30th September 2011
Matt Moore, Johnny Damon and Kelly Shoppach led the Rays to a 1-0 lead in their ALDS with Texas.
At 22 years and about 104 days, Moore becomes the 9th-youngest pitcher to throw at least 7 shutout innings in a postseason game, slotting in between Waite Hoyt and Gary Nolan on the following list. Number 2 should ring a bell: Read the rest of this entry »
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30th September 2011
If I did my quick math correctly, Matt Moore earned a 77 game score by going 7 innings with 2 hits, 2 walks, and 6 strikeouts (and no runs).
Among pitchers making their first career post-season start, Moore ranks only tied for 56th-best.
However, check out where he ranks among those pitchers making their first career post-season start in the first game of a post-season series:
| Rk | Gcar | Player | Date | Series | Gm# | Tm | Opp | Rslt | App,Dec | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | HR | GSc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1 | Tim Lincecum | 2010-10-07 | NLDS | 1 | SFG | ATL | W 1-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 96 |
| 2 | 1 | Roy Halladay | 2010-10-06 | NLDS | 1 | PHI | CIN | W 4-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 94 |
| 3 | 1 | Mike Scott | 1986-10-08 | NLCS | 1 | HOU | NYM | W 1-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 90 |
| 4 | 1 | Bob Forsch | 1982-10-07 | NLCS | 1 | STL | ATL | W 7-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 87 |
| 5 | 1 | Johnny Sain | 1948-10-06 | WS | 1 | BSN | CLE | W 1-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 85 |
| 6 | 1 | Christy Mathewson | 1905-10-09 | WS | 1 | NYG | PHA | W 3-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 85 |
| 7 | 1 | Don Sutton | 1974-10-05 | NLCS | 1 | LAD | PIT | W 3-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 84 |
| 8 | 1 | Dave Stieb | 1985-10-08 | ALCS | 1 | TOR | KCR | W 6-1 | GS-8 ,W | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | 83 |
| 9 | 1 | Bill Donovan | 1907-10-08 | WS | 1 | DET | CHC | T 3-3 | CG 12 | 12.0 | 10 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 12 | 0 | 83 |
| 10 | 1 | Carl Hubbell | 1933-10-03 | WS | 1 | NYG | WSH | W 4-2 | CG 9 ,W | 9.0 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 81 |
| 11 | 1 | Howard Ehmke | 1929-10-08 | WS | 1 | PHA | CHC | W 3-1 | CG 9 ,W | 9.0 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 81 |
| 12 | 1 | Dick Rudolph | 1914-10-09 | WS | 1 | BSN | PHA | W 7-1 | CG 9 ,W | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 0 | 80 |
| 13 | 1 | Don Newcombe | 1949-10-05 | WS | 1 | BRO | NYY | L 0-1 | CG 9 ,L | 8.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 79 |
| 14 | 1 | Mordecai Brown | 1906-10-09 | WS | 1 | CHC | CHW | L 1-2 | CG 9 ,L | 9.0 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 7 | 0 | 79 |
| 15 | 1 | Mike Norris | 1981-10-06 | ALDS | 1 | OAK | KCR | W 4-0 | SHO9 ,W | 9.0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 78 |
| 16 | 1 | LaMarr Hoyt | 1983-10-05 | ALCS | 1 | CHW | BAL | W 2-1 | CG 9 ,W | 9.0 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 77 |
| 17 | 1 | Nick Altrock | 1906-10-09 | WS | 1 | CHW | CHC | W 2-1 | CG 9 ,W | 9.0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 77 |
He'll be tied with Hoyt and Altrock and on a list of very impressive pitchers.
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30th September 2011
Having homered in his first plate appearance, Johnny Damon has a chance to become one of the oldest players to have a multi-HR post-season game:
| Rk | Player | Age | Date | Series | Gm# | Tm | Opp |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Frank Thomas | 38.129 | 2006-10-03 | ALDS | 1 | OAK | MIN |
| 2 | Larry Walker | 37.309 | 2004-10-05 | NLDS | 1 | STL | LAD |
| 3 | Babe Ruth | 37.238 | 1932-10-01 | WS | 3 | NYY | CHC |
| 4 | Eric Karros | 35.334 | 2003-10-04 | NLDS | 4 | CHC | ATL |
| 5 | Ted Kluszewski | 35.021 | 1959-10-01 | WS | 1 | CHW | LAD |
| 6 | Jeff Kent | 34.231 | 2002-10-24 | WS | 5 | SFG | ANA |
| 7 | Darryl Strawberry | 34.214 | 1996-10-12 | ALCS | 4 | NYY | BAL |
| 8 | Carlos Delgado | 34.110 | 2006-10-13 | NLCS | 2 | NYM | STL |
| 9 | Gary Matthews | 34.089 | 1984-10-02 | NLCS | 1 | CHC | SDP |
| 10 | Tim Salmon | 34.057 | 2002-10-20 | WS | 2 | ANA | SFG |
Damon is about a month shy of his 38th birthday.
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30th September 2011
See Naples and die.
That famous line may have been coined by Goethe to express the opulence of 18th-century Naples -- Napoli -- but it's acquired another meaning this year for AL pitchers, who may wonder if Mike Napoli has struck a Faustian bargain.
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30th September 2011
Two polls...one for who deserves it and one for who will actually win it.
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30th September 2011
The Rays have opted to have rookie Matt Moore start Game 1 of the Division Series against the Rangers. (h/t to LoHud Yankees Blog for the link)
Holy wow! Moore has made only 12 appearances above double-A in his career, including 3 in the last few weeks at the big-league level.
With Moore about 22 years and 100 days old, there have been roughly 70 starts in the post-season by younger pitchers. Very few of them have been in Game 1 of a series, with notably exceptions such as Fernando Valenzuela in Game 1 of the 1981 NLDS, Rick Ankiel in Game 1 of the 2000 NLDS, as well as starts by Clayton Kershaw, Ralph Branca, Don Gullett and, of course, Dwight Gooden.
But I wonder how many pitchers have made a post-season start with so few appearances in the big leagues?
This event relates, I think, the the Rays having such a stockpile of young pitching. If Moore does well and the Rays make it far in this post-season, it will be remembered as his coming-out party.
I'm starting to think that the 2011 playoffs are going to be the best we've seen in a long time. The way I see it, a very strong case can be made that any of 7 teams have a great shot at making the World Series, with the Cardinals being the only exception. The American League, in particular, is wide open.
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29th September 2011
Was yesterday the most exciting day in baseball history? I can't remember a regular-season day that was anywhere close to as exciting. Can you?
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29th September 2011
Two polls...one for who deserves it and one for who will actually win it.
Read the rest of this entry »
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29th September 2011
The Red Sox and Braves were locks for the playoffs...or so just about everyone thought. Now they're both going home.
I am totally amazed, and my hats go off to the Orioles, Rays, and Phillies, who all staged great comebacks to make it happen. In particular, the Orioles and Phillies deserve a lot of credit given they had nothing on the line.
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28th September 2011
Despite a 6-run 8th, Tampa Bay was still down a run in the 9th, with two out and none on, and two strikes on pinch-hitter Dan Johnson, who had 1 HR this year, and 1 pinch-HR in his career.
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