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Articles By Charlie Miller
Was B.J. Upton's chopper off R.A. Dickey down the third-base line a hit or an error? By my standards, it was an error. By most official scorer's decisions on a nightly basis, it was a hit.
It doesn't carry the same weight as a block/charge in basketball or pass interference/no call in football — those decisions affect the outcome of the game — but every night in every baseball game the official scorer decides hit or error at least once. And while it doesn't affect the outcome, it does play havoc with batting averages, ERAs and, as we saw last night, even history.
Wednesday night in St. Pete, this is not just your garden variety hit/error decision where the Mets' Dickey might call the press box during the game to have the scorer make a change, only to have Upton make a subsequent call to have it changed back. No. There's much more import here.
You see, this was the only play in which the scorer ruled a hit for the Rays.
Dickey faced just two batters over the minimum during his sterling effort. Third baseman David Wright made an error on a ground ball by Elliot Johnson leading off the ninth inning. Had the no-hitter still been in effect, this would have been a defining moment. Instead, it was just another error.
The deeper issue I have is that official scorers have become much too hitter-friendly over the years. A quick glance at error totals through the years supports this. I understand that fielders are better, gloves are better, fields are immaculate eliminating most weird bounces, but it seems that in order to be charged with an error these days, the ball must bounce out of a glove, a throw sail wide or a ground ball must squirt through a fielder's legs.
Wright should have made that play on Upton, in my opinion. From a pitcher's perspective, an out should have been recorded. It wasn't, so charge an error. However, by most scoring standards, this was a hit.
Last night, as the Cardinals were nursing a 1-0 lead in the ninth inning, a ground ball up the middle just eludes shortstop Rafael Furcal, allowing a runner to reach. My call: Error, no question. Official Scorer: Hit. In this instance, other than Alejandro De Aza of the White Sox having another hit in his column this morning, there was no impact whatsoever. No ERA effect, no game-changer, no history re-writing.
Questionable scoring decisions occur every night in every game. Most have no lasting effect, and most even would be considered "correct" by experts. And there are review processes in place under certain circumstances. But let's not start changing calls just because a no-hitter is in play.
Upton was the third batter Dickey faced in the first inning, so no one is thinking no-hitter at that time. And with a 1 in the column under H on the scoreboard, no one is thinking no-hitter for the remainder of the game. So the suspense, the tension, the superstitions, the excitement of watching history unfold — all of that is gone.
The Mets are appealing to MLB to have the scoring changed to an error, giving Dickey a no-hitter. I'm sure the Mets would love to celebrate two no-hitters in one season after playing 50 years without one, but the moment is gone.
- Charlie Miller (@AthlonCharlie)
Each week Athlon Sports looks back at the previous week's best baseball players in the American and National leagues, and recaps the most outstanding pitching performances. Here are last week's—June 4-10—standouts.
AL Player of the Week
Mike Trout, Los Angeles—Following teammate Mark Trumbo, who received this honor last week, Trout posted a .520 batting average for the week, leading the American League with 13 hits and 10 runs, which tied teammate Torii Hunter. The 20-year-old outfielder began the week with a 4-for-4 performance against Seattle and ended with eight hits and eight runs in the Angels' three-game sweep at Colorado.
AL Pitcher of the Week
Andy Pettitte, New York—The Yankees thought Pettitte could help the team by logging quality innings and mentoring young pitchers along the way. However, the veteran, who will turn 40 on June 15, has been one of the team's best starting pitchers since signing earlier this season. Last week the lefthander threw 7.1 shutout innings in a win over the first-place Rays, and he turned in six innings in a win over the crosstown Mets.
NL Player of the Week
Jason Kubel, Arizona—Kubel was signed over the winter to bring offense to a suspect lineup, and the leftfielder hasn't disappointed. Last week Kubel batted .409 and slugged .818 with two home runs. He had 12 RBIs, all coming over a four-game stretch, which included a weekend sweep of the Oakland A's. Kubel had three RBIs in the Diamondbacks' one-run win on Friday and added two more in the one-run win on Sunday.
NL Pitcher of the Week
Ryan Dempster, Chicago—After a string of 18 consecutive starts without a win (dating to last August), Dempster finally broke through with two wins last week. The Cubs' righthander tossed 15 shutout innings in his two starts, beating the Brewers on three hits over seven innings and the Twins on four hits and a walk over eight innings. He struck out nine and allowed just eight baserunners en route to posting a 0.53 WHIP and 0.00 ERA.
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for June 11, 2012.
1. Dodgers—Won last six games in which they have at least one hit.
2. Rangers—Won only three of last 10 vs. AL West.
3. Rays—Convincing sweep over the Marlins.
4. Nationals—Waltzed out of Fenway with a sweep.
5. Yankees—May be old, but still team to beat in AL East.
6. Orioles—Lost 12 of last 19 with three wins in extra innings.
7. Braves—Followed eight-game losing streak by winning eight of nine.
8. Reds—Chapman finally appears human in loss to Tigers.
9. Marlins—Streaky Fish back on the skids.
10. Angels—Only one loss since May 18 by more than two runs.
11. Giants—What's wrong with Tim Lincecum?
12. White Sox—Paul Konerko making case for MVP.
13. Mets—Lost six of seven since Cardinals left town.
14. Blue Jays—Jose Bautista beginning to heat up a bit.
15. Pirates—Ended the week tied for first place.
16. Diamondbacks—Making a charge to defend their title.
17. Indians—Brash Chris Perez keeps saving games.
18. Cardinals—Redbirds need starting pitching and bullpen help.
19. Red Sox—Lost six of seven.
20. Phillies—Dropped two nail-biters at Baltimore over the weekend.
21. Tigers—Ended the weekend at Cincinnati on high note.
22. Brewers—Road trip to Kansas City and Minnesota this week.
23. Mariners—No-hit the best team in the National League.
24. Royals—Still bullish on future, but present not too bright.
25. Twins—Won nine of 12, won 15 of 17 in June 2011.
26. Astros—Won four of Lucas Harrell's last five starts.
27. Rockies—Outscored by 27 over last five games — all losses.
28. A's—Lost 14 of 18, now facing NL West.
29. Padres—One positive: Closer Huston Street is back and healthy.
30. Cubs—On pace to lose 108.
By Charlie Miller Follow @AthlonCharlie
With the 2012 Major League Baseball Draft underway this evening, we decided to take a look back through history at the top picks at each slot, from 1 to 50. There are some Hall of Famers on the list, but some had to be left out. And there are a few slots that will probably make you scratch your head and ask, "Who's that guy?"
50—Dennis Eckersley, Cleveland, 1972
Became a Hall of Fame closer with Oakland after a 150-win career as a starter. The Indians received Bo Diaz and Rick Wise from Boston among others for Eck in a 1978 trade.
49—Carlos Beltran, Kansas City, 1995
Rookie of the Year for the Royals; too bad they couldn't afford to keep him.
48—Cal Ripken, Baltimore, 1978
Seven shortstops were drafted ahead of Cal in 1978, including Buddy Biancalana, Lenny Faedo and Rex Hudler. Evidently, the Orioles thought more of Robert Boyce, Larry Sheets and Edwin Hook, who were drafted ahead of the Iron Man.
47—Tom Glavine, Atlanta, 1984
Five high school hurlers were selected ahead of Glavine, including Greg Maddux. Glavine wore his draft slot number on his back for 305 major league wins with the Braves and Mets. An Atlanta legend.
46—Jimmy Rollins, Philadelphia, 1995
Two years before taking Rollins at No. 46, the Phillies grabbed Scott Rolen with the same number. Give Rollins the edge here due to loyalty to the franchise. He has meant more to the Phillies than Rolen. The Brewers nabbed Yovani Gallardo here in 2004. He may replace Rollins on this list someday.
45—Tom Gorzelanny, Pittsburgh, 2003
So, what did you expect? Gerald Laird? Jed Lowrie? You find a better guy.
44—Joey Votto, Cincinnati, 2002
There were no good options at No. 44 until Votto showed up in 2002. He rewarded the Reds with an MVP in 2010 and likely will win another.
43—Bob Knepper, San Francisco, 1972
Knepper won 47 games for the Giants before being traded to Houston for Enos Cabell. I guess the Giants wish they had taken Eckersley with this pick, you think?
42—Dennis Leonard, Kansas City, 1972
As tempting as it was to put Mookie Wilson here, we just couldn't ignore Leonard's 144 wins for the Royals during their glory years in 1970s. The three-time 20-game winner played his entire career in Kansas City.
41—Fred Lynn, Boston, 1973
Two years later, the former USC star would be named Rookie of the Year and MVP for the AL champion Red Sox. Oddly enough, every season from 1980 until his retirement after 1990, Lynn hit below his career average.
40—Huston Street, Oakland, 2004
Street earned the 2005 Rookie of the Year award. He was traded with Carlos Gonzalez for Matt Holliday after the 2008 season. How'd that work out for ya, Oakland?.
39—Don Baylor, Baltimore, 1967
Baylor played 511 games over six seasons with Baltimore, getting some MVP votes in 1975. He was then a part of six-player deal just prior to the start of the 1976 season that brought Reggie Jackson to Baltimore. Baylor was named MVP in 1979 with the Angels.
38—David Wright, New York Mets, 2001
Of the 37 players drafted ahead of Wright, 14 have yet to see time in the big leagues. His 175 home runs and 682 RBIs are second to Mark Teixeira's 293-947 among players drafted in '01.
37—Frank Viola, Minnesota, 1981
Sweet music won a Cy Young in 1987, helping the Twins to the World Series championship. Mike Scott won a Cy Young in 1986 helping the Astros to the playoffs. Adam Jones of Baltimore may trump both in a few years.
36—Johnny Bench, Cincinnati, 1965
In the first draft ever, the Reds called Bench's name in the second round. Bench holds the distinction of being the first Hall of Famer drafted. Among the seven catchers selected ahead of Bench were Ray Fosse, Gene Lamont and Ken Rudolph. Twenty years later the Montreal Expos would call Randy Johnson's name at No. 36.
35—Johnny Damon, Kansas City, 1992
Economics lesson: In six seasons with the Royals, Damon played in 803 games, scored 504 runs and racked up 894 hits and made a total of $7,089,000. In one season with Oakland he played in 155 games, scored 108 runs, with 165 hits, and made $7,100,000.
34—Mark Gubicza, Kansas City, 1981
Gubicza won 14 games for the 1985 champion Royals and won 20 in 1988. After making 327 starts for Kansas City he ended his career with two forgettable starts for the Anaheim Angels in 1997.
33—Dave Burba, Seattle, 1987
Somehow Burba managed to win 115 and lose only 87. That seems better than Milt Wilcox's 119-113 career record. Those were the best choices.
32—Dave Magadan, New York Mets, 1983
Magadan made history with eight consecutive hits to begin the College World Series. Actually received some MVP votes in 1990 after hitting .328 for the Mets.
31—Greg Maddux, Chicago Cubs, 1984
Perhaps the best pitcher of his generation, the Professor won 355 games and logged more than 5,000 innings. He won four consecutive Cy Young awards from 1992-95, and finished in the top five another five times.
