umpbump.com

What they need: Cardinals

Coley Ward — Sat, 21 Nov 2009 22:38:48 +0000

The Cardinals offense was just so-so in 2009, despite the presence of hitting god Albert Pujols. St. Louis was square in the middle of the pack in slugging, wOBA, and OBP. Where they excelled was pitching. The Cards’ pitchers issued the fewest walks in the league and had the third best FIP, allowing St. Louis to run away with the NL Central.

visit site to read more]

Tagged: Cardinals, What They Need

What they need: Marlins

Coley Ward — Fri, 20 Nov 2009 02:28:42 +0000

The Marlins finished in second place in 2009, but the reality is they only scored 6 more runs than they allowed and the third-place Braves had a much better run differential. So Florida will have to improve more than a little if they’re going to compete for a playoff spot in 2010.

Offense isn’t a big … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Marlins, What They Need

What They Need: Minnesota Twins

Alejandro A. Leal — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:54:10 +0000

If you take a quick glance at the Minnesota Twins 2009 campaign, you might deem it a success since they reached the postseason. But taking a closer look at the numbers and you’ll realize that the Twins were … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Twins, What They Need

What They Need: Dodgers

Nick Kapur — Mon, 16 Nov 2009 10:20:24 +0000

Look, we could talk about how the Dodgers need a second baseman now that Joe Torre completely alienated Orlando Hudson by benching him in favor of an inferior player down the stretch and in the playoffs, or how the Dodgers need another starting pitcher or two, but why beat around the bush when what the Dodgers clearly need, way more than anything else, is new ownership.

visit site to read more]

Tagged: Dodgers, Frank-McCourt, Jamie McCourt, Ned Colletti, What They Need

What They Need: Red Sox

Sarah Green — Sun, 15 Nov 2009 14:00:13 +0000

The Red Sox finished 7 games behind the Yankees and were swept out of the first round of the playoffs. How can they avoid a similar fate in 2010?

Boston’s biggest problem in 2009 was defense. They had the third-best run differential in baseball, yet ranked dead last in deff eff for much of the year. Their lineup, while certainly not bad, was not good enough. And their starting pitching, while good, was not good enough in the postseason.

Defense, offense, and pitching sounds like a lot … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Red Sox, What They Need

What They Need: Mariners

Paul Moro — Sat, 14 Nov 2009 16:10:21 +0000

The 2009 Mariners became a bit of a darling in the sabermetric world. The proponents of the non-traditional fielding stats such as Ultimate Zone Rating and Defensive Plus/Minus were actually able to see their beliefs translate to on-field success. You see, the Mariners brought in a group … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Mariners, What They Need

Love your agent and you just gotta show it? Get a tattoo!

Coley Ward — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 04:52:41 +0000

Leave it to ESPN.com’s Jerry Crasnick. While all the other baseball hacks are reporting on boring stuff that nobody cares about (trades, signings, the crappiness of the O’Hare Hilton), he’s bringing us the good stuff.

From Crasnick’s … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Dontrelle Willis, Sosnick-Cobbe, tattoo

Jimmy Rollins must bat leadoff no more forever

Coley Ward — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 20:41:53 +0000

Jayson Stark doesn’t think the Philies should sign Chone Figgins because Figgins is a leadoff hitter and the Phillies already have a leadoff hitter.

From ESPN.com:

“What happens if they try to install Figgins in the leadoff hole? That has the potential to create a … [visit site to read more]
Tagged: Jayson Stark, Jimmy Rollins, OBP, Phillies

What they need: Braves

Coley Ward — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 19:16:43 +0000

As a Phillies fan, the Braves’ rotation is keeping me up at night. Derek Lowe. Tim Hudson (who just signed a three-year deal). Jair Jurrjens. Tommy Hanson. Javier Vazquez. Good god almighty, that is a solid five.

Oh, and don’t forget about Kenshin Kawakami, who posted a 3.86 ERA in 2009 and is under contract for another two seasons. … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Braves, What They Need

Johnny Damon Really Must Be Jesus

Paul Moro — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 20:43:44 +0000

“Chronological age does not have anything to do with a player of (Damon’s) genetics.” – Scott Boras

Well, sure. Had Jesus Christ been around longer, I’m pretty sure that he would’ve been able to OPS … [visit site to read more]

Tagged: Jesus, Johnny Damon, Scott Boras