At the beginning of the season, the Cincinnati Reds beat out the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox for the prized mystery pitcher, Aroldis Chapman. The Reds signed Chapman to a six-year contract worth over $30 million. Chapman had a lot of hype in Spring Training, with his fastball topping off over 100 miles per hour; however, he suffered an injury right before the regular season, which led to Mike Leake taking his spot in the Reds rotation.
In Chapman’s first minor league appearance, Chapman pumped up the Reds organization by pitching 4.2 innings, giving up one earned run and nine strikeouts, which boosted his publicity to the level of Stephen Strasburg. In spite of that, Chapman had an unsuccessful stretch in the minor leagues, where he ended up going 5-5 as a starter with a 4.11 ERA, before the Reds decided to move Chapman to the bullpen, where he has excelled going 4-1 with a 2.40 ERA in 26 appearances as well as reportedly throwing his fastball at speeds up to 105 miles per hour.
After baseball suffered the loss of the most anticipated pitcher of future in Stephen Strasburg (more on him in this post), Chapman took the baton and ran with it. Chapman received a standing ovation, when he began warming up in the bullpen and didn’t disappoint once he entered the game. Chapman threw one inning, which earned him one strikeout including seven strikes in eight pitches, including four pitches over 100 miles per hour. "Aw, that was a wonderful debut," Reds manager Dusty Baker said. "People expected it, and they got what they heard about and read about." The fans were definitely pleased with Chapman’s performance giving him a standing ovation during the duration of his inning. "There were a lot of people down there," closer Francisco Cordero said. "Even before he started throwing, they were calling 'Chapman, Chapman!' It was amazing. It was a great night." Even Chapman understood the excitement in Cincinnati,
"It's a big thing for me," the 22-year-old Chapman said, speaking through a translator. "Being able to come up and pitch not only here, but to pitch for the Reds in the playoffs would be something great for me, to keep going with the team and someday get an opportunity to win it all."
Chapman has been flawless in his first three appearances and seems to be an unstoppable force once the Reds hit the playoffs. Chapman owns the top five fastest pitches in the major leagues this season including a pitch that reached 103.9 on the stadium’s radar gun. Here is a pitch-by-pitch detail of Chapman’s three appearances (I created the chart by watching and recording all of his pitches):
August 31 – 8TH Inning:
Facing Johnathan Lucroy
• 98 mph fastball, middle outside corner, strike (0-1)
• 86 mph slider, low inside corner, swinging strike (0-2)
• 102 mph fastball, high outside corner, foul ball (0-2)
• 87 mph slider, low inside corner, swinging strike (K)
Facing Craig Counsell
• 100 mph fastball, high inside corner, swinging strike (0-1)
• 102 mph fastball, low outside corner, groundout to short
Facing Carlos Gomez
• 101 mph fastball, middle inside corner, ball (1-0)
• 99 mph fastball, low middle of plate, groundout to second baseman
Line: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
September 1 – 7th Inning:
Facing Lorenzo Cain
• 99 mph fastball, low middle of plate, strike (0-1)
• 102 mph fastball, middle inside corner, groundout to third
Facing Alcides Escobar
• 102 mph fastball, middle inside corner, strike (0-1)
• 88 mph slider, in the dirt, swinging strike (0-2)
• 102 mph fastball, middle inside corner, foul ball (0-2)
• 89 mph slider, low inside corner, swinging strike (K)
Facing Johnathan Lucroy
• 104 mph fastball, low inside, ball (1-0)
• 102 mph fastball, low middle of plate, foul ball (1-1)
• 89 mph slider, middle outside corner, strike (1-2)
• 104 mph fastball, low outside, ball (2-2)
• 88 mph slider, low inside corner, swinging strike (K)
Line: W (1-0), 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
September 4 – 8th Inning:
Facing Aaron Miles
• 101 mph fastball, low outside corner, strike (0-1)
• 88 mph slider, in the dirt, ball (1-1)
• 101 mph fastball, middle outside corner, foul ball (1-2)
• 103 mph fastball, middle outside corner, foul ball (1-2)
• 88 mph slider, high middle, ball (2-2)
• 100 mph fastball, high outside, ball (3-2)
• 100 mph fastball, middle inside corner, groundout to shortstop
Facing Jon Jay
• 102 mph fastball, high inside, ball (1-0)
• 99 mph fastball, middle inside, ball (2-0)
• 99 mph fastball, low inside, ball (3-0)
• 100 mph fastball, middle inside, walk
Facing Albert Pujols
• 101 mph fastball, low middle of plate, ball (1-0)
• 100 mph fastball, middle outside, swinging strike (1-1)
• 100 mph fastball, middle inside, ball (2-1)
• 99 mph fastball, low inside corner, 5-4-3 double play
Line: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
Aroldis Chapman gives the Reds a huge piece in the bullpen. It will be hard for opposing players in the playoffs to scout Chapman on the basis that most team’s won’t have faced him yet and that he may have the most devastating slider in baseball to complement his 100+ mph fastball. It will be interesting to watch how Chapman responds in the playoffs when the pressure is multiplied. However for now, as a baseball fan, I can just kick back and watch poetry in motion.
