Bay Area Home Run Leaders

It's the baseball offseason.  I'm a retired student between semesters (still hoping to pull a Favre at some point).  Consequently, I have some free time.  Hence this post.

Here are the top 50 career home run totals for players as a San Francisco Giant, Oakland Athletic, or both.  So the homers Mays hit as a New York Giant don't count, nor do all the home runs Dale Murphy hit at Candlestick.  I was definitely surprised at some of the players who made the list, and how high or low certain players ranked (Jim Ray Hart hit more homers as a Giant than Kevin Mitchell did?  Really?).  Feel free to share this list.  These stats are through the 2011 season.

1. Barry Bonds            586
2. Willie McCovey      469
3. Willie Mays             459
4. Mark McGwire       363
5. Reggie Jackson       268                              
6. Jose Canseco           254
7. Matt Williams          247
8. Eric Chavez             230
9. Orlando Cepeda      226
10. Jason Giambi          198
11. Sal Bando               192
12. Bobby Bonds          186
13. Dave Kingman       177
14. Will The Thrill        176
15. Jeff Kent                 175
16. Rickey Henderson   167
17. Jack Clark               163                            
18. Miguel Tejada         160
19. Jim Ray Hart           157
20. Dwayne Murphy     153
21. Kevin Mitchell        145
22. Rich Aurilia             143
23. Darrell Evans          142
24. Terry Steinbach       132
25. J. T. Snow              124
26. Matt Stairs               122
27. Gene Tenace          121
28. Robby Thompson  119
29. Joe Rudi                 116
30. Tony Armas           111
31. Tom Haller            107
32. Dave Henderson   104
33. Chili Davis            101
34. Jeffrey Leonard      99
35. Jack Cust                94
36. Carney Lansford    94
37. Felipe Alou            93
38. Bob Brenly            90
39. Wayne Gross         88
40. Geronimo Berroa   87
41. Mark Ellis              86
42. Mike Davis            84
43. Ray Durham          83
44. Nick Swisher         80
45. Jim Davenport       77
46. Scott Brosius         76
47. Ben Grieve            76
48. Chris Speier           70
49. Jermaine Dye         64
50. Gary Matthews      64

Notables who played for both teams (in order of Bay Area HR total):

Willie McCovey           SF: 469, Oak: 0
Orlando Cepeda         SF: 226, Oak: 0
Dave Kingman            SF: 77, Oak: 100, Tot: 177
Miguel Tejada        SF: 4 (yes, 4), Oak: 156, Tot: 160
Kevin Mitchell             SF: 143, Oak: 2, Tot: 145
Dave Henderson        Oak: 104, SF: 0,
Felipe Alou                SF: 85, Oak: 8, Tot: 93
Ray Durham               SF: 77, Oak: 6, Tot: 83
Gary Thomasson        SF: 38, Oak: 5, Tot: 43
Stan Javier                 SF: 17, Oak: 23, Tot: 40
Mike Aldrete              SF: 14, Oak: 18, Tot: 32
Joe Morgan                SF: 22, Oak: 6, Tot: 28
Ernie Riles                  SF: 18, Oak: 5, Tot: 23
Jesus Alou                  SF: 18, Oak: 3, Tot: 21
Dusty Baker                SF: 3, Oak: 18, Tot: 21
Matty Alou                  SF: 12, Oak: 1, Tot: 13

Just a few observations:

• Giving Kingman to Oakland, there are 26 Athletics and 24 Giants, but each team has 5 in the top 10.
• Eric Chavez never, ever would have crossed my mind as a possible top 10.
• I'm pleasantly surprised to see The Thrill one spot ahead of Jeff Kent.
• Rickey Henderson ahead of so many guys we think of as "sluggers" is just one more reminder of how awesome he was.
• Dwayne Murphy at #20 made me smile more than any other surprise on the list.
• Mitchell and Aurilia both had 143 homers as Giants, but Kevin hit 2 for Oakland in 1998, his last season in the big leagues.  Not counted are the 7 homers Mitchell hit for the Sonoma County Crushers in 2000.
• Do you think even Orlando Cepeda remembers he had 3 AB's (0-for-3) with Oakland in 1972?

Did I make any mistakes?  Let me know!  Raw data from the glorious baseball-reference.com.

Attention Brian Sabean

Re: Angel Pagan, Eli Whiteside, Carlos Beltran, Hiroyuki Nakajima, etc: 

The Dark Side Of Christmas Songs: A Non-Sports Post

I apologize for the lack of posting on this blog, and for the non-sports topic of this post, but someone has to say something about the attack on morality and high standards that returns every December like cousin Eddie and his RV.  Alarmingly, there are Christmas songs, widely embraced as part of a traditional celebration, but are, in fact, permeating our minds, and the minds of our children, with unsavory and dangerous ideas.

Please, take the time to read through this post, share it with your friends, family, and social networks, and then take appropriate actions regarding your own holiday music collection.

