After I interviewed him 12 months in the past, Logan O’Hoppe advised me that he retains two journals. One is for baseball. The opposite is for all times. Because the then-rookie catcher defined, “It’s robust to remain in a constant headspace everyday,” and writing down his ideas helps maintain him centered.
One yr later, he’s not solely taking his recreation to a brand new degree — O’Hoppe has a 137 wRC+ over 70 plate appearances — he’s additionally upping his journal enter. I discovered as a lot once I requested the LA backstop if he ever writes in regards to the ballparks he visits. Furthermore, I discovered these visits are atypical of most main leaguers’.
“I’ve bought three completely different ones now,” O’Hoppe defined when the Angels performed at Fenway Park earlier this month. “One is for the game-planning stuff with the pitcher, and one other is for hitting; these are clearly all baseball. With the third one, sure, I write loads in regards to the ballparks. It retains my perspective in line. Early on final yr, once I was actually new to [the big leagues], I tended to assume that this was the top all be all, and that the outcomes have been all the things. I’m attempting to realign my perspective and perceive the outcomes for what they’re. I really feel prefer it’s actually helped me to return to completely different ballparks like this one, and sit alone in stadiums that I used to be at rising up.”
Adam Wainwright did one thing comparable towards the top of his profession, visiting numerous locales in ballparks, akin to press containers and concourses, previous to video games. O’Hoppe is doing one thing comparable, solely on the entrance finish of his profession.
“I like it,” the 24-year-old Lengthy Island native advised me. “I strive to do this in each ballpark I am going to. One factor I all the time considered rising up was, ‘What wouldn’t it be like if I bought this ballpark to myself? What would I am going see, what would I am going do?’ I attempt to make the most of that in every single place I am going.”
That features Fenway Park. The Angels had an off day earlier than beginning a weekend sequence in opposition to the Crimson Sox, and O’Hoppe took benefit by experiencing the historic venue in a lot the identical method that you simply, the reader, would have finished.
“We bought in on Wednesday night time and Boston was enjoying Baltimore on Thursday,” defined O’Hoppe. “So, I purchased a ticket within the middle discipline bleachers and floated round, watching the sport. I needed to realign my perspective and watch as a fan.”
He did capitalize on his participant standing halfway by the competition. A bleacher ticket received’t get you entry to Fenway’s most-unique viewing locale, however an MLB credential will. O’Hoppe watched the latter innings from the Monster seats.
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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS
Whitey Herzog went 10 for twenty-four in opposition to Early Wynn.
Whitey Kurowski went 9 for 14 in opposition to Tom Seats.
Whitey Witt went 7 for 12 in opposition to Waite Hoyt.
Whitey Lockman went 6 for 12 in opposition to Rip Sewell.
Chuck Essegian went 11 for 21 in opposition to Whitey Ford.
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It’s important to go all the best way again to 1954 for the final batting title received by a Cleveland participant. Bobby Avila holds that distinction, having hit .341 for an Indians crew that received 111 video games earlier than being swept by Willie Mays and the New York Giants within the World Sequence.
Would possibly Steven Kwan be the participant to interrupt the now-70-year-old drought? A .289/.358/.392 hitter since debuting with the Guardians in 2022, Kwan has a .374 common three-plus weeks into the present marketing campaign. (Whereas I’m not essentially making the identical prediction right here, it’s value noting that Luis Arraez was batting .316 on Could 12, 2022 once I wrote that he was a future batting champion).
I requested Kwan for this ideas on batting titles when the Guardians visited Fenway Park earlier this week.
“They’re superior,” the Guardians outfielder mentioned. “They’re tremendous prestigious. I really feel like they’re the gold commonplace of hitting. It’s a very cool honor.”
Even in an period the place batting common isn’t valued prefer it as soon as was?
“I undoubtedly must assume so,” replied the 26-year-old Kwan. “I’m not a man who’s going to hit a bunch of house runs or extra-base hits. I’m extra like like Luis Arraez or Ichiro, and even Trea Turner — guys who’ve excessive batting averages. These are guys I mannequin my recreation after.”
Requested if he ever thinks about what it will be prefer to win a batting title, Kwan was pragmatic in his response.
“That is form of a boring reply,” mentioned Kwan, “but when I do, nice. And if I don’t, it’s what it’s. When the mud settles, it’s one thing I can look again on. Proper now it’s not one thing you consider.”
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A quiz:
Pete Rose has essentially the most runs scored in Cincinnati Reds franchise historical past. Who has essentially the most RBIs in Reds franchise historical past?
