300 Game Outfields

As a follow-up to my earlier post on 300 game infields, this piece looks at outfield trios that have played together most often. With one less position, there are more outfield groups with 300 game starts than in the infield, but this is still a very unusual occurrence.

Three hundred games is less than two seasons worth, so it may not seem like a lot. But, with the reality that outfielders tend to be quite interchangeable, having the same set of three outfielders start as many as 300 games together is still quite a rarity.

More after the jump.

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300 Game Infields

The foundation of team defense is a solid, dependable infield. But, finding a quartet of infielders that a manager can pencil in on the lineup card everyday is no easy task.

This post looks at a baseball rarity, four infielders (1B, 2B, 3B and SS) who started at least 300 games together. Three hundred games is less than two seasons worth, so it may not seem like a lot. But, it is a most unusual team that can find such a group.

More after the jump.

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End of the Ironman

Manny Machado led the majors in 2015 with 153 complete games played. That’s the lowest leading total in an expansion era full-length season, and the 11th straight year that a player has led the majors with fewer than 160 complete games played. Except for Richie Ashburn‘s 152 total in 1956, Machado’s 153 mark also fails to beat the majors-leading total in every full-length pre-expansion season since the 154 game schedule was adopted in 1904.

More on the decline of the ironman after the jump.

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An Ode to Takashi Saito

On October 4th, former big league reliever Takashi Saito, at the age of forty-five, took the mound for one last time, struck out a batter, and called it a career — a long, respectable career that spanned over twenty-two seasons and seven teams.

I note that Toru Hosokawa, the batter, took a pair of “this guy is going to retire so let him have his moment now” swings. This is an usual sight in the NPB.

In his career, the right-hander accomplished many great feats — other than punching out Hosokawa, obviously. Some of those accomplishments make him a member of elite clubs. Let’s take a look at what he did.  Continue reading