Posts Tagged ‘ Boston Red Sox ’

Episode 38: The 1/3 Season Awards

June 13, 2013
By

In Episode 38, Brock & Ben discuss the Dodgers-Diamondbacks brawl, the Hollywood entrance of Yasiel Puig & wrap up the 2013 Draft with a few final quick hits.  In the educational segment, the guys break down BABIP (batting average on balls in play) and the factors that influence it for both hitters and pitchers.  Finally, in the discussion segment, Brock & Ben start the awards talk early – at the 1/3-season mark instead of the more conventional 1/2-season – and look at how the MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year races are shaping up.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 35: Getting the Calls Right

May 16, 2013
By

In Episode 35, Brock & Ben debut the new, more sectionalized format of the podcast, beginning with observations on Brandon Belt’s improvement and the impressive pitching performances of the last week.  The guys then debut a new recurring segment designed to unpack and discuss the myriad advanced statistics that inform modern baseball.  This week’s focus is on pitcher strikeouts, specifically the evolution from strikeout rate (K/9) to strikeout percentage (K/PA).  While discussing strikeouts, Brock & Ben explore the recent league-wide spike in strikeouts and strikeout % and what factors might be contributing to this trend.  The guys round out the podcast with a discussion of umpire accountability and expanded replay and how MLB moves closer to what everyone wants: getting the calls right.

For further reading, here are the New York Times and Fangraphs articles referenced during the discussion on the recent rise in strikeouts/K %.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 34: Surprising Starts and Sustainability

May 2, 2013
By

In Episode 34, Brock & Ben discuss the surprising starts – both good and bad – of the teams in the American League East, assessing the sustainability of strong Aprils for the Red Sox and Yankees and whether the struggling Rays and Blue Jays can turn it around.  The guys then turn their attention to quick-starters Colorado, Pittsburgh and Kansas City, wondering if any of them can exceed expectations of general mediocrity this season.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 31: AL East Preview

April 5, 2013
By

In Episode 31, Yankees fan Digger Lauter returns to the podcast to help Brock & Ben preview the American League East.  The guys kick off the show by discussing the rash of recent big dollar extensions before closing out divisional previews with a belated look at the AL East.

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 27: Samurai Japan and the World Baseball Classic

March 14, 2013
By

In Episode 27, Brock & Ben are joined by international Citizen of the Diaspora Glen Tsurudome to talk Japanese baseball.  The guys discuss the latest World Baseball Classic action before turning their attention to Japan.  Glen illuminates the Japanese perspective on baseball, the World Baseball Classic and the relationship between Major League Baseball and Nippon Professional Baseball.  The guys then identify Japanese players to watch, both in the 2013 WBC Championship Round and as potential cross-overs to MLB.  The conversation closes with Glen discussing the identity conflict the WBC raises for a Japanese American, particularly when Japan and the USA meet head-to-head.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 24: The World Baseball Classic

February 27, 2013
By

In Episode 24, Brock & Ben turn their attention to the upcoming World Baseball Classic.  After briefly discussing the Curtis Granderson injury and what it means for the Yankees in 2013 and beyond, it’s 100% WBC!  The guys provide a brief primer of the history, rules and format of the tournament, then break down the rosters pool by pool.  To wrap up, Brock & Ben put their reputations on the line, predicting the 2013 World Baseball Classic from the First Round to the Championship game.

For more on the World Baseball Classic, check out the WBC’s website.

Special thanks goes to Yahoo! Sports’ Big League Stew.  Their team-by-team WBC previews were indispensable in preparing us for this episode.

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 22: The Baseball Diaspora 2.0

February 13, 2013
By

In Episode 22, Brock bids a heartfelt farewell to Dan’s regular involvement with the podcast and welcomes new co-host Ben Stein.  After establishing Ben’s diaspora credentials, the guys turn their attention to the concluding offseason, focusing specifically on issues of baseball economics, injuries and medical advances and the impending World Baseball Classic.  Topics include:

- How the big pitching deals of the offseason stack up both against past long-term, high-dollar pitching contracts and the mega-contracts given to hitters in recent years in terms of advisability and value

- Whether the rising cost of quality pitching will result in teams locking up their young aces (or potential aces) long-term early in their careers (a la Evan Longoria, Troy Tulowitzki and a slew of other young position players)

- If the rising cost of pitching is responsible for a recent willingness to deal top prospects (Wil Myers, Travis D’Arnaud) to net quality starters on team-friendly contracts (James Shields, R.A. Dickey)

- What the Myers, D’Arnaud and Trevor Bauer trades mean for the recent standard practice of holding onto top prospects and whether we will see more major league-ready prospects traded in the near future

- What role personality plays in organizational thinking with respect to its players and prospects and whether Arizona mishandled its unloading of Bauer, Justin Upton and Chris Young

- The advance of medical technology and how it is impacting baseball contracts, making the “pending physical” much more than a mere formality

- Whether the use of enhanced medical capabilities to not only spot current injuries but to project future risk may present a future labor problem as more players have the experience shared by Mike Napoli and Francisco Liriano and lose guaranteed money and guaranteed years as a result of more heightened medical scrutiny

- Injuries and the World Baseball Classic and whether it’s time for MLB to step in to remove some of the barriers to the participation of some of the game’s top talents

- What it will take for the WBC to rise to the level of prestige and participation of the World Cup

and

- Who is missing from Team USA that would most enhance the team in terms of both quality on the field and star quality?

