SBNation.com: All Posts by Batting Stance Guyhttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/46737/sbn-fave.png2012-08-11T11:00:22-04:00https://www.sbnation.com/authors/batting-stance-guy/rss2012-08-11T11:00:22-04:002012-08-11T11:00:22-04:00Missing the Curve
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<p>Last year, I spent a day with <span>Drew Storen</span>. I woke him up for breakfast, traveled to the park with him, watched him pitch a 1-2-3 ninth inning, and tucked him into bed that night. As we drove home from the park in his Batmobile after he got the save, we talked about his teammate, <span>Rick Ankiel</span>. I asked him what it was like to have a center fielder with such a good throwing arm. His response?</p>↵<p><i>What’s it like that he has the best curveball on the team.</i></p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/8/11/3235421/missing-the-curveBatting Stance Guy2012-08-06T18:07:59-04:002012-08-06T18:07:59-04:00Best Response I Will Ever Receive
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<p>Went to the post office today and bought <a href="http://a.espncdn.com/photo/2012/0721/mlb_u_stargell_gb1_576.jpg" target="_blank">the Willie Stargell stamps</a>. From David Letterman to ball fields to minor-league All-Star Games games, I get Stargell requests everywhere I go. When the crowd is over 40 years old, forget about it. They want Pops ...</p>
<p>Recently, I was at an event for a youth-education program in Wilmington, North Carolina, and during my Stargell imitation, a woman screamed, stood up and walked past 300 guests toward me, holding up her camera and saying, "Do that again, please."</p>
<p>Oh-kay.</p>
<p>That's a slightly bigger response than normal. She laughed, sighed, smiled and gave me a thumbs-up before returning to her seat.</p>
<p>Curious, I sought her out later that day. She hugged me harder than anyone ever has, or will, for doing a batting-stance imitation. She whispered, "You looked just like him. <i>Just</i> like him." Now I was officially puzzled. I pulled away from the hug and realized she was slightly misty-eyed. "He's my late husband" she said.</p>
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https://www.sbnation.com/2012/8/6/3224261/willie-stargell-batting-stance-widow-responseBatting Stance Guy2012-07-27T13:45:23-04:002012-07-27T13:45:23-04:00Yay.
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<p>The 7th inning of Game 7 of the 2011 World Series featured the <span class="sbn-auto-link">Cardinals</span>' <span>Octavio Dotel</span> getting two big outs and the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a>' <span>Mike Adams</span> facing <span>Rafael Furcal</span> with two on and one out. At this exact point last season, Dotel, Adams and Furcal were on teams with losing records. This is great news for fans of <span>Jonathan Broxton</span>, <span>Marco Scutaro</span>, <span>Luke Gregerson</span> and <span>Alfonso Soriano</span>. There's an 87.5-percent chance that all four will be on base or pitching in Game 7 of the 2012 World Series. Yay trade deadline! Yay dumping payroll! Yay players to be named later!<br></p>↵
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/7/27/3193860/trade-deadline-factoidsBatting Stance Guy2012-04-20T20:00:20-04:002012-04-20T20:00:20-04:00Ranking Managers' Knowledge Of Coachella
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<p>Are all MLB managers out-of-touch, middle-age-to-elderly men, clueless about what's hip and cool?</p>
<p>Coachella, the massive uber-trendy desert concert festival, has drawn hundreds of thousands of music fans over the last two weekends outside Los Angeles, and because it has the word "coach" in its name we have to wonder: What is the likelihood that MLB managers have any idea what Coachella is? I polled friends, beat writers and various people in the know and came up with a ranking from least to most likely:</p>
<p><b>30. Davey Johnson.</b> One Nats writer told me, "There is a fantastic chance he thinks it's a coaching clinic."</p>
<p><b>29. Ron Gardenhire.</b> Twins writer: "There is less than .05 percent chance he knows about it."</p>
