Tag: MLB

FEB 18: Annual guessing game

FEBRUARY 18, 2017 | FLORIDA & ARIZONA – Prediction time for fans and prognosticators as spring training begins for 2017. Baseball Prospectus (BP) has among the most knowledgeable baseball people. BP’s crunching of the numbers leads their experts to believe the following teams are most likely to win their respective divisions in 2017.

American League
East – Boston Red Sox
Central – Cleveland Indians
West – Houston Astros

National League
East – New York Mets
Central – Chicago Cubs
West – Los Angeles Dodgers

It’ll be fun to see what happens. But how well have Baseball Prospectus’ predictions fared? Let’s look back. Here are BP’s 1998 predictions, and whether they were correct or not:

American League
New York Yankees – CORRECT
Cleveland Indians – CORRECT
Seattle Mariners – WRONG (Texas)

National League
East – Atlanta Braves – CORRECT
Central – Houston Astros – CORRECT
West – LA Dodgers – WRONG (San Diego)

Here’s a look at the favored teams from 1999 and how then fared.

American League
East – New York Yankees – CORRECT
Central – Cleveland Indians – CORRECT
West – Texas Rangers – CORRECT

National League
East – Atlanta Braves – CORRECT
Central – Houston Astros – CORRECT
West – LA Dodgers – WRONG (Diamondbacks)

Overall, Baseball Prospectus did very well.

Mar 1: MANTLE RETIRES

MARCH 1, 1969 | FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA – A sports icon of the 1950’s and 60’s retired on this date.  Mickey Mantle made the announcement at the spring training home of the New York Yankees, ending an 18-year career.

It’s remarkable it lasted that long considering “Mick” endured a variety of injuries, mostly to his legs. In announcing his decision, Mantle revealed the frustrations of a proud athlete, whose body would not perform, “I don’t hit the ball when I need to. I can’t steal when I need to, I can’t score from second base when I need to.” It’s cruel how 37 can look so old.

Mantle had superstar numbers, but they could have been better. He was the prototype 5-tool player when he came up to the Yankees at age 19. He could run, hit, hit for power, throw and catch.

Early in his career he was described as the fastest player from home to first, but that was before leg injuries turned him into a 4-tool star.

Career Milestones:

  • 3-time MVP
  • 16-time all-star
  • On 12 pennant winners
  • On 7 World Series championship teams
  • 536 home runs
  • .298 average
  • .421 on-base percentage
  • .557 slugging percentage

Being among the first superstar players to face the best Black ballplayers for an entire career, Mantle put a mark of authenticity on the American athlete. When the news came, “Mickey Mantle Retires,” it was the end of an era.

Contributing sources:
New York Times, Fort Lauderdale, Florida, March 2, 1969
More on Mantle

JAN 25: TEAM VALUE$ SOAR

THIS STORY STARTS IN NEW YORK IN 1945 –

These aren’t your father’s Yankees anymore. The New York Yankees were sold for $2.5 million on this date in 1945. If the Yankees were sold today, the asking price would be about 1400 times more than that – $3.7 BILLION, with a “B”.

MLB team values continue to skyrocket. The increases are almost incomprehensible. Even comparing for inflation, they’re way beyond the hikes in costs of everything else.

Here is Forbes Magazine’s comparison of team values in just the 10-year span from 2007 to 2017:

                                                                                            2007              2017
1. New York Yankees         $1.2B             $3.7B
2. Los Angeles Dodgers      $632M             $2.75B 
3. Boston Red Sox           $724M             $2.7B
4. Chicago Cubs             $592M             $2.68B
5. San Francisco Giants     $459M             $2.65B 
6. New York Mets            $736M             $2.0B    
7. St. Louis Cardinals      $460M             $1.8B 
8. LA Angels of Anaheim     $431M             $1.75B
9. Philadelphia Phillies    $457M             $1.65B 
10. Washington Nationals    $447M             $1.6B
11. Texas Rangers           $365M             $1.55B
12. Atlanta Braves          $458M             $1.5B
13. Houston Astros          $442M             $1.45B  
14. Seattle Mariners        $436M             $1.4B
15. Chicago White Sox       $381M             $1.35B
16. Toronto Blue Jays       $344M             $1.3B
17. Pittsburgh Pirates      $274M             $1.25B
18. Detroit Tigers          $357M             $1.2B
19. Baltimore Orioles       $395M             $1.18B 
20. Arizona Diamondbacks    $339M             $1.15B
21. San Diego Padres        $367M             $1.13B
22. Minnesota Twins         $288M             $1.03B 
23. Colorado Rockies        $317M             $1.0B
24. Kansas City Royals      $282M             $950M
25. Miami Marlins           $244M             $940M 
26. Milwaukee Brewers       $287M             $925M
27. Cleveland Indians       $364M             $915M
28. Cincinnati Reds         $307M             $915M 
29. Oakland A's             $292M             $880M 
30. Tampa Bay Rays          $267M             $825M

