LangerHAAAAAAAAAANNNNNNNNNSSSSSSSSSSSSS

Wigi asks in the previous post: "isn't it possible that the reason the OOZ stat is low for Logan is that the rest of the outfield is positioned correctly, and is converting their own outs?"

It's entirely possible. There may be something to Manny's much-maligned "no-doubles" defense, at that.

"What are Church's numbers (bet they're low)?"

You're on. (But I have the numbers in front of me, bwahahaha...)

Defensive effectiveness for all left fielders with at least 656 innings in the field and at least an .895 ZR:

Player, Team, Inn, ZR, OOZ
Byrnes, Arizona, 684, .924, 32
Matsui, NY Yankees, 845, .907, 25
Church, Washington, 656, .895, 28

Seventeen other players have at least 656 innings in LF, but a lower Zone Rating. Church's OOZ ranks eleventh of the 20 total players. (Wigi, I'll take some of that tasty Alaskan smoked salmon. It'll be a nice snack on my trip to Dallas after the game. 8^D )

To complete the outfield, Austin Kearns has the third-most innings in the field (1064) of all 2007 major-league right fielders. (Francoeur and Markakis are 1 and 2 respectively.)

Of right fielders with at least 702 innings in the field, Kearns ranks fourth in ZR (.902) behind Winn, Ethier, and Ordonez. Kearns is tied for the MLB lead in OOZ (52) with Francoeur.

Not a bad little outfield at that, which validates Wigi's possibility.

Seeing how the team hits in The Juice Box, The Great American Smallpark, and Citizens Financial Launching Pad, has JimBow assembled the wrong team for the wrong town? Didn't a GM tell Barry last year that RFK was ideal for speed burners who could get the bat on the ball, and that these type players (see Anaheim) are cheaper than power hitters? He even suggested that the new park keep RFK's big power alleys. The night before last, I heard Yankees' announcer John Sterling (just seeing what life was like on the other side of the tracks) describe the Angels as "a bunch of singles hitters who all go first to third at the least excuse." And they have 75 wins! It's great to have a plucky team of over-achevers, but it would be nicer to have 75 wins and be in a pennant race.

Looks to me like Garret Anderson had a lil' more than a single last night.

Chicks dig the longball, unless you have rally monkey.

Hendo: Consider me chastized. Regarding the smoked salmon, king, sockeye or silver?

Flynnie: That stadium (RFK) is obsolete in a month (actually, it is irrelevant in a month... it is already obsolete). The new stadium will FOR SURE be more hitter-friendly... my theory is that it will be a lot more hitter-friendly. Not band-box, but on the other side of the mean. My guess is that the team as it is being assembled and the stadium will gel nicely.

I don't think Vladimir (should be a Nat) Guerrero would qualify as a singles hitter or cheap.

Hendo-

"gel nicely"=70 wins by Aug. 21, 2008 or you owe me Brisbane caviar.

Vlad and Garrett Anderson, notwithstanding,the Angels win with speed, defying moneyball and Jimbow's Lumbering Redleg Reunion.

Flynnie:

Hendo accepts that bet!

I'm no adherent to moneyball by any means, I like stolen bases, bunting and moving from 1st to 3rd. But when you can complement that speed with the 150 RBI that Vlad and Anderson contribute, then you get your 75 wins. I think the Nats have the speed, we just need the bats to drive them in consistently.

Wigi, re salmon, your pick. And re OF, thanks for encouraging the discussion.

BTW, to wrap up the subject of defense for the moment, I got all gushy on Zimmerman a few weeks ago. Do the THT statistics agree?

Among all 24 MLB third basemen with at least 680 innings in the field in 2007, Zimm ranks ninth in Zone Rating at .704. (Scott Rolen and Pedro Feliz are the leaders at .759 and .753 respectively; A-Rod ranks 15th at .674.)

Zimmerman has made 53 putouts out of his zone, trailing only David Wright who has 65 OOZ on a .717 ZR. (Rolen has 37 OOZ; Feliz, 49.)

So if I had to pick a NL Gold Glove at third at this moment based on ZR and OOZ, I'd be hard pressed not to consider Feliz and Wright for my 1-2 votes either way. But if Zimm cleans up those throwing errors, then Feliz, Wright, et al., better look out.

[RF]. I don't even know if they sell caviar in Brisbane. I better get Googling.

Wigi, I'll send you the bill for you and Flynnie to duke out.

You're off the hook, Hendo. Find something expensive that can be shipped here from Brisbane by Wigi to Flynnie if the Nats don't have 70 wins a year from today.

Anybody heard about the status of the Reds' grievance with the Nats re: Majewski?

Also, Patterson's gotta be out for the season, right? I mean, Class-A ball finishes up in about two weeks or so, which doesn't give him much time to attempt a rehab slot...

NovaNat -

70 wins by Aug. 21, 2008 or dinner at the Inn at Little Washington on you. Or air tickets to Paris - Dulles is in NoVa and it would probably be cheaper.

Flynnie: Looks like Black Pearl Epicure (www.blackpearl.com.au), in Fortitude Valley, may answer the call. They feature Yarra Valley salmon caviar as well as Tasmanian smoked salmon.

