Items after the jump:
- Is CBP more homer-friendly in hot weather?
- Interleague play: NL trounced
- Phils batters vs. projections
- Phillies stats vs. 2011, and vs. Pirates
- NL Standings and team stats
- Milestones: Rollins, Thome, Pierre, and Hamels
CBP and Hot Weather
(repeated from the previous stat notes since it may not have gotten much visibility over the weekend; adds 2012 HR/G by month)
When home runs were flying out on Tuesday and even Michael Martinez hit one, even some who konw that Citizens Bank Park is essentially neutral voiced the opinion that the park plays like a bandbox in hot weather. However the stats don't seem to support that. Below are home runs hit (by both teams) at CBP in each month in 2008-2011.
There is no indication that hot weather boosts home runs, and in fact if we compare the two cooler months (April-May) with the two hottest months (July-Aug), there have actually been more homers in the cooler months. Adding in June and September makes the two groupings essentially equal in home runs per game. (50-60 games per month is a rather small sample for this type of analysis, and we gain some level of confidence by combining into two- or three-month groups)
So how does this compare to home runs in the Phillies' away games? If anything, relative to other parks CBP is slightly more homerun-friendly in April and May, when the Park Factor of 1.10 shows there have been 10% more home runs per game at CBP in those months. Again, adding June and September makes CBP equally home run friendly relative to other parks in the cooler and warmer months.
And HR/G so far this year at CBP:
April: 16 in 10 games (1.6)
May: 32 in 14 games (2.3)
June: 26 in 13 games (2.0)
Interleague Play
After closing the gap for three straight years, NL teams were 110-142 in interleague play this season, for a .437 winning percentage. Their pythagorean record was slightly better, at .455.
Phillies Hitters vs. Projections
John Mayberry Jr. has sunk below Victorino again. Meanwhile, Jimmy Rollins is now essentially at both his 2009-11 average OPS, and the average of the preseason projections.
Commenter LTG at Crashburn Alley pointed out that Juan Pierre's wRC+ of 116 is his career high.
Phillies Team Stats vs. 2011
The table below now compares to the 2011 full season stats. Also, the color indicators for pitching were changed so that throughout the table, green typically means better, while orange/red means worse.
NL Standings and Team Stats
The Pirates are 5 games over .500 and a game out of 1st place despite giving up more runs than they've scored.
Milestones
Jimmy Rollins
- Rollins needs 3 more extra base hits (28 total) to tie Delahanty for 2nd on the Phillies list, with 686. Schmidt is out of reach at 1,015 (30th all-time).
- He needs 4 more doubles (20 total) to tie Schmidt for 2nd on the Phillies list at 408. Delahanty is first, with 442.
- Needs 2 more stolen bases (14 for the year) to tie dead-ball era outfielder Sherry Magee for 3rd on the Phillies' list at 387, behind Billy Hamilton (508) and Delahanty (412). In fact Rollins has been the Phillies' leader for the post-1920 era ever since he passed Larry Bowa's 288 back in 2008. Surprising perhaps, but Richie Ashburn only stole 199 with the Phillies, partly because he played in an era where there was much less stealing. He led the league once, in his 1948 rookie season, with 32.
Jim Thome
- Thome's walk-off home run on Saturday tied him with Sammy Sosa for 7th on the All-time list with 609.
- When he was intentionally walked in yesterday's first game, he tied Mickey Mantle for 7th on the All-time list in walks with 1,733.
Shane Victorino
- Appearing in 4 more games (78 total) will make it 1,000 for his career. He needs 40 to become only the 37th player in history to appear in that many with the Phillies.
Cole Hamels
- Hamels' last strikeout on Sunday tied him with Jim Bunning for 6th on the Phillies' all-time list, with 1,197. He's also third in Phillies history among lefties, behind Steve Carlton (3,031), and Chris Short (1,585).
Jonathan Papelbon
- His next save (#18) will tie him with Ugueth Urbina for 35th on the All-time list, with 237.
- His 19th save will tie him with Sparky Lyle for 34th at 238.
For reference:
- MLB All-time leaders: Hitting and Pitching
- Phillies All-time leaders: Hitting and Pitching