Jordan Weems was in his tenth skilled season when he was featured right here at FanGraphs for the primary, and heretofore solely, time in July 2020. His story was one in every of resilience, but additionally of change. Then 27 years previous, Weems was a transformed catcher quickly to make his big-league debut as a pitcher for the Oakland Athletics. Drafted by the Boston Crimson Sox in 2011 out of Columbus (GA) Excessive Faculty in 2011, he moved to the mound 5 years later after dwelling in Mendoza-line territory whereas sporting the instruments of ignorance.
Weems is now in his third season with the Washington Nationals, and by and enormous he’s solid an honest profession as a reliever. The 6-foot-4 right-hander has made 118 appearances at baseball’s highest stage, and his numbers embrace 140 strikeouts in 130 innings. The primary of his Ks got here towards Trevor Story, the primary batter he confronted whereas toeing a big-league rubber.
I just lately requested the personable hurler if he ever thinks about that preliminary punch out.
“Completely,” replied Weems, who has a 3.94 ERA over 16 innings within the present marketing campaign. “You need to form of keep the place your toes are on this recreation — what you probably did prior to now is in your previous — however on the identical time, in case you’d have advised me early on in my [professional] profession that I’d be a pitcher within the large leagues, I might have laughed. Trying again, what I’ve accomplished is fairly cool.”
Weems remembers being calm when he took the mound towards Colorado within the 2020 contest — however solely till the umpire mentioned “Ball’s in!’ That’s when the second hit him. And so too did the Rockies, albeit not essentially as exhausting because the field rating may counsel. After fanning Story, Weems gave up a bunt hit to Charlie Blackmon, adopted by three singles — two of the ground-ball selection — and a sacrifice fly.
“They scored two runs, however it was good to get that one below my belt,” Weems mentioned of his first big-league body. “I knew that from there I might simply go on the market and do what I do.” Which he did. Weems labored two extra innings that day, each scoreless.
He needed to wait till final yr for his first win. On June 27, he pitched the tenth and eleventh innings in Seattle, and to say the W was well-earned can be an understatement.
“That was a nuts recreation,” recalled Weems, who was making his 66th big-league look. “That’s one I look again on so much. I had two pitch clock violations with me coming set earlier than the hitter was prepared. I had the bases loaded and no outs, in further innings, and bought out of it. Then we scored two runs, I got here again out and had a one-two-three inning, and I bought my first win. It’s fairly cool how… I imply, all people’s journey is totally different. Typically it takes a little bit longer for issues to come back about, however you may’t let that discourage you. You need to simply go on the market and what is going to occur will occur.”
To say that Weems has an admirable perspective on the sport he performs for a dwelling would even be an understatement. His upbringing performs a giant half in that — “I’m very family-oriented” — as do his favourite off-the-field actions. Weems likes to hunt and fish, and whereas he enjoys bagging a trophy-size whitetail deer, what he really relishes is the quietude of nature.
“Searching form of grounds me, simply being out within the wilderness on my own, watching the solar rise and the world coming alive,” defined Weems. “It’s a slower tempo of life. Whenever you’re taking part in ball, it’s nonstop and fast-paced. Being on the market settles you down and allows you to take within the little issues in life which are essential.”
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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS
Joe Charboneau went 8 for 15 towards Floyd Bannister.
Joe McEwing went 5 for 13 towards Kerry Wooden.
Mario Mendoza went 5 for 10 towards Richard Dotson.
Will Clark went 7 for 10 towards Mario Soto.
Mario Guerrero went 9 for 13 towards Rick Honeycutt.
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I’m at the moment studying Keith O’Brien’s new biography of Pete Rose, and it has solely lessened my opinion of the controversial all-time hits chief. The well-researched e-book doesn’t pull many punches, with O’Brien opting as a substitute to put naked Rose’s overblown ego, a number of marital infidelities, shut associations with gamblers— which started lengthy earlier than his rise to fame — and different tawdry habits.