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Episode 21: The Baseball Diaspora Eats Crow with the Best of ‘Em

November 1, 2012
By

In Episode 21, things are curious and unnatural on The Baseball Diaspora.  Due to the lingering effects of the sinister confluence of Halloween and a San Francisco Giants World Series Parade, Brock is joined not by Dan, the ardent anti-Giant, but bizarro Dan – Dan Lerner – a lifelong diaspora Giants fan.  San Fran Dan takes Brock through the 2012 Postseason experience before the two look ahead to the Giants’ offseason and the NL MVP race.  Topics include:

- Which component of the Giants’ winning formula was most indispensable to the team’s success in the postseason.

- The Giants player most deserving of the MVP award for the entire postseason.

- What play or moment stood out as the most memorable for Giants fans from an October full of remarkable games?

- Dan’s road warrior experience in the 2010 and 2012 playoffs, following the Giants to Atlanta, Texas and St. Louis, and favorite memories from those trips.

- How the 2012 World Series compared to 2010 for Giants fans and, from a more general perspective, can you ever top the first World Series your team wins in your lifetime?

- The 2012 Giants team compared to the 2010 team and which will be remembered more fondly.

- What the future holds for the Giants: continued playoff success or a drop-off due to stiffer competition within the division?

- The Giants’ fan’s wishlist for the offseason: does the team build upon its success by keeping the team largely intact?  Add outside talent through free agency or trade?  Both?  Neither?

The guys close out the podcast by discussing the NL MVP race between Buster Posey and Yadier Molina, whether the race is closer than most people think and how to adequately factor defense and base running into the MVP calculus.

While the focus is on the 2012 World Champs, Brock is able to work the St. Louis Cardinals into the conversation at regular intervals.

This episode goes out to Dan (the original), his wife Rachel and the certain A’s fan daughter who they should be welcoming very soon!

NOTES:

The Bill James book Brock completely blanked on the name of is The Politics of Glory: How Baseball’s Hall of Fame Really Works

The ESPN article Brock & Dan discuss during the brief discussion of the AL MVP race is this one by Peter Keating (sorry, it’s an Insider piece)…

…and here is an evisceration of Keating’s argument that I found when searching for the original article

 

 

 

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Baseball Time Travel

September 9, 2012
By
Dick Groat and Bob Gibson

As a blogger, when someone else writes a piece – the premise of which you wish you’d come up with yourself – your options are limited.  You can either stew and mutter in incredulity or brazenly appropriate and hope the strength of your perspective and writing will make up for the less-than-original idea underneath.  With…

Read more »

Episode 12: NL Central Preview

March 12, 2012
By

In Episode 12, Brock and Dan turn their attention to Brock’s favorite division – the NL Central.  Joined by very special guest Marc Towler, Brock’s dad and Citizen of the Diaspora, the guys tackle the St. Louis Cardinals and the rest of the Central.  After Marc recalls what life was like for diaspora fans prior to the internet, satellite and cable, the guys discuss:

- Which of the departures – Albert Pujols, Tony La Russa, Dave Duncan and Jeff Luhnow – will impact the St. Louis Cardinals most going forward

- How the Cardinals offseason moves – adding Carlos Beltran, extending Yadier Molina – will make up for the loss of Pujols

- How Matt Holliday will handle becoming more of a focal point of the offense

- Whether Chris Carpenter’s neck injury is cause for concern

- Dan’s scouting report on the Cardinals, based off his visit to Cardinals Spring Training last week

- How the Cardinals’ primary competition in the division – the Cincinnati Reds and Milwaukee Brewers – stack up against each other and against the Cardinals for 2012

- What the outlook is for the Pittsburgh Pirates and if their young core and prospects will gel to become a factor in the NL Central in the near future

- What Theo Epstein and new ownership means for the Chicago Cubs’ chances to end their century-plus championship drought

- How much the NL Central will miss the Houston Astros after this season and how strange it will be for AL West fans to welcome a new team into the division

- How the addition of a second Wild Card will impact the NL Central and whether more than one team from the division will make the playoffs this year

and

- Predictions for who will win the NL Central and NL Wild Card(s)

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

The Baseball Diaspora RSS


Subscribe to the Baseballdiaspora RSS feed