As I have mentioned previously, I have a bet this season on who will end up with better statistics on the season between Corey Hart (my pick) and Nick Markakis. We came up with a very complicated method for comparing the players, which isn't important here - I'm just going to provide the raw statistics as of games through July 22.
Corey Hart .286/.325/.507 16 hr, 59 rbi, 14 sb, 108 h, 52 r
Nick Markakis .295/.400/.489 15 hr, 54 rbi, 9 sb, 111 h, 66 r
As with last time, these guys are pretty close. Markakis has a pretty big lead in OBP and runs, and Hart is pulling away in stolen bases and has a decent lead in SLG, but all of the other categories are still up for grabs. If the season ended today, I think I would lose the bet but there are still two months to go. The Brewers are getting hot as they push for the NL Central lead, while the Orioles may dump players at the deadline. My hope is that Hart and Markakis will trend with their teams from here on out, bringing Hart ahead in the end.
Showing posts with label Nik Markakis. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nik Markakis. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 23, 2008
Wager Update
Thursday, May 29, 2008
Markakis vs. Hart
As I previously posted, I have a running wager this season with a friend regarding the performance of Nick Markakis of the Orioles and Corey Hart of the Brewers. As it is turning out, we could not have picked two more similar players through the first two months. Here are their respective stats as of today:
Nick Markakis: 187 at bats .251/.367/.433 9(hr) 24(rbi) 7(sb) 28(r) 47(h) 7(2b) 0(3B) 33(bb) 43(k)
Corey Hart: 196 at bats .296/.347/.464 6(hr) 27(rbi) 9(sb) 26(r) 58(h) 11(2b) 2(3b) 13(bb) 40(k)
The only significant difference is that Hart has a higher batting average, which Markakis makes up for with walks (leading to a higher OBP). I still feel pretty good about the wager, though. To this point, Markakis and the Orioles have played above their heads (the Orioles are 26-26 right now) and should slow down - in fact they have lost seven of their last ten games. The Brewers, on the other hand, have been unable to get things going. They are currently 26-27 and while they may not be as good as I thought before the season, I still expect them to pick up the pace. I somehow doubt that Prince Fielder will stay on pace to only hit 19 homeruns this season (after hitting 50 last season).
So, I believe that while Markakis' stats are the best you can hope for out of him considering the performance of his team and the players around him, Hart has considerable room for improvement once his team begins to play better.
Nick Markakis: 187 at bats .251/.367/.433 9(hr) 24(rbi) 7(sb) 28(r) 47(h) 7(2b) 0(3B) 33(bb) 43(k)
Corey Hart: 196 at bats .296/.347/.464 6(hr) 27(rbi) 9(sb) 26(r) 58(h) 11(2b) 2(3b) 13(bb) 40(k)
The only significant difference is that Hart has a higher batting average, which Markakis makes up for with walks (leading to a higher OBP). I still feel pretty good about the wager, though. To this point, Markakis and the Orioles have played above their heads (the Orioles are 26-26 right now) and should slow down - in fact they have lost seven of their last ten games. The Brewers, on the other hand, have been unable to get things going. They are currently 26-27 and while they may not be as good as I thought before the season, I still expect them to pick up the pace. I somehow doubt that Prince Fielder will stay on pace to only hit 19 homeruns this season (after hitting 50 last season).
So, I believe that while Markakis' stats are the best you can hope for out of him considering the performance of his team and the players around him, Hart has considerable room for improvement once his team begins to play better.
Monday, March 31, 2008
Opening Day Predictions - American League
Yesterday I posted my NL predictions and here are my AL predictions:
AL East: Red Sox - Boston's lineup is getting older and soon they will need a new thumper in the middle as Manny and Big Papi decline, but I think they've got another big year in them. I also think that Daisuke Matsuzaka is going to have a Cy Young quality year now that he's got a year of American baseball under his belt and should be more comfortable. The Schilling injury won't hurt as bad as some think as Clay Bucholtz will soak up the innings without missing a beat. I'm not sure about Bartolo Colon, but as a #4 or #5, it isn't a bad risk to take (since they have Jon Lester and Tim Wakefield to pick up if Colon falters).
