Although Pedro Martinez may not have had the longevity or durability of some of baseball’s other pitching greats, there is little doubt that his peak years were some of the best, if not the best, that any pitcher has ever produced. With the introduction of the “minus stats,” ERA-, FIP-, and xFIP-, we have yet another tool with which to put these fantastic years in context. Here’s a look at Pedro’s 1999-2003, with the reminder that 100 is average and unlike the “plus stats,” (OPS+, wRC+, etc.), lower is better.

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“His stuff is amazing,” said Roenicke. “He waited too long to bring his curveball into play. That’s why he struggled the first couple of innings. But I haven’t seen too many guys with that kind of stuff.”

Brewers Manager Ron Roenicke, on Yovani Gallardo

Yovani Gallardo started on Opening Day for the Brewers, recording a decent but unimpressive start against the Cincinnati Reds. In that start, Gallardo threw six innings, allowing ten baserunners (seven hits, three walks) and striking out four. Some would say that he was lucky to escape only allowing two runs. Gallardo allowed eight of those ten baserunners in his first four innings. Roenicke noted that Gallardo didn’t bring his curveball in until later. Indeed, Gallardo threw his first of ten curveballs in the fifth inning. Seven of the ten went for strikes, including one swinging strike. The curveball was Gallardo’s only above-average pitch according to pitch-type linear weights, as well.

Gallardo took the advice of his manager last night, getting the curveball out early and often to retire Braves hitters through his complete-game shutout. Atlanta only recorded two hits and two walks in the nine innings, and even though Gallardo only struck out two batters, he induced a whopping 16 ground balls, in no small part thanks to the effectiveness of his curveball.

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Ben Zobrist did everything for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2009. He posted 8.4 WAR and earned MVP consideration from out of nowhere despite entering the season with only 530 below-replacement plate appearances to his credit. With that given, perhaps it’s not surprising that the MVP candidate in 2009 was merely a solid contributor in 2010, posting 3.1 WAR in 151 games for the AL East Champion Rays. Zobrist was still a solid fielder all around the diamond in his second campaign as a full-time player. The difference instead was a stark drop-off in the power that fueled his .408 wOBA. In 2010, Zobrist’s ISO fell from .246 all the way down to .115, and with it his wOBA plummeted to .323. Which Zobrist will show up in 2011?

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Something tells me this year’s #6org will be slightly less controversial.

Current Talent – 84.09 (7th)

Twins Season Preview

Future Talent – 85.00 (T-5th)

Twins Top 10 Prospects

Baseball Operations – 84.09 (9th)
Financial Resources – 81.67 (9th)

Overall Rating – 83.50

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Although the White Sox only rank fourteenth in our overall rankings, let it be known that any organization that marries Kenny Williams with Ozzie Guillen will always be #1 in our hearts.

Present Talent – 80.45 (T-11th)

White Sox Team Preview

Future Talent – 65.00 (T-27th)

White Sox Top 10 Prospects

Financial Resources – 81.67 (T-9th)
Baseball Operations – 80.45 (12th)

Overall Rating – 78.50

When it comes to the product on the field, the White Sox continue to be above average, as they have throughout much of the Kenny Williams Era. Occasionally, they produce great teams (the 2005 World Series team) and duds (2007’s 72-90 clunker). However, the best bet for a Kenny Williams’ White Sox team is competency as opposed to greatness or mediocrity – his teams have won an average of 85 games per season since he took the reins prior to the 2001 season.

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Although the top of the Yankees rotation should be strong behind CC Sabathia and Phil Hughes, their depth is a bit, well, shaky. And that may be a kind statement – behind those two, the Yankees will trot out A.J. Burnett, Ivan Nova, and the victor of the desperate battle between Bartolo Colon and Freddy Garcia. Kevin Millwood won’t be able to start the season with the Yankees, as he will have to work out the kinks in extended spring training, but it’s easy to see why the Yankees were willing to drop some pocket change for his services and add him on an incentive-laden minor league contract.

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Washington might just have the best hypothetical core in the league – combine Ryan Zimmerman and Jayson Werth with Stephen Strasburg, Bryce Harper, and Jordan Zimmermann and you have five legitimate stars. The question, of course, is whether or not the stars can align at any one point in the franchise’s future. R. Zimmerman will soon become expensive, Werth is in his 30s, Strasburg and J. Zimmermann must return from injuries, and Harper is likely a few years away. Beyond the core, the franchise has work to do to surround the stars with supporting talent. There is a light at the end of the tunnel, but much work is yet to be done in the nation’s capital.

Major League Talent: 70.45 (24th)

Nationals Season Preview

Minor League Talent: 80.00 (T-15th)

Nationals Top 10 Prospects

Financial Resources: 75.00 (T-20th)
Baseball Operations: 75.00 (T-24th)

Overall Rating: 74.39 (24th)

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When it comes to sabermetric studies, no single item sees more energy expended with less gain than the analysis of batting orders. The Book basically opened and shut the door on the issue: the best three hitters should bat first, second, and fourth, but even the most egregious of lineup errors won’t cost a team more than a win. It’s also more important to split lefties to avoid LOOGYs than it is to get that perfectly chained lineup.

That doesn’t mean that lineup construction isn’t fun, and I’ve certainly spent my share of time on largely fruitless but enjoyable studies on the batting order. There’s a tool available over at Baseball Musings that seems to make things easier for everybody, spitting out optimal lineups and even run totals for any lineup you can think of. Unfortunately, the numbers it spits out cannot be trusted and are no longer a reflection of reality.

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This Sunday, sitting in a Chicago bar with knowledgeable fans of various Midwestern baseball teams, including the Minnesota Twins, news that the Twins placed reliever Pat Neshek on waivers broke via twitter. Reactions varied from “wait, what?” from the unaffiliated to the “[expletive deleted]” from the Twins fans in the group. Within 10 minutes, news broke, once again via twitter, that the Padres had claimed the 30-year-old righthander. Given the reaction from those who follow the organization as well as the speed with which Neshek was claimed, the move appears curious at best.

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