There’s Always Next Year

Jason Budden: Un-Common Sense?

Finally, the season is over (no, this isn’t going to be a blog about Cole Hamels asking for the season to end). If Chase Utley had hit another home run in game six and the Phils had made a comeback, we really would have had a Mr. November. Isn’t there something drastically wrong about that?

Don’t get me wrong, I am a diehard baseball fan, but there has to be something that the commish can do to shorten the season. I am not advocating for the league to cut any games, just figure out a way to end the season in October. Schedule some double headers. Cut out a few travel days. Eliminate the extra off-days during the playoffs. I’d even settle for October 31.

A few other end of season comments:

Just because he finally performed in the post season, doesn’t mean ARod won’t get booed next year at Yankee Stadium. The first night he goes 0 for 4 and strikes out in a clutch situation, the fans will let him know about it.

Cole Hamels should make sure he does more off-season workouts than off-season commercials (those Comcast commercials are horrible)

When is Fox going to realize that Tim McCarver is past his prime? He’s been past his prime for 10 years. I’m sure he’s a great baseball guy, but there are so many other analysts I’d prefer to listen to during the World Series.

I’m sure ratings dictate the start time, so I don’t see this changing, but these games don’t end until midnight most evenings. This wasn’t a problem when I was 23, but I’m not 23 anymore.

A few interesting stats to keep an eye on for 2010:

Alex Rodriguez is only 17 home runs away from 600 for his career. He is likely to pass three more players on the all-time list and should finish the season in 6th all-time behind only Barry Bonds, Hank Aaron, Babe Ruth, Willie Mays and Ken Griffey, Jr.

Albert Pujols has hit 366 homeruns in his career. He turns 30 years old this January. Only Rodriguez (401 home runs), Ken Griffey, Jr. (398), Jimmie Foxx (379), Mickey Mantle (372), and Eddie Matthews (370) hit more home runs prior to turning 30 years old. Pretty good company to be in and he should get to 400 next year.

Don’t expect anyone to reach hit 3,000 in 2010, but Derek Jeter is getting closer to adding this stat to his Hall of Fame resume. He is 253 hits away and he’s averaged 203 hits per year over the past five seasons. The next player to do it after him will likely be Ken Griffey, Jr. (237 hits shy), Pudge Rodriguez (289) or Alex Rodriguez (469). Griffey and Pudge can get there if they play another 2-3 seasons of healthy baseball. Rodriguez is 2+ seasons away.

At age 43, Tim Wakefield is only 11 wins away from 200 for his career. Pretty good for a guy that tops out at 70 MPH. Only 110 other pitchers in the history of the game have reached 200 wins.

At 122-60 for his career, Johan Santana is #11 overall in win-loss% for pitchers with a minimum of 1000 innings pitched. His .6703 percentage is only .0011 behind #10…Babe Ruth, who was 94-46 in his career.

Early prediction for 2010:

Yankees over Dodgers in five games

MVP: Alex Rodriguez and Chase Utley

Cy Young: Roy Halladay and Clayton Kershaw

Jason Budden is the Vice President of Operations and Marketing at Baseball Factory. Jason joined the Baseball Factory in 1997 while still a junior in high school. After going through the Baseball Factory's college recruiting program he was placed at Johns Hopkins University where he played two years of college baseball before graduating with a degree in Economics. After working part-time at the Factory throughout college, Jason joined the team as a full-time employee in January 2002 when he was promoted to Director of Marketing. He currently oversees all marketing projects and sponsorship opportunities at Baseball Factory. He is also in charge of development and marketing for Baseball University, the leader in online baseball education and a division of Baseball Factory.

Change of Pace

Steve Bernhardt: Building the Better Ballplayer

What do the 2008 AL Cy Young Award winner, the MVP of the 2008 World Series, the 2008 ERA champ and the All-Time ML Saves Leader have in common?

They all throw a great changeup.

Cliff Lee, Cole Hamels, Johan Santana and Trevor Hoffman are among the pitchers in the Major Leagues who have perfected the pitch that every young pitcher should have in his repertoire. After all, a major goal of pitching is to disrupt the timing of the hitter. A quality changeup disrupts timing better than any other pitch.

I have written before about the importance of fastball command to a pitcher. That is still the top priority, but the next pitch to establish is a changeup. Too many young pitchers are caught up in throwing a curveball or slider at a young age without ever learning a change. You will be amazed at the swing-and-misses and weak contact that a quality change will induce.

