Ryan Noda was a 22-year-old Toronto Blue Jays prospect coming off his first full skilled season when he led Sunday Notes on December 15, 2018. Drafted within the fifteenth spherical out of the University of Cincinnati a yr earlier, Noda had logged 20 dwelling runs and a .421 OBP with then-Low-A Lansing, prompting me to check him to former Bearcat Kevin Youkilis. With the caveat “I’m not close to being in his class,” he informed me that he modeled his sport after Joey Votto.

Five years and two organizations later, Noda is now a big-leaguer himself. Selected by the Oakland Athletics out of the Los Angeles Dodgers system in final winter’s Rule 5 draft, the left-handed-hitting first baseman proceeded to place up strong numbers with MLB’s worst-performing membership. In 495 plate appearances, Noda logged a team-best .364 OBP and slugged 16 dwelling runs with a 123 wRC+.

“I don’t mind those two comps at all,” Noda replied once I reminded him of our bygone dialog. “I certainly wouldn’t mind having either of their careers, either.”

It’s most likely protected to say that Noda received’t go on to match, and even approximate, what Votto has completed over his storied profession. Channeling Youkilis, who was 27 years previous — Noda’s present age — when he established himself as a big-league common might be one other story. The erstwhile nook infielder averaged 20 dwelling runs with a .385 OBP and a 127 wRC+ in his seven-season prime.

Stylistically talking — Youkilis being a righty apart — would he comp himself extra to at least one than the opposite?

“Not really,” stated Noda. “But I do take both of them into account with how I go about hitting. I’m trying to get a pitch to drive and from there hopefully driving it. In this game, patience is important — and not just at the plate. It’s a long season, and if you can stick to what you do best, even when you’re going bad, you can be successful.”

Noda and I had been at Fenway Park when he spoke these phrases, which dropped at thoughts yet one more comp. I requested him how acquainted he's with 23-year-old Red Sox rookie Triston Casas.

“Not too much,” Noda responded. “I know he’s a good ballplayer and that he can swing it well. It will be interesting to see him play over the years and watch how similar we maybe are. But again, I don’t know too much about him.”

Casas had a 13.9% stroll price to go together with 24 dwelling runs and 129 wRC+ in 502 plate appearances this season. Noda had a 15.6% stroll price to go along with his aforementioned 16 dwelling runs and 123 wRC+ over 495 plate appearances. With the caveat that Casas is three years youthful and has a first-round pedigree — Boston drafted him Twenty sixth-overall in 2018 — there are undoubtedly some similarities. If Casas goes on to satisfy expectations, Noda wouldn’t thoughts having his profession both.

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RANDOM HITTER-PITCHER MATCHUPS

Bryce Harper is 20 for 49 towards Julio Teheran.

Brian Harper went 18 for 44 towards Dave Stewart.

Tommy Harper went 21 for 56 towards Dave McNally.

Terry Harper went 11 for 18 towards Bruce Ruffin.

George Harper went 32 for 71 towards Grover Cleveland Alexander.

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Left on the cutting-room ground from Thursday’s interview with former Seattle Mariners scouting director Tom McNamara had been his reflections on the membership’s fourth-round decide within the 2012 draft. With the 131st-overall choice, Seattle took a 3rd baseman whose collegiate profession comprised all of 51 video games and 229 plate appearances.

“We needed a senior, because we’d spent money,” McNamara informed me. “Patrick Kivlehan was a safety on the Rutgers football team. He played both baseball and football. The amazing story about Kivlehan is that he didn’t play college baseball for his first three years. I remember flying in and talking to the coach at Rutgers. I asked him, ‘How did he make the team?’ He said, ‘He asked if he could try out for the team. I told him we had a spot, but he was probably never going to play.’ Well, what happened is that Rutgers’ third baseman tore a hamstring and Kivlehan ended up playing third base and almost winning the Triple Crown in the Big East. We took him in the fourth round and he got to the big leagues. He played with Arizona and Cincinnati, and I think San Diego.”