While I like Boston better this year, I think the Yankees are set up better for the future. A-Rod will be the centerpiece for the foreseeable future and Wang, Hughes, Kennedy, and Chamberlain provide long-term solutions for the rotation. A lot of big contracts will be gone after this year or next: Giambi, Abreu, Damon, Pettitte, Matsui, Mussina and while they might resign some (Pettitte and Abreau possibly), the others will create a vacuum that will certainly be filled with other high-dollar players (Mark Teixeira, I'm looking at you). While they aren't ready to retake the division, they should still win the Wild Card this season and come back even stronger for 2009.
AL Central: Detroit - As I wrote in an earlier post, the Tiger's window is open. They've got an amazing lineup, with Granderson at the top, Sheffield, Ordonez and Cabrera in the middle, and Pudge Rodriguez, Carlos Guillen, Renteria, and Polonco as complementary pieces. The rotation is strong with Verlander and Bonderman at the top and Rogers, Willis and Robertson filling out the bottom. The bullpen could be the best in baseball if they could stay healthy, but injuries to Zumaya and Rodney present the biggest internal speedbump to Detroit.
The biggest external speedbump to the Tigers is the Indians. Cleveland is walking a fine line with their team this year - if a couple of things go against them, they could be mediocre quickly. Travis Hafner is on the wrong side of 30 and his production is in decline. Victor Martinez isn't far behind him and you have to wonder if staying at catcher will take a toll on his offensive production. The top of their rotation is great, with Sabathia and Carmona, but Bryd, Lee and Westbrook all fail to inspire.
AL West: Seattle - I predict that the AL West will be the worst division in baseball this season and I have the Mariners winning almost by default. The acquision of Erik Bedard gives them a true Ace at the top of their rotation and Felix Hernandez could develop into an Ace before the end of this season. The rotation is shaky thereafter. The lineup probably doesn't have a legitimate 30 homerun threat, but is solid top to bottom with Ichiro, Lopez, Beltre, Sexson and emerging youngster Wladamir Balentien. They are, at best, the fifth best team in the AL, but that should be enough to win a weakened West.
The Angels would be the team that provides the West with some legitimacy, but injuries have them depleted. John Lackey should come back after missing the first month, but Kelvim Escobar might be done for the season and Scot Shields' future is cloudy. I like Jared Weaver, but I'm not sure he's ready to step up and carry the team while Lackey and Escobar are out. Offensively the club still revolves around Vladimir Guerrero and there isn't a lot of power to be found elsewhere, but I think that Howie Kendrick has a chance to be a quality doubles and average kind of hitter.
MVP: Alex Rodriguez - I wanted to put someone else here, I really did, but every time I thought about another player (Grady Sizemore, Manny Ramirez - who I think will have a great season this year, Miguel Cabrera) I kept asking myself if I really thought that they would have a better season than A-Rod and I could never say yes.
Cy Young: Daisuke Matsuzaka - As with Ben Sheets in the NL, I figure if I'm going to make a bold prediction, I might as well take it all the way. I really think he's got the stuff and makeup to be a top shelf starter in this league. He had a very good year last year and he was still adjusting to the schedule and cultural differences in America.
ROY: Adam Jones - If Evan Longoria had started the season in the majors, I think this would be his. Jones is going to be very good and his two month head start on the counting stats will give him the ROY over Longoria.
Nik Markakis: .274/.355/.482 22hr
AL East: Red Sox - Boston's lineup is getting older and soon they will need a new thumper in the middle as Manny and Big Papi decline, but I think they've got another big year in them. I also think that Daisuke Matsuzaka is going to have a Cy Young quality year now that he's got a year of American baseball under his belt and should be more comfortable. The Schilling injury won't hurt as bad as some think as Clay Bucholtz will soak up the innings without missing a beat. I'm not sure about Bartolo Colon, but as a #4 or #5, it isn't a bad risk to take (since they have Jon Lester and Tim Wakefield to pick up if Colon falters).
