A confession: I have been coveting. I know, I need to stop, which is why I am coming to all of you with my confession.
You see, every night Fernando Tatis, Jr. does something on the field that makes me covet him. Don’t get me wrong, I am so glad he is not on any of your teams, but I REALLY wish he was a Tornado.
He is not only a very good player, he is also fun. And I think baseball needs fun. Two nights in a row he has broken the so-called “unwritten rules of baseball,” (which are r-i-d-i-c-u-l-o-u-s) and I love it.
Just two nights ago the baseball world was all atwitter because Tatis hit a grand slam on a 3-0 pitch when his team was already ahead by 7. Chris Woodward, the Texas Rangers coach whom the Padres were opposing, stood up on the top step of the dugout yelling at Tatis about his audacity. How dare Tatis swing a bat while standing the batter’s box as the batter in a Major League Baseball game. Tatis 1, Woodward and everyone else who is stodgy and not fun 0.
Last night Tatis broke another unwritten rule. With two outs in the 6th inning and the Padres up by 6 runs, Tatis stole third while the pitcher had the ball on the mound. With a nifty slide he evaded the tag and added a SB to his stat line while also creating another highlight for the world to see.
His slash line this season is .310/.384/.710 with an OPS of 1.094. He leads MLB in HRs with 11, RBI with 28, Runs with 23 and is tied for the lead in SB with 6.
And he isn’t on an EFL team. For now, we all get to enjoy El Nino as a player who is making baseball fun and doing so by playing with high energy, incredible skill, and a disregard for stupid unwritten rules. I love it, and I hope you do, too.
Who is the most exciting player on each of our teams?
| EFL | ||||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB | RS | RA |
| Kaline Drive | 15 | 9 | .646 | — | 125.4 | 91.6 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 12 | 11 | .532 | 2.8 | 120.8 | 115.8 |
| Haviland Dragons | 12 | 12 | .520 | 3 | 135.6 | 129.6 |
| Peshastin Pears | 11 | 14 | .440 | 5 | 121.8 | 137.1 |
| D.C. Balk | 11 | 14 | .439 | 5 | 116.5 | 132.1 |
| Cottage Cheese | 9 | 13 | .431 | 5 | 102.9 | 119.4 |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 10 | 15 | .411 | 5.7 | 112.6 | 137.6 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 9 | 15 | .372 | 6.6 | 115.9 | 160.8 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 9 | 16 | .372 | 6.7 | 135.0 | 175.3 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 9 | 15 | .361 | 6.8 | 107.8 | 146.0 |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 5 | 18 | .214 | 10.1 | 77.8 | 148.2 |
Kaline: L, 3-7 (37PA; 2IP)
| AVG: 0.212 | OBP: 0.297 | SLG: 0.212 | OPS: 0.509 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.500 |
The Drive actually haven’t forgotten how to lose! I was beginning to wonder if they would ever lose again (sorry to wish such a thing against you, Tom). An uncharacteristic day at the plate hurt them the most, scoring only 3 runs on paltry hitting. They had 7 hits, all of them singles, and though they managed 4 BBs, it wasn’t enough to win.
The most exciting Drive player has to be Kyle Lewis, also a youngster. Last night he made headlines for a HR robbery, just one night after hitting 2 HRs. He might rival Tatis in terms of excitement and also potential. When the Ms start winning again, I am betting it will be in part because of his heroics.
Flint Hill: W, 10-6 (53PA; 5.7IP)
| AVG: 0.349 | OBP: 0.434 | SLG: 0.512 | OPS: 0.946 |
| ERA: 7.89 | WHIP: 1.228 |
The Tornadoes woke up this morning .6 games closer to the Drive, thanks to an excellent day at the plate (and to shrewd managing earlier this month that covered for un-shrewd managing even earlier in the month – that is, benching Wade LeBlanc after having drafted Wade LeBlanc). The Tornado batters racked up 15 hits – 4 2Bs and 2 HRs – and 6 BBs to score 10 runs on the day and nab an Edgar Martinez Day.
