Back in November, the Padres quietly signed a pitcher named Cesar Vargas as a minor-league free agent. Tonight, he’s making his major league debut against the Cardinals. Vargas pitched in the Yankees organization last year, where he spun an impressive 2.55 FIP and 24% strikeout rate in relief between Double-A and Triple-A. New York let him walk as a minor-league free agent last winter, however, rather than adding him to their 40-man roster.

Interestingly, the Padres inked Vargas to a major-league contract. It’s pretty rare that a minor-league free agent signs a major-league deal, so the Padres clearly saw something they liked from the Mexican righty. Perhaps even more interestingly, they’ve used him as starter in the minors this year — something he hadn’t done since 2013, when he pitched in Low-A.

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Other ballots: Arizona / Atlanta / Baltimore / Boston / Chicago (AL) Home / Chicago (AL) Away / Chicago (NL) / Cincinnati / Cleveland / Colorado / Detroit / Houston / Kansas City / Los Angeles (AL) / Los Angeles (NL) Home / Los Angeles (NL) Away / Miami / Milwaukee / Minnesota / New York (AL) / New York (NL) / Oakland / Philadelphia / Pittsburgh.

Recently, the present author began the process of process of reproducing the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

Below are eight more ballots — the last on the television side of things — to the end of producing a new collection of these broadcaster scores.

For each broadcasting team, the reader is asked to supply a grade on a scale of 1-5 (with 5 representing the highest mark) according to the following criteria: Charisma, Analysis, and then Overall.

Charisma is, essentially, the personal charm of the announcers in question. Are they actively entertaining? Do they possess real camaraderie? Would you — as is frequently the case with Vin Scully — would you willingly exchange one of your living grandfathers in order to spend time with one of these announcers? The Analysis provided by a broadcast team could skew more towards the sabermetric or more towards the scouting side of things. In either case, is it grounded in reason? The Overall rating is the overall quality of the broadcast team — nor need this be a mere average of the previous two ratings. Bob Uecker, for example, provides very little in the way of analysis, and yet certainly rates well overall, merely by force of personality. Finally, there’s a box of text in which readers can elaborate upon their grades, if so compelled.

St. Louis Cardinals

Some relevant information regarding St. Louis’s broadcast:

• Play-by-play coverage is typically provided by Dan McLaughlin.
• Color analysis is typically provided by Al Hrabosky.
• Jim Edmonds, Rick Horton, and Tim McCarver all seem to appear, too.

Click here to grade St. Louis’s television broadcast team.

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Other ballots: Arizona / Atlanta / Baltimore / Boston / Chicago (AL) Home / Chicago (AL) Away / Chicago (NL) / Cincinnati / Cleveland / Colorado / Detroit / Houston / Kansas City / Los Angeles (AL) / Los Angeles (NL) Home / Los Angeles (NL) Away / Miami / Milwaukee.

Recently, the present author began the process of process of reproducing the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

Below are six more ballots to the end of producing a new collection of these broadcasters scores.

For each broadcasting team, the reader is asked to supply a grade on a scale of 1-5 (with 5 representing the highest mark) according to the following criteria: Charisma, Analysis, and then Overall.

Charisma is, essentially, the personal charm of the announcers in question. Are they actively entertaining? Do they possess real camaraderie? Would you — as is frequently the case with Vin Scully — would you willingly exchange one of your living grandfathers in order to spend time with one of these announcers? The Analysis provided by a broadcast team could skew more towards the sabermetric or more towards the scouting side of things. In either case, is it grounded in reason? The Overall rating is the overall quality of the broadcast team — nor need this be a mere average of the previous two ratings. Bob Uecker, for example, provides very little in the way of analysis, and yet certainly rates well overall, merely by force of personality. Finally, there’s a box of text in which readers can elaborate upon their grades, if so compelled.

Minnesota Twins

Some relevant information regarding Minnesota’s broadcast:

• Play-by-play coverage is typically provided by Dick Bremer.
• Color analysis is typically provided by Bert Blyleven.
• Both Jack Morris and maybe Roy Smalley appear for select games.