Winter Wonderland: In the meadow we can build a snowman, and pretend that he is Parson Brown. He'll say "Are you married?" we'll say "No, man. But you can do the job when you're in town."  There's so much wrong with this.  I mean, I get having a crush on the Parson.  He's probably a charismatic guy in a position of authority.  I can forgive that.  But now you're building a snowman, and pretending it's him?  How much detail are you putting in to the sculpting of this snowman?  Because there is a level of anatomic correctness that definitely crosses a line.  And then when he asks if you're single, you admit you are, but propose that he play the role of husband "when he's in town?"  That's sick.  What kind of snowman fantasy are you living in?

Even Rufio knows this
song is messed up.

Baby It's Cold Outside: Check out the back and forth conversation between a man and woman in this song.  Well maybe just a half a drink more (Put some music on while I pour), The neighbors might think (Baby, it's bad out there), Say, what's in this drink (No cabs to be had out there), and later I ought to say no, no, no, sir (Mind if I move closer), At least I'm gonna say that I tried (What's the sense in hurting my pride?), and in the next section I simply must go (Baby, it's cold outside), The answer is no (Ooh darling, it's cold outside).  Hey, jack, she said "the answer is 'no'."  And "what's in this drink?"  Yeah, I'm pretty sure it's called a rufie (no, Steve, not "rufio." That's something entirely different).  How does this song not end with Detective Benson and the whole SVU showing up?

Frosty The Snowman: He led them down the streets of town, Right to the traffic cop, And he only paused a moment when, He heard him holler "Stop!"  Yeah, that's a little something that's known as "resisting arrest."  Don't we already have enough problems with people not respecting law enforcement officers without our holiday songs encouraging rebellion?

We Wish You A Merry Christmas: Oh, bring us a figgy pudding; Oh, bring us a figgy pudding; Oh, bring us a figgy pudding and a cup of good cheer.  We won't go until we get some; We won't go until we get some; We won't go until we get some, so bring some out here.  This is the opposite of what I want to happen at my house on Christmas.  First off, "figgy pudding?"  That just sounds nasty.  More troubling, though, is the attitude of these Christmas guests.  First they make demands, and then they refuse to leave until those demands are met.  The last thing I need at the end of the big day is a group of people Occupying my Living Room.  What has happened to us as a society if part of our holiday preparations now include stocking up on riot gear and pepper spray?

Grandma Got Run Over By A Reindeer:  This song has never been welcome around any grandmothers I have known, but it's not just that she gets run over, it's what precedes that tragedy.  She'd been drinking too much eggnog, And we begged her not to go. But she forgot her medication, and she staggered out the door into the snow.  This family is the very definition of "dysfunctional."  First off, nobody is paying attention to the dangerous combination of the alcohol content of eggnog and the grandmother's medication?  A lot of those bottles have warning labels on them, and for a good reason.  Second, on Christmas Grandma skips her medication entirely?  So she's drunk, off her medications (for who knows what physical or psychological ailments), and she's barely ambulatory ("... staggered out the door"), but the family is satisfied that they've done their part by begging her "not to go."  I'm surprised there aren't more verses to this song, with things like "Uncle Bob wrapped his car around a telephone pole after we asked him for his keys and he said 'no'" or "someone should have mentioned to little Jimmy that it's a bad idea to take your new electronic toys into the bathtub."


So there you go.  Five "celebratory" Christmas songs that are actually destroying the foundation of good and decent people and families.  Continue to listen to these songs in your home at your own risk, and if your kids turn out to be drunken, demanding, disrespectful snowman fetishists, don't come crying to me.

Jim Thome: Forever Known As 'The Man Traded For Aaron Rowand'

I can't stand Jim Thome.  Ugh.  Blech.  Ptooey.  Okay, 98% of my disdain is directly attributable to what he did against me in the World Series when I played Triple Play 97 (from EA Sports, which I totally won from KNBR!).  I used Mark Gardner, Shawn Estes, Rod Beck, and even the great William VanLandingham, but I just could not get him out.  I mean, what a jerk, right?  That game was also where I first noticed his not-quite-calling-his-shot way that he holds his bat way out in front of him while the pitcher gets set.  All arrogant and confident.  I hate that.  I'm pretty sure I woke my wife up at least once by yelling something like "Yeah, that's right, Jim Thome!  You do that thing with your bat, and we're going to be coming inside like that all day long!"

Although now that I'm thinking about it, that bat pointing thing might only bug me in that game, as I don't think I even notice it when I actually watch him hit.  So I might have adjusted my Thome-hate to being 100% from that game, except for this horror:

Disgruntled, Drunken GM's And The Owners Who Love Them

Adam:  Boy that Pujols is awful this year, eh?

Gabe:  Keep talking like that.  Try to get some writers to say it.  Maybe his price will drop enough that the Giants can afford him after the season.

Adam:  Does Rowand's contract end this season?  Zito?  Are you freeing up some cash?

Gabe:  Neither.  Not Huff, either.  DeRosa yes.  Ross, probably.  Tejada, yes.  Although pretty much all of that money is going to go to pitchers getting raises.

