Summary[]
Ben Lindbergh and Meg Rowley banter about the response to FanGraphs’ request for financial support, discuss the latest news about minor league pay, Tommy John surgeries, college eligibility, the possibility of baseball coming back, Astros suspensions, and the suspiciously lively ball, and unveil a Stat Blast song cover and a Stat Blast about the longest team streaks of starting different players at a particular position on Opening Day. Then (45:34) they bring on Texas Rangers major league strength and conditioning coach Jose Vazquez to explain how teams are trying to keep players in shape from afar while the season is on hold, how technology is aiding that effort and changing training, how players are maintaining their strength, the risk of injury if/when the season starts, how to discourage players from hiding injuries, bearing responsibility for injuries, and working with independent facilities.
Interstitial[]
Neil Young, "Give Me Strength"
Topics[]
- Challenges for remote strength training.
- How training is affected by not knowing when games will begin.
- Is spring training too long?
- Biggest injury risk when season resumes.
- What players do wrong when they exercise.
- Working from home as a strength coach.
- The effect of technology on strength and conditioning.
- Players who go to independent training facilities like Driveline.
- The 2014 Rangers injury-plagued season and taking responsibility for injuries.
- Players hiding injuries.
Banter[]
- Amazing response to pleas for support from FanGraphs, with some people even asking how they can help out beyond their existing subscription.
- MLB paying minor leaguers $400/week during the suspension. Daniel Murphy (link) and Shin-Soo Choo have also contributed. Choo had also contributed to pandemic relief in Korea.
- Ethics of undergoing Tommy John surgery when elective surgeries are suspended.
- College seniors have been granted an additional year of eligibility, allowing them to enter the draft next year. Downside is that they will be in the draft with current juniors.
- Rumors of when baseball may resume.
- The time-based suspensions from the Astros sign-stealing scandal expire at the end of 2020 even if there is no season.
- Dr. Meredith Wills discovered that some de-juiced balls from 2018 and early 2019 were used in the 2019 postseason.
- People are desperate for baseball: Baseball Reference is running simulations of the 2020 season, and some fantasy leagues are even using that data.
- Joey Gallo hitting batting practice in his luxury apartment makes Ben nervous that the net may fail.
- Lindsey Adler's article on how pitching coaches are dealing with the delay. Coaches from different teams are contacting each other, sharing tips.
Stat Blast[]
- Ben does a make-up Stat Blast because Sam didn't do one this week.
- Ben will use entries from the Stat Blast covers competition to introduce the segment. This week, he uses the one from Benjamin James Campbell.
- What is the record for the longest streak of seasons without the same opening day starter at a position?
- Listener Adam Ott frequently answers Stat Blast-like questions in the Facebook group. He used Retrosheet to answer this one about the "Barry Bonds Curse".
- Ben jokes that this is a completely outsourced Stat Blast: Listener-contributed theme, question, and answer.
- Ben shared the full spreadsheet.
- Position 10 is DH.
- BAL includes the St. Louis Browns.
- PHI is the Philadelphia A's, not the Philadelphia Phillies.
Longest streaks with no returning starter (allowing repeats separated by two or more years)
- The record is 26 years, held by the St. Louis Browns / Baltimore Orioles, from 1933 to 1958, in left field.
- Ben notes that left field is not a specialty position. It's just where you stick somebody who doesn't fit anywhere else.
- Ben observes that the Browns were not very good during their record-setting run, and it's not unexpected that a poor team would have more turnover.
- Second place is the Reds, with 24 years at pitcher.
- Ben observes that the Reds are not known for their pitching. Their franchise best pitcher is Noodles Hahn who last pitched for the Reds in 1905, and the rest of the top ten are almost all similarly ancient.
- Ben and Meg debate whether the first name of Jigger Statz (who started the 1927 Dodgers LF streak) is safe to say on the podcast.
- Ben also looks at the longest streaks by position. He was somewhat surprised that first base was not high on the list, at 11 years. Meg also finds it interesting because first base is another place you put a weak defensive player, but figures that a strong offensive player typically goes in that position, and that tends to be more stable.
Longest streaks with no repeats
- The record is 16 years, again held by the St. Louis Browns / Baltimore Orioles, from 1940 to 1955, in left field.
- Second place is an active streak: 14 years, held by the Padres, 2006 to 2019. The Padres will probably extend their streak to 15 years when Tommy Pham takes left field.
- Ben decides to name the Padres streak the Ryan Klesko Curse because Klesko was a teammate of Barry Bonds in their shared final seasons, and he was the last player to repeat for the Padres.
- The Giants streak is only seventh longest overall.
- Editor's note: The Padres streak ended in 2022 when Jurickson Profar started in left field for the second opening day in a row.
