# Baseball June 2009 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [June 1, 2009, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348 "2009-06-01T13:24:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 4:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/21 "2009-06-04T16:56:26Z")
Reality might be catching up with my Brewers. We won yesterday, but that’s after dropping five. Gallardo seems to be our only true starter, and I don’t know how much the rest of the starters can hold up. Yet, we still don’t talk about Peavy…sigh. Anyone know if Glavine actually has anything left?? ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 5:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/22 "2009-06-04T17:50:04Z")
I don’t think Peavy wants to leave Southern California or the NL. I am guessing he would approve a trade to the Dodgers, but other than that I would be surprised if he left San Diego this year. Phillies are doing really well on the road. I hope they can turn their home record around and maybe this year win the division without any drama. That’s really not the Phillies way, though. Happ has been a great addition to the staff. He played well against the Yankees and really well against the Padres as well. ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/23 "2009-06-04T19:08:09Z")
> [@pricciar](#): > > I don’t think Peavy wants to leave Southern California or the NL. I am guessing he would approve a trade to the Dodgers, but other than that I would be surprised if he left San Diego this year. > > Phillies are doing really well on the road. I hope they can turn their home record around and maybe this year win the division without any drama. That’s really not the Phillies way, though. Happ has been a great addition to the staff. He played well against the Yankees and really well against the Padres as well. I thought Peavy indicated a willingness to go to the Angels recently? ---
**Author:** ![Hampshire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hampshire/32/4887_2.png) [@Hampshire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hampshire)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/24 "2009-06-04T19:13:14Z")
So what’s up with Joe Mauer’s batting stats? Is he disqualified from having his batting average posted with others since he was out for the first month of the season? He’s hitting a .425 with 106 at bats (he’s 2 for 3 so far today). They show the MLB leader as Jason Bartlett with a .373 and 161 at bats. ---
**Author:** ![EvilHamsterOnCrack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/3ab097/32.png) [@EvilHamsterOnCrack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilHamsterOnCrack)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 7:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/25 "2009-06-04T19:13:28Z")
> [@Sir\_T-Cups](#): > > Anyone know if Glavine actually has anything left?? He’s pitched 11 shutout innings in 2 rehab starts for AAA Gwinett and A Rome, and as soon as he said he was ready, the Braves dropped him. He’s not happy, but the Braves scouts just say he doesn’t have the stuff to compete in the majors. With Tommy Hanson (just called up, I’m probably gonna go see him in his first start on Saturday, supposed to be one of the best pitching prospects in the majors) and Tim Hudson coming back, with a starting 4 who are all pitching a sub-4 ERA, it really did make sense to release him and give him a chance elsewhere… I wish him all the best, but it sucks how it had to end. ---
**Author:** ![Southern\_Yankee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/southern_yankee/32/2800_2.png) [@Southern\_Yankee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Southern_Yankee)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/26 "2009-06-04T19:22:16Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > So what’s up with Joe Mauer’s batting stats? Is he disqualified from having his batting average posted with others since he was out for the first month of the season? > He’s hitting a .425 with 106 at bats (he’s 2 for 3 so far today). > They show the MLB leader as Jason Bartlett with a .373 and 161 at bats. Usually there’s a minimum number of ABs to qualify, but this early in the season I’m not so sure. He’ll catch up soon enough. ---
**Author:** ![pricciar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f4b2a3/32.png) [@pricciar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pricciar)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/27 "2009-06-04T19:26:12Z")
> [@What\_Exit](#): > > I thought Peavy indicated a willingness to go to the Angels recently? Huh. I hadn’t heard that. I thought he wanted to stay in the NL. It makes sense him Oking the Angels, though. Since he seems to have a definite love for the Southern California area. I just saw that LaRussa is suing Twitter. I wonder if that is the first time a fake twitter account caused them a lawsuit. ---
**Author:** ![drm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a88e57/32.png) [@drm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/drm)\ **Post date:** [June 4, 2009, 11:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/28 "2009-06-04T23:47:17Z")
Randy Johnson gets his 300th win in Washington in the Afternoon in front of an empty house - it doesn’t seem right. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 12:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/29 "2009-06-05T00:00:20Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > I admire your restraint. I was steeling myself for some gloating over last night’s butt-whooping of my beloved team. 9-3? Damn. I can’t brag. I’m still sore from my team being swept by the Brewers, when they should have and could have won 2 of 3 from them. Close games lately are like kryptonite to the Reds. We need our hitters back, most notably Joey Votto. And Jay Bruce is in a HUGE slump. Brandon Phillips is playing with a fractured thumb. Yet, the Reds are mostly winning. Credit goes to their management and farm system for having guys worthy enough to get on the roster and contribute when necessary. Our starting pitching has been pretty good overall. We don’t have Edinson Volquez due to the DL right now (he was one if not the only all-star we had last year, IIRC) and Micah Owings is always hit or miss (usually HIT with his bat, pitching, not so much!), Arroyo is the same despite his record, and really our best two pitchers right now are Harang and Cueto (who I think is poised to become a superstar). Our bullpen is good too, but too often recently overworked. It will bite them in the ass every so often when starters get yanked so early. Cordero has 14 saves, he’s been a pleasant surprise. ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/30 "2009-06-05T01:58:53Z")
