Primer Dugout (and link of the day) 2-23-2015

Pittsburgh Press, February 23, 1915:

“If baseball players did not load around and drink so much booze during the off-season, there wouldn’t be any necessity for so much training in the spring. This was “Billy” Sunday’s opening clout when asked what he thought of training camps for the major league clubs.

“Of course, I don’t mean to say that training camps are not necessary. They are even more so today than they were when I was in the game, although there isn’t nearly as much boozing among the ...

Morrissey: It’s WAR: White Sox’ Samardzija not a big fan of analytics

And this is coming from a guy whose name contains over two dozen sabermetric acronyms.

The topic Sunday morning was whether Sox pitching coach Don Cooper’s methods were old school in this day and age of Sabermetrics.

“Sabermetrics, nyeh. Sounds like a lot of hot air,’’ Samardzija said, smiling. “I think there are definitely positive aspects to it. I think there is some information you can take from it that’s important. But ultimately from a player’s point of view, you want a ...

Q&A: MAT LATOS OPENS UP

Where’s the manager and coaching staff?

After Bronson, the same exact thing. We had starters in there roping our (clubhouse attendants), like, cattle-roping our clubbies. Guys on their computers, buying stuff, hanging out in the clubhouse. We had a guy with a year-and-a-half in the big leagues wandering around the clubhouse, hanging out. We had a closer in there sleeping until the seventh inning. We lose that veteran leadership, that’s what happens. You can’t have that ... it turns into a ...

Choate hopes to resume specialist role : Sports

This is silly.

Veteran lefthander Randy Choate and Matheny have discussed Choate’s occasional unhappiness last year that he wasn’t used as much for lefthander-on-lefthander specialty purposes, which basically why Choate was given a three-year contract before the 2013 season. He pitched more complete innings than he thought he would but some of them were in blowout games.

Bids are coming in on Moncada, 19, and so far they’re past $20M - CBSSports.com

No real update in this report. I still can’t see a team going over $30 million. As Heyman notes, Sandoval got $95 million. On top of that fact, this is just bonus money. Moncada will still need to be paid.

He is probably worth such a lofty price, anyway, but the other big factor is that the signing team will have to pay a 100 percent tax, or something very close to that. So $50 million would really mean $100 million. That would be an extraordinary fee for a teenager considering established big ...

Projecting baseball’s best rookie pitchers in ‘15. | SportsonEarth.com : Paul Casella Article

Is Snydergaard really going to get a lot of MLB time this year?

1. Noah Syndergaard, Mets (No. 10 overall prospect)
Projected ERA: 3.57

Allen Craig out to prove his worth with Red Sox - Sports - The Boston Globe

If he hits this spring, he’ll be playing somewhere.

“I’m pretty confident that the best players are going to play. That’s the way it’s going to be, and I’m going to go out there and do the best that I can. ... I have something to prove every spring training, but I feel like this spring training is extra important for me to go out and prove myself and just get ready for a really good season, which I’m looking forward to.”

Maury Povich’s baseball past includes a stellar batboy stint and a sportswriter dad | MLB.com

Who’s he going to expose is the baby daddy?

He’ll be on MLB Now live Monday at 2 p.m. on MLB Network, talking about that and more.

Yoan Lopez a poster boy for Diamondbacks’ scouting efforts

How long will it take Lopez to make the major league team?

Baseball America: Five Historical Precedents for Cubs’ Loaded Top 100 Class.

1. 2006 Diamondbacks

The Players

SS Justin Upton (#2), SS Stephen Drew (#5), 1B Conor Jackson (#17), OF Carlos Quentin (#20), OF Chris Young (#23), OF Carlos Gonzalez (#32), RHP Dustin Nippert (#67)

The First Six Seasons
Arizona went 477-495 (.491) from 2006-11, with three winning seasons and two trips to the playoffs, one courtesy of an National League West division title.

The precedents aren’t as strong as I would have expected.

BJ Upton to be henceforth known as Melvin Upton

‏@JeffSchultzAJC
#Braves exec John Hart made passing reference to “Melvin” (B.J.) Upton, then confirmed player will go by Melvin Upton Jr, this season.

Nate Silver: Sports nerds have it too easy - ESPN

Yeah, nerds, stop whining while you run your regressions and correlations!!

Sunday Notes: Thorn on Game Changes, Salaries Redux, Moya on Mashing, more | FanGraphs Baseball

David Lauria’s latest includes an interview with John Thorn.

Is rust inevitable for Matt Harvey in 2015? - Mets Blog - ESPN New York

More Matt Harvey info.