The reply may be discovered beneath.
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NEWS NOTES
College of Florida two-way participant Jac Caglianone set an NCAA D-1 file yesterday by homering in his tenth straight recreation. The 21-year-old left-handed first baseman/pitcher is anticipated to be chosen within the high half of the primary spherical of this summer time’s MLB draft.
A number of new visitor audio system have been introduced for his summer time’s SABR nationwide conference, which will likely be held in Minneapolis from August 7-11. Amongst these becoming a member of the previously-announced Bert Blyleven, Rod Carew, Jim Kaat, and Tony Oliva are Twins radio voice Kris Atteberry, players-turned-broadcasters LaTroy Hawkins and Glen Perkins, and GM Thad Levine. Extra data may be discovered right here.
Yuniesky Betancourt has reportedly been arrested on insurance coverage fraud expenses in Miami-Dade County. The previous MLB and NPB infielder was certainly one of 4 individuals accused of staging a automotive crash to gather on insurance coverage premiums.
Ken Holtzman, who pitched for 5 groups — primarily the Chicago Cubs and the Oakland Athletics — from 1965-1979, died earlier this week at age 78. The southpaw logged 174 wins, made two All-Star groups, and received 4 World Sequence rings, three with the A’s and one with the New York Yankees.
Fritz Peterson, a left-handed pitcher who spent eight-plus seasons with the Yankees in a profession that spanned the 1966-1976 seasons, died on April 11 at age 82. Finest identified for swapping wives with teammate Mike Kekich in 1973, Peterson went 133-131 with a 3.30 ERA and made one All-Star look.
Larry Brown, a center infielder who spent the majority of his 12-year profession with the Cleveland Indians, died final weekend at age 84. Identified principally for his glove, Brown batted .233/.300/.313 from 1963-1974.
Carl Erskine, a top quality starter for the Brooklyn Dodgers within the Fifties, died on Tuesday at age 97. The correct-hander’s greatest seasons got here in 1952 and 1953 when he went 14-6, 2.70 and 20-6, 3.54 respectively. He pitched in 5 Fall Classics, successful a World Sequence ring with the Dodgers in 1955.
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This has been a take-a-deep-breath week by way of baseball passings. Whereas itemizing the above passings early Friday night, I discovered that Dave McCarty has died on the far-too-early age of 54 as a result of a cardiac occasion. Like a variety of you studying this, I’m older than McCarty, whose big-league profession spanned the 1993-2005 seasons. Life is valuable. Maintain your family members shut.
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The reply to the quiz is Johnny Bench, who had 1,376 RBIs with the Reds. Tony Perez is second with 1,192. Joey Votto is third with 1,144.
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Casey Mize will likely be seeking to construct on a stable comeback marketing campaign when he takes the mound in Minnesota on Sunday afternoon. Out for a lot of the previous two seasons after present process Tommy John surgical procedure in June 2022, the 26-year-old Detroit Tigers right-hander has a 4.11 ERA and a 3.27 FIP over three begins comprising 15-and-a-third innings. Previous to the second of his outings, I requested him how he differs from his pre-TJ self.
“The most important change I’ve made is the fastball,” mentioned Mize, whom the.Tigers took first-overall within the 2018 draft out of Auburn College. “I’m not likely throwing two-seam fastballs anymore. I’m attempting to essentially experience the four-seamer. My arm slot has modified. I’ve had a again surgical procedure [in 2022, after the Tommy John] that permits me to leverage the ball a bit of bit higher, so I’m in a position to carry it a bit of bit extra. I’ve been about 18-plus [inches] in comparison with most likely 15 previously. My VAA (vertical strategy angle) is barely like 4-8, however from the suggestions I’ve gotten from hitters, the ball form of jumps on them a bit.”
The righty has tweaked the grip on his heater, though he doesn’t really feel that’s a major purpose behind its success.
“I flipped the laces,” defined Mize. “Now I’m climbing with the laces as a substitute of the horseshoe the place it’s declining. The emblem is in direction of me once I maintain it. The grip helps, however I believe simply staying behind the ball and leveraging it with a bit of bit increased arm slot might be what’s affected the fastball greater than something.”
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FOREIGN AFFAIRS
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles infielder Hideto Asamura performed in his 1,181st consecutive recreation on Friday, shifting him into sole possession of sixth place in NPB historical past. The NPB file is 2,215, by Hiroshima Carp participant Sachio Kinugasa. Cal Ripken Jr.’s MLB file is 2,632 consecutive video games.
