TheGrinch

http://wiki.answers.com/Q/Does_sliding_into_a_base_make_you_reach_base_faster Spent about 20 minutes looking for a scientific study that wasn't all talk and included testing...came up with nothing. It is really really interesting to me that Deuce has the progressive, science-based stance on sliding into first, and most rail against him on it with Deuce's own "but people say it sucks so it must be true" argument. That said, even taking for granted that sliding into first is faster (slightly if you do it right), the risk for injury increases so much its probably not worth it unless its an ultra important game/situation.

To come to Deuce's defense again, to makes perfect sense that sliding into first is indeed faster. Think about it in terms of center of gravity of the person running. By falling and extending your arms to the bag, you can touch the bag while having to travel a shorter distance. You lose a little bit of overall speed doing so at the very end, but it is more than made up for by the decreased distance you have to travel (center of gravity-wise). As for the Steve Stone counter to this idea, (Why don't sprinters slide into the finish line?) that argument sucks on a lot of levels. First off, the rules for the end of a race say that the torso is what counts. Also, you don't have to touch an object on the ground, just pass by a line. If it weren't for those two rules, I'm positive you would see any sprint of significance ending with a slide. Not coincidentally, you always see sprinters leaning/lunging their torsos forward to end every race, the sprinting equivalent to a slide. As for injuries...I'm sure the likelihood increases in most situations. And sliding into 1st most definitely won't mean you will get to 2nd base faster. Loss of momentum and having to stand back up cost way more than anything gained by a shorter path. This might be my new sig, though. On a side note, if I had Theriot's spunk and heart, I'd continue to suck at baseball.

I think that's the worst blog name I can imagine. No way I'm going there. The name is actually reference to what my friend's husband said to me at that moment in 2003. I had to leave the bar in the ninth and take a nine block walk before I could come back to the bar and not punch him in the nose. (btw-no, I don't believe in curses, jinxes, or goats. At a time like that, though, it was any port in a storm). Yeah, I know how that goes. When monumentally horrid stuff like that happens, you wouldn't be surprised to see a leprechaun pointing and laughing at you. I recall lying on my bed after game 7 just staring at the ceiling. I MIGHT have done other things that week, but if I did I don't remember any of it. ...fine I guess I'll go there.

I think that's the worst blog name I can imagine. No way I'm going there.

My guess is he's hanging with Sosa and getting some fake hustle lessons before reporting. I was hoping this really wouldn't catch on. Come on, when someone says something THAT ridiculous, in the media no less, you have to just laugh. I hope it catches on big time. I'm sure that during game threads it might rival the "fake rally" references.

Soto GEOVANY SOTO

My guess is he's hanging with Sosa and getting some fake hustle lessons before reporting.

"He chose...poorly." Dang. Even that is out of juice...Major League references anyone? Scorched. Pow. See if you can figure out what I AM referencing.... :lol: I've got no clue. None. But now I want to get "97-X, BAM, The future of Rock and Roll" going. I think the repetitive nature fits this thread well. Also, to be fair to the "non-professional" poster that is wrigley23, it was Dexter that originally mentioned the breaking ball, fastball high, breaking ball strikeout scenario to describe what would happen if Soriano was hitting 5th with no protection, so stop jumping on wrigley23 for that. I'm all for piling on, but lets pile on fairly.

Too much of the recent convo has actually revolved around Roberts...and it wasn't pretty. I say we go back to Indiana Jones references. "He chose...poorly." Dang. Even that is out of juice...Major League references anyone?

So yer saying this thread will continue unless Elsa crosses the seal? Yes. And remember: Only the penitent man will pass. Little known fact: in Latin "Brian Roberts" starts with an "I". So you're saying Hendry stepped on the J when he started these trade negotiations? I could see the term "stepped on the J" quickly surpassing "jumped the shark" in its use.

So yer saying this thread will continue unless Elsa crosses the seal? Yes. And remember: Only the penitent man will pass. Little known fact: in Latin "Brian Roberts" starts with an "I".

I very good friend of mine from High School is a huge Reds fan. After the Reds signed Dusty, he gave me a call and asked "Was he really as bad as you let on he was. You are over a year removed from Dusty, so now can you look back and think that maybe he wasn't that bad?" "...no, he really was that bad." "....damn it."

If his post would have included mention of eating babies, I would have been able to tell that it was sarcasm. But without that, this is something that a person would actually say with a straight face. When sarcastic, I always try to add a little something as a tip off, either way over the top, or self-contradictory.

The publicly accepted bash on him is lack of hustle. (or you may choose to apply the new term that will sweep the journalism world off its feat: fake hustle) You can't just make up baseless criticisms of a player and use that as the reason for wanting him gone...wait...nevermind.

