Some Phillies Links For You, September 17, 2010: Off-day Scoreboard Cruising, Reading Makeover

by WholeCamels on Sep 17, 2010 8:23 AM EDT

Phils' MVP? How about Ruiz?
In a non-Roy Halladay world, this is a very good suggestion.

Talk grows about making Wild Cards wilder
Personally, I go back and forth on this. On the one hand, I like how things are going now, but on the other, I like the idea of rewarding the division winner and "punishing" the Wild Card team somehow.

Paul Hagen: Why not to start Halladay in NLDS Game 1
File under: "Overthinking Things."

FirstEnergy Stadium renovation plans debut
To paraphrase The Simpsons: Don't get rid of the dank!

Lawrence: Phils aren't shoo-ins ... just yet
While Lawrence dismisses the idea that Roy Halladay's failure to pitch in the postseason is a concern, I wonder if it is a legit concern for many. And I'm afraid to hear the answer. More importantly, I dread what I will hear if/when Halladay has a poor start in the playoffs.

In Baseball, It's the Year Money Didn't Matter - WSJ.com
It'll be interesting to see how this calculus works out if the Padres fail to make the playoffs.

The700Level.com - Video: Jimmy Rollins Talks Mustang Convertible at Shane Victorino Roast
So apparently Shane Victorino was roasted last night. Was Dean Martin there?

Dbacks beat Reds 3-1 for series split
Phillies maintain three game lead for league's best record.

Westbrook leads Cardinals past Padres 4-0
Padres drop to second place (tied in loss column, though).

Giants beat L.A., move into first place in NL West
So, if the season ended right now, the ~~Phillies would get the Padres in the first round~~ Padres would be eliminated. Devastating turn of events!

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Comments

Not always Lawrence’s biggest fan, but credit where it’s due for not taking the old “Halladay has never pitched in the playoffs” line that I thought he might. Also credit to Hagen, who destroyed that same line of thinking with…

Both Hamels and Oswalt have postseason experience, but that really isn’t relevant here. Cliff Lee had never pitched in the playoffs before last season and he did just fine.

Philly sportswriters: they’re not perfect, but they’re learning!

by PhillyFriar on Sep 17, 2010 8:31 AM EDT reply actions

Giants beat L.A., move into first place in NL West
So, if the season ended right now, the Phillies would get the Padres in the first round.

I think you meant the Giants or the Reds. Padres would be the wild card runner up if the season ended right now.

by EastFallowfield on Sep 17, 2010 8:40 AM EDT reply actions

You're right

Fixed. Damn you.

http://www.thegoodphight.com

by WholeCamels on Sep 17, 2010 8:58 AM EDT up reply actions

I think these writers need to stop talking about the “Ruiz for MVP” idea as if it was something counterintuitive they just thought up. When they’re all saying the same thing, it’s no longer counterintuitive.

by taco pal on Sep 17, 2010 9:03 AM EDT reply actions

Fine, have it your way…

EXXON FOR MVP!

by PhillyFriar on Sep 17, 2010 9:30 AM EDT up reply actions

Whoops, didn’t scroll down far enough apparently…

by PhillyFriar on Sep 17, 2010 9:31 AM EDT up reply actions

The playoffs drag far enough into November, there is no need to add another best of 3 or 7 series.

If anything, reward the division winners by giving them an extra home game, like Scoscia mentions.

The Mikan Drill

by JoshuaR on Sep 17, 2010 9:05 AM EDT reply actions

or

Just go one giant league of 16/14 teams, top four teams make it, first round 1 vs. 4 and 2 vs. 3.

http://www.thegoodphight.com

by WholeCamels on Sep 17, 2010 9:08 AM EDT up reply actions

I heard Jayson Stark mention that as a solution for the Orioles and Blue Jays being stuck in the AL East. I fail to see how it help that issue (as then the Orioles would also be stuck behind the Twins, Angels, Rangers, etc.), but in the case of making sure the best teams make the playoffs, it makes sense. I always hated that in the NHL the Panthers and Hurricanes could make the playoffs as a barely .500 team in a god awful division and get home ice against better teams, based solely on the fact that they were the least terrible team in their division.

by Cormican on Sep 17, 2010 12:10 PM EDT up reply actions

Carolina did win a four playoff rounds to win the cup, so complaining about them being too bad to qualify for the playoffs, as much as I did too at the time, is moot.

by Shazbot on Sep 17, 2010 1:34 PM EDT up reply actions

Hey, I was here when Carolina won the Cup and they were a better team in a stronger division. I’m talking more late 90’s early 2000’s when the Lightning weren’t very good, the Caps were abysmal and the Panthers were Left Wing Locking everyone to sleep. The Carolina team that won the Cup was fun for me, since half the damn team were former Flyers anyway.

by Cormican on Sep 17, 2010 1:39 PM EDT up reply actions

Yeah, that’s a different period.

Still didn’t take that long to correct itself. If you let one bad team into the NHL playoffs, it’s still a sixteen team tournament… and the situation only endures as long as ALL the teams in that division remain terrible… and if they’re really terrible, luck can only take them so far.