<p><b>28. Terry Collins.</b> Plenty of the Coachella bands share his intensity, but that's the only trait they share. No way he knows.</p>
<p><b>27. Charlie Manuel.</b> Thinks it's a Latin phrase for base coach. Would be stunning if he drawled, "Feist plays tomorrow. Love her."</p>
<p><b>26. Jim Leyland. </b> He loves the newer music out these days, like Bruce Hornsby and the Range.</p>
<p><b>25. Buck Showalter.</b> He'll change the topic to seeing Charlie Daniels once in Starkville, Miss. in the summer of 1972.</p>
<p><b>24. Joe Girardi.</b> The only men with flattops who attend Coachella wear lots of leather and don't carry around binders.</p>
<p><b>23. Bobby Valentine.</b> He'll say he knows it. "Oh sure, I do." But ask him a follow-up question and he'll get it wrong. He doesn't have a clue.</p>
<p><b>22. Eric Wedge.</b> A Mariners blogger: "Uh, there's a chance, but less than 2 percent. Never seen him in a Thundercats t-shirt."</p>
<p><b>21. Ron Roenicke. </b>He attended college less than two hours from Indio, California where Coachella is staged. Emotionally, it was a longer distance. No way he knows.</p>
<p><b>20. Mike Scioscia.</b> For someone in SoCal who is on TV a lot he received too many, "G#% no!, Not Scioscia."</p>
<p><b>19. John Farrell.</b> His son Luke, who is a student-athlete at Northwestern, puts it gently, "My dad doesn't know the first thing about music."</p>
<p><b>18. Brad Mills. </b>Just because you are from California and have kids doesn't mean you know about it.</p>
<p><b>17. Don Mattingly.</b> He's smack dab in the middle because beat writers say his kids keep him hip. Then his son Preston told me, "Uh, no."</p>
<p><b>16. Ned Yost.</b> Rumor has it he had a second career as a <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taxidermist">taxidermist</a> in <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jackson,_Mississippi">Jackson, Mississippi</a> in between his playing and coaching days. That doesn't bode well for him knowing the Arctic Monkeys or Swedish House Mafia.</p>
<p><b>15. Dale Sveum.</b> The dip between his teeth will be heavily featured at the Dawes show, but jury is out on Sveum knowing the festival.</p>
<p><b>14. Jim Tracy.</b> Even if he knows about it, his voice sounds like the sheriff that shows up to see if the concert promoter has all the correct permits.</p>
<p><b>13. Ozzie Guillen.</b> Please don't ask him. Seriously. I'm afraid he'll say he hates the Black Keyes and someone will think he's talking about someone in the Florida Keys and everyone will get upset again.</p>
<p><b>12. Ron Washington.</b> Ron parties so he's in the top 12, but barely. Balding guys with the Bozo-ring aren't seen in big numbers at the festival. Tough call on Wash. Maybe Lil' Wash goes instead.</p>
<p><b>11. Kirk Gibson.</b> Most polarizing. Received several "Gibby is hip" and "No way Gibson knows it." He had a long conversation with the drummer of Rival Sons and talked knowledgeably about music.</p>
<p><b>10. Fredi Gonzalez.</b> I'm not sure how riding motorcycles correlates with knowing Florence + The Machine, but he does and that gives him more indie-cred than Ron Roenicke.</p>
<p><b>9. Mike Matheny.</b> I could be giving him ‘concert under the stars' credit for (almost) sharing a surname with Pat Metheny, but he's young, good looking, speaks fluent Spanish and probably loves <i>Friday Night Lights</i>. Explosions in the Sky is performing tonight so he's in the top 10.</p>
<p><b>8. Clint Hurdle.</b> I know, right? In all my research I was most surprised by the number of "Oh, hell yeah Hurdle knows it". I should have him higher but it feels unbelievable. No one whose hat moves that much while chewing gum knows Bon Iver.</p>
<p><b>7. Bob Melvin</b>'s smiling/sunny disposition resembles the too-old-to-be-there concert goer that will be sitting in front of you at Radiohead this weekend slurring, "Kaaaaaarma Police!" That's worth something.</p>
<p><b>6. Robin Ventura.</b> Most radio/TV/beat folks, when guessing, always come back to "Well, he's got HS/college-age kids and they keep him hip," or, "He's from California so, probably, yes, he knows." Both true for Ventura. But he'd be the only concert-goer with Oakley Blades.</p>