Email Questions[]
- Andrew Vodin: Since the Giants participated in the alleged blackballing of Barry Bonds, they have not had the same opening day starting left fielder in consecutive years.
| Year | Player |
|---|---|
| 2008 | Dave Roberts |
| 2009 | Fred Lewis |
| 2010 | Mark DeRosa |
| 2011 | Pat Burrell |
| 2012 | Aubrey Huff (LOL) |
| 2013 | Andres Torres |
| 2014 | Michael Morse |
| 2015 | Nori Aoki |
| 2016 | Angel Pagan |
| 2017 | Jarrett Parker |
| 2018 | Hunter Pence |
| 2019 | Connor Joe |
The year 2020, whenever it starts, (or 2021) will be the 13th year without the same opening day starter at a position. Is this a record? If not, what is the record?
- Andrew again: And in what season will the Giants have someone start in LF for their second consecutive opening day?
Notes[]
- Meg: "I now have a Twitch account. ... A lot of weird stuff happens in a pandemic."
- MLB is paying minor leaguers $400/week plus medical benefits, which is not a lot, but better than nothing. Sadly, for some minor leaguers, this is a raise.
- Ben doesn't feel the lifting of the suspensions will have much effect on Jeff Luhnow's and AJ Hinch's employability. Luhnow is a difficult hire regardless, and it is the passage of time rather than lifting of a suspension that will make Hinch employable again.
- Meg warns people to be careful what they ask for. Do you really want an authoritarian commissioner (like Roger Goodell of the NFL) who can rewrite punishments unilaterally?
- Meg notes that the treatment of the Luhnow and Hinch suspensions is consistent with how MLB is handling other issues, such as service time and player suspensions.
- Meg reminds us, "You can still boo the Astros." Ben notes, however, that fan outrage will fade, especially since cheating feels insignificant in the face of a pandemic. Meg counters that Ryan Braun served a PED suspension in 2013, and he is still booed by fans.
- Ben doesn't see any immediate stability in left field for the Giants, so he guesses that 2023 will see their first returning starter.
Interview with Jose Vazquez
- Vazquez's training team holds video meetings to plan their next steps, like designing custom workouts and creating videos.
- Some players have elaborate workout facilities at their home. Vazquez sends equipment to those who don't. Pitchers need portable mounds, for example.
- Some players are self-directed, but others require more guidance and attention. Need to adjust to each player's style.
- Pitchers play catch six days a week at whatever distance they can, and throw bullpen twice per week (around 35 pitches).
- Typically, workout programs have a goal date at which to achieve peak performance, but they can't do that now. He just keeps everybody on a medium pace.
- Players arrive at spring training in much better shape than they used to. His concern is now that players are over-exercising during the off-season.
- When play resumes, pitcher arms are at the top of the list for injury risk, especially for starters. For position players, he's worried about the legs, because running on grass is different from running on a treadmill.
- He hasn't seen any of his players trying creative exercises that he had to talk them out of. Some players get bored and overdo the training, and he has to slow them down.
- This is the time of year he usually sees his family the least, but now he's seeing them more than ever. He is enjoying his family quality time. He gets to teach his kids, for example.
- He's been taking the opportunity to improve his computer skills: Making training videos and sharing them with his players.
- Vazquez misses coaching and being around everyone.
- To stay in shape, he has weights in the garage, and he also does jujitsu.
- Technology has been a game-changer. It has made it easier to design custom workout programs for each player, which then sync to the player's phone in minutes. The field is changing rapidly, and Vazquez is worried about being left behind.
- Wearables allow him to get a better picture of how players function and determine what they need. It helps him decide where to start and what to prioritize.
- He tries to get involved when players go to independent training facilities. The plans they create are not as individualized as they claim. The trainer is usually biased toward what worked for him, even if it may not work for the customer. He coordinates with the other trainer to find something that will work.
- Vazquez received an award from his peers for his handling of the 2014 Rangers injury-plagued season.
- He takes responsibility for the injuries, but he also recognizes that each injury is different and needs to be understood in context.
- It is important to build trust with the players so they won't hide injuries. For some players, this comes easily, but for others it can take a long time. Trust also helps players understand that the data being collected is for their own benefit, rather than being used against them in arbitration.
Links[]
- Episode 1523: Do Try This at Home
- 'This is just what he does': Shin-Soo Choo donates $1,000 to each Rangers minor leaguer during MLB shutdown by Evan Grant
- Is It Wrong for Baseball Players to Get Tommy John Surgery? by Emma Baccellieri
- AJ Hinch, Jeff Luhnow suspensions fulfilled in 2020 even if MLB season canceled
- New study says 2019 playoff balls were de-juiced, but MLB still has no answers by Bradford William Davis
- MLB Says It Didn’t De-juice the Ball. So Where Have All the Homers Gone? by Ben Lindbergh
- Stat Blast song cover by Benjamin James Campbell
- Stat Blast song covers thread on Facebook
- Opening Day start streak data spreadsheet
- Reds pitching WAR leaders
- Rangers’ Numerous Injuries Shelve a Promising Season (2014) by Zach Schonbrun
- 2014 Disabled List Information and So Much More by Jeff Zimmerman
- TeamBuildr strength and conditioning software
- Joey Gallo video hitting batting practice in his apartment
- How Matt Blake and the Yankees are organizing pitching workouts remotely by Lindsey Adler