Adam:  Are you possibly expanding AT&T Park?

Gabe:  No, but I'm sure they'll raise ticket prices again.  Maybe we can get a cheaper GM.

Adam:  Maybe.

Gabe:  And they're going to be putting the Copenhagen logo on the butts of all the uniforms.

Posey, sponsored

Adam:  Nice.  Posey's ass will certainly sell chew.

Gabe:  That's tweetable.

Adam:  Any chance Zito clears waivers so you can deal him to the Yankees?

Gabe:  I'm sure they'll put him on waivers and hope someone claims him like Alex Rios.

Adam:  Like some drunk GM thinking he is being funny.

Gabe:  Exactly like that.  Neal Huntington is going to wake up all hung over and see Barry Zito warming in the pen.

Adam:  My money is on Ed Wade, just three sheets to the wind one night ... wanting to screw the new ownership that he knows is going to fire him ... drunkenly leaves them with Zito as their ace.

Gabe:  That sounds altogether too plausible.  Think we can get a couple of those Phillies prospects they just got for Pence?  Maybe Wandy Rodriguez?  We can throw in Astros' fan favorite Migue Tejada.

Adam:  And maybe you could purchase the rights to Brad Ausmus from the Newark Bears (or dodgers) and throw him in too.

Gabe:  Good call.  Any way we can get Berkman in the deal?

Adam:  Maybe the corpse of Bagwell?

Gabe:  And Larry Anderson.

Adam:  Undoubtedly.

Whose Line Is It Anyway: August 12, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


Today's player had a 22 year career with 5 different teams.  He spent 21 years in the National League, and 1 in the American League.  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints: 

• He was an All Star 10 times.
• He finished in the top 10 of MVP voting 5 times.
• His 22 seasons took place sometime between 1960 and 1995.

Last week's answer after the jump.

Whose Line Prizes!

Hey, we need to get caught up on a couple of Whose Line Is It Anyway winners!

Anthony correctly identified Larry Walker, and requested a desktop wallpaper with Ken Griffey, Jr.  (I didn't get your monitor resolution, so I just used a standard one.  Let me know if you need it re-sized.)

From Adam and Gabe Talk About Sports and Stuff

Christopher correctly identified both Steve Rogers and Kevin Mitchell, and gets this snappy Brandon Belt wallpaper.

From Adam and Gabe Talk About Sports and Stuff

Click on the thumbnail to see a larger version, but you need to click "download" in the upper left to get the full sized image.

Congratulations to both of you!

Whose Line Is It Anyway: July 29, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


This player had a 14 year career, spending parts or all of seasons with 8 different clubs.  He played nine seasons in the National league, and five in the American League.  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints:  

• He was a 3-time All Star
• He won 3 Gold Gloves
• He finished in the top 10 of MVP voting twice

Last week's answers after the jump.

Do you trust management?

Well we are in the midst of the craziest personnel week maybe in the history of sports. The NFL is back from their lockout out and trying to find a way to squeeze their entire off season into a 5 day period. Then you have the baseball trading deadline this week. As a Bears and Braves fan I am obviously consumed with the news of the goings on with my teams. The rise of Twitter has made this so much fun, but also that much more stressful as the multitude of rumors that swirl about is impossible to manage and navigate with any success. Here is a tweet from Gabe in the midst of the insanity and just after the Beltran trade was starting to come into clarity.

@thatgabe Gabe Guterres

Who is the best prospect Sabean has ever traded away? Nathan? Accardo? He has weak areas. Trading future all stars isn't one of them.

One of the feelings that continues to resonate with me is the idea of trust. I think my entire off season or trade deadline enjoyment comes down to whether or not I trust the management of my team. Can’t you relate to that feeling? When you see a team trade or sign a guy and you sit there thinking, why didn’t we do that? In baseball you see the prospects offered up for a great player and you are just befuddled at your team’s unwillingness to surrender the same bounty for the high valued returns. Or you see the guys signed by your opponents and you think, what could have possibly possessed them to make a stupid move like that (Uribe)? It is really a matter of how much you trust the management of your favorite team and your GM’s track record of success or failure.

In the case of the Braves, I lean more toward trust in Frank Wren than not. So as the trade deadline approaches in the major leagues I find myself more curious and antsy than annoyed and frustrated. I wouldn’t put Wren on the Rushmore of decision makers, but he certainly has earned a bit of trust. The great Rangers/Braves massacre was not Wren’s doing. He has made good personnel moves and very few moves I actually hate. That really is what it comes down to as a fan, trust. This morning I woke up to the news that the Patriots traded for Albert Haynesworth and Chad Johnson (his momma called him Johnson, so I am going to call him Johnson). All over the media this morning there is massive praise for the great business sense of Belichick and his ability to consistently buy low and bring veterans into a strong locker room and get production out of them. There is no doubt that the city of Boston and the fans of the Patriots trust Bill to overcome Albert’s penchant for trouble and Johnson’s addiction to attention. Bill has won this trust after years and years of quality moves and his ability to control his locker room.

