Sabathia, Lee, Burnett, Pettitte, Hughes?

CC Sabathia, Cliff Lee, A.J. Burnett, Andy Pettitte, Phil Hughes. What would you say if I told you that was the starting rotation of a Major League Baseball team? You would probably say that they would inevitably be in the World Series, and it would be nearly impossible to beat them. Oh, you can also add […]

Time To Stop Sucking Up To Burnett

If it were ever more evident that AJ Burnett’s big, long-term contract was dictating the decisions made by the Yankees front office, it is right now. After the Yankees cruised through the American League Division series with just three starters, the Yankees announced Monday morning that they will use a fourth starter in the American […]

Burnett Does Not Fit on Yanks ALDS Roster

With the postseason set to begin on Wednesday, the Yankees announced their roster for the American League Division series against the Twins. As expected, AJ Burnett is on the roster––although he is not in the starting rotation––while Ivan Nova and Javier Vazquez has been left out. Now, it would seem to be a ridiculous decision to […]

Breaking Down The MVP Candidates

While the Cy Young debate in the American League is getting a lot of attention, the Most Valuable Player award is not. Although it is discussed occasionally, people are not giving it the attention that it deserves. The front-runner(s) at this point are Robinson Cano, Miguel Cabrera, and Josh Hamilton. All have had incredible seasons, but […]

Yankees Should Avoid Using Burnett in the Postseason

Since 1920, 391 Yankees pitchers have had a seasonal ERA of at least 5.30. Of all those pitchers, no pitcher has been allowed to pitch as many innings as A.J. Burnett. Why? Because Burnett is on a five-year deal, and he is making $16.5 million this season. Essentially, he is here to stay and the […]

2010 Season Presents Puzzling Mathematical Results

If you can understand correlations, you can begin to understand something essential to success in baseball. Why? Because correlations show how one variable affects another variable. For example, we can see how strikeouts influence runs scored, and we would find that there is no notable correlation (actually true). The dictionary describes a correlation as a […]

Yankees Need a Back-Up in Ivan Nova

As the New York Yankees thrust towards the playoffs, with a magic number of three as of this writing, some postseason roster decisions still loom––large. At this point, the concern for the Yankees is their pitching. Yes, CC Sabathia, Phil Hughes, and most of the bullpen will be fine. But beyond that (the other two starters) the Yankees have […]

CC Sabathia Does Not Deserve Cy Young

The 2010 Cy Young conversation had been a fascinating debate. It had raised questions about how to determine if a pitcher is successful, and the value of certain statistics. But, unlike other years, the 2010 debate has recently become quite a silly argument as the season comes to a close. The main discussion has been between CC […]

Say Yes To Instant Replay

If there were ever a climax for the instant replay debate in baseball, it came on the night of September 15, 2010, when Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter pulled a “Tom Cruise” when batting in the top of the seventh inning. With one out, and the Yankees down a run, Jeter squared to bunt on the […]

Yankees: Why Losses Today May Mean Wins Tomorrow

Yankee fans were unhappy—to say the least—on Monday night, when the Yankees surrendered first place to the Rays for the first time since August 3. Tuesday night, the Yankees got first place back, and breathed a sigh of relief. Amidst all that anger came an interesting thought: what if, by some chance, the Yankees didn’t win […]

Derek Jeter: The Curious Downfall

When you glance at Derek Jeter’s .261 batting average in 2010, the first thing you ask yourself is: do I need glasses. Why? Because, barring an extremely unprecedented surge, Jeter is on pace to hit below .300 since 2002. More concerning, it will be his lowest batting average since 1995, his first season, when he […]

Joe Girardi’s Crucial Mathematical Error Costs Yankees Game

Picture this: a game lasts over four hours, uses 41 players, features 374 pitches, has two blown saves, and ends in a walk-off hit by pitch — by Mariano Rivera. Welcome to Yankees-Rangers, September 11 (and part of 12), 2010 It was a peculiar game to say the least, and it was no surprise that such […]

Why Is A.J. Burnett So Inconsistent?

To say the least, 2010 has been a season of inconsistency for A.J. Burnett. After his first start of the season, his ERA was 5.40. By his sixth start, it was 1.99. 10 starts later, it was 5.25. Now, after his 27th start, his ERA stands at 5.15, and unless he can bring that down […]

Is Robinson Cano Less Aggressive This Season?

Robinson Cano’s career has been a battle of improvement. And, for the most part, it has been extremely positive. After nearly winning the batting title in 2006, and hitting .306 in 2007, things looked pretty good for Cano. But, once he hit .271 in 2008, the Yankees needed an answer. The answer was Cano’s aggressiveness. […]

Stephen Strasburg: It Was Bound To Happen

Almost three months ago, Nationals Stadium was filled for the first time in it’s existence. Not because the Nationals were playing well, but because the most sought after prospect in baseball, Stephen Strasburg, was set to make his debut. The day was June 8, 2010. The opposing team was the Pittsburg Pirates. If the uniforms […]

A-OK without A-Rod? Not quite.