The Mariners traded Kivlehan to the Texas Rangers in December 2015 as a part of a five-player deal, reacquired him six months later in change for Justin De Fratus, then launched him in early August. The Padres picked him up, and Kivlehan made his MLB debut a number of weeks later. He went to log a 84 wRC+ over 250 plate appearances in what was in the end a modest big-league profession.

The participant taken one decide after Kivlehan has had a notable profession that took awhile to get off the bottom. The Baltimore Orioles chosen Christian Walker 132nd general out of the University of South Carolina, solely to put him on waivers 5 years later after 31 nondescript big-league plate appearances. Then got here a four-week rollercoaster that ultimately landed the slugging first baseman in his present dwelling. The Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds each claimed, however then waived, Walker earlier than the Arizona Diamondbacks inked him to a contract on the eve of the 2017 season. The relaxation is historical past. Hitting in the midst of the D-Backs lineup, Walker has 69 dwelling runs and a 122 wRC+ over the previous two seasons.

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A quiz:

Which pitcher holds the Pittsburgh Pirates franchise file for strikeouts in a single season? (A touch: he additionally has the franchise’s second-highest single-season strikeout complete.)

The reply could be discovered beneath.

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NEWS NOTES

Brad Ciolek, who has been serving as Baltimore’s director of draft operations, is leaving the group and might be becoming a member of the Washington Nationals. Ciolek has overseen the final 5 Orioles drafts, which embody the choices of Gunnar Henderson, Jackson Holliday, Heston Kjerstad, and Adley Rutschman,

Toronto Blue Jays coach Luis Rivera has determined to retire. The 59-year-old former big-league infielder had coached and managed within the Jays system since 2010.

Casey Cox, who pitched for the Washington Senators/Texas Rangers from 1966-1972, after which briefly for the New York Yankees, died earlier this month at age 82 (per Baseball Player Passings). The right-hander’s greatest season got here in 1969 when he went 12-7 with a 2.78 ERA.

SABR’s Larry Dierker chapter will maintain a twin in-person/Zoom assembly tomorrow (Monday October 16) starting at 7pm with former Astros announcer Bill Brown the visitor speaker. More data could be discovered right here.

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The reply to the quiz is Bob Veale, with 276 strikeouts in 1965. A yr earlier, the hard-throwing southpaw logged an NL-best 250 strikeouts, the second-highest complete in Pirates franchise historical past.

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The Houston Astros advancing to their seventh consecutive LCS ranks proper up there with the Nineteen Nineties Atlanta Braves and a number of a long time of New York Yankees American League supremacy. The grownup sons of the growth Colt .45s are eight wins away from a 3rd World Series title since 2017.

The Brooklyn Dodgers deserve some love right here. Shortly earlier than being relocated to Los Angeles in 1958, “Dem Bums” reached the World Series 5 occasions from 1949-1956. and their win totals within the three years they fell simply quick had been 89, 97, and 92 (in what was then a 154-game-schedule). The winningest of these not-quite seasons was famously painful — Bobby Thomson’s Shot Heard ‘Round the World capping a four-run backside of the ninth inning for the New York Giants. Four years after that soul-crushing 1951 defeat, Brooklyn received its solely World Series by beating the Yankees in seven video games. Johnny Podres was on the mound for the 2-0 clincher, whereas Gil Hodges drove in each runs.

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FOREIGN AFFAIRS

NPB’s postseason acquired underway on Saturday with the Chiba Lotte Marines beating the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 8-2. Twenty-one-year-old wunderkind Roki Sasaki threw three scoreless innings for the profitable facet, whereas 2018 Atlanta Braves first-round decide Carter Stewart was tagged with the loss.

NPB’s different first-stage contest noticed the Hiroshima Carp edge previous the Yokohama DeNA BayStars 3-2 in 11 innings with a pair of former MLB pitchers getting the choices. Nik Turley was credited with the win, whereas J.B. Wendelken was tagged with the loss. Game 2 of every best-of-five, first-stage matchups are at this time.