Anderson Espinoza has received every of his first three NPB begins whereas permitting only one run over 20 innings for the Orix Buffaloes. The 26-year-old former MLB right-hander has surrendered 12 hits and fanned 16 batters.
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks outfielder Kensuke Kondoh is slashing .323/.468/.500 with three house runs in 79 plate appearances. The 30-year-old left-handed hitter has a .307/.416/.448 slash line over 13 NPB seasons.
Do Yeong Kim is slashing .316/.356/.589 with seven house runs in 105 plate appearances for the KBO’s Kia Tigers. The 20-year-old third baseman homered the identical variety of occasions final season in 385 PAs whereas slashing .303/.371/.453.
Victor Reyes is slashing .375/.433/.500 with three house runs in 97 plate appearances for the Lotte Giants. The 29-year-old former Detroit Tigers outfielder is in his first KBO season after spending final yr in Triple-A with the Chicago White Sox group.
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A random obscure former participant snapshot:
Hal Trosky wasn’t obscure throughout his enjoying days, however he’s largely forgotten almost a century later. A slugging first baseman for the Cleveland Indians from 1934-1941 earlier than extreme migraines compromised his profession, the Norway, Iowa native bashed 215 house runs whereas logging a 130 wRC+ over that eight-year stretch. His 1936 marketing campaign was spectacular. Together with posting a .346 common and leaving the yard 42 occasions, Trosky drove in a league-best 162 runs. 5 years earlier, at age 18, he’d begun his skilled profession as a pitcher with the Class-D Cedar Rapids Bunnies.
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FARM NOTES
Zyhir Hope is slashing .310/.396/.667 with three house runs and a 165 wRC+ over 48 plate appearances with the Low-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. The 19-year-old outfielder was acquired by the Los Angeles Dodgers from the Chicago Cubs in January as a part of the Michael Busch commerce.
Mark Coley II is slashing .365/.484/.731 with two house runs and a 226 wRC+ over 64 plate appearances between Low-A Jupiter and Excessive-A Beloit. The 23-year-old outfielder was drafted by the Miami Marlins final yr out of the College of Rhode Island within the seventeenth spherical.
Mike Boeve was promoted to Double-A Biloxi yesterday after slashing .528/.620/.611 with a 247 wRC+ in 50 plate appearances with the Excessive-A Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. The 21-year-old nook infielder was drafted by the Milwaukee Brewers final yr out of the College of Nebraska-Omaha within the second spherical.
Jonah Tong has a 56.3% strikeout price and hasn’t allowed an earned run in 12-and-two-thirds innings with the Low-A St. Lucie Mets. New York chosen the 20-year-old right-hander within the seventh spherical of the 2022 draft out of a Markham, Ontario highschool.
Carson Palmquist has allowed eight hits over 16 scoreless innings for the Double-A Hartford Yard Goats. Colorado’s third-round choose in 2022, the 23-year-old southpaw out of the College of Miami has walked seven and fanned 25.
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Crimson Sox right-hander Tanner Houck tossed a gem at Fenway Park on Wednesday, requiring simply 94 pitches in a complete-game effort as Boston beat Cleveland 2-0. Furthermore, the competition was performed in a crisp 1:49 — the shortest recreation in MLB since 2010. Afterwards, I requested Alex Cora if what we’d simply witnessed, a pitcher going the gap in a less-than-two-hours timeframe, was good for the sport.
“It’s good for the households,” the Crimson Sox supervisor replied. “You possibly can go house early and luxuriate in it. However I believe the place we’re at within the recreation, within the enterprise, it’s a greater recreation so far as the tempo.”
Philadelphia’s Ranger Suárez had thrown 9 shutout innings in opposition to Colorado the earlier night time. Would possibly we start seeing extra full video games going ahead?
“I don’t know,” Cora mentioned to that query. “Right here? Nah. We’re not huge followers of full video games right here.”
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The shortest nine-inning recreation in MLB historical past was performed on September 28, 1919 when the New York Giants beat the Philadelphia Phillies 6-1 in a time of 51 minutes. Based on this text from The Guardian, which referenced newspaper tales from that day, the 2 groups have been making an attempt to interrupt the file for shortest recreation in historical past.
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APRIL STAT NOTABLES
The Baltimore Orioles are an ideal 14-for-14 in stolen base makes an attempt. The Pittsburgh Pirates are 11-for-11. The Chicago Cubs are 3-for-8.
The Kansas Metropolis Royals have a plus-43 run differential. The Chicago White Sox have a minus-65 run differential.
