Job Posting: New York Mets – Computer Vision Analyst

Computer Vision Analyst, Baseball Analytics

Location: Citi Field – Queens, New York
Status: Full time

Summary:
The New York Mets are seeking a Computer Vision Analyst in the Baseball Analytics Department. The Analyst will contribute to multiple areas of Baseball Operations, working closely with the Data Science group with a focus on Computer Vision- and Machine Learning-related projects. All candidates must demonstrate strong educational background and/or work experience in computer vision or related analytics fields, but prior experience in or knowledge of baseball is not required.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities:

  • Drive the development of computer vision systems to create new datasets that support the needs of various departments within Baseball Operations
  • Build statistical models to analyze data derived from CV processes
  • Advise other analysts on projects that could benefit from machine learning expertise
  • Interpret data and report conclusions drawn from their analyses
  • Present model outputs in an effective way, both for technical and non-technical audiences
  • Evaluate and recommend new or emerging modeling techniques and baseball technologies
  • Communicate well with both the Director of Baseball Analytics and other Baseball Operations personnel to understand the parameters of any particular research project

Qualifications:

  • BS, Masters, or PhD in Computer Science, Statistics, or a related field
  • Experience in computer vision, image and video analysis, statistical modeling, and machine learning
  • Strong proficiency in R, Python, or similar, as well as strong proficiency in SQL
  • Basic knowledge of data engineering and front-end development is a plus, for the purpose of communicating with those departments
  • Strong communication skills
  • Ability to work cooperatively with others, and to take control of large-scale projects with little or no daily oversight
  • Prior experience in or knowledge of baseball is a plus, but is not required

The above information is intended to describe the general nature, type, and level of work to be performed. The information is not intended to be an exhaustive or complete list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required for this position. Nothing in this job description restricts management’s right to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time. The individual selected may perform other related duties as assigned or requested.

The New York Mets recognize the importance of a diverse workforce and value the unique qualities individuals of various backgrounds and experiences can offer to the Organization. Our continued success depends heavily on the quality of our workforce. The Organization is committed to providing employees with the opportunity to develop to their fullest potential.

Salary Range:
$97,416.11 – $129,888.15

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the New York Mets.


Job Posting: Philadelphia Phillies – Organizational Intern, Video & Technology Associate

Organizational Intern, Major League Strategy

Position: Organizational Intern, Major League Strategy
Reports to: Manager, Major League Hitting Strategy & Analysis
Department: Baseball Development
Location: Philadelphia, PA

Position Overview:
The primary role of this position is to aid in the day-to-day production of material to enhance the strategy and preparedness of our Major League coaching staff and players. This position will be responsible for integrating critical thought with organizational research and resources to provide high quality information to members of our Major League staff.

Responsibilities:
Breakdown of responsibilities may vary depending on the background and strengths of the candidate. We hope to develop the selected individual based on their goals and how they can best help The Phillies. Previous responsibilities covered by this role and areas you might be able to make an impact include:

  • Pre-series advance reports covering all aspects of opposing players
  • Research and analysis to guide player development at major league and minor league levels 
  • Production and formatting of information cards that drive in-game strategy 
  • Participation in group discussions to innovate and optimize internal processes
  • Ad hoc projects to support major league coaches, Baseball Development and Baseball Operations

Required Qualifications:

  • Careful attention to detail and strong problem-solving aptitude
  • Excellent written, verbal communication and presentation skills
  • Strong foundational knowledge in modern baseball analysis and evaluation
  • Ability to multitask and meet strict deadlines in a fast-paced environment
  • Ability to work effectively and collaboratively in a team setting
  • Must be able to work flexible hours to include holidays, weekends, and evenings as needed
  • Must be based in or willing to relocate to Philadelphia for the duration of the 2023 season

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Fluency in Spanish is a plus
  • Proficiency in SQL, R, and/or Python is a plus

You will be required to answer the following question along with the submission of your application:
Who is the best defender in Major League Baseball? Explain your reasoning. Please limit your response to 300 words.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.


Baseball Video & Technology Associate – 2023 Season (Multiple Locations)

Title: Baseball Video & Technology Associate
Reports to: Manager, Minor League Video & Technology
Status: Full-Time, Seasonal
Locations:

  • Lehigh Valley, PA
  • Reading, PA
  • Jersey Shore, NJ
  • Clearwater, FL
    Please Note – Housing will be provided by The Phillies for this role for all locations

Position Overview:
Oversee the daily video, sports technology, and advance scouting operations at assigned minor league affiliate. Duties will include, but not be limited to: filming and logging home and road games, as well as assisting in daily instructional film/data review sessions with coaches, players, and staff. In addition, the P.D. Associate will be responsible for maintaining all sports technology equipment including setup, logging, and uploading all data each day.

