LATEST STORIES FROM BALLS, STICKS & STUFF
Reader Mailbag: Is Jamie Moyer Getting Squeezed This Season?
June 02, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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A reader writes in: Because I live in Maryland, MLB.com blacks out the Phillies-Nationals games, so I must watch the Nationals broadcast. Their announcers repeatedly state that the strike zone is smaller this year, and this is hurting control pitchers such as Moyer. You...
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Video: Antonio Bastardo Wind-Up and Delivery
May 31, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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The Phillies have decided, likely temporarily, to replace Brett Myers with AAA Lehigh Valley left-hander, Antonio Bastardo, age 23. Now, if Bastardo can have even a mediocre career as a Phillie, it's pretty obvious his t-shirt and jersey sales will be through the roof,...
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Phillies Strategy to Help Rotation Taking Shape
May 30, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Ken Rosenthal spoke with Phils GM Ruben Amaro Jr.: Don't look for the Phillies to make an immediate trade for a starting pitcher now that right-hander Brett Myers is out for the season. Rather than obtain a short-term fix such as Red Sox right-hander Brad Penny, the...
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Phillies Look to Bolster Rotation
May 28, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Jayson Stark, a man seemingly more connected in South Philly than any mobster, has a very Phillies-centric “Rumblings & Grumblings” running on ESPN.com. In it, Stark touches heavily on the Phillies’ pitching dilemmas including Jamie Moyer’s struggles and their search for...
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Cadillac Time for Chooch!
May 27, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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In the bottom of the 5th inning tonight, Carlos Ruiz hit a solo home run. Just ripped a liner to the left field seats. Back in March, during my trip to Clearwater, my friend and traveling partner Steve predicted Carlos Ruiz would hit .300 for the season. Given Ruiz' .219...
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Vote for Raaaaaaaaa-ooooooooool!
May 27, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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It's this easy, you don't even have to navigate over to the browser-busting, flash-laden mlb.com to do so. Error: Embedded data could not be displayed.
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Blanton Pitching Like His Hair is Standing on End
May 26, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Technical difficulties this evening prevent me from bringing you the previously mentioned podcast with Mr. Weitzel, but that doesn’t mean we can’t point out the exceptional work by Joe Blanton. No technical difficulties for Blanton so far. He’s struck out eleven batters...
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Programming Note
May 26, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Obviously, things have been a little slow around here. First I had to get ready for a week’s vacation, then vacation itself, and now the usual digging out from under a giant to-do list after you get back… At any rate, even though content may be light here in the main...
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Podcast: Confidence vs. Complacency
May 14, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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First ever audio post. This could be really good or really bad. You tell me.
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Phantasy Phun with Jayson Werth's Thievery
May 13, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Q: What's better than Jayson Werth stealing second... then third... and then home? A: Jayson Werth stealing second, then third, then home all while on your fantasy team ["Whitey's Ashburns"]. Q: What's better than Jayson Werth stealing second, then third, then...
adameatonfacts.com in the Making
May 10, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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See the comments section. I think my favorites are #86, #87, and #117
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Moyers Night Raises Questions
May 08, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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The concept of tenure in academics has always seemed a bit odd to me. A professor can pretty much say or do whatever the heck he/she wants and still have a job the next day. It’s always seemed to me that job security should be based on merit rather than just being able to...
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As Knee Heals, Brad Lidge's Release Point Settles and Performance Improves
May 06, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Almost a month ago, as Brad Lidge struggled to start the season, I played around with some spreadsheets and found that his release point in his delivery was no where near as consistent as it was in 2008 [link]. Since then, Lidge disclosed that his right knee had been...
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Do the Phillies Owe Something to Chan Ho Park?
May 05, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Found this paragraph from the Inquirer’s Andy Martino’s notes column interesting: Manuel maintained yesterday that [Chan Ho] Park would make his scheduled start tomorrow, but he also praised the 26-year-old Happ. "We know that he can start games," the manager said. So,...
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Joe Blanton's Straight-Line Fastball is the Shortest Distance for Hitters Over the Outfield Fence
May 04, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Your eyes aren't deceiving you, Kentucky Joe's fastball really is flat.
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Phillies Latest Team to Discover -- They Have Discovered It Haven't They? -- that Chan Ho Park is Not a Major League Starter
May 01, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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It's almost as if the Phillies feel they have to have at least one starting pitcher per season that either sinks or nearly sinks their season. A couple of years ago it was Paul Abbott, another year it was Vicente Padilla, then for a time it was Jon Lieber, then finally,...
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Welcome Mets Fans, to the Home of the WFC Philadelphia Fightin' Phillies
May 01, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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It's that time of year again. Several times a summer, New York Mets fans invade Philadelphia for the series with the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park -- the normal sea of red and white in the seats at the ballpark takes on a rude orange tint. Typically, the influx of Mets...
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At This Rate, Madson Will Be Throwing 100 mph by August
May 01, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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When Ryan Madson successfully filled in for Brad Lidge and closed out Monday night's victory over the Washington Nationals, he did so with a stunning fastball. Several times in the half inning, Madson's heater reached 97 mph as he struck out Justin Maxwell. The big cheese...
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Just Wait Until Charlie's Hittin' Season
April 29, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Playing around with some numbers over lunch, and the Phillies offense is on quite a pace. Through 19 games, they've scored 118 runs. That's on pace for 1,006 runs. To be objective, there are quite a few teams who have more runs scored than the Phillies, and obviously,...
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Charlie Manuel Takes a Page from Sam Snead
April 26, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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A tidbit on Charlie Manuel's gamesmanship. Gotta love it.
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This Story Sounds Familiar
April 26, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Tell me if you've heard this one before: New ballpark replaces historic ballpark. Prior to construction, wind studies are commissioned. When the new ballpark opens, the wind effects are much greater than what was predicted in the wind studies, and home runs are sailing...
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Brett Myers Afraid of His Own Fastball
April 24, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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If you watch a baseball game on MLB.com's Gameday, it gives you an interesting perspective on how pitchers approach batters. Since there are no distractions that come with a typical broadcast, you are forced to focus on pitch selection and location. In that light, it's...
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Pedro Paciente: Abstinence Pays
April 23, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Lets figure out what has Pedro Feliz waiting at the plate more often.
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Examining Cole Hamels' Fastball Velocity
April 21, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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Much has been made of Cole Hamels' lack of velocity so far in this young season, which has featured only two starts by the reigning World Series Most Valuable Player. The truth of the matter is, Hamels' fastball is travelling at pretty much the same rate it did last year...
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What Did We Learn About the Phillies This Weekend?
April 20, 2009 by
Balls, Sticks & Stuff
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One of the things that is most interesting about following baseball and your favorite baseball team is that things are always evolving. There are new players to become acquainted with and for the ones that remain, their skills are by no means static. Therefore, the team...
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