30—Mike Schmidt, Philadelphia, 1971
The Hall of Famer hit 548 home runs for the Phillies with three MVP awards over an 18-year career. He anchored a lineup that won five division titles, two pennants and the 1980 World Series.
29—George Brett, Kansas City, 1971
Two Hall of Fame third basemen were drafted back-to-back in 1971. Brett is Mr. Royal — with three batting titles, 3,154 hits and a .305 lifetime average. He was the heart and soul of the best teams in franchise history.
28—Lee Smith, Chicago Cubs, 1975
Smith made closing look excruciating and painful, but he mastered it to the tune of 478 career saves. He had just 180 saves for the Cubs before a trade to the Red Sox for Al Nipper and Calvin Schiraldi.
27—Vida Blue, Kansas City Athletics, 1967
Of his 209 career wins, 124 of them came with the A's. He was named MVP and Cy Young winner in 1971 and was a mainstay in the rotation that won three straight World Series titles from 1972-74.
26—Alan Trammell, Detroit, 1976
Two shortstops were selected ahead of Trammell in 1976. Neither reached the major leagues. Trammell played 2,293 games, all for the Tigers. He hit .419 in the 1984 postseason with three home runs, nine RBIs and seven runs in eight games.
25—Bill Buckner, Los Angeles Dodgers, 1968
Forget about the error and remember the 2,715 hits over a stellar 22-year career. Buckner had 837 hits in 773 games for the Dodgers prior to being traded to the Cubs in a deal that brought the Dodgers Rick Monday, the first player ever drafted in 1965. Buckner was then dealt to the Red Sox in a trade for Dennis Eckersley.
24—Terry Mulholland, San Francisco, 1984
Mulholland played for 11 different teams in a 20-year career that lasted until he was 43. He went from front-line starter to lefty specialist. I suspect Chad Billingsley will make this list here by 2015.
23—Mo Vaughn, Boston, 1989
Mo was one of the most feared hitters in the American League for a short period of time. Owns an MVP and was a member of three All-Star teams. Jacoby Ellsbury is right on his heels.
22—Craig Biggio, Houston, 1987
Two years earlier the Cubs drafted Rafael Palmeiro in this slot, and although Palmeiro has huge numbers, he wasn't half the gamer that Biggio was. Biggio made the All-Star team as a catcher and second baseman, and owns 3,060 hits, 668 of them doubles.
21—Rick Sutcliffe, Los Angeles Dodgers, 1974
After winning Rookie of the Year with a 17-10 mark for the Dodgers in 1979, two years later Sutcliffe was dealt to the Indians for Jack Fimple, Jorge Orta and Larry White. Oops. He later won a Cy Young with the 1984 Cubs.
20—Mike Mussina, Baltimore, 1990
Mussina narrowly missed winning 20 games five times before accomplishing that feat in his 18th and final season. He rewarded the Orioles with a 147-81 mark over 10 seasons, then dissed them by signing a huge deal with the Yankees. He made 21 postseason starts, but never won a ring.
19—Roger Clemens, Boston, 1983
However tainted you may believe Clemens' record is, he won seven Cy Young awards, an MVP, finished third in Cy Young voting another three times. He retired with 354 wins, 4,672 strikeouts, 46 shutouts and a 3.12 ERA. In 34 postseason starts, he was 12-8, including 3-0 in eight World Series starts.
18—Willie Wilson, Kansas City, 1974
The New York Mets are certainly rooting for Ike Davis to take over this slot one day, but for now it's Wilson. The speedy center fielder stole 521 bases from 1978-87. He owns a batting title and finished fourth in MVP voting in 1980. At age 36, he stole seven bags in a six-game ALCS against the Toronto Blue Jays.
17—Roy Halladay, Toronto, 1995
Drafted in the same slot as Phillies teammate Cole Hamels, Halladay is among the career leaders for active pitchers in several categories. He owns two Cy Young awards and has finished in the top 5 another four times. His average season since 2002 is 16-7 with a 3.02 ERA.
16—Lance Berkman, Houston, 1997
A Texan through and through, Houston made the former Rice star the No. 16 pick in 1997 and promoted him to the big leagues in July 1999. Enjoying a resurgence with St. Louis this season, the five-time All-Star has a lifetime .410 on-base percentage.
15—Jim Rice, Boston, 1971
Between 1975-86, the consistent Rice averaged .307-31-110 with 95 runs (excluding the strike-shortened 1981 season). He won just one MVP, but was in the top 5 six times. In 1978 he had 406 total bases.
14—Don Gullet, Cincinnati, 1969
For whatever reason, the No. 14 slot isn't very strong. Lots of above average candidates, but no Hall of Famers. Tino Martinez, Tom Brunansky, Derrek Lee, Jason Varitek, Jeff Weaver and Jason Heyward made the short list. But Gullet enjoyed the most success with his original team. He was the ace of the Big Red Machine in 1975-76 before signing with the Yankees as part of the first-ever free agent class in 1977. He appeared in four World Series with the Reds, the first at age 19 in 1970.
13—Manny Ramirez, Cleveland, 1991
Before "Manny Being Manny" became popular, Ramirez played eight seasons with the Cleveland Indians, hitting 236 home runs with 804 RBIs. He never won an MVP, but finished in the top 10 for eight consecutive seasons.
12—Kirk Gibson, Detroit, 1978
The former Michigan State star receiver was drafted into baseball by his home-state team. In 12 seasons with the Tigers, he hit 195 home runs and batted .273. But stats don't show the impact that Gibson had on his teams. He won the 1988 NL MVP with modest numbers (.290-25-76). Billy Wagner, Nomar Garciaparra and Jay Bruce received consideration here as well.
11—Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh, 2005
Until McCutchen was drafted, Greg Luzinski (aka The Bull) was the best here. McCutchen is the centerpiece around which the Pirates are rebuilding.
10—Mark McGwire, Oakland, 1984
Although it's unfortunate that Big Mac has become synonymous with the Steroid Era, it's difficult to ignore his 583 homers, 363 of which came in an Oakland uniform.
9—Kevin Appier, Kansas City, 1987
The righthander spent 13 of his 16 seasons with the Royals, with whom he earned 115 of his 169 wins. He logged more than 200 innings eight times, and had 10 seasons of double-digit wins.
8—Todd Helton, Colorado, 1995
The former backup to Peyton Manning and closer at the University of Tennessee, Helton has become the face of the Colorado franchise. He is Mr. Rocky.
7—Frank Thomas, Chicago White Sox, 1989
The Big Hurt terrorized American League pitchers for 16 seasons in a White Sox uniform. He made his major league debut 14 months after being drafted, then played eight seasons before posting his first sub-.300 batting average. He had back-to-back MVPs in 1993 and '94, and finished his career with 521 home runs, 1,704 RBIs and 1,494 runs.
6—Barry Bonds, Pittsburgh, 1985
Two of the greatest stars of this generation (Bonds and Derek Jeter) share this slot. Bonds' numbers are absolutely off the charts (as is his hat size). Seven MVPs — four consecutive — 2,558 walks, 762 home runs and 2,227 runs. He was walked intentionally 120 times in one season. And in his pre-bulked-up days, he won eight Gold Gloves and stole more than 500 bases.
5—Ryan Braun, Milwaukee, 2005
Mark Teixeira, Dale Murphy and Dwight Gooden all have strong cases, but Braun has become the face of a franchise and is committed to Milwaukee through 2020.
4—Dave Winfield, San Diego, 1973
Winfield made his major league debut a few weeks after the draft and 3,110 hits, 465 home runs and 1,833 RBIs later he's in the Hall of Fame. In seven full seasons in San Diego prior to bolting for New York via free agency (when have we heard that before), he averaged .284-22-88 with 19 stolen bases.
3—Robin Yount, Milwaukee, 1973
Four years later the Brewers drafted another shortstop in the third slot, and fellow Hall of Famer Paul Molitor became a teammate of Yount's for 15 years in Milwaukee. During their time together, the two combined for 4,736 hits. Yount gets the nod with two MVPs and spending his entire career with the team that drafted him.
2—Reggie Jackson, Kansas City Athletics, 1966
Jackson owns four home run titles and five strikeout titles, but Mr. October electrified crowds in Oakland, New York and L.A. He was at his best when the lights were the brightest. In 27 World Series games, he batted .357 with 10 home runs. Just what were the Mets thinking with Steve Chilcott at No. 1?
1—Alex Rodriguez, Seattle, 1993
As tempting as it was to go with Ken Griffey Jr., who energized baseball fans in Seattle; or Chipper Jones, who has spent his entire career with the Atlanta Braves, and most of those seasons in the postseason; the best overall player is Rodriguez. And there is no argument here. A-Rod is among the best to ever play the game.
Well, there you have the best players drafted at each lot, 1-50. In case you're wondering which team seemed to be the best at spotting talent over the last 47 years, the Kansas City Royals placed seven players on this list. But of course, that is far from a reliable evaluation given that the Giants get credit for drafting Bob Knepper and the Brewers get no credit for Paul Molitor when counting from this list.
For what it's worth, the Yankees, Cardinals, Angels and Rangers — franchises that participated in all 47 drafts — did not show up at all. Thurman Munson at No. 4 (Yankees), Ted Simmons at No. 10 (Cardinals), Frank Tanana at No. 13 (Angels) and Mark Teixeira at No. 5 (Rangers) were close calls.
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for June 4, 2012.
1. Rangers—Roy Oswalt signing makes the best even better.
2. Dodgers—Catcher A.J. Ellis quietly covering for the injured Matt Kemp.
3. Rays—Weekend showdown with Orioles avg. att.: 20,200. Sad.
4. Marlins—23-9 since a tough 8-14 April has Marlins at top of division.
5. Braves—Five upcoming Interleague series take Braves through AL East.
6. Nationals—Gio Gonzalez won all five starts in May.
7. Orioles—Adam Jones second in the majors in total bases.
8. Yankees—Fewest blown saves in the majors.
9. Mets—Johan Santana makes Mets history with no-hitter.
10. Angels—Angels closer to first place than Cardinals #Pujolseffect.
11. Reds—Bolted into first place.
12. White Sox—White-hot Sox on blistering pace, leave Tigers, Indians in dust.
13. Blue Jays—Jays have won six of Drew Hutchison's nine starts.
14. Giants—Streaky Barry Zito wins another two starts.
15. Phillies—Cole Hamels having huge season in contract year.
16. Indians—Lost seven of nine and grip on first place.
17. Cardinals—Best run differential in NL, but have dropped to .500.
18. Red Sox—Rookies Daniel Nava and Will Middlebrooks breath of fresh air.
19. Pirates—James McDonald had an 0.89 WHIP and 1.54 ERA in May.
20. Tigers—Revolving doors at second base and right field.
21. Diamondbacks—Last three-game winning streak ended May 1.
22. Brewers—Sweet four-game sweep at Dodger Stadium.
23. Royals—Only starter with wins in back-to-back starts is Bruce Chen.
24. Mariners—Suffered four losing streaks of four-plus games.
25. Rockies—Dexter Fowler, Carlos Gonzalez carrying the offense.
26. Astros—Won seven of nine, then lost eight in a row.
27. A's—Scored 21 runs in last 11 games — nine came in one game.
28. Twins—Former Rule 5 pick Scott Diamond has 1.86 ERA in six starts.
29. Padres—Only franchise without no-hitter.
30. Cubs—Trade talks heating up in Chicago.
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for May 29, 2012.