Update: Hiroshima defeated DeNA 4-2 and can go on to play the Central League champion Hanshin Tigers within the subsequent spherical. SoftBank beat Chiba Lotte 3-1, establishing a deciding Game 3 to find out who goes up towards the Pacific League champion Orix Buffaloes.

Yuki Matsui, who will reportedly be exercising his worldwide free agent rights this offseason, made his five hundredth NPB look in his last sport of the common season The 27-year-old Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles southpaw had 39 saves and a 1.60 ERA this yr.

Seunghwan Oh recorded his four-hundredth KBO save, and his 522nd professionally, on Saturday. The 36-year-old Samsung Lions right-hander’s resume contains 80 saves in NPB and 42 extra in MLB.

Erick Fedde went 20-6 with a 2.06 ERA for the KBO’s NC Dinos. The 30-year-old former Washington National right-hander had 204 strikeouts and 134 hits allowed in 174-and-two-thirds innings.

Dong Ju Moon went 8-8 with a 3.72 ERA over 118-and-two-thirds innings for the KBO’s Hanwha Eagles. The 19-year-old right-hander went six scoreless in his final begin of the season.

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Dixie Howell holds three obscure big-league data. Per his B-Ref bio web page, the Harold, Kentucky native is the final aid pitcher to hit two dwelling runs in the identical sport, having executed so with the Chicago White Sox on June 16, 1957. Moreover, all 5 hits he had that season — a double, a triple, and three dwelling runs — went for additional bases (Rick Wrona subsequently tied Howell’s most-hits-sans-a-single file in 1994 whereas enjoying with the Milwaukee Brewers). Howell additionally holds the file for the longest time between when he first pitched within the majors and when he acquired his first victory. He made his MLB debut in 1940 and wasn’t credited with a win till 1955.

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FARM NOTES

Alexander Albertus slashed .310/.471/.468 with 5 dwelling runs and a 152 wRC+ in 170 plate appearances between the Dominican Summer League and the Arizona Complex League. A local of Oranjestad, Aruba, the 18-year-old infielder within the Los Angeles Dodgers group drew 38 walks and fanned simply 19 occasions.

Cesar Quintas had a .516 BABIP in 168 plate appearances with Giants Orange, one among two San Francisco entries within the Arizona Complex League. The 20-year-old outfielder fromValencia, Venezuela slashed .372/.506/.473 with one dwelling run and a 159 wRC+.

Jakob Marsee has 19 hits, together with 9 for additional bases, in 38 at-bats for the Arizona Fall League’s Peoria Javelinas. The 22-year-old outfielder within the San Diego Padres system slashed .274/.413/.428 with 16 dwelling runs this yr between High-A Fort Wayne and Double-A San Antonio. Marsee is a former Central Michigan University Chippewa.

Carter Howell has seven hits, together with a triple and a pair of dwelling runs, in 21 at-bats with the Arizona Fall League’s Scottsdale Scorpions. The 24-year-old Fargo, North Dakota-born outfielder within the San Francisco Giants system swatted 10 taters and had a .295/.369/.442 slash line between Low-A San Jose and High-A Eugene.

Liam Hicks is 16-for-28, together with 4 doubles, for the Arizona Fall League’s Surprise Saguaros. The 24-year-old, Toronto, Ontario-born catcher within the Texas Rangers group slashed .275/.414/.373 with 4 dwelling runs between High-A Hickory and Double-A Frisco.

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The following paragraph is included in Jonathan Mayo’s Smart, Wrong, and Lucky: The Origin Stories of Baseball’s Unexpected Stars:

“It begs the question, of course. If the Padres area scout and regional crosschecker had him in as a second rounder, if a national crosschecker saw him, if the the scouting director came in to see a private workout, all of which occurred according to Campbell, how on earth did Mookie Betts become a San Diego Padre?”

