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Grantland's MLB ratings: Hey, at least the Red Sox are ahead of the Rockies...
22. Boston Red Sox, 11-16 (144 RS, 156 RA) (last week: 15)
There have been some decent moments, with the Sox alternating good weeks and bad since the start of the year. But the problems start to look more severe when they go from simple injury problems to chronic ineffectiveness by players who are actually healthy. Clay Buchholz's latest debacle Sunday made it six straight starts with 5-plus earned runs allowed to start the season; that tied the live-ball era record set by Carl Doyle 76 years ago. Cody Ross and Mike Aviles have slowed down after big starts, Jarrod Saltalamacchia's hitting for some power but also carries a .268 OBP, and Marlon Byrd hasn't shown anything since coming over from the Cubs. Even the little things haven't clicked. The Sox got stolen-base contributions from Jacoby Ellsbury, Carl Crawford, and Dustin Pedroia last year, finishing middle of the pack with 102 steals. This year, they're 28th in MLB with just eight steals, to go with five caught stealings.
It's not all bad news. The bullpen's pitched infinitely better since getting rocked by the Yankees on April 21. And you have to love a rookie making his first big league homer a game-tying grand slam over the Green Monster. Given Kevin Youkilis has hit .205/.307/.345 since last year's All-Star break and remains racked with injuries, we might see a lot more of Will Middlebrooks this year.
23. Colorado Rockies, 12-15 (146 RS, 153 RA) (last week: 23)
More on the Chipper vs. Moyer kerfuffle: Jones said he believes Moyer is paranoid about base runners relaying signs to hitters from second base because he used to play for the Phillies, a team supposedly known for stealing signs. Chipper added that he told a couple of Rockies he'd be happy to discuss the matter further with Moyer out in the hallway.
All of which is just crazy. There's nothing immoral or unsporting about stealing or relaying signs, so long as it's done within the flow of the game and not, say, 1951 Giants-style. Paying close attention and looking for little edges to exploit is a concept baseball players have tried to follow for as long as there's been baseball. Even if Chipper was passing on signs to Brian McCann, good on him. If Moyer (or any other pitcher) is worried about the other team figuring out his signs, he's got two choices: Do a better job of disguising those signs, or keep runners from reaching second base.
http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7899532/the-orioles-squawking-our-no-1-looking-ragged
There have been some decent moments, with the Sox alternating good weeks and bad since the start of the year. But the problems start to look more severe when they go from simple injury problems to chronic ineffectiveness by players who are actually healthy. Clay Buchholz's latest debacle Sunday made it six straight starts with 5-plus earned runs allowed to start the season; that tied the live-ball era record set by Carl Doyle 76 years ago. Cody Ross and Mike Aviles have slowed down after big starts, Jarrod Saltalamacchia's hitting for some power but also carries a .268 OBP, and Marlon Byrd hasn't shown anything since coming over from the Cubs. Even the little things haven't clicked. The Sox got stolen-base contributions from Jacoby Ellsbury, Carl Crawford, and Dustin Pedroia last year, finishing middle of the pack with 102 steals. This year, they're 28th in MLB with just eight steals, to go with five caught stealings.
It's not all bad news. The bullpen's pitched infinitely better since getting rocked by the Yankees on April 21. And you have to love a rookie making his first big league homer a game-tying grand slam over the Green Monster. Given Kevin Youkilis has hit .205/.307/.345 since last year's All-Star break and remains racked with injuries, we might see a lot more of Will Middlebrooks this year.
23. Colorado Rockies, 12-15 (146 RS, 153 RA) (last week: 23)
More on the Chipper vs. Moyer kerfuffle: Jones said he believes Moyer is paranoid about base runners relaying signs to hitters from second base because he used to play for the Phillies, a team supposedly known for stealing signs. Chipper added that he told a couple of Rockies he'd be happy to discuss the matter further with Moyer out in the hallway.
All of which is just crazy. There's nothing immoral or unsporting about stealing or relaying signs, so long as it's done within the flow of the game and not, say, 1951 Giants-style. Paying close attention and looking for little edges to exploit is a concept baseball players have tried to follow for as long as there's been baseball. Even if Chipper was passing on signs to Brian McCann, good on him. If Moyer (or any other pitcher) is worried about the other team figuring out his signs, he's got two choices: Do a better job of disguising those signs, or keep runners from reaching second base.
http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7899532/the-orioles-squawking-our-no-1-looking-ragged
Time to give Wakefield a call, see if he's busy...
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