Last night’s episode of The Baseball Show was only supposed to last an hour, but ultimately reached the hour and a half mark, which only means good things.  Clint, MJ, and I touched on several different topics including the Hall of Fame, the Reds’ recent acquisitions, Howie Kendrick‘s extension, and our favorite bizarre MLB injuries.  Last night also marked the debut of “Ask MJ,” a new series where Clint and I ask MJ whatever we want.  Somehow he survived and actually came up with surprising answers, which can be found below.

Hall of Fame Voting

– Barry Larkin is the lone Hall of Fame inductee from the Class of 2012. Would we all have voted for him? Yes.  As a Reds fan, Clint is especially pumped, and we’re pumped for him.

– Larkin isn’t the only player we would have voted for…so who else? We’re not quite sold on Jack Morris, but how about Jeff Bagwell? Absolutely.  Tim Raines? Absolutely.  Edgar Martinez? Hopefully. Perhaps Frank Thomas‘ imminent induction will open the door.

– MJ highly recommends Rob Neyer’s article about players’ integrity and character

– As we look ahead to the Class of 2013, we speculate about which players will make the cut? Our early unanimous votes go to Mike Piazza, Craig Biggio, and Curt Schilling.

Reds bullpen

– Clint weighs in on the Reds’ bullpen acquisitions, Sean Marshall and Ryan Madson.

Howie Kendrick

– A great deal for both teams as they lock up Kendrick for his prime years. We all consider him to be about the seventh or eighth best second baseman in baseball.

MLB Injuries

– This past week Dustin Penner of the L.A. Kings injured his back eating pancakes…seriously.  Don’t worry, despite the injury he still finished the meal.

– So naturally we discuss our favorite freak baseball injuries: Clint: Joel Zumaya injuring his elbow playing Guitar Hero; MJ: Clint Barmes falling down a flight of stairs while carrying a slab of deer meat; Mike (three-way tie): Smoltz ironing his shirt while wearing it, Kevin Mitchell microwaving a donut/cupcake that caused the microwave to explode, and Jeff Baker burning his ass while trying to light fights on fire with the Cubs pitchers.

Ask MJ:

Clint’s questions:

– Jerry Dipoto: Over or under career fWAR of 5? – MJ answered under, and was wrong.  Dipoto finished his career with a 6.6 fWAR.

– Worst pick up line ever used on a woman: Told strippers he’s a baseball writer; told women he could get them on a lingerie football team when they were actually having open tryouts; he’s a race car driver.

– In a four-year keeper league, would you rather have Justin Upton or Matt Kemp? – Kemp

– You have to go the next year of your life without either looking at Fangraphs (or any Saber-related site) or drinking booze. Which one would you choose: No booze…it’s hard to be a blogger without using stats.

Mike’s questions:

Who will have more wins in 2012: Reds or White Sox? – Reds

Who would win in a game of scrabble: Delmon Young or Colby Rasmus? – Colby Rasmus

Name the three core ingredients in a Denver omelette: Green peppers, ham, and onions.  Wow, he actually got it right, although his “I’m not even near a computer” claim remains suspect.

Rapid Fire Round – Pick one:
Chuck or Steve Finley: Steve
Freddy or Jason: Jason
Braun or Kemp: Kemp
Todd Hundley or nobody: Nobody
Shane Victorino or Benny Agbayani: Victorino
Todd Walker or Neil Walker: Neil Walker
Nomo or Dice-K: Nomo
Bonds or Aaron: Bonds
Goldstein or Neyer: Goldstein
Trout or Harper: Mike Trout
Paul Assenmacher or Terry Mulholland: Mulholland
Vernon Wells or a pile of rocks: After clarifying that I’m not referring to the rocks beyond the left-centerfield wall…rocks, hands down.
Whiskey or Rum: Rum

Which Hostess product will you be sad to see go? Snowball (Editor’s note: Gross)

Have you ever considered entering the medical field? Somewhat. I am actually a certified medical coder.

If you had the to domesticate one wild animal, what would it be? Probably a hawk or falcon to my bidding.

Who will win the 2012 AL Rookie of the Year? NL? AL: Matt Moore; NL: Paul Goldschmidt

How many dugout/clubhouse brawls will the Marlins have in 2012? It will be a season-long brawl.  Gatorade should remove all dispensers from their dugout.

H/T to Matt Sebek of JoeSportsFan.com for his breakdown of Colby’s backwoods-gangster lingo.  This video is an absolute gem for so many reasons.

