May 21, 2025

Top Stories

Promise Unfulfilled…But Why?

April 27, 2025 · by · Leave a Comment 

Some seamheads check the TRANSACTIONS web sites on a regular basis. Me, I check Baseball Almanac, not for transactions, but for obituaries. When a Hall of Famer (e.g, Rickey Henderson) dies, it makes the news. Lesser players receive less airtime or column space. Sometimes much less. Yet Baseball Almanac dutifully records the death of anyone who ever played big league ball, even if his cup of coffee was a demitasse. In scanning the list of former players who have been permanently designated for assignment, one often finds the name of a player one hasn’t thought of in years, perhaps decades. Such... [Read the full story]

General

Computer Baseball Sims – Conducting a Solo Draft

May 1, 2025 · by · 1 Comment 

I recently posted a number of tutorial videos on my HardballRetro YouTube channel offering a step-by-step walkthrough for conducting a draft using various computer baseball simulations. You can view the playlist here or click on the individual links to access the videos. I usually break them into two parts: the first video discusses how to create a new league, unaffiliate all of the players (make them all free agents), configure the draft options, and conduct the draft. In the subsequent video(s), I review the draft results and briefly check each team’s roster, simulate a season, and check... [Read the full story]

Features

Gold Glove, Golden Memories: So long, Brooks

September 27, 2023 · by · Leave a Comment 

I have dreaded this day since I was old enough to truly appreciate the perspective that mortality brings. I just heard that Brooks Robinson has died. It must be true because something is gone inside of me. Maybe the last vestiges of childhood innocence that have hung around for these 66 years. Maybe the ultimate rejection of that fantasy that somehow Life will go back to the way it was, and once again we’ll be in the early morning of our hopes and dreams. Yes, this baseball player meant that much to a generation of Baltimoreans; a ballplayer about whom as Gordon Beard, a former AP sports writer... [Read the full story]

Hall of Fame

WAR and Win Shares and Charlie Blackmon

March 23, 2019 · by · 1 Comment 

It appears that WAR, in attempting to assign a single number to represent a player’s season, has a problem with fielding.   And the problem is not so much with the player’s defensive WAR score – but rather with trying to COMBINE this score with the offensive WAR.   A very good or very poor fielding score appears to seriously distort the player’s total WAR score. As an example, Matt Chapman had a great fielding season at third base in 2018 and his situation illustrates quite well why WAR does a relatively good job of evaluating his offensive value (oWAR) and his defensive value (dWAR)... [Read the full story]

Minors

Principal Park: Despite City’s Size, Ballpark Has Big Impact

June 30, 2018 · by · Leave a Comment 

Minor league baseball a Des Moines, Iowa, staple at same location since 1947 Submitted by Steve Dunn Located at the confluence of the Des Moines and Raccoon rivers in Des Moines, Iowa, Principal Park and its two predecessors have hosted professional baseball since Friday, June 20, 1947. One of the more unique games in minor league history was played nearly 61 years later at Principal Park on Saturday, June 14, 2008. With widespread flooding in central Iowa, the Iowa Cubs and Nashville Sounds played a Triple A Pacific Coast League game that drew an official attendance of zero. “The only other... [Read the full story]

General

Computer Baseball Sims – Conducting a Solo Draft

May 1, 2025 by

I recently posted a number of tutorial videos on my HardballRetro YouTube channel offering a step-by-step walkthrough for conducting a draft using various computer baseball simulations. You can view the playlist here or click on the individual links to access the videos. I usually break them into two parts: the first video discusses how to create a... Read more of this article

Minor League Ball; Major League Brawl

March 1, 2025 by

Two-team MLB markets have built-in rivalries. Even before inter-league play, the Yankees were, in a sense, competing against the Mets, and before 1958, against the Dodgers and the Giants, though the Yanks never played them in a regular season game. The same had been true for the Cubs and the White Sox since 1901, as well as other cities (Philadelphia,... Read more of this article

Tommy Lasorda: Magnifique Moundsman Of Montreal

January 18, 2025 by

There is not much one can say or write about Tommy Lasorda that hasn’t already been said or written…raconteur, comedian, linguini lover, show biz schmoozer, coach, manager, goodwill ambassador for baseball…and the game’s greatest bullshit artist, though I don’t believe Sabermetrics has advanced to the point where any statistics can be adduced... Read more of this article

Do You Feel Lucky?

