Inside Pitch

I still don't know if the first half means he can play shallow or is short back to the ball as in, his stroke to the ball. Really could go either freaking way and it's annoying

So... Since nobody has said it. Sean Newcomb was left off the top 100....

Truest words ever...

More nonsense from the King of non sequitur nonsense.

LOL.. too funny. Can you imagine the nonsense if they gave him that telestrator thing John Madden used to have?

Actually, I was just telling you that you were full of shit.... like always. Snark breeds snark... Don't cry about it later.

So it's just you talking? TY for clearing that up. Would he be a better player in your eyes had he been named to an all star game? or been drafted in the 5th round? What if any impact does it have on the actual transaction? Would having been an AS or drafted in a different spot make his numbers anything other than what they are? None of what you're droning on about is really relevant, the Angels didn't trade for a first rounder that's being hyped -- they aren't looking for a franchise cornerstone.. to the best of my knowledge nobody is touting him as anything remotely close to that. You are talking up what he isn't and ignoring what he is. Dude was brought in as a stopgap. If the Angels can get the same 105 OPS+ out of Maybin they got from Iannetta or the 1.5 bWAR they did per year I'm pretty sure they would call it a success. I'm not expecting much out of either Maybin or Revere -- if they can play to their career averages I'd be happy.

Got a link? Would love to see the amount of shock involved.

You're moving the goal posts... You said he Maybin hadn't done enough to merit being given the starting job and that Revere had been TOO GOOD to keep from being relegated to the bench -- you offered zero opinion on what to expect from either guy moving forward (a completely different conversation), your entire argument was based on past performance. Opinions are nice and all that, but the facts showed that Maybin was almost twice as valuable a player in fewer plate appearances. I've not look at other sites to see if FGs views it more closely but that one comparison was pretty clearly in Maybin's favor. Your initial statement was at the most basic level completely wrong. As to where you're trying to go now... I'm not a fan of either guy to be honest, and yet I view both as potential upgrades -- which is more of an indictment of what we have had in LF than a ringing endorsement of either. Revere is a craptastic top of the order bat despite all the talk about him being a lead-off hitter -- he's a speedy guy who hits for an empty an average. He's Erick Aybar with better wheels. Maybin is a frustratingly inconsistent talent but he offers more. Like you, I don't think either guy should be guaranteed the starting spot but there is no denying that to date, Maybin has been the more productive player despite playing in less hitter friendly environments. History also tells us that Revere is the far more consistent player. They each have their plus and minuses, I'd argue Revere is more likely to rebound than Maybin is likely to repeat his numbers from last year. At my most basic, I'd rather see a platoon than either one guy starting to be honest.

This is an incredibly outdated way of looking at defense. A guy runs 50 yards and has a ball glance off his glove -- he gets dinged with an error. Next guy runs ten yards, ball falls 30 yards out of reach... not an error, but in your world the guy with the crap range is the better defender because, no errors? Maybin's been credited with 482 plays outside of his zone, Revere 427. Despite having more errors than assists, he's actually had more assists than Revere... Maybin has also started 8 DPs, meaning... he threw out the baserunner after making a catch 8 times.. Revere, 2 -- and yes.. Maybin has a crap arm IMO. For his career, Maybin has a positive defensive WAR. Revere, a negative one.

Maybin - career OPS+ 93, career bWAR 11.3 - 3014 PA. dWAR of 1.2 Revere - career OPS+ 83, career bWAR 6.1 - 3035 PA. dWAR of (-2.3) I'm not even a Maybin fan but....

That guy got some praise even before ST from scouts outside the Angels system. Apparently he started life in the Pac 10, transferred to OCC then went to some SEC school and looked like a completely different hitter.

He doesn't look as thin as he's been in previous Springs -- dude always seems to lose a ton of weight during the offseason and historically hasn't pitched well until he put some of it back on.