I’ll give Colby some credit for mentioning that Michael Jordan is the one person he’d like to meet.  Me too, Colby. Me too.

• Mevs over at Diamond Hoggers offers a suggestion on how to spice up the All-Star Game and its other side-stage events: The Pitcher Home Run Derby.  So, who would win? I also applaud Mevs on the inclusion of Mike Hampton’s 1992 Bowman rookie card. That may be the most awkward card series of all time. See for yourself.

• One of my favorite baseball bloggers, The Flagrant Fan urges the Cardinals to trade Colby Rasmus, and believes that a change of scenery would do the 24-year-old some good.  Over at FanGraphs, though, Steve Slowinski explains why the Cardinals will not be able to trade him. It’s important to note that both articles were written before Colby’s dad burst back on the scene.

• Jim Thome is four home runs shy of becoming the eighth player in baseball history to reach the 600 home run milestone…and nobody seems to be talking about it.  Considering that Thome has NEVER been linked to any sort of PED use, and is perennially regarded as one of the best dudes in all of baseball, why aren’t people talking about this? Perhaps it’s because three of its current members were known steroid users (and flagrant liars). Babes Love Baseball is dead on when they argue that Thome’s 600^th longball is both imminent and a huge deal.

• With Adam Dunn as well as the majority of the White Sox offense still struggling mightily, Jim Margalus (my favorite White Sox blogger) of South Side Sox lays out several potential trades that Kenny Williams could swing as the trade deadline rapidly approaches.

• Speaking of the ever-frustrating Dunn, our friend MTD from Off-Base Percentage airs his frustrations over Ozzie Guillen’s reluctance to bench the big man.  Apparently Ozzie will only sit Dunn if he’s not helping the ball club, which seems pretty ridiculous if you ask me.  There’s no way he is helping the team by turning in an 0-for performance every night which includes at least two strikeouts and three or four runners left on base.

• One of the most frequently mentioned names in trade discussions has been Chicago Cubs third baseman Aramis Ramirez, who, in the face of a deal that would send him to the Angels, recently stated that he would veto any trade.  With 10-to-5 rights, Ramirez can only be traded if he gives it a thumbs up.  If he’s traded, his potential suitor will be forced to pick up his massive $16 million option for 2012, which seems like nothing given how much the Halos spent on Vernon Wells this offseason.  It comes down to this: Is Aramis Ramirez content with losing, or does he want to play for a contender? Foul Balls weighs in on the issue…

• MLB Trade Rumors reported that the Tigers designated third baseman/super utility man Brandon Inge for assignment on Wednesday after acquiring Wilson Betemit from the Royals.  Even though he was never a star player, I’ve always had a soft spot for Inge.  No, it’s definitely not because he loaded up with a bunch of lame tattoos over the last few seasons. Rather, it’s because he’s an absolutely freak across the athletic board.  At 5-foot-11, 190-pounds, here is a summary of Inge’s sheer athleticism: can drive a golf ball 400+ yards; can dunk a basketball; MLB All-Star (that’s the obvious one); and he can kick (at least) a 50-yard field goal. Don’t believe me? Here’s a link to Laura Downhour’s original article which highlights the team-less infielders abilities. Oh yeah, dude also told a terminally ill kid that he’d hit a home run for him in a game….and did.

Bottom 2: Colby Rasmus struck out on a foul tip against Bronson Arroyo

Bottom 5: Rasums struck out swinging against Arroyo

Bottom 7: Rasmus singled to center against Arroyo

Bottom 8: Rasmus struck out swinging against Nick Masset

Bottom 10: Rasmus struck out swinging against Sam LeClure

Final Line: 1-for-5, R, 4 K

Notes: Once again, another golden sombrero made possible by an extra-inning game.  I’m kind of surprised that this is only Colby’s first of the season, considering that he repeatedly fails to adjust to a right-hander’s change up.

Total 2011 Sombreros: 66

Before the Detroit Tigers landed Victor Martinez, the Texas Rangers were allegedly interested in landing the free agent catcher.  The Rangers, who seem to be looking for an upgrade from Mitch Moreland at first base, now might be interested in Paul Konerko. [Baseball Time in Arlington]

Jim Margalus shares his thoughts on the Chicago White Sox decision to decline arbitration on catcher A.J. Pierzynski.  He also explores the potential outcomes of the White Sox decision, ranging from the “most likely to the most dangerous.” [Sox Machine]

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