Last Year: The Astros started off the year with eight straight losses, and were sitting at 17 games below .500 at the all-star break. However, they turned things around somewhat in the second half of the season, going 40-33 despite trading co-faces of the franchise Lance Berkman and Roy Oswalt at the trade deadline. Much like the Pirates the Astros …
The Stats We Use: wOBA
Several people on Another Cubs Blog had asked us to write something that explained some of the stats that we often reference in articles and comments. It was always something that I wanted to do, but never got around to it. Since several have asked before and now that we’ve created a new blog with Tim and Adam, it seems …
2011 Playing Time Projections
Each of the last few years Tangotiger has put together a survey for people to enter in their projected playing time for each player. It’s a valuable tool and one that doesn’t take much time to fill out. Pick your favorite team (mostly the Cubs around here I assume) and start predicting how much you think each player will play. …
Ten Myths About Obstructed View Debunked
Since the announcement of the repeat of the end of sports history and the dawn of a newly discredited day, I’ve heard a lot of nasty rumors about what Obstructed View will be like. Mostly it’s a bunch of lies and obvious misrepresentations, so I just want to clear the air right off the bat. If you’re going to fom …
Raised Expectations
Well… here we are. After all the hype building up to the site’s debut today, I can’t help but wonder if people will walk away with the same sense of disappointment felt by the folks who initially buy into the Cubs’ “It’s a Way of Life” campaign after watching the Cubs’ attempts to hit the ball, catch the ball, or …
2011 Cubs a Pretty Blank Slate
I haven’t heard anyone not named Carlos Silva complain about Andrew Cashner being named the Cubs’ 5th starter. I’m still waiting for a yet-to-be-discredited Cubs blog to erupt in rage over Marcos Mateo making the roster. Nobody seems all that bothered to see Silva go, and if you’re looking to find someone who is, I’m sorry to disappoint you. But …
NL Central Questions & Answers: Milwaukee Brewers
Throughout the week we’re going to be posting some Q&A’s with other NL Central bloggers about the upcoming season. Berselius has written some nice previews for each team so we’re going to try and post those fairly close to one another. These are some very good blogs and I encourage all of you to check them out. Up first is …
Andrew Cashner joins the rotation
The Cubs announced on Saturday that Andrew Cashner would be the team's 5th starter and that Marcos Mateo had claimed the final bullpen spot. This leaves Carlos Silva off the roster and the Cubs will try to trade him. That's not going to happen so the Cubs will eat about $5.6 million assuming some team picks him up and pays …
Platooning 101
The day everyone has looked forward to is here. Obstructed View is no longer something we can hype though we had little to no intention of doing that. It just became fun to do it. Now we have to live up to the hype or face critisim and ridicule by the thousands of fans we raised expectations for. Anyway, this …
NL Central Preview: Milwaukee Brewers
Last Year: The Brewers finished in third place in the NL Central with a 77-85 record. They had the second-best offense in the NL with a team .334 wOBA, trailing only the surprising Cincinnati Reds. However, it was their pitching and defense that proved to be their downfall. Brewers pitchers posted a 4.21 FIP and 4.59 ERA on the season, …