Almost Cooperstown

#Tigers Tarik Skubal and #Braves Chris Sale are both in line to win the AL and NL pitching triple crowns this season. Most wins, most strikeouts, and lowest E.R.A. is the criteria. It was last done in 2020 in the pandemic season by #Guardians Shane Bieber. It's happened 33 times in #MLB history which is more than double the amount of batting triple crowns (15). 

We discuss why fans are less enthusiastic about pitching triple crowns than batting ones - if fans are even aware the award exists in the first place.  Miguel Cabrera was the last batter to win a Triple Crown in 2012 which was the first time a player had done it since #RedSox Carl Yastrzemski did it in 1967 - 45 years earlier! 

What if WHIP was the third metric instead of pitcher wins? Walks Hits per innings pitched is a better measure of a pitcher's effectiveness. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

Tyler Glasnow is out for the year. Yamamoto might be able to throw 6 innings by playoff time. What will the #Dodgers do? #Rangers had the future and the past happen this week with Kumar Rocker, Jacob DeGrom and Max Scherzer start consecutive games. 

Why did Gerritt Cole intentionally walk Rafael Devers while working on a no-hitter? It totally backfired. Bobby Witt Jr. has 100 RBIs. #Royals will finish above .500. Gunnar Henderson has 37 home runs but Aaron Judge will still win AL MVP. #brewers Willy Adames might be the most unheralded quality shortstop in #MLB.

#Mets Francisco Lindor is injured & the team's playoff chances hinge upon his health. Luisangel Acuna's debut was a success for him but not for the team as they lost two games to the #Phillies in which they had the lead this past weekend. 

We introduce a new segment this week called 'Things you may not have heard". This will be a regular thing. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

Albert Belle isn't in the HOF. Nor did he ever win an MVP although he deserved one in 1998. Instead Juan Gonzalez of the #Rangers (also not a HOFer). But Belle's not the biggest snub ever for MVP. There are lots of other more worthy, or unworthy, candidates! 

#Giants Barry Bonds ruined it for #Cardinals Albert Pujols in 2003. But Bonds did that to #Cubs Sammy Sosa who also is not in the HOF although for different reasons. 

How about #Tigers Norm Cash in 1961? Or Willie Mays in 1955? #redsox Ted Williams won the Triple Crown twice but was not awarded the ALMVP as both times he lost out to #yankees Joe DiMaggio. 

We cover those and others that are incredible to believe. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

Parker Meadows had the backyard moment for the #Tigers in San Diego this week hitting a 2 out 2 strike grand slam in the 9th inning with his team down by 3 runs.  #Cubs Shota Imanaga was part of a combined no-hitter this week. Meh! We didn't talk about the #Brewers because they are still in cruise mode. #Dodgers & #Phillies have best records over Milwaukee. #Yankees need a closer they can count on. So do #Orioles. 

Everyone would like to have a Clase to close! Playoff participants in the AL are pretty much set - only the actual positioning is in doubt. We doubt the #Mariners and #RedSox can swipe a spot. In the National League #Mets #Braves #Padres & #Dbacks are 4 teams playing for 3 spots. Should be a great final 18-19 games! 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

Automated balls and strikes, will be instituted in MLB, eventually NCAthers wont be able to 'steal' strikes by trying to trick the umpires. Tennis hasn't missed anything moving to an automated line calling system and neither will MLB. 

Will catchers be able to focus more on baserunners? Maybe. Will they have to hit more than they do now? Yes.  The job of pitch framing takes a lot of attention and finesse. Teams won't likely carry a defense first backup catcher as much since being a good pitch-framer will not be of benefit!  

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music!  

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

Can a team go 22-3 to make a playoff run? It can happen but it's not likely. That's where some of the teams that are on the bubble are right now. #Cubs, #Tigers, #RedSox are those kinds of teams with the #Mets not far behind. 

September baseball is fantastic and there are still many things left to be decided before we start hearing about 'Magic' numbers to clinch a division or playoff spot. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music! 

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

We didn't need to wait until the end of the #MLB season to review the #Mets performance.  Are we happy? Yes and No? Was it a good season? Yes and No. The team has undergone a lot of changes since Opening Day. 

Rosters are different, a rookie manager Carlos Mendoza has navigated as best he can without having his #1 starter Kodai Senga in the mix. We hope the team will rally and make the playoffs but that is far from a given. 

The Mets are also very good at celebrating much the fan's delight. Jose Iglesias smash hit OMG has been the team anthem.  

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music! 

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!

40 Homers and 40 steals is cool - Ronald Acuna of the #braves showed that last year. Shohei Ohtani is vying to have a 50/50 season - 50 home runs and 50 steals! Plus Ohtani is throwing off the mound! Will he come back for the playoffs? OK not likely but wouldn't that be cool? 

Aaron Judge hit HR's 50 & 51 on Sunday to lead the #yankees to a rout of the #rockies. #dodgers Yamamoto hasn't pitched since June 15. Will he come back? #mets Francisco Alvarez and Jesse Winker have outsized walk-off celebrations vs. #orioles. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music! 

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!
 

The pitcher who has hit the most batters in MLB history is one that you have almost certainly never heard about before - Gus Weyhing. Walter 'Big' Train Johnson is 2nd and Randy 'Big Unit' Johnson third all-time hitting batters and they pitched 75 years apart. If you think players are getting hit and injured more often there's reason for that. In baseball history 7 of the top 25 seasons in teams being hit by pitches have occurred since 2016. 20 out of the 25 most-hit batters on a team have happened since 1997. 

What makes it more dangerous is that pitchers throw harder than ever and the injuries suffered by some hit batsmen are often season-changing for the player and team. Which players get hit most often today? In MLB history? Which pitchers hit the most batters now?  

HOFer Hughie Jennings got plunked more than anyone else in MLB history. HOFer Craig Biggio is 2nd all time proving that playing many years is a requisite for being on that list!  Who has the record for being hit the most in one season?  If you can't hit then - get hit! 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music! 

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!
 

We did not even talk about #phillies Weston Wilson who became the first Phillie rookie to hit for the cycle!  Complete game shutouts are back in vogue.  Injuries still are in the picture for pitchers. 

Outfield defense is better than ever. We talk about why. 

Intro & Outro music this season courtesy of Mercury Maid! Check them out on Spotify or Apple Music! 

Please subscribe to our podcast and thanks for listening! If you can give us 4 or 5 star rating that means a lot. And if you have a suggestion for an episode please drop us a line via email at [email protected].  You can also follow us on X @almostcoop or visit the Almost Cooperstown Facebook page or YouTube channel.  And please tell your friends!