Ryan Braun...wait, what? And other thoughts

Since it was announced earlier this week, I found myself thinking a lot about the NL MVP award. This was, after all, the last trophy (as it were) given out and not an insignificant one either. However, after I did that, I found myself rather distracted by this man.

This man happens to be Josh Homme, frontman for Queens Of The Stone Age. And as much as I love baseball, if there ever were a man to distract me from it, he's a damn good one. His band is pretty good too. As I was saying...

Apparently, I'm one of the few who thought the NL MVP Award should have gone to Matt Kemp, when, in fact, Ryan Braun did. I find myself obviously conflicted - Matt Kemp is a Dodger, after all. Nonetheless, with the kind of year that Kemp had, the choice was obvious. At least to me. When baseball insiders voiced their reactions to Ryan Braun being the recipient of said award, their main argument perplexed me. The logic seemed simple enough, and yet, completely unfair: Braun played for the Brewers and was one of the main reasons that Milwaukee won their first division title since 1982 (my birth year, in fact!). Kemp, on the other hand, played for the third-place NL West Dodgers and thus his contributions were less valued. 

Now, I'm not stupid enough to argue that Kemp's numbers were better or that Braun somehow didn't deserve to win the award. On many levels, he did. However, to base that argument largely on which team a player was on is at least somewhat absurd. If Matt Kemp had played in front of Prince Fielder, his contributions probably would have been more valued too. Any person's would have. Matt Kemp did not have that advantage, although when Andre Ethier was healthy that must have been nice. I admit, this argument is not dissimilar to, in particular, the kind of teams a pitcher faces when being considered in award contention. But I'm going to go ahead and make the same case for Matt Kemp that I did for Jacoby Ellsbury: both players had amazing seasons while playing for less-than-amazing teams. They both stood out in their respective leagues and divisions. 

As far as voting went, Kemp was not the only NL West player in the MVP award race; Justin Upton was as well. I'm not sure you can exactly compare these two players, but Upton was the main reason that the Diamondbacks had one of the highest home run averages in the NL, and the top five in all of baseball. I take some comfort in knowing that Kemp is more than capable of winning the NL MVP award someday. Anyhow. As Ryan Braun himself pointed out, Kemp had one of the best seasons in Dodger history this year. There is also my own personal preference to consider. Was Kemp the more attractive of the two? No. For me, cuteness almost always counts. This particular situation, however, is an exception. Matt Kemp was the NL MVP, hands down. And that is that.

Okay, so I won't lie and say that I paid a lot of attention to the recent baseball CBA (collective bargaining agreement) discussions that took place. I can say, however, that one of the good things mentioned was the usage of instant replay. Not only do I agree on the usage of instant replay, but it's particular necessity on foul lines. The very fine (almost invisible) line between a foul ball and a home run is one of the most interesting, if not frustrating, components of the sport. For the sake of argument, it's a life-or-death situation for hitters. In terms of outcome, there's no gray area - it's either a home run or it isn't. And its consequences can be deeply felt by all involved. So bravo for that potential investigation. 

My only "nay" from the CBA discussions was the idea of expanding the playoffs to include more teams. The addition of a wild card team from each league was a great thing, and the stats tell it all - many World Series winning teams have been wild card teams. On the flip side though, what will expanding the playoffs mean, exactly? Does that mean making it into the playoffs will somehow be less special? It's unfortunate, but I think that would be the case. After playing more than 120 games during the regular season, the few teams that make it beyond that should be select, at the very least.

While I've been on the subject of cuteness, it seems that one of my favorites pitchers, Huston Street, is gaining interest from quite a few teams this off-season, including the Red Sox and the Reds. I was lucky enough to see him in a game as the closer for the A's early in his career and I have to say, regardless of where he ends up, I just hope I'll be seeing plenty of him in 2012. And that perhaps his ERA is a bit lower next year, too.

