Rusty Staub, long-time outfielder and DH from 1963 to 1985, has died. Staub averaged almost one hit for each of his nearly 3000 career games, played mostly in the NL with the expansion cousin Mets and Astros. More after the jump on the career of Rusty Staub. Continue reading
New faces in new places: 2018 AL Edition
“You can’t tell the players without a program” has never been more true in today’s game, with hundreds of free agent signings every year. To that end, MLB has helpfully provided projected starting lineups for all major league clubs as we head into the start of the new season later this week. After you’ve perused the MLB post, I’ll highlight some of the changes in each team’s lineup. More after the jump. Continue reading
Sixty feet six inches and the birth of the power hitter
My previous post on the 1893 adoption of the 60 foot 6 inch pitching distance focused on the impact to pitchers. This follow-up post looks at batters and how their offensive stats were affected by the longer pitching distance. More after the jump.
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Everybody hits 20 homers
We all know 2017 saw an all-time high in home runs hit, but here are a couple of graphs that show just how staggering the power change has been over the course of MLB history. Continue reading
Sixty feet six inches and the birth of relief pitching
This season marks 125 years since pitchers first launched their offerings from the current distance of 60½ feet from home plate. That’s 10½ feet or more than 20% further than before the 1893 season, a massive change that launched the 1890s “ultra-live ball” era but also introduced the more lasting change of pitchers who were used fairly frequently in relief roles. More after the jump. Continue reading
Search Feature Enhancements
Search features for accessing the archive of HHS posts have been expanded. Click the Search link at the top of the HHS main page to try them out. More details are after the jump. Continue reading
Circle of Greats 1973 Balloting Part 4
This post is for voting and discussion in the 128th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG). This is the last of four rounds adding to the list of candidates eligible to receive your votes those players born in 1973. Rules and lists are after the jump.
Circle of Greats 1973 Part 3 Runoff: Manny Ramirez vs. Mordecai Brown
We need a quick runoff vote to resolve the tie at the top in the 1973 part 3 voting. Voting closes Sunday night, so vote early. More after the jump. Continue reading
Circle of Greats 1973 Balloting Part 3
This post is for voting and discussion in the 127th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG). This is the third of four rounds adding to the list of candidates eligible to receive your votes those players born in 1973. Rules and lists are after the jump.
Circle of Greats 1973 Balloting Part 2
This post is for voting and discussion in the 126th round of balloting for the Circle of Greats (COG). This is the second of four rounds adding to the list of candidates eligible to receive your votes those players born in 1973. Rules and lists are after the jump.