<p><b>5. Manny Acta.</b> He's the surprise of the list but he tweeted about music during spring training and is 10 years younger than you think. He's the sneaky member of the Top 5.</p>
<p><b>4. Dusty Baker.</b> He knows everything about everything. One writer: "He'd go if they didn't have games those weekends." Knows everyone. He's friends with Hologram Tupac.</p>
<p><b>3. Bruce Bochy.</b> "He knows about that stuff. He probably knows about Burning Man too." The Burning Man MLB coaches knowledge chart is a tad bit smaller.</p>
<p><b>2. Bud Black.</b> Most NL West writers said, "Bud Black is a cool dude. He knows it." They could be giving him extra credit for having a first name that many 24-year-olds will be holding this weekend at the venue. Wouldn't be surprised if he has all The Shins CDs.</p>
<p><b>1. Joe Maddon.</b> He beat-boxes, plays the mandolin, dated Cat Power and is Snoop Dogg's Dogfather. He likes Gotye, Neon Indian and M83 but thinks The Hives and DJ Shadow are overrated. He prefers House over dub-step and tells anyone that will listen that Noel Gallagher is actually a great guy. He's the first MLB manager to get signed by True Religion jeans.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/4/20/2962857/coachella-baseball-managers-joe-maddon-hipBatting Stance Guy2012-03-06T14:14:34-05:002012-03-06T14:14:34-05:00Baseball And 'Downton Abbey' - A Lot Closer Than You Know
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<p> <a target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/#!/michaelianblack">Michael Ian Black</a> recently tweeted that he hates the dead time every year between <i>Downton Abbey</i> finishing and the baseball season starting.</p>
<p>Many baseball fans have lost their wife, brothers, friends, co-workers to the Downton Abbey kick. Scores of baseball fans don't understand what the craze is about. Downton Abbey creator Julian Fellowes shares an Aug 17th birthday with Boog Powell, Dustin Pedroia and Jorge Posada, so there is no doubt he loves American baseball and created characters out of that love. Think I'm crazy? Here's me with my <i>Usual Suspects</i> Keyser Söze moment ...</p>
<p>The main character in Downton Abbey is Robert Crawley, the Lord of Grantham. George Grantham was a first basemen for world champ 1925 Pirates. Season 2 of DA ends in the 1920s. George Grantham led the league in caught stealing, strikeouts, putouts and errors - all metaphors plaguing the House of Grantham.</p>
<p>His mother is Violet, the worldly matriarch of the family. Fellowes no doubt researched Frank Violet's place in baseball and knew he played every position but pitcher in late 1800's. Violet played for the Roanoke Magicians, Stubs, Lima Farmers, Twins, Statesmen, Citys, Nailers, Colts, Senators, Cabinet Makers and Puddlers. No pitcher has played for a more worldly cavalcade of worldly team names than Violet.</p>
<p>Crawley's wife is Cora, an American from huge money. Have any friends that went to Vanderbilt? Me too. Joey Cora went to Vandy. Boom. There's your rich American character.</p>
<p>Cora has three daughters: Mary, Edith, and Sybil Branson. Your wives will say Sybil is the all-star, pretty, winner wanting free agency for her countrymen and women. Well, Cy Blanton was born in 1908, an all-star, led league in ERA, GS, SO, WHIP, got MVP votes and was granted free agency in 1940. No mystery here; Fellowes fashioned Sybil after Cy.</p>
<p>The head of Crawley's staff is Carson. Fellowes wanted to create a character that was bold and trustworthy. But as a member of the staff, can't be too much of an all-star or he'd be a dignitary. He must do little things that no one notices but well enough to rise to head of the staff. Fellowes needed a quiet hero who came off the bench. He looked no further than the 1925 World Series. The left fielder for the Pirates, Carson Bigbee, quietly led the NL in fielding, assists, singles, and putouts various seasons in the 1920s. He assisted his team but in non-spectacular ways. In the '25 World Series the Pirates faced Walter Johnson in Game 7, down in the bottom of the eighth with two outs. Carson pinch hit and doubled home the tying run off one of the best pitchers in baseball history. Three batters later, Carson and a teammate score the go-ahead runs. Senators went down 1-2-3 in the ninth and the Pirates won it all.</p>