As a Bears fan I have zero trust in the management of the Chicago Bears. Too be honest, zero may be a slight exaggeration of just how much trust I do in fact have in Angelo and Smith. I tell every one that there are three constants in Chicago. Jerry Angelo is a terrible GM, Lovie Smith is completely clueless and Urlacher can tackle. Angelo has repeatedly used the phrase “trust us” when discussing personnel moves. Why? Why should I trust you to make any decisions for the team? Let’s take a look at why we should or shouldn’t trust you Jerry.

Yesterday the Bears traded away their first round pick from the 2007 draft. While I have so much to say about that trade, that is not the point of this article. With the trade of Greg Olsen the Bears now have absolutely nothing to show for the entire 2007 draft. To be clear, that draft was four years ago. The players taken in that draft should be entering the final years of their first contract. The Bears have zero left. Let’s go back a little further. Of the 2005 draft the only player that remains is Chris Harris, and we traded him away once! Take a look at the 2006 draft. One player remains. One! Of the 2009 draftees the Bears still have exactly two on the roster, and to be fair, only one is assured of a spot this year. So I ask again, why should I trust you? Isn’t the proof of your value as a General Manager found in how you manage the draft and build your roster? The Bears have one of the oldest rosters in the NFL because we cannot draft with any effectiveness, which means, that the really bad years are coming and there is no help on the way.

The problem with being a fan is that the only recourse you have in voicing your displeasure is to stop watching games and stop buying memorabilia. Well, very few of us are going to stop doing those things. So we are stuck. The McCaskeys run the Bears much like the McCourts run the Dodgers. The difference is that Bears fans continue to show up because they are some of the most loyal fans in all of sports, so the NFL can claim the Bears as a success and revenue stream and turn their backs on all of the shady dealings going on. Not trusting the management of your team is just draining. But what can we do? The idea of a fan union is great in theory, and would certainly change the landscape of sports, but we know that could never happen because Yankees fans are just fine with how things are going. And as we know, if Yankees fans are happy, ESPN is happy. So we are just stuck eating the rotten and stinky meal we are served by management. I guess I will just sit back, hold my nose, pretend its steak and watch the Bears play this year and do what I always do. Love the Bears, hate the management and pray the defense can shut out the opposition every week.

Simple Truths About Trades

During a morning health class at Acalanes High School, in the winter of 1987/88, I often found myself writing baseball lineups or letters instead of taking notes.  Some of those letters were to Al Rosen, who was the San Francisco Giants General Manager at that time.  I usually proposed some trade idea, because it was pretty likely I was going to come up with complex scenarios that would never cross his mind, and then I always closed with a plea to "never trade Clark, Thompson, or Dravecky, and retire all their numbers!"  While he took my advice, kind of, on that last line, he never made any of the trades I suggested.  That could be because they were mostly trades that would have the Giants send a big pile of crap for a superstar (say ... Mike LaCoss, Harry Spillman, Joe Price, and "hot" prospect Francisco Melendez for Benito Santiago).  My baseball knowledge and passion had grown significantly during the '87 season, and I felt pretty confident that I was coming up with incredibly savvy and creative ideas.  I tried similar approaches to trading baseball cards, and that didn't work either.  I'm still perplexed why my friend didn't want to swap his Gregg Jeffries Rated Rookie card for 17 Ron Hasseys.

I'd like to think that I've learned a few things about trades in the years since high school health class, so here are some things to keep in mind before you freak out about what your favorite team does or doesn't do as we head toward the trade deadline.  

1.  Trades usually have to make sense, on some level, for both teams.  I say "usually" because we are talking about a world in which the Pirates traded Rajai Davis for Matt Morris, but besides that, there has to be something each side gets out of the deal.  There are a lot of factors that go into a team pulling the trigger on a trade, but they have to feel like they are receiving some benefit.

You probably aren't the first person
to figure out Gaby Sanchez can hit.

2.  The chances are good that that other team's General Manager does, in fact, know how awesome that guy on his team really is.  I see you looking over there at that young, talented kid on that other team.  Gaby Sanchez?  Madison Bumgarner?  Justin Upton?  Robinson Cano?  Yeah, you're not going to be able to trick them into trading you those guys, especially when you're offering young players you already know have very little chance of living up to their hype.  If you know their guy is good and your guy isn't, that team's front office probably knew that 5 years ago.  Sorry.

3.  Money is a huge factor.  Some teams have some to spend.  More teams are looking to spend less.  Either way, both teams are looking at the dollars as closely as they are the players' abilities.

4.  "We couldn't have offered more than that?" is heard from fans of every team who failed to acquire the impact player they longed for.  I've said it more than once.  In fact, I fully expect to have a conversation in the next week that consists almost entirely of my Dad and I saying this to each other. But remember that these teams, even the small market ones, invest millions and millions of dollars into scouting and analysis, while I read some websites and watch SportsCenter.  As smart and insightful as I am, there are probably some things that I don't know that I don't know.  And again, there are plenty of financial things going on behind the scenes that you and I are unaware of.

