This week, I once again joined Clint as co-host on “The Baseball Show.”  Clint is the head editor of Diamond Hoggers Baseball Blog (and my alter-ego). Follow Diamond Hoggers on Twitter here, and bookmark the site.

Clint and I discuss:
-Does instant replay belong in baseball?
-Top 5 fond memories from the MLB Postseason
-Postseason Awards which we’ll be voting for shortly for the Baseball Bloggers Alliance

It has been an extremely long season for Matt Kemp and an even longer season for his fantasy owners.  Coming off All-Star caliber seasons in both 2008 and 2009, Kemp was regarded as a top 5 fantasy outfielder and top 10 overall player headed into the 2010 season.  According to ESPN, Kemp’s average draft position this season was 8.8, and the only other outfielder with a higher average draft position was the Milwaukee Brewers Ryan Braun(4.9).

Needless to say, Kemp has been a major disappointment in 2010, falling well short of the career highs–runs, hits, home runs, RBI, stolen bases, OPS–that he established in 2009.  With the season almost over, Kemp’s fantasy owners will be forced to reflect on their decision to draft him in the top 10, when players like Carl Crawford and Josh Hamilton were still available.

(more…)

It is doubtful that Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Gavin Floyd will pitch again in 2010, following an unexpected early exit from his start against the Oakland A’s on Monday night.  Floyd threw just 7 pitches before leaving the game due to soreness behind his pitching shoulder, a discomfort that apparently might have affected his previous start against the Twins.  On Thursday, Floyd will travel to Los Angeles to have his shoulder examined by the Angels team physician, Dr. Lewis Yocum.

Now that the Minnesota Twins have clinched the American League Central, the White Sox are likely to shut down Floyd for the remainder of the season and allow him to properly heal and prepare for 2011.  Neither Floyd nor White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen have seemed particularly optimistic about the right-hander’s lingering shoulder discomfort.

(more…)

When the Atlanta Braves signed Billy Wager to a 1-year/$6.75 mil contract prior to the 2010 season, there was a general skepticism regarding his health, as well as his level of effectiveness at 39 years old.  Luckily for the Braves, Wagner has surpassed what little expectations the club had at the time of his signing, by notching 35 saves while sporting a 1.43 ERA.  Despite the fact that Wagner is having one of the best seasons of his 15-year career, it was made clear at the beginning of the 2010 campaign that he plans on retiring at end of Braves season.

Normally, the thought of losing one of the best closers in baseball, let alone a guy who has been so vital to the success of his team in 2010, would be incredibly worrisome and drives a GM towards action.  Yet, the Atlanta Braves will find themselves in a unique situation with a vacant closer’s spot and 22-year old Craig Kimbrel ready to continue his dominance on the mound.  For those who have not seen Kimbrel pitch this season, there is only one, accurate way to describe him: utterly filthy.

(more…)

To say that the Chicago White Sox have hit a skid in September might be an understatement after their latest homestand.  Following their 9-7 loss to the Detroit Tigers on Monday night, the White Sox(79-70) now trail the Minnesota Twins by 10 games, and their dwindling elimination number rests at 4 games entering Tuesday night’s game against the A’s.

After being swept at home by divisional rivals Minnesota and Detroit, the White Sox losing streak sits at a season high six games; it was also the first time that the South Siders had been swept in back to back home series since 1989.  The starting rotation, one of the key ingredients in the White Sox 28-8 midsummer surge, struggled mightily over the past 14 games, posting an 0-8 record and 7.09 ERA while allowing opposing hitters to hit a robust .345.

The offense, which had nicely complemented the excellent starting pitching around the All-Star break, turned in consistent lackluster performances during both the Twins and Tigers series.  In those six games, White Sox hitters slashed .240/.333/.373 with 6 HR and 21 RBI.  Those numbers would have been drastically different had the offense not repeatedly struggled with runners in scoring position.  Against the Twins, the Sox left a total of 62 runners on base; against the Tigers, they left 53 runners on base(including 41 in Monday night’s extra innings loss).

Barring an unprecedented and unimaginable Twins collapse down the final stretch of the season, the White Sox will fail to reach the postseason after finding themselves on the brink of contention for the second consecutive season.  Although the team’s quest for a postseason birth has come up short, there are still many reasons to watch the White Sox play out the remainder of their 2010 season.

(more…)