<p>The staff at Downton Abbey all came with their baggage. Check baseball-reference.com for info on John Bates. We know he played in 1889. Know he died during Season 2 of DA (1919). Played for Kansas City Cowboys, pitched one complete game and surrendered 14 runs. What else do we know? Nothing. He's so mysterious we don't even know if he pitched that lone complete game righty or lefty. So John Bates will be the most mysterious.</p>
<p>Fellowes filled out the cast with Ms Patmore, clearly after 1884 Springfield's Pat Morrley with bad eyesight and culinary talents. Her sidekick would obviously be mirrored after Daisy Davis, the 1885 Boston Beaneater who had a losing record and has the cemetery listed (Pine Grove) for visits the character would make to grave.</p>
<p>Thomas Burrows played for 1903 Reliance. His counterpart is O'Brien. Cinders O'Brien pitched in 1890s was a mean SOB erratically leading league in hit batsmen and cleaning up his messes (fielding %) for Spiders, Blues and Infants. O'Brien would wreak havoc on the House of Grantham in ways befitting those three team names. William Mason had career cut short, peaking his final year (.301 in Phils farm system). Fellowes wanted Carson's counterpart to be reliable, rarely on screen Elsie Hughes. He knew Elsworth Hughes pitched for 1924 Reading Aces finishing with winning record. Good when called on. Reliable.</p>
<p>Julian Fellowes' favorite player as a young adult was Downtown Ollie Brown. Downtown Ollie played for Giants, Padres, Phillies and more, amassing serviceable numbers. His brother Oscar played for the Braves. When Fellowes won the Oscar for his <i>Gosford Park </i>screenplay, he had his Oscar; now he needed his Downtown Ollie. Out of respect for his favorite player's privacy, he penned his most beloved and personal ode to baseball, <i>Downton Abbey</i>. Baseball has given us a great series.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/3/6/2849486/baseball-downton-abbey-connectionsBatting Stance Guy2012-02-13T16:54:10-05:002012-02-13T16:54:10-05:00Uneasy Lay The Heads ...
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<p>News has broken out that <span>Kevin Youkilis</span> is marrying Tom Brady's sister. If true, this is certainly news in Boston. It appears to be the greatest pairing of a batting stance with sports royalty since Nomar and Mia Hamm. The only couples that come close to Youk/Brady sister were these (can't confirm) ...</p>
<p>Rod Carew - Pele's sister<br>Phil Plantier - Laila Ali<br><span>Jeff Bagwell</span> - Bobby Orr's yoga instructor<br>Ron Cey - Peggy Fleming<br>Ben Oglivie - Nadia Comaneci<br>Gil McDougal - Jim Thorpe's daughter<br>Bruce Bochte - Juanita Jordan<br>Felix Millan - Jim Brown's Senior Ball Date<br><span>Tony Batista</span> - Jeff Gordon's ex-wife<br><span>Alex Rios</span> - Serena Williams<br><span>Moises Alou</span> - Kelly Slater's youth babysitter<br><span>Jason Kipnis</span> - Diana Taurasi<br><span>Julio Franco</span> - Yao Ming's physical therapist<br>Bobby Tolan - Tida Woods<br>Wes Covington - Babe Didrikson Zaharis<br>Dick McAuliffe - Roger Federer's grandmother<br>Dave Kingman - Secretariat's owner's daughter<br><span>Craig Counsell</span> - Zinedine Zidane's sister. (Uh-oh. Maybe I shouldn't have gone there ... )</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/2/13/2796078/uneasy-lay-the-headsBatting Stance Guy2012-02-05T02:43:16-05:002012-02-05T02:43:16-05:00Hope
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<img alt="HOUSTON: Jose Altuve #27 of the Houston Astros high-fives Humberto Quintero after defeating the Colorado Rockies at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images)" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/3iZxKl9DaJkFO9ng1nmmlLGzzhI=/0x43:920x656/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/photo_images/4140331/126147733.jpg" />