1. Dodgers—Scored six or more runs in seven of last 10 games.
2. Rangers—25-2 when allowing three runs or less; 5-16 otherwise.
3. Orioles—Outscored Royals and Red Sox on homestand, but lost 4 of 6.
4. Rays—Fernando Rodney finally blew a save.
5. Yankees—Andy Pettitte has found the fountain of youth.
6. Nationals—Sweep at Atlanta has Nats cruising.
7. Reds—Won eight of nine and next nine vs. Pirates and Astros.
8. Braves—Tough week drops Braves to fourth, but still squarely in hunt.
9. Marlins—Can gain ground in East this week.
10. Blue Jays—Lost five straight and Baltimore and Boston visit this week.
11. Cardinals—Losing record outside the division.
12. Indians—Majors best at 10-2 in one-run games.
13. Mets—8-2 when R.A. Dickey starts.
14. Angels—Lookout! Pujols and Angels hitting their stride.
15. Phillies—Roy Halladay's shoulder is balking.
16. Giants—Melky Cabrera (.369) having a terrific season.
17. White Sox—June schedule lines up well for Sox.
18. Tigers—Must improve defensively to climb in standings.
19. Red Sox—4-8 at Fenway Park vs. AL East.
20. Diamondbacks—Offense better; pitching worse in May.
21. A's—Bullpen has 2.55 ERA, 1.16 WHIP.
22. Pirates—Third-best ERA (3.23) in majors.
23. Mariners—Starters allowed just 33 homers in 49 starts.
24. Astros—Won seven of nine prior to losing last two at Los Angeles.
25. Brewers—Opponents batting .185 off Zack Greinke at home; .369 on road.
26. Royals—Jonathan Broxton doing nice job as fill-in closer.
27. Padres—Get to play Cubs next.
28. Rockies—Cubs only team in NL playing worse right now.
29. Twins—On pace to have worst two-season stretch in franchise history.
30. Cubs—Scored 18 runs in last nine games — all losses.
Mike Trout or Bryce Harper?
Proposing the question to most casual fans as to who the top rookie in baseball is this season, most answers will include Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals, either at the top or near the top of their lists.
If you watch the baseball highlight shows, you know Harper has a cannon arm, swings a powerful bat from the left side, has tremendous speed and is daring on the basepaths, enough so his first major league stolen base was a steal of home off the Phillies' Cole Hamels, as the lefthander was throwing to first. Whether it's throwing or running (or even losing a fly ball in the lights), the 19-year-old phenom has been a lead part of the highlights many nights. The media throng for his major league debut in Los Angeles against the Dodgers was unreal.
But there's a 20-year-old outfielder on the other coast who is upstaging the Nats' rising star. Mike Trout of the Los Angeles Angels made his debut last season as a teenager and didn't have great success, but wasn't exactly overmatched either. And after a strong start at Triple-A this season, Trout was recalled the day before Harper made his ballyhooed debut. But Trout's recall was quickly and easily buried by Harper's debut.
Sometimes the substance of a good steak gets lost in the sizzle on another plate. Trout's substantive exploits on the West Coast have been overshadowed by Harper's sizzle on the East Coast. And it's understandable given fans' thirst for the spectacular. A Bryce Harper pop out in his debut somehow seems more exciting than an RBI double off the wall by a 20-year-old in his second season.
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for May 21, 2012.
1. Dodgers—Won 9 of 11, five of them without Matt Kemp.
2. Orioles—Closing in on June with best record in American League.
3. Rangers—Lost four of seven vs. sub-.500 teams.
4. Braves—In the midst of what could be 41 straight vs. winning teams.
5. Rays—Scored 13 runs in last five games, but managed to win two.
6. Nationals—Stephen Strasburg beats Orioles with arm and bat.
7. Blue Jays—Casey Janssen has three perfect saves.
8. Yankees—Only 8-11 since Mo Rivera's last save.
9. Marlins—Best team in baseball this month.
10. Cardinals—Costly injuries have caused evaporation of division lead.
11. Reds—Ended the weekend within a half-game of St. Louis.
12. Indians—Batting .264 vs. righthanders, just .210 vs. lefties.
13. Phillies—Finally jumped over Mets to get out of cellar.
14. Tigers—Austin Jackson (not Fielder or Cabrera) has Tigers' best OPS.
15. Mets—Tough luck for Johan Santana: 1-2, 2.89 ERA.
16. Giants—13 players have outhomered the Giants this month.
17. A's—Josh Reddick is only bright spot offensively now.
18. White Sox—Showed the Cubs who their daddy is.
19. Red Sox—Starting pitching has made an about-face.
20. Diamondbacks—Welcome sight getting Chris Young back in lineup.
21. Mariners—Swept Rockies in Denver without throwing ace King Felix.
22. Angels—Fired hitting coach Mickey Hatcher; improved 0.2 runs/game.
23. Pirates—Paltry .254 OBP in May leaves offense in trouble.
24. Astros—Winning record at home, getting killed on the road.
25. Brewers—Ryan Braun swinging hot bat in May (.381).
26. Royals—Irving Falu has 12 hits in seven major league games.
27. Padres—Have two fewer home runs than Josh Hamilton.
28. Twins—Breaking even (3-3) against their own division this season.
29. Rockies—Rockies are crashing and burning.
30. Cubs—Bryan LaHair is fifth in majors with a 1.044 OPS.
On Tuesday night, Josh Hamilton hit four home runs off Baltimore pitching.
How rare is that feat?
It's been accomplished only 14 times since 1900; 16 if you go back prior to the turn of the century when rules were different. That's four fewer than the number of perfect games during that time.
The list of the 14 players to accomplish it spans from Pat Seerey, who had a nondescript seven-year career and finished with 86 career homers, to Hall of Famers Willie Mays and Lou Gehrig, two of the greatest to ever put on a uniform.
Gil Hodges is on the list, Duke Snider is not.
Lou Gehrig did it, Babe did not.
Seattle's Mike Cameron made the list; Seattle's Ken Griffey Jr. didn't.
The Cardinals' Mark Whiten, yes; The Cardinals' Mark McGwire, no.
Willie Mays, uh-huh; Hank Aaron, nope.
Before Tuesday night, it had been nine years since a four-homer game. While that seems like a long span, it's just the fifth-longest between quadfectas. There were 15 years between Willie Mays' four shots in 1961 and fellow Hall of Famer Mike Schmidt's clouts in 1976. Another 10 years passed before Bob Horner put four in the seats for the Braves in 1986.
15 Miscellany Facts About Four-homer Games
1. Only once has a team lost when a player hit four home runs. That was Horner in 1986. The Braves forgot to keep the Expos from scoring and lost 11-8.
2. Shawn Green holds the record for most total bases. In addition to the 16 courtesy of the homers, he added a single and double for 19 total bases.
3. You must hit in the middle of the order to do this, evidently. Only Nos. 3, 4, 5 and 6 hitters have accomplished it. Spots 1-8 have hit three in a game, but table-setters and the bottom third have never gone deep four times.
4. Only twice has a team failed to score in double figures. The aforementioned Braves in'86 and Chuck Klein's Phillies in 1936 defeated Pittsburgh 9-6.
5. Stereotypical offensive positions do this. Only outfielders and corner infielders have done it. Every position except pitcher has pulled off a trifecta.
6. The shortest time between four clouts is 21 days. Mike Cameron hit four on May 2, 2002 and Shawn Green followed that on May 23.
7. Three franchises have had two players pull it off. But only one franchise, the Philadelphia Phillies, called the same city home. Klein and Schmidt were the two Phillies to do it. Gil Hodges did it as a Brooklyn Dodger, Green as an L.A. Dodger. Joe Adcock was with the Milwaukee Braves, Horner was with Atlanta.
8. No one saw Horner's four clouts on live TV, although Ted Turner's Superstation TBS broadcast every game. But during the Goodwill Games — a brainchild of Turner's — in 1986, TBS delayed Braves' telecasts.
9. Adrian Beltre has the distinction of belting home runs in two games in which a teammate has hit four. He hit in front of Green (and Beltre laid down a sac bunt in the first inning to get the Dodgers' offense rolling), and also hit a home run hitting behind Hamilton.
10. Fans rarely have gone home completely happy. While most fans are thrilled to see the rare event, only twice have the home fans witnessed their team accomplish it AND win the game. Gil Hodges thrilled the fans in Brooklyn and Carlos Delgado made the Jays' fans happy with a come-from-behind win.
11. Eleven of the 14 times it has been accomplished by a visiting player.
12. Two stadiums have been the site of two feats. Shibe Park was the site of two of the first three occurrences. Gehrig did it there against Philadelphia in 1932, and Jim Seerey of the White Sox broke the Athletics' spirit with four in 1948. It's happened twice at Baltimore, Chicago and Milwaukee, but in different stadiums in each city.
13. Connie Mack, the long time owner/manager of the Philadelphia Athletics, is the only manager to watch his pitchers allow an opponent to hit four home runs in a game twice.
14. No pitcher has ever given up four home runs to the same hitter in a game. Only three times on this list has one pitcher allowed three of the four.
15. Were there any close calls for a fifth? Only three times have hitters come to the plate with a chance for a fifth home run, twice by the same player. The first, Lou Gehrig hit a rocket to deep center field for an out in his sixth at-bat after hitting four home runs. The only other was Mike Cameron. He actually made it to the plate twice. The first ended in him being plunked by Mike Porzio (imagine that). It may or may not have been intentional —it was on a 1-1 count — as Porzio gave him one pitch to hit. Cameron came up again in the ninth and hit a liner that backed up right fielder Magglio Ordonez for an out.
The complete list (since 1900)
Lou Gehrig, New York Yankees
June 3, 1932
New York 20, at Philadelphia 13
The Athletics' George Earnshaw is one of only two starting pitchers to give up three of the four home runs. Yankees third baseman Tony Lazzeri also deserves some accolades for hitting for the cycles that day. Not to be too overshadowed, Babe Ruth also went deep, but only once.
Chuck Klein, Philadelphia Phillies
July 10, 1936
Philadelphia 9, at Pittsburgh 6
The Pirates (with three Hall of Famers in the lineup) tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the ninth, which gave Klein an extra at-bat in the 10th.
Pat Seerey, Chicago White Sox
July 18, 1948
Chicago 12, at Philadelphia 11
Like Klein, Seerey also needed extra innings to hit his fourth. Seerey's solo shot in the 11th provided the winning margin.
Gil Hodges, Brooklyn Dodgers
Aug. 31, 1950
Brooklyn 19, Boston Braves 3
Hodges' first blast came off Hall of Famer Warren Spahn. The Dodgers' first baseman had nine RBIs. Pitcher Carl Erskine had five hits and Hall of Famer Duke Snider also went deep.
Joe Adcock, Milwaukee Braves
July 31, 1954
Milwaukee 15, at Brooklyn 7
Lew Burdette was the winning pitcher with 6.1 innings of relief. It was a banner home run day for the Braves, as Hall of Famer Eddie Mathews hit two out and Andy Pafko hit one. Hank Aaron did not go deep, but had a double and a single. By the way, Gil Hodges hit one out for the home team.