Rose’s response to the tip of his NL file 44-game hitting streak isn’t tawdry, however it’s eye-rolling. The streak ended with a ninth-inning strikeout in a lopsided recreation. and the truth that Atlanta Braves reliever Gene Garber fanned him with a changeup angered Rose. Garber — gasp! — had truly tried to get him out! As O’Brien associated within the e-book, Rose cursed a number of instances throughout his postgame interview, and complained that Garber had pitched to him prefer it was the seventh recreation of the World Collection. He advised reporters that he hoped Garber would pitch once more the subsequent day in order that he might hit a tough line drive on the mound. The next day, he was nonetheless offended a few pitcher having accomplished his job, slightly than bow all the way down to the nice Pete Rose.
Pete Rose the baseball participant merited respect and adulation. The identical can’t essentially be mentioned about Pete Rose the particular person. O’Brien’s e-book — Charlie Hustle: The Rise and Fall of Pete Rose, and the Final Glory Days of Baseball outlines the explanations fairly clearly.
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A quiz:
4 St. Louis Cardinals pitchers have gained 20 or extra video games in a single season since 2000. Chris Carpenter and Adam Wainwright are two. Who’re the others?
The reply could be discovered beneath.
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NEWS NOTES
Tom Tischinski, a catcher who performed in 82 video games for the Minnesota Twins throughout the 1969-1971 seasons, died on April 23 at age 79 (per Baseball Participant Passings). A Kansas Metropolis-born catcher, Tischinski logged 21 hits, one in every of them a house run off of Washington Senators right-hander Casey Cox.
Trying forward, the sixth annual SABR/IWBC Girls in Baseball Convention will likely be held nearly on September 22-24. Data could be discovered right here.
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The reply to the quiz is Darryl Kile (20 wins in 2000) and Matt Morris (22 wins in 2001).
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Requested previous to a latest recreation what number of pitches he hoped to get out of that evening’s starter, Tampa Bay Rays supervisor Kevin Money joked that the quantity was 170. Given his membership’s well-known reliance on relievers and modern-day pitcher utilization as a complete — even Koshien has in the reduction of — such a complete would clearly be unfathomable. As such, I joked again that it’ll most likely be fewer than 170.
“I believe that’s truthful,” the Rays supervisor replied. “110, I don’t assume there are a lot of pitchers who’ve gotten there. I imply, the best way we attempt to set up the rotation, with our bullpen utilization, we get to that 100-pitch mark hardly ever. I’m not going to say we’re uncomfortable with it, however we attempt to stick proper round that quantity.”
Probably the most pitches a Rays starter has thrown throughout Money’s tenure?
“If I needed to guess, it could be Chris Archer at Yankee Stadium,” mentioned Money. “I believe he threw 114 pitches.”
Money was in the best ballpark, however the quantity was a tad low. Archer threw 122 pitches at Yankee Stadium on July 3, 2015, his profession excessive.
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FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Robinson Canó is slashing .402/.479/.588 with 5 residence runs in 119 plate appearances with the Mexican League’s Diablos Rojos del Mexico. The 41-year-old, eight-time MLB all-star has 3,369 skilled hits, together with 2,629 within the majors.
David MacKinnon is slashing .347/.448/.456 with three residence runs in 174 plate appearances for the KBO’s Samsung Lions. The 29-year-old nook infielder spent final season in NPB after taking part in within the Los Angeles Angels and Oakland Athletics programs.
Kyle Hart is 5-1 with a 2.93 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 55-and-a-third innings for the KBO’s NC Dinos. The 31-year-old former big-league lefty — he appeared in 4 video games with the Crimson Sox in 2020 — Hart spent final season with Seattle’s Triple-A affiliate.
Hiroya Miyagi is 2-4 with a 1.70 ERA and 47 strikeouts in 42-and-and-third innings for the Orix Buffaloes. The 22-year-old southpaw has 443 strikeouts and 418 hits allowed since making his NPB debut in 2020.
Roki Sasaki is 3-2 with a 2.31 ERA and 53 strikeouts in 46-and-two-thirds innings for the Chiba Lotte Marines. The 22-year-old right-hander has a 1.95 ERA and precisely twice as many strikeouts as hits allowed (448-224) since making his NPB debut in 2021.
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The Cy Younger Award was launched in 1956, though it wasn’t till 1967 that it was given to a pitcher in every league. For the primary 11 years of its existence it went to just one pitcher, with Sandy Koufax profitable it 3 times, together with in 1966 when he was by far the sport’s most dominant hurler.