Click here to grade Minnesota’s television broadcast team.

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Other ballots: Arizona / Atlanta / Baltimore / Boston / Chicago (AL) Home / Chicago (AL) Away / Chicago (NL) / Cincinnati / Cleveland / Colorado / Detroit / Houston.

A couple days ago, the present author began the process of process of reproducing the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

Below are six more ballots to the end of producing a new collection of these broadcasters scores.

For each broadcasting team, the reader is asked to supply a grade on a scale of 1-5 (with 5 representing the highest mark) according to the following criteria: Charisma, Analysis, and then Overall.

Charisma is, essentially, the personal charm of the announcers in question. Are they actively entertaining? Do they possess real camaraderie? Would you — as is frequently the case with Vin Scully — would you willingly exchange one of your living grandfathers in order to spend time with one of these announcers? The Analysis provided by a broadcast team could skew more towards the sabermetric or more towards the scouting side of things. In either case, is it grounded in reason? The Overall rating is the overall quality of the broadcast team — nor need this be a mere average of the previous two ratings. Bob Uecker, for example, provides very little in the way of analysis, and yet certainly rates well overall, merely by force of personality. Finally, there’s a box of text in which readers can elaborate upon their grades, if so compelled.

Kansas City Royals

Some relevant information regarding Kansas City’s broadcast:

• Play-by-play coverage is typically provided by Ryan Lefebvre.
• Color analysis is typically provided by Rex Hudler.
• Steve Physioc and maybe Jeff Montgomery both appear for select games.

Click here to grade Kansas City’s television broadcast team.

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Other ballots: Arizona / Atlanta / Baltimore / Boston / Chicago (AL) Home / Chicago (AL) Away.

Yesterday, the present author began the process of process of reproducing the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

Below are six more ballots to the end of producing a new collection of these broadcasters scores.

For each broadcasting team, the reader is asked to supply a grade on a scale of 1-5 (with 5 representing the highest mark) according to the following criteria: Charisma, Analysis, and then Overall.

Charisma is, essentially, the personal charm of the announcers in question. Are they actively entertaining? Do they possess real camaraderie? Would you — as is frequently the case with Vin Scully — would you willingly exchange one of your living grandfathers in order to spend time with one of these announcers? The Analysis provided by a broadcast team could skew more towards the sabermetric or more towards the scouting side of things. In either case, is it grounded in reason? The Overall rating is the overall quality of the broadcast team — nor need this be a mere average of the previous two ratings. Bob Uecker, for example, provides very little in the way of analysis, and yet certainly rates well overall, merely by force of personality. Finally, there’s a box of text in which readers can elaborate upon their grades, if so compelled.

Chicago Cubs

Some relevant information regarding Chicago’s broadcast:

• Play-by-play coverage is typically provided by Len Kasper.
• Color analysis is typically provided by Jim Deshaies.
• No one else really appears for select games, according to the internet.

Click here to grade Chicago’s television broadcast team.

Read the rest of this entry »

Recently, the present author announced his intentions of revisiting the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

Today, we begin the balloting process to produce a new collection of scores.

For each broadcasting team, the reader is asked to supply a grade on a scale of 1-5 (with 5 representing the highest mark) according to the following criteria: Charisma, Analysis, and then Overall.

Charisma is, essentially, the personal charm of the announcers in question. Are they actively entertaining? Do they possess real camaraderie? Would you — as is frequently the case with Vin Scully — would you willingly exchange one of your living grandfathers in order to spend time with one of these announcers? The Analysis provided by a broadcast team could skew more towards the sabermetric or more towards the scouting side of things. In either case, is it grounded in reason? The Overall rating is the overall quality of the broadcast team — nor need this be a mere average of the previous two ratings. Bob Uecker, for example, provides very little in the way of analysis, and yet certainly rates well overall, merely by force of personality. Finally, there’s a box of text in which readers can elaborate upon their grades, if so compelled.

