Perhaps the question I get the most this time of year is “Who will win the Rookie of the Year Awards?” It’s a tough one, because winning the award isn’t just about being the top prospect in the game. Opportunity plays a huge role, as does age. All else being equal, a 24-year-old rookie has a better chance to win the award than a 21-year-old, even though the 21-year-old is the more valuable property. Rookies of the Year, in fact, are often older players having the best year of their career, while younger players who barely register in the voting go on to have the most success.
The 11th hour has begun. That, in itself, is a good sign. The Royals never got to the 11th hour with Johnny Damon. Jermaine Dye was shipped out of town at the slightest hint of urgency. But Mike Sweeney, whose contract expires with the 2002 season, is still in a Royals uniform. Sweeney represents the…
Perhaps the question I get the most this time of year is "Who will win the Rookie of the Year Awards?" It’s a tough one, because winning the award isn’t just about being the top prospect in the game. Opportunity plays a huge role, as does age. All else being equal, a 24-year-old rookie has…
A recap of the funniest and most poignant quotes in baseball over the course of the last two weeks
NOOOOOOOOOOO "He would always say, `Why are you letting that guy throw the pitch right down the middle?’ It didn’t matter if I got three hits. If I let one go right down the middle, he’d just want to go home. It bugged him the worst." —Nick Johnson, Yankees infielder, on his grandfather "There are…
In general, it’s a bad thing if you can associate an umpire’s name with his work.
In general, it’s a bad thing if you can associate an umpire’s name with his work. It’s one thing if the umpire is Doug Harvey, and you’re talking about his "Rules of the Game" segment on the old Game of the Week, back when that term actually meant something. (Something horrible.) It’s still another when…
There is no competitive balance problem in baseball, even in the latest period of Yankee pennants. Supposedly, the Yankees play an entirely different game than other teams. If this is true, we should see this in almost any metric we choose, but it’s not there.
I recently wrote a column in which I explained about how boring I found payroll caps, and how I felt that they forced everything in their leagues to become about the cap. I got a ton of e-mail, much of which read (and I’m omitting some colorful language here) "What about competitive balance? That’s what…
As noted in my last column, operating losses account for only $232 million of the $519 million Major League Baseball claims to have lost in 2001. Another $112,491,000 represents net interest expenses. Here’s how the interest was distributed.
There is simply no perfect spring day that Bud Selig can’t ruin.
There is simply no perfect spring day that Bud Selig can’t ruin. Yesterday, Selig announced that he was going to begin enforcing a 27-year-old rule that had been ignored for, well, most of the last 27 years. According to the so-called "60-40" clause, teams cannot have debt higher than 40 percent of their asset value….
Part One Part Two Part Three Part Four Part Five Part Six As noted in my last column, operating losses account for only $232 million of the $519 million Major League Baseball claims to have lost in 2001. Another $112,491,000 represents net interest expenses. Here’s how the interest was distributed: Team Interest Chicago Cubs $4,665,000…
If the Royals are in a good frame of mind, it must be spring. If they’re still in first place, it must be spring. If Tony Muser has a smile on his face, it definitely must be spring. Last season, spring training got off to an inauspicious debut when intriguing NRI Steve Rain put his…