Contributing: Associated Press for quotes
Stephen Strasburg Injury
Remember when rookie Stephen Strasburg stepped onto the mound for the first time in his career on June 8th against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and earned all the hype he accumulated since his senior year at San Diego State? Strasburg blew everyone’s minds away with his seven innings and fourteen-strikeout debut. The way the Nationals’ fans stood on their feet for almost the entire game, and the incredible atmosphere that surrounded the lowly Nationals franchise for the first time in years. Strasburg stroked magic again in his next three starts when he averaged six innings and ten strikeouts per outing. Strasburg’s 100 mph fastball and knee-buckling curve ball made baseball fans across the nation cry to baseball officials to get Strasburg in the All-Star game, despite the fact that he had only four starts in the season. However, in the next couple of starts, Strasburg-mania died down after the Braves and Mets hit him around before the break. Now, Strasburg is 5-3 with a 2.91 ERA and 92 strikeouts in 68 innings. Those numbers average out to a 1.07 WHIP, 12.18 K/12, and a .221 batting average against him. After breaking his numbers down more, you realize that batters have no chance against him when they are against a bad count:
• Count 0-2: .118 average, 4 for 34 and 24 strikeouts.
• Count 1-2: .154 average, 8 for 52 and 29 strikeouts.
• Count 2-2: .119 average, 5 for 42 and 27 strikeouts.
In other words, statistics show that Strasburg is having a great season, and is already poised to become one of the most dominant pitchers in baseball. After a poor showing in a July 21 game, Strasburg was later placed on the disabled list with an inflamed right shoulder, which scared all the fans that have rallied behind him. "They're talking every precaution with me," Strasburg said at the time. "It's feeling great already. I'm making big strides. I'm just going to keep getting better, keep getting stronger, and when the time comes I'm going to be ready to go."
Although Strasburg was capped to only pitch 160 innings this year, a 20 percent increase from his inning total last year, he returned to the mound August 10th against the Florida Marlins. Strasburg was destroyed in his return, producing his worst professional outing, giving up six earned runs in 4.1 innings. After another decent outing, Strasburg’s arm gave him more trouble. On August 21, against the Phillies, Strasburg winced on the mound after a pinch and left the game with a ‘strained tendon’. "You're always concerned when your pitcher leaves in the middle of the game, but we'll see what the MRI says and we'll react accordingly," Nationals general manager Rizzo said after the game.
After the MRI results on August 28, the Nationals delivered a bombshell to Major League Baseball and everyone who follows by announcing that Stephen Strasburg had a torn ligament in his right elbow and that he was done for the season and possibly the next as he undergoes Tommy John surgery.