Arizona Diamondbacks

Some relevant information regarding Arizona’s broadcast:

• Play-by-play coverage is typically provided by Steve Berthiaume.
• Color analysis is typically provided by Bob Brenly.
• Luis Gonzalez appears for select games.

Click here to grade Arizona’s television broadcast team.

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John Farrell received the wrong result from the right move today. The Red Sox manager used his closer in a high-leverage, non-save situation, in the eighth inning. With the bases filled with Blue Jays and one out in a tie game, Farrell lifted Koji Uehara and brought in Craig Kimbrel.

Kimbrel fanned Edwin Encarnacion for the second out, but proceeded to walk Troy Tulowitzki to force in a run. Russell Martin followed with a two-run single.

After the game, I asked Farrell — prefacing my question by saying I agreed with the move — if it was something we can anticipate seeing more of this season.

“We’ve got roles established,” responded Farrell. “The seventh, eighth and ninth have been efficient. They’ve been successful. I think this was a little bit of a blip with Koji today. That bullpen group knows that they’re there to pick one another up in certain situations. The highest-leverage inning was clearly the eighth, and hopefully we don’t find ourselves in that spot too often.”

I hoped for a more definitive answer. What Farrell said about established roles, not to mention his “hopefully not,” suggested that this might be the rare case. At the same time, he did seem to leave a window open.

It’s a breath of fresh air when a manager cites high-leverage and does more than play lip service to the term. Farrell brought in his best reliever with the game on the line — results be damned — and if he’s smart, we’ll see more of it in the future.

It both seems like and also actually was just last week that the present author announced his intentions of revisiting the broadcaster rankings which appeared on this site roughly four years ago. The purpose of those rankings? To place a “grade” on each of the league’s television and radio broadcast teams — a grade intended to represent not necessarily the objective quality or skill of the relevant announcers, but rather the appeal those announcers might have to the readers of this site. By way of MLB.TV feeds, the typical major-league telecast offers four distinct audio feeds — which is to say, the radio and television commentary both for the home and road clubs. The idea of these broadcast rankings was to give readers an opportunity to make an informed decision about how to consume a telecast.

The results of that original exercise have been useful as a complement to the dumb NERD scores published by the author in these pages. Four years later, however, those results have become much less useful. In the meantime, a number of the broadcast teams cited in that original effort have changed personnel. It’s possible that the tastes of this site’s readers have changed, also.

Last week’s post represented the first step towards a new set of broadcaster rankings — namely, to assemble an actual list of all baseball’s main television broadcast teams. The current post is the natural complement: an attempt to identify all the relevant members of baseball’s radio broadcasts. The information here is taken from a combination of Wikipedia and MLB.com, but would benefit from readers who possess a more intimate knowledge of how each club’s broadcasts are executed.

Again, the idea is to identify the broadcasters most frequently found in each team’s booth in 2016. While many clubs have occasional color commentators and guest announcers, isolating the most regular contributors will make this process more efficient, if perhaps slightly less nuanced.

Below is the preliminary list. Teams marked with a “(?)” are the ones about which I’m least sure.

Arizona: Greg Schulte, Tom Candiotti

Atlanta: Jim Powell, Don Sutton

Baltimore: Joe Angel, Jim Hunter

Boston: Joe Castiglione, Tim Neverett

Chicago (AL): Ed Farmer, Darrin Jackson

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Position: Toronto Blue Jays Manager of Baseball Analytics

Location: Toronto

Description:

The primary focus of this position will be to support the Baseball Analytics Department. Incumbent will learn and understand how decisions are made in all areas of Baseball Operations, develop a familiarity with the data required to make those decisions and create tools and systems to display and expedite the access to that data.

