Jones also had a down year in 2004, but then posted four straight years with an OPS of .968 or better, though he missed time with injuries in all three. Really, his batted ball numbers for 2009 match up pretty closely with his numbers from 2007 and 2006, and his strikeout rate and walk rate aren't changing much, so it seems possible that Chipper's just seeing some bad luck this year that's driving his average down and leaving him frustrated. If that's the case and he gets back on line next year, he'll likely play out his contract (which runs through 2012) out before retiring.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That the Rays left their magic in 2008.
Fading Tampa Bay wasted a dazzling major league debut by Wade Davis, who allowed one run and struck out nine over seven innings, in a crushing 5-3 loss to the Tigers.
Davis' pitching helped the Rays carry a 3-1 lead into the ninth inning, but then the bullpen came unraveled. Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon used five relievers in the ninth, three of whom -- Grant Balfour, J.P. Howell and Russ Springer -- failed to record an out in succession.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting that the body of a 22-year old man was found on the ranch owned by Chipper Jones and his family in Texas. Jones' father says that the man was found on a remote part of the 10,000-acre ranch that isn't visited daily. He also believes the man entered the country illegally and died as a result of the extreme heat in southwest Texas over the past few months.
Jones has obviously been away from the ranch for the past few months himself; he apparently learned the details of the situation through a phone call with his father. Beyond that, there really aren't many details known about the situation. The police have been notified, but there's no word about any investigation.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
The Nationals of all teams are the hottest club in baseball. They've won five straight games, scoring no fewer than five runs in each of their six games in August. Mike MacDougal recorded saves in four of those five wins, but the real hero in Washington is Ryan Zimmerman.
On Friday, the Braves celebrated Greg Maddux's election into their Hall of Fame by throwing a luncheon in his honor. Baseball fans, of course, recognize him as one of the greatest pitchers of all time. However, he's about as much of a pop-culture presence as Hideki Irabu (Maddux pieced together a shoo-in Hall of Fame career as quietly as possible; Irabu was mentioned in the series finale of Seinfeld).
I'd venture to guess that Maddux isn't bothered by this in the least. He humored his peers, but I suspect that he spent the entire luncheon silently reciting the Periodic Table of Elements to himself, or trying to remember whether Calvin Coolidge died before or after Herbert Hoover.
A Dugout in honor of Greg Maddux is after the jump. Greg Maddux is ambivalent.
ATLANTA -- The entire Atlanta Braves 25-man roster, coaching staff, some former players and almost 900 fans were in attendance today to watch Greg Maddux become the 21st player in Braves history to enter their Hall of Fame.
Joe Simpson was the Master of Ceremonies today at a luncheon celebrating the career of Greg Maddux, which spanned 11 seasons in Atlanta and ended with the pitcher landing eighth on the all-time wins list with 355 career wins.
Instead of focusing on his four consecutive Cy Young Awards, a feat nobody has ever matched, or his 18 Gold Gloves, fans were treated Friday to stories about Maddux the person and teammate; stories which not only proved his worth as a ball player, but showed us all that Greg Maddux lived, breathed and loved this game, and wanted not only to be the best, but have fun doing so.
Have you seen the commercial for this year's All-Star Game yet? If not, here's a brief summary. A hand comes out of the sky and pulls the Gateway Arch out of the ground. It turns out that the Gateway Arch is a magnet that can attract baseball players and fans to it. (A special magnet.) The hand moves it all around America, picks up a bunch of people, then dumps them all on the Busch Stadium turf while Albert Pujols stands there and scowls. It's amazing.
It takes a minute to watch, but an eternity to comprehend. Fortunately, The Dugout's Speculation Station is here to help. Your Dugout is after the jump, and so is the video.
Starting Five is our wrapup of the previous day's baseball action, with a quick nod to what is ahead.
You Oughta Know ... That every once in a blue moon, a pitcher doesn't even have to throw a single pitch to get a win. How? Rockies reliever Alan Embree demonstrated Tuesday night against the Nationals. He entered the game with two outs in the top of the eighth and the score tied at 4-all and Washington outfielder Austin Kearns standing at first base.
Embree caught Kearns leaning off the base a little early and ensnared him in a rundown -- a rundown in which the southpaw hurler ended up making the putout.
"Then I end up with the ball [in the rundown] somehow, and I'm going, 'What just happened?'" Embree said. "And then I came in and they went, 'You're done. Do you think you can go tomorrow?'
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Hahaha. Get it? The Who? Tommy? Yeah. Dated cultural references mixed into fantasy baseball news FTW, eh? Sorry. Anyway, Tommy Hanson made his debut yesterday for the Atlanta Braves -- and while he was perfect through two innings, yeah, notsomuch the rest of the way: Hanson ended up getting knocked around for six hits and six earned through six innings (sign?) while striking out five and giving up three gofer balls.
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the Roto Rush is your double espresso shot of fantasy baseball advice every weekday.
Max Scherzer, the 24-year-old fireballer for the Diamondbacks, has worlds of talent. He also takes a step back every time you think he's finally hitting his groove. This past week, he was a two-start pitcher in the fantasy baseball world. His first start was pure gold (that's gold, Jerry!). He threw 7 shutout innings and struck out 10 before getting chased in the eighth inning -- after allowing a few earned runs. He followed that up with an absolute catastrophe on Sunday. The light-hitting Braves touched him up for 10 hits and 8 earned runs in only 3 2/3 innings.
Chipper Jones is currently hitting .268/.390/.437 with 16 home runs and 64 RBI in 124 games. That seems pretty decent for a guy that turned 37 in April. His OPS+ is still 119 (placing him well above average) and though his defense is slipping, FanGraphs puts his WAR at 2.1, seventh-best in the National League among qualified third baseman. Decent apparently isn't good enough for Chipper, though, because he told the Atlanta-Journal Constitution that if 2010 doesn't go better than 2009 for him, he'll consider hanging up his spikes up for good. 
Starting Five
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
On Friday, 
ATLANTA -- The entire Atlanta Braves 25-man roster, coaching staff, some former players and almost 900 fans were in attendance today to watch 
Have you seen the commercial for this year's 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
Poppin' out the box scores and right into your cubicle, the 
