Table of Contents
Here’s the table of contents for today’s edition of Daily Notes.

1. Today’s Two Featured Games
2. Today’s MLB.TV Free Game
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Two Featured Games
Regarding a Thing That Happens
It is not uncommon, during a late-season game of some consequence, it’s not uncommon for an announcer to suggest that there is a “playoff-like atmosphere” within the relevant ballpark.

A Note on Two Games This Afternoon
Two games this afternoon, while unlikely to possess a “playoff-like atmosphere,” might at least offer a “playoff-ish-esque-like atmosphere” — which is to say, similar to playoff-like, just not as dramatic.

What One of Those Games Is
One of the games of note today is the Pittsburgh-St. Louis one at 2:15pm ET.

Read the rest of this entry »

Table of Contents
Here’s the table of contents for today’s edition of Daily Notes.

1. Featured Game: Chicago (NL) at Cincinnati, 19:10 ET
2. Today’s MLB.TV Free Game
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Chicago (NL) at Cincinnati, 19:10 ET
Regarding This Game, Why It’s Notable
This game is notable on account of it features the major-league debut of Todd Redmond, who starts for the Reds.

Regarding Todd Redmond, Who That Even Is
Todd Redmond is a 27-year-old right-hander drafted originally by Pittsburgh in the 39th round of the 2004 draft out of St. Petersburg College. He was traded to Atlanta in 2008 and then again, about a month ago, to Cincinnati in exchange for Paul Janish.

Regarding Todd Redmond, His Numbers at Triple-A This Season
Here’s Todd Redmond’s Triple-A line at Triple-A this season: 134.2 IP, 8.4 K/9, 2.3 BB/9, 1.1 HR/9, 3.62 FIP.

Read the rest of this entry »

Episode 228
RotoGraphs editor Eno Sarris is the guest on this Fantasy Friday edition of FanGraphs Audio.

Discussed:
• Dan Haren, how his back injury is of no little concern.
• Brandon Morrow — specifically, as a potential Haren replacement.
• Boston and Houston and San Diego, who’s closing in those places.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @cistulli on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximately 29 min. play time.)

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

Other Lists
Cape Cod League
Northwoods League
Coastal Plain League
New England Collegiate League

The people have spoken and “We don’t care that much about these collegeiate-summer-league posts,” is mostly what they’ve said.

In the tradition both of Seneca and post-Deconstructing Harry Woody Allen, however, the present author has decided to ignore entirely the thronging, vulgar masses and write about collegiate summer leagues harder than ever before.

Below are the players to have performed most ably in this year’s edition of both the Alaska Baseball and the Cal Ripken Collegiate Baseball Leagues. Offensive production (represented as the totally made-up SCOUT+, where 100 is league average and above 100 is above average) is essentially a version of wRC+, except using the three main defense-independent inputs (home-run, walk, and strikeout rate), all regressed duly*. Pitching performance (represented by the also entirely made-up SCOUT-, where 100 is league average and below 100 represents above-average run prevention) is calculated using a version of kwERA, with regressed strikeout and walk rates as the relevant inputs.

*By the method outlined here.

Read the rest of this entry »

Table of Contents
Here’s the table of contents for today’s edition of Daily Notes.

1. First-Round Leaderboard Update Update
2. Today’s Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

First-Round Leaderboard Update Update
Regarding What This Is
Within the safe space that is these Daily Notes, it has become customary to publish, every so often, to publish a leaderboard of all the first-round picks from the 2012 draft (plus, because the author’s True Nature has dictated it, Astros shortstop prospect Nolan Fontana, Angels infielder Sherman Johnson, and Rangers third baseman Joey Gallo) to’ve made their professional debuts.

Regarding What This Is, Part II
What follows is an update of the first-rounders leaderboard, with five (!) players added, as follow:

Read the rest of this entry »

Episode 227
David Laurila, curator of FanGraphs’ Q&A Series, talks with Pirates Double-A reliever Victor Black.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @cistulli on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximately 13 min. play time.)

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

A map of the New England Collegiate Baseball League.

Other Lists
Cape Cod League
Northwoods League
Coastal Plain League

With August very much here, the nation’s collegiate summer leagues — many of which have probably hosted at least one future major leaguer — are coming to an end.

Below are the players to have performed most ably in this year’s edition of the New England Collegiate League. Offensive production (represented as the totally made-up SCOUT+, where 100 is league average and above 100 is above average) is essentially a version of wRC+, except using the three main defense-independent inputs (home-run, walk, and strikeout rate), all regressed duly*. Pitching performance (represented by the also entirely made-up SCOUT-, where 100 is league average and below 100 represents above-average run prevention) is calculated using a version of kwERA, with regressed strikeout and walk rates as the relevant inputs.

*By the method outlined here.

The idea here is not to suggest that the following players are/were the actual best prospects from the New England Collegiate League this summer. Outlets like Baseball America and Perfect Game will certainly do a much better job of that. Rather, it’s to (a) represent as accurately and responsibly as possible the best performances of the New England Collegiate League season and to (b) acquaint ourselves with those top performers.

Read the rest of this entry »

Table of Contents
Here’s the table of contents for today’s edition of Daily Notes.

1. All the Teams Without Hope
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

All the Teams Without Hope
Woody Allen on Hope
Here’s a brief passage from Woody Allen’s book Without Feathers regarding hope:

How wrong Emily Dickinson was! Hope is not “the thing with feathers.” The thing with feathers has turned out to be my nephew. I must take him to a specialist in Zurich.

Norm MacDonald on Hope
Here’s an excerpt from Norm MacDonald’s special Me Doing Standup, in which he discusses hope briefly — like around the 5:40 mark, mostly. (Note: this clip contains English swear words.)

Read the rest of this entry »

Episode 226
Dayn Perry, contributor to CBS Sports’ Eye on Baseball and author of two books (one of them serviceable), shares his largely impotent thoughts in re news and journalism during his weekly appearance on FanGraphs Audio.

Don’t hesitate to direct pod-related correspondence to @cistulli on Twitter.

You can subscribe to the podcast via iTunes or other feeder things.

Audio after the jump. (Approximately 48 min. play time.)

Read the rest of this entry »

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS

A map of the Coastal Plain League.

Other Lists
Cape Cod League
Northwoods League
New England Collegiate League

With August very much here, the nation’s collegiate summer leagues — many of which have probably hosted at least one future major leaguer — are coming to an end.

Below are the players to have performed most ably in this year’s edition of the Coastal Plain League. Offensive production (represented as the totally made-up SCOUT+, where 100 is league average and above 100 is above average) is essentially a version of wRC+, except using the three main defense-independent inputs (home-run, walk, and strikeout rate), all regressed duly*. Pitching performance (represented by the also entirely made-up SCOUT-, where 100 is league average and below 100 represents above-average run prevention) is calculated using a version of kwERA, with regressed strikeout and walk rates as the relevant inputs.

*By the method outlined here.

The idea here is not to suggest that the following players are/were the actual best prospects from the Coastal Plain League this summer. Outlets like Baseball America and Perfect Game will certainly do a much better job of that. Rather, it’s to (a) represent as accurately and responsibly as possible the best performances of the Coastal Plain League season and to (b) acquaint ourselves with those top performers.

Read the rest of this entry »