"It's a new challenge," Strasburg said. "I want to be the best at everything, and right now I want to be the best at rehabbing and getting back out here."Strasburg’s rehabilitation is expected to take between 12 and 18 months. "There's no words that I can put in place here that would indicate we could possibly replace Stephen," manager Jim Riggleman said. "But we have to do it a different way, different names, different staff members who will go out there and fulfill the rotation until Stephen comes back." ESPN provided a chart of recent pitchers that have undergone Tommy John surgery:
• Chris Carpenter, 31-9 since Tommy John with a 2.55 ERA
• A.J. Burnett, 79-64 with a 3.95 ERA
• John Smoltz, 56-42 with a 3.28 ERA
• Kerry Wood, 69-62 with a 3.73 ERA
My number one fear is that Strasburg could end up being like Minnesota Twins pitcher Francisco Liriano. Liriano was unhittable in 2006 until he suffered an elbow injury and decided to undergo Tommy John surgery, the same procedure that Strasburg has just taken. In 2006, Liriano was 12-3 with a 2.16 ERA, and 144 strikeouts in 121 innings. At the time, Liriano was possibly upstaging the best pitcher in baseball at the time, his own teammate Johan Santana. Liriano has struggled afterwards going 5-13 in 2009 with a 5.80 ERA and 122 strikeouts in 136.2 innings, which almost led to his demotion in the minors and could have possibly ended his starting pitching career. This year, Liriano made the Twins rotation as the #5 pitcher, and has pitched well going 12-7 with a 3.27 ERA and 178 strikeouts in 165.1 innings but we are now four years in the future since he underwent Tommy John surgery. Will Strasburg suffer the same fate as Liriano? Will his fastball ever reach 100 mph again? Will the devastating curveball return with the same effect? Was this the best we will ever see of Strasburg?
These are all questions that baseball fans will be awaiting when Strasburg returns, in my opinion, 2012.
Twins – Sox race
The Minnesota Twins are notorious for playing close baseball down the stretch, and winning the division on the last couple of days. Again this season, the Twins are 3.5 games up on the Chicago White Sox, as of September 6th. Both teams are playing their best baseball down the stretch as the Twins are on a four-game winning streak, while the White Sox are on seven-game streak. The divisional race is going to come down the series on September 14 to 16. That series will be a three-game series between Twins and White Sox in Chicago, and the last meeting between the teams. Here is a breakdown for the rest of the season for the two teams:
Minnesota Twins
• Kansas City Royals, 2 games left in current series, and (Sept. 27-29) Twins record vs. Royals: 10-3
• Cleveland Indians, (Sept. 10-12), and (Sept. 20-22) Twins record vs. Indians: 7-5
• Chicago White Sox (Sept. 14-16) Twins record vs. White Sox: 10-5
• Oakland Athletics (Sept. 17-19) Twins record vs. Athletics: 5-1
• Detroit Tigers (Sept. 24-26) Twins record vs. Tigers: 9-6
• Toronto Blue Jays (Sept. 30-Oct. 3) Twins record vs. Blue Jays: 2-3
Teams with winning record: 2 (White Sox and Blue Jays)
Chicago White Sox
• Detroit Tigers, 3 games left in current series and (Sept. 17-19) White Sox record vs. Tigers: 8-4
• Kansas City Royals, (Sept. 10-12) White Sox record vs. Royals: 8-7
• Minnesota Twins (Sept. 14-16) White Sox record vs. Twins: 5-10
• Oakland Athletics (Sept. 20-22) White Sox record vs. Athletics: 3-3
• Los Angeles Angels (Sept. 24-26) White Sox record vs. Angels: 4-2
• Boston Red Sox (Sept. 27-30) White Sox record vs. Red Sox: 3-0
• Cleveland Indians (Oct. 1-3) White Sox record vs. Indians: 7-8
Teams with winning record: 2 (Twins and Red Sox)
The biggest result of this race was the White Sox claim of Manny Ramirez off waivers, which forces the White Sox to pick up over $4 million of Manny’s contract, although he will only be on the team for a month. Thus far, Manny is hitting .364 (4 for 11) in five games but hasn’t produced any power (zero homeruns and RBIs). Although the White Sox are 5-0 since Manny’s addition, the stretch of Twins, Athletics, Angels, and Red Sox is the stretch that the Sox’s season will come down to. On the other hand, if Manny can’t produce down the stretch, this may be the end of his career, as the Dodgers were the only team to reach his demands of a high-paying contract two years ago. It will be interesting how this race plays out, and I’ll be watching it intensely as I’m in Illinois.