One quick note on the Giants: it seems that they are interested in Jerry Hairston Jr., which I find a bit mystifying. That's not to say I'm against the Giants acquiring a utility player, but do they need a utility infielder in particular? They have Aubrey Huff (for only one more season, hopefully) and Brett Pill at first base, Buster Posey as catcher (theoretically) and Pablo Sandoval at third base. Perhaps their interest implies shaking confidence in Sandoval's ability to stay in shape next season? I can only hope not

Jacoby Ellsbury, Craig Finn and Roy Halladay, oh my!

I feel like I can go on quite a rant about Justin Verlander winning the AL MVP award today, but I have other items to discuss after said rant. So, am I surprised that Verlander won the AL MVP award? No, not really. I think that what upsets me more is not so much that Verlander won it, but that Jacoby Ellsbury did not. I'm not going to dispute Verlander's stellar season and his numbers. We all know what those are. But can we talk about Ellsbury's numbers for a minute? 321 average, 32 home runs, 119 runs, 105 RBIs. Is it seeming at least a bit more ridiculous that he didn't win now? I also think that the team you play for has to be considered. The same reason I'm upset about Ellsbury not winning the AL MVP award is the same reason I'm upset that Pablo Sandoval didn't win the Gold Glove award for third baseman.

I know it seems stupid that I would ever compare the Red Sox with the Giants, but I have my reasons. At the same time that the Tigers were running away with their division (which was for a pretty long time), the Red Sox were anything but consistent. And with the Giants' collapse in their division at the end of the regular season, maybe it's not on the same level as the Red Sox, but there are some similarities. My point being this: the pressure of doing well on a team that, by and large, is not is pretty major, if not intense. Ellsbury came through for the Red Sox, and in the end, he was one of the few bright spots on that team. Pablo Sandoval was the same way for the Giants. He had a fantastic year amid some major disappointments and stumbling blocks. Players like that simply stand out. How many games did Verlander pitch this season? Not even 40 games in a season that has over 120. So, he doesn't play half the season and wins the AL MVP award. Wait, what? Here's the thing: instead of putting down Verlander, I simply want to point out how overlooked Ellsbury was this season and how much more sense his winning the AL MVP award would have made. Anyhow. Onto other matters...

Now, I'm not a person who believes in jinxing a person, or that jinxing even exists, but have I just jinxed poor Joe Nathan? Not even a week after posting his picture in this blog, he signs with the Rangers. Say it ain't so, Joe! It also gives me the perfect opportunity to mention one of my favorite musicians, who is probably as miffed as I am about it.

Oh yes, I went there. I had to mention Craig Finn (of the Hold Steady, for those woefully unfamiliar), perhaps one of music's biggest Twins fans. When you talk about the Twins being in the playoffs for a full paragraph in your band's liner notes, obviously you are a fan. And he doesn't just talk about loving the Twins. He's practically the Twins' musical endorser (as indicated in the picture), wearing Twins gear whenever he has the chance. I also have to love a guy who is quoted as saying that going to baseball games alone is one of life's great pleasures. Additionally I discovered, via Twitter, that he is following the Twitter accounts of potentially every player for the Twins that tweets. This is obviously a guy I could talk to, and about more than our mutual love of The Replacements and Pavement. But I digress. Joe Nathan becoming a Ranger just saddens and disappoints me. And that's that. Although, if I can figure out a way to mention Craig Finn again, I definitely will. Any excuse is a good one to me! *swoons* Moving along...

Watching MLB Network as religiously as I do, I found the topic of Clayton Kershaw beating Roy Halladay for the NL Cy Young award an interesting one. One of my favorite shows on MLB Network is Clubhouse Confidential, which is all about baseball statistics. Now normally, I hate statistics. It involves math, so it is usually evil to me. However, I am pretty fascinated by baseball statistics. According to the statistical experts on this show, Roy Halladay should have won the Cy Young over Clayton Kershaw. One of the categories they mentioned, however, had little to do (I think) with statistics themselves: the schedule that a pitcher has, including the opposing pitchers he faces and how many times he's faced certain teams.

