Welcome to an interpretation of the extreme from the 2016 Major League Baseball season! I’m going to look into the best and worst performers at several of handpicked statistics from the past season. First, though, let’s go through the… Read more »
Last week, I reviewed some players that had poor seasons for various reasons, attributing most of them to poor luck. Sometimes baseball isn’t kind to its players, but the inverse can also be true. If… Read more »
Last Wednesday we started to count down the days until pitchers and catchers report by looking at some of the best the sport of baseball has to offer. We had the young hitting talent in… Read more »
Hall of Fame results day arrived on January 18. After months of waiting, the ballots (which made it through snail mail) were counted and the results officially became public. Ryan Thibodeaux did an excellent job… Read more »
Starting rotations are not evenly balanced. A quick look at a team’s depth chart will show that most rotations petter off near the back end, and some have massive gaps between ace and #5. Fans… Read more »
This Better Know a Ballplayer Bio looks at a player whose primary position is listed on baseball-reference.com is “Pinch Hitter.” But before we get into his pinch hitting exploits and career, let’s address the name: without… Read more »
On January 17, Blaine Boyer, baseball’s leader in lowest strikeout percentage, was signed to a one-year deal with an invitation to Spring Training by the Atlanta Braves. A 35-year-old free agent pitcher should not be… Read more »
The 1924 New York Giants amassed the strongest lineup in the National League that year. They were first in the league in runs, home runs and BA/OBP/SLG. As a team, they had just 12 more… Read more »
As you all know, we are currently in the deepest malaise of the baseball offseason right now. The last baseball signing big enough to reach the front pages of ESPN for more than a half… Read more »
Last week, the Rays made the type of deal that many thought they would make at some point this offseason: they traded one of their many MLB level starters–Drew Smyly. What is more surprising is… Read more »
Baseball is hard. Even for the players who play at the highest levels, the most talented men in the world, the challenge sometimes can be too much to handle. See, baseball is not simply a… Read more »
Living in New York City, the Mets and the Yankees get all of the headlines as far as baseball is concerned – and rightfully so. However if you’re not as big a baseball fan as… Read more »
The steroid era saw an explosion of home runs and scoring in the major leagues, and some parks amplified these effects even more. Coors Field in 2000 was the pinnacle of extreme scoring: 6.25 runs… Read more »
Stoicism is defined as the quality or behavior of a person who accepts what happens without complaining or showing emotion. By that definition I was the epitome of the word on the night of November… Read more »
Nolan Arenado is no slouch and writers have taken to his new ability to walk at close to a 10-percent clip. The rise to prominence started in his first season when he won a Gold… Read more »
I needed a portfolio to get into Ryerson University’s journalism program. That’s basically why I started writing at Banished to the Pen. I was a baseball fan my whole life, and I had some knowledge of advanced metrics, so I said screw it, this seems like a good place to write and if/after I get into my program I’ll stop…
For about 20 years now, sabermetrics has ruled baseball intellectualism. Moneyball started a divide, at least in the mainstream, between sabermetrics and scouting that has slowly faded over time. The mainstream baseball media and fanbase… Read more »
Banished to the Pen is always looking for new writers. To help convince you that this is a great place to get your work out, we’ve asked a few BTTP alumni to tell you about… Read more »
On a recent listener e-mail episode of Effectively Wild (number 983 to be exact), Ben and Sam responded to a question from a listener named Jeff on the rights to Clayton Kershaw’s newborn son, Charley:… Read more »
Two years ago I devised a plan to better evaluate front offices besides the typical wins and losses used by many casual fans. I perform this evaluation by creating specific metrics using preseason projected statistics and… Read more »
On July 31, 2014, the Red Sox were 48-60 and had just finished the process of unloading 80% of their rotation through trades. The Red Sox were looking for valuable major league assets in return,… Read more »
This week, members of the Electoral College cast the votes that actually and ultimately determined the next American president. As a result of deep dissatisfaction with the putative president-elect, Donald Trump, and allegations of foreign… Read more »
Originally published on Camstew’s View on Baseball. For a variety of different reasons, hardcore baseball fans have a certain affinity for their team’s AAA-affiliate. Prospect-hounds love to watch top prospects progress through the minor league… Read more »
One of the themes I hope I’m conveying through my work is that I am a fan of professional baseball, period. I recognize that Major League Baseball is the crème de la crème of professional baseball…. Read more »
Nick Koss and Nick Strangis join Ryan Sullivan to talk about Chris Sale to the Red Sox, the Wade Davis-Jorge Soler trade, and Adam Eaton to the Nationals. They wrap up with more picks for favorite baseball movies.
Effectively Wild listeners probably don’t need anyone to tell them that if you spend long enough with the Baseball-Reference Play Index (coupon code BP), you’re virtually guaranteed to uncover some kind of statistical curiosity or fun fact that you’d never been aware of.
Affectionately known as “Sugar” by his teammates and friends, Mariners reliever Edwin Diaz is a man worthy of a different nickname. It’s not that “Sugar” is bad, it’s just that there really isn’t anything sweet… Read more »
The Winter Meetings began this week just outside of Washington, D.C., and the one team everyone will be watching is the Chicago White Sox, as it seems as though the market is waiting for the South Siders… Read more »
The Chicago Cubs’ decision to decline Jason Hammel’s 2017 club option is about many things. It’s about what the Cubs want to do with the starting rotation moving forward. By declining Hammel’s option the Cubs… Read more »
On this episode of On Baseball Writing, Eric interviewed Ben Lindbergh. Ben writes for The Ringer, and he is the co-author of The Only Rule Is It Has To Work.
