Bill Chuck: Around The League

Written by: Bill Chuck on 15th May 2009

Bill Chuck: Around The League | read this item

1. Okay, I’m officially fascinated with the Pirates’ Nyjer Morgan. Here’s why: Through Wednesday, Morgan leads the NL with 35 singles and 3 triples (tied) and he has had the most at bats (132) in the majors without a homer this season. His 17 RBI already exceeds the 14 career RBI he had in two partial big league seasons. Last season, he stole nine bases and was caught five times and so far this season he has stolen nine bases and been caught five times. He started the year with a .296 career batting and is creeping up to .300 (.298). And the piece de resistance, in 399 career at bats, he has never hit into a double play.

2. The Astros’ Ivan Rodriguez has 299 homers and for all we know he may have already hit his 300th. Pudge is in the lineup for the May 5 game against the Nationals that was suspended with the score 10-10 in the 11th inning. When the game resumes on July 9 all the stats will count and credited to that date, so if he homers in the resumption of that game then the homer he hit on May 10 was his 300th. BTW: Lance Berkman currently has 295.

3. So far this season, the most runs the Indians have scored (22), the Red Sox have scored (16), the Rays have scored (15), and the Orioles have scored (12) have all been in games against the Yankees.

4. In Daniel Cabrera’s last 12 starts, he is 0-7 with a 4.97 ERA (which doesn’t include the 13 unearned runs he’s allowed) and he’s walked 47 in 56.1 innings.

5. Mark Teixeira’s first 40 games last season he hit .247 with 5 homers and 21 RBI. In the first 40 in 2007, he hit .291 with 6 homers and 20 RBI. While he’s significantly down in average, he has surpassed the homer total for each season and will soon pass the RBI as well.

6. Through 8 starts in 2008, Roy Oswalt was 3-3; in 2007, 5-2; in 2006, 5-2, in 2005, 4-4. This season through 8 starts he was 1-2.

7. Since 2000, Jaime Moyer has been averaging 13 wins a season, which means that he has to pitch at least four more seasons to reach 300 wins, which means that he has to pitch that effectively at 50 years old.

8. The Washington Nationals hitting coach is David Eckstein’s older brother Rick and starting his first full season with the team, the Nats batting average is up over 25 points.

9. Through his first 40 games last season Adrian Beltre hit .252 with 7 homers and 16 RBI, not great but significantly better than his start this season considering he hit home run #1 on May 9 in his 31st game.

10. Through Wednesday, the race was on between Jason Smith and Brad Nelson as to who would get their first hit of the season. Smith has had 24 at bats with no hits, but on the plus side has one run scored and one RBI, while Nelson was 0 for 21 and his positive news consisted of two walks. However, the Brewers conceded the contest by outrighting Brad Nelson to Triple-A Nashville on Wednesday. The Astros designated Smith for assignment on May 6 but re-signed second baseman four days later.

11. Since the 2000 season the Wild Card team in the AL has averaged 96 wins (High: Oakland 102 wins in 2001, Low: Seattle in 2000, 91 wins) while in the NL the Wild Card team has averaged 91.3 wins (High: the 2002 Giants with 95, Low: the Dodgers in ’06 with 88).

12. Through Wednesday, Cristian Guzman had been to the plate 101 times with one sacrifice and 100 at bats, translated that means zero walks.

13. Brad Pitt will be playing Billy Beane in the new “Moneyball” flick but playing themselves will be former Oakland manager Art Howe, pitching coach Rick Peterson, and first baseman Scott Hatteberg.

14. This season, Micah Owings is a so-so hitting pitcher having gone 3 for 16 with one double, one triple and one RBI to go along with his .188 batting average. But Owings is a great pinch-hitter going 3 for 5 with 2 doubles, one homer and 3 RBI to go with his .600 batting average.

15. Rick Reed is looking forward to resuming his 27-year major league career as an umpire after suffering a pair of stroke since last May. Reed was behind the plate this past Monday in Toledo umping the first of nine minor league games before he returns to “The Show” on May 21 in Chicago.

16. Josh Beckett’s high in pitches thrown last season was 118 in six innings, May 30 against Baltimore. He threw 118 pitches again Tuesday night against the Angels, once again in only six innings.

17. Playing at home in spacious Petco, Adrian Gonzalez (79) is the only NL Wester with over 70 homers from 2007 through games on Wednesday. Gonzalez has hit 27 at home and 52 on the road over that span.

18. Chan Ho Park won his first game as a member of the Phillies on Tuesday. Whenever I think of Park I think of Fernando Tatis who hit two grand slams against Chan Ho in the 4th inning on April 23, 1999. It must have reminded Tatis as well, he hit a grand slam on Wednesday. Park has given up 7 grand slams, and Tatis has now hit 7.

19. Through Wednesday, Carl Crawford had 143 at bats without banging into a DP, next on the list is Brian Roberts with 139 ABs.

20. If you want to see the evolution of some team logos, check out http://www.typesett.com/2009/05/retired-baseball-logo-showcase/ it’s fascinating.

Top 10 Most At Bats with No Homers
Through games of May 13

1. Nyjer Morgan 132
2. Orlando Cabrera 131
3. Placido Polanco 130
4. David Ortiz 123
5. Chone Figgins 118
6. David Eckstein 118
7. Akinori Iwamura 117
8. Bobby Abreu 116
9. Emmanuel Burriss 114
10. B.J. Upton 112

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