What this show pointed out was, if you simply compare Halladay and Kershaw's schedules, it is pretty obvious that Halladay has faced tougher opposing pitchers and tougher teams overall. Also, Halladay has pitched more innings than Kershaw and several complete games (which for an NL pitcher is impressive). On the flip side, both pitchers have similar stats when it comes to ERA, WHIP and strikeouts. Both Kershaw and Halladay were almost unbeatable at home this season. As much as I think Kershaw deserved it (Halladay has already won it anyway), I can't say that it wasn't a close call this year.   Then again, despite Tim Lincecum's somewhat-off year, he remained in the top 4 in strikeouts among NL pitchers all season. Like a lot of things, it's a double-edged sword, for sure. But wow. This is longer than I thought I could go on about guys who pitch for the Dodgers and the Phillies! What does that say about me? No, wait. I won't answer that.

However, I will say, the best thing about having a baseball blog is that I can say my constant watching of MLB Network is "research". What could be better than that?

Various snippets, courtesy of MLB Trade Rumors

A few odds and ends:

- While I already don't like the Phillies, at this point, they're just getting greedy. By the end of the year, they could acquire Michael Cuddyer, in addition to already signing Jim Thome and Jonathan Papelbon. What did the Twins do to Philly? Papelbon is the only one that makes sense to me, since the Phillies really do need a decent closer, but the other two? Yes, Thome is technically coming back to his old team, but he's not getting any younger and it's not a team where he could be the DH. Does not compute!

- The speculation on whether or not Tim Lincecum will be with the Giants next year is not only silly, it's unnecessary. The World Series hasn't even been over for a month and the bay area is in a tizzy over this! And now they have moved on to whether or not Matt Cain will re-sign with the Giants next year. Considering how long both pitchers have been with the team, it seems unlikely that SF will lose either of them, let alone both. Enough already!

- With Mike Matheny having been made the new manager of the Cardinals, it looks like I have to be a full-fledged Cardinals fan now. I think he has a better shot at managing the team than some people do. Plus, he's obviously the cutest manager in baseball now!

- Why is everyone grabbing at a chance to get C.J. Wilson when he was winless in the entire postseason? Sure, postseason play isn't everything, but to lose each start from the ALDS to the World Series is something worth noting. The fact that insiders are projecting he will earn the same amount as Matt Kemp is short of insane!

- Can someone explain to me why Clayton Kershaw still only makes $500,000, but Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee got at least $50,000 extra each for coming in second and third in the NY Cy Young race? I'm baffled, to say the least.

- Even though SF don't need him in their rotation (assuming Brian Wilson stays healthy), having Joe Nathan back as closer would sure be awesome. I really miss him! Come back Joe, come back!

- Another inexplicable recently-made decision: why are the Astros moving to the AL in 2013? The reasoning seems to be that it adds one more team to the AL West, but really? I'd like a better reason than that. And having two Texas teams going against each other in the same league and the same division can come to no good. Does that mean that the Astros will suddenly be good again? I think it will take more than a move from one league to the other, especially since they no longer have Hunter Pence or Michael Bourn. Their recent glory days ended when Lance Berkman was no longer an Astro. Those were the days.

And I realized that I'm as addicted to mlbtraderumors.com as some people are to tabloids!

Congrats, award edition...

A quick re-cap of the recent awards given out every off-season. I would like to give a few congrats and "I figured that"s. First off, I figured that Craig Kimbrel would win the NL Rookie of the Year Award. A record 46 saves in your first season will make that more than likely, and since he's one of the main reasons the Braves were in contention in September at all, that's a fairly obvious pick. So congrats to Mr. Kimbrel. Plus, he's pretty cute, so it's a bonus for me! 

Moving on...

Now, I admit to not really knowing much about Jeremy Hellickson. Why? Because the only rookie pitcher on the Rays that I paid attention to was Matt Moore. But congrats nonetheless. Having an ERA under 3.00 and 13 wins would indicate that that was once again a deserved choice.

