Welcome to the second edition of The Fortnight. Read here for our initial post, and here for the explanation of our depth charts and standings pages, which fuel The Fortnight in its utmost.
This week, I thought we’d take a look at the teams whose projected full-season run differential has changed the most since we last left off. Stats for this edition run from May 21 through the games on June 2.
Thursday night, the Tigers got yet another great pitching performance from their starting rotation, as Doug Fister struck out 12 over seven shutout innings. But a couple of hours after he came out of the game the Tigers walked off extra-inning losers, and it was basically all manager Jim Leyland’s fault.
Ian Kennedy cut his finger recently while washing dishes. As a result, Tyler Skaggs got the start in the early game of Monday’s Memorial Day twinbill against the Rangers, and he acquitted himself quite well. The start threw into sharp relief just how necessary Kennedy is to the Dbacks plans, both current and future. As we move further away from his breakout season, it is fair to wonder — is Kennedy about to be the odd man out in the Arizona rotation?
Earlier this week, the Rockies sent Josh Rutledge to Colorado Springs. To be certain, Rutledge was not playing well, and there is a decent chance that Rutledge really isn’t that good in general. Then again, he may also need to just figure out who he is. He was semi-rushed to the majors, as he skipped Triple-A, and there is anecdotal evidence that his game has changed since his hot start.
| 6:06 |
: Hi everybody!
Jeff Zimmerman and I will be here to entertain all of your baseball-related queries. Chris Cwik will NOT be here, something about preparing to get married this weekend. I don’t know, sounds suspect. Anyway, get in your questions. As a tribute to Chris, we’ll be running some polls on your favorite movie with a wedding scene. There’s tons, so don’t be mad if I don’t pick yours. Or, be mad if you want, it’s up to you really. See you soon! |
| 8:45 |
: We’ll start in 15 minutes. By the way, if you have a tasteful message of good luck — or of warning — for Chris, drop it in the comments, and we’ll run them at the end of the chat!
|
| 9:01 |
: Hi guys. Let’s get started. Jeff will be along shortly.
|
| 9:02 |
Would you trade A.Jones and P.Corbin for M.Trout? |
| 9:03 |
: Probably. I like all three players, but if you’re going for it, I like the gamble on Trout.
|
| 9:03 |
Would you bench Cishek for David Hernandez now that the Marlins are going with a committee? Thanks |
A couple of weeks ago, you the attentive reader, will surely have observed the introduction of our depth charts and standings pages. It was a long time coming, and we remain pretty freaking excited about it. As such, we thought that every two weeks that we’d take a look at some sort of change or happening or goings-on that occurred.
We’re not going to cover every team, because let’s face it, there really is only so many times that one can write a variation of “the Marlins aren’t even trying” without wanting to scrape out your eyebones with a rusty screwdriver. But we’ll still try to pry out an objective look in some way. This week, we’ll take a look at the three biggest movers — one positive and two negative — in terms of ranking of projected full season winning percentage. (One note — the looks here are from last Tuesday, the 14th, to this morning, but in future editions we’ll likely use Monday as the cut-off day for a number of reasons, nearly all of which involve my sanity.)
In the 1990s, the Yankees had a pretty fantastic offense. They won three World Series trophies, and would win a fourth to kick off the aught’s. Everyone remembers their great offense. But what might get lost in the weeds a little bit is just how fantastic the Astros’ offense was in the ‘90s, because they were pretty great too. They had the best offense in the National League for the decade, and they would really hit their stride in 1998, when they put up the best offensive team performance in the wild card era.
| 6:20 |
: Hi everybody!
For the second straight week, I am flying solo, because both Chris and Jeff will be watching live baseball in stadiums. It’s almost like they don’t like you guys anymore. But I still love you, so join me tonight at 9 pm ET, and I’ll cram some baseball down your cramhole. Get your questions in and I’ll see you soon! |
| 9:00 |
: One sec guys. Cracking a Shipyard Summer real quick. The people have spoken!
|
| 9:01 |
Is Chris and Jeff skipping out on everyone. Should they be punished? |
| 9:02 |
: Don’t worry, they will be!
|
| 9:02 |
With reinforcements coming, could you see the Yankees pulling away? |
| 9:02 |
: Nope. I think the AL East is still a five-team race. Not ready to even declare the Blue Jays dead and buried. Maybe in a couple more weeks though…
|
It’s hard to imagine the White Sox having a more depressing start to the season. They are stuck in last place in the American League Central, and their hitting has been abysmal. When you remove pitchers’ hitting from the equation, the White Sox wRC+ is tied for dead last in baseball with the Marlins, who are not even trying to field a competitive team. And while usually the team has fan favorite Paul Konerko to look to as a bright spot, even he has stumbled badly out of the gate. With the AL Central suddenly seeming rather competitive, the question arises — is it time for the White Sox to blow it up and sell?
| 6:26 |
: Hi everybody!
There’s a 95% chance that I’m flying solo tonight. Chris is definitely not going to be here, and Jeff probably won’t be. So you’re stuck with me and all of my nerdly glory! Get your questions in, and I’ll be back at 9 p.m. ET to tackle as many of them as I possibly can. |
| 6:37 |
: Jeff wants to know – what ballparks do you believe are affected the most by a specific wind direction? Let me know your thoughts and I’ll post them.
|
| 9:01 |
: Alright, let’s do this thing!
|
| 9:01 |
No one seems to be talking about Scott Feldman, but the guy went 7 innings and limited the Rangers to 3 base runners. In his last four starts he has a 1.63 ERA and a 0.80 WHIP with a 7.5 K/9 rate. Is this for real? |
| 9:02 |
: Well, he’s not good enough to consistently post a 1.63 ERA and 0.80 WHIP, but he is an underrated play, and the K/9 could definitely stand up. I like him as a 4th/5th starter in mixed leagues, and even better in NL only leagues.
|
| 9:03 |
did clay cheat? Is Eckersley just a wee bit too protective of him? |