Nyjer Morgan Fight
Nyjer Morgan has immense potential and is one of the best defensive outfielders with his exceptional speed. However, 2010 hasn’t been a good year for him. At the plate, Morgan is hitting .258 with zero home runs and 23 RBIs in 120 games. However, it’s the idiotic plays that fans will remember for Morgan.
On May 22, Morgan made a fool of himself as Baltimore Orioles’ Adam Jones hit a high deep fly ball to center. As the ball bounced out of Morgan’s glove, Morgan was enraged and mistakenly thought the ball went over the fence so he threw his glove down and walked away from the ball, allowing Jones to hit an inside-the-park home run. While the result of the play was disastrous, it’s not as disastrous as the last week in August was.
On August 21, Morgan, after being heckled by fans in the crowd, threw a baseball at one of the heckling fans.
"I still have a slight lump and some mild pain," the fan, who requested anonymity, told The Inquirer. "I got hit in the left temple. .... My head was turned, watching the outfield screen. I never saw it coming.”Morgan was subsequently suspended for seven games, which he appealed that the throw in the crowd wasn’t intentional (the decision on the appeal has yet to be determined).
The next Saturday, against the St. Louis Cardinals, in the eighth inning, Morgan was on first after a single, and Willie Harris was at the plate with the bases loaded. Harris hit a double down the right field line, and with Morgan’s speed, he attempted to score from first. Morgan sprinted into home as the ball was held up at first base. Although Morgan didn’t know if the ball was coming in or not, catcher, Bryan Anderson was standing at least two feet in front of the plate as Morgan ran into him, while missing the plate.
Morgan was called out on the play for not touching home and running into a teammate that had already scored before being told to touch home and running back to touch it. Although the Nationals have to appreciate the hustle, Morgan intentionally ran into a player that was defenseless, as Anderson had his glove off as well. Nationals’ manager Jim Riggleman benched Morgan the next game for what he called ‘unprofessional play’, as Morgan publicly disagreed.Of course, the story doesn’t end there. On the next Tuesday against the Florida Marlins, the Nationals were deadlocked in a tie 0-0 in the tenth inning. Morgan was on second after walking and then Alberto Gonzalez walked behind him. With Adam Kennedy at the plate, Morgan decided that he didn’t learn anything from hitting Anderson. Kennedy hit a grounder to the second baseman to start a double play, however, Kennedy was going to beat out the play at first. Marlins’ shortstop Hanley Ramirez threw home and the ball got into Brett Hayes glove about a step before Morgan arrived with his shoulder down to plow Hayes, although Hayes held onto the ball for the out. On the other hand, Hayes was hit so hard that he separated his shoulder, effectively ending his season. Even though Morgan’s play excites baseball purists, if Morgan would have slid, I think that he would have beaten Hayes’ tag and scored to take the lead in the game (you can took a look for yourself through the pictures).
Do I find Morgan running into Hayes a dirty play? No, but I felt that a slide would have better suited him. I’m all for the intensity at the plate, but when a player gets injured for the season, the ethical value of it has to go up.The next day the Marlins were obviously expected to retaliate. The Marlins waited until the fourth inning after striking him out in the first. In the fourth inning, Morgan was hit by a pitch by Chris Volstad but simply flipped his bat and sprinted to first base. However, with the Marlins up 14-3, Morgan still decided to steal second base on the next pitch, and third base on two pitches thereafter, which led to him scoring on a sacrifice fly afterwards. Although the lead was eleven, I don’t have a problem with Morgan stealing those bases. In football, when there is a blowout, you still expect the losing team to pass the ball, and I’m glad that Morgan was trying hard. However, I’m not sure of Morgan’s intentions. Was he trying hard? Or was he trying to show up the Marlins, sending a message that he didn’t care if the pitch plunked him? I’m guessing the latter because of the incident in the sixth inning. With Volstad still pitching, he threw the first pitch behind the back of Morgan. Morgan stood still for a second before flipping his bat and sprinting out to the mound and laying a punch on Volstad before being laid out by Gaby Sanchez. After the bench-clearing brawl and order returned, Morgan as he walking off the field; seemed pumped up after instigating the fight. I’m all for a good fight, as I am a big boxing fan, but come on, you can’t be doing this knowing that every sports TV and radio station is going to be talking about you the next day. After the game, Riggleman backed Morgan, saying it was OK for the Marlins to throw at the outfielder once but not twice. Riggleman also had no problem with Morgan, who declined comment Friday, stealing the two bases.