Rocky Colavito, Cleveland Indians
June 10, 1959
Cleveland 11, at Baltimore 8
Colavito followed Tito Francona and hit in front of Minnie Minoso, who also homered. Indians pesky second baseman Billy Martin also went deep. Colavito is the only player to hit four home runs in a game and have a win as a pitcher. (Colavito was the winning pitcher in relief of for the Yankees against the Tigers in 1968.)
Willie Mays, San Francisco Giants
April 30, 1961
San Francisco 14, at Milwaukee 4
There were seven home runs hit by Hall of Famers that day. In addition to Mays, Hank Aaron hit two and Orlando Cepeda hit one. Giants Felipe Alou hit one and Jose Pagan hit two of his 52 career homers. The Giants' ninth inning ended with Mays on deck as Jim Davenport grounded out to second.
Mike Schmidt, Philadelphia Phillies
April 17, 1986
Philadelphia 18, at Chicago Cubs 16
In no doubt the wildest affair on the list, the Phillies were once down 12-1. Hall of Fame lefthander Steve Carlton lasted just 1.2 innings and allowed seven earned runs in the worst start of his career. The Phillies took a 15-13 lead into the bottom of the ninth before the Cubs sent it into extras. Schmidt hit number four in the 10th to break the tie. The game ended with the tying run at the plate. Schmidt is the only player on this list to hit home runs off brothers in the process. Rick Reuschel allowed the first two before his brother, Paul, gave up Schmidt's fourth.
Bob Horner, Atlanta Braves
July 6, 1986
Montreal 11, at Atlanta 8
The Expos' starter Andy McGaffigan gave up three blasts before closer Jeff Reardon, who recorded a save, yielded the fourth.
Mark Whiten, St. Louis Cardinals
Sept. 7, 1993
St. Louis 15, at Cincinnati 2
Whiten heads the list with 12 RBIs and is the only player to include a grand slam among his four round-trippers. First baseman Gerald Perry scored in front of Whiten on all four homers.
Mike Cameron, Seattle Mariners
May 2, 2002
Seattle 15, at Chicago White Sox 4
After Jon Rauch (yes, that Jon Rauch) gave up Cameron's first as the starting pitcher, reliever Jim Parque gave up his second, also in the first inning. Parque proceeded to give up Nos. 2, 3 and 4 as well, becoming the only reliever to give up three of the four. Hitting in front of Cameron was Bret Boone, who hit two homers of his own that day. That had something to do with the fact that all four of Cameron's clouts were solo shots. Cameron had two chances for a fifth. He was hit by a pitch in his next plate appearance, then lined out to deep right.
Shawn Green, Los Angeles Dodgers
May 23, 2002
Los Angeles 16 at Milwaukee 3
In perhaps the greatest statistical day ever, Green had a double and single to go with his four dingers giving him 19 total bases. Adrian Beltre, Green and Dave Hansen went back-to-back-to-back in the ninth.
Carlos Delgado, Toronto Blue Jays
Sept. 25, 2003
Toronto 10, Tampa Bay 8
Delgado is the only player to hit four homers with just four plate appearances in the game. His fourth tied the game in the eighth before the Jays added two more for the comeback win. His final two clouts had a Republican slant coming off Joe Kennedy and Lance Carter.
Josh Hamilton, Texas Rangers
May 8, 2012
Texas 10, at Baltimore 3
The former AL MVP hit four two-run shots surrounding a double, giving him eight RBIs. Hamilton ended the night with a .406 average, 14 home runs and 36 RBIs, leading the American League in all three categories.
Boston's Adrian Gonzalez suffered through an 0-fer day against Baltimore in the Red Sox' 9-6 loss in 17 innings. The first baseman struck out in the 17th representing the tying run against the Orioles' Chris Davis, who
began the day simply as the DH and ended it with a win. Gonzalez was the first AL cleanup hitter to go 0-8 since Andre Thornton of the Indians in 1984.
The last time (before Sunday) that a position player picked up a win on the mound in the majors. Rocky Colavito of the last-place Yankees won a game in relief of Steve Barber against the first-place Tigers.
At the end of the weekend, the five AL Central teams were a combined 21 games below .500 at home. They were two games over .500 on the road. So much for playing for home-field advantage in the playoffs.
Home runs from pitchers in April. It marks the first season since 1994 that no pitcher has gone deep in April. So, maybe Albert Pujols shouldn't feel so bad.
Mariano Rivera's age, uniform number and record for postseason saves.
Save in the minor leagues by Rivera prior to notching 608 in the major leagues.
We often hear baseball pundits talk about the value of hitters being surrounded by other feared hitters in the lineup. It's easy to see the impact of not having protection behind hitters in the lineup. We learned the importance of that nearly a decade ago watching Barry Bonds walk 232 times in 2004, with 120 of those intentional.
But what about the table-setters hitting in front of the big guns? A clear example is happening right before our eyes in Cincinnati.
Shortstop Zack Cozart is hitting.196 batting leadoff and .354 batting No. 2. Similarly, when center fielder Drew Stubbs bats leadoff, he's a paltry .107. But put him second in the order and his average jumps to .373. Stubbs also struggles in the seventh spot at .182.
That is what you call the Joey Votto Effect. Votto is the Reds' No. 3 hitter, and this helps explain why Cincinnati has committed more than $200 million to their first baseman.
- Charlie Miller (@AthlonCharlie)
Mariano Rivera vows that he will come back next season, telling reporters last week, "I am coming back," and to "write it down in big letters." So…MARIANO RIVERA IS COMING BACK NEXT SEASON.
There. Mo obviously does not want his career to end this way.
But how else could we expect Rivera's career to end? We don't expect him to lose the effectiveness of his cutter. It doesn't appear that he will ever wear out by pitching. So how else could baseball keep Rivera from answering the call to the bullpen?
A knee injury while shagging flies during BP. Yeah, that's the only way to stop the Sandman — the best relief pitcher in the history of the game. Rivera may never be too old to pitch. He may never be too old to break bats with his devastating cutter. But maybe he is too old to shag flies during BP.
But Rivera resolves to come back and has no regrets.
"If it's going to happen, it's going to happen doing something I love to do," explains Rivera. "And shagging I love to do. I'd do the same thing, without hesitation. The reasons why it happen, you have to take it as it is. You know, just have to fight."
His illustrious Hall-of-Fame career began inconspicuously enough. There was no fanfare like we've seen recently with Bryce Harper or Stephen Strasburg. None of that, "he'll be the next whomever."
Very quietly, on May 23, 1995, Rivera took the mound as the starting pitcher — that's right — starting pitcher for the Yankees at Anaheim against the Angels' Chuck Finley. His manager was Buck Showalter and his catcher was Mike Stanley, the Yankees' cleanup hitter that day.
Rivera didn't last long. He struck out Tony Philips swinging, then caught Jim Edmonds looking. After that, the Angels began to catch up to the Sandman. The future New York closer gave up a three-run jack to Edmonds, then walked Tim Salmon on four straight and Showalter was out of the dugout with the hook. Bob Macdonald was summoned from the Yankees' bullpen but the damage was done. Joe Ausanio and Scott Bankhead followed Macdonald, but Finley was too good.
In 3.1 innings, Rivera gave up eight hits, three walks, five runs and struck out five. Of his 89 pitches, 50 were strikes. There is no record of how many bats Mo may have broken that day.
He made seven more starts, winning three of them, before making his first relief appearance on Aug. 1. And even that beginning was nondescript. He gave up three runs over two innings, blowing a save in relief of Andy Pettitte before the Yankees scored three runs of their own to make Rivera the winner.
Rivera completed his rookie season with a 5.51 ERA and 1.507 WHIP and looked like anything but a Hall of Famer.
But in 1996, the idea of starting was scrapped for good. He was John Wetteland's setup man for the world champs in 1996, appearing in 67 games and tossing 107.2 innings. He had five saves and 26 holds and blew just three save chances. He had a more Rivera-like ERA of 2.09 and 0.994 WHIP in his second season. He finished third in Cy Young voting and 12th in the MVP race. By the fall of 1996, everyone knew the name Mariano Rivera.
Rivera's first save came at Yankee Stadium on May 17, 1996. He induced the Angels' Garret Anderson to ground into a double play turned by Derek Jeter in a game won by Andy Pettitte. His last — make that his most recent — came on April 30 of this season vs. Baltimore. That was save No. 608 for his career. His next save will come sometime in April of 2013 at the age of 43.
|Winning Pitcher
|May 17, 1996
|Andy Pettitte
|June 11, 1999
|at Marlins
|Orlando Hernandez
|Aug. 1, 2001
|Sterling Hitchcock
|May 28, 2004
|at Devil Rays
|Javier Vazquez
|July 16, 2006
|White Sox
|Jaret Wright
|June 28, 2009
|at Mets
|Chien-Ming Wang
|Sept. 13, 2011
|at Mariners
|A.J. Burnett
|April 30, 2012
|Hiroki Kuroda
What they're saying about Mo...
"Rivera has shagged entire pro career. In Single-A in '91, his mgr Brian Butterfield watched, said, 'This guy's our best outfielder.'"
— Tweet by Joel Sherman of the New York Post
"I saw it all go down. It's hard even to talk about it tonight. I mean, Mo has meant so much to us on a personal level, and his significance on the field, on the mound. But the bottom line is we're the New York Yankees, and nobody is going to feel sorry for us."
— New York Yankees third baseman Alex Rodriguez
"You have freak injuries, and this is one of them. We had a guy carrying a box down the stairs that broke his foot. You can fall off a curb. You have to allow him to be an athlete and a baseball player and have fun out there. I've never seen Mo do anything recklessly, or seen Mo dive to try to rob a home run. It's the way he exercises."
— Yankees manager Joe Girardi
"I always argued he was the best pitcher of all-time. Not just the best reliever, but the best pitcher of all-time."
— New York Yankees first baseman Mark Teixeira
Runs scored by the St. Louis Cardinals while Adam Wainwright was in the game during his first four starts this season, spanning 20 innings.
ERA of the first-place Texas Rangers' bullpen in April.
ERA of the last-place Los Angeles Angels' bullpen in April.
Cumulative batting average in the major leagues this season, the lowest for a season in the DH Era. In 1972, the season prior to the DH rule, the majors' average was .244. The league batting average has declined each year since 2006.
Home runs by the Dodgers' Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier in 163 at-bats. Their teammates have combined for just three homers in 545 at-bats.
Consecutive games with a hit by the Giants' Pablo Sandoval to start this season. Before being held hitless by the Padres on Saturday, Sandoval established a new San Francisco mark for a hitting streak to start the season, beating the old mark of 16 set by Willie Mays in 1961.
Home runs for Albert Pujols in the month of April. The future Hall of Fame slugger also had just four RBIs for the month, easily the lowest totals of his illustrious career. For the first 11 seasons of his career, he averaged seven homers and 21 RBIs in April with lows of five and 15.
