The Best of FanGraphs: April 9-13, 2018

Each week, we publish in the neighborhood of 75 articles across our various blogs. With this post, we hope to highlight 10 to 15 of them. You can read more on it here. The links below are color coded — green for FanGraphs, brown for RotoGraphs, dark red for The Hardball Times and blue for Community Research.

MONDAY, 4/9
There’s Already a Book on Shohei Ohtani, by Jeff Sullivan
But is it a good book? A New York Times bestselling book? Will it have pictures?

The Dodgers Will Probably Be Fine, by Jay Jaffe
Right? I mean, probably? They’re totally going to be fine. Right, Jay? Jay?

TUESDAY, 4/10
How To Make Lousy Teams Watchable, by Asa Beal and Michael Wentworth
An excerpt: “So what’s the plan? We’ve chosen a franchise record for each of our have-nots to break, and crafted a plan for how to break it. Roster decisions, in-game strategy, even altering field dimensions—we’re making an art out of chasing stats.”

The Playoff Picture Has Already Shifted, by Jeff Sullivan
The Mets are caught red-handed orchestrating the bulk of the shift, but how far has it moved?

Corey Kluber Is the Best Pitcher in Baseball, by Craig Edwards
You did it! Congratulations! Baseball’s best pitcher. Great job, everybody. It’s great to meet you.

WEDNESDAY, 4/11
Shohei Ohtani, The Bambino, and Bullet Joe, by Mike Duncan
An excerpt: “One might still walk away believing that Ruth was the last great two-way player. But this is not true. Long after Ruth committed full time to hitting, there remained a wealth of phenomenal two-way players accomplishing phenomenal two-way feats.

They can’t be found in the major league baseball records because they were not allowed to play major league baseball.”

Examining SMT’s Lawsuit Against MLBAM, by Sheryl Ring
On Thursday, Sports Media Technology dropped a 92-page suit on MLBAM for breach of contract in addition to theft of trade secrets and patent infringement in its development of Statcast technology. (I mean, we knew the over-referencing of Statcast was criminal, but…) Ninety-two is a lot of pages. Imagine how much you would have to scroll if you wanted to read it! Sheryl sacrificed her scrolling finger so you don’t have to.

THURSDAY, 4/12
Giancarlo Stanton Has Struggled with the Fastball, by Craig Edwards
Things could be… going better at the plate for Baseball’s Friendly Giant. Much better. The four-seam fastball seems to be the genesis of his struggles. But, why? Will we ever see a Stanton moonshot again?

The Marlins Are Claiming to Be British, by Sheryl Ring
Okay, but are they going to start doing a fake accent and stuff? Because that’s where I draw the line.

Free Brandon Nimmo, by Travis Sawchik
Good news! After being sent down to the Las Vegas 51s Tuesday, Nimmo was recalled Friday. Travis’ Brandon Nimmo jailbreak worked. Everyone met outside Cashman Field, grabbed Nimmo, and dragged him all the way back to New York. Travis explains why Nimmo’s presence is good for the Mets.

FRIDAY, 4/13
Who’s the Best (non-Bonds*) Baseball Family in History?, by RealCarlAllen
Which family came, saw, and conquered baseball and installed itself as a ruling (non-Bonds) family?

Batters With New Approaches, by Jeff Zimmerman
Jeff throws small sample size cautions to the wind and makes some judgments about players with new approaches.

The Mets’ Surprising Start Isn’t That Surprising, by Craig Edwards
You doing okay over there, Nats fans?

The White Sox Cap and Hip-Hop Culture, by Shakeia Taylor
In Shakeia’s second piece of her April residency, Shakeia writes about the intersection of the White Sox cap and hip-hop culture. “And the game’s influence has been felt in hip hop, as well. Baseball caps, also known as fitteds, have become a mainstay in hip-hop culture. In a game that can at times feel dominated by pop country music, hip hop’s prominence in baseball — and baseball’s presence in hip hop — offers a foothold for fans of both who wish to see their interests intersect,” she writes.

Freddie Freeman Is Joey Votto Now, by Jeff Sullivan
Freddie Freeman took one game of dress up too far and actually transformed into Joey Votto. Science is incredible.