Sorry, only a 4.7

What if the rumors die down in Spring Training, but then heat up again at the trade deadline? Then we'll keep it going and shoot for 500 pages. It will be our responsibility (much like the Knight in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade) to protect this thread and keep it alive so long as we live - and Brian Roberts is not yet a cub. I envision the year 2078 when our children's children are on NSBB talking about baseball on played on the moon (The Lunar Lions? The Sea of Tranquility Stars?) that even though Brian Roberts is not yet a Cub, some day he will come again and be traded to the Cubs or signed by Jim Hendry, IV. So yer saying this thread will continue unless Elsa crosses the seal?

I give it an 8.7

As noble as it may sound, that's not really true. The only difference in approach is a sacrifice bunt. I feel as if I'm being forced into taking up a Deuce Baseman stance, but what stat or observation or information makes you think batters (at least some of them) don't change their approach? What about hit & run situations? Sac Flies? Taking pitches for SB or getting balls from pitch outs? Don't some hitters shorten their swing (or even choke up on the bat!) with two strikes with men on base but not otherwise? Don't some batters try to just put the ball in play with a man on third and one out? Now whether or not these changes in approach are smart, or whether the differences significantly change their run production for better or for worse I don't know...but how can you state so positively that at least some batters don't? This is done, WPA (win probability added). The problem is that the year to year correlation of these variables is virtually non-existent...so we should use runs (which can then also be converted into wins if we feel like it). All production should be measured in runs. That's the kind of stuff I like to hear. If there is no correlation, then the stat either doesn't have enough data to constrain the model, or the model isn't any good. Either way, I can then dismiss it. Thanks for the responces.

WHY NOT!?! Heh, fair point. Also, what the heck is pinto? Is this a baseball musings reference? Let me ask a different question - It seems that, on the whole, people are fairly optimistic that the back end of the bullpen will have a strong year. If that is the case, and we think that the peripherals of the top 3 in the rotation don't regress much, why the bump up in ERAs for Z and Lilly? I would think that the strength of defense and the fact that people dont expect that many inherited baserunners to score (strength of bullpen), would lead to an expectation of similar or better performances out of the top 3 in the rotation in terms of ERA. No, just an obscure Animal House reference so I won't hold it against you for not recognizing it. Myself personally, I think Lilly just pitched a little over his head last year, and is going to come back a little. Hill I think will do great again this year, and Zambrano I hope will come closer to his career average...but continued regression wouldn't surprise me either. I think his problems have been mental and mechanical and not physical and that he can correct those.

Because he saved the Cubs.That will never get old. I chuckle every time I read it. Someone already took my pic for least favorite, so my least favorite that I don't think has been mentioned is...Augie Ojeda

WHY NOT!?!

I think this is an excellent question to ask and what could be the first step to quantifying situational hitting. Instead of weighting all ABs the same, you could weight a BB with no one on base the same as a 1B for that particular AB. Maybe a HR will have a proportionally greater coefficient applied than a 2B or 3B when there are two outs as opposed to no outs. Baseball players DO change their approach at the plate depending on the score of the game, the inning, the number of outs, whos hitting behind them, what the count is, and so on. I'd imagine how effectively someone changes their approach could also be accounted for in a catch-all WINS created stat (as opposed to runs created stat) with enough data...and an insane amount of number crunching and research. . It's probably more effort than it's worth, in all honesty. We'd be talking about pretty slight variations. I usually feel fine just looking at EqA and WPA when I'm trying to evaluate those sorts of things. ...but how do you KNOW you should feel fine? And how fine should you feel? :P In all seriousness, I think that if you are not accounting for the fact that a HR is more valuable with two outs than with no outs, or that in some situations a walk is exactly the same as single when in others it is not...you are missing something. And I'd rather prove that what I'm missing is insignificant rather than just assume so. The more accurate and inclusive you become the more the stat as a whole improves, sometimes by magnitudes would wouldn't imagine. ...and what is WPA? I guess I'll look it up.

When I get home I'll try and rig something up.

Nothing funny at all about the idea of Dempster pitching 200 innings for us this year. :banghead: It's actually a little concerning that he thinks he's going to pitch 200 innings this year. If Dempster reaches 200 innings that will mean he had a pretty damn good season. I just don't see that happening. The season AFTER Shawn Estes left the Cubs, he was allowed to pitch 200 innings for a ML club, and posted a 1.624 whip and an 84 ERA+. I wouldn't be too confident 200 innings automatically means success.

I've got that vid saved on my computer. I'll email it to ya. Why not put it on Youtube so we can all enjoy it? How does youtube work, and won't MLB send the FBI to my home to disappear me?