Last week we presented the best of the young guys — 25 and under. Now the old dudes. Needless to say this roster is one huge injury risk. As was the case with the 25-and-under list, I'm using Opening Day (April 4, 2012) as the cut-off. Players had to be at least age 35 on that day to qualify. I can't tell how tempting it was to fudge on the age eligibility and include Carlos Beltran, who is 20 days too young, and Roy Halladay, who missed by 40 days. Doc immediately becomes this team's ace next season.
A.J. Pierzynski, Chicago White Sox
Last season was the first time A.J. spent any time on the DL in his career. Remarkable. So far this season, he's batting better than .330. Easy to run on though.
First Base
Paul Konerko, Chicago White Sox
He has played close to 2,000 games for the White Sox after both the Dodgers and Reds traded him. This is likely to be his third straight .300-30-100 season.
Second Base
Michael Young, Texas
Okay, crucify me now for taking some liberty here. But Placido Polanco? Jamey Carroll? Marco Scutaro? Jerry Hairston? Not much to choose from here. At least Young has played 433 games in his career at second base, and he can still hit like a 30-year-old. He made 14 starts there last season and three already in 2012.
Third Base
Alex Rodriguez, New York Yankees
Clearly A-Rod is in decline, but he's still a feared hitter in the middle of one of the best lineups in baseball. And he's one of the guys on this team who isn't a liability on defense.
Derek Jeter, New York Yankees
There can be no argument here. Just when you think Jeter might be slowing down, he carries a .400 batting average into late April.
Left Field
Alfonso Soriano, Chicago Cubs
He's turned himself into an horrific outfielder and has some horrific holes in his swing. Other than that, the Cubs should be excited about the $54 million they owe him for 2012-14. Just nudges Carlos Lee off the team.
Center Field
Torii Hunter, Los Angeles Angels
Yes, I know he plays right field now, but I'm sure he can still handle himself quite well in center. No doubt he's in decline though. He has yet to homer and has as many strikeouts as hits (19).
Right Field
Ichiro Suzuki, Seattle
Ichiro is not the same player that arrived in the States in 2001, but he's borderline All-Star quality still. Having Ichiro and Jeter hit 1-2 (in some order) makes for good table setting.
Starting Pitchers
Tim Hudson, Atlanta
I know he's been injured, but he appears to be healthy and ready to join the Braves' rotation without a hitch. He can lead this staff.
Ted Lilly, Los Angeles Dodgers
He's 2-0 with a sub-1.00 ERA and WHIP this season. While those trends won't continue, he's still a reliable No. 3 starter for the Dodgers.
Jamie Moyer, Colorado
Anyone who is older than me can have a spot on this roster. Sporting a 2.55 ERA can earn you a spot in the rotation.
Bronson Arroyo, Cincinnati
Last season looked like the end for Arroyo as he struggled mightily. But 2012 has brought new life with just two walks in 26.2 innings with a 2.70 ERA in a hitter's park.
Bartolo Colon, Oakland
We have no idea what to make of Colon's unbelievable comeback. He won a Cy Young and 21 games in 2005, but has won just 25 games since. But he's allowed less than one base runner per inning this season over 34 frames. We'll ride him until his arm falls off, then turn to Hiroki Kuroda.
Relief Pitchers
Scott Downs, Los Angeles Angels
Every bullpen needs two lefthanders. Downs limited left-handed hitters to a .179 average last season. I think that's more indicative than his slow start this season.
Matt Thornton, Chicago White Sox
Opponents are batting .216 so far this season as the White Sox are asking him to get tough outs every night it seems.
Setup Men
Fernando Rodney, Tampa Bay
Rays pitching coach Jim Hickey doesn't get enough credit. From Soriano to Farnsworth and now Rodney, the Rays' bullpen doesn't seem to miss a beat. Not to mention Peralta and Benoit. So, we're relying on Rodney in late innings in front of Mo.
Rafael Betancourt, Colorado
It was tempting to take Joe Nathan for this role, but Betancourt has proven to be consistent even in Colorado.
Mariano Rivera, New York Yankees
This may be the only position on the roster where the old guys have an advantage. We would rely on Rivera to save big games for us, no matter the age restrictions.
Chipper Jones, Atlanta
Chipper's knees just aren't responding well enough to keep him on the field. But he's a tremendous asset in selected spots off the bench.
Jose Molina, Tampa Bay
As tempting as it was to turn to the recently retired Ivan Rodriguez, we decided to include only active players. Molina would be familiar with the backup role and capable of making starts for an extended period. And since his name is Molina, he is tough to steal against.
David Ortiz, Boston
Since this writer still refuses to recognize the designated hitter in my lineups, Ortiz would be a serious weapon coming off the bench.
Todd Helton, Colorado
Helton loses out to Konerko due to durability issues, but Helton gives the team some punch off the bench and is a solid defensive replacement for Konerko.
Lance Berkman, St. Louis
Rife with nagging injuries (but who on this team isn't?), Berkman is a switch-hitter who still believes he can play the outfield. Truth is, he probably can as well, or better, than Soriano. Great guy in the clubhouse, just trouble keeping him healthy.
John McDonald, Arizona
Edging out Alex Gonzalez and Marco Scutaro, McDonald provides some defensive help off the bench.
Jerry Hariston, Jr., Los Angeles Dodgers
No matter who he plays for or what position he plays, Hairston contributes with his bat, glove and on the bases.
Will be Eligible Next Season
Jose Valverde, Detroit
Rafael Furcal, St. Louis
Carlos Beltran, St. Louis
Roy Halladay, Philadelphia
- Charlie Miller (@AthlonCharlie)
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for April 30, 2012.
1. Dodgers—Sweep of Nationals proved Dodgers are best — for now.
2. Rangers—Lost first series of the season over the weekend.
3. Rays—David Price making early Cy Young bid.
4. Cardinals—Of three NL pitchers with four wins, two are Cardinals.
5. Braves—Craig Kimbrel has saved four of last five wins.
6. Nationals—Respectable debut for Bryce Harper.
7. Yankees—Only four AL teams have allowed more runs.
8. Blue Jays—Edwin Encarnacion leading the offense.
9. Tigers—Recent slump has allowed Indians and White Sox in the race.
10. Diamondbacks—Joe Saunders emerging as D'backs' ace.
11. Indians—Derek Lowe and Jeanmar Gomez ERA: 2.40; other starters: 4.90.
12. Reds—Won seven of 10 with Cubs and Pirates on docket this week.
13. Orioles—Next 15 games will be tough stretch.
14. Phillies—Big games at Atlanta and Washington upcoming.
15. Giants—Won eight of 12 to get back on track.
16. Brewers—Corey Hart carrying the offensive load so far.
17. Rockies—Opponents are hitting .285, third-worst BAA in majors.
18. Mets—David Wright carrying a .506 on-base percentage.
19. Red Sox—Won six of seven against weaker teams.
20. White Sox—Next 15 games are within the division.
21. Angels—Scored 11 runs in last seven games, won only one.
22. A's—Only AL team with fewer runs than Angels.
23. Mariners—Clean-up hitters are batting .194 with 22 Ks and 18 hits.
24. Pirates—Batters Nos. 6-9 hitting just .167.
25. Marlins—Scored 13 runs in last eight games, won one.
26. Astros—Outhomered 26-13 but outscoring competition.
27. Cubs—Won five of eight behind strong pitching.
28. Padres—4-1 when Cory Luebke starts, 3-15 when he doesn't.
29. Twins—Four of last seven losses were by one run.
30. Royals—Jonathan Broxton settling in as closer.
If you were trying to win a championship this season, would you rather have youthful talent? Or seasoned experience? Consider a roster of players age 25 and younger vs. a roster of veterans age 35 and older. Here's my 25-man roster of players who were age 25 or younger on Opening Day (April 4). Next week, I'll showcase the veterans.
Buster Posey, San Francisco
The former Rookie of the Year is hitting .361 and has allowed just three stolen bases in 80 innings behind the plate.
First Base
Eric Hosmer, Kansas City
Hosmer is the cornerstone of the Royals' future offense. Although he's struggling so far this season, Hosmer hit .293 with 19 homers after arriving in early May last season.
Second Base
Jemile Weeks, Oakland
The rising star for the A's hit better than .300 and stole 22 bases in less than 100 games as a rookie last season. He should be the offensive catalyst for the A's for years to come.
Third Base
Pablo Sandoval, San Francisco
Records show that Kung Fu Panda won't turn 26 until August, so he qualifies by a few months. Once he proved he could keep his weight down, he's kept his batting average up.
Starlin Castro, Chicago Cubs
The Cubs' rising star may look lackadaisical at times, but he led the National League in hits last season, and he covers a lot of ground at short.
Left Field
J.D. Martinez, Houston
Astros fans can look forward to Martinez hitting in the No. 3 hole for several more seasons. He was Houston's Minor League Player of the Year in 2010 while at Double-A, and hasn't been overmatched in the bigs.
Center Field
Andrew McCutchen, Pittsburgh
It seems like he's been patrolling center field for the Bucs forever, but he won't be 26 until October.
Right Field
Justin Upton, Arizona
A thumb injury has derailed Upton this season. The right fielder missed just three games last season, hitting 31 bombs and stealing 21 bags.
Starting Pitchers
Clayton Kershaw, Los Angeles Dodgers
There's no surprise that the reigning National League Cy Young winner would lead this rotation.
Stephen Strasburg, Washington
It appears that he has completely recovered from Tommy John surgery. Now if the Nationals will just turn him loose, we could see just how good the flamethrower can be.
Felix Hernandez, Seattle
King Felix turned 26 just after this season started, although it seems like he's been Seattle's ace since Ken Griffey's first tour with the Mariners.
Madison Bumgarner, San Francisco
After the first three spots in our rotation, the choices get much tougher. Bumgarner pitched through tough luck last season, with just three runs or less of support in 16 of his 33 starts.
Jaime Garcia, St. Louis
In a razor-thin close call, Garcia is chosen over Yu Darvish of Texas and Ivan Nova of the Yankees. Garcia went 26-15 over 60 starts in 2010-11 and has postseason experience.
Matt Moore, Tampa Bay
We're going with a traditional 10-man pitching staff and we like having a lefthander who can eat innings and miss bats.
Jeremy Hellickson, Tampa Bay
Moore's teammate is the right-handed version of our long man.
Setup Men
Aroldis Chapman, Cincinnati
Officially, Chapman is only 24. He also throws 100-mph gas for multiple innings from the left side. Valuable asset.
Neftali Feliz, Texas
Developed as a starter in the minors, then converted to one of the best closers in the game, Feliz has returned to the rotation this season.
Craig Kimbrel, Atlanta
Kimbrel was lights out last year until he ran out of gas late in the season. Manager Fredi Gonzalez plans to take it easy on Kimbrel this season.
Matt Wieters, Baltimore
We won't lose much when one of the best catchers in the game subs for Posey.
Elvis Andrus, Texas
Due to his experience, Andrus gets the bench spot over Dee Gordon of the Dodgers.
Carlos Santana, Cleveland
With the same birthday as Hernandez, Santana barely makes it eligible. The switch-hitter can hit and gives us a third emergency catcher.
Billy Butler, Kansas City
The hitting machine really doesn't have a position, but he can rake.