<figcaption>HOUSTON: Jose Altuve #27 of the Houston Astros high-fives Humberto Quintero after defeating the Colorado Rockies at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Bob Levey/Getty Images) | Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>According to Baseball Nation's proprietary forecasting tool, the Astros and Royals will make the playoffs in 2012, but the Giants and Tigers will face off in the World Series. You read it here first.</p> <p>Prediction time. Who's gonna win the 2012 World Series?</p>
<p>Actually, hold that thought. You know who's going to make the playoffs? The <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.crawfishboxes.com/">Houston Astros</a>. There, I said it. You think I'm nuts? Here's why I'm not quite the dumbest guy in the room ...</p>
<p>The EXACT same thing is going to happen this year that happened last year.</p>
<p>Not Cards over <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.lonestarball.com/">Rangers</a> in the World Series, but rather the preseason third-best National League team -- according to the Las Vegas Oddsmakers will win the '12 series over the preseason fourth-best American League team. Last season every expert had the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.overthemonster.com/">Red Sox</a> winning the AL East and oddsmakers gave the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.azsnakepit.com/">Diamondbacks</a> the <i>worst</i> NL odds to make the World Series (yeah, worse than the Astros). As we know, the Sox missed the playoffs altogether and the Diamondbacks won the NL West. When history repeats itself this year the Astros, owning to this year's worst preseason odds, will win their division. Boom! That also means that this years' AL favorite misses the playoffs.</p>
<p>Bye-bye, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.pinstripealley.com/">Yankees</a>!</p>
<p>Ultimately, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.mccoveychronicles.com/">Giants</a> (this year's Cards with preseason No. 3 NL ranking] will beat the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.blessyouboys.com/">Tigers</a> (this year's Rangers with 4th AL ranking) in the WS after defeating the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.truebluela.com/">Dodgers</a> (ranked same spot as last year's <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.brewcrewball.com/">Brewers</a>) and <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.royalsreview.com/">Royals</a> (the '12 spot Tigers ranked in '11) in the LCS. The Halos, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bluebirdbanter.com/">Blue Jays</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.thegoodphight.com/">Phillies</a> and Astros will all make the playoffs but lose their first-round matchups.</p>
<p>Since I'm clearly on a roll, let's talk player awards. In 2011, the best player on the preseason seventh-ranked NL team (Ryan Braun) won the MVP. For 2012, then your National League Most Valuable Player is <span>Ryan Zimmerman</span> (Nats are rated seventh in the National League in '12). Repeating history, the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.bleedcubbieblue.com/">Cubs</a>' Starlin Castro will barely miss the NL Triple Crown (this year's Matt Kemp on the preseason eighth-ranked NL squad) and Kansas City's <span>Bruce Chen</span> will win the AL MVP and Cy Young (this year's <span>Justin Verlander</span>) You can't doubt history, people.</p>
<p>What's this all about? Hope.</p>
<p>Let's say that you're the Blue Jays. You dreamt that you were in the <span>Yu Darvish</span> sweepstakes, you demanded <span>Prince Fielder</span>, you made small trades and finally watched the Yanks, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.draysbay.com/">Rays</a> and Red Sox add players. You feel hopeless. Look no further than last year at this time. Experts/oddsmakers listed the Rays and Tigers as the seventh- and eighth-ranked AL teams entering 2011. Guess who that is this season. The Royals and Blue Jays. Yup. If history repeats itself, Toronto and Kansas City will taste postseason glory. No self-respecting expert will pick the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.amazinavenue.com/">Mets</a> to win the