5.  Sometimes you have to trade tomorrow for today.  Every fan dreams of a championship dynasty that would be compared to Ming instead of the Yankees, and for that to happen your team has to continue to produce successful players from within its own system.  But the reality is, sometimes this year is your chance, and you have to trade legitimate, high-ceiling prospects for the piece you're sorely missing.  In a perfect world, it works out for both teams.

6.  Other teams are also looking to improve.  Keep in mind that, unless a team is trying to lose enough games to trigger a clause in their contract that would allow them to move to Florida, teams want to compete and win.  That means beating the other teams.  At this moment, somewhere between 3 and 7 teams are making attempts to acquire Carlos Beltran from the New York Mets.  Not only does the team that ends up with him improve their squad, they also keep him from a team they might be in a pennant race with, or could see in a playoff series.  Every year, there are fewer true "impact" players available than there are teams that could use them, and any of the reasons we've talked about might mean another team matches up better for the selling team than yours does.  It's a drag when your team misses out, but it's just going to happen some of the time.

So this year when you're playing amateur GM, refreshing your Twitter feed and MLBTradeRumors at a frantic pace for the most up-to-the-minute info, try to keep these truths in mind.  And then yell at your TV, call your Dad, and write letters to Al Rosen.

BONUS Whose Line Is It Anyway: July 22, 2011

Some combination of life and flakiness lead to 2 weeks with no Whose Line game on our blog.  For that we are terribly sorry, and offer this bonus installment as penance.


Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


This player had a 13 year career, spending time with 8 different big league teams.  10 seasons were with National League clubs, and 4 were in the American League (so there was some overlap in there where he was on more than 1 franchise in at least 1 season).  Those seasons fall somewhere between 1970 and 2000.  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints:  

• He was an All Star just 2 times
• He won only 1 Silver Slugger award, and 0 Gold Gloves
• At one time, Baseball Digest called him the "Most Intimidating" hitter in all of baseball

Whose Line Is It Anyway: July 22, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


In some ways, this one is the trickiest and most obscure player we have featured in this game.  In other ways, he's the most topical.  In an obscure way.  This pitcher spent his entire 13 year career with the same team.  In fact, let's specify that it was a Canadian team.  That might help.  Those 13 seasons were somewhere between 1970 and 2000.  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints: 

• He was an All Star 5 times
• He finished in the top 5 in Cy Young Award voting 3 times
• It's something like ironic that a player with this name played for a team in Canada

Last time's answer after the jump.

Day 23: Did Not Hear From Giants

Still waiting.

And waiting.

Read the sordid story here.

Whose Line Is It Anyway: July 1, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


This player spent his entire 17 year career in the National League, playing for 3 different teams.  Those 17 years fall somewhere between 1980 and 2010.  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints:  

• He was an All Star 5 times
• He finished in the top 25 in MVP voting 8 times
• He won a Gold Glove award 7 times

Last week's answer after the jump.

Comeback Player Of The Year

Note: In 1989, Lonnie Smith of the Atlanta Braves won the National League Comeback Player of the Year award, beating out San Francisco's Dave Dravecky.  Smith put up very good numbers after having his career derailed by cocaine abuse.  Dravecky pitched in only two games, but did come back from cancer in his pitching arm.  This has been a point of contention between Adam and Gabe for some time now.

Adam:  The race for comeback player of the year is going to be interesting this year.

Gabe:  Vogelsong or who?

Adam:  Beltran.  Berkman?

Gabe:  Oh right.  So Dravecky, then?

Dave Dravecky

Adam:  Did Carlos miss last year because of blow?

Gabe:  Probably.  It was under the floorboard of his locker.  It was Strawberry's at Shea, and they just moved it over.

Adam:  Nice.  I think Brooks Conrad's comeback is worthy of merit.

Gabe:  I do my best.  But I forgot about Fat Elvis.  He's been awesome.  Brooks is also a good option.  In other years he might have won.  He's the Jason Jennings of comeback players.

Adam:  Vogelsong would win if it were held today.

Gabe:  You'd think so.  He really has been amazing this year.  And not "good for a guy with his story."  Just good.

Adam:  Nice Jennings reference ... I was thinking Doug when I first read that ... very confused.

Gabe:  Sadly, Doug Jennings probably won't win this year.  But when I first read that, I was thinking Doug Henning.

Adam:  It's one award per league, right?

Gabe:  I think so, yes.

Adam:  'Cause JJ Hardy is legit, too.  And Hafner.

Gabe:  Totally.  But I'm still hoping he's in the NL by next month.

Adam:  Which one?

Gabe:  Hardy.

Adam:  Ohhhh good ... 'cause Hafner might not be a great fit in San Fran.

Gabe:  Yeah, he might have a tough time playing right at AT&T.

Adam:  Would pay to see that, though.

Gabe:  Absolutely.

Adam:  What would he have to hit to make sabermetric sense?

Gabe:  An OBP of roughly 1.400.