Austin Jackson, Detroit
Jackson is proving what a complete player he can be. We love his speed and defense off the bench.
Giancarlo Stanton, Miami
A quick glance at his split stats shows that he has much more power going by Mike than Giancarlo.
Brett Lawrie, Toronto
We need another infielder and Lawrie plays the game with the kind of gusto and confidence we like.
—By Charlie Miller, follow him on Twitter @AthlonCharlie.
Career complete game by Phil Humber of the Chicago White Sox. The 29-year-old, who has been claimed off waivers twice in his career, had never pitched into the ninth inning before his perfect game against the Mariners on Saturday.
Run differential for the Texas Rangers, who are 13-3 on the season. Texas has three one-run losses to the White Sox, Mariners and Tigers.
Hits by Boston's Carl Yastrzemski at Fenway Park, the most of any player in the stadium's 100-year history.
Games started at catcher by the trio of Jorge Posada, Jason Varitek and Ivan Rodriguez, who all retired since last season. They combined to play in 228 postseason games, including 48 World Series games, winning seven championships.
Age of Colorado's Jamie Moyer, who became the oldest pitcher to win a major league game with a victory over San Diego on April 17. Moyer tossed seven innings and allowed no earned runs to lower his ERA to 2.55. It was win No. 268 for the veteran lefthander.
Players who participated in Moyer's historic win who were not born at the time the veteran pitcher made his major league debut with the Chicago Cubs in 1986. Cameron Maybin, the first batter Moyer faced in the game, Anthony Bass, the opposing pitcher, Wilin Rosario, Moyer's catcher, Rex Brothers, who relieved him and Yonder Alonso, who later pinch-hit for the Padres, were all born after Moyer made it to the big leagues. Eric Young, Jr. pinch-hit for Moyer. Young's father, Eric Young, Sr., a 15-year major league player himself, was just age 19 and still six years away from his major league debut with the Dodgers, when Moyer first pitched for the Cubs on June 16, 1986.
After three times through the rotation (and four starts for ace Stephen Strasburg), the Washington Nationals' rotation has been dominant. Extremely dominant. All five starters boast a WHIP below 1.00, allowing less than one base runner per inning. While the numbers are staggering (1.82 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, two home runs in 98.2 innings, .186 batting average against), the success of the group isn't that shocking. All five starters have, at some point in their careers, been projected as top-of-the-rotation aces.
Certainly, they will come down to earth and cough up a few bad outings, but the Nationals' plan to build around starting pitching is coming together nicely.
Ace Strasburg has been hyped as a Hall of Famer since the Nats made him very rich as the first overall draft pick in 2009. After missing about 12 months recovering from Tommy John surgery, the fireballer is dominating again. Over 25 innings, he's allowed just three runs. The Nats have won all four of his starts, but he has two no-decisions, one after pitching six scoreless innings against Miami. Imagine how good this guy can be once the Nats decide to turn him loose. Strasburg has been allowed to pitch into the seventh inning just once this season.
Ross Detwiler, who leads the staff with a 0.56 ERA, was the team's first round pick out of Missouri State in 2007. The organization thought enough of Detwiler to promote him to the big leagues three months after he was drafted.
Jordan Zimmermann was taken in the second round in 2007, and in four seasons of minor league pitching, he allowed just 182 hits in 235 innings. He was named the organization's Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2008, and blossomed last season with a 3.18 ERA in 26 starts for Washington.
Gio Gonzalez was a first-round pick by the White Sox in 2004 and was subsequently traded three times before Oakland dealt him to Washington this winter. In two full seasons with the A's, Gonzalez was 31-21 with a 3.17 ERA and gave up 346 hits in 402.2 innings with 368 Ks.
Edwin Jackson was once considered by Baseball America (2004) as the No. 4 prospect in baseball. The 2001 sixth-round pick of the Dodgers never turned the corner in the minor leagues, but his major league numbers have been much better. This season, he tossed a two-hit complete game against Cincinnati, then had a horrendous first inning against the Astros, before settling down. He tied James Shields for the team lead in wins for the Rays in their historic pennant-winning season in 2008, and was a part of the world champion Cardinals' staff down the stretch last season.
This weekend, the best rotation in baseball will take on the senior circuit's best offensive player in Matt Kemp as the Nationals visit the Dodgers. Detwiler will get the ball for the opener on Friday night against the reigning Cy Young winner Clayton Kershaw. Strasburg will be on the hill on Saturday against Chad Billingsley. Two lefties, Gonzalez and Chris Capuano, will take the stage for the finale on Sunday.
- Charlie Miller (@AthlonCharlie)
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for April 23, 2012.
1. Rangers—Josh Hamilton early MVP candidate.
2. Dodgers—Mark Ellis is proving to be a nice offseason acquisition.
3. Yankees—Yanks rained homers on Boston's weekend parade.
4. Tigers—Justin Verlander was only answer for powerful Texas offense.
5. Cardinals—Won first five three-game series of the year.
6. Nationals—Rotation is best in baseball right now.
7. Blue Jays—Part of logjam in AL East.
8. Braves—Michael Bourn and Freddie Freeman getting it done.
9. Diamondbacks—Won't face Dodgers until mid-May.
10. Rays—Pitchers prepping for vaunted Rangers offense this weekend.
11. Indians—Hafner and Hannahan hitting above .340; teammates, .221.
12. Phillies—Only the Pirates have scored fewer runs.
13. Reds—Team batting average mired at .223.
14. Brewers—Only team to take a series from the Dodgers.
15. Angels—Better batting average than opponents, but fewer runs.
16. Rockies—Won three series in a row.
17. Giants—Buster Posey hitting his way into MVP talk.
18. White Sox—Perseverance pays off for humble Humber.
19. Marlins—Last four losses by one or two runs.
20. Orioles—Toronto, Chicago, Los Angeles trip yielded a 6-4 record.
21. Red Sox—On the outside looking in at four-team division race.
22. Mets—Of the four NLers hitting above .370, two play for the Mets.
23. A's—Scored fewest runs in American League.
24. Mariners—Can M's get Felix Hernandez any runs?
25. Pirates—A.J. Burnett gave Bucs huge lift on Saturday.
26. Astros—Closer Brett Myers becoming valuable trade bait.
27. Cubs—Cubs have just five homers through 16 games.
28. Padres—Opponents are slugging just .316 at Petco Park.
29. Twins—Only Boston has allowed more runs.
30. Royals—Lost first nine games at home.
After last night, 59 players with enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title are homerless so far this season. Some like infielders Daniel Descalso and Ruben Tejada may not hit one all season. And, yes, we know it's less than a month into the season, but we like to have fun anyway.
Here are some notable players yet to go yard:
Alfonso Soriano, Chicago Cubs
Forget the $79 million the Cubs have already sunk into this guy. But they still owe him $54 million to cover this season through 2014. I think there's been a heist on the North Side.
Jayson Werth, Washington
We're giving Werth a break because he's hitting .347. But the Nats are paying him handsomely to produce runs. He has just six RBIs and four runs scored.
Albert Pujols, Los Angeles Angels
The poster boy for this list. How can King Albert not have any home runs two weeks into the season? Although this is the longest drought to start a season in his career, we're betting on Pujols to finish north of 35.
Mark Teixeira, New York Yankees
We know. We know. He's a notorious slow starter, so leave him alone, right? Why? He's a .238 career hitter prior to May 1 and .289 after. He's driven in just 10 percent of his runs in April. Maybe the Yankees should pay him only half his salary in April.
Ryan Zimmerman, Washington
Over the winter, the Nats gave Zim what is essentially a lifetime contract, which is guaranteed through 2019 with a team option for 2020. We're not giving up on Zimmerman being a terrific player, just merely pointing out that hs hasn't homered since inking a huge deal.
Mark Reynolds, Baltimore
The Orioles might be able to stomach the 15 whiffs in only 36 at-bats if they were just one home run to show for the big swings.
Justin Upton, Arizona
He now has a jammed thumb, which could land him on the DL. Prior to that, the D'backs' No. 3 hitter had just two extra-base hits and no RBIs.
Giancarlo Stanton, Miami
We're reverting to Mike until he hits at least one bomb.
Regardless what the standings look like now, with the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox teetering near the bottom of the AL East, they are not likely to end the season there. The Baltimore Orioles are bad enough that they won't let it happen this season, but just in case you're wondering, the last time the Yankees and Red Sox finished last and next-to-last in their division/league was in 1966. The only other time was way back in 1925.
Now in 1966, the Red Sox were a year away from winning the pennant in 1967, and the Yankees were just two years removed from winning five straight from 1960-64. Boston had stars like Carl Yastrzemski, George Scott, Jim Lonborg and a young Tony Conigliaro. The Yankees had Elston Howard behind the plate, Bobby Richardson at second and an outfield of Roy White, Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris. Howard, Mantle and Maris were all former MVPs. Mel Stottlemyre and Al Downing led the pitching staff that included an aging Whitey Ford.
But with all that star power, somehow the Red Sox managed to finish ninth, 26 games back of the Orioles (who swept the Dodgers in the World Series) and the Yankees a half game behind the Sox. I wonder how Mickey, Maris and Whitey felt about finishing last.
Back in 1925, the Red Sox were a collection of no-name players, so it's understandable that they would finish last, 49.5 games out of first. The BoSox had the worst offense, pitching and defense — last in batting average, last in runs, last in ERA, last in fielding percentage and made the most errors. It takes a microscope to find anything positive about that team.
But there was no excuse in New York. Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Bob Meusel and Earle Combs led the Yankees' lineup. You know, guys most fans have heard of. You would think that would be enough firepower to support a pitching staff of Herb Pennock, Urban Shocker, Waite Hoyt and Sad Sam Jones. And the Yankees were 21 games better than the Red Sox, but still finished seventh in the eight-team league. Must have been why Sam was so sad.
- Charlie Miller (@AthlonCharlie)
Active pitchers who have held opponents to a sub-.200 batting average over a full season: Justin Verlander 2011 (.192); Johan Santana 2004 (.192); Kerry Wood 1998 (.196) [min. 162 innings].
Times players have hit 40-plus home runs in a season over the past three years. Jose Bautista and Albert Pujols are the only players to accomplish it twice.
Teams that ended last weekend with a team batting average below .200. The Padres ended Sunday with a .191 average and the Pirates finished up at .188.
Pitching staffs that ended last weekend holding opponents to a sub-.200 batting average. Toronto's pitchers are holding opponents to a .199 average, and the Nationals' pitchers are even stingier at .186.
Players with enough plate appearances to qualify hitting below the Mendoza Line (.200).
Players with enough plate appearances to qualify not even on the interstate yet, hitting below .100. Marlon Byrd of the Cubs ranks at the bottom of the 193 players with a .065 average and .212 OPS.
Remember those cool little trophies that Topps has put on baseball cards of the previous year's best rookies? The card company began the practice in 1960 honoring the best rookies from 1959 — a group that included the likes of Pumpsie Green and Hall of Famer Willie McCovey.
Since that time, Topps has forsaken the trophies in a few years, but has continued to select an All-Rookie Team. Topps usually honors eight position players and two pitchers, one right-handed, one lefty. We prefer four starters and a closer.
