gigem1223 said:

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5. Freeman
4. Ohtani
3. Judge
2. Betts
1. Acuna Jr

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Madison Bumgarner had more grand slams than Prince Fielder, who had more inside-the-park home runs than Rickey Henderson, who had fewer steals of home than Babe Ruth, who had as many shutouts as Pedro Martinez.

— Ryan M. Spaeder (@theaceofspaeder) February 22, 2024

Tksymm7 said:

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DallasAg 94 said:

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Chipotlemonger said:

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gigem1223 said:

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5. Freeman
4. Ohtani
3. Judge
2. Betts
1. Acuna Jr

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I think Seager should be above Judge. That's definite coastal and NYY bias coming into play there. No issue with the other 4 there though.

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They gotta pimp their mainstay's. NYY and LAD.

Judge is one of the most overrated, league enhanced superstars. He is nothing more than Joey Gallo in pinstripes with all the advantages of an NBA superstar.

There. I said it.

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I'm not Judge's biggest fan either, and I also don't think he's a top 5 player in the league (much of that due to constantly being injured), but the guy did hit 62 bombs in 2022, and 37 last year in like 250 less at bats. So is he overrated for what he does in the batters box? Because if that's your take then that's a SPICY take. Or is he overrated because he can't play a full season almost ever and is already 31 years old?

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Quote:

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The Wills and Insider report shows that of the 200 baseball they tested from the 2022 season the majority were from the new "dead" ball stock, which MLB said would be every ball for the season. However, they also found instances of the old "juiced" balls, as well as a third construction which fell into the middle and is being dubbed the "Goldilocks ball," for being the perfect mix of weight and velocity. More alarming is that there appears, at least from the initial data, to show huge inconsistencies in the ball distribution across MLB ballparks.

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Quote:

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Wills and Insider found that 36 Goldilocks balls only appeared in four distinct situations:
[ol]

Special commemorative balls used on team anniversaries (6)

All-Star week (3)

Postseason (14)

Yankees games (11)

[/ol]

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Quote:

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For those monitoring from home, keep one thing in mind: None of what happens, barring an injury, matters one iota.
Not yet. The first few times through the rotation aren't about results as much as they are about pitchers getting a feel for their pitches and building arm strength. Yes, they want to do well, but their primary concern is making sure the foundation for success is being put down.
That might mean throwing only fastballs in one outing or throwing their third-best pitch in a full count.
Even those like Leiter and Duffy, who are competing for a roster spot, get a freebie the first time out.
The hitters have been in camp less than a week and have seen live pitching only twice. Some will be ahead of the pitchers, but some will be behind. And that's OK, too.
Just as pitchers are on short leashes early in camp, don't expect starting position players to see more than two or three at-bats. They will be replaced by bench candidates, who will be replaced by just-in-case players from minor-league camp.
And, just to top it off, Arizona is a difficult place to evaluate players. The air is dry and thin, which affects pitchers' sliders and curveballs. In turn, a hitter might catch a flatter-than-normal breaking ball and knocked for a home run.
But because the air is thin, it can be hard to tell if he truly got the barrel to the ball.
Also, the infields are as hard as cement, so balls that hit in front of the plate might bounce over the infielders. The sky is high, and balls lost in the sun might lead to a cheap double and a couple of RBIs.
Just things to consider whether the Rangers win 15-2 or lose 15-2, and it's going to be that way for a week or two.

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