Although we wish Tatis was our most exciting player, we will have to settle for Austin Meadows, who lacks the dramatic flair of Tatis, but who does something almost nightly to make the Tornado fans swoon with joy. Last night, it was leading the team with 2 hits and a HR on his way to beating the Yankees – what a stud!
Haviland: W, 13-3 (46PA; 6IP)
| AVG: 0.325 | OBP: 0.413 | SLG: 0.750 | OPS: 1.163 |
| ERA: 1.50 | WHIP: 1.500 |
The Dragons woke up this morning having flown 1.1 games closer to the leading Drive, and now sit just .2 games behind the Tornadoes in second place – much too close for anyone’s comfort. Dragons are much better from a distance, if history is any indication. But here they sit on the strength of an EMD led by on-base machine Brandon Nimmo (.431 on the season) who had 3 hits including a 3B and a HR. Yu Darvish spun 6 innings of 1 run ball, and another day like this might find the Dragons in second place.
There are two most exciting players on the Dragons – the aforementioned Nimmo, and the scrappy (and currently suspended) Ramon Laureano. Both of them do things on a seemingly nightly basis to give Dragon fans a moment of joy and a lot of hope into the future, since both of them are under contract for at least another year or three.
Peshastin: L, 3-8 (43PA; 4IP)
| AVG: 0.211 | OBP: 0.302 | SLG: 0.395 | OPS: 0.697 |
| ERA: 9.00 | WHIP: 2.000 |
The Pears squandered a chance to move closer to the Drive, dropping .1 games to be an even 5 games back of them, now tied with DC and Cottage in the standings though holding a slight edge in winning percentage over each of them. Half of the Pear hits were 2Bs, led by Juan Soto who went 2 for 4 with one of those 2Bs.
Though the Pear team is full of quite a few young players, and though it would be easy to list Juan Soto as their most exciting player, I actually think Dustin May deserves the nomination. There are two reasons – he is a very good pitcher, and his hair is amazing.
DC: W, 6-2 (38PA; 19.3IP)
| AVG: 0.226 | OBP: 0.351 | SLG: 0.355 | OPS: 0.706 |
| ERA: 5.60 | WHIP: 1.399 |
The Balk climbed .6 games in the standings into a near identical tie with the Pears. Dylan Bundy and Nate Pearson both came down to earth a little yesterday, combining to give up 9 runs in 8 IP, but they got 10 more innings from 3 other pitchers and they only surrendered 3 runs to even things out a bit. News out of Toronto today is that Pearson has elbow tightness and is going on the IL.
Tim Anderson is the most exciting player on the Balk, and the choice is easy. He has made his own headlines for incredible bat flips after long HRs, but his hit tool is just so good. Last night he went 4 for 5 with a 2B and a HR, and is on his way to winning his second Batting title in as many seasons.
Cottage: “L,” 4-0 (52PA; 7IP)
| AVG: 0.178 | OBP: 0.269 | SLG: 0.289 | OPS: 0.558 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.429 |
Is there anything more heartbreaking in the EFL than giving up 0 runs and still losing? Take heart, Cheese! You did gain .6 games on the leading Drive even though you added an L to your record. The Cheese rode the Dodger pitching train to victory, using Tony Gonsolin and Scott Alexander for all of their excellent pitching on the day. There hitting was not excellent, and too bad it wasn’t or else their climb in the standings may have been Dragonian!
The most exciting Cheese player is their current deb, Luis Robert. He is often paired with Tatis in each day’s MLB highlights, and I hope the Cheese are enjoying every minute they get with him, because it won’t be long before he is a Wolverine.
Canberra: L, 4-5 (47PA; 10.6IP)
| AVG: 0.167 | OBP: 0.319 | SLG: 0.250 | OPS: 0.569 |
| ERA: 5.09 | WHIP: 1.321 |
Yesterday was a fairly bad day for the Roos. They had as many BBs as hits (6), and 3 HBPs (!). Rhys Hoskins, who got the gift of hitting against the horrendous Red Sox pitching staff, went 1 for 3 with a HR and one of the HBPs. They sent the heavyweights to the mound, but both Carrasco and Snell gave up 3 runs in 5 or fewer innings.