Here's our lineup of the top 2012 rookies we believe will be honored by Topps at the end of the season. Some are still in the minors, but you will know their names by the end of the summer.
Hector Sanchez, San Francisco
Sanchez won't get as many plate appearances as other catchers because of some guy named Buster Posey. But as the Giants get Posey more time at first base, Sanchez will continue to impress with his bat and arm.
Others: Devin Mesoraco, Cincinnati; Wilin Rosario, Colorado
First Base
Anthony Rizzo, Chicago Cubs
Rizzo is likely to make the scene by the end of May, and will immediately take his place in the middle of the Cubs' lineup. The Cubbies need his bat, for sure.
Other: Chris Parmelee, Minnesota
Second Base
Freddy Galvis, Philadelphia
Given the full-time gig in Philadelphia until Chase Utley returns, Galvis' bat has been slow starting this season, but he knows how to play the position — and there is little competition at the position.
Other: Kolten Wong, St. Louis
Third Base
Nolan Arenado, Colorado
The third baseman has hit well at every stop, including spring training this season. The hot corner in Denver will be his later this summer. He is among the best long-term prospects on this list as well.
Tyler Pastornicky, Atlanta
Clearly, the deepest position for rookies this season, there are shortstops galore. Pastornicky isn't the best defender of this group, but he is expected to hit close to .300 and steal 20-plus bases.
Others: Zack Cozart, Cincinnati; Nick Franklin, Seattle; Marwin Gonzalez, Houston; Jose Iglesias, Boston
Each week Athlon Sports looks back at the previous week's best baseball players in the American and National leagues, and recaps the most outstanding pitching performances. Here are last week's—April 9-15—standouts.
National League Player of the Week
Matt Kemp, Los Angeles
For the second week in a row, the most feared hitter in the NL is honored here. Kemp hit .455 for the week with an NL-leading four home runs and nine RBIs. He scored seven times.
National League Pitcher of the Week
Jake Westbrook, St. Louis
The Cardinals are getting strong starting pitching from unexpected sources, and Westbrook tossed two gems this week. He won at Cincinnati, then defeated the Cubs at home. In 14 innings he was 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA and 0.86 WHIP.
American League Player of the Week
Josh Willingham, Minnesota
The Twins are struggling to score runs, but Willingham showed why Minnesota signed the free agent over the winter. He hit an even .500 and slugged north of 1.000 with three home runs.
American League Pitcher of the Week
C.J. Wilson, Los Angeles
It hasn't been the kind of start to the 2012 season that the Angels expected, but Wilson was a lone bright spot last week. He won both his starts with a 1.38 ERA and 1.15 WHIP.
Each week during the season Athlon Sports looks at the best and worst baseball teams in the league. Here's our MLB Power Rankings for April 16, 2012.
1. Rangers—Joe Nathan gets first save, bullpen only potential problem.
2. Dodgers—Matt Kemp determined to have monster season.
3. Tigers—Miguel Cabrera, Prince Fielder latest version of Bash Bros.
4. Yankees—Derek Jeter off to hottest start of his career.
5. Cardinals—Kyle Lohse, Lance Lynn, Jake Westbrook are all 2-0.
6. Diamondbacks—Bullpen becoming strength of the team.
7. Nationals—Stephen Strasburg is officially dominant.
8. Blue Jays—Kyle Drabek finally pitching like an ace.
9. Phillies—Phils' leader: 5 RBIs; Ryan Howard: 11 after 9 games in 2011.
10. Red Sox—Big Papi crushing the ball early.
11. Braves—Atlanta needs Jason Heyward and he's producing.
12. Rays—Rays out of the gate slowly once again.
13. Brewers—Cleanup hitters are batting just .103 with no homers.
14. Angels—Offense is struggling and bullpen is terrible.
15. Reds—Aroldis Chapman dominant in relief role.
16. Indians—Derek Lowe settling in as Cleveland's ace.
17. Giants—Tough blow losing Brian Wilson for the season.
18. Rockies—Rockies and opponents have identical .777 OPS.
19. Mariners—Outhomered 15-7, but outscored by only two, 42-40.
20. Marlins—Giancarlo Santon yet to go deep, Omar Infante has four.
21. Orioles—Four regulars hitting better than .285; four below .220.
22. Mets—Relievers Francisco, Byrdak, Rauch and Parnell 1 ER in 16.2 IP.
23. White Sox—Opponents batting .196 with runners in scoring position.
24. A's—May have found another ace in lefty Tom Milone.
25. Pirates—Bucs have 2.57 ERA and .188 batting average.
26. Royals—Hitting .313 at home, .227 on the road.
27. Astros—J.D. Martinez becoming a big hit in Houston.
28. Cubs—Cubs have no home runs from their No. 3 and No. 4 hitters.
29. Padres—Hitting .219 on the road, .179 at Petco Park.
30. Twins—Josh Willingham brings big bat to Minneapolis.


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Wine of the Week: Chai de Bordes, Bordeaux AOC 2010
If you think that wines from Bordeaux are too haughty and expensive, think again.
If you think that wines from Bordeaux are too haughty and expensive, think again.
Don't worry — there's no hand-cranking involved. Follow these steps and you'll be able to enjoy one of five delicious flavors of ice cream, all from the comfort of your home.
Growers get rights to a new variety called Cosmic Crisp
The Collin County Farmers Market, a young but vibrant up-and-comer, is folding up its tents.
Quinoa is a new favorite. When served plain and prepared with water, it is unimpressive. But its simple flavors pair with just about anything you can think of.
Still desperately searching for that last-minute gift? Or a zinger for your holiday table? Look to the Market at the Dallas Farmers Market.The former Shed No. 2 is open every day from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m....
Take a culinary tour of the Crescent City. New Orleans cooking class features crawfish, bread pudding and more.
Bellavista, Franciacorta DOCG, Brut 2008, $34.99-$36.99Celebrate New Year's with something different and delicious: a sophisticated sparkling wine from the Franciacorta region of northwestern Italy. Bellavista's...
Corrado Palmieri makes authentic pastries and coffee for his cafe at the Dallas Farmers Market.
Feta, mint and pita crumbles give this easy salad a different flavor profile.
A new book from the magazine Real Simple — "The Real Simple Guide to Real Life" — includes a useful chapter on cooking.
The protein in flour can be difficult to avoid during the holiday season, so check out our guide to gluten-free gravy, stuffing, green bean casserole and more.
With a bit of helpful advice, you won't need an expensive grill to make something extraordinary.
If you've always wanted to try making your own, here's how to churn out today's fancy, fun flavors.
From tomatoes and peaches to eggplant and okra, this will go down as one of North Texas' best local produce seasons in years.
Cargill says bulk packages and some ground beef chubs bear labels that say, "Contains Finely Textured Beef."
They don't plan to compete with Sprinkles. The focus is to be a "neighborhood cupcakery," said the owner.
Swiss chard, cheese and a judicious amount of chicken sausage add great flavor to the new breed of whole-grain penne.
The vast majority come from Sides Pea Farm in Canton, owned and operated by the Sides family since 1957.
Or how about chocolate éclairs, chopped and mixed in? Or maybe snickerdoodles.
If you are planning on grilling for Memorial Day Weekend but are in need of some help, we've got you covered. Click through for some great ideas and tips for a successful grilling session.
Caramel buttered popcorn gelato? Bloody Mary mix with horseradish and capers? We're so there.
For the truest flavor, sweeten a mix of fresh orange and lime juice with Stevia.
This addictive appetizer, snack or sandwich option tastes best fresh out of the oven.
This Easter, pass up the ham and let lamb anchor your feast, with a great wine to match.
Although many red wines take beautifully to lamb, the panel sought matches that also let the citrus notes in the beans shine, while complementing the rich potatoes.
Roasted leg of lamb, sides, an easy salad and simple dessert make it easy on the cook for the holiday gathering.
The Ruibal family bought out Rosemeade Market and Greenhouse not to change the concept but to improve it.
Dallas-area food and wine events, March 27
The winery is known for chardonnay and pinot noir in the style of Burgundy. This wine is an affordable example.
Put a little gold in your glass with this selection of wines that were winners at the 2013 Dallas Morning News and TexSom Wine Competition.
The following wines earned gold medals in this year's Dallas Morning News and TexSom Wine Competition.
Lemon olive oil is the surprise ingredient; it replaces the usual mayonnaise dressing.
Here are ideas for comforting foods that won't send you out in to the rain to find ingredients.
Major growing areas haven't hit spring yet, but everything should pop in the next week or so.
Chile is known for bargain reds, and this mellow cabernet is no exception. Order in a sausage pizza and open a bottle.
A last-minute drizzle of egg and cheese turns this simple soup into a filling entrée.
Lemon zest and a drop of yellow food coloring turn these into fabulous Easter cookies.
Dallas-area food and wine events for the upcoming week.
Here are ideas for comforting foods that won't send you out in to the rain to find ingredients.
Here's a look at 10 great finds, from miniature cookies to sweetly spicy pickles and barbecue sauce.
Here are ideas for comforting foods that won't send you out in to the rain to find ingredients.
Here are ideas for comforting foods that won't send you out in to the rain to find ingredients.
Here are ideas for comforting foods that won't send you out in to the rain to find ingredients.
Even if pecan pie is not your favorite, here are 10 recipes that should satisfy any pie craving.
We are deep into crawfish season, and you don't have to look far to find live, never-frozen crawfish from Louisiana.
You may see cocktail recipes calling for this flavorful wine, but keep it simple: over ice with a twist of orange.
Yes, anchovies. Give it a try. In this dish they add a subtle, rich flavor – nothing fishy.
A cold oven, an oiled skillet and some simple ingredients produce a classic version with the texture we all crave.
See what's happening in the Dallas-area food and wine scene.
Think of it as the Italian version of bacon. It's cured but not smoked.
This simple baked chicken gets added interest from a two-ingredient sauce that's big on flavor.
Columnist Anne Greer McCann updates two labor-saving versions of the flavorful and spicy concoction.
Here's a look at 10 great finds, from miniature cookies to sweetly spicy pickles and barbecue sauce.
This amber ale is what you need to go with whatever is on the grill this weekend.
A reader shares the treat her mother made for a son stationed in Germany during World War II.
This simple dessert has only five ingredients. Dress it up with toppings and a nice cookie on the side.
Columnist Anne Greer McCann updates two labor-saving versions of the flavorful and spicy concoction.
Columnist Anne Greer McCann updates two labor-saving versions of the flavorful and spicy concoction.
It's party perfect. Assemble it in the morning, and by dinnertime you have a big batch of chili.
It's best to steer toward seasonal items, such as Texas Rio Star grapefruit, pineapple, winter squashes and root vegetables.
This white wine from Burgundy is just right to serve with grilled salmon or roast chicken.
Children ages 3 to 5 can bring an adult helper to a hands-on class that celebrates spring.
Mini desserts have become a trend in many restaurants, usually with familiar concoctions such as tiramisù, red velvet cake or some kind of cobbler. Ours are made with ice cream and various toppings, served in sherry glasses and small glass containers.
Use leftover banana bread or buy a loaf from the store.
The top recipe will still be worth $1 million to one creative cook.
