Blogs Archives

From The Detroit Tigers Weblog:

Some people go to games to watch baseball and drink beer. I go to baseball games to watch baseball, drink beer, and do math.

Capitol Punishment is going dark. Thanks for all the great posts, and good luck in your future endeavors!

A football site devoted to the Cincinnati Bengels found themselves threatened by the team they support!

Well, looks like the Cincinnati Bengals are first in something. The fansided.com blog network is a collaboration of fan NFL blogs run by UNPAID, Fans of the teams. Cincinnati has contacted our main office to threaten us with a lawsuit over using pictures (that are out in the public domain) that we gave copyright credit to the Bengals organization for. We have been forced into a redesign, as we cannot defend ourselves against Mike Brown's deep pockets. Funny, we've been in touch with the Bengals (PR Director Jack Brennan) via email several times (me personally). I've invited him to browse the site, comment and make suggestions for our site to a benefit to the Bengals organization. Instead, we get a lawsuit threatened against us (why, Mr. Brennan, could you not just ask us to make changes?).

I guess this will go over badly. Never pick a fight with someone who buys pixels by the gigabyte.

Does anyone know how I go about getting Amazon to make Baseball Musings available on the Amazon Kindle?

The Dodgers invited bloggers for a meeting with various club personnel, including the GM Ned Colletti. Well done.

My experience with club PR people has always been positive. Whenever I write or call to ask a question, I find they usually know who I am, and they respond very promptly and informatively. It's not the clubs that have problems with bloggers, it's the media. If the LA Times calls in bloggers for a meeting, that would be big news.

MetsGrrl asks an interesting question:

Why are none of these rants about girls sitting in their underwear in their parents' basements, writing about baseball?

Don't these writers know about Title IX?

Of course, women blogging in their underwear might be a great way to drive traffic to a site. :-)

Live blogging from opening day at Fenway Park.

Jon Weisman at Dodger Thoughts responds to Murray Chass's dislike of bloggers. Remember, Murray is about to lose his job with The New York Times, and I've offered him a job here at Baseball Musings.

Baseball Musings moved from 7th to 4th in Wikio's top sports blogs listing. Thanks to everyone who made that possible!

Congratulations to The Cub Reporter, who picks up a corporate sponsor!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive is officially over. The time to make your donation is now. One hundred seventy readers donated $3603. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon. It's very rewarding to have readers that care about the site so much.

I still have three copies The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. If someone would like to make a late donation of $75, a copy is yours.

Even though the official pledge drive is over you can still contribute. Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

Tom Elia starts a new blog on the Cubs, 1908 World Champions. His first post predicts a pretty good season for Chicago:

The 2008 season is upon us, and after strenuous evaluation of the empirical data, we project the Cubs' final 2008 record at 149-13.

Some may ask, Why the pessimism? Well, years of disappointment have caused this corner to curb our enthusiasm.

Today marks the final day of the Baseball Musings Pledge Drive. The time to make your donation is now. So far, 165 readers donated $3503. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

I'd love to see the donor total reach 200. The individual donations don't need to be big. The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 42,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 165 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. If you like the opening day coverage and live blogging, find $1 in your wallet. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

The penultimate day of theBaseball Musings Pledge Drive begins. So far, 160 readers donated $3378. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

I'd love to see the donor total reach 200. The individual donations don't need to be big. The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 40,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 160 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With three days to go, 157 readers donated $3333. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 40,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 157 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With four days to go, 154 readers donated $3278. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that almost 39,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 154 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With five days to go, 149 readers donated $3185. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 37,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 149 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

The commissioner of my Strat-o-Matic league sent an email with the following subject:

Pinto's blog as a throwaway line in a National Review Online piece.