If I get over to Fortitude Valley today, wherever the hell it is, I'll be stocking up on snacks for the Bangalore leg of my journey, as well as bet-settling caviar, and salmon to exchange with Wigi. Stay tuned.

(Don't groan, people, or I'll fling some more numbers at you.)

Can we use all those fielding stats to see how much of an improvement Fick is over DaMeat defensively? I'm thinking Fick's defense isn't nearly as much better as his bat is worse.

Believe me, I don't need any more salmon.

Hendo - Here to Brisbane! Brisbane to Bangalore! I hope you're in Business Class, or do you just enjoy the fetal position? There's less room in Coach than the in the cheap seats at Fenway, which were built for manual laboring apple-eating ancestors, not today's Great American Can. Go ahead! Throw some numbers at us! Just tell us what they mean. OOZ - outfield, out of zone?

Flynnie, I'm going to have to respectfully decline on that wager. First off, I'd have to sell my car to buy a dinner at the Inn at Little Washington. Also, I think there's a long way to go before we've got a team that will win 70 by August 21 next year. I think a 500 season in the new stadium will be a great accomplishment next year.

Wigi: wouldn't that be in the same category as coals to Newcasstle?

Flynnie: I think that OOZ was explained in the prior thread.

Langy: I'm glad that you and your defense are still in the franchise fold. Hope to see you getting back some hitting mojo and starting at the new stadium some day (there's a plate of ribs in it for ya...)

Newcastle. Where did that extra "s" come from? Daggon gremlins (and proofreaders)...

Wigi: OK, your loss. (Or not.) BTW, I wonder if the lox on the breakfast buffet here at Rydges Hotel comes from Yarra Valley? Will have to ask...

Flynnie: I flew nonstop LAX-SYD in business on United. Despite the big seat -- and despite drinking lots of water and marching up and down the aisle as prescribed by those in the know -- my left knee was swollen something fierce after that joy ride. Fortunately that cleared up by the next morning.

The next stage of the trip (BNE-SYD-SIN-BLR) should be somewhat less painful. Perhaps Singapore Air's seats are less taxing on middle-aged knees; I've had good luck on them in the past.

OOZ: Number of defensive plays successfully made Out Of the player's Zone. Think Belliard in not-so-short right, or Zimm backing up the shortstop.

Hope you have a good, comfortable trip on the next leg, Hendo!

I like the OOZ statistic a lot: And I like the acronym for it even more.

PS: What to ship back from Australia? Well, I'd suggest barramundi fillets instead of salmon caviar, but if you don't want to deal with sending frozen fish or rushing fresh fish halfway around the planet, emu oil is very useful for soothing aches and pains. Just rub it in like "the cream" or "the clear".

Hendo -

Belliard playing short right just shut down Ryan Howard, didn't he? As far as the swelling, my secretary says that you can eliminate it w/vitamins - fish oil, coQ10, and L-caritine. Gotta keep you around to explain Wigi's obscure stats and enforce Wigi's wagers. And keep NatsCan "indomptable."

Thanks to all for the knee advice. I'll be making another stop at a health food store when I trek to Fortitude Valley this morning. (And it's not such a trek; just the other side of downtown Brisbane, ten minutes by train.)

I agree, Bells gives 'em hell with his deep positioning at second and his wizard plays on the overshift. Haven't regularly seen anything quite like that since the days when Rennie Stennett roamed Three Rivers Stadium. And Stennett about had to play that way on the artificial surface, making Belliard's judgment on the natural infield even more amazing.

Betting on WaPo.com? Call the ombudsman!

Ribs in Columbus? RIBS in Columbus??

NovaNat -

Listening to the Yankees broadcast Monday night was a real Window on a Better World. It was like suddenly being the teacher's pet or the boss's favorite. From the theme music that sounded like a 50's shaving cream commercial to all those bats and all those wins, to the urgency for both teams - well, I want it. Here. This area hasn't had it since Davey Johnson's O's were foiled by Grover calling the Wheel Play in Cleveland which sent the Indians to the World Series against the Marlins. That series featured the largest crowds in history (at that football stadium in Florida) and MVP Livan, no? At any rate, once you've gotten that pennant fever, hoping for 500 is so . . . unsatisfying.

It's not betting! It's proof of one's conviction!

flynnie:

... oh how I hate to admit ignorance. But "And keep NatsCan "indomptable."

...????

From the "Mostly Nonsense" department:

This discussion of infield positioning reminded me that teams defending against Frank Howard used to do the same thing, playing the second baseman behind second base...

And then I thought about the prospect of someone introducing Hendo to Frank Howard:

"Hondo, Hendo... Hendo, Hondo."

natscan, that has me stumped, too, so we can admit ignorance together...

---

flynnie:

... oh how I hate to admit ignorance. But "And keep NatsCan "indomptable."

...????

Sounds like Letterman ("Uma, Oprah")...

There's someone with a Hondo moniker who posts here sometimes, so perhaps the introduction could happen (or has happened) here. Whenever they both post in the same thread, it always give me pause in figuring out to whom I should address a comment.

---

And then I thought about the prospect of someone introducing Hendo to Frank Howard:

"Hondo, Hendo... Hendo, Hondo."

I wonder if Frank Howard is still going to Nats games regularly... he was my hero when I was a kid... I even had a 36 ounce bat... and I was 10 years old.