October 12, 2024 by

In 1995 Nicolas Cage won a Best Actor Oscar for his portrayal of a man committing incremental suicide by alcohol in Leaving Las Vegas. Today a more appropriate remake might be titled Leaving Oakland, which is lacking in alliteration but an accurate description of the professional sports scene in the East Bay. Unlike Nicolas Cage, teams aren’t leaving... Read more of this article

The League of Mysterious Baseballists

September 3, 2024 by

Twenty-First and Lehigh is a painting by Thomas Kolendra When I was growing up, I lived in a National League metro area.  The only games I saw in person were Philadelphia Phillies games, and all I heard on the radio or saw on television were Phillies games.  There was a Game of the Week with Dizzy Dean on CBS but it was not available in Philadelphia... Read more of this article

Barry Shetrone: O’s Bright Prospect Whose Promise Was Unfulfilled

August 4, 2024 by

Speedy outfielder was once compared to Vada Pinson Barry Shetrone was one of the Baltimore Orioles’ brightest prospects when they signed him for $4,000 after he graduated from Southern High School in 1956. Although he became the first Baltimorean to play for the modern-day Orioles (1954 to present), he never fulfilled his promise.  He played... Read more of this article

Baseball’s First Phenom

July 6, 2024 by

Nary a season goes by without the chattering classes of our national pastime heralding the arrival of one or more phenoms. The phrase “can’t miss” is bandied about with the self-assurance of racetrack touts. If you’re keeping score at home, however, you have probably noted how many can’t-miss players fail to live up to their billing. Sooner... Read more of this article

The Vanishing Pinch-Hitter

March 30, 2024 by

Red Lucas Let’s start this essay with a FUN FACT: the Spanish term for pinch-hitter is bateador emergente, or emergency batter. Now there’s a phrase I’d like to see catch on in anglophone play-by-play accounts. It enhances the drama of the situation. I don’t think there are fewer emergencies in contemporary baseball than in ye olden times, but... Read more of this article

Often Overlooked Johnny Mize Put Up Impressive Numbers

March 30, 2024 by

Ted Williams said, “Johnny Mize was one of baseball’s most outstanding hitters.” Indeed, Mize, a first baseman, was a feared slugger who clouted 369 homers and a compiled a career batting average of .312. He was the first player to knock 50 homers (51 in 1947) and strike out less than 50 times. The big, quiet Georgian led the National... Read more of this article

Walter Johnson’s Beanball Stymied Nemesis Home Run Baker

March 9, 2024 by

Frank “Home Run” Baker For nearly a decade, four-time home run champ Frank “Home Run” Baker and strikeout king Walter Johnson waged one of the most intense rivalries in the American League. From 1909 through 1913, the Philadelphia Athletics slugger dominated the Washington Senators fireballer. When Johnson was considered unhittable... Read more of this article

More Posts From General

Features

Gold Glove, Golden Memories: So long, Brooks

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I have dreaded this day since I was old enough to truly appreciate the perspective... 

Cheap and Ugly in the Capitol

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Calvin Griffith (AP Photo/John Duricka )   Upon Googling: “Cheapest Baseball... 

Making the Game Fun Again

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As the season loomed large in the late winter months, a friend who had prepared a... 

Stories Over Stats

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While on our way to breakfast Saturday morning, the subject of former Oriole, now... 

Aaron Judge in a Nationals Uniform?

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No, I did not predict Josh Bell going to San Diego, but who did? In my defense, just... 

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Hall of Fame

WAR and Win Shares and Charlie Blackmon

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It appears that WAR, in attempting to assign a single number to represent a player’s... 

The BBWAA “Report Card” for the 21st Century

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The CAWS Career Gauge (CCG) has ranked all of the outstanding players of the modern... 

WAR and JAWS – Exaggerating Fielding Value

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In an earlier post, I pointed out that Matt Chapman’s WAR value for 2018 (8.2)... 

A Problem with WAR = Defensive Value

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My primary research interest has always been determining which players had the best... 

The Four CAWS HOF Benchmarks for Pitchers

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In a previous post re Koufax and Kershaw, I mentioned one of the benchmarks created... 

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Minors

Principal Park: Despite City’s Size, Ballpark Has Big Impact

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Minor league baseball a Des Moines, Iowa, staple at same location since 1947 Submitted... 

Max Watt: The Boston Red Sox’s Power Pitching Prospect

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Scouting is an integral part of professional baseball. Teams employ and send out... 

Suns’ First Pitch Thrown By Suns’ First Pitcher

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The Hagerstown Suns of the South Atlantic League asked the retiring sheriff of nearby... 

An Interview with Boston Red Sox Prospect Nick Longhi

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Growing up rooting for a baseball team, and striving to get into position to one... 

Carroll enjoys staying on his grind

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ROCHESTER, NY – More than a decade has passed since Brett Carroll roamed... 

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