Here's the article, a summary of the hot stove season:

Chances are that you haven't paid attention to many Major League Baseball offseason news items over the past five months, excepting perhaps the very public crash-and-burn of Roger Clemens's reputation. For those who are neither daily readers of BaseballMusings.com nor frequent guests at Jose Canceso's wild parties, but who still love the game, here's a primer to get you caught up in time for Opening Day -- in America, anyway. (The Boston Red Sox and Oakland A's opened the season in Tokyo this morning.)

Thanks for the mention!

New premium available!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With seven days to go, 142 readers donated $3050. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 36,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 142 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

New premium available!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With seven days to go, 137 readers donated $2970. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 35,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 137 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium today is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The next three readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

Today is the sixth anniversary of the start of Baseball Musings. I want to thank all the people over the years who helped make this site successful by linking, commenting, advertising, donating and of course reading. I love working on this site and hope to keep it going as long as I live.

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The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With one week to go in March, 134 readers donated $2865. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 33,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 134 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium today is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The first four readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

New premium available!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. With one week to go in March, 130 readers donated $2810. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 32,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. There have been a few pledges at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 130 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium today is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The first four readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

New premium available!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. Two thirds of the way through March, 119 readers donated $2605. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 30,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. Over the last week, a number of pledges came in at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 119 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink. A new premium today is The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed, donated by author J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics. The first four readers donating $75 or more receive a copy of this fantastic book.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!

J.C. Bradbury of Sabernomics kindly donated four copies of The Baseball Economist: The Real Game Exposed to the Baseball Musings pledge drive. The first four readers donating $75 or more will receive this fascinating and unusual study of sabermetrics. You can use one of the donation buttons below. Remember if you donate through Amazon to send me your name!

Bill James returned to writing about his research this year. I just received in the mail, The Bill James Gold Mine 2008. I've been thumbing through it a bit, and it reminds me of the old Baseball Abstracts. The one article I've read through is on rating the most consistent players of all time. It's a typical James thought piece, and the formula he arrives at makes logical sense.

Many years ago at ESPN, a producer complained to me that Rickey Henderson was inconsistent. I asked why, and the producer explained that his batting average was up and down from year to year. I pointed out that his OBA was very consistent, and that's what really mattered. So when Bill published a list of players at the end of the article, I immediately looked up Rickey to find he received an A in consistency.

One of the nice things about the aughties versus the eighties is that we no longer need to wait for spring to read about Bill's research. Bill James Online is an inexpensive pay site where Bill published his latest research. The current article looks at unusual careers. Not surprisingly, Barry Bonds rates as having the most unusual career by a long shot, with Mark McGwire a distant second.

If, like me, you grew up reading Bill's work, you'll love the book and the web site. If you're new to the world of sabermetrics, there's no better writer on the subject. Enjoy the book and the site!

The Baseball Musings Pledge Drive continues. Over nineteen days, 116 readers donated $2475. Thanks to all, including those who donated anonymously through Amazon.

The average donor is giving better than $20. Google Analytics shows that over 29,000 unique visitors read Baseball Musings so far during March. These readers could help support the site at a much lower level and make a huge difference. Over a last week, a number of pledges came in at $5 or less. Ten percent of readers donating at that level would double the dollar amount donated so far. Don't let these 116 readers support the site by themselves.

If you enjoy this site, if you use the tools such as the Day by Day Database, consider a donation. Any amount helps. If everyone who visits in March donates $1, I can run this site for a year. For $10 this site can run indefinitely.

And, in best NPR fashion, there are premiums. For a donation of $50, you will be able to dedicate a post. The dedication should be in good taste and may contain a hyperlink. For a contribution of $500, you can join Jan in Wellesley and Jack Spellman as a Patron on the side bar for two years, including a hyperlink.

Donations can be made via Amazon, PayPal or Click and Pledge. Just click on the button of choice below. There are a number of people who won't use PayPal, and Amazon limits contributions in a one month period. Click and Pledge will process a credit card without making you sign up for an account.

Thanks to all my readers for your visits, your comments, and for making this site a success!