Free At Last?
ShysterBall —
Rob Neyer just announced in his chat that his blog is now free. Clicking over, it does appear to be devoid of any Insider paraphernalia and accessories. There's a chance it's just like the magazine, though, and once you go Insider you can't go back (I can't find a "logout" button). Can any non-insider click to Rob's blog and confirm this for the rest of the class?
Pujols MVP
umpbump.com —
... believe that, then you’ve obviously never experienced a Ryan Howard strikeout. It’s majestic. It’s why you might not make that swap for Pujols, even if you could. Because as good as those baseball scientists have become in statistical analysis, they can’t measure presence, not yet anyway. They can only feel it, just like you and me. Sports fans, I don’t know about you, but all I feel is fortunate — fortunate that Donnelly isn’t in charge of my favorite baseball team. Because, as Rob Neyer pointed out recently, “Pujols destroyed Howard in baseball’s two more important ...
Dempster Signing Reactions
MLB Rumors - MLBTradeRumors.com —
... ESPN's Rob Neyer (whose blog is now free) says, "Dempster gave up only 14 home runs in 2008. I don't believe that number is sustainable." ...
Todd Jones and Rob Neyer: Best Friends Forever (BFF)
The Spot Starters —
... Glanville column than from all the Todd Jones columns I’ve read.
Not that they haven’t been interesting. But if Jones’ next job isn’t interesting, I doubt his columns will be. In the end, I suspect his legacy will be all about his pitching. And he was a pretty good pitcher for a long time.
Apparently Todd took exception to some of Neyer’s comments and tracked him down. This is from Rob Neyer’s blog today:
Finally, you might recall that I recently wrote something snarky about ...
Here's How Rumors Get Started
Bleed Cubbie Blue —
... Let me preface this by saying that I met Rob Neyer last year at BlogWorldExpo, have enjoyed all his books, and generally think he's a knowledgeable baseball writer. On his blog today, there's this almost throwaway paragraph: ...
Rob Neyer touts wOBA
THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball —
Here is the blog entry:
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?name=neyer_rob
For a change, there are some good comments/suggestions about the merits and demerits of wOBA and whether it will or should be “mainstream.” I say “for a change” only because unfortunately (given the good quality of the articles) the quality of the comments/discussion on Rob’s blog is generally poor. I guess that is because ESPN.com is a “mainstream” site and tends not to get the ‘serious’ sabermetrically-oriented fan. ...
wOBA wOBA wOBA wOBA Woo Woo Woo
Basement Dwellers —
I've watched a lot of Sesame Street with my daughter. She's now moving on to Dora (who I wholeheartedly endorse), but I think Elmo will always be her first love. As a result, Sesame Street has influenced a lot of the language we've used around the house these first few years. As it turns out, Sesame Street has also influenced how we talk about baseball. From Tango, in a response to a comment on Rob Neyer's blog: wOBA, huh? Every time I see this stat, or even think about it, I will always think of this: ...
Neyer doesn't get it
Royally Speaking —
Rob Neyer, aka disgruntled former Royals fan, is still bashing the Meche signing. He is like a jilted boyfriend who continually takes cheap shots at his ex just to make himself feel better. Neyer is a brilliant writer with a keen baseball mind but when it comes to the Royals he loses all objectivity. ...
A.J. joins CC; 5 Years, $82.5M
The Sommer Frieze —
... Rob Neyer isn’t thrilled with Ibanez to the Phils. He blasts Ibanez’ defense in LF. But then, the Phils should be used to what Neyer is saying. Poor defensive LFs? Ibanez would just be following a tradition in Burrell and Luzinski. ...
Rob Neyer: Numbers tell outfielders’ stories
BBTF's Baseball Primer Newsblog —
Rob Neyer: Numbers tell outfielders’ stories In the same vein, I would like to submit for your approval (or not) four free-agent outfielders, along with their 2008 salaries, and their Ultimate Zone Ratings (per 150 games and averaged over the last three seasons): Manny Ramirez $20M -19 Bobby Abreu $16M -15 Pat Burrell $14M -14 Adam Dunn $13M -14 Atop those scary numbers, you’ve got the positional adjustments. For corner outfielders, it’s -7.5 runs. So now Burrell and Dunn are more than 20 runs in the hole before they even get a chance to run (ugh) or hit (yea!). Sure, ...
Rob Neyer: Explaining some new math
BBTF's Baseball Primer Newsblog —
Rob Neyer: Explaining some new math As you know, I’ve been wrestling with this notion of positional adjustments, which on Thursday led to the following e-mail exchange with FanGraphs’ Eric Seidman … Eric: Rob, I thought I would try to see if I could clarify the adjustments for you. Basically, it is all due to defense. Tom Tango likes to refer to the adjustments as “Runs Over Willie” (in honor of Willie Bloomquist, who can play everywhere). Essentially, the idea is that if you took Willie Bloomquist and put him anywhere on the field, what would an average fielder produce, ...
Meanwhile, the Brewers' GM isn't real happy, either, but his beef is with the system used to...
Beyond the Box Score —
... Can anyone make an argument as to why the Elias rankings are still implemented?