While I like Boston better this year, I think the Yankees are set up better for the future. A-Rod will be the centerpiece for the foreseeable future and Wang, Hughes, Kennedy, and Chamberlain provide long-term solutions for the rotation. A lot of big contracts will be gone after this year or next: Giambi, Abreu, Damon, Pettitte, Matsui, Mussina and while they might resign some (Pettitte and Abreau possibly), the others will create a vacuum that will certainly be filled with other high-dollar players (Mark Teixeira, I'm looking at you). While they aren't ready to retake the division, they should still win the Wild Card this season and come back even stronger for 2009.
AL Central: Detroit - As I wrote in an earlier post, the Tiger's window is open. They've got an amazing lineup, with Granderson at the top, Sheffield, Ordonez and Cabrera in the middle, and Pudge Rodriguez, Carlos Guillen, Renteria, and Polonco as complementary pieces. The rotation is strong with Verlander and Bonderman at the top and Rogers, Willis and Robertson filling out the bottom. The bullpen could be the best in baseball if they could stay healthy, but injuries to Zumaya and Rodney present the biggest internal speedbump to Detroit.
The biggest external speedbump to the Tigers is the Indians. Cleveland is walking a fine line with their team this year - if a couple of things go against them, they could be mediocre quickly. Travis Hafner is on the wrong side of 30 and his production is in decline. Victor Martinez isn't far behind him and you have to wonder if staying at catcher will take a toll on his offensive production. The top of their rotation is great, with Sabathia and Carmona, but Bryd, Lee and Westbrook all fail to inspire.
AL West: Seattle - I predict that the AL West will be the worst division in baseball this season and I have the Mariners winning almost by default. The acquision of Erik Bedard gives them a true Ace at the top of their rotation and Felix Hernandez could develop into an Ace before the end of this season. The rotation is shaky thereafter. The lineup probably doesn't have a legitimate 30 homerun threat, but is solid top to bottom with Ichiro, Lopez, Beltre, Sexson and emerging youngster Wladamir Balentien. They are, at best, the fifth best team in the AL, but that should be enough to win a weakened West.
The Angels would be the team that provides the West with some legitimacy, but injuries have them depleted. John Lackey should come back after missing the first month, but Kelvim Escobar might be done for the season and Scot Shields' future is cloudy. I like Jared Weaver, but I'm not sure he's ready to step up and carry the team while Lackey and Escobar are out. Offensively the club still revolves around Vladimir Guerrero and there isn't a lot of power to be found elsewhere, but I think that Howie Kendrick has a chance to be a quality doubles and average kind of hitter.
MVP: Alex Rodriguez - I wanted to put someone else here, I really did, but every time I thought about another player (Grady Sizemore, Manny Ramirez - who I think will have a great season this year, Miguel Cabrera) I kept asking myself if I really thought that they would have a better season than A-Rod and I could never say yes.
Cy Young: Daisuke Matsuzaka - As with Ben Sheets in the NL, I figure if I'm going to make a bold prediction, I might as well take it all the way. I really think he's got the stuff and makeup to be a top shelf starter in this league. He had a very good year last year and he was still adjusting to the schedule and cultural differences in America.
ROY: Adam Jones - If Evan Longoria had started the season in the majors, I think this would be his. Jones is going to be very good and his two month head start on the counting stats will give him the ROY over Longoria.
Nik Markakis: .274/.355/.482 22hr
Miguel Cabrera: .317/.402/.554 32hr
Erik Bedard: 16-6, 3.26 ERA, 204 K's
Saturday, March 29, 2008
Spring Training Photo Dump
I finally got around to going through the rest of my pictures from Spring Training. Here are the best of what's left.
The first one has a story - I have a bet going into this season with a friend of mine regarding who will have a better season, my breakout pick, Corey Hart, or Baltimore's Nik Markakis. Since I got to see Baltimore play while I was in Florida, I took a bunch of pictures of Markakis and emailed the following awkward looking one to my friend, offering to let him out of the bet, if he wanted:
The next one has no story, I just think it is a nice looking picture (Chris Duncan singled to rightfield on this pitch):
The next pair of pictures concerns me as a Cardinals fan. I hope that this isn't the extent of the video crew that the club is using for internal purposes.
Here is a closeup of the guy:
Finally, rookie Adam Jones (who the Orioles acquired from Seattle as part of the Erik Bedard trade) had a nice spring and I expect him to be a very good all around ballplayer for years to come. Here is a picture of him just prior to contact.
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