Giancarlo Stanton is an unbelievable player on a terrible team. He's the Miami Marlins franchise player, and is young, and has plenty of great years ahead of them. The Marlins are bad. They're worse then bad. They stink. They are planning for the future. Everyone knows that. All the GMs do, too. They have been calling Miami offers for Stanton, and every single one has been turned down. Here is what Phillies GM Ruben Amaro Jr. had to say on the situation: I’ve tried to trade for him at least 10 times...He’s one of the best right-handed power bats in the game...He's property of the Marlins, dude. The Phillies are one of the many teams that are "in" on Stanton. And, what's not to like? The 23 year old is a proven, young, power hitting outfielder that can really provide a large boost to ANY team. He has a three slash line of .266/.354/.537 for his career with 115 HR and 285 RBI in only 478 games. His career BABIP is .324. He's a player that will automatically add wins to your ball club, and will continue to hit homers and drive runs in.
Realistically, what are the chances that the Marlins part with Stanton? I would say next to nothing. Obviously, we have a four month offseason and anything could happen, but why would the Marlins give up their coveted star player? If they had a reason to, that is a possibility, but Stanton is entering his prime now, and most likely with the Marlins. I would not be counting on a trade with Stanton. If Stanton somehow gets put on the open marker, who would my frontrunners be? I think the Phillies are willing to give up "everything" for Stanton, as they are still trying to make a run with their old, depleted team. Their top prospects, Maikel Franco and Jesse Biddle, are immediate trade candidates. Other teams, such as the Mets and perhaps the Cubs could be in on Stanton if he was to become available. Stanton is a nice and juicy trade target, but is a tad bit farfetched right now. We don't know what the future holds for his trade stock, so watch out for the "Giancarlo Stanton sweepstakes!"
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What if the Rangers win? What if the Royals win the Wild Card? How about the Indians? Or the Yankees? Is the first Wild Card spot really going to be held by the Rays? What happens if there is a tie?....We ask ourselves these questions every year in September, when teams are racing to the finish and when many possibilities are in order. A couple of months ago, the AL Wild Card leaders had separated themselves from the rest of the pack, with the Rays and A's taking a solid lead. The A's haven't slowed down, as they now hold a 6.5 game lead on the Rangers in the AL West. But the Rays and Rangers are making this a race, for both Wild Card spots. The Rangers have lost seven games in a row and seem to be the collapse of the year, as they've tried to do everything they could, to no prevail. The Rays are just playing inconsistent baseball, but have won four of their last five, nonetheless. What teams are benefitting from this mess? How about the Cleveland Indians. With their upcoming series against the Houston Astros, Chicago White Sox, and Minnesota Twins, the Indians fate truly rests in their own hands. They've won four of their last five, scoring 6.6 runs per game in that span. They could make the playoffs for the first time since 2007, as they're sitting 0.5 games back. The Orioles (2 GB), Yankees (2.5 GB), and Royals (2.5 GB) all sit behind the Rangers, as they've all tried to put the pressure on as of late. At this point, I can't see the Rangers making the playoffs. Their loss of Nelson Cruz hurts the team, although that was decided that it wasn't much of a factor at the time of his suspension. Now, they need Cruz and all his power, to supply something, anything, to get this team back on a roll. Or at least get a win. I also like how the Indians are playing, as they are really the only team from the pack (Them, Orioles, Royals, Yankees) to really gain ground. They have a favorable schedule (actually one of the best schedules of any team) and are scoring some runs as of late. I wouldn't be surprised at this point if the Indians make the playoffs. But, don't count out on my original projection, the New York Yankees. They have a winning attitude, and who knows what could happen? What if they..... The St. Louis Cardinals have not had a losing season since 2007. They have not lost 100 games since 1908. They are one of the most historic organizations in baseball and can continue to win every year. They have the 4th most wins of all time in the major leagues. But, what is their secret formula? How do they continue to win, without all the star studded players? And how can they do it with only the 10th highest opening day payroll in the MLB? The Cards have a very smart front office, one that restocks the farm system (most teams trade away their top prospects) and bases their team off of stats. They are able to consistently use the strategy featured in Moneyball, a stats first method, one that basis success off of not on how well a player "looks" or is scouted, but on how well he is able to perform on paper. This has been adopted by many teams in the majors, but only very few can do it well. Since the Cardinals have the money, they're able to get players that other teams can't get, while still being able to use a statistical way of decision making. As you can see, the Cardinals OPS over 10 years has been pretty consistent. It's never dropped below .731 or gone higher than .804. This may seem like a big range, but in these 10 years they've had 10 different teams, and still have been able to preform at a very high level. OPS is something that the Cardinals love to record and something they love to continue to have. Only once (2007) did they not finish inside the top 10 in the National League in OPS (10th). That's a very cool statistic.
How else are the Cardinals winning games? RISP (runners in scoring position). Although that's been their thing this season, they actually lead the league in average with runners in scoring position over the past 10 years as well. With a .279 mark, the Cardinals rank first of thirty teams from 2004 to 2013 in the average with RISP category. When runners are in scoring position (on second or third base) the Cardinals are able to capitalize more then any other team, which ultimately gives them the best chance to win. Five Cardinals, Allen Craig (1st), Matt Carpenter (4th), Carlos Beltran (5th), Matt Holliday (6th), and Yadier Molina (9th), rank in the top 10 of batting average with RISP this year, yet another reason why they continue to score timely runs, and are able to win important games. Why haven't more teams caught on? Using statistics will win you ballgames. For the teams who don't, they'll continue to wonder how this team beat them, or how that team beat them. People in baseball have made made evolutions to the game, and we should be going through one right now. The teams who use stats as the answer are truly one step ahead, and truly have better chances of winning the World Series, compared to the teams who continue to use old fashioned scouting as a way of life. If you don't believe me or think otherwise, read the article again. Because the Cardinals are showing that they've figured it out. The Yankees just traded for Brendan Ryan because of it. He makes a major league roster because of it. He is a terrible hitter, but is able to be a starter because of it. Brendan Ryan can play defense. Very well. He is a great defender, and his 13.8 defensive WAR is a good way to show how well he is as a defender. But is he one of the greatest defensive shortstops of all time?
Brendan Ryan has the 15th highest career fielding percentage of all time for shortstops, with a .978 mark in his seventh year in big league service. He also has the 28th highest Total Zone Runs at SS, which is a statistic that shows how many runs a player was worth based on how many plays they've made. His mark is at 54. He also has the most SS defensive runs saved by any active player of the last five seasons. He ranks 8th in shortstop fielding percentage among active shortstops. But, is Ryan one of the greatest active shortstops defensively? I think he is. He's done a great job over his career, and is right up there with Jimmy Rollins, Troy Tulowitzki, and Jose Reyes defensively as some of the great defenders in the league. Ryan's career fielding percentage (.978) at shortstop is actually better than Reyes' (.973). Imagine if Ryan could hit... Brendan Ryan is a great defender and he lives in the major leagues by playing defense. He is a great defender and will always be up there as one of the best defenders at shortstop. I think yes, that he is one of the best defensive shortstops, and that the Yankees made a good deal by trading for him, as their shortstop fielding percentage is 5th worst in the major leagues. Ryan is a good fielder, and his contract is up after the season. I think because of the way he plays defense he will get a new contract. He is a great defensive shortstop. |