Adam:  Right, to go with his UZR of -654168448.3.

Gabe:  And a VORP- of pi.

Adam:  VORP would also transcend sabermetrics to become a word describing that feeling every Giants fan would get on a routine fly to right.

Gabe:  "Fly ball towards right, Hafner going baaaaaack ... oh, VORP!"

Adam:  You would all be longing for the days of torture.

Gabe:  Yep.  We'd miss Burrell's glove.

Adam:  Nah, you keep him for a defensive replacement.

Gabe:  Or to play shortstop.

Adam:  He was probably a shortstop in high school.

Gabe:  Just like every other Big Leaguer?

Adam:  Prince?

Gabe:  Ooh.  Good point.  Fat kid.  He was a catcher.

Day 13: Did Not Hear From Giants

The Giants, like most successful businesses, look for every possible way to get their customers to part with more of their money.  That's expected and appropriate, for the most part.  One of their new revenue streams allows fans to have Lou Seal, their ridiculous costumed mascot, visit them in their seat during the game.

For $75, Lou Seal will drop by your seat, ostensibly between innings, to "hi-five your kid, and take photos."  For $100, the mascot will make a special birthday visit, bringing some manner of undefined "gift."  For $125, he will make a 15 minute visit to your pre-game tailgate party.  There is no information on whether or not he will also require a burger or any of your adult beverages.

Seriously. Go away.

Personally, I can't stand costumed mascots at the Big League level.  Sure, the late, great Sonoma County Crushers' "Abominable Sonoman" was clever, and the between-inning stuff with kids was fun.  But when the World Champs are on the field?  I don't get why that's necessary at all.  And there have been times (mostly at Candlestick), where the dumb guy was actually blocking my view of the field, which is nigh-unforgivable.

So I figured, the Giants are looking to bring in some cash to help pay for the cost of sanitizing mascot costumes, and on June 13 I sent them the following email:

Just curious about the cost of ensuring Lou Seal does not come into my section at any point during the game.  I'm not really sure why anyone needs to be entertained by a Mime/Furry when the World Champs are on the field, but it would be awesome if I could make sure he/it isn't distracting me or any other actual baseball fans around me.
Yes, I am serious.
And yes, I pay the Salvation Army Santa to stop ringing his dang bell until I have driven away.  
Sincerely,Gabe

Now it's been almost two weeks, and still nothing from the Giants.  But seriously.  I want to know.

Feel free to email and/or tweet @SFGiants on my behalf.  I will be posting regular updates as this drama plays out.

Whose Line Is It Anyway: June 24, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


This player spent his entire 19-year career with one National League team.  Adam says we should note that he played in the Modern Era (1980-Present).  So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints:

• He was an All Star 12 times
• He finished in the top 10 in MVP voting 2 times

Get AdamandGabe.com Approval To Vote For All Stars

We here at AdamandGabe.com take our All Star voting seriously.  And every year, we're frustrated by people who don't.  The natural, gut reaction to poor voting practices is to want the vote taken from fans and given to players, writers, groundskeepers ... really anyone who might actually be paying attention to what's happening in the games taking place this season.  But it's not fair to penalize all fans for the actions of their peers.  Instead, we are proposing that Major League Baseball require fans to pass a small test that would allow them to vote for the All Star teams.  And to help them get started, we have developed our own test.  (note: Adam also thinks there should be a test required to vote in any local, state, or federal elections, but that's better saved for another post)

So below are five questions, which we think progress from very easy to moderately challenging.  Get 4 out of the 5 right, and we think you should vote with pride and confidence that you know what you're doing.  Then you will receive the AdamandGabe.com "Official Seal Of Approval" which you can post on your Facebook page, use for your Twitter profile pic, or give to your favorite tattoo artist and have it permanently emblazoned onto your body.  This may be the last year that passing a test like this is not required to vote, so think of this as a tune up for future seasons.  Like the PSAT of All Star voting qualification tests.

My All Star Ballot 2011

With just over a week left to cast ballots for the 2011 All Star teams, it's time to carefully look at stats and fill out my 25 ballots (per email address!).  My process is to look at a wide range of stats from this season, and then consider peripheral things like career stats and the role they fill on their team.  Lastly, I have an unbreakable personal law that prohibits me from ever voting for dodgers.  It's right up there with my "no rental footwear" law.  I guess I hope that someday, nobody will vote for any dodger players, and the NL manager will just forget about them and I won't have to see that uniform in the mid-summer classic.

American League

First Base: Paul Konerko

Also considered: Adrian Gonzalez, Miguel Cabrera

This is probably the closest call for me in either league. It comes down to Konerko having a few more home runs, a slightly higher SLG, and the fact that his lineup isn't as strong as Boston's. On some subconscious level, I may have also factored in which 1B had the most DUI arrests.  It's kind of a thing for me.

Second Base: Robinson Cano

Also considered: Dustin Pedroia, Howie Kendrick

Cano has the most hits, most home runs, and highest SLG of any AL second baseman.  Pedroia is also having a great season, and I was pretty surprised by the excellent numbers being put up by Kendrick.