Betts, as has been effectively chronicled, lasted till the fifth spherical of the 2011 draft when he was taken by the Boston Red Sox with the 172nd-overall decide. The Padres, who had the 173rd decide that yr, had taken eight gamers earlier within the draft, together with 4 supplemental first-round choices. None of them have come near matching Betts’s accomplishments.

Mayo addresses that a part of the backstory, in addition to how Betts in the end landed in Boston, in his must-read guide.

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LINKS YOU’LL LIKE

MLB.com’s Michael Clair wrote about how power-hitting Japanese highschool phenom Rintaro Sasaki will reportedly bypass the NPB draft and, with MLB in thoughts, as an alternative attend school within the United States.

Dan Connolly provided some observations from the Orioles’ postseason press convention, and opined on the Mike Elias-Brandon Hyde partnership, at Baltimore’s WHAR.

True Blue LA’s Eric Stephen wonders if Clayton Kershaw has thrown his final pitch for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Covering the Corner’s Matt Dallas appeared again on the 1949 Cleveland Indians, who didn't defend a World Series championship. More than seven a long time later, the fanbase awaits its first title since 1948.

Over at Bless You Boys, Patrick O’Kennedy gave us an offseason calendar masking not solely the Detroit Tigers, but additionally MLB as a complete. From the GM Meetings to the non-tender deadline to the Rule 5 draft, it’s all right here.

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RANDOM FACTS AND STATS

Including the postseason, NLCS managers Torey Lovullo and Rob Thomson have a mixed 672 managerial wins. ALCS managers Dusty Baker and Bruce Bochy have a mixed 4,379 managerial wins.

Lance Lynn allowed 48 dwelling runs in 186-and-a-third innings (together with the postseason). Sonny Gray allowed 10 dwelling runs in 193 innings (additionally together with the postseason).

Mookie Betts is 6-for-48 with two extra-base hits over his final three postseason collection. Trea Turner is 18-for-42 with 10 extra-base hits over his final three postseason collection.

Ronald Acuña Jr’s mixed runs scored-RBI complete in the course of the common season was 255. Matt Olson’s mixed runs scored-RBI complete was 266.

The league-average workforce totals for stolen bases and caught-stealings this yr had been 117 and 29 respectively. The most-league-average workforce was the Seattle Mariners, with 118 stolen bases and 30 caught-stealings. The New York Mets swiped 118 bases and had been caught simply 15 occasions.

Arizona Diamondbacks batters mixed for 36 sacrifice hits this season, essentially the most of any workforce. Atlanta Braves batters mixed for 2 sacrifice hits this season, the fewest of any workforce

Minnesota Twins pitchers mixed to permit 443 walks with a franchise file 1,560 strikeouts. Pitchers for the 1991 World Series champion Twins mixed to permit 488 walks with 876 strikeouts.

Bob Gibson acquired the win because the St. Louis Cardinals beat the New York Yankees 7-5 in World Series Game 7 on at this time’s date in 1964. The Boyer brothers each homered — Clete for the shedding facet and Ken for he victors — as did Lou Brock, Mickey Mantle, and Phil Linz.

On at this time’s date in 1975, Luis Tiant went the space because the Boston Red Sox edged the Cincinnati Reds 5-4 in Game 4 of the World Series. El Tiant threw 163 pitches whereas scattering 9 hits and 4 walks. The Reds stranded eight runners, together with two within the backside of the ninth.

Players born on at this time’s date embody Tommy Toms, a right-handed pitcher who appeared in 18 video games for the San Francisco Giants from 1975-1977. The Charlottesville, Virginia native went 0-1 in every of the three seasons, and was credited with one save.

Also born on at this time’s date was Jim Command, a 3rd baseman who went 4-for-25 whereas getting cups of espresso with the Philadelphia Phillies in 1954 and 1955. The Grand Rapids, Michigan native’s lone dwelling run was a grand slam off of Brooklyn Dodgers right-hander Carl Erskine.

Content Source: blogs.fangraphs.com