Essential Duties:

  • Open and oversee operations of affiliate video room on a daily basis
  • Be able to operate, troubleshoot, and support IP and high speed video cameras, computer networks, and network hard drives
  • Film and accurately log all home and road games using BATS video system
  • Film and capture data for bullpens, batting practices, and workouts based on requests by Phillies coaches and staff
  • Be able to accurately and efficiently set up and run various sports technology equipment, including but not limited to: bat sensors, motion capture tools, and ball flight tracking technology
  • Assist with daily data and video review sessions between Phillies coaching staff and players
  • Provide regular status reports to Minor League Video Coordinator and other Player Development staff in Philadelphia and Clearwater
  • Assist with various Player Development, Integrative Baseball Performance, and Player Information initiatives as needed
  • On-field skills such as throwing BP is a plus

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s Degree or currently enrolled college student
  • Must be detail oriented and well organized
  • Must have the ability to work with and protect highly confidential information
  • Must be able to interact professionally with players, coaches, front office personnel and medical/training staff
  • Must be able to work flexible hours, including nights, weekends and holidays
  • Must be a team player with strong oral and written communication skills
  • Must be active, quick-thinking, and a good technology troubleshooter
  • Previous experience working with BATS video system and/or sports technology is preferred
  • Previous experience working in baseball is preferred
  • Must be based in or willing to relocate for the duration of the 2023 season (approximately February through up to end of September) to one of the following locations:
    • Lehigh Valley, PA
    • Reading, PA
    • Jersey Shore, NJ
    • Clearwater, FL

Physical Demands and Working Conditions
Must be able to stand and walk in hot conditions for long periods of time

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by the Philadelphia Phillies.


Job Posting: Sports Info Solutions – Baseball Video Editor, Baseball Video Scout

2023 Baseball Video Editor

Department: Baseball

Reports to: Senior Operations Analyst

Remote Work: Currently SIS is only cleared to hire remote candidates in AL, DE, FL, GA, IN, LA, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NV, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI. If you live in any state not listed here, you will need to relocate to one of these states or close to the HQ in Coplay, PA.

About Sports Info Solutions

Pioneers in the Sports Data Industry

SIS was founded on the belief that decision making in sports could be improved and that we could help teams win more games through the use of better data, analytics, and technology.

That belief has been validated repeatedly since our founding in 2002 as we continue to revolutionize the way the game is played on and off the field.

Company overview

Our mission is to enrich and optimize the decision-making process for sports teams, sportsbooks, and sports fans.

We are proud to have been leaders in collecting, analyzing and distributing the deepest data sets and insights to professional sports teams across the MLB, NBA and NFL.

In the beginning, John Dewan set out to change the way baseball was played, by taking on Project Scoresheet alongside Bill James, bringing about a new wave of baseball statistics that have become common in today’s vernacular. That deep passion and understanding of sports and data has remained central to the core at SIS, as our organization has evolved to include former professional and collegiate athletes, coaches, scouts alongside our best-in-class technology and research analysts. Simply put, we go deeper.

We are now doubling down on what’s made us successful by further advancing our data, technology, insights and partners as we drive forward the next innovations in Sports Data and Analytics.

Position overview

SIS is looking for highly motivated individuals with a desire to work in the baseball industry and/or in video production. Video Editors will have a chance to make an immediate impression on the company and clients during their time with us. Each Video Editor will be using video that is directly used by SIS clients (including major league teams) for advance scouting and evaluation purposes. Not only will the Video Editors become more familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of hundreds of minor league players, but they will have the opportunity to learn the ins and outs of the baseball statistics industry.

We take pride in making our internships great development opportunities for those looking to get their start in the baseball industry. In addition to gaining invaluable experience reviewing thousands of players across different levels, we offer introductory classes that cover creating scouting reports and using the database management language, SQL. We also provide insight and advice from previous SIS Employees who have branched out into a variety of areas in the sports industry.

  • This role is open to remote work
  • Internship dates: 04/03/2023 – 09/10/2023
  • Typical weekly hours range from 35-40 hours during the season.