Dunno. There’s a lot of ways to re-arrange the MLB playoffs. Just gotta ask two questions, how many, and which ones?

by Shazbot on Sep 17, 2010 1:48 PM EDT up reply actions

And in steps Halak who basically grew 2 more arms and a tail….

by j reed on Sep 17, 2010 3:25 PM EDT up reply actions

I believe the NHL actually used that “one giant league” system for a while back in the ’80s.

by taco pal on Sep 17, 2010 12:16 PM EDT up reply actions

In terrms of baseball someone suggested rotating teams in and out of divisions which is a interesting idea but logistically a nightmare when you consider travelling and TV scheleduling for a sport played 6 days a week.

by j reed on Sep 17, 2010 4:20 PM EDT up reply actions

Realignment to 4 divisions in each league was another idea I kind of liked and could fix oddities like a team in Dallas, TX being the AL West.

by Cormican on Sep 17, 2010 4:29 PM EDT up reply actions

I’m really against the WC as well. I keep hearing all the pundits talking about how all the races are decided (they actually started this two wks ago) and they discussed the AL and the NL central. They then decreed that the padres had the west wrapped up and the loser of the NL east would be the WC.

I guess they just needed something to talk about.

by Bilzo on Sep 17, 2010 10:10 AM EDT up reply actions

clarifications…

against an ADDITIONAL wild card team. having one is fine, and I like that.

by Bilzo on Sep 17, 2010 10:11 AM EDT up reply actions

I agree. I feel as though the playoffs in the NBA are too diluted and drag on for too long and I don’t think it would be a good idea for MLB to implement an additional WC team. That said, they probably will because it is a dumb idea and will bring in big money for the teams and in terms of TV dollars.

The Mikan Drill

by JoshuaR on Sep 17, 2010 10:18 AM EDT up reply actions

5 teams is a really bad number to work with. I hope that’s a deterrent.

by Bilzo on Sep 17, 2010 10:19 AM EDT up reply actions

Well, they would definitely have the 2 WC teams face off against one another, forcing them to use their top pitchers. This just pushes the playoffs back to mid-November, it’s bad enough already.

The Mikan Drill

by JoshuaR on Sep 17, 2010 10:23 AM EDT up reply actions

maybe they can put the qualifier in that only teams with domes or warm weather or from NY can be playoff eligible.

by Bilzo on Sep 17, 2010 11:09 AM EDT up reply actions

twins never get to WS again,

by j reed on Sep 17, 2010 3:27 PM EDT up reply actions

While a best of 3/5/7 series may be too long...

A one game winner take all wild card would bring more of a race to the wild card and would sum it up in one tense night— essentially a game 163 to find the best non-division winner. This idea was brought up on Baseball Today a while back, and I really liked it, as it would make winning one’s division more of a prize, and give a little more drama to the wildcard race instead of having it wide open and sort of decided in the AL East.

by dannijd on Sep 17, 2010 12:39 PM EDT up reply actions

j reed will like this

Take a swing at it

Rays manager Joe Maddon thinks batting practice is overrated, especially at this time of year. “It matters nothing. It’s about keeping guys fresh. They swing way too much,” he said.

by taco pal on Sep 17, 2010 9:17 AM EDT reply actions

Smart guy.

by Cormican on Sep 17, 2010 12:11 PM EDT up reply actions

Indeed I do. Dammit, this makes it that much harder to dislike the Rays.

by j reed on Sep 17, 2010 3:43 PM EDT up reply actions

MVP!

The fill-in

The Phillies are 28-12 when Wilson Valdez, who has been playing in place of the injured Jimmy Rollins, scores or drives in a run. They are 28-29 when he plays and does neither. This note is courtesy of Bob Vetrone Jr., who notices that sort of stuff.

by taco pal on Sep 17, 2010 9:19 AM EDT reply actions

I wonder if Bob Vetrone, Jr. has run numbers to see what the Phillies record is for every player who “scores or drives in a run”.

That eliminates all shutouts, for one. With the low-scoring (generally) nature of baseball, I bet every player has numbers close to this for the events categorized.

Sarcasm of the above post duly noted, btw. I’m just beating it further into the ground.

Remember the Phitans

by RememberthePhitans on Sep 17, 2010 9:34 AM EDT up reply actions

In fact, even Hagen was using sarcasm, which I guess makes this sarcasm^3 or something.

by taco pal on Sep 17, 2010 9:41 AM EDT up reply actions

Are you suggesting I should actually RTFA? Are you fucking Jeff Francoeur?

;)

Remember the Phitans

by RememberthePhitans on Sep 17, 2010 9:43 AM EDT up reply actions

Exactly. I have that data (and posted it in the 8/1 Stat Notes. I think it’s fairly automated, so I will try to update it some time soon.

by schmenkman on Sep 17, 2010 12:00 PM EDT up reply actions

Name it MTCM – Morgan’s Team Catalyst Metric. Make it baseball’s first (+/ -) stat….

by j reed on Sep 17, 2010 4:10 PM EDT up reply actions

So someone gave me a news article in my javascript class last night that referenced this article, which i have not read through completely but argues that the higher percentage home attendance you get the more likely you are to win.

For the nerdly inclined

by SportingFanaticism on Sep 17, 2010 1:23 PM EDT reply actions

A 2009 paper by an Economics professor at UM-Rolla suggest that the causation runs in the other direction.

by essman on Sep 17, 2010 3:04 PM EDT up reply actions

I didn’t read the article (but it is my favorite journal out there, lots of nba research done) but to me it seemed like a very iffy thing to try and prove with lots of mitigating factors and yes the chicken and egg – do they win because they come or they come because they win

by SportingFanaticism on Sep 17, 2010 3:49 PM EDT up reply actions