Rickey Henderson no será electo unánimamente
Planeta Béisbol —
Bueno, señoras y señores, Rickey Henderson no será el primer candidato electo con el 100% de los votos para el Salón de la Fama en la historia del beisbol.
Es dificil de creer, lo sé, sobre todo viendo la lista de nominados de la actual edición, Rickey la verdad que descata sobre ellos.
No obstante, leyendo el blog de Rob Neyer nos enteramos de que uno de los electores, Corky Simpson del Green Valley News and Sun, no votó por el mejor ladrón de bases de todos los tiempos.
Una de las razones de Simpson de no votar por Henderson fue que ...
Ryan Howard Seeks $18 Million in Arbitration
Bucs Dugout —
Holy wow. The Phillies have offered $14 million, and Howard wants $18 million.
A little Player A / Player B: ...
An Interview With Rob Neyer
DRaysBay —
... We'd like to thank Rob for taking time out of his busy schedule and responding to our questions. You can read his daily thoughts on his ESPN blog, and peruse (and purchase!) his books ...
ACCESS DENIED
WCBias | West Coast Bias Sports Blog | West Coast Sports News by West Coast Sports Fans, Covering Los Angeles Lakers, Dodgers and All Things West Coast —
... even going online at work. First thing every morning, cut and paste every single blog update into MS Word and email to yourself with a deliciously deceptive title like “Tuesday Sales Leads” or something horrific like that. I’ve been doing this for the past twelve months with great success. I set my alarm about 5 minutes earlier than I normally would and immediately cut/paste between 25-35 pages of text…everything from Buster Olney to Rob Neyer to the NBA Daily Dime—and don’t forget the ESPN chat transcripts, those are a ...
My dirty dozen favorite baseball websites
THE BOOK--Playing The Percentages In Baseball —
http://www.insidethebook.com/ee/ (for the reader comments)
http://www.hardballtimes.com/
http://www.fangraphs.com/
http://joeposnanski.com/JoeBlog/
http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?name=neyer_rob
http://sabermetricresearch.blogspot.com/
http://lanaheimangelfan.blogspot.com/
http://walksaber.blogspot.com/
http://statspeak.net/
http://ussmariner.com/
http://sbnation.com/
http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/files/newsstand/ ...
About This 'What to do with Jeter in 2011?' Thing
Sliding Into Home: A Yankees Blog —
... on the doorstep of 3,000 hits, a total never reached by a Yankee. And, really, do we need complications? He is Derek Freaking Jeter. He is the very definition of Yankee. How do you explain being tied to Alex Rodriguez for 10 years, but cutting relationships with Jeter? But how do you decide to make this a popularity contest rather than a baseball team? How do you decide to ignore all the obvious data that screams be heartless, even with Jeter? Rob Neyer added this: Derek Jeter can't play shortstop in 2011. Not for the Yankees, ...
One More Time
1835 Miles Away —
... This point was also raised by Rob Neyer in his blog today. Because the writers grew up idolizing the players taking amphetamines or doctoring baseballs, they get a free pass? Barry Bonds fails an amphetamines test and he is the devil, but the fact that baseball legends have been doing it for decades is just fine. How dare this current crop of players cheat to break the records of the previous crop of cheaters! ...
Nothing to Click Here
Major League Jerk —
... send them here.
I’m not sure what to make of this new animated Weekend Update-ish feature. Sports Talk Weekly
2009 Fantasy Position Preview: 2nd Base. Sharapova’s Thigh
Analyzing the Rays hitting tendencies in April. DRays Bay
Position battles in the AL West. Walk off Walk
The guy behind baseball-reference.com is about to get paid for his efforts. Good for him. Sports Business Journal via Rob Neyer
The Steelers are cheating fraud bastards. Maybe. Sports ...
How About Some Links?
The Spot Starters —
... Ian of Bless You Boys is going corporate. I kid, I kid.
Rogo does the sort of thing I wish I had the time for right now and breaks down some fun numbers about the Tigers. A good read at DesigNate Robertson.
John Lowe of the Free Press notes that Nate Robertson is in shape and is ready to compete for that final spot in the rotation.
The Detroit News reports something new and different: Gary Sheffield is hurt!
Rob Neyer weighs on why Pudge Rodriguez cannot find a team to sign him. Here’s a taste: ...
Friday’s Sports Biz Links: Maury Goes “Traditional Blogger”, Dodgers Get Testy with Boras, More
Sports Bash —
First off, before I get started, this post marks a bit of a change in how I’ve been reporting in the past. As most know, I run the Business of Sports Network, and with that, the vast majority of articles we run are of the analysis or column variety. To that end, traditional blogging has never been part of the dynamic — the aggregating of story links across the web to a particular topic. Today, I figure I’d join in the fun and shift my personal blog over to this format. Hey, if Rob Neyer can do it (hey, Rob, nice new mugshot), so can I! So, without further ado…
To start with, the ...
Ramiro O Angel
Fack Youk —
... I'm guessing that the Yanks will go with Berroa. If they really believe that Pena is the shortstop of the future, then I don't think sitting him on the major league bench and only allowing him to play a couple of innings every couple of games would be the best way to continue his development. Let Berroa take the spot, and if he falters, Pena will be waiting in the wings. ...