Job responsibilities

Includes (but is not limited to):

  • During overnight shifts, edit video from Minor League games and properly mark in and out points for pitches and plays, ensuring all meaningful action is captured
  • Validate the accuracy of Minor League pitch by pitch data
  • Provide administrative support to the full-time staff

Compensation:

  • An hourly rate of $12 per hour and college course credit will be offered for those interested.
  • Each Video Editor will also be eligible for monthly performance bonuses based on efficiency and accuracy of their work.

Network Requirement:

  • Access to high-speed internet at a minimum of 75mbps in order to stream and share large video files

Why work with SIS?

We believe in making sports better through data, analysis and insights. For that reason, we have an incredible team of technologists, scouts, analysts, and operators helping our partners win more games.

It is our ultimate vision to create an unparalleled platform of sporting data and insights, through best-in-class technology, products and partnerships.

We believe in a flexible, energetic, enjoyable working environment where we band together as teammates to do great things. We are committed to creating a diverse environment, working in a collaborative, team-centric environment.

EEO commitment

SIS provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, age, veteran status, military status, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. In addition to federal law requirements, SIS complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location where the company operates. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Abilities required

These physical demands are representative of the physical requirements necessary for an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodation can be made to enable people with disabilities to perform the described essential functions of the job.

While performing the responsibilities of the job, the employee is required to talk and hear. The employee is often required to sit and use their hands and fingers, to handle or feel. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, reach with arms and hands, climb or balance, and to stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. Vision abilities required by this job include close vision, including intensive computer usage.

Additional info

Sponsorship is not available for this position. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.

Sports Info Solutions uses E-Verify and is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.


2023 Baseball Video Scout (Seasonal)

Department: Baseball

Reports to: Operations Analyst

Remote Work: Currently SIS is only cleared to hire remote candidates in AL, DE, FL, GA, IN, LA, MI, MN, MO, MS, NC, NE, NV, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, UT, VA, WI. If you live in any state not listed here, you will need to relocate to one of these states or close to the HQ in Coplay, PA.

Position overview

SIS is looking for highly motivated individuals with a desire to work in the baseball industry. Video scouts will have a chance to make an immediate impression on the company. Each video scout will be collecting data that is directly used by SIS clients (including major league teams) for advance scouting and evaluation purposes. Not only will the video scouts become more familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of hundreds of amateur and professional players, but they will also learn the ins and outs of the baseball statistics industry.

Former video scouts have risen through MLB front offices after getting their start reviewing two to three games per day at SIS. MLB teams frequently contact us for recommendations when they need to fill a position within their organization, and our top video scouts each year routinely land team internships and/or full-time jobs. Multiple video scouts have been a part of World Series champion organizations over the years.

We take pride in making our internships great development opportunities for those looking to get their start in baseball. In addition to gaining invaluable experience reviewing thousands of players across different levels, we offer introductory classes that cover creating scouting reports and using the database management language, SQL. We also provide insight and advice from previous SIS video scouts who have branched out into a variety of areas in the sports industry.

  • This role is open to remote work

Job responsibilities

Includes (but is not limited to):

  • Score and pitch chart MLB, MiLB and amateur games using specialized computer software
  • Check the accuracy and validity of data
  • Prepare and analyze statistical data for delivery to customers
  • Assist with the production of the 2024 Bill James Handbook
  • Provide administrative support to the full-time staff

Time frame:

  • There will be 2 different start dates for the Baseball Scout position:
    • February 6, 2023
    • February 27, 2023
  • Typical weekly hours range from 40-50 hours during the season.

Compensation:

  • A starting rate of $12 per hour and college course credit will be offered for those interested.
  • Each video scout will also be eligible for regular raises based on performance.
  • There will also be opportunities to sign up to work overtime to earn extra income (opportunities will depend on work levels throughout the year)

Network Requirement:

  • Access to high-speed internet at a minimum of 75mbps in order to stream and share large video files

Why work with SIS?

We believe in making sports better through data, analysis and insights. For that reason, we have an incredible team of technologists, scouts, analysts, and operators helping our partners win more games.

It is our ultimate vision to create an unparalleled platform of sporting data and insights, through best-in-class technology, products and partnerships.

We believe in a flexible, energetic, enjoyable working environment where we band together as teammates to do great things. We are committed to creating a diverse environment, working in a collaborative, team-centric environment.