Holy cow, Chris Carpenter is good. Through 7 innings, he’s allowed 2 hits and no walks while tossing a mere 72 pitches. The guy’s averaging about 10 pitches an inning. He’s whittled his ERA down to a paltry 0.50. Zero-point-five! He hasn’t thrown quite enough innings to qualify for the league leader spot, but still. Great googily-moogily. And, after “struggling” for a couple of weeks, Pujols is back to being kind of a freak. He’s driven in all 3 of the Cards’ runs tonight, and he’s got his BA back up to .348. These two guys are why it’s a great time to be a Cards fan. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/31 "2009-06-05T02:13:01Z")
> [@drm](#): > > Randy Johnson gets his 300th win in Washington in the Afternoon in front of an empty house - it doesn’t seem right. Well, at least he got it against the Expos! ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/32 "2009-06-05T02:17:28Z")
> [@Southern\_Yankee](#): > > So, A.J. Burnett gets a 6-game suspension for throwing over the head of Nelson Cruz in Tuesday night’s game, but Padilla, the Texas pitcher who precipitated it by beaning Teixeira _twice_, gets a fine? Burnett’s pitch was before the ump’s warning to both teams (and the cause of it.) That’s BS, IMO. I wonder if the league knew that the Rangers were going to put Padilla on waivers because of that stunt? Can a player clear waivers on suspension? ---
**Author:** ![Defensive\_Indifference](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/defensive_indifference/32/6502_2.png) [@Defensive\_Indifference](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Defensive_Indifference)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 2:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/33 "2009-06-05T02:26:19Z")
> [@Bayard](#): > > Holy cow, Chris Carpenter is good. Through 7 innings, he’s allowed 2 hits and no walks while tossing a mere 72 pitches. The guy’s averaging about 10 pitches an inning. He’s whittled his ERA down to a paltry 0.50. Zero-point-five! He hasn’t thrown quite enough innings to qualify for the league leader spot, but still. OK, so he allowed a homer in the 8th, ending the game with his ERA at 0.71. In 38 innings so far this year, he has walked five batters. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/34 "2009-06-05T03:09:48Z")
> [@Hampshire](#): > > So what’s up with Joe Mauer’s batting stats? Is he disqualified from having his batting average posted with others since he was out for the first month of the season? > He’s hitting a .425 with 106 at bats (he’s 2 for 3 so far today). > They show the MLB leader as Jason Bartlett with a .373 and 161 at bats. Mauer currently ranks 5th in the AL in BA. How it work is that if a player is short of the minimum plate appearances requirement (last I checked 3.1 PA/team game played), they deduct “imaginary” hitless at-bats to make up for the missing ones. Hence Mauer would have needed to have come to the plate 167 times; he’s actually come up 130 times (before tonite), which means 37 imaginary hitless at-bats, dropping his average down to an imaginary .315 (tho Baseball Reference has him somewhere between .[352 and .351](http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2009-batting-leaders.shtml)) ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 3:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/35 "2009-06-05T03:42:34Z")
> [@John\_DiFool](#): > > Mauer currently ranks 5th in the AL in BA. How it work is that if a player is short of the minimum plate appearances requirement (last I checked 3.1 PA/team game played), they deduct “imaginary” hitless at-bats to make up for the missing ones. Hence Mauer would have needed to have come to the plate 167 times; he’s actually come up 130 times (before tonite), which means 37 imaginary hitless at-bats, dropping his average down to an imaginary .315 (tho Baseball Reference has him somewhere between .[352 and .351](http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/AL/2009-batting-leaders.shtml)) I’ve run the numbers over and over, and you’re right and they’re wrong. I have absolutely no idea how they conclude he’s fifth in the AL in hitting. Interesting point, however; suppose Mauer were to finish the season hitting .425, short of the plate appearance limit, but won the batting title anyway with his imaginary “Adjusted” average - let’s pretend it came out to be .375. He would be credited as having won the batting title with a .425 average; he’d be the first man since Williams to bat .400 and would in fact be fully credited with having the second-highest average of modern times. But if some other player bats .376, Mauer doesn’t win the batting title and his .425 would not count as a .400 season. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 12:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/36 "2009-06-05T12:45:12Z")
Damn you, Chris Carpenter and Albert Poo-holes! Damn you to hell and you die! ::shakes fist impotently:: ---
**Author:** ![Hawkeyeop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/958977/32.png) [@Hawkeyeop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hawkeyeop)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 12:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/37 "2009-06-05T12:56:53Z")
> [@EvilHamsterOnCrack](#): > > He’s pitched 11 shutout innings in 2 rehab starts for AAA Gwinett and A Rome, and as soon as he said he was ready, the Braves dropped him. He’s not happy, but the Braves scouts just say he doesn’t have the stuff to compete in the majors. With Tommy Hanson (just called up, I’m probably gonna go see him in his first start on Saturday, supposed to be one of the best pitching prospects in the majors) and Tim Hudson coming back, with a starting 4 who are all pitching a sub-4 ERA, it really did make sense to release him and give him a chance elsewhere… I wish him all the best, but it sucks how it had to end. He doesn’t have the stuff anymore, but really that is no different from the last couple years. It isn’t clear that he has lost anything from when the Braves resigned him. They released him because Glavine would get a million dollar bonus for making the active roster and they have better options. A matter of depth that thye didn’t end up needing. ---
**Author:** ![cards](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ecd19e/32.png) [@cards](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cards)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/38 "2009-06-05T15:10:17Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Damn you, Chris Carpenter and Albert Poo-holes! Damn you to hell and you die! > > ::shakes fist impotently:: You know, I love that opposing teams still pitch to Albert, but in reality it’s kind of a dumb macho shit head move. The rest of the team sure isn’t hitting, so I would walk him every time, even with a good lead. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/39 "2009-06-05T15:52:52Z")
Can someone explain to me how Dontrelle Willis can give up 5 runs on ZERO hits? That’s a special kind of terrible. ---
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [June 5, 2009, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348/40 "2009-06-05T17:38:59Z")
Walks and HBP’s. Willis’ anxiety disorder must not be completely under control with his new meds after all. Damn shame, too. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/baseball-june-2009/498348.md?page=3)