The wine panel chose 15 obscure options that are worth a taste — and they're also great values.
Learn how to make small plates, including a potato omelet, at a hands-on class.
Just what you're looking for: a well-made, bargain red wine from Italy, to serve with pizza and pasta.
On Saturday, Grand Prairie Farmers Market and the second location of White Rock Local Market open for the season.
Follow the lead of local chefs and cooks for meals that are offal good.
Add corn, or roasted tomatoes, or mango, or shrimp and, of course, some bacon.
Love the Oh Henry! candy bar? Here's a homemade version that captures the same flavors in a bar cookie.
It seems people either prefer a sweet topping or a crunchy and nutty topping. With this idea, you can have either — or both.
The wine panel chose 15 obscure options that are worth a taste — and they're also great values.
This Tuscan wine, made in the Maremma area of Italy, pairs well with pasta in a spicy tomato sauce.
This is a light, malty ale that is refreshing on its own and also a good match for Tex-Mex and salty snacks.
This version can be refrigerated and baked the next day and the leftover are delicious when warmed.
As the tangerine-tangelo season wanes, Sumo citrus will be in some area markets as late as May.
Learn your way around the cheese case, and how to pair them with drinks, at an introductory class.
Use chicken livers in a creative way like one of Dallas' best chefs, David Uygur of Lucia.
Whoda thunk? Chicken livers go exotic in Chicken Liver Yakatori.
For a real meal, start with veggies and dip and then have a bowl of red with sweet cornbread and a cupcake for dessert.
This chardonnay from Italy's Piedmont region is citrusy and crisp — just right for pairing with a rich pasta dish.
You need only five ingredients, including a homemade raspberry sauce, to whip up a healthy treat for your Valentine.
If you haven't nailed down a bottle of bubbly for Valentine's Day, we're here to help.
Get crazy with the toppings: bacon, toasted coconut, pretzel bits, toffee, candied ginger, or maybe a dash of sea salt.
Despite recent rains in the U.S., there's no crisis for the popular Valentine's Day fruit.
Layer on the flavor with infused tequila and simple syrup you make in advance.
Here's a simple from-scratch version to satisfy the picky or the purist.
Learn to grow and cook with herbs or visit with pinot noir specialist Mac McDonald in upcoming events.
For a warm and soothing treat, here's what you need to know to create the perfect snuggly beverage for your Valentine.
For a real meal, start with veggies and dip and then have a bowl of red with sweet cornbread and a cupcake for dessert.
For a real meal, start with veggies and dip and then have a bowl of red with sweet cornbread and a cupcake for dessert.
For a real meal, start with veggies and dip and then have a bowl of red with sweet cornbread and a cupcake for dessert.
For a real meal, start with veggies and dip and then have a bowl of red with sweet cornbread and a cupcake for dessert.
Don't know what bubbly to buy for you and your valentine? Before New Year's, our Wine Panel experts found 15 great sparkling wines, in a variety of styles, that offer excellent value.
Just a little slice will do. Top it with your choice of whipped cream, ice cream, berries or powdered sugar.
In this recipe for lamb shoulder chops and potatoes, heat mellows the flavor of the assertive herb.
A twitter chat focuses on love and food.
This American-style porter from a Hawaiian brewery delivers rich coffee and toffee flavors. Serve it with seafood stew.
Here's how to make a version in about 20 minutes that tastes like it has cooked for hours.
This citrusy riesling is made from grapes that grow on the dry eastern side of the Cascade Mountains.
Mushrooms are among the healthiest plant foods you can eat, whether in a ragout or mushroom soup.
This spread is about as easy as it gets. Most of it can be made ahead of time, then served warm during the game.
Also: Wines that'll class up (just a little!) your Super Bowl party
This white wine from the Graves region of France combines the best of sémillon and sauvignon blanc.
If you've never made a batch from scratch, give it a try with these detailed recipes from a pro.
Ground turkey, vegetables, traditional spices and two kinds of beans add up to a meal that's sure to be a winner.
We tried 12 wines and found six nice matches for this classic cold-weather comfort food.
Tracey Altman of Fort Worth-based Wholly Guacamole offers ideas for snacks you can make ahead of time, so you won't be stuck in the kitchen while everyone else enjoys the game. (And the commercials.)
Dallas Morning News Taste writer Tina Danze demonstrates how to make guacamole in a molcajete, or mortar and pestle.
Peticolas, Lakewood, Deep Ellum, FireWheel, Four Corners and Rahr all have their own vibe.
Serve them for breakfast, then heat the leftovers to serve with soup at supper time.
Simply stuff ricotta-based filling into the uncooked shells and bake them in the oven for al dente perfection.
An ale from Alaska? Why not? This one will pair well with dishes that blend sweet and savory flavors.
Jan. 23-29: Dallas-area food and wine events
This red wine from the Loire Valley of France is just the thing to serve with roasted pork tenderloin.
Find South American peaches, nectarines, cherries and plums at groceries now; they'll be pricey.
Lettuces and several veggies are suffering from weather-related ills.
Zestfest heats things up in January with spicy foods, and prepare your taste buds for a goat-and-beer dinner.
This California chardonnay is rich and creamy, with the acidity to pair with scallops or a roast chicken.
The recipe uses rotisserie chicken and frozen waffles — with homemade mushroom gravy holding it together.
is recipe shortens cooking time with frozen chopped collard, kale or mustard greens and diced sweet potato.
A quick trip to the grocery store, and you can slap together the ingredients for Quick-And-Easy King Ranch Chicken Casserole.
We picked up 11 rotisserie chickens from local supermarkets over the course of several chicken runs, keeping them hot in an insulated bag and tasting them as soon as we got home.
High fiber and vitamin C make turnips a go to during the winter season.
Learn how to make kale salad two ways.
Plus, see how Asador chef Brad Phillips whips up a seasonal beet salad
For each vegetable, we've got a simple recipe, as well as one that's more involved.
Roasting is an easy, tasty way to prepare root veggies.
The andouille — about an ounce per serving — adds flavor without a lot of fat in this hearty winter soup.
Finish it in the oven, then top it with a sherry pan sauce.
This Texas ale is stronger than its taste might suggest — so drink carefully.
Whole Foods Market at Park Lane kicks off a 28-day healthy challenge on Monday.
This sauvignon blanc, made with grapes from several vineyards, comes in on the elegant end of the spectrum.
Do a favor for your health and the environment by reducing your reliance on consuming animal protein.
In a series that celebrates traditional foods of the South, the nut gets its turn.
When you need a meal in January that goes easy on the waistline, consider Asian-inspired dishes like this one.
As amazing as it sounds, you'll want to keep the slices small. This is a rich, indulgent end to a meal.
It's a simple technique, but one that pays big dividends in flavor. Plus, it doesn't add much fat.
Make it from scratch for a fresh take on football fare. Serve with pita or use it in sandwiches.
Ripe papayas can stand in for any soft fruit and be consumed in salads, drinks and by itself with a sprinkling of lime.
A rose in winter? Yes. This French charmer has the body and acidity to make it a good food wine.
Pilot Point-based Cheers Spirits & Liquor plans to rename the stores after the bankruptcy court and TABC grant approvals.
City officials approved a new permitting system that allows markets to operate while addressing food safety concerns.
Assemble it the night before, if you'd like, then bake it the next morning. Serve with black-eyed peas and fresh fruit.
Find the right bubbly for your New Year's celebration with a little help from our Wine Panel experts.
Offsetting flavors combine for humdinger of a dish.
The Italian invention does not melt, which makes it perfect atop pizza and in other dishes.
If you're looking for the best-tasting peas for New Year's Day, head for the frozen-food aisle of the grocery store.
Serve this herb-encrusted main dish with cheeses, fruits, nuts, vegetables, crackers and bread for a casual gathering.
This stout, brewed in Garland by the Lakewood Brewing Co., is now available bottled in retail stores.
Looking for a wine that will slap your tongue with acidity? Look no further than this budget-priced Oregon chardonnay.
Find the right bubbly for your New Year's celebration with a little help from our experts.
We hacked Santa's email for do-ahead menus to make a special Italian, Mexican or all-American breakfast.
It's the rich extras — chocolate on the cereal, ricotta on the poached pears, mascarpone on the bread — that make this Italian-inspired menu a holiday happening.

subset: commoncrawl


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Kevin Grandia | April 20, 2009
By Kevin Grandia • Monday, April 20, 2009 - 12:14
Given the debate over BC's carbon tax, we thought we would search about for some expert opinion on carbon emission policy. Few leading thinkers present the issue as an either/or carbon-taxes-or-cap-and-trade option. Most policy analysts favour using both instruments.
An exception is Dr. William Norhaus, the renowned Professor of Economics at Yale University, who recently called for "an internationally harmonized system of carbon taxes."
This, Nordhaus said, would be much more efficient than an international patchwork of emissions caps; small countries wouldn't have to worry about achieving certain emissions levels and the system would be much less prone to corruption or cheating.
Most importantly, Nordhaus said, Taxes, "while hated," are a long-standing and "proven" financial instrument.
flytofreedom replied on Permalink
How hot are we getting?
During a recent stay at our Marbella Property I realised just how bad global warming was - Hot is not in it - we had to come home 3 weeks early!


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Illinois Public Media
All articles tagged Biking
Annual C-U Event Pushes People to Bike Ride
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Rutland man falls asleep, totals carFebruary 19,2013CLARENDON Police said a Rutland man was asleep at the wheel when he totaled his car Sunday afternoon.
Around 2 p.m., police responded to a crash on Route 133 and found Joel Knight, 24, was asleep when he crossed the center line, entered a ditch and struck a tree in his silver 2007 Honda Accord, police said.
Knight sustained injuries to his face and knees, according to police. His car was considered a total loss.MORE IN This Just InHARTFORD, Conn. Full StoryWHITE RIVER JUNCTION A Springfield man will spend 17 months in jail and the next decade on... Full StoryEvery year thousands of school children are transported in school buses. Full Story
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The Perth club have been the toast of Scotland since sending Rosenborg spinning from the Europa League.
The Northern Irishman is now turning his attention to Thursday night's third qualifying round first leg with Belarusian outfit FC Minsk, but he is not concerned about his players developing big heads after they shocked the Norwegian league leaders.
Instead, he believes the success has only whetted their appetite for more.
Wright told Press Association Sport: "There has been such a positive reaction to the Rosenborg result and I want the players to show me that they want more of it.
"Everyone loves a pat on the back and to see their names in the papers. If that fires them up to believe they can win again against Minsk, then that's great. It's important that we keep the run going."
Thursday night's first leg takes places in the city of Grodno, 140 miles west of the former Soviet state's capital, while Minsk's Dinamo Stadium is redeveloped.
Few fans of either side are expected to be in attendance for the match but an eerie atmosphere does not concern the Saints boss.
"We don't need to quieten the crowd because there won't be that many there," Wright joked.
"It's disappointing that there won't be many of our supporters there either but I think we just need to show the right attitude and make sure we don't relax.
"Players can focus a bit easier when there is a big crowd. But these lads have all played in pre-season friendlies and games in the middle of winter when crowds are low. I don't see it being a problem."
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