From the Windup is Matt Snyder's weekly look at some aspect of America's pastime.
Instead of handing our hardware to Joe Girardi, Joe Torre, Albert Pujols, Joe Mauer, Zack Greinke and Chris Carpenter (yes, those would be my votes), I thought we'd mix it up a bit. Plus, being a Cubs fan, I'm plenty filled with negativity at this time of the year -- which, really, is normal. So these are the Bizarro World Awards. The Suck Awards, if you will. The envelopes, please ...
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's weekly look at some aspect of America's pastime.
Zack Greinke has been the best pitcher in the majors this season.
That statement wouldn't be disputed by anyone other than people who look only at won-loss record and nothing more. I'm not suggesting you throw that stat out the window, but you can take Greinke's 15-8 record, combine it with everything else, and still come to the conclusion that the best pitcher in 2009 plays for the Kansas City Royals.
With that in mind, I wanted to create a starting rotation from the past decade of pitchers who were similarly plagued by a less-than-stellar record, while also sporting filthy numbers elsewhere. It's the Zack Greinke Tribute Team.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime.
Being a fan of certain sports teams, by definition, means we aren't exactly the most rational people around. "Fan," after all, is short for "fanatic." The dictionary definition of fanatic? A person with an extreme and uncritical enthusiasm or zeal. So, yeah, when I say I'm a Cubs fan, you'll have to keep that definition in mind as you read this.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's weekly, extended look at some aspect of America's pastime.
As I look ahead to the MLB playoffs, I'm faced with the fact that my beloved Cubbies aren't going to be competing. Being a devout baseball fan, though, there's no way I'm not watching the postseason. Without a horse in the race, I'm forced to focus instead on individuals, and there are always plenty of reasons to watch certain players. Thus, I'm going to list 10 players I'm looking forward to watching and five players I wish I could come October.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's weekly, extended look at some aspect of America's pastime.
For baseball fans who don't have a favorite team in the race, September can still be fun. Of course, it's a bit depressing to see this: 7 1/2, 5, 3 1/2, 8 1/2, 10 1/2, 5 1/2 and 3. You know what those are? The margins in every playoff race except for the NL wild card. Unless the Twins or Rangers get hot, there isn't much promise for an exciting pennant chase this September (again, NL Wild Card excepted). So, considering I'm a Cubs fan, should I just quit watching baseball and focus on the NFL?
No. There's plenty to watch. Here are 15 reasons, aside from the playoff push, to watch baseball in September.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday -- it's running Friday this week.
Earlier this week, Brad Lidge's nightmare 2009 season continued, when he allowed a walk-off homer to Andrew McCutchen. Ed Price covered the outing the following morning. The abysmal performance by the Phillies' closer underlines the only weakness of the defending World Series Champions.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.
Every Hot Stove season, each team reshapes its roster in an attempt to better themselves. After each transaction, whether a free agent acquisition, trade or something else, writers and bloggers everywhere provide knee-jerk reactions on each particular move. Though the majority of the analysis is educated, it's still just conjecture. Today, we'll take the long view and look back at some of the maneuvering this past offseason and see how it played out on the field.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.
Bud Selig has been rightfully blamed for many of baseball's ills, like the notorious "juiced" era, the debacle during the 2009 World Series and a myriad of other issues. It's easy to paint him a scapegoat for everything -- and, make no mistake, I do it often. If for no other reason than for the purposes of symmetry, though, we should give him credit when it's due. So, Bud, I'd like to say thank you for the wild card.
You see, the name Steve Bartman conjures a slew of emotions in me. Any time I hear his name, I find that I can simplify all these thoughts into three simple complaints about how this entire "situation" aggravates me.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.
With the non-waiver trade deadline looming just eight days away, it seemed like the perfect time to warn teams about the dangers of a deadline deal. There are plenty of good trades on the books. Then again, it's the swaps that blow up in the face of a team that seem to stick with us. That's nothing new. We know the famous, ill-fated John Smoltz and Jeff Bagwell deals, but for now let's look at recent history by ranking the 10 worst deadline deals of the 2000s.
From the Windup is Matt Snyder's extended look at some aspect of America's pastime each Thursday.
