I told my son Ben that we were going to NLDS Game 4 against the Brewers if the Braves won Game 2 today. He said: “I think every Braves postseason game I go to, the Braves win.” He’s not wrong—the only Braves postseason game he has attended was the Acuña slam game against the Dodgers […]
Category: Baseball (General)
2018 Baseball Hall of Fame
For two years, I have written at some length regarding the current year’s Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. I’m a “big-Hall” guy who does not care to rehash PED arguments, who just wants to see the best players of his formidable years honored together in a museum. It’s getting tougher to believe that will ever […]
2017 Baseball Hall of Fame
Last year I wrote a lengthy post (link) explaining my approach to the Baseball Hall of Fame ballot. This year I will follow much the same approach, and I recommend reading the intro to that post before diving in below. While you’re at it, check out Ryan Thibodaux’s awesome ballot tracker (link), which he updates […]
Moneyball Review
I loved the Moneyball book and am a full-fledged baseball stat nerd, but last week I expressed skepticism of its potential as a movie. Would anyone go to see a movie about the business of baseball? The answer to that question is apparently yes, as it grossed over $20 million in its opening weekend, no […]
Why I’m a little skeptical of the Moneyball movie
If you read a lot of baseball blogs, you are no doubt aware that there have been some decent reviews and some pretty scathing reviews of the new Moneyball movie by baseball writers. I respect the opinions of Gleeman, Law, and Leitch, so I will go into the movie with a few key questions that […]
MLB Realignment on Freakonomics
From Freakonomics: What proposed realignment changes seem to make the most sense from a competitive and economic standpoint for Major League Baseball? If you’ve read through the five-part series explaining my own realignment proposal, you know it’s fairly radical, but you also know it addresses several issues that are important to both fans and MLB […]
MLB’s Better Way Forward: Summary and Conclusions (Part 5)
This week, I have progressively rolled out a radical realignment proposal for Major League Baseball. I love baseball as it is, but I can’t help but think there are ways to make it better. This series represents the current fruit from that ongoing thought process. Summary – A Better Way Forward If you haven’t been […]
MLB’s Better Way Forward: Revenue Sharing (Part 4)
The last post outlined the competitive structure of the MLB League Championship, which I will simply call the League or “league play.” In forming one 30-team championship format separate from the playoff structure, the concern is that teams out of the MLB Cup Elites tier will lose interest, destroying fan attendance and franchise profitability. Before […]
MLB’s Better Way Forward: MLB League Championship (Part 3)
The MLB League Championship should have a familiar feel. The new wrinkle we’ve added with the MLB Cup, though, will force a shorter regular season, at least in number of games. It will actually be longer in terms of the calendar, since the two competitions run concurrently. Scheduling This seems as appropriate a time as […]
MLB’s Better Way Forward: The MLB Cup (Part 2)
I’ll explain the MLB Cup next, since the League Championship follows a familiar structure. This is a little different. Taking a page out of the UEFA Champions League, the MLB Cup is a season-long competition that is based on the prior year’s league result. A “Group Stage” Teams are grouped into three tiers of ten […]
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