Responsibilities:

• Understand and document current database structures, historical design decisions, format, definitions, limitations and content of currently used external and internal data feeds, and establish future requirements.
• Maintain and support the current end to end data warehousing process within Baseball Operations, starting with structured and unstructured data, conceiving and designing appropriate data structures, performing ETL processes to house the data in the data structures and exposing the data structures to end users.
• Design and manage a new data warehouse capable of supporting reporting and analytics to improve the currently deployed systems.
• Develop and maintain data quality assurance processes to ensure database integrity in the future.
• Complete ad-hoc database queries and analysis as dictated by circumstances.
• Oversee the evaluation, selection, implementation and support of new database systems.
• Collaborate with members of the Baseball Operations department to develop best practices for storing and displaying baseball data.
• Recommend new data sources for purchase and/or new techniques to gather data.
• Develop and maintain conceptual, logical and physical data models.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, or equivalent professional experience required. Master’s degree a plus.
• 5-8 years of related work experience is required, including demonstrated knowledge about data management best practices, long-term maintainability of code and ability to effectively solve problems pertaining to data infrastructure and integrity.
• Must have demonstrated some ability to complete baseball-specific statistical analysis.
• Previous experience with baseball-specific data, either publically available or otherwise (i.e. Pitch F/X, TrackMan, Statcast, etc.).
• Proven background in the ability to relate to and communicate effectively with people of varied backgrounds (programmers, analysts, outside data vendors, other front office members, and Major and Minor League coaches, possibly players).
• Demonstrated ability to successfully design and execute data warehousing projects.
• Expertise with SQL and relational databases is required.
• Experience with at least one of Python, Ruby, Perl, C++ and/or other programming languages’ is required.
• Experience processing large amounts of JSON formatted data strongly preferred.
• Represent the Blue Jays in a positive fashion to all business partners and the general public.
• Ability to work evening, weekend and holiday hours as dictated by the baseball calendar.
• Willing and able to relocate to Toronto.

To Apply:
Interested applicants must do the following:

• Complete this online application.
• Send an email to BaseballResumes@bluejays.com with your resume and the answer to the following three questions:

1. Why do you want to work in baseball?
2. Describe a time when you either built a production-level database from scratch or added a new data source to an existing production-level database and explain the steps you took to make sure the process went smoothly.
3. Please describe any work you’ve done with any publicly available baseball databases.

Last week, the Astros’ Dallas Keuchel and the Yankees’ Masahiro Tanaka faced off on Opening Day in New York. The first Opening Day was pushed back a day because of wintry weather. This day was no different, with a 36-degree first-pitch temperature and 18 mph wind. The next day, I ran my daily velocity report and both of the above names were on the list of starters who’d exhibited huge velocity drops. Keuchel was down 2.5 mph and Tanaka was down 2.3 mph. By running a quick study, I found that colder weather does have a fairly dramatic effect on pitcher velocity.

To find the data, I ran a query using the PITCHf/x database. For the years 2008 to 2015, I compared average velocity from a game which started at 40 degrees or less and the average from the rest of their games. The average change in velocity was -0.95 mph, with a median value of -0.92 mph. A pitcher throwing in a cold game should expect some velocity decline.

Note: Reader yaboynate quickly pointed out that the drop because it is early in the season. I change the query around a bit, and found the average and median change to -0.58 mph. Now the rest of April would be colder and the whole month is lower to start with.

Here are how the velocity changes were distributed.

Cold-Weather Effects, 2008-15

Velocity Change	# of Pitchers	% Change
> 2 mph	3	0.7%
1 to 2 mph	17	3.7%
-1 to 1 mph	221	48.3%
-2 to -1 mph	136	30.0%
< -2 mph	81	17.7%
Total	458	100%

Well, the cold weather definitely limits any upside and almost half the pitchers in the sample experienced a 1 mph loss — with one in every eight experiencing a 2 mph loss relative to the rest of the season. The differences shrink as the games warm up. From 40 to 50 degrees, the gap is around -0.6 mph; from 50 to 60 degrees, around -0.4 mph.

So, it’s simple: when looking at early season velocity declines, look at game temperatures. Part of the reason for the decline could be attributed to the cold weather.