For some of you who still read when I occasionally blog, this headline makes perfect sense. Lineup studies have shown that you’re better off with your best hitters getting more PAs at the top of your lineup. Even Bobby Cox batted Heyward second for the most part last year, and it was a terrific choice. […]
Category: Braves
The 2010 Atlanta Braves
Rooting for a sports team is a peculiar thing to do. You attach your hopes, dreams, and emotions to a group of people you’ve never met, and you root for them to succeed as though they were your own children. The whole concept of being a sports fan sounds so silly if you can take […]
2010 Pythagorean Wins with BaseRuns
2011 update: Download here: Google Docs / Dropbox Matthew Carruth made some excellent points in today’s Fangraphs article about using BaseRuns as a “sanity check” for a team’s performance at this point in the season. The theory is that you can break runs scored and allowed into their components and remove some of the “noise” […]
Braves Check: October 5, 2009
The Braves sure know how to finish, don’t they? The team made it to the final week of the season in contention and decided they’d had enough drama for one season, so they packed up and went home a week early. The end result: a six-game home losing streak to the Marlins and Nationals. By […]
Braves Check: September 28, 2009
Five. That’s the Rockies’ magic number this morning after the Braves extended their win streak to six games yesterday. It was a good week picking on the dregs of the NL East, the Mets and Nationals. I’m not going to dwell much on the stats this week, but I’ll consider some recent trends and get […]
Braves Check: September 21, 2009
Seven consecutive wins weren’t good enough to scare Ryan Howard and the Phillies into prolonging the Braves’ continuing status as a contender. The Braves finished last week with a series loss to the Phillies, leaving them 5.5 games out of a playoff spot with 13 to play. Mathematical elimination could come as soon as this […]
Braves Check: September 14, 2009
The Braves’ timing is impeccable. They just finished the 5-1 road trip that they really needed to have 2 weeks ago to stay in the playoff race. In reality, the Braves still need a miracle if they’re going to reach the playoffs. They’re 6.5 games out of the wild card with three teams ahead of […]
Braves Check: September 8, 2009
Five straight losses, with this pitching staff? Three against the Reds? I suppose that’s one way to say you’re ready for the offseason. The Braves started packing early this week and all but ended their playoff hopes. They’re now 70-67 and in serious danger of finishing under .500 for the third time in four years. […]
Braves Check: August 31, 2009
I missed last week and will have to do an abbreviated version this week. I just have too many irons in the fire right now to devote much time to blogging, and the Braves’ uninspiring play hasn’t helped. They lost both series last week, both crippling losses given their standing in the division, but the […]
Braves Check: August 17, 2009
The two-game sweep of Washington was a nice start to the week, but it hurts to lose two of three from the Phillies. The Braves are now in third place, six games back of the Phils for the division lead, with six games remaining against them. The Wild Card race is getting closer, but the […]
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