For many high school players around the country, there are a few more weeks before games start. Take that time to get comfortable in the bullpen with a changeup. It is a feel pitch that can be thrown from a number of different grips (circle, three-finger and vulcan a just a few of the many variations). As long as the pitch is thrown with the same delivery and arm speed as the fastball but with less velocity, it can be extremely effective. Not only will you see more success in games, but this pitch is easier on your arm than a breaking ball. In fact, most Major League pitchers throw exclusively fastballs and changeups during the early weeks of Spring Training working on command and feel while limiting the stress on their arm.

I should mention one other successful Major Leaguer with a quality changeup – Tim Lincecum. He won the National League Cy Young Award last year. Although he is best known for his electric fastball that he throws at 95-plus, this is what he said in an article on MLB.com after receiving the award as the league’s best pitcher:

"That's the thing that helped me out the most, to get more ground balls and strikeouts," Lincecum said of his changeup, explaining that finding a comfortable grip for the pitch gave him the command he lacked as a rookie.

If it’s a major part of the success of the most recent Cy Young Award Winners as well as the World Series MVP, don’t you think you should make it a part of your arsenal?


Steve Bernhardt is the Executive VP of Baseball Operations with Baseball Factory. Bernhardt played for five years in the Colorado Rockies organization. As Executive VP of Baseball Operations at Baseball Factory, he oversees all events and instruction. Bernhardt formerly served as an Associate Scout with the Colorado Rockies. He received his B.S. from the University of Richmond where he was an All-Conference player.

All-Star Beef

Jason Budden: Un-Common Sense?

Every year there is a debate about the players selected to the All-Star Game:

- “How did the fans vote in that guy?”
- “I can’t believe the manager is playing favorites and taking him over a guy who really deserves to be in.”
- “Why do they need to have a player from each team? So-and-so should definitely have made it before that guy.”

There are always going to be a few players that got the All-Star snub. Who fits the mold for this year’s game?

What A Snub:

A.J. Pierzynski, Chicago White Sox, Catcher
Pierzynski is hitting .296 with the same number of homeruns as Jason Varitek, and six more RBI. Not to mention 21 more runs scored. Varitek clearly got preferential treatment from Terry Francona. No one hitting .215 should be chosen as a reserve.

David Wright, New York Mets, Third Base
Seriously, how did he not get selected? He has scored 56 runs, hit 17 homeruns and driven in 70, while stealing nine bases and hitting .288. Hopefully he receives the “Final Vote” from the fans because he should be there.

Jermaine Dye, Chicago White Sox, Outfield
Head-to-head, his stats match up with J.D. Drew and Manny Ramirez, both of whom are in the game. While I personally would put him in over Drew, I can’t fault that selection by Francona. Dye is another candidate who could get in the game through the “Final Vote” by the fans on MLB.com.

Carlos Lee, Houston Astros, Outfield
I think the fact that Lee was left off the team is a complete reflection of the fans voting in Alfonso Soriano and Kosuke Fukudome. Soriano and Fukudome both have solid numbers, but not in comparison with Lee and some of the other reserves that were selected. It would not surprise me if Soriano was still hurt and Lee was named as his replacement.

Cole Hamels, Philadelphia Phillies, Pitcher
Of all the pitchers not selected, Hamels can raise the biggest argument. He is 9-5 with a 3.22 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 110 strikeouts in 128 2/3 innings pitched. This may be another case of favoritism as Clint Hurdle selected Aaron Cook from the Rockies. Cook is 11-6 with a 3.66 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and only 64 strikeouts in 132 2/3 innings pitched. He is having a career year, but Hamels deserves it more.

Regardless of the snubs, the game should be a classic and help bring an end to the era that is Yankee Stadium. I know that whatever players are competing, I’ll be watching.


Jason Budden is the Vice President of Operations and Marketing at Baseball Factory. Jason joined the Baseball Factory in 1997 while still a junior in high school. After going through the Baseball Factory's college recruiting program he was placed at Johns Hopkins University where he played two years of college baseball before graduating with a degree in Economics. After working part-time at the Factory throughout college, Jason joined the team as a full-time employee in January 2002 when he was promoted to Director of Marketing. He currently oversees all marketing projects and sponsorship opportunities at Baseball Factory. He is also in charge of development and marketing for Baseball University, the leader in online baseball education and a division of Baseball Factory.