint if need be. Or, I guess, they could hire them, but that's slower.

While two ...

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Sox Therapy: I have no idea what the Sox are going to do next

The first round of the offseason is nearly over. For the Red Sox it is over – the one first tier FA left is Prince Fielder, and he’s obviously not headed our way. I had hoped the Red Sox would find the money to go after Darvish or Wilson, and Wilson’s below-market deal has left every team in need of pitching (read: every team) wishing they’d been involved. Darvish is looking at 6/110 or more, though, so I don’t have a problem with the Red Sox passing on him. The second-tier FA ...Read More...

Transaction Oracle: 2012 ZiPS Projections - Houston Astros

At some point, to bash the Houston Astros simply becomes piling-on. The 2011 Astros were not only a lousy team, but a team that applied lousiness consistently across all the various aspects of baseball, and needed 6 WAR from the departed Hunter Pence and Michael Bourn just to get up to 56 wins. The long reckoning expected by observers for an organization that had a GM in Ed Wade that simultaneously ignored the major leagues, the minors leagues, and any kind of thrift, finally came to pass, ...Read More...

Transaction Oracle: 2012 ZiPS Projections - St. Louis Cardinals

As I generally mention when a good, not great team wins the World Series, the most dangerous trap that team can fall into is the tendency to "bring back the band" and try to keep the roster pretty much the way it was during their championship season. A great team has a little more room to rest on their laurels, a very good team doesn't. The San Franciso Giants were the most recent team to fall into the trap and when an offense that had a lot go right to just finish 9th in scoring in 2010 had ...Read More...

Hall of Merit: Most Meritorious Player: 1967 Results

In a unanimous decision, Yaz tops the poll! The NL MMP is Ron Santo. Jim Bunning is top pitcher.

		1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pts
Yastrzemski	13										195
Santo			12					1				177
Clemente			7	4	1				1		157
Aaron				2	6	3		1	1			148
Killebrew			3	1	4	4	1				144
Kaline						1		6	1	1	3	 98
Cepeda					1	1	3	1		3	2	 95
Bunning				1	1		1	1	5			 84
Frobinson					1		2	3	1		 60
McCarver						4			1	2	 59
Freehan						1				3	1	 38
Allen									1	1	3	 33
Abernathy								1	2		 22
Brock									1		1 ...

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