Baseball fans love seeing exciting home runs and talented players knocking the ball out of the park. Appreciating strong pitching, as well, it’s remarkable how there have been five no-hitters already this season. But while the pitchers get credit, some concerns are being raised about how so many players are striking out and not getting hits. According to CBSSPORTS.COM, the current league batting average of .236 will be the lowest league-wide batting average of all-time if it remains that low throughout the season. Baseball writer, Tim Kurkjian, has an article on ESPN.com about…
Category Archives: Baseball
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The Rise of Strikeouts
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Opening Day
Continue ReadingOn “Opening Day” in Major League Baseball, every team took the field! This time of year, fans and players are filled with optimism about the new season and the fresh start that every team gets. Many players are making their debut on different teams and others are taking the field for the first time since an injury. There is great anticipation about the upcoming season as we wonder how many games the Dodgers will win…what the return of fans will be like…and how well the young stars across the league…
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2020 BEST of UNPACK this…”In the Process of Winning”
Continue ReadingThe MLB Playoffs are well underway with the eight remaining teams competing in the NLDS and ALDS today. Sam Miller has written a fascinating and thought-provoking article on ESPN.com that describes the six types of games that have already taken place and will continue throughout the MLB playoffs. He compares them to a story and has graphs to demonstrate the narrative shape for these six types of games: The Fall Gradually and Then Suddenly The Countdown Clock The Comeback The Back and Forth The Blowout As fans, we may or may not…
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2020 BEST of UNPACK this…Counting the Cost of Sports to Return
Continue ReadingAs sports fans, we are eagerly awaiting the return of the NBA and NHL and the start of a new season in the NFL and MLB. Whether following closely or loosely, we’ve been hearing about the negotiations between owners and players as they work out the details for how their sports can operate in the current environment. Of course, like so many things, it comes down to money and specifically how much an altered season will cost the owners and the players as overall yearly revenues are sure to drop…
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The Unanimous Cy Young Award
Continue ReadingThis week, the Baseball Writers’ Association of America named Cleveland Indians star pitcher, Shane Bieber, the winner of the AL Cy Young Award. The right-hander had a successful season throwing his effective curveball and slider which helped him finish with an 8-1 record, a 1.63 ERA, and 122 strikeouts. Although a shortened season, he was able to lead the majors in ERA and strikeouts and tied with Yu Darvish for the most wins. Bieber’s 14.2 strikeouts per nine innings is the highest single-season total in MLB history. What made this…
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Every Year is Different by Guest Writer, Lexa Power
Continue ReadingFor 13 years, Clayton Kershaw has been thought of as one of the best pitchers in baseball. He’s an eight-time All-Star, three-time National League Cy Young Award winner, and the 2014 National League MVP. But one fact remained: he never won a World Series title. Sports analysts and critics are quick to point to this during discussions of the best pitcher of all time, and many people have said over the years that Kershaw “chokes” in the post-season and that he couldn’t “win the big one.” Kershaw’s post-season ERA (4.19)…
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The Drought is Over
Continue ReadingThe World Series ended last night in Game 6 with the LA Dodgers beating the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1. They finally clinched the title after finishing as the runner up in 2017 and 2018. This was a huge win for this roster as many of the key pieces have remained together over the last few years. But, it’s also a great celebration for life-long Dodgers fans who haven’t won the World Series since 1988. The Dodgers finally put an end to their three-decade title drought! They’ve had good teams over…
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World Series Payrolls
Continue ReadingWithout a salary cap in Major League Baseball, big market teams can give enormous contracts to top players. They can load their roster with All-Stars because they have the money to do so. As fans, we oftentimes complain because it seems unfair and lopsided when we’re rooting for a team in a smaller market. However, the reality is that the teams with the top payrolls don’t always win the World Series, and small market teams like Kansas City and St. Louis have shown they can go all the way. In…
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“In the Process of Winning”
Continue ReadingThe MLB Playoffs are well underway with the eight remaining teams competing in the NLDS and ALDS today. Sam Miller has written a fascinating and thought-provoking article on ESPN.com that describes the six types of games that have already taken place and will continue throughout the MLB playoffs. He compares them to a story and has graphs to demonstrate the narrative shape for these six types of games: The Fall Gradually and Then Suddenly The Countdown Clock The Comeback The Back and Forth The Blowout As fans, we may or may not…
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A Player to be Named Later
Continue ReadingMajor League Baseball’s trade deadline passed this week and we saw lots of activity across the league, including deals that sent proven players for future prospects. This allows teams to rebuild through their farm system and stockpile young players they believe have bright futures. In the trades, multiple teams included “a player to be named later.” As a throw-in piece of the deal, nobody pays much attention because they’re not expecting the “player to be named later” to be a big contributor. It just allows teams to get a trade…
