On Friday night, The Great Ejector was ejected. Think about that for a minute, or ten.
Oh, how the tables have turned.
And, yes, you can absolutely trust NESN.com’s Jeff Howe on this one. He knows a guy.
Bravo, Boston. I am indubitably impressed. Bravo.
The lamb is breaking the seals, or something like that.
I don’t know remember the exact passage, but certainly somewhere in the Book of Revelation does John note that, just before the rivers turned to blood or whatever, an auction was started in his fantasy league for Jeff Francoeur.
Well, thanks to Mike Axisa, that very same thing has just happened in my FanGraphs’ ottoneu league.
Thanks for nothing, Axisa. Hope you like your plagues in tens.
The best headlines, of course, incorporate simple rhyme schemes …
If you’re interested in some educated speculation on this guy who is oddly delighted to be squatting in trash, then please stop by The Fightins. And before you say something unfortunate like, “YEAH, PHILLIES FANS IS GARBAGE, LOL, NEENER NEENER, FTW, TLDR!!!!1!1!!ONE1!,” please know that we pride ourselves on being above and occasionally beneath such banalities.
Run afoul of this simple request and risk Puritan’s discipline at the hands of the NotGraphs Sergeant-at-Arms …
With the increasing popularity of MLB.TV, MLB Extra Innings, and Stealing Games Off the Internet, it’s the case now that something close to a critical mass of baseballing fans have access, on any given night, to the full slate of games being played in the majors. This sort of access allows the enthusiast not only to follow specific teams or players in a way that was previously impossible, but also to participate in out-of-market broadcasts unlike before.
Accordingly, it’s become possible to see the different broadcasting choices that networks and clubs make. One of the more conspicuous of these choices is the placement of the center-field camera. While basically all 30 center-field cameras in use today allow viewers to follow the basic narrative of the game (i.e. the identity of the pitcher/batter, the umpire’s call, etc.), it’s also the case that some center-field cameras provide the viewer with a more intimate experience than others.
If we allow that the goal of the center-field camera shot is to capture the batter-pitcher encounter — and, in particular, to document as accurately as possible what a pitcher’s throwing and to where — then it follows that we might adjudge the league’s 30 center-field cameras using that as our criteria.
In what follows, I’ve endeavored to do just that. Below, you’ll find images for all 30 of the league’s center-field cameras, broken down into three categories: Bottom Five, Top Ten, and The Rest.
The reader will note that, with the exception of Minnesota’s contribution, straight-on shots constitute the most highly ranked of the center-field cameras. This makes sense, of course: straight-on shots portray lefties and righties in the same way and document pitch movement in a way that off-set cameras can’t.
The reader should also note that, of all the rankings I’ve given here, the most difficult was Minnesota’s. It has the advantage of being straight-on from center, but is also bizarrely high, making it difficult to gauge the depth of pitches.
Finally, if you believe I’ve erred in any of the screen captures here, don’t hesitate to make note of same in the comment section.
Bottom Five
30. Pittsburgh Pirates
No. It’s not alcohol. A Cubs fan’s greatest ally is a shoulder on which to cry. Few better shoulders exist than Tim Souers’s, the artist behind the site Cubby-Blue.com.
The life of a Cubs fan meanders along a path of self-loathing and repeated punishment. For those of us who choose this way of life, it sure is nice to lighten the mood occasionally with some fancy art and bone-jostling funny-tales.
Taste the bitter wine of the Cubs life, and grow wiser on its drought of suffering.
Moments before Justin Verlander completed his no-hitter on Saturday, Rogers Sportsnet presented home viewers with this image — i.e. what sabermetric paterfamilias Bill James would currently look like if, instead of running headlong into a life of cliche-destroying and brow-furrowing, he just wore a whole bunch of orange instead.
High-five for reader/commenter/professional back-up singer reillocity, for calling the world’s attention to this.
| The Colbert Report | Mon – Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30c | |||
| Bill James | ||||
|
||||
Father of Us All Bill James has (a) written a book called Popular Crime and (b) endeavored to promote said book via some kind of American television program.
You fill in the blanks.
Executive Summary: The KC Star’s Royals blogger, Lee Judge, recently criticized Wilson Betemit for not taking an 81-mph slider in the ribs with the bases loaded. In order to lend the heft of authority to his criticism, Mr. Judge then decided to see what an 81-mph slider to the ribs felt like. This is Mr. Judge’s superlative video tale of journalistic integrity and a large, red welt.
(Frog-punch in the arm: BBTF)
Remember Feast Days? They’re back. At least for one glorious Friday afternoon, when we rightfully celebrate.
Please remember: I’m no poet. I’m no Carson Cistulli.
Life: Willie friggin’ Mays. Fourth all-time with 163.2 WAR. One of only five baseball players to eclipse the 150 WAR-mark. In center field, Mays flew.
Spiritual Exercise: Mays twice hit 50 home runs in a season; 51 in 1955, and 52, 10 years later, in 1965. Even time appreciated Willie Howard Mays, Jr.
A Prayer for Willie Mays:
Before my time,
Came Willie Mays.
A student of baseball history,
I learned: GOAT.
Willie Mays!
Before “The Catch,”
Before the home runs,
The MVP and World Series trophies,
Mays, a rookie in 1951, hitless in his first 12 Major League at-bats.
Lucky 13: a home run.
Against Warren Spahn, no less.
He’d hit 659 more, 17 more off Spahn.
Willie Mays!
New York, San Francisco, and back to New York.
A Giant, in baseball and in life.
Walk through AT&T Park
and look for Ted Williams’ words on the wall:
“They invented the All-Star game for Willie Mays.”
It’s true,
They did.
Eighty-years old today,
but forever just a Kid.
Say Hey!
Image courtesy blackathlete.net.
When he’s not playing minor league baseball for the Tampa Bay Rays, Emeel Salem sings “Katy Perry piano covers. You know, guy stuff.”
Me, I’m just glad I’m not the only one who enjoys Perry’s Teenage Dream. Massive tune, no matter what the haters say.
Enjoy. And make sure you thank Emeel on Twitter: @e_salem.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9iJKKXldVc&
Piano-sized props out to Rays Index. And Emeel. Definitely Emeel.
