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

1. Featured Game: Baltimore at Toronto, 19:07 ET (Free Game)
2. Other Notable Games
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Baltimore at Toronto, 19:07 ET
Regarding These Teams, Their Respective Places in the AL East
I’m not lying to you or your face when I say that these teams enter Wednesday just zero and three games, respectively, out of first place in the AL East.

The Surprising Thing About That, Duh
The surprising thing about that is how Toronto and Baltimore have, generally speaking, been a distant fourth and fifth place in their division for the past three or six years or whatever.

Duh
Duh.

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Episode 188
FanGraphs managing editor Dave Cameron makes his weekly appearance.

Discussed:
• The achievement that is Bryce Harper’s first 100 plate appearances, and what it has to do with someone named Oyster and someone else named Buttercup.
• The Adam Jones‘ extension and also what’s the deal with Baltimore.
• Three teams that, not even two months into the season, are almost entirely removed from playoff contention.

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 35 min. play time.)

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

1. Featured Game: Milwaukee at Los Angeles NL, 22:10 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule
4. Today’s Complete Schedule, With a Playoff-Odds Adjustment

Featured Game: Milwaukee at Los Angeles NL, 22:10 ET
What This Game Features
What this game features, in Brewers right-hander Michael Fiers and Dodgers right-hander Nathan Eovaldi, is a pair of starting pitchers with both (a) an above-average minor-league track record and also (b) limited major-league experience.

Also, What Else
Also, both pitchers are making their season debuts tonight.

Michael Fiers, In Brief
Fiers, in his age-27 season, has pitched very well in the minors (346.2 IP, 9.6 K/9, 2.4 BB/9, 0.8 HR/9) despite a pedigree (he was drafted in the 22nd round of the 2009 draft) and stuff (he has below-average fastball velocity) that might have originally suggested otherwise. According both to Baseball America’s Prospect Handbook and also John Sickels, Fiers’ best pitch is a changeup that one supposes will help him neutralize left-handed batters.

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

1. Reluctantly Featured Game: Houston at Colorado, 20:10 ET
2. MLB.TV Free Game
3. Today’s Complete Schedule
4. Today’s Complete Schedule, Adjusted for Playoff Odds

Reluctantly Featured Game: Houston at Colorado, 20:10 ET
What the Reader Is Likely Saying
The reader is likely saying — with regard to the selection of this game, featuring a pair of teams that are a total of ca. 20 games out of their respective division races — the reader is likely saying, “I protest!”

What a Different Sort of Reader Might Be Saying
A different sort of reader — one who’s not a member of England’s landed gentry, for instance — might be saying something more like, “I hate this author” or “This author’s an idiot” or “I hate this author’s face part of his face.”

Regarding All Those Comments
All those comments by all those fictional readers I just invented are probably reasonable.

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

1. Featured Game: Washington at Atlanta, 20:05 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Washington at Atlanta, 20:05 ET
Who You’re Watching When You’re Watching This Game
If and when you’re watching this game, you’re watching — in Washington left-hander Gio Gonzalez — the pitcher who currently has the highest strikeout rate (31.5%) and fifth-best SIERA (2.81) and third-highest WAR (2.0) among qualified pitchers.

What Might Be Surprising About That
What might be surprising about that — to the equally bespectacled and muscular reader — is how effective Gonzalez has been so far, given that his season-high strikeout rate entering 2012 was last year’s 24%.

A Question the Reader Might Be Asking
A question the reader might be asking is, “Is Gonzalez throwing anything different this year that would merit such an improvement?”

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

1. Featured Game: Washington at Atlanta, 16:05 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Washington at Atlanta, 16:05 ET
Regarding Who Pitches for Washington
Right-hander Stephen Strasburg (53.0 IP, 70 xFIP-, 1.8 WAR) pitches for them.

A Notable Comment Regarding Strasburg
Here’s a recent comment — notable because of who made it — regarding Strasburg:

Chipper Jones on #Strasburg: “He has the best stuff, the best repertoire of pitches that I’ve seen on any one single pitcher.” #Nats #MLB

— William Ladson (@washingnats) May 25, 2012

What We Can Say About the Aforementioned Repertoire
According to PITCHf/x, here’s Strasburg’s repertoire this season, accompanied by the average velocity and usage of each pitch:

• Four-Seam Fastball: 96.0 mph, 47.0%
• Two-Seam Fastball: 94.8 mph, 16.4%
• Curveball: 80.3 mph, 21.4%
• Changeup: 88.5 mph, 15.1%

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Episode 187
Eno Sarris, editor of RotoGraphs, is the guest for this Fantasy Friday edition of FanGraphs Audio. Discussed: the new parent’s fantasy survival guide; a Dale Thayer Status Update (?!?); and the St. Louis Cardinals first-base situation.

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 46 min. play time.)

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

1. Actual Transaction News: Three Recent Promotions
2. Today’s Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Actual Transaction News: Three Recent Promotions
The following players were promoted from the minors recently. Here we answer the question, “Who are they?”

Player: Quintin Berry, OF, DET
Line: 187 PA, .270/.368/.321 (.377 BABIP) at Triple-A
Notes: The 27-year-old Berry was recalled on Wednesday to replace Austin Jackson (abdomen) and has now batted leadoff twice and played center field in consecutive games. He actually has shown some ability to get on base in the minors (.091 isolated patience), but might see some of those walks evaporate owing to his lack of power (.071 ISO in minors).

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Episode 186
David Laurila, curator of FanGraphs’ Q&A Series, talks to talented and erudite Tampa Bay outfielder Sam Fuld on the phone regarding the latter’s role in Sun Sports’ recent sabermetric broadcast.

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 16 min. play time.)

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

1. Featured Game: Philadelphia at St. Louis, 20:15 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Philadelphia at St. Louis, 20:15 ET
Regarding Two Surprisingly Effective Pitchers, Their Names
The names of two surprisingly effective starting pitchers this season are Joe Blanton (53.0 IP, 93 xFIP-, 0.9 WAR) and Jake Westbrook (52.1 IP, 90 xFIP-, 1.0 WAR).

Regarding Those Same Pitchers, An Extraordinary Coincidence
An extraordinary coincidence involving those same pitchers is that they’re both starting tonight, against each other, in this featured game.

Regarding Those Same Pitchers, Another Coincidence
Another coincidence involving those pitchers is that Joe Blanton’s secretary is named Westbrook and Westbrook’s secretary’s name is Blanton.

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