National League. Who cares. The Diamondbacks were given less of a chance last season. Believe in your team. And when fishing for experts to pick your team, remember that this time last year SI's Mel Antonen picked the Red Sox, A's, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.twinkietown.com/">Twins</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.halosheaven.com/">Angels</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.purplerow.com/">Rockies</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.redreporter.com/">Reds</a>, <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.talkingchop.com/">Braves</a> and Giants to make the postseason.</p>
<p>Along with hope comes fear. This time last year, the Twins were the fifth overall favorite team to win the World Series. They finished last in the American League. If that repeats, Red Sox will finish this year behind the <a class="sbn-auto-link" href="https://www.camdenchat.com/">Orioles</a>. Ouch. Be afraid. Be very afraid ... Or, no matter where in the country you live, become an Astros fan and drink a giant, legally blinding cup of hope.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/2/5/2770621/mlb-2012-predictions-standingsBatting Stance Guy2012-01-31T13:15:11-05:002012-01-31T13:15:11-05:00We Really Can All Get Along
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<p>Often in school and sometimes in life, there are the drama geeks and the jocks and rarely shall the two meet. This week I was standing in line for coffee at the Sundance Film Festival behind Paul Giamatti. Indie-film crowds know him as the star of <i>Sideways</i>, <i>American Splendor</i> and the scene stealer in <i>Big Mama's House</i> and <i>Big Fat Liar</i>.</p>↵<p>But I really think of him as the son of A. Bartlett Giamatti, the MLB commissioner who levied Pete Rose’s lifetime ban and died eight days later. I miss his dad, who wrote the first poem about baseball I ever saw.</p>↵<p>See, jocks and drama geeks can be friends.<br></p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/1/31/2761298/we-really-can-all-get-alongBatting Stance Guy2012-01-30T15:14:01-05:002012-01-30T15:14:01-05:00Best Team Left
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<p>It’s almost February and Bill Hall's about to sign a minor-league deal. That means it’s time to play: Could a team made up of the remaining free agents beat the Astros?</p>
<p>Our lineup is old, but we’re hungry. Johnny Damon leads off with Aaron Miles setting the table for Yoenis Cespedes, Vlad and .300-hitting Casey Kotchman. The bottom half features Fukudome, Renteria, Pudge and Eric Chavez. Our bench is stacked with D-Lee, Ankiel, Carlos Guillen, Ibañez, Paulino, Ordoñez and pinch-hitter extraordinaire Dan Johnson.</p>
<p>Our staff will eat innings: Edwin Jackson, Brad Penny, Roy Oswalt, Livan Hernandez and Javier Vasquez. Our pen will throw hard: H-C Kuo, Coffey, Durbin, Qualls and Mike Gonzalez. Come to think of it ... we’re younger than the Phillies and Yankees. I'm not nerdy enough to really crunch these numbers but this feels like a .500 team in the NL West.</p>
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/1/30/2758822/best-team-leftBatting Stance Guy2012-01-21T16:56:08-05:002012-01-21T16:56:08-05:00Credit Where It's Due
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<p><span style="border-collapse: collapse; color: #454545; font-family: arial,sans-serif; font-size: 12px;"><font face="arial, helvetica, sans-serif"><span style="font-size: 16px;"></span></font></span>Every diehard fan has a candidate for the most overlooked play in postseason history. Is it Snow getting picked off first base in the 2003 NLDS? Or Jack Clark letting Balboni's foul drop in the 1985 World Series? I vote for Mike Davis and his four-pitch, two-out walk in the 1988 World Series. There's no Kirk Gibson/Dennis Eckersley moment if that doesn't happen. Just like in Little League when I bunted Scott to second and then Timmy doubled him in and everyone mobbed them and nobody hugged me, bespectacled Davis gets no love and he should.</p>↵
https://www.sbnation.com/2012/1/21/2723999/credit-where-its-dueBatting Stance Guy