If you asked J.J. Hardy, he would say he’s happy his team got the win. Because the Baltimore Orioles did, in fact, beat the Los Angeles Angels by a score of 3-2 tonight. The O’s pushed across the go-ahead run in the 8th inning and then held the Angels from scoring with two on in the bottom of the ninth.
But if you asked J.J. Hardy if, in his heart of hearts, he wasn’t a little peeved with the Angels outfielders, he’d be lying if he said anything other than “yes.”
I don’t know what kind of weather system blew through Kansas City tonight but our planet’s prevailing physics don’t appear to apply in the Show Me state.
What other possible explanation could there be for a baseball swing that short and compact to impart such violent force upon a baseball? The kind of force required to send a baseball careening some 460 feet the other way needs a bigger swing and a bigger man, doesn’t it? HOW? WHY? I’M BAMBOOZLED.
SUPERLATIVE SUPERLATIVE MIKE TROUT EXPRESSION OF DISBELIEF PROFANITY SUPERLATIVE.
Earlier today, we covered Jose Bautista‘s record-setting game for the Blue Jays. Jose went 4-4 with two home runs and the game-winning RBI in extra innings (and a walk for good measure). His Win Probability Added for the game is the highest in Blue Jays history, exceeding 100% in a most delightfully counter-intuitive way possible.
In the comment section of that post, reader “TOK” pointed out something truly bizarre: when Mike Trout hit for the cycle earlier this week, his WPA for the game was actually negative. WHAT? Hold on a tick…
The 2013 is full of terrific redemption stories, most of them residing on the New York Yankees. Travis Hafner and Vernon Wells are putting together seasons many refused to believe they still had in them.
Vernon Well, in particular, looks like a new man. A few changes to his swing and setup have the former Blue Jays center fielder swinging like it’s 2006. Or 2010. Maybe 2003. One of those odd years in which Vernon Wells is good, I can’t tell which one.
While Vernon Wells might steal all the headlines with his multi-positional verstality and (dead cat) bounce back to relevance, he isn’t the only recovering Blue Jays outfielder putting together a solid first half in 2013. Wells’ old outfield mate Alex Rios is swinging the bat better than just about any outfielder in baseball, actually.
To his eternal credit, Jeremy Guthrie is having a very unusual season. Unusual for Jeremy Guthrie in that he’s pitched very well and Jeremy Guthrie is the human embodiment of serviceable. He has a very low ERA and a sparkling 5-1 won/loss record. Before last night, it was a 5-0 record.
Last night, Jeremy Guthrie posted one of the weirdest pitching lines you’ll ever see. It was the anti-FIP start for the ages. And that was tip of Guthrie’s weirdness iceberg.
Let’s set aside the argument over whether or not this was the correct call and just admire Mike Trout‘s nearly 10-foot feet first slide. Ok, we all good? Trout probably should have been called out there.
Hit the jump for a look at the entire “stolen base”
Remember last year when Mike Trout made that amazing catch in center field against the Baltimore Orioles? It was great, he leaped far and high to steal a dinger from J.J. Hardy in what was arguably the baseball highlight of the year.
This year, Mike Trout reported to camp heavier than before, bulking up ahead of the long season. He lost most of the weight before the Cactus League schedule was even finished but, apparently, that hasn’t stopped some from digging away at this low-hanging fruit.
Last night, while playing left field against the Oakland A’s, Mike Trout went back to the fence on a high drive by Coco Crisp. Trout jumped in an attempt to steal the homer to no avail. Big fly for Covelli. Somebody at Guyism saw this play and noticed Mike Trout didn’t jump as high and then assumed it’s because Mike Trout can’t jump as high as he once did. Which is just terrific.
Dustin Parkes, Andrew Stoeten, Scott Lewis, Craig Robinson, Matt Klaassen, Eno Sarris, Riley Breckenridge
