Author Archive

Daily Notes: Say Hi to Your Mother for Us

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

1. A Note for the Mothers
2. Featured Game: Tampa Bay at Baltimore, 13:35 ET
3. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
4. Today’s Complete Schedule

A Note for the Mothers
Please, if you would, say hello to your mother for FanGraphs.

And for Mark Wahlberg, too, if you have time:

Featured Game: Tampa Bay at Baltimore, 13:35 ET
First of All, Who’s Pitching
Pitching in this game are decorated British general James Shields (47.1 IP, 75 xFIP-, 0.4 WAR) for Tampa Bay and noted Italian avant garde filmmaker Jake Arrieta (44.2 IP, 85 xFIP-, 0.6 WAR) for Baltimore.

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Daily Notes, With Adam Wainwright’s Virile Curveball

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

1. Featured Game: Atlanta at St. Louis, 19:15 ET (Free Game)
2. Video: Adam Wainwright’s Virile Curveball
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Atlanta at St. Louis, 19:15 ET
Regarding Who’s Starting Tonight for St. Louis
In terms of who’s starting tonight for St. Louis, it’s handsome and able right-hander Adam Wainwright.

Regarding Adam Wainwright, His Line So Far
In terms of Adam Wainwright and his line so far (through six starts, now), this is it: 33.2 IP, 24.3% K, 5.0% BB, 55.8% GB, 2.70 SIERA, 73 xFIP-, 0.1 WAR.

Regarding That Line Relative to Wainwright’s Career Numbers
Every number in Wainwright’s current line — with the exception of the WAR mark — would constitute a career best.

Regarding What One Guy Somewhere Is Probably Saying About That
One guy somewhere is probably saying — with regard to that comment about how Wainwright is posting career-best numbers — a guy somewhere is probably saying, “Um, sample size much?”

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Daily Notes: Largely Concerning Felipe Paulino

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

1. Featured Game: Kansas City at Chicago AL, 20:10 ET
2. Lightly Annotated Video: Felipe Paulino’s Season Debut
3. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
4. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Kansas City at Chicago AL, 20:10 ET
Of Particular Note Regarding This Game
Of particular note regarding this game is that right-hander Felipe Paulino, 28, is starting it for the Royals.

Regarding Paulino, His Season Debut
Paulino made his season debut against the Yankees last Saturday after missing the first month of the season with a strained forearm — and he was excellent. Line: 6.0 IP, 23 TBF, 6 K, 2 BB, 8 GB on 15 batted-balls (53.3%), 2.40 xFIP.

Regarding Paulino, His Career So Far
For his career so far (353.2 IP, most of them since 2009), Paulino has posted basically average defense-independent numbers (98 xFIP-, 101 FIP-), with slightly above-average strikeout rates and slightly below-average walk rates.

Regarding Paulino, His Career So Far, Part II
Over his career, Paulino has been decidedly less successful in terms of overall run prevention, having posted an ERA that’s 27% worse than league average and a full run worse than his FIP over that same time (5.19 ERA, 4.14 FIP).

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FanGraphs Audio: Fantasy Friday on Thursday

Episode 181
RotoGraphs contributor Zach Sanders appears on this Fantasy Friday edition of FanGraphs Audio. Performed: a Hector Santiago Status Update. Asked: what the eff, Jemile Weeks? Noted: the host’s place in the FanGraphs Staff ottoneu league relative to the guest’s.

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 42 min. play time.)

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FanGraphs Audio: In the Clubhouse with Luis Exposito

Episode 180
David Laurila, curator of FanGraphs’ Q&A Series, talks to catcher Luis Exposito, who recently made his major-league debut with Baltimore not long after being DFA’d by Boston.

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 14 min. play time.)

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Daily Notes: Sabathia-Price Mega Showdown Clash

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

1. Featured Game: Tampa Bay at New York AL, 19:05 ET (Free Game)
2. Other Notable Games
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Tampa Bay at New York AL, 19:05 ET
Regarding the Big, Big Deal About This Game
The big, big deal about this game is that it’s the first so far this season to receive a NERD Game Score of 9.

Regarding What a NERD Game Score Is, For Anyone Who Doesn’t Know
For anyone who doesn’t know, NERD is intended to be a numerical representation of a team or a player or a pitcher’s aesthetic appeal, or “watchability.” (Read more about it here, if you even want to). A Game Score is the combination of the pitcher and team scores involved in a specific game.

Regarding the Number of People Denoted by “Anyone Who Doesn’t Know”
Over six billion, definitely.

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FanGraphs Audio: Dayn Perry Can’t Help You

Episode 179
Dayn Perry, contributor to CBS Sports’ Eye on Baseball and author of two books (one of them decent), makes his weekly appearance — during the course of which, for example, it’s revealed that he shares an alma mater with Ted DiBiase, Jr.

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 41 min. play time.)

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Daily Notes: Rockies Prospect Friedrich Debuts

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

1. Featured Game: Colorado at San Diego, 15:35 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Colorado at San Diego, 15:35 ET
Regarding Colorado’s Starting Pitcher
Making his major-league debut this afternoon for Colorado is left-handed and 25-year-old pitcher Christian Friedrich.

Regarding Who Is Christian Friedrich
Christian Friedrich was, at one point, a relatively celebrated prospect in the Rockies system — ranking third among Colorado minor leaguers, for example, in Baseball America’s 2009 Prospect Handbook.

Regarding Who Is Christian Friedrich, Part II
Entering the 2012 season, Friedrich was decidedly less celebrated, ranking 14th in the Colorado system, per Baseball America. And 15th, per our Marc Hulet. And 14th, according to John Sickels. And 17th, according to Rockies SB Nation blog Purple Row.

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FanGraphs Audio: Dave Cameron

Episode 178
Managing editor Dave Cameron makes his weekly Monday appearance — this time on a Tuesday. Topics discussed: the sanest possible discussion of the Cole HamelsBryce Harper kerfuffle; the NL East, who Cameron regards as the favorite in it; and Jose Altuve: a franchise player, perhaps, but of how good a franchise?

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 42 min. play time.)

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Daily Notes, Including the Rhetorical Device Paralipsis

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

1. Featured Game: Tampa Bay at New York AL, 19:05 ET
2. Other Notable Games (Including MLB.TV Free Game)
3. Today’s Complete Schedule

Featured Game: Tampa Bay at New York AL, 19:05 ET
Regarding This Game, How I Was Tempted to Describe It for a Second
In terms of this game between the Rays and Yankees, I was tempted momentarily to describe it as a “clash of division rivals.”

Regarding Why I Was Tempted to Do That
I was tempted to do that probably because I’ve been watching game promos on sporting networks for over 20 years — on which networks, for example, phrases like “clash of division rivals” are relatively common.

Regarding Why I Didn’t Describe It That Way
I ended up not describing it that way, because, ultimately, a person probably shouldn’t use the word clash unless he’s addressing a phalanx of hoplites, and I — for the moment, at least — am not addressing a phalanx of hoplites.

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