The most exciting Roo on the roster (that has a nice ring, Ryan, maybe a podcast title for our league-related podcast?) should be Vladito, but he hasn’t done much this season that one would consider exciting. As such, I think former Beaver Mike Conforto is my nominee. His slash line is .315/.435/.416. Look at that OBP!!
Bellingham: “W,” 8-9 (27PA; 1.7IP)
| AVG: 0.381 | OBP: 0.519 | SLG: 0.429 | OPS: 0.947 |
| ERA: 10.59 | WHIP: 1.765 |
The Cascades resumed their excellent hitting after taking yesterday off. Kevin Newman and Paul Goldschmidt both went 3 for 5 to do most of the damage for the Cascades. Sadly, their pitching was not as great, though minimal. They did manage to gain .2 games in the standings, though, so that is a silver lining!
The most exciting Cascade is currently injured – Bo Bichette. If I remember correctly, Bichette was chosen by the Cascades before Tatis was chosen, and in hindsight even though Tatis is having such a great season, Bichette is having an excellent season himself, slashing .356/.387/.610 for an OPS of .997.
Portland: L, 8-9 (50PA; 5IP)
| AVG: 0.317 | OBP: 0.408 | SLG: 0.488 | OPS: 0.896 |
| ERA: 9.00 | WHIP: 1.200 |
It feels like EFL offenses are really starting to heat up, or maybe it is just the Rosebud offense starting to heat up. The Rosebuds had 6 different hitters with 2 hits, including Bryce Harper who got the joy of hitting against the atrocious Red Sox pitching, adding a 400+ foot HR as one of his two hits.
The most exciting Rosebud has to be either Nick Solak or Edwin Rios. Both of them have bright futures as Rosebuds, while also contributing a lot of offense to the team this season.
Pittsburgh: L, 2-11 (33PA; 11.7IP)
| AVG: 0.194 | OBP: 0.242 | SLG: 0.290 | OPS: 0.533 |
| ERA: 7.69 | WHIP: 1.709 |
Seeing as Allegheny management has not chimed in, we are left to surmise why their offense has dropped off so significantly this month. Though the month of July was short, the Alleghenys led the EFL is runs scored per game at just under 7. This month? Dead last at 3.46 runs per game. I know part of the reason is that Christian Vazquez, the Red Sox catcher, went from being able to get hits in July to not being able to get any hits in August. Maybe PA management will shed some light on this unfortunate phenomenon for us all.
The most exciting player on Pittsburgh is first baseman Dominic Smith. Smith is slashing .311/.397/.607 for an OPS of 1.004. He might be overshadowed by Nimmo and Conforto, but he is good. By the way, how are the Mets not good this year? Too bad their SP squad has fallen apart – they have some excellent offensive players!
Old Detroit: L, 4-5 (52PA; 2.6IP)
| AVG: 0.188 | OBP: 0.250 | SLG: 0.396 | OPS: 0.646 |
| ERA: 0.00 | WHIP: 0.769 |
If nothing else, we know that days like these will motivate the OD management to indulge us with his thoughts about his team (and these posts), and for that I am grateful. I suppose I am also grateful that someone is so willing to inhabit the basement of the standings with such conviction. Rafael Devers is perhaps coming out of his season-long slump, going 3 for 5 with a wall ball 2B last night. If he was able to hit against his own team’s pitching, he might be hitting .500. But he’s not, and he’s not.
The most exciting player on the Wolverines is, I think, Walker Buehler. However, he is not having a great season. But the raw stuff in addition to a name that might be found equally on a novel cover as in a box score makes for an exciting player – and the LA market doesn’t hurt, either.
