Rox Pile » Carlos Beltran http://roxpile.com A Colorado Rockies Fan Site - News, Blogs, Opinion and More Sat, 25 May 2013 18:25:23 +0000 en-US hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.4.1 Why Michael Cuddyer is a Good Fit for the Rockies http://roxpile.com/2011/12/14/why-michael-cuddyer-is-a-good-fit-for-the-rockies/ http://roxpile.com/2011/12/14/why-michael-cuddyer-is-a-good-fit-for-the-rockies/#comments Wed, 14 Dec 2011 20:37:27 +0000 Hayden Kane http://roxpile.com/?p=3181 Imagine you are in the stands at Coors Field for your average game in the middle of July. You watch the Rockies play one of the seemingly hundreds of games on the schedule against the San Diego Padres. The Rockies are relevant but hardly outstanding. It is the rubber match of the series, and you figure if they are a contender they should win a series against the Padres at home. The game is tied in the bottom of the 6th inning. With a runner on 2nd base, the Padres pass on Troy Tulowitzki and up strolls the #5 hitter in the order. Sensing the importance of the next at-bat, the fan standing next to you asks: “Who’s up after Tulo?” In the 2011 season that just passed, the following  scenarios were all possibilities:

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]]> http://roxpile.com/2011/12/14/why-michael-cuddyer-is-a-good-fit-for-the-rockies/feed/ 0 Declaring WAR on MLB’s Biggest Contracts http://roxpile.com/2011/01/31/declaring-war-on-mlbs-biggest-contracts/ http://roxpile.com/2011/01/31/declaring-war-on-mlbs-biggest-contracts/#comments Mon, 31 Jan 2011 20:54:32 +0000 http://roxpile.com/?p=806 Despite what Edwin Starr said, WAR is good for something. Of course, I’m talking about nerdy, baseball stat-geek WAR; something that was unheard of when Edwin sang his famous anti-establishment tune. Like any stat, Wins Above Replacement can be misleading, particularly with defensive calculations. Still, by taking into account every player’s defensive and offensive contributions, WAR is the most effective method of player evaluation.

Last year, according to WAR, the top three position players in baseball were Evan Longoria, Shin Choo-Choo, and Albert Pujols. You might be surprised to see Choo in that group, but he had a terrific 2010 season offensively and defensively. League MVPs Josh Hamilton and Joey Votto ranked in the top 10. Ubaldo was the most valuable pitcher last season, with Roy Halladay, Adam Wainwright, and Josh Johnson finishing just behind. Ubaldo’s WAR received an enormous boost because he pitched so effectively in Coors Field.

While studying last year’s WAR rankings, I noticed something interesting. For the most part, the game’s highest paid players were not the most valuable. Of MLB’s top 25 earners of 2010, very few actually earned their keep. It’s proof that big spending in baseball doesn’t pay.
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