Who would have merited the AL Cy Younger in 1966 had the award been given out in each leagues? Voters possible would have chosen Jim Kaat, who together with main the junior circuit in innings pitched went 25-13 with a 2.75 ERA and a 3.02 FIP with the Minnesota Twins. However did Gary Peters have a fair higher season? The Chicago White Sox southpaw logged fewer innings and went simply 12-10, however he posted a 1.98 ERA and a 2.70 FIP. And whereas Kaat had the sting in fWAR (6.4 to 4.2), Peters had a greater bWAR (5.3 to 4.5). Furthermore, together with main the league in ERA, Peters additionally had the most effective WHIP.
Given Kaat’s sizable benefit in innings — 304.2 to 204.2 — he most likely would have been extra deserving. What then was the purpose of this thought train? As a lot as something it was to spotlight a powerful season by a back-in-the-day pitcher you won’t have heard of. From his 1963 Rookie of the Yr season via 1967, Peters had a 131 ERA+ whereas averaging 15 wins yearly. He additionally slugged 11 residence runs over that five-year span, second most within the majors behind Earl Wilson (23), whose 1966 season additionally would have merited Cy Younger consideration.
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A random obscure former participant snapshot:
Steve Sisco had one residence run and two RBIs in a 25-game MLB profession that noticed him go 5-for-27 with the Atlanta Braves in 2000. They got here on the identical swing, and in game-winning style. On Could thirteenth, the Thousand Oaks, California native blasted a pinch-hit, two-run homer off of Scott Aldred within the tenth inning to carry the Braves to a 3-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies. Thirty years previous on the time, Sisco was hitless in 5 big-league at-bats when he delivered a reminiscence that can final him a lifetime.
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FARM NOTES
Brett Bateman is slashing .325/.450/.404 with 26 strikeouts and 25 walks in 142 plate appearances for the Excessive-A South Bend Cubs. The left-handed-hitting outfielder was chosen within the eighth spherical of final yr’s draft by the Chicago Cubs out of the College of Minnesota.
Frank Mozzicato has a 2.57 ERA, and has allowed simply 12 hits in 28 innings, for the Excessive-A Quad Cities River Bandits. Drafted seventh-overall by the Kansas Metropolis Royals out of Manchester, Connecticut’s East Catholic Excessive Faculty, the 20-year-old southpaw has walked 18 and fanned 27.
Matt Wilkinson has a 1.02 ERA and a 1.60 FIP to go together with 63 strikeouts in 35-and-a-third innings for the Low-A Lynchburg Hillcats. The 21-year-old Vancouver-born southpaw was drafted 308th total final yr by the Cleveland Guardians out of Central Arizona Faculty.
Phillip Glasser is slashing .321/.412/.482 with two residence runs in 132 plate appearances between Low-A Fredericksburg and Excessive-A Wilmington. The 24-year-old infielder/outfielder was drafted 285 total final yr by the Washington Nationals out of Indiana College.
Filippo Di Turi is slashing .359/.537/.487 in 54 plate appearances for Milwaukee’s Arizona Complicated League affiliate. No. 10 on our Brewers Prime Prospects checklist, the 18-year-old center infielder was signed out of Venezuela in January of final yr.
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Mike Scott had a five-year stretch the place he was the most effective pitchers in baseball. From 1985-1989, the Houston Astros right-hander had a 89-49 won-lost file and a 2.93 ERA. A 3-time All-Star over that span, he led the Nationwide League in strikeouts and gained the Cy Younger award in 1986.
Mike Aldrete was among the many handful of hitters who loved success towards Scott within the righty’s prime. Enjoying for the San Francisco Giants and the Montreal Expos throughout these years, Aldrete went 10-for-28 with three doubles and a pair of residence runs. I requested the now-Oakland Athletics coach about his reminiscences of going through Scott.
“Early on, he had a fastball — and it was an excellent fastball — however guys hit fastballs,” recalled Aldrete. “As soon as he bought that cut up — and that cut up was filthy — he became Cy Younger. A number of guys would guess split-finger and attempt to hit it, however my thought was, ‘I can’t hit that.’ As a substitute, I might guess split-finger and take. I principally waited round for a fastball.
