David Pinto worked for ten years as the chief researcher for ESPN’s Baseball Tonight. Starting in 2002, David brought his research and insights to a wider audience through his blog, Baseball Musings.

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Upping the Volstad

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July 12, 9:40 AM

by David Pinto, Baseball Examiner

Chris Volstad
Photo: Icon SMI

Chris Volstad made his second appearance and first start for the Marlins Friday night and nearly threw a shutout. He entered the ninth with less than 100 pitches thrown. He gave up a leadoff single, then with two outs allowed his fifth hit (all singles) to score a run. That put him at 100 pitches exactly, and Gregg came on to get the final out.

His minor league numbers are a bit Maddux like.

Stat	Maddux, career majors	Volstad, career minors
K per 9 IP	6.08	6.20
BB per 9 IP	1.81	2.42
HR per 200 IP	13.9	10.5

Okay strikeouts, low walks, low home runs. Few strikeouts and walks allow these pitchers to be efficient, and the low home run numbers means fewer runs allowed, also keeping them in games longer. Chris is just 21, so there plenty of time for both good and poor performances. He's certainly off on the right foot.

For more info: Baseball Musings.

Topics: Baseball , Pitchers , Greg Maddux , Chris Volstad , Marlins

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ALCS: Red Sox versus Rays

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October 9, 5:47 PM

The following table compares the 2008 seasons of the Red Sox and Rays, opponents in the ALCS. AL Ranks 2008 Red Sox Rays Runs/Game 5.22 (3rd)... Read More
Topics: MLB , League Championship Series

NLCS: Dodgers versus Phillies

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October 8, 10:44 AM

The following table compares major batting and pitching stats for the Dodgers and Phillies with NL ranks:NL Ranks2008DodgersPhilliesRuns/Game4.32 (13th)4.93 (2nd-T)Batting Avg..264 (5th).255 (10th)On-Base Average.333 (6th).332 (7th)Slugging Pct..399... Read More
Topics: MLB , League Championship Series

Lovable no more

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October 5, 10:43 AM

The Cubs choked. This wasn't a typical Cubs bizarre defeat. There was no unprecedented comeback, no fan knocking the ball away. It wasn't even a hard-fought set of games in which luck just went the other way. The Cubs simply stunk in a series in which... Read More
Topics: League Division Series , MLB

ALDS: White Sox versus Rays

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October 2, 10:25 AM

The following table compares the 2008 seasons of the White Sox and Rays, opponents in the ALDS.AL Ranks2008White SoxRaysRuns/Game5.00 (5th)4.78 (9th)Batting Avg..263 (11th).260 (13th)On-Base Average.332 (9th).340 (6th)Slugging Pct..448 (2nd).422 (8th)ERA4.06... Read More
Topics: League Division Series , MLB

ALDS: Red Sox versus Angels

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October 1, 1:24 PM

The following table compares the 2008 seasons of the Red Sox and Angels, opponents in the ALDS.AL Ranks2008Red SoxAngelsRuns/Game5.22 (3rd)4.72 (10th)Batting Avg..280 (2nd).268 (7th)On-Base Average.358 (1st).330 (11th)/Slugging Pct..447 (3rd).413 (9th)ERA4.01... Read More
Topics: League Division Series , MLB

The best baseball statistics web sites

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September 30, 8:48 PM

For statistically minded baseball fans, the internet offers a bevy of sites to find the numbers on your favorite players or teams.It all starts with Baseball Reference. I remember buying my Baseball Encyclopedia in the mid 1980s and paging through the... Read More
Topics: MLB , Statistics

NLDS: Dodgers versus Cubs

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September 30, 5:27 PM

The following table compares the 2008 seasons of the Dodgers and Cubs, opponents in the NLDS.NL Ranks2008DodgersCubsRuns/Game4.32 (13th)5.31 (1st)Batting Avg..264 (5th).278 (2nd)On-Base Average.333 (6th).354 (1st)/Slugging Pct..399 (13th).443 (1st)ERA3.68... Read More
Topics: League Division Series , MLB

NLDS: Brewers versus Phillies

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September 30, 5:25 AM

NL Ranks2008BrewersPhilliesRuns/Game4.63 (7th)4.93 (2nd-T)Batting Avg..253 (12th).255 (10th)On-Base Average.325 (10th).332 (7th)/Slugging Pct..431 (5th).438 (2nd)ERA3.85 (2nd)3.88 (4th)Strikeouts/9 IP6.9 (9th)6.7 (12th)Walks/9 IP3.3 (5th-T)3.3 (5th-T)HR/200... Read More
Topics: League Division Series , MLB

AL Batting Race

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September 28, 9:26 AM

The AL batting brings two more games into the interesting category on this last day of the season. Joe Mauer leads with a .330 BA (.32954), a five point lead over Dustin Pedroia and a six point lead over Milton Bradley. Mauer can't sit on his laurels... Read More
Topics: Awards