The Yankees placed Alex Rodriguez on the 15-day disabled list Saturday. The move is looked at as a precautionary one; the Yankees want to make sure that the injury does not turn into a bigger problem as we approach the playoffs. With a win on Saturday, the Yankees improved to 11-0 when Alex Rodriguez is not […]

If the Granderson trade never happened…

As CC Sabathia and the Yankees beat up on Justin Verlander and the Tigers Tuesday night, a very interesting battle occurred within the war. Austin Jackson, an outfielder who was developed in the Yankee system, hit a home run on the first pitch thrown by the Yankees ace CC Sabathia. The inning later, Curtis Granderson, […]

The Yankees’ future is grid-locked

Remember a couple of months ago when Stephen Strasburg was ready to advance to the majors? The anticipation was as high as ever before: Nationals Stadium was sold out within hours of the announced date of his debut. It seemed as though the world of the Washington Nationals was waiting for the future to thrust […]

Never count out the Red Sox

Here is the lineup the Red Sox used on Wednesday: Ellsbury CF, Scutaro SS, Ortiz DH, Martinez C, Drew RF, Beltre 3B, Lowell 1B, Kalish LF, Hall 2B If that lineup seems a little bit out of the ordinary, you are right. However, abnormal batting orders have not been out of the ordinary for the […]

610 is the new 600

After about 50 chances at home run number 600, Alex Rodriguez finally became the seventh player in history to hit 600 career home runs. The fans went wild, the anticipation is over, and the history is made. Yay! But here is my question: what is so special about 600? Why does all the excitement come […]

Pressing Matter: A-Rod’s pursuit of 600

Watching Alex Rodriguez swing for his 600th home run has been a frustrating experience. “Strikeout, groundout, popout” seems to appear in the box score every night. As he approaches plate appearance number 50 since home run number 599, it has become more and more evident that A-Rod is pressing. Here are four of Alex’s five […]

The story of Joba Chamberlain: Frustration, frustration and more frustration

Believe it or not, Yankee fans can be frustrated too. Hard to believe considering they have won 27 championships and are in the playoff race year in and year out. But occasionally, Yankee fans find something to complain about, something to criticize. And once you get Yankee fans going, there is no stopping them. This […]

Can Dan Haren be the game-changer the Angels need?

The Angels swooped in to acquire one of MLB’s best in Dan Haren. Seamheads writer Jess K. Coleman wonders if he can he the season-changer that the Angels need.

Dunn can be a big difference maker

What would you say if I told you that your team has just acquired Adam Dunn? You would probably sigh and say something like, “we better prepare ourselves for a lot of strikeouts,” or “another classic hit or miss player.” While those two things may be very true, Adam Dunn can be a very valuable […]

Player survey: Who is the most overrated player in baseball?

187 Major League players were surveyed to answer the question: who is the most overrated player in baseball? Keep in mind that when determining whether a player is overrated or not, evaluation is not the sole factor; public opinion also needs to be weighed in. As determined by the players, here are the top five […]

2010 midseason awards

MVP: Robinson Cano It’s hard to deny Cano’s talent the most valuable player award for the first half. Despite his numbers — his batting average is fifth in all of baseball — Cano has been the center piece of a Yankee team that holds the best record in baseball. With Alex Rodriguez, Mark Teixeira and […]

Steinbrenner’s legacy: Winning and entertainment

George Steinbrenner passed away today at the age of 80. Although he hasn’t been running the Yankees for some time now, his legacy will always be remembered. From 1973-2010, Steinbrenner created and maintained the most successful franchise in sports, and it was never done without some entertainment. In the 37 years under Steinbrenner, the Yankees […]

Renteria, Beltre also have shot at Hall

After exploring Johnny Damon and his chances at making the Hall of Fame, I thought it would be interesting to find out if any other players have a chance at accomplishing the ultimate baseball goal. Surprisingly, there are many players that appear on the same lists as sure Hall of Famers such as Derek Jeter […]

Johnny Damon is going to the Hall of Fame

On Tuesday, Johnny Damon recorded the 2,500th hit of his career. To many peoples surprise, it became evident that Johnny Damon, when it is all said and done, will have Hall of Fame numbers. If Damon matches his first half numbers in the second half, the 36 year old will end his 16th season with […]

Beware the Derby

The participants have been announced for the 2010 Home Run Derby. Among the participants are Miguel Cabrera of the Tigers and Robinson Cano of the Yankees. The Tigers and Yankees are both wrapped up in tight races in their respective divisions, and these two players are significant, essential pieces to their teams. Other participants include […]

The year of fear. Not pitchers.

Take a moment right now to look back on the 2010 baseball season so far. About half a season has gone by, and the excitement has been inspiring. But, to be fair, every season has it’s share of excitement. However, in 2010, the accomplishments have an interesting twist. Consider the following list of some accomplishments […]

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