Notice: Trying to get property 'display_name' of non-object in /var/www/html/wp-content/plugins/wordpress-seo/src/generators/schema/article.php on line 52
keyboard_arrow_uptop

A year ago, a horrible atrocity occurred which will never be forgotten.
We at Prospectus Entertainment wish to extend our condolences to the
families and friends of those who were lost on September 11, 2001. Our
thoughts and encouragement go out to those people still gamely working
their butts off to get better, and our gratitude goes to all who have
given so generously of themselves to help others during this very
difficult year.

With due respect, let’s get down to baseball…

This is a strange time for me personally. I find myself rooting for the
Giants. This is a similar feeling, I suspect, to finding yourself
cheering for influenza, spoiled shellfish, or for a victor in the
California Gubernatorial Race.

It’s NoCal vs. SoCal in the baseball world right now, and as a NoCal
separatist (we can make the cutoff point somewhere around Gilroy or so,
and you can expect the water rates to go up–gouge us back by charging
an inordinate amount of $$$ per NoCal prisoner housed within 100 miles
of Coalinga), I find myself actually rooting for a bunch of aging,
low-OBP hitters with moderate power… the ones in Orange and Black.

I thought Jim Tracy did a tremendous job managing the Dodgers last year,
and my opinion of him’s even higher now. Tracy’s done an admirable job
of spotting a bunch of role players, placing them in situations that
give them the best opportunity to succeed. Take Marquis Grissom
as an example.
Over the previous three years, Grissom’s hit .295/.338/.460 against
lefties, in just over 450 PA. Against right-handers, he’s stunk up the
joint like Drew Carey in an airplane bathroom–.229/.273/.363 in 1300
PA. Tracy’s been able to balance his playing time better, allowing
Marquis to get 42% of his PA against lefties, instead of only 26%.
(Grissom’s posted a .934 OPS against lefties, and .712 against
righties.) In other words, Tracy probably deserves some credit for
summoning the
aliens that
have taken over Grissom, Dave Roberts, and Alex Cora,
and made them useful contributors.

Meanwhile, out near the magic kingdom (which is Disneyland, not the
floodlighted $80/hour studios of the San Fernando Valley), Oakland and
Anaheim are playing their most meaningful series since Ed Ott
body slammed Rickey Henderson. They’re the two hottest teams in
baseball, both driven by strong rotations, some potent contributions
from the bullpen, offenses without a megastar, and furry, bouncing
primates. (Dan Hedaya
is a noted A’s fan.) Oakland has an opportunity
to basically clamp down on a playoff spot if they can win 3 out of 4.
Anaheim has an opportunity to drag the A’s kicking and screaming into
the discussion of the wild card. Seattle may find that all they have to
show for Freddy Garcia‘s velocity is a couple of brief postseason
appearances.

On the east coast and fringes of the AL Wild Card, the remaining
schedule for the Boston Red Sox looks something like this:


Red Sox            @ Tampa Bay
Worcester Webelos  @ Red Sox
Baltimore          @ Red Sox
Red Sox            @ Washington Generals
Cleveland          @ Red Sox
Red Sox            @ Baltimore
Macaulay Culkin    @ Red Sox
Tampa Bay          @ Red Sox
6 Wounded Voles    @ Red Sox


So yes, they’re down, but you never know. It’s not as if it’s
impossible to win 17 of the remaining games, and have a nailbiter of a
final week. As an A’s fan, I want the Yankees and the Giants, in that
order.


Gary Huckabay is an author of Baseball Prospectus. You can contact him by
clicking here.

Thank you for reading

This is a free article. If you enjoyed it, consider subscribing to Baseball Prospectus. Subscriptions support ongoing public baseball research and analysis in an increasingly proprietary environment.

Subscribe now
You need to be logged in to comment. Login or Subscribe