As of right now, Morgan will be suspended for fifteen games, although his seven-game suspension before the brawl has been appealed.
National League Triple Crown Race
Both players are in the heat of a divisional race and a race for history. One of the guys was drafted in the second round of the MLB draft, and took four years to burst onto the Major League scene. He is known as one of the nicest guys in baseball, and has earned all the accolades that he has received this season. The second man was drafted in the 13th round of the MLB draft and jumped up to the Major Leagues in two seasons as he quickly progressed through the minor leagues. Also, this player is one of the nicest guys as he raises money and support for Down Syndrome as he has a child with it (not his daughter but from his wife’s previous relationship). Both of these players are Cincinnati Reds 1B Joey Votto and St. Louis Cardinals 1B Albert Pujols. As of September 7th, the Reds are six games up on the Cardinals, and Votto is up on Pujols for the prestigious Triple Crown. The Triple Crown requires that hitters are the league leaders in batting average, home runs, and runs batted in. For the National League, the last winner of the Triple Crown was in 1937 by St. Louis Cardinals’ Joe Medwick, and the last winner of a Triple Crown overall was Boston Red Sox outfielder Carl Yastrzemski in 1967. Votto leads Pujols in batting average .321 to .309, while Pujols leads the National League in home runs (35) and Votto leads him in RBIs with 98, only two behind Gonzalez. Votto trails Pujols by three home runs and Colorado Rockies’ Carlos Gonzalez by .20 batting average points, but still has a month to make up the difference.
Joey Votto is in his third Major League season and was voted by the final fan vote to the All-Star game in July. Votto should’ve been on the team in the first place but due to the plethora of first basemen in the NL, he was forced to wait for an extra vote to put him in. Votto is a strong hitter average wise, as he hit .322 last season to go with 25 home runs and 84 RBIs. Already, with a month left in the season, Votto has set career highs in home runs and RBIs as well as giving him a chance for the Triple Crown.
Albert Pujols has suffered an ankle injury, which has limited his production lately, and the Cardinals have suffered. However, Pujols has become the best hitter in baseball as his accolades speak for themselves: nine All-Star selections, five Silver Slugger Awards, and three-time National League MVP. Although Pujols has a chance for the Triple Crown, he hasn’t played particularly better than he has any other season.
The wild card for the Triple Crown race is Carlos Gonzalez. He made his debut in 2008 with the Oakland Athletics, and showed some strong potential throughout the season. The Rockies took notice and he was included in the trade that took Matt Holliday to the Athletics. Last season with the Rockies, he played about half the season and had a .284 batting average with 13 home runs and 29 RBIs. However, this season, Gonzalez exploded at the beginning of the season with power as he hit 17 home runs and had 60 RBIs before the All-Star break. The miraculous notice is that Gonzalez didn’t make the All-Star game, and the only notable honor he holds is hitting for the cycle earlier this season. After the break, he exploded by hitting for average: .388. As of today, Gonzalez has the best chance for the Triple Crown as he leads in batting average (.341) and RBIs (100). Also, Gonzalez only trails Pujols by three home runs, and if the Rockies make the playoffs, he can make a strong case for MVP.
Who will win the Triple Crown? Will the Reds hold on for the division? These questions will be answered by October 4th, and you can bet I’ll be waiting.
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