Kazumi Saito of the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks won it this year for the third time.

Of course, they were also the best bet to win the World Series last month. :)

BTW, isn't a gyro ball the same thing as a knuckleball.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gyroball

A gyroball is a breaking back that when flat resembles a slider, when it is on its break is measured in feet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sboi0EWp8ao

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yimyfjcf2f4

149. Robert Daeley
Again, Great American Ballpark = Homerun Hitter's Heaven. Do not let the inflated numbers distract you.

Well, actually, no. Dunn's 2006 H/A splits:

Home: .231/.362/.502
Away: .236/.368/.479

So, basically no split at all. A little more slugging at home (22 HRs, vs. 18 on the road), but better average and on-base away from GAB. Twice as many doubles on the road. More RBIs at home, but given how close Dunn's splits are, that must be a function of big H/A splits for his teammates.

In fact, if Dunn is to be criticized, it's for NOT taking sufficient advantage of his home park.

But if they are, can we have Steve Lyons do those games instead?

Interestingly, he had twice as many doubles away as home this year.

Take a look at 2005:
H 274/418/639, HR 26
A 221/359/446, HR 14

or 2004:
H 265/390/600, HR 25
A 266/386/539, HR 21

He is consistently inconsistent in the slugging department. ;)

I would think that a knuckleball would be a gyrolessball.:)

Clemens: A no-decision for 2007

Am I the only one who has grown really tired of this annual headline? Does anyone outside of Texas or NY really care anymore?

I never cared

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xsptUfnhVcc

From what I can tell, coming out of the hand, and for the first 30 feet or so, the ball appears to be boring in on the batter, then suddenly appears to break down and away from the lefty batter. It looks almost like your standard Lowe/Maddux cut fastball, only with much more downward break to it...Jon, is there any way to have Will do a once-and-for-all post about this?

http://www.rotoauthority.com/2005/10/daisuke_matsuza.html

And re: Matsuzaka saying he does not actually throw the pitch, methinks maybe he has learned a trick or two from Maddux in the mental department...

22 - Surely Red Sox Nation still cares, as gullible as they are...

http://tinyurl.com/ybbxpx

Drew moves up to 7th place!

apparently the dodgers have no plans to bid for matsuzaka..

i wonder if he is just saying that as to not show the dodgers hand too early.

Either way, we have money to spend this offseason and it seems like Colletti wants a top tier free agent.

he Angels, according to industry sources, also plan to bid for left-hander Barry Zito, the top starter on the free-agent market, but it appears they will not enter the bidding for highly touted Japanese right-hander Daisuke Matsuzaka. The Dodgers are engaged in serious discussions this week about whether to post a bid on Matsuzaka, a 26-year-old right-hander who was the most valuable player of the World Baseball Classic last spring

I give Jon an "E"

I guess I'll settle for Zito.

Landing a pricey starting pitcher and a proven slugger are top priorities.
It doesn't say anything about being good. I'd consider Tomko to be "pricey" considering the amount of production he gives. I hear Jeff Suppan is look for a big contract.

How about Tim Thomas? Wow..

"Burrell's representatives indicated yesterday that he would accept a trade to the Giants. That team could ask Burrell to switch back to first base, the position he played in 2000...

In trade, the Giants might want the Phillies, who are looking for bullpen help, to take closer Armando Benitez, who comes with plenty of baggage: a $7.6 million salary for this season, the last on his contract; his bad knees, which limited him to 41 games this season; and a poor reputation as a teammate."

http://www.philly.com/mld/philly/sports/baseball/15917763.htm

This could get interesting...

I don't trust Colletti yet. He could easily give up on the Dodgers youth in favor of something old.

48 - Interesting. This Ned of ours is one complex character.

drew slugged .498 last year and a has a career slug% of 512.

Drew's one of those players who inspires such hatred that people apparently feel compelled to just make up stuff that's patently false. Why?