About Sports Info Solutions

Pioneers in the Sports Data Industry

SIS was founded on the belief that decision making in sports could be improved and that we could help teams win more games through the use of better data, analytics, and technology.

That belief has been validated repeatedly since our founding in 2002 as we continue to revolutionize the way the game is played on and off the field.

Company overview

Our mission is to enrich and optimize the decision-making process for sports teams, sportsbooks, and sports fans.

We are proud to have been leaders in collecting, analyzing and distributing the deepest data sets and insights to professional sports teams across the MLB, NBA and NFL.

In the beginning, John Dewan set out to change the way baseball was played, by taking on Project Scoresheet alongside Bill James, bringing about a new wave of baseball statistics that have become common in today’s vernacular. That deep passion and understanding of sports and data has remained central to the core at SIS, as our organization has evolved to include former professional and collegiate athletes, coaches, scouts alongside our best-in-class technology and research analysts. Simply put, we go deeper.

We are now doubling down on what’s made us successful by further advancing our data, technology, insights and partners as we drive forward the next innovations in Sports Data and Analytics.

EEO commitment

SIS provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, gender, national origin, age, veteran status, military status, disability, gender identity, sexual orientation, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. In addition to federal law requirements, SIS complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location where the company operates. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

Abilities required

These physical demands are representative of the physical requirements necessary for an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of the job. Reasonable accommodation can be made to enable people with disabilities to perform the described essential functions of the job.

While performing the responsibilities of the job, the employee is required to talk and hear. The employee is often required to sit and use their hands and fingers, to handle or feel. The employee is occasionally required to stand, walk, reach with arms and hands, climb or balance, and to stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl. Vision abilities required by this job include close vision, including intensive computer usage.

Additional info

Sponsorship is not available for this position. Applicants must be currently authorized to work in the United States on a full-time basis.

Sports Info Solutions uses E-Verify and is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

To Apply:
To apply, please follow this link.

The content in this posting was created and provided solely by Sports Info Solutions.


JAWS and the 2023 Hall of Fame Ballot: Jeff Kent

© Matt Kartozian-USA TODAY Sports

The following article is part of Jay Jaffe’s ongoing look at the candidates on the BBWAA 2023 Hall of Fame ballot. Originally written for the 2014 election at SI.com, it has been updated to reflect recent voting results as well as additional research. For a detailed introduction to this year’s ballot, and other candidates in the series, use the tool above; an introduction to JAWS can be found here. For a tentative schedule, and a chance to fill out a Hall of Fame ballot for our crowdsourcing project, see here. All WAR figures refer to the Baseball-Reference version unless otherwise indicated.

Jeff Kent took a long time to find a home. Drafted by the Blue Jays in 1989, he passed through the hands of three teams that didn’t quite realize the value of what they had. Not until a trade to the Giants in November 1996 — prior to his age-29 season — did he really settle in. Once he did, he established himself as a standout complement to Barry Bonds, helping the Giants become perennial contenders and spending more than a decade as a middle-of-the-lineup force.

Despite his late-arriving stardom and a prickly personality that sometimes rubbed teammates and media the wrong way, Kent earned All-Star honors five times, won an MVP award, and helped four different franchises reach the playoffs a total of seven times. His resumé gives him a claim as the best-hitting second baseman of the post-1960 expansion era — not an iron-clad one, but not one that’s easily dismissed. For starters, he holds the all-time record for most home runs by a second baseman with 351. That’s 74 more than Ryne Sandberg, 85 more than Joe Morgan, and 86 more than Rogers Hornsby — all Hall of Famers, and in Hornsby’s case, one from before the expansion era (note that I’m not counting homers hit while playing other positions). Among players with at least 7,000 plate appearances in their career who spent at least half their time at second base, only Hornsby (.577) has a higher slugging percentage than Kent’s .500. From that latter set, only Hornsby (1.010) and another pre-expansion Hall of Famer, Charlie Gehringer (.884), have a higher OPS than Kent (.855). Read the rest of this entry »


Red Sox Take a Chance on Joely Rodríguez With Incentive-Laden Deal

Joely Rodríguez
Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports

If the BABIP gods change their minds, the Red Sox are the first in line. Last week, they inked left-handed reliever Joely Rodríguez, formerly of the Mets, to an incentive-laden, one-year contract with a team option for 2024. If he pitches like his peripheral numbers indicate he can, the signing should prove fruitful for Boston.