The Cleveland Guardians are 10-3 on the highway. The Miami Marlins are 2-11 at house.
Marlins catchers are slashing .052/.113/.069 with no house runs and a minus-43 wRC+ to date this season. They’ve mixed to go 3-for-58 with three walks and 9 strikeouts.
Boston Crimson Sox catchers, who positioned twenty seventh in our preseason positional energy rankings, are slashing .313/.341/.518 with 5 house runs and a 140 wRC+.
Crimson Sox beginning pitchers have allowed 27 runs, 21 of them earned, in 110 innings. Crimson Sox relievers have allowed 55 runs, 36 of them earned, in 82-and-a-third innings.
Colton Cowser (234 wRC+) and Michael Busch (187), each of whom have been featured right here at FanGraphs in previous week, have been the hottest-hitting rookies to date. Different rookie standouts embrace:
Blaze Alexander: .333/.393/.588 with a 169 wRC+.
Masyn Winn: .321/.385/.429 with a 128 wRC+.
Jackson Merrill: .311/.378/.419 with a 139 wRC+.
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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE
Toronto left-hander Yusei Kikuchi reaches into his locker for a bottle of pricy Japanese whisky after the Blue Jays win certainly one of his begins, and he reads over 200 books a yr. Keegan Matheson has the story at MLB.com.
The Baseball Corridor of Fame will likely be highlighting the historical past of US-Japan ties in a brand new exhibit. Jason Coskrey has the story at The Japan Occasions.
At Contained in the Diamondbacks, Jake Oliver wrote about how Tucker Barnhart is happy to work with the Diamondbacks pitching workers.
At The Bangor Day by day Information, Emily Burnham wrote about Maine’s lengthy minor league baseball historical past, from the Millionaires to the Orphans to the Sea Canines.
The KBO is now utilizing an automatic ball-strike system (ABS) — aka a robotic umpire — and the primary controversy occurred earlier this week due to human error and a sizzling mic. Jim Bulley and Mary Yang have the story at Korea JoongAng Day by day.
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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS
Mike Trout’s Thirteenth-inning stroll on Tuesday was the 941st of his profession, shifting him previous Tim Salmon for essentially the most in franchise historical past. Trout additionally has essentially the most strikeouts in franchise historical past. Salmon has the second most.
St. Louis Cardinals centerfielder Curt Flood was caught stealing 16 occasions in 20 makes an attempt to start out his MLB profession.
Sandy Koufax had six seasons with 5.0 or extra WAR, with a excessive of 10.0.
Bert Blyleven had 9 seasons with 5.0 or extra WAR, with a excessive of 10.8.
Invoice Campbell threw 167-and-two-thirds innings, all of them out of the bullpen, for the Minnesota Twins in 1976. The correct-hander went 17-5 with 20 saves and a 3.01 ERA.
John Dagenhard holds the MLB file for many innings pitched with out permitting an earned run. The correct-hander from Magnolia, Ohio appeared in two video games for the Boston Braves in 1943 and allowed a pair of tallies, each of the unearned selection, over 11 innings. He logged an entire recreation win in his lone begin.
Cleveland has received 5 of the final six video games they’ve performed in Boston on Patriots Day/Marathon Monday. The Guardians’ 6-0 win this previous Monday was their fourth shutout in these half dozen contests.
On as we speak’s date in 2001, Jim Thome hit a two-run, walk-off house run in opposition to Todd Jones to offer the Cleveland Indians a 5-4 win over the Detroit Tigers. The Corridor of Fame slugger completed the yr with 49 round-trippers.
Zack Cozart hit two of Cincinnati’s 5 house runs on as we speak’s date in 2015 because the Reds outscored the Brewers 16-10 at Milwaukee’s Miller Park. Jay Bruce, Todd Frazier, and Joey Votto additionally went deep for the guests.
Gamers born on as we speak’s date embrace Greg Harts, whose big-league profession comprised three video games, two as a pinch-hitter and one as a pinch-runner, for the New York Mets in 1973. Harts went 1-for-2, singling off of Rick Reuschel in a recreation the place the Chicago Cubs right-hander threw a 10-hit shutout with two walks and no strikeouts.
Additionally born on as we speak’s date was Greg Legg, who went 9-for-22 whereas enjoying in 14 video games for the Philadelphia Phillies in 1986-1987. A minor-league coach and supervisor within the group as soon as his enjoying days have been over, Legg has a .409 batting common on his ledger — the best in Phillies franchise historical past amongst gamers with not less than 20 plate appearances.