Episode 100
FanGraphs Founder and CEO David Appelman discusses the early days both of the site and his own personal life, some features he’ll be adding this offseason, and whether or not he’ll still be in charge of FanGraphs in 2042. Also discussed: more on the gym and more on Zooey Deschanel vehicle The New Girl.

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

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Audio on the flip-flop. (Approximately 26 min. play time.)

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Chicago (AL) lefty Chris Sale is one of the few major leaguers to play in khakis.

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

1. Assorted Headlines
2. SCOUT Leaderboards: Arizona Fall League
3. Prospecting: Baseball America’s Top-10 List for Chicago (NL)

Assorted Headlines
Confirmed: Sale to Start in 2012
White Sox general manager Ken Williams confirmed on Tuesday that left-hander Chris Sale will be a starting pitcher next season, Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times reports. Sale, 22, was an enormously successful starter in college at Florida Gulf Coast University, but has pitched exclusively in relief for Chicago, posting this line in 2011: 71.0 IP, 27.4% K, 9.4% BB, 49.7% GB, 2.73 SIERA, 3.00 xFIP, 74 xFIP-. Dave Cameron discussed on Monday’s podcast (around the 8:10 mark) how Sale might profile as a starter. Mike Podhorzer reflects on the changes in Sale’s fantasy value over at RotoGraphs.

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Episode Ninety-Nine
Stay-at-home dad and author of one alright book Dayn Perry discusses NL Central prospects, new Cardinal manager Mike Matheny, and his own personal workout regimen. “Riveting” is not the right word to describe it.

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

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Audio on the flip-flop. (Approximately 25 min. play time.)

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Nationals prospect Tom Milone calls Bill James to verify the accuracy of his projection.

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

1. Projecting: Some Notable Bill James Projections for 2012
2. SCOUT Leaderboards and Notes: Venezuelan Winter League

Projecting: Some Notable Bill James Projections for 2012
As noted by Dark Overlord David Appelman on Monday, we’ve posted the 2012 Bill James Handbook Projections on the player pages. As noted later by that same Dark Overlord, James projects an average wOBA of .334 for a player set that averaged a .325 wOBA as a group in 2011 — and so, on average, these projections are likely about .009 points higher than one might expect from 2011’s run environment.

Below are some of what I’ll call “need-to-know” projections, presented in the order I looked them up. (Note: there are no park or league adjustments in these projections. Proceed with due caution.)

Player: Charlie Blackmon, OF, COL
Projection: 125 PA, .277/.312/.429 (.294 BABIP), .319 wOBA
Notes: This would mark a 60-point improvement over Blackmon’s 2011 wOBA (in limited PAs).

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Episode Ninety-Eight
Dave Cameron provides Instanalysis™ on Monday’s Rookie of the Year announcements — including, but not limited to, “What the deal with the Rookie of Year announcements?” Also discussed: Matt Kemp’s and Jonathan Papelbon’s ample contract size.

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

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Audio on the flip-flop. (Approximately 24 min. play time.)

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Twins GM Terry Ryan: A Case Study in Human Communication

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

1. Assorted Headlines
2. SCOUT Leaderboards: Arizona Fall League
3. Prospecting: John Sickels’ Top-20 List for Arizona

Assorted Headlines
Plouffe to Move Off Shortstop
I don’t know much about the science of human communication, but I’m guessing that people who do would have something interesting to say about this utterance (relayed by ESPN 1500’s Phil Mackey) by new-old GM Terry Ryan regarding Trevor Plouffe: “It sounds as if I think our thoughts are he’s probably going to be best suited to the outfield and DH.” The phrase “It sounds as if I think our thoughts” is vigorously indirect. Understood literally, Ryan is suggesting that he’s not sure if he knows even what he thinks (“It sounds as if I think”). In fact, Ryan is probably well aware of what he thinks. More probable is that he’s utilizing an indirect construction to emphasize both/either that (a) the decision is not final and/or that (b) the decision is not merely his, but the product of a group (“our”) effort. In any case, it also appears to be the true that Trevor Plouffe — owner of one above-average offensive season in the minors — will DH periodically for the Twins this season.

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Pat Burrell, seen here strangling a defenseless elderly man, might retire soon.

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

1. Assorted Headlines
2. SCOUT Leaderboards: Arizona Fall League
3. Projecting: ZiPS for the Detroit Tigers

Assorted Headlines
Equal parts fact and fiction.

Burrell Leaning Towards Retirement
Pat Burrell said Thursday that his baseball career is likely over owing to a right foot injury, the Associated Press reports. The (recently) 35-year-old Burrell was limited to 219 plate appearances in 2011, but still managed a 114 wRC+ — which still makes him better than Delmon Young (whose ZiPS projection you can find below), for example. In all, the former No. 1 overall pick by the Phillies in 1998 has posted 21.9 WAR over his 12-year career.

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Episode Ninety-Seven
Contributor Chris Cwik elaborates on his post from Thursday regarding the Marlins’ free-agent spending power and also gives his expert opinion on whether or not Arizona’s recent signings of Willie Bloomquist and John McDonald more or less assure the D-backs of a World Series. (Answer: they don’t. At all.) Also discussed: recent weight gain by the host, owing largely to the lipid-rich cuisine of Wisconsin.

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

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Audio on the flip-flop. (Approximately 22 min. play time.)

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Today’s edition of Offseason Notes was written by two Mark Twains.

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

1. Assorted Headlines
2. SCOUT Leaderboards: Dominican Winter League
3. Prospecting: Baseball America’s Top 10 List for Washington

Assorted Headlines
All the nerd that’s fit to you-know-what.

(Matt) Young Signs with Detroit
Notable among the many players included in Baseball America’s most recent minor-league transaction log is OF/2B Matt Young. The 28-year-old Young became a free agent recently after spending his first seven years of professional baseball in the Atlanta organization. While he possesses almost no power (21 HR in 3637 minor-league PAs), Young has walked more than he’s struck out over that period and appears to rate as an average center fielder. OLIVER projects him as a 0.2 WAR player in 591 PAs for 2012 — which is actually better than Delmon Young, whom OLIVER rates as a 0.0 WAR player exactly.

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Episode Ninety-Six
Father-to-be Eno Sarris learns everyone on what, exactly, is unique about the Bill Smith firing and also what we might expect from center fielder Lorenzo Cain in the wake of Melky Cabrera’s departure from Kansas City. Also discussed: the frigging elitist boarding school attended by both host and guest.

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 on the flip-flop. (Approximately 25 min. play time.)

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