Combined MLB + EFL Standings for 2020
| AL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| New York Yankees | 16 | 7 | .696 | — |
| Tampa Bay Rays | 15 | 9 | .625 | 1.5 |
| Flint Hill Tornadoes | 12 | 11 | .532 | 3.8 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 12 | 11 | .522 | 4 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 9 | 11 | .450 | 5.5 |
| Boston Red Sox | 6 | 18 | .250 | 10.5 |
| Old Detroit Wolverines | 5 | 18 | .214 | 11.1 |
| NL East | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Atlanta Braves | 14 | 11 | .560 | — |
| Miami Marlins | 9 | 8 | .529 | 1 |
| Philadelphia Phillies | 9 | 9 | .500 | 1.5 |
| New York Mets | 11 | 14 | .440 | 3 |
| D.C. Balk | 11 | 14 | .439 | 3 |
| Washington Nationals | 9 | 12 | .429 | 3 |
| Canberra Kangaroos | 10 | 15 | .411 | 3.7 |
| AL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Minnesota Twins | 16 | 8 | .667 | — |
| Cleveland Indians | 14 | 9 | .609 | 1.5 |
| Chicago White Sox | 13 | 11 | .542 | 3 |
| Detroit Tigers | 9 | 12 | .429 | 5.5 |
| Kansas City Royals | 9 | 14 | .391 | 6.5 |
| Bellingham Cascades | 9 | 15 | .372 | 7.1 |
| Pittsburgh Alleghenys | 9 | 15 | .361 | 7.3 |
| NL Central | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Chicago Cubs | 15 | 7 | .682 | — |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 10 | 11 | .476 | 4.5 |
| St. Louis Cardinals | 5 | 6 | .455 | 4.5 |
| Cincinnati Reds | 9 | 11 | .450 | 5 |
| Cottage Cheese | 9 | 13 | .431 | 5.5 |
| Pittsburgh Pirates | 4 | 15 | .211 | 9.5 |
| AL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Oakland A’s | 16 | 8 | .667 | — |
| Kaline Drive | 15 | 9 | .646 | 0.5 |
| Houston Astros | 13 | 10 | .565 | 2.5 |
| Haviland Dragons | 12 | 12 | .520 | 3.5 |
| Texas Rangers | 10 | 12 | .455 | 5 |
| Los Angeles Angels | 8 | 16 | .333 | 8 |
| Seattle Mariners | 7 | 18 | .280 | 9.5 |
| NL West | ||||
| TEAM | WINS | LOSSES | PCT. | GB |
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 18 | 7 | .720 | — |
| Colorado Rockies | 13 | 10 | .565 | 4 |
| Arizona Diamondbacks | 13 | 11 | .542 | 4.5 |
| San Diego Padres | 13 | 12 | .520 | 5 |
| Peshastin Pears | 11 | 14 | .440 | 7 |
| Portland Rosebuds | 9 | 16 | .372 | 8.7 |
| San Francisco Giants | 9 | 16 | .360 | 9 |
It all depends on what you mean by “most exciting”. If you mean “makes one most excited about his team’s long-range future” Buehler is paired with Eloy Jimenez atop the Wolverine list. Rafael Devers is right behind — three franchise players. They make me feel rich, even though only Eloy is performing anything like expectations at the moment. ‘
If you mean “brightest firework against the dark 2020 Old Detroit sky”, the most exciting at the moment might be Luis Urias. He went 0 for 5 yesterday, bringing his season line down to .374, .400, .448 — but it was more like .474, .500, .526 yesterday. And he splits his time evenly between 2b, 3b, and ss. (Hey Dave, can you give Urias a 3b rating?) Devers at 3rd, Urias at ss or 2b — that’s a lot of offense coming from the infield. Now if Gavin Lux can be Urias’ twin at the keystone, and Bell can be what he was in April and May 2019, and Jamie can keep his promise about Luis Robert becoming a Wolverine next year, and Willson Contreras can give me one more great year followed closely by his understudy Will Smith — if all these dreams come true, I’ll only need to find a DH and an OF — the two easiest places to find great hitting — and the W offense will be awesome next year.
I think we can all agree that would be exciting, right?
But, look! Yonder breaks bad news for the Ws: https://twitter.com/GregJohnsMLB/status/1296200206552150016
Instead of being bach, Daniel is Vogelgone…