Rodríguez will make a base salary of $1.5 million in 2023, with a chance to earn an additional $2.25 million in incentives. He’ll receive a $50,000 bonus if he pitches in 30 games and an extra $50,000 each for reaching the 40-, 50-, 60-, and 70-game plateaus. On top of that, he’ll earn a bigger bonus the longer he remains on the active roster — an extra $500,000 each for logging 30, 60, 90, and 120 days.

Barring a significant injury or complete meltdown, Rodríguez should easily reach 120 days of service time in 2023. In other words, that $2 million bonus is practically money in his pocket. On the other hand, the games-pitched incentive is less of a guarantee. Rodríguez pitched 50-plus games in both of the past two seasons but has yet to cross the 60-game threshold in his MLB career. He has gotten close, however, and 2023 could be the year it finally happens. With the Red Sox, not only will he find himself a little higher up on the bullpen depth chart, but there will also be more relief opportunities to go around, as Boston’s starting rotation is unlikely to pitch quite as deep into games as New York’s. All that to say, he can reasonably expect to earn the $50,000 bonus for pitching 30, 40, and 50 games, and he might pocket another $50,000 for reaching the 60-game plateau; 70 games still seems a little out of reach.

After the deal’s first year, the Red Sox have a team option for $4.25 million (with another $250,000 in games-pitched incentives). If they choose not to exercise the option, Rodríguez receives a $500,000 buyout. In short, the deal is for a minimum of one year and $2 million, with a maximum potential of two years and $8.25 million. Read the rest of this entry »


South Siders Look for Upside in Mike Clevinger Signing

Mike Clevinger
Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

The White Sox dipped into the free-agent pool this week with their first significant move of the offseason, agreeing to terms with righty Mike Clevinger on a reported one-year, $12 million deal. For the soon-to-be-32 Clevinger, it represents an opportunity to reestablish himself as a reliable mid-rotation starter after struggling to do so with San Diego in his return from his second Tommy John surgery in 2022. For the White Sox, it means adding a relative unknown with some upside to a talented and extremely right-handed rotation featuring 2022 AL Cy Young finalist Dylan Cease, a pair of veterans in the possible last years of their contracts in Lance Lynn and Lucas Giolito, and a 26-year-old Michael Kopech, who is trying to stay healthy for a full season himself after an early-career Tommy John surgery of his own.

The move comes as a bit of a surprise this early in the offseason, with much of the starting pitcher market yet to be sorted out. The reported $12 million value of the contract is a chunk of change higher than both our crowdsourcing and Ben Clemens predicted at $8 and $9 million, respectively. There’s a lot of starting pitching out there in November, including a handful of veterans coming off strong years that might be available for a one-year contract at or around $12 million. Corey Kluber contributed a productive season in Tampa this year, as did Michael Wacha in Boston, though he may require a second year of commitment. Andrew Heaney has generated enough buzz early that he might push that budget, but he’s available. Johnny Cueto was the second most valuable pitcher on these very same White Sox, with 2.4 WAR over 158.1 IP, but at age 36 would likely come at a similarly reasonable rate. So why did Chicago instead jump the market for Clevinger? Read the rest of this entry »


Count Got Your Tongue? Consider the Breaking Ball

Charlie Morton
Dale Zanine-USA TODAY Sports

Falling behind in the count puts an enormous amount of pressure on the pitcher. It’s in his best interest to throw a strike and retake control, but knowing this, hitters are more likely to swing. Aiming outside the zone is dicey: It’s great if the hitter bites but disastrous if he doesn’t, and the risk generally outweighs the reward. A pitcher would ideally execute a borderline strike that hitters can’t help but pass up, but that’s easier said than done. Navigating this situation is tricky, and just from a numbers perspective, whoever’s on the mound is pretty much always in trouble. The question isn’t “can the pitcher emerge victorious,” but rather, “Can he escape with minimal harm?”

For decades, pitchers have relied on their fastballs to fight these uphill battles. Part of that is because long ago, some of them actually believed throwing a slider or another secondary pitch wasn’t very manly. You ain’t tough unless you blow a 2–0 heater by your opponent, I guess. But really, it’s because a fastball is the pitch a majority of pitchers are comfortable with, and it’s the one they can most reliably lob in for a strike. If your goal is to equalize the count, why risk using an erratically moving curveball to achieve it?