When everyone first started talking about their predictions for NL Manager of the Year awhile back, I just assumed it would be Kirk Gibson. And what do you know? I was right! I can't say I'm a big Kirk Gibson fan, mainly because of his legendary association with the Dodgers, but he obviously did a lot of things right to pull off a "worst to first" with the Diamondbacks in the NL West. Being a Giants fan, I'm not too into the Diamondbacks, but they had one of the highest HR averages in the NL and a solid pitching rotation. So he gets a hesitant congrats from me.

I would say that Joe Maddon winning AL Manager of the Year was similarly unsurprising, and that the Rays had something in common with the Diamondbacks playoff-wise. Unfortunately, much like the multiple times the Twins have faced the Yankees in the ALDS, it was not to be for the Rays once again. And I'm sad to say that I missed that amazing final day of the season game they had, and the one ALDS game they managed to win against the Rangers. Apparently Matt Moore put on a hell of a performance. So another deserved congrats to Mr. Maddon.

The NL CY Young award winner was yet another "I figured that". Despite being a Dodger (again, I'm conflicted), Clayton Kershaw had such an amazing year and his numbers don't lie. The idea that anyone in the NL could catch him was kind of silly, especially given how the voting turned out. Is it wrong to say that when Roy Halladay and Cliff Lee came in behind Kershaw? Well, not to me. And I must say that I like his humility when compared with Dodger legend Sandy Koufax. Let's just hope Kershaw's career turns out better than the last Dodger to win the Cy Young, Eric Gagne. We can only hope.

My final sort-of congrats and definite "I figured that" is of course, Justin Verlander winning the AL Cy Young. Most of us probably knew this back in August, or maybe earlier. As I recall, the Tigers were running away with their division lead for quite some time before September came around. Do I think Verlander deserved it? Sure. He had an amazing year, one that had not been duplicated for at least a decade. However, my sort-of congrats comes from his apparent ego, especially when it comes to his chances of winning the AL MVP award.

Usually thinking that you are "different than everyone else" is something you might want to keep to yourself. Or at least I would. But to each his own. Humility is obviously not one of Verlander's strong suits and to rob players like Granderson, Cano and Ellsbury of the MVP award would be something short of criminal. We'll just have to see how it plays out.

And so it begins...

So, I've been sitting on the idea of having a baseball blog for awhile now, but never managed to actually get one started. Apparently, my brother, having realized that 80% of my Facebook posts were baseball-related, suggested that any girl who writes about Michael Cuddyer should have their own blog exclusively about baseball. This makes sense, given that a good 75% of 29-year-old girls in this world outside of Minnesota don't know who Michael Cuddyer is. And why would they? But I digress.

I started out innocently enough as a born and raised Giants fan. Throughout the years, however, my obsession has become about baseball in general. The level of importance some people put on watching, say, every episode of "Dexter" or "Glee" is the same level of importance I put on watching every episode of MLB Tonight. I read baseball box scores in the paper/online and MLB Trade Rumors on Twitter religiously. Because baseball season runs from April to October, generally the months in between are sad ones for me, hence why I decided to start this blog in November. Instead of feeling depressed and restless during the baseball off-season, I thought, why not do something about it? I seem to have enough to rant and rave about during the off-season as I do during baseball season, so why not?

So here we are. Long story short, because I'm a Giants fan, I'm generally a National League fan. However, I have an inexplicable hatred toward the Phillies (though for a Giants fan, not quite so inexplicable right now) and, of course, the Dodgers. And, once again, quite possibly because of being a Giants fan, I also hate the Rangers. And the Yankees, for the most part, though I have conflicts with that because I really like Mark Teixeira and Nick Swisher. It is what it is. The Giants are the only team I follow obsessively, but I do have love for individual players on other teams, again, for mostly baffling reasons: Lance Berkman, Josh Beckett, Huston Street, Justin Morneau, Dan Haren, Joe Nathan, Joe Mauer and Brian McCann, to name just a few. I seem to have a thing for pitchers, for reasons that escape me. My favorite Giants players (currently) are Brandon Crawford, Matt Cain, Pablo Sandoval, Javier Lopez and Madison Bumgardner.

This is probably all one needs to know about me. For now.