The workloads have been partially due to his age -- he was always among the youngest pitchers in his leagues and yet if you compare his workloads to those of his rotation mates... he's pretty much been at the same pace. I do believe some of it is shell-shock like D-Vol mentioned. Prior to his TJ surgery the only time he missed time with any semblance of an arm issue was in 2012 when he was rested the final six days of ST with Zona due to a "dead arm". Based on Skaggs comments in Jeff Fletcher's OCR article, I think even Skaggs knows he needs to prove he can stay healthy. As has been said by many here.. Pretty much the only SP that doesnt have some sort of injury related concern is Nolasco. So, expect Nolasco to break down any day now.

Did you read the article?.... it might make you a little less worried. Seems the team did a strength test immediately after his start and will doing them on a daily basis as a way to gauge fatigue and avoid injuries. This probably is connected to them having hired a biomechanics dude, and the nutrition person -- the Angels are seemingly making a large move forward in certain areas. Anyway, it sounds like they have reached the point where they can call fatigue what it is instead of calling it a "dead arm period." You know, that thing people talk about every ST and pitchers either comment on how it usually hits them at the start or the end of ST... whenever it suits them to put a label on a flat or a bad performance. I dunno, seems like one of those things where people can go in different directions. I personally was happy to see them not go Terry Collins mode and demand Skaggs toughen up and pitch through it. Protecting their assets is the smart play but again.. some might read it to mean he's hurt and the sky is falling.

What defense? The numbers are what they are. Equating his performance to date to that of Brandon Wood is whats indefensible.. Skaggs needs to stay healthy, sure.. So does his statistical clone -- Andrew Heaney.

Manager Mike Scioscia said Wednesday that the team’s medical staff put Skaggs through a post-game strength test that showed “a little bit of a deficit” in the shoulder “that has corrected itself.” Skaggs is scheduled to throw a bullpen session on Saturday and will be folded back into the rotation next week. Right-hander J.C. Ramirez will start in Skaggs’ place on Friday. “He’s fine,” Scioscia said of Skaggs, “but we’re just trying to stay ahead of some stuff.” http://www.latimes.com/sports/angels/la-sp-angels-tyler-skaggs-20170308-story.html

The Mount Rushmore of ESPN baseball......

Holy exaggeration Batman!.... Brandon Wood was one of the worst players in MLB for most of his career - his Angels career saw him put up an OPS+ of 22, Skaggs ERA+ as an Angel is 87. He isn't remotely close to being the Brandon Wood of pitchers... I get that he may not live up to his status as a top 10 prospect but, if he never gets any better than he's been he would still be an above average 4 or 5 pitcher.

If that's what they really want -- then single payer is the way to go. The GOP won't ever go that route but it's the one that would likely be the most efficient.

I came here for the cojones...

http://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/18816530/detroit-tigers-miguel-cabrera-dying-art-rbi Have at it!!! LAKELAND, Fla. -- Miguel Cabrera doesn't care if you think the good old-fashioned RBI is the most washed-up, irrelevant stat since six balls equaled a walk. In fact, if you think that stat is so irrelevant, the Detroit Tigers' favorite RBI machine has a question for you. "How are you gonna score," Miggy asks, "if somebody doesn't drive in the runs?"

Bolden maybe -- I never saw Clarke as having that big time upside -- speed wise maybe. But he didn't have the full set of tools Williams has.

Not your best effort, but didn't disappoint 7/10.

Verducci actually touches on how RBI's aren't all on the player. It's a pretty well rounded article -- both rates and counting stats are mixed in. Before advanced statistics, stars aging between 34 and 36 with similar Triple Crown numbers as Pujols (.261, 99, 319) were venerated: Mike Schmidt (.281, 106, 318), Reggie Jackson (.275, 95, 266) and Harmon Killebrew (.253, 95, 306). The RBI has since been devalued, seen more as a statistic of opportunity. But Pujols’s skill at making contact in those spots deserves special notice. Even last year, at 36, and even with his many chances while hitting behind Trout, Pujols was a much tougher out with runners in scoring position than more acclaimed hitters with similar opportunities. Pay particular attention to his ability to put the ball in play with runners in scoring position.