Unfortunately for those old-timey hurlers, they’re probably rolling in their graves at the apparent cowardice of modern pitchers. Rather than adhere to axioms, pitchers today are challenging notions of what’s “right” or “wrong” in pitching, aided by advancements in pitch- and body-tracking technology. One example of such sacrilege is the continuously increasing rate of breaking balls — sliders, curveballs, and the like — thrown in disadvantageous counts:

It’s true that breaking ball usage is up no matter the count or situation, but I find it particularly interesting that the trend remains strong even when pitchers fall behind. The name of the game is optimization. If teams didn’t think opting for breaking balls when behind in the count granted them an advantage, we wouldn’t see this happening. Granted, just because teams do something doesn’t necessarily means it’s effective, but a league-wide jump of eight percentage points in pitch usage is significant and worthy of investigation. Read the rest of this entry »


A 2023 Hall of Fame Ballot of Your Own – and a Schedule of Profiles

Hall of Fame season is underway, and I’ve already completed my review of the eight Contemporary Baseball Era Committtee candidates and gotten a start on the annual BBWAA ballot. With the latter, it’s time to launch what’s become a yearly tradition at FanGraphs. In the spirit of our annual free agent contract crowdsourcing, we’re inviting registered users to fill out their own virtual Hall of Fame ballots using a cool gizmo that our developer, Sean Dolinar, built a few years ago. I’m also going to use this page to lay out a tentative schedule for the remainder of the series as well as links to the profiles that have been published.

To participate in the crowdsourcing, you must be signed in, and you may only vote once. While you don’t have to be a FanGraphs Member to do so, this is a perfect time to mention that buying a Membership does help to fund the development of cool tools like this — and it makes a great holiday gift! To replicate the actual voting process, you may vote for anywhere from zero to 10 players; ballots with more than 10 won’t be counted. You may change your ballot until the deadline, which is December 31, 2022, the same as that of the actual BBWAA voters, who have to schlep their paper ballot to the mailbox. Read the rest of this entry »


2023 ZiPS Projections: Chicago White Sox

For the 18th consecutive season, the ZiPS projection system is unleashing a full set of prognostications. For more information on the ZiPS projections, please consult this year’s introduction and MLB’s glossary entry. The team order is selected by lot, and today’s team is the Chicago White Sox.

Batters

Imagine you’ve just built your dream home. You had an architect come up with a custom design that you absolutely loved. You hand selected the building materials, from the hardwood floors to the Spanish tiles in the roof. You’re ready to move into your endgame house! But wait, almost forgot, you have to furnish the house too, huh? OK, let’s head down to Crazy Joe’s Discount Furniture and find four dining room chairs without cigarette burns. The maroon couch behind the abandoned Caldor next to the bowling alley that still uses a sign from 1973 looks nice. I’m sure the smell will come out of that Craigslist mattress, and it’s not like you need all of the springs.

The White Sox did so many things well while building up the team, but they face-planted as soon as it was time to compete. Once the fun began, the discipline in the team’s decision-making disappeared. Want the 1980s manager for no reason? Sure! Need to solve the problem of two of your best young bats both essentially being designated hitters? Split the difference and have neither of them be the DH! Surely all that money you were going to use to sign Manny Machado will go towards other budgetary needs? Nope? Well, you’ve got Leury Garcia. Read the rest of this entry »


José Abreu Fits the Astros Like a Glove

© David Richard-USA TODAY Sports

The Astros capped off a dominant postseason run with a World Series title that showed off a well-rounded and star-studded organization. They won with great starting pitching, great relief pitching, powerful hitting, and excellent defense. This wasn’t a case of a few guys getting hot and carrying a moribund offense, or a heroic member of the rotation piling up innings that no one counted on. The team stacked with good players up and down the roster simply deployed them as expected, and got a parade for its trouble.

It’s funny, in that context, to note that one of the best offenses in baseball had a clear hole at first base. Yuli Gurriel, the longtime incumbent at the position, had an abysmal year, compiling a .242/.288/.360 batting line that represented his second-worst performance in the majors (and his second poor showing in three years). The Astros scored runs at a gaudy clip despite his decline, but they didn’t bury their heads in the sand about Gurriel; they traded for Trey Mancini at the deadline to shore up their first-base options.

Bad news: Mancini wasn’t very good either. He and Gurriel combined to rack up -1.4 WAR with Houston. Yeesh. By the time the playoffs rolled around, the Astros were using unheralded rookie David Hensley as a right-handed DH in lieu of Mancini. It worked well enough to win, but it was a strange look for a team already punting on offense at catcher. Read the rest of this entry »