Pablo Sandoval challenges Boston.com’s Steve Silva to workout contest - Over the Monster

Steve and I were middle and high school classmates. As I jokingly commented on his Facebook status, “I can verify that Steve was the fastest kid in 7th grade. Unfortunately, that was his athletic peak.” I’m sure the contest will be amazing.

Report: Dodgers sign Brandon Beachy

The contract is a one-year deal with a club option for 2016.

I’ll have to see how much money this is for before I can say whether or not I approve.

Q&A: Travis Sawchik on ‘Big Data Baseball’ and the rise of the Pirates through analytics

An interview with Travis Sawchik, author of the upcoming book “Big Data Baseball: Math, Miracles and the End of a 20-Year Losing Streak.”

How are fantasy baseball projections calculated and how best to use them - Fantasy Baseball - ESPN

I predict you’ll find all this predictable.

Top baseball scenes in non-baseball movies - SweetSpot Blog - ESPN

I’d put “One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest” at the top.

Matt Harvey to face batters in week - Mets Blog - ESPN New York

Harvey seems on schedule.

Shields rebuffed bigger Giants offer weeks before landing in San Diego - CBSSports.com

While there’s still no evidence James Shields received or rebuffed a rumored $110 million, five-year offer this winter, Shields did turn down an $80 million, four-year proposal from the Giants a few weeks before signing with the Padres for $75 million—$5 million less than the Giants’ bid—sources familiar with the negotiations said.

Blue Jays 1st rounder Pentecost undergoes surgery - Sportsnet.ca

That’s not good.

Max Pentecost recently underwent shoulder surgery in an operation that will delay the 2015 debut of the Toronto Blue Jays’ 2014 first rounder, sources told Sportsnet.

Dr. James Andrews performed the operation, a scope intended to clean out the shoulder joint of the top catching prospect’s throwing arm. Pentecost previously had a shoulder cleanup after the 2014 season, but the operation didn’t work as well as initially hoped.

Posnanski: The Pat Tabler Experience

Tabs was clutch man.

I think about Tabler now because of an email sent by Tom Tango referencing a contradiction in my Strat-O-Matic post. On the one hand, I say I don’t like the horseshoes on Strat-O cards that reference a players ability to hit in the clutch (I have been told by several people that these were actually added to regulate a player’s RBI totals so that they somewhat mirror what happened during the season but it’s the same general thing). On the other hand, I say that I did ...

Washington Post - Jayson Werth on jail time: ‘It’s not a destination you would choose’

“Where I was wasn’t the same kind of thing you may have seen on TV or the movies,” Werth said. “That goes for the guys that were in there. The inmates were very supportive. The guards were very supportive. Nats Nation holds no bounds. It’s grown a lot since I got here, I’ll say that. It wasn’t so bad I’m like a different person. It was just an experience you went through. You get over it. You get through it.”

Phillies’ Cliff Lee Answers Questions Using Magic 8 Ball During Press Conference

Baseball season is finally underway, and Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee has already run out of answers for the media.

Following the pitchers and catchers’ first workout of the season, Lee used a Magic 8 Ball to field questions from reporters.

And Phillies camp is bound to get weirder…

Top 100 Prospects: Start Of A Ranking Revolution - BaseballAmerica.com

And I’ve been following Baseball America the whole time.

It was 25 years ago that Baseball America unveiled its first Top 100 Prospects list.

MLB announces pace of game initiatives, replay modifications | MLB.com

To do my part I just did a quick read before posting.

Twinsights: Miguel Sano ‘able to do everything’ as spring camp nears - Twins Now

More than 11 months removed from Tommy John surgery that wiped out his 2014 season, Twins third-base prospect Miguel Sano remains on track to enjoy a normal big-league spring training.

“He’s doing pretty much everything,” said Brad Steil, Twins director of minor league operations. “I don’t know if (Twins trainers) are going to watch how much activity he has in the first few days. Sometimes guys get in there and air it out and overdo it.”

Raissman: A-Rod ‘impossible to dislike’ says Suzyn Waldman - NY Daily News

“Virtually nothing is impossible in this world if you just put your mind to it and maintain a positive attitude.” ~ Lou Holtz

White Sox’s Ken Williams want players to bring attitude to the field - Chicago Tribune

Ahh, the Diamondbacks approach.

“I prefer to talk more on the level of intensity on a day-to-day basis, that grind,” Williams said. “Whenever we’ve had teams that understand that (grind), we’ve been in the mix. … We purposely went out and got those types that really want it. If you don’t have (them), nothing else matters.

“I made a lot of mistakes early in my career by throwing a lot more talent against the wall and looking good on paper, but not having the guys who really wanted it and would ...