“His cut up would disappear,” added Aldrete, who logged 565 hits over a comparatively modest 10-year profession. “What he would do is throw that 95-mph fastball, after which he’d throw the cut up in the identical spot. One would do that and the opposite would try this. Typically it was exhausting to tell apart between them. His cut up was low-spin, nearly like a forkball, so in case you might acknowledge the dearth of spin you knew it wasn’t the heater.”
Scott was thought to have doctored the baseball now and again. In line with Aldrete, that may have occurred when the hurler threw his signature pitch.
“Rumor had it that what he would do is put the scuff on prime,” mentioned Aldrete. “I’m not an aerodynamics whiz, however apparently if there was a scuff on prime of the ball it could go down. He’d do that when he threw his cut up. This was throughout the scuffed-ball period, so yeah, there have been rumors.”
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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE
MLB official historian John Thorn profiled Retrosheet founder Dave Smith for his pioneer sequence at Our Sport.
The St. Louis Cardinals offense has gone south since hitting coach Jeff Albert departed following the 2022 season. Josh Jacobs wrote about it at Redbird Rants.
At SaskToday, Calvin Daniels wrote about Eleanor Callow, a Winnipeg native who was one of many prime energy hitters within the All-American Skilled Women Baseball League whereas taking part in for the Rockford Peaches within the Forties and Fifties.
Daniel Epstein shared a baseball-focused interview he did with just lately deceased punk rock luminary Steve Albini seven years in the past.
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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS
Robert Gasser — first featured right here at FanGraphs in July 2022 — has allowed only one run in 11 innings since debuting with the Milwaukee Brewers on Could 10. He’s the primary pitcher in franchise historical past to earn a win in every of his first two MLB appearances (per Brewers media relations director Mike Vassallo).
Chicago Cubs left-hander Shota Imanaga is 5-0 with a 0.84 ERA over 53-and-two-thirds innings in his first 9 MLB begins. In 1981, Los Angeles Dodgers left-hander Fernando Valenzuela went 8-1 with a 0.91 ERA over 79 innings in his first 9 MLB begins.
Eight totally different Tampa Bay Rays relievers have been credited with no less than one save this season, and the workforce has 16 saves in all. The Cincinnati Reds have seven saves as a workforce, all by Alexis Díaz who has a 7.47 ERA and a pair of losses on the season.
Philadelphia Phillies reliever Matt Strahm has a 0.95 ERA, a 0.13 FIP, and a 42.9% strikeout price in 19 appearances comprising the identical variety of innings.
John Hiller allowed one run in 26 innings in his first three big-league begins, these over a 10-day span in August 1967. The southpaw pitched out of the bullpen in all however 43 of the 545 appearances (probably the most in franchise historical past) he made for the Detroit Tigers from 1965-1980.
Mark Fidrych went 9 or extra innings in 23 of his 29 begins in his 1976 rookie season. “The Hen” had a 10-inning outing, 4 extra through which he went no less than 11, and he additionally had an eight-inning full recreation.
On in the present day’s date in 1990, Rod Booker hit a two-out, three-run triple within the eleventh inning to present the Philadelphia Phillies a 15-12 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers. The groups mixed for 39 hits, with Tom Herr accounting for 5 of Philly’s 24.
The Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees performed to a 16-inning, 2-2 tie on the Polo Grounds on in the present day’s date in 1916. Harry Covaleski went the space for Detroit, whereas Nick Cullop and Bob Shawkey went eight frames apiece for the house facet. Time of recreation was recorded as 3:00.
Gamers born on in the present day’s date embrace Fritzie Connally, a 3rd baseman who performed in 10 video games for the Chicago Cubs in 1983, and in 50 video games for the Baltimore Orioles in 1985. A Baylor College product, Connally counted three residence runs amongst his 57 profession hits, together with a a pair of grand slams.
Additionally born on in the present day’s date was Skippy Roberge, an infielder who performed for the Boston Braves in 1941 and 1942, then missed three seasons serving within the Military earlier than returning to the NL membership in 1946. The Lowell, Massachusetts native was wounded in battle in 1945 and obtained a Purple Coronary heart.
