So now Pitching, Speed and Defense works?

"Over the last three years, the Rays have gone about the task of stockpiling young arms and legs to fit their pitching, speed and defense blueprint."

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Pitching and defense

Isn’t that the A’s strategy since Giambi left?

VAE PVTO DEVS FIO

by Bhaakon on Oct 8, 2008 2:15 PM PDT reply actions

Well, of course pitching and defense works. The front office just has to know what good pitching and defense is. Our FO said we were going to be all about it and then put an average staff in front of a horrible defense (not the outfield).

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by marcello on Oct 8, 2008 2:16 PM PDT reply actions

Exactly

Good defense and good pitching works. We had average pitching and bad defense.

..so allow me to present Tim Lincecum and Matt Cain as two sweet, sweet bottles of warming hooch.

by Cookyman on Oct 8, 2008 5:35 PM PDT up reply actions

it works when you can do it!

Travis Denker can hit a little. That's why I drive his bus. Not much about baseball here .

by oldjacket on Oct 8, 2008 8:22 PM PDT up reply actions

mostly pitching

They allowed the second fewest R/G to the surprising Toronto Blue Jays who should have finished a close second to the Red Sox according to the Pythagorean formula.

Mischievously implosive purple pitching staff.

by SloIsLonelyForTheOrange on Oct 8, 2008 3:25 PM PDT reply actions

Sorry But The RedSox Had A Much Bigger Run Differential Then Either the Rays Or Jays

The RedSox outscored their oponents by 151 runs compared to 104 for the Jays and 103 for the Rays.

by giantsrainman on Oct 8, 2008 3:41 PM PDT up reply actions

that's not at all what i was talking about.

The Rays had the second best runs allowed out of all of the teams. The Jays were second. All my stats are from BBref.

Mischievously implosive purple pitching staff.

by SloIsLonelyForTheOrange on Oct 8, 2008 3:46 PM PDT up reply actions

actually, The jays pitching staff had an amazing year

their entire pitching staff had a K:BB of over 2.5:1. The team ERA+ was 124. The average pitcher on the Jays this year was just a little bit better than Bob Feller over his career. Litsch and Marcum were great and Halladay was unhittable. the back end of their bullpen was just as unhittable as Ryan, Carlson and Downs combined for a 187 ERA+ and a WHIP of 1.15.

Mischievously implosive purple pitching staff.

by SloIsLonelyForTheOrange on Oct 8, 2008 3:56 PM PDT up reply actions

I’m pretty sure Evan Longoria hit more home runs in an incomplete season than our entire team combined.

My Dave Righetti is better than your Dave Righetti.

by howtheyscored on Oct 8, 2008 3:35 PM PDT reply actions

But he used pitching, speed and defense to do it!

There amass been plenty of articles written this spring about the stud shortstop Matt Cain and Tim Lincecum , as well as the fluid young outfielders and thirteen basemen Kevin Frandsen.
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by Natto on Oct 8, 2008 3:39 PM PDT up reply actions

This is a stupid article. It’s about why the Rays beat the White Sox in the Postseason, but ignores the sample size issues involved with a short series.

Also, the statistics that the author cherry-picks:

• The Rays entered the series with just three players with more than 100 career homers in Cliff Floyd, Carlos Pena and Eric Hinske. The White Sox had 10 with 100 or more, and A.J. Pierzynski had 98.
• If you counted every home run hit by all 20 position players the Rays used in 2008 for their entire careers, that’s still 231 fewer than just two White Sox (Ken Griffey Jr. and Jim Thome) and less than half of what the top 10 White Sox have hit in their combined careers.

…are irrelevant.

by rotorueter on Oct 8, 2008 4:15 PM PDT reply actions

My thoughts exactly.

by Natto on Oct 8, 2008 5:28 PM PDT up reply actions

that would be kinda like using Barry’s 500 career stolen bases, in any of the last couple seasons, to say the Giants are a speed team

Brad Hennessey: the next Kevin Correia
Kevin Correia: the next Brad Hennessey

by stealth snail on Oct 8, 2008 7:39 PM PDT up reply actions

Career Stats != Current Ability

Though there may sometimes be a correlation.

Barry Zito - Mildly half-OK! Sometimes.

by Revolution1 on Oct 8, 2008 8:45 PM PDT up reply actions

I would not be surprised if it worked...

But you’d need really really good Pitching (Starting + Bullpen), Speed (and not getting CS all the time), and Defense (like some goddamn gold gloves).

Also hitting and power helps too.

So really its Pitching, Speed, Defense, Hitting, and Power. Huh.

Barry Zito - Mildly half-OK! Sometimes.

by Revolution1 on Oct 8, 2008 8:48 PM PDT reply actions

Pitching, Speed, and Defense does work!

With offense.

No one has made this joke in this thread yet!!!!

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by WalrusMan on Oct 8, 2008 9:07 PM PDT reply actions