Sports Info Solutions
Author: Mark Simon
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Kyle Gibson’s slider has been vital to his success
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By SEAN ZERILLO Minnesota Twins pitcher Kyle Gibson has had a breakout 2018 season, posting a 3.27 ERA with a 1.17 WHIP (career 4.55 ERA, 1.41 WHIP) over 14 starts and 82 2/3 innings pitched. Gibson has bumped his strikeout rate up to 8.8 strikeouts per 9 innings (K/9) from his career mark of 6.2…
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Marco Gonzales seems to be figuring it out
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By ANDREW ZENNER Before 2018, Marco Gonzales had never been able to experience sustained success in the major leagues. The former first-round pick had compiled a 5.47 ERA and 5.03 FIP in 77 1/3 innings from 2014 to 2017. That lack of success made it easier for the Cardinals to part ways with him when…
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Alex Gordon had a great defensive week
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By MARK SIMON The 22-49 Kansas City Royals don’t have much to be happy about these days, but the defensive play of Alex Gordon provided at least one positive this weekend. Gordon had four Good Fielding Plays in the three-game series against the Astros this weekend (Good Fielding Plays are Web Gem-type plays and other…
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‘O’ my: Orioles’ defense struggling mightily
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BY MARK SIMON There was no reason to believe that the Baltimore Orioles were going to be as bad as they’ve been this season. Similarly, there was no reason to believe that the Orioles defense was going to be as bad as it has been in 2018. But here we are in mid-June, with the…
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Stat of the Week: Evaluating the Phillies’ infield shifts
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By ANDREW KYNE Jake Arrieta’s recent comments called attention to the Philadelphia Phillies’ infield shifts. The veteran right-hander complained that his team is “the worst in the league with shifts,” and by our Shift Runs Saved metric at Sports Info Solutions, he is indeed correct. The Phillies rank last in Major League Baseball in Shift…
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Matthew Boyd turns back the clock
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BY COREY FISHMAN In 2015, Matthew Boyd was acquired by the Detroit Tigers in a trade that ultimately sent David Price to the Toronto Blue Jays. That same season Boyd won the MiLB.com Fans’ Choice Award for best starting pitcher in the minor leagues and he was also selected to be a Double-A All Star…
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Why does Brett Gardner lead outfielders in Defensive Runs Saved?
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By MARK SIMON Age is no hindrance to 34-year-old New York Yankees outfielder Brett Gardner. He currently leads all outfielders with 14 Defensive Runs Saved this season, if you combine his work in center field and left field. This is nothing new for Gardner, who saved 20 runs defensively in 2017, his third season with…
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Stat of the Week: Who’s moving up and down the Starting Pitcher rankings?
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By Mark Simon From May 2013 through the end of the 2016 season, Clayton Kershaw almost always reigned supreme in The Bill James World’s Best Starting Pitcher Rankings, a measure based on the Game Score metric and a pitcher’s sustained excellence over a lengthy body of work. But Kershaw’s recent injury history has caused him…
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Bryce Harper’s batting average vexed by infield shifts.
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BY MARK SIMON Bryce Harper is having a very Bryce Harper-like season in a couple of regards. He has an NL-leading 18 home runs and 47 walks, to go with 40 RBI. So why is he hitting only .232? Some of that has to do with his performance against defensive shifts. Harper is seeing more…
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2018 MLB mock draft
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From SPORTS INFO SOLUTIONS VIDEO SCOUTS Last week, Sports Info Solutions’ video scouts conducted a mock MLB Draft. Our video scouts regularly watch college baseball, so for each collegiate player, we offered a detailed assessment of his skills, with help from Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, Fangraphs and other resources. 1. Detroit Tigers: Casey Mize, RHP,…