48-It may be inappropriate to wonder where this speculation comes from, about Colletti not liking LaRoche or more specifically I guess to wonder why he wouldn't, since his performance is certainly promising-enough-on-paper, and I'd think 30+ HR potential forgives bad breath or a sick sense of humor. Is it work ethic? Can one say any more?

http://tinyurl.com/wphqc

Here's a picture of Dunlap I took last month. He's still pounding the Big Macs as heavily as ever, obviously. (Incidentally, Jon and his fellow Stanford alumni may recognize the other, taller guy in the shot... John Mayberry Jr.)

http://img110.imageshack.us/img110/1980/dunlapmayberryzf1.jpg

http://img120.imageshack.us/img120/5670/dewitt1lj0.jpg
http://img526.imageshack.us/img526/6173/dewitt2zn0.jpg

He didn't have that strong a season, so I think most people are figuring he'll stick with the 3 years and $33 million left on his contract. But with the new CBA in effect, the thin FA class this winter, and talk of how flush with money teams are nowadays, I'm wondering now if he'll opt out after all.

Andohbytheway ($1 to Bill Simmons), his agent is The Boras. If there's a nickel more to be made elsewhere, you know that's where he'll be going.

Stan from Tacoma

I am, on the other hand, guilty as charged when it comes to sufficient real-game views of J.D., and made the mistake of transferring too much evidence of Pat Burrell to Drew's account. I have formed my impressions of the latter over time, and this year, mostly post-season (he had a statistically fine September, no?). I'd wanna see the stat
on his caught looking in what I define as
"game situations." The "K" stats, as offered, don't tell me what I need to know
(and generally, for a guy who's not a premium power bat, the failure to even put a ball in play one-in-five is not impressive, even if consistent with other stats.).

For my sins, I'm givin' myself two months away.
Just add: absent an extraordinary next three years, J.D. will never be seen as a bargain, relative or any other kind, in this camp.
And lastly, since I'm not here regularly, and won't be, for a while, let me make it clear I was a Paul guy when he was hired, and became disenchanted quick; I was not a Ned guy when he was hired, and am a little apprehensive after watching this year, and then reading the Times' piece on him today.

I do not agree that my take is far from what you said or implied.

That said, I'm always up for a little mutiny. I hereby sentence Jon to picking up trash on the highway tomorrow morning, for three hours. Working up the proper punishment for D4P will be a labor of love.

The old school belief that minor leaguers are supposed to be in awe of major leaguers, are supposed to be quiet and know their place, was illustrated by many statements that Colletti and Grady Little made about the Dodger rookies in 2006, though it seemed to be tolerated when Martin didn't follow the script all the other rookies supposedly adhered to.

Kemp, Loney, Abreu, and Betemit all seem to be doing well so far, although reliever Mark Alexander didn't last too long.

I have post over at minorleagueball.com for the details.

Wait a second: what did I do? Here I am, minding my own business, and all of a sudden I'm an Enemy Combatant™...

And Torii Hunter's business

Apparently Japanese teams use a 6-man rotation. So if a starter goes only about once a week, is a higher pitch average than MLB norms dangerous?

This writer seems to think so. Excerpts from and link to a story dealing with this and other things follow. (Page 2 of this has an interesting bit about how Pujols wasn't very far from being a Red Sox.)

"Perhaps because they knew they would sell his rights after the season, the Seibu Lions allowed the 26-year-old Matsuzaka to carry a tremendous workload this season. In his final start, a 13-strikeout shutout in the first round of the playoffs, Matsuzaka threw 137 pitches, and that wasn't atypical.

"While going 17-5 with a 2.13 ERA, Matsuzaka topped 120 pitches 12 times in 25 regular-season starts. It's true he got more rest than major-league pitchers, as the Lions used a six-man rotation, but 115 pitches per start is still an alarming number. He twice topped 140 pitches, with a high of 145.

"Say this for Matsuzaka, though. He has always been a workhorse.

"He came into prominence in Japan, where high school baseball is king, with a memorable performance in the 1998 National High School Baseball Championship. When the quarterfinal game went 17 innings, Matsuzaka threw 250 pitches. He played the outfield the next day until he pitched for the save in the ninth. He bounced back to start the championship game a day later, throwing a nine-inning no-hitter.

"That's a hoss."

http://tinyurl.com/yxqbxa

Hey Eric, do you live in Hawaii or were you just visiting? I was on vacation there right before the HWB League started and would've loved to go to the games. What are they like?

Wow, I didn't know Miller was doing so well, although I was alwa