In 2007 one team (the Yankees) was worth a billion dollars. In 2017, 23 of the 30 teams were worth at least a billion dollars.

Everything costs more today than it did in 1945:

  • The average cost of a new home today ($371,200) is 81 times what it was in 1945 ($4,600).
  • The average cost of a gallon of gas today ($2.43) is 16 times greater than the average gallon in 1945 ($0.15).

But the value of the New York Yankees is 1,460 times greater than it was in 1945. And team values continue to skyrocket.

Contributing Sources:
Forbes Magazine
The New York Times, January 26, 1945
Census Bureau – home prices

JAN 17: MAYS DEFENDS OWNERS

TODAY’S STORY TAKES US BACK TO SAN FRANCISCO JANUARY 17, 1970. 

Baseball great Willie Mays spoke out in favor of major league baseball owners on this date in baseball history.
 
The San Francisco Giant outfielder told broadcaster and former player Joe Garagiola, “If players control the game it is going to be bad. Owners must make some money, too.”
 
Mays’ comments were in reference to Curt Flood. The St. Louis Cardinals traded Flood to the Philadelphia Phillies. Flood refused to report in protest of baseball’s reserve clause which put the player’s future totally in the hands of the team that held his contract.
 
Mays didn’t criticize Flood, only saying, “That’s a personal thing. For myself I want to stay in San Francisco, but if the Giants traded me I would go.”
 
Flood sued Major League Baseball and the case went all the way to the United State Supreme Court. The Court ruled against Flood in 1972, saying that Major League Baseball was exempt from antitrust laws. But the case paved the way for free agency.
 
Flood only played 13 more games in his career and retired at age 33. Willie Mays was traded to the New York Mets in 1972. He retired in 1973.
Contributing source:
 Jack Hanley, The Daily Review, Hayward, California, January 18, 1970

A STORY FROM MARCH 11 IN BASEBALL HISTORY – JOHN McGRAW ATTEMPTS TO PULL ONE OVER

TODAY IN BASEBALL TAKES US TO HOT SPRINGS, ARKANSAS ON MARCH 11, 1901. Arrogant, ornery and extremely successful Baltimore Orioles manager John McGraw attempted to pull one over on the rest of major league baseball on this date in 1901.

The problem wasn’t that Tokohoma was a Native American, the problem was, he was Black.

According to the Cincinnati Enquirer McGraw tried to sign Charlie Tokohoma, a Cherokee Indian, to a major league contract.

McGraw first saw him working as a bellhop at a Hot Springs, Arkansas hotel during spring training. The problem wasn’t that Tokohoma was a Native American. The problem was, he was Black.

By this time a well entrenched “gentgralemen’s agreement” dictated that no team would sign Black players.

Several sources including James A. Riley, author of The Biographical Encyclopedia of the Negro Baseball Leagues says Chicago White Sox owner Charles Comiskey, the gentleman that he was, let the cat out of the bag. He recognized “Tokohoma” as Charlie Grant, second baseman for the Columbia Giants, a Chicago based Negro Leagues team.

For a few weeks, McGraw insisted that Tokohoma (Grant) was Native American, and had him in the lineup for a few spring training games, but Grant never saw regular season major league action. John McGraw attempted to pull one over on the rest of Major League Baseball, but failed.

Contributing sources:
The Cincinnati Enquirer, Hot Springs, Arkansas, March 11, 1901
Baseball Think Factory
Charlie Grant
Negro Leagues Baseball Museum