Shortstop: Johnny Peralta

Also considered: Alexei Ramirez, Yunel Escobar, Asdrubal Cabrera, Elvis Andrus

This one was really close between Peralta and Cabrera.  In fact, if I hadn't used up all my ballots yet, I might switch.  But Peralta does have the slight edge in AVG/OBP/SLG, and that tipped it for me. You can make a solid case for any of the 5 shortstops listed here.

Third Base: Alex Rodriguez

Also considered: Kevin Youkilis

I'm as surprised as you are that I'm voting for A-Rod, but the guy has the numbers and star power to be there.  He and Youk are the only AL 3B's slugging over .500.  Youkilis has a slightly higher OBP, while A-Rod has a slightly higher average, and 2 more home runs.  Coming into play today (June 22), they have an identical .506 SLG.  

Catcher: Alex Avila

Also considered: AJ Pierzynski, Matt Wieters

Avila leads all AL catchers in OBP and SLG, tied for fifth in home runs, and has been steady all year.  Plus, he's been a tremendous asset on one of my fantasy teams.  And I definitely went into this looking for reasons to not vote for Pierzynski, which makes me like Avila even more.

Outfield: Jose Bautista, Curtis Granderson, Jacoby Ellsbury

Also considered: Carlos Quentin, Brennan Boesch, Matt Joyce, Adam Jones, Nelson Cruz, Melky Cabrera (I know, right?)

Bautista is probably the easiest call in either league.  The guy is just unreal.  Granderson is having the season the Tigers were dreaming of when they drafted him (too bad he's having it with the Yankees).  Ellsbury is having a tremendous season after everyone assumed he would be supplanted at the top of the Red Sox lineup by Carl Crawford.

Designated Hitter: David Ortiz

Also considered: no one

This one isn't even close.  Ortiz is having one of the best offensive seasons of anyone in the American League, regardless of position.  He's everything Ron Blomberg hoped to be as a DH.

National League

First Base: Prince Fielder

Also considered: Joey Votto, Gaby Sanchez, Ryan Howard, Michael Morse

With Pujols out with an injury, this one becomes a lot easier.  Fielder's OPS is over 1.000, and he leads NL first basemen in home runs, RBI, and doubles.  Sanchez is probably next, with Votto, Howard, and Morse all having excellent seasons.  Yes.  Michael Morse.  Who knew?

Second Base: Rickie Weeks

Also considered: Brandon Phillips

Weeks is the only NL second baseman with an OBP over .350 and SLG over .500, and he's the leader in home runs.  He also has more steals and a higher batting average than Brandon Phillips.  It's hard to believe this guy was losing playing time to Ray Durham just a couple of years ago.

Shortstop:  Jose Reyes

Also considered: Troy Tulowitzki, Starlin Castro

It's amazing that there's a runaway winner at this position and it's not Tulowitzki or Hanley Ramirez.  Reyes is second in the majors in hits, has an OPS just shy of .900, and is 26-for-31 in stolen base attempts.  This may go down as the new definition of "walk year."

Third Base: Chipper Jones

Also considered: Ryan Roberts, Chase Headley

No NL third baseman is having a truly great season so far, and two of the best young 3B's, Ryan Zimmerman and Pablo Sandoval, missed significant time with injuries.  It's a very close call here between Jones and Roberts, and so I employ my secondary criteria of career success and who I'd rather watch in the game, and Chipper clearly wins in both of those categories.  Plus, maybe Adam will buy coffee next time because I'm advocating voting for his guy.

Catcher:  Brian McCann

Also considered:  Yadier Molina, Miguel Montero

Molina and Montero are both having nice seasons, but let's be honest.  The only real competition McCann had is out for the season with a broken leg.  I look forward to many years of the McCann/Posey NL All Star catching tandem.  

Outfield: Ryan Braun, Lance Berkman, Justin Upton

Also considered: Hunter Pence, Mike Stanton, Andrew McCutchen, Michael Bourn, Shane Victorino, Jay Bruce

Obviously there's a glaring omission here because of my "no dodgers" policy.  Still, Braun, Berkman, and Upton are all having amazing offensive seasons and definitely deserve to be on the team.  The runners-up included a couple of surprises, like Hunter Pence leading NL outfielders in hits (93), and Shane Victorino having a SLG of .507.

Okay, that's my ballot.  Feel free to use it for reference, or just copy the whole dang thing when you cast your votes.

Get our official Seal of Approval to vote for All Star teams by taking our quick 5-question quiz to prove you know what you're doing!

Whose Line Is It Anyway: June 17, 2011

Look at the following career total stat line, and guess which player has those numbers.  Then leave your guess as a comment to this post.  First one with the right answer wins a custom desktop wallpaper featuring your favorite (non-dodger, non-o. smith) player, from any sport, built to the size of your screen.  Obviously, the "honor system" is at work here as far as not researching the answer.  You can submit more than one answer, but please make each guess a separate comment.  Come back every Friday for another game and chance to win!


This player pitched for 2 teams over 10 seasons.  
So ... whose line is this? (click to view larger image)

Hints:

• He lead the AL in ERA, Complete Games, and Shutouts one time in each category
• He was an All Star twice

Yeah, I Do Think I'd Be An Awesome Commissioner

Still waiting to hear if I'm going to get an interview to step in when interim Commissioner Bud Selig steps aside, which I'm sure he's going to do any day now.  I say that because I'm working on an article discussing the proposed baseball realignment, and once it's posted, I fully expect MLB to come a-calling with any number of job offers.  I'm still hoping to hold out for the big one.  I also hope everyone's cool with me moving the Commissioner's office to the Bay Area.

This is the letter I received, on snappy Milwaukee Brewers letterhead, in response to my letter expressing interest in the MLB Commissioner position, August of 1993.

Yes, it's real. Some of you have seen it in person.
Feel free to validate it in the comments.

Fun With Stats: Strikeouts Per 9 Innings

While perusing the halls of Baseball-Reference.com for next Friday's Whose Line Is It Anyway, I strolled through the career leaders for most strikeouts per nine innings, with pitchers who have thrown a minimum of 1,000 innings.  You know what the first thing was to grab my attention?  Dwight Gooden, "Dr. K," at number 67, with 7.3686 K/9.  Sixty.  Seventh.  He doesn't even have the highest rate in that great rotation the Mets had in the second half of the 80's; that belongs to "El Sid" Fernandez, who ranks twenty-first with 8.4038.  Other pitchers I never, ever would have guessed to be ahead of Gooden include Brett Myers (65th, 7.3972), Ted Lilly (44th, 7.6577), Matt Clement (38th, 7.7534), and Bob Veale (32nd, 7.9579), but that last one is mostly just because I don't think I've ever heard of him.

Dr. 7.4 K/9

But those are Gooden's career numbers.  His numbers just with the Mets must be better, right?  Before his decline years, which started after he missed a year with a drug suspension, and before he got clean?  Is cocaine technically a "performance enhancing" drug?  Anyway, Dr. K's K/9 with the Mets, 1984-1994, is 7.4.  Which is possibly more than 7.3686, but not by much.  Or not at all, if B-R is employing any of that fancy "rounding" I've been hearing about.  In fact, the only season that Doc was above 10 strikeouts per 9 was his rookie year of 1984, when he racked up 11.4.

I think the lesson here (and who knew you could learn life lessons from baseball stats?) is that sometimes reputation supersedes reality.  People thought of Gooden as a strikeout pitcher, and I'm not saying he was Billy Swift (3.4859 K/9), but he never lived up to the Dr. K title.  So the lesson here is don't do drugs, kids.  Or give up big home runs to Mike Scioscia in a playoff game.  That's the lesson.

Why did they always
take his picture right
after he threw up?

A couple more quick things from the list.  Because it takes 1,000 career innings to qualify, there aren't nearly as many relief pitchers as there are starters.  Discounting Kerry Wood (47% of his appearances through 2010 are starts), the only reliever in the top 10 is Trevor Hoffman (5th, 9.3608 K/9), whom I haven't really considered a strikeout pitcher since around the time he broke Robby Thompson's cheekbone in 1993.  It's all the changeups.  The other relievers in the top 25 are Arthur Rhodes (11th, 8.7921), Dan Plesac (13th, 8.7397), Lee Smith (15th, 8.7324), Eric Plunk (20th, 8.4526), Tom Gordon (24th, 8.2315), and Mariano Rivera (25th, 8.2004).  Plesac and Plunk?  Really?  Those are names I did not expect to see.  For reference, longtime closer Roger McDowell is 599th with 4.4914.

Lastly, seventh on this list is Oliver Perez, with 9.1160 strikeouts per 9 innings.  That's seventh all time.  Oliver Perez.  The same Oliver Perez who the Mets cut before this season started, feeling they were better off paying him $12,000,000 to not pitch for them.  Perez has a career ERA of 4.63 and WHIP of 1.482.  Those numbers are what we, in the business, like to call "not good."  So the lesson we learn from this list of names and numbers is this: strikeouts are exciting and impressive, but not a terribly accurate way to evaluate a pitcher's overall effectiveness.  Lesson learned.

Whose Line: June 10 Winner

Hall of Famer
Eddie Murray

This week's Whose Line Is It Anyway winner is faithful reader (to the extent that's possible) Dan!  He correctly identified switch hitting slugger Eddie Murray.

While he tried to decline his fabulous prize, he gets one anyway.

But I did have to guess at what player he'd want, and what his monitor resolution is.  Hope I'm close.  As you can see, though, these are downloadable for everyone who visits the site, so in a sense when one person wins, everyone wins!

Congratulations Dan!
Clicking the thumbnail image takes you to a page with the image, then you'll need to click "download" on that page (right clicking doesn't give you the